Vampire's Crucible

by Yvette Bostic

  “I need your help killing this thing, AJ,” he slurred past his fangs.

  I shook my head and stowed my fear, at least my fear of Logan. It was unfounded. I drew my long, slender spear made from compressed air, just like Niyol showed me back when I was learning the basics of my magic. Without thinking or second guessing what the hell I was doing, I sprinted towards the monstrous green creature.

  It swiveled around and swung a grasping hand at Logan, who dodged it easily but kept the green machine’s attention. Determined not to waste his efforts to give me a clear target, I raced halfway up the stairwell and leapt onto the creature’s shoulders. I wrapped my legs around its neck, forcing my spear into the soft spot above its collar. It howled in pain and reached for the offending weapon. I grabbed hold of its large ear and unwrapped my legs just as its meaty fingers wrapped around my chest.

  I couldn’t breathe beneath the pressure of its grasp, and it whipped me around so we were eye-to-eye. Its wide nostrils flared and the squinty orbs bore into me.

  “Put me down,” I ordered between gasping breaths.

  Its grip loosened and it shook its head. Blood poured from the puncture at its throat, but it didn’t do as I commanded.

  “Put me down, now!” I yelled.

  It stumbled backward and sat in the middle of the living room but still refused to release me.

  “Logan!”

  My vampire appeared next to the creature, looking from it to me. “Is it still crushing you?”

  “No, but it won’t do as I command either.”

  “A strong compulsion has likely been woven over its mind. If it hasn’t killed you, it’s because it was instructed to capture.” Logan strolled around the other side of the green monster. My vampire was no longer feral and fierce. Just my Logan, wearing a pair of boxer shorts.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “An ogre.”

  I didn’t know what to say. Kellen said there were other supernatural families, but this wasn’t what I imagined. Shifters, vampires, and mages, sure, but monsters?

  “Niyol said there were six vampires with it,” I said, remembering my conversation and looking towards the broken window. “He appears to be handling it, though.”

  The trees outside the windows swayed violently and a six-foot-tall tornado raced by. If it were any elemental but Niyol, I might be worried, but I knew he had it under control.

  “We need to get you out of its grasp,” Logan stated, stopping at the opening to the hallway.

  “No kidding.”

  “I cannot bite it. Well, I can, but it’s a really bad idea.”

  “Can you get a butcher knife and cut the tendons in its wrist?” I asked.

  “I can try, but it’ll probably attack me again,” he replied. “As long as I’m not aggressive, it’ll wait until its master shows up to retrieve you.”

  “Wonderful,” I muttered. “I’m not waiting.”

  I concentrated on the wind spear again, and it appeared in my hand. I stared into the ogre’s squinty eyes and pulled on the magic in my core.

  “Put me down or I’ll be forced to kill you,” I said.

  It blinked several times, but otherwise didn’t move.

  “Okay, stupid, I’m not really trying to hurt you. Put me down now.” I put as much power into the command as I could muster, but it still wasn’t enough. “You stupid animal. Do you want to die?” It didn’t answer me, just continued to blink rapidly. I hung my head. I didn’t want to hurt this big ugly creature, especially if someone else controlled its every move. “I can’t do it, Logan.”

  My vampire didn’t answer me. I leaned over, peering around my capturer, and found an empty space where Logan had been a few seconds before. I felt for my connection to him. He was still in the house. I leaned the other way and gasped. Two men held long knives against Logan’s neck. How the hell did they catch him?

  Logan’s eyes pleaded with mine not to do anything stupid, but he didn’t have to. I knew our lives were tied together. I couldn’t let him die.

  “What do you want?” I asked.

  Both men turned their heads towards the front door. My stomach lurched when a tall man with shoulder-length blond hair walked through it. It had to be Braden, the council guy looking for me. I remembered him from my first interrogation with the council so many weeks ago in that Vegas hotel.

  “You are difficult to find, princess,” Blondie said, strolling towards me.

