The Royal Flush (Knights of the Darkness Chronicles(Book Three)) (37 page)

“Oh my God, we’re going to die!” Amanda Patrick cried.

Richard wheeled around, slapping her hard across her face, knocking her to the ground. “Keep it together! Andrew lost his nerve and you saw what happened to him!” He looked at the others. “Come on! We have a better chance at defending ourselves inside.”

They began to move slowly towards the mansion. Every few feet one of them released another ultra-violet grenade. The shape-shifters stealthily followed them, when Xander thought the timing was right he lunged into attack. He leapt into the group with a speed their eyes could not catch. He ripped Amanda’s head from her body, leaving the still-standing corpse behind and darted off into the darkness before her body hit the ground. Blood from her headless corpse splattered the others as they screamed in panic shooting their guns blindly in all directions.

“Let’s get the fuck out of here!” Walter Bailey yelled to the others, he then ran in front of the group followed by Victor Foster.

Darian chuckled deeply before swooping down from the rooftop to snatch Walter in mid dive taking him up high above the others even as he plunged his sharp fangs into the man’s jugular. The hunters shot erratically into the air trying desperately to hit Darian who seemed to dodge the bullets effortlessly as he feasted from his victim. Sergio saw this weakness and he attacked Victor as he was trying to make it back to the group. He ran full speed at Victor and in a movement too fast for Victor to see. With the force equivalent to a freight train, Sergio tackled Victor, ripping his torso in half, and taking the top half with him to feast on. The hunters stopped firing their weapons and looked at the bloody legs, which was all that was left of Victor. Jeffery Kingston doubled over and began retching profusely. The others stepped away looking around frantically.

Richard was beginning to panic, he turned around in a rage. “Where are you?! You fucking freaks! I’m more powerful than you! Humans are the superior beings! We hunt you, we can kill you! This isn’t the first time I’ve killed one of you abominations! Show yourselves, you fucking cowards!”

Sweat poured from his forehead. He reached for a grenade on his vest and found none. He looked down to see that he was out of ultra-violet grenades. He turned to look at the others; mentally he counted their remaining grenades. All combined they had only four grenades left.

“We’re going to die,” Jesse Harthorne said weakly.

This time, Richard didn’t comment. He only l
ooked around.

“Put on your night vision goggles,” he said as he slid his goggles over his eyes.

“But the ultra-violet grenades might damage out eyes if we

” Miriam started.

“Just put them the fuck on!” Richard demanded.

They didn’t say another word. Ea
ch one of them placed their goggles over their eyes. Richard looked through his goggles. He could see the eyes of the shape-shifter clearly. He then looked up and saw Darian suspended in the air looking down at them, smiling. He watched as Darian landed on the roof next to Xavier who was kneeling as he gazed at the hunters. Richard looked at the two vampires and smiled.

“Hand me a grenade.” He extended his hand, palm upward.

Darian and Xavier watched Richard trying to work out his newest strategy.

Darian chuckled. “He insults me at every turn.”

“I suppose he thinks we’re just going to sit here while he tosses that grenade,” Xavier added.

“He intrigues me,” Darian said as he continued to watch the hunters.

Jesse handed Richard one of his grenades. Richard unlocked the lever then threw the grenade towards the vampires. A huge burst of light illuminated the area, Darian and Xavier dodged the explosion of light landing in a tree some distance away.

Darian chuckled at the human’s audacity, but then he grew serious. Looking down at Nagesa under the tree, he whispered. “Take out Jesse, he has two grenades.”

Nagesa growled low in confirmation. Darian turned toward Xavier. “I will make them released their last grenade, my attack will also allow Nagesa to make his move.” Xavier nodded.

Darian landed behind Jeffrey, breaking his neck with a speed that eluded everyone. Then he flew back into the tree just as Nagesa ripped open Jesse’s abdomen, spilling his insides onto the ground before him. Jesse’s mouth was agape; shocked he looked down and saw his intestines pour from his body. Richard and Miriam turned in time to see Jesse fall to his knees, then onto his side, dead.

