The moment the cross dropped into my hand, the world blurred out of focus. Warmth spread through me, reaching every inch of my body. I breathed in sharply and looked down at the cross. There was nothing special about it, no magic powers or fancy light beams shooting from its core, nothing that lent me super-sonic vampire strength. But just having the treasure in my hand gave me courage. It was like the small symbol of faith and hope had restored my strength. I focused not on the chaos around me, but on the energy within myself. It fizzled and sparked, shooting through me like an electric current, the effects of the suppressant slowly wearing off. And, as if in slow motion, time stopped when Horus’ hands reached my neck. I pushed back with all my might, the force of my movement exploding into him. I powered ahead, pushing the two of us out of the corner and into the open. In my world of empowered fury, nothing else existed except for my target, my enemy. Horus.
Shock marred his features and I took advantage of the distraction, rearing back my arm, the point of my cross aimed at Horus’ heart. But as I brought it down he blocked me, sending my arm above his chest. I gasped as the sharp wooden point stuck directly into his eye.
Unlike anything I’d ever heard, the screech Horus released could’ve woken the dead. His howling scream thrilled through the desert, causing the fine hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end. Horus stumbled backward, gripping the rosary protruding from his eye. It was like the world had stopped spinning, the fighting was over, and everyone held their breath. It was a macabre dream in slow motion.
Far away, and lost in a haze, I closed in on Horus, my rage urging me onwards. I was not done with him yet. Horus scrambled back again, gripping the cross with his fingers. He yanked it out, pulling the damaged eye from his face.
“You think you can kill me with a cross?” Horus laughed, though weakly now, blood pouring from his empty eye socket.
“No,” I growled. “But I can kill you like this.”
Without another thought, I punched through the flesh of his chest, crushing bone and muscle, finding the meaty lump of his heart.
I squeezed.
Our eyes met —or Horus’ one eye met my two, rather— and I saw the fear in his gaze, the knowing.
I tore the beating muscle from his body and held it out in front of me. Horus’ mouth hung open in shock and he just stood there. Fear crawled through me as he gazed at me with his one good eye, my rosary in his hand. For one quick moment, I thought he would come after me like the heartless zombie he was. But he didn’t. Instead, his knees buckled and he dropped to the ground, his limbs going limp. His body shriveled like a raisin, leaving his bloody clothes lying on the ground.
The world faded back into focus as the wailing whine of an alarm pierced my ear drums. I blinked rapidly, my breath coming in ragged pants and my legs trembling, threatening to collapse beneath me. But I stood strong, blood trickling down my arm from the heart I held in my hand. The wind whistled through the desert trees bringing a chill to my skin.
“Ruby.” Cloe’s voice came through the settling dust like a cool breeze. She touched my arm. “Ruby. Are you all right?”
I nodded numbly, frozen in shock.
“It’s over,” she said.
I glanced at the heart cupped within my fingers and exhaled.
It was over.
FORTY-SIX: RUBY
Within my hand, Horus’ heart beat once, twice, and then stopped. The leathery tissue resting in my palm shriveled from lack of life. In horror, I dropped it to the ground, holding back the urge to throw up.
I glanced around the Tombstone gates, the melted forms of Horus’ dead vampires littering the ground. Orie stumbled over, the last traces of his werewolf form wearing off. He pulled Cloe into him and she released a breathy cry.
I quickly looked for Guy, and saw Wilson propping him up against his side. Apparently the effects of my blood had worn off, draining Guy of his energy. The two came over and Guy withdrew his arm from Wilson’s shoulder. He stood up tall and flashed me a crooked smile.
“It’s over?” I asked, wanting even more affirmation the nightmare had ended.
Guy nodded and I flew into his arms. He held me and ran his fingers over my back, planting kisses in my hair. Relief flooded through me and the warmth of Guy’s embrace enveloped me. We did it. We defeated Horus and were free now. Free to choose our own destinies. Free to be together again.
But I paused my thoughts of freedom and quickly turned to Wilson, images of his house exploding in a ball of fire flashing to mind. He should’ve died. Even if he’d managed to thwart the dozen FUSE soldiers ambushing his house, he would’ve been blown to pieces by the blast. I voiced the question that was on everyone’s mind.
