by L. J. Red
Terror ran through him, but he firmed his stance, refusing to step back one inch. He wasn’t going to bow to this freak. He would get Roman in the end. He would use the mad vampire as long as he needed to and then he would make sure that he turned to dust.
Roman had no idea how powerful Cleaver really was. Had no idea what the backing of V.I.T.R.I.O.L. meant. All the doors it would open, the politicians, the military, the private security contractors, even the heart of law enforcement itself. He had his own people in the FBI, watching them try and build a case against him and HUNT.
He thought of his mole on the inside complaining down the phone to him. That idiot was replaceable. If they didn’t start being useful, he would find someone else to take their place. Nothing would stand between him and his goals.
But as Cleaver stared at Roman, he recognized the sign of madness in Roman’s eyes. He would need to think up some kind of emergency plan for Roman sooner rather than later. The vampire was cracked. Maybe he always had been, or maybe it was a vampire thing. Either way, there was nothing rational left in that body.
“Why are you even doing it?” he asked Roman. “Why are you helping us? You never explained that. You let us take the vampires you turn and torture them. Don’t you care?” he asked. Testing weapons involved a great deal of pain, not that Cleaver cared. As far as he was concerned, vampires were dead people—they died the moment Roman got his fangs in them—and the dead didn’t have rights. But everything he’d learned about vampires said they looked after their own, looked after their Bloodlines. Why didn’t Roman care? “What are you planning to do with them?” Surely he wasn’t going to leave them all with HUNT forever?
“What am I going to do with them?” Roman asked, easing back slightly. His eyes had taken on a faraway look. “My new fledglings? My little Radiance vampires?” he asked in a singsong voice.
“Yeah,” Cleaver said, easing back, his hand going to his collar and tugging, unsettled by Roman’s tone.
“Why,” Roman said with a sharp grin, “I’m going to kill them.”
Chapter 27
“Hey, B, wait up.” Brigit looked over her shoulder to see Dana jogging to catch up with her. She had tried to sneak out while Dana was in a meeting with the captain, not wanting her sharp-eyed friend to ask the question that had been on her lips all day. She supposed it had been foolish to think her friend would let her get away with it. Dana finally reached her, concern in her eyes. “Look,” she said, “I can see something is eating you. If you don’t want to talk about it that’s fine, but I just wanted you to know I’m here.” Dana hesitated. “And I think maybe it has something to do with Rune? I thought maybe I might be able to… If it’s something about vampires, then I might be able to help,” she finished.
Brigit tugged her jacket around her shoulders. She did want to speak to someone about it, she really did. She didn’t know what to think about everything that had happened. It was too much for her to deal with, and Dana was the best person to speak to. It was just… Dammit, she was no good at all the emotional talking crap. Maybe it was growing up with three brothers or maybe it was just her, but she was shit at heart to hearts. She never talked about her emotions. She’d never had to; she’d only ever stuck to one-night stands. Simple, meaningless sex. This was different. This was something that involved deeper emotions. Walking away from Rune, it had hurt more than she could bear. She looked up at Dana. “You’re right,” she said, “it is about vampires. It is about Rune and I do need someone to talk to. I just…” She trailed off. “I don’t even know where to start.”
Dana glanced around them. “Well, maybe right here isn’t the best place,” she said. “Come on, let’s go get a drink.”
Instead of going to the local bar, near the precinct, which would be full of cops at this time, they decided to go to a quieter bar a little further away. The interior was pleasantly shadowed, but the lights above the bar gave the space a warm glow. Brigit slid into one of the red leather upholstered booths as Dana grabbed the drinks and tried to put her thoughts in order. There was nothing for it, she thought as Dana placed the drinks on the table and slid into the seat opposite her; she had to just say it out loud. “Rune says I’m his soulmate,” she said. She expected Dana to be shocked, but instead a look of realization crossed Dana’s face.
“Of course,” she said. “That makes so much sense.”
