by Julie Kagawa
Sarren knelt above me, still pinning me by the throat. His face was pulled into a vicious snarl, his eyes blank and terrifying. Fear lanced through my stomach. There’d be no words this time, no toying with his prey, no taunts or hints or creepy poetry. I faced the true demon now, and it wasn’t interested in words. All it wanted was to rip me apart.
Sarren’s grip tightened, bony fingers closing like a vice, crushing my windpipe and turning the world red with pain. One knee pinned my sword arm to the deck; I couldn’t move my arm, and watched as Sarren raised his sword, angling it toward my neck.
With a defiant snarl, I clenched my free hand into a fist and punched the arm at my throat as hard as I could, striking the elbow. There was a snap and Sarren toppled forward, the pressure at my throat loosening as he was thrown off-balance. I shoved hard with my legs, bucking him over my head, then scrambled upright with my sword.
I barely had time to turn before he was on me again, hissing and baring his fangs. I dodged the first savage blow, deflected the second, and was hurled back as Sarren lunged in and kicked me in the chest. I hit the deck, rolled to my knees, and stabbed up as quickly as I could, almost without thinking. A jolt went up my arms as Sarren hit the point of my blade, impaling himself through the stomach. He glanced down at the weapon through his gut, bared his fangs, and stepped forward, sliding along the katana edge and slashing his sword arm at my face.
I jerked back, managing to keep ahold of my weapon, wrenching the katana free in a spray of blood. Sarren didn’t even slow down as he attacked once more, driving me back across the deck. Blood drenched his front, dripping to the metal, but his eyes were crazed and glassy, beyond any pain. Past his head, I caught a split-second glimpse of land, of the lights of the checkpoint, nearly upon us.
Snarling, I knocked away Sarren’s blade and slashed in with my own, desperate to end this. He dodged, the edge missing his head by centimeters, and lunged forward with an inhuman shriek. I jumped back, but hit the wall of the engine room, striking my head against the metal. In that moment of shock, Sarren stabbed forward, and the tip of his blade slammed into my shoulder, sinking deep and pinning me to the wall.
Agony flared. I howled and slashed at him, but his free hand shot out, striking my wrist as the blow came down, and my sword was knocked from my grasp, skidding across the deck. Turning back, Sarren hissed and shoved the blade in deeper, twisting it as he did, and I screamed.
Zeke suddenly rammed into Sarren, hitting him from the side as he brought his machete slashing down at his neck. The impact sent another blaze of agony up my shoulder, setting it on fire, as the blade pinning me to the wall snapped with a metallic ringing sound, and Sarren lurched away with half a sword. Roaring, the mad vampire spun on Zeke, who faced him with his machete in hand, the other pressed to his chest. His clothes were drenched with blood, and he could barely stand, his jaw clenched with pain and determination.
Zeke bared his fangs and slashed viciously at Sarren’s face, but his swing was wild, hindered by pain and blood loss. Sarren blocked easily and grabbed Zeke by the throat, lifting him up with a snarl. I grabbed the blade in my shoulder and, ignoring the jagged edge slicing my fingers, pulled it free, lunged at Sarren, and sank it into his back.
He whirled with a roar, backhanding me in the jaw, sending me flying. I hit the deck and rolled into the railing, crying out as everything blazed with pain. I couldn’t keep this up. I was just about done. But I had to keep fighting. For Zeke, and Kanin, and everyone in Eden, I couldn’t let Sarren win.
I raised my head and caught a glint of metal, lying an arm’s length away. My sword. I tried to move, to reach for it, but footsteps echoed over the deck, and a shadow fell over me.
I looked up. Sarren stood there, pale and terrible in the darkness. He held Zeke against him, one arm circling his throat, gazing down at me over his shoulder. Zeke’s hands were empty of weapons, and he clawed futilely at the arm around his neck, his face tight.
“Now, little bird.” Sarren’s voice was a rasp, and he wrenched Zeke’s head back, exposing his throat. I could only watch as Sarren raised his sword arm, the jagged, lethal edge glinting evilly as it prepared to strike. “Watch as I destroy everything you’ve ever loved.”
A barrage of gunfire echoed from the shore ahead, ringing through the darkness and sparking off the deck and railing. Sarren jerked in surprise, hissing as he glanced toward the checkpoint. For a split second, I met Zeke’s eyes, and he gave a tiny nod.
