Heroines and Hellions: a Limited Edition Urban Fantasy Collection

by Margo Bond Collins

  As her skin began to disintegrate and the flesh burned away from the bones, her ear-piercing scream only intensified, and he almost felt sorry for her. Sami still squeezed her neck, and soon, she would have to decide if would allow Selene to suffer or give her a speedy death.

  He figured he had no say in the decision. Selene’s arms had almost completely detached from her torso, her beautiful face now forever scarred and covered in singed, black skin. He scooted away from the debacle and leaned up against a damp wall, leaving the knife next to Selene. If Sami wanted her to die quickly, she’d bury it in her chest over and over until the woman turned into nothing but ash.

  Sami kept her fingers wrapped around her great-great-grandmother’s windpipe, her screams seeming never-ending while Selene’s had quieted. The sound seemed to convey so much agony, frustration, and anger, he worried for her and hoped that after she was through, she’d have all her mental faculties intact.

  He caught his breath, and was finally able to speak.

  “Sami!” he yelled, hoping he could get her attention.

  She gazed over at him, her eyes wide with hatred.

  “End it.”

  After blinking a couple of times, it was as if the spell had been broken. She looked down at her family member, and then at the knife. Selene had no way to fight her with her arms and sight gone, and laid there now unmoving, yet still breathing.

  Sami picked up the knife, her Ko burning bright red, and slammed it into Selene’s heart without hesitation.

  Selene’s torso bucked a couple of times, but then stilled. The smell of burning flesh overwhelmed him, but he didn’t have the energy to move.

  Sami covered her mouth and nose with her hand, then removed herself from Selene and crawled over to him.

  Without a word, he wrapped his arm around her, and she laid her head down on his shoulder. She trembled next to him, and he assumed it to be from shock as he tried to calm his own jitters.

  As Selene’s body slowly disintegrated, relief swept through him while his adrenaline ebbed. Both he and Sami were alive, and eventually, everything would be okay.

  After what seemed like a small eternity, her body finally turned into ash, the knife left lying on its side in the middle of it.

  The last of the sun’s rays had passed over, plunging the area into almost total darkness.

  “We should go,” Sami said, getting to her feet. “You need medical attention.”

  He nodded, absolutely exhausted. “Do you know how to get out of here?”

  “Right there,” she said, pointing to an area of the rock wall. “It’s a small passageway that leads to the outside.”

  He tried to see it, but failed. However, it didn’t mean that it wasn’t there. He trusted Sami completely, and if she said it existed, then it did.

  “Some pants would be nice,” he murmured, glancing down at his nude body.

  “I know where some are. I’ll be back,” she said, then left through one of tunnels.

  He stared at the pile of ash, unable to believe he would be getting out of here alive. He wouldn’t have if it hadn’t been for Sami; of that, he was certain.

  The eerie quiet settled in around him after Sami’s footsteps faded into the distance.

  When she didn’t return after about ten minutes, he began to worry. Perhaps she’d gotten lost, or worse, there was another psychotic vampire on the loose in this mountain. He didn’t have confirmation that Tyson was dead, but considering he hadn’t seen him, he had to assume it.

  When Sami reappeared, he recognized the pants and shoes she carried as Tyson’s, solidifying his guess.

  A wave of sadness settled over him as he stared at the clothing, but then he remembered that neither Sami nor he would be in this position if it hadn’t been for Tyson. Perhaps the guy got what he deserved.

  He stood and slipped on the pants, then the boots, hissing as they met his raw, open wounds.

  “We won’t have to walk very far,” Sami murmured. “I have a first aid kit in my bag, and we can call Harper to have a crew come in and get us.”

  The last thing he wanted right now was to see anyone. Both he and Sami had been through a horrible ordeal, and they should take some time to process it, as well as have a long chat about it. He’d always found hashing out a terrible situation helped ease the emotions and stress.

  “I can walk down to the car,” he said, not believing it. “We don’t need to call anyone.”

  Sami leaned down and picked up the knife, then wiped the blood and ashes in the dirt. “I don’t believe you.”

  She stood and looked at him, holding the blade at her side. Her face was streaked with dirt and blood, and so was the front of her shirt. It looked as if her hair had once been a neat and tidy ponytail or braid, but now, a lot of it had escaped, and she had what she would call a good case of the frizzies.

  She was still the prettiest woman he’d ever seen.

  The thought of admitting his mental health was far more important than his physical well-being right now didn’t sit well with him, but he also had to make her understand he just needed some time before jumping back into civilization.

  “Okay, fair enough,” he said. “I don’t want a crew to swoop in. I’ve just spent the most horrifying days of my life being held captive by a sadistic, bat-shit crazy vampire, and I need some time before I deal with anyone.”

  She narrowed her gaze on him. “Does that mean me, as well?”

  “No. I want you to stay with me, but I understand if you want to get home. I just need to process what happened to me and unwind.”

  Sami glanced around the area, then nodded. “I’ll stay with you. I have a tent. We can camp, and I can fix up your legs so they won’t get infected.”

  Surprise washed through him. He never would have imagined Sami coming so prepared, but maybe she did enjoy the great outdoors and camping.

