Broken Dawn

by Duvall, Dianne

  All three were totally oblivious to the vampires stalking them.

  The women reached an intersection of three wide sidewalks and absently turned up one.

  Four vampires, whom most onlookers would mistake for students, strode up one path behind them. Four more strolled up another.

  The pack—all male—merged at the intersection and followed the women without a word. One or two looked as though they had made at least some effort with their appearance, so they might be recently turned and not yet mad. The rest were slovenly, greasy-haired, and wore clothing that bore dark stains consisting largely of blood from previous victims.

  The women never once looked back.

  Eliana shook her head. “Aren’t they old enough to know they should pay some damn attention to their surroundings?” she whispered, her voice preternaturally soft so it wouldn’t carry to the vampires.

  Yes. But he’d seen older women and men do the same.

  She nudged his arm. “Let’s go.”

  The two of them left the shadows and crossed to the sidewalk. Eliana again slipped her hand into his as they strolled toward the women.

  The one in sneakers glanced up, then looked at her friends. “Who are they supposed to be,” she muttered sarcastically, “Neo and Trinity?”

  The blonde beside her didn’t even look up.

  The other one glanced at Nick and Eliana, then returned her attention to her phone. “Who the hell are Neo and Trinity?”

  Sneakers rolled her eyes. “From The Matrix?”

  “What’s The Matrix?”

  “Don’t you watch any of the movies your parents mention?”

  “No. I figure if they like it, it must be lame.”

  Sneakers sighed and shook her head.

  Nick prepared to smile and nod at the students as they came abreast of them, but none even looked up. He sighed. Where the hell was the Southern hospitality he’d heard so much about before coming here?

  The students continued along the path behind him, occasionally muttering about posts and he didn’t know what else. Now Nick and Eliana faced the pack of vampires who continued to trail the women, no doubt waiting for them to reach an area with no cameras.

  Eliana squeezed his hand, warning him she was about to begin.

  He fought a smile. Eliana had the most unorthodox approach to vampire hunting he’d ever seen. Usually he and his fellow Immortal Guardians just dove in and attacked when they encountered vampires. If any seemed newly turned, he and his colleagues would sometimes try to talk to them and determine whether they were worth trying to save. So far they had found… maybe a dozen who were and who wanted to be saved. Most vampires, however, were so drunk on the new speed and strength they’d acquired after transforming that they had no interest in searching for a cure or treatment. They enjoyed scaring and hurting others too much.

  The vampires slowed as they shifted their gazes from the students to Nick.

  Vampires in general weren’t the brightest bulbs, so it usually took them a moment to conclude—based on his clothing, coloring, and mannerisms—that Nick was an Immortal Guardian. Then they would either flee or attack. In these numbers, they always attacked.

  But Eliana could pass for a college student. She was small and wore a crop top with her black pants that exposed a strip of pale bare flesh on her flat stomach. The neckline dipped low enough to provide a glimpse of cleavage. The long black coat wasn’t typical of Houstonians—Houston so rarely saw anything approaching winter temperatures now that he often encountered students wearing shorts in December. But even if the coat roused suspicion among vampires, that tended to vanish once she opened her mouth.

  Eliana stopped short and stared at the vampires. Her eyes widened as a smile lit her pretty features. “Jason?” she cried with surprise.

  The vampires slowed to a halt a few yards away and glanced at each other.

  “Oh my gosh! It is you! I can’t believe it!” Releasing Nick’s hand, she skipped forward and threw herself into the arms of a tall, blond vamp in front.

  Eyes widening, the vampire closed his arms around her while his comrades looked on with What the hell? stamped on their faces.

  Nick struggled not to laugh.

  Eliana released the vamp and stepped back. “I haven’t seen you in like two years!” She glanced at a blond vampire standing behind him. “Wait. Is that your cousin? The one who got you into the fraternity? What was his name? Bill, I think?”

  The vampire in question glanced at his buddies, then smirked. “Sure. You can call me Bill.”

