by E. S. Moore
If this was all the vamps left in House Tremaine, then things would be a lot easier than I could have ever hoped. I guess Mikael had been right when he said Tremaine had recently been weakened. There should have been a whole hell of a lot more vampires here than the small group facing me.
Tremaine smiled, displaying fangs that had punctured his gums long ago. They were stained red as if he had recently fed. For an instant, I thought I saw surprise on his face, but it was quickly swallowed by the bloodlust and glee in his eyes.
Along the wall to my right were chained werewolves. The heavy rings embedded in the walls held the chains, keeping the wolves from lunging too far from where they stood. Almost every single one of them was fully shifted. The rings were just far enough apart so that they wolves couldn’t reach other and tear the head off its neighbor.
I recognized Jonathan and Nathan at once in the mass of fur. Jonathan had yet to shift, though his eyes were wild, teeth bared and extended. Nathan was fully shifted, his coat matted with blood.
A growl erupted from a throat at my side and I took a quick step forward into the room. Two wolves were chained just inside the doors, one to either side of the wide opening. If I hadn’t walked directly in the center of the doorway, one of them could have easily snatched hold of me and began tearing me apart bit by bit before I even knew they were there.
“So glad you could join us,” Tremaine said, his smile never wavering. His eyes betrayed the calm tone of his voice. Underneath the cool façade was a building rage, accentuated by the full moon.
I brought my gun up to bear and Davin stepped in front of the Count. I felt a thin flow of power and saw the shimmer in the air. He had lifted his shield. As long as they stayed huddled together like that, my gun was useless.
“I won’t ask how you managed to escape,” Tremaine said, glancing toward Nathan. “But my question would be as to why you are here instead of choosing to flee while you had the chance.”
As one, the wolves started thrashing in their chains, pulling the links taut to the point they should have snapped. They gnashed their teeth at each other, at the vampires in the middle of the room, at their own bindings. One wolf began to smash his head against the wall as if he thought he might be able to bash his way through before his brains splattered out his ears. Blood was already running from his nose, and I could hear the crunch of bone as his skull began to fracture.
“Maybe someone was feeling generous,” I said, taking another step into the room. I didn’t feel comfortable with the wolves at the door that close behind me. “Maybe I offered him something you couldn’t.”
Tremaine’s smile deepened, though his eyes hardened. “Or there is more to this story than I have been told. No one seems to be willing to talk about how you managed to be here, who you really are. There is definitely something about you that brings out their loyalty. It would be fascinating if it wasn’t so aggravating.”
I took another step forward and two of the other vamps moved in front of Davin and Count Tremaine. I stopped and glanced at the raging wolves chained to the wall. Something was missing. It hadn’t hit right away, but now that I was farther into the room, something was definitely not as it should be. Or should I say someone?
Where was Adrian?
I looked over each face and tried to determine whether any of them might be the Luna Cult defector. If he was here, he was already shifted into full-on wolfman, and since I had never seen him in his wolf form, I wouldn’t be able to pick him out with certainty.
But if he was there, wouldn’t his wolves be there, too? Not a single wolf in the room bore the scar on their forehead that would indicate their ties to Adrian. Had he already jumped ship, knowing what was to come? Or was he being held back in reserve, Tremaine’s proverbial ace in the hole?
I glanced over my shoulder to check the wolves by the door. Neither of them had the bulk to be Adrian, nor did they bear the scar. The doors were still open and I could see out into the hallway and into the next room. No one lurked out there as far as I could see.
“I was going to send someone to fetch you anyway,” Tremaine said. “I sent a wolf after the former Denmaster, but he seemed to have gotten distracted.” He glanced at Nathan again. “I suppose while you are here, we can commence the festivities. Perhaps you might be willing to talk now that you can see you have little chance of success. I would hate to have to sick my wolves on you before I learn what I wish. They would tear you apart.”