“Oh my God, what are we going to do?!” Miriam was terrified, her body trembled as she struggled to keep her calm.

“Shut the hell up, I’m thinking!” Richard looked at the last grenade on Miriam’s vest, as he formed another plan.

In a bold move, Nagesa and Adrian leaped into the shrinking group of hunters and dragged the two dead bodies away. Richard shot at Nagesa but missed. Miriam and Richard pressed their backs together as they reloaded their weapons. Miriam removed the last grenade from her vest and handed it to Richard.

“When I released this, we run. Do you understand?” Richard instructed, his voice riddled with fear.

Miriam nodded; her voice was lost to her terror. She could not form words now even if she wanted to. Tears ran down her cheeks as she waited for Richard’s cue.

Richard slowly pulled the pin free, he kept his finger on the release as he walked closer to his mansion and Miriam kept up with his pace.

“Now!” he yelled as he released the UV grenade.

Together he and Miriam ran towards the mansion as fast as they could as they shot blindly into the darkness, hoping to deter any attacks. When the light of the ultra-violet grenade faded, Darian and Xavier converged on them. Darian swooped down from the tree, locking an unbreakable grip around Richard’s body, crushing the bones in his arms. Richard cried out in pain as he dropped his two remaining weapons. Xavier held Miriam in his vice-like grip. The others approached them. Rachel and Nicole’s faces were bloody from the victims they had feasted on. Gary who was still suffering from his starvation was being supported by Tony as they approached.

“How superior are you now, Richard?” Darian whispered into the man’s ear.

“Fuck you! You and your kind are an abomination… y-you’re beneath us!” Richard said weakly. The pain throbbing from his two broken arms was unbearable.

“Ah, same words, less conviction. I think you’re beginning to understand the reality of your situation.” Darian looked at Gary and smiled. “I see that you failed to feed him properly. Perhaps you can make that up to him. I’ll give you one last chance to be a gracious host.”

Richard shook his head in desperation. “No, no please!” he begged.

“Now, now… None of that… Die with dignity. Well, as much dignity as you can muster. Here, Gary, gorge on his blood, savor him.”

“Please Master, allow me,” Tony requested.

Darian thrust Richard towards Tony who held him with ease.

Tony looked at Gary whose eyes had glazed over. The intoxicating scent of the blood pumping frantically through Richard’s veins was driving him mad. Tony had refused to let him feed because of the danger from the ultra-violet grenades. Now he was free to feed at will and before him was a most delectable feast.

“Gary... feed.” Tony offered Richard up to him.

Gary was more than ready and willing to do just that. Immediately he fastened onto Richard, sinking his fangs deep into the man’s neck. A hollow scream came from Richard as Gary began to feed with an animal abandon. Tony held Richard’s weakening body as his lover drained him. Gary panted soft moans as the hot blood rushed through his body, sating his hunger. Seconds later, he pulled away, leaving Richard completely drained and dead.

Tony tossed the body to the ground.

“Are you still thirsting?” he asked. Gary had pressed himself against Tony, encircling his arms around his cold body.

“I am, but I can tell that you haven’t fed. You must be starving,” Gary said as he held Tony in his arms lovingly.

“I haven’t. But I can wait.” Tony looked down into Gary’s pale face. “I want you sated.”

Gary looked up at Tony, his blue eyes filled with the admiration and love he felt for his Maker and lover. Then his gaze turned to one that was predatory as he settled his sights on Miriam.

“No! God no! Please I beg you, it was Richard’s idea to hunt you, not mine!” she cried in her defense.

“Save it, bitch!” Tony growled.

