This Blood (26 page)

I held my breath but my heartbeat was so loud I knew it would bring her straight to me. I had to move further away, only a few feet separated us. A single potted plant hid me from her view.

 “I was sure I heard something.” she said, glancing casually around.

I was freaking out! The temptation to turn my head and see who she spoke to was overwhelming! But my smarter side warned that she would see the movement.
Shit
.

“It’s nothing. Come on back, your man must be missing you.”

It was Eden. And I knew he was referring to Lucian. My blood boiled. My adrenalin began to fuel my courage, along with a healthy dose of pissed-off!  I was looking at that petite little bitch with murder on my mind. My former fear was vanishing at the speed of light.

She was toying with Lucian. I couldn’t stand it! Oh, yeah, she was getting her ass kicked! I may die trying, but I was beyond rational actions. I started to move, my mind racing with images of her coiling around Lucian, her little slut hands on his body, her little slut face purring in his ear, her teeth…
No
!

A cage of iron hard arms snaked around me. I opened my mouth to scream, only to find it covered with a golden hand. Oh, thank God it was Gavyn! “Let go,” I mumbled between his fingers. She was getting away. She was leaving. That little whore was still whole,
so unacceptable
!

“Hush, you fool!” he whispered into the side of my face, “Do you want to blow the rescue before we even begin?” Gavyn’s breath was hot. He was holding me so tightly that I was having trouble drawing breath. He may have been slimmer than Seth, but this man had startling strength!  “I’m going to release you, but before I do, I want you to remember why we are here. We need
stealth
, but if you cannot control yourself,” he scolded, “then our cause is already lost and you may as well leave now and forget the rescue!”  

I nodded, I was having trouble getting a full breath, my lungs needed to expand and I began to panic. My eyes watered, then he suddenly released me. I sucked in a huge breath, spinning to face him. I growled through clenched teeth, “Listen you elfish bastard! If you ever man handle me again, I swear, I’ll give us up just for the joy of seeing them suck the life from your body!” I was shaking. God he pissed me off.   His eyes grew huge.

Then he quickly nodded his head. “Understood,” he said, “but you have just reinforced the wisdom of my decision. The ring stays with me.” He grabbed my arm and led me along the path again, his head sweeping from side to side, diligently watching for any signs of our enemies. I had to give him credit; he was as silent as death. Meanwhile, I sounded like a small buffalo herd.

I stopped, pulling him close. “This is ridiculous,” I whispered. “I’m making way too much noise. Why don’t you go ahead? I think you can sneak around much faster than I can. I’m going to give us away no matter what I do.”  I pulled him over to the shelter of the greenery. “If you go ahead of me, maybe you can take out Eden or Chloe, or God willing, even Thorak, and then we can rush in and rescue Ann and Lucian together.”

He pulled me close to his body, standing rigid. Ooh, now he was pissed. “I did not figure you for a coward,” he sneered, his handsome face suddenly harsh, “After what I witnessed this evening, I was sure you would be all too willing to charge ahead, but I guess you are not the woman I thought you were.” He pushed me away, and in an alarming flash of speed, he was gone. I was left alone, staring at the empty spot where he stood only a moment before.

Well, that was just great. I looked around. I had no idea where he went so I began to walk, looking for the path. My sense of direction was screwed up. I felt like a child lost in a cornfield maze. I wandered for what seemed like forever, when I finally caught sight of the opening.

TWENTY-EIGHT

I cautiously poked my head out of the potted refuge. The gates to the prison were just a few yards ahead. There was no sign of Gavyn.

I searched for a weapon. Scattered along the surface of a long table was an assortment of gardening tools. I moved slowly, passing the pots and various jars of fertilizer.  My eyes fell on a pair of sharp shears. They were a little long, but if I held them just right, I could hide them fairly well.  I looked up, scanning the gates again, wondering what became of Gavyn. I had no idea what he had up his sleeve, but I knew one thing, I didn’t fully trust him. Also, he didn’t appear to be breaking down the door, so I guess it was up to me. 

Shit. 

I began unbuttoning my shirt, only then did I realize I was still covered in blood. I didn’t have time to wash. I just hoped I could still pull this off!  My camisole came off next. I grabbed the shears, using my shirt to hide the conspicuous weapon. Taking a deep breath, I strode purposefully toward the gates.

