“You couldn’t have foreseen what would happen.” The soldiers were giving me impatient looks; I didn’t have a lot of time. “This is the best option, Zeke. We don’t want to start a fight. Better that it’s just me then all four of us.” I leaned in even closer, dropping my voice to a whisper. “You can’t let them discover you’re a vampire, not until you figure out what’s happened to Eden.”
Zeke sighed, looking angry and frustrated, but nodded. “I’ll find you,” he promised, briefly pressing a hand to my cheek. “I promise. I know the people here, they’re not unreasonable. We’ll talk to them and sort this out. Just hang on until then.”
“I will,” I said, though I didn’t tell him my true thoughts. That humans in general were not very reasonable when it came to vampires. That the fear of monsters and predators usually took over any rational thoughts when it came to their own survival. That I didn’t expect much sympathy or understanding, and I was really just buying him and the others time to find Sarren.
And lurking in the darkest part of my mind was the fear that I kept even from myself. The whole reason Zeke had been allowed to leave Eden in the first place was to bring back a vampire. And now, here I was. A vampire, in a city full of frightened, desperate mortals.
Part of me said I was being incredibly stupid, putting faith in these humans, trusting they wouldn’t strap me to a table and dissect me like a rat. Part of me was insisting that I fight my way clear. I was a vampire; who were these mortals to treat me like a prisoner and an animal? We could rip them apart, scatter their limbs in the road, and find Sarren without their help.
I pushed that voice aside. I was not that kind of monster, I told myself. We had come all this way; I wasn’t about to slaughter the people I’d come to help. And Zeke still had family here; if I gave in to the monster, he could fall as well, and it would be even more devastating for him once he came out of it. No, if it meant keeping Zeke grounded and in control, if it meant the others would remain free to look for our real enemy, I would put myself in the humans’ custody and not tear them in half. Even though I had zero faith that they would treat me as anything but a monster.
“Leave that weapon behind,” the lead soldier told me, jabbing his gun at my katana as I walked up. “Bad enough we let a bloodsucker walk through the streets—it’s sure as hell not going to be armed. Take it off.”
I bristled, but calmed my anger, stripped off my weapon, and handed it to Kanin. Our eyes met as his fingers closed around the sheath. Look after him, Kanin, I thought, holding his gaze, hoping he could read my expression. Don’t let him succumb to the monster.
He gave a tiny, almost inscrutable nod, and I relaxed. Kanin knew what was happening, what had to be done. He would take care of both Jackal and Zeke, and they could figure out what was happening in Eden, as well.
Turning back to the soldiers, I raised my hands to show they were empty and stepped forward. They surrounded me, keeping their guns trained at my center. The lead soldier eyed my companions over my shoulder, his mouth pulled into a grim line.
“You three wait right here,” he told Zeke and the others. “Don’t move until we return.” Turning to me, he motioned us forward with his gun. “Let’s go.”
They escorted me down the road, where it became clear that something was terribly wrong in Eden.
Rows of makeshift tents and buildings lined the street, filled with humans reeking of pain, blood and fear. Lean-tos made of corrugated metal, wood or tarp had been hastily constructed into crude shelters, and people crowded together for warmth and body heat. Sometimes, a family or group didn’t even have shelter; they huddled in blankets around a lamp or fire pit, their lips blue with cold. When I’d first come here with Zeke, this had been a sparsely populated outpost, with a few long cement buildings that held military units and the checkpoint clinic, where they tested you for infection before you were allowed into Eden. That was as far as I’d gotten; a well-meaning doctor had tried treating my injuries, only to discover I didn’t have a heartbeat. I’d left immediately after, not thinking I’d ever see this place again.
“What happened here?” I asked the lead soldier. “Are all these people from Eden? What’s going on?”
“Not at liberty to say, bloodsucker.” The soldier’s voice was clipped; he was obviously on edge. People stared at us as we walked by, eyeing me with suspicion. This was probably not the best time for a vampire to arrive at Eden’s gates; nerves were shot, and tempers were already frayed thin with the chaos.
