"And," Luke continued talking, recognizing that Kira still needed reassurance, "the council really isn't that bad. Everything is going to be great, you'll see."
"I hope so," she said and glanced back out at the party. Miles and Susie were still dancing, getting friendlier and friendlier Kira thought, and Dave and Emma had disappeared. So much for the five of them hanging out. Everywhere she looked, she saw her classmates, but they seemed more like strangers to her now than ever before. She wasn't sad to be leaving this town, just the few amazing friends she had made there.
Kira looked back at Luke, ready to ask more questions about their travel arrangements for tomorrow, when she saw him focus on something beyond her shoulder. The muscles in his face tensed, his usual laugh lines disappeared, and Kira saw his whole body stiffen. It could only mean one thing.
"Lover boy is here," he said, and Kira turned to see Tristan weaving his way through the crowd. Like a shadow sneaking between the rays of the headlights, he molded into the dark. Every part of him was hidden except for his pearly skin. Kira tried to smother the smile threatening to spread across her face and turned back to Luke to silently let him know she wouldn't abandon him to spend time with her boyfriend.
"I'll leave you two alone," Luke said, pushing against the wall to straighten his body and prepare to walk away.
"Luke, stay. I want to hang out with both of you."
He shrugged, as if to say that's not possible, and started to leave. Kira heard the porch steps creak behind her, knowing it was Tristan, and spun around.
"We need to talk," Tristan said, his voice full of concern. Luke stopped walking and looked back, alert.
"What's going on?" he asked. Kira could tell he had transitioned to business mode and had let the personal drama go for the moment.
"Privately. Can we get inside?"
Luke nodded and walked over to the door. Reaching above the doorframe, he pulled out a spare key that Miles must have told him about and opened the locked door.
Tristan grabbed Kira's hand, entwining their fingers, and quickly kissed the top of her head before following Luke inside.
Luke shut the door behind them. The kitchen was eerily dark and the soundproof glass dulled the strains of music coming from the party. Heavy shadows crept around the lines of light peeking through the windows, making the three of them seem very alone. Kira shivered with a sense of foreboding and dropped Tristan's hand to lift herself onto the granite countertop. She knew she would need a seat to hear the news Tristan clearly felt was urgent.
"What's going on, Tristan?" she asked.
With traces of sadness lining his clear blue eyes, Tristan looked at her and responded, "You and Luke need to leave now. Immediately. I brought Luke's car and packed your stuff." He ended quietly, as if not wanting to believe the truth in his words. Kira reached out to grab his arm, pulling him closer. There was something else, something he didn't want to tell her. In the corner of her eye, Kira could see Luke pacing around the kitchen, thinking.
"They're here, aren't they?" Luke stopped walking and faced Tristan, who just nodded.
"What?" Kira asked, feeling left out, before realizing Tristan of course meant vampires. "Wait? They're here? As in Charleston or the backyard?"
Tristan ran his free hand through his hair and turned to Luke in full protection mode. Kira had seen this act before, and she didn't like it. "The pack of vampires I sent away last time, they're back. We have five, maybe ten minutes before they reach the party and tear this place apart. You both need to leave now."
"But what about everyone else?" Kira jumped from the countertop, not allowing them to ignore her. She could not leave these people to fend for themselves.
"We need to do something," Luke said, walking closer to the two of them in order to figure out a plan. Tristan nodded in agreement. "Okay, Kira and I will just have to face them. We're powerful enough to bring down a few vampires, this will all be fine."
"No, that's way too risky," Tristan said, looking Kira in the eye. "You have to leave. You and Luke get in the car and start driving. I'm going to lure the vampires away, pretend I'm with them and that I saw you leave. Hopefully, I can lead them in the wrong direction for a while so you and Luke have a chance to escape."
"Oh, and your plan is totally foolproof," Kira smarmily replied. "I would rather fight them. It's what, eight or nine vampires? Luke and I can handle it. You can't do this on your own, Tristan." She reached her palm up to cup his face, letting her finger brush against his hair. She wouldn't let him do this alone.