My steps faltered a little as I reached the latch, but I steeled my spine. I said a silent prayer and opened the latch. The gate swung open, alerting every bird in the place to my presence. They all flew about madly, screeching and flapping.  It was just as effective as ringing the doorbell.  I strode to the main door, whipping it open with more confidence than I felt. Thorak was standing just inside. His eyes fell upon me and a look of confusion crossed his face.

“What are you doing here, Madea? Why are you not with Seth? Where is Arian?”  He looked around, as though expecting her to come up from behind me.

I tightened my grip on the shears, my mind racing.

“I came because I wanted to. Seth is with the Council.  Arian is in someone’s bed. I had nothing else to do.”

He looked wary. “Why are you covered in blood?” He looked at my bare feet.

I had to think fast. “I was told you like blood; I wanted to make a good impression.” I ran my free hand along the curve of my breast. I was hoping his mind was still on sex, I was banking on it. The deal we made was only a few hours old.

He stepped closer, his foul tongue sliding out of his mouth. “You are human, I will injure you, and Seth will not abide my touching you.”  He said the words, but he still approached me. My fear was making my skin prickle. This had to work.

“What Seth doesn’t know won’t hurt him, and I am
not
human, I am Madea.” I traced a finger along my breast, watching him. I licked my finger and ran it along a splatter of blood low on my neck, smearing it into the whiteness of my skin.

Thorak watched me, a look of longing on his face. I held out my finger. His eyes met mine. “Taste,” I said.

His eyes went huge as he closed the large distance that separated us. Grabbing my hand in one of his, he bent to his gnarled knees, then, lowered his mouth. The feeling of thick slime almost gagged me. Oh, my God, this was so gross! Ugh, his slimy tongue slid along my blood-covered finger with a sickening slowness. I shuddered. His scent was a mixture of dead cats and used gym socks.

He sat back, his face showing confusion again. I realized my error about the same time he did.

“This is not your blood.” He began to stand as I uncovered the shears. His eyes were focusing, now that his hunger was falling away. My body acted quicker than my mind and before I knew what I was doing I had the long shears shoved deep into his groin.  His scream was deafening, like a thousand pigs being slaughtered at once. My blood went cold as I jumped back, scrambling out of the door. The huge troll fell forward in agony. Black viscous blood oozed onto the floor. I turned and leapt over his huge writhing form and fell into the room. I scrambled, searching frantically around for some sort of door release. All I could find were a jumble of complicated buttons, a cell phone and a huge caliber hand gun. I recognized the gun. It was a Clint Eastwood favorite if my TV trivia was accurate;
Smith and Wesson
was engraved along the barrel.  

Super
.

I picked it up. Knowing what I had to do. I felt sick, but this was survival. I couldn’t be squeamish.  I strode toward the bleeding troll. He was still rolling about on the floor, cupping his slaughtered equipment.  I approached, lowering the weapon. I took aim at the creatures head. Taking a calming breath, I grasped the gun in a strong, two-handed grip. I knew it was going to kick like a son of a bitch and I prepared myself for the jolt. My stance firm, my grip steady, my arms strong, I slowly squeezed the trigger.

Thorak’s head must have been filled with gas because it exploded all over. Pieces of his skull and brains flew in every direction, including all over me. Foul bits of gray matter slid slowly down the walls as I flicked a larger piece off my cheek.

I barely lowered the weapon when Gavyn silently dropped from somewhere above. He landed without a sound.

He stared at me, his eyes taking in the scene. He held his hands up and slowly approached me. “Don’t shoot Grace. Please, I’m on your side.” He moved cautiously, his eyes wide. I could see fear. Funny how a little violence could change a person’s entire attitude. He stepped over Thorak’s now lifeless form. I allowed him to take the gun from my hands.  He lifted my arm and tucked the gun gingerly into the waistband of my pants. I guess he felt safer with my finger off the trigger.

“Perhaps you
are
the woman I thought.” His grin was lopsided, only half of his mouth turned up. He looked a little unsure, but pleased.