  “Let’s go,” she murmured and walked over to the small crawlspace. Just before she got on her knees, he grabbed her arm.

  “At some point, you’re going to need to talk about what happened, as well.”

  She looked at him and shook her head. “Right now, I don’t want to even think about what I’ve seen or what I’ve done. I just want to get away from here.”

  She dropped to the ground and disappeared into the small space. As he carefully moved to all fours and followed her, he didn’t blame her one bit for wanting to put everything out of her mind for the time being. However, he also knew that if she didn’t talk about it, that shit would eat her up alive.

  26

  As she emerged from the passageway, Sami stood and waited for Connor. When he exited, she walked over to the waterfall and cupped her hands, gathering some of the water in her palms. Since the bodies were below the falls and in their own small lake that seemed to get its water from somewhere else, she didn’t worry too much about contamination, but she wouldn’t take any chances on drinking it.

  She washed her face and arms while Connor did the same, then peeled off her bloody shirt. After removing his pants and boots, he gently cupped water over his ankles while Sami grabbed her pack from the bushes and slipped on a clean shirt.

  When he finished washing the wounds and dressed once again, Sami took out the first aid kit and removed the antiseptic and some bandages. She uncapped the antiseptic and poured some on a cotton pad, then gently dabbed the raw, angry grooves of barely-dried blood circling his ankles.

  After wrapping them in bandages, she took out the water filtration bottle while Connor slipped on his boots. She handed it to him.

  They watched the water slide through the tubing in silence, which seemed to suit both of them just fine. Apparently, neither were ready to discuss the Hell from where they’d just emerged.

  When the water cleared the tubing, Connor took a long drink, as if a liquid hadn’t touched his lips in days. It seemed possible that had been the case. She refilled it, took a few sips for herself, then handed it back to him. He consumed more, and nodded, sig
naling to her that he was ready to go. She picked up the pack and slung it over her shoulder onto her back.

  “Let me carry that,” he said.

  She rolled her eyes. “You can barely walk. I’ve got it.”

  Thankfully, he didn’t argue.

  She moved slowly, trying to lead Connor down the mountain in the safest way possible that wouldn’t put much strain on his battered legs. After a while when she looked back and saw him hobbling with sweat rolling down his body and his face contorted in pain, she wanted to kill Selene all over again.

  Her mother had never told her about Selene. She’d never even really mentioned her own mother, and Sami wondered if she’d left Turkey before she’d died, or after. And why hadn’t she told her about Selene? The only thing she could think of was that her mother had wanted to protect her, but it hadn’t been successful. She understood that sometimes, parents wanted to shield their offspring from the Evil of the world, but Sami should have been told, especially since the Evil resided in her own damn family.

  What would have changed if she’d known? A lot. First, once her name had come up, they would have known exactly who and what they dealt with. They wouldn’t have let their guard down for a moment, and they certainly would have never had the experiences that they’d shared, especially while in Selene’s clutches. Perhaps they could have gotten to her sooner, and people would have lived. Guilt weighed heavily on her at the thoughts.

  She’d actually been happy Connor had wanted to tough it out for the night. Right now, she felt completely numb, but she knew in time, the emotions she suppressed would come to the surface. His idea of a quiet night without a bunch of medics bustling around, or a plane ride back to Dedou’s, sounded good. Yes, they were both dirty, frightened, and probably in shock, but she appreciated being close to the man she thought she’d lost, and the silence.

  They’d made it down the steepest part of the trail, and she heard Connor cursing behind her. The sun had almost completely set, and her stomach had settled a bit and now moaned with hunger.

  “We’ll just go into the woods here and find a place to camp,” she announced to Connor, hoping he didn’t argue with her. She knew he was in pain, but she also would feel much safer off the beaten path and tucked in between some trees. She didn’t fear the animals any longer, just humans and her own species.

  She found the perfect spot about a quarter mile in. She slipped off the backpack and unhooked the tent. As she began to erect it, Connor sat down on a rock, his gaze never leaving her.

  When the tent was up and secure, he let out a low whistle.

  “I’m impressed,” he said with a grin.

  As she dug into her pack for some of the remaining MREs, she smiled, then tossed him a Chicken Alfredo and the cinnamon bun she’d been eyeing yesterday. She took a Beef Taco for herself.

  They ate in silence, and she pulled out the water, offering it to Connor. He drank greedily, but left enough for her.

  When she glanced up at him, it looked as if he did everything in his power to remain awake, his chin resting on his hand, his eyes fluttering open and closed. She wondered what he’d endured in his time with Selene, and only wished she could have gotten to him sooner.

  Yet, she hadn’t exactly been helpful to him. How had he gotten out of those shackles, anyway?

  “I’ll lay out the sleeping bag so you can stretch out, and then I’ll look at those legs.”

  He nodded wearily.

  After arranging everything in the tent, she motioned for him to get in. He slipped off the boots and lay down on his back with a groan.

  She turned on the flashlight and pulled up his pant legs. Blood had seeped through the bandages, and she wondered how he’d walked so far with the boots on. When she looked inside them, she saw the soles were covered in crimson and she cringed, wishing he had told her so they could have stopped earlier.

