She gasped for air. Just as she thought she was getting her breath back, he pinned her to the wall. He towered over her and his voice took on a biting, raw undertone she had never heard before.
“If I want your opinion, I will ask for it. In the meantime I suggest you shut the fuck up, and run the hell back to your room.”
Unable to move a single muscle, frozen by his frigid eyes, she stared at him. Then a shrilling fire alarm pierced her ears, and he released her. Glancing back the way he had come, he cursed as shouts of “Fire!” erupted downstairs.
“What the fuck is going on now?”
With that, he was gone. Putting her hands over her ears, Liv hesitated, but only for a second. She would run all right, just not back to her room. Could it be Zontag creating a diversion? In any case, it was now or never. Disregarding her intricate, confusing feelings for Raskhan, she gritted her teeth in order to bear the painful wail of the siren, and flew in the opposite direction. This was her chance to get to Rogan, and the diversion wouldn’t last forever.
She dashed straight to the spa without encountering a single vampire. They must have all gathered downstairs to fight off the fire, and she wished they’d all burn to ashes. Vampires bad, fire good!
She bolted towards the room. Without bothering to check her surroundings, she let herself in. As she closed the door behind her, the shrieking wail diminished.
Rogan lay on a massage table, motionless. Liv approached him slowly. Both hands on her mouth, she started at the sight of his hollowed face. Complexion deathly pale, sunken cheeks, dark rings under his eyes, he was dying all right.
But, in spite of his ghastly appearance, he was her Rogan and he was gorgeous. Although time might be running out, she couldn’t help but observe him. So like Raskhan. Yet the term ‘like’ didn’t begin to compare them. They didn’t share likeness, they shared sameness. For the life of her, she wondered how they could be so different inside.
Outside the room the wailing of the fire alarm lessened, urging her to get a move on. With great care she lifted Rogan’s shirt where a large bloody stain indicated the wound. Like the first time he had been shot, the silver bullet had gone straight through his body and left a gaping hole.
Liv applied her right hand to the entrance wound. Closing her eyes, she willed herself to shut out the disturbing siren outside and concentrate on healing his broken body. A slight inner tingle raised goose bumps on her arms, but not much else. Come on! She had to do this right.
Drawing in a long breath, she recalled the first time Rogan had kissed her. In her living room, both of them attracted to the other like magnets, she had felt so nervous then. But his long kiss had tasted like a sliver of heaven. Now she felt furiously glad Raskhan had never kissed her.
Lost in tender recollections, Liv almost jumped in surprise when the force brutally lashed out. She felt an incredible power storm out of her being to crash into the dying vampire, and invade his whole body. Caught unaware by its startling emergence and intenseness, she almost cried out when the flaming tongue leapt from one to the other.
Without knowing why, she perceived the healing sensations to be different this time—quicker and stronger. Perhaps she was getting better at the job. She didn’t feel as tired.
Her heart beating like a wild sparrow, she looked at Rogan. His features still appeared hollowed and devoid of life, but when she withdrew her hands the gaping hole had been filled. Letting out a relieved sigh, Liv touched the perfect, healthy-looking skin to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. But no, she had done it. She had healed Rogan again.
A smile of pure happiness lifting the corners of her mouth, she felt like dancing right there between the hot tub and the massage table. Except that she suddenly realised that the screeching fire alarm couldn’t be heard anymore. How long ago had it stopped?
As much as she wanted to stay with Rogan until he woke up, the idea sounded bad. He might come to in a few minutes or hours and she didn’t have that much time to spare. Whether the vampires had managed to put the fire out or had found out there wasn’t any fire in the first place, they’d come to check on Rogan. And Raskhan would definitely look for her.
Her eyes watering from joy, Liv passed a gentle hand across his forehead. Although he didn’t stir, she knew in her heart he was going to be fine. He just needed a little time.
With a last glance at the unconscious man, she retreated to the door. On leaving, she activated the lever she had seen Raskhan use. Soundlessly, the panel covering the two-way mirror slid open. She might well not be able to stay with Rogan, but she would watch him come back to life.
