Killing Time

by Elisa Paige

  An outward rush of air preceded the attack, blowing my hair back from my face, so swift were the charging vampires. With that rush of air came the sense of unrestrained, violent power and the most extreme threat I’d ever felt.

  Without warning, my vision flashed to red, the sound of my own hammering pulse filled my ears and the rage took me.

  Coming around this time surprised me more than usual, since I’d gone into a frenzy surrounded by vampires—pound for pound, the world’s most lethal predators.

  I was pinned against a cold, damp wall and a whole fleet of car alarms were shrieking loud enough to split my aching skull wide open. Blinking my eyes into focus, I saw that Siska had both hands wrapped around my wrists and was holding them high over my head. His body was flat against mine, preventing me from moving even an inch.

  “There’s no one else to fight, Sephti,” he growled next to my ear. “They’re all dead.”

  Nic’s voice carried from somewhere past his shoulder. “One’s still hanging on.”

  “Whatever you do, don’t kill him,” Siska called to her. “I was kinda hoping we’d have somebody left to question.”

  Nic grumbled an answer, but my head was ringing too much to bother trying to make it out.

  “Let me go.” My voice was faint, but I knew Siska’s acute hearing would detect it.

  He leaned back a little to look me in the eyes. “You going to go ape-shit again?”

  I laughed weakly. “Is that what you call it?” He took his weight off me and I sagged. Only his quick reflexes kept me from hitting the floor.

  “This happen often?” he asked, holding me until I found my equilibrium.

  I passed a trembling hand across my lips. “I got the impression you were familiar with my kind.”

  “I’ve seen a few.” He gave me an appraising glance. “But aside from your ability to string words together,” he chuckled when I made an irritated noise, “you’re…different.”

  “Not possible,” I said wearily. “We’re like clones.”

  “Not possible,” he echoed, unperturbed. “Or else you wouldn’t be different.”

  I waited for him to elaborate, but he just looked at me. Realizing I hadn’t responded to his earlier question, I made a face. “Even once is too often.”

  He grunted at my non-answer, but didn’t press.

  Doing a quick mental inventory, I figured I had two broken ribs and a badly wrenched left knee. Several nasty gashes and the assorted aches and pains that told me I’d taken some bad hits, but nothing serious—just seriously sore. When I turned my head, a bolt of pain made me hiss as the movement tore open a wound and started blood running into the collar of my jacket. Swearing, I reached up to feel the twin punctures there. “Which asshole bit me?”

  “That would be the corpse with the foam all over his face, whose heart literally exploded through his ribcage.” Siska’s jaw tightened. “Care to explain why that happened?”

  Pulling my hand away, I scowled at the smear of red on my palm and thought about how hard leather was to clean. Dammit, I’d just gotten these clothes, too! Not bothering to look at the dead body, I said, “My blood is toxic to vampires. Really, really toxic.”

  Siska straightened to his formidable height. “You might’ve mentioned that nugget of information before now!”

  “Why?” I shot back. “Were you thinking about biting me?”

  He looked nonplussed. “Hell, no! But still…it would’ve been good to know.”

  “Get over yourself and come here,” Nic muttered. “This guy is healing too fast.”

  Which, of course, was why a fight with vampires was a fight to the death. Even their most ghastly wound repaired itself in moments, leaving a very pissed off immortal to contend with. Only destroying a vampire’s heart would take him out, requiring either ehrlindriel, vampire fangs, or specially designed slayers’ bullets.

  Siska propped me more securely against the wall before going to Nic’s side. When I limped over, she gave me a surprised look but didn’t say anything.

  “You could always shoot him in the groin,” I suggested, my voice a croak. “They don’t heal as fast when you blow off their ba—”

  “Enough of that,” Siska interrupted, blanching. “Nic doesn’t need any suggestions.”

  Before she could comment, her eyes glinting with glee, the vampire at our feet lunged toward my legs. I dodged with nothing like my normal grace, losing my footing on a nearby corpse and going down in a tangle. I heard Nic rack a round into the chamber of her gun, heard Siska snarl and sensed his own impossibly fast attack, but the wounded immortal was even quicker.

