by Susan Illene
He flinched a little when she first started work, but slowly his tension eased. She kept a close watch on his face, regularly checking his mood as she tattooed the outline of the reaper. Hayden was handling the pain reasonably well. With each customer, their tolerance varied and she tried to always keep that in mind.
Cori finished the outline and went to rinse the needle out when she heard the shop door chime. She glanced at the clock, noting it couldn’t be Asher since he wasn’t supposed to arrive until five. Of course, someone would show up while she was busy. She hoped that someday she’d make enough profit on the place to hire an extra person to work at the front desk full time.
Half turning toward the doorway, she called out, “I’ll be with you in a minute.”
“No need.” A grizzly-looking man wearing faded jeans and a long-sleeve flannel shirt stepped into view.
Hayden lifted his head. “What the…?”
The intruder raised a huge knife with a serrated edge. Murderous intent filled his eyes, and it was all for her. Cori leaped to her feet, knocking over her stool and losing her grip on her tattoo machine. It clattered to the floor. The man glanced down at it for the barest moment before he came barreling toward her.
She jumped out of the way, slamming her hip into the counter where she kept all her supplies. Cori knocked over several bottles as she moved to get farther away. Hitting her back against the far wall, she froze in horror as the attacker slipped on one of the containers rolling across the floor and went flying into Hayden. With his knife still raised, the tip sunk into her customer’s shoulder at the edge of the tattoo outline. Hayden let out a cry of pain and struggled to turn over, but the man’s weight pinned him down. Her heart leaped into her throat. She should have protected him instead of trying to save herself.
Cori frantically searched the room for her purse. She couldn’t remember where she put it, but she had to get her father’s revolver. How could she have relaxed her guard so much that she didn’t have it within arm’s reach? Her gaze finally fell on the leather bag at the end of the counter near the door. While her attacker struggled with Hayden, she dashed over and snatched the weapon from where it lay just inside her purse. With shaking hands, she spun on her heels to aim it at the intruder.
“Stop!” she yelled.
The grizzly man yanked the blade free, his hands sticky with her customer’s blood. Hayden rolled onto his side, eyes wide with shock. He was struggling to get up, but his breathing was ragged as if he could hardly draw in air.
“Run,” he choked out.
Cori developed a whole new respect for him in that moment, but she couldn’t go anywhere. She turned her attention back to her attacker. The man’s eyes were glazed over as he faced her, clutching his blade. “I have to hurt you real bad, but not kill you.”
He said it like a command with no emotion. She’d suspected this wasn’t a random intruder from the start, but now her suspicions were confirmed. Griff had taken control of an innocent person and ordered him to come into her shop to attack her.
She aimed the revolver at his chest, hating that she had to choose between herself and an innocent man caught in a vampire’s revenge. “If you move, I’ll shoot.”
“Must not stop until I’m done,” he replied, unflinching.
Only a few feet separated them. He might have been ordered to only wound her, but he could still make a mistake that would end her life. Cori couldn’t take any chances, especially with Hayden already injured. This had to end as quickly as possible before her customer died from his stab wound.
When the attacker raised his knife and took a step forward, he left her no choice. Cori squeezed the trigger. A loud crack rent the air, piercing her ears. The man let out a cry of pain as he stumbled backward. She’d hit the grizzly man square in the chest, but she didn’t see any signs of blood—only a hole in the flannel with black underneath. Shit! He was wearing a bulletproof vest. She hadn’t even considered Griff would care enough to protect a human he sent after her, but she supposed he did know she had a gun, and he’d want the person he sent to finish the job.
Cori inched toward the doorway. At this point, she had two choices. Shoot the man in the head, an innocent person under compulsion, or try to get away and find help. Before she could decide, the attacker came for her again. She lowered her aim and shot him in the thigh.
He blinked and stumbled on his next step as blood started soaking his jeans. His gaze met hers with the kind of single-minded determination one usually only saw in crazy people or those on hardcore drugs. She took another step back, crossing the door’s threshold, then turned and ran. Loud grunts came from behind her as if a linebacker was on her tail. The next thing she knew, a piercing pain sliced through her side, and she went flying to the floor. Cori crashed into it hard, busting her elbows and knees in the process. She twisted around, and the attacker fell on top of her, pinning her legs in place. He leaned forward with a growl. The knife came down again, plunging into her left shoulder just beneath the collar bone.
Cori screamed as unbelievable pain shot through her. It hurt so badly that she could hardly think, but the man was already pulling the blade back out. The look in his eyes said he wasn’t done yet. She swept her right hand across the floor and came into contact with her fallen revolver. Taking a shaky breath, she lifted it and pressed the business end to the man’s head.
“Last chance to stop,” she said.
No reaction. Except for her attempt on Griff’s life, she’d never killed a human being before. She’d gotten into plenty of fights, and she didn’t have a problem shooting at annoying supernaturals like Kerbasi, but murdering a stranger had never been on her bucket list. So many thoughts ran through her head as she stared into the burly man’s eyes. He was just a pawn, but it was either him or her, and she wasn’t quite ready to die yet.
