Erik's phone rang in his pocket and he snatched it out, eyeing the screen as if considering not answering. “Shit, one second.” He lifted it to his ear, still gripping my arm to support me. “Get to the point Wolfe, what is it?”
My thoughts sharpened at the name. Had he freed my dad?
“What?!” Erik roared. “How is that possible?”
He fell silent as Wolfe answered and I gazed up at him, my heart thumping harder at his anxious tone.
“Who said that?” he hissed, grinding his teeth whilst Wolfe replied. “Good, bring her here immediately. And don't you dare play your usual games with her. She is the sister of my Courtier, understand? That makes her life more valuable than yours.”
“Callie's there?” I gasped, suddenly desperate to hear her voice. “Let me talk to her!”
Erik eyed me, listening to something Wolfe was saying.
I reached for the phone, but Erik leant back so I couldn't grab it. Desperation filled me. Nightmare hummed on my thigh. I could almost sense my sister's presence on the other end of that phone call.
“I...” Shock poured through Erik's eyes. “Describe him,” he growled and a moment later he ground his jaw so hard I was sure he was going to break some teeth. “Get his fucking name, Wolfe.” He hung up a second later and his gaze drifted down to me.
“You didn't let me speak to her,” I snarled, my eyes scorching with unshed tears.
He sighed. “She's fine, Rebel. Relax. Wolfe will bring her here.”
A jagged lump rose in my throat and I looked away. “I'd like to be alone now.”
“Montana-”
“Go!” I demanded and he reluctantly released me, heading toward the door.
“I'll come check on you soon,” he murmured before exiting.
I held my aching shoulder as I headed into the bathroom, a mixture of emotions rolling through me. Callie was safe. But she was also with Wolfe. And he'd already threatened to hurt her. Would he keep his word to Erik and bring her here in one piece? And what about my dad? Had he been released yet?
Slowly, I managed to strip out of my clothes without jolting my shoulder too much. I unwrapped Nightmare from my thigh and it seemed disappointed with me. Who knew what I'd done to piss it off. But its stony silence spoke bounds. Either that or I’d hit my head harder than I'd thought.
I carefully took the bandage off my shoulder, finding a neatly stitched wound on my pale flesh. Leaving the bandage on the sink, I stepped into the shower and turned the water on. I made sure it wasn't too hot, letting the cool stream soothe my aches and pains as ash and dirt gathered around my feet.
Callie was okay. That was what I had to hold on to. And surely that meant dad would be free soon too? My breathing slowed as I relished that information. Maybe I should have asked Erik to send Callie away with my dad. I didn't want her to come here and get wrapped up in the twisted company of the royals. I half wondered if he'd let me go too...
I recalled how he'd kissed me at the hotel and squeezed my eyes shut, lifting my face into the shower of water.
Why had he kissed me? And why the hell had I let him? Again.
Something about Erik drew me to him. He wasn't like the vampires who'd guarded the Realms. None of the royals were. Even Fabian hadn't openly acted like a heartless bloodsucker until tonight.
I drew in a deep breath, trying to unwind my web of thoughts to no avail.
As I exited the shower and wrapped myself in a towel, wincing at every movement, I thought of tomorrow. That was the easiest way to manage things. One day at a time. Perhaps if I asked Erik, he'd let me skip the choosing ceremony. After what had happened tonight, maybe they'd postpone it anyway.
I took Nightmare back to my room and pushed it under my pillow, wanting it nearby after my close call with death.
I pulled on some pajamas, leaving the wound bare on my shoulder. I couldn't wrap it up myself anyway. Laying back in my bed, I sighed as I relaxed against the pillow which concealed Nightmare.
Rest, Moon child.
Relief swept through me at hearing its voice. I guessed it had gotten over its mood. So that was one thing to be thankful for.
Yup, you're talking to a knife. Things are really looking up. Montana.
Wolfe dragged me to the end of the corridor where a row of doors were clustered together on both walls. He tore open the final door on the left and pulled me inside. I kicked out at the wall as he yanked on my arm, smearing blood from the side of my boot along the grey brickwork for Magnar to see.
