He scowled over his shoulder at her.
Caterina hurried to him, eyes scanning as she closed the distance between them, checking every dark corner for a sign of the vampires.
Marek nodded towards a building at an intersection ahead of them, an apartment block that had seen better days. Independence flags hung from some of the balconies, but all of the plants on them were long dead. There were lights in the windows near the top floor.
“Sorry about this.” He looked up at the illuminated floor, his noble profile to her. “It’s either this or leaving you here.”
Caterina didn’t get a chance to ask him what he was talking about.
He snaked his arm out, curled it around her waist and hauled her up against him, and she grabbed hold of him with both hands as darkness whirled around her and the world spun into shadows. Cold slithered over her and she shuddered as she blinked in the inky black, desperate to see something as her senses were suddenly stolen from her.
There was only black. Only silence.
Only numbing ice.
And then there was light and voices, and the warmth of Marek’s body pressing against hers.
Her head spun, twisting the world around her into a blur of colours, and the noises swam in her ears as her legs weakened beneath her, and bile rose up her throat.
“You’ll feel better in a moment.” Marek released her and something hissed.
A vampire?
Caterina slumped to her knees on the floor and gripped the tacky carpet, desperately clinging to it as if it would anchor her and stop the room from spinning.
“Needed the element of surprise.” Marek’s voice rang in her ears and then there was a grunt and another vicious hiss, and someone growled.
The light flickered as glass smashed, dimming and making everything more bearable. The spinning in her head started to slow, things coming gradually into focus, forming four black shapes.
Marek was one of them. She blinked and could make him out more clearly. He remained in front of her, blocking the path of the three male vampires as they swiped at him with their claws, all of them baring their fangs, their eyes vivid crimson.
The one to her right looked beyond her, taking his eyes off Marek for only a second.
Caterina looked behind her. The door there had locks on it. The only exit?
Marek had managed to teleport her into their nest and block the exit at the same time.
She would have been impressed if she hadn’t wanted to vomit so badly.
She swallowed hard, trying to keep it down and keep it together, and exhaled hard. Marek glanced over his shoulder at her.
The vampire to his left sprang at him.
“Marek!” she screamed.
He was gone in a flash and the vampire stumbled through the black smoke he left behind. His red eyes narrowed, a frustrated snarl pealing from his lips as he realised Marek was gone, and then he looked down at her where she sat on the dirty grey carpet.
And grinned.
“Not so fast.” Marek appeared behind him and thrust his knife into the vampire’s side, spilling blood down his black jeans.
The vampire shrieked and tore away from him, ripping the wound open, so the flow of crimson became a waterfall that rapidly drenched the carpet and crept towards her.
The other two vampires attacked at once.
Caterina pulled herself together, and tore her leather jacket off as she shot to her feet. She reached around behind her, drew her blade and swept below the arm of the first vampire as he lashed out at her.
Leaving himself wide open.
She tried to land a blow on him, but the second vampire spotted her before she could get close. He kicked at her arm and she cried out as his boot connected, sending fire zinging along her bones.
Marek loosed an unholy growl and grabbed her by the strap of her sword sheath, and pulled her backwards as the black-haired vampire struck again. His boot shot through the air where her face had been. Marek twisted her around him, so her back was to his, and brought his hand around in a vicious arc, his silver knife a blur as it sliced through the air.
The black-haired vampire leaped backwards on a hiss, clearing the length of the room.
Marek’s dark gaze swept around the room and he frowned at the same time as she did. This room was far too cluttered for a fight, the over-large sofa and coffee table getting in the way, giving the vampires objects they could hide behind to slow her and Marek down.
She had to clear some space.
Whether she could do that without losing her neck, or a pint of blood to the vampires, was another matter.
Marek tossed his knife to his left hand and swept his right one out before her, his palm facing the sofa and table. The large dark red sofa shot backwards, towards the mousy-haired vampire who had moved behind it for cover. He leaped over it, barely avoiding being pinned against the wall by it and landing with one booted foot on it before he gingerly sprang from it and towards her.
The coffee table suddenly shot up between her and the vampire and he ploughed into it. She flinched away, expecting both of them to hit her, curling into a protective position as she waited for the collision and the inevitable pain.
It didn’t come.
Instead of hitting her, the vampire and the table flew backwards, slamming into the wall above the couch.
Marek muttered, “Breaking my own damned rules here.”
He tossed his blade back to his right hand and glared at both of the vampires. The mousy one gathered himself, snarling as he tossed the wooden table aside and dropped down from the sofa. He wiped blood from his nose, his eyes fixed on her the entire time, as if it was her fault the furniture had suddenly attacked him.
Maybe it was.
Marek had somehow hurled the coffee table at the vampire to keep him away from her, something which had apparently broken the rules of engagement. She wasn’t sure the vampires were aware of these rules as the black-haired one picked up a lamp and hurled it right at her, as if testing a theory.
Her warrior caught it and hurled it right back at him with enough force to leave a dent in the plaster when the vampire dodged it and it careened into the wall.
The vampire’s slow grin said it all.
She was Marek’s weakness.
They were going to attack her to provoke him, forcing him to lose his cool so he would make a mistake.