I lunged, snatching my weapon from the deck, and as Sarren turned back, stabbed up with all my might. Through Zeke’s stomach and into Sarren’s heart. Zeke cried out, and Sarren went rigid, his eyes bulging in shock and pain. I yanked my sword free and, as Zeke fell, crumpling at my feet, brought the blade slashing across Sarren’s neck, cutting off his head.
I collapsed to the deck beside Zeke as my strength gave out, as Sarren’s body collapsed like a jerky puppet and went still. His bald head bounced on the deck, rolled over several times, and came to rest a few yards away, the scarred face frozen in an expression of surprise. This time, finally, he wouldn’t be getting up again.
“Zeke.” I pushed myself to an elbow and put a hand on his chest, my voice a ragged whisper. He lay on his back in a pool of blood, his eyes glazed as they stared at the sky. “Can you hear me?”
He grimaced, clenching his jaw, his fangs fully extended in pain. But his hand sought mine and gripped it tightly, his voice urgent as he turned to stare at me.
“Stop the barge, Allison.” A trickle of red streamed from his mouth, and he gritted his teeth. “Hurry. There’s…no time left. I don’t think…I can get up right now. Please.” He squeezed my hand. “It has to be you.”
I nodded wearily. I was so tired. Everything hurt, and I didn’t know if I had the strength to stand, much less turn an entire barge. But I pushed myself to my knees, and then, clenching my jaw, shoved myself upright. Hunger roared like fire through my veins, and every step was torture, but I staggered across the deck and practically fell against the open shipping container we had chained to the deck.
Putting bloody hands against the wall, I pushed. Nothing happened, except the bright jolt of agony slicing through me like a knife, and the Hunger that shrieked in my veins. Gritting my teeth, I tried again, closing my eyes against the pain, but the box stubbornly refused to budge.
I slumped against the wall, closing my eyes. I couldn’t do it. I was too weak, in too much pain, and I had no strength left. I’m sorry, Zeke, I thought, sliding down the metal, despair and grief clogging the back of my throat. I wanted to spend forever with you.
You can do this.
Blinking, I opened my eyes. The deck was empty, I was alone on the side of the ship. But I was almost certain I’d heard his voice, low and confident, like he was standing right beside me.
You are my last offspring, my legacy to this world. You are a Master vampire, Allison. I hope that, whatever your choice, whatever path you choose, you will remain that same girl I met that night in the rain. The one decision for which I have no regrets.
“Kanin,” I whispered, my throat tightening once more. Glaring at the metal wall, I bared my fangs. “I won’t let you down.”
Putting my shoulder against the steel once more, I closed my eyes and pushed, ignoring the pain, the Hunger that consumed me. For seconds, the container didn’t move. Then there was a rusty screech as the box shifted, just a few inches, but it was enough. I threw myself into the task, pushing with all my might, thinking of Kanin, Zeke, Caleb, even Jackal. All the people who had brought me this far. I would not fail them. I would, as a now-dead psychopath had put so eloquently, beat my wings against the coming dark until it swallowed me whole, or I drove it back entirely.
The metal container screeched horribly as it slid across the deck, stopping at the very edge of the barge. I paused, gathered the last of my strength, and shoved as hard as I could. The huge box tipped on its side, seemed to teeter at the edge of the deck, and finally went over, hi
tting the dark waters with a tremendous splash.
I crumpled to the deck once more, listening to the chain rattle over the side as the container sank beneath the surface, hopefully filling with water. It was done. I didn’t know if I’d gotten to it in time, if it would be enough to turn the barge, but there was nothing more I could do. As I lay there, I thought I could feel the barge turning…turning…agonizingly slow. But I couldn’t be certain.
And then there was a deafening, grinding crunch that shook the deck, as the huge ship finally ran aground. The barge shuddered violently, metal screeching, wood snapping, sounding like it was tearing itself apart, before it finally stopped moving. I thought I heard shouts and cries from the shore, gunfire booming into the night, and knew I should get up, try to help. I ached, badly, but I was healing, and in no danger of hibernation. At least not yet.
But, Zeke…
Suddenly frantic, I pushed myself upright and half crawled, half staggered over to where Zeke lay, collapsing beside him. His face was slack, but at my touch, he stirred, and his eyes opened. Bright with Hunger, glazed over with pain, but alive.
