Vampish: Blood Bonds, page 6
“Red, wait!” Ransom called out behind me, but I didn’t stop. I had to get to my friend. The vamps closed around me, and I lost sight of her.
“Move! Out of the way!” I shouted.
A second later, Cal’s alabaster wings appeared over the crowd, their heavenly glow lighting up the dark night. Vera lay across his arms, unmoving.
“No, no, no!” I barreled through the remaining vamps between us, slicing my way across decaying bodies. Ransom raced beside me, snapping necks and ripping hearts out like it was his day job. When we reached the bridge, I let out the breath I’d been holding.
Spark, Seline, and Archer all stood around Callan and Vera. My friend’s eyes were closed, but her chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. Tears filled my eyes, emotion clogging my throat. “Is she okay?”
Callan nodded. “She hit her head on the stone floor when the fanger lunged. She could probably use the rest. She’s been overusing her magic trying to fend off the attack.”
I quickly wrapped my arms around my team. “Thank the gods you guys are okay.”
“We are, but we can’t say the same for the queen’s castle.” Archer motioned at the looming fortress behind us and the serviles scaling the walls. “There’s just too many of them.”
“And we’re the last line of defense,” said Spark.
“Sounds like we’re all screwed then.” Ransom smirked.
I ignored his comment and scanned the field. To my right, I recognized a few more of the sicari teams still holding the bridge, but Archer was right, we were greatly outnumbered.
“Hold the line!” River shouted from a few yards back. The sicari teams’ leader bellowed instructions to the remaining slayers.
But it was no use. The entire compound was overrun. From over Spark’s head, I could make out the building that used to house the remaining sicari. Serviles spilled from the doorways, shattering glass and trampling the fine furnishings.
“Has anyone seen the queen?” I cried out over the chaos.
“I saw some of her personal guards hightail it back inside a few minutes ago,” Spark answered. “I’m pretty sure they were her ticket out of there.”
“Do you really think she’d abandon her throne?”
“If it meant her life, yes,” Ransom answered. “There’s no such thing as a good dead queen.”
The serviles continued their advance, their snarls and cries ricocheting across the stone. We wouldn’t be able to stay here much longer.
“What now, boss?” Archer tossed me a smug smile. “Or is Spark still in charge?”
I exchanged a look with my old friend. “Spark is still our temporary team leader. We’ll do what he recommends.”
His eyes grew wide as he regarded me. “Right,” he mumbled. Turning to the team, he scanned the same weary gazes I’d been watching. “Every good leader knows when it’s time to retreat. And I think this is it.”
“Excellent choice, dragon boy.” Ransom grinned.
“Where to?” Callan asked, his wings flapping leisurely, so he and Vera hovered just a foot above the ground.
“Nix, any ideas?” Spark turned to me.
“Well…” I glanced over at Ransom and shot him my very best smile.
“No, no, not the penthouse, Red,” Ransom whined.
“I like the sound of that,” Archer chimed in.
“Don’t even think about getting comfy there, Fae boy.”
I elbowed Ransom in the gut. “It’s our best option for now. We’ll regroup and come up with a plan tomorrow.”
“Fine,” he muttered. “But all you girls better not hog the bathroom.”
Chapter
Eight
Ransom
* * *
I couldn’t believe the Scooby gang had raided our love nest. I huffed out a frustrated breath as I watched the witch and the angel making out on my couch. Okay, well, technically nothing was really mine, but it should’ve been. Mine and Red’s.
What a hell of a day this had turned out to be, and to think it had started out with such promise. Which reminded me, Carmen Rosa’s time was nearly up. Surely, she’d take me up on my offer of a truce now that she’d been ousted from her precious castle.
Sparky trudged across the living room and settled down beside me on the kitchen island. I shot the dragon a narrowed glare, but he didn’t even flinch. Dammit. I needed to work on my game. He didn’t find me the slightest bit intimidating anymore. That was what love did to a man. “I just heard back from River. The entire compound has been taken over by the Children of the Night. Ronin’s probably settling his fanger ass into the queen’s throne as we speak.” The dragon directed his statement at Red who stood by the window, staring out into the Darklands.
