Twilight Hunter

He flipped his knife around in his hand, admiring the gleam of light on the bloody blade. “I traveled the world for a while, perfecting my technique before I came home again. It started out as nothing but good fun—killing the women here in Rochester. The occasional wolf. But it became so much more than that.”

Robert gazed down at the knife blade. “I realized I could use them to lure you to me. I realized I didn’t need to kill our father to gain my abilities.” He met Jace’s eyes. “I just needed to kill you.”

Before Jace could react, Robert threw his knife. The blade hit Jace’s shoulder, lodging in his flesh. Blood gushed down Jace’s arm. Pain shot through him, and he fell to his knees. His grip weakened and he dropped the gun, which skidded across the floor. The knife must have nicked an artery.

The old man died of a heart attack. His heart stopped. His heart stopped. Jace’s thoughts screamed the truth at him. Robert’s not a Berserker—yet. We’re both Skinwalkers.

He scrambled for the knife. If he could stab it through Robert’s heart, he might have a chance. He ripped the blade from his shoulder and launched himself at the other man. At his brother.

* * *

FRANKIE’S HEART STOPPED when she saw Robert throw the knife at Jace.

“No!” she screamed.

Her heart kicked into high gear when the blade lodged in Jace’s shoulder. His blood poured out, but thank goodness the hit hadn’t killed him. She would never forgive herself if he died. Damn it. She was a fool. She couldn’t lose him.

“Frankie,” David said, shaking the bars to get her attention. “This isn’t working. Take this.” He handed her the lock pick he’d been using. “Keep working at it. I need to get to Allsun, get her out of here and hand her over to Shane. She’s losing too much blood. She—”

“David, it’s all right. Robert is busy with Jace. It’s your only chance. Go.”

He threw her a grateful look and said, “When you get out, go to Shane. He’s waiting outside. Don’t try to fight Robert.” Then he left and made his way to Allsun’s side as stealthily as possible, and began working at her handcuffs.

Frankie’s eyes darted to the other side of the room, where Jace was rolling on the ground with Robert, a tangle of punches and kicks. Forcing herself to look away, she shoved the lock pick into the keyhole, feeling around for the tumblers.

Come on. Come on. Come on.

She continued working at the lock. The hell with David’s instructions. She needed to help Jace, She would be damned if she was going to abandon him when he needed her most. Damned if she wouldn’t avenge her parents, herself, Allsun.

There was a thud as Allsun’s shackles opened and she fell to the floor. She tried to get up and toppled into David’s arms. He hoisted her onto his shoulder and ran awkwardly toward the rear exit.

Damn it, Frankie thought. The lock wouldn’t budge.

She kept working frantically, and just as she felt a small shifting as the lock yielded to her efforts, a loud bang echoed through the warehouse as the front doors burst open. Mr. Ice stepped in, followed by Blondie and Jersey. Ice’s cold blue eyes locked onto her.

Shit. Just what they fucking needed.

* * *

JACE SLAMMED HIS fist into Robert’s jaw with a disgusting crack. Bone crunched beneath his hand, but he knew it would heal in a matter of minutes. Robert slashed at him with the silver knife, which he’d managed to wrest back. Warm blood covered his body, flowing from multiple wounds on his chest, shoulders and arms. Heat burned through him, rushing to his wounds. He felt the skin knit together and regrow seconds after the wound had been made.

An equal playing field. It all came down to sheer ability.

With a massive shove, Robert pushed Jace off him. Jace fell back onto the floor, and Robert was on him in seconds. He slammed the knife down toward Jace’s chest. Jace grabbed his wrist and struggled to hold back Robert’s arm.

A tingling sensation ignited beneath his skin, and he was faintly aware of the glowing blue markings covering his body and glowing through his clothes. Electricity pumped through him. He felt stronger, faster.

But Robert retaliated, quickly channeling his own energy. Energy that was more practiced, more refined, than Jace’s. The knife shifted down an inch, closer to plunging into his chest.

Fuck. He was going to lose this fight. He couldn’t lose. He couldn’t.

The image of Frankie’s face clouded his mind. If he had one wish, it was to see her gorgeous smile one last time.

He needed to see her. Needed to talk to her. He couldn’t die without telling her he loved her. In an instant Robert was ripped off him and the bloodied knife skidded across the floor as Jace’s fellow hunters attacked the bastard. Damon’s fists collided with Robert’s face in an angry frenzy.

Jace grabbed the knife and jumped to his feet, prepared to fight.

As he lunged forward, a surge of power pumped through Jace’s body. Without warning, he grabbed Robert by the back of his neck and ripped him away from Damon’s fists, then stabbed the knife straight into the fucker’s side.

“Damon, get the girls out!” Jace yelled. He ripped the knife from Robert’s flesh and stabbed him again.

Robert threw a wild punch, his fist slamming backward into Jace’s kneecap, and Jace crumpled to the ground right alongside him. The bastard was indestructible. There was no way he could manage to stab him in the heart. Jace scrambled to his feet, but Robert slammed into him again, pinning him to the ground. His nails dug into Jace’s wrists, and Jace could tell he was channeling all his strength in order to hold him down.

“Just let me kill you, Jace. Give up and I’ll leave your bitch and her friend in peace.”

Jace spat into Robert’s face and snarled. “Not a chance, you murdering motherfucker.”

“Don’t make this harder on yourself than it has to be, Jace. I have you trapped. You have no way out.”

Jace growled. Robert was right. He had him pinned. The other hunters were trying to get Frankie and Allsun out safely. They couldn’t help him before Robert made his move. The bastard could strip him of the knife any time he wanted, and once he did it would be inside Jace’s heart within seconds.

“It’s too bad it had to be this way, brother,” Robert went on patronizingly. “You would have made an excellent Skinwalker if you weren’t such a bleeding heart, so weak.”

Jace ground his teeth together. Weak? No. He was a lot of things: a stubborn, hardheaded smoking asshole who drowned himself in alcohol. But he was not weak. If he had his way, he would rip out Robert’s throat with his...

Jace’s eyes widened. With his teeth. He would rip Robert’s throat out with his teeth.

Robert’s fingers dug into the flesh of Jace’s hand, and Jace felt the knife begin to slip from his grasp. He ignored that and focused on Robert’s disgusting face. He thought of all the women he’d hurt, all the women he would hurt if no one could stop him. He thought of his dickhead of a father, who’d created the monster before him. His inner beast stirred, and he pushed all his energy into his chest, straining beneath Robert’s grip.

In one massive push, Jace lunged forward, his body contorting and shifting as fur sprouted from beneath his skin.

Robert recoiled, the knife in his hand. He raised his arm, but not quickly enough.

Jace’s muzzle collided with Robert’s neck, and he sank his canines into the meaty flesh of Robert’s throat as he ripped through the bastard’s jugular.

Blood spurted from the wound, and Robert’s body convulsed several times, thick red blood pouring from his mouth.

Within seconds Jace’s fur folded in on itself and he lost his shift, but it didn’t matter. He glanced down at his body as the claws retracted back into his hands. His shirt hung off him in shreds. He’d only managed to shift the upper half of his body, but he’d done what he’d needed to.

His eyes shot to Robert, and he realized the fucker still wasn’t dead. He stared at the bloodied mangled mess that he was ashamed to call his brother. Already the skin of Robert’s neck was beginning to knit together.