He’s looking at me?
“What? Do I have something hanging from my nose?” I wipe my face.
“I wasn’t looking at you.” He turns back to the movie.
Weird. Maybe I took too much of his essence.
We watch some more movies until we both pass out on the couch. I wake as the early morning light shines through the broken blinds. Groaning, I pull myself from the couch. I’ve probably only been asleep for two hours. It feels like less.
Somehow I make it upstairs and into my bed.
The aromas of bacon and coffee wake me. I’m rested but groggy. I don’t want to get up, but my stomach growls, urging me to eat before Titan inhales it all.
Bleary-eyed, I stumble down the stairs.
“’Morning, sunshine!” Titan’s bright smile is an assault to my sleepiness.
I glance at the clock. “It’s one in the afternoon.”
“That’s still morning.” He shoves a plate piled with bacon my way. “Want some coffee?”
I sit on a stool and rub my eyes. “Yeah. How can you be so chipper this early?”
“I’m a mesmer. I just tell myself it’s a great day and that I feel fantastic.”
“You should become a self-help guru. You’d make millions. Then we could get that penthouse without having to worry about how to pay rent.”
His expression sours. “You really think I’d be a self-help guru?”
“Why not? I could see it.”
Titan shudders. “No thanks. If I had to keep up a peppy persona, I’d puke. Constantly.”
I take a piece of bacon. “Fine. We’ll keep living in this shack with neighbors who are obsessed with firecrackers.”
“Sounds good to me.” He fills a mug with coffee. “Black?”
“Sure.”
He slides it over.
I down half of it. I’m still exhausted.
Titan leans his elbow on the counter. “I’ve been thinking.”
“I already don’t like where this is going.”
He scowls at me. “I’m serious.”
“So am I.”
“We go to the club tonight, then when the witch shows, I’ll use mind control on her. You suck her essence and find out what she knows.”
I don’t bother correcting him on his wording. “It won’t work.”
“You don’t know that until we try.”
“She’s an ancient witch, Titan.”
“Your point?”
“We can’t stand up against her.” I down the rest of my coffee. It doesn’t help.
“Why not? There are two of us and only one of her. Besides, you’re ancient.”
“Thanks for the reminder.”
He rolls his eyes. “It’s hardly a bad thing. You’re hotter than any twenty-year-old.”
“Whatever. That doesn’t help us take down the witch.”
“We won’t know until we try.”
“She’ll use the anti-Valkyrie call. It’s the one thing that renders me powerless. We thought we’d gotten rid of everyone who knew how to invoke it. Then I met her sister.”
“We? You mean, like other Valkyries?”
“Of course.”
“Can’t you call some of them? You can all band together against a witch who knows how to use that call.”
“Valkyries don’t make friends with each other.”
He looks at me like I’m crazy. “Seriously?”
I nod.
“Why?”
“Just the way it’s always been.”
“You guys all hate each other or something?”
“We don’t do emotions.”
“Sure you do.”
I draw in a deep breath. “Truth is, we all feel deeply, so we shut our emotions down. They get in the way of everything. I should know.”
Titan frowns and rests a hand on mine. He knows about my lost love, not that I’ve given many details. “All the more reason to get that witch off your back.”
“It really isn’t going to be that easy.”
“She’s alone, right? It’s not like we’ll be facing off with an entire coven.”
“Yeah. Unless she brings friends this time.”
He leans over the counter. “Okay, so we go and, if we’re not outnumbered, we work our magic. If we are outnumbered, we retreat and come up with a new plan. What do you say? We’ve got all day to figure this out.”
I nibble on some bacon and think about it. “Okay, but I’m going to have to fill up on essence.”
“You can take as much of mine as you want.” He leans closer, practically laying on the plate of bacon.
“I already took some from you last night.”
He shrugs. “I don’t mind.”
“You will when you’re too weak to use mind control on the ancient witch.”
Titan stands up straight. “Fine, you’ve made your point. Whose essence are you going to take, then?”
“I’ll either need a lot from humans or to take some from supernatural creatures. It’ll be so much stronger and go further.”
He holds my gaze. “I’ve heard rumors of some vampires giving people trouble. Nobody would complain if you suck them dry. How does that sound?”
“That would do the job. How difficult is it going to be to get to them?”
“It’s going to be a challenge.”
“Great. How big of a challenge?”
“From what I hear, there’s a family of them living in an abandoned building. What do you think?”
“That I really need to make more supernatural friends I can go to when I need essence. But there’s no time for that now. Let’s do this.”
Five
“It’s in there.” Titan points to the dilapidated building in between two shining and towering office buildings.
“And you’re sure vampires are living there?”
“Well, yeah. It totally looks like a vampire nest. It’s shadowed by the other buildings, giving them even more darkness, and it’s falling apart. They don’t take care of anything—just feed and fight each other. Good times, huh?”
I let it all sink in. “So, they’re common vampires? Humans turned to vampires?”
