Deliverance

by Adrienne Monson

  His eyes were bloodshot, and the pain she saw shining there was almost her undoing. He nodded and wiped the tears. “We should wait for you.”

  Leisha shook her head as she pushed him into the passenger seat of the car. “No time. They’re practically here and you have to get out now. I’ll call you and we’ll rendezvous later.”

  Tafari’s lips thinned. Clearly, he didn’t like the plan. But he slumped against the back of the seat, looking lost and defeated—not at all like her African warrior. It almost crumbled her resolve. She wanted to touch his face, to look into his eyes and show him that she understood. Instead, Leisha closed the car door.

  Glancing at Samantha, Leisha could see that she was doing her best to keep her sobs at bay. Leisha hoped she’d be able to think straight while driving because Tafari clearly couldn’t. She saw Nikita crouch in front of the driver’s window and speak quickly to Samantha. Whatever he said seemed to center Samantha. She wiped her eyes and nodded grimly.

  Two vampires broke into the clearing fifty feet away. Leisha grabbed Rinwa’s sword from the ground and ran to intercept them.

  In mere seconds, Leisha was clashing steel with one assassin while trying to dodge the other’s daggers.

  Leisha feigned a fall and stabbed up into the man’s crotch. He groaned deeply and fell while Leisha jumped up. A dagger landed in her back, barely missing her heart. Instead of fighting back, she slumped and allowed her exhaustion to show. Why didn’t I start using this trick before today? When the vampire approached, he reached forward to stab his other dagger into her neck. She blocked his wrist with her own, and at the same time slashed out with her sword, decapitating him. The assassin’s head falling to the ground in a wet thud made Leisha think of Rinwa and she turned away, pretending that her body wasn’t dry heaving.

  Samantha had already peeled out in a spray of gravel.

  A helicopter thundered overhead and the car was suddenly in the spotlight as the hovering craft followed.

  Nikita crouched in a defensive stance as six more vampires appeared, his gaze still lingering on the car speeding away.

  “Don’t worry about her,” Leisha said. “I’ve taught her well. She can lose them.”

  Samantha swerved around a semi on the lonely road and took the first exit. The image of Rinwa’s headless body lying in dirt and gravel was at the forefront of her mind, but her reflexes were sound and she turned two corners in the sleeping city at high speeds. She refused to allow herself to think about Nikita and if he’d survive. He was good, and he’d trained those men himself. He had to come out on top.

  “They’re still following us,” Liam stated in his enigmatic tone. His eyes looked unusually bright, but held himself erect. If he was grieving for his sister, he hid it well. “Sounds like they’re going to drop another grenade if they can get a good enough shot.”

  Heart beating even faster, Samantha’s eyes searched the roadways for options. She had to make sure that wherever she went, it wasn’t a dead end. Skidding over to a main road, she then sped as fast as she could until they entered a part of the city that appeared to be more industrial than residential. She took twists and turns to lose their tail, the tires squealing in protest and her hands sweating on the steering wheel.

  I should have lost that dumb helicopter by now. She glanced in the rear view mirror to meet Liam’s gaze. He shook his head solemnly.

  Frustrated, Samantha growled in the back of her throat. As she continued to swerve the car in every direction while maneuvering through the streets, she surveyed the cars parked in the area. There weren’t many, but there were a handful that could prove helpful.

  “I can take the wheel,” Tafari offered. He’d been in a quiet stupor until then. “We can keep driving and I will just slip into the driver’s side while you scoot over.” His manner was slumped, as if they’d already been defeated. She didn’t think he was in a state to handle what he was offering, and that scared her more than anything. Tafari was always the rock.

  “No, I got this.” Samantha’s grip tightened on the wheel. She had an idea, but didn’t want to say anything just yet.

  She headed for a long strip of road. Liam handed her two shoelaces before she had to utter the request for them.

  “What is going on?” Tafari asked.

  “We’re going to have to time this perfectly,” Liam cautioned.