  As she pulled out the first aid kit, she glanced at Connor. His eyes had fluttered closed.

  “How did you find me?” he asked, his voice laced with sleep.

  She unwrapped the worn bandages before answering. “Harper located your phone, and I came to find it. When I got up into the forest, my body started humming, and it was like I had two heartbeats. Your blood was in my veins, and it drew me closer to you, helped me get a feeling of where you were.”

  “Seriously?”

  It all sounded unbelievable to her, but she had been the one to live it.

  “Yes. I knew you were up on the mountain somewhere—I could feel it. So, I kept hiking up that way until I got to the little lake at the base of the waterfall. That’s where Tyson found me and he brought me to you.”

  She cut some bandages, and glanced over at Connor again. His chest rose and fell evenly, indicating he may be asleep, or close to it.

  “This may hurt,” she murmured, not surprised when she didn’t get a response.

  He moaned and jolted as she soaked his wounds, but never fully woke. In the end, she didn’t see any outward signs of infection, but he would need some antibiotics and to have a doctor look at his injuries.

  She put everything away, then crawled over the sleeping bag next to him. As she wrapped them both with the cover, exhaustion clawed at her. When she closed her eyes, she prayed that the fatigue would draw her down into a place where she dreamt of nothing. If not, nightmares would plague her, and she’d had enough of them in her waking hours to last a lifetime.

  27

  Connor woke the next morning to the pitter-patter of rain hitting the tent. As he tried to flex and point his feet, the pain traveled through his legs, but it didn’t seem to be as bad as yesterday. However, it still hurt like a son of a bitch on steroids.

  He should be able to make some progress today on their walk back to the car.

  Glancing over at Sami, he found that she lay with her back to him. He grinned, so happy to have her in his sights. He’d spent a long time believing he’d never see her again, but his prayers had been answered, and now, she lay within his reach.

  Turning to his side, he snuggled up behind her, spooning her. She startled and gasped at first, but then relaxed into him with a sigh. She felt so good against him, it brought tears to his eyes. He needed to tell her how special she’d become to him, and how much he loved her and appreciated her.

  “How are your legs?” she asked after a few moments.

  “They hurt, but they feel slightly better than yesterday.”

  “Good,” she said, squeezing his hand. “We’ll take it slow today, unless you’re ready to have the cavalry come in to rescue us.”

  He’d be happy just to lie here with her for the rest of his life. No one knew where they were, and it almost felt like they’d dropped off the face of the Earth. He didn’t mind the sensation in the least bit.

  At the same time, people worried about them. Maybe Sami had a phone, and they could just call Dedou and Harper and let them know everything was okay, but just not tell them he had been hurt.

  “Do you have a phone on you?” he asked.

  Sami nodded, her eyes still shut. “As well as a portable charger. It’s all in the backpack.”

  Impressed with her forethought, he sat up and reached over her to grab the bag, finding the phone in the front pocket. Lying back down, he texted Harper.

  Found Connor. Everything’s fine. Be in touch soon.

  After setting the device down, her curled up behind Sami again and tried to sleep once more.

  “What did you do?”

  “I texted Harper and told her that everything was fine and we’d be in contact soon.”

  Sami didn’t say anything for a long while, and he thought she’d gone back to sleep.

  “But everything’s not okay, Connor,” she cried, sitting up. “It’s a mess!”

  He also rose and looked at her. Tears welled in her eyes, and he realized she was having the breakdown he’d expected yesterday after she’d killed Selene.

  “Y-you almost died. I killed a member of my own famil
y and I have no regrets about it, and the things she did to Tyson … she made me watch and it was horrible…”

  “Shhh,” he whispered as he took her into his arms. “Yes, I almost died, but I had my sexy vampire to save me.”

  She shook her head. “I don’t even want to be associated with the vampire race any longer. Not after what we’ve seen, what they’ve done to us.”

  Sami was more human than vampire, but he didn’t see why she couldn’t embrace both. Just like with any race, there was good and bad in the vampire nation, and she happened to be one of the best.

  He didn’t know for sure what Selene had made her watch with Tyson, but he had a good idea. If it had been anything like he’d witnessed, he wished he could erase the memory for her.

  “She killed Tyson,” Sami muttered, pulling away from him. “She was fucking him and then took him out of trance. She ripped his throat out. I couldn’t do anything but watch. He wanted me to help him, but I couldn’t. She had some sort of spell over me where I couldn’t move. I just had to sit there and watch him die. He was so scared …”

  The tears fell, and she swiped at her face with the palms of her hand, almost as if she hated that she cried.

  “I’m sorry you had to see that,” he whispered. “I wish I could make it all go away.”

  She stared at him for a long while, then took a deep breath. “I have to ask you something.”

  “What?”

  “D-did you have sex with Selene?”

  He shook his head, the thought giving his stomach a good lurch.

  “You wouldn’t really know if you were in a trance,” Sami ventured.

  “Sami, I didn’t have sex with Selene, and I was never put into a trance, although at some points, I wish I was. I swear to you, I was fully aware of everything around me the whole time I was there. “