by Nina Bangs
“Zero will be angry, but that doesn’t mean he won’t try to protect her.” Fin moved to the nearest chair and sat. He looked troubled. “I’ll try to keep him away from Mount Tabor. It won’t be easy. I’ve used up lots of energy on him lately.” He looked at where Jude and Kione still stood. “Kione has agreed to add his power to mine. We’ll see what happens.”
That didn’t sound very comforting to Utah. “Have you asked Seir for help?”
“No.” Fin’s expression said to drop it. “Jude and his five vampires have agreed to help. We’ll need them, because you can bet that Adam will be there with his vampires.”
Damn his pride. Utah didn’t care what Fin thought, if he could contact Seir, he’d beg for his help.
“So what’s the plan?” Car looked ready to tear someone apart right now.
“As soon as Q gives the word that we have the right place, we head out. We’ll keep to the back streets to avoid the evacuation routes. Once there, Gig, Ty, and Spin will close in on one side while Utah, Tor, and Lia come in from the other. Jude and his vampires will go where they’re needed.”
“Hey.” Car sounded outraged. “What about the rest of us? We don’t get a shot at them?”
For just a moment, Fin looked weary. “I never commit all of you to the fight. I can’t take the chance of everyone getting wiped out at one time. There always has to be some of you left alive to fight them at another time and place. You know this.”
“Seems like the more of us there are, the better chance we have of winning.”
Al sounded as though he was trying to be reasonable, but his resentment showed. Jenna put her hand on his arm. Utah figured that she’d just breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Purple swirled in Fin’s eyes. “If Zero gets past me, every one of you that’s standing on Mount Tabor will die. He’s one of the few beings who can destroy you in your predator form. You can’t fight him, you can’t defeat him. He will kill you.” He looked away. “I won’t chance losing all of you.”
Utah filled the silence following Fin’s announcement with frantic thoughts about how to keep Lia safe.
Lia evidently had her own doubts. “What do you expect me to do? Even if I manage to get close to her—which looks pretty impossible right now—I still don’t know what I’m supposed to use to touch her.”
Fin frowned. “You’ll have to improvise.”
“Hey, good plan, O Lord of All Wisdom. I should’ve thought of that.” Lia was in full sarcastic mode.
The walls shook, and there was a sudden crash as a large mirror fell to the floor. Fin stared at Lia. “You annoyed me. And I liked that mirror.” It was an unusual expression of frustration for Fin. “I don’t know what to tell you. But something will be there.”
Lia looked as though she wanted to go another round with him, but then she sighed and swallowed her comment.
Fin nodded. “Car, you and the others who won’t be part of the battle will drive. You’ll stay with the vehicles until you hear from me.” He paused, his thoughts seeming to turn inward. “Once we leave this room, every one of us has only one goal—to get Lia within touching distance of Seven. Do whatever is necessary to make that happen.” Left unsaid was that “whatever is necessary” might include dying.
His gaze swept the room. “Now we wait for word from Q.”
Lia couldn’t believe two hours ago they were sitting in Fin’s condo talking. Normal humans doing normal things. Okay, maybe not so normal.
Now she was climbing up a steep path that wound among towering Douglas-fir trees—to face God-knew-what with some as yet to be determined weapon. She was so going to die tonight.
Lia glanced at Utah walking beside her in the darkness. At least she’d die near the man she loved. She really needed to tell him that, but not right now. That admission would bring on the kind of emotional scene guaranteed to make her lose focus on Christine. She’d tell him after this was all over, if she lived. And if she died? He’d probably forget her more easily if he thought she’d never loved him.
He moved closer. “Let me do this, Lia. I don’t give a damn about Fin’s vision. In Philly, he saw Jenna ringing the bell, but I’m the one who actually did it. No big deal. Eight went home just the same.”
His words were a whispered temptation. It would feel so good to unload this whole thing onto someone else’s shoulders.
“Do what? If you know, please tell me.” Lia sighed. Sarcasm wouldn’t help. “Evidently, Fin’s vision means I’m the only one who’ll recognize the mysterious something meant to get rid of Christine. The powers-that-be have a lot of faith in my ability to think on the fly.”
