B005EMAYWS EBOK (11 page)

Getting on her hands and knees, she crawled across the floor until she came to an object that blocked her progress. Reaching up, she felt it with her hand - hoping to identify it.

Summer’s breath caught in her throat when she realized that the object she was feeling was a coffin.

She was in a tomb, just like in her nightmare. Terror ripped at her mind, but she willed it away. She would need all of her wits to survive
, if
she could survive. Summer hadn’t the slightest idea how to fight a vampire.

Moving away from the coffin, Summer leaned her back against a wall. She had to assume that she was being held in the same way as the vampire had held his other victims. At least he hadn’t killed her right away. That might mean that she had a couple of days to try and escape. But how could she get out of a tomb?

If there had been even a small amount of light, she could at least see outlines of darker areas and find her way around, but no light made it into this place of death. She would need to use her hands to guide her. Scooting away from the wall, Summer held her hand out in front of her and moved slowly until she found what she believed to be stairs. Those stairs would lead her to the door.

There was no rail to guide her, so Summer stayed on her hands and knees. She crawled up the stairs until she reached the top. The door was made of heavy wood, and it was locked from the outside. She made a fist and started pounding.

“Help! I’m locked in here!” she screamed.

She had no idea if it was day or night, but it was possible someone might hear her.

The vampire would be sleeping if the sun were out. If the crypt she was being held in were in a cemetery, there would likely be a caretaker.

Determined not to have her life end the same as all of the other victims of the vampire, Summer screamed at the top of her lungs and continued pounding on the door.

Anton would be looking for her, and so would her father.

Out of breath, Summer gave up for the time being. Closing her eyes, she pictured Anton’s face. Keeping him close to her heart was the only way she would make it through this nightmare.

* * *

Anton stared up at the silver moon, a mask of despair marring his handsome features. In the distance he could hear the wolves gathering at the large encampment around Beaver Creek. He had not yet sought out Justin Gray Eagle, Summer’s father. It was the Gatekeeper’s wish that Anton not tell Justin of his daughter’s fate.

He wondered if he could keep this from the
Sungmanitu
leader. What if the vampire
did
kill Summer? How could he live with himself? How could he justify his silence?

Anton was haunted by the vision of Summer as she looked the last time he held her in his arms. He could almost feel her at that moment. It was as if her essence was there with him - calling to him to save her and bring her home.

Forcing his thoughts back to the moment, Anton peered below into the dark canyon. Lex was close. He’d picked up the
Vilka’s
scent not far from Beaver Creek and had tracked him to the cliff’s ledge.

Though he’d be able to track Lex more efficiently if he were in his wolf’s body, he would be far too easily distracted. He had to stay in control if he were to have any hope of rescuing Summer from a sure death at the hands of that rogue vampire.

Suddenly he picked up on the wolf’s scent even more strongly. He stood completely still - listening. There was movement in the trees behind him. Anton was ready to slip into a self-defense mode. His eyes changed to those of the wolf - their shimmering yellow radiance seeing far better in the dark than his man’s eyes.

A shadow crept forward and he felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. His caution quickly turning into full-blown rage as the beast within him made ready to take over. When Anton went into self-preservation mode, he would no longer be able to hold the wolf back.

Lex watched him, his dark eyes seeming to take in every detail of his surroundings. At one time Lex was the leader of the Zen, but he’d turned bad and was banished from
Outerlands
. Would he care enough to help find Gray Eagle’s daughter?

“What could a Zen warrior want from an old wolf that has been cast out from his pack?”

“Summer Gray Eagle has been taken by a vampire. The same vampire that has been killing women in Reno,” Anton explained.

Lex’s mouth turned down in a frown. “That is indeed a problem. I saw Summer not too long ago. She has been very helpful with my endeavors on this side.”

Anton shook his head. “No, it has to do with me. I did something a long time ago and it has continued to haunt me since. It is why I joined the Zen.”

“When I was young, there was a gypsy girl who lived near my home in Romania. Sabina was so beautiful. I tried to resist her, but she was very persistent.”

Anton took a deep breath before continuing. “I was with her once … only once, but she became pregnant. I obviously could not marry her and she was devastated. She took her own life. I have lived with this guilt since.”

“That is unfortunate, but what does this have to do with some wayward vampire?”

“This vampire fell in love with Sabina. He wanted to help her I think, but she would not have him. He blames me for Sabina’s suicide and has killed every woman that he thought I might care about. He killed my wife. It was then that I decided to live a solitary existence. I did not want to put any woman’s life in danger.”

“No, but it doesn’t matter. I love her and the only thing that I care about right now is getting her away from that vampire.” Anton’s voice rose, as did his frustration.

“So how do you believe I can help you when I know nothing about this vampire?” Lex sighed.

“The Gatekeeper came to me. He said to tell you that you must go to the immortal sisters. I have no idea what he’s talking about, but he believes they can help. He also said to tell you that Summer is important to the destiny of these sisters.”

Lex stopped, but did not look back. “Anton, if you have a distaste for vampires then you will not want to go with me. I will not have my friends treated with anything but the utmost respect.”