“How did you —I mean… the soldiers and… and the explosion. How did you…?”
“Escape death?” Wilson finished for me with a wide grin. “What, did you think I wouldn’t be prepared for an attack of that sort?”
Guy and I said nothing, but stared at him wide-eyed, waiting for an explanation.
Wilson stretched his neck to the side nonchalantly and cracked his knuckles. “What you probably thought was a bomb set off by the soldiers to kill me, was in fact a bomb I’d constructed myself. I made it in the instance of any unwanted intruders. Plus, it demolished any clue I was ever there.”
“But how did you not blow up?” I asked, still not understanding how he managed to get away without turning into vampire bacon.
Wilson glanced at me with one mischievously cocked eyebrow. “Do you remember the red room that I always kept locked?” I nodded, my curiosity brimming. “It took me years to build, but I’d constructed a steel-plated bomb shelter underground, only accessible by a cellar door beneath the carpet. I kept enough provisions down there to last me an entire month, yet after I ignited the bomb, I knew I’d only need to stay below ground for a few days. I finally emerged to reconvene with my friends.” He glanced over his shoulder at the remaining Unfortunates who surrounded the van.
Guy released a rumbling laugh and pounded Wilson on the back in an affectionate man-to-man way.
“I should’ve never underestimated you old friend. But I still have one question.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “How did you know we needed your help? How did you know it was tonight we would escape?”
Wilson cleared his throat. “Wasn’t it you who called me the smartest vampire on the continent? Let’s just say I have my ways.”
I released a giggle and shook my head in awe of our friend Wilson. He was something else. Guy pulled me closer into his side and I ran my fingers down his rippling chest. He was thinner from his stay in Tombstone, but his muscles remained solid, emanating his core strength. Guy surprised me by turning my face with his thumb and crushing his lips against mine, warmth rushing through me from our point of contact. And like the first time he kissed me, my knees turned to liquid and fire shot through my veins.
“Save the make-out session for later,” Wilson grumbled.
My lips parted from Guy’s and I brought a hand to my mouth and laughed. But my joy became lost beneath the sound of another blaring alarm bell. Wilson frowned.
“If you have the desire to stay alive we need to get the hell out of here. Now.”
“Yes,” Orie said, stepping forward with Cloe in his arms. “The lockdown drill has ended. And now they’ve begun a distress signal. We don’t have much time.”
“Right,” Wilson agreed. “The vampires will be swarming us in a matter of minutes. We mustn’t stall.”
I glanced over to see the humans were already piled into the van. Wilson’s Unfortunates stood in a circle around it as though protecting them. Wilson nodded to his crew.
“We can take it from here.” The werewolves, vampires, and witches receded into the darkness leaving us alone. I wondered who they were or where they’d come from, but there was no time for questions just now. We needed to get the heck out of Tombstone.
“Are you coming with us?” I asked Wilson.
“You couldn’t get
rid of me if you tried,” he smiled and then gestured to Guy. “And with Captain Stone behind the wheel, we’re in for one hell of a ride.”
I laughed out loud, remembering the time we were in a car chase with FUSE, Guy like an overeager teenage boy behind the wheel.
“Forget something?” My attention flickered to Cloe, my rosary hanging from her finger, now clean of Horus’ blood, and more importantly, his eye. I released a thankful sigh and took my necklace from her. Happiness flooded through me, but the fear of getting caught again overshadowed my joy. We rushed to the van along with Orie and Cloe.
“Wait,” I stopped dead and swiveled around to face the gates of Tombstone. “Where’s Pandora?”
The incessant alert signal rang out but no one spoke. Dread fell through me at their silence.
“Where is she?” I breathed, barely above a whisper.
“She’s gone,” Wilson said, and Guy ran a tentative hand down my arm.
I shook my head in disbelief, but my heart knew it was true. Tears threatened to spill free but I held them back, wondering how many times I would have to feel this way. Guilt over someone dying to protect me wasn’t anything new at this point, I just hoped this was the end of it.
