Consumed: The Vampire Awakenings, Book 8

by Davies, Brenda K.

“This one,” Mollie said, touching the strap across her shoulder. “I already know how it shoots, and they’re both the same caliber. Are there any more bullets?”

  Mike handed her the ones he’d removed from the vamp. Then she took the rifle from him and emptied the ammo into her hand. Feeling better prepared to continue, Mike rested his hand against her cheek as he sought to reconnect with her. He wasn’t sure she wouldn’t turn away from him or slap his hand aside, but he hoped she’d gotten over their disagreement.

  She couldn’t hide her uncertainty, but she still turned her head into his touch and closed her eyes as her lips brushed his palm. Unable to resist, he brushed back a strand of black hair and caressed her cheek with his other hand.

  “Let’s find Aida,” he said, even as the vampire within him screamed to take her from here, but he couldn’t tolerate having her hate him.

  Her eyes flew open, and she smiled at him. “Yes.”

  He lowered his hands and was about to turn away when a shadow slid from the trees behind her. Mike pulled her back and stepped in front of her as he lifted the crossbow and aimed at the chest of the vampire who emerged.

  “Whoa!” Doug blurted, throwing his hands up.

  Unable to believe what he was seeing, Mike blinked before he lowered the bow and grinned at his friend. Doug cautiously studied the two of them before approaching.

  “I thought you were going to shoot me,” Doug muttered.

  “I almost did,” Mike admitted as he swung the bow onto his back and strode toward his friend.

  Embracing, they clapped each other on the back and held on for longer than usual, but Mike was reluctant to let Doug go. He hadn’t let himself consider the possibility they might be dead, but the fear had niggled at the back of his mind.

  He also hadn’t realized how much he missed Doug and Jack until he saw Doug again. They bickered and occasionally fought, but they’d been friends since he was a kid. Rarely had a day passed in the last forty-some-odd years when he hadn’t seen or spoken with the two of them, David, and Liam.

  Mollie lowered her rifle as the rest of her annoyance with Mike faded. She couldn’t be mad at him when he had that look of love and relief on his face. He’d missed Jack and Doug as much as she missed Aida.

  “Jack?” Mike asked Doug when they separated.

  “I haven’t seen him since we escaped the barn. I don’t know where he is or if he’s alive.”

  “He’s alive,” Mike said confidently. “If anyone’s going to kill him, it will be one of us.”

  Doug chuckled and ran a hand through his blond hair. “True enough. Or a woman.”

  “More likely,” Mike agreed.

  Doug’s curious gaze turned to Mollie, and his eyes fell to the mark on her throat. The puncture of one fang was barely visible above the collar of her shirt; her clothing hid the other one. When Mike stiffened, Doug tore his eyes away from her and looked warily back at Mike.

  “Just a friend, or more?” Doug said so quietly Mike barely heard him.

  “More,” Mike answered.

  Doug’s eyebrows shot up. “Mate?”

  “Yes, but she doesn’t know.”

  “Wonderful,” Doug murmured. “And the bond isn’t complete.”

  They all knew how volatile a vampire could be when their mate was threatened, and how unstable they were when the bond between mates wasn’t sealed. The fact their bond remained incomplete was evident in Mollie’s still human nature.

  “Have you run into anyone else we set free?” Mike asked.

  “A couple of humans and two vamps, but I didn’t get close,” Doug said. “Come on, let’s discuss this somewhere safer.”

  “You have a safe place?” Mollie asked as she stepped toward them.

  “Not exactly safe but safer,” Doug replied.

  Mike held his hand out to Mollie, and she took it. “Mollie, this is Doug; Doug, this is Mollie.”

  “You already made these introductions in the barn,” Doug told Mike and laughed. Mollie couldn’t help but smile at the man’s jovial laugh. “But it’s nice to meet you again,” Doug said to her.

  “You also,” Mollie replied.

  She went to extend her hand toward him to shake his, but Doug was already turning away from her. She frowned when she realized he must’ve seen the gesture, yet he pretended like she never made a move toward him. Glancing at Mike, she noticed he’d focused his attention away from her and her interaction with Doug.

  They were talking about something she couldn’t hear earlier, and she had the sinking suspicion it was about her.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Doug pulled back the branches on a spruce tree to reveal what lay beyond. The tree was one of a cluster of spruces fighting for survival amid the oaks and maples surrounding them. The spruce’s branches were thick and heavy on the outside, but the sun didn’t pierce inside the cluster, and many of the needles had fallen off the dying branches within. The result was a small alcove in the center.

  Mike gestured for Mollie to go ahead of him and studied the forest as she crouched to slip inside. Mike followed, and Doug entered last. Mollie gazed around the small space, perfectly situated between the five spruce trees. Needles lined the forest floor, and though a couple of them poked through her jeans when she sat, the ground was soft and dry.

  For a moment, as she gazed at the surrounding trees, a sense of security slid over her. She could almost pretend she’d been transported to some magical land—a magical land where all the creatures were looking to kill and eat them.

  That thought tore her attention away from the trees and back to Mike and Doug. When Mike settled in beside her, his knee rested against hers while Doug sat across from them. She noticed Doug was careful not to touch her in the cramped area though he jostled Mike when he crossed his legs.

  The space was about the size of the small pop-up tent her grandpop set up in her backyard when she was a kid. She and her best friend, Donna, spent an entire week in that tent one summer. They only left it to shower, use the bathroom, gather food, and cool off in the sprinkler when it got too hot.

  She didn’t know what ever happened to Donna; she moved away before the start of the school year. They kept in touch for a time through phone calls, but when her grandpop died the following spring, Mollie stopped taking her calls and eventually lost touch with her.

  “What do you know about this place?” Mike asked Doug in a whisper.

  Pulled from the past, Mollie focused on the conversation between the two vampires.

  “Not much,” Doug said. “I’ve spent my days searching for you and Jack in a grid pattern. I haven’t covered much land, but I mapped the land I trekked.”

  “Do you have that map?” Mollie asked.

  Doug tapped the side of his head. “Right here. If I can answer it for you, I will.”

  “We know there is the barn and another building beyond it. Are there any more buildings where they could be keeping prisoners on this island?”

  Doug visibly paled. “Island?” he croaked.

  “Yes,” Mike said. “We’re on an island.”

  Doug sat back and closed his eyes. “Well, shit,” he muttered. “I’ve come across the ocean on both sides, but I assumed it was a peninsula or a skinny piece of land. I hoped for it anyway.” Opening his eyes, he focused on Mollie. “To answer your question, those are the only two buildings I know about. I’ve been close to the mansion beyond the barn, which is probably the other building you know about, but I didn’t explore much of it.”

  “Why not?” Mike asked.

  “Because it was near sunset, and it’s where the Savages are staying.”

  Mollie gulped. “Are all of them there?” How would they be able to get Aida out if there were a bunch of killer vamps holed up inside the place where she was?

  “Not all of them, but I think the majority are. Some Savages, mostly the ones with the security patches, are out all day searching for fugitives. They’re not killing all