  Nick didn’t have to be a telepath to read the dark thoughts that entered each man’s mind. All assumed Eliana would make an easy victim. And she was lovely enough to inspire lust for her body as well as her blood.

  Immortal males dramatically outnumbered immortal females for a reason: few female gifted ones who were attacked survived the vampires’ brutality long enough to complete the transformation. Were Eliana a human, her fate would’ve been sealed as soon as she greeted these vampires.

  But she wasn’t human. She was immortal.

  Eliana smiled up at Bill. “Great to finally meet you.” She waved Nick forward. “This is Nick. We’re on our way back from a party with a Matrix theme. Nick, this is Jason and Bill.”

  The vampires shared a gleeful look as Nick went from possible Immortal Guardian to nerdy second victim in the space of a heartbeat.

  “Are these your frat buddies?” Eliana asked.

  Jason nodded. “Yeah. If y’all aren’t ready to go home, we can take you to another party. We’re on our way there now.”

  Eliana looked up at Nick.

  He shrugged. “I’m up for it.”

  “Excellent!” Grinning, she turned back to Jason. “Let’s go.”

  The vampires closed in around them and resumed their stroll. Some grinned and nudged each other as Eliana embarked upon a steady stream of mindless conversation. Those who had been infected with the vampiric virus the longest practically salivated in anticipation.

  The vampires led Nick and Eliana to a camera-free zone on a less traveled path by one of the auxiliary buildings, then stopped and fanned out, facing them.

  Nick and Eliana positioned themselves so that the vampires were between them and the building.

  Nick tilted his head. “Where’s the party?”

  Jason smirked. “It’s right here, you just don’t know it yet.”

  A few of his friends snickered.

  Eliana looked up at Nick, her smile shifting into a look of exasperation. “I mean, really. That was way too easy. They don’t have a single clue.”

  He shook his head. “None at all. Like taking candy from a baby.”

  “Exactly! Where’s the fun in that?”

  Some of the vampires lost their smug expressions.

  Jason frowned. “What?”

  Nick ignored him. “You have to admit though, it does make our job easier.” There had been times when he’d been unable to herd the vampires he fought to a camera-free zone before they attacked. Messes like that necessitated a call to network headquarters. Camera footage had to be erased. The minds of security guards had to be altered, as did the minds of any students or professors who happened upon the scene. Anything uploaded to the internet had to either be scrubbed or debunked. It was a real pain in the ass.

  “True,” she admitted, then wrinkled her nose. “But it kinda makes it harder for me to kill them. They’re like lambs who led themselves to the slaughter, you know?”

  Jason began to lose patience. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  She sighed. “We’re Immortal Guardians, moron. Look how we’re dressed.”

  Several vampires’ eyes flared, an involuntary response to spikes in emotion… like anger or alarm.

  Bill scowled. “You said you were coming from some geek’s Matrix party.”

  “I lied,” she explained patiently. “Seriously, didn’t your parents warn you about talking to strangers?”

  Nick no
dded. “Particularly those who try to lure you closer with a promise of candy?”

  Eliana motioned to her body. “I’m the candy.”

  “And when she dangled herself in front of you, you pretty much leapt into our windowless van without a backward glance, sealing your doom.”

  She shook her head. “How gullible can you get? You’re adults, for Pete’s sake! You should know better.”

  Jason stiffened. Fury contorted his features as his eyes flashed a brilliant blue. “You’re the ones who are doomed!”

  “Thaaaaat’s it,” Eliana coaxed as she drew two shoto swords. “Get angry.”

  “Or,” Nick added, “you could always surrender. Other vampires have, and we’re doing everything we can to help them.” Not all humans infected with the virus welcomed the insanity. A precious few recognized the monsters they were destined to become and put themselves in the Immortal Guardians’ hands, trusting them to keep them from hurting innocents while the network researched a cure.

  “Only pussies surrender!” Jason snarled as he drew a bowie knife.

