by Lucinda Dark
I stood, lifting Barbie in my arms. She didn't hesitate to wrap her arms around my neck as I strode through the guesthouse. I smirked. Before, she would've punched me and demanded to be put down. This was progress.
"I think it would be best if we left town," I said.
"Left town?" she repeated, blinking. "Why the fuck can't we just kill her?"
I grimaced. "My sister is not to be taken lightly. Had you been human, her initial attack would've killed you. Had I not been there, she would've."
"Your belief in my abilities is astounding," she deadpanned.
It wasn't her abilities that worried me, but Katalin's. "She is much older than you and me," I said. "She is dangerous. I've never even seen her fight. Her speed..." Had been incredible. Unparalleled. Worrisome. I shook my head. "We should leave town anyway just for a little while. I'm sure Maverick has a list of possible hunters we can contact by now." I made it to the master bedroom and set her down, holding onto her arm as she wavered slightly. "We'll go looking for them."
"What about—"
I caught a whiff of something rising from her skin. Something that most certainly should not have been there. My hand tightened on her arm. "Why do you smell like human blood?" I cut her off.
Her eyes widened as her head jerked back and she looked up at me. Her lips parted and the quietest of curses slipped out. "Fuck."
"Barbie..." I growled, backing her into the bedroom wall, caging her in with my body and arms. "What. Happened?"
Her eyes closed and when she reopened them, she'd found her steel again. She shoved against my chest, pushing me back. "I—" she started, only to cut herself off when the front door banged open, capturing both of our attentions. I was out of the bedroom in a flash, ready to defend her if Katalin had chosen to come after us anyway. But it wasn't Katalin. Maverick stood there with keys in hand, looking at me as though I'd lost my mind.
"What the hell is that look for?" he snapped. Barbie walked out of the bedroom a moment later, coming up behind me and his attention shifted to her. "Barbie? What are you doing here? I thought you were with Olivia."
"I was," she said sidling past me. I growled at her in warning. It wasn't that she was getting nearer to Maverick that bothered me so much as the fact that more of that human blood scent hit my nose. We were not done talking.
She shot me a look of irritation over her shoulder before turning and fixing her gaze on Maverick. "We have to talk," she announced. I settled a hand on her shoulder and she stiffened slightly.
Maverick lifted a hand and scrubbed it down his face as he lowered his other arm and shoved the keys back into his pocket. "When you say shit like that—I know I'm not going to like whatever comes next," he complained. I agreed. I didn't think either of us was going to like what she had to say next.
When the words came out of her mouth, I knew I was right. I didn't like it. “Olivia and I were attacked in the city—don’t worry, I took care of it.” She stopped, sliding her eyes my way. “I had to hurt them, they bled,” she confessed. That explained the scent of human blood on her. “In the process, Olivia might have found out that I’m…” she grimaced, “not human.”
"She fucking what?" Maverick just stared at her.
“I didn’t have much of a choice at the time,” she said defensively. "What was I supposed to do?"
"You should've brought her back here," I answered. "Where I could've erased her memories."
"It's a goddamn good thing I didn't," she snapped at me before turning her gaze back on Maverick. "His sister's back and considering that she just tried to fucking kill me, that might have complicated things." She lifted a hand from her chest and pinched her thumb and forefinger together. "Just a smidge."
The little smartass. Oh, how I wanted to spank her. I huffed out a breath as I reached up and pinched the bridge of my nose.
"What?" Mav's head swung my way. "When the hell did this happen? And why the fuck did no one call me? Is that why the main estate—"
"Yes," I answered his question mid-sentence, cutting it off as I released the bridge of my nose and lowered my arm. "And it just happened. We hadn't gotten to the guesthouse but a moment before you arrived."
"What are we going to do about her?" Mav demanded.
I didn't know. We could kill her ... but she'd let Barbie and me go. She'd attacked Barbie, knowing she was my mate. Those things she'd said to me just before Barbie had arrived ... my mind was whirling with the confusing knowledge. What had she meant when she'd said she wished she'd killed me when I was born? What did she know? Why couldn't she kill me now?
