15. FIFTEEN

fifteenLiam and I took a step backward as the sentinel ripped his left leg out of the building, sending chunks of brick and plaster flying. Next came his right. It tore free with a harsh grinding sound that I knew was going to feature heavily in my next nightmare.

Unencumbered by the restriction of concrete and steel, the sentinel took a wobbly step. His second was a little steadier. By the third, he was moving faster.

Liam grabbed my arm, tugging me in his wake. “Don’t look back. Just run.”

There was a heavy thud behind us, making me forget Liam’s warning as the ground under our feet trembled. I chanced one last glance over my shoulder as we rounded the corner and wished I hadn’t.

Hope was a fragile thing that was easily destroyed. And seeing the sentinel drop to all fours and lope after us like a damn cheetah killed the illusion that we could outrun this thing.

We finished rounding the corner, the building acting as a barrier against that disturbing sight. At least for a short time.

I heard the heavy fall of its footsteps chasing us as I raced after Liam, following him down one street and then the next. We couldn’t go back to Liam’s car with the sentinel and hunters waiting between it and us.

That left only forward and onward.

Behind us, the sentinel barreled onto our street with the same creaking, cracking noise as before. Like the kind rock made when the earth exerted incredible pressure on it.

“Move!” Liam tackled me, rolling us out of the way as the creature exploded past. It collided with a store front at the end of the street.

Liam and I didn’t wait to see it shake itself free before we were up and sprinting down another street in an effort to lose the sentinel.

Gunfire opened up as we crossed an intersection.

I dodged as Liam burst past me. He reached the first hunter, grabbing his arm and shoving it in the direction of one of his companions as the gun went off.

There was a scream and then the crisp scent of blood.

Before the third could react, I reached him. I slapped the gun out of his hands. The protest he made was cut off as I punched him in the throat.

He choked, dropping to his knees.

In the intervening silence, it took a second to process that the confrontation was over and that none of the three hunters were in any shape to continue the fight.

As my adrenaline faded, I realized the three were different than the ones who had ambushed us earlier.

“How many of you did they send after us?” I muttered.

Shouts from the end of the street warned me that we were out of time and that these guys weren’t alone.

“Liam, that’s enough feeding. We have to go,” I ordered, heading toward a brick pathway that cut between two buildings. I hesitated to call it an alleyway because it was clear it had been created intentionally. An arch hung over it with fancy planters framing either side of the space.

Liam’s mouth and chin were covered in blood as he lifted his face from the neck of the hunter he’d grabbed. He curled his lip at the sight of the humans pounding toward him.

For a moment, I feared he wouldn’t listen and would go on the attack instead. A vampire’s instinct was to fight rather than retreat. And normally, I wouldn’t stand in his way, but with that wound he was in no shape to tangle with an unknown number of hunters.

I took a step toward him. “Don’t you dare. There will be plenty of time for that later.”

He scrubbed a hand over his mouth, wiping away the traces of blood. “But it’s so much more satisfying when they struggle.”

“See—this is why I sometimes lie awake questioning my life decisions.”

“I am a vampire. This behavior is natural for us,” Liam defended.

A car embedded itself in the glass frontage a few stores down from me. A human flew through the air after it. Their scream was cut short with a meaty thunk.

The hunters that had been locked on us, shifted their attention to the sentinel.

I dashed for the brick path as the hunters engaged the monster. Liam blew by me.

We reached the next street seconds later. Before I could step out, Liam held a hand up in front of me.

I stopped to listen.

The scuff of a boot against pavement reached me along with the rustle of clothes. More hunters. That was just great.

Did they bring an army to Easton? For little old me? I’d be flattered if I wasn’t so damn scared.

“How many?” I mouthed.

“A lot.”

I rested my back against the wall. “Escape or fight?”

I was down for either. Though I’d prefer escape. Liam was hurt. Even with the blood he’d taken from the hunter, he had to be feeling the effects of silver poisoning. If he didn’t get help soon, he would be in trouble.

On the other hand, Thomas had said we needed to prove a link between these hunters and Dominick or his master. What better way to do that than to capture a few of them for interrogation?

Liam leaned the back of his head against the wall, looking paler than he had a few minutes ago. “We should escape for now. There’s too many to take on with me in this condition.”

I watched Liam with worry. With his age, he should have started healing by now, but his bullet hole was still raw, with blood oozing out of it.

“What’s the matter?” he asked, giving me a faint smile. “Worried?”

I shook my head, burying my fear. Liam would make it. He had to. “Just disappointed. What happened to the big bad vampire from a few minutes ago?”

“He has something to lose.”

