by Anya Nowlan
Yet despite the realization she might have gotten herself in the middle of something she had no business being in the middle of, there was one thing she kept thinking about, and that was how stupidly, irrationally good it was to see Harlan again.
Despite the fact he’s a lying jerk who I should hate, she reminded herself.
Lost in how he still had his arm wrapped around her, and starting to forget why she was so mad at him in the first place, Ruby almost jumped when the doors of the warehouse suddenly flew open.
By her count, seven men poured out, some with guns and others with knives in their hands. She couldn’t tell which, if any, of them were vampires, but it didn’t really matter. Having planned on a simple recon mission to see if Theo’s crew would lead her to Grant’s location, this was now much more than she had bargained for.
Harlan grabbed her face in his hands, staring into her eyes.
“I’m sorry about before. Stay hidden, we’ll talk later,” he hurriedly said, before planting a quick, passionate kiss on her lips and disappearing.
Stupid, sexy vampire, Ruby huffed to herself, trying not to smile.
She still felt betrayed, and very much hurt by how cold he had been with her when they’d last spoken, but this seemed to be the Harlan she had thought she knew. And against her better judgment, she was looking forward to that talk he had just promised her. Maybe he did have an explanation for everything…
Ruby certainly hoped so, because as much as she tried to hate the man, her heart seemed to be forcing her in the opposite direction.
Flattening herself against the side of the building, Ruby watched as Julius and Harlan were little more than blurs, speeding toward the goons standing in front of the warehouse, their heads on a swivel.
When the first thug went flying, only to land on his face in the dirt, it quickly became clear which of Theo’s men were vampires and which were not.
As the human guards started spraying the air with what she could only assume were silver bullets, the vampires leapt into action, until there were four blurry bodies whizzing around. Everything was moving so fast and in the chaos, Ruby couldn’t even tell which side was winning.
The humans were definitely the ones taking most of the beating, though, as they struggled to aim at the right people while being knocked to the ground by unseen assailants. Five men were either groaning or lying motionless on the ground before she even knew it, with their guns in a neat heap out of their reach.
Peering around the corner, Ruby could see Julius and Harlan standing in the light pouring out of the warehouse, facing off against the remaining two – a tall, dark-haired man and a wide-set blond guy, both heavily tattooed and wearing bulletproof vests. Ruby had no doubts these were the vampires of the group, or they wouldn’t still be standing.
Ducking down, she started carefully moving in between the nearby buildings, with the goal of reaching the car. Harlan and Julius might have been handling the situation, but she still wasn’t comfortable just standing around, with no weapon and no way to defend herself.
And no way to help Harlan and Julius if something goes wrong.
Glancing over at the front of the warehouse, she could see Harlan’s fangs were now out as he charged at the dark-haired goon, letting out a savage snarl as he went flying to the air and knocked the man down.
Julius was grappling with the blond guy, holding on to the man’s arms as he lifted the guy in the air and brought him crashing down into the ground. Dirt went flying around, and Ruby was sure if the blond man hadn’t been a vampire, every bone in his body would have been shattered.
Remind me to never piss off Julius, she thought to herself, creeping closer to the Corvette.
With Theo’s human thugs all incapacitated, and the vampires busy beating the shit out of each other, she managed to reach the car with no problems. Popping the trunk, she let out a sigh as the silver net came into view, glinting in the dim illumination of the sparse streetlights.
But as she got out her secret weapon and closed the trunk, she spotted movement beyond the open doors of the warehouse. It looked like someone was in a hurry to get to the back entrance, which definitely caught her attention.
From what she could make out, the man she was seeing was heavy-set, with a shaved head, and wearing a flashy, green suit. From the pictures she had seen of Theo Greene, both in magazines and in police files, she was sure that had to be the crime lord extraordinaire, trying to make a quick getaway in the confusion.
And since Big Theo was the only link she had to Grant, Ruby was not about to let that happen.
