by Ann Gimpel
“Say more.”
“He’s nuts. Blood-fury nuts, and it’s not going away.”
“Why are all of you following him?” Viktor glanced sidelong at Glenn.
“Abe tried to leave. He was subtle enough about it, but Jorge noticed and called him back. Abe was an idiot and trotted right up next to him. Next thing we knew, Jorge swung that saber he bragged about using to kill Raph, and Abe’s head bounced into the dirt.”
“He wasn’t kidding when he spouted off that jewel about killing first and asking questions later.”
“No.” Glenn bit off the word. “And now you’re as fucked as the rest of us. Jorge knows you’re part of this pack. He’ll figure it out quick enough if you desert.”
“Maybe Raph will get the upper hand back. He’s got to be in there somewhere.”
“Pah. That old fucker wasn’t much better. Just as crazy, but he covered it well.”
Viktor trotted next to Glenn, shuffling through possibilities and discarding them. Ketha’s voice flashed through his mind, but he ignored it, not wanting to risk Glenn picking up on her presence. “There’s way more of us than him,” he muttered at last.
“So? Raph kept the upper hand. Bastard didn’t even have to try very hard.”
“That was because he wasn’t all that unreasonable,” Viktor shot back. “You should catch up with the rest of them. Sooner or later, someone will notice we fell behind.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Better if you don’t know,” Viktor replied and turned left down an alley leading to an entrance to the underground burrows riddling Ushuaia’s hills. Glenn might rat him out, but he didn’t think so. The other Vampire had seemed genuinely disgusted—and distressed—by Jorge’s transformation. Given that Vampires rarely expressed much of anything in the emotional spectrum, Glenn’s reaction had been all the more significant.
Christ! The world was turning into an even worse mess than it had been. If Ketha’s spell didn’t prevail, dying a few months ahead of time wasn’t the worst consequence. Living in a world where a lunatic’s paranoid whims dictated outcomes would be far worse.
He moved a manhole cover aside, bounded down the ladder, and ran hard as soon as his feet connected with the dirt passageway. He didn’t fear for his own life. Regardless of how he’d felt about Raphael, the Master Vamp had been tolerant of him, and Viktor was certain he wouldn’t stand by while Jorge raised the saber against him.
Ketha.
She’d be the only bad part about dying. He’d finally found a woman he could love. A woman he wanted to spend eternity with. Was she about to be ripped away from him because none of them had a future?
He hoped she’d done the smart thing and beelined it for the mesa. He couldn’t shield his presence. If he’d remained within the cypress grove, his emanations would’ve alerted the other Vamps. They might not have noticed Ketha swathed in her invisibility illusion, but it was better not to have taken that chance. At least he’d bought her time to flee.
He came to the last leg of the tunnel, the one ending in the ladder that would spit him out not far from the trail up the mountainside. He’d grabbed the metal side rail when a muffled grunt froze him in place. Though he listened intently, swiveling his head this way and that to maximize his range, he didn’t hear anything else.
Silence reigned, but it held an ominous aspect. Was someone following him? Someone doing his damnedest to remain hidden? If so, it ruled out Jorge. Subtlety was probably beyond him at this point.
Viktor remained motionless for long moments. He sent out feelers, but the tunnels had so many twists and turns, they masked whomever might be behind him. What should he do? If he left the tunnels and headed uphill on the trail, he’d eventually reveal his destination.
Until he could rule out being followed, he’d be goddamned if he’d put the Shifters at risk. Never mind Juan and Recco and Daide. If Ketha had been smart, she was almost back at the mesa by now, but there was a good chance she was out and about, combing Ushuaia’s streets hunting for him.
Viktor let go of the ladder and turned, taking care to be absolutely silent. He wouldn’t have to backtrack far. Once he passed a ninety-degree bend in the passageway, the next half mile was a straight shot. He’d be able to determine if someone had tracked him, and who that someone was. He reached the corner and slowed, using the earthen wall to shield his body as he peered down the passage.
Vampire essence bounced back at him.
“Son of a fucking bitch. I know you’re there, Glenn. Game’s up.”
