by Dakota Brown
Dad, Nikolai, and Doc headed outside with the house lights while Ed, Allan, and I went to work on the tree. Mom went to the kitchen to help Ash bake.
It took a couple of hours but between the fresh pine from Ash's tree, the sugary sweetness of the baked goods, and our efforts at decorating, the place looked extremely festive.
Ed and Allan sat in front of the fire, contented smiles on their faces as they looked at the tree and ate cookies. I sat on one end of the long couch and nibbled on a sugar cookie. Ash and Mom had started up a card game and Doc, Nikolai, and Dad had just come inside from hanging the lights. For once I couldn't wait for it to get dark so we could fully appreciate their efforts.
Doc and Nikolai sat on the couch by me and Dad joined Mom.
The winds picked up outside and Ash and I traded glances. Normally we sensed weather shifts a few days in advance. It was something to do with how tightly demons were tied into the energies and elements of the world. That was part of why Ash was so good at using the land to build things. I still had a lot of that from when the demon had possessed me.
"That's strange. A storm is kicking up."
"It's winter, honey," Mom said.
"Right, but Ash and I usually sense it coming. This one is unexpected. It wasn't even on the weather." I had actually checked since I wasn't quite used to the ability.
"Interesting." Doc got up and went to the window. "We got done just in time."
Uneasy, but not sure why, I went over and joined him.
Doc, sensing my distress, put his arm around me. "We're safe in here."
"Yeah, I know. It's just strange. I've been able to predict the weather for weeks now and it feels weird to not have sensed this coming."
"Ash, did you sense anything?"
"No. It is unusual, but not completely unheard of."
"Don't sense magic," Nikolai said, uneasily. "Is probably natural." He didn't sound convinced.
Doc pulled a hair tie out of his pocket and pulled his long hair back into a tail. "I'm going to check and make sure everything is tied down, if the wind is going to kick up like that."
"I'll help." Allan joined Doc. Neither of them remembered to grab a jacket since they really didn't need one.
Moments after the door shut, Ash bolted to his feet and clutched at his head.
Nikolai swore, leapt to his feet, and blasted Ash in the chest with the same spell we had taken the demon out with before we'd released him. He crumpled to the ground.
"Nikolai!" I was interrupted as pain seared through my chest. I clutched at myself and staggered, falling to my knees. Moments later I heard Allan yelp.
The Russian mage was already casting another spell, this one a shield as he rushed out the door, Ed on his heels.
I struggled to my feet, ignoring my parents except to make sure they were still all right. Mom knelt by Ash.
Ed and Nikolai dragged an unconscious Doc back inside while Allan hobbled in after and slammed the front door.
"What the hell! Doc!" I shrieked and hit my knees again beside the very unconscious vampire. "Nikolai!"
Nikolai rolled Doc onto his back and brushed some stray hair out of his face. I stared at the wooden bolt protruding from the vampire's chest in shock.
We had wards. Why weren't they triggered? How were we under attack?
"Ready?" Ed asked his brother.
I glanced at them. Ed had his hands wrapped around another wooden bolt that was imbedded in Allan's thigh.
Allan nodded and Ed pulled.
Allan howled in pain, collapsing backward, skin rippling as he almost shifted. "Fuck," he gasped.
I grabbed the bolt in Doc's chest, but Nikolai stopped me. "That is not a good idea. He will wake up violently. Last time I did this, nearly died."
"Wake up?" Dad was standing behind me. "That's through his heart. There's no way he survived that."
Nikolai and I locked gazes, not answering my dad.
The house shuddered.
"Lock the doors, no one gets in," I shouted.
The house responded, sealing even more tightly. I didn't even think the magical attacks would get through, at least not any time soon.
"He can wait until we defeat the Andersons," Nikolai said.
I switched to Russian, in a sort of last-ditch effort to keep my parents in the dark a little while longer about Doc's vampire nature. "He's half human. This can't be good for him. Hell, feel the bond, he's fading." I fought off panic, knowing it wouldn't help me save my lover.
