The Fangs of Bloodhaven (29 page)

Leander lowered his head without answering.

“It’s alright,” Leon continued. “I’ve built a haven where cast outs like us are in charge. Interested?”

“I don’t know,” Leander said warily.

“Come on,” Leon urged. “What could it hurt? Besides, there’s all the human blood you could want.” He held out a hand to help the vampire up.

Leander hesitated, then accepted the vampire’s assistance to rise.

The memories faded. There were so many more, but like Leon’s, Everett was able to push them to the background until he could process them. With the roof still caving in around the room and the screams of vampires trapped below, there wasn’t much time to escape.

“Give me the bar,” Everett said.

Vanguard handed it to him without a word. Everett could see the disapproval on the warlock’s face, but he was grateful Vanguard decided not to voice his worries at the height of their danger.

Everett snapped the lock and the gate swung open. Leander shoved past him and fell to his knees next to the nearest fallen pod. Before Everett could stop him, the vampire had sunk his teeth into the pod and was drinking the blood of the elk caught in the plant’s grasp.

“Come on,” Angel urged. “We’ve got to go.”

Chapter Twenty-nine

They ran through the jungle. When Adrielle got too tired to run, Everett picked her up and carried her until his legs refused to listen any longer. He set her down before stumbling against a tree.

“Everett, you need to drink something,” Angel urged.

Everett sank to the ground. He couldn’t deny the bone-weariness or the pain that was growing in his stomach. He had giving Angel a good amount of his blood and lost more than he wanted to admit when the guards stabbed him with their blades. He held the puppy that was wrapped in his shirt. Throughout the chaos, the animal had only let out a whimper or two. As long as he was holding it, the creature didn’t fuss.

“There’s nothing here,” he said. “We don’t have time to hunt.”

“You’ve never hunted with a werewolf,” Adrielle said with a grin.

“Or a poltergeist,” Lisette said from somewhere near their left.

“They make a killer team,” Vanguard said. He paused, then chuckled and said, “Literally.”

“Wait, you guys are friends now?” Everett asked incredulously.

“How do you think all those elk made it to the pods?” Adrielle asked. “When Lisette told us what happened, it took us a minute or two to listen to her.”

“Vanguard was busy screaming like a girl,” Lisette said.

“I was not!” Vanguard denied.

At Adrielle’s look, he lifted one shoulder. “I have a very manly scream.”

Both Lisette and Adrielle laughed.

“Anyway,” Adrielle continued, “I tracked the elk herd in my wolf form and then Lisette put the fear of the Ending War into them! They took off like a flock of banshees was chasing them!”

“I don’t know if Jeraldine would appreciate that,” Vanguard said, “But, yeah. They sounded like thunder crashing through the trees.” He linked his hands together and cracked his knuckles in front of him. “I made the pods disappear so they wouldn’t know what they were running into, then bam! Gobbled up by the plants just like Lisette said. The clearing caved in right after that.”

“I can’t thank you enough,” Everett told them. “We never would’ve gotten out of there. They were going to starve us to death.”

“So much for the hospitality of vampires,” Vanguard said.

Everett made a face at him.

Vanguard grinned. “I could have said, ‘I told you so.’”

“I had to try,” Everett mumbled.

“Yes, you did,” Adrielle agreed. “But now what? Dr. Transton’s plan failed. We don’t have enough vampires to defeat all the wendigo. Nectaris is lost.”

Everett shook his head. “I’m not giving up without a fight.”

“Me either,” Angel echoed.

Everyone stared at her. The vampire’s bright blue eyes showed her embarrassment. She looked at Everett. “It’s just, I, uh, I understand why you want to save it. I’d rather fight for your cause than nothing at all.”

Everett gave her a grateful smile. “Thank you.”

“Alright,” Adrielle said. “The rescue is still on, as hopeless as it might be. That leaves us with the matter of your food. What’s your order, Mr. Vampire? Muskrat, rabbit? I could rustle up a cassowary or two.”

“A what?” Everett asked.

Adrielle rolled her eyes. “A bird, tastes like chicken...” She shrugged. “Of course, for all I know the blood is more like lizard. All birds generally taste the same to me when I’m in my wolf form. You’ll have to let me know.”

“I’m up for whatever you want to hunt,” Everett told her. “Thank you.”