When she didn’t reply, I took advantage. “This should be interesting. I wonder how the Etrian Assembly will react to that. Why don’t you tell your alpha daddy, dragon boy?”
“Fang off,” he gritted out.
“Both of you shut up.” Red marched over, hands planted on her hips. “As much as I hate to admit it, Ransom’s right. We need to see how this plays out with the Etrian Assembly.”
I snorted on a laugh. “They won’t do anything. They’re too busy sitting on their gilded thrones to stop a mad man’s revolution.”
“You don’t know that,” Spark snarled back. “My father understands what Ronin’s planning. He’ll tell the others, and they’ll never allow it.”
I shrugged. “Maybe, maybe not.”
“Azara knows too,” Red added.
A twinge of guilt rocketed through my insides at the mention of the dark lord. The dark lord-slash-female-warlock that I’d promised to kill if things went sideways. Did I hope it wouldn’t come to that? Of course. Would I do it if it meant saving Red? Also, of course. Love ruined rational men, and I was slightly unhinged to begin with. I was totally fanged.
Seline appeared from one of the bedrooms and her gaze caught on Spark. She darted over and positioned herself between her current lover and his ex. “So what do we do for now?”
“Let’s just wait until the dust settles,” said Red. “At least now we’ll know where to find Ronin when we need to.”
“You don’t think that warlock of his will have the castle warded up till kingdom come?”
“Probably, but since when has that stopped us?” She shrugged. “And anyway, Ronin’s waiting for my answer, remember? I’m pretty sure that’ll give us a ticket inside.”
“At the low, low price of your life.”
Red rolled her eyes at me. “I don’t think Ronin really knows how much of my blood he needs. Vera couldn’t figure it out so why would Drakin? He’s not that all-powerful. It would explain why he always wanted to keep me around. He doesn’t know exactly what he’ll need from me.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” said Spark. “I think we missed something here. How are you even considering going to see him?”
Red quickly summarized our encounter with the rebel king during the battle as Spark and the rest of the team stared expectantly.
“Do you think he can really resurrect your parents?” Vera asked.
Red chewed on her bottom lip, a nervous habit I found irresistible, and I wondered if her friends knew the truth about her biological father. “I don’t know,” she finally mumbled. “But even if he could, I wouldn’t sacrifice all of Azar to bring them back.”
A glossy sheen curtained her expressive irises, and I understood the truth in her words. She was a real-life heroine. She’d always put the good of all over her own selfish desires. Unlike me. It was a good thing she had me in her life to make the selfish decisions for her.
Ransom, it’s time to talk, my child. Carmen Rosa’s voice echoed through my mind, and I nearly crawled out of my skin.
What are you doing in my head? I drew up my walls, trying to force out the invasive presence.
No, don’t block me out yet. We need to talk.
The rumors about the queen’s telepathic abilities were true then. Why had she never made them known to me before? I slowly slunk away from the group and drifted toward the windows. Had the queen found us? I scanned the streets below, but not a shadow stirred. What do you want? I kept my eyes on the surrounding darkness, searching for the queen or her guards.
You said I had until tonight to get back to you regarding Phoenix. I’m doing just that.
A smile curved my lips. Now you want our help? Now that you’ve been ousted from your throne.
Does the deal still stand or not, Ransom? As you can imagine, I’m not in the most patient mood this evening.
Well, I’m just thinking that the deal isn’t quite as attractive anymore. Without a castle, without your guards, you don’t exactly have a safe place to offer Red any longer. How would this arrangement benefit us?
I’m still the queen, despite the temporary loss of the castle.
Are you though? I singsonged.
Don’t push me, Ransom.
Why not? It’s not like you’d waste your precious resources coming after Red now.
