As she kept walking, her house got smaller and smaller. There was no Dmitri running around the corner to save her. Lucian didn’t magically appear in front of her. Just the cold emptiness of the night.
Was Dmitri even alive? He was just one vampire against who knew how many. Lucian said there were at least three, but that didn’t mean there weren’t more.
Ella shook her head. She needed to focus. She needed to be ready.
As she reached the end of the street, she turned left, toward the library. Gloria told her to meet the vampire there, but Ella had no illusions. They were watching her and were just waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
She didn’t have to wait long. Right as she turned the corner onto the street that led to downtown Pikesville, Gloria emerged from behind a parked car. Her skirt was so short and her top was so low, she must’ve been out with friends when she was caught.
Gloria stopped just feet in front of Ella, her blank stare confirming she was not the one in control of her body.
Ella’s hand tightened on the butcher knife. “Where’s your friend?”
The teen said nothing. Just blinked, as though no one was in front of her.
Which meant she was the distraction.
A cold hand wrapped around Ella’s wrist before the thought was ever completed.
“Are you going to drop it, or do I have to make you?” Unlike Gloria, this voice wasn’t emotionless. It was deep and serious, with a slight hint of glee. This thing wanted her to fight him.
In all honesty, she wanted to fight him too. She knew better, though. She loosened her fingers, allowing her weapon to clatter onto the sidewalk. She tried to keep her mind blank, not wanting to inadvertently give away the locations of her other weapons.
Trying her best to keep her hand from shaking in his hard grasp, Ella turned to face her demon.
Familiar black eyes stared into hers. “Miss me?” he asked.
“Not especially,” she said, unable to prevent the quiver in her voice.
He let out a soft laugh. “We’re going to have fun together,” he whispered into her ear.
The trembling spread from her hand to the rest of her body.
“Pick up the knife.” The vampire’s booming voice, so close to her ear, was almost as painful as his tight grip.
At first she thought he was ordering her to pick up the discarded weapon, but Gloria bent down to collect it. The teen turned her empty eyes back to the vampire, silently asking for further instruction.
“Stab yourself in the gut.”
Ella’s eyes went wide at the command, but her captor was ready for her outburst. Ella used every bit of strength she had to pull toward Gloria, dropping the phone to claw and scratch and kick her feet as hard as her training allowed, but it was no use. In seconds, the blade was imbedded to the hilt in the teen’s stomach.
Gloria’s eyes watered and her breathing quickened. Her knees seemed to shake, but she didn’t fall down or make a sound.
“You goddamn son of a bitch! Fucking ass—”
His fingers curled in her hair and jerked her head back. The sudden pain and awkward angle made words impossible.
“She’s not dead yet. I want all your weapons on the ground in the next ten seconds or I’m going to make her do it again.”
And for the first time that night, Ella felt truly powerless. Cutoff from Clara. From Lucian. Trapped in the arms of a psychopath.
She didn’t even consider fighting him. As she looked up at the night sky, she pulled the hem of her shirt away from her waist and snaked her hand up to shake the mace loose from her bra. The aluminum clattered onto the pavement.
Still avoiding his probably smug gaze, her other hand reached to her back, having to force its way between her body and his. A wave of nausea hit her at the contact and she closed her eyes tightly.
As quick as her shaking would allow, she plucked the blade from her waistband and threw it to the ground.
“That’s everything?”
The damn shaking wouldn’t stop. “Are you going to search me?” He laughed again and Ella still refused to look at his grin.
He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her fully against him while releasing her hair and stroking his fingers along her cheek and neck. “I think you’re going to behave.”
She wished he was wrong, but she couldn’t deny the facts. If she disobeyed, Gloria was dead and they were still so close to Clara. Any type of offensive move would have to wait.
So she stood still, not making a sound. That apparently wasn’t good enough for the man.
“Girl! Take that knife and ram it into your throat.”
Gloria’s eyes widened and her arm tensed as though she was trying to fight against the compulsion to obey his every command.
“Please!” begged Ella, pulling against him even knowing she couldn’t get away. “I’m doing everything you ask. You don’t have to do this!”
But it was already too late. Gloria shoved the blade through the delicate skin of her neck. The immediate squirt of blood, followed by a steady stream, flowed down to mix with the blood already spilling from her stomach.
Ella felt the world spin around her as she struggled like a wild animal, trying to hurt him in any way possible: nails, teeth, head butt. All she could see as she struggled was Gloria’s terrified eyes as the lights seemed to slowly go out and she slipped limply to the cold ground.
And then came the sharp sting in her neck as his fangs sank in. Ella’s struggles slowed as defeat set in. Then there was nothing but black.
One heavy push on her back sent Ella sprawling on her hands and knees as a heavy door slammed shut behind her.
The darkness surrounded her, the utter blackness more paralyzing than any bindings. She didn’t hear anything except the sound of her own breathing but couldn’t shake the feeling that something was in that darkness.
She moved a hand out a few inches in front of her, feeling only grime and cold tile. Pushing herself up, she sat back on her knees and wiped her hands on her pants. She should hold something to her neck to stop the bleeding, but she had no idea what types of filth her hands had just touched.