I quirked an eyebrow. “Am I supposed to be the one in danger of being lost in that scenario?”

Liam’s laugh was tired as his eyes slid shut. “Take it however you want, mo chuisle.”

I took his hand in mine. “Face it, lover. You couldn’t misplace me if you tried.”

I’d fight the devil himself to stay right where I was.

Liam opened his eyes to give me a tender look that stole my breath.

Giving his hand one last squeeze of reassurance, I focused on how we were going to get out of this mess.

Carefully, I peered into the street. “It’s clear.”

The hunters must have been drawn by the commotion with the sentinel, leaving an opening for us to move through.

I ducked back behind our wall. “We need to find one of the garages. If there’s a car, I can hot wire it.”

Probably. My skills in that department were hit or miss.

It was a long shot, but the hunters hadn’t appeared here by magic. They would have had to park somewhere. Wouldn’t it be poetic justice if we managed to steal one of their cars?

Liam was a little unsteady as he pushed away from the wall.

I caught his arm, waiting until he got his balance before letting him go. “You okay? Do you need blood?”

He waved me off. “It’s too risky in this situation. With the amount of blood I’d need to heal this, it would leave you weakened and vulnerable. I’ll wait.”

I pressed my lips together, wanting to argue but knowing better. He was right. Until we were out of danger, he would have to endure.

I nodded, taking the lead. It was testament to how hurt he was that Liam let me.

Cautiously, we made our way through Easton, pausing every now and then to seek cover when hunters got too close.

I hadn’t been far off earlier when I said it felt like they’d brought an army. With their numbers, they’d created an effective web over the area, making it almost impossible to escape as they slowly closed it around us.

To make things more complicated they’d had time to adapt to the sentinel’s presence and were now using military tactics to begin clearing the streets.

If it continued like this, we might not have any choice but to fight our way out.

Liam and I took shelter in a recessed doorway near a planter that had a spiral-looking tree. We hid behind it as another group of hunters moved onto our street.

“The male vampire is injured. They couldn’t have gotten far,” a voice said over one of their radios.

“Fourth quadrant is clear.”

“Third as well.”

“The perimeter is locked down. There’s no way they’re getting out of here without our snipers seeing them.”

Liam sagged, his legs losing strength. I caught him before he could fall, lowering him silently to the ground.

“Groups one and four will engage the sentinel. The rest of you keep searching for the blood suckers. You heard the council member. If we bring him their heads, he will give us his blood to induct us into the ranks of the hunter born.”

I didn’t find it surprising that Vitus had recruited some of these humans by promising them something they were desperate for. Though it was interesting to hear what that thing was, since I was pretty sure becoming a hunter born didn’t work that way.

It was there in the name. Hunter. Born.

“Stay here,” I whispered as the hunters closed in on our position.

Liam caught my hand as I started to straighten. “No, I’m fine.”

“You’re not.

When exposed to light, silver nitrate oxidized, turning a dark gray or black. I didn’t think it was a good sign that Liam was beginning to bleed black blood. While his age might protect him for a little while, it wouldn’t be enough. Every pump of his heart spread that poison farther.

I cupped his face as I pressed a kiss to his lips. “You’re not the only one afraid of losing someone.” I let him go to tug up the hem of my shirt, exposing my appendix holster and the gun I’d brought in case of a situation like this. My Sig P365, was smaller and less conspicuous than my normal weapon, but it would work just fine against humans. “Besides, one of us had the foresight to come armed.”

Liam’s laugh changed to a grimace of pain. “Of course, you did.”

“Never go anywhere without it is my motto.”

A gun might be largely ineffective against the heavy hitters of the spook world, but it was better than nothing. If nothing else, it was excellent in causing distractions—or pissing someone off.

You’d be surprised how helpful that second could be in the right circumstance.

I sent Liam a wink. “I told you my pea shooter would come in handy one day.”

Though I never expected that day to be today. Or for me to be using it against humans.

I peeked around our spiral tree, unsurprised to find the hunters had spread out to sweep the street in search of us. Definitely a sign of military training. Someone in their ranks must have served. They were professional as they cleared the corners.

I drew back behind my cover, dropping my magazine and checking how many rounds I had before reinserting it and chambering a round.

I wouldn’t get a lot of time. The second I started shooting it would draw nearby hunters to our position. We’d have mere moments to make our escape.

Two on the left. Two on the right.

The ground shook as the monster from the next street over did something that was followed by screams.

Don’t think. Don’t hesitate. Point. Aim. Shoot,I told myself. Go home safe.

When your back is against the wall, you find out a lot about who you are. The extent you’re willing to go to protect what’s yours.

