"Tristan," she said, leaning in close so he could hear her over the music. "I need some time."
"But, what if the Six…"
"If the Six are here then let them come and play." Taking in his worried expression she rolled her eyes. "Give me some time to think, then I will meet you at the bar upstairs. Twenty minutes. I just need to process this."
Thankfully, Tristan nodded and backed off, leaving her alone. Hoping to see Zac she scanned the crowd, but couldn't sense him. It worried her to think what he was doing here, not to mention what Coraline had just told her. Thoughts flew through her brain so fast she couldn't grasp onto any of them for long.
Regulus took Victoria because she was part of the Coven. He had hoped that she would be his way inside to whatever they were hiding, her blood was his key to their sanctuary, but somehow it had backfired. The Roman was going to stop the Coven, but take whatever it was that they were embroiled in and use it for his own gain. Of course he was.
The Coven claimed to be of the same blood as Aya and for a fact she knew it didn't have anything to do with vampires. Victoria was one of them, which meant her blood had carried over to other vampires she had made. That meant Zac and his brother Sam's blood was supposedly made up of Celestine if what the Coven claimed was true.
And Zac was inside the theatre, in London of all places and he knew she was looking for Coraline. When she had seen him looking down from the balcony, it had felt like he wasn't even there. His blood had been silent and she was afraid to think about what that meant.
Letting out a slow breath, she turned the opposite way to where Tristan had gone, trying to find a quiet corner. Alcohol and blood would soothe her for now.
Zac wandered down the stairs to the first floor, not in any hurry. There was a band playing onstage, some kind of jazz ensemble done up as zombies and most of the humans present were watching the performance. Lingering in the shadows, he saw who he was looking for. Aya was talking to the half-breed and Tristan was standing to the side, looking horrified.
As he watched their fevered exchange, he knew something big was going down. The way she was reacting to whatever the half-breed was saying made him wonder if she had a personal stake in what the Coven were plotting. More so than there being rouge witches involved. He wondered what it was.
As the half-breed woman walked away, he watched as Nye followed her. He was going to take the witch once she had left the theatre. His job was to shadow Aya. The rest of the Six were there to help take her down if it came to that. Maybe they would do his job and kill Tristan for him. Or maybe he would do it first.
Aya ran her hands over her face and sighed, making Zac frown at the gesture. Something had rattled her and from experience it had to be something big for it to effect her so outwardly. He felt a twinge in his heart and snorted. He'd turned away from his humanity, but she still managed to worm her way in without even trying.
She leant over and said something into Tristan's ear and he nodded, wandering off in the opposite direction. She watched him until he'd disappeared, then stalked into the hallway that ran along the side of the stage.
Zac ducked into the opening behind him and waited. The hall was lined with kaki colored camouflage nets and fake spider webs, and a multitude of costumed humans passed him by. When he saw her approaching, oblivious to the fact he was watching her, he stifled a gasp. She stood out like the brightest star in the universe and how he hated and loved her all at the same time. It was then that he knew what he had to do.
As she came level, he grabbed her arm, pulling her across the hall into the dark corner of a room that had been themed as a Japanese garden. Her surprise didn't pass unnoticed, but he ignored it, casting his eyes around the room to see if they had been followed. All he saw were drunk humans and occasional performers dressed up as geishas.
"What are you doing here?" Aya asked, confused and horrified at the same time.
Zac was pained, his eyes closed, fighting what he knew he had to do... unless. There was only one way out, one way where she wouldn't be caught.
"You need to leave," he whispered in her ear. "It's a trap. Upstairs there is a door that leads to the roof. All other exits are watched."
"I already suspected as much," she sighed.
He let his eyes drop and saw that her hands were trembling. Why was he warning her after what she had done to him?
"This is the only time I will help you. After that you're on your own," he snarled. There was only one explanation as to why he was here of all places and she looked like she had finally gotten it.
"You're with him, aren't you?" she shook her head in disbelief, her eyes wide. "You're with Regulus."
