Magick Rising (24 page)

was faster.

She could hear him closing in, his footsteps drawing near. “Damn.

Damn. Damn.” If she could only get time to set up, to plunge her stake into

his heart.

Sunlight filtered inside in the distance. Close, but not close enough. Her

lungs gasped for air. The altitude had stolen it all, and she needed every bit

she could get.

She stumbled over a loose limb and tumbled to the ground, skinning

her knees through her jeans, but that was the least of her worries. Paul fell

on her with a roar.

Was this it then? Would she become the next vampire? No. She’d kill

herself first. His claw-like hands tore at her shoulder.

The stake was useless now. Sliding her silver knife free from the leather

sheath at her waist, she stabbed at him over and over until he finally drew

back screaming in pain. She scrambled to her feet and ran once more.

Not much farther.

He snagged her backpack, nearly pulling her off her feet. Hayley slid out

of it, leaving it in his hands.

Run. Faster. Faster.

She’d just reached the edge of the sunlight when he grabbed her

shoulder, tearing her shirt, digging his fingernails into her flesh again. “No!”

She struggled forward. One step. Another.

Sun rays fell onto his hand which burst into flames. With a howl of

pain, he released her, and Hayley staggered into the full sunshine.

She dropped to her knees, struggling for air, watching the tunnel

entrance. Paul remained just outside the range of the light, growling, savage,

until he finally disappeared back into the darkness.

That had been close. Too damned close.

And worse, he had her backpack. With most of her weapons.

At least she still had her knife. She cleaned it then slid it back into its

sheath. Two more stakes remained in her belt.

Finally, she climbed to her feet, her chest burning from the lack of

oxygen and the scratches aching as well. He had the advantage at the

moment. Time to regroup.

She’d go to the hotel and clean up the blood trickling down her back.

She’d get more weapons. She might be a lousy shot with a crossbow, but it

worked best in this situation. Plus she’d been practicing. Then she’d return.

HAYLEY MADE IT to her hotel room, pain throbbing through her. The

scratches on her shoulder and back burned, and the way her shirt stuck to

her skin told her more than a little blood was involved. Round two for Paul.

She needed to clean up, tend her wounds, gather new weapons, and

return to the train tunnel before the sun set. Glancing at the clock, she

swore. Sunset wasn’t that far away.

Paul would be even more difficult to take out after dark, and she wasn’t

eager to lose another chance. She had to stop him. Last night he’d only killed

a deer. What . . .
who
would provide his meal tonight?

She headed into the bathroom, wincing as she tugged her long-sleeved

T-shirt over her head. The damp feel of warm blood trickled down her back.

Definitely not good.

Sliding her bra strap off her shoulder, she angled to best see the damage

in the large mirror. She wrinkled her nose as she made out the deep gouges

on the back of her shoulder and over her shoulder blade. They looked as raw

and painful as they felt, the furrows oozing blood in a thin but steady stream.

Vampire scratches didn’t cause a person to become one or she would

have been doomed a long time ago. She grabbed her extra-large tube of

antiseptic cream and box of bandages and placed them on the counter.

“You’re hurt.”

Hayley shrieked as she whirled around to see Rurik standing in the

bedroom. “How the hell did you get in here?” She snatched her shirt and

held it in front of her, her heart racing. She hadn’t even heard him.

“I knocked. The door was slightly ajar.” A concerned frown lined his

brow. “Turn around. Let me see your wounds.”

Hayley didn’t move. The door was ajar? Usually she was fanatical about

ensuring it shut tight after her. Still, she had been concentrating more on

how much she hurt when she first arrived. It was possible. She glanced

behind him. The door was shut now in any case.

She tilted her chin toward him. “I’d prefer you left.”

“You can’t treat that yourself.” He hesitated for a moment then entered

the bathroom, making an area she’d previously considered somewhat

spacious shrink to the size of a closet. A very small closet.

Damn, why did her hormones insist on reacting to this guy she barely

knew? Where was the control she’d forced on herself?

He snatched the antiseptic cream from the counter. “Turn around.”

Part of her wanted to refuse, to face him down, but the logical part of

her insisted he was right. She’d never do a good job of it herself.

Keeping her shirt pressed to her chest, she turned around. Rurik sucked

in his breath. “You need stitches on some of those.”

“No.” She didn’t have time to mess with doctors and hospitals. What

was another scar? She’d add it to her growing collection. She met his gaze in

the mirror. “Either help out or get out.”

His gaze held hers for several moments, then he sighed. “This will

hurt.”

Hayley bit back a sarcastic retort. It wasn’t Rurik’s fault she was injured.

She was lucky it wasn’t worse. Killing vampires wasn’t easy, and this one was

turning out to be more difficult than most.

She gasped when he pressed a warm damp washcloth against the

scratches. Pain radiated from her back, and she tensed in response, her

fingernails digging into her palms.

“Easy.” Rurik’s voice held a soothing quality. “Relax or it’ll be worse.”

Once he finished with the washcloth, he applied the ointment with a

feather-light touch. “I assume you found Paul.”

“We found each other. He’s staying in a train tunnel in the hills outside

of town. I have to get back before it gets dark.”

“You’re not going alone.”

Hayley met his gaze again, noting the quick flash of anger in her own

reflection. “I’m just fine by myself. I know what I’m doing.”

“Do you?” Rurik applied more ointment, a bit rougher than before to

make his point, and she winced.

“I was ambushed. It won’t happen again.” Now that she knew for sure

where Paul was, she’d approach it differently.

“That’s right. I’m going with you.” He opened several bandages and

lined them along the counter.