Utah made a frustrated sound and kept walking.
Ahead of them, Ty, Spin, and Gig ghosted from shadow to shadow. It was amazing to Lia how men who morphed into such huge beasts could move so silently as humans. And somewhere behind them, Tor watched their back trail.
Jude and his vampires were out there too. Lia tried to take comfort in the powerful forces backing her up, but the bottom line was that she’d have to face Christine alone.
The silence worked on her nerves. She had to say something. “I’m surprised the city didn’t put police around here to keep gawkers away.”
Utah shrugged. “If they did, Seven took care of them.”
Silence descended again. She glanced around at the leafy trees, the grass, and the flowers. “Christine’s been a busy girl. This could be the middle of July.”
Before Utah had a chance to answer, Lia glanced into the darkness beside the trail. She controlled a startled gasp. Seir stood beside one of the trees. She prodded Utah to get his attention.
They stopped as Seir stepped onto the path in front of them.
“Live volcano, psycho immortal, wacko followers. Not a great place to take your date, Utah.” Seir wasn’t smiling.
“Yeah, well, some of us care about more than just running our mouths.” Utah stepped closer to Seir.
Lia wanted to grab his arm and yank him back. “I’m glad you showed up, Seir. I think Fin could use some help holding off Zero while we take care of Christine.”
“Should I care about what my brother needs?”
Seir’s body language said relaxed, but Lia sensed tension thrumming just below the surface.
Utah made a visible effort to control his aggression. “Sorry about going off on you. I’m always strung tight before a battle.” He tried to smile. “I appreciate what you did to get rid of Lia’s compulsions. I’m just afraid . . .”
Lia could see him struggling with how much it was safe to tell Seir. After all, Seir’s loyalties were murky at best. But Lia believed there were times in everyone’s life when you had to trust your instincts. And her instincts were telling her Seir wouldn’t betray them. If she was right, it was an epic win. If she was wrong, she wouldn’t be around to bemoan her stupidity.
She laid it out for him. “I have to get within touching distance of Christine. Fin’s trying to make that happen.”
Seir looked intrigued. “I’ll have to see this. I assume it all has to do with kicking Christine back out into the cosmos.”
Utah moved closer to Seir, his expression intent. “If Seven stays, those volcanoes will blow and people will die. Officials can’t evacuate a city this size fast enough to beat an eruption. And once she’s finished here, she’ll go on to some other city to spread her poison.”
“Hmm. So what I’m hearing is that both of you want me to help so that humans will survive.”
“Yes.” Lia glanced at Utah when he didn’t answer immediately.
Seir’s smile was slow and wicked. “Truth, raptor.”
Utah kept his face averted from Lia as he answered. “No, damn it. Okay, so I do want humans to survive, but I want Lia to survive more. If Fin can’t hold off Zero, she’ll die.”
“Well, well. Self-interest rears its beautiful head.” Seir looked gleeful. “And if I agree to help?”
Utah exhaled deeply. “I’ll owe you.”
“
A favor owed. I love it.” Seir nodded. “You have a deal.” He stepped back before fading into the darkness.
Utah shook his head. “Tell me I didn’t just make a pact with the devil.”
Lia held up her hands. “I’m staying out of this.” But she couldn’t leave it at that. “Thank you for caring so much about me.” She didn’t try to keep the softness out of her voice.
He smiled. “Always, vampire, always.”
They were getting close to where Q had said Christine was, so they moved more quietly. Lia could feel the heat buildup. And as they neared the summit, she could see the trail of steam above the trees. They weren’t as far from the crater as she’d like to be. The air felt dense, stifling. She didn’t know whether to blame the volcano or Christine’s evil miasma for that.
She didn’t have to guess where Christine was because she could hear shouts and laughter coming from someplace ahead.
Suddenly, Ty emerged from the darkness. They waited for him. Silently, Tor joined them.
