Oblivious to the narrowly avoided mishap, Elijah released Chloe and Josephine and bent down to scratch the fawn Great Dane behind her ear, a spot that he’d learned shortly after meeting her was one of her favorites. “It is good to see you, too, old girl,” he said; earning a lick on the cheek.
“At least some things have not changed,” Josephine said; watching Tilly sidle up to Chloe, pressing her body against her as she sat down. Even sitting, Tilly was easily as tall as Chloe, who slung her arms around her companion’s neck and leaned in.
“Ah, yes; Miss Tilly has made for an interesting addition to the household already,” Ariel added. “Our cats are far from pleased by her presence, though I must say it’s quite nice to have a pet around that actually seems to appreciate our attention. The girls barely tolerate us in all our human inferiority,” she said with a laugh.
“Elijah,” William said; as he walked over and pulled the other man into a friendly embrace. “It is good to see you in one piece, my friend. Our deepest condolences for your loss.”
“Yes, we are so very sorry, for you both,” Rebecca added; as she and Jared approached. “Barb was a truly lovely woman.”
“So you have told Chloe then?” Josephine asked, her sad eyes following Chloe, who ran off with Tilly after a black cat which scurried by.
“There was really no keeping it from her,” William responded, “the hazards of being a telepath. Even I have difficulty blocking her; though shielding me seems to be no trouble for her. It really is quite amazing; I’ve never come across another who could keep me out as effectively as she can.”
“I’ve been working with her, trying to help her learn to control her power,” Jared added; as his mother linked her arm with his.
“It’s quite surprising, really that, given how close she was to Barb, she didn’t seem very upset. She simply asked if she was gone, then nodded and walked away. Everything was happening so fast, we didn’t push the issue further, but I have to believe she doesn’t fully understand yet,” Rebecca stated.
“A small blessing,” Josephine added; taking Elijah’s hand for comfort.
Just then, the door swung open, drawing all eyes to the short, slightly plump woman who entered carrying a small box. “Elijah, you remember my sister, Tara,” Ariel said; as she approached the other witch.
“Please excuse me for not greeting you when you arrived,” Tara said; addressing the room. “But we wanted be certain these were ready for you in time for your journey.”
Tara walked over to Elijah and passed him the box. He lifted the lid, the scent of cedar filling the air as he discovered Chloe’s four-pointed star necklace and three others like it inside. The charms were identical, except for the longer chains on the new ones intended for the rest of Elijah’s family. “These should do until you get to Boston. We’ve already spoken with the coven there and they’ll be waiting to perform the permanent spells as soon as you arrive. We would do them here, but there simply isn’t enough time.”
Elijah gently removed two of the charms and handed them to his wife, who placed one around her neck and carried the smallest over to Chloe, returning it to its rightful place over her heart. Barb had given Chloe the blocking charm the first time she’d met her as a toddler, only a few short weeks before, though as far as Josephine could tell, it was an unnecessary precaution, considering she found it impossible to access Chloe’s future no matter how hard she focused.
Josephine’s gift had always been strongest when she applied it to her own family, particularly in conjunction with physical contact, yet with Chloe, she saw nothing. Josephine knew that, if she was blind to Chloe’s future, so was Asana, and that knowledge gave her some comfort.
“Regarding the other matter we discussed,” Ariel said; turning to William. “Vivian has agreed to fly to Boston to remove the repression spell for your daughter, though it may be a few days before she arrives.”
“We cannot begin to thank you enough,” William responded gratefully. “If you ever have need of anything, anything at all, you know how to reach me.”
“Forgive the intrusion,” Captain Erikson, the head of William’s personal guard, said as he approached the group. “But I have just received word that our escorts will arrive in less than five minutes.”
“Thank you, Captain,” William said; as Erikson rejoined the other guards against the far wall where they had been silently standing since Elijah and Josephine arrived. Much like the human Secret Service agents, who protected the President, the High Commander’s personal guard remained by his side at nearly all times when he was away from the security of Red Manor, the vampire equivalent to the White House; at least as close to his side as was necessary, given their vampire speed and reflexes.
The three men waited quietly while the two witches, the High Commander, and his family exited the parlor and returned to the foyer in anticipation of their departure. As they reached the door, Erikson paused, speaking to his subordinates quietly.
“Once we are outside, I want you to stay tight to Red One. I will keep eyes on Little Red,” he said; using the team’s code names for William and Chloe. “The last two arrivals were exposed for nearly an hour, so there’s no telling if their futures were tapped by the enemy seer and this location compromised.”
They nodded in response and filed out of the room.
✧
“I don’t like this,” Cami grumbled; as they turned on to the street on which the witch home was located.
Commander Claesson glanced at her sideways from the driver’s seat of the black SUV. “What’s to like? The house is surrounded by human residents, there’s a hundred goddamn places Lucias’s men could be hiding for an ambush, and odds are, we’ve got a mole on the inside. Seems like the only thing we have going for us is the sun, but that’s only going to last a few more minutes.”
