Grady noticed the change in her expression. “What is it, Amber?” She didn’t sense Judy, but she did think she heard her crying. She shushed Grady and held out a hand for him to wait. Men were talking to their side. “Get them quiet!”
“Button up for a sec!” Grady ordered.
They all turned and stared at Amber. She keened in on the faint whimpering. It sounded like it was coming from underneath the ground somewhere. “There any wells or tunnels around here?”
“Don’t know…” He yelled at Brooks. “Any wells around here?”
“Let me ask Jerri.” Brooks ran up to the house and knocked on the door.
Jerri stepped outside.
“Any wells around here? Tunnels? Anything underground?”
“Ahhh…” she tried to think… “I don’t think…Wait! I do recall something.”
“Yeah? What?”
“There used to be a farm house back of here…in that clearing where those people were attacked the other night. It was torn down a long time ago. But…I think there was a mound of some kind not too far from it…Remember noticing it once a long time ago. There was a wooden door covered with thick vines. I wouldn’t have noticed it, but got something in my shoe, sat down on this mound to get it out, and noticed the door. Don’t know if it was some kind of food cellar…or if it was there for storing something else.”
“Can you give us an idea of where it is?”
“I can try…but I never came across it again. Think it was in the northeast corner.”
“Well that’s something.” He glanced in Amber’s direction. “You get that?” he yelled.
She’d already heard and was searching the area around the clearing. She concentrated on telling Dorian and the others that she thought Judy was there. She picked up that they were on their way back. Dorian told her to wait. But she heard Judy scream and knew that waiting was out of the question.
She shimmered here and there, furiously pulling back rocks, weeds, felled trees, anything that might be hiding the door as the officers, Jerri and Clifford watched. Judy screamed again, this time it was clear and loud. Had to be close! Amber frantically scanned the nearby grounds. “Where in hell is she?” Then she saw it – A bit of sunlight reflecting off a small amount of pooled water on one of the old planks. The door was covered in briars. But they had been manually placed there for concealment.
In seconds, she removed them, sending them flying in the air, and she ripped the door off its hinges and hurled it about thirty feet away. Just as she did, she was met by the blonde-haired girl. But the sunlight hurt the girl’s eyes and she cringed back.
Amber grabbed the blonde’s wrist, yanked her outside and sent her sailing into the sunlit clearing. The girl instantly caught fire, screaming a keening scream as the suns rays incinerated her flesh.
“Ugh!” Grady cringed.
“Now I know why Dorian’s building that greenhouse,” she quipped. Amber dropped down into the cellar. Judy was sniffling. “Judy?”
“Is that you, Amber?” she cried from a dark corner.
“Yes!”
“You’ve got to get out! They’re coming back soon. Nancy, the dark- haired girl and the guys can go out in the sun. They got some pills from somewhere…Heard them say they were stolen.”
“I came here to get you, Judy. And I’m not leaving without you…How badly did they hurt you?” She touched the wound on Judy’s neck.
“Hurts…but I’m okay…She was just torturing me…biting me for the hell of it.”
“But you’re okay? You didn’t drink any of their blood, did you?”
“No.”
“You’re absolutely sure? For it’s important.”
“I didn’t! I’m sure.”
“Good! That’s something, at least.”
Through the trees, Brooks and Grady saw two males coming back across the field, and behind them were a couple of friends; one was a girl with long dark hair in a pony tail.
“Damn! It’s four against one!” Brooks shot a glance at Grady. “Amber won’t stand a chance!”
“Just hope Dorian gets here fast!” Grady looked skyward. “Dorian! Get your ass here ASAP!”
Just then Paul ran up out of breath. “Had to come…Been wondering what was going on all morning… to hell with the friggin’ store… What’s happening?”
Grady replied, “Good news and bad. Think Amber found Judy down in that mound over there…She’s already killed the blonde vampire…Now there’s four more approaching from back there…” He pointed to the left corner of the field. “Afraid Amber won’t have a chance against them.”
“Where in hell is Dorian?” Paul asked, still breathing fast.
“He and the others are searching elsewhere. Hope he senses Amber’s in trouble.”