No, I wouldn’t, but we can still work together to bring Ronin down. Isn’t that what your precious sicari wants anyway?
She had a point. Red still desired Ronin’s demise above all else. And having one less enemy to contend with, despite the queen’s current status, would be beneficial, but I had to sweeten the deal somehow. Fine, but I have an addendum to the initial agreement.
What is it? Her frustrated sigh resounded across my mind.
I need your word that if Phoenix ever gets captured by Ronin again, you’d do everything in your power to get her out. And not like last time, Carmen Rosa. I mean legitimately moving heaven and hell to find her.
Yes, fine. I agree. Is that all?
For now. I smirked.
Good. Now, I assume Phoenix and what remains of her team are within your reach.
Sure. I eyed the streets below one more time. Still quiet.
I need all the remaining sicari assembled. River and his team are with me, and we are working on finding the others. Tell the witch to await my message. Ronin will not sit upon my throne for long.
We anxiously await your instructions, my liege.
The connection between us closed, and I quickly threw up my mental barriers. If the queen had been able to speak to me telepathically all along, why hadn’t she come after Red a long time ago? My brows drew together. Perhaps, she never really wanted to harm Red after all, and she was content with having her wolf in hiding.
A hand landed on my shoulder, and I spun around, bristling. “Geez, Red, put a bell on or something.”
“What’s going on? Why are you being so quiet?”
I took her hand and towed her into the bedroom we’d shared just the other night. “I talked to the queen.”
“What? How?” Her brows shot up.
I pointed at my temple. “Apparently, the queen’s telepathic abilities aren’t just rumor.”
“She contacted you out of nowhere?”
I nodded. Sort of true. “In any case, given the situation, she’s no longer a threat to you. She needs our help.”
Her eyes narrowed as she regarded me, as if she could ferret out the truth. “Just like that? She’s given up on keeping me locked up or flat out killing me?”
I sat on the bed and crossed my legs, trying hard for that casually sexy look. “Red, she did just lose her throne. She’s not exactly in a place to make demands.” I patted the empty spot beside me. “Anyway, she needs you and River to round up all the remaining sicari. She’s trying to summon up her forces to take back the castle.”
Red ignored my invitation and stood in front of me, arms pressed against her chest. “Ransom…”
“What?” I gave her my most innocent smile.
“This all seems a little too convenient.”
Curses. My little sicari was too smart. Either that or she knew me too well. That was highly disconcerting. “I may have promised her something in return.”
“I knew it!” She pointed her finger at me triumphantly, and I couldn’t help the smile from curling my lip. “What was the deal?”
“I may have told her that I’d eliminate one of the other critical components of the spell if things got out of control.”
“What does that mean?” she growled, stepping closer.
Lie. Lie. “I told her I’d kill Azara and her mother if I had to.” Dammit!
Her eyes widened to astronomical proportions as her mouth curved into a capital O. “How could you?” she shrieked. “Azara welcomed us into their home! How could you even consider killing her? She’s a dark lord of the Underworld and Lucifer’s granddaughter! Are you out of your mind?”
I leapt up and captured her hands between our bodies. “Yes,” I snarled back. “I’m out of my mind with fear that someone would take you away from me.”
She struggled in my grasp, jerking her wrists free. “Well, if you keep this up, the only person that’s going to take me away from you is you.” She jabbed her finger into my chest. “You have to stop doing these terrible things in my name. I’d rather die a hundred times over than let you kill someone to save me. Don’t you understand that?”
“I do! I know perfectly well how stupidly selfless you are. Which is why you need me to make the hard choices to protect you.”
“Ransom!” She grabbed me by the collar, those emerald irises ablaze. “You can’t keep doing this. Don’t you see that the harder you fight to keep me, the more you’re pushing me away? I can’t be with someone, I can’t love someone who I can’t trust, mate bond or not.” She shoved me back and I fell onto the bed, my heart sputtering out a dismal beat. She marched out of the room and slammed the door behind her. It had a depressing ring of finality to it.