The soldiers ushered me to one of the long cement buildings, down a flight of steps, and into a small underground room. Two cells stood opposite each other in the dim light, small and cramped, and already occupied. A pair of scruffylooking men looked up from the bench in one cell, their eyes going wide when they fixed on me. The lead soldier marched to a cell, unlocked it, and yanked open the door.
“Out,” he snapped, glaring at the men in distaste. “Go on, then. Back to your zones, and stay out of trouble this time. No one is happy, but we’re working on the problem as fast as we can. I swear, if I have to break up any more fights, I’ll start tossing people over the wall, you got that?”
“What, you mean you’re not going to let the girl stay with us?” one of the rougher-looking men drawled, peering through the bars at me. “She must be pretty special, to get a whole cell block to herself.” He leered at me, showing broken yellow teeth. “You can throw her in here with us, Sarge, we’ll be good, I promise.”
The monster perked at this, and I swallowed the sudden excitement…and fear. That would be a very, very bad idea. Me, in a tiny cell with a pair of humans, locked in, nowhere to go. Even if these men didn’t try anything, I wasn’t sure I could control my instincts. The soldiers might come back to a massacre.
“Funny.” The soldier’s voice was cold; apparently he was thinking the same thing. Stepping back from the cell, he jerked his thumb at the stairs, glaring fiercely. “Out,” he barked again. “Both of you, get out. Now.”
The men complied. Filing out of the cells, they shuffled toward the stairs, shooting me looks that ranged from curious to hungry. One of the soldiers jabbed a gun in my direction and backed me against the wall, away from the humans passing us. They kept their guns trained on me until the men clumped up the steps, and then the lead soldier pulled back the cell door with a groan, motioning me inside.
“Move, bloodsucker.” A gun poked me in the ribs, and I went. Passing the sergeant, who watched me carefully, as if I might turn on him at the last moment, I stepped into the cell, and the door clanged shut behind me.
I took in the space in one quick glance: cement walls, heavy iron bars, no windows. That was something, at least. I wouldn’t have to worry about the sun slinking across the floor, with me huddled in the corner, desperate to get away from it. I didn’t think I’d be able to break out of here even if I got the chance; the door and bars seemed pretty heavyduty. Kanin could probably bend them, no problem, but I wasn’t a Master vampire and didn’t have his strength. I might be stuck in here for a while.
I gazed back at the sergeant. “How long will I have to stay here?”
“Not my call, vampire.” The men seemed a little more at ease, now that iron bars separated us. “We’ll alert the proper authorities, but it’s up to them to decide what to do. I suggest you get comfortable, and don’t get any ideas. You poke one fang out of this room without authorization, I’ll have every soldier in this place shoot you full of holes. You got that?”
“Yeah.” I sighed, walking to the bench on the far wall. “I got it.”
“Good. Make sure you don’t forget.” He strode away, barking orders to his men. “Lewis, Jackson, watch this room. No one comes down here without my say-so, and if the bloodsucker so much as sneezes, I want to know about it.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And check out the other three—the kid and the two strangers. I want to know who they are, where they came from, everything.”
“Yes, sir.”
/> Their footsteps clomped up the stairs, their voices fading away, and I was alone in the room.
Great. I’d been afraid it would come to this, locked in a cell while I waited for the humans to decide what to do with the vampire. I hoped that, when I woke next, I wouldn’t be strapped to a bed while scientists in white coats milled around, poking me with needles and taking my blood. Like they’d done to Sarren, and all those other vampires sixty years ago. The ones they’d turned into the rabids.
Shivering, I hugged my arms to my chest and sat on the hard metal bench, trying not to think about that. This had been a bad idea; I should’ve known not to trust the humans. I hoped Zeke, Kanin and Jackal were all right, that they’d be smart enough not to wait for the soldiers to return. I worried most for Zeke. Would he be able to control himself in the presence of so many humans, many of them weak and vulnerable? I trusted Kanin would be able to keep him sane, but I also had my doubts that my sadistic blood brother wouldn’t say or do something that would send him over the edge. And if that happened, we could all end up in here, waiting for the scientists to strap us to tables and poke tubes through our veins.