  “You will not call me princess,” I commanded, meeting his gaze with my most hostile stare. Would I be lucky enough to boss him around the way I did with Fiona?

  He cringed, stopping several yards from the ogre. “That is uncomfortable.”

  “No kidding,” I snapped. “Who are you?”

  “Braden. May I call you Alisandra?”

  “Whatever. Tell this thing to release me.” I added more command to my voice.

  “Dearest girl,” Braden said. “I’m not like your boy-toy. You cannot command me to do anything.”

  He thought I commanded Logan to stay with me. I nearly laughed. He knew so little about my vampire. “Tell me what you want,” I ordered.

  He chuckled and rubbed his temple with one finger. Maybe I couldn’t make him do it, but I’d sure make him miserable.

  “If you do it again, Logan will die.”

  I scowled at him, loathing him with every part of my being.

  “That’s what I thought,” he said. “Now maybe we can do business. If you try to kill the ogre, Logan dies. If you attack me, Logan dies. If you try to command me again….”

  “Yeah, I get it,” I snapped. “Will you tell this creature to put me down? I won’t do any of those things you mentioned.”

  The vampire eyed me for several moments, then snapped his fingers. “Put her down and leave.”

  The ogre dropped me, and I screamed as I fell several feet, only to land in Braden’s arms just before hitting the floor. The ogre stood and ambled out the door, dripping a trail of blood along the way. I should have healed its wounds. Why didn’t I think of that before now?

  Braden’s hands ran up my sides and brushed the edge of my breasts as he put me down.

  “Don’t…” I clamped my mouth shut and wiggled out his grasp. I wanted to tell him to get his filthy hands off me, but I wouldn’t give him a reason to hurt Logan.

  He chuckled again. “Let’s sit and chat like civilized people,” Braden suggested, moving towards the dining table that somehow survived the sofa’s attack.

  Logan’s escorts pushed him that way as well and forced him into a chair. I thought about the dynamic Braden used. Did he hold Logan hostage because he thought my vampire wouldn’t bargain for my life? Did Braden not know that Logan retained some of his soul, enabling him to care for me? Possibly. Most likely. Why else would he use my emotions as the bargaining chip?

  I sat across the table from Logan, with a space between me and Braden.

  “I’m taking a huge risk today, one that I hope I won’t regret,” Braden said, drawing my attention. “Your elemental took the lives of four of my men. Men I cannot afford to lose.” He leaned towards me, the smell of sandalwood coming with him. Why did he have to smell good? He was an asshole. “If your elemental shows up now, you will both die.”

  I didn’t respond to his threat. I had complete confidence that Niyol would kill Braden and protect me, but he might not be able to stop Logan’s death.

  “I will help you fight against the vampire council,” Braden continued, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms over his chest.

  This time I was stunned to silence. Why would he do that? Wasn’t he on the council?

  “Why?” I asked after a few silent heartbeats.

  “Because there is no future for us if Jack wins,” Braden replied. “None of us. I was around the last time someone tried to reveal the vampires to humanity. I have no wish to do it again.”

  “I thought you wanted to reveal all the supernatural families,” I said. “Not just the va
mpires.”

  “Jack wants to, not me,” he corrected. “What do you think will happen to the ogres when humans discover them? They’re large and ugly, but they’re also stupid and docile. They’ll fight if they must, but they’re not aggressive predators. Their entire line would be hunted and killed within a year.”

  I contemplated what he said. I hadn’t even known they existed until today and my first instinct was to kill it even though I was sort of familiar with the supernatural world.

  “Why do you care?” I asked.

  “Like I said, I was there last time. Being hunted for generations is… tedious,” he replied. “Those of us who managed to hide from the hunt, starved. Starvation for a vampire is worse than anything you can imagine.”

  “I can imagine a lot,” I said. “I spent my entire life hungry.”

  He leaned a fraction closer to me, his deep blue eyes holding mine. “Vampires don’t die from hunger,” he whispered. “We just continue to starve.”