As the knife came down, she squeezed the trigger. A loud crack pierced her eardrums at the same time as blood and brain matter splattered all over her. The man slumped forward onto her chest, his knife narrowly missing striking her again. Cori couldn’t breathe, though she wanted nothing more than to scream. The weight on top of her felt closer to an elephant than a human being, and one of her arms was too numb to shove him off. Everything was starting to go black when the image of a troll appeared above her.
“Ya bleedin’ idiot,” Bambi said with a scowl. “Ya couldn’t shoot him in the arm instead of killin’ him? He coulda given us a clue!” She grabbed the huge man’s arm and pulled him away as if he weighed nothing.
Cori dragged in several gulps of air before speaking, “Could have used you about two minutes ago. Where were you?”
“Hurryin’ as fast as I could.” Bambi grunted, setting the attacker down a few feet away. “Ya hardly gave me much warnin’, so I didn’t make it here ‘till you were already shootin’ him fer the second time. Text for help next time!”
Yeah, because if she had to choose between grabbing her gun or her cell phone when she had a guy with a knife coming at her, texting would be the obvious choice. Cori wasn’t going to bother responding to that. She could feel her life spilling out on the tile below her, and darkness threatened her vision. “My customer,” she gasped. “He was hurt, too.”
“I’m callin’ for help now. You just wait,” Bambi said.
Cori gasped one final breath before everything went black.
Chapter 15
Bartol
Bartol crouched next to Lucas inside a thick forest of trees, staring through the vegetation at an old hunting cabin in the middle of a small clearing. It was mid-afternoon, and all was quiet. They’d gotten a tip from the master of Fairbanks, Derrick, about a report he’d received of several vampires hiding out in the area. Normally, the alpha would have come straight to the location to check it out himself, but he knew they were on the hunt for Cori’s former husband, so he called Lucas first.
“There could be vampires in there—desperate ones,” Bartol said, speaking in a low tone.
&nb
sp; The cabin was in poor condition with broken steps, cracked glass in the windows, and shingles missing from the roof. Someone had taken the time to make some improvements, though. Thick cloth covered the windows from the inside, and there was a new door at the front. Those were the sort of things vampires would make a priority. The only reason they couldn’t be certain was that it was too dark inside to take a look through their flashing “sight.”
Lucas nodded. “Agreed. How do you want to handle this?”
Bartol glanced at the nephilim, confused. Cori was closer to Lucas and his wife than him. He was only helping out because they were his friends. “Why are you asking me?”
“The human woman and her safety became your responsibility when you took on the role of being her protector,” Lucas replied, giving him a pointed look. “You wouldn’t have done that for just anyone.”
Bartol worked his jaw. He didn’t need to hear this from one of his oldest friends after already hearing about it from the others. “I was nearby when she was attacked the first time, and I live close enough to keep an eye on her. That is all.”
Lucas gave him a hard stare. “If she means absolutely nothing to you, then go. I can handle this alone.”
There was no way he’d leave now.
“What does it matter what I feel?” Bartol could not understand why everyone was interested in his feelings, or why they wished to meddle with him and Cori. Could they not just let them be?
“Because I do not want you to suffer the way I did with Melena. For many years, we denied the attraction we had for each other. It cost us dearly, and since we’ve admitted our love, we’ve spent more time apart than together.” Lucas shook his head. “I am not one to discuss my personal life openly, but I would not wish that fate on a good friend if I can help him.”
Bartol had spent some time with Lucas in Purgatory and seen him suffer all kinds of tortures, but he’d never witnessed the nephilim open up like this. The regret in his gaze spoke volumes about what he’d gone through to be with Melena. It also said a lot that he chose to talk about it now.
“I can hardly stand to touch her,” Bartol admitted.
A brief flash of sympathy showed in Lucas’ eyes. “It won’t be like that forever, and if anyone can help you get past that problem, it would be Cori.”
“She isn’t exactly perfect herself.” Bartol turned his gaze toward the cabin. It was still daylight, so the vampires wouldn’t be going anywhere for a while, but it couldn’t hurt to keep an eye on the place while they talked. “She has told me more than once that she isn’t looking for a serious relationship, only physical.”
Lucas snorted. “Melena used to be the same way, perhaps worse.”
Bartol ran his fingers through his hair. He didn’t want to talk about this, and yet he felt a strange need to explain himself. Perhaps if he did, his friend would drop the subject. “Cori is different than any woman I’ve ever met before,” he said, choosing his words carefully. “I have this fear inside of me that whatever part of me Kerbasi didn’t break, she could finish off, given a chance. Some might think it is ridiculous, but it’s true.”
“Have you considered you might hold that same power over her?” Lucas asked.
Bartol frowned. “How so?”
“Look at what we’re doing right now. She has an abusive ex-husband who is harassing her and likely wants to kill her after he’s done making her as miserable as possible. A man like that must have damaged her. The fact she’s even willing to get close to you says she trusts you more than she’s admitting—perhaps even to herself.”
“She is still hiding things from me. I can tell by the way she talks about her past that she is leaving details out.” It bothered Bartol and made him that much more wary around her.
Lucas lifted a brow. “And how much have you told her about yourself?”
“Very little.”
