Boxed Set

by Brenda K. Davies

  They'd gotten to her on the bus ride, he realized. She was the reason the others hadn't sensed a different presence in the house. No one else entered the home to take Emma out; Jill had done it on her own. Emma was small and light enough that Jill could carry her to the balcony. The others had sensed no one else within the house, but there had been at least one outside, waiting to take Emma and Jill away.

  Ethan's gaze was drawn to the left as Tristan stepped into view.

  "There you are," Tristan said in a taunting voice that set Ethan's teeth on edge and caused his upper lip to curl into a sneer.

  Tristan's eyes ran over Ethan, and though he tried to hide it, Ethan sensed his steadily increasing fear.

  "We've been waiting." Tristan continued as he walked over and rested his hands on the back of the chair. "Haven't we, Emma?"

  A snarl escaped Ethan as Tristan's hands settled on her shoulders. The world seemed to lurch out from underneath him as Tristan shook her roughly. Emma's head lulled for a second before she slowly lifted it. Her eyes were dazed and unseeing for a second, but when she finally focused on him she jerked in the chair, and a strangled cry escaped her. Her right eye was nearly swollen shut and already a dark purple color. Her lips were split open, and a line of dried blood ran from her broken nose to her chin. The world around him lost its reddish hue as everything cleared once more. All his rage centered on one thing...murder, and Tristan was the target.

  Emma had never seen anything like the man standing in the doorway. She wasn't even entirely certain he could be considered a man anymore. Everything about him reminded her of the pictures she'd seen of Satan in countless paintings and books over the years. A reddish black color covered Ethan’s entire body.

  Looking at him, she understood where the legend of the devil originated from. Even the whites of his eyes had red veins connecting to the blood red irises. Terror trickled down her spine; a chill slid over her body as her heart seemed to stop beating for a second.

  Would he come back from this? He had fought his entire life to keep himself under control, but he’d let it all go. She was certain his eyes remained on Tristan. He couldn't lose himself, not now, not because of her. If she was going to die today, she didn't want him to go with her.

  "Yes, we have been waiting for you," Tristan continued as he ran his hands over her shoulders and down her arms. Emma shivered and tried to shrink away from his touch, but she couldn't escape his disgusting hands. "This is when the fun can begin. When you can stand there and watch helplessly as I get to enjoy what you stole from me."

  "Don't!" Emma snapped when his hands circled her waist and dropped down toward her lap.

  Ethan growled and leapt forward only to be thrown back again by the barrier. Tears of helplessness burned her eyes, but she refused to give Tristan the satisfaction of seeing her shed them.

  "But then, I did get here first," Tristan taunted.

  A shiver of revulsion shook her as Tristan's lips brushed against her ear and his hand slid between her legs. He chuckled as she clamped her legs together, and he squeezed her thigh so roughly the skin broke and blood seeped out.

  "I haven't tasted something I want even more though," he whispered in her ear. "You smell delicious."

  Emma tried to turn her head away as his hand wrapped around her head and seized her chin. Vomit surged up her throat as his lips pressed against her neck and he inhaled deeply.

  "Scrumptious," he said in a tone that made her think he was going to have some fava beans and Chianti when he finished with her.

  Brian and Stefan appeared in the doorway behind Ethan; their eyes settled briefly on her before shooting up to Tristan. Brian's breath exploded out of him as Stefan placed a hand against the barrier keeping them from entering the house. Emma tried not to think about the fact they would all be forced to stand by and watch as Tristan did whatever he planned to do to her. Behind them, Isabelle, Aiden, and Ian appeared and spread out across the porch.

  "Imagine my surprise when I finally tracked you down, only to discover you were spreading those pretty little thighs," Tristan said.

  Emma jerked when he squeezed her thigh again, drawing more blood from her. He ran his hands over her skin, rubbing the blood over her leg before his hand slid down the bottom of her shorts.

  "For another vampire. I told you, Emma, you are mine, and you will always be mine,” Tristan murmured.