A part of me honestly wanted to believe it was because she cared—tonight had been the most emotion I'd ever seen from her. In recent months, I'd seen more and more of Katalin's emotions emerge. It was growing concerning. Did that mean Arrius was planning something? Did she know what it was? It involved me, that much was sure. What could I do to ensure she wouldn't tell Arrius about Barbie still being alive before we got a chance to kill him?
"Torin?" I lifted my head, meeting the focused gazes of both Barbie and Maverick. The way they'd said my name told me that it hadn't been the first time they'd called for me and I realized I still hadn't answered the question.
"I'll figure it out," I promised. I strode across the living room and opened the weapon trunk. Rifling through it, I withdrew a weapons bag and set it on the floor before closing the lid. "For now, we need to take off for a few days."
"What?" Mav frowned at me. "Where the hell are we going to go? How are we going to explain it to—"
"Tell your parents that you're staying with me for the weekend," I interrupted him. "Barbie is supposed to be with Olivia," I paused and shot her a look full of meaning, "which we will have to deal with."
"You're not going to hurt her," Barbie stated.
"Of course not," I agreed, “but she still can't be allowed to know."
"She doesn't know everything," Barbie said. "She doesn't know about you or Mav."
"She knows we're involved though, doesn't she?" Her silence was the answer I needed.
"I agree with Tor, Barbie," Mav said. "She's a liability."
Barbie gritted her teeth, lowering her arms as her fists clenched at her sides. "I don't want to take away her choice," she said.
"It's not just her choice at stake," I said. "It could be her life."
Quiet stretched through the room, uncomfortable and tense. Barbie didn't speak and neither did I. It was Mav who chose to break the silence. "Why don't we come back to it when we get back?" he suggested.
I slid a glance his way. "Time won't change what has to be done," I warned.
"No," he agreed, "but a weekend won't make much of a difference, will it?"
I supposed it wouldn't. Not in the long run. I didn't like it, but with one look at Barbie's face, I knew any further argument would be met with vitriol. She glared at me, as if waiting for me to pass judgment, and I could tell by the tautness in her arms that as soon as I said something she didn't like—which always seemed to be the case—she'd be ready to punch me. I sighed. I would give in. For now. "Fine," I said, "but when we get back, you need to resign yourself to what needs to be done."
Barbie didn't answer for a moment and then she nodded, one small barely perceptible jerk of her chin. "Okay."
Mav nodded. "Then that settles that—at least for now. It just leaves us with the fuck we're supposed to do about your sister and where we're going to go."
"That's up to you," I replied.
He frowned at me. "What do you mean 'up to me?’"
"We need to find hunters," I said. "Do you have a list compiled yet?"
His lips parted and curled into a grimace. "Of sorts..." He reached back and pulled out his phone. He tapped a few buttons and scrolled before coming to whatever screen he needed. Mav took two strides and stopped at my side, handing me the device. I lifted it from his grip and looked down.
"There are only three names on this list," I said.
He shrugged.
"What can I say?" he replied. "They're either dead—wiped out by your father—or they're very good at hiding. There's a reason it's taken me this long. Narrowing down the suspects. I'm about ninety percent sure these three are hunters. They're the only ones I could find and I don't just mean in the area, I mean in the United States. Whatever Arrius is planning," he paused, taking the phone back from me, "he's almost achieved complete annihilation of vampire hunters."
"That's not good," Barbie said as she stepped closer. "That's not good at fucking all."
No, I agreed internally. It wasn't.
"Call your family," I ordered Mav. "And start packing a bag for each of you." I turned towards the front door.
"Where are you going?" Mav called after me.
"To talk to Katalin," I answered.
I found Katalin much in the same way as I had earlier. A new glass of blood in hand, staring out at me as I approached the back of the main estate. Barbie’s backpack rested on the ground where I supposed Katalin must have brought it out and tossed it. I picked it up and slid it over my shoulders before looking up to where she stood.