"No, Kira," Luke spoke forcefully. "Tristan's right. He needs to do this. It's the best way to make sure you don't get caught."
Kira turned to Luke angrily. "It's not like you wouldn't gladly watch him die," she hissed, then looked away, instantly sorry for the remark. Luke was better than that—she knew he was better than that.
"This isn't about that, okay?" Luke replied softly, staring at the ground to hide his involuntary wince. "Everyone at this party is at risk right now, and you being here only amplifies that. Tristan's plan is the best way to keep everyone safe. So, let's go." He grabbed her hand and started pulling her from the kitchen toward the front door of the house.
"Wait, Luke. Wait!" She tugged against his hold and stopped walking to glance back at Tristan. Drenched in shadow, he stood in the kitchen alone, turned slightly away from her and Luke as though he knew this was goodbye but couldn't bring himself to say it.
"Meet me at the car," Luke said and dropped Kira's hand to leave the two of them alone. He disappeared out the door, and before Kira could blink, Tristan was by her side. His hands gently cupped her face while he stared into her fire-laced eyes.
"It's going to be all right," he said, urging her to believe him. Kira tried to quell her racing heart and believe his words, but even if it was all right tonight, neither one of them knew what the future would hold in these next two months apart. He would be chasing down Diana, and though Kira knew he could take care of himself, even vampires could die.
Kira rested her forehead against his, enjoying the brush of his cool breath on her cheek in this one moment of peace.
"I love you," she whispered.
He leaned in to kiss her, and Kira pulled him closer, not wanting to let go and lose the touch of his soft lips on hers. Tristan lifted her off the ground, hugging her close to his body, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Everything felt perfect, at least for an instant before his body stiffened. He broke their kiss, pulled her in even tighter for a final hug, and then set her back down, still holding her.
Kira stared into his sapphire eyes, reading the sadness-tinted longing in his irises and knew the vampires were here. Tristan let her go and stared, moving his eyes so he could take in every inch of her face. She ran her hand through his hair, pushing the ebony locks off of his forehead one last time, breathing in the moment.
In the time it took for Kira to blink away a tear, Tristan had vanished, leaving just a memory, and she was left alone holding only the air.
Chapter Two
Kira dashed through the house, sprinting out the front door and down the driveway, racing to beat not only the vampires but also her own emotions, which were threatening to burst forth.
Before she rounded the street corner, Kira saw headlights and heard the familiar rumble of Luke's pickup truck. Really, she thought, the truck?
"Let's go, Kira," Luke yelled from the driver's seat and the passenger door popped open. Kira jumped inside and slammed it closed while Luke pushed the gas pedal all the way down, throwing her back against the seat with the force.
"Where are we going? Do we even have a plan?" Kira dragged her seatbelt around and clicked it into place.
"Yes," Luke said, not looking away from the road. His hands were white from gripping the steering wheel so tightly. "All we need to do is get to the airport. No vampires would dare attack us there, not in front of an audience and security cameras."
"How far away is it?"
&nb
sp; "About half an hour."
Thirty minutes, Kira thought. It didn't seem like a long time, especially not with Luke zipping through the empty, fog-filled roads as he was now. And after five minutes, Kira was beginning to think they were in the clear. Tristan must have diverted the pack, or, she thought darkly, they had reached the party and decided to drop their chase. Kira searched the night for the sound of sirens. Twisting in her seat, she looked out the back window, just in time to see the faint outline of a body rapidly approaching.
"Luke!" she yelled, grabbing his shoulder. He flicked his eyes to the rearview mirror, and his brows tighten into a frown.
"They're here," he said, like a sigh, as if a faint hope had been denied. "Okay, Kira, listen. I want you to kick out the back window—"
"What!" She jerked her head to the side and knew her eyes were just about popping out of her skull.
"Okay...that might have been a bit drastic, but it would have been really awesome." He smiled. She rolled her eyes.
"Luke, be serious!" She wanted to shake him, but she looked out the window instead. The vampire was gaining speed and fast.