It wasn’t going to happen. She was no damsel in distress. She didn’t need Marek to protect her. She could handle herself.
She stepped up beside him, readied her blade and stared down the mousy-haired vampire as he edged around the room, heading towards the windows to her right, manoeuvring her between him and Marek.
No.
She realised that wasn’t his intent as he leaned down to reach behind a worn armchair and metal dragged against the skirting board.
He straightened, revealing a length of solid steel pipe gripped in his right hand.
Caterina drew down a fortifying breath. Her sword was strong, but she wasn’t sure it would stand up to the strength of a vampire combined with a thick length of steel.
Marek huffed.
She risked a glance in his direction, looked beyond him to the other vampire where he stood in the door to the next room, a huge kitchen knife in his hand.
“Hardly going to level the playing field.” Marek twirled his blade, dark menace written in every line of his face as he braced his feet shoulder-width apart and hunkered down.
The black-haired vampire rolled his neck and eased his shoulders back. The one closest to her grinned and weighed his weapon. Marek might still like the odds, but she didn’t.
They only got worse when the door behind them opened and another vampire walked in.
Froze as she took in the scene.
Launched at Marek on a vicious hiss.
He pivoted so his back was to Caterina’s and slammed his fist into the female’s chest as she flew through the air. Bone crunched, the sound twisting Caterina’
s stomach, and the female cried out as she fell backwards, hitting the floor in a sprawl near the door.
“Estel, run!” The black-haired vampire threw himself at Marek, swiping wildly with the blade he brandished, keeping Marek busy as the woman tried to pull herself onto her feet.
Estel clutched her chest and wheezed, staggered onto her feet and shook her head as she looked at the male, her eyebrows furrowing as fear flooded her crimson eyes.
He growled in response to that, the pain in it catching Caterina off guard.
They were lovers.
Hesitation beat through her for the first time ever when she had been fighting vampires. She had battled them countless times, had watched them from the shadows, but never had she witnessed anything like this. She had seen males and females together, but it had never looked as if what they were doing was anything more than casual, a sating of primal needs.
The way Estel looked at the black-haired vampire as he battled Marek, keeping him busy, pure fear written across every line of her face, said that what she felt for him was more than a primal need. More than lust.
It was love.
Caterina gasped when Marek twisted on his heel, rammed his shoulder into the gut of the male vampire, lifting him off the ground and knocking the wind from him, and hurled his blade at Estel at the same time.
It nailed her in the shoulder, burying deep and ripping a scream from her as she went down.
“Estel!” The black-haired vampire grabbed Marek, sinking claws into him, ripping long gashes in his dark linen shirt as he fought to get free of Marek’s grip.
Marek kicked off, launching forwards, and slammed the male’s spine into the doorframe, tearing a grunt from him. The vampire tore a grunt of his own from Marek, bringing his right knee up hard into Marek’s stomach as he finally got a good hold on him. He kneed Marek once, twice, and then a third time.
Estel ripped the blade from her shoulder and hurled herself towards Marek on a vicious cry.
All sympathy Caterina had felt for the woman and her lover instantly dissipated.
She leaped into the brunette’s path and swept her sword around. It connected with Marek’s knife and the vampire’s hand. Estel grunted as the silver sliced into her and dropped Marek’s knife.
The knife didn’t hit the floor.
When it was close, it suddenly shot past Caterina, coming close to grazing the shin of her calf-height leather boots. A male bellowed behind her and Caterina’s heart leaped into her throat.
Marek.
She shoved forwards with her sword, driving Estel back, giving herself space to breathe so she could check on Marek. She cast a frantic glance over her shoulder and relief poured through her when she saw he was fine.
The vampire hadn’t fared so well.
As Marek stumbled back a step, revealing the male, Caterina grimaced. The hilt of the short blade protruded from underneath the vampire’s chin. His red eyes were glazed, dulling rapidly as he slumped against the wall and began to slide down it.
Marek gripped his blade and pulled it free, filling the heavy silence with a wet sucking sound.
Estel screamed.
Caterina blocked her before she could throw herself at Marek, pinned her back to his and fought the female away, lashing at her with her sword. The woman snarled, fangs flashing and scarlet eyes glowing dangerously as she hunkered down.
The mousy-haired vampire stared at his fallen comrade, his eyes wide as the male began to disintegrate, and then turned on Marek and Caterina with a low, rumbling growl.
Marek moved with her as the male attacked, blocking the vampire’s steel bar with either his knife or his hand. Caterina fell into the fight with him, all of her focus shifting to surviving as Estel pulled a knife from beneath her short violet jacket. The blade flashed as the vampire attacked, her movements so swift that Caterina struggled to keep up with her as she jabbed and slashed, thrust and withdrew.
Heat blazed across her biceps and the left side of her chest and then across her right forearm, and she bit back the cry that wanted to leave her lips as the scent of her blood filled the air and fear crept up on her.
Marek growled and twisted with her, swapping positions so she was facing the male instead. He glared at her, red eyes narrowing as she brought her sword up between them, daring him to make the first move.
