by Shéa MacLoed
"This is definitely it."
Kabita nodded and stepped to the left. Twisting the doorknob, she shoved the door open and shone her flashlight into the kitchen beyond.
"Where's yours?" she asked.
"Didn't bring one."
She shot me a look. "You didn't?"
I shrugged. I didn't bother pointing out I could see better in the dark without one. I didn't like reminding her I was a freak and getting freakier by the second. Not in a good way, either, if that whole flooding thing was anything to go by. Yeah, I was pretty sure that had been me, but I really didn't want to think about it right now.
Since Kabita was going left, I went straight to the second closed door. Pushing it open, I found more hallway and closed doors. Fantastic.
Straight ahead was the front door. All the glass inserts had been covered over with tin foil and duct tape, and weather-stripping had been tacked around the cracks to prevent even the tiniest amount of light from seeping through. There was a door on either side of the hall. Same deal with the weather-stripping, I guessed just in case somebody accidentally opened the front door in broad daylight. Which was doubtful, seeing as how it was barricaded with a steel bar. Nobody was opening that door from the outside.
The door to the left revealed a dining room, its giant picture window covered in more tin foil and topped by a heavy velvet curtain. Totally out of place in the tropics. I could make out a long table large enough to seat twelve. Matching chairs had been pushed back against the walls like it was a ballroom, and black garbage bags covered the floor beneath the table. Weird. Another door led to what I assumed was the kitchen. I left the room to Kabita and crossed to the other side of the hall.
The main room ran the full side of the house and, like the dining room, its large windows were completely blocked off. Still, I could easily make out the low huddled forms of sofas, easy chairs, and side tables. The room was as empty as the rest of the house, but still I could feel that gripping on the back of my skull that told me vamps were nearby.
"I'm headed upstairs." Kabita's whisper broke the silence. I turned to see her standing in the doorway, her flashlight pointed at the floor so it wouldn't blind me. Who was I kidding? Kabita knew all my best freakish qualities.
"Sure thing. I'm going to poke around down here some more." I couldn't say why, but I had the strongest feeling our answers lay here, not on the floor above. Kabita nodded and disappeared. I could just make out the sound of her footsteps ascending the back stairs.
I returned to prowling the room. Heavy velvet drapes graced every window despite the aluminum foil. Double security, I guessed. Someone had hung matching drapes on the opposite wall to balance the room. It was weird, but it kind of worked. All dramatic and stuff. I frowned, wondering why. The room wasn't that large that it needed balancing. Why not just paint the wall or hang pictures or something? Why hang curtains?
I swished back the first curtain, revealing bare white wall. The next was the same. By the time I reached the last curtain, I was starting to think I was an idiot, but instead of bare wall, there was a cheap wooden door.
"Oh, bravo," I murmured, pushing it open. A set of stairs led down into what was clearly a basement. All righty then.
Leaving the door open, I made my way around the room, shoving back curtains and ripping foil off the windows. Light flooded the space and filtered down the stairs. Perfect. Anyone running up here would either be human, or they'd dust. Well, they could be demon, but hopefully it wouldn't come to that.
Blinking my eyes against the bright light, I made my way quietly down the stairs. My eyes quickly adjusted to the dim light, sharpening edges and picking out details. I cursed silently as I realized the Darkness had risen again without my bidding. We were going to have a chat one of these days, the Darkness and me.
At the bottom of the stairs was yet another door. What was with these people and doors? I pushed it open to reveal another hallway with still more doors. The door on the left was a small storage room filled with random bits and pieces: old cans of paint, the remains of a broken chandelier, a box of faded, dusty magazines. Nothing to get excited about. The door on the right…. I pushed it open and immediately froze. I could hardly comprehend what I was seeing.
It was a small room, maybe eight feet by eight, with a low ceiling and fake wood paneling. The red shag carpet under my feet had seen better days, and the brass sconces on the wall held fake electric candles. It was like something out of a really bad '70s porno, complete with the large, faux mahogany desk in the middle of the room. And behind that desk? Alister Jones.