“Your wolves could try,” I said. I still had my sword in hand. I was loath to rush right in and use it. I didn’t know what kind of abilities the vampires had, especially Count Tremaine. Davin was obvious. The others, I wasn’t so sure about. The older they were, the more power they could have gained over time.
The last vampire moved to stand on the other side of Count Tremaine. The wolves on the walls began thrashing even more as he neared. A loud crack jerked my eyes toward the one who had been beating his head against the wall. He hung limp in his chains, his skull smashed in. Brains and blood clung to the wall, pooled on the floor.
“Perhaps it is time to release them,” Tremaine said, as if in reflection. “The wolves grow restless and their meal has finally arrived. I had planned a hunt, giving you a chance to show your skills, though I hadn’t planned on allowing you weaponry. You could serve well as entertainment for the evening. I always enjoyed seeing a member of another House fight for their lives. It is quite relaxing.”
“Where’s Adrian?” I asked, my eyes roving over the ravenous wolves. Jonathan was almost fully shifted now. It was clear he was trying to fight it, but it was a battle he would never win. “Has he already been set loose? Did you leave him to hang with his entrails spilled out on the floor like the wolf upstairs?”
Tremaine’s smile faltered. “You saw that, did you?” He shrugged. “It’s no matter. I left him there for my newest wolf to find. I had hoped the sight of him like that would break his stubborn streak. I see I misjudged how stubborn he really was.”
Jonathan’s head swung toward Tremaine, his eyes glowing fiercely. A few wolves down, Nathan struggled even more against his bindings, his eyes trained on Tremaine as if he could kill him with a stare. He gnashed his teeth, tore at his restraints with his claws. Whatever the vampires had used in their chains, it was pretty damn strong stuff. Not many metals could stand up to the brute strength of an enraged werewolf.
“Why do it?” I asked, inching closer and closer to the gathering of vampires.
Tremaine glanced toward Jonathan and then back to me. The smile had returned. He was so smug, so sure of himself, yet I could see the doubt behind that smile. This wasn’t how he planned things to go down. That meant he was no longer in control. A man like him needed to be in control, craved it.
“Because I could,” he said. “A wolf who refuses to act in the name of his master is useless to me. I found those strange packets in your coat to be quite effective in dealing with him, by the way. They are rather ingenious, really.”
“So, then, where is Adrian? How does he factor into all of this?” I felt naked without my coat, exposed. It bothered me my own weapons had been used against Simon.
“Adrian can take care of himself. He is no concern of yours.”
“Did you know he was coming to me?” I took another step forward. I needed to get closer if I wanted to have any chance against them. I just needed to get to Davin. Once his shield was down, I could finish off the others before they could react.
Or so I hoped.
“He came to me before tonight even, asked me to join him,” I continued. “He has no intention of sticking with you. He believes your House is done. He only wanted the power you could provide him, the resources he would need to gain power of his own. He was recruiting your wolves right out from under you.”
The doubt thickened in Tremaine’s eyes. His smile slipped and finally fell away for good. “You lie,” he said. “Adrian is bound by his Oath, just as are all my wolves. Even your precious Luna Cult wer
ewolves are now mine. They have sworn the Oath.”
I think he expected me to flinch at the last. I only smiled. “They swore the Oath, yet here I am. How do you figure that happened?”
The two vamps in front of Tremaine eased slowly to the side, spreading out. Their faces had not changed since I entered. They watched me warily, though it was clear they felt they had the upper hand. They did have the numbers on me, but I had the weapons. A few more steps away from Davin’s shield and I could put a bullet in both their brains.
Tremaine closed his hands into fists. His upper lip lifted into a sneer, and for a second, I could have sworn his ears and eyebrows got just a little bit fuzzier. What the hell?
“The Oath is binding.”
“So are handcuffs and rope. They can be broken.”
“Not the Oath.”
“But it can be worked around.” I moved forward another step. The two vamps sliding around the side moved with me, though they kept close to Davin and his shield. “I ask again, where is Adrian? Shouldn’t he be here protecting you with the rest of your wolves?”
