Blood Legacy (PULSE Vampire Series #6) (15 page)

But one face among so many Kalina did not see, and this absence caused her to breathe a sigh of relief. Whoever else was out there, waiting to slaughter her, Justin was not among them. Had he been able to resist Molotov's call, after all? The thought gave her hope. If the Life's Blood in Justin was strong enough for him to break the hold Molotov had over him, then perhaps it would be able to counteract the effects of vampirism in him altogether!

But if Justin wasn't here, where was he? And where were the other Carriers? Kalina's heart began to beat faster. Night had only just fallen, and she couldn't tell if these new vampires had been out during the sunshine or not. They certainly weren't wearing rings. Did that mean that they had all drunk Carrier blood? Or were they only just waking now? Fear gripped her like a vice.

“Of all the despicable things I have known you capable of,” growled Octavius in a low voice, “I never thought you would stoop so low as to do
this.
”

“I will not let her live,” Molotov glared at Kalina. “This
child
, this
girl
, has gotten the better of me once too often. She lives – she, who dared to cause the fall of my vampire stronghold, but not for long.” He rushed forth, flying through the air, his hands outstretched as they clutched for Kalina's neck. But Octavius jumped in front of Kalina, pushing Molotov aside. His face was white with hot fury.

“How dare you!” Octavius cried, anger flooding through him. “I will never let you harm the woman I love ever again, mark my words. If I have to slaughter every last one of you to keep her safe, I will. But you will not hurt Kalina any more than you already have.”

“What, you think you can order me around, you young upstart?” Molotov laughed, his eyes jeering with contempt. “You couldn't stop me if you tried. The girl's Life's Blood runs through my veins- a blood so strong that all other Life's Blood in the world is as nothing in comparison. And I nearly drained her dry. I doubt even your powerful rubies would stop me now – for those rubies were designed for vampires drinking far less blood than I have supped upon these past few days.” He smiled, displaying bloody teeth. Kalina wanted to vomit at the sight – at the smell. SO much death... so much blood.

Molotov jumped to his feet, drawing himself up to his full, considerable height. “But I will not deign to fight you myself,” said Molotov. “You must slaughter these
innocents
to get to me.” He leaned back his head. “Vampires,
strike
!”

At his words, the whole horde of newly-turned vampires strode forth, their teeth bared. Kalina winced as she raised her stake. She could take on a few of them, but with only one full-fledged vampire in the pack, they were vastly outnumbered. Molotov had calculated all too well. He knew that neither she nor Max would be able to stake mere
children
– vampire or no. And that hesitation would cost them their lives.

Oh, Justin…
Kalina thought desperately.
If you can hear me, wherever you are – please come to save us. Please break that hold that Molotov has over you. Don’t let him win, Justin. You’re stronger than that. I know you.
She prayed that their bond would let him hear her. If she could hear Octavius and Jaegar, after all, why shouldn’t she be able to hear her brother, with whom she had a connection deeper than any romance? But there was no answer.

And now it was time to fight. Kalina tried to concentrate her attentions on staking only those who looked as if they had been turned as adults, but soon her efforts were proved fruitless. The only way to survive was to stake furiously – burying her ruby-wood into every approaching chest, regardless of sex or age. She felt ill – disgusted with herself, with Molotov – but she couldn’t stop. It was her or them, and some adrenaline coursing through Kalina’s veins convinced her that she had to stay alive.

There were too many of them. Their teeth flashed in the air; the smell of blood filled the courtyard. They kept coming; every time Kalina breathed a sigh of relief as one vampire staked into dust, ten more would come forth. Even Octavius was growing tired; Stuart, with nothing supernatural to give him strength, was all-but-collapsing. They were running out of energy, out of time. Sweat poured down their faces. It would all be over soon; they had only to wait…and to succumb.

And then they saw them. Kalina’s heart began to race as she made out the figures at the corners of her eyes. Justin and Jaegar stood before her, their faces shining with bravery and courage, stakes in their hands. “Hello, sis,” said Justin, with a smile. “I’ve come to rescue you.”

Kalina’s heart leaped within her chest. Had Justin really been able to fight off Molotov’s influence? The smell of Life’s Blood filled the air once again – Max, too, began sniffing. It was the same smell they’d experienced in the Inn – the mysterious Carrier who seemed to be following them wherever they were going.

And then it hit her. It was Justin. Kalina’s eyes opened wide with surprise. Justin – a Carrier? Had Max’s transfusion given him all the properties of a real Carrier? Never before had a Carrier been turned into a vampire – and it looked like Justin’s Life’s Blood had served as an antidote against the worst curses of vampire life. He was beautiful, strong, and healthy-looking – he no longer had that bloodthirsty look in his eye. The Life’s Blood gave him gravity, gave him strength. He had all the power of a vampire, but none of the vampire’s cruelty. Kalina beamed with pride. How could she have doubted that her big brother would have been strong enough to fight off Molotov’s influence? Justin had always been strong enough to do the right thing – she should have trusted that from the beginning.