"Morgan," he said, placing the tips of his fingers together in a classic Evil Villain move. He actually looked pleased to see me.
"Alister," I spat, "what are you doing here?"
"Oh, a little of this. A little of that." He tapped his forefinger on something lying on his desk. I craned my neck to see. It was a book. I recognized the symbol on the cover. It was the book Jack and I had been all over half of France looking for.
I scowled at him. "That book does not belong to you." I had to get it away from him. We still had no idea what we needed it for, only that leaving it in Alister's hands was a really bad idea.
He ignored me. "I've been waiting for you."
"Excuse me?"
His smile was beyond smarmy and into the creepy zone. Then he frowned. "Your amulet."
"What about it?" Great. Now Alister was obsessed with the thing.
"You're not wearing it." His eyes narrowed, anger flashing in their depths.
"No. I'm not." And that was all he was getting from me. I could almost see the frustration boiling beneath his skin. I had no idea what Alister had planned for me and my amulet, but leaving it behind on the ship had been an unexpected stroke of brilliance. Curses. Foiled again, eh, Alister?
"Ah well, no matter," he said, picking up a silver letter opener and twirling it between his fingers before placing it back on the desk. "I have a lovely little surprise for you. Oh, and by the way? You'll never get your hands on this book."
Before I could open my mouth, the room was plunged into darkness. I heard rushing sounds and the grip on the back of my skull screwed down so tight, I thought my head might explode. I was surrounded by vampires.
Chapter Twelve
I didn't have time to let my eyes adjust. It was so deeply black, I couldn't see a thing though I knew they could see me just fine. I heard them, though. Sensed them. The dagger was in my right hand, wrist blade in my left.
I knew it was cheesy, but I couldn't help myself. "Let's dance, boys."
I slashed with my left hand first, knowing they wouldn't expect it. Steel connected with flesh. and cool, thick blood spilled over my hand and arm. I slashed right next, slicing someone up good if the cry of pain was anything to go by. I kicked straight ahead and connected with something solid. I heard a crack and a howl. Thrust an elbow back, slash, kick, repeat.
It was too much. There were too many of them. The Darkness rose, lending strength and speed to my movements, turning the pitch black into dim gray. Still, it wasn't enough. Where was Kabita?
My dagger slipped from my hand and clattered to the floor, blood turning my skin so slick, I couldn't keep a grip on it. One of the vamps grinned wickedly, flashing fang. He rushed me on the right side, knowing I was now vulnerable.
The two of us crashed into the desk, my hip hitting the edge so hard I knew it was going to leave an amazing bruise. With the vamp's hand in a vice around my left wrist, and my blade lying useless on the floor, I was out of weapons. Then I remembered the glint of silver between Alister's fingers. The letter opener!
I reached out with my right hand, patting around on the desktop until I felt the letter opener beneath my palm. I wrapped my fingers around the handle, gripping the tiny blade tightly. With all my strength, I thrust upward, burying the knife in the side of the vamp's neck. His eyes widened as I yanked the blade back out, dark blood oozing in thick rivulets from the wound. With a roar, the vamp b
ackhanded me so hard I saw stars.
Something broke loose inside me. I want to say it was rage, but it was more than that. It rose, ice cold and deadly calm.
I. Would. Finish. This.
I'm not sure what I thought I was doing. With the Darkness riding me, I felt no fear. I brought up my knee, hard. Instinctively, the vamp doubled over despite the fact vampires don't feel much in the way of pain. The minute he did so, my knee came up again, smashing him in the face. I lashed out with my foot, kicking him in the head so hard he tumbled across the floor before jumping to his feet with a snarl. As the vamp rushed me, I simply raised my left hand, palm facing him. The new thing flooded my veins, a rush of icy liquid, chilling me to the bone. It swirled up and through me, down my arms to my fingertips, pooling in the center of my palm. I took a deep breath and then….
As I thrust out my hand, something flew from the center of my palm and lodged itself in the vampire's heart. The creature stared down at the thing sticking out of its chest, then back up at me, eyes wide. It opened its mouth and burst into a cloud of dust. The thing I'd thrown at the vamp hit the floor with a dull thud and shattered into a million pieces that bounced across the carpet like tiny, shimmering diamonds.
