With a last, long look at us, Francine and Lisa let Tyler escort them down the street to wait for one of the ambulances. I was eternally grateful that it seemed Kramer had been too busy following me and setting up his ambush to have spent it torturing them, but they were still the worse for wear. They had deep lacerations on their wrists and ankles from struggling against the metal restraints, and that was just what I could see.
“Do you feel up to coming with us, Kitten?” Bones asked. His aura wrapped around me in strong, soothing bands even though his hands were still full with a livid ghost.
I had no hesitation in my response. “I’ll need someone to carry me, but I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”
I was still too weak from healing the many injuries I’d received to fly myself, but I wanted to be there when Kramer was sealed into his prison. Hell, I wanted to dance around it, chanting.
More noise drew my attention to the sky. I’d expected to see firemen, policemen, and ambulances descend on the farm, but I was surprised to see a military helicopter land in one of the cleared areas of the street. It was far enough away from the remaining flames for the churning air from the rotors not to fan them, but close enough that I recognized one of the men who exited it.
“Tate’s here.”
Bones’s head whipped in that direction, lips tightening when he saw the brown-haired vampire shouting orders to the other, helmeted soldiers who exited after him. They were too far away to see us, but as if Tate could feel our stares, he turned, looking right at us.
“You go, I’ll deal with him,” Spade muttered.
We did need to leave. The trip to Ottumwa would take almost four hours, and if Tate was here, Madigan probably wasn’t far behind, but I put a hand on Bones’s shoulder.
“Let’s wait a minute,” I said, motioning to Tate. “If he calls anyone else over, we’ll leave.”
Tate trotted over after a last shouted command, slowing down to stare at Francine, Tyler, and Lisa when he drew abreast of them. Then he resumed his brisk pace, his indigo gaze flitting between me, Bones, and the cursing ghost between us.
“Cat, your hair . . .” he began.
“If you think I look like shit now, you should’ve seen me when I was on fire. But enough of that. Why are you here?”
His features tightened at my brisk overview of being burned, but then they turned stony at my question.
“Madigan confiscated some amateur footage a week ago of you throwing a car off yourself, so he knows you’re in Iowa. He’s hot to get his hands on the ghost who killed his men, and he knows you’re after it, too. So we’re supposed to keep a lookout for you.”
“Was the footage from a cell phone video?” I wondered irreverently.
Tate nodded. “Those things fucking annoy me.”
He’d get no argument from me on that one. “Someone reported seeing a flaming person fly through the air with one of the 911 calls about the fire,” Tate continued. “We were deployed to investigate if it that was hysterical witness exaggerating, or if something supernatural was involved.”
“You will all be thrown into the eternal lake of fire!” Kramer shouted. I slammed my elbow into his face without bothering to look at him. From the zzzt! sound that followed, Bones zapped him again.
“So Madigan’s after me because he wants revenge for his murdered soldiers,” I mused.
Tate grunted. “No. He wants you to trap the ghost, then have us steal the trap so he can use the thing later as a weapon. Stupid bastard thinks he could control it.”
“And what are you intending to report to him?” Bones asked, his aura changing to icy, warning currents.
Tate shrugged. “That I didn’t see any vampires here but me.”
Kramer continued with his ranting about how we were all going to suffer, burn, beg, etc. None of us paid any attention to him, which enraged him more.
“This is the ghost,” I said, noting the shock that crossed Tate’s expression as he looked at the very solid Kramer. “We need you to make sure your team stays here for a while so no one follows us.”
The slightest smile crossed his face. “Then again, maybe I did see something suspicious on the far end of the field. Might take hours to investigate.”
I smiled back. “Thank you.”
He cast a final glance at Kramer before heading back toward the helicopter. The dangerous currents eased from Bones, changing into waves of determination.
“Let’s finish this, Kitten.”
I looked at Kramer and, for the first time, saw fear in the Inquisitor’s green gaze.
“Yes, let’s,” I drew out with supreme satisfaction.
Epilogue
A car pulled up to the former combined sewage facility, no door on the driver’s side. Denise sat behind the steering wheel, bundled up in a thick coat with her seat belt around the outside of it. Not a hint of the damage Sarah had inflicted on her showed anymore, as her bright smile evidenced. My mother dozed in the passenger seat, her lids fluttering when Denise parked. The sun had come up a few hours ago, and she was still noticeably feeling its effects.
“We here?” I heard her mumble.
