The air crackled with tension, thick and suffocating as the vampires moved in, their eyes gleaming with hunger and hostility.
My heart pounded so hard it felt like it would explode out of my chest, but I couldn't afford to lose focus. Not now. Not when we were so close.
Carmen's grandfather stood tall in front of us, calm and unmoved by the threat, but Lydia and Isabel had already prepared themselves for a brutal fight.
Zaya, standing beside me, had a look in her eyes that I hadn't seen before. It was cold, calculating, and determined.
The usual warmth was replaced by something fiercer, something deadly. I could feel the power radiating off her like a storm ready to break.
The vampires hissed as they closed in, forming a tight circle around us. Their movements were quick, predatory, but they hadn't realized what they were up against.