  She stared into his reddened eyes as he lowered his face before her and licked the blood from his fingers.

  "What happened to you?" Emma blurted to try and buy herself more time. She suspected her attempt at distraction was useless. "How did you become like this?"

  Tristan laughed as his blood dampened fingers stroked over her face. She turned her head away, but he jerked it back and held her chin. He placed his cheek against hers and held her so she had to look at Ethan.

  "I caught the fancy of a young girl who admired my unique ways," Tristan murmured.

  She had admired his insanity, Ethan thought as Brian pressed closer against his side and rested his hand on the barrier. Tristan's twisted mind was incredibly enticing to some of their kind, they would have loved to see what perverted creation Tristan would become, and they were probably proud of this monster standing across from him.

  "You're stronger than you think, pureblood," Brian whispered. "You're capable of more than all of us."

  Ethan shot him a look, but he didn't respond as his attention was drawn back to Emma and Tristan. His fingers had left streaks of her blood across her face. Frustration filled him. He had no idea how he was going to get to her, how he was going to save her from this monster.

  "What happened to her?" Emma croaked in a strangled voice when Tristan's hand wrapped around her throat and his thumb stroked up to caress the underneath of her chin.

  "You are and always will be my only love, Emma; no one was ever going to come between us. I was the only one who had been within you, and I will make you pay for allowing another to take my place, but you are still mine. My creator gifted me with immortality and the ability to do as I please. She taught me everything she knew, taught me the joys of our ways. And one day, while she was sleeping, I put a stake through her heart," Tristan said.

  Unwillingly she flinched away from him as he pressed a kiss to her cheek. "And just think, she didn't betray me like you have, with this man."

  She inhaled sharply as his fingers dug into her chin and he held her so she had to look at Ethan. The fire rose in Ethan's eyes as his gaze burned into hers. She flinched away when Tristan's tongue ran from her chin to her temple, leaving a trail of saliva behind.

  "Fuck you!" she spat, unable to keep her temper anymore as exasperation and helplessness tore through her.

  Tristan laughed and turned her face to his. "Oh, believe me, Emma; you will be doing that again too."

  Nausea and horror twisted within her at the thought. Without thinking about the consequences, she leaned back and spat in his face. His eyes turned red almost instantly, and before she knew what he intended, he raised his arm and backhanded her across the face with enough force the chair toppled over.

  Pain exploded through her head, her vision blurred as a roar filled her ears. It felt like a shovel hit her instead of a hand as blood spilled from the corner of her eye. She was still trying to gather her wits when a hand wrapped in her hair. Her skull screamed in protest, strands of hair ripped free as she was lifted off the ground and the chair returned to a seated position. Though it felt like her head would explode, she realized it was Ethan's bellow vibrating through the room.

  "It sucks you can't get in here, believe me, I know. I had a door slammed in my face recently too, but this time I'm going to leave it open just so you can watch," Tristan taunted Ethan.

  Emma didn't have a chance to react before he sank his fangs into her neck. A scream boiled up in her throat and clogged there as he drained the blood from her body. Her hands and legs strained against the ropes binding her, sweat broke out on her forehead, but t
hough she tried to get away from him, it was useless as the pain made it almost impossible for her to move.

  The scent of her blood lured Tristan's cronies from the shadows; she saw the eager gleam in their eyes as they narrowed in on her. Panic tore through her; she somehow managed to get her fingers to spasm as she partially broke free of the paralysis gripping her. A cruel smile curled the lips of the woman she'd hit with the rock as she knelt by her side. Emma's heart raced as she realized her intent, and there was absolutely nothing anyone could do to stop her.

  Tristan broke away from her and shoved the woman away. "This one is mine; you can have the other one."

  The woman hissed in protest but turned away from her to approach Jill's immobile form. Jill hadn't moved from that spot since Tristan told her to sit and stay as if she were nothing more than a dog. Emma's pulse raced as the woman knelt before Jill and rested her hands on Jill's thighs. Ten more of Tristan's cohorts emerged from the shadows and moved toward her friend.

