“So you are the imposter queen’s brother.” Her sweet, girlish voice was entirely out of place with the rounded, sensuous curves of the woman across from him.
“The queen is my sister,” he replied. So much for playing nice, but then he hadn’t spit at her feet and called her a bitch like he longed to do, so he believed it was an improvement. “My twin actually.”
“Twins,” her green eyes lit with keen interest at the word. “They say twins have a special bond.”
“I believe the imposter is the one who turned him from human to vampire, your majesty,” Kane murmured demurely from beside him. William sneered at the man; he’d known he was a coward, he hadn’t expected him to be such an ass-kisser too.
“Hmm,” the woman said in a purring tone of voice, her index finger tapping against his chin. “Is this true, did your sister change you?”
“She did,” William confirmed.
The woman’s full, blood-red lips pulled back to reveal all of her perfect white teeth. The regal red cloak she wore was of the same fine quality as Goran’s and emphasized her pale complexion. “That makes your bond doubly special, doesn’t it?”
William refused to respond, she already had her answer. She was unlike anyone he’d ever seen before; yet, there was something strangely familiar about her. His eyes narrowed as he searched her broad cheekbones and slender nose for some spark of memory as to where he might have seen her before, but he knew there was no way they could have ever met before. Even if he’d still been human, he would have felt the wash of power she radiated, and he didn’t think he would have survived an encounter with her.
Then what was it about her that was so familiar?
“Who are you?” he inquired.
A malicious smile curved her mouth. “That’s for me to know my dear.” The woman’s fingers slipped under his chin and lifted it up. He stared into eyes the color of grass on a late spring day as she bent closer to him. “What brought you to our town?” she inquired.
His gaze flickered toward where Kane stood. She followed his gaze, a smirk curving her mouth. “And what did you do?” she asked of Kane.
“I mistakenly believed I’d killed the bastard,” he replied.
A small laugh escaped the woman; her gaze came back to him. Her fingernail scraped against his flesh, drawing beads of blood when she began to stroke under his chin. “So you came for revenge?”
“I did,” William said.
“It looks as if you may have gotten some.” She glanced back and forth between him and Kane before leaning so close to him that a strand of her floor length, black hair tickled his cheek. “How did you get into our town?”
“I walked,” he replied.
“No one could walk down that street without my people knowing they were there. How did you get here?”
“I’ve been following Kane’s trail for weeks, hunting him through the towns. I was born and raised a rebel and lived amongst caves and forests for most of my life. I’ve found my way into places far more challenging than your town.”
Her eyes burned into his as she pondered his words. Her fingernail slipped away; she grabbed hold of the healing skin on his chin before ripping it away to the bone again. His teeth clamped together as he fought back a snarl. The last thing he needed was his arms snapped by the vampires holding him, or torn from his body by the woman across from him. He would need them sooner rather than later.
“I see,” she murmured. “Pity you aren’t a true vampire; you would have been a strong addition to our growing army. You may come in handy before it’s all said and done, and I’m sure you’ll be fun to play with.”
William’s upper lip curled in revulsion when the woman’s gaze raked him in a lascivious way. The warm color of Tempest’s doe eyes flashed through his mind. This woman was perfect in her icy beauty, but the idea of ever having to touch her made his stomach turn.
“I don’t play nice,” he growled.
Her fangs glinted in the light when her lips skimmed back in a smile. He didn’t think he’d ever seen fangs so long or razor-sharp. “I’m counting on it,” she replied; her tongue slid over her lower lip and flicked over her fangs before they receded into her gums. “In fact, that’s the way I like it.”
He’d rather be killed outright than be used in such a way, but there was still a chance he could escape this mess. “Take him to the prison and lock him up with the others,” she commanded. He’d been somewhat expecting this, but had been hoping she would find somewhere within the hotel to imprison him. It would be easier to escape a hotel room than a cell, but at least he would be further away from this woman and her cohorts.
“Do you think others may have come with him?” Goran inquired.
“No,” she replied. “But notify the guards to be more alert and place more of them on the barricade at the end of the street. He’ll come with us, when we leave. His twin’s ability to track him may be her downfall.”
With a flick of her fingers, she dismissed him as if he were no more than an annoying gnat. His first reaction was to flip her off, but he thought better of it. She’d probably enjoy ripping off the finger he would soon need. The vampire’s hands on his arms squeezed more firmly; he kept his legs weak as they turned him away from the queen. The curtain rustled when it fell into place behind her. She’d left the room, but now that he’d encountered it, he could still feel the pulse of her power against his flesh.
Another vampire came forward with a length of rope he wrapped around William’s wrists and cinched tight. His pinched skin turned red almost immediately, but he didn’t protest. He continued the façade of being weaker than he felt as they led him past the crowd of vampires who parted to get out of his way. Stepping outside again, he caught a whiff of acrid smoke in the air, but he couldn’t tell if Tempest had succeeded in starting the fires, or if they were the fires burning in the hearths to ward off the chill of the night.
