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He srabbed round I hadn’t anticipated the daiven hoell-trained they were in ignoring everything Theht pink-hued tears toa little more diluted Neither variety cried often, but when soether, it’s sort of hard to stop yourself

I gave ot a hold of e of the balcony It didn’t take a genius to knohat he was planning to do with ainst a forty-story drop But the guard was in a hurry, and he was a little too sure of his plan He threw

My ribs sht tipped, otherwise I would have bounced off the edge and fallen the whole way, risly end on the sidewalk below

As soon as I hit the railing I caught the sword, despite my broken arm I knew I’d still need it when I ht weapon sent fresh shock waves of pain through rabbed the slick wall and used theacross the glass, until I could hookand propel myself back onto the balcony, where I landed behind the stunned guard

I rose froood hand, and didn’t waste tiuard to turn for a second attack He spun on his heel to face h the air, and it didn’t falter as it bisected his head frolistening with blood where it had gone through the vampire

For the briefest second it didn’t look like I’d done anything to the guard He blinked and his lip curled in disgust Charlie watched with detached aht I’d missed until he saw the blood on the sword

We both watched the guard as his eyes widened before they went dull He fell to his knees, and with the force of his big body hitting the ground, his head lolled to the side, then toppled off his neck where it had been severed with surgical precision It landed at his knees, his unseeing eyes staring at my feet

"What are you?" Charlie roared

"My naainst old Jiuard and pointed nized my face, but he knew end This tiet it so easily

"I didn’t leave LA just to get killed by some council lackey"

It never ceased to aues ith my name, they always believed they’d be the one exception to the rule No rogue got away frouess I shouldn’t expect them to roll over and let me kill them It would be nice if so to be that one He ju, and before I could cross the balcony, he had jumped Vampires couldn’t fly, nor could they land on their feet from a forty-story drop without so in tirab hold of another balcony about ten floors down

Sure, they couldn’t fly, but they could annoy the hell out ofheard the co the door when I blitzed past hiency stairwell next to the elevator I heard the elevator doors sigh open as the stairwell door shut behind me, and by the tiain and two sets of feet pounding on the stairs behindoninto the wall and jarringthump before I ran out the door I had to catch up with Charlie before he left the hotel, and it pained me to admit the elevator would be the fastest route to the lobby

I wanted to grab my cell phone, which I’d stuffed into the front ofmy clutch with Holden, but with one arrip onin the lobby The elevator doors closed at the saave theer with my disabled arm

After what felt like an hour, the doors opened into the lobby, and I stepped out and surveyed the space to see if Charlie had been there yet Holden sat in an arot to his feet when he saw my arm I was thankful for the late hour, because uests in the lobby were the ones co from the bar I didn’t think drunk businessmen would be the ainst

Holden was halfway across the lobby when the stairwell door burst open and Charlie skidded out across the Plexiglas floor He sawto back down because sos at ht was over, I knehich one of us would still be standing

He turned to run for the door but stopped cold when he saw Holden