Chapter
Nine
Phoenix
* * *
“Nestor’s been in touch.” Vera marched into the kitchen with a sleepy Cal at her heels. The past few days in the penthouse with the whole team had gone surprisingly smoothly. With the exception of the occasional heated argument between Ransom and Spark, no one had killed each other which I viewed as a win, considering the circumstances. Luckily, the space was large enough for everyone to keep some distance.
Even Ransom had kept away after our last fight, choosing to sleep on the couch instead of “our room”. I hated that I missed him, missed the comfort and safety of falling asleep in his arms. But fated mate or not, I couldn’t be with someone with so little regard for human life. Ransom’s love for me made him even more reckless, more volatile. I huffed out a breath as I watched him from the corner of my eye. He stood at the floor-to-ceiling windows, staring out into the darkness. He didn’t even turn around when Vera entered.
Given the temporary truce with the queen, I’d let go of the idea of approaching Ronin with a deal. I had nothing to offer him besides my blood and as much as I wanted my parents back, I couldn’t have that and risk an apocalypse of the dead rising.
I placed my mug down on the oversized island and glanced up at my friend. If the queen’s warlock had reached out, there must have been a plan in place. I’d been itching to get back out there. “What’s going on?”
“They’ve rounded up all the remaining sicari, or at least those that hadn’t deserted or were too wounded to fight.”
“How many are left?” Archer appeared in the doorway of his room, platinum hair sticking up in wild spikes.
“Including us, River and his team, thirty-two.”
I hissed out a breath through clenched teeth. We’d been a hundred and thirty-nine strong when we arrived at Nocturnis. After the attack on the sicari residences and the infiltration of the castle, two-thirds of us were gone.
“Damn…” muttered Cal.
“What’s going on?” Spark poked his head around the corner, and Seline appeared beside him. The pair had been sharing one of the bedrooms, and I was surprised by how okay I was about it. Spark would always hold a special place in my heart, but I’d moved on. My gaze unwittingly flickered to the unusually quiet vampire in the corner.
“We have to get ready to move,” I finally answered, turning to my team.
“I thought the queen wanted you dead?” Spark cocked a curious brow at me.
“Ransom already took care of that little problem.” From the corner of my eye, I caught him stiffen.
“We’re all on the same side again?” Seline asked.
“Looks that way.” I turned to Vera. “What else did Nestor say?”
“The queen wants to meet with all of us this afternoon to go over the plan. Nestor will open a portal to summon us through so the queen’s location remains secret.”
“Great.” Spark clapped his hands. “I don’t know about you all, but I’m ready for some action.”
“I need coffee,” Seline grumbled, trudging around him.
I grabbed the pot, filled a mug, and handed it to her. “Anyone else? We need to bring our A-game today, guys. With our numbers down, each of us has to make it count.”
“Coffee all around then,” said Ransom, finally turning to face us. “Why don’t I open up a vein to spike your drinks with? Because you’re going to need a hell of a lot more than caffeine to survive this.”
“Ransom…” I growled.
“No, Red. I won’t be shushed. They deserve to know what they’re getting into.” He shot me a glare. “You all do. With Ronin holding the castle, he has the upper hand. Your numbers are down by a third, and the queen is sending you into a bloodbath. You’re expendable. Don’t you all get that?”
“You’re not helping,” I shouted.
“Yeah, this is kind of what we do, fanger.” Spark rolled his eyes. “We fight for the good guys.”
“Good, bad, it’s all so black and white to you all.” Ransom shook his head, his lips curling into a sneer. “You’ll never get it until you realize there’s a whole world of gray out there.” He pointed across the dark streets below. “Ronin may be crazy in wanting to summon Thanatos and take the queen’s throne, but he’s not all wrong. Why are vampires forced to dwell in the darkness? Why can’t we consume human blood like we were made to? No one asked to become what we are. I sure as hell didn’t. But I still have to deal with it, every damn day.”
