He paused when he caught her staring, and gave a slow smile as he lifted his hand in a quick salute.
“He’ll be alright, lass,” Fergus said, laying a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “He’ll be alright.”
And Gabi had to take his word for it, though she had some deep-seated doubts. She did a quick mental tally: ten Werewolves, three Vampires, herself and Razor. Under normal circumstances that would be a good-sized force, but with few of them ever having worked together before, along with the inclusion of a brand new Vampire and two Alpha Werewolves, there was always the potential for disaster.
Luckily there was no time for posturing and arguing, and the Red Shadow Alpha seemed conscious of the fact that they were all here to get back one of his Pack. When Gabi stepped up to explain the set-up and give orders, Harrison followed Kyle’s lead and nodded understanding of the strategies.
They approached the crumbling church from three sides. The fourth side had no exit points; unless something rammed right through the stone walls, it wasn’t getting in or out that way. Gabi concentrated the Werewolf forces at the front and rear of the building with easy-to-breach doors, and stationed the rest in positions outside to keep watch for anyone trying to take them unawares or flee the scene. The long side of the church was adorned with over a dozen cracked and fading stained-glass windows. They were fairly large but positioned high off the ground. Those she left to the three Vampires. She and Razor would be last in from the back of the church, their responsibility to secure and evacuate Adriana as quickly as possible while the others took on any armed forces. They were all under clear instructions to take as many alive as possible. Nex’s jewelled handle was comfortably familiar in her right hand, and a MacDart, one of Mac’s crazy mash-up weapons, loaded with both Were saliva and liquid silver darts, was ready in her left. Extra cartridges of darts clung to her waist and the flame-thrower was slung across her back.
Gabi had thought they were ready for just about anything. She had been wrong. There was indeed a trap inside, but not the kind they’d been expecting. As Gabi followed Rory, Ross and Butch through the double doors at the back of the building, she, along with all the other rescuers, came to a screeching halt, and the Vampires paused on the ledges of the windows they’d broken through.
The entire inside of the old church had been stripped bare, and in its centre a large metal cage huddled, cemented into the ground and reinforced with thick cables lashed to the very foundations of the building. A dozen spotlights, dark but ready, surrounded the cage, and on a pallet in the middle of the cage lay Adriana. She sat up in alarm, her blonde curls tangled and dirty, her face streaked with blood and grime and tears, her clothing in tatters, barely covering her body.
“Adriana,” Gabi gasped, rushing forward and tucking the MacDart gun into its holster on her hip.
The girl’s eyes widened with recognition and then relief. And then fear. In the dim lighting Gabi could see dark red welts covering much of her friend’s exposed skin, her eyes were round with terror, and the scent of her wolf was dangerously strong.
“Down, down, the cellar,” she said in a hoarse whisper.
Gabi spun, searching the dark as Razor pressed his warm body close to her right leg. Why hadn’t she considered an underground level? Her Vamp sense still wasn’t picking up anything beyond those with her.
“Spread out, find a way down,” she ordered, falling to customary SMV hand signals to send Kyle, Matt and the other SMV Hunter in opposite directions. The others quickly followed suit, scenting the air and searching the floor. Gabi approached the cage.
“Don’t touch it,” Adriana warned, and then shook herself. “Oh, Gabi, you’re probably okay; it’s plated with silver.”
“Silver?” Gabi checked and put a hand out to touch the metal links.
Adriana was right. Though it didn’t affect her, she knew the cool touch of silver well; it had a distinct feel and smell. The cage was heavy with it.
“Here,” Kyle’s terse voice called out. “There’s a trapdoor here.”
Adriana lunged up weakly off the floor, barely able to stand. Razor suddenly hissed in alarm, staring into the dark beyond the cage.
“Don’t go down there,” Adriana begged. “They’ve got all kinds of weapons. Just get out before they—”
Her words were cut off as the spotlights flared to life, blinding Gabi. She threw her arms over her face, shielding her burning eyes as yells and shouts erupted. Something fell over her from above, heavy but malleable. Gabi managed to keep her feet under her and struck out with Nex, but she couldn’t move. Some kind of heavy net or toughened fabric covered her, restricting her movement, weighing her down. Razor yowled in warning, still pressed close to her legs. Grunts, shouts and cursing assaulted her ears. Panic rose in Gabi’s chest as she fought to get free, hacking at the constraint with Nex. Exultant battle cries resounded through the church, from many directions, but they didn’t sound like any of the Vampires or Werewolves. Or even Demons or Ghouls. Finally Gabi’s eyes adjusted to the bright light and she saw that the net was some kind of fine chain link; a masculine roar of pain confirmed it was also laced with silver. Just as the panic began to ebb, as Gabi’s mind began to make some kind of sense of the chaotic scene, five small pops sounded and acrid, choking smoke filled the air.
“Tear gas,” someone yelled. She thought it was Matt’s voice.
“What the fuck?” Gabi growled. She quickly stretched the front of her shirt over her nose and mouth, but knew it wasn’t going to be enough. Wisps of the smoke swirled around her, and her eyes instantly stung like a thousand fire ants had bitten into her eyeballs; tears streamed, blinding her again. Despite the protective covering over her face, she began coughing and choking, trying not to retch. Similar sounds echoed around her. She wondered how the Vampires were faring, but figured they’d be worse off than her and the Werewolves.
