Arctic Fire

by Erica Stevens

  “Any marks would have healed by now,” Rat-Face replied.

  “Perhaps, but if he’s fed from her recently, they could still be on her body somewhere.”

  Quinn’s stomach clenched. Julian had fed from her before she’d gone to work, but the bite mark was on her inner thigh. If they decided to strip her in order to look…

  Don’t move! She barked the order at herself, but it was taking everything she had not to squirm against the chains binding her when someone grabbed hold of her chin and turned her head back and forth.

  “No marks,” Rat-Face replied.

  “Hmm. It would be a huge bonus for us if they were mates,” the other man said. “We’d not only have control of the vampire of the prophecy, but also one of the remaining two Elders.”

  “Julian won’t bow to our will, no matter whose mind we have under our control,” Helena replied.

  “How do you know?” Rat-Face demanded.

  “I’ve met him, I know,” Helena replied absently.

  “We should strip her and see if there are any of his marks on her,” the other male said. The eagerness of his voice made her already queasy stomach pitch and roll.

  “And if there are, what would that prove? Have you never fed from another vampire in the throes of passion?” Helena asked.

  “Perhaps, but I’ve never allowed another to feed from me.”

  “Well, aren’t you special,” Helena drawled. “I have.” Another hand clasped hold of her chin. The tips of Helena’s pointed fingernails dug into her skin as Helena lifted her chin and took a long, deep sniff of her neck. Seeming to find what she was looking for, Helena abruptly released Quinn. Her chin slumped back to her chest. “There is another’s blood in her, and it’s powerful.”

  “Julian’s?” Rat-Face asked.

  “I can think of no one else’s it would be,” Helena replied.

  “It’s best if you let me at her mind,” Rat-Face said. “If she’s ours, we’ll control them both.”

  “You’re very eager for this, Earl,” Helena replied. “Maybe too eager.”

  Earl! Quinn almost laughed at the innocuous name. Over the years, she’d imagined what his name would be, but could never come up with a name monstrous enough for the man who had laughed as he’d pinned her to the floor with his knives before draining her dry. Earl had never been one of the names to cross her mind. Satan or Lucifer had been her top two.

  “I’m only eager to see us reclaim our rightful place, Helena. She could lead with me,” Earl replied.

  “Do you really think we would allow you to be our leader,” the other man replied. “You’re younger than either of us.”

  “I’m almost two centuries old,” Earl replied.

  “And we are nearing three hundred. You are still a teen in comparison.”

  “Fine,” Earl relented, “but she could be my bride.”

  “If we agree to you taking control of her mind, I will not allow you to abuse her in such a way,” Helena replied. “She is not to be touched by any man she does not give her willing consent to.”

  A man had once hurt her, Quinn realized and actually felt a stab of sorrow for the powerful woman standing next to her. The last thing Helena deserved was her pity, but she knew well what it was like to be at the mercy of others.

  Quinn could practically feel Earl seething, but he didn’t argue with Helena. “Fine, she will simply do what she is told to do, when she is told to do it,” he relented.

  Quinn didn’t buy that for one second, she doubted Helena did either, but the three of them finally stopped bickering. “When she wakes, we’ll have her readied to be brought before the others. Perhaps we should get some weight back on her too,” Helena murmured.

  “If you’re not going to let me control her, then keep her weak. She’ll destroy anyone she gets her hands on otherwise.”

  “A weak vampire of prophecy is no good to us,” the other man said. “If we’re not able to use her to destroy our enemies, we might as well kill her now, so no one else can get their hands on her.”

  Apprehension slid down Quinn’s spine. Helena’s sharp tipped fingernails pinched her skin as she grabbed Quinn’s chin once again. “You are right, what good is this pathetic creature to us? Earl, when she awakes take control of her mind.”

  No! The scream echoed within Quinn’s head. Her heart twisted at the idea of this monster having control of her in such a way. If Helena thought Earl wouldn’t use her in every way possible before turning her against anyone he deemed a threat to him, she was sadly mistaken.