Tremaine took the slightest step back. The movement was so slight I almost didn’t notice it.
“I think he has left you here on your own because he knew your time had come. He knew you were done, that tonight, your House would be at an end. He knew what was to be unleashed here, and he wanted no part of it.”
“No one leaves,” Tremaine said. “Whatever you think you know, you are wrong. Adrian is hunting with his wolves outside the estate. It is his reward for being so faithful to me.”
I took another step forward. “And the man upstairs? What did Simon do to be eviscerated like that?”
Tremaine stared at me, hatred burning in the depths of his gaze. “He was an example, nothing more.”
A roar came from my left that caused me to jerk back. The chains rattled and Jonathan lunged forward. He was yanked back well before coming close to anyone. The rage in his eyes was so wild, so strong, I feared what would happen if he actually did break free. I knew I wouldn’t be safe from his rage, not with the moon being full and the Madness taking hold of what was left of his sanity.
Tremaine laughed at the seemingly futile display. His confidence was back in full. I had given him what he wanted. I had told the Luna Cult wolves that their Denmaster was dead. In Tremaine’s mind, it proved his superiority over them. He didn’t realize how wrong he really was.
Another loud snap came from the wolves, this one so loud it sounded like a bomb had gone off in the room. A crack like a hundred-foot whip, followed by a crash like thunder, shook the very foundations of the mansion. The wolves were in full rampage mode now, thrashing in their bonds, howling and gnashing as one, fueled by Jonathan’s rage.
A howl of triumph came from Nathan’s direction, and it was echoed by the rest of the wolves down the line. He heaved forward with all his might and a large chunk of the wall tore free. Another wolf lunged and his chain snapped as if whatever strength had been holding it weakened with the breaking of the first.
Wolf after wolf began to push forward, their chains breaking, mortar and stone falling from all around the metal rings. It sounded like a dozen gunshots went off in quick succession, and the entire house shook as the werewolves finally broke free of their bonds.
30
Jonathan’s chain snapped and the vampire closest to the wall went down under his rending claws. His scream was cut off before it could truly be voiced.
More chains snapped and the wall shook with the strain.
Within seconds of the first snapped chain, the wolves as a whole were free.
Claws and fur flew as they fell on each other, lost in the grip of the Madness. Howls and cries of pain echoed through the mostly empty house. Blood fell from torn, shredded flesh. The wolves fought friend and foe alike, desiring only to kill.
And to feed.
The vampires were moving almost immediately. They needed to contain the wolves as fast as possible, to minimize the damage. Each wolf that fell beneath the claws of another was one less wolf for House Tremaine to use.
They were so intent on what was going on with the werewolves, the vamps seemed to have forgotten me. Either that or they thought me a lesser threat. These were moon-crazed wolves they were dealing with, after all. Perhaps they thought I would help them in subduing the insane shifters.
I didn’t hesitate. The moment the vampires turned their backs to me, I moved.
The first bullet took one of the vamps in the side of the head. He dropped without a cry, the bullet lodged in his brain. He shuddered on the floor, his body convulsing with the silver poisoning his body.
All eyes turned toward me at the sound of the gun going off. Everyone seemed frozen for a split second, as if they were so shocked that I actually shot someone, they didn’t know what to do.
Davin was the first to regain his composure. He spun to protect himself, as well as the Count, with his magical shield. The third vamp stayed close, waiting for me to make my move before deciding what to do. He kept glancing at the wolves, his eyes wide, waiting for the moment when they might pounce.
I took a step toward Tremaine but was forced to turn away from him when a handful of wolves charged me. Blood mixed with saliva splattered on the polished floor as they charged. There was nothing in their eyes but the Madness. They knew only that I had made the big sound and were intent on ending me.