Throwing the net over her shoulder and grabbing the gun Harlan had taken from Mickey, she quickly circled around the building to head Theo off. The fight between Harlan, Julius and the two other vampires was still going on, so everyone was distracted enough to not even notice her.
As she ran around the side of the building, she could hear the sound of a car idling nearby. With her gun gripped in her left hand, she rounded the corner, ready for anything. She came face to face with Theo Greene, hurrying toward a black SUV, breathing heavily as the man did not look like he usually did a lot of running.
“Stop right there,” Ruby called out, aiming the gun at him while also keeping an eye on the car. “And whoever’s in there, come out with your hands up,” she added, pointing her chin toward the SUV.
“You’re making a big mistake,” Theo shook his head at her, beady eyes fixed on her face.
“I don’t think so,” Ruby replied, using both hands to keep her weapon steady. “You’re going to tell me where I can find Grant, or you’re not getting out of here alive,” she said, just as the door to the SUV swung open.
Her heart skipped a beat as a very familiar figure stepped out, grinning at her with his fangs extended. With her blood running cold, she could only stare, the Colt in her hand suddenly feeling as useless as a toy gun.
“You’re looking for me, little girl?” Grant asked, giving her a once-over. “Well, here I am.”
21
Harlan
Wrapping his hands around the throat of the vampire doing his best to kill him, Harlan gave the man’s neck a savage yank, hearing the guy’s spinal cord snap. The thug’s body went limp, his features slack, as Harlan continued to separate his head from his body in one smooth, fierce movement.
Julius already had his opponent on the ground, and was using a piece of wood he’d snapped off one of the buildings to stake the man in the chest. The makeshift stake went through the man’s body with a wet, cracking sound, a pool of blood forming underneath him.
With the rush of battle still flowing through him, Harlan looked around to make sure Ruby was still okay, but didn’t see her anywhere.
“Ruby!” he called out, honing his senses in on anything that might tell him where she was.
It’s you, he heard her voice say, somewhere on the other side of the warehouse.
But before he could go to her, he was distracted by two loud pops. Whipping his head around, he saw one of Theo’s human guards had crawled over to the pile of weapons, and was now aiming a gun at Julius.
Within a second, Harlan was at the thug’s side, ripping the gun from the man’s hands and turning it on him instead.
That’s what I get for showing mercy to lowlifes, he thought, as a round of silver bullets pierced the man’s heart.
When he turned around to see if Julius was alright, he found his Maker on his knees, clutching his chest.
“Julius,” Harlan said, rushing over to his friend’s side.
“Just a little silver,” Julius said, his words sounding strained. “I’ve had worse.”
“We’ve got to get that out of…” Harlan started, glancing over at the warehouse as another familiar voice floated into his ears.
Grant is here.
Julius must have heard it, too, as his lips thinned into a line and he gripped Harlan’s shoulder.
“Go, end this, and get your betrothed back. I’ll be fine,” he said, an
d by the look in his eyes, Harlan knew better than to argue.
Not bothering with stealth, he quickly rushed to the other side of the building, to find Ruby aiming a gun at a man who he could only assume was Theo Greene, her heart racing as she kept glancing over at Grant, leaning casually against a black SUV.
Oh, and then there was the fact that there was a silver net slung over Ruby’s shoulder.
Before Harlan could say anything, Grant spoke up.
“Good of you to join the party,” he said, smirking. “I was having a chat with your betrothed here. Too bad she has all that silver near her neck, or we would have been doing more than talking by now.”
“Grant,” Harlan started, trying to remain calm in what was clearly an explosive situation. “Stop this. Whatever you think you’re going to accomplish, it’s not going to happen.”
“You don’t know anything,” Grant scoffed, his expression turning sour. “You’ve always had a soft spot for humans, for whatever reason. But it’s time we stop hiding from those who are weaker, slower, inferior in every way to us and claim our spot at the top of the food chain.”