"Sweet gods above," I whispered, hardly believing my own eyes. I'd just killed a vamp with a freaking icicle. That wasn't normal.
There were still half a dozen more vamps to worry about. I had no time to think on what was normal or why I could suddenly throw shards of ice. This new power came surprisingly easy. I shoved the bloody letter opener in my jeans pocket in case I needed it later. Then, using both hands, I threw another icicle, and another. Within seconds I'd downed another three vamps. But with each icicle, I was growing colder, my movements slower. My entire body was starting to feel numb. Something from a long ago survival class niggled at my brain. Hypothermia. This new power of mine might be awesome, but it came with one hell of a nasty side effect.
I stopped throwing icicles and dug into my pocket with numb fingers for Alister's letter opener. The vamp blood had turned sticky on the handle, and my icy cold skin stuck like a tongue stuck to a frozen lamppost.
I knew the letter opener wasn't much of a weapon, so I made a dash across the room before the vamps were on me. Leaning down, I scooped up my blade. This one didn't stick so badly. Thank the gods for leather handles.
As I continued slashing and hacking and kicking, I tried to force the ice back down to that place inside me where my powers lived. To no avail. I was too sluggish and weak. Even the vamps could see it.
I did the only thing I could think of. I called Fire.
It ripped through me so fast, it left me gasping for breath. Fire shot from my fingers in hungry streamers, licking at the skin of the vamps, blackening it. They screamed in pain, rushing away from me, toward the stairs and daylight. I ran after them, the carpet squishing under my boots. The Fire had melted the ice. I no longer felt cold, but flushed and feverish. The Fire was out of control, licking at the walls, the ceiling. This house was going to turn into an inferno with Kabita and me still inside.
As the Fire lit up the blackness of the basement, I saw that Alister was gone. Damn him.
Screams erupted from the stairwell. The vamps had made it to the top of the stairs before realizing, too late, that bright sunlight spilled through the now open windows, bathing the living room above in deadly rays. The first one burst into dust before the rest hustled back downstairs only to be greeted by the Fire. And me.
I strode slowly toward them, dagger in one hand and letter opener in the other, ignoring the exhaustion that pulled at my limbs. I must have looked freaky as hell, because they appeared to be scared to death, their glowing red eyes fixed on my face. Except vampires were rarely scared, not like this. Their terror was almost palpable.
It hit me. Souls. Every single one of them had souls. Fuck Alister and his damn technology.
"I release you."
The words weren't mine, though I'd spoken them before. They came from the Darkness. Or maybe from something else, who knows? But they came out of my mouth as the Fire licked up the walls toward the trapped vampires.
I watched as the Flame and the sun took them. Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust. As their remains drifted slowly down through the air, I walked calmly up the stairs and out into daylight. Behind me, the fire raged out of control.
# # #
I didn't remember making it outside, but I must have, because the next thing I knew, I was laying on my back in the grass, staring up at the impossibly blue sky. I coughed a little, my throat tickled by smoke, but other than that, I felt fine. A little overly warm maybe, but that could have been due to being in the tropics.
"Morgan. Oh my goddess, Morgan, say something."
I blinked as Kabita's face came into view, hovering over me. "Oh, good," I mumbled. "You made it out."
"Of course I did," she hissed. "Now stop this before the neighbors see."
"Can't stop a house fire." The very idea was absurd. And was that a rock poking me between the shoulder blades? How rude.
"Not that, you ninny. The Fire. You're still channeling it."
Oh, shit. I hadn't realized. The Fire had always been the hardest of my powers to control. The wild nature of it, I supposed. I tried to pull it back down into its hole, but it refused. It was out, and it liked being out. It wanted to burn. Burn everything.
Water was Fire's natural enemy, but calling it was out of the question. I'd nearly frozen myself to death with it. Earth. Yes. Dirt put out a fire, right? That's what people who camped did. Threw dirt over the fire pit to put it out. Not that I knew about such things personally, as I found camping a ridiculous pastime. Still, if throwing dirt was needed, I could do that.