Nikolai swore colorfully and at length. "Will take me out of the fight." He swallowed nervously. He didn't make me decide, just hooked his arms under Doc's. "Ed, grab his legs."
They carried Doc into the bedroom, Allan limping after them. I followed, shutting the door in Dad's face.
"Sofia!"
I ignored him.
"Dan, help me with Ash," Mom called.
"Okay, will pull this out. He will probably attack me. If not, needs blood right away. Try to keep him from killing me." Nikolai gritted his teeth and gestured for the others to get back. He cast the healing spell on himself that helped with vampire bites and muttered something, maybe some sort of prayer.
The house shrieked in pain as a particularly nasty spell attacked it. Sparing a bit of attention, I pushed some of my energy into restoring the house. It pulsed with gratitude.
I turned my attention back to the guys just in time to hear Doc's feral growl as he tackled Nikolai off the bed. They both hit the floor hard and Nikolai gasped a strangled cry of pain.
We let Doc feed until Nikolai started to look a little panicked. He clawed weakly at the vampire's back. None of us would be the same without the mage, and Doc would never forgive himself if he killed Nikolai. I had to stop him. I just hoped I could.
"Doc," I grabbed his shoulder.
He growled, probably not completely conscious through the bloodlust. I used a little of my own magic, shoved it through Doc and zapped him.
I probably should have let him have one of the werewolves next, but I hadn't thought that far ahead. Doc released Nikolai and turned on me. He was so damn fast, I was trapped in arms before I even comprehended that I was no longer leaning over him. I barely managed to shove my wrist in his face before his fangs sank into me. There was nothing pleasurable about this bite and I bit my lip so I wouldn't yell in pain. I did not need my parents hearing that.
Doc drank some of my blood, but I'd shoved the wrist with the pack tattoo in his face and I used that extra bit of connection to shove my magic at him again, calling him back to himself.
He released me almost as fast as he had restrained me and fell back, blinking as if trying to figure out what was going on. His eyes fell on Nikolai. "Shit, Nikolai." He scrambled over to the unconscious mage.
I joined him and cast another healing spell.
"Are you okay?" I put my hand on Doc's shoulder.
"Physically."
Nikolai gasped, his eyes fluttering open. He looked around at us before giving us a loopy grin. "Didn't die," he said happily.
Doc's shoulders sagged and he sighed. "You're insane."
"Yes," the mage agreed. "Also, I will not be casting magic for a while. Drained."
We all groaned at his horrible joke. Even Doc.
"I need to reinforce the house," I said. "They're hitting pretty hard, even as sturdy as the house is."
Doc growled.
"Will be okay. Help me up."
I hauled Nikolai to his feet and Doc stood. Allan leaned heavily on Ed but they both made it to their feet, as well.
"You've, um, got a bit of blood on your face." I gestured.
Doc rubbed at his face with his sleeve. "Better?"
"Um, kind of."
"Is good enough," Nikolai shrugged. "Not going to be able to hide my neck anyway. Parents will have to deal."
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure the not instant death from the stake through the heart was a big clue, anyway." I was more worried about dealing with my parents than the Ander
son's. How fucked up was that?
Doc put his arm around Nikolai's waist and supported him, and Ed supported Allan as we stalked back out into the living room.
"How are you not dead?" Dad's eyes widened and he blanched as he took in Nikolai's bloody neck and Doc's angry expression.
I hadn't noticed in the darker bedroom, but the shadows danced around Doc's feet unnaturally, and his movements were completely unhuman. His eyes had gone wholly black and I suspected a lot of blood would be spilt before he would truly get himself under control again.
"What happened to Ash?" Doc ignored the question from Dad.
"Blasted him. Ash was worried about the Andersons possibly being able to control him, even now. They had him for three hundred years. Seemed like a good idea to knock him out. It was his idea." Nikolai sank down onto the couch, groaning. "Let's not do that again any time soon."
