by E. S. Moore
With a sigh, I started walking for the mall. There was no sense standing around and waiting for something to happen. I was there for a reason and I just wanted to get it over with.
A pair of men stood to either side of the doors as I entered. They casually glanced my way and I knew they were looking me over to make sure I wasn’t a threat. I must not have registered on their scale because they looked away almost immediately to check out an older couple wearing nearly as much leather as I was.
I made it all often steps into the mall before realizing how mind-numbingly stupid it would be to attack someone inside. I could walk through the mall and out the other side where there were some other stores, but that would only put me farther from my motorcycle. If I was going to do this, I was going to do it smart.
I turned around and walked right back out. The two men both raised their eyebrows at me and I shrugged in what I hoped would be an innocent manner as I passed them and headed back to the parking lot.
I walked all the way back to my Honda, checking behind me to make sure neither of the men followed me. They were still by the door, leaving me alone to consider what to do next.
The parking lot had constant traffic, people walking to and from the mall. I could easily find someone here if I waited long enough. It wouldn’t be too hard to feed, to expose myself for what and maybe who I was, and then get the hell out of there.
I leaned against the van parked beside my motorcycle, crossing my legs so I looked as though I was just hanging out. No one would be fooled into thinking I was anything but dangerous thanks to my leather, but here, that might be more of a turn-on than anything.
A group of kids dressed in coats similar to mine passed by. A sweet, smoky smell trailed after them and their eyes were bloodshot. It wasn’t hard to tell what they’d been doing before arriving.
One of the guys looked my way, started to look away, and then did a double take. He smiled and said something to his friends before he sauntered over to me. The rest of his friends kept walking.
“Hey, baby,” he said. He reached out and trailed a hand down the front of my coat. “Cool threads. I do like.” He smiled, exposing crooked teeth.
I had to fight hard not to roll my eyes. It was just as much of a struggle not to leap out at him either. I gave him a smile that spoke of things he could only dream about.
He licked his lips and I noticed his tongue was pierced more than once. The metal piercing clanked against his teeth when he talked. “My car is back that way,” he said, jerking his head back the way he had come. “Want to go for a ride?”
“Why not here,” I said, stepping back beside my bike. As far as I knew, the kid wasn’t dangerous, wasn’t anything but a dumb teenager out looking for a little action. I moved a hand down to my waist suggestively, though I had an entirely different motive for getting my hands near my belt.
The kid’s grin widened. God, he had to be no more than seventeen or eighteen. I almost told him to piss off so I could find someone else. If I hadn’t been so hungry, I might have.
He stepped close, putting the van between us and the mall. The two big men at the doors wouldn’t be able to see us.
I pulled a knife from its sheath. As the kid reached for me, I grabbed his hand, flipped it over, and cut into his palm. The blade was hidden back in my belt before the guy even knew he was cut.
He tried to jerk out of my grip, but I held firm.
“What the fuck?” he said. Blood bubbled from the wound. It might leave a scar, but he was in no danger of dying from it.
I gave him my best sultry look. It appeared my leather-loving friend was Pureblooded. I leaned forward and licked his palm. I came up with blood on my chin. “I’m so hungry,” I said, lapping at the blood like a kitten.
He hesitated, then smiled, easing into my grip. “Go ahead,” he said. His voice went husky.
I immediately latched on. He groaned as my fangs sank into his palm and I started sucking. I didn’t want to kill the kid, which was what I would have done if I’d gone straight for his neck. I’d been lucky the kid had a vampire fetish, but it wasn’t so surprising really, considering where we were.
My hunger screamed for more. I sucked as hard as I could, but the blood was already beginning to slow. The palm wasn’t exactly the best place to feed.
I moved up his palm and found the delicate flesh of his wrist. I breathed in his scent, and mingled with the blood it had an almost euphoric effect on me. I bit down much harder than I intended.
The groans of pleasure turned into a hoarse scream. He tried to push against me, but I was holding him too tight. He’d have to cut his arm off before he would ever get it away from me.
Blood filled my mouth, sent me into near ecstasy. I swallowed mouthful after mouthful, relishing the warm, sticky taste as it slid down my throat.
It had been too long. Levi’s blood bags could never take the place of a real feeding. This was as close to Heaven as I was ever likely to get.
The kid’s fighting weakened and I knew I had to stop. If I kept going, I could easily kill him. The wound in his wrist wouldn’t stop bleeding unless I let him take care of it.
I forced myself to pull away. I pushed him back the moment my face was free, and he slammed hard against the van. His hand immediately went to his wrist. His face was ashen as he stared at me with wide, bloodshot eyes.
“Go,” I said. I could still smell his blood, and despite the fact my hunger was sated, I knew if he didn’t leave now, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from finishing him off.
I didn’t have to tell him twice. The kid spun and started running down the lot toward where he’d last seen his friends. He tripped over his own feet after only a few paces and sprawled face-first onto the pavement. He didn’t let it slow him down. He was up and running again without missing a beat.
I wiped my mouth and looked around. A woman a few cars down was watching me. As soon as my gaze fell on her, she ducked back into her vehicle and backed out as if she feared I would chase her down. Her tires squealed as she tore out of the parking lot.