Murmurs of excitement and interest followed him as they pulled him down the street toward the prison. He barely glanced at the vampires still in the stocks outside, but their heads raised to take him in. His feet clomped up the stairs as he was hauled inside of the brick building with Kane leading the way. Four vampires inside leapt to their feet from behind the desks they’d been sitting at. They weren’t wearing the white cloaks of the traitors, but he spotted the cloaks hanging from hooks on the wall.
They glanced questioningly at each other when he was led toward one of the cells. “Keys!” Kane barked.
One of the men jumped forward and pulled the keys from his waistband. William glanced over the other guards, one other had his keys at his waist, but the other two didn’t have keys on them. He wondered if they had sets of keys, or if they had them stashed somewhere else.
Kane snatched the keys from the man and turned toward the cell door. The door opened, Kane thrust it back with a clang that rattled through the building. The ten vampires imprisoned within, rushed to the bars lining the back of the square cell to cower within the shadows. His eyebrows rose at their action and the black and purple bruises marring them from head to toe.
The vampires holding him shoved him ruthlessly forward. He stumbled but managed to catch himself before he fell against the bars separating his cell from the one next to it. The eight vampires within that cell pressed further against the bars of the back wall.
Turning, his hands still bound before him, he met Kane’s despised, smiling face as he slammed the cell door shut. “These cells are designed to keep a vampire locked away.” Kane’s hands ran almost lovingly over the thick bars as his gaze lifted to the bars running across the top of the cell. His smile only grew when he focused on William again. “You’ve come so far to find me only to have you’re revenge denied, how heartbreaking for you.”
“What can I say, life’s a bitch,” he replied dismissively.
Kane smirked at him. “And soon you will become one. What the queen will do to you will make you wish you’d died when I ran you through.”
&
nbsp; William smiled at him as he took a step closer to the bars. “I am going to kill you, and when I do, I want you to remember this moment and this vow. Your blood will be on my hands, and I’m going to savor ripping your heart out of your chest.”
Something in Kane’s eyes flickered, for a second William believed he actually saw distress there, but it quickly faded to a look of malice. His eyes shimmered with red as he held William’s gaze. “When the queen is done with you, I will have what broken bits are left, and I will crush them.”
“Are you sure about that?” William taunted. “Your queen didn’t seem to have much regard for you.”
A muscle jumped in Kane’s cheek; William could hear his teeth grating together. He stared unblinkingly back at the man until Kane spun away from him. “Break his legs and arms if he goes near those bars!” he barked at the four men still standing by their desks.
William’s gaze followed Kane out the door before turning to smile at the remaining guards in the prison. Lifting his hands to his forehead, he gave them a brief salute before walking to the bars lining the back of the cell. No bars ran across the floor of the cell, but he doubted there was any way out below them. The other vampires moved away from him, their gazes wary as he leaned against the back bars and waited for all hell to break loose.
CHAPTER 26
The wind had started to pick up. It blew her hair about her face when she crept to the back of the human bakery and knelt on the porch. She lifted her head to the sky, her heart sinking when she spotted the gray clouds creeping in to obscure the stars and moon that had been shining in the sky. She didn’t smell snow on the air, but the growing wind would whip the flames up and spread them through the town more rapidly.
If the fire spread too fast, would it give everyone enough time to get out? Would it give William enough time?
Her heart sank, but she couldn’t deviate from the plan, she’d promised him she wouldn’t. Her hands trembled as she lit the next rag, rose to her feet, and knocked out the window of the door. Tossing the rag inside, she dashed down the steps and across the yard. She skipped over the three buildings in between to kneel behind a small restaurant. William had told her to spread the fires out to create more chaos, and she preferred to stay away from the residential homes for as long as she could.
Dousing the rag, she popped open the basement window and tossed it inside before hurrying away. Her next stop was a home on the same road as the hotel. There were too many vampires gathered around to risk going any closer to the hotel.
Poking her head cautiously around the corner of one of the buildings, she looked toward the hotel. The crowd gathered around it had begun to disperse, but the highest concentration of white cloaked vampires remained around the building. Like bees protecting their queen.
Did that mean William wasn’t in there anymore? Or did it mean he was, and his punishment had been handed down, and their curiosity answered. Was he still alive? Tempest shook off that thought. She would know if he was dead, she was certain of it. He was still alive; she just didn’t know what was going on.
Keep going. It was what she’d promised him she would do. She couldn’t shake the inner tremor rattling her system as her worry for him ate at her. Ducking away, she hurried toward the back of the next building. She carefully broke out the glass of the latched basement window.
The acerbic scent of smoke had grown thicker on the air. Tilting her head back, she peered up at the increasingly cloudy night, but now puffs of dark gray smoke could be seen mingling with the lighter gray clouds. No cries of alarm or warning filled the air yet, but it was only a matter of minutes before someone noticed the smoke, and the flames finally broke free of the buildings.
She was about to douse the rag when a footstep sounded in the snow behind her. She pressed closer against the building, flattening herself to it as a white cloaked figure emerged from the shadows. “What are you doing?” the woman demanded.
Tempest’s mind spun as she tried to come up with a believable response. “Forgot my key.”
Lines creased the woman’s forehead when she frowned at her. “You’re not staying here.”