“Are the cameras rolling?” a male voice shouted over the general din. “Someone check the cameras are rolling.”
“Holy Lord and Lady…” Gabi fumed. What the hell was going on? Razor had begun a piteous yowl next to her; the tear gas spared no one, it seemed.
“Gabi.” It was Mac’s rough shout. A tearing sound, followed by the tinkling of tiny bits of metal falling to the wooden floors. The weight of the net lifted from her left, from where it seemed like Mac’s voice was emanating. Squeezing her eyes shut against the agony of stinging smoke, she began working her way towards him, keeping Razor between her feet as she went. More tearing, less weight, and soon she bumped into the solid mass of a male body. Vampire. Mac. She was so relieved to find him she nearly hugged him right then and there.
“Humans,” Mac coughed the word. “Attackers are human.” He pointed upwards.
Through bleary, tear-streaked eyes she looked up and saw large chunks of electronic equipment embedded in the ceiling. Some of it had to be camera equipment, by the shouts she’d just heard. The humans were what? Taping the attack? Mac’s arm shot out and deflected something hurtling towards Gabi’s head.
“We need to get out, regroup,” Mac wheezed. “Come.” He turned, obviously meaning to lead her out of the mayhem.
“No way,” Gabi choked out. “Get Adriana. The cage is silver. Weres can’t touch it.” She couldn’t be sure, but she thought he sighed before turning back. Having adjusted somewhat to the sting of the tear gas, Gabi tried to make sense of the senseless. Now that the place was lit, she could make out wires and cables running in swathes across the walls and over the ceiling. Cameras and other recording equipment dotted the walls at shoulder level.
Men shouting in apparent pain and panic drew her attention. Several of the Werewolves were floundering on the ground, covered with sheets of the metallic netting, others were trying to pull it off, and howling in pain as they did so. The scent of Werewolf was strong enough to be noticeable even over the tear-gas stench. They were going to start changing if they didn’t get the silver away from themselves soon. She didn’t fancy being in
a fight with unknown Werewolves backing her up. They were as likely to attack her as the bad guys. Speaking of bad guys. She looked around, wiping the tears from her eyes, to see several men and women in dark clothing pouring from several rough trapdoors in the ground. They were wearing gas masks and held weapons that looked a lot like handguns.
Julius would’ve been so useful right now; his ability to move the air would’ve cleared the gas in seconds. Nudging Razor towards the busted back door, she made a run for the nearest struggling Werewolf. It was Matt. Gabi grabbed one side of the net and screamed at him to lie flat. Even overcome with the pain inflicted by the silver, he obeyed her command. Quickly she flung the net to one side and dropped to check on him. He was panting, his face and hands blistered to the point of bleeding, his wolf so close Gabi could see the faint blur around him. She squeezed her eyes shut as she used her ability to control animals to force the wolf back, calm him, reassure him, settle him. No sooner had the wolf receded than Matt’s hand waved weakly at her.
“I’m fine,” he gasped. “Go.”
She took him at his word and moved onward, Razor at her heels, ignoring her command for him to leave. Fergus was yanking a net off Kyle, and Tabari was collecting the last of the gas canisters, his shirt pulled up over most of his face. He drew his arm back and expertly lobbed the small metal containers out of one of the broken windows.
“Tabari,” she yelled, “break more windows, then secure the exits. No one gets away.”
He nodded that he’d heard her and Gabi turned again. Kyle was back on his feet; he too was blistered from contact with the net, but he was calm and the look in his eye was a rare streak of annoyance.
“Humans,” he grumbled in disgust. “What game are they playing?”
“I don’t know, but we need to contain them,” Gabi replied, retching again and spitting up foul-tasting bile from the back of her throat. “Any idea how many there are?”
Kyle used a sleeve to wipe his eyes, carefully avoiding the bleeding welts on his hands. “At least ten, could be more.”
“Do you think they have an escape route from underground?” Gabi asked. “I don’t want any of them getting away.”
“I’ll get the guys outside to sweep for any runaways,” he assured her and jogged away towards the closest exit. He didn’t take time to open the door, he just lashed out with his foot and took the entire door off its hinges, letting a blessedly crisp, clear night breeze flow towards Gabi. She gratefully drew in a deep lungful of the fresh air and then a sharp noise split the air. It was soon followed by more. The world slowed down as adrenalin flooded Gabi again. She knew the sound, she’d heard it before. Shots. They were shooting. She had an eternal second to spin in the direction of one of the shooters and then something impacted her shoulder hard enough to knock Nex from her grip.
Someone had hit her with a cudgel, no make that a spiked cudgel. Numbness and then pain, her whole arm and upper right side of her body seemed to vibrate with them both. She glanced up to see a man standing on the far side of the now empty cage, a gun pointed directly at her, his eyes gleaming with excitement through the gas mask. Right up to the second that Razor launched himself at the man’s arm and sank his none-too-gentle fangs into flesh and bone.