  The crack of a pistol came hard on the sound of a bullet striking flesh and the bastard’s fangs ripping into my left thigh, just above my twisted, throbbing knee. Screaming with rage and pain, I drew my daggers and plunged them into the vampire’s back, severing everything the ehrlindriel blades came into contact with. The immortal’s arms went slack even as his body began to spasm violently. The convulsions tore his long fangs—and a chunk of me—from my leg and spun him onto his back. Siska pulled me clear of the dying vampire as his back arched in an agonizingly long seizure, then his chest erupted in a shower of blood, bits of white bone and raw flesh.

  Nic cursed a blistering stream of profanity and fired twice into the corpse before holstering her sidearm. Glaring at me, she snarled, “We needed him alive, dammit!”

  Struggling into a sitting position, I clamped both hands over my shredded thigh. There was a helluvalot of blood, but it was pouring, not pumping, which meant the bastard missed the artery. Dizzy and panting from the agony, I slumped sideways against the wall to rest my cheek against its cool surface. “It’s not like…I stuffed my leg…in his mouth!”

  “He committed suicide by biting you,” Siska growled. “I hate zealots.” Over the still-bleating car alarms, the sound of sirens reached us then, still faint but growing stronger as they drew closer.

  “We don’t need this complication.” Siska took matches from the pocket of his jeans. In moments, he had the bodies ablaze and—not for the first time—I was relieved at how quickly dead vampires burn. No idea why since living immortals are impervious to flame.

  Kneeling by my side, he grimaced at all the blood soaking through my torn leather pants leg. “You’re a mess.”

  “I noticed.” I was trying for humor, but my response was far too thready.

  Whipping off his belt, Siska took a handkerchief out of his back pocket and folded it twice. “This won’t do much, but it’s better than nothing.” He pressed the cloth against the hole in my thigh and held it in place by wrapping the belt around and around my leg.

  When he cinched it tight, I almost came off the floor.

  “Sorry, but we’ve got to stop the bleeding.” He stood and helped me stand. “Can you walk?”

  Squeezing my eyes shut as the world spun, I was surprised when Siska caught my elbow, helping me balance.

  “I can carry you,” he offered.

  My chin came up. “I’ll manage, thanks.” Burying the pain deep in my awareness, just as I’d been trained to do, I forced my mangled and twisted leg as straight as it would go and limped at a snail’s pace—a really sick, really slow, geriatric snail—toward the parking garage’s exit. Still cursing, Nic caught up with a watchful Siska pacing on my other side.

  “How is it possible,” he mused out loud, “that they’re dead, but we’re the ones who lost?”

  Nic didn’t bother responding and I was beyond being able to.

  We made it to the street and headed in the opposite direction mere moments before five police cars flew at dangerous speed into view. I grabbed Siska’s and Nic’s arms just in time to fling up my camouflage, but knew I’d have only a few minutes before my control evaporated. The second the cops disappeared into the parking garage, I let our shapes re-form.

  Cold sweat coated my body and I was barely holding off the worst of the pain. Dizzy from blood loss, I desperately needed about twelve p
ounds of jelly beans, another meal like the one Koda had fed me and a couple days’ rest.

  Just as I thought I wasn’t going to make it much further, Siska put out a hand to stop me. Holding open a black SUV’s door, he caught me around the waist as I swayed. “Climb in, Sephti.”

  “Whose…?” I managed to stammer, my focus going in and out alarmingly as I sagged against Siska’s side.

  “Mine,” Nic answered, settling into the driver’s seat and gunning the engine. “Get in before you fall down.”

  “Din’ know you cared,” I shot back, trying for pissy but coming out faint instead.

  Siska gave me a hand in, murmuring an apology as he had to bend my brutalized leg to get it through the door. I blinked blearily at him and made a nasty remark about letting him do all the fighting next time, since he’d already healed from even his worst injuries. Freaking vampires.

  He laughed and said something that didn’t really register, but had to do with my bleeding all over a federal vehicle.