Cursing softly, I backed away. I didn’t have enough bullets to deal with all the wolves, as well as Tremaine. I shot one wolf in the head in the hopes it might make the others change their minds about me, but it seemed only to enrage them further. They came on without missing a step.
I was forced to backpedal as they advanced. I had my back to the far wall, which was thankfully empty of wolves, but there was no way out there. I kept firing, counting the bullets, knowing at any moment it would be my last. I dropped one wolf, then another, but they were coming too hard, too fast. I would never drop them all before they got to me.
The third vampire started forward as if he thought he could join in on the kill. He must have forgotten what had happened to the last vamp who got too close to the wolves.
A pair of wolves leaped on him, ripping his throat out before he could so much as scream. Within seconds, he was a mass of blood and guts, strewn across the floor. The two wolves quickly fell on one another, fighting over the remains.
I dropped another wolf as it lunged for me, barely stepping aside as its body flew past and slammed into the wall at my back. I only had time to pay it a quick glance to make sure it was going to stay down before I was forced to contend with the remaining wolf.
I raised my gun, hoping I had at least one bullet left, and was about to pull the trigger when I realized who it was that was coming. Nathan’s eyes were yellow, almost fully dilated, and there was absolutely no recognition in them. I jerked my aim away anyway, cursing under my breath, and tried to sidestep his leap.
I wasn’t fast enough. His full weight hit me in the chest and we both went down hard. My gun went spinning out of my hand, landing somewhere out of sight. I landed on my back, the full weight of the fully shifted werewolf on my chest. Blood trailed down his face. One ear was almost completely torn from his head. His breath smelled of gore and death.
I fought under him as he snapped at me, barely getting my forearm up under his chin before his teeth closed around my face. He fought hard and it took all my strength just to keep him from biting my nose off. There was no way I was going to get him off me by pure brute strength. My sword was still in my hand, but I wasn’t going to be able to stab him without dropping my guard first. He would probably kill me before I could get the angle right to break his skin anyway.
“Nathan,” I gasped, my breath pressed from my chest by his weight. “Stop.”
He snapped at my face, then suddenly jerked back, eyes wild. He seemed to look me over, panting and growling deep in his throat. It was almost like he was having some sort of wolf-langua
ge conversation with himself. I only hoped the sane part of him that was buried deep within the depths of his brain would win out in the end.
I struggled beneath him, trying in vain to push him off me. All I needed to do was stab him and he would be paralyzed by the silver. I wouldn’t have to kill him. I just needed to get him off me and get the hell away from him before he regained control of his body.
My breath was coming in harsh, painful gasps. Even vampires needed air. I wouldn’t die from suffocation, but I sure as hell could suffer from it. His weight pressed down on me, pushed the air from my lungs and I gasped for breath.
Nathan howled, mere inches from my face, and I froze, certain he was going to finish me off. I couldn’t hold him off much longer. My arm was trembling. The lack of air was causing my strength to wane. Even my moon-hyped strength was no match for Nathan’s all-out rage.
He opened his mouth wide, his tongue a bloody mess in his mouth. His lips pulled back from his teeth, his eyes bulged from his head. He growled deep in his throat, then turned his head and leaped off me, charging back into the fray.
I got to my feet the moment he was gone. I sucked in large gulps of air and had to steady myself a moment before acting. I held my sword in both hands as I scanned the fight, trying to make sense of what I was seeing.
Werewolves were fighting each other all over the room. I hadn’t even realized how many wolves Tremaine had at his disposal. The pair that had been chained by the door had broken free, but were fighting right in front of the doorway, blocking off any escape. It was a mass of fur and death everywhere I looked. The vampires were standing close to the dais, watching it all in rapt fascination.
And Nathan was going right for them.
I didn’t bother looking for my gun. It was probably out of bullets anyway. I raised my sword and charged right in behind him. In the tumult caused by the fighting wolves, neither of our approaches could be heard. Both vampires stood watching the fight, most likely thinking me dead already. Davin still had his shield up, but he was facing the wrong way.