He shrugged, glaring and looking away. "You need to forget the half-breed and get out. This is your last warning."
Aya realized in horror that he had turned his humanity off, that's why she couldn't hear him anymore. His blood wasn't masked. His blood was silent.
"Zac, no," she whispered, not trying to cover the shock in her voice. "Come back."
"You left," he said. "You made a choice and so did I."
"Regulus has gotten to you," she shook her head in disbelief. "He's turned you into the thing you loathe."
"He only helped me see that fighting it was pointless."
"No, Zac. It's not pointless. Come back. It's not too late."
"Why would I want to?" he scoffed. "After what you did to me?"
"I did it to keep you safe," she breathed into his ear.
"I don't believe you." Zac turned to leave, to melt back into the crowd, but she pinned him against the wall, using all her strength against him. Letting her body meld into his, she pressed her knee in between his legs, forcing them apart, grinding herself against him. Leaning up, she tentatively kissed his bottom lip, coaxing his mouth to hers. He didn't have the strength to turn away, his body tensing under her touch.
As Aya kissed him, he couldn't fight anymore. The burning need for her seared the jagged threads of the remnants of his humanity. Her mouth found his, the tip of her tongue coaxing him to part his lips. His hands found the back of her neck and face, and he roughly pulled her close, crushing his mouth to hers, kissing her with all the longing and pain he'd felt since she'd left. It consumed him to the point where he almost lost control, his tongue clashing with hers, their lips bruising.
All at once, he pulled away, Aya allowing him to push her back, breaking physical contact.
"Zac," she whispered huskily. "I know you're still in there."
Sighing heavily, he lent his forehead against hers, restraining himself at the contact. "I saw you," he said, carefully guarding his voice. "If you don't leave and take him with you, I will not hesitate. I will kill him." He was oddly satisfied when he watched her face contort into horror. Why the hell did she care so much?
"Zac," she grasped the lapels of his coat.
"Leave," he said without emotion. "Leave before I kill him."
She took several steps back, a look of pain contorting her pretty features. Then she was gone.
Sending Aya away with Tristan was one of the hardest things Zac had ever had to do. He loved her, of course he did. But, she had thrown it away like it was nothing. He had to let her go. If he didn't, the Six would corner her and Regulus would have won. This was her last free pass with him. Next time he wouldn't lift a finger to help her. As long as Nye got the half-breed, then they would have satisfied the Roman enough. Aya would keep.
He waited a few minutes before peeling himself away from the wall and ascending the stairs to the third floor. Seeing no signs of the Six, he began to worry. Pushing through the door, he came out onto the roof and stifled a surprised gasp.
The Six were circled around Aya and Tristan, their heavy black coats flapping in the icy breeze. They knew. They fucking knew he would warn her. There was no other explanation for the deviation in their plan.
"Look what we caught, Zac," laughed Maddox. "Just as planned." Like hell.
He didn't say anything,
his gaze darkness as he took in the two vampires in the center. He couldn't let on that he'd tipped them off or he was as good as dead. They assumed, but none of them had any proof. He couldn't give them any. He turned his glare onto the Six, who had quickly come to know that it meant trouble of the greatest kind.
"Alive, dead or maimed?" asked Nye, chomping at the bit for some action.
"Alive," Zac snarled. "The condition doesn't matter."
Before the Six could move, all hell broke loose. Rob and Holly were dead in under a second, their bodies grey and decaying as they suffered their true deaths.
Zac let his eyes swirl into fury ridden black orbs as he lunged for Tristan, the image he'd conjured earlier teasing the monster within. Maddox had him at a stalemate, their skill evenly matched. Zac came from behind, grasping the vampires right arm and wrenching it with all his might. He felt the bone pop from its socket at the shoulder, bones crunching under his hands, but it didn't come free from his body. Tristan roared in pain, alerting Aya to his plight as Zac sunk his fangs into the joint, attempting to sever the limb. Maddox was thrown from the roof over the edge with a scream as he hurtled to the street below. He would survive, it was only four stories. Then Aya was on him, pulling him off Tristan.
