Chapter 20

I opened my eyes later, unsure how much time had passed. The candle wicks still burned, though the wax was completely melted. A moment after I opened my eyes, the flames winked out. The clay pot I’d drunk from, and the brazier had vanished. The only remains of the ritual were the puddles of wax.

Nimbus trotted forward and pressed his nose against mine, rooing softly.

“Hey, buddy. I talked with Twister.”

He perked his fuzzy ears and sat back, curled tail wagging.

“Who is Twister?” Katsuro asked, voice soft but filled with curiosity.

“A nimbus who has fully joined the storm,” I answered, and buried my fingers in Nimbus’s fluff. He leaned against me.

“Did the ritual work?” The vampire rose smoothly to his feet.

“Yes. I have no idea how long it will take for my powers to unfold, however.”

He came over to me, standing outside the ring of wax puddles, and offered me his hand. When Nimbus didn’t object, I took it and let him help me to my feet.

The vampire pulled me close, raising his other hand and brushing his fingers along my temple.

“You are radiant.”

I took a deep breath, then everything that had happened in the last few days hit me. I’d come to a new town, gotten a dog—as it were—met new friends and gotten a new job. I’d also apparently found four men who wanted me, been rediscovered by the group of traffickers I’d thought I’d helped put behind bars, been almost kidnapped, had to run again, and they’d gotten to my D.C. contact. Now I was hiding in a compound in the woods with beings I hadn’t even realized existed until a short time ago.

Seeming to sense my mood shift, Katsuro turned down the intensity and pulled me into a comforting hug.

He was the last person I would have expected that from, but I accepted the affection and rested my cheek against his chest.

“All will be well,” he murmured.

Nimbus pressed up against my leg and rooed softly as if in agreement.

***

We found Clare and Bridger in the kitchen a while later. I’d stayed in Katsuro’s arms far longer than I’d expected, and he had held me patiently, kindly, and with great compassion, not letting go until I’d finally stepped back.

Clare’s enormous eyes widened, and she smiled. “Well, dear, how do you feel?”

I took a breath and shrugged. “I don’t know if I feel different or not.”

“That is perfectly fine. It takes time for the unfolding. Now, let’s eat something.” She glanced pointedly at Bridger.

The hunter obediently got up and went to the pantry.

It didn’t take long for him to procure drinks for everyone and a quick meal of stew from a can for those who wanted something to eat. Though it was canned, it tasted like a feast. I hadn’t realized how hungry I was until the first bite of food passed my lips.

Bridger’s phone beeped as I was polishing off my stew. He frowned as he stared at the screen.

“We’re going to have company soon.” He massaged his forehead as if easing a headache before sighing. “This place is secure against the supernatural, but apparently they’re adapting to modern times, finally. They brought assault vehicles. The walls will take a lot of damage, but they’ll get through after the wards are broken. Katsuro, there’s a tunnel that hits an old mineshaft. In the mineshaft there’s an ATV that you can take. Get Hannah out of here. Clare and I will distract them by running in your car. If they don’t capture us, we can meet up in Redmont. You should be able to make it before sunup. If you get there, go to the Redmont Inn and tell them you’re friends of mine. As long as the owner doesn’t figure out you’re a vampire, he’ll believe you and hide you away until I show up. If Clare and I don’t show up, wait a few days and make another plan.”

“Bridger, we’ll make it to Redmont,” Clare assured him with a pat on his arm. “I brought plenty of dust.”

I assumed she referred to the substance she’d used on the shade back at her bookshop.

“The three of you might take longer than one night to make it, however. Your unfolding makes the visions less reliable. Take your time. We will wait.”

Not completely comforted by Clare’s words, I still let Bridger lead us to the hidden door that let us into the escape tunnel. It was well hidden and even Katsuro thought it would remain secure unless it took physical damage.

On impulse, I gave Bridger a quick hug, but he put his finger over my lips when I tried to apologize.

“This is an excellent test of my defenses. If any of them fail, it gives me a chance to make them better in the future. I do admit, I hadn’t planned for assault vehicles, but I should have. I was thinking of supernatural attacks.”

“Well, okay then. Clare, be careful.” I gave the psychic a quick hug, and then Katsuro, Nimbus, and I descended into darkness.

Total darkness, as far as my human eyes were concerned, anyway. I froze as soon as the thick door shut behind us. My breathing was harsh in my ears, and it was quiet enough that I could hear my heartbeat. Nimbus pressed against my leg before I could panic, and a soft whisper of cloth, then a gentle touch on my arm, let me know Katsuro was there.

“I can see, Hannah,” he said.

I jumped as his quiet voice seemed to shatter the surrounding stillness. I desperately wanted to be able to see instead of relying on the vampire to guide me.

“We’re going down steps. They are even. You shouldn’t have any issues.”

I squinted in the darkness, but let the vampire lead me.

“Why are you interested in me?” I blurted out. I couldn’t figure out why any of the men were interested. I wasn’t unattractive, but I certainly wasn’t the sort of eye candy that caught men’s attention as quickly as I had these powerful beings.

“There is something about you that calls to me.” He hesitated, then continued. “Calls to all four of us, I guess I should say. Even the human hunter feels it. A resonance, if you will. Not to mention, you are intelligent, interesting, compassionate, and your scent reminds me of apple spice.”

“Apple spice?”

“Yes. Very compelling.” He squeezed my hand, and I couldn’t tell if he was joking or not.

“Do you feel a draw to any of us?” He continued.