“It’s okay,” Wilson said, bringing me back to the screeching sirens.
I turned to my friends. Their faces looked anything but okay and I could feel a collective sadness washing over us all.
“Pandora would never have been welcomed back inside the gates,” Wilson said. “Yet she loved Tombstone and wouldn’t be happy on the outside, either. This is what she would’ve wanted.”
Another bell sounded out causing our group to flinch.
“Come now,” Guy urged me on. “I don’t know what I’d do if they separated us again. I can’t lose you.” I numbly walked to the vehicle, my gaze lingering behind me as though I might catch a glimpse of Pandora. I imagined her impassive expression, her red hair, and her sarcastic attitude, but there was no one left standing. I sighed heavily and reluctantly let Guy and Wilson guide me into the van, Cloe and Orie in tow. I checked over the humans as we peeled off into the night, Guy driving like a bat out of hell. I wondered what we were doing and where we were going, but figured anywhere was better than where we’d come from. I glanced at my love in the driver’s seat, the light from the moon flickering over his chiseled face as we flew. I knew in that moment, that anywhere I went would be okay, as long as my Captain was by my side.
FORTY-SEVEN: RUBY
“Has anyone followed us?” I asked, hunching my way to the front of the van after checking on the humans, making sure to ignore Orie, Cloe, and their wooing each other in the second row as I passed by. Guy’s eyes found mine in the rearview mirror and we shared a moment of relief. We’d been driving for well over an hour, Guy blowing down the highway so fast, the dark scenery rushed by in a blur.
“No.” Wilson adjusted himself in the passenger’s seat and I knelt down in the empty space between him and Guy. The old vampire scanned the road ahead. “We’re lucky, though. I thought for sure those scouting motorcycles would catch us. They are damned fast. Someone must’ve stalled them.”
“Jax,” I said under my breath with a smile, thinking that none of this would’ve been possible without his help, and it was probably him who stalled the motorcycles.
Guy turned the wheel to miss a fallen branch in the road, causing my body to sway with the motion. And then it suddenly dawned on me and I wrinkled my brows in thought.
“But with Horus gone and without a leader now, how much of a threat can the vampires actually be?” I asked.
“Natalia escaped,” Wilson replied flatly. “And if I remember anything about that vicious vamp, she’s relentless. No doubt she’ll step up to take Horus’ place.”
Guy’s body tensed at the use of Natalia’s name and my heart poured out to him. Though he said nothing of it —keeping his always brave façade— I couldn’t begin to imagine how it had affected him, all the beatings and torture he’d endured. I wondered if it would always plague his mind.
Despite my sadness over the notion, and the fear we still might be caught, I changed the subject to a lighter note.
“Who were those Unfortunates?” I asked, remembering Wilson’s entourage appearing from the shadows. “The ones that came to help us?”
“Friends. You’ll see in due time.”
The van fell quiet, and I figured the humans had passed out after such a traumatizing night. I glanced back to see I was right, and even Cloe and Orie’s eyes were closed, wrapped peacefully in each other’s arms. I couldn’t help but smile, knowing that things were going to be very different from now on. But try as I might I couldn’t imagine what the future held in store for us and Wilson hadn’t been very forthcoming with details of our destination. My curiosity got the better of me.
“Where are we going?” I asked, gazing out at the passing scenery. It was the tail end of the night and still dark.
Wilson kept his gaze firm on the road. “We’re going somewhere safe, a place they’ll never find us. But for now, we have a stop to make.”
Wilson nodded to Guy and he slowed the van, pulling to the side of the road. I glanced around in confusion but my eyes landed on an old beat-up Nova parked beside us, the grey paint peeling from its sides. A sleepy Cloe and Orie appeared behind me hunched over as not to bump their heads on the roof. My heart sank as I realized what was happening. I slid my best friend a sad smile.
“You don’t have to go yet, do you?”
Cloe shook her head. “I’m sorry, Ruby. We made Jax a promise. We have to find Orie’s family.”