  Bill nodded. “And we outnumber you.”

  A particularly sleazy vampire stepped forward, a blade in each hand. “You think you can take all eight of us?”

  “Easily,” Eliana countered.

  Jason’s eyes glinted with the madness that was slowly taking control of him. “Bitch. Let’s see if you’re still saying that that after we kill your boy here and take turns fucking you.”

  The sleazy vamp growled, “Yeah. We’re going to tear you up.”

  Eliana’s brown eyes flashed amber. “Now you had to go and make it gross. I’m going to kick your ass for that, you fucked-up fuck.” She shot forward in a blur.

  Nick drew his own shoto swords and leapt after her.

  Chaos erupted as the other vampires drew blades and dove into the fight.

  Nick and Eliana were indeed outnumbered, but he didn’t fear the outcome. The vampires they fought had spent most of their time sitting on their asses, either in class or playing video games at home. Their weapons might be sharp but were of the poor quality one would find in superstores and online. And they swung them with little proficiency.

  He and Eliana, on the other hand, had endured months of vigorous daily training after their transformations. Master swordsmen, who had been schooled in battle by the best warriors hundreds, if not thousands, of years ago, had drilled them until they, too, became master swordsmen and -women. Their weapons—everything from swords to daggers to throwing stars—were of the finest quality, crafted by swordsmiths who followed in Masamune’s tradition.

  There wasn’t a vampire here who could match them.

  Most of the vampires converged upon Eliana, believing her the easier target because she was so much smaller. And female. Vampires always underestimated female fighters, the weaselly bastards.

  Nick ducked the swing of the first vampire who ran at him. Swiveling, he swung his shoto swords and liberated the vamp’s head from his shoulders. The second vampire’s eyes widened in shock. Then his face contorted with fury as he swung two long bowies at Nick.

  Nick blocked both blows, fended off more, and swept the first blade from the vampire’s fingers.

  The vampire howled in rage, too far gone mentally to feel the fear he should.

  Nick ran the vamp through, then decapitated him. He spun to face Eliana, who had already taken down the sleazy vampire and Jason. The other vampires hovered close, awaiting their opportunity to strike.

  Bill circled around and came up behind her, wielding tactical knives. Face twisting in a sneer, he swung at her.

  Nick blocked the asshole’s swing and positioned himself at Eliana’s back. “Coward!”

  Shicks and tings split the night as he fought off Bill’s blades.

  Someone cried out behind him before another vampire Eliana felled collapsed to the ground.

  Nick’s blades flashed, fending off Bill’s and drawing blood as he opened the vampire’s carotid artery.

  Eyes wide, Bill stumbled backward and fell to the ground.

  Another vampire took his place.

  Nick cut and thrust relentlessly, opening a brachial artery, a femoral artery, and lopping off a head.

  The vampires dropped to the ground.

  As soon as the vamps breathed their last breath, they began to shrivel up as the peculiar symbiotic virus that infected them devoured them from the inside out in a desperate bid to continue living. By the time it finished, there would be nothing left of them but clothing, jewelry, and dental fillings.

  He spun to see how Eliana fared.

  Her last vampire foe fell to the ground like a discarded rag doll.

  Eliana turned to check on him, then glanced down. Blood painted the exposed skin of her stomach, chest, and neck. It also liberally speckled her face. “Well, crap,” she muttered in disgust.

  He laughed, prompting her to shoot him a dirty look.

  Leaning down, he tore a piece off a vampire’s shirt and used it to wipe his blades clean before sheathing them. “Any injuries I should know about?”

  “No. How about you?”

  “I’m good.” Reaching into his back pocket, he withdrew a pristine white handkerchief and held it out to her.

  “Thank you.” She wiped blood from her forehead, cheeks, and chin. “How do you always manage to avoid getting blood on your face and neck?”

  “I don’t. Tonight I lucked out. But I think height might be a factor. You’re shorter than most of the men you battle, so your face is more apt to be sprayed when you open their arteries.”