  "No," Emma croaked.

  The word was barely out of her mouth before Tristan sank his teeth into her neck again. It was the strangest feeling to go from moving to completely immobile in less than a second, but her body felt as if cement encased it while he fed on her. There was a deafening, almost static sound in her ears due to the rapid pulse of her blood in her ears.

  She could barely get her eyes to move toward the doorway. When she did, she couldn't believe what she was seeing. It seemed like there was a clear wall of rubber pushing inward as Ethan put his shoulder down and pushed against whatever blocked the doorway.

  Sweat coated his brow as he moved one excruciatingly deliberate inch at a time into the house. What he was doing should be impossible, and she thought perhaps she had taken a few too many blows to the head today, but when she closed her eyes and looked again, he appeared even closer.

  He was almost two feet inside the living room when the wall gave. With a roar rivaling the largest of lions, he raced at them in a blur of motion so fast she didn't see him again until he snatched Tristan up by the throat and heaved him across the room. Plaster cracked and shattered as Tristan crashed loudly into the wall. The painting on the wall slid to the ground and broke when it hit the ground.

  Emma gasped in a breath as her lungs were finally released from their paralysis enough for her to inhale again. Her head lulled down; her chin bumped against her chest as weakness crept through her now mobile body. Her heart felt like lead in her chest as it labored to pump what blood remained through her system.

  Ethan grabbed the ropes binding Emma's wrist to the chair and shredded them before seizing the ropes around her ankles. Her limp body slumped to the side, but he caught her before she fell to the ground. He spun her around and hunched protectively over her as Tristan launched himself at them.

  A grunt escaped him as something sliced down his shoulder and ripped open his flesh. He realized he'd been stabbed when he felt the air blowing against his exposed skin and the blood spilling down his back.

  "Ethan!" Isabelle screamed from the doorway.

  He didn't bother to look at her though as he kept Emma pressed against his chest with one arm and swung back at Tristan with the other. The knife, still embedded in his shoulder, hindered his movement but he was still faster than Tristan and managed to catch him across the cheek. Blood spilled as he sliced the right side of Tristan's face open from ear to chin with his claws. The blow exposed the white of his cheekbone and his lower teeth.

  Shifting Emma, he bent and placed her carefully on the floor before turning to face Tristan as he came back at him with five of his companions. Reaching back, he wrapped his hand around the handle of the knife and tore it free of the muscle. Fresh blood spilled free, but he paid it no mind as he shoved Tristan back and smashed his hand into the chest of another vampire. Bone gave way beneath the crushing impact as he drove his fist straight into the man's chest cavity. His hand wrapped around the man's beating heart, a victorious smile curving his mouth as the man's eyes widened in horror a second before Ethan tore the heart from his chest and crushed it in his hand.

  One of the other vampires fell back, but the other three launched at him while Tristan made a move to get around him toward Emma. Thrusting upward, Ethan's lips pulled back to reveal his teeth as he drove the blade of the knife to the hilt into the sternum of one of his attackers. The man's eyes bulged, his hands clawed at the offending weapon as he staggered back. Ethan seized another man by the throat, lifted him, and threw him into two vampires. Darting to the side, he grabbed Tristan's arm and flung him back before he could reach Emma. Someone grabbed his arm. Ethan jerked it free and spun to face his attacker. His fist caved in the right side of the man's face, shattering his teeth and nose.

  Behind him, Emma was struggling to her feet, but he could hear the sluggish, erratic beat of her heart. If there was any chance she was going to survive, he had to get her out of here, now. The rage within him continued to grow as two more vampires came at him. A bellow ripped from him as he tore the throat from one and thrust his fist into the stomach of the other one. He was outnumbered, but his concern for Emma, his fury, and the power surging through him made him realize it didn't matter. He could and would kill every single vampire in this house.

  Two of them fell back when he drove his fist into the chest of another and tore out his heart. The woman who knelt by Emma's side before turning her attention to Jill fled from the room and down the hallway.

  "Mine!" Brian declared and disappeared from the doorway in pursuit of the woman.