I was about to break the promise I’d made to myself when I’d woken up as a vampire. That night, I’d told myself that I had a choice in what I wanted to be. That just because I was different didn’t mean I had to be a monster.

Now I was going to tap dance right over that last edge by taking life. Human life.

I listened carefully as my prey drew near. Liam touched my shoulder, squeezing it.

If I missed, he’d be there to cover.

I needed to not miss.

The scrape of a boot came from the other side of the planter. Liam threw a rock at the store across the street. The store front’s glass shattered.

All of the hunters twisted to look.

Mistake number one.

I stepped from my cover, grabbing the closest hunter’s gun and forcing it away from me. I held my gun to his head and pulled the trigger.

He dropped. One down.

“Not fair! She has a gun!”

I grabbed the dead man and used him as a shield as I moved with vampire speed away from where I’d been standing.

“Did you think you were the only ones with a few tricks?” I snarled, hoping to distract them from Liam’s position.

I fired another shot, hitting a second hunter. He fell.

Two more left.

My ploy worked as the remaining hunters focused on me. I kept moving, not giving them time to remember there were supposed to be two quarries.

Liam burst from his hiding spot, his body a blur. He was on the hunter in the next second. Liam grabbed the man, yanking his head up as he buried his face in his throat.

The last hunter, a woman, spun to point her sawed off shotgun at Liam.

I fired. She fell to the ground with a hole in her chest.

“The gun shots are coming from over here,” someone screamed from the end of the sheet.

I rushed to Liam’s side, tugging him from the human.

He lifted his face with a snarl, his eyes an unnatural blue.

I cupped his face the same way I had earlier, ignoring the tacky feel of blood. “They’re coming. We can’t stay here.”

Reason returned to his eyes. Liam released the hunter’s body, letting him fall to the ground.

I didn’t stop to check if the human was alive, not caring one way or the other.

Having ingested more blood, Liam was a little steadier as we raced down the street away from the hunters.

Gunshots rang from behind us. Instinctively, I ducked. We turned the corner in the next second, buying ourselves a brief respite.

It didn’t last long as a second group rounded the corner up ahead, blocking our path forward.

“I guess it’s going to be a fight to the death after all,” I said, glancing behind us. We had no choice but to slow.

The delay gave the group to our rear time to catch up.

We were surrounded.

Liam moved to put his back against mine as the hunters slowly advanced, their guns trained on us. But not firing.

“Why aren’t they shooting?” I asked softly.

Out in the open like this we were easy pickings. Even with vampire speed, it would be almost impossible to avoid that many bullets. Especially as injured as Liam was.

So why not end us while they still had the upper hand?

The answer came a second later.

“Our benefactor wants them alive,” a woman cautioned as they closed the circle around us. “Only shoot if you have to.”

A hunter near the back squinted at the gun in my hand. “What kind of vampire uses a Sig?”

No one answered as the woman in charge lifted her voice. “Fire the nets!”

Liam left my side, charging the group in front of him.

I started firing, noting in my peripheral vision when someone lifted a contraption like a modified rocket launcher to their shoulder.

There was no time to dodge as a soft whoosh came. A net shot out, barely missing me.

I jumped to the side in shock. Since when did hunters come equipped with rocket launchers and silver nets? And where could I get something like that?

My amazement was the reason a second net was able to take me by surprise. It wrapped around me before I could react, the silver burning my flesh as I toppled to the ground.

I swallowed my scream, knowing it would distract Liam.

They thought a measly net like this was going to keep me down? They were sadly mistaken. Nets had holes. The perfect medium to shoot through without ricochet.

Ha. Take that, hunters. Who was using a pea shooter now?

I wiggled to find a better position, firing often enough through the net to deter the hunters’ approach.

Sadly, because of my limited field of vision, this method wasn’t as infallible as I’d hope. The woman from before stomped on my extended arms, putting a stop to my shooting spree.

She pointed her shotgun at my head. “On second thought—maybe we only need one of you.”

My gaze fixed on the night above her head and the figure dropping from the sky.

Natalia wasn’t wearing boots. It was an odd thing to focus on given the situation. But not as odd as the realization that Natalia’s bird-like feet were tipped in metal blades. And extended in front of her as if already anticipating the kill.

Her expression was merciless as she struck the back of the hunter’s neck, severing her spine instantly.

Screams came from several around us as more harpies dropped. Unlike Natalia, her sisters weren’t so quick to dispatch their prey. A few of them picked up the humans, lifting them into the sky, from where they dropped them.

The humans plummeted to their death.