Luke reached back with his arm, unlatched the window, and slid it open. "Kira, you're going to have to fight them. Remember to keep moving quickly and, whatever you do, don't lose control. You need to make speedy movements. Do not concentrate on just one vampire because we're probably already surrounded."
Kira nodded and stuck her head out the opened window. The wind whipped her hair around and the trees swooshed by quicker than her eyes could follow. Of all the ideas they had had, this was probably high on the list of the worst, she mused and started pulling herself through the tight space. The vampire disappeared from the road, but Kira wasn't stupid enough to think they had lost him.
Finally, Kira made it through the window. She tried to stand but got knocked over by the wind and slammed against the metal bed of the truck. There was no way she would be able to stay up when every bump in the road sent her flying. She noticed a rope in the back and crawled over on her stomach, grabbing the string. She looped it around her waist and tied it to a hoop in the bed of the truck. At least she couldn't be sent flying over the edge.
The wind still whistled in her ears, making it hard for her to hear anything else, and she was so concentrated on not toppling over that she didn't see the vampire jump through the trees until Luke shouted her name.
Blindly flinging her hand to the side, Kira shot flames into the night.
"Control!" Luke screamed from inside the car. Kira could only just hear him over the crackling of her fire. But she stopped, realizing the vampire was long gone and she had been wasting energy on open space. Think, she chided and leaned against the back of the truck for stabilization. Finally adjusting to the rhythm of the road, Kira scanned the trees, waiting for something to jump out.
She saw a blur of blonde hair before registering the female vampire that jumped out from the right side, and she shot a short, controlled flame right at her face, sending the vamp in somersaults back into the trees. To her left, another blur, and Kira fired again. She watched as the vamp circled in the air only to land on stable feet. He kept charging from the road, and Kira concentrated again, putting a killing force behind the blow. He retreated to the woods.
A tingle in the back of her neck made Kira turn around seconds before Luke bellowed, "In front!"
The blonde female stood in the middle of the road with her hands outstretched, ready to stop their car. Kira sent a stream of light arching over to encase the female from above. She put all of her concentration into the kill, and by the time Luke and Kira had reached the spot, all that remained was a pile of dust that scattered in the wind.
Kira was amazed at her own power. She had never been this accurate or this fast before. It might have been the extra adrenaline, but she took a moment to look at her own hands. The scars glowed in the darkness like coals still cooling on the grill.
The sound of boots slamming against metal jerked Kira awake. She stuck her hand toward the sound, letting her power go, and only saw the glowing blue eyes of the vamp as it flew off of the car.
Another jumped from the left and she shot it. One more from the right, and Kira knocked it down. Next, two vampires planned an attack together, and she threw her arms wide to the sides, shooting both at once. But hands grabbed her neck from behind, and the tightly knotted rope slipped free from her waist. Kira swung her hands back and latched onto the vampire's head, burning it. A high-pitched scream pierced her ears, but she refused to let go. Soon, the squeal came to a halt, and Kira's own hands slammed together. A cloud of dust swooshed in front of her, and she knew the vampire had imploded.
Something howled from the forest and before she could process, Kira had been lifted up and thrown down against the bed of the truck. A brown-haired vampire with blood dripping from his lips stared down at her, growling. He was crouching, ready to pounce, when the truck came screeching to a halt.
Before Luke had time to turn around in his seat and fire, a new blurred figure slammed into the huge vampire, sending him over the side and into the thick trunk of a tree with a slap.
"Go, Luke! Drive!" Tristan shouted and smacked his hand down on the roof of the car. Kira looked him over, noting the rips in his shirt and the blood seeping out of fresh wounds. He met her eyes and winked. Then a smile rose on his lips causing his dimples to appear.
"Love you," Tristan shouted over his shoulder as he jumped from the speeding truck and slammed into yet another vampire that had come flying from the trees. He's enjoying this, Kira thought, flabbergasted.
But Kira still felt her heart sink when she scrambled to her knees and watched Tristan disappear from her sight, locked in a death grip. She couldn't shoot the other vamp without risking Tristan, and before long, the two vampires had disappeared altogether.