"Have you calmed down?" she inquired as she took a sip, red staining her lips before she licked it away.
I stiffened—my muscles growing tense—but I didn't slow my gait as I strode up the back steps. "You should not have attacked her," I said.
She didn't reply and for a moment, I wasn't sure if she would or not. And then, "You're right," she said. "It was a poor decision on my part. I should've maintained control of my emotions." Her eyes slid to the side. "But make no mistake, it matters not whether I kill her here or not, she will die, Torin."
"If it doesn't matter then you shouldn't try to do it again," I advised.
Red flashed in her eyes before disappearing so quickly, I might have thought I'd imagined it had it not been for the crackle of energy between us. I was poised—ready to strike. She pivoted towards the back door, downing the rest of her glass in one gulp, letting the empty crystal hang in her grip. She stopped in the doorway and without turning, she spoke. "Be very wary of your choices in the coming weeks," she said, and I knew the words for what they were. Not just a threat but also a warning.
"Will you tell him?" I demanded, stepping closer until I was within reaching distance of her back. Her cheek turned and her lips curled upwards. I wasn't stupid enough to believe that it was a true smile though.
"And if I said I would?" she asked. She spun, facing me. "What would you do, Torin? Kill me?"
I inhaled sharply. "I'd do what was necessary."
Her lips slowly returned to their normal passive line. "That's all I've ever done," she said. "What was necessary." Before I could reply—before I could extract a promise that she would keep Barbie's life a secret, at least for now—she shook her head and gestured out beyond the back lawn. "Go," she said. "Go back to your friend and your mate."
She knew then, too, about Maverick. I didn't know what else to say. I couldn't—I realized—say what I knew would happen if we stepped closer to this line we were reaching. I would kill her if she crossed it and she would kill Barbie if I did. Perhaps even Mav. A growl rumbled in my mind—my vampire's memory of the blood I'd shared with him insulted by the suggestion of something marked by us in danger, though it was not nearly as strong as it had been for Barbie.
“If you hurt them,” I cautioned quietly, “I’ll never forgive you.” Once again, there was nothing in her expression to hint at what she was feeling. It appeared that she’d drawn that cold shell of hers closed once more. For only a moment, I’d seen past the silence that cloaked her. And inside of Katalin, I knew there was a storm of fury just waiting to be unleashed. “Please, Kat…”
She shook her head again. “You’re not welcome back in the main estate,” she said. “I’ll have the rest of your things brought out to the guesthouse. I don’t want to see you here again.”
“And Barbie?” I asked. “Maverick?”
She lifted the glass she still held so that the light pouring out from the house reflected on its surface and sent a dozen rays of gold across the ground between us. “What you do from this point on is none of my business,” she said. “I won’t reveal anything I’m not asked, but the less I know the better. If you know what is good for you and your mate, you’ll take her and you’ll run far, far away from this place, Torin.”
It was my turn to shake my head. When I smiled, it was sad. “Pawns can’t get away from their owners for long,” I said, stepping back.
She blinked, as if surprised by that statement. “I suppose you’re right,” she acquiesced, dropping her arm and cutting off the array of lights as the crystal glass in her grip lowered as well.
I took another step and lowered myself until I was no longer standing on the stone, but in the grass, looking up at her. She didn’t say anything, but she didn’t have to. Whatever my father had done to her when he’d turned her—it hadn’t made her loyal because she loved him.
“But kings,” I said as I moved away from her and the estate I’d been raised on, away from all that I’d been taught, all that I’d known, “should also realize that if they abuse the power they were given that their pawns just might rise up to destroy them.”
She swallowed. Her lips parted at those words, surprise echoing across her features—splitting the curtains that covered her for a brief moment so that I could see the hope behind her veneer of indifference. “Yes…” she whispered, “I suppose you’re right.” An echo of her earlier words, but this time they meant something more.