“What happened to you, Grant?” Harlan shook his head, while sneaking glances at Ruby to see how she was holding up.
Being face to face with Grant again couldn’t have been easy for her, and all he wanted to do was tell her everything was going to be alright. But he couldn’t let his guard down around Grant, not for a second.
“I started seeing things clearly, that’s what happened,” Grant insisted, pushing himself off the car and taking a step closer.
Greene chose that moment to speak up, which absolutely no one appreciated.
“You were supposed to get me out of here,” he said, narrowing his eyes at Grant. “I don’t care about your reunion or whatever is going on here, relieve this bitch of her gun and let’s go.”
“You better watch what you call me,” Ruby shot back, fixing Greene with her gaze.
“Stop interrupting, Theo,” Grant sighed. “I don’t work for you.”
“The hell you don’t!” Theo protested. “You might be a vampire, but you need my money and my men for your little revolution, don’t forget that,” he warned, pointing a finger at Grant.
“Your men,” Grant chuckled to himself. “You think they want to follow you after I’ve shown them what real power is like? What a human mistake.”
“Now you listen,” Greene countered, starting to get worked up.
But Big Theo didn’t get to finish that sentence, as Grant ran over and snapped the man’s neck in a second flat, before returning to his spot near the car. Ruby gasped, still aiming at where Theo used to be standing, while the man was already in a heap in the dirt.
“Humans,” Grant remarked with a small shrug. “They never learn.”
“You sick son of a bitch,” Ruby hissed, glaring at Grant.
“Whoa, there,” Grant laughed, looking from her to Harlan. “You better tell your pet to watch her mouth when talking to the new boss in town.”
“Is that what all this is about?” Harlan asked, sweeping a hand through the air. “You taking over Greene’s criminal enterprise?”
He slowly moved closer to Ruby now, all the while keeping a close eye on Grant. Her breathing seemed to even out a little as he came to stand by her side, as close as the silver over her shoulder would allow him before his skin started feeling like he was getting too close to an open flame.
Ruby dropped the gun to her side, now that she had no one to aim it at, and looked up at Harlan. All he could do was give her a small smile and hope she trusted him to take care of this situation.
I won’t let him hurt you again, Ruby, he promised her, hoping his eyes relayed his thoughts.
“It’s a start,” Grant replied, cocking his head to the side. “Theo here has a nice infrastructure in place that I can use. I’ve already turned a few of his men, but now I can really start building my army.”
Ruby looked like she just realized something as she looked over at Grant. She would have almost looked impressed if there wasn’t such clear disgust in her eyes.
“That’s why you teamed up with Greene – he was in the middle of a nasty turf war and you promised him a way to gain an upper hand. The other gangs would be helpless against him if he had vampires on his side. All you wanted in return was some cash, or so you let him believe,” she said, and from the expression on Grant’s face, she was spot on.
“Bravo,” he said, pretending to clap. “Not as dumb as I thought. You must be proud of your bride,” Grant sneered, looking over to Harlan.
“She is the best thing that ever happened to me, and you are going to pay for hurting her, and for killing that woman she was trying to save. And for all the other lives you’ve taken along the way,” Harlan replied, earning a surprised look from Ruby.
“Old friend,” Grant started, sounding overly sweet. “When did you get so sappy? Why don’t we think back on the good old days, when we used to bond over how hopelessly boring all the older vamps were? We don’t have to fight here. Instead, we could team up, have fun again, cause a little mayhem. What do you say?”
“Grant,” Harlan sighed, tilting his head at him. “I stand by the opinion of the woman who has come to mean so much to me in such a short while – you’re a sick son of a bitch. And I can’t wait to separate your head from your body.”
A snarl took over Grant’s face at those words, and the man charged at him, fangs sliding out from between his lips. Harlan had been expecting that, as he pushed himself into motion, meeting Grant halfway.