Another harpy disemboweled one in midair. Her maniacal cackles floated to me on the breeze.

To the other side of the battle field, Liam was a machine, slaughtering any hunter within reach. Every now and then, he would delay the killing, grabbing them and bringing them to his mouth where he would then drain them before moving onto the next.

Natalia bent to help me unravel the net. “When I said come find me, I didn’t mean bring an army of hunters.”

“I thought you could use a little entertainment.”

I winced as the silver came into contact with my skin. Prickles similar to that of pixie dust nipped at my nerve endings. It was only when the net was finally lifted off me that the sensation abated. Though it didn’t entirely disappear. It would probably take a couple hours before I fully healed from the small amount of silver exposure.

“You have great timing, by the way,” I told her.

A second later and I’d have been dead.

“We would have intervened sooner, but we needed to wait for the right opportunity,” Natalia informed me.

Her explanation wasn’t an apology. But then again, I didn’t need one. In her position, I would have made the same decision.

“You’re pretty good at scurrying about. I particularly liked the part where you leap frogged a bench and nearly fell on your face because you misjudged the height.”

“When you’re moving that fast, it’s hard to judge distances,” I said stiffly.

Natalia made an o shape with her mouth.

“It is!”

“Uh huh.”

I sighed, putting a pin in the conversation as I winced at the number of bodies strewn around us. “What do you think the chances are that any of these hunters will still be alive when your sisters are done? Having someone to interrogate later would be helpful.”

I didn’t hold out much hope though. The harpies were impressively thorough in their actions. The few they didn’t get, fell at Liam’s fangs.

“Once engaged in battle, harpies aren’t known for leaving our enemies alive. We have a reputation for hunting down any who happen to survive.” Natalia lifted a hand to signal her sisters. A pair of harpies snapped to attention, their expressions eager. One of them was coated in blood, her hands and face dyed red with it. The other had entrails hanging around her neck. I was pretty sure I’d seen her take a bite out of heart earlier. “You, however, weren’t as thorough as us. You left a few alive in your wake. They should satisfy your request.”

“Just to reiterate—I need them alive,” I said.

The harpies sneered, their expressions more terrifying than usual what with all the blood.

“So much more fun to kill,” the entrail-wearing one grumbled.

Be patient, self.

“Yes, but they also have information that I can’t get from them if they’re dead.”

And I had need of what was in their heads.

Liam released his last victim, letting the hunter slump to the ground. Like the harpies in front of me, he hadn’t been fastidious in his killing. I was pretty certain there was more blood on his clothes than in his stomach.

The harpies close to him drew away, a little intimidated by his homicidal aura.

Natalia’s gaze lingered on Liam as she answered in place of her sisters. “They understand and will bring them back alive.”

The entrail-wearing harpy made a face but didn’t argue. She took to the sky with a screech that her sister answered.

A loud boom came from the other end of the street, reminding me that the hunters were just one of our problems.

“We need to leave this area,” Natalia said, summoning several harpies with a flick of her hand. “The sorcerer’s creature won’t return to its slumber until its prey no longer exists in its territory.”

I glanced at the harpies as they flanked me. “You’re sure it won’t follow us into the city?”

“Past encounters with the monster support my theory,” Natalia said with a shrug.

Ah ha.

I stared at my friend, wondering if any of those encounters involved baiting the sentinel to test its limits. Or if they’d learned by watching the sentinel pursue other victims.

“What are they doing?” I asked as the harpy to my right, a woman whose dark brown skin matched the feathers of her wings, slid an arm around my waist.

Her companion did the same on my other side. She was one of those from the roof of the Blue Pepper earlier that night. The white and black in her hair distinctive enough to remember.

Speaking of, I was pretty sure her companion was also on that roof.

“It’s too dangerous to go by foot. They’re going to carry you out of here,” Natalia answered. “You can use the flight to ask any questions you have about earlier this evening.”

She took off into the sky before I had a chance to say anything.

A pair of harpies appeared next to Liam. They were more cautious than the two beside me, asking permission before they approached. Liam accepted with a tired nod.

“No dog this time, fanger?” the harpy next to me asked.

“If you’d like, I could call him for you.”

She snorted. “Try not to scream.”

Their hold tightened a second before they beat their wings, lifting themselves—and me—into the air in defiance of the laws of gravity. It made me light-headed.

“Don’t drop me and I won’t.”

An image of the harpies doing exactly that to the hunters flashed across my mind.

Their soft snickers didn’t make me feel better.

I glanced over my shoulder, my gaze finding Liam’s to reassure myself he was okay.

