“He made me, but it wasn’t me. It was Alfred. I couldn’t kill a fly.”
“Your hands did the killing, Curtis. You’re just as responsible.”
He looked down at his feet, shame coloring his cheeks to match his flaming red hair. “If I could have done things differently, I would have. I’m just not strong enough.”
Nyla’s body stiffened as she felt a dark presence draw near. “He’s coming,” she warned Curtis, unsure if the man could feel Demarcus’s presence as well as she, the beast’s fledgling, could.
Curtis tapped his hand against the pocket of his cargo pants, seeming to make sure something was there, before backing away from her and turning to face his master as Demarcus entered the room.
Nyla gasped when she saw her dark tormentor. He had the same eyes and face shape as she’d remembered, along with the same tall, muscular build, but his body was covered in patches of fur. Some of the fur around his face was spotted with blood and seemed to be falling out. The air around him was rank with the smell of decay.
“Well, no wonder you’re pissed at me,” Nyla said, noting the scratches she’d embedded across his cheek sixteen years before. They should have healed the next day.
“You gave me a disease, catwoman, and now you are going to pay,” he said as he approached.
Nyla frowned, trying to figure out how she’d given the vamp a disease when she was disease free. “How could I have made you ill? Pantherians can’t catch diseases. For that matter, I thought vampires couldn’t either.”
“I thought the same thing, but you cursed me with your lycanthropy, somehow weakening my system and allowing this disease that you obviously carry, to enter my system.”
“First, I’m not a lycanthrope. I’m a pantherian, and that isn’t contagious.”
“Well, apparently you’re wrong, since I’ve been like this since I bit you,” he said, stopping in front of her, his body’s foul smell stirring waves of nausea inside her.
“Well, that’s what you get for putting your filthy mouth on me,” she said, unable to resist sparking his ire.
His hand shot out, and she felt pain explode through her head as it connected with her jaw, whipping her head to the side. “Watch your mouth, bitch. I can still make your inevitable death slower than it needs to be. I could allow you to live long enough for the child inside you to form, then cut it out and make you watch as I kill it before putting you out of your misery.”
“You are one sick bastard,” she said, tasting her own blood well inside her mouth.
“Thank you, I try,” he said with an evil smile. “Your lover should be here soon, and then the fun times will really begin.”
“Why are you doing this?”
His smile never wavered. “Because I’m evil. I thought we’d established that already, and I’m very vengeful.”
“So you’re going to kill all these people because I somehow passed a disease to you?”
“Yes.”
“Why not just kill me?”
He grinned. “Because killing multiple people and watching their deaths weigh on your conscience is so much more satisfying. I loved my appearance as much as you love your little slayer. You took my face, and now I’m going to take your man.”
“Why the girls? Why did you imitate the Dunn murders?”
“Because you let your guard down for a moment in Baltimore. I’ve always known you followed a vampire hunter, but I couldn’t find out who it was. Then, when you let your guard down, I saw he’d followed the trail of bodies of those women. Lucifer helped me find Alfred and recreate the killings. I knew he’d follow that trail, too, and that you’d follow him.”
“And you killed Chrissy just to torture him?”
“Chrissy?” He turned toward Curtis. “Who was Chrissy?”
“The last girl,” Curtis answered.
“Your man knew the girl?” Demarcus asked, returning his black gaze to Nyla before erupting into a fit of laughter. “Oh, that’s priceless! And to think, I just picked her at random.” He threw his head back, letting the laughter roar from his throat. “And the little boy named Bobby, your lover turning out to be the boy who’d gotten away from me sixteen years ago, and the sheriff his own relation . . . absolutely priceless! I couldn’t have planned it any better.”
No, you couldn’t have, Nyla realized. Everything was unfolding the way it was because of the words etched into the dream realm’s cave walls, the way it had been planned before either she or Jake were born. She’d led Jake right to his killer, and he was going to come here to save the little boy and his cousin, getting killed to fulfill their destiny. Jake had given her a child, and in return she was going to be forced to watch the man she loved more than life itself die.