“The park has a bunch of reservoirs. Number five is just ahead. Q said that Seven and about sixty of her followers are in an open space near it. We caught a break. She didn’t bring everyone, probably just her main people. Q saw Adam there. He has about ten of his vampires with him.”
Caught a break? Lia had to call him on that. “Maybe you count differently than I do, but the last time I checked my fingers, sixty was a lot more than twelve.”
Ty’s grin flashed white in the darkness. “We fight big, sweetheart.”
Utah looked worried. “Don’t forget that Seven can return us to human form. Without our beasts, we’d be in deep shit.”
Tor spoke up. “Let’s hope she can’t keep us in human shape. Once she’s distracted, we can regain our predator forms.”
If you’re still alive. Lia silently prayed that Tor was right.
“Spin, Gig, and I will head around that way.” Ty pointed. “You come in from the opposite side. Jude and his guys are already in place. They’re hiding up in the trees. They’ll be ready when we attack.” The thought of Jude sitting in a tree seemed to amuse Ty.
“The plan?” Lia was getting nervous. The more she stood around, the more time she had to think about what could go wrong.
“Right. As soon as I know you’re in place, I’ll attack with Spin and Gig. Once Seven is focused on us, you, Utah, and Tor can make a run at her. At the same time, Jude and his vamps will come out of the trees. It’ll be total chaos.”
Utah didn’t look too in love with Ty’s plan. Lia wasn’t either. She would’ve liked something a little more organized.
Ty must’ve sensed their doubts because he hurried on. “You’re vampire now, Lia. If you put on some speed, you’ll just be a blur. Everyone will be concentrating on the rest of us. They probably won’t even notice another vampire until it’s too late.” He threw up his hands. “I know it’s not perfect, but we didn’t have much time to put something together. We had to act fast. When Seven shuts down this party, she’s outta here. And you already know how she’ll celebrate leaving town. This volcano along with the others in the city will blow.”
Lia didn’t need a reminder of how urgent the situation was. She didn’t want to be a Debbie Downer, but she had bad feelings about this. What if she got in front of Christine and there wasn’t a seven in sight? Should she just wave and say hi?
“Let’s go kick some immortal butt.” Ty’s voice was a hushed rallying cry.
Then they were running. Utah leaned close. “Tor and I will be with you every step of the way.”
Lia smiled up at him as she pulled the hood of her jacket over her head. She loved him so much it hurt, and she truly hoped he wouldn’t be with her every step of the way. Not if those steps took him too close to Christine, too close to death.
Events were moving so fast she couldn’t think straight. Lia didn’t believe in putting her life in fate’s hands, because fate was a clumsy bitch who stumbled and dropped things a lot. But that’s what Lia was doing tonight.
They stopped among the trees, watching the large open area where Seven and her followers laughed, drank, and generally whooped it up. The vampires had brought their own wet bar—a bunch of terrified humans trussed up in the back of a pickup truck. It wasn’t tough to spot Christine in the middle of all the partygoers. She wore a long, flowing white gown. Trying to recapture her lost virginity? Or maybe she thought of this as her wedding night. The bride of blood and death. Okay, getting way too melodramatic about this. Focus.
Utah watched Lia’s changing expressions—worry, determination . . . And when she looked at him? Love? It didn’t matter. He loved her, so she was family now. He’d protect her better than he’d protected Rap. And those others he couldn’t remember.
Tor interrupted Utah’s thoughts. “Where are Seven’s guards? They should’ve stopped us before we got this far.”
Utah snorted his contempt. “If she had guards, Jude and his vampires probably got to them. But she’s full of her own power, overconfident. She knows Zero is out there, so she thinks it’s safe to party hard.”
Everything would be over soon, one way or another. But as Utah waited for Ty, Spin, and Gig to crash Seven’s party, he realized something. Life had never been so important. Lia and he had to survive. He loved her too much to believe they’d have no more tomorrows. And Tor? Utah wouldn’t lose his only remaining brother. He called on his beast, and his beast screamed its readiness to make sure Lia and Tor lived.