  I didn’t want to feel bad for him, but how could I not? I averted his gaze with some effort, sparing a glance at Logan. Fear and unease drifted between us.

  “What do you expect from me?” I asked, turning back to Braden.

  “Leave my people alone,” he replied. “When I ask for information, give it to me.”

  “I can’t make blind promises. And pardon me,” I snapped, “but how exactly am I supposed to trust you?”

  “Right now, I’m the only one looking for you. I convinced Jack to give the task to me, ensuring him that I would not fail,” Braden responded, uncrossing his arms. “Losing four of my men today will convince him that I’m still pursuing you. It will also force him to realize that you are stronger than he’s been told by others whom he trusts. I’ll continue to plant seeds of doubt and false trails.” He stretched his hand across the table, palm up. “I’ll provide you with information about his next attack, like the one in Australia that you’re currently trying to stop.”

  I looked down at his outstretched hand, then glanced at Logan, who shook his head. I got it, don’t take his hand.

  I leaned back in my own chair and frowned. “How will I know which vampires are yours?”

  He chuckled again and withdrew his hand. “Show her,” he said, waving at one of his men.

  The vampire on Logan’s left side held out his arm. A tattoo wrapped around his forearm, but it was too far away to see the details. I sat forward and the man stepped closer. A large cross with a teardrop looping over the top covered his forearm. I could only see the entire thing if he rolled his arm from one side the other. A quick glance didn’t reveal its entirety.

  “And I’m supposed to do what? Hold up my hand and ask them stop charging at me so I can see their tattoos?”

  “My people will not attack you, regardless of your disguise of the day,” he replied, a smile playing across his face. “That will be your first clue to leave them alone.”

  I glanced at Logan again. Braden’s men still hovered, their blades threatening my vampire. Could I trust a member of the vampire council? It didn’t feel like he lied to me. Was there a way to test it? The only people who knew our location for sure, were Yun and Elaine. Possibly Otto and Fiona.

  “How did you know we were here?” I asked. “Did Jonathan tell you?”

  “Does it matter?” Braden countered.

  “That’s a stupid question,” I replied. “If the shoe were on the other foot, wouldn’t you want to know who revealed your location?”

  “Of course, but I go to great lengths to ensure I don’t have spies among my people,” he replied.

  “I bet you do, but that doesn’t answer my question.”

  He was good at side stepping with his answers. I truly couldn’t tell if he lied or not.

  “Mr. Smith is not aware of your location,” Braden finally replied. “But his people are easy to manipulate.”

  “Why? Because most of them are vampires?”

  He chuckled again. It was really starting to irritate me.

  “Do we have a deal or not?” he countered.

  He wasn’t going to answer my question. I couldn’t make a deal with a vampire, but I could concede to cooperate if it were in my best interest.

  “I’ll do my best to avoid your people,” I replied. “If there is information that I can give you that will be of mutual benefit to us both, I’ll gladly share.”

  “And I will continue to lure my leader away from your path,” he said. “I will also share information is that mutually beneficial.”

  He held his hand out again and smiled. It should have made his handsome face even more beautiful, but it only made me wary.

  “I don’t shake hands,” I said quickly. “Too many people are interested in testing my… talent.”

  “Smart girl.”

  He stood and waved at his men. Before I could react, one of them drew his knife across Logan’s neck. Blood spurted from the cut and I screamed, knocking my chair away as I raced to his side. He fell to the floor and I went with him. Logan clamped his hand over the spurting blood, his eyes meeting mine with fear. Would this kill him? I didn’t know and didn’t want to find out.

  “Don’t you dare die,” I whispered. It wasn’t what I meant to say, but the words fell out on their own. My heart ached and I couldn’t stand the thought of not having him. I should’ve been afraid for my own life, and maybe I was, but my fear for him eclipsed it.

  He blinked at me and tried to smile.

  “Göksu, you have to do something!” I yelled. “He can’t die!”

  My elemental appeared at my side and placed his watery hand over Logan’s. My vampire’s eyes widened in disbelief.