"How about never." Allan grumbled.
"It's time to end this," Ed snarled.
"Agreed. Okay, here's what we're going to do. We need to know how many of them there are, and their positions. Ed, you shift and sneak out. I'll cast Nikolai's invisibility spell on you. I'm going to go out front and nuke them. Allan, Nikolai, stay with my parents in case they need defending. Doc, what do you want to do?"
"I'm going to rip their throats out." The deadly calm in his voice covered me with goosebumps. "I should have done it years ago." He stalked over to the door and tilted his head, listening. "Well, that's different," he muttered.
"What now?" I hugged myself.
The house screamed as they hit it again, and we all flinched. I poured more energy into the house's shields.
"They found themselves a vampire." Doc smiled.
I might have wet my pants at the expression on his face if I knew he would never hurt me.
"Clearly not the only ones," Dad muttered. It wasn't loud but we could all hear really well.
Doc cast about until he saw the bolt Ed had pulled out of Allan. He grabbed that and tucked it in his belt.
Ed, now a wolf, stalked back into the room. He rubbed against me and I trailed my hand along his back.
Mom and Dad both stared. Ed ignored them, bumping against Doc.
"Out the back?"
They both nodded.
"I'm going out the front. I'll keep them occupied and I'm seriously going to fuck them up."
My parents didn't even object to my violent intent. They must really have understood the danger we were in.
"Not by yourself." Nikolai grumbled as he pulled himself to his feet.
"You're not in any condition to help," I objected.
"Blood." He held out his hand in Doc's direction.
Doc slipped off the magic reservoir and bit his wrist, holding it out for Nikolai.
My parents were getting all of our pack secrets in one giant dose. If we survived this, we were going to have a very interesting conversation later.
The mage wrinkled his lips but drank until Doc's wrist healed.
"Will be fine in a minute. Need weapons."
Doc vanished from the room and returned a minute later with a sword I'd never seen before and his spelled long knife. He handed the sword to Nikolai, who's hand slid over the handle like he caressed a lover.
Come to think on it, I'd never seen him use a sword before, though I knew he was quite accomplished with one. He acted familiar with this weapon, however, and I wondered if that was something I had missed while being possessed.
Dad acted like he was going to join us when we headed for the door.
"Dan." Doc tossed him a set of keys. "There are a few guns in the safe. Closet in the main bedroom. Take position at that window." He pointed at the big picture window. "The window will allow you to put the muzzle of the gun through it. Magic, of course. You're welcome to shoot anything that isn't us."
I cast Nikolai's invisibility spell over Ed, but Doc waved me off when I offered to do it for him, too. "Won't need it."
Dad stared as Doc and the invisible Ed headed for the back door. The house adjusted as it let the two slip out and then sealed back up.
"I guess I can see why you told us he was a mage," Dad said, voice dark, as he headed for the gun safe.
I glanced over at Mom. A smile played across her lips despite the situation. "Dan, grab one for me, too."
"Of course, honey."
"Be careful, Sofia," she said as Nikolai and I headed for the door.
Allan growled in frustration, but he stayed with my parents.
I threw up the strongest shield I knew and opened the door. Nikolai followed me out, sword at the ready.
A new wave of magical destruction battered my shields, but they held. I expanded my awareness into the pack bond so I could get a sense of our opponents from Doc and Ed.
I caught a vague sense of something inhuman. That must be the vampire. Doc was intent on hunting it. Probably wise, the vampire was likely the most dangerous opponent. Another human with the smell of magic about him covered the back door, though he hadn't seen Doc and Ed slip out. Ed stalked that one.
Three human mages were out front. I recognized Melinda, Alex, and Sam.
"Fucking traitor," I muttered.
Nikolai had tuned in to our bond also, so he knew who I talked about. "Could be prisoner."
The magical barrage died down and Alex stepped out of the trees, followed by Melinda and Sam.