Gary was impervious to her pleas as he closed in on her. She screamed as tears flowed freely down her cheeks. She continued to struggle and beg for her life, insisting that she never wanted to hurt them. She claimed that she didn’t know all of the details. Darian scoffed at her remarks as he awaited her inevitable death. Gary placed his hands gently on her shoulder before plunging his fangs deeply into her neck. Miriam froze as if she had been bitten by a poisonous snake. Gary began to drain her blood, feeding his raging hunger. Miriam’s body twitched several times in Xavier’s grip before going completely limp. Gary quaked as he pulled away, licking the spilt blood from his lips as pleasure from his feeding coursed through his limbs. Xavier released her body, letting it crumple to the ground.

Darian looked around at the others. He could tell that they had all feasted. He chuckled to himself when he took note of the blood stains on Warren’s muzzle.
So the little cop hasn’t forgotten his roots. This is good,
he thought as he reflected on Warren’s human-like personality.

“We need to get rid of these bodies,” Xavier stated as he looked around the area.

“Indeed. We don’t want this to be linked to supernaturals,” Darian said.

Xavier began to laugh as he looked down to see the little tiger cub growling, gnawing and pulling on Darian’s pants leg.

“Looks like you have a friend,” he teased.

“Looks that way.” Darian chuckled as he reached down, grabbing the little cub by his scuff and lifted him to eye level. The cub’s little eyes focused on Darian and he whimpered.

“You’re fishing in the wrong lake my friend.” He placed the cub near Richard’s dead body. The cub sniffed the body then took a small bite from Richard’s neck. He swallowed that piece and went for another.

“I’m starving,” Tony said, “we need to take care of these bodies before we leave.”

Darian nodded in agreement as he looked around the grounds. When he was in the air, he had spotted a jet on the private airstrip.

“We will load their bodies onto the aircraft over there,” he pointed in the direction of the airplane. “Then I will crash the plane into the mountains. Their remains will be burned and scattered, thus preventing others from determining their true cause of death.”

Xavier smiled and kissed Darian deeply wrapping his arms around him, pressing him closer to his chest.

“As Natasha would say, you were bad-ass tonight,” he whispered seductively. “And it sounds like the perfect cleanup plan.”

Darian chuckled. “It is. Come now, let us get this over with.”

He lifted Richard’s body from the ground and loaded him on the plane. By now the little cub had eaten his fill and was sitting down watching the others with keen interest. The shape-shifters began to drag all that was left of the bodies to the plane as did the vampires until all of the remains were packed inside the plane.

Darian stood in the doorway of the aircraft.

“Xavier, Tony, take the others back to my plane, let them rest. Tony you may feed in this territory safely. When I am done with this, I’ll be returning to Kysen to finish our conversation. I’ll reunite with you all tomorrow night.”

Xavier threw him a teasing look. Darian smirked but said nothing and neither did Xavier.

“Are you sure you’re going to be fine, Master?” Tony asked.

“I’m sure. Now go and do as I say,” Darian said.

Tony nodded and taking Gary’s hand walked towards the two SUV’s followed by the shape-shifters.

Xavier looked at Darian. “Be careful,” he said.

“Always,” Darian replied.

Xavier turned, smiling at him before walking farther into the forest. He climbed into one of the SUVs filled with the leopards as Tony drove the other SUV with Gary, Xander and his Pack. Darian watched as they drove away, when he could no longer see the lights of their trucks he closed the airplane door. He ignored his own bloodlust as he walked past the bloody and mangled remains of the hunters on his way to the cockpit.

“It’s been years since I’ve flown one of these,” Dariam mused.

He studied the control panel, trying to recollect his piloting knowledge. When his memory came to him, it wasn’t too long before he was flying high towards the northern mountains. Once he reached the proper altitude, he opened the airplane’s door and jumped out. He suspended himself in the air and watched as the airplane flew downward until it crashed nose-first into the mountains bursting into a gigantic ball of super-heated flames and black smoke. Pleased with the outcome of his task, he flew to Kysen’s home at blinding speed. Once he reached the huge mansion he landed at the main entrance, ringing the doorbell. He waited patiently for the servant to answer. A few seconds later the door opened.