Innocence and Evil (The Arcadia Falls Chronicles #6) (9 page)

***

“You know they’re going to be waiting for
us.” Drew slid his gun into its holster and then covered it with
his hoodie.

I nodded. “Yeah, I know, and I don’t care. I
just want to go get her.”

“Oh, we’re going to get her. There’s no way
we aren’t going. I just wanted you to know it’s not going to be
easy getting in there a second time.”

“Like I said, I don’t care.”

Chloe stepped up beside Drew. “Let’s go over
the plan then. The sooner we do, the sooner we can go.”

The team had met up in the park and we were
all packed into one of the gazebos. Drew called out to get
everyone’s attention. “All right everyone. This mission is going to
be messy. We’re going in with the vampires expecting us. So,
basically we are gonna have to storm the place.” He finished by
telling them where the entrance to the downstairs lair was and then
giving instructions on where he wanted everyone to go. By the time
he finished going over the plan about a zillion times I was
practically fuming.

“Can we go already?” I snapped.

“Zander,” Chloe chided. “We have to be sure
we do this right. For her sake and for ours.”

I wasn’t going to apologize because I wasn’t
sorry. “Well hurry up, the longer we wait the longer they have to
drink her blood or kill her … or turn her.”

Drew placed a hand on Chloe’s shoulder.
“Don’t worry, we’re heading out now.”

It didn’t take long for us to get back to
the library and we weren’t discreet about anything. The entire team
marched right up those massive stairs, pushed open the doors and
filed into the building.

Once we were inside we found what we could
see of the first floor empty. That vampy blonde librarian wasn’t
anywhere to be found and the place was just as creepy and quiet as
it was before.

You would think that this many people
tromping over a hardwood floor would have made more noise, but the
team was surprisingly quiet. It must be that Hunter training or
something. I was at the head of the pack, leading the way to the
door that led down into the freaky dungeon below.

I pushed open the door and immediately the
smell of charred flesh and smoke assaulted my nostrils. Holy crap
that was bad. Trying not to cover my nose from the stench, I began
the descent. Some of the team stayed upstairs, since we didn’t want
to be trapped from both sides like what happened with me and
Christina. We hadn’t gotten far when we saw the blackened stone
walls and bloodstains on the steps.

I tried not to let it get to me, that this
was where they took her. So, instead of stopping and wallowing in
self-loathing, I trudged on.

We got all the way through the hallways and
into the room with the couches before we had to stop. “Which way
now?” Chloe asked.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. This was as far
as we got.”

She flicked her eyes back and forth between
the two choices. “Okay. Let’s go left and see what we find.”

So we did, and this was a shorter hallway,
veering strongly to the left and sloped downward, taking us further
down. When it opened up, we found ourselves in complete
darkness.

Not good.

Even worse, I could feel the evil
surrounding us. It was strong. Hate and pain and anger all combined
into one feeling that couldn’t even be described. I was about ready
to just start flashing my white light at whatever stood in front of
us when someone clicked on a flashlight.

The beam of light immediately landed on a
vampire. I heard some gasps of surprise in the background, but most
everyone was expecting vamps to be all over this place. I raised my
gun, aiming for his heart. “Where is she?” I asked, my voice
resounded through the silent room.

Another flashlight flickered on and scanned
the room. I almost wished whoever had done that, hadn’t. The whole
wall was lined with a combination of humans and vampires. There
were at least ten bodies, but I couldn’t be sure.

The vampire didn’t answer, but stepped
forward two paces.

“No further!” Chloe ordered and I heard a
ripping noise as she let her fire come to life in her palms. “You
will all burn if you take one more step.”

They were all going to burn anyway. If she
didn’t take them out, then I would.

The vampire spoke. “You come for the Hunter
girl?”

“Yeah, genius.” I rolled my eyes even though
he probably couldn’t see it.

“She belongs to Edgar now. We are to tell
you that if you leave at once, no harm will come to any of
you.”