Chapter 28
Maverick
“Turn up here,” I directed from the backseat as Torin drove through the narrow alleyway buffered by two tall brick warehouses. We’d been in this exact situation a time before—Barbie and I—and it hadn’t exactly ended well. This time, however, we weren’t hunting down vampire nests, we were hunting the hunters of those vampire nests.
One three hour plane ride across several states, a rented SUV, and one very disturbingly quiet Barbie later—we’d arrived at our destination. I stared out through my spot in the backseat, centered between the driver’s and front passenger seat, up at the mountain of a building. “Are you sure this is the place?” Torin asked.
I shot him a look. “Yes, I’m fucking sure.” This was it. This was the last known location of Barnaby Wilder.
“How did you manage to find him?” Barbie asked. “How can we be sure that he is a hunter?”
“I hacked your mom’s old emails. They exchanged quite a number of them over the years,” I said. “They talked about a lot of things—on the surface, it all looked mundane. Legit. But it was clear that the timeline between when your grandparents passed and when they began exchanging emails matches up to when my parents lost contact with them. She and your father apparently exchanged information with Barnaby and from the sound of their correspondence, they met him infrequently, but enough that they trusted him.”
Barbie shook her head, biting her lip. “We never found out how Arrius managed to track down most of the hunters in America,” she said. “What if a mole was feeding him information. What if it was Barnaby?”
I reached back and withdrew my Glock. I checked the chamber, snapped it shut and gave her a tight smile. “Then we’ll make sure he won’t be feeding anyone information ever again.” I said it and I meant it. This shit was getting all too real. People had already died over this bastard—she had as well. We weren’t fucking around anymore. This needed to be dealt with.
Her crystal blue eyes met my gaze and she nodded. We got out of the car. “I’ll go first,” Torin announced.
“Not a good idea,” I argued. “They’ll know you’re a vampire and—”
“I’m not as easily killed,” he interrupted.
The heat of irritation rose in my chest. “Neither am I,” I reminded him.
He paused as if just realizing. Grimacing, he nodded in acknowledgment. “You’re right, I’m so—”
“We don’t have time for this,” B
arbie said, squeezing between us as she moved towards the front of the old newspaper offices.
The windows were darkened, several on the lower row broken or cracked. Torin and I exchanged a quiet look of understanding before we headed after her. We both reached her sides, buffering her from possible threats.
The Glock in my hand felt light—though I knew it wasn’t. The more and more I used it, the safer it felt in my grip, less of a burden and more of a dependable friend. I only hoped it would help me protect what I needed to, I thought, staring at the back of Barbie’s head as she reached for the front door, her hand closing around the rusted handle.
We entered the building, letting the old metal doors clang shut. Before—when I’d been human—I’d have needed some sort of light. As soon as the darkness closed in now, my vision went black and white—all color leeching away even as everything became crisper, sharper. I could not only see clearly in the pitch dark, I could smell everything. The dust coating the floor. The scent of human sweat—acrid and salty with adrenaline.
Wait. I paused. Human sweat? Barbie wasn’t human anymore. Neither was Torin. Neither was I. I realized my mistake a moment before the lights jerked on and water came crashing down on us. I stumbled under the shock of the onslaught—not because it hurt, but because it was so unexpected.
I reached for Barbie at the same time as Torin—felt his arm bump mine before she was ripped away. The lights were too bright, the switch too abrupt. I blinked, trying to adjust my vision. Where the fuck had she gone?
Someone cried out—a man. I took off, following the sound as I wiped the water from my eyes. That’s when I saw Barbie with her hand clasped around an older man’s throat as she crushed him to the wall at his back. It was no small feat. The man was a good foot taller than her, burly and large with a wide chest and a full beard. He groaned as she squeezed his neck, snarling. Damn it. Her fangs were out and red splotches were cropping up on her neck and face where the water had touched her. Holy water. Jesus fucking Christ.
