VET Vampire Romance 01 - Covet

his savage side. He roared and threw himself at Lord Ashville, tackling him so they both landed close to Snow.
    Snow swiped at them both, his blood-tinted eyes wild with hunger, and Antoine growled as he struggled to pin his older brother to the wooden stage floor. Javier rolled with Lord Ashville, scratching and kicking, trying to gain the upper hand. His arms and chest blazed white-hot with each slice of Lord Ashville’s claws over his flesh. Blood soaked the stage around them and filled the air, driving them both into a frenzy.
    Callum reappeared from the side of the stage and joined Antoine in his struggle to calm Snow. The vampire was a danger to them all now. Javier rolled backwards, flipping Lord Ashville over his head, and landed on top of him. He punched Lilah’s master, one strike after another, bloodying his face and satisfying the dark need to avenge her.
    Lord Ashville grabbed him by the throat, fingers closing around it, throttling him. Javier didn’t stop. Driven by the smell of blood and his lust for violence, he fought on regardless of the lack of air. He clawed and scratched at Lord Ashville’s chest until his vision swam and the edges of his sight turned fuzzy and black.
    Lord Ashville grinned up at him, rolled to his side and came out on top again. He throttled Javier and rather than fighting him, Javier fought for air instead. He grasped Lord Ashville’s wrists, trying to prise his hands off his throat, and choked. Someone moved out of the corner of his eye and then Lilah was standing over them both. She brought a thick carved wooden pillar that normally held a church candle down on Lord Ashville’s back, sending him slamming forwards into Javier’s chest. Lord Ashville reared up and turned on her. He lashed his arm out, catching her across the stomach and sending her flying into the black painted wall to the side of the stage. She fell to the ground in a heap. Lord Ashville went after her.
    Javier pushed himself onto his feet with great effort and shot as fast as he could across the stage after Lord Ashville, intent on reaching him before he could harm Lilah again. He would never allow that. Lilah was his now and he would do all in his power to protect her.
    She was his.
    He brought his fingers together so they formed a flat surface with his palm, extended his claws, and came up behind Lord Ashville. The man choked as Javier struck, driving his hand into his back and smashing through his ribs. Javier growled, clutched Lord Ashville’s heart, and tore it out. Lord Ashville slumped to his knees and then fell forwards onto the stage floor. Javier uncurled his fist and let the heart roll from his fingers and fall onto its former owner. Blood dripped from his fingertips.
    Javier stumbled past Lord Ashville’s corpse, his body aching with each weary step, pain blazing across each long gash that littered his arms and chest. He fixed his senses on Lilah, needing to feel that she was alive and would heal with his blood in her body. He collapsed onto his knees next to her and struggled to pull her into his arms. They trembled and shook, weak from the fight and blood loss. He still couldn’t believe what he had done. There would be repercussions. He shouldn’t have killed Lord Ashville. He should have retained enough control that he could have forced the man to face the heads of society and let them judge whether he and Lilah had broken the sacred law. There was no hope of that now. His superiors would believe he had sought to defend himself when he should have meekly accepted his fate and allowed Lord Ashville to collect his head. He had only made things worse.
    He managed to work Lilah into his arms and rested there with her, his hands looped around her front and her back against his knees. Her soft steady breathing concerned him as much as her slow heartbeat. He closed his eyes and fought his own desire to sleep. He had to get her to safety and heal her.
    “Let me help,” Callum said and Javier snarled at him, baring his fangs, and held Lilah closer, unwilling to let anyone touch her while she was badly injured.
    “She will live.” Those words, roughly spoken by Snow, ignited the spark of hope in his chest and soothed some of his fear. He looked up at the powerful male, right into his icy eyes that were still ringed with red, needing to hear him say it again.
    Antoine stood a step behind Snow, his pale blue eyes on his brother, wary and watchful, as though he expected him to lose control