“STAY LOW, AND do everything as I say,” Jake instructed the headstrong girl at his back as they crept toward the boarded-up house. “And shoot everything that moves.”
“Honey, that’s one command you didn’t have to give,” Marilee said, her finger poised over the trigger.
Jake paused outside the door and opened his senses. Nyla was here, scared and weak, deep inside the house, or . . . below. “Did your grandparents have a basement?”
“Yes.”
“How deep?”
“It’s just a regular-sized basement,” Marilee said with a shrug.
Jake focused on Nyla, trying to pin down her location. “Is it the same length as the house?”
“Yes.”
“Dammit. They’ve built tunnels beneath the house. I hope you can see good in the dark.”
The young girl looked at him, fear in her eyes, but she quickly banked the emotion. “Come on. Let’s go kill some undead guys.”
Jake allowed himself a moment to determine the whereabouts of Demarcus’s minions, and then he busted down the door.
HE’S HERE. NYLA’S eyes welled with tears as she sensed the man she loved nearby. He’d come to save the lives of innocents, just as the vampire in front of her had known he would, and he was walking right into his own death trap. She ground her teeth, trying to keep her tears at bay. She didn’t want to give away the fact that Jake was in the house above them. She had to give him a fighting chance, despite already seeing his death in a vision.
“How is killing Jake and me going to help you find a cure?” she asked her tormentor, trying to gain his undivided attention.
“It won’t, but it’ll make me feel better for a little while.”
“And then you’ll be left with fur all over your body.”
“Who said I’m going to kill you right away? Your punishment will be watching the man you love die, but we’re going to dissect your living body. Find a cure for my ailment.”
“I won’t let you.”
“It amuses me how you think you have a choice. I can do anything to you I want,” he said, placing his hands over her breasts as he leaned in close to her face. “Anything.”
“Get off of me, you disgusting freak,” she cried, squirming in effort to escape his touch as he continued molesting her.
He abruptly darted away from her, and pain exploded inside her chest. Nyla let out a scream, glancing across the room to see Marilee standing opposite her, one of Jake’s guns poised in her grasp, her face twisted into a classic look of horror. “Oh, shit! I’m sorry! Oh, shit! Oh, shit, oh shit!”
Jake appeared behind her. “I told you to stay behind . . .” His admonishment was cut short as he looked across the room, meeting Nyla’s gaze. “No!”
Nyla looked down and saw her own blood gushing from her chest. She let out another scream before pulling her head up to look at Jake. Her gaze found him just in time to see Curtis barrel into him as he tried to run toward her. They rolled on the ground until Curtis came out on top, a syringe gripped tightly in his hand.
“No!” Nyla scre
amed, watching helplessly as the man drove the syringe into Jake’s body.
Nyla.
Seta? Nyla jerked, surprised to hear the voice inside her mind. Seta, is that you? Where are you?
Nowhere near. The blood you offered me is still in my system, giving us this mental link. You’ve been shot.
Yeah, I kind of noticed that.
You must focus on the bullet.
It’s kind of hard not to.
Not the pain, Nyla, the bullet itself. Imagine the flesh around it squeezing tighter, pushing it out. DO IT !!!! Seta screamed inside her head when she started to black out.
Nyla forced herself to ignore the action around her, closed her eyes and focused on the area of her body where the bullet had penetrated. It seemed to be lodged inside her chest wall, right over her heart. She imagined the flesh around it, just behind the tip of the bullet, swelling. She imagined the bullet being pushed out from her body, and in a rush of pain, the foreign object fell from her chest as the area behind it closed.
Good girl. I knew you could do it.
Nyla opened her eyes, surprised to find herself lying on the ground. Marilee was at her feet, untying the ropes around her ankles, crying madly. “I didn’t mean to shoot you. I swear, I didn’t. I was aiming for the guy in front of you.”