“We can’t just let her die! God! She’s risking her own life to save Judy!”
“We’ll just get ourselves ripped apart, Paul. We haven’t a breath and a prayer against these creatures.”
“What he says is true,” Brooks agreed. “We’re puppets in their hands.”
The four neared the mound just as Amber stepped out with Judy, whose clothes were stained with blood, but she appeared okay otherwise.
Seeing the four approaching, Judy said, “I told you to go!”
“Listen to me, Judy…When I say run…You run like you’ve never run in your life! Grady and the rest are waiting for you behind the trees back there. Got it?”
She shook her head in the affirmative.
“Now…Stay behind me until I give you the word.”
Judy crouched down and moved to the left with Amber, while Amber focused on the girl and three males that were now sizing up the situation.
“We’ve got to help her!” Paul cried. “Got to!”
Amber focused on the nearest one. “One…two…three! Now Judy! Run!”
Judy took off for the trees. Amber stopped the girl vampire and managed to toss her off before she could reach Judy. But Amber was already confronted by the other three, who were now circling her.
I love you, Dorian! I love you!
“Hell with this!” Paul chanced it, rushing out and grabbing his sister’s hand and then quickly led her up to Grady who’d run out after him. Grady handed him a long stake. Paul spun around and charged towards the vampires that were surrounding Amber. “You sons a bitches!” he bellowed, getting the female’s attention.
“Go back, Paul!” Amber yelled. “Go back!”
“No!” He lunged for the dark-haired girl that was snarling at him.
Amber moved to help Paul, but was thrown aside by one of the males. She managed to regain her footing and flew back at him. A male picked her up and tossed her across the field, but she was back in a flash and doing the death dance with the three again.
Paul stabbed at the oncoming female, missing, and barely getting out of the way of her sharp teeth. He stabbed at her again and again. It was do or die! He knew this was it, but at least Judy was safe. “Come on!” he challenged the red-eyed monster grinning maniacally.
Dorian had heard Amber’s thoughts. She was in trouble! He’d turned and sped back as fast as he could, a blur across the sky, but Sally was closer. He hoped she’d get there in time.
Grady handed Judy over to Brooks and turned around. Paul was now in trouble. The female had him and was tossing him around like a rag doll. “Dammit all to hell!” Grady grabbed up another stake he’d brought along and ran out to assist Paul.
The vampire threw Paul aside and swirled around, meeting Grady face to face.
Paul was temporarily stunned, but managed to get up, retrieve the stick and charge back at the vampire that now had Grady up over her head. Paul plunged the stake in the female’s back just in time. She buckled and Grady dropped to the ground, shaken but okay.
Amber was still doing the circling dance with the other three, eyes darting back and forth, watching and waiting for one to make a move. Finally, one dove in and she shimmered out of h
is way just in time. She turned and faced them again. This time, the one in the middle charged at her and she grabbed for his arm, but the other two caught her from each side.
“No!” Paul yelled rushing in to be confronted by the third vampire. But Amber was still in danger. They had her and were pulling her arms. They were going to rip her apart.
“Dorian!” she screamed, knowing this could be it.
Then Sally was there, plowing into the vampire on Amber’s right, knocking him loose.
Amber managed to fling the other vampire off. He regained his footing instantly and charged into her. They fought furiously, biting and tearing like the savage beasts they were. The male was gaining the upper hand, though. He was stronger and bigger.
All the while, Sally was barely holding her own with the vampire she’d tackled. And Paul knew this was his end as the vampire bit furiously into his neck. He lost his footing and folded downwards.
Amber was growing weak. The other vampire was winning. Memories of her and Dorian sharing and making love came to her mind. Her thoughts drifted off in a vague fog.
Then there was a yell of such fury that it seared the very air. Dorian came in like a freight train at full speed, knocking the vampire off Amber.
In one swift move, he tore the younger male’s head off and threw it as far as he could. Then he turned to see about Amber who was lying on the ground.
Klaus slammed in too, tearing the other vampire away from Paul.
Grady managed to pull himself up and go over to Paul, who was still bleeding but very much alive.
Klaus had no problem in eliminating the young male, being much more powerful. He then turned and relived Sally of her
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