“And you don’t see the irony in that?” he asked, incredulous. “One thing I’ve learned about Melena is the more I hide from her, the more she hides from me. She hates me keeping parts of myself and my past from her.”
Bartol looked away. “I’m not looking to be more than Cori’s neighbor and maybe a friend. There is no need for us to bare our souls.”
Lucas sighed. “Do what you wish, friend. This is clearly something you two are going to have to work out on your own.”
“I think it’s time we search the cabin.” Bartol stood, ready for the discussion to be over. This place probably wouldn’t turn out any more useful than the others they’d tried in the past few days, but he could hope.
“Very well.” Lucas rose to his feet.
After taking a moment to coordinate how they would proceed once they were inside, they flashed into the cabin. It was pitch black in the room with only the tiniest rays of light coming from the edges of the window drapes. Bartol had to squint to make out the sleeping forms of three vampires in the corner where it was darkest. Using his power, he pushed soft light out through his skin. It wasn’t like the sun and wouldn’t harm the vampires. The ability came from his angelic half—a natural magic he rarely used except in cases such as this. Lucas followed his example, doing the same until the interior of the cabin was bathed in a soft glow.
“Wake,” Bartol commanded.
The vampires lifted their heads, one woman and two men. As soon as they saw the intruders, they jumped to their feet. One of the men grabbed a scimitar from his pallet and stepped in front of the others in a protective posture. The glow Bartol and Lucas emitted gave away what kind of supernaturals they were, so the vampires knew better than to attempt attacking. They were well aware they’d lose in a fight against nephilim.
“What do you want?” the lead man asked with a hint of a northeastern accent.
Bartol skimmed their faces, noting none of them had any resemblance to Cori’s former husband. He pulled out a picture of Griff and held it out. “Have any of you seen this man?”
The vampire with the scimitar hesitated, but when Bartol gave him a lethal look, he quickly moved forward to study the photo. Recognition lit in his features. “Yeah, saw him a couple of weeks ago. He traveled with us for a while until I had to kick him out of our group.”
Bartol’s shoulders eased with relief. They’d finally tracked down someone who could verify Griff was in the area and perhaps could tell them more. “Why did you make him leave?”
“Too much trouble. The man had a violent temper, and I didn’t like the way he treated my sister.” He gestured toward the woman behind him. “After he slapped her, I had to make him leave.”
“Do you know why he’s in town?” Bartol asked.
“Said he was searching for a woman, but that was about it.”
Lucas stepped forward. “Why are you here?”
The vampire gulped as he took his first good look at the nephilim. Lucas had an intimidating presence, and he was well known in the supernatural community as being extremely powerful. Few remembered Bartol since he’d been away for too long. And while he could fight with the best of them, he’d preferred to spend his time with women during the last few centuries before he landed in Purgatory. The world had forgotten about him, which was perfectly fine as far as he was concerned.
“Too many vampires are being killed in their nests where we lived before. It was only a matter of time before we were next. I heard the humans are more tolerant in Fairbanks, so I decided to bring my brother and sister here,” the vampire said, speaking in a hesitant tone. “Is there a problem with that?”
“You should have registered with the master for this area. Why didn’t you?” Lucas asked.
The vampire shifted on his feet. “Heard he was a werewolf. We were afraid he might not let us stay since there’s so many of us coming here, which is why we picked a place far outside of town.”
In fact, they were barely within Derrick’s territory. The cabin where they were staying was well out of Fairbanks to the west of the city. Bartol had wondered why they’d chosen such a remote pla
ce when they’d need to feed from humans on a regular basis. Unlike what he’d seen in the movies Melena and Emily made him watch while he lived with them, bagged blood was no good—not that these vampires would have had a way to keep it cool without electricity or a refrigerator, anyway.
Bartol studied the man. “He won’t force you to leave, assuming you didn’t cause trouble where you came from last. I’m more curious about how you came into contact with Griff.”
The two men and woman looked at each other, relief in their gazes. They’d truly believed this was the best they could hope to find for living quarters. Judging by their name brand clothing, which Bartol could thank Emily for teaching him about, this group could afford to buy nice things. It was only the concern for their safety that kept them hidden in a single-room cabin where the humans were few and far between.
The lead vampire addressed Bartol, “We all came from Albany together. In fact, Griff was the one to suggest Fairbanks but told us to avoid talking to the alpha werewolf because he wouldn’t like us.” He shook his head. “I guess I should have known that was a lie.”
“You haven’t seen him at all since he left?” Bartol asked, using compulsion to ensure the man told the truth. He couldn’t influence elder vampires, but this family couldn’t have been turned more than two or three decades ago. The hum of power coming from them was soft and only beginning to grow into something stronger.
“No, but we’ve mostly kept to ourselves except going out to feed.”
Bartol hid his disappointment. He had to console himself that at least they’d learned something new. Griff was smart enough to stay on the fringes of this territory and avoid the alpha, which meant they could stop bothering to search for him closer to town. He might have only risked going to Cori’s place because she lived far enough out in the bush.
Lucas spoke up, “Go tonight to speak with the master, and after that you can live wherever is preferable to you.” He paused. “As long as you obey the rules.”