  Ethan leapt forward as Tristan spun away; he grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and jerked him back before swinging an uppercut at another man who lunged at him. The man's head shot back; blood spilled down his chin as his fangs were driven into his lower lip.

  Claws raked over his side, slashing his skin open to the ribs as Tristan spun on him. Ethan barely felt it though as he pulled Tristan toward him and buried his fangs into his neck. He didn't taste the blood spilling into his mouth, didn't swallow it as he tore a chunk of flesh from Tristan's throat and spat it out. Grabbing Tristan's head with both hands, he jerked it brutally to the side. A resounding crack echoed through the room and scared another vampire into fleeing down the hall.

  Emma tried once more to get to her feet, but though she willed them to move, they had stopped listening to her. It was getting to the point she could barely feel them anymore. She thought she should be terrified. Instead, she found herself oddly detached from her body and the weakness creeping through it. She wanted desperately to help Ethan, to fight with him, but there was nothing she could do as her body refused the commands of her mind.

  She was pretty sure she was dying, it certainly felt that way as her heart did a strange stuttering thing again. Before her, Ethan moved to the side and grabbed Tristan. She'd never seen anything like the bloodbath going on in the room, but she still felt no fear of Ethan as he crushed another heart in his hand. A cry of alarm lodged in her throat when Tristan sliced Ethan's side open, tearing his clothing and skin apart.

  "No," she managed to croak when she spotted Ethan's ribs beneath the blood oozing from the lethal looking wounds.

  She'd never seen such ruthlessness before, never expected to see it in her life, and yet the sight of the blood and body parts splattered around the room and covering Ethan, didn't make her stomach turn. She was too concerned about the number of vampires still coming at him and the blood seeping out to cover his shirt and jeans.

  Emma tried to lift her fingers, but they were as numb as the rest of her. Ethan shoved Tristan away from him and grabbed the arm of another vampire. Blood and bone erupted from the man's elbow as Ethan snapped it in half. Emma winced as the man let out a howl loud enough to rival an ambulance siren. Ethan shoved the man away and grabbed another one. Her eyes felt heavier, she could barely keep them open, but she had to know Ethan would survive this.

  Tristan held his hand against his mutilated throat as he stumbled back and turned to
try and make an escape. Ethan grabbed the man's arm that he’d broken, lifted him up, and threw him at Tristan. He flew into Tristan's back, driving Tristan to his knees as Ethan hit him with the force of a battering ram. She'd known Ethan was powerful, but she doubted he realized he'd had this much power within him.

  Please come back after this, she pleaded silently.

  Ethan jumped onto the man he’d thrown and placed his foot on the back of his head. He drove it into the floor and twisted his toe into it, caving in the front of the man's skull. Grabbing Tristan, he seized his head with both hands. Tristan howled, his hands flailed at him as skin and bone gave way. Ethan didn't stop as he continued to turn Tristan's head completely around before ripping it from his body.

  His shoulders heaved, bloodlust pulsed through him, and he tossed the head away as if it were no more than a bowling ball. He lifted his head to take in the remaining three vampires in the room. They stared at him in disbelief and horror before turning and fleeing down the hall. Though all he wanted was to tear into something else, to feel more life slipping away in his bare hands, he didn't bother following them; they wouldn't get past the others—especially not Brian.

  There was something far more important than blood and death right now. He spun away and fled back to Emma's side. Her eyes were mere slits as she watched him approach, her heart had slowed to an alarming rate, and he knew there was almost no time left for her. He ran into the kitchen and grabbed a towel and knife from it. Wetting the towel, he wiped away the blood covering his forearm as he returned to her side. His knees hit the ground beside her; her body felt almost lifeless, her head flopped against his chest as he gathered her in his arms.

  The minute his arms wrapped around her, he felt more of his murderous impulses fading away as his body reeled back in the power and brutality it just unleashed. It was impossible to feel the urge to kill when all he cared about now was saving her.

  "Emma?" Jill croaked from behind him.