As though in answer to that silent cry, the T. rex, Spinosaurus, and Giganotosaurus broke from the darkness. Utah just had to admire the jaw-dropping effect of a combined twenty-two tons of angry predators charging into the clearing. A real holy-shit moment.
Evidently, Seven’s followers thought so too. There was lots of yelling and cursing. But these were nonhumans. It took them only a few seconds to regroup and attack. Once the shifting was done, a pack of bigass werewolves launched themselves at Ty and the others. Adam’s vampires moved with blurring speed, fangs bared. The demons in the crowd had their own styles—strange but deadly. There were even a few entities that Utah didn’t recognize.
“It’s time.” Utah resisted the urge to pull Lia into his arms. Not now, but afterward . . . He made do with sliding his fingers along the side of her face and felt her jaw clench, saw her will harden beneath his gaze.
“Stay safe, raptor.” She placed her hand on his chest where his jacket gaped open.
He absorbed the warmth of her touch for one last moment before she withdrew her hand. Taking a deep breath, he became raptor.
Utah’s beast knew he must protect Lia, understood that he couldn’t lose himself to the bloodlust. He swung his head to make sure his pack mate was on her other side. Then they leaped from concealment.
She moved with a vampire’s speed. That speed kept her alive now as she raced beside him. He and his pack mate flung aside any who tried to attack her. And no matter how much he wanted to savage the ones who dared try to touch her, he kept moving.
From the corner of his eye, he saw the vampires that were his allies leaping from the surrounding trees onto their enemies. Even though he recognized them as friends, he still would’ve attacked them if given the chance. Only the spark of humanity within his predator’s body kept him under control, stopped him from trying to kill anything that moved.
Except for Lia. Even with bloodlust pushing at him, he knew he wouldn’t kill her. She was . . . special.
He turned his head to watch the wolves swarming over the enormous beasts he called pack mates, at least for now. The wolves were losing. They lay, broken and bleeding, and he wanted to scream his pleasure at their defeat. But he knew he must not call attention to the woman he guarded, so he remained silent. He burned to take part in the kill, to sink his teeth into living flesh, but he couldn’t because—
As he returned his attention to Lia, he realized his mistake. While he’d watched the wolves, a vampire had appeared in front of her with lip curled back to ex
pose its fangs. He prepared to leap at it.
She waved him away. “I’ll get this.” She pulled out her gun and shot it. The vampire went down. “Did you see her expression? Looked insulted. Guess the vampire code of ethics frowns on using anything but fangs in battle. Tough shit. She might not be permanently dead, but a few bullets will take her mind off of me for a while.” She grinned up at him before continuing to fight her way forward.
His beast felt pride in her. She’d make a worthy pack mate. The human in him murmured that she’d make a fine mate. Forget the pack part.
The whole place had become a bloody tangle of churning bodies. It was getting harder to make headway. They’d caught a break, though. As the fighting escalated, the predators worked themselves into a frenzy of killing and then reverted to their true natures. Everyone turned on everyone else in a supernatural free-for-all. He wanted to be part of the fun, but he stayed close to the woman.
Worried, he watched her almost lose her footing on the ground now slippery with blood. She kept scanning the area, searching for something. His beast’s mind wasn’t sure what she was looking for, but he’d see that she lived to find it.
Suddenly, a wolf sprang past him to clamp his teeth onto the woman’s arm. She muffled a pained yelp.
The wolf had hurt her. Fury drove him. He leaped onto the enemy. And even as he disemboweled the wolf, three others charged him. They had abandoned their larger prey. Perhaps they thought he’d be an easier kill. Their mistake.
The wolves’ ferocity drove him to the ground. For the next few minutes, he showed his attackers what a raptor’s teeth, tail, and claws could do to their flesh.
When he had finished, he was surrounded by dead wolves, blood, and . . . a yellow flower. He stared at the small bloom that had managed to survive being crushed beneath dozens of struggling bodies. Blood dotted the petals, but that’s not what caught his attention. There was something important about the flower, if he could only concentrate.
Thoughts whirled through his mind. Get up. Protect the woman. He gathered himself. He’d tear apart any others who threatened her. Then he paused.