  “That’s why I’m using your ability for it,” Samantha responded as she tied the steering wheel in place with the shoestrings. “Tafari, be ready. When Liam says go, we’re all going to bail.”

  “You are going nearly one hundred miles per hour,” Tafari said. “This will kill you.”

  Butterflies were forming a mosh pit in her stomach at the idea, but Samantha managed to force a confident air. “Human servants heal faster. I’ll be fine.”

  “No,” he protested. “This is a foolish—”

  “Go!” Liam’s shout echoed throughout the car.

  Samantha swallowed and opened her door. There was no time to think about what she was doing, so she simply fell out of the vehicle with her arms over her face. The rest happened so fast that she didn’t actually understand what occurred until she finally lay still.

  She had skidded, then bounced and rolled like a rag doll, with pavement and gravel biting through her clothes and into her skin at every impact. If that wasn’t enough, the bomb dropped on the car only a split second after she’d jumped, which sent her banging against the ground even harder. It also singed the skin off her back.

  Samantha had no idea where the others were. The car was a fiery mass, still moving forward at a snail’s pace about thirty feet away. The heat was overwhelming. Sweat dripped down her temples, mixing with the blood that was seeping from lacerations all over her body. I’m so done with bombs.

  The vampires would know that they were alive by the sound of their hearts still beating. Samantha knew they would be landing the helicopter and searching for them as soon as possible. It made sense that she needed to get up, find the others, and get out of there while they still could.

  Unfortunately, her body didn’t want to obey. She couldn’t even push her hands under her to try and boost herself up. The only thing that happened was her fingers twitching. At least I know I’m not paralyzed. Moaning through a mouthful of bloody saliva, Samantha tried to make her body move, but she couldn’t do it.

  “We need to go,” Liam said.

  Samantha started. She hadn’t heard anyone approach. Small arms slid around her waist from behind and pulled. Samantha grunted at the stinging tendrils of pain rushing through her middle, but didn’t complain. Liam was right; they had to get out of there.

  “I can take her,” Tafari’s voice came from above.

  Samantha felt Liam hold her out and then Tafari’s big, warm arms took her against his chest. The transfer hurt her body and it continued to ache as the immortal carried her out of the area, but she was already starting to feel better. Or maybe her body was just going numb. She couldn’t tell.

  “This way,” she heard Liam say. “I’m sticking to the plan you already had, Samantha,” Liam told her. “I’m pretty sure I can hot-wire that car you scoped out.”

  No one spoke as they made their way back to one of the cars she’d noted earlier. In fact, the night seemed incredibly silent since Samantha couldn’t hear the helicopter anymore. She hoped that they’d had to land far away. There were a lot of buildings around them in the immediate vicinity, so if luck was with them, that would buy them some time.

  With a little direction from Samantha and Tafari, Liam broke into the car. Tafari deposited Samantha into the back seat and then climbed behind the wheel. Liam sat next to Samantha.

  “We need to hurry,” Liam said. “The vampires haven’t caught our scent yet, but they’re getting closer.”

  Tafari hot-wired the car and then drove quickly. “I know of an underground
place that we can stay in. It is near Nevada, so all we have to do is head southeast.”

  “That’s too close,” Samantha said through her cracked lips. “They’ll track us down before we even settle in.”

  “I do not think they expect us to stay so close. We should be safe there while we decide what to do next. Besides, this location is difficult to find.”

  Samantha didn’t say it, but she was glad they wouldn’t be traveling very far. The jostling from the car aggravated all the pain and pulsing aches riddling her body. Even riding in the car for a few hours would prove to be a lot. She only hoped Tafari was truly in his right mind to think of a place so close by. If he’s not thinking straight, we’ll all be seeing Rinwa again very soon.

