Grabbing the Savage by the collar of his shirt, Doug yanked it backward and tossed it overboard as a fresh wave of gunfire rang out. Doug spun away from the railing and leapt in front of Mollie when more bullets riddled the boat.
Mollie screamed and lunged for Doug when his body jerked from the impact of the bullets piercing it. Blood trickled from his mouth and bloomed across his chest as he seized her arms and pushed her down next to Aida before falling on top of them.
“Son of a bitch!” Mike spat as the shield in front of the steering wheel spiderwebbed and a wooden bullet embedded in the center of it. “Mollie! Doug!” Mike shouted. He’d seen the blood on Doug’s shirt before he pulled Mollie beneath him. Mollie hadn’t been hit, but Doug was. “Doug, are you okay? Mollie? Someone answer me!”
No one responded though as the engine chugged, caught again, and purred for a few seconds before bogging down. Mike’s heart sank, but then the motor roared back to life, and the boat lurched forward. Mike clutched the handle beside him and threw the vessel into reverse before it crashed into the dock. Water sprayed up around him; the side of the boat dipped down as he twisted the wheel to steer the vessel away from the dock.
On top of the cliff, the woman with Jack grabbed his arm and pointed to something on their right. Jack swung the rifle onto his back, clasped the woman’s hand, and fled toward the woods. With a heavy heart, Mike watched them go; he wouldn’t be able to get to them and get them off the island now that he didn’t know where they’d gone. He’d have to come back for Jack after he got Mollie to safety and made sure Doug was okay.
Mollie remained still beneath Doug’s heavy weight as the boat lurched backward. She couldn’t see anything beyond his body, but water sprayed the fingers she’d dug into his shoulder. Tears burned her eyes as his blood soaked through her shirt to coat her skin. He’s a vampire; he’ll be okay. She tried to convince herself of this, but she couldn’t shake the feeling of dread creeping over her skin.
“Doug?” she whispered, but he didn’t respond.
Beside her, Aida’s arm rested against hers, yet her sister remained abnormally still. Had Aida also been shot before Mollie pushed her out of the way?
“Aida?”
“I’m okay,” Aida said in a choked voice.
Mollie realized Doug’s weight and the way he’d landed on her sister was making it difficult for Aida to speak. When the boat suddenly shifted into forward, and the engine roared, the three of them slid back a few feet before coming to a stop. Something smashed off the bottom of the boat, but she felt no sympathy for the Savage who probably just had their skull bashed in.
“Doug?” she asked again. Please be alive. Please be alive.
If he replied, she didn’t hear it over the hum of the engine and the waves slapping the sides of the boat as it skimmed the surface of the ocean. Mollie closed her eyes to hold back her tears, but some slid free. There was no rise and fall in Doug’s chest against hers, and no breath tickled her cheek though his mouth was next to her face.
“Doug,” she choked out as she hugged him closer. She feared he was already gone, but if not, he needed to know she was here for him.
The boat continued across the ocean for what was probably only another minute or two, but it felt like an eternity before their speed eased. Mollie couldn’t bring herself to release Doug as the boat came to a halt and the engine purred while they bobbed on the waves.
Then Doug’s body was eased off hers. Mollie’s fingers remained curved into cramped hooks when she released him. She blinked against the influx of light as the sea breeze cooled her flesh. Getting her elbows under her, she pushed herself up a little as Mike carefully lifted his friend and placed him on the bench seat.
“Doug?” Mike croaked.
The broken sound of Mike’s voice and the suffering on his face as he knelt at Doug’s side tore at her heart. Mike pressed his fingers against Doug’s neck to check for a pulse and then frantically moved them to another location and then another.
“No,” Mike moaned.
Tears slid down her face when Mike bit into his wrist and placed it against Doug’s partially open mouth.
“Come on, Doug, drink,” he commanded in a hoarse voice.
He willed his friend to swallow the blood filling his mouth. There had been no pulse, one of the bullet holes in his shirt was dead center through his heart, but that didn’t mean anything. Doug was a vampire, he was a vampire, and anything could happen. If Mike succeeded in getting some of his blood into his friend, he could still save him; he was sure of it.
“It will heal you, drink!” he ordered.
Mike waited for Doug’s throat to make the motion of swallowing and for the healing effects of the blood to take hold, but Doug didn’t move.
“This will help you,” Mike insisted.
Mike knew he was lying to himself; he could see the truth in the stillness of Doug’s body, the ashen hue of his cheeks, the blood spreading across his chest, and the missing beat of his heart, but he refused to believe it.
“Drink, Doug!” Mike gave his friend a shake that caused Doug’s head to turn toward him. Doug’s once lively blue eyes were unseeing beneath his half-closed lids.
No! Mike screamed inwardly as memories of their life together flashed through his mind.
They’d been friends since they were kids running their neighborhood, riding their bikes uptown to get penny candy, discussing girls, stealing Playboys from Doug’s dad, and building forts. They’d played on the same teams together, had many of the same classes in high school, and gone to college together. When Liam and David initially chose different colleges, he, Doug, and Jack went to the same one and joined the same frat. The three of them were turned into vampires only hours apart from each other.