“Agreed,” Anton nodded.

* * *

Summer stirred at the sound of wood scraping against the concrete floor. She held her breath and listened. The door was opening, and as it did, a sense of
déjà vu
washed over her. She had already lived this moment in her dream.

Summer had been in the dark for so long that she was forced to bring her hand up to shield her eyes from the radiance of the full moon.

Her eyes adjusted to the light, but all she could see was an inky silhouette against the moonlit sky. He leaned in and grabbed her arm. Summer shivered when his cold hands made contact with her already chilled skin.

The vampire pulled Summer to her feet and forced her out of the tomb. Though all she wore was the T-shirt that she’d gone to bed in, the night air was warm in comparison to the icy crypt.

Her eyes wild with fright, Summer looked around, hoping to get some idea of where she was. It was an old cemetery. Many of the headstones had that gothic appearance common to the Victorian era. When the vampire snatched her from her bed, they’d been less than an hour away from Beaver Creek, but this looked nothing like Wyoming. There was an abundance of trees, and the grass was too green. The cemetery just wasn’t the type you would expect to find in Wyoming.

Summer struggled to pull away from her captor, and for the first time she actually saw his face. She wasn’t sure what it was that she was expecting, but it wasn’t the person that was standing next to her.

Sarah was the only vampire she had ever met, and she was a born vampire. Summer had to assume that those that were born with the blood of the immortal would be different. In her mind she had imagined that her captor would resemble monster or some type of pale - lifeless zombie.

The vampire was pale, like she imagined he would be, but he was stunning. His was a beauty that was breathtaking, but sinister. His light brown hair curled softly around his ears, and his thick lashes managed to soften the glare of his dark eyes. Summer could not recall ever seeing eyes so black, or so piercing.

“Where am I?” she asked.

He stared at her - his silence deafening.

“What do you want with me?” Summer glared at him, hoping that her defiance would provoke him into talking. If she could get him to talk, she might be able to forestall the moment that he would take her life.

“You know what I am … don’t you?” His voice was soft, but still deeply masculine.

Summer lifted her chin boldly. “Yes I know what you are, but do you know what I am … or who I am?”

As he squeezed her arm, she felt sharp pain radiate all the way up to her shoulder. The pain was excruciating, and Summer could not stop herself from crying out.

“The scent of the wolf is all over you, but if you were one of those creatures, I am sure you would have changed by now. It is the stench of that murdering
Vilka
that you carry on your skin.” His eyes sliced right through to her soul.

“It is you that is the murderer!”

His smile was as cold and hard as his heart.

“Do you know what you are defending?” he asked through clenched teeth, as he was forcing her onto her back in the tall grass. “He defiles young women and then leaves them to face the consequence of his actions.”

His eyes had taken on the light of hunger. Baring his fangs, he prepared to feed off of her, but was startled when she drew back her lips to reveal her own ferocious teeth. Her eyes were cat eyes - the eyes of the jaguar. Summer roared and swiped at him with nails that had grown instantly into razor-sharp claws.

She had not inherited her father’s ability to change into the wolf, but from her mother she had the shifter blood of the jaguar. Until that moment, she had been completely unaware of the jaguar that slept within her. Her parents had always assumed that if she were able to shift, it would be the wolf. The jaguar shifters were too far back in her family line, but the spirit of the cat clawed its way up from the deepest recesses of her being.

The vampire moved quickly to avoid her claws, but now it was a struggle to hold her down. The jaguar was far stronger than the woman. She had not changed completely, but the cat was definitely there and struggling to come out.

Marius stared at her in fascination.

As soon as the immediate threat was gone, the jaguar retreated. Summer’s golden eyes now reflected her fear, but there was strength behind that fear.

Pale and distraught, Sarah stared at the
Vilka
as if he had just handed down a death sentence for her friend. Lex had shown up in New Orleans shortly after she and Darrien arrived from Oregon.

When she’d been called to her father’s house, Sarah hadn’t the slightest idea of what to expect. She knew that the number of vampire killings had multiplied recently, but she never expected the situation to involved Summer. If the vampire hadn’t killed her friend already, there was no doubt in her mind that he soon would.

Sarah felt personally responsible. She should never have allowed Lex to involve someone else in her problems.

“It’s my fault,” she choked on her words.

Lex shook his head. “This is not connected to Omar at all. Chances are, even if war was not on the horizon, Summer would have been taken.”

“I don’t understand,” Nicole commented, drawing her brows together in confusion.

“It was for personal reasons,” he told the two sisters.

For the first time, the tall man with the silver-gray eyes stepped forward. “This vampire has a vendetta against me. He has taken Summer for revenge.”

Sarah studied the wolf, admiring how he could have such an air of savagery about him, but still seem so regal. This had to be the man she’d brought to Summer with her spell. If it was, then what happened to Summer was still her fault.

“How can we help?” Nicole asked.

“The Gatekeeper says that you will need Summer. She is your connection to the wolves,” Lex told them. “My guess is that she was meant to speak on behalf of the vampire.”