  “I have a feeling that won’t be much longer,” Earl replied.

  Quinn heard a single footstep before a hand grasped her breast, twisting it cruelly as he fondled it. Instinct brought her instantly to life; she came up spitting at him as he laughed in her face. Quinn’s fangs burst free of her mouth; rage poured through her body, replacing her physical weakness.

  She swung her legs forward, jerking and twisting violently against the chains binding her wrists and ankles in an attempt to break free. Earl released her breast and stepped away. Quinn lunged forward again, her fangs only inches from his face.

  Something behind her gave a groaning creak. Metal bent and twisted as she swung her legs forward again. There was a lessening in the tightness of the chains as something gave way. She may not be at her strongest, but with her heritage and Julian’s blood, she was still stronger than any normal vampire of her age would be.

  “Guards!” Helena shouted.

  Three vampires rushed into the room as Quinn swung her legs forward, dragging the heavy weight of the chain with her. She caught the first guard under the chin with the end of the chain. Blood burst from his mouth as he staggered into the wall. Twisting to the side, she smashed her feet into the chest of the next one who lunged at her. The force of her kick knocked him into the vampire behind him.

  Swinging herself up, her feet hit the ceiling before she pushed herself down again. She landed on the shoulders of the third guard, causing him to grunt from the force of her weight. Her thighs clamped against the sides of the man’s head. He howled and grabbed at her thighs as she began to compress his skull. Tentacles of power slithered out and latched onto the man’s face. A groan of pleasure escaped her as more of his life seeped into her body, replenishing her strength.

  Before she could feed from him too much, the chains clasped to her ankles were jerked down with enough force to knock her victim’s feet out from under him. They toppled toward the ground together. A scream tore from Quinn when the chains binding her wrists abruptly stopped her fall. Her shoulders popped out of their joints with a resounding crack that reverberated within the small confines of the room.

  Helena and the other man had scurried away from her, but Earl stood before her with a smug smile on his lips. He held up the chain he’d grabbed for her to see before slipping it over one of the massive metal hooks jutting from the wall. He turned to give a pointed look at Helena.

  “Do you see why she must be kept under control?” he inquired.

  “Yes,” Helena murmured, her eyes filled with admiration and dread as they ran over Quinn.

  Despite the excruciating pain it caused in her shoulders, Quinn strained against her bonds when Earl came at her with a malicious gleam in his eyes.

  CHAPTER 24

  Julian would have given anything to be able to get out of this RV and run through the desert in search of her. Being confined to this rolling tin can was making him edgier by the second. Turning away from where he stood by Luther, he paced to the back of the vehicle and through the doorway to the bedroom beyond. He caught a glimpse of his blazing red eyes and strained face when he walked past the bathroom. The thin thread holding the last of his control together felt about to fray.

  Lou watched him warily when he walked back through, but the others kept their gazes focused outside. Chris turned toward him as Luther parked at the side of the road just past the driveway of The Rising Moon Ranch.

  “Pull in there,”
Julian commanded.

  “What if they’ve got the security system running again or if someone has shown up to watch the ranch?” Lou inquired.

  “Then you’d better come up with some excuse for them,” Julian said, “before I kill them.”

  Melissa rested her hand on Julian’s arm, drawing his attention to her. She subtly shook her head as Lou nervously glanced away from him. Julian’s teeth clamped together; he didn’t have time to coddle a teenage Guardian right now. Every passing second was one more Quinn was in the hands of someone who would destroy her.

  If they ever got out of this mess, he didn’t care how badly it hurt, he would make his body able to withstand the sun. Never would he be this helpless again. Never would he be hindered in any way from getting to her.

  Luther put the RV in drive and did a twenty point turn in the middle of the roadway. He’d finally gotten the RV turned around when a black car materialized on the horizon. It sped toward them, its illegally tinted windows making it impossible for him to see anyone inside it. Julian rested his hand on the back of the passenger seat where Clint sat.