A flash of anger shot through me, “That’s
bull sh…” Chloe cut me off because she shouted “Not a chance!” at
the same time as I had spoken.

“We aren’t leaving without her,” Drew told
the vampire. I didn’t want to look away, but I was sure that all of
the Hunters were ready to fight. I knew already that we weren’t
getting through this room without fighting our way through. “We
want to speak with Edgar.”

The vampire who appeared to be the
spokesperson for the rest of them shook his head. “I’m afraid that
isn’t possible at the moment.”

I’d had it. “Cut the formal tea party
etiquette already. We don’t give a crap if he’s available for
visitors or not.” A hot wave shot through me, emanating from my
core. I holstered my gun and stretched out my arms, palms toward
the vampire in front of me.

I let loose and white light filled the room,
flashing like what you would imagine a visit from an angel would be
like. I heard the fight around me break out as soon as the light
erupted from my body.

Vampires and Dragons attacked at the same
time as the Hunters did. Steel slashed against flesh, and screams
filled the room. Guns were fired, causing our ears to ring with
pain from being fired in the enclosed space.

The battle probably only lasted about two
minutes, but it felt like forever. We knew it was over when the
room fell silent. The bright beams of flashlights washed over us,
checking to see who was still standing. “Is everyone all right?”
Drew called out urgently, “Do we still have everyone?”

After a quick round of accountability, we
were grateful that we hadn’t lost anyone. Everyone who came down
with us was still there. “Let’s move.” Drew stepped over one of the
vampire bodies, which was already beginning to deteriorate as a
bluish, white light began to eat away his flesh.

Funny, it was only then, as I too stepped
over and stared down at the body, that I realized that light was a
lot like what my power was like. I had to wonder if it was the same
thing.

We found the only door on the other side of
the room and pushed it open. More Dragons were waiting for us. I
couldn’t see any vampires this time, but I didn’t really have time
to look. No one waited for conversation, we attacked as soon as we
burst into the room.

The Dragons, unlike their vampire
counterparts, were armed. Shots were fired on both sides and
suddenly I felt the air wrap around us as the shimmering veil of
Alice’s protective bubble fell around us.

I heard cursing and yelling from behind me.
I turned and saw that two of the Arcadia Falls Hunters had been hit
before the shield came down. The Dragons kept firing and the
bullets hit the invisible shield like they were made of rubber,
bouncing off and then landing on the stone floor with a small
clinking sound.

I didn’t have time to go check on the
injured. The Dragons realized that their weapons weren’t doing
anything and we were about to be forced into a standoff. It wasn’t
the first time we had been in this situation. When we were inside
the bubble, nothing could get to us, but we had to step outside the
protective barrier to fight our enemy. Otherwise, we were basically
trapped inside until Alice got too tired to hold the shield.

I stepped as close to the barrier as I dared
without going through it and slowly pushed my hands through the
magic. Once my hands were out, a few of the Dragons fired off shots
in my direction. The odds of them hitting my hands weren’t very
good and they would never be able to hit my body through shield. I
barely had to try and summon the power, the white light shot from
my palms and took out at least two of the Dragons. I moved a tiny
bit to the right and fired again.

Chloe stepped up next to me and followed
suit. Drew did as well, only he was using a gun instead of his
gifts. After that, every Hunter in the bubble was at the edge of
the barrier firing a weapon of some kind.

“Okay!” Drew held his hand up in a fist.
“They’re down. Let’s move.”

Alice let the shield come down with a great
sigh of relief. Holding magic for a long time was exhausting. While
I got that little fact, I couldn’t help but think that I was a
total jerk for thinking that she was going to slow us down now.

It wasn’t long before I realized that I
wouldn’t have to worry about that. This room, just like the last
one, had only one door besides the one we came in through. I surged
toward it, stopping only to turn the knob and slam it open
roughly.

I entered a huge room which was surprisingly
open and spacious. Torches and lamps lit the space, the fire
flickering shadows over the aging stone. A large oval table, made
of carved wood dominated the center of the room. The heavy wooden
chairs bore the same carving as the table, making them look like
there were vines growing up the legs and curling around the
back.