“Nyla!”
Jake leaned over her, checking her chest for signs of a wound.
“I pushed the bullet out,” she explained. “Seta helped me. What did Curtis inject you with?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “I knocked the little bastard out before he could tell me. Your wound is closing.” He helped her to her feet and gave her a push toward the exit. “Get out while you can, and take the others with you.”
“No! You’re going with us.”
“I can’t do that. Demarcus has to be stopped.”
“Jake, please!”
“I have to, Nyla.” He cocked his head to the side. “I can’t sense him. Why can’t I sense him?”
“Because your girlfriend’s feline traits have blocked my vampire scent,” Demarcus’s cruel voice said from four feet behind them.
Jake whirled around, placing himself in front of Nyla. “You’re furry? Dude, you are fucked.” His statement intensified the rage shining out of Demarcus’s black eyes, and Jake ordered, “Marilee, get Bobby out of here now!”
The girl had just finished untying the boy, after freeing Peewee first, and jumped at Jake’s command. She quickly pulled the child toward the exit. Demarcus rushed toward them, but both Jake and Nyla lunged for him, tackling him before he could reach the escapees.
They all hit the ground with a thud, and Nyla rolled off the vampire, her body filled with pain from the force of the impact. She managed to raise herself to all fours before recognizing the sense of déjà vu washing over her.
“Oh, no,” she gasped, realizing she’d lived this moment before, even if only through a vision. “No, no, no, no, no!” She forced herself to turn her head in Jake’s direction, screaming as she saw her vision come to life.
Jake and Demarcus stood face to face. Blood poured around Jake’s hands, which were gripped around the hilt of the small sword Demarcus had hidden from them until the moment he’d sunk it into Jake’s chest. She watched helplessly as Demarcus twisted the sword, effectively destroying Jake’s heart.
Jake fell backward when Demarcus gave him a small push. His head lolled toward Nyla as his body connected with the ground, blood pooling beneath him. “I’m . . . sorry,” he said, struggling to speak through his own blood coming up through his throat. “R . . . run.”
“Jake!” All of the pain in Nyla’s heart came out through her voice, erupting into an excruciatingly sorrowful scream.
Demarcus pulled the sword from Jake’s lifeless body, smiling in victory. Nyla rushed to Jake’s side, feeling his throat for a pulse, but there was none. Just as she’d feared, he’d been killed, and she’d failed him exactly as she’d failed his best friend sixteen years before.
“Kiss him goodbye, bitch. I have plans for you before I go catch your little friends,” Demarcus said from above her, laughter accompanying his words. “None of them are going to survive to see a new dawn.”
“That includes you,” Nyla growled, quickly twisting around to face the beast who’d taken from her the only man she’d ever loved. “Without Jake, I don’t give a damn if I live or die,” she said, “and you don’t know how dangerous that makes me.”
She saw a glint of fear in Demarcus’s eyes seconds before she struck. She couldn’t shift due to her pregnancy, but she was still quick, and she was filled with a rage she could barely contain, a rage which surpassed anything she’d ever felt emanating from Jake’s body.
She barreled headfirst into Demarcus, knocking him to the ground, disarming him before burying her elongated fangs into his throat, ripping the flesh out with her teeth. He let out a scream of pain before backhanding her, effectively removing her from his body.
She flew backward, smacking into the wall with enough force to shake the underground room, causing dirt to fall from above them. “You won’t beat me, bitch,” Demarcus said, rushing toward her with a speed which surpassed her own. “I made you.”
“You only gave me immortality and a thirst for blood,” she spit back at him. “Two things which will make it easier for me to kill you!”
She moved aside in time for Demarcus to run headfirst into the wall, causing more dirt to rain down upon them. “You’ll pay for killing Jake!” she cried, kicking the vampire in the midsection, causing him to howl in pain. She attempted to kick him in the face, but he reached out too quickly, grabbed her by the ankle and pulled her to the ground.