White-blond dreads came into view as the other Vamp emerged from one of the many ladder wells dotting the corridor. Light on his feet, he sped to where Viktor stood. Defiance flashed from his eyes.
“Figured you’d catch me when I tripped over that hole in the ground and made some noise. If you expect me to apologize,” he growled, “don’t. I’m not going to. I took my chances. Wherever it is you’re headed, I’m coming. Let’s get moving before someone tracks us. So far so good.”
So far so good indeed.
Where to begin?
“You may not want to throw your lot in with me.” Viktor started for the place where he’d been when Glenn’s bumbling had alerted him he wasn’t alone.
“I don’t give a fuck if you’re planning a swan dive into the ocean. It’s better than whatever Jorge has up his sleeve.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that.” Viktor swarmed up the ladder with Glenn behind him. He ran for the last street that hugged the hillside and stopped near the same crumbling concrete bunker where he’d waited for Ketha earlier that night.
Glenn ground to a halt and sent a calculating glance Viktor’s way.
Viktor readied himself. If the other Vamp bolted once he heard about the collusion with Shifters to defeat the Cataclysm, his life would be forfeit. Viktor couldn’t chance him spilling any of the story—to anyone.
He turned and let his gaze bore into Glenn’s. “I’m not much safer than Jorge at this point. If I tell you what I’m up to—and you don’t like what you hear and don’t want to be a part of it—I’ll kill you. I’m far more lethal than Jorge because I haven’t lost my mind. Choose, but be quick about it.”
Desolation pinched the corners of Glenn’s green eyes into pinwheels. “What we’ve been living, it’s not any kind of life.” He held his hands in front of him. “I was a violinist before the Cataclysm trapped me. Four of us—me, my pianist, my cellist, and my harp player—were here on a concert tour.”
Viktor generally steered clear of life-before-the-Cataclysm conversations, but he needed to know more about Glenn, so he asked, “What happened to them?”
“The piano player and cellist died in the first wave of riots to hit the city after the Cataclysm.” Glenn looked away. “The harp player was also my wife.”
Viktor waited, but Glenn didn’t offer anything further. “What happened to her?”
Glenn shrugged uncomfortably. “Raph turned her too, except it totally changed her. She joined up with the other female Vamps. Didn’t want anything to do with me. I don’t know. She wasn’t the same person. This will sound melodramatic, but her eyes looked dead. Vampires forfeit their souls, but with her, it was far more apparent.”
“Maybe that’s only because you knew her so well and noticed the difference.”
Glenn shrugged again. “Maybe so.”
Viktor glanced at a sky edging toward dawn. It was still black, but in another hour or two, it wouldn’t be. He had to get moving. Before launching into a discussion with Glenn, one that might well end in the other Vamp’s death, he raised his mind voice, hoping Ketha would hear him. “Mesa. Now.”
Her response came immediately. “Viktor?”
“Who else?”
“Where were you earlier? I tried to reach you.”
He didn’t answer. He’d told her enough to get her moving toward safety, and he didn’t want to divert his attention from Glenn. Viktor turned toward the other Vampire and said without
preamble, “The Shifters have a spell that might break the Cataclysm’s hold on Ciudad de Huesos. They need our help to pull it off. It’s dangerous. Far from a sure thing. It might kill us all, but if it works, it’s possible we won’t be Vampires anymore.”
“What would we be?”
“Not sure. We might turn into Shifters, or we might go back to being humans.”
Hope glimmered in Glenn’s eyes, painful in its intensity. “I’m in. Let’s get moving. You can tell me more on the way.” After a brief hesitation, he held out a hand.
Viktor shook it. The small retreat to what had once been “normal” warmed him. Vampires rarely touched. It wasn’t part of their culture. He understood at a bone-deep level how desperately Glenn wanted not to be a Vampire anymore. Being dead would be an improvement—if it didn’t spell the loss of Ketha right along with it.
He led the way onto the mountain track, filling Glenn in on what he knew. The things they had tacked down, and the long list of things likely to pose problems—including Jorge. He searched for fresh traces of Ketha’s energy as he moved uphill, but didn’t find it, which meant she was somewhere behind them.