Never had he imagined life without his friends in it, without his family in it, but one of his brothers was gone. A bellow swelled in his chest and lodged in his throat as tears burned his eyes, and he swayed between rage and choking grief. Doug, the gentlest soul, the one with the smile that melted women’s hearts and brightened everyone’s day, was dead.
The bellow erupted from him, and he smashed his fist into the bench seat. The hole he tore through it caused yellow stuffing to explode and rain down on Doug’s body. Horror filled him, and he brushed the offending debris away.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured. “I’m so sorry.”
Mike knew he wasn’t apologizing for the stuffing; he was apologizing for his failure to save Doug’s life and his inability to get them all off the island alive. He gripped Doug’s still warm wrist and squeezed it.
Lifting his head, he glowered at the island on the horizon. One of his friends remained in that hellhole, and no matter what it took, he would get Jack out of there. He would not let another one of his friends down.
A sob sounded behind him, and he glanced back to find Aida with her hand against her mouth to stifle her sounds. Mollie sat beside her with an arm around Aida’s waist and tears streaming down her face.
Aida pulled her hand away from her mouth. “He died to protect us,” she whispered and sobbed again.
Mollie kissed her sister’s temple when Aida turned her head into her shoulder. Mike’s glistening red eyes briefly met hers before he focused on Doug again. His shoulders remained hunched as if he expected someone to hit him, but no one could deliver him a worse blow than this.
Still kneeling, Mike turned to another set of seats and lifted the top of one to peer at the contents stashed inside. He discovered a white boat covering tucked within and pulled it out before turning back to Doug.
Rising, he unfolded the covering and carefully draped it over Doug’s body, but he couldn’t bring himself to cover his friend’s face yet. Falling back on his knees beside Doug, he rested his hand on Doug’s chest and willed his friend to live again. He had a better chance of seeing a unicorn, but he couldn’t bring himself to give up on him yet.
Doug’s words from earlier played through his mind. “Besides, you hav
e something more to live for now, Mike, someone to live for. That’s more than either Jack or I have, and you can’t risk losing it; I won’t let you.”
Doug died to protect Mollie, and he did it for him. “I’ll protect her with my life,” Doug had promised, and he’d upheld that promise.
Mike had only one thing to give Doug in return. “I’ll make them pay for this,” he vowed as he settled the covering over Doug’s face.
A hand on his shoulder drew Mike’s attention away from Doug as Mollie knelt at his side. She draped her arms over his shoulders and rested her face against his neck.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
She’d give anything to take away his suffering, but it was impossible. Only time would help him cope with the loss of his friend, but no matter how much time passed, the sadness would remain, and the hole would never fill. However, he had to know she was here for him.
Mike hugged her against him and buried his face in her hair. He squeezed her tighter than he probably should have, but she didn’t protest or try to pull away.
Mollie turned her head to kiss him on the cheek. “I love you.”
“And I love you,” he said.
Chapter Forty-Five
Once he spotted land less than a mile from the island, Mike searched for a secluded stretch of beach. He waited until nightfall before daring to come ashore with their bullet-riddled boat, bloody clothes, and Doug’s body.
Once he beached the boat, he removed Doug’s body from it before cutting the gas line and using his Zippo and a rag to set it on fire. He didn’t worry the police or someone would somehow locate him through blood and fingerprints, but he needed to hide any evidence of Mollie and Aida.
With the flames rising behind them, and with Mike carrying Doug, they trudged along the shoreline and into a small town where they slipped through the shadows until he discovered a man exiting his car. Placing Doug down, Mike snuck up on the man, knocked him out, and stole the vehicle. They couldn’t stay in this town; he wasn’t going to take the chance the people here were working with the Savages.
Judging by the kilometer speed limit signs on the side of the dark, two-lane road winding through barren fields and pine trees as he drove south, Mike assumed they were still in Canada.
“I’m so sorry about Doug,” Mollie whispered. “He was a good man.”
Mike winced as the mention of his friend reminded him that Doug’s body was stashed in the trunk. Doug deserved so much better, but Mike couldn’t give it to him yet. “He was,” Mike agreed.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes.”
His clipped answers made it clear he didn’t want to talk about it. Please don’t blame me, she silently pleaded. It was her Doug died defending; she wouldn’t blame Mike if he resented her for what happened.
Swinging her gaze out the window, she stared at the trees passing by in a blur. She tried not to think about Doug, the island, and this whole mess, but then a disturbing realization settled over her.
“The vampires on the island, they have our info,” Mollie murmured. “They took our IDs from us, and I’m sure they went through my car.”
Mike didn’t have his real ID on him when he left home, he wasn’t sure he still had an ID for the real him, and he didn’t have one with his real info on it.
“None of those fuckers will make it off that island alive,” he assured her.
“Some of them may have already left the island if they realized things were going wrong and they had escapees who might want revenge,” she whispered. “They may not know exactly who got away yet, but it won’t take them long to figure out if they kept all our info, which I’m sure they did.”