“I wouldn’t dare damage the flock’s main source of entertainment. My sisters would be so upset.”

“That fills me with warm fuzzies.”

I couldn’t help my snarkiness. Tense situations tended to bring out my sarcastic side.

“I’m Frankie,” the woman with the brown wings said. “That’s Leah.” She nodded at the woman with the white speckled wings. “Natalia said you had questions for us?”

“That’s right.”

The wind whipped my hair into my mouth, nearly choking me and momentarily blinding me. When I spit it out and could see again, we were much higher than before. The city felt tiny, its lights twinkling as merrily as the stars above.

“Can you tell me what you saw?” I asked.

Liam’s head turned toward us, showing he was also paying attention to the conversation.

The teasing disappeared from Frankie and Leah’s faces.

“Two men—a vampire and a human,” Frankie said.

“The vampire is a newcomer,” Leah agreed with a nod. “He’s only been in the city a week.”

Liam’s abrupt movement nearly caused the harpies carrying him to drop him. My heart lurched until their flight path steadied.

My gaze still on Liam, I resumed the conversation. “Are you sure he was here for a week? Not two nights?”

The harpy nodded with a thoughtful look. “I’m sure. I remember his stupid face.” Seeing my look, she lifted a shoulder, sending my heart into my throat as she bobbled me in the process. “Harpies have a thing about faces.”

That was interesting—but not important at the moment.

If they were to be believed, it meant Dominick and his people had delayed presenting themselves to ask permission to enter the territory. Thomas might be able to work with that. Maybe use it as an excuse to kick him and the others out?

“The human was a hunter,” Frankie added. “He was part of the group who invaded our territory.”

“Another stupid face?”

“More like an enemy usurper we marked for future death.”

Ah. My bad.

“Natalia didn’t want to risk a war with their kind so she had us pull back.” Frankie stared at me. “Though we ended up in one anyway.”

I resisted the impulse to squirm, knowing their involvement was my fault.

Her smile bared sharp teeth. “Thanks for that, by the way. We might have missed our chance otherwise.”

“You’re welcome,” I replied in a faint voice, not knowing if that was a good thing or not.

Moving on…

“How did the vampire and human seem to you? What was their relationship like?” I asked.

“They weren’t friends,” Leah said.

Frankie’s face was thoughtful. “More like acquaintances.”

“But they knew each other?”

Both nodded. “Definitely.”

Adrenaline shot through me. That was what we were looking for. Proof of a connection.

“Anything else you can remember?”

“Just that the vampire handed a piece of paper to the hunter and said something like ‘it needs to be done tonight.’ After that, they walked over to your car and the hunter placed something under it.”

Leah glanced at her friend. “We’re not sure what it was.”

They might not be, but I had my suspicions.

Liam was already dialing one of his people when I glanced over at him. I could hear the phone ringing until Nathan answered a second later.

“What’s up, boss man?”

“Are you still at the bar?”

“Unfortunately,” Nathan said, sounding rather put out by that fact. “The djinn was a little irritated at the state of her bar when she finally came out of her office. She insisted we clean up all of the glass Thomas shattered and reimburse her for her lost liquor.”

“Go check under Aileen’s car.”

“No problem, boss man. You wanna tell me why?”

The roof line of the Gargoyle appeared on the horizon.

“What happened after the car?” I asked Frankie and Leah while Nathan was preoccupied.

“A creature killed the vampire and set him on fire,” Leah answered.

“Did it look emaciated? Like a mummy or someone who is all skin and bones,” I explained when they looked confused.

Recognition dawned and they nodded.

“That’s right,” Frankie agreed.

“We’ve never seen anything move like that,” Leah added with a touch of fear. “It was horrible. He tore that vampire apart and then set him on fire with his mind.”

“The hunter ran into the bar after that,” Frankie finished.

There was a pause as the harpies shared a look.

“What is it?” I prodded, knowing there was something they weren’t telling me.

“When he was done killing that vampire, he looked right at us,” Frankie confessed. “He didn’t speak, but we heard his voice in our heads. He told us to leave unless we wanted to die too.”

“We didn’t stick around after that,” Leah said.

Then we were right. Ahrun killed both the hunter and vampire. But why? That was what I didn’t understand. It couldn’t have been to protect me. For one thing, he couldn’t know who I was.

Although his stalking might contradict that.

Still, going by his advanced stage of decomposition, he was only recently awakened from his long sleep. It was unlikely that he’d have known what the vampire and human were up to.

Then was it instinct?

Nathan came back over the phone. “You want to tell me how you knew there was a bomb under Aileen’s car? Because I’d really love to know what the fuck is going on.”