“What? No, it doesn’t,” Brigit exclaimed. “How can I possibly be a soulmate to a vampire? It has to be wrong. He has to be wrong. I can’t be his soulmate.”
Dana frowned. “I don’t think it’s ever wrong, Brigit. Once you feel it, you know.” She looked at Brigit. “And you do feel it, don’t you,” she said. Brigit looked away. There was a moment’s silence, then Dana said, “Why don’t you think it’s true?”
“Because I’m not like you Dana, I’m not…” Brigit waved her hand.
“What?” Dana said into the silence. “You’re not an extremely competent policewoman? You’re not smart? You’re not capable? You’re not pretty… fucking… hot?” she said. Brigit rolled her eyes. “Okay, fine,” Dana continued. “It’s not about looks anyway—”
“He looks at me and sees this pretty little princess who needs to be protected, and I’m not that.”
“Well neither am I,” Dana said. “I don’t let Lucian wrap me up in cotton wool. There’s a difference between being protective and being overprotective. We protect each other. We have each other’s backs. Rune…” She sighed. “He’s less in tune with the modern world than the others, but give him a chance. If the soulmate bond formed that means you two have a chance at something special, something life-changing. It’s worth having a couple of fights over. Hell, nothing’s ever perfect. I fight with Lucian, but I know what I have is special. I’d never give it up.”
Brigit sighed. It’s not just that; it’s also…” Brigit trailed off. How could she say this without offending Dana? Maybe there was nothing for it. Just like with the soulmate thing she had to say it out loud. “I don’t want to become a vampire.” She winced, hoping Dana wasn’t too offended.
But Dana surprised her for a second time.
“Well, why should you?”
Brigit stared at Dana. “Of course I have to. He wants to claim me, to bite me.”
Dana flushed. “Well yes—”
“So,” Brigit said. “There you go. I’ll turn into a vampire.”
“Um, Brigit? That’s not how it works. Vampires bite people all the time; they have to drink blood remember? And it has to come from the vein. Even I do it.” She shrugged uncomfortably. “It’s a bit weird, kind of intimate, but it certainly doesn’t turn you into a vampire. Otherwise, all the vassals working at the Sanctuary would be vampires by now.”
“Oh,” Brigit said. She hadn’t even thought of that. “But then, I don’t understand. What is the claiming?”
To her surprise, Dana flushed deeper and shifted in her seat. “It’s… intimate, like I said.”
“Holy shit.” Brigit leaned forward. “Is it a sex thing?”
Dana laughed and shifted back, raising her hands. “How come emotion talk freaks you out but sex talk is A-OK?”
Brigit grinned and waggled her eyebrows.
“I’m not going to kiss and tell, or bite and tell even, but… yeah, it kind of is. I mean, it can be painful, but it can also be extremely, extremely pleasurable.”
Brigit laughed. Well that was something she probably didn’t need to know about Dana’s love life. Brigit ran her hand through her hair, trying to think of a way to pull the conversation out of the gutter. “So, you’re saying he could claim me, I mean I could be his soulmate, and I wouldn’t need to turn into a vampire?”
“No,” Dana said. “Not if you don’t want to, and Rune’s not gonna make you do anything you don’t want to do. He’s not like that; you’ve gotta tell him. You guys talked about it, right? I mean you didn’t just…”
“Have sex, then run out of the room?” Brigit said miserably.
Dana’s eyes widened. “Yeah, I did.” She was always the one who left first. It made things easier. It protected her from getting hurt. She left before they could tell her to go. Only that hadn’t worked out so well this time. She’d run out on the one guy that didn’t want her to leave. Brigit was starting to realize that maybe she had misunderstood more than just Rune’s intent when he said he wanted to claim her as a soulmate.
“He had his fangs out. What was I supposed to think.”