The man screamed; Gabi didn’t have the breath to. Holy smoke, she’d just been shot. With a bullet. A real live, fucking man-made bullet. What was the world coming to?
********************
The plane touched down just as Julius awoke from his daysleep. He had become skilled at waking himself whenever he needed to. These days he rarely slept more than seven or eight hours. Before he’d begun taking blood from Gabi, he’d found it difficult to get by on less than ten. Most Vampires needed at least twelve, and newer Vampires closer to fourteen.
He dressed quickly as the plane taxied to a hangar at the small private airport. Once he felt the engines shut down, he left the narrow, partitioned cabin and tapped on the door of the one Kimberley rested in.
“I’m awake,” she told him through the door and he could hear her gathering her bags. He moved along to the back section of the plane, where a larger cabin housed several bunk beds. Derek was already awake and stretching; he’d slept in his jeans and a T-shirt and looked rumpled but alert.
“A light meal will be served in the dining area up front,” Julius told him. “Please help yourself and tell Kimberley to do the same. Our ride will be here in about half an hour and I’m not sure when you’ll next get the chance to eat.”
The man nodded, briefly leaning down to adjust his prosthetic limb before gathering his bags and exiting the cabin without a word. Julius waited until he heard the other man engage Kimberley in conversation and their voices travel towards the front of the plane before moving towards his guards. They lay as unmoving as corpses in the bunks. Something about seeing another Vampire daysleep always made him uncomfortable; he wasn’t sure if it was the blatant reminder than he was no longer human, or if it was the stark reality of his vulnerability when he was in the same position.
He roused them one by one, using a reserve of his own power. They would feed that power back to him once they were awake and moving. It was an exhausting exercise, especially as he had three to wake, but it meant they could get to the castle earlier, and that would give him time to catch up with Xavier and get a feel for what they were about to walk into. One by one they came awake like a drowning person suddenly reaching air. In a few minutes Charlie, Quentin and Rat were standing, ready to leave.
The transfer to the limousine took place in the shelter of the hangar. Julius exchanged a few words with his pilots before leaving. They would remain with the plane until it was time to leave. If they needed any supplies in the meanwhile, they knew who to contact, and they knew what to do in an emergency.
Julius settled back into one of the dark leather seats near the front of the extravagant car. Kimberley, wearing Gabi’s face and clothing, and Derek shared a seat right at the back, a respectable distance between them. Charlie was near the door, while Quentin and Rat, the newest addition to Julius’s personal guard, took up seats on either side of the town car.
The windows of the car were so dark that it was almost impossible to see the scenery outside as they drove through mid-morning traffic in the city of Kiev. He wondered if he should put Savannah’s name forward to them so that they could also make use of her ingenious inventions, but then he remembered that Savannah preferred to be left alone, and decided against it.
The longer they drove and the closer they got to the castle, the more Kimberley’s heart rate and breathing increased. She’d been peering out of the window, trying to make out a little of the foreign city around them, but the first glimpse of the real European castle looming over the eastern side of the city seemed to have finally driven home the magnitude of her daunting task.
Derek noticed her anxiety as well, and he casually tossed his jacket from one arm to the other and used that to surreptitiously take Kimberley’s hand in his. She flashed him a grateful smile and made a conscious effort to calm herself.
Her version of Gabi was flawless, it still amazed Julius. If it wasn’t for the lack of a mental sense of her…a spear of pain suddenly lanced through his mind. So sharp that it stole the air from his lungs and left him gasping. He knew immediately that the pain wasn’t real, that it wasn’t his pain. His guards reacted immediately, lunging to form a protective wall around him. He didn’t have the breath to tell them that something terrible had happened back in the City. Something had happened to Gabi.
CHAPTER 8
Not for the first time she truly wished she could just pass out at will. Just close her eyes and make the world cease to exist. But that option apparently wasn’t open to her tonight.
“Shit, Gabi.” Kyle’s voice broke into her reverie. “You’ve been hit.”
“Help Raz,” she tried to say, but her voice came out more like a ragged gasp. She was standing, but the world was swaying nauseatingly. Razor was still layi
ng into the guy with the gun. For a moment Kyle looked almost comically dubious, but when she didn’t fall over, he obeyed and rushed to Razor’s aid.
A distant part of her mind told her that the gunshot wound wasn’t life-threatening. Not that she knew a whole lot about gunshot wounds, but the burning agony was centred in her shoulder, and she didn’t think anything vital resided in her shoulder. Clamping her hand over the entry wound and biting down on her lip to hold back the howl of pain wanting to escape, she bent to retrieve Nex, forcing her fingers to close around the hilt. As she rose, the world dipped and spun a little.
“Gabrielle.” Fergus’s booming voice reached her just as another shot rang out.
She tried to jog towards the sound of his voice, but that pushed the bounds of even her capacity for pain. She stopped, gasping for breath. A strong arm curved around her waist.
“Gotcha, lass,” Fergus said at her ear. “Let’s get ye oot of ’ere.”
“No, wait,” she protested, digging in her heels. She couldn’t leave yet. She was having trouble remembering exactly why that was, but she was absolutely certain she couldn’t.
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