She grinned, her golden eyes sparkling. She changed form behind a tree and took off. Everett leaned his head back against the trunk.

“Do you think we put enough space between us that Leon won’t catch up?” he asked Angel.

She looked toward the jungle they had already traveled. “I think he’s going to be pretty busy if he wants to save the vampires caught in the collapse. Of course, he’s probably more concerned about the pods. I hope Leander took off.”

“Do you think I did the right thing by letting him go?” Everett’s decision weighed heavily in the back of his mind. From what he had seen, the vampire wasn’t dangerous, just a product of his circumstances. He hoped Leander would stay far away from Nectaris and the other cities of the Pentagrin.

“I think so,” Angel answered. She sat down a few feet away on a patch of grass. “You did the right thing, Everett.”

“You mean by freeing that psycho vampire you bit?” Vanguard asked. He held three pinecones in his hands and started juggling them. “I don’t agree with that being a good choice. The fewer vampires in this world, the better.”

Everett gave him a straight look. “You know we’re vampires, right?”

Vanguard dropped one of the pinecones. He sighed. “Of course, Rett, but you’re like a tame vampire, someone’s pet. You’re not going to go around sucking everyone’s blood.” He paused halfway to picking up the pinecone. “Are you?”

“Depends,” Everett said dryly. “I’m pretty thirsty.”

Vanguard paled. He left the pinecone and dropped the other two as well. “I think I’ll go check on Adrielle’s progress,” he said before hurrying through the trees.

Lisette laughed somewhere on Everett’s right. “That was mean.”

A smile spread across Everett’s face. “Yeah, it was.” He glanced at Angel. She watched the space Lisette spoke from quizzically. “I guess we haven’t had formal introductions. Angel, this is Lisette. Lisette, Angel.”

“Thank you for saving our lives,” Angel said, her voice sincere.

To Everett’s surprise, Lisette materialized. Her sandaled feet brushed the grass, but it didn’t flatten. Her long dark hair was tangled and the yellow ribbon was askew as though scaring the animals had been harder than she told them. She caught Everett looking at her and ran her fingers through her hair.

“I’m glad I could do something. I just wish it didn’t result in the deaths of all those animals.”

Everett hadn’t thought about how that must have been from Lisette’s point of view. The thought of a ghost caring about the deaths of others hadn’t occurred to him.

“I’m sorry, Lisette...” he began.

She shook her head. “Don’t be. I was able to help, so I did. It’s the most useful I’ve been in decades.”

“Thank you very much,” Angel told her. The vampire smiled, her pale cheeks lifting. “I’ve never met a ghost before.”

Lisette gave a little curtsey in her striped dress. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Angel. I’ve never met a girl vampire before.” She smiled and said, “You have an unusual name for a vampire.”

Angel lowered her gaze, but a smile stayed on her face when she said, “Before it was known that I was a vampire, my name was Angela, but my older brother always called me Angel. It sort of stuck.” Her smile faltered and pain filled her gaze. She watched the ground as if seeing memories there that haunted her.

“I like it,” Everett told her, wanting to tear her back from the regret that seemed to consume her. “Angel fits you.”

She looked back up at him and a wry smile touched her lips. “I don’t think any vampire deserves the name Angel.”

He smiled. “Maybe I’ll change my name to Angel. It suits me, I think.”

She laughed and threw a pinecone at him. He ducked and the puppy whimpered. Everett unwrapped the pup from the shirt and held him up so he could get a good look at the animal.

“He looks bigger,” he noted in surprise. “How fast do they grow?”

Adrielle appeared between the trees and vines a few paces away. When she saw what Everett was holding, her jaw dropped and the dead animal she carried fell to the ground. She rushed back to the bush she had changed behind as though she couldn’t get to human form fast enough. She was still trying to get her arm in one sleeve when she came out.

“What is that?” she demanded.

Taken back by her tone, Everett held the puppy closer. “Leon gave it to me. It was supposed to be a snack,” he concluded, looking down at the animal in dismay.

“Did he tell you what it was?” Adrielle asked, stopping so close she towered above where he sat.

“He called it something that started with an A. An Aardvark, an artichoke; I don’t remember.”

She folded her arms in front of her chest. “It’s an amarok.”

Everett nodded. “That’s what he called it.”