Viktor halted at the turnoff to the cells. “Ketha!”
“Yes!” Joy boiled into his mind along with the one word. “Where are you?”
“Close to the cells.”
“Be there in ten minutes. Maybe less.”
Relief weakened his knees, and he sagged against a boulder partially blocking the track.
“What?” Glenn demanded. “Why are we stopping?”
“To wait for Ketha. Remember, I told you she was with me in that cypress grove.”
“Yeah, I got that part, but what took her so long?”
Viktor eyed the other Vampire. “She was probably looking for me.”
Glenn shook his dreads over his shoulders. “Sorry, dude. None of my business. Maybe if this gig of yours works, I’ll get my wife back.”
He sounded so hopeful—and so broken—Viktor didn’t know what to say. He was still wrestling with variations that didn’t come out like condolences when the sound of Ketha’s boots pounding up the trail reached him.
“Wait here,” he told Glenn, and raced downhill.
She wasn’t as close as he’d thought, but he ran until he could wrap her into his arms and sweep her off her feet tight against him. She wound her arms around him, hanging on as if she’d been certain she’d never see him again.
“Damn me, but you’re a welcome sight,” she said. “I was afraid something hideous—”
“Hush.” He loped uphill, carrying her. “None of it matters except we’re together. Glenn is at the cells. I didn’t ask for his help, but he followed me when I slipped away from Jorge’s gang. We need more Vamps, and he’s willing.”
“You took a huge chance. How much did you tell him? Are you sure—?”
He stared down at her, bewildered by her lack of faith in his judgment. “Yes. I wasn’t at first, but I am now.”
“That’s good enough for me.” She offered him half a smile. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. It’s been a long night.”
Viktor reached Glenn and set Ketha back on her feet. She held out a hand. Glenn shook it without any hesitation. That, more than anything, convinced Viktor the other Vamp was on board and they could trust him.
“You never did tell me exactly where we’re headed,” Glenn said.
“Not much longer until you find out,” Viktor replied.
Ketha walked in front, setting the pace then Glenn with Viktor in the rear. He was content to keep Ketha within sight. The swing of her hips ignited desire that seeped through him like warm honey. Her dark hair shimmered, its red and gold strands glowing in his amped-up night vision. Apparently, she’d been as worried about something untoward happening to him as he’d been about her. Evidence of her caring touched his soul, the soul he was supposed to have lost once he was turned.
Ketha stopped shy of the enormous bramble bush. She’d slowed before reaching it, and Viktor knew how worn out she must be. He scooped her into his arms. “Get some rest, love. I’ll carry you over the hard part.”
She nestled against him. “Thanks. Magic’s nearly gone again, and I have a feeling I’ll need it soon.”
“What the hell?” Glenn stared up the near-vertical mountainside, craning his neck. “What’s at the top that’s worth the struggle? It’s so far up, I can’t even see it with my augmented vision.”
“It’s not as hard as it looks,” Viktor said, following it with, “I’m not sure how it happened, but there’s a plateau up there that escaped the worst of the Cataclysm’s ravages. It has clean water, underground rivers with fish, and shelter.”
“You’re joking. That’s impossible. I was a physics professor before I quit teaching at the university to play music.”
“And I was a microbiologist. You’ll see for yourself soon.” Ketha raised her head from Viktor’s shoulder long enough to smile encouragingly.
Glenn was still muttering about black holes and vortices when Viktor started uphill, Ketha clasped tightly against him. Energy pounded him in waves as the air came alive with something other than the three of them.
Ketha stiffened in his arms, twisting her head from side to side. “Damn it! What is that? Not one of you? Certainly not another Shifter...”
“Doesn’t leave many choices, now does it?” Viktor muttered. Unless some other manner of being chose to storm the Cataclysm, which was impossible, the odd energy had to belong to Raziel. The Archangel wasn’t bothering to cloak his essence since they’d blown his cover.
Vibrant light flashed on the slope above him. When it cleared, Raziel balanced on a rocky outcrop, long, fair hair shrouding him to his waist. “Top of the morning to you.” He mock bowed.