“Allie?” His gaze sought mine, worried and anxious even through the Hunger. “Did it work?” he whispered. “Did you turn the ship in time?”
“I don’t know,” I whispered back. Raising my head, I stared past the deck, but couldn’t see anything beyond the railing but trees. “I did everything I could.”
“Well, you did cut it a bit close, there, runts,” said a clear, familiar voice, as a shadow fell over me. “Another couple hundred feet, and it would’ve been a massacre. Which, don’t get me wrong, I’m usually all for, but not when I’m on the losing side.”
I looked up. Jackal stood over us, wearing his usual smirk, an assault rifle held casually to one shoulder. Raw, open wounds glimmered on his cheeks, and the sickly black veins had spread from his jaw to the side of his face, but he stood tall and proud there on the deck, shaking his head at me. His duster billowed out behind him, and his gold eyes shone in the darkness.
“Jackal,” I whispered, as he raised a sardonic eyebrow. “You’re…still here? I thought you took off….”
He snorted. “With Requiem on the loose? Where would I go, exactly? We had to stop it here, but I figured if Sarren killed us all, the damn plague would begin the second the barge hit land and the rabids got loose. I knew I wouldn’t be any help in taking on the psychopath. So, I implemented a backup plan. That way, if he managed to kill you all, at least I could warn the meatsacks what was coming.”
“That was your plan?” I glared at him, remembering what he’d said on the boat, right before he pulled away and vanished over the waves. “I thought you were abandoning us! Why didn’t you just tell me that earlier?”
Jackal gave me a smug grin. “And miss out on those lovely rants you do so well? What fun would that be?”
“Wait a minute.” Zeke struggled to sit up, his expression incredulous and skeptical. “You…you’re telling me you left to warn the town. To save the humans?”
“Don’t read too much into it, puppy,” Jackal sneered. “I don’t want Requiem to spread any more than you. It would put a rather large damper on my plans if everyone up and died. So, yes, I left to warn the bloodbags, who all agreed that we should try to stop this thing. Maybe pick off as many rabids as we could before they hit shore.” He raised his assault rifle. “That’s when I saw you and your girlfriend on deck with Sarren, getting your asses kicked, and thought I’d intervene. You’re welcome, by the way. I’m just a little sad I didn’t get to see Sarren’s face when it finally left his scrawny neck.” He snorted and looked at the pale, crumpled corpse lying several yards away. The head was nowhere in sight, having rolled off the deck when the ship ran aground. One corner of Jackal’s lip curled in a satisfied grin, before he sobered. “Too bad the old man never got to see it.”
A lump caught in my throat, even as I blinked at him. “You know.”
“I have a blood tie, too, sister.” Jackal smirked at me, though it lacked the bite of before. “I felt when the old bastard finally kicked it. It seemed to be what he wanted, so I’m guessing Sarren wasn’t the one who did him in. How’d it happen, anyway?”
I swallowed hard. “Kanin,” I began, trying to keep my voice steady, “discovered the cure…was inside him.” Jackal’s eyebrows arched, and an incredulous look crossed his face as I continued. “That he carried the cure for Requiem in his blood. He gave his life to make sure the virus wouldn’t spread to the rest of the world, that it would end right here.” My eyes went blurry, and I blinked hard to clear them, my voice coming out a little choked. “He saved us. He saved everything.”
“Huh.” Jackal blinked at me, his expression unreadable. Turning, he gazed back toward the platform, where the rabids had been minutes before. “Well, old man.” He sighed, and his voice wasn’t smug, or sarcastic, or mocking. “You’ve been waiting for this day since the rabids were first created. I hope you found your peace.”
Suddenly, he winced, sinking down on the deck, the assault rifle clattering beside him. Alarmed, I straightened, reaching out to steady him, but Jackal slumped to his back on the deck, putting an arm over his face. I could see the ugly bite wound on his neck, glimmering and black, turning the skin around it dark.
“Well, isn’t this fucking hilarious.” He sighed as the wind blew over the railing, swirling around three vampires slumped together on deck. “We saved a bunch of bleating meatsacks, killed a psychopath who is older than dirt, stopped another world-destroying plague…and we still don’t have the cure. God really does hate us, after all.” He sighed again, letting his other arm rest on his stomach, like he was just getting ready to take a nap. “Seeing as this is probably my last hurrah, I don’t suppose I could get you two bleeding hearts to massacre a village with me? For old time’s sake.”