Please be alright. Please come for me again. I was making a habit of relying on him to rescue me but I didn’t even care. I’d never wanted anyone to give a damn about me until I’d met him but now that I knew he did I never wanted him to stop.
Wolfe slammed the door behind us and threw me away from him, sending me flying into the rear wall. I crashed to the ground and used the wall to claw my way upright again. I turned to glare at him, keeping my back pressed to the freezing stone.
The room was empty save for some chains which hung from the ceiling. It was cold and dank, a dirty puddle covered the floor. It looked just like the room my father was being held in and I wondered if he was trapped nearby.
My gaze skimmed past the evil creature standing before me and found the wooden door. If only I could get out of here then maybe I could find my dad...
“What do you want me for?” I demanded, my voice sounding braver than I felt. I straightened my spine in defiance, hoping that my slayer blood would help me to hold my own.
Wolfe’s gaze flicked to me without any real interest and he pulled a cellphone from his pocket, dialling a number before turning away from me to talk.
“Good evening sir, I’m sorry to interrupt your-” He cut off abruptly and I caught sight of a scowl on his face which didn’t match the simpering tone he was using with whoever he was talking to. “It’s just that a situation has occurred here. I’m afraid we had to destroy the current batch of humans being held in the blood bank.”
He winced as the person on the phone started yelling at him, their outraged voice reaching me. I couldn’t hear the words behind the tone but I could tell they were pissed. I wondered if he was speaking to Erik Belvedere; if the answer to my sister’s whereabouts was within reach.
“We had a security issue. The bio-units were all compromised and there was a chance of contamination to the product. The decision had to be made in the interest of public safety. I’m sure we can make up the loss by upping donations within Realm G for the next few months. We might lose a few of the weaker specimens but it never hurts to cut the wheat from the chaff.”
I glared up at him angrily as I realised what he was saying. The people in the Realm would suffer because he’d killed the prisoners here.
“I’ll kill you,” I growled, moving towards him with my fists clenched. “You psychotic piece of-” Wolfe took a step towards me and slapped me hard enough to split my lip. I stumbled back as the iron tang of blood filled my mouth.
“Sorry, sir. That was the other reason for my call. The Ford girl is the one who broke in here.”
He paused to listen while the vampire on the other end of the phone spoke. I glared at him as he eyed me hungrily, his gaze snagging on the blood which lined my lip. Fear licked down my spine as he took half a step towards me.
“Of course. I understand but... she wasn’t alone. There is a man here with her. A slayer. And I don’t mean someone who has trained themselves to hunt us; this mortal is like a slayer of old. If I hadn’t seen him with my own eyes I wouldn't have believed it.
He was taller than any man I’ve ever met and built like a bear. He fights with two slayer blades the likes of which I’ve never seen and he has killed almost all of us who were here tonight. The last I saw he was still fighting Helga but I am not confident she will win. Of course I only avoided killing him myself to be sure of bringing you the Ford girl.”
“More like you were afraid!” I shouted before slamming my mouth shut, wondering why
on Earth I was goading this monster.
Wolfe bared his fangs at me as he listened again.
“Tall, like I said. Long, dark hair. Thick with muscle and full of rage. There are tattoos and scars on what little of his skin I could see but he is wearing fighting leathers so that wasn’t much.”
He fell silent for a few seconds then looked down at the cellphone like it had done something surprising. “Oh I’ll get you that name,” he growled as he pushed the phone into his pocket and advanced on me.
I backed up, hitting the cold brick wall behind me as my heart rate spiked with fear.
“Count Erik wants to know the name of the slayer who brought you here,” he growled.
I took a deep breath to buy myself a moment before I answered. If Count Erik wanted to know who Magnar was then I wasn’t about to tell him.
“Why not ask him yourself? Or does he frighten you?” I asked, waiting for his anger to fall on me. There was no way I would give him Magnar’s name and I forced my own fear aside as I prepared to take what was coming for my silence on the matter.