She held the back of her fingers to the wound. Wasn’t perfect, but better than nothing. The bleeding from the first bite outside her house had stopped while she was bounced around in the trunk of the vampire’s car. However, he decided to feed from her once more after dragging her through a maze-like arrangement of cells in what looked to be an old warehouse.
She tilted her head to look up and around her, but not even a sliver of light penetrated her cell.
Something felt wrong. This room was wrong.
The corner of her mouth lifted. What was she thinking? Of course it felt off. Nothing about this was right.
She could only hope Lucian or Dmitri realized she was missing and got to Clara. She didn’t know what she’d do if these bastards turned their attentions to her.
Lucian would take care of their daughter. He might be hard to deal with and much too controlling at times, but he loved Clara. He would keep her safe.
She wasn’t so sure about her own safety at the moment.
She should investigate. Feel around the borders of the room. Search for anything the vampires might’ve missed.
Instead, she leaned against the door behind her, still holding her neck. What were the chances she’d find a way out of this prison?
But it was more than the sense of defeat that left her motionless against the door. The darkness seemed to beat at her, as if it were another living being in the room. Surrounding and stalking her.
She had no idea how big or small the cell was. Just that it was dirty, cold, and she was trapped in it.
She got the idea it wasn’t too big. Maybe a six to ten-foot square. The sounds didn’t seem to echo the way they would in a bigger room.
A bright light turned on, almost like a spotlight, and shined directly at her. Instead of allowing her to see into the dark, it blinded her. She held he
r free hand in front of her face; the light burned her retinas even through closed eyelids.
The squeak of a speaker filled the room before stabilizing. “I’m sorry to be so rude,” came the voice. It was the same bastard who’d dragged her in here. “I forgot introductions. This is our pet. He loves raw meat.”
Ella pushed herself away from the door and slammed into the nearest wall. She whipped around to stare at the entrance, waiting for some horror to burst through.
The door didn’t budge.
If nothing was coming in, that meant...
She gazed into the blinding glow again. Was this terror already there?
Something shuffled in the shadows behind the light.
Ella plastered herself to the wall and listened for any other sign of movement, but all she heard was her frantic breathing.
She felt around on the dirty tiles, feeling for anything that could be used as a weapon, but all she found was more dust and debris.
Not even a stick littered the floor.
No, no, no, no. She couldn’t go out like this. All her training and promises to Clara lost as she was stuck, defenseless, in a trap made by the vampires. She was supposed to go out in a blaze of glory, firing guns and slowly walking away from explosions.
Not with a whimper.
“Who’s there?” she called.
Laughter dripped from the speakers. “Silly girl, animals don’t talk. Tell me what you are and I’ll keep him from eating you.”
More shuffling. Whatever it was, it seemed to be agitated by the speaker’s voice. Well, at least they had something in common.
“I’m human,” she repeated, not willing or able to tell the bastard what he wanted to know.
“Wrong answer.”
The lights rapidly flickered, and Ella jumped to her feet. Whatever he was planning, she wasn’t going down without a fight.
She clenched her fists, one dry and one still wet with blood, and held them defensively in front of her.
The shuffling moved closer and she tried to regulate her breathing. No matter how badass she stood, she’d still look like a fool if she died hyperventilating. Though what did she care if she looked like a fool when she died? She’d be dead.
Ella squinted and tried to see the creature better through the strobe effect of the flickering lights. What could be dangerous enough to threaten her, yet so silent? Some type of vicious dog would surely be growling, panting or pacing.
Besides that, the little noise she did hear told her this thing was much bigger than a dog.
“Bite her, you moron!” shouted the speaker.
Ella’s heartbeat kicked up a notch, which was saying something considering how fast it already pounded away in her chest. So, whatever this thing was, it could speak English and had sharp teeth.
Some sort of feral vampire? Did vampires turn feral?
More rustling sounded and for the first time, it moved into the light.
Ella’s breath caught in her throat at the sight of a gaunt and skeletal man. His arms and legs were nothing but skin and bones. Black eyes stared at her above hollow cheekbones. Thinning hair covered his skull and reached well below his shoulders.
“Oh my God,” she breathed. As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t deny the instant recognition.
Even with the heartbreaking features, she would recognize him anywhere. “Cade?”
His lips curled in a snarl. This new Cade looked her up and down. Disgust filled his gaunt features. Then the frail-looking creature she used to know ran straight for her throat.
Lucian appeared in Ella’s living room, eyes narrowing at the sight of Dmitri on the couch with Clara. As quick as he could, he donned his human form. “Aren’t you supposed to be in bed?”
Clara met his eyes. “Mr. Dmitri woke me up. Mommy is missing.” She said the words calmly as she looked at him. As though she had complete faith he’d find Ella.
And he would. Ella would be back with him by sunrise, he swore to himself.
“I think it’s best you stay with me for the rest of the night. Why don’t you go pack a bag, okay?”
Clara nodded and pushed herself off the couch.
As soon as she was out of sight, Lucian changed back to his myotis form. “How the hell did you lose her?”