  “Great.” She wiped her neck, then some of her chest before the handkerchief grew too stained to be of help. “Got another one?”

  Grinning, he took the first from her and stuffed it into his pocket, then handed her a second. “I’m going to call Henderson.”

  “Okay.”

  Palming his cell phone, he dialed the head of the Midwest division of the human network that aided Immortal Guardians.

  “Henderson,” Scott answered absently.

  “It’s Nick. Eliana and I just took out eight vampires at U of H. No witnesses as far as I can tell. And I think we managed to avoid getting caught on camera. But you might want to double-check that. We also need a cleanup crew to come rinse the blood off the pavement and retrieve the vamps’ belongings.” When vampires had roamed alone or in pairs, the network hadn’t had to do much in the way of covering up their disappearances after Immortal Guardians killed them, particularly in a city this size that boasted so much crime. But eight males going missing on the same night might draw notice. Having their personal belongings would help Henderson and his crew identify them and concoct a reasonable explanation for each one’s absence.

  “Okay,” Henderson said. “I can have someone there in five.”

  “Great. Thanks.” He pocketed his phone. “Did you hear that?”

  Nodding, Eliana cleaned her shoto swords and sheathed them. “Too bad it isn’t still raining. That would’ve at least gotten rid of the blood for us.” Again she grimaced. “And rinsed the stench off me. I shouldn’t have hugged that guy. I’m pretty sure he hasn’t bathed in weeks.”

  Nick silently agreed. Eliana reeked. “Do you want to head home for a shower? I can stay here and take care of this.”

  “Actually, I was hoping we could hang out for a while. Max is out of town, visiting family. So the house is too quiet.”

  He smiled. “I think a lot of the Seconds are taking vacations. After the past few years, they deserve it.”

  The Seconds, or human guards, assigned to live with Immortal Guardians sacrificed much for them. They conducted business for them during the day since most immortals could only tolerate limited sun exposure. They lent an appearance of normalcy for nosy neighbors. (Boy, he’d had some nosy neighbors in the past!) They also protected their immortals, providing backup when they needed it. And immortals had needed a hell of a lot of that in recent years.

  Every Immortal Gua
rdian was required to have a Second. Except for Roland Warbrook. That antisocial immortal didn’t trust anyone who lived with him not to kill him. Or at least he hadn’t until a few years ago. Nick still couldn’t believe a female gifted one had fallen in love with the cantankerous male and asked him to transform her so they could spend the rest of eternity together.

  And every Immortal Guardian appreciated his or her Second.

  Nick was no different. “Mine’s in Cabo.”

  “Oliver isn’t home?”

  He shook his head. Nick had insisted he take some time off. “You want to stay at my place tonight?”

  “Sure.” She smiled. “Although I worry it might give the missus the wrong idea.”

  Laughing, he bent and began to collect the fallen vampires’ weapons. “Your worry is unfounded. Kayla isn’t interested in me.”

  Chapter Two

  Kayla reviewed the material on her computer screen, then clicked Send Invoice.

  “Done.” Leaning back in her chair, she indulged in a nice long stretch and glanced at the clock—3:27 a.m. And she wasn’t a bit sleepy.

  She sighed. It hadn’t taken her long at all to inadvertently shift to a new sleep schedule. While she’d homeschooled Becca, she had steadfastly remained on the traditional rise early in the morning and go to bed at a “decent” hour schedule. But Becca was in North Carolina now. And Kayla had always been a night owl.

  At the rate she was going, she didn’t think it would be long before she ended up going to bed when the sun rose. Fortunately, her job as a freelance editor and proofreader allowed her to work whatever hours she liked.

  Rolling her chair back from her desk, she rose and left her home office, shutting the light off behind her.

  It was quieter at night, providing a better work environment, so she saw little harm in the new schedule. Becca usually didn’t call until afternoon or evening anyway.