“I don’t even remember what fear is, but I’m sure you know it well,” Wolfe hissed. His eyes dropped to my mouth and the blood which I could still feel on my lip.
“That’ll be why you ran from him like a frightened little bitch then,” I replied with a smile I knew would earn me a smack.
Wolfe punched me in the gut and I doubled over as the breath was knocked from my lungs. Before I could recover, he grabbed me and pinned me against the wall, his fingernails biting into my shoulders.
“Tell me his name!” he roared and his anger sent terror coursing along my spine.
I gathered every inch of resolve I had left and spat in his face.
Wolfe growled like a feral beast, seizing me around the throat and raising me up above his head. “I will have his name from you, whore. Or I will have his head!”
The door burst open, slamming against the wall hard enough to break one set of hinges.
Wolfe dropped me as he spun away from it and I crashed into the concrete floor, pain flaring along my side.
The vampire stared up in horror, recoiling from the huge man who stood in the doorway.
“My name is Magnar Elioson and I was put on this earth to wipe your kind from it. Tell your master I have returned for him. I hope he has made the most of the extra years he has been given, because his time is up.”
My heart flared as I scrambled towards Magnar but Wolfe was quicker; he lunged at me, catching my arm and heaving me upright against his chest.
I tried to kick and claw my way free of him but his hold was unwavering as he pulled out a dagger and pressed it to my throat. I stilled as the sharp blade scratched against my skin and a warm trickle of blood leaked down my neck.
“What’s it to be, slayer? My life or hers?” Wolfe hissed.
“You fear me that much? What will your master say when he learns you didn’t even attempt to stop me from coming for him?” Magnar asked icily.
“He hasn’t asked me to kill you. He just wants me to bring her.” He pushed me forward a step but Magnar didn’t move aside.
“And which Belvedere’s day am I ruining by stopping you from taking her?” Magnar asked.
“Count Erik has requested Miss Ford’s presence and I will be delivering her along with your name. Do you think you can stand against he who has killed a thousand slayers?”
Before Magnar could reply, Wolfe shoved me towards him and leapt forward to attack.
I stumbled into Magnar’s chest and he twisted, delivering me into the safety of the corridor whilst trying to block the thrust from Wolfe’s dagger. He grunted in pain as Wolfe managed to drive the small blade into his bicep and a gasp escaped my lips.
Magnar slammed his fist into Wolfe’s face, throwing him back into the room where he crashed against the rear wall. While he righted himself, Magnar wrenched the dagger from his arm and tossed it at my feet.
“Find your father,” he commanded. “I’ll catch up with you.”
Wolfe was on him again before I could respond and I quickly grabbed the dagger from the floor, wiping Magnar’s blood off of it on my pants. It was a cold, soulless thing, nothing like a slayer blade; just a hunk of sharpened metal. It did little to reassure me as I held it close and I desperately wished I hadn’t lost Fury.
I hesitated as I watched Magnar slamming into Wolfe and driving him back into the small room again. He still hadn’t drawn his blades and I hoped he wasn’t holding back because Wolfe was unarmed. If any monster deserved a swift death then it was him.
A pain-filled groan drew my attention away from their battle and I recognised my father’s voice. I spun around and ran to the door behind me, wrenching it open and finding him still hanging by the chains on his wrists.
“Dad!” I gasped, racing into the room and throwing my arms around his neck.
“Callie?” he frowned in confusion, his voice sounding fuzzy. “Am I dreaming again?”
“It’s me Dad.” Tears slipped from my eyes as I squeezed him tighter and he groaned in pain.
I released him guiltily and made myself look at what they’d done to him. He seemed thinner than he had a week ago, his ribs poking out harshly through his skin so that I wondered if they’d even fed him in all this time.
His bare chest was marked with bruises in colours ranging from yellow to blue, purple and red telling me that he’d been beaten repeatedly over the last week. But the cuts on his arms and neck were the worst of his injuries. I counted more than ten bites, all of which continued to ooze blood. It was hard to be sure of exactly how many of them there were because they overlapped so many times.