  “Move your hand, child,” Göksu said in his wispy voice.

  Logan did as he asked, and my elemental’s translucent hand turned red with my vampire’s blood. I could almost feel the warm healing saturating Logan’s body. Tears filled my eyes, and huge lump swelled in my throat as the gash in his neck slowly shrank.

  I was going to kill Braden, regardless of the promise I just made. As far as I was concerned, he just forfeited everything. I looked around the room and wasn’t surprised to find it empty. Stupid coward.

  “Your spirit calls to me,” Göksu whispered, drawing my attention back. “Just as strongly as Alisandra’s. I didn’t understand why until now.”

  The elemental stood; his fluid essence only slightly pink now. Logan remained sprawled out on the floor, covered in his own blood, staring at the elemental that used to be his.

  “You healed me,” Logan stuttered. “I don’t think I would’ve died from that, but you healed me anyway.”

  “You were already very close to death,” Göksu said. “Only the blood of another would have saved you.” He glanced at me and I looked away. “She would have given it freely, but I see now that you wouldn’t be able to harbor the guilt when her blood didn’t work.”

  I jerked my head up and stared at my element. “What do you mean?”

  “I can’t speak of gifts I did not bestow,” Göksu replied. He took a step back and his form started to dissipate.

  “Oh no you don’t!” I yelled, jumping to my feet. “I have questions.”

  “But I do not have answers, child.”

  And then he vanished into a puddle of water and seeped into the floorboards.

  Chapter 8

  “How could he do that to me?” I asked no one in particular. “You don’t just throw out info bombs like that and leave!” I stomped my bare feet on the damp floor boards like a child. “I know you hear me, Göksu!”

  “AJ.” Logan’s voice halted my temper tantrum.

  I slowly turned to him and tears swelled in my eyes. He stood on unsteady legs, deep red swirling in his hazel eyes. He’d lost a lot of blood that needed to be replenished.

  “Would that have killed you?” I asked.

  “I’m not sure,” he replied. “I don’t think so, but Göksu was right. My need to feed would kill everyone else.”

 
; “Braden must have known that. He did it on purpose to get rid of me.” My anger flared hot and fierce.

  He was definitely going to die.

  “That’s not important right now,” Logan said. “If your blood won’t quench my thirst, then no other human will either.”

  My eyes widened and I took a step towards him, but Logan vanished.

  “I cannot be near you until this need is gone,” he said, reappearing at the end of the hall. “My next victim will not survive.”

  Pain and guilt contorted his features, and my heart ached. Why did he have to endure this?

  The front door blew open, slamming into the wall behind it. Two bodies flew into the room and landed on the floor. Niyol sauntered through the door, followed by another being I’d never seen before.

  Wait… yes I had!

  It’s height and semi-humanoid form mirrored my air elemental, but that was the only similarity. Wide, defined shoulders supported tall wings whose bottom edges swept the floor and tops brushed the ceiling. Swirls of light and dark magic folded on each other along the wings’ spines and then stretched out were feathers should have been.

  Movement from the floor drew my attention. One of the men rolled to his side and moaned. Niyol speared him in the stomach, forcing a pained cry from his lips. I looked down at the tattoo on his arm. It was one of Braden’s vampires; not the one that sliced Logan’s throat, though. A matching tattoo ran up the other vampire’s arm, confirming he was also one of Braden’s. Perfect.

  “Time is not our friend today,” the winged stranger said, his booming voice vibrating in my chest. “There is much to tell, but let’s start with your gift.” He pointed at Logan, who still stood at the far end of the hall. “Don’t make me wait, Logan.”

  Typical of my vampire, he suddenly appeared in the living room a few yards from the vampires laying on the floor.

  “Human blood will no longer sustain you,” the stranger said, taking a step towards Logan. My heart sank. How would he survive? “You feel the draw, do you not?”

  Logan’s eyes filled with blood again, the way they did when he fought the ogre, wiping out everything else. “Yes, but how?” he asked.