“That describes vampires.”
“Not the ones I know, but all that matters is they’re supernatural now.”
Titan turns to me. “What vampires do you know?”
“The royal class. They’re not hindered by daylight and they follow a strict code of conduct.”
He gives me a double-take. “You’re saying royal vampires are more than just old stories?”
I nod. “We can swap stories later. But first, what can you tell me about these ones before we go in?”
Titan uses his hand to block the sun from his eyes and turns back to the run-down building. “They follow no rules. Just attack and bite. They’ll turn on one another pretty quickly. Things can get ugly fast.”
“And how many live there?”
“No idea. Five? Ten at the most? We can take one family.”
“You’ve got a wooden stake?”
“Wooden knife. I also have one made of silver, just in case.”
“In case what?”
Titan shrugs, then pulls the knives out of his pocket. “And my gun’s loaded with wooden bullets. It might be overkill for a small family, but a mesmer’s gotta be prepared.”
I pat the two stakes in my pockets. “Let’s do this.”
“Wait. They’re already dead. Are you sure you can get essence from them?”
“Yeah. The fact that they’re walking around means they have essence. How else do you think they can do that?”
“Because they eat blood?”
I shake my head. “That just keeps them going. It’s not what actually allows life.”
“But they’re dead.”
“Undead,” I correct. “They walk, they talk, they eat—there’s life there despite the fact that they died. Can we go in now?”
“Yeah, sure. I had no idea about all that. How’d you know?
”
“I’m friends with a vampire. Like I said, we’ll swap stories later.”
Titan pulls out his gun and checks it. “And like I said, these ones are savages. We won’t be making any friends.”
“Fine by me. I just need their essence.”
“You got that garlic I gave you?”
“Yeah.” I roll my eyes.
“I saw that.”
“Garlic doesn’t affect them. My vampire friend, she can eat that stuff day and night. I think she does this mostly because of the ridiculous human superstitions.”
“That’s great, but I’m not taking any chances.”
We march toward the building. It’s not going to be easy to get inside. All the windows and doors are boarded up. The structure itself is made of concrete and stone.
I turn to Titan. “You know how to get in?”
“They can get in, we can get in.”
I stop in my tracks. “Wait, what?”
“You heard me.”
“Vampires can go through walls.”
“No, they can’t. They have to be invited in.”
“Amateur!” I spin around. “I can’t believe this. You’re basing all this off the movies. Next, you’re going to tell me they sparkle.”
“Now that would be ridiculous. Come on.”
“Fine. It’s not like I know of any other supernatural creatures I can drink from.”
“You really shouldn’t say that out loud.” We come to a chain link fence and Titan pulls out a piece that’s already been ripped. “Ladies first.”
I pause, realizing we’re probably in over our heads. Somehow, I’ve managed to live all these years without ever running into a common vampire.
“Hurry. It’s going to be dark soon, then they’ll have the advantage inside and out.”
I go through the fence and wait for him. We’ve already gone this far, so there isn’t any sense in backing out now. If I’m going to face that witch, I need all the essence I can get.
Titan and I creep around the building. It gets darker and colder with each step. Everything is still boarded up tight, and considering they can go through walls, it’s probably the same all around. But that might not be a bad thing. We might draw some out rather than having to go in after them. Into their nest. I shudder at the thought. It’s probably far worse than it sounds.
“You okay?” Titan whispers.
“Fantastic.”
Crash!
I spin around toward the building. All my defenses shoot onto high alert. My body feels like knives trying to explode out from the inside as my enormous wings prepare to release at a moment’s notice.
Whatever fell is inside, and so is whoever knocked it down. If only I could drink essence through a wall, that would make this so much easier.
Nothing is ever simple.
Titan nods to keep going. I follow him, stepping over broken glass, piles of rusty nails, and other fun stuff like that. We come to a door.
It isn’t boarded shut.
He heads toward it and reaches for the door.
I hurry beside him in case wild vampires pile out, ready to attack. My mouth waters at the thought of more essence.
Titan twists the knob. Nothing happens. He turns to me. “It’s locked. You got a way inside?”
“Yeah. I keep a spare key to every building in the city. All right here.” I pat an empty pocket.
“I meant a magical power. Are all Valkyries so sarcastic?”
“I’m one of a kind.”
“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.” Titan turns back to the door, presses one foot against it and pulls on the knob all the harder. “This thing ain’t budging.”
“Clearly. Let’s keep moving.”
He stares at the door like ogling it will make it open. “There has to be a way in. It’s not boarded.”
“Yeah, it’s called a key, and we don’t have one. Come on.”
Titan pulls himself away, and we proceed around the building, coming to even more trash.
I kick aside what looks like a human finger bone. “This place is classy.”
He glances at a smear of blood on the wall. “I wouldn’t want to be here as a human, that’s for sure. They won’t like my blood.”
“Mine either, but they can still do some serious damage if we’re not careful.”