I reached down into my metaphorical core and called for Earth. It came slowly, no hurry, easing its way through me, unfurling gently like a blossom or a vine. It twined its way through my body, creating that green shimmer only I—and possibly a few magical others—could see. Mentally I sent it toward the burning building. I saw it twisting and curling its way over the grass and up the sides of the house, across the roof, through the windows, down the chimney. Wherever it touched, the Fire retreated. Sulkily, like a child who has had its favorite toy taken away.
I called the Earth back to me, and it came, calmly, as if to thumb its nose at the unruly Fire. The Fire slunk back with it, firmly put in its place. I grabbed them both, the Earth gently, but the Fire with a very firm grip, and pulled them back inside myself. Then I slammed the metaphorical lid on them both and lay back on the grass with a sigh. I was bone-deep exhausted. All I wanted was a nap.
"You okay?" Haakon's face appeared beside Kabita's.
"Yeah, fine." I wasn't fine, but I didn't want to look like a wuss. Besides, what could he do about it?
"Find anything?"
Kabita shook her head. "No tech. I think Morgan found some vamps."
Haakon raised an eyebrow. Why could everyone do that but me?
"Yeah," I said, slowly sitting up, realizing I was still gripping blades in either hand. My mouth tasted like week-old socks, and a headache pressed behind my eyes. "They're dust."
"Good. I don't suppose you found who was controlling them," he said.
"Oh, I didn't say that," I said, sliding my dagger into my boot before heaving myself to my feet. I ignored his offered hand. I might be a bit wobbly, but I wasn't an invalid. The minute I was standing, or rather swaying, I shoved the bloody letter opener into my pocket. No sense disturbing the neighbors any more than they already were.
Kabita's eyes widened. "You saw who it was?"
"Better. We had a nice little tête-agrave;-tête."
She narrowed her eyes. "Oh, really. Do tell."
"It was your father, Kabita. It was Alister Jones. He's got the book. And we need to go after him before he finds a way off this island."
# # #
We left the burning house behind us. The neighbors were too busy gawking at the blaze to worry about thre
e random tourists. They had even forgotten Haakon's bizarre behavior in the wake of this new excitement. I heard the wail of a fire engine in the distance. The three of us picked up our pace, trotting downhill toward the center of town and the harbor.
"Are you sure it was my… I mean Alister?" Kabita asked. A frown marred her usually placid face. It took a lot to rattle Kabita.
"Definitely. No doubt about it. He even taunted me about the, uh…about stuff." I didn't want Haakon knowing too much about the book. He might be a Sunwalker, but he was an unknown factor in this…whatever this was. War, maybe?
Haakon shot us a glance. "You saw Alister Jones? Here? On the island?"
"Yeah. And we need to get a move on. He's way ahead of us." We picked up the pace, moving almost at a jog. I turned to Kabita. "He left this behind. Thought maybe you would want it." I pulled out the letter opener.
She stared at it in distaste. "Vampire blood?"
I gave a slight shrug. "I needed a weapon. It was handy."
"No, thanks," she said. "I don't want anything of that man's."
I couldn't say I blamed her. Since I was low on weaponry, I tucked the letter opener away. Never knew when something like that would come in handy. "You find anything in the house?"
"No sign of the soul vamp tech anywhere and nothing that would point us to where it is. You?"
I shook my head. "No tech downstairs, either. Just Alister and a whole lot of vamps."
"He wouldn't have it here," Haakon said, falling into step beside us.
"Excuse me?" We both turned to stare at Haakon.
"This soul vamp technology you keep talking about. Jones wouldn't have brought it here. He would keep it in a safe place." He said it slowly as if he was talking to a couple of idiots.
"But then how could he create soul vamps?" I asked archly. "He's got to have the tech to do that."
"Sure. But he probably turned these on the mainland and brought them here. It's not that far. He could easily fly them over at night or bring them in the cargo hold of a ship. Like the ones on-board my cruise ship."