And Jaegar, standing alongside him, was just as beautiful. Kalina gasped with delight. She hadn’t seen Jaegar for so long – she had almost forgotten just how handsome he was.  As he stood before her now, dressed in black silks, Kalina felt the familiar weakening at her knees – she knew just how badly she wanted him. Even after everything. Even now. She had not realized until this moment just how much she missed him, missed his cocky smile, his easy arrogance. He grinned at her and suddenly Kalina’s heart flooded with hope. Good old Jaegar. She could never bring herself to despair when he was around. In the glimmer in his eye she saw the possibility of escape.

“Come on, then!” Justin was shouting at Molotov. “You think you’re so big and brave, turning defenseless humans? Well let me tell you something,
Master
– you don’t control me any longer.”

Jaegar materialized swiftly at Kalina’s side, staking two newborn vampires as he did so. “I brought him home,” he whispered, a smile spreading over his face. “Just as I promised I’d do for you, Kal. I’d do anything for you.”

“Then he’s okay?” Kalina’s eyes filled with tears. She could hardly bear to let herself believe that Justin was safe, after all.

“He’s still a vampire,” said Jaegar. “I couldn’t do anything about that, of course. But I taught him how to fight Molotov’s power over him. Usually only the most ancient vampires can fight vampire-glamour – but Justin’s a natural. His Life’s Blood – not to mention his love for you – made him able to resist Molotov’s voice inside his head. He’s free of Molotov’s influence – at least for now.”

Kalina watched in admiration as Justin effortlessly slew another three vampires, ash and dust crumbling all around him. “He’s a strong man with an iron will,” Jaegar said. “Almost as strong as his sister. When I found him, he was devastated, heartbroken. Just wanted me to stake him. But I talked to him. Tried to convince him that he could use his vampire powers for good, not evil. That he could use them to save you. And that made it easier for him to hold on to his humanity. To his good side. He loves you more than you know, Kalina. It’s one thing for all of us to love you the way we do – we see you as a woman. But for Justin…you’re
family
. It’s a deeper bond than any of us will have.” He sighed, and Kalina knew that he was thinking of the brother he had lost, of the bond that truly had been severed.

Jaegar caught Stuart’s eye. “You’re here too?” He gave Stuart a wry smile. “I didn’t think it was safe to have humans in these parts.”

“It’s not,” said Stuart grimly. “But it’s worth the battle.” He was bristling at Jaegar’s presence. Evidently he, too, could see the attraction on Kalina’s face. “I’ll fight for Kalina whenever she needs help, vampire or not.”

“Wow…” Jaegar’s tone was sarcastic, but it betrayed genuine emotion. “I guess you are truly devoted, brother. You really do love her.”

Kalina turned bright red and focused her attention on slaying the vampires – with Jaegar and Justin both fighting, they were falling swiftly and easily. She didn’t want to hear this conversation.

“I do love her,” said Stuart. “I thought that I never had a chance with her – but when I turned, it was all so clear to me. I did love her – I
do
love her now.  I had so many dreams about what I’d do when I was human, what I’d do the second I turned…but when she left me, when we spent our first night together and she couldn’t…” Stuart blushed and did not complete his sentence. “All those dreams became empty to me. I realized that even a human life is no true life without her.”

“Spoken like a true romantic human,” said Jaegar. To Kalina he spoke telepathically.
Is it true? That you and he never…

None of your business.
Kalina hoped that he would attribute the bright red spreading across her face to exhaustion, not embarrassment.

But you…didn’t, did you? You can still turn back vampires? There is still hope?

Kalina said nothing. Memories were flooding back to her – memories of the agony she’d felt when Jaegar left, of how much she’d missed him, of how her whole body and soul had ached to run after him, to wrap her arms around him, to kiss him and promise him that
he
 - he and nobody else – was the one she loved.

In the midst of her pain she had been sure he was the one. But did she feel that way now?

Jaegar, my love…
She softened.

Kal
,
listen to me.
His voice was so soft, so caressing, yet strangely insistent.
When we get through this, I’m going to show you just how much I miss you. I’m going to show you just how much I love you. I tried to forget you once you chose Stuart. I wanted to harden my heart against you, to control my emotions. I studied to be a stronger vampire – learning dreamwalking, how to counteract glamour, all these skills…and yet they amount to nothing when it comes to you. The second I see you, I melt – my hardened heart is as soft as a dove’s wing. I could never turn my heart from you, Kalina. Not when I love you so. And even now, as we fight for our very lives, I can think only of kissing you…

Molotov interrupted them as he stepped forth, evidently ready to fight now that his soldiers had largely been killed off. “So, we’re all back together again,” he sneered. “A nice little family reunion. And Kalina’s
former
brother Justin. My protégée. He should have come straight to me when he turned. Don’t dawdle, little boy, come to me now.”

Justin stood motionless, glowering at Molotov.

“Never mind,” Molotov spat. “If you’re as weak a vampire as you seem, you’re not worth having in my army anyway.” He stepped back. “I have enough minions to do my bidding, besides.”

Kalina and the others gasped in unison. Another group of vampire soldiers – these much stronger and older – stepped out of the shadow.

“The foot-soldiers have weakened you,” sneered Molotov. “Now let’s see if you have the strength to fight in the big leagues. These soldiers have not fed in weeks. They are hungry for human blood – and I spot
three
humans among you, two with delicious Life’s Blood in their veins.”

The vampires all licked their lips.

“Finally,” said Molotov. “I will have my revenge.”