I nodded sadly. “Let me walk you out.” The van door slid open and I followed Cloe outside. I looked back to see Orie shaking Wilson and Guy’s hands, thanking them for their help. Cloe leaned on the hood of the Nova and I turned to her.
“Are you going to be okay?” I asked, worried for my friend’s well-being.
“Of course,” she smiled, the breeze whipping her brown hair in front of her face. She wrinkled her nose with a smile. “And it’s all because of you.”
I blushed, looking down at my dingy brown boots that reminded me so much of torture and sadness.
“Really,” Cloe continued. “My bond to Horus is broken and I’ve never felt so alive before. So free. I can’t begin to thank you enough for what you’ve done for Orie and me. We can be together now, without fear. I have a feeling that good things are in our future, and yours too.”
I lifted my wet lashes to look at my dear friend. Since I’d died and became the vampire hybrid I was —which seemed years ago— Cloe had been my one true friend, the only friend I fully trusted with all my heart. My love for her rushed through me, not wanting to let her go. Yet I pushed aside my own selfishness and grabbed her in for a hug. All I wanted for my friend was happiness and freedom and love. And I knew now that is what she would have, with Horus gone and Tombstone in her past.
I pulled back and held her at arm’s length, looking into her sweet face. “I want to thank you. Without you, none of this would’ve been possible. You’re the bravest girl I know. You saved Guy, and because of that, you saved me. Thank you a thousand times over.”
Cloe fanned her moist eyes. “Stop it,” she laughed. “As if I haven’t cried enough already.”
“Okay then,” I giggled, taking a step back. “I’m going to miss you.”
“And I you.”
Cloe rounded the car and gave me one last glance. No more words were necessary, we both knew what this was. This was not a mere ‘Goodbye and I’ll see you later.’ This was a ‘Goodbye and I genuinely wish you the best in your life.’ A bittersweet ending to a great friendship.
Cloe’s chest expanded with breath before she opened the car door and got in. I turned away just as Orie climbed out of the van, the blush of the sunrise highlighting his silhouette, indicating we didn’t have much time. He came to me and gave me a brotherly hug. At this point it was all I could do to hold back an ugly, sobbing c
ry. He stepped back and looked at me kindly.
“Thank you Ruby. I hope you find what you’re looking for and I wish you the best. And even though I don’t know the captain very well, I can tell he will take good care of you.”
I nodded. “Yes he will.”
“You take care.” Sadness tore through my chest at having to part from my housemate, my friend, my brother. I held out a hand. “And don’t forget the vanilla.”
Orie frowned, confused.
“The pancakes, silly.” I punched him playfully in the arm, taking great care to do it lightly. “When you make pancakes, don’t forget to add a dash of vanilla.”
Orie laughed heartily and walked backward toward the car, rubbing the spot where I punched him. “I won’t ever forget. Vanilla.”
Wilson rolled down his window and tossed a set of keys to Orie. He caught them and nodded, hopping into the Nova and shutting the door. The car sputtered and then roared loudly before peeling out onto the highway, dust pouring from the back.
“Come on, girl!” Wilson shouted from his window. “We haven’t long until roasting time.” I glanced at the rosy hue blanketing the mountains and inhaled deeply. I closed my eyes and let the cool breeze brush across my face. I would never see Orie and Cloe again, but I’d always hold them deep in my heart.
Guy turned in his seat and watched me climb back into the van. He winked and I flashed him a coy smile, sliding the door shut. I couldn’t wait to finally be alone with him, to have him hold me in his arms without any fear of being caught. I couldn’t wait to feel truly free and at home and happy again. I was on my way.
The van shimmied while going over a patch of potholes and I glanced back at the humans. There wasn’t much room for them back there, but I supposed they were used to that. Crammed together, they slept on each other’s shoulders, and now with their freedom, I imagined they were sleeping better than ever.
A pang of sadness shot though me at Earl’s absence. I wished more than anything he were here to finally witness freedom. I’d grown to love the old man like family, as I did the rest of them. But Earl had gone to a better place now, and nothing I could do would bring him back. All I could do was make sure the rest of them were safe and taken care of. I crouched my way to the front and knelt between the two men again.
Broken Souls Page 26