So much for believable. Turning away, she doused the rag with oil. There had been enough left to set at least three more homes on fire, but that wasn’t going to happen now. She lit the rag and tossed it into the basement with the rest of the oil before turning and fleeing down the side yard.
“Hey, stop! Stop her!” The woman’s shouts rang through the small side yard and reverberated between the buildings as she ran through the snow. She burst onto the street and fled across the crowded thoroughfare. “Stop her!”
Shoving past two vamps who turned to face the woman, she dashed in between a couple of homes. Putting her head down, her arms and legs pumped as she leapt through the snow toward the mountains two hundred feet away. Away from the bustle of the town, she could hear the footsteps and grunts of the vampires laboring to pursue her through the snow.
Turning to the left, she didn’t dare look back, as she headed for the mountains. Her legs burned from exertion, but she could feel the pulse of William’s blood within her veins, giving her a strength and speed she’d never experienced before.
Who knew vampire blood could be so powerful? It certainly boosted her in a way human blood never had. But then, perhaps that was why it had always been so taboo for vampires to feed from one another. Vampires might have turned on each other if they knew they could feel this strength from it. That may have been the reason, but she believed it was more likely taboo because it took a lot of trust for a vampire to share blood with another vampire. To let them know where they would be at all times, to always be able to find and track each other.
She never would have given anyone, other than William, such intimate knowledge of herself. Maybe it was her trust in him that had enabled her to feel more powerful now, and not his blood.
Without slowing, she turned sideways and plunged into the cave she knew was etched within the mountain’s face. Once inside, she was forced to slow as the rocks pressed so close against her they nearly touched the tip of her nose. She shuffled onward, her fingers scrabbling over the rock wall as she guided herself forward.
Behind her the grunts and shuffling feet of the vampires chasing her reverberated against the rocks encompassing them. These caves were in the mountain opposite of the one she’d used to escape this town, but she knew them well.
After fifty feet, the cave widened out. She turned and bolted across the open expanse before making a sharp left and turning sideways into another crevice. The crevice only went twenty feet back before coming to a dead stop, but the cave itself went on for another mile before dead-ending.
She hoped they would pass right by her hiding spot without noticing her. Opening her cloak, she tugged a stake free and gripped it firmly in her sweating palm. Her cheek pressed against the cool rock as she stared out at the gloomy cave. The echoing slap of her tracker’s feet on the rock floor reached her seconds before they burst into view. The light in here was dim, but her pursuers stood out in stark relief against the shadows surrounding them.
Her teeth clamped down on her bottom lip, she became completely still as they ran onward. They didn’t glance in her direction before plunging into the murky depths of the cave. Tempest’s shoulders sagged, her fingers eased their death grip on her stake, but she didn’t have time to appreciate her brief reprieve. It wouldn’t take them long to arrive at the end of the cave and realize she wasn’t there.
Sliding free of her hiding spot, she ran toward the entrance of the cave. She turned sideways to go back out the entrance and plunged into the open again. What she saw there caused her to take a staggering step back. She collided with the mountain. The rock face bit into her skin, but she couldn’t move away from it. Her mouth dropped as she gazed at her hometown.
The wafting smoke she’d last seen before entering the cave had turned into a full-fledged inferno in the library and school as hungry flames leapt out of their coll
apsing roofs. Other buildings had flames beginning to poke out the tops of them as well. The crackle of the fires snapped and popped so loudly she could hear them from her location almost two miles away.
Turning, she ran across the backyards toward the main street once more. She slipped in between two of the buildings and plunged into the chaos packing the road. White cloaked vampires and villagers ran back and forth down the crowded thoroughfare. Most of the vampires wearing white ran toward the hotel while the others tried to flee the town by running down the road toward the barricade.
She didn’t look for humans; she hadn’t seen any since their town had been taken over. She assumed they were still alive, most likely in the blood bank, but she didn’t know for sure. Perhaps in the chaos they would be able to get free, but she didn’t know for sure, and she didn’t have time to try for the blood bank.
She shoved her way through the crowd, bouncing back and forth, as the fleeing vamps pushed her from side to side. Her foot was stomped on; she took an elbow to the chin and one to her breast, but they didn’t slow her as she continued to fight her way toward the orphanage.
An elbow to the cheek caused her hand to fly to her face when her skin split open from the blow. She staggered back a step as more vampires jostled violently against her. Ear splitting screams resonated through the air. She glanced down the road leading out of town to find the soldiers who had been standing guard there using their spears against the residents trying to flee. The scent of blood rose in the air to mix with the increasing aroma of smoke and burning wood.
Struggling through the crowd, she was almost to the orphanage when the glass windows of a house four down from her exploded with an echoing bang. Glass flew outward, slicing across the vampires running past the house. They screamed loudly as the shards sliced across their skin. Some fell to the street while others raced onward. Flames shot out from the windows and licked hungrily up the front of the house. Her stomach plummeted into her boots when she realized the house hadn’t been one of the ones she’d set on fire. The wind had whipped the fires up and spread them far faster than she or William had anticipated.