Turning on her, blood dripping down his face, he flung her away, her body colliding with the brick wall behind. To any bystander he would have looked positively demonic, lips pulled back in a feral snarl over his bloodied fangs, eyes black as the purest night. Aya came to face him with a calm expression, her blue eyes full of sadness. Zac realized then, that he was the only one left and he would either prevail or die. Nye and Rix, he noticed were dead, but not desiccated and Pyke was impaled on the iron barrier at the roof's edge. They, along with Maddox might still revive. Then the question that had haunted the back of his mind came to the surface; did he want to die or go back?
"Zac," she hissed, bringing his attention back to her. "Stop this."
"Kill me," he sneered, wiping the blood from his face with the back of his sleeve. "That's the only way you will be able to stop me."
"Arrow," Tristan grimaced, holding his limp arm. "He's gone. There's no saving him. Not right now. We need to go."
"Yes, go Tristan. Go so she can ruin you too," Zac spat at them, glaring through his eyelashes. "Or perhaps I shall just kill you now to save you the pain."
"Zac," Aya took a step forward. Tristan tried to pull her back, but she shook herself free.
Zac lunged for her then, his anger taking hold, but her arms were around his neck in an iron grip that left him breathless. All she had to do was tear and he'd be dead. Perhaps that would be better than the life he had resigned himself to.
"I'm sorry Zac," she murmured into his ear before everything went dark.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
It was Nye's face Zac woke to some time later. His messy brown hair and pale face was spotted with dried blood, telltale signs that they had been fighting. He was looking at him with a concern that annoyed the hell out of him. It wasn't like he hadn't had his neck snapped before. Sitting up, he pushed Nye away and rubbed some feeling back into it.
"Thought we were goners then," said Pyke, scratching the new skin on his stomach where it had healed over.
"Why'd she leave us alive?" Maddox asked. He'd obviously survived his fall.
"She still has a soft spot for Zac," Nye nodded in his direction.
He glared at the four vampires with such force that they shut their mouths and looked away, knowing better than to push him further.
"Holly and Rob are gone," Pyke said.
Zac didn't even care. "I suppose that makes you the Four now."
"Until we get two more," Pyke said.
"We fucked up," Maddox groaned.
"Not entirely," Nye grinned mischievously. "We were out of it for a while, so I hope she's still there."
"Nye," Zac hissed through his teeth.
"Take a chill pill, Zac Attack."
The first signs of dawn were staining the horizon, the dull grey glow of another miserable day was lightening the night as the five vampires jumped over the side of the old building down to street level. The whole area around the theatre was oddly deserted, nothing moved, human or vehicle. Nye led them to where he'd parked his car the night before, down a side street away from prying eyes.
Fishing out his keys he unlocked it, the indicators flashing orange. He threw open the trunk of the car with a flourish and proclaimed, "Ta da!"
The half-breed woman was bound and gagged in the trunk, her cheeks blotched red and stained with tears. She looked up at the sudden light and cowered back when she saw the five men looking down at her.
"Do you want to know what she told the Hunter? I know that too." Nye was almost dancing on the spot with excitement.
"You know everything don't you," Zac sneered, jamming his hands into the pockets of his coat.
"I was a spy, Zac. Cut me some slack, mate." He closed the trunk and rapped his knuckles on the top, nodding to the others.
"We'll take the other car," Maddox said, getting the hint.
"Get in," Nye said to Zac, opening the drivers side door.
Climbing in beside him, Zac cut straight to the chase. "What did she have to say?"
"A great deal," Nye said, turning on the engine.
"Spit it out."
"Settle down, mate," he said, pulling out from the alley onto the road. "She said the Coven is of the same blood as the Hunter. I'm guessing she meant whatever she is a hybrid with, because I can't see it having anything to do with Arturius' blood. She didn't even know what it is they're hiding anyway. Apparently, she is planning on getting the Hunter inside their sanctuary so she can either kill them or take whatever it is."