She held out her hand. “We’ve got to kill it.”

“No!” Everett turned, shielding the puppy with his body. “What’s wrong with you? Its eyes aren’t even open yet!” But when he looked down, he found the pup watching him with a clear blue gaze.

“Great,” Adrielle muttered. She stomped a foot. “That’s just great.”

“Am I missing something here?” Angel asked, glancing from Adrielle to Everett.

“Your
little puppy
,” Adrielle answered ironically with a glance at the overgrown newborn, “Is a wolf, but not just any wolf. The amarok are supposed to be extinct. They can’t exist in this world.”

“Why not?” Lisette asked. Her form was barely an outline near the trees.

“Because they live on souls,” Adrielle said. She gestured at the pup. “That thing can suck souls from a body just like Everett sucks the blood. With it around, none of us will be safe, ever!”

“Look at the way it’s watching you.” Angel’s voice was a quiet counterbalance to Adrielle’s high-pitched flustered rant.

Everett looked back down. The puppy’s paws were on his chest and it stared up at him with searching eyes as though it saw far more than anything so young should. Everett wondered if he should be afraid like Adrielle said. He didn’t know if the puppy wanted to suck his soul, as strange as it sounded. Maybe that was the reason Leon drank their blood when they were young. He wanted the same power.

“What did you do?” Adrielle asked. She took a step closer and sniffed at the puppy. She made a face. “He smells like you.”

“Maybe you’re just smelling me,” Everett replied.

“Or maybe it’s because you fed the puppy your blood,” Lisette replied.

Everett gritted his teeth at the look of dismay that filled Adrielle’s face.

“I don’t believe it,” she said. “Why would you do such a thing? Do you know what that does?”

“He was hungry,” he told the werewolf. “I was already going to starve to death. Letting someone else do the same when I could stop it seemed pointless.”

Adrielle sputtered. Unable to retort, she stomped back to the dead bird she had caught and threw it at him.

“Enjoy,” she said tightly before storming away.

Vanguard hurried after her.

Everett caught the bird before it hit him in the face. He looked at Angel. “What did I do?”

“Bonded with the amarok, I think,” she replied. “Werewolves are pack animals. Maybe she feels betrayed.”

The puppy wiggled. He set it down and drank from the bird while he watched the amarok wander on unstable feet around the clearing. He was amazed at how quickly it was growing. There was no way a newborn puppy would be exploring on its own. Maybe Adrielle was right; he needed to be careful. The monster world was far different from the life he knew. Perhaps he had acted hastily.

Yet when the puppy came back to him and nuzzled his hand, he couldn’t help but be grateful that he had saved it.

“What are you going to name him?” Angel asked. She held out a hand. The puppy sniffed her fingers, then licked them.

“I’ll have to think about it,” Everett said. He smiled when the pup tugged at Angel’s bedraggled shirt and she gave a little giggle. “I think he likes you,” he told her.

Vanguard and Adrielle appeared through the trees. Adrielle looked frightened.

“We’ve got to go. I think we’re being followed,” she said quickly.

Everett scooped up the puppy. He was too big to be bundled back in the shirt. Everett tucked the animal under his arm. He debated whether to keep the shirt, but it had already been ruined by the spears. He shoved it under the bush Adrielle had changed behind.

“We’re not too far from Nectaris,” Adrielle told them. “Let’s hurry!”

Everett kept to the shadows by habit. Now that he knew what would happen if he stayed in the sunlight for too long, he wasn’t so afraid of it, yet old habits were hard to break. He felt the relief he had become accustomed to when the sun finally set.

“There’s the wall!” Vanguard said. He ran ahead with Adrielle at his side.

Angel took two steps after them, then glanced back. “Are you coming?” she asked.

Everett hesitated in the jungle. “I’m afraid of what we’ll find,” he admitted.

“Your family is going to be okay,” she said.

He asked the question that had been plaguing his mind since they left Bloodhaven. “How do I save them?”

“We’ll find out together,” she said, her bright blue eyes sincere.

She held out her hand. Everett took it. A shiver ran up his arm at her touch. He noticed that her skin was even paler than his. The side of his mind not distracted by the impending death of everyone he cared about noted that she looked absolutely beautiful at that moment, watching at him with eyes that seemed so impossibly bright in the starlit evening.