“I assume you mean Oliver, Davin, you, and Bridger, right?”

“Indeed.”

“Well, obviously, I’m attracted to Oliver.” No use in pretending I hadn’t practically had sex with the shade already. “And yes, there’s something that catches my interest about all four of you. I just don’t know what to do about it, and I haven’t really had time to settle in.”

He squeezed my hand again. “Hopefully we can conclude this unfortunate business quickly and then you can take more time to get to know us.”

“Are you all serious that you’d share me?”

“All of our fates are intertwined,” he said. “It would be unwise to ask you to single one of us out.”

“Did Clare tell you that?”

“Yes, but on reflection, it is also obvious. At least to me.”

As we walked farther down, my knees starting to ache at the descent, the darkness lightened and gradually, I could see again.

By the time we reached the bottom, I realized that my ability to see wasn’t because there was a light source.

“Katsuro, I can see.”

“Good. Perhaps your powers are awakening already.”

A thrill of terror chilled me, followed almost immediately by exhilaration. I’d accessed my new abilities and used them to help myself in a dangerous situation. And by helping myself, I made myself less dependent on Katsuro in case something happened, and he needed to act.

Nimbus bumped me with his nose, and I scratched his head.

The ATV waited as promised, provisioned with supplies for an extended camping trip in case I needed food. Katsuro’s only real concern was shelter from the sun. He’d told me it wouldn’t kill him instantly, but it certainly wouldn’t do him any favors.

“Do you know how to drive one of these?” I asked the vampire.

“Yes. Do you?”

I nodded.

“As you can see, perhaps you should drive. Your nimbus can lead the way. That will leave me free to watch for trouble and react if necessary.”

“Okay.” I glanced at Nimbus, and he trotted out in front of the ATV as if agreeing.

I got on and Katsuro climbed on behind me. He put one arm lightly around my waist, though there were handholds in the back, and his thighs pressed against mine as he slid into a comfortable spot behind me.

“This okay?”

“Yep.” My voice squeaked, and not in fear. Warmth flushed through me at his proximity.

“Hannah.” His breath tickled my ear.

“Yeah?”

“Perhaps you should turn the vehicle on.”

I shook my head and jerked my attention away from the vampire’s closeness and the heat flooding through me. “Right. Sorry.”

He laughed, a low sound that completely scattered my brain again. “I’m certainly not offended, nor am I unaffected by your presence, but we do want to get out of here. That is the priority, unfortunately.”

That he was having similar reactions made me feel marginally better. I turned the key and got the ATV going.

I kept the headlights off since I could see reasonably well, and Nimbus didn’t seem to have any issues in the dark either. The sound of the engine echoed in the close confines of the tunnel, and I found myself wishing the engine was quieter.

“That power of yours is useful,” Katsuro said.

“What?”

“You turned the engine noise down somehow. I’m grateful.”

“Huh. Cool.”

He tucked himself close against me, tightening his arm around my stomach and making sure I was well aware of every inch of him that pressed against me.

“I thought getting out of here was our priority.”

“We’re in very little danger at the moment.”

I shivered as his breath tickled my neck.

“And we are moving forward.”

His free hand slid down my thigh.

“And I can’t help myself. Unless you want me to stop?”

“Uh.” My mouth stopped translating my thoughts into words, and I could only shake my head. No, I didn’t want him to stop.

“Just don’t wreck the ATV,” he murmured as his lips touched my neck.

The strangled noise that came out of my mouth was a confused mix of pleasure and fear. His low chuckle didn’t help.

Nimbus barked sharply ahead of us, a sound he rarely made, and Katsuro laughed again.

“Quite right, little one. Quite right.”

Whatever Nimbus had said to the vampire, he eased off his distracting touches a bit. I was still extremely aware of him behind me, the tension building in my chest nearly painful. The ground grew uneven, and I had to concentrate on where we were going. Grateful for the distraction, I tried not to think about how much I wanted him to keep running his hands over my body.

“Did Bridger say how long this mineshaft was?”

“No, but I sense a difference in the air. I believe we are coming to the end.” His voice had lost the playful tone from earlier, and he had clearly focused on our problems and not on tormenting me.

Nimbus slowed and turned a bend in the shaft. I hadn’t realized we were rising up an incline, but apparently this was an old enough mine that they’d had rails going in and out instead of an elevator system and we’d come to the surface.

We left the confines of the mineshaft and entered the forest. My vision adjusted to the increased light, and Nimbus raced off down an overgrown two-track while I tried to keep up.

In the distance, wolves howled.

“Those are not Davin’s wolves,” Katsuro said, voice tense.

“Fuck,” I muttered.

“Indeed. We’re not going to make it to Redmont before sunrise. Nimbus, perhaps you could find us some shelter where we might have a chance to fight off the wolves and shelter from the day.”

Nimbus rooed and raced down the trail.

I hoped he’d grown enough that he’d be able to keep up the pace ahead of fully grown werewolves. Hell, they could probably outrun the ATV.

“We are ahead of them.” Katsuro apparently sensed my fear. “We should have time to reach shelter if there is some close. There are a lot of natural caves in this region.”

Another set of wolves took up the howl.

The vampire tensed. “Those wolves are a lot closer.”

“Double fuck.”

He kissed my neck, arm tensing around me as we hit a bump on the track. “Perhaps you can go a touch faster.”

I opened the throttle as much as I dared and prayed the mineshaft had given us enough of a head start to get away.

Branches cracked in the distance, and I wished for invisibility.