"Did she say where this sanctuary is?"
"Bloomsbury. There's an abandoned tube station near the museum somewhere. From what the half-breed told the Hunter, the place is warded up to the eyeballs with all kind of nasty spells. Only one of the blood can get in."
One of the blood. Victoria was one of the Coven before she was turned. Her blood ran with his and if what this half-breed woman said was true, then it was Celestine blood. That was why it was potent to Aya, but it also meant he could get into the sanctuary.
He wondered how sure Regulus was of this, but perhaps he already knew. Maybe that was the real reason he had recruited him. The Roman wanted into the Coven and if he couldn't manipulate Aya to get in for him, he would either use the half-breed or his new protégé. He was Regulus' failsafe.
"She's Regulus' ticket inside," Zac mused.
"Bingo."
"I wonder what he plans to do once he's gotten in?"
"I guess we'll find out, I mean, if he wants us to go. He's been trying to find out more about the Coven for a few hundred years. He never told me, but I assume that that's where Victoria came from. I also think you have something to do with it as well," Nye glanced over at him as if he was trying to break through his poker face. The spy really was good with information. "Regulus does have a penchant for the bloodthirsty, but he's paid more attention to you than he has me or any of the others that have been a part of the Six over the years. That leads me to believe that it's personal."
"I think we both know that you've already worked it out," Zac said evenly, looking out the window as the grey streets passed by.
"You're of Victoria's blood."
"Hallelujah," he rolled his eyes.
"But that means… if what the half-breed implied is true… You also have the same blood as the Hunter."
"Which is why I get all the attention, apparently."
'I would keep that to yourself if I were you," Nye warned. "Don't say anything to the others. Don't say anything about it to me again."
"Wasn't planning on it," he said dryly. "I don't intend to let anyone control me ever again."
It wasn't long before they arrived back at the apartment block where Maddox, Rix and Pyke were waiting inside the parking garage for them. As the outer door fo
lded upwards, the car shot through and pulled into an empty spot at the rear. Popping the trunk as they got out, Nye dragged the half-breed out and dumped her unceremoniously onto the concrete floor. She scrambled to her feet as best she could with her shins gaffer taped together, and let out a muffled cry as she came face to face with the five male vampires.
Nye reached out and pulled her to his side, half carrying her across the garage to where a door was set into the wall. He opened it and led Zac into a storage area, as the others entered the stairwell going back up to the apartment. When Zac stepped into the room fully, what caught his eye was the large steel cage in the middle of the room. The scent of stale blood filled his head and he gave Nye a look.
"What?" he said, feigning innocence. Pulling the half-breed hard into his side, he smiled. "Sometimes we need to take extraordinary measures with our house guests."
Zac watched the witch's face fall into an expression of horror as she began to quake. "Enough," he said. "Put her in and get out."
"Fine," he sighed. "Just don't go overboard." The spy pulled open the door of the cage and pushed the witch inside, none too gently. She fell to her knees and let out a sob, the tang of blood from her scraped knee filling the air.
"I'm calling this in," Nye said, closing the cage door. "If you want to question her before Regulus gets here, you better do it now. I doubt he will be as merciful as you."
Zac nodded his understanding, not taking his eyes off the half-breed, who knelt on the concrete floor, hands and legs bound with gaffer tape and a gag around her mouth. Nye had been good to him so far. It was easy to forget that he was one of the Six and one of the bad guys. Nye was still capable of doing horrible things in the name of Regulus. They all were.
Once the spy had gone, Zac opened the cage door and stepped inside, not in the least worried about the half-breed's power. He was protected against her from the magic that had been placed over him and the Six the previous evening. As he approached her, she tried to scurry away from him, but he knelt down and caught her hands. Regarding her for a moment, he ripped off the gaffer tape from her wrists with a sigh. Looking up at him in disbelief, she allowed him to pull the gag from her mouth, leaving it hanging around her neck.