Sam did appear to be a prisoner. Her arms were tied behind herself. Melinda shoved Sam to the ground in front of her.
"It's dangerous to be your friend," Alex mocked. He aimed a shocking bolt of green magic at Sam.
She screamed when it hit her and collapsed to the ground.
That got Doc's attention, but we all assured him that focusing on the vampire was the most important.
"That's quite the bite you've got there, Nikolai. We weren't sure if that would kill Cassidy or not. Too bad." Alex smirked.
Shouting in rage, I dropped my shield long enough to lob a fireball at Alex.
Melinda had watched for that and shot deadly lightning back at me, but the house shields protected me.
Alex looked a little singed, but had mostly blocked my attack, though the smug expression had vanished from his face.
The demon had left me with the knowledge I needed to defeat the Andersons. It was up to me to wield the magic. This was going to take a while.
Chapter 20
Doc
The shadows called to him, and for once Doc didn't try to fight it. He gave into his vampire side more completely than he ever had before. He was pissed, he was still hungry, and he knew he would need every edge possible against a full vampire. He had hunted and killed them before, but in the past he had always had the element of surprise on his side. This time the vampire knew he was coming and it might be more difficult.
Doc slipped into the shadows, wrapped them around himself, and faded completely from view.
The one he stalked circled the house. He sent a quick warning to Nikolai through the pack bond before slipping from shadow to shadow as he followed.
The mage guarding the back of the house screamed, though the sound cut off abruptly. The coppery tang of magic laced human blood carried on the gusting wind, tugging at Doc's attention. Ed had taken care of the mage. The vampire he stalked paused and then nearly vanished from Doc's awareness.
Fuck.
A whisper of stillness in the gusty wind was his only warning. Claws ripped through his flannel shirt, popping a few buttons and lightly scoring his chest. He snarled and threw himself backward, ignoring the fiery sting. A swipe of his hunting knife met only air.
Doc flowed through the shadows until he had put some distance between him and the other vampire. The presence was about as solid as a wisp of fog, but he managed to keep his attention locked onto it. If he could keep the vampire focused on him, it wouldn't go after Sofia or Nikolai.
"You're good, for a half breed." A masculine voice floated on the breeze, not quite coming from any one direc
tion, but Doc thought he still had a fix on the vampire's location.
"Is this where you try to get me to switch sides?" The shadows coated him as he dashed to a new position.
Moments later, the wind eddied around his previous location and he saw a flash of silver before the vampire vanished into the swirling wind.
Snow flurries joined the gusting wind, further obscuring his vision. He slipped fully into his ability to see in the dark. The vampire had let his body temperature cool to the ambient temperature, but he could get clues to the other's location by the air currents.
"No," the other responded finally. "I'm going to kill you. Then I'm going to drain your friends. It will be quite the power boost. Then I might kill those asshole mages. I haven't decided yet."
Doc guessed the mages had coerced him into helping, but that didn't mean the vampire wouldn't kill everyone else first.
The other's voice shifted with the winds and Doc couldn't get a fix on his location by sound.
Snow came down in earnest, big flakes reducing visibility to nothing.
Crouching, listening, watching, Doc waited for a clue.
The winds shifted. Acting on impulse, Doc lunged forward. His knife met resistance. The rank, cooper tinged reek of old vampire blood coated the air.
An iron grip clamped down on his wrist and shoved Doc forward, throwing him off balance.
He jerked away, managing to free himself, but losing the knife in the process.
Hissing, the vampire solidified out of a swirl of snow and stalked forward. Doc saw the knife, blade stuck in the dirt. He used all of his vampire speed to rush forward and grab it.
The other vampire came forward at the same time, and Doc got the knife up in time to sink it into the other's stomach, but it missed his heart and the full vampire didn't give a fuck if he had a knife stuck in him, even a spelled one like Doc's. It hurt but wouldn't be enough to take him down.
Doc tried to get away, but the other vampire trapped him close, wrenching his neck around and digging his fangs into Doc's neck.