She ran again. Retracing her steps, Liv raced along the back ways straight to Zontag’s lab all the while praying not to be spotted. She barged into the lab, a little breathless but delighted to have made it without problems. Dear God, she had never run so much since her teenage years.
Looking around to ensure she was alone, she went to the older vampire’s worktable. She found the button in a matter of seconds, and pressed it. On the back wall of the lab, the two-way mirror slid open. Excited beyond reasonable measure, she approached it slowly.
Even from there she could tell a change had already taken place. Still unconscious, Rogan nonetheless looked much better. Cheeks fuller, he didn’t seem as pale as he had been a minute ago. As Liv watched, his whole body shuddered. Yet he didn’t open his eyes.
Waiting being her only option, she waited. She had quit biting her nails when she had turned eighteen, but the long-lost compulsion suddenly rose up. To nip it in the bud, she placed her hands on the thick window. As if she possessed a magic touch, Rogan moved.
Not much at first—just an indistinct stretching of limbs, a vague sense of consciousness returning. Unable to remove her hands from the mirror, Liv studied the smallest of his movements. Pretty soon, his hands twitched. Holding her breath, she felt her heart kick when his eyes popped open.
Motionless, he stared at the ceiling for what seemed like hours, but must have been seconds. Although Liv stood too far away to see them, she knew the golden freckles were lively in his dark gaze. As if in slow motion, Rogan rested his elbows closer to his sides, swung his legs over the massage table, and pushed himself into a sitting position.
He stayed there for a while before standing up. Testing his strength he crossed the room away from the door and towards her, but his eyes only passed over the two-way mirror. While he rolled his shoulders and stretched his neck, a familiar sensation woke up in Liv’s stomach. The vibe.
She began to panic as the soft fluttering roused from sleep, but quickly understood the feeling wasn’t increasing. Raskhan must be close by, yet some distance away. With that also came the painful realisation that she had just spent long minutes with Rogan, touching Rogan, without ever feeling the vibe. Why did it have to be Raskhan?
On the other side of the mirror, Rogan suddenly turned round to face the door. Body tensed, Liv looked at the door too. As it swung open to make way for the king of the Overworld, she let out a soundless breath.
A tall shadow of darkness, Raskhan stared at his brother. The white shirt tainted with his own blood and enhancing his pale features, Rogan stared at his brother. Cliché as it was, the image of a demon and an angel fighting to the death seized Liv’s mind. Her heart knocking hard, she felt riveted to the two vampires who had rocked her world.
The standstill didn’t last long. As the door clicked shut, Raskhan and Rogan rushed into each other’s arms and hugged like brothers.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Liv rubbed her eyes. Could she have fallen asleep and started dreaming? Had she been transported to another planet without her knowledge? Had her last meal been spiked with magic mushrooms? She blinked a few times, but on the other side of the mirror the twins were still hugging and clapping each other’s backs. Holy mackerel, she hadn’t seen this one coming!
Hands pinned to the window, mouth agape, she watched the fraternal reunion. A violent surge of happiness shook her at the visio
n of their beaming smiles as they finally took a step away from each other. Now clasping hands and forearms, they both looked overjoyed.
Then they started talking, but she couldn’t hear a single word. For once, she wished she had taken a course in lip-reading. That would have been extremely useful right now. Whatever they were saying, they kept smiling at each other. At some point, Rogan threw his head back and laughed.
There was no point in hiding in the lab. Curiosity gnawing at her, Liv went to close the two-way mirror before walking to the door. She needed to know what the heck was going on. She deserved a clear explanation about the so-called hatred fuelling them, and she would get it now. As she stepped out of the lab, a rough hand clamped her mouth.
“Hey, slut, looks like you and me are going on a little trip.”
Then she experienced a blur of movement, a whooshing sound in her ears, and cold air slapped her face. When the world stopped moving, she brought her hands to her belly to quiet a slight nauseating sensation. Then she blinked to make sense of what stood in lieu of the lab door.