The faint sound of beeps and rumbling engines caused Kira to turn around, and she saw the highway ahead. She and Luke were finally free from the country roads. They had made it.
"Get inside," Luke said and slowed the car to make it easier for Kira to crawl through the window and slip back in.
"Are you all right?" Luke asked when Kira was safely seated and buckled in. She took a moment to survey the damage, and besides a bump on the head and a few scrapes, she was fine, just tired. She raised her hand, and let her palm glow, sending the light inward to heal herself. Almost instantly, Kira felt revived. She sighed and rested her head against the back of her seat.
"So, let's agree to never do that again," Kira said.
"I don't know. You were pretty awesome up there. That move where you twisted your arms and burned that vampire chick's head apart. I mean, that was like comic book amazing."
Kira smiled. "That was pretty badass."
"Kira, the Vampire Slayer…no…Kira, the Avenger…nah, still not right…Kira, the Human Flame Thrower…eh, maybe—"
"Luke?"
"Yes?"
"Stop."
"Okay."
Kira looked over and saw that his lips were still moving. "Luke, you are not giving me some fancy nickname. Stop."
"Oh, come on. I just thought of something amazing."
"No." She laughed at his persistence.
"Please?"
"No." She stood strong.
"Pretty please with a cherry on top...?" Kira finally looked him in the eyes, meeting his puppy-dog pout, and couldn't resist.
"Okay, fine, but keep your eyes on the road."
"All right, here goes," Luke said, adding a dramatic pause for effect. "Kira…the Flaming Tomato." He grinned widely, super proud of himself. Kira snorted almost against her will.
"Luke, that stinks. That is actually the worst superhero name I have ever heard. I prefer the Human Flame Thrower."
"Too late," he cheered. "Kira Dawson, the Flaming Tomato. I think it has a nice ring to it. You have red hair like Shaun White, but you flame while he flies. It's perfect."
"It's terrible. If you ever call me that agai
n, I may have to hurt you."
"You, hurt me? Never." Luke was doubtful, clearly.
Kira turned to look at Luke, grinning, and finally gave in. "Hey, I'm the Flaming Tomato, mister. I could kill you with the simplest flick of my finger."
He smiled triumphantly, and Kira let the conversation fall away as she noticed the exit sign for the airport. In an hour or two, they would probably be seated with their seats up and tray tables secure, flying off into the night sky, away from everything...and everyone.
"Do you think he's okay?" Kira didn't have to clarify.
"Yeah, you have nothing to worry about," Luke said as he switched lanes onto the exit ramp. They rode in silence for the next five minutes, enjoying the peace, until the lights from the parking lot came into view. They had arrived.
The clicking of the turn signal filled the silence as Luke made his way through long rows of empty spaces speckled here and there with a car. He pulled his truck to a halt in the last space of the longest row, the spot closest to the garage exit.
"Do you think they followed us?" Kira asked while peering around the fluorescent lamps and through the slight fog that stilled danced along the ground.
"I'm not sure," Luke responded. He reached for the handle on his door, and then hesitated. "On the count of three, we make a run for it, okay?"
Kira nodded. The entrance to the airport was maybe fifty yards away. They could definitely make it. She reached back for the duffle Tristan had stuffed full of her clothes and saw Luke take hold of his. She fixed the strap over her shoulder and met Luke's waiting eyes.
"One," Luke started.
"Two," Kira added.
"Three," they said simultaneously. Kira flipped the handle, shoved the door open, and jumped out. Luke had already rounded the car, and Kira sprinted forward, keeping pace with him. They made it out of the dark parking lot and were greeted with the bright lights of the airport entrance. Neither one of them slowed for a second until they were at the automatic door, panting and out of breath, but alive.
Kira sucked air into her lungs. The distance hadn't been far, but fear had made her heart race even faster than the running. When she straightened and walked through the sliding door, Kira noticed the security guard for the first time. He looked at Kira and Luke with clear suspicion.
The Complete Midnight Fire Series Page 22