An hour, maybe two, passed in silence. No one came to check on me, and I alternated between sitting on the bench and pacing my cell. I tested the bars and door a couple times, wondering if I could break free if I had to, but the metal was thick and the door firmly locked. I wondered what Zeke and the others were doing, if they had found a way to Eden without me. Or had their secret been discovered and they were in hiding now, trying to avoid capture, or death? Zeke had promised that the Eden scientists wouldn’t use me as a lab rat, but those scientists were no longer around. Growling, I clenched the bars of my cell, feeling my fangs slide free. If it did come to that, I wouldn’t go quietly. A vampire could only be pushed so far. Keeping me locked up was one thing. If they came anywhere near me with a needle or a scalpel, I hoped they were ready for a hell of a fight.
I had just paced back to the bench to settle in the corner again when a noise on the steps made me look up.
A human stood at the foot of the stairs, watching me from behind his glasses with sharp black eyes. He was tall and slender, with a narrow face, thinning hair, and a pristine gray suit that looked slightly too small for him, showing off bony ankles and wrists. I narrowed my eyes. He reminded me of a Pet, of a boy I once knew, who’d betrayed me to become the aide to the vampire Prince of New Covington. It seemed Eden had their version of Pets, as well.
The man gazed at me, lips pressed into a serious line, then stepped briskly into the room. I tensed as he approached the cell and stopped several feet from the bars, well out of my reach should I decide to lunge at him. I eyed him wearily. I didn’t know what he wanted, but if he was anything like that Pet I used to know, then I didn’t want to talk to him. He was probably here to threaten, or ask questions, or maybe to inform me that I was bound for some kind of secret lab on the island. I wondered if I could get any information out of him regarding Zeke and the others.
“Miss Allison.”
I blinked, frowning. I was surprised that he’d used my name; most humans just called me vampire or bloodsucker. But his tone wasn’t condescending, or smug. It almost bordered on…civil. That was different. “Yes?”
He continued to stay well away from the bars, but his voice was serious as he folded his hands before him. “Please, forgive the accommodations,” he said, as if he was soothing an annoyed yet important guest. “Rest assured we are doing everything we can to clear up this misunderstanding. Your friends are speaking with the mayor right now about the situation in Eden. We expect that you will be able to join them soon, if you can be patient just a little longer.”
I stared at him, unable to believe what I was hearing. It had been so long since any human had spoken to me like I was a person, once they knew what I really was. “You…you do realize what I am, right?” I asked. Maybe he didn’t know what he was talking to; maybe his boss hadn’t told him the girl in the cell was really a monster. He blinked, then gave a somber nod.
“Yes. You are a vampire. That has already been established. But your friends have vouched for you, that you mean no ill to the people of Eden, and we will hold them to that. If you harm or kill anyone while you are here, it will be on their heads.” The man’s voice didn’t change; it was still polite and matter-of-fact, but the warning in it was clear. If I hurt anyone, Zeke and the others would pay for it, too.
“However,” the human went on, “Zeke Crosse has done much for Eden, and we have spoken to the doctors and soldiers who saw you the last time you were here. On their testimony, and the insistence of Mr. Crosse, we have decided to trust you. As soon as the mayor gives the order, you are free to go.”
“He’s letting me go. A vampire.” Suddenly leery that this could be a trap, I narrowed my eyes, searching his face for the truth. “I find that a little hard to believe. What does he really want from me?”
“Only your cooperation, Miss Allison.” The man’s voice didn’t change. “And the promise that you will not harm anyone here. The citizens of Eden do not know about you, nor should they, but the mayor realizes that a vampire could be of great use to us, especially now.”
“If that means he’s going to turn me over to the scientists, I’m afraid we don’t quite see eye to eye,” I said, showing the very tips of my fangs. But the man shook his head.
“No, Miss Allison. Never without your consent.” If he saw my incredulous look, he didn’t mention it. “The scientists you speak of did need vampire blood to continue their research, this is true, but we fear they are all dead now. They never got off the island when the catastrophe hit.”
“What catastrophe?”