“I told you, you can’t kill me.” He gripped her throat in both hands, squeezing the air out of her lungs. “I’m your sire. You’ll never be stronger than me. You can’t kill me.”
“I guess it’s moments like these you hate having a slayer in the room with you,” a deep voice said from behind the vampire.
Nyla blinked, unable to believe her eyes as she gazed past Demarcus’s shoulders to see Jake standing behind him, Demarcus’s sword raised in his hands.
“You’re dead,” Demarcus said, his voice full of disbelief.
“And you’re still ugly as hell,” Jake retorted. He swung the sword in an arc and sent Demarcus’s head careening across the room.
Nyla quickly scooted back, avoiding as much splatter of Demarcus’s blood as she could when his decapitated body fell forward. “Jake!”
He pulled her to her feet, quickly checking her body with his hands. “Are you all right? The baby’s not hurt, is he?”
“I’m . . . You . . .” She glanced toward the area where she’d watched him die and saw his blood still puddled on the ground. His T-shirt was ripped, but as she pulled it up to inspect his chest, she found the skin unmarred. “I don’t understand. I saw you die.”
“Yeah, well, now we know what Curtis injected me with. It looks as if the crazy bastard created the immortality serum his brother was trying to make. Come on,” he added, pulling her toward the exit as the dirt roof above them started to fall. “This place is going to cave in.”
A FEW MOMENTS later, they emerged into the blazing sunlight of the summer day, walking side by side with Curtis Dunn draped over Jake’s shoulder. Jake lowered the still unconscious man to the ground and walked over to his cousin, who stood next to the Malibu, shaking like a leaf.
“Are you all right, cousin?” he asked the smaller man, holding him by the shoulders.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Thank goodness you found us.”
“You should have believed me in the first place,” Jake said, letting his anger coat his words. “And you should have never put my woman in danger. Jonah called before I got here. The feds are on their way. Have fun explaining this mess.”
Peewee stared up at him horror. “What? How am I supposed to explain all of this?”
Jake only smiled as he hoisted Curtis back over his shoulder. “Don’t know and don’t care. I have some people to get home.”
MARILEE, MAYBELLINE, and Bobby waved goodbye as Jake maneuvered the Malibu out of the motel parking lot, heading toward the city limits.
“I can’t believe he’s dead,” Nyla said, watching the trees whiz by as they sped out of town, trying to get well away from the aftermath of everything that had happened in Hicksville before the feds showed up. They didn’t want to be anywhere near the town when the slaughtered bodies they’d left behind were discovered.
“I can’t believe that one helped,” Jake responded, inclining his head toward the backseat where Curtis Dunn lay unconscious.
“You knocked him out pretty good.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t like it when people stab me with things.”
“And why are we bringing him with us?” Nyla looked back at the unconscious man, uneasy with his nearness after all that had happened.
“I need to find out what, exactly, he put in me, and I just have this gut feeling that leaving him back there was the wrong move. I have the feeling that I’ll be getting a visit from the Dream Teller instructing me what to do. She was adamant that he not be killed.”
Nyla nodded. Jake’s gut was never wrong, and she trusted him, so she accepted the fact that Curtis was coming along for the ride. But there were other issues weighing heavily on her mind. “Can we be serious for a moment, Jake?”
“Sure. What’s up?”
She glanced at him, noticed the tight set of his jaw as he kept his eyes focused on the road in front of him, and sighed. “What are we going to do about this situation?”
“What situation?”
“The baby.”
“Well, I guess the first thing we’ll do is get married.” Jake continued to look forward, but finally turned his head in Nyla’s direction after a few moments of stunned silence had passed. His brow furrowed as he looked at her, and she knew she’d gone slack-jawed. “What? I didn’t exactly have time to get a ring, and since the baby’s already been conceived, I didn’t think you’d hold me to some sort of romantic formality.”
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