“Raziel?” Glenn chugged next to Viktor and Ketha and directed his next words to them. “What’s he doing here? I didn’t know Vampires could control the visible light spectrum.”
“You might ask me. I’m right here.” Raziel stared down at them for long moments before he started uphill, leaping over obstacles as he moved in a vertical line that defied gravity.
“He’s, um, not one of us.” Viktor aimed his words at Glenn.
“No shit. I figured that part out, but he sure put on a good show all those years.”
Viktor slogged after Raziel, feeling slow and clumsy by comparison. “Why are you here?” he called to the Archangel.
“Maybe I’m a sucker for lost causes.”
“Define lost cause,” Ketha said.
Raziel shrugged. The motion made light cascade around his fast-moving form. “You never know,” he replied. “Could be yours. Might be mine. Hard to say about these things until they’re over. I fought the good fight, resisting your plea for aid, but this is where I’m supposed to be. Who knows? Maybe it’s one of many reasons I was sent here all those years ago. To bear witness to how the world ends.”
“Not sure I trust your sudden change of heart,” Ketha muttered.
“If I were you, I wouldn’t, either. Beyond that,” Raziel went on, “didn’t it strike you as odd when you found my garden? The one up there.” He glanced toward the top of the ridge.
“You made that?” Viktor battled incredulity that the Archangel commanded enough power to stave off the Cataclysm.
“Who else? It wasn’t so much a matter of making as of protecting it from the Cataclysm’s ravages.” Raziel leapt away from them, moving upward with the grace of a mountain goat.
“There’s your explanation,” Ketha said to Glenn.
The Vampire shook his head. “Not sure it’s any easier to swallow than knowing there’s decent water and fish up there. It’s like an arcane rebirth of the Garden of Eden myth.”
Raziel waited for them, straddling the ridgeline. He took one look at Ketha and extended an index finger. Light flashed, illuminating her forehead.
Viktor set her on her feet and stepped between her and Raziel within the space of two heartbeats. �
�What did you do to her?” he snarled.
“Restored her magic. Go ahead. Ask her.” Raziel skinned his lips back from his teeth, displaying false fangs. “Look, Vampire. I already told you I’m fighting on your team. Do. Not. Anger. Me. It’s not a good idea.”
“No, you look, you sorry sack of sanctimonious shit—” Viktor began.
“It’s all right,” Ketha cried. “I have no idea how he did it, but I’m back to a hundred percent. Neat trick on his part, since I was sucking fumes on the way up here.”
“Apologies are welcome any time, as are thanks.” Raziel spread his mouth in an approximation of a smile, faux fangs extended.
“There you are!” Aura pelted toward them at full speed. “Hurry. You have to hurry.”
Ketha moved from behind Viktor. “Why? What’s happened?”
“We cast the tarot. Did it half a dozen times to make sure, and the only time to do this is at daybreak.” She glanced skyward. “I’m guessing we have about half an hour, max.” Aura stared at Raziel and Glenn. “I recognize that one.” She pointed at Raziel. “Who are you?” She focused her moss-green gaze on Glenn.
“Another Vampire,” Ketha said, her tone curt.
“Goddess’s tits. I have magic. I know what he is. Why’s he here? He wasn’t in your vision.”
“I’ll help any way I can if it’ll defeat the Cataclysm,” Glenn spoke up. “Just tell me what to do.”
Aura sent daggers his way out of slitted eyes. “I’ll hold you to that, Vamp. If you give me the slightest reason to doubt you, I’ll kill you myself.”
“Got it.” Glenn didn’t sound nearly as cordial, and Viktor didn’t blame him.
“Ketha. Come on.” Aura latched a hand around her arm and tugged. “You need to parcel out assignments. Rowana tried to pry your worksheets out of your spell book, but the bastard burned her hand.”
Ketha ran lightly after Aura. “Of course, it did. I’m surprised any of you would tackle another Shifter’s book. They’re spelled against anyone but their owner and specific blood kin.”
“We knew that, but you weren’t back. Dawn was coming, and we were desperate.”