The heat that burned in her cuts became a fire that blazed in her blood as she fought with Marek at her back. She had never had a partner before, had never thought she would have one, but it felt good to know he was there behind her, watching out for her. She liked how they worked in tandem with each other, as if they had been made to fight together as a unit.
It was exhilarating.
A little bit thrilling.
She blocked the vampire’s steel bar and swept her sword out, keeping him on the backfoot and trying to drive him into a confined space so she could finish him. The sound of the fight happening behind her threatened to distract her, but she somehow managed to keep her focus on her own opponent.
The mousy-haired male suddenly sprang at her and she reared, her back plastering against the solid, powerful heat of Marek’s. He turned slightly and brought his arm up as the vampire swung, blocking the bar with his forearm and taking a blow that would have hit her in the side of her head. The vampire’s eyes widened as he realised what had happened and Caterina didn’t hesitate. She gripped her sword with both hands and brought it up in a fast arc, putting all of her strength and speed into it so he wouldn’t have time to dodge it.
The blade slashed up his chest, slicing clean through his shirt and his flesh beneath it, the cut deep enough that she saw bone as he reeled backwards on a pained hiss.
Estel cried out at the same time and a thud sounded, but Caterina didn’t take her eyes off her vampire, trusting that Marek could handle the female.
Had handled the female judging by the noises that came from behind her, bubbling and fizzing that filled Caterina’s mind with a blur of memories, all of them blending together into one disgusting stream of disintegrating vampires.
The male in front of her hit the deck, his knees colliding hard with the carpet, and stared down at his chest, at the gaping wound that spilled crimson as his flesh began to blister and burn. He started babbling in Catalan, desperate frightened words that tore at her.
Caterina closed her eyes and swept her blade out, tensed as it met with resistance and he fell silent.
She exhaled, releasing the breath she had been holding.
It was over.
The usual fear that gripped her after a battle didn’t come this time.
Her pulse remained fast, her blood buzzing as she breathed, as she felt the heat of Marek behind her. He took her sword from her hand and sheathed it for her, and placed her jacket over her shoulders, sending a shiver racing up her arms as he gently caressed them and eased her back against his hard chest.
His delicious heat sank into her as he banded his arm around her stomach, kept the cold at bay as he teleported with her. The stifling warmth of a summer night surrounded her, a breeze buffeting her as it swept in from the sea, carrying the scent of saltwater to chase away the horrid stench of blood.
“Are you all right?” Marek eased her to face him and she slowly opened her eyes as the weird swirling sensation faded and she was confident she wasn’t about to fall to her knees or vomit.
The heat of battle kept it at bay, burned inside her as fiercely as it burned in his eyes as he checked her over, the gold and emerald flecks in his brown irises blazing brightly in the low light rising from the streets below them.
Caterina stared up at him, transfixed, unable to take her eyes off him as he looked her over, as he inspected her wounds with a tender touch and concern in his gaze.
The fire burning inside her grew hotter, brighter, consuming her from the inside out as it filled her mind with wicked thoughts, with a need that rapidly became impossible to deny as the fact she had survived sank in.
She was aliv
e.
She wanted to feel it.
Marek lifted his head, his eyes locking on hers.
His voice was low, a belly-heating purr as awareness dawned in his eyes.
“Caterina.”
She didn’t give him a chance to voice whatever doubts were building inside him, whatever attempt he might make to stop this from happening.
She grabbed him by the nape of his neck, pulled him down and kissed him.
Chapter 9
This was just adrenaline. A crazy post-battle high that was too powerful to resist. Caterina kept telling herself that as she kissed Marek, as his warm lips met and mastered hers, sending a sharp thrill tumbling down her spine and spreading over her limbs.
He turned with her and pressed her against a wall on the dark roof of the oceanfront building, the low moan that rumbled in his chest as their bodies came into contact pulling a groan from her own lips.
His large hands claimed her waist, slid up to her ribs and tugged her closer to him. The desperate clash of his lips with hers, a frantic and choppy meeting and parting of their mouths, spoke to her, telling her that she wasn’t alone. The same fierce, undeniable need poured through him too.
A need that left her feeling as if she might die if she didn’t satisfy it soon, easing this consuming hunger to have him, to feel his lips on every inch of her flesh and fulfil the attraction that had burned inside her from the moment she had set eyes on him.
He pushed the jacket from her shoulders and skimmed his hands down her arms, another shiver chasing in the wake of his light touch. His tongue brushed her lower lip just as softly and she opened for him, moaned as he angled his head and their mouths fused. His left hand claimed her nape, tunnelled into her hair and pulled her head back. He kissed her deeper, claiming all of her, his kiss a drug she couldn’t get enough of as she surrendered to him.
Caterina placed her hands on his arms, heart pounding at her first touch, at the feel of his corded biceps beneath her palms. They were rock hard, tensed as he pulled her flush against him and held her there, as if he wanted her to know his strength. She was already deeply aware of it, of how powerful he was, and it spoke to her on a primal level where she wasn’t quite master, had her arousal ratcheting up another ten degrees, until it was unbearable and all she could think about was how badly she needed him.
Marek: Guardians of Hades Series Book 4 Page 9