“I’m going to get you out of here,” I promised. “You’re going to be okay.”
I stood on my tiptoes to inspect the chains which held his wrists suspended and was relieved to find they were only secured by thick iron pins. I yanked the first pin free and his arm fell heavily as he swung towards the other side.
I grabbed his arm and pulled it over my shoulder so that I could take his weight, releasing his other wrist. It didn’t seem like he’d be able to do it himself and I was afraid he would fall if I didn’t help him.
“Where’s your sister?” he muttered.
“We’ll get her back too,” I promised. “Let’s just get you out of here first.” I pulled the other pin free and he fell against me. I stumbled as I struggled to take his weight and he groaned weakly.
“Can you walk?” I asked anxiously.
“I’ll walk for you, Little Sun,” he mumbled.
He leant against me and I half dragged him towards the door. I hesitated as we reached it, the sound of Magnar and Wolfe’s continued struggle making me unsure of the best course of action.
“Wait! Your mother’s wedding ring.” He pointed to small table beside the door. On top of it lay my mom’s golden wedding ring hanging from a silver chain. Dad had worn it around his neck ever since she’d died.
“Here.” I grabbed it and handed it to him as a faint smile lifted his lips.
“She’d never let me live it down if I lost it. It’s been in her family for generations,” he muttered as he placed the chain over his neck. I nodded vaguely; a piece of missing jewellery was the least of my concerns at that moment. And seeing as Mom was dead I highly doubted she cared either way.
I set my jaw and dragged my dad out into the corridor. He shuffled along as quickly as he could manage and I pulled him to move even faster.
Magnar roared in anger behind me and I chanced a look over my shoulder just as the two of them fell out of the room where I’d been held.
My breath caught as Wolfe landed on top of Magnar and lunged towards his throat but Magnar slammed a powerful fist into the side of his head before his teeth could make contact.
I returned my attention to helping my dad along, wrapping my arm more firmly around his back. We needed to get out of this place before their fight followed us along the narrow corridor and crushed us with
its ferocity.
We finally made it to the heavy wooden door which led outside and I flinched aside as General Wolfe went flying over our heads, crashing into the wall.
Magnar came running after him with a challenging cry and I watched with wide eyes as they collided again, their fight moving them towards the room with the furnace.
I forced my attention back to getting my dad out of there and shouldered my way through the door. Dad’s teeth started chattering as the winter air hit his exposed skin and I moved him towards the wall, resting him against it as I quickly shrugged my thick coat off.
He tried to protest but I forced his arm into the padded material and he relented. It wasn’t big enough to fasten over his broader frame but he stopped shivering as he huddled into it.
A heavy crash sounded from inside the building and my heart leapt. Magnar hadn’t taken this long to finish an opponent before now and I was beginning to worry that he’d met his match in the psychotic General.
I wished I hadn’t lost Fury.
As my mind drifted to the blade, I could feel my connection to it calling me back inside. I guessed it was still where I’d last seen it, laying in the room of coffins which was now filled with the dead. I wanted to run and retrieve it but my dad was too vulnerable to leave alone.
He’d closed his eyes and was leaning against the wall so heavily that I wasn’t sure I’d be able to get him moving again. The horses were so close to us, hidden within the trees but retrieving them would mean leaving him.
An almighty crash sounded from within the building and I flinched backwards, fear clawing at me as I waited to see what had happened.
The door flew open and I spun to place myself in front of my father, holding the pathetic metal dagger before me as Wolfe paced out.
Magnar didn’t follow him and my heart twisted painfully as I stared in horror at the beautiful demon who stalked towards us.
“Don’t cry little slayer,” he purred as he closed in on me, paying no attention whatsoever to the blade I held ready. “I’m sure you’ll be joining that one in death before long. Count Erik has such plans for your family and I can’t wait-” He stumbled forward, a cough falling from his lips and bringing up blood which trickled down his chin.
Age of Vampires- The Complete Series Page 43