  Chapter 28

  The fighting had definitely taken its toll on both Leisha and Nikita. Leisha did her best to focus on killing all of the vampires and not on her daughter’s body, lying only a few feet away. But it was obvious by all the blows and stabs she received that her head wasn’t in the fight. The fingers of her left hand had been cut off completely. She lost too much blood from the open slices marking all over the front and back of her torso, arms, and legs. Nikita yelled at her several times to dodge, his frustration lacing every word.

  Her comrade stepped into three of her fights to save her and kill the assassin about to cut off her head. Nikita’s face was red and veins bulged from his neck. Leisha was positive his anger had more to do with her than the vampires they fought. Finally, Nikita noticed that one of the vampires he had killed had several bombs strapped to his belt. He set all of them to detonate and then yelled for Leisha to run.

  She started to, but the thought of leaving Rinwa there to be cremated without a proper goodbye paralyzed her until Nikita picked her up and rushed out of the range of the blast.

  The blast was large enough to start a forest fire. Leisha had no doubt fire crews would be there as soon as it was reported. They made it into Medford after running for forty minutes without rest. There, they broke into an empty house and used the bathroom to clean up and stole fresh clothes from the closets. The clothes were ill fitting, but at least they didn’t stand out. Leisha moved as if pulled by a puppet master. Her movements were spot on, but more mechanical than anything else. She felt as if her brain had gone numb. It was like having eyes out of focus and not being able to blink away the blurriness. She tried to think, but her mind was in shock, and she could only handle mindless tasks to keep her moving.

  They got a hotel room to rest in while the sun was up.

  “We can lose them if we travel in the day,” Nikita considered.

  Leisha shook her head. “We’re so battered that we need to feed and rest. If you had to hide in the trunk under a blanket during the day, you’d never heal.”

  Looking at the bed, Leisha was compelled to lie down and lose herself in blissful oblivion, where she wouldn’t have to think about watching her daughter die. Ignoring the temptation, she pulled out a laptop that they’d bought from Walmart before they checked into the hotel.

  They had gotten some strange looks at the store, since their clothes were obviously not made for them and the two of them were covered with lacerations and bruises, but they were in and out quickly enough. They’d also bought clothes that weren’t as ridiculously small on them as the ones they stole.

  Leisha logged onto the website and was relieved to see that Samantha had a posted a message for her to find. Once she decoded it, she found a phone number to reach them.

  Liam answered after two rings.

  The vampire’s entire body relaxed at the sound of her son’s voice. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes,” he responded. “We’re almost to a hideout Tafari knows about. It’s practically on the state border between California and Nevada. I’ll let him talk so he can give you the directions.”

  “Hi, love.” Tafari’s deep timbre brought up all the grief she’d been trying to keep bottled up. Fresh tears fell onto her cheeks, but she took a deep breath so he wouldn’t hear her coming undone.

  “Hey. So everyone’s all right? You were able to lose that helicopter?”

  A pause. “Samantha sustained some injuries, but we think she simply needs some time and rest.”

  Pressing her lips together, Leisha decided not to pursue it. She would catch up to them soon enough and see for herself how Samantha was faring. “We’re going to rest here until tomorrow morning, then head over to you.”

  “That is a wise time to travel. They should not be able to track you during the day. If you do not mind, would you be able to bring us food? There is water here, but nothing to eat.”

  “Of course.” She was worried about his formal tone, but couldn’t tell how he was truly doing through the phone. “I’ll bring enough to feed an army.”

  “We are much obliged.” He hesitated. “Are you all right?”

  “I can’t really talk about . . . that. I mean . . . her, right now.” Her throat tightened painfully, but Leisha ignored the grief that wanted to overwhelm her. “But, physically, yes. We just need to feed and wait for tomorrow’s dawn. Sorry for the delay.”

  When she’d said feed, Tafari made a sound in the back of his throat. Leisha suspected he didn’t even realize he’d made it, and she was surprised at how unhappy the sound was.

  “You don’t have a problem with me feeding, do you? I have to in order to accelerate the healing.”