Dana curled her lips over her teeth and pressed them together, clearly holding back a laugh. “Did… did you let him get his clothes back on, or did you leave him with his dick hanging out—”
“Oh my God, Dana.” Brigit cracked up, wiping at her eyes. “We didn’t get that far actually, and I’ll have you know this is no laughing matter.”
“Right, right, Deadly serious.” Dana breathed deep, her giggles finally subsiding. “It’s not lost. Rune isn’t going anywhere, neither are you. You two can fix this. I’m sure of it.”
Dana was right. She needed to try. “I think I need to come back with you to the Sanctuary.”
“No time like the present,” Dana said, standing up.
At that moment both their phones went off. Dana frowned down at her screen. “It’s the captain,” she said.
“I’ve got Franklin,” said Brigit, picking hers up.
Franklin started speaking quickly before Brigit had barely said hello.
“I found it!” she shouted. “I found it. I found the place.”
Brigit held the phone away from her ear. “What?” she said. “Speak slowly. I can’t understand you. What did you find?”
“The place where they’re taking the missing people. I’ve tracked them down. The weapons, they were the key after all. It’s a factory. We’ve got them on CCTV going in and out at all hours. I’ve got them, Brigit. We finally got them.”
Chapter 28
Rune punched the punching bag so hard it split down the seams, sand spilling out across the gym floor. Chest heaving, he stopped his flurry of punches and rested his head against the broken bag for a moment. Then he shoved himself back upright and unhooked the bag. His muscles bunched under the weight as he took it off the hook and flung it down in the corner. Then he walked over to the other side of the room and grabbed another, hooking that up in its place.
He stood still for a moment, his weight balanced on the balls of his feet, his shoulders thrown back, his chest glistening with sweat, and then in a flurry of movement he punched the new one. Again, and again, strike after strike, punch after punch, Rune emptied out all his frustration. All his anger, all his need, his desire, his lust poured out of him in a wave of mindless violence.
He hadn’t been able to face the precinct this night. He knew if he saw Brigit he wouldn’t be able to contain his agony and misery. His emotions, all the newfound emotions the bond had awoken within him, were raging to escape. He missed the cold, the ice. It would be better to have no feelings at all than experience this agony. He would cut his heart from his chest if he could. The loss was killing him. The separation from Brigit was almost too much to bear. The only way he could deal with it was to pour it all into physical violence and exhaust himself completely.
She didn’t want him to be part of her life. She didn’t want anything to do with him. The soulmate bond was undeniable. But it only mattered to him. It didn’t matter to her. He didn’t know what would happen to a vampire whose soulmate bond was never claimed. He feared the result would be ugly, perhaps even lead to his own death. He didn’t care. It would be preferable to be dead than to feel this agony a moment longer. He straightened, ready to punch the bag to oblivion once more when he heard the door open behind him.
He refused to turn around, the hard line of his shoulders and the fact that he didn’t turn to look communicating his desire to be left alone. He didn’t want to speak to any of his brothers right now. Better they left him in peace. However, the footsteps didn’t walk away. The person behind him didn’t leave. Instead, the footsteps grew louder as they approached, and deep within the bloodline bond, Rune felt Lucian’s presence growing clearer. He turned, unable to disregard the call of his leader.
“Rune,” Lucian said somberly. “We need you.”
“Why?” Rune asked, his chest heaving from his exertion.
“I received a call from Dana.”
Rune’s chest constricted, his heart beating hard against his chest. Could something have happened to Brigit without him sensing it?
“They have found the place where the kidnapped people are being kept. The stronghold of the hunters. They’re going in and they want the Shadows to go with them. They expect a fight.”
Rune stared at Lucian, unable to process the words for a moment as his brain changed gears. Brigit wasn’t in danger. But she was gearing for a fight. A fight. Yes, that was what he needed. But no, he couldn’t be near Brigit. He couldn’t see her again. Lucian took a step toward Rune.
“I can’t.” Rune shook his head. “Take another; take Jacob, take Talon.”