“Exactly, and I still can’t wrap my head around what happened at my dad’s clinic. He’s sure the assailants were humans, but why would Lucias send them after my father? No matter how well-armed they were, odds were good he would escape. And where the fuck did that picture of Ethan and Alexa on the lawn come from? I wish we could have investigated the scene more thoroughly,” she replied; pulling one of her Glocks free to check the magazine for about the tenth time since leaving the clinic. When Cami had arrived on the scene with the local Elite cleanup team, the place was already swarming with human civilians. Luckily, Lucias’s men had covered their tracks, making the explosion look like an accident caused by an electrical short too close to an oxygen tank. The fire was still burning strong by the time they’d left, destroying the three bodies that were left inside, along with all evidence of the attack.
“That’s the million-dollar question, my dear,” Claesson responded; as he slowed the vehicle to a stop. They waited until the other vehicles lined up behind them before exiting. Ten Elite soldiers from the Indy base quickly followed suit, all focusing their acute senses to survey the surrounding area for any signs of danger.
Satisfied that the area was clear, Claesson nodded to the High Commander’s guards posted on the porch. One of them put a hand to his ear, speaking a few words into a radio device and signaling to Captain Erikson that they were clear for departure.
After hurried and heartfelt goodbyes to their hosts, the group began filing through the door. Exiting first were Elijah and Josephine, who walked quickly down the stairs to the SUV parked furthest away. On their way by, Elijah tossed Cami the necklace that Ariel and Tara had spelled for her. Catching it in one hand, she let the pendant slip from her palm and examined it as it swung from the delicate silver chain. Recognizing it as being identical to Chloe’s, she quickly slid it over her head and pulled her tight ponytail through, allowing the cool metal to fall around her neck. She let out a sigh of relief at feeling the slight weight of the magic against her skin.
The sense of relief was soon replaced with another she couldn’t quite describe as she lifted her gaze just in time to see Jared appear in the doorway. Wit
h Chloe in one arm and Tilly’s leash wrapped around the other, his eyes found and locked on hers like magnets as he descended the stairs. Her heart began to pound even harder than it already was when he flashed a crooked grin and walked by.
Cami silently cursed the gentle summer breeze as it carried his intoxicating scent directly toward her. Its effect was immediate, causing her blood to rush and her thoughts to shift to all sorts of distracting images of him, most featuring far more skin than was decent.
Jesus Christ, Cami. Get. It. Together! she yelled within her own mind, holding her breath while she waited for Jared to move away, praying that the unwanted feelings she always experienced in his presence would pass quickly.
As he placed Chloe on the leather seat, Jared glanced back at Cami. Her unease was apparent, as she fought the urge to look at him again. He reached for her stream of consciousness and smiled wickedly at the erotic images which were fluttering through her mind. His body immediately responded, pushing the scent of his arousal into the air, a most inappropriate reaction given the current circumstances, as evidenced by the disgusted scowl he received from the Elite soldier who was holding the door open.
Jared shrugged and smiled sheepishly at the imposing man while he waited for Tilly to jump inside. “Sorry,” was all he could manage as he placed his foot on the runner, not knowing what else he could offer in explanation for his current physical state. Before he cleared the door, a silenced shot cut through the air, the sound too quiet to garner the notice of the humans tucked comfortably in their homes, but as loud as an explosion to the vampires who were already on edge.
Jared spun around in a panic, his eyes searching for Cami, who was running towards the house where his parents and three guards were rushing down the stairs. She bypassed the stairs and grabbed the railing which surrounded the porch, flipping herself over it in one swift motion and landing beside the guard who was lying awkwardly on the concrete. Fragments of his skull and blood covered the wooden swing which swayed slowly behind him. The injury was absolutely fatal, even for one of their kind.
“Kline, get your ass back down here!” Commander Claesson shouted; as the last of the sun’s protective rays slid behind the horizon. Though the area was still well lit by sunlight, and would remain so for at least another hour, the direct UV light, which was so hazardous to the infected, was gone. As if on cue, more than a dozen red-eyed vampires appeared in the street.
“No more blood need be spilled here. Just hand over the girl,” one of them said in a voice barely above a whisper, but easily discerned by the preternatural hearing of all concerned.
Though she didn’t know why, Cami’s eyes instinctively shot to Jared, who was already looking back at her. Understanding the desperate plea in her eyes, he nodded in response and climbed into his assigned vehicle. Feeling easier with him and Chloe tucked safely behind a layer of bullet-proof steel and glass, Cami ran back down the stairs, flanking the High Commander and his guards as they made their way to the middle vehicle. Bullets whizzed by as they ran, some so close that their breeze could be felt on the skin of those they passed. William and Rebecca leapt into the car, the sound of bullets bouncing off of the frame around them before a guard slammed the door and rushed to the driver’s seat. The already-running vehicle peeled out immediately, despite the High Commander’s insistence that they wait.