I took a few deep breaths and let the euphoria of the feeding wash over me. My head had cleared and I was starting to realize how bad of an idea this really was. I’d let too many things get to me, and I was putting myself in a dangerous situation for no reason at all.
I never should have come. Coming to Polaris to attract attention was about as smart as walking into a Major vamp’s house unarmed. You just didn’t do it if you wanted to live.
I started to turn to my Honda, intent on getting out of there, when I saw the two men walking toward me. At first, I thought it was the two men by the door, drawn by the freaked-out kid, but after a second look, it was clear it wasn’t. These two were wearing long brown dusters and identical cowboy hats pulled down low to conceal their eyes. I didn’t have to see their faces to know I was their target.
I considered jumping on my motorcycle and taking off before they got too close. I really didn’t want to have Count Mephisto’s men questioning me. I didn’t have a permit to hunt in his territory, and I was sure it wouldn’t take him long to figure out who I really was.
But I was tired of running. I had to face my problems head-on if I ever wanted them to go away.
I stepped forward to face the two men. They stopped a good five feet back, legs spread like they were in some western and we were preparing to duel. I couldn’t see any weapons on them, but that meant little. They could be hiding anything under those coats.
“Lady Death?” the one on the right said. His voice was gravelly and deep. He sounded like he’d smoked for years and it had slowly started to eat away at his esophagus.
I didn’t nod, didn’t say anything. I just stared at them, waiting for one of them to either make a move or tell me what they wanted. I hated the idea that they knew who I was just by looking at me.
I guess my silence was enough, because the two men looked at each other and then nodded as if something had passed between them. As one,
they removed their cowboy hats.
I cursed softly under my breath and took a step back as they both turned to face me. They were identical twins. Everything about them was the same, their clothes, their eyes, the dimples in their cheeks.
The knot of scar tissue on their foreheads.
“We are here on behalf of Packleader Adrian,” the one on the left said. He sounded just like his brother. “You are to come with us.”
And with that, they started walking my way.
9
I didn’t like the idea of drawing my weapons in the Polaris mall parking lot, especially with a couple of Mephisto’s goons standing at the door, but I had no choice. The two vamps by the door were far enough away, it was unlikely they would see what was going on until after the first blow landed. I hoped that would give me enough time to escape before they could call in help.
I drew my gun and kept it pointed low. Since it was small, it was the least likely of my weapons, outside my knives, to draw attention right away. No one would know I was packing silver bullets until I shot them.
Both men replaced their cowboy hats and walked slowly toward me, as if afraid I might bolt if they moved too fast.
“We’re not going to hurt you,” Lefty said. The way he said it, however, made it clear he wouldn’t mind roughing me up a bit. Add to that the way his eyes were already a feral yellow, and I knew he was just itching for a fight.
“Stay the fuck back,” I said, taking a step back so I couldn’t be seen from the front of the mall. “Make another move and I’ll shoot.”
Righty snarled and took a step forward.
So I shot him in the leg.
The Glock I used had been modified by Ethan and his demon so that the bullets moved slower and would stick in anything they hit. The silver would then be stuck in my target, leaving a supe paralyzed until someone dug out the bullet. And while his modifications also made the gun quieter than it otherwise would be when fired, it was still loud as hell when you didn’t want others to notice.
Righty screamed in agony as he dropped. He grabbed his knee, thrashing on the ground. The silver wouldn’t work on Adrian’s wolves, but a gunshot wound was still a gunshot wound.
I turned my gun on Lefty, who was standing with both hands in the air. A gust of wind blew the cowboy hat from his head and even though he winced at its loss, he didn’t make a move to retrieve it.
“I’d turn around and leave if I were you,” I said. “I’m in no mood to be fucked with. It’s too cold. Go back and tell Adrian I’ll deal with him when I’m damn well ready, not when he sends two bozos like you to collect me.”
Lefty stood there, frowning. He didn’t make a move toward me, which would have earned him a bullet to the leg like his brother, but he didn’t turn to leave either.
“I’m serious,” I said. I was growing nervous. Someone had to have heard that gunshot, and even though they wouldn’t know the bullets were silver, they’d still wonder why I was shooting people up in the parking lot without Mephisto’s permission.
“I can’t leave without you,” Lefty said. It looked as though it pained him to say it.
“You’ll just have to manage.”
He looked down at his twin, who had stopped thrashing on the ground. Though his eyes were still yellow, he wasn’t screaming in pain anymore. He looked more frightened than hurt, and for some reason, that scared me.
“You don’t understand—”
He cut off as my aim firmed on him. He took a deep breath and bowed his head once before reaching down to help his brother to his feet.
And that’s when we all heard the running footsteps.
Lefty’s eyes widened as he looked behind him. “Go,” he said, shooing me as if I were some annoying fly. “Get out of here.”
I hesitated, undecided whether I should be pissed at how he dismissed me or if I should take his advice and run. The hesitation cost me my chance to get away clean.
Something roared on the other side of the van and I knew I had to move fast. Instead of leaping onto my Honda and tearing out of there, I stepped forward, closer to Adrian’s wolves. I couldn’t leave them there when I was the one who’d drawn attention to our little confrontation.