  I tilted sideways when Nic took a sharp turn, but I didn’t have the energy to get a hand up to slow my descent to the leather seat. Dimly, I saw Siska dialing his cell phone and lifting it to his ear. I caught a stream of what sounded like the language Koda sometimes spoke. There was a sense of urgency to Siska’s voice that surprised me, since I hadn’t imagined much of anything upset the powerful vampire. Then he was in the backseat with me, gently taking my backpack from my shoulders and rooting around in it. Things went blank for a short span and I could feel my body beginning to shut down—after all the shading, the frenzy, multiple injuries and the blood loss, the only surprising thing was that I’d held on this long.

  When I came to, it was to find Siska shoving a crushed jelly bean between my teeth—it was the sweetness that revived me. His concerned gaze found mine and he smiled encouragingly. “Chew, Sephti. Koda says you need sugar.”

  “Koda?” I rasped, stirring a little as the candy melted on my tongue.

  “Yes. He’s on the phone.”

  A low rumble came from the cell Siska held between his jaw and shoulder.

  Swallowing, I slurred, “Sounds…mad.”

  A second squashed jelly bean was pushed past my lips. “Naaa, he’s too freaked out to be mad.” Another rumble came from the phone’s little speaker. Siska made a face. “Koda says to tell you he’s beyond mad. He’s pissed.” Yet another rumble. “And freaked out.”

  “Koda says. Koda says.” Nic barked a laugh. “I feel like I’m back in junior high school. Next thing, you’ll be passing notes for them, Siska.”

  Shooting her a black look, he fed half the bag to me, one flattened jelly bean at a time. Sighing at the invigorating rush of sugar hitting my bloodstream, I got more upright. “Is Koda still wherever he went when he left Dallas?”

  Siska nodded.

  “So you know where he is?”

  His face a mask, he nodded again.

  “You’re not going to tell me.” I cranked an eyebrow. “Are you?”

  Holding my gaze, something flickered in his clouded eyes as he shook his head. “That’s for Koda to do.” He winced as the cell’s earpiece erupted with invective.

  I didn’t say anything. Hiding my shock that Koda was still on the phone, I took the bag of jelly beans from Siska and ate a handful.

  Sighing, he responded angrily in their melodic language, shooting a dirty look at Nic when she snapped at him in the same tongue. Furious that I was the only one who didn’t understand, I looked out the window and chewed in silence.

  After a brief back-and-forth, Siska closed his cell with a snap. I could feel him studying me, but refused to meet his gaze. A long moment passed before he said quietly, “I told Koda you’re better now, that the candy he told me to give you did the trick.”

  “Thank you.” My voice was tight and not just the pain from my injuries made it so.

  Another long moment stretched. “I also told him that I’m going to send you to Jack.”

  This brought my head around. “You are? What’s changed?”

  “Two things. I saw you fight—”

  “You saw me lose control,” I interrupted bitterly.

  “I saw you fight,” Siska repeated. “You regained control as soon as the threat was neutralized.”

  “You had to pin me!” I wasn’t arguing just to argue, but I was damned if I’d be patronized. Not by Siska. Not by anyone.

  “You let me pin you, Sephti. I’ve met and fought bitterns before. Never have I come across one that had that kind of control. Not until you.” He gave me a put-upon look. “Are you trying to talk me out of helping you?”

  I shook my head, having to look away from his gaze—equal parts irritation and concern. Seeking refuge in humor, I popped a jelly bean in my mouth. “To have seen my kind fight, you must’ve pissed off a lot of fae.”

  “Hell, yeah. Every chance I get.”

  “Ah. A fellow fanatic.” I smiled faintly. “So what was your second reason for introducing me to Jack?”

  “I asked Koda if the situation were reversed, would he thank me for blocking his path the way he’s asking me to block yours.”

  I whistled soundlessly, imagining Koda’s reaction. “Wow. You are really into pissing people off.”

  Siska grinned. “We go way back. He’ll get over it.”

  Folding up the now-empty plastic bag and tucking it into my backpack, I considered Siska’s change of heart. Weariness pulled at me, but my blood sugar was at acceptable levels and I was safe—for now—from the bittern coma. “So what happened to not wanting to cause Koda any more upset?”

  Siska shook his head. “Ask me later, after all of this is behind us.”

  Nic growled from the driver’s seat. “Seriously? You’re not going to tell her what you told him?”

  “Enough, Nic,” he snapped.