I pushed away from him, and quickly approached the locked door. “Now, how do we get this damned thing open?” I said as I inspected the lock.

“It should be no problem.” Gavyn hastily typed in a code and the door clicked open.

I was surprised. “How did you do that?”

He smiled at me. It was such a beautiful smile, it almost made me forget what I was doing.

“I am part of the Council, remember?”  He was beaming.

“Oh yeah, how handy,” I beamed back, “so, you’re useful after all.” He frowned a little and we walked though the door. I slid the gun from my pants. I knew it might not kill the vampires, but I felt better holding it just the same.  We entered a long hall. It stretched for about twenty feet. The entrance was the only visible door in the room. The walls along the left side of the room were clear glass, with pleated shades on the inside to obscure the view. Chairs were placed in rows, theater style along the length of the hallway. It was an observation hall, and I had a pretty good feeling little kids weren’t performing ballet in there.

The thought sank home. Oh,
gross
! People came to watch?

What did they do in there?

I looked around, searching for a way into the room. My eyes landed on a set of small buttons. They were recessed and painted to match the wall. I pressed the first one. Our ears were filled with sounds from the room. It was Lucian, he was shouting in Russian. His voice was strong, and very, very pissed.

Then Chloe spoke. She was speaking in Russian as well. Figured as much, the little bitch was multi-lingual!  Now I hated her even more than I did before. I held the gun in my right hand and motioned to Gavyn. He nodded and stood off to the side. Eventually, I would hit the correct button and the curtain would be drawn, and I didn’t want them to know I had back-up.

I pressed the second button. We were plunged into darkness. The room behind the curtain glowed brilliantly. I ran my fingers along the buttons again, pressing the third one. I watched as the curtains slowly parted. The conversation died and the sound of scrambling ensued.

I raised the gun, taking aim. I held my breath, watching, waiting for the horror to unfold.  I gasped. Lucian and Ann were shackled to what looked like hospital gurneys. They were propped up and standing on end. Their hands were bound above their heads and their feet were fastened to the metal at the bottom. 

Chloe was nude from the waist up, her white skirt was hitched high up on her skinny thighs and she was leaning onto Lucian’s bare chest. His golden skin was glistening with sweat, his mouth was an angry slash and his eyes were filled with venom as he eyed the tiny vampire.

She obviously couldn’t see her audience. She was putting on a show.  I could tell this was a regular occurrence.  She seemed to have her motions well rehearsed. Lucian began glaring at me, or at whomever he thought was sick enough to get a kick out of this, I knew he couldn’t see me any better than the vamps.

Ann was lying with her head pressed against Eden’s chest. She was fully clothed in the same toga type outfit she was wearing the last time I saw her, only this one was blood red.

Eden was petting her cheek. His head was thrown back, I watched him, remembering the look on his brothers face just before he disintegrated. I felt cold again, but this time it was welcome. I smiled, taking aim. I had to wait for just the right moment. One clear shot.

It didn’t take long. Chloe peeled herself off Lucian and approached the window. She ran her hands along her body. She must have thought it was sexy. Personally, I thought it was pathetic.

I held the gun steady, moving my eyes off her for a second to signal to Gavyn that I was ready. My eyes returned to her and I knew then and there that I could kill her and my conscience wouldn’t even ripple. I squeezed the trigger, feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.

The window shattered, glass flew and Chloe hit the ground. I could hear Ann screaming as the little whore lay bleeding. I took no chances. I wanted her down for good. I jumped through the opening, sending three more shots into her still form. She was down and out, but not ash. God, the world was so unfair!

I felt movement. Eden was rushing towards me, a look of shock and hatred marring his beauty. I braced myself; I had one bullet left, maybe.

Then, like a white knight, Gavyn suddenly appeared.  He hit Eden with the force of a cannonball, and the two men fell to the ground in a tornado of flying fists and snapping jaws. I spared them a quick glace and then bolted for Ann.

She stared at me, her eyes wild and rapidly filling with tears. I smiled at her, knowing I looked pretty bad. I was still shirtless and covered in Seth’s blood among other things, courtesy of Thorak. I pulled the pins that held the shackles closed and released her. Giving her a hug, I ran to Lucian. His eyes were scanning me.