“I’m quite aware of that.”
We round another corner. I expect to find the street again, but the building isn’t rectangular. It has either five or six sides from what I can tell.
Someone jumps out in front of us. He’s covered in dirt and dried blood, and his long hair hangs in stringy clumps. His eyes turn red, meaning he’s hungry for blood.
My heart skips a beat, but I whip out one of the wooden stakes despite being taken by surprise.
Titan already has his gun aimed at the creature.
His eyes redden, and he flashes his sharp yellow teeth at us.
My stomach lurches. He’s so different from the vampires I’m used to.
“Take us inside!” Titan shoves the gun in the creature’s face.
He pushes the pistol away, then speaks with a scratchy voice. “You think a gun’s going to stop me?”
“No.” Titan brings it back to his face. “But the wooden bullets will.”
The vampire’s eyes widen. “Liar.”
“You think I’d come to a vampire nest unprepared?”
While Titan has him distracted, I step closer and open my mouth, ready to drink. The vampire’s mouth opens, but he doesn’t speak. He turns toward me with fear in his eyes. He flails about for a moment before going limp and closing his eyes.
Mine also close and in just a few moments, the familiar silky feeling swirls into my mouth. It’s sour and bitter rather than sweet and satisfying. Images of bloody violence and unimaginable gore flash before my mind’s eye. Things too disgusting even for the vilest of movies.
This creature is pure evil. That’s why it tastes so horrible. Part of me wants to stop drinking just to stop seeing the images, but I would do the world a service to get rid of him.
My body trembles as his essence fills me and my mind reels from being forced to watch his memories. I’ve watched countless battles, and yet I’ve never seen anything like this monster.
My head snaps back as the stream of essence finally ends. The vampire will never again be able to hurt another person.
Titan leaps to his crumpled body and jams a stake into his heart.
I wipe my mouth and try to shake the images. “He’s already dead. For good this time.”
“I’m making double sure of that.” He stabs the wood into the vampire’s chest a few more times. “Did you get enough essence?”
“Not even close.” I shudder, thinking of drinking more like that.
“You okay?” His expression softens. “You look like you’re going to be sick.”
“I’ll be fine. I might need therapy after this, but I’m good. Let’s get this done.”
Titan’s brows knit together. “If you’re sure.”
Crash!
Smash!
Clatter!
I clench my fists. “Let’s do this.”
Six
Titan and I run around another corner.
Three vampires, all equally as disgusting as the last one, nearly crash into us.
Titan whips out his gun and shoots one. He goes down, cursing us until his eyes close.
The other two charge.
Cringing, I open my mouth and drink the essence from the nearest one. Before my eyes close, I notice his essence is black rather than purple, like it should be.
I make a mental note never again to drink from common vampires if I can help it.
As soon as the silkiness enters my mouth, I gag. This tastes even worse than before. And the images… they make the previous vampire’s life look like child’s play.
I’m definitely going to need therapy.
Shouts sound as more ugly creatures make their way towar
d us. I close my mouth and push the vampire back. He crashes into the wall, still confused from the essence drinking. I pull out a stake and drive it into his heart.
Titan and I are now far outnumbered. There are at least a dozen of them, and Titan’s busy reloading.
I’m left with two choices. Either I fight these savages with my two stakes or I do a group drinking session. If I ingest all of their essence at once, I risk making myself ill, especially given how it tastes.
More of them pile out. Now it’s closer to twenty of them against the two of us.
Waves of strength run through me. The supernatural essence I just drank is kicking in. I can take out some of them with the stakes before doing a group drink session.
Titan glances over at me before spraying bullets into the horde.
Several fall, but more trample them and close in on us.
I back up, but there’s no time to draw them into the light. It’s too far, and they’re approaching too quickly. I dig a stake into one heart, then another. Titan’s gun goes off, taking others down.
But for every vampire we kill, another five pour out of the building. All the red eyes cast a glow on everything else. They snarl and snap, reaching for us with ragged nails and teeth.
How did I let Titan talk me into this? I’d rather move and hide again than have to deal with these monsters.
Titan shoves his gun into a pocket. “I’m outta bullets.”
“Use mind control!”
“I can’t! Not with this many.”
I glare at him for getting us into this. No vampires, ever again.
One lunges for my friend, nearly biting into his neck. Titan barely gets out of the way in time.
Fury tears through me.
That means only one thing. I step back and draw in a deep breath. Everything appears to slow down and my vision grows crisper. Clearer.
Titan glances back. His face pales like I’ve never seen.
There are few things as terrifying as an angry Valkyrie.
And I’m beyond angry.
Pain rips through my back as my enormous wings break through my flesh and my shirt. More clothes I’ll have to replace.
Darkness surrounds us. A flash of lightning blinds us before thunder shakes the ground and the building. Cement crumbles to the ground. Large cold raindrops pour down on us.
Renegade Valkyrie (Valhalla's Curse Book 1) Page 3