Mike glanced over at her. In the dim glow of the dashboard lights, her skin was ashen. “I’ll get you both new IDs, and I will keep you safe. They’ll never find you.”
“But we can never go home again, can we?” she whispered.
Mike reached over and took her hand when her fingers dug into her thigh. “It would be safer if you didn’t,” he said.
“My mom’s ashes are there and all our things. Aida is supposed to start college in the fall, and…” Mollie broke off and shook her head. She blinked away the tears filling her eyes as she recalled all the things and memories filling her home. She would never see them again, but it could be far worse. “We’re alive, that’s what matters.”
“I will figure out a way to retrieve your mother’s ashes and anything else of importance to you. With fake IDs and our ability to change and manipulate memories, we can get Aida into another college. I wouldn’t recommend her attending the same one she planned to go to, but we’ll figure it out. Most of the Byrne kids are good with computers, but Julian is a computer genius. He’ll be able to get it all situated; he can probably get her into Harvard.”
“I’d flunk out of there in a month,” Aida muttered. “I like school, but I also like to have fun, and I don’t think they get much playtime at Harvard. I’ll find another college. Besides, I think I might like a little time off from learning after this. I’ll start next spring, and maybe I’ll take some online classes until then.”
Mollie wanted her sister to go to college, it was what their mother had dreamed of, but she couldn’t argue with Aida about it after everything she’d endured. Aida needed time to process everything and heal before returning to normal life. However, neither of their lives would ever be normal again given everything they now knew about the world.
“Where will we live? How will we live?” Mollie asked. “We have money left over from our mom’s life insurance policy, but I don’t know how I’ll get it without any ID or my bank cards.”
“We will figure out a way to get the money, and both of you can stay with my family and me.” He glanced at Mollie as she turned in the seat to look at him. “We’ll protect you, and I want you with me forever, if you agree to it.”
Aida’s breath sucked in loudly, and Mike glanced at her in the rearview mirror.
“If not forever, at least until you’re safe,” Mike said to ease some of Aida’s fear, but she still looked as if her eyes were going to pop out of her head.
“And who are the members of your family?” Aida asked.
“My friend Liam and his wife Sera have ten children, and some of them also have children. Liam and Sera’s children are my adopted nieces and nephews. They’re the Byrne kids, or the Byrne clan is more like it,” Mike said. “Liam is like my brother—I’ve known him since we were kids—and my friends, David, Jack, and… and Doug, all live on the same land together. It’s a massive property with multiple houses and plenty of room for more.”
“Are they all vampires?”
“They are, but they’d never harm you or Mollie.”
“So, they’re more like you than those freaks on the island?”
“Yes.”
“And you want us to live with them?”
A trickle of unease slid through Mike. It was a lot to ask of a young girl who’d been severely abused at the hands of vampires, but if Aida refused to stay with him, then Mollie would too, and he needed her somewhere she would be safe.
“You’ll be safest there,” he said.
Aida didn’t respond as she sat back in her seat and turned to gaze out the window. Mollie squeezed Mike’s hand. He didn’t seem to resent her for Doug’s death, but they still had so many hurdles to leap. One of them being her sister.
Mollie would understand if Aida wanted nothing to do with vampires again and chose not to live with them, but she would have to go with Aida.
She tried not to think about it as she focused on what she could see of the passing scenery. One step at a time, and they had plenty of steps to get through before they decided their living arrangements.
Half an hour later, they arrived in another small town with only one road as the main strip through it.
“Stay out here,” Mike said when he pulled into the parking lot of the only motel in town. One other car was parked outside the office, whic
h was the only room with a light on. “I’ll get the keys.”
Using his power to bend a human to his will, he got three keys from the clerk, instructed the man to give them unlimited access on the phones, and left him with false names and no memory of how they paid for the rooms. If the clerk were ever asked to describe them, he would give descriptions of the cast of Three’s Company.
He made sure there was no security system and they were the only guests in the ten-room motel before returning to the car. Because of that, Mike wasn’t concerned someone would report him carrying a tarp-enshrouded body to whatever police they had in town.
Mike placed Doug’s body in the first room he confiscated, went through the door to the second room, and opened the door in between the second and third room. Mollie and Aida had already settled into the third room and looked up at him when he opened the door.
He nodded to them before closing the door and walking over to sit on the king-sized bed. He didn’t like having Mollie out of his sight, but she needed time with her sister, and he had some things to deal with. Lifting the phone from the bed stand, he dialed Liam’s number.
Liam answered on the second ring. “Hello.”
“Liam,” Mike said.
“Mike! Where the fuck have you been? We’ve been trying to call you for days, and your phones aren’t given off a location, so we had no idea where to start searching for you!”
“We ran into a lot of trouble up here.”
“How bad?”
“Real bad.”
“Jack and Doug?”
“Jack’s still caught up in it.” He’d prefer not to break the news about Doug over the phone, but he didn’t have a choice. The problem was, he didn’t know how to make it easy, but then there was never an easy way to tell someone a loved one was dead. In the end, he decided just to rip the band-aid off. “Doug’s dead.”
Consumed: The Vampire Awakenings, Book 8 Page 27