Beyond the table, at the far end of the
room, stood two cloaked figures. I couldn’t see their faces, but I
knew they were vampires without having to see. It was what was in
between them that made my heart lurch in my chest.

Christina.

Thick chains hung from the ceiling.
Cuff-like contraptions held her wrists high above her head. The
tips of her toes barely scraped the floor beneath her and her hair
hung down over her face. She was conscious, but barely.

The sound of our busting through the door
caused her to lift her head. My gaze met with hers as she tried to
shake her dark hair out of her eyes. “Zander,” she croaked.

I nodded, unable to speak. Anger and fear
and love were all competing for the driver seat on the ride my mind
was on.

“You shouldn’t have come.”

I stared at her for a moment and then
finally ripped my eyes away, flicking my gaze back and forth
between the two silent vampires. “I wouldn’t have been able to stay
away.” I lifted my hands, palms outward.

Drew stepped up on one side of me and Chloe
on the other, both with their hands mimicking mine. We didn’t wield
guns, or knives, this time our victory would be won by the gifts
that we were bestowed by angels and gods.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” one of
the vampires spoke. His black cloak covered his whole body, held
together with a large golden pin that was very obviously a dragons
head. He didn’t remove his hood when he spoke, so his face remained
a mystery in the void of darkness beneath the fabric.

“Well, you aren’t me.” I stepped forward
defiantly. Chloe and Drew continued to flank me, following me, but
staying one step behind me, as if they understood that this was my
battle to win.

“Young man,” the voice of the vampire
warned.

I wanted to run up there and rip those
chains from the wall. I wanted her safe. I continued to march
toward them, my hands out in front of me, ready to blast them back
to hell. I would have done it already, but Christina was too close
to them and I didn’t want to take the chance of her getting
hurt.

“Hunters, you were given more than one
opportunity to leave here unharmed. I’m afraid that is no longer an
option.” The voice came from the other hooded vampire.

My power sizzled beneath the surface of my
skin, waiting to be released. “Are you kidding me? We just plowed
through most of your guard. I think we can handle the two of
you.”

“Think what you will, young one. We are not
the ones you should truly fear.”

“You are Edgar and Tristen … right?”

The vampire on the left nodded. “Indeed. And
if we perish this existence, our maker has bigger plans for this
earth.”

“Who is your maker?” Drew asked from behind
me.

The hooded freak on the left laughed. “I am
sure you would love to know.”

We were close enough, it was time. I let my
power loose, as did Chloe at the same time. She took the one on the
right and I took the one on the left. White and orange spewed forth
from our palms with a beauty that couldn’t be described.

Christina cringed, squeezing her eyes shut
and probably hoping that she wasn’t going to be touched by any of
the forces at work.

We were all expecting the vampires to scream
in pain and crumble to the ground as they lay dying. What we did
not expect, was for the white light and the fire to slip around
them as if they weren’t even there. And that is what it did. Both
vampires stood unharmed, probably grinning with victory beneath
their hoods.

Oh crap. We were in trouble.

One of the vampires turned to the other.
“They appear surprised.” Then he turned back to us. “Children of
the earth are not the only ones who can learn a little magic. Some
are naturally born to it and others have centuries to learn. A
shield is one that your little witch learned quickly, so it really
is not a difficult task.”

There wasn’t really a whole lot that could
happen to Hunters that would shock them, when it came to vampires
anyway, but this was one thing that could. Vampires with magic?

The vampire on the right lifted his finger
and touched it to Christina’s exposed torso, trailing the tip over
her skin. “I am going to turn her. This beautiful Hunter is going
to be mine forever.” He then turned back toward us. “She has
already begun the transition.”

“You’re lying!” He had to be.

“I’m afraid not. See for yourself.” His pale
hand reached up and moved Christina’s dark hair aside, exposing her
neck. And there, on her throat, I saw a very distinct bite
mark.”