Dmitri’s jaw clenched. “I don’t know. I saw her in the kitchen one minute. I went to check out a sound in the backyard, and I didn’t see her again. I figured she just went to bed.”
“How long ago did you see her last?”
“Hour tops. Your text came pretty quickly.”
Thank God Lucian had been keeping in contact with Ella. When she stopped responding to his messages, he asked Dmitri to make sure she was okay. Now there was no trace of her.
“Her purse is still here but I can’t see any trace of her phone,” said Dmitri.
Lucian strode over to the purse sitting open on the table next to the couch. He riffled through the contents before he threw the bag against the nearest wall.
Dmitri jumped up. “What is it?”
“Her mace is gone. She had it in her purse. It was how she had the chance to kill that vampire. If you didn’t hear a struggle and the mace is gone, that means she left voluntarily.” Lucian pushed open the door, not bothering to change back to human. He took a deep breath as he gazed at the mostly dark houses.
Just on the edge of the wind was the barest hint of her scent. “Stay with Clara. Call Dean.”
The farther he got from the house, the angrier he got. They made her walk this far. She wouldn’t have left Clara unless Ella thought Clara would be in more danger if she stayed.
His already bubbling rage overflowed as he turned the corner. Her scent ended right at the bloody body of a young blonde lying face down. She was half on the concrete sidewalk and half on the grass, her skirt riding up to take away any remaining piece of dignity.
Leaning above the corpse, Lucian rolled her over and stared into the still open eyes of Clara’s babysitter. He’d only glimpsed her momentarily, but it was long enough to get a good look. Judging by the position of the blade and the angle of the cut, the vampire made her impale her own throat.
Chances were he’d done it in front of Ella. The ultimate display of power. Lip curled in disgust, Lucian closed his eyes. Anger was fine, but he needed to think clearly. He needed to find Ella before the trail went cold.
He gently pulled down the young woman’s skirt and stood up, only then seeing the crushed cell phone at his feet. Cursing under his breath, he transported back to Ella’s living room where Clara waited, her small pink and purple backpack already packed with stuff.
Lucian bent down, pulling Clara to him in a tight hug, inhaling the scent of her shampoo and hair, needing to know at least one of his girls was safe. “Where’s Dean?” he asked over Clara’s shoulder as Dmitri walked in the room.
“Said he was looking for the car that took her. Should be here any moment,” said the vampire.
Lucian didn’t have time for this shit. He picked Clara up, holding her tightly, and thought of Dean’s New York apartment. “Dean! Where is she?”
Dean jumped at Lucian’s sudden appearance. His gaze darted between him and the girl. “You sure you want to talk about this now?”
Lucian narrowed his eyes. “Time is important here. Tell me what you know.”
Clara’s gaze kept switching between Lucian and Dean. “You two both look like monsters,” she stated.
Lucian stiffened. Damnit! He should’ve changed back! He couldn’t focus on all this shit. He needed to find Ella. “Are you afraid of me?”
She shook her head. “You don’t act like a monster.”
Lucian let out a sigh of relief. “I need you to think hard. Did you hear anything strange before your mother left?”
Tears filled the child’s eyes. Being held by a monster didn’t faze her, but the reminder of her mother was too much. “I was sleeping. I shouldn’t have slept through the monsters.”
Lucian laid a comfor
ting kiss on her forehead, only belatedly remembering what he looked like. But the child leaned deeper into him, wrapping her arms even more tightly around his neck. “Don’t worry. We’ll find her. I promise. Dean! Do we have any footage of the cars they were driving?”
Dean took a nervous gulp, his leathery neck bobbing with the action. “I was already on it. Because it’s so late and there were so few cars on the road during the timeframe Dmitri gave me, I was able to narrow down what car they used to get away and used the security camera at the bank down the road to get a read on the license plate.” Dean paused.
“And...” pestered Lucian.
“And I tracked the car to a gas station about twenty minutes from where Ella was taken. They switched cars.”
Lucian felt the world spin around him. “Were there any cars stolen from there?”
“None reported. They could’ve just made the guy they stole the car from forget. Or worse,” he muttered.
Clara hugged him tighter and he knew she understood exactly what Dean meant.
“We need to get to that station. Grab Dmitri and Charlie and head out there to take a look. I’m going to drop off Clara and I’ll meet you out there.”
Dean nodded. “Who’s going to watch Clara?”
Lucian ground his teeth, not looking forward to his next task. “Her grandfather.”
Lucian appeared at the foot of Dr. Murray’s driveway, not wanting to get too close. Knowing his history with the doctor, he’d end up with a bullet in his head before he could hope to explain the danger Ella was in.
He shut his eyes and clenched his teeth as he forced his human form to resurface.
Clara gasped in his arms. “You’re back.”
He gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. “I never went anywhere.”
“Why don’t you always look like you?”
“Both of my faces are me. This one hurts me at night and the other one hurts during the day. Since I’m seeing your grandfather for the first time in a long time, I wanted to look my best. You know, some people get scared of my other face.”
Stealing Fire (Bad Boys Of The Underworld Book 5) Page 20