“No,” I said, as Zeke frowned beside me. Though I was starving, and I would have to feed soon, as would Zeke. Hopefully, Dr. Thomas could spare a real blood bag or two. “You’re not going to slaughter the humans we worked so hard to save,” I told Jackal, who snorted without looking at me. “Besides, you’re not going to die.”
“Oh?” He lowered his arm, eyeing me with resignation. “Got the cure up your sleeve, then, sister?”
“Actually, I think I do.”
They both stared at me. I looked at Zeke, and Jackal, and felt that tiny flicker of hope grow steadily into a rising flame. Kanin had been injected with Zeke’s blood in New Covington, but he wasn’t the only one. Just to be certain, I felt along my neck where the infected rabid had bitten me, finding smooth, unbroken skin, and smiled.
“I’m a Master vampire,” I said, to their stunned expressions. “The cure is inside me, as well.”
Chapter 20
I woke up on a table.
Opening my eyes, I winced as an overhead light blazed down on me, making me hiss and turn away, shielding my face. The surface under my back felt hard and smooth, metallic. Confused, I struggled upright, squinting against the brightness, wondering where I was.
“Ah, Miss Allison. You’re awake.”
A man came forward, dressed in a long white coat, the light reflecting off his glasses. His arm hung in a sling, and a bandage covered one side of his head, but I blinked in recognition. “Dr. Richardson?”
He nodded, and the rest of the room came into focus, small and white, with tile floors and shelves full of sharp instruments. The surface I lay on was a metal table, shiny and smelling faintly of chemicals and blood. My stomach gave a jolt as I realized where I was. Somehow, I was back in the lab.
I groped back for my sword and found it missing, as well. Glaring at the scientist, I growled and bared my fangs. “You should’ve tied me down if you thought you were going to keep me here,” I said as the human’s eyes widened.
“Easy.” Richardson held up his uninjured hand. “Calm down, girl. It’s not what you think.”
“Where are Jackal and Zeke?”
“They�
�re fine! They’re both fine. Please, calm down.”
“Both of them?”
“Yes.” The scientist gave a firm nod. “Both of them.” He sighed as I relaxed a bit, retracting my fangs. They were okay. Even Jackal was all right. “And we’re not going to keep you here,” Richardson went on, gesturing to the door, which lay open and unguarded. “You can leave whenever you want. Just hear me out.”
“Where are we?” I asked, trying to remember the final few minutes of the night before. After the ship had run aground, most of the rabids had fled into the woods or joined the swarm still lingering around the checkpoint gates. Jackal, I discovered later, had taken a small boat out to the crippled barge rather than fight his way through the horde. We’d returned to the checkpoint the same way and found a platoon of soldiers waiting for us, thankfully with an ample supply of blood bags and no citizens around to tempt us. Jackal, apparently, had told them what to prepare for when we returned.
After downing two—just enough to heal and keep the Hunger at bay—I had returned to the hospital with Jackal and Zeke. Hendricks had been waiting for us, but with Jackal in such a bad way, I’d sent Zeke to deal with the mayor while I hunted down Dr. Thomas and forced him to help the sickening vampire. The little human hadn’t said anything when I’d ordered him to draw my blood and inject it into Jackal, clearly terrified now that there were three vampires to contend with instead of only one.
After that, with dawn less than an hour away, the rest of the conversation had become somewhat of a blur. I remembered meeting with Mayor Hendricks and Zeke, remembered telling them about the cure, and the mayor had asked if I was willing to offer a bit of my blood for research. After making him swear that they would not be using me for a lab experiment, I’d agreed.
And then I’d woken up here.
“Is this Eden?” I asked in amazement, but Dr. Richardson shook his head.
“No, this is still the checkpoint,” he answered, and offered a wry smile. “Trust me, I was just as confused when I woke up in the hospital and not on the island. After you four vampires left me at the lab, I thought I was going to die. I holed up near the power plant until I passed out from blood loss.” He shook his head. “But, as it turns out, it wasn’t quite my time. A squad came for me early this morning, said that one of the vampires had told them where to find me, and that Mayor Hendricks had personally ordered my retrieval.”