“Jacob is coming with us. We need the numbers, but I need you. Rune, you have been working with the humans all this time. Do you really want to send them into the final battle alone? What would that say of the Shadows’ honor?”
What did honor matter when his entire life was crashing apart around him?
Lucian took the final step toward Rune and, moving slowly, telegraphing his intent, he placed his hand on Rune’s shoulder. “I know,” he said, staring intently at Rune. “I know why you volunteered to be part of this team.”
Rune stared at his leader, shock rippling through him. “How?” he said.
“You are not the first soulmate bond I have seen form in the past months. I have learned a great deal about how they form and what they look like. I have come to recognize it, the resonance that vibrates through the bloodline bond. I am not merely another Shadow, after all. I am the leader of this Bloodline and I hold the threads to all of you in here.” He placed his free hand on his chest. “Rune. I understand it is not easy.”
“Not easy? She rejected me.”
Lucian’s eyes darkened. Rune shook his head, fearing that Lucian would blame Brigit, and, despite the agony he was feeling, the thought of her being blamed made his insides feel like they were filled with broken glass. “It wasn’t her fault,” he said. “I was an idiot. I didn’t explain—”
“It doesn’t matter,” Lucian said. “There will be time to solve whatever is wrong between you,” he said. “I believe more than ever now in the power of the soulmate bond to overcome our differences. We may be vampires, we may be immortal, but we are still prone to the same foolishness that we were when we were humans. However, I do not need Rune, the man, right now. I need Rune, the warrior.” He raised his other hand to Rune’s shoulder and gripped him tightly. “I need the Viking warrior who came at me with his broadsword again and again as a human, even though he had no chance to win, merely because he thought he was protecting his people and that it was the right thing to do. I need that force. I need that rage. I need that warrior by my side.”
Rune looked into his leader’s eyes and raised his hands to clasp Lucian’s forearms. “I’m yours,” he said.
Chapter 29
The hulking shape of the HUNT factory loomed out of the darkness. It sat, a gray concrete eyesore among bare open fields, at the end of a long, gravel road. The entire area felt empty, lost, like it had been abandoned by humanity. The perfect place for a group of violent hunters to keep their hostages.
Brigit knew it gave the vampires with them an edge but she wished they didn’t have to do this in the middle of the night. It only made the place creepier.
Gravel crunched under the wheels as they drove closer. At first everything was silent, still, but the moment the police cars drew up to the building, floodlights lit up the night. They slammed the cars into reverse, as a scattered hail of bullets forced them all back.
They swung the cars into a barri
cade to provide cover. Brigit shoved open her door and crawled out, keeping low. The night loud with the sound of gunfire and shouting.
“They knew we were coming!” Dana was hunched down behind her vehicle.
“Someone must have tipped them off,” Brigit called back, pinned down behind her car.
It was too late to worry about that now. They had to find a way to get in and find the kidnapped hostages and get them safe.
“We’ll punch a hole in their defenses,” Dana called. “You come in after.” With that, the Shadows congregated around Dana. Brigit caught a quick flash of Rune’s blond hair and then they were away, skimming through the shadows, folding the darkness around them, leaping over the fences and up into the building so quick and so fast it stole Brigit’s breath. There was nothing like them.
A minute trickled by, and then the hail of gunfire suddenly ceased.
“Go, go, go!” came the shout from Morrell over the radio, and Brigit went.
She entered the factory from the garage doors. Lined up against the far wall were the vans they had used to kidnap people. She gritted her teeth in anger and pressed on, trying to move silently, her eyes peeled for movement. Where were they?
Deeper they went, meeting up with Dana and the vampires as they got further in. Across from her, Brigit watched Dana and Lucian move like a team, each one anticipating the other’s movement without words, without gestures. It was as if they were communicating in their minds. It was the soulmate bond. That was what it looked like between two warriors. That was what she could have if she and Rune could only find a way to understand each other. God, she wanted it.