  Just as Luther was about to turn into the driveway, the car slid to a sideways stop before them, blocking their entrance to the road. “Who is that?” Clint muttered.

  “I don’t know, but they just signed their death certificate,” Julian vowed.

  Dani rose to her feet beside him. A new scent filled the air when the driver’s side door of the car opened. Julian’s deadened heart leapt hopefully in his chest at the same time he breathed, “No.”

  “Devon,” Melissa whispered.

  Devon slid from behind the wheel of the sleek new Challenger. Dark sunglasses shadowed his emerald eyes; his wavy black hair fell around his face. He turned back toward the car and said something before closing the door and walking toward the RV. He didn’t get far before the passenger side door of the car opened.

  “Get the door open!” Julian barked at Chris, but Chris was already scrambling toward the door.

  Devon jumped over the hood of the car grabbing hold of Cassie as she stepped from the vehicle. Within seconds, the blanket covering her began to smoke from her burning skin. Devon pulled her against his chest and ran with her toward them. He tossed her through the door of the RV. He stormed up the stairs behind her, his eyes red behind his glasses.

  Despite the turmoil rolling through him at losing Quinn and having Cassie here, Julian had to fight the urge to laugh. He understood Devon’s frustration all too well now that Quinn had walked into his life. However, he still found it amusing to watch the normally composed Devon unravel in an instant.

  Cassie tossed the blanket off her head. She scowled as she smoothed back her long, golden hair now standing in a million different directions from static electricity. Her violet-blue eyes flashed to Devon, and she frowned at him. A red burn on her cheek marred her otherwise perfect features and porcelain skin. She was as beautiful as he recalled, but looking at her now, he felt nothing other than friendship toward her as Quinn’s striking, honeyed eyes floated across his mind.

  “I still had some time,” Cassie protested to Devon. “You didn’t have to toss me inside.”

  “Seconds,” he shot back. Devon showed no ill effect from the sun. After years of working to withstand its rays, Devon was the only vampire in existence who could tolerate it. “I told you to wait in the car.”

  “I don’t like to wait.”

  Julian rested his hand on the cabinet over his head as she finally looked at him. “I see you’ve still got a death wish, Solar.”

  Her haughty expression softened to one of sorrow. His eyes widened at that look; his hand clamped on the cabinet door so forcefully he tore it from its hinges. Had she received a vision and knew something about Quinn he didn’t?

  “Julian, I’m so sorry,” she said.

  “What did you see?” he growled.

  Devon stepped forward; he rested his hand against Julian’s chest. “Easy,” he urged.

  Cassie shook off the last of the blanket and rose to her feet. “It’s okay, Devon.” She rested her hand on his arm, pulling him away as she focused on Julian again. “I only saw what she would become if she falls into the wrong hands. I convinced Devon to come here after he told me one of our own had staked you. Melissa filled us in on the events of last night.”

  Julian shot Melissa a look, but she shrugged negligently. “They were already on their way here,” she replied nonchalantly. “They had to know what they were walking into.”

  “You could have told me they were coming,” he grated.

  “It wouldn’t have made a difference. We need their help, and I wasn’t going to turn it down.”

  “Is that really the only vision you’ve had of Quinn?” he demanded of Cassie.

  “Yes.” She looked away guiltily before focusing on him again. “If we can’t save her, she has to be destroyed. I’ve seen the amount of good she will be capable of, but I’ve also seen the amount of destruction she could create, if she falls into the wrong hands.”

  The cabinet door snapped in half in his grasp. Devon stepped forward again, but this time he didn’t bother to touch Julian; he only nudged Cassie back with his shoulder. Such a foolish gesture, Julian thought inanely. If Cassie decided to unleash the full force of her power, she was stronger than he and Devon combined.

  Julian spun away, his shoulders heaving. He had to destroy something, had to sink his fangs into it and tear it to pieces. His gaze swung over the occupants of the RV as the beat of their hearts became as loud as drums in his head. He had to get out of here before he killed someone.

