by Parker Blue
He looked disappointed. “Who’s that?”
“Mike and Ike,” I told him, though I wasn’t sure if they used different names here.
“Sure,” Dante said. “The twins. I know them.”
“Are they here tonight?”
“Not now. They were earlier.”
Shoot—I was hoping this would be easier. “What do you know about them?” I asked casually.
When he gave me a cautious look, I added, “We hooked up with them yesterday and want to see them again, but they left before we could give them our numbers.”
He shook his head. “I don’t get why you chicks like them so much. So not Goth.”
I shrugged. “They’re hot . . . different.”
“Yeah,” he said and gave us significant looks. “Real different. Dangerous different.”
“So you know what they really are?” Ivy asked.
“Yeah. Do you?” he challenged.
“Vampires,” Ivy whispered on a hiss.
“I’m talking the real thing,” Dante said, sounding intense.
“Me, too,” Ivy said. “And we have the puncture marks to prove it.”
Where was she going with this? He glanced at our necks, free of fang marks.
“Not there,” Ivy said. “There are other veins to sink fangs into.”
He glanced down at her lap, and I realized what she meant—the femoral artery near the groin. I felt myself flushing but hoped he wouldn’t be able to see it beneath the white makeup.
“No,” Ivy said. “We’re not going to show you. You’ll just have to take our word for it.”
He shrugged, trying to appear indifferent. “Your funeral.”
I entered the conversation. “So, if you know so much about them, maybe you can tell us where they went tonight after they left here?”
“I don’t keep track.”
I smiled and sent Lola into him, just a little. It wasn’t as if he needed much encouragement. “But you know anyway, don’t you?” His expression turned dreamy as Lola stroked his chakras. “And you want to tell us everything you know.” I reinforced the suggestion with Lola, but it didn’t take much. He was very eager.
“Mmm. They’re okay, except for hogging all the chicks and boring us with talk about the Movement.”
“What do they say about the Movement?”
“How it sucks, how it’s ruining their lives, how they’re going to take it down.”
Now we were getting somewhere. “How are they going to take it down?”
“By killing the leaders.” His mouth twisted in a wry grin. “But they haven’t been very successful so far. They talk big, though.”
“What was the talk tonight? Did they say where they were going?”
“Yeah, they were going to go after one of the leaders again.”
“Which one?” Ivy asked when my throat closed up.
“Don’t know his name.”
“What do you know about him?” I asked, finally getting my voice back.
“The cowboy, they called him.”
Oh, crap. They were going after Austin tonight.
AUSTIN CAN TAKE CARE OF HIMSELF, Fang reminded me.
“Did they say how?” I persisted. “Or where?”
“With crossbows and a lot of friends. At the downtown blood bank.”
Oh, crap. Crossbows were a whole lot harder to dodge than mere fists and fangs. I exchanged glances with Ivy as we both slid off the barstools. “Thanks, Dante. Appreciate the info.”
“No problem,” he said with a leer at my cleavage. “Come on back anytime. With or without your friend.”
Rolling my eyes, I pulled Lola out of him—he was enjoying it way too much.
Outside, I said, “Hold on. Let me call Austin and warn him.” If it wasn’t too late.
I pulled my phone out of my skirt pocket and dialed Austin. The phone rang once, twice, three times, my heart rate doubling each time. Finally, he answered on the fourth ring.
“Austin—” I began.
“Not Austin,” a man said on the other end. “Who’s this?”
“It’s Val. Val Shapiro.”
“The Slayer?”
“Yes. Where’s Austin? Why didn’t he answer the phone?” I asked, my heart in my throat.
“Get here quick. We’ve been attacked.” And without another word, he hung up.
Chapter Fifteen
Austin
AUSTIN NEVER understood why some men found glory in battle—the aftermath was so agonizing. He glanced around the blood bank, now smeared with the life fluid this building was designed to collect, and sighed in frustration. Though their trap hadn’t worked, they’d won the battle . . . but at what cost?
Three of the rogues had been killed, and, in trying to shield the humans from harm, two of Austin’s followers had been slain, a dozen injured, and several humans wounded despite their best efforts to shield them. Most of the vampire wounded would heal in time, but he was worried about Jeremy, who had taken a bolt in the eye.
Hearing a commotion at the door, he glanced up from the wounded vampire he and Gwen had been trying to help. What now? He leapt to his feet and readied himself for whatever was coming.
Not necessary. This time it was two Goth girls trying to force their way in, along with a dog.
Wait—he knew that dog.
“Come on, you know me,” one of the girls protested.
Austin realized he knew that voice as well . . . though it definitely didn’t go with the way she was dressed. He raised his eyebrows along with his voice. “Let them in.”
Val turned her head toward him—black lipstick and dark eye shadow stark against the paleness of her face—and he could see the horror in it even from across the room.
“Austin,” she said on a gasp. “Are you hurt?”
He glanced down at his denim shirt, red with the blood of the fallen. “I’m fine. The blood isn’t mine.”
“Oh, thank the gods,” she said and flew into his arms.