They grappled for a second before breaking apart, circling each other instead, both looking for the perfect time to strike. Harlan could feel his own fangs poking at his lower lip, and his bloodthirsty side was in full force.
Grant’s fist came flying at his face, but he blocked the blow with his forearm. Fueled by his anger, Harlan punched Grant straight in the gut, hard enough to crack ribs and sending the man stumbling backward, his feet kicking up dust.
As soon as Grant regained his balance, he used his speed to come up behind Harlan, locking his arms around him.
“I’m going to kill you, and then I’m going to finish what I started with your girlfriend,” Grant snarled into Harlan’s ear.
Harlan didn’t even dignify that with a response as he leaned forward and threw Grant off of him, sending the man flying onto his back.
“Harlan, duck!” he heard Ruby call out.
Whirling out of the way, he ended up standing right next to Grant when the silver net came flying down on him as the man was still on the ground, pushing himself up. Hissing and writhing, Grant tried to get the silver off him, but to no avail.
It was covering him from head to toe as Grant lay flat on his back, teeth gritted, trying not to let on how much pain he was really in.
Now you know how it feels, Harlan thought to himself, still remembering vividly what it felt like to have silver burning into his skin.
Harlan rushed over to Ruby, who was standing very still, staring right at Grant with an unreadable expression.
“Ruby,” Harlan said, gently placing his hands on her shoulders. “Are you alright?” he asked, looking her over to see if she was injured in any way.
“I’m fine,” she nodded after a second, the glassy look in her eyes retreating as she looked at him. “We did it. We actually got him,” she added, shaking her head in disbelief.
“Don’t act so surprised now,” Harlan chuckled. “We’re a hell of a team, after all.”
“Yeah, about that,” Ruby narrowed her eyes at him, but he cut her off before she could say anything else.
“Let me explain,” he quickly said, and she pursed her lips but didn’t argue. “I was being stupid. And I lied to you – I wasn’t ordered to bring Grant in alive. And I did leave out the fact we used to be friends on purpose. You already didn’t want to trust me, and I was afraid you wouldn’t even give me a chance if I told you that.”
Ruby was still glari
ng at him, but she wasn’t pouting anymore, at least. Her black hair fell straight over her shoulders, her blue eyes intense and her cheeks flushed, and she looked as fierce and as beautiful as he had ever seen her. And he knew if he wanted to keep her with him, he would have to lay it all out there.
“Back at the house… I was trying to push you away on purpose. Remember I told you I cared for a human once? Well, she died. Of pneumonia, of all things. You humans are so fragile, so vulnerable to every little thing… And in that moment, I felt like driving you away would be less painful in the long run.
“I care for you so much, after only knowing you for such a short while. I knew that the more I would spend time with you, the more I would fall for you. And every day, I would hear the sound of a clock ticking in the back of my head, counting down the days before you grow old and die, and I’d be left alone again.”
Harlan’s hands had moved from her shoulders to her face as he talked, their gazes locked together. There was no anger left on Ruby’s face anymore as she stared back at him, her lips slightly parted and her eyes shiny.
“You stupid man,” she muttered, and there was a weak smile on her mouth. “You could have just told me that instead of acting like a total jerk.”
“I know… Julius helped me figure out I can’t live this life running away from everything that might end up disappointing me. I want to be with you, Ruby, for however long we might have together. You are the most special woman I’ve ever met, and I would be an idiot if I let you slip away,” Harlan replied, stroking her cheeks with his thumbs.
“Well,” Ruby said, sniffling a little. “I guess I wouldn’t mind being your betrothed a little longer. Wouldn’t want you to get in trouble with the royal vampires or anything,” she smiled, and Harlan couldn’t help but kiss her.
She melted against him, the gun still in her left hand falling to the ground with a soft thud. He only broke apart from her when he remember he had left Julius behind, with a chest full of silver.
“Julius,” he muttered, looking over at the warehouse.