The deepest night engulfed her in an oppressive embrace. She had to let her eyes adjust to the sudden darkness to understand the new landscape. She only saw emptiness all around except in front of her where black buildings formed the edge of town. But, with some light coming off them, she was able to see enough to realise the danger of her position.
Straight on, at least a mile away, she spotted the white marble reflection of the king’s palace. She was on the border of an endless desert, and Khord was standing beside her.
“Ha, ha, I got you this time, didn’t I?”
The ugly brute must have used his vampire speed to career her out of the palace and far into this cold, infinite night. Liv concealed the wall of fear constricting her guts as best as she could.
“Oh, yeah, and the king is gonna get you now!”
“He’s too busy ensuring his brother is dying. Besides, he doesn’t give a shit about what you do or don’t do.” Spit on his mouth, Khord uttered a rough bark of laughter. “Oh, don’t tell me you thought he’d fall for you like Rogan did. Hell, this is so hilarious!”
“You disgust me!”
Shrugging, Liv started walking towards the faraway palace. She gasped when Khord grabbed her arm and threw her onto the ground. Pain shot up her knee, but she barely felt it as the monster loomed over her and ripped apart the bottom half of her black robe.
“Such a pity lover boy will never know about this.”
He wanted to rape her, and she couldn’t push the fear away, the wild terror now running free in her veins. Eyes wide, Liv caught some movement to her left. So afraid to look away from Khord she nevertheless glanced sideways. Tall and menacing, three vampires watched them.
Recognising the hungry look burning in their eyes, Liv realised she wouldn’t get out of this alive. Her body seeming to weigh a ton, a terrible dread keeping her flat on the dusty ground, her throat too tight to scream, she felt panic work its way inside her. Khord twisted his lips.
“Hey, you slut, don’t look so terrified. How about a smile to greet my friends? They’re rogue vampires, and, trust me, they’d love a taste of you. They haven’t fed off a human in a long time.”
What kind of Bringer of Death was she? The ‘quitting when things got a little rough’ kind? If she possessed an ounce of courage and determination, she should get up and fight for her life. Unfortunately, all she had going for her was a sensible awareness of her position.
In the best-case scenario she might be able to turn Khord into a human. Providing her power worked, then what? Even as a man he would still be much stronger than her, and the three other vampires wouldn’t waste time to pounce on her. No way out. No option.
Trapped in a no-win situation, Liv shut her eyes when Khord’s large body fell on her. She winced from pain, but held on to the single image filling her mind—Raskhan taking her into the safety of his arms. Raskhan’s passionate gaze boring into hers as he made love to her.
There she had it. About to be raped and probably torn to pieces, there could be no lying to herself, no deceiving, no denying the truth or the depth of her feelings—she loved the king of the Overworld.
Yet the horror writhing in her blood escalated when Khord’s hands gripped her bare thighs, his fingers squeezing her flesh so hard her eyes watered. As if his revolting touch liberated her pent-up throat, her eyes flew open and she screamed her lungs out. His horrid face right above her, she put her hands on his shoulders to push him back.
He was hurled from her as if a giant, invisible force heaved his body. He crashed on the ground at least ten feet away with a thumping, cracking noise, clouds of dust swirling around him.
Before Liv could wonder about her unexpected new strength, Raskhan was on his knees beside her. Lifting her up, he carried her to the first black building behind them. Shaken but oh so relieved to be alive, she leaned against the cold wall as he cupped her face in his hands.
“Are you okay?”
She nodded. He was gone in a wink, back to the heart of the battlefield where the three vampires already circled Rogan. Although his white shirt displayed a large bloodstain from the wound she had healed, he looked healthy and more than ready to fight.
Back to back, stakes in hands, standing poised for the first strike, the brothers watched the rogues. From where she stood Liv couldn’t tell who’d launched the attack, but her vision suddenly blurred. Only perceiving blunt sounds and vague black shapes colliding, she focused on breathing.