Austin grabbed hold of her and hung on tight, grateful for her presence and the fact that she was coming to care for him. He’d expected some awkwardness in Val after their night together, but fear trumped awkwardness apparently, and she was fine. At least there was one good thing to come from this night.
He pulled away far enough so he could look down into her face. Fingering the dramatic blue-black wig, he asked, “What’s with the get-up?”
“Oh, I forgot. Ivy said we’d fit in better at the seminar if we dressed like this.”
He nodded, realizing the other Goth girl must be Ivy. She’d gone to help the humans on the other side of the room, just as she had before.
“But never mind that,” Val said. “What happened here?”
“Remember I told you we set a trap to try and lure Mike and Ike in so we could capture them?”
She nodded.
“It didn’t work.”
Fang, down by her side, snorted in what sounded like amusement.
Yeah, kind of obvious. “We put out the word that I was going to be here tonight at midnight, hoping to catch them off-guard. Unfortunately, they showed up early, and in much greater force than we anticipated. We’d planned to keep all the violence outside, away from the donors, but they brought it inside.” Luckily, there were only a few donors this time of night.
“Was it the rogues?” she asked.
“Yes, definitely,” Austin confirmed.
“You should have seen Austin,” Charlie gushed from behind him. “He was faster and stronger than anyone else here—he took down twice as many as anyone else. He was like . . . like all supervamp and everything.”
Austin winced, hoping no one else had heard that—he’d never live it down.
“Looks like they need help over there,” he said, nodding toward the far side of the room, and Charlie went eagerly on his way.
“You’re really okay?” Val asked, and he could see worry in her eyes. “I was afraid that Lola might have . . . drained you last night.”
He squeezed her reassuringly then let her go. “You don’t have to worry about that with me. A little restorative sleep, and with my healing and recuperative powers, I was back up to normal in no time at all.”
Val grinned in what looked like relief. “Actually, if what Charlie said is true, it sounds like you were better than normal. Or did he exaggerate just a tad?”
“Well, actually, he didn’t. I was faster and stronger than I’ve ever been in my life.”
“Why? You don’t think Lola had anything to do with it?”
“No, I don’t know why I was suddenly more powerful.” But he’d felt almost like a berserker. He gestured at his shirt. “If it wasn’t for Jeremy, this blood might be mine.”
He glanced down at the former football player who was being tended by Gwen and Amanda. Val’s gaze followed his, and she gasped when she saw the vampire with the bolt in his eye. “Is he still alive?”
“Yes,” Austin said. “He took a bolt meant for me.”
“Can he heal from that?” Val asked in disbelief.
“Yes,” Austin said. “But the bolt has to come out soon, or he’ll heal around it.”
“So why haven’t you taken it out yet?”
Gwen looked up. “We don’t know if his brain has been damaged beyond the point where even accelerated vampire healing would help. I’m afraid we’ll injure him more unless we can pull it straight out. But I can’t keep him still, and Austin is afraid he’ll crush his head if he tries to hold him motionless. Shade is on his way, but we need to get the bolt out first.”
“I can help with that,” Val said. Taking one of Jeremy’s hands in hers, she must have done her mojo with Jeremy, because Austin could see the wounded vampire visibly relax. “Close your eyes, be perfectly still, and let us take care of you,” he heard her murmur.
“Oh, thank you,” Amanda breathed as Jeremy relaxed.
Her tear-streaked face just made Austin feel more guilty. The human receptionist had volunteered to man the desk here tonight, and, while she hadn’t been injured, she shouldn’t have had to witness such mayhem.
“Take it out straight,” Gwen whispered. “Fast.”
Austin nodded and, feeling as if he was performing a delicate operation with brute force, pulled the bolt straight out of Jeremy’s eye.
Despite Val’s control over him, Jeremy screamed and thrashed.
“Keep him still,” Gwen said urgently.
“Shh, shh,” Val said. “Relax,” she said and placed her hands on him. Good—even if the man was brain-damaged and unable to understand her, Lola should work on him at a subconscious level.
“Can you put him to sleep?” Austin asked Val.
“I can, but Shade will want to get his permission before he heals him. He’ll need to be awake for that.” She must have seen the worry in his expression, because she added, “But I can keep him calm now that the bolt is out.” She glanced toward the door. “Fang says Shade just arrived.”
Austin looked in that direction. A man in a motorcycle helmet stood in the doorway, talking to the guard he’d posted. Austin raised his voice. “Let him in. Over here, Shade.” He’d never been so glad to see the shadow demon.
Shade approached them slowly and paused to apparently take in the scene. “What happened here?”
“Mayhem,” Val said curtly.
The helmet turned toward her. “Val?” he asked in disbelief. “Why are you dressed like that?”
“I’ll explain later,” she said impatiently. “Can you fix him?”
Shade knelt down beside Jeremy.
Gwen placed her hand on his. “He took a bolt in the eye. Can you heal him, please? I’m afraid there will be brain damage if we let him heal on his own.”
Shade took off his helmet, and Austin saw the interdimensional whirling for only an instant before Gwen touched him again to bring him back into focus.