“I’m afraid you’ll need to hear it from the mayor,” the human said gravely. “He just sent me here to inform you that the situation is being resolved, and ask you to please not attack the citizens of Eden when you leave this place.”
I continued to stare at him. That wasn’t what I’d been expecting. Humans welcoming a vampire into their city? Treating her like she wasn’t a monster, or a thing that could be turned into an experiment? The human outside the cell was being cautious, yes, but he’d spoken to me with respect, like I was a real person. Maybe…I’d been wrong. Maybe Zeke’s version of Eden had been the right one, after all.
“Allie.”
Footsteps echoed on the steps, and Zeke came into the room, followed by several soldiers. The lead soldier, the sergeant I had seen before, gave me a businesslike nod as they entered, then jerked his head at another human, who approached the cell door with a key.
Zeke stood back as the soldier unlocked the door and pulled it open with a rusty screech, but quickly stepped forward as I left the cell. His gaze was worried, hesitant, as if afraid that I blamed him for being stuck behind bars for three hours. “I’m sorry, Allie,” he murmured, regret and concern etched into his face, along with a little anger and guilt. “This shouldn’t have happened. I promised you wouldn’t be treated this way—”
“It’s fine,” I assured him, lightly touching his arm. “They had to protect themselves. I get it. Where are Kanin and Jackal?”
“They’re with the mayor right now.” He paused as the sergeant approached, holding my katana out to me. Surprised again, I took it and slipped it onto my back, and the soldier motioned us up the stairs. “He wants to talk to you. Are you ready?”
I nodded, then glanced at the man I had thought was a Pet, still watching us from where he stood before the cell. He met my gaze, solemn and unsmiling, but his expression wasn’t fearful or filled with hate. Perhaps I’d judged him a bit harshly, too.
“Thanks,” I said softly, and he nodded.
We followed the soldiers up the stairs, out of the building, and into a large jeep humming at the edge of the road. No one spoke. Zeke and I sat pressed between two soldiers, guns held across their chests, gazing straight ahead. Outside the windows, I viewed the tent-and-rubble city, sprawled in messy rows past the pavement
and reaching all the way to the distant wall. Ragged, shivering humans wandered the streets or huddled around metal drums, looking scared and miserable. Whatever was happening in Eden, it had to be horrible, to have driven the entire population here.
That did sound like Sarren.
“Do you know what’s going on?” I whispered to Zeke. He nodded grimly.
“Mayor Hendricks will tell you everything,” he murmured back. “Better that you hear it all at once. But it’s awful, Allie. I didn’t think it would be like this when I came back.” His voice turned steely. “Sarren has to die. I don’t care what happens to me, but we have to find Sarren and end this, once and for all.”
The vehicle pulled to a stop at another long cement building, one I recognized from my last stay. It was here that I’d watched the rest of the group being shuffled off to different parts of the building, never to see them again. It was here that I’d whispered my goodbyes to a sleeping, post-surgery Zeke, turned, and walked out of his life without looking back.
“The hospital?”
“Yes,” Zeke answered as we piled out of the car. “The mayor was badly injured in the flight from Eden and has been recuperating here ever since.”
The hospital was filled to capacity, rooms bulging with wounded humans, and the scent of blood and chemicals nearly knocked me down when I stepped through the doors. People in stained white coats shuffled through the aisles of cots, checking patients, administering aid, trying to make them comfortable because that was all they could do anymore. Groans and soft cries of pain followed us as we walked through the rooms, and, surrounded by the wounded and vulnerable, my demon stirred restlessly. Injured people were everywhere. They had even spilled into the halls, huddled in blankets or curled up in corners, looking miserable. The monster, of course, watched them intently, urging me to take advantage of the sick and weak, easy prey. I pushed it down, but the scent of blood and fear made it hard to think of anything else. Halfway through the walk, Zeke reached down and took my hand, squeezing tightly as we ventured deeper into the hospital. He did not look at the beds or the rows of moaning, thrashing humans, keeping his gaze rigidly in front of us. But his eyes were glazed, and his jaw was clenched to keep his fangs from sliding out. I kept a firm grip on his hand as we continued down the halls.