Denise rolled her eyes at me. “Do you know how many times I had to poke her awake so she could mesmerize the cops who pulled us over into forgetting we were driving a car that clearly isn’t street legal?”
Seeing her so chipper after the awful thing that had happened to her brightened my mood even more. She didn’t say a word about my hair, which meant Spade had called her and warned her in advance. Oh well. There were always wigs if Bones had been stretching the truth about special vampire hair-growing abilities to lessen the stress I was dealing with at the time.
Spade stood, smiling at Denise in a way that made me glad my best friend was so cherished. Then again, I knew what that felt like, as Bones’s arms around me and his mouth brushing my temple attested.
Elisabeth floated out of the facility, Fabian close behind her. I’d always thought she was beautiful, but today, she looked especially radiant even without the more vivid effect of being solid.
“You sure you want to stay here?” I asked her. “He’s been screaming in there for hours and it’s well past the time when he’d be air again. If he could’ve gotten out, he would have already.”
“I’ll wait until you seal the area off permanently. I don’t know what I’ll do after that.”
The words seemed to sink in, and I could almost see Elisabeth realizing that her long quest for justice was finally over. She let out a laugh that was half-nervous, half-filled with wondrous joy.
“I have no idea what I’ll do after that.”
Fabian cleared his throat, which, considering he was a ghost, was as obvious as a sky-written message.
“Perhaps I might, ah, might be able to assist you with your options,” he stammered, and, though it was impossible, I could’ve sworn he blushed.
Elisabeth’s mouth dropped open, catching his meaning. Then she tilted her head in a very feminine, contemplative manner, a slow smile stretching her lips.
“Well,” she said at last. “Perhaps you can.”
Bones turned away so that they couldn’t see his grin. “Everyone, let’s leave them to their guarding,” he said, the faintest wicked emphasis on that last word.
“No, I want to stay and see this,” Ian protested.
Spade’s hand landed heavily on his back. “Get in the car, mate.”
Ian rose, shooting a last regretful look at Elisabeth and Fabian, who floated much closer to each other. “Only trying to enhance my repertoire with continuing education,” he muttered.
“I’m sure it’s plenty enhanced already,” I noted dryly, accepting Bones’s hand up. “Now get it out of here.”
The car was only meant to seat five, and there were six of us, but we made it work. Spade insisted on driving, and Denise sat snuggled between him and my mom. Bones’s comment that my mother could sleep quite comfortably in the trunk was met with a heavy-lidded, evil look that o
nly made him laugh.
“What a dreary-looking day out,” Ian commented as we pulled away.
The sky did have a grayish tint that hinted at an early winter. Darker clouds kept most of the sunlight at bay, but as I glanced up at them, I couldn’t help but think that each looked like it had a silver lining.
Acknowledgments
I will again try to keep this short, but I never have before and this may not be the exception. Before anyone else I have to thank God for continuing to give me inspiration and determination—two things no writer can survive without. Thanks to my editor, Erika Tsang, and the rest of the wonderful team at Avon Books for all your hard work. Additional thanks go to Thomas Egner, for yet another gorgeous cover. Nancy Yost, my agent, has my continued gratitude for keeping my head above water professionally. To my husband, friends, and family, I love you and would be lost without you. Thanks to Tage, Carol, Kimberly, and the rest of the incredible team at Frost Fans for spreading the word far and wide about my books. Endless gratitude also goes out to my readers, who’ve amazed and humbled me with your support. I could never thank all of you as much as you deserve.
A final note of thanks goes to Theresa and the Lock Haven Paranormal Seekers for answering my questions regarding paranormal investigations. It should be mentioned that I took “artistic license,” which is a nice way of saying I twisted the information they gave me to suit my plot, so any errors were derived from my imagination and not their feedback.
About the Author
N ew York Times and USA Today bestselling author JEANIENE FROST lives with her husband and their very spoiled dog. Although not a vampire herself, she confesses to having pale skin, wearing a lot of black, and sleeping in late whenever possible. And while she can’t see ghosts, she loves to walk through old cemeteries. Jeaniene also loves poetry and animals, but fears children and hates to cook. She is currently at work on the next novel in her bestselling Night Huntress series.
To know more about Jeaniene, please visit her website at www.jeanienefrost.com.
By Jeaniene Frost
One Grave at a Time
This Side of the Grave
Eternal Kiss of Darkness
First Drop of Crimson
Destined for an Early Grave
At Grave’s End
One Foot in the Grave
Halfway to the Grave
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