“He has to agree,” Shade said, “and I’ll need a template.”
“Jeremy?” Austin said, hoping the wounded man’s brain wouldn’t be too scrambled so he could agree to the healing.
“I felt him respond to your voice,” Val said softly. “Go ahead and ask.”
“Do you agree to let the shadow demon heal you?” he asked.
Jeremy looked confused and in pain.
“Hold on,” Val said. “I’ve never done this before, but I think I can find a chakra. . . . There.” She sighed. “I found out how to block his pain. Ask him again.”
This time, Jeremy breathed a “yes” in reply to Austin’s question.
“And the template?” Shade asked.
Austin glanced around, wondering whom he could conscript. “Not Val,” he said. “We need her to keep him calm. Ivy, maybe?” He glanced to where she was busy wrapping bandages around a human’s hand.
He didn’t know the gemstone whisperer very well, and this might be too much to ask.
“What’s a template?” Amanda asked.
Shade responded. “To heal Jeremy, I’ll need to use a person with a whole eye and brain as a template to repair Jeremy’s and to provide energy for the healing. It can’t be a vampire.”
They’d learned that when they’d tried to use Elspeth as a template and failed—something about being undead made it impossible for the shadow demon to use them as a template.
Shade turned to Val. “Do you want to ask Ivy?”
“No, use me,” Amanda said.
“Are you sure?” Austin asked, frowning. “What they didn’t say is that you may also share very intimate details about your life and your feelings.”
She blushed but lifted her chin in defiance. “I don’t care. Jeremy has always been very nice to me, and I knew him before . . .”
Before the rogues had turned him into one of the undead. Austin nodded encouragingly.
She shrugged. “He’s so brave. I want to do this.”
“I can put him to sleep,” Val suggested. “That should lessen the exchange of memories.”
“Okay, do it,” Shade said.
As Val told Jeremy to sleep, Amanda asked nervously, “What do I need to do?”
Shade sat next to Jeremy on the floor and placed a hand on his head. “Just lie here on the other side of me,” he said gently to the frightened girl, “and let me place my hand on your head.”
Austin pulled off his jacket and made it into a pillow for Amanda’s head. “Thank you for doing this,” he said. Definitely above and beyond the call of duty.
“It’s okay,” she said with a tremulous smile.
“It will be,” Val assured her. “Don’t worry. I’ve done this a couple of times myself, and everything turned out just fine.”
“Okay,” Shade said, “close your eyes. I’m ready to start.” He glanced at Austin. “This may take longer if there’s a lot of damage.”
Austin nodded in comprehension. He just hoped the shadow demon would be able to help the man who’d thrown himself between Austin and the crossbow bolt.
Shade placed his other hand on Amanda’s head, and they both closed their eyes. His head thrown back and teeth bared in concentration, Shade flickered in and out of focus as he pulled on another dimension’s healing energy. Harsh streaks of violet lightning pulsed through him, flashing from Amanda to Jeremy. It looked as though a storm was raging inside the shadow demon.
Much faster than Austin had expected, it was over, and Jeremy’s eye was completely restored. Shade let go of Amanda and Jeremy and slumped back against the wall.
“Are yo
u all right?” Austin asked Shade in concern.
Fang lay down next to the shadow demon and rested his head on Shade’s arm, bringing his face into view. He looked pale and drained.
“I’m okay,” Shade said. “I just need some rest.”
Val glanced down at the hellhound. “Fang says this was much quicker than any other healing you’ve done before. He’s right. Are you sure Jeremy’s brain will be okay?”
Shade ran a hand over his face. “It should be—I felt it being repaired at a cellular level. He might lose some memories, but he should function just fine.”
“When—” Austin began, but was interrupted by Diego.
“Hey, boss, what should we do about the two guys we captured? I’m not sure how long they can hold them without killing them.”
Jeremy was in Gwen’s capable hands, so Austin glanced at Val. “Can you . . . ?”
“Of course,” she said.
Grateful for her understanding and willingness to help, Austin led her to the room where six of his men had two rogues cornered. The conference room had definitely seen better days—the tables were smashed, the chairs ripped apart, and dents decorated all four walls. Thank goodness they’d reinforced this room with more than just drywall. The vampires had seen better days, too. The two rogues rushed the door, attempting to escape, but his people piled on them, until he could see nothing but flying arms and legs.
“Stop,” Val yelled, her arms outstretched.
All eight of the combatants stopped immediately, frozen in a bizarre statuelike lump of bodies.
“Stand up,” she said.
All eight followed her orders.
“Okay,” she said to Austin. “Which ones do you want to question?”
Austin pointed out the two rogues, and Val released the six who’d kept them under control. “Good work, guys,” Austin said. “You can stand down now.”
They all retreated to the walls, leaving the rogues in the center of the room—one short and blond, one tall and dark. His people made no move to leave, and Austin let them stay, figuring they deserved a chance to see what their efforts wrought.
“Still no Ike or Mike,” Val muttered in disappointment.