  “Meet me at the ranch,” he shot over his shoulder and leapt out of the RV and into the sun.

  “Stop him!” Cassie shouted.

  He barely felt the burning rays of the sun as he raced across the sand in massive leaps and bounds that ate away at the distance. The run didn’t ease any of his hostility, but he was out of the RV, away from all the tempting heartbeats and pulsing blood.

  His mind spun with the implications of what Cassie had told him. It didn’t matter what Quinn did, he realized as flames danced from the tips of his fingers and up his arms. He’d love her no matter what she became. No matter what they did to her while they had her, she would always be the only woman he’d ever truly love. She would always be his.

  If she had to be destroyed before she could be used for evil, he would do it. Then he would walk into the sun and welcome the rays that would sear away his flesh and bones. No matter how much he loved and needed her, he would never allow her to be used to hurt and destroy others. She would rather be dead before that ever happened, rather be dead than have her mind controlled by someone else; she’d said so herself.

  He heard the loud rev of an engine and glimpsed the Challenger in the distance as Devon raced the car down the drive, almost keeping pace with him. “Get in!” Devon shouted at him, but Julian ignored him as he leapt over a large cactus. He darted to the side as flames began to consume his clothes and body.

  Withstand it! he shouted to himself, even as he felt the skin melting from his bones.

  The ranch came into view. Turning to the left, he raced toward the massive building used to house the temporary workers. He slid down the hill as his skin peeled away and his muscles started to feed the flames. The pain of the fire eating at his flesh had nothing on the pain twisting his heart and tearing at his soul.

  He slammed into the door of the building, tearing it from its hinges as he staggered into the shadows. Falling to his knees, he rolled across the floor as something fell over the top of him. Hands rapidly ran over him, smothering the flames beneath their blanketing touch. With the flames smothered, Devon pulled whatever he’d draped over him away. He didn’t scowl at Julian, didn’t tell him he was an idiot; he simply tossed the ruined blanket aside and stepped away.

  The charred muscles of his flesh cracked when Julian shoved himself to his feet. Fresh blood spilled from open wounds, but at least the flames had been dous
ed. His clothes were nothing more than tatters sticking to his flesh as he moved through the building. Wordlessly, he led the way upstairs to the bedroom he’d discovered earlier.

  The bottoms of his feet stuck to the floor as he walked. Charred bits of flaking muscle and skin fell on the ground behind him, but he could already see fresh veins and flesh beginning to form. He threw the door open to reveal the sickening display of the family gathered around the table and stepped back to let Devon enter first. It had only been a few hours since Julian was last here, but the stench of the rotting bodies was more potent than it had been before.

  A low hiss escaped Devon when he took in the scene before them. Devon’s shoulders thrust back as he circled the bodies surrounding the table. Julian knew Devon wouldn’t recognize this scene for what it truly was, but he would recognize the drive of the twisted mind who had created it. He would recognize it as something he too may have done in the past, just as Julian had.

  “What is this?” Devon demanded.

  Before Julian could answer, he heard a set of nimble footsteps running up the stairs and turned as Cassie stalked down the hall toward him. “What were you thinking?” she shouted. “You could have gotten yourself killed, you stupid, foolish, idiot! Look at you! You look like a crisp fried corpse! What good is a crisp fried corpse to anyone? I knew you were reckless, but this…”

  Her scolding tirade broke off when she spotted the decaying bodies positioned within the room. Her hand flew to her mouth as she took a step away from the scene. Devon stopped walking on the other side of the table. His eyes narrowed on the two girls.

  At the end of the hall, the others appeared at the top of the stairs; they didn’t come any closer. Seeing it once had been enough for them. Clint may not have seen it first hand, but he’d been informed about it and remained where he was. They probably didn’t want to get anywhere near him right then either. He didn’t blame them for that.

  “I don’t understand,” Cassie whispered. “Why would someone do this?”