  “Enough, my ass,” she snapped back. “Cupid here told Koda that there’s more to life than duty. He said—”

  “Nic!” Siska rumbled a warning.

  “Oh yeah, that’s so gonna shut me up.” She tossed her head. “Siska said Koda needs to get off his deerskin-covered ass. That he should either wish you well in killing Philippe and as many fae as possible before you die or give you a damn fine reason to abandon your suicidal plan.”

  Siska sighed. “Still channeling junior high?”

  She smirked. “Still listening to 1930s ballads?”

  The corner of his mouth twitched. “I’m up to the ’40s now.”

  “I swear I don’t get why you waste your time on sentimental bullshit.”

  Focused as she was negotiating the busy streets of Chicago’s downtown, Nic didn’t see the flood of emotion cross Siska’s face—a maelstrom of hope, frustration and longing. Before he caught me noticing, I busied myself closing my backpack. Dignity is a fine thing to fall back on, but only if no one else knows how fragile your hold on it is.

  Despite my resolve not to, I had to ask. “Koda didn’t want to talk to me?”

  Siska’s eyes lifted to my face, shadows swirling in the dark irises. “Oh, he was adamant about talking to you. Demanded I put you on the phone.”

  When Siska didn’t expound, I prodded, “And?”

  “I told him no.”

  “What do you mean, you told him no?” I gasped. “How could you do that?”

  Siska wore a smug smile. “It was my phone.”

  Speechless, I stared at him.

  “Trust me on this, Sephti.” At my scorching look, his smile gentled. “While not an expert on matters of the heart, I’ve had some time recently to observe others who are. What a man needs is a little adversity. A few obstacles thrown in his path. Difficulties to whet his interest. A challenge to—”

  “We get it already,” Nic grumbled. “Friggin’ cavemen.”

  A long silence built in the SUV, broken only by the occasional outraged bleat of horns behind us at Nic’s aggressive driving.

  “Deerskin-covered ass,” I echoed. “You actually said that to
him?”

  “Yeah.” Siska grimaced. “I figure about now, Koda is calling me every foul name he can think of in every language he’s ever known. Sometime after that, he’s going to realize I’m right. He’ll leave the all-nations meeting in his brother’s capable hands and get himself up here.”

  “You’re wrong.”

  Siska raised a brow. “Am I?”

  “You talked about obstacles—”

  “Don’t forget adversity, challenges and difficulties.” Nic wiggled her fingers in the rearview mirror when Siska flipped her off.

  Thinking about what he was implying…hell, in what he was trying to help along, I stared at him. “There’s no possible way Koda and I could be togeth—”

  Siska interrupted, “Spare me the arguments about history and race. I don’t buy into either.”

  “No?” I asked archly.

  “No.”

  “Rea-lly?” Drawing out the first syllable, I rolled my eyes in Nic’s direction.

  “There are things you don’t understand,” he gritted, giving me a look intended to make me shut up.

  As if.

  “Well, maybe there are things you don’t understand, either!”

  “For crying out loud, could we please talk about something else?” Nic groaned. “Y’know. Like how we’re going to kill Philippe?”

  “Maybe he could just bite me,” I grumbled, emphasizing the last two words for Siska’s benefit.

  A funny look crossed his face, one that had nothing to do with my not-so-subtle insult. “You know, that’s not a bad idea.”

  Chapter Ten

  Nic cut across two lanes of traffic to barrel into the mouth of a parking garage, giving the traditional one-finger salute at the cacophony of car horns behind us. The sudden swerve flung me up against the SUV’s left back passenger window. I saw the brief blur of a pedestrian’s chalk-white face as the front bumper missed him by mere inches, then we were rocketing up the ramp like the Wild Hunt was hot on our trail.

  Nic tapped the brakes just long enough to snag a ticket from a parking attendant whose mouth hung open in a perfect O. The SUV’s engine roared and we were off like a shot, the tires barking on the garage’s pavement as Nic took us higher and higher around the circling ramps until we were almost on the top level. She spotted an open space just ahead and the force of her mind-boggling acceleration pressed me back into the seat. It didn’t seem to register with her that the space she was aiming for required parking parallel and not head-on.