It turned out she didn’t possess superhuman strength, but once more Raskhan had saved her from Khord. As Liv’s intense fear receded, she began to feel the vibe. Numbed with shock, it now rose slowly inside her belly. The vibe linking her to the king of the Overworld.
The picture seemed to freeze in front of her. Two rogues lay dead on the ground, stakes sticking out of their chests. The third one was up and grabbing Rogan by the throat. Raskhan was nowhere in sight, and the spot where Khord had crashed only showed dust.
With a swift toppling move, Rogan shook off his enemy to ram a stake into his heart. As the rogue dropped dead, a gruesome scream rose up in the distance. Khord or Raskhan? Where were they? Her pulse lurching at the dreadful sound, gooseflesh covering her arms, Liv nonetheless felt reassured when she saw a smile lighting Rogan’s face.
Somehow he knew Raskhan was dealing with Khord, and that was good enough for her. Then he turned to her, a beautiful smile still on his lips, his gaze assessing her from head to toe. Whatever had happened since he had left her, she couldn’t forget that he had been her Rogan once. On impulse, she ran to him and flung her arms around his neck.
“I’m so glad you’re alive.”
A surprised look on his face, Rogan gently unlaced her hands from around his neck and took a step back from her.
“I really do appreciate your concern, lovely lady, but who are you?”
Chapter Thirty
Sweet Jesus in heaven, she had healed him wrong. For Rogan not to recognise or remember her only meant she must have healed him wrong. Had he forgotten everything they had shared and suffered? Had she involuntarily erased some parts of his memory when the force invaded his failing body? Holy mackerel, this could not be happening!
Closing her mouth, Liv gaped at him. Rogan let go of her hands with care, and raised a quizzical eyebrow when she didn’t answer his question. Like two statues facing each other, they both stared and waited for the other to speak. A fragile silence ensued, soon broken by Raskhan’s voice right beside her.
“We’re done here. Let’s go.”
Heedless of his warning tone, Liv slowly twisted her head towards him while she grasped his hand in a gesture of apology. Emotion welling up, she struggled to articulate her distress to Raskhan.
“I’m sorry, but I healed Rogan wrong. Oh, my God, I am so sorry!”
“Hush, kitten, not here. We have to get back to the palace. Khord is still at large, and I don’t want to give him another oppor
tunity to hurt you. There, hold on to me now.”
However, before Raskhan could take her to safety, shadows moved around them. Coming from behind the closest buildings to the desert, a band of rogues advanced towards the three of them. As they formed a semicircle to block their way to the palace, Liv counted ten vampires.
Ten—way too many for Raskhan and Rogan to defeat them. So outnumbered, even a king couldn’t work miracles. Eyes wide, holding her breath, Liv waited for a new swell of fear to override her mind. But as she watched the rogues get into an attacking line, no fear came. And she felt the vibe instead.
Connected to Raskhan, possibly linked to his present emotions, the vibe suddenly infused her with determination, power, and a single relentless goal—kill them all. Was that what he felt? If so, no wonder he had become king. At any rate, she welcomed the potent sensation while she wrenched her gaze away from their enemies to look at him.
He was watching Rogan, but Liv caught the knowing look that passed between the twins. Without any lessons in lip-reading, she also picked up what Raskhan mouthed to his brother.
“Keep her safe.”
Without a word, Rogan nodded. She shivered. Did it mean Raskhan was going to die? Would he fight to the death to protect her? Would he give up his life to ensure hers? Did he love her that much?
One of the rogues took a step forward, and it sounded like a clash of titans. They used their inhuman speed to rush at each other, preventing Liv from seeing anything except a vague swirl of black shapes, but the wicked, sticky noises followed by gurgling screams of pain told of hearts impaled on stakes and of blood being spilled. Whose blood?
Although she couldn’t make out Raskhan in the moving blur around her, Liv didn’t have time to feel helpless. Coming from nowhere, fangs out, a rogue grabbed her head to tilt it to the side. Something that had nothing to do with the vibe raked her from inside. At the same time she heard Raskhan shout her name. Probably overrun with vampires, he couldn’t save her this time.