  “I know.” He was silent so long that Leisha thought he was finished speaking for a moment. “I guess . . . I was beginning to think of myself as your only source for . . . that.”

  Heat spread up her chest and into her cheeks. “I hope you realize that it’s not like that for me. I mean,” she pushed a hand through her hair. “Drinking blood only . . . arouses me when it’s yours.”

  She saw Nikita glance at her through her peripheral vision, but refused to meet his gaze.

  Tafari cleared his throat. “That, uh, pleases me.” There was a beat of silence. “Well, take down these directions so you can find us tomorrow. The underground door is nearly impossible to find, even if you had a map, so call this number when you get close and I will come out and show you how to get in.”

  Leisha typed the directions in the notes application on her laptop so she wouldn’t forget any of the details. “This sounds like a great hideout.” She licked her lips. “I’ll see you tomorrow then. I love you.”

  “I love you, too. Be safe.”

  Putting down the phone, Leisha ignored Nikita’s stare and decided to lie down to get some rest.

  She woke after five fitful hours to see that Nikita was sleeping in his bed. Her chest felt like it might explode with churning emotions. As quietly as she could, Leisha went to the bathroom, locked it, and turned on the shower. The water wasn’t even close to warming up yet, but she stripped off her clothes and curled in a ball in the tub, allowing herself to finally release her grief. As the water poured over her, she stared at her feet while she cried as quietly as she could. Red tears mixed with the water and flowed to the drain. It reminded Leisha of her daughter’s precious blood draining out of her body.

  Closing her eyes, Leisha envisioned Rinwa as she was alive: a mix of vibrance and gracefulness, splashed with a good amount of attitude. She was sarcastic and didn’t care for addressing her deeper emotions. Leisha had barely been able to have a relationship with her, and yet she missed her already. Now we’ll never be able to make up for lost time. For two thousand years I didn’t know she was on this earth, and now I’ll never be able to know her the way I should have! The thought of moving on without Rinwa was enough to make her heart clench. Leisha knew that when she chose to become a vampire, it damned her soul. She’d always thought it was worth it to save her daughter, but now, knowing she wouldn’t be able to see Rinwa in the afterlife, it was more than she could cope with. Fresh tears emerged with the waves of despair that flowed through her.
/>
  With an effort, Leisha breathed in and out slowly to get herself under control. She stood and scrubbed herself thoroughly, determined to be strong for the others. Tafari, Liam, and Samantha needed her and she couldn’t be an emotional mess.

  After drying off and putting on clothes, Leisha combed her wet hair. Back when she’d been human, when life was happy and Rinwa hadn’t changed her name from Adanne, Leisha had been surprised when her toddler had started to grow blonde locks like her own. Especially since her daughter had inherited Tafari’s silvery-blue eyes. But it had been exactly like hers and Leisha had loved combing it and putting it up into different twists and braids.

  Leisha stopped, once again feeling her loss anew. She glanced at Nikita still sleeping on the bed and decided it would be all right to relish in a few memories for a while.

  Leisha felt a chill in the air and burrowed into her husband’s warmth as they slept. She wasn’t fully awake and started when she felt a light touch on her toes. Looking down, she saw Adanne. Her three-year-old-daughter was pouting in that cute way that only toddlers can.

  “I can’t sleep,” she complained.

  Groaning, Leisha put her head back down. She knew where this was going. “Adanne, you are going to have to learn to sleep by yourself one of these nights.”

  As if sensing that Leisha wouldn’t argue further, Adanne smiled, showing her small white teeth, and promptly climbed up between her parents. The little girl fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit Tafari’s shoulder.

  Leisha wasn’t sure how he could sleep through their nightly exchanges and Adanne pushing and kicking the both of them as she slept, but he did. Leisha, however, barely slept. She had bruises on places where Adanne kicked her. And yet, she couldn’t find the heart to leave Adanne by herself in her own cot.

  Accepting her lot, Leisha snuggled into her daughter and smelled her clean, young scent as she slowly drifted back to sleep.