I was barely a step out from behind the van when something very large and very angry came flying over the van. It smashed into my motorcycle, and the crash of my Honda hitting the pavement as they both tipped over sent my teeth to grinding.
“Goddamn it,” I said. I raised my gun and shot the werewolf in the back of the head while he was still trying to untangle himself from the wreckage.
He dropped instantly and I turned my attention to what was approaching.
There were at least a dozen of them. The wolves were already shifted and were approaching much faster than the vampires behind them. Someone in the back was carrying a shotgun.
“In the name of Count Mephisto, lay down your weapons and surrender yourselves.” One of the vampires in the back spoke, his voice lofty and self-important. He didn’t look to be overly concerned that I’d just killed one of the wolves.
“Get out of here,” Lefty snarled to me. “You aren’t any good to Adrian in the hands of Mephisto.”
“And you’ll be no good to him dead.”
He gave me a long, hard look before he nodded once. We turned to the oncoming army.
There were five wolves in the party, as well as five vamps behind them. The other two in the back appeared to be Purebloods, but I couldn’t be sure. One was carrying the shotgun. The other looked unarmed, but with the confident way he held himself, I was pretty sure he had a weapon hidden away somewhere.
The wolves stopped a good ten feet back. The vamps held their ground behind them, waiting for us to either surrender or make the first move. They knew they had us. Even if I started firing right away, there were too many of them for me to get them all before they’d be on us.
“We’ll just be leaving,” I said, faking a smile. “We just had a little lover’s spat. It’s all cleared up now.”
One of the vampires in the back smirked. “I don’t think so,” he said. “Firing a weapon on Mephisto’s property is against regulation 436.” He looked me up and down. “We must confiscate the weapons and take you back with us so you can be properly interrogated.”
A wolf growled, causing the rest to follow suit.
“Oh, fuck this,” I said, raising my gun and firing.
I’d been aiming for the vamp who last spoke, but just as I moved my arm, all five of the wolves straightened. The one in front of the vamp I was aiming for took the bullet and he dropped, shuddering from the silver bullet lodged in his chest.
The other four wolves didn’t hesitate. They charged forward, dropping to all fours to increase their speed. They were on the twins so fast, I didn’t get a chance to fire another shot before the melee began.
The vamps held back, but spread out so I couldn’t drop them in a couple of quick shots, and the Purebloods behind them moved to hide behind cars.
I had to think fast. The twins weren’t going to hold their own against the wolves, but I knew if I left the vamps alone, they’d find a way to get to me while I was distracted by the wolves.
I growled deep in my throat, frustrated that I had to make the decision.
I drew my sword as I fired two quick shots. One took a wolf fighting Righty in the head; the other nicked Lefty’s shoulder and flew off harmlessly. He howled in pain and glared over his shoulder at me. I shrugged and mouthed an “oops” before turning my attention back to the enemy.
Righty had fallen and struggled back to his feet. His cowboy hat was somehow still on his head despite the wind and the fight. He started to say something, but before he could say much more than “Th,” a loud blast took his head clean off his neck.
I immediately fired. The Pureblood had made the mistake of watching the results of his shotgun blast and my bullet took out his eye.
The vamps, apparently having seen enough, charged. I managed one shot, which
went wide, before two of them were on me. They each had wicked curved blades in hand. Even though they weren’t silver, the blades looked more than sharp enough to get the job done.
I swung my sword to meet the first attack and then just barely managed to twirl out of the way of the second. If I’d had my knife in my other hand, I might have been able to jab one of the vamps in the ribs. As it was, I managed to twist my wrist just enough to fire a shot. It hit him in the ass and he cried out as he dropped.
I managed to avoid another attack from a curved blade and turned just in time to see one of the vamps who’d held back come charging in. I raised my hand to fire, but the vamp I dodged came at me and hit the top of the gun with the hilt of his blade, knocking it from my hand.
I didn’t have time to draw another weapon. I dropped low and swung out my leg, catching in the calves the vamp who’d knocked my gun free. He tried to catch his balance but stepped on the dropped gun. The Glock shot out from under him and went flying under the van as the vamp fell hard, cracking his skull on the pavement.
The oncoming vamp howled as he leaped at me.
Rookie mistake.
I braced myself and settled my sword so the point would meet him on his downward arc. His eyes widened and he tried to twist in midair, but instead impaled himself on my sword. I jerked back in time so he wouldn’t slide all the way down, trapping the blade beneath him. He fell to the ground, shuddering.
I spun to face the vamp I’d tripped to find him lying there, eyes dazed. Blood oozed from his skull, which was oddly misshapen. It wouldn’t kill him, but it should keep him down for a good long while.
I couldn’t take the chance that he’d recover enough sense to rejoin the fight, however. I stabbed him in the chest just to make sure he stayed down, before turning to face the others.
Lefty was just barely holding his own against the remaining wolves and vamps. He’d shifted, but it was clear he wouldn’t last long if I left him, which I wasn’t about to do. I’d created this mess by firing my gun. I planned on cleaning it up, even if it meant saving one of Adrian’s men.