“I—”

He rested his hand on her uninjured shoulder. “Is it so difficult to

accept help?”

Was it? She hesitated. She’d been fighting this alone for so long that she

didn’t dare relax. Not until the Destroyer was eliminated.

She’d never stayed long enough in any one place to make friends,

hadn’t tried, hadn’t wanted to invest the time. Her friends from her previous

life hadn’t believe her, had tried to talk her out of this mission. She couldn’t

blame them. She would’ve been the same way if not for Lissa.

But could she trust this guy?

Rurik didn’t wait for an answer, but applied the bandages with swift,

careful movements. The ointment began to work, easing the pain slightly.

Now if only the rest of her aches would go away.

“That’s better,” she murmured. It did help to have someone else do the

bandaging.

“You’re still tense.” Rurik turned his attention to the tight muscles of

her neck and uninjured shoulder. She stiffened. This more intimate touch as

he worked those muscles with his hands sent a frisson of heat along her

nerves. She tried to pull away, but he held on, massaging with an expertise

that soon had Hayley’s eyes dropping closed, her head sagging, and a sigh

escaping.

He definitely knew what he was doing. Doing
for
her or
to
her? At that

moment she ceased to care. Her muscles melted to jelly while her blood

warmed, and she found herself leaning back against him.

His warm breath caressed her neck as he dropped his hands to her

sides, his touch gentle against her flesh. Her pulse skipped several beats as

her breasts tightened in response, her mind useless while her body reacted.

He nuzzled her ear then pressed kisses along her throat, adding to her

internal meltdown. The shirt fell to the floor, her arms hanging uselessly.

“I suggest you go without a bra for a few days,” he said, his voice husky.

“To avoid irritating the wounds.”

Hayley found it a struggle to comprehend his words, her entire body

alive with new sensations. “Braless?” How could a simple massage turn her

mind to mush?

He expertly released the catch then eased her bra off to join the shirt on

the floor. The cool air barely had time to brush her flesh before he cupped

her breasts in his hands, teasing her taut nipples with his rough thumbs.

A sudden ache stabbed Hayley low in the gut. An ache of longing, of

need so intense she gasped, her eyes flying open. The mirror reflected their

images—her naked torso, Rurik’s hands working a delicious magic on her

breasts. His eyes were so dark they were black, the light in them echoing the

rough desire churning within her.

He brought his hands to her waist and turned her to face him, his

breathing as uneven as hers. “I want you, Hayley,” he muttered, his voice

rough. “You’ve intrigued me from the beginning, but now . . .”

“I—” Where was her brain? Lost somewhere in the erotic sensations

boiling in her blood.

He seized her lips in a possessive kiss as he pulled her close, her

sensitive nipples brushing against the rough wool of his sweater. His kiss

ravaged not only her mouth, but her senses until she could only focus on the

ache twisting her gut, the longing that demanded she take this man to bed.

She raised her arms to wrap them around his neck then jerked out of

the hormone-driven haze as a blast of fiery agony shot across her back. At

her cry of pain, Rurik released her, and Hayley grabbed a towel to hold in

front of her. She backed away from him as far as the bathroom would allow.

“I . . . I don’t know what you’re doing to me, but I don’t like it.” She

detested the shakiness of her voice. Where was her control?

“You do like it.” Fire blazed in his dark eyes. “And that’s what frightens

you.”

“Please leave.” His words held too much truth. No one had ever shaken

her to the core like this. No one had ever made her want with a frenzy that

yet swirled inside her.

“Are you still planning to go after Paul?”

“I . . . yes.” Yes, her mission. She had to remember that.

“Then I’m coming along.” His tone left no room for argument, but

Hayley shook her head. She needed him gone.

Rurik sighed and gentled his voice. “I can behave.” A slight smile lifted

the corner of his lips. “If stopping Paul comes first, then that’s what we’ll

do.”

She eyed him, uncertain of how to proceed. A part of her wanted to

trust him. Yeah, the part he’d stirred to aching life. “Then wait outside.”

“Okay.” He sent her a last lingering look that threatened to destroy the

wall she was struggling to rebuild, then left the hotel room.

Hayley rushed to her suitcase and pulled out a thick sweatshirt, donning

it in record time despite the pain of her back. Even the soft fleece tormented

her aching breasts, and she closed her eyes, forcing the pulsing need to

abate. Damn the man. She didn’t need this, want this.

He stirred her humanity to life, a side she’d tried to stifle in order to

complete her task. And it felt good. Too good.

She focused on grabbing new weapons—a crossbow that she could use

without getting close to Paul, wooden arrows, and more stakes. Grabbing a

large towel from the bathroom, she wrapped it around everything.

Somehow, she didn’t think the hotel management would be pleased to see

her parading through the hallways with a crossbow.

Finally, she drew in a deep breath and opened the door, uncertain

whether she wanted to see Rurik there or not.

But he was there, and his gaze searched her face. “Are you all right?”

“Let’s get this over with,” she muttered, heading down the hall, not

looking back to see if he followed. His dark eyes held a potent danger of

their own. Better to avoid them.

As she reached the hotel porch, she grimaced. The sun had already

dipped behind the mountain peaks, pulling the fading light with it. “Damn.”

“You can wait until tomorrow.” Rurik appeared by her side.

“No, I can’t.” She stalked toward her car. “I can’t let him kill again,

especially now that I know where he is. The next time might not be just a

deer.”

Rurik said nothing but slid into the passenger seat and maintained a

stony silence during the entire drive.

Hayley parked as close as possible to the hill then hiked up the slope to

the tunnel, Rurik beside her. She used her brightest flashlight this time and

swung it around them as they progressed through the bushes and trees. With