“God damnit, O’Mally! Stop the damn car!” William yelled; as they moved down the street away from the danger.
“Sorry, sir; but you know I can’t do that,” Drake O’Mally replied remorsefully; understanding how difficult it must be for William to leave his family in the midst of danger while he fled to safety. Under any other circumstances, as a member of the High Commander’s guard, O’Mally would have no choice but to obey William’s orders, but in an instance where the High Commander’s life was at risk, disobedience was not only permissible; it was required in service of the greater responsibility to their race William’s position required.
More shots sliced through the hot summer air as Cami dove across an opening to join Commander Claesson behind the protection of the open door on his vehicle and returned fire. Her bullets expertly found their marks in the center of several of the vampire’s chests, yet the men kept coming, walking at a slow, almost taunting pace, completely unfazed by the silver which should have stopped them cold.
“Fuck, they’ve got Kevlar,” Cami said aloud; as she reloaded and two other Elite soldiers joined the fray, taking cover around the back of the car.
“Yep, going to have to aim for their heads,” Claesson responded; popping off his last two rounds, catching one of the infected where it counted and decorating the pavement with a spattering of gray matter. The body crumpled to the ground and immediately began to disintegrate as the others split apart and flashed away with preternatural speed, taking cover behind parked cars and trees. Cami heard a loud thud and turned to see one of the Elite fall a few feet behind her, obviously dead, with half of his face missing.
“Kline, I’m going to lay down some cover; get back there and find out why the fuck the rest of them haven’t left yet,” Claesson ordered; as he reloaded.
As she turned, Cami saw four infected vampires moving in on the car which was carrying her niece and Jared.
✧
Chloe wrapped her arms around Tilly’s neck, her whole body shaking with fear as bullets bounced off the car all around them, the sound reminiscent of an intense hail storm. With each impact, the glass’s protection grew weaker and weaker, having already cracked in several places. Jared knew it wouldn’t be much longer before some of those shots broke through.
“It’s going to be all right, squirt,” Jared said; trying to reassure Chloe despite his own fear. “We’re going to follow your grandmas and grandpas now,” he continued, looking quickly to the cars carrying his parents, the Klines, and several of The Elite down the street. Satisfied they had made it away safely, his stare returned to Cami and it was all he could do to remain with Chloe while he watched the infected vampires inching closer and closer to her and the other soldiers.
“Erikson, what’s the hold up? Let’s get the hell out of here,” he said; knowing that if he didn’t get away soon he wouldn’t be able to resist the pull in his heart telling him to go to Cami, consequences be damned.
Erikson wordlessly dropped the car into reverse and the engine died. He moved the shifter back to park and turned the key, only to be rewarded with silence as he impatiently tapped the accelerator.
“What’s the problem? The engines in these things were triple- checked before we left base.” The Elite soldier in the back questioned, as he popped the rear door and jumped out. He ran to the passenger door, only to find it locked as several shots struck the black metal around him. With a confused glance towards Erikson, Jared leaned forward and lifted the lock while the captain of his father’s guard remained silent with his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly.
“What the fuck?” the soldier questioned; opening the door and looking at Erikson just as another shot rang out. Blood exploded across the front of the truck following the bullet which flew through the soldier’s neck and found a home in the side of Erikson’s seat. His hand flew to the gushing wound, only to fall away as a second shot shattered his skull, spraying his brains all over Erikson.
In all of the chaos, no one noticed that the other locks had been released until Chloe’s door flew open forcefully. Before anyone else could react, Tilly let out a growl which reverberated through the car like a lion’s roar, as she lunged. Everything seemed to be happening in slow motion as Jared watched the infected vampire raise a gun towards the protective dog. He dove forward, intending to absorb the shot himself, hoping the distraction would give the rest of The Elite time to save his niece.
“NO!” Chloe screamed, squeezing her eyes shut tightly before Tilly’s full weight fell limp in her small lap. Everything went eerily quiet as tears spilled down her cheeks. There were no more shots, no yells, nothing except for th
e low purr of another engine and the slow beats of the vampire hearts which surrounded her.
After several moments passed, Chloe finally swallowed her fear, opening her eyes with surprise as she recognized the fast thump of Tilly’s canine heart. Wiping away the moisture which was clouding her vision, she gazed down at her beloved dog with wonder. It appeared as if she was merely sleeping, with no signs of injury at all. Confused, Chloe’s eyes shot to the open door where the infected vampire lay crumpled on the ground with his head pressed against the runner and his arm extended into the car. The gun he’d been holding was lying on the floor at her feet. Chloe gently pushed Tilly’s heavy form off of her legs and turned to Jared, whose unconscious body was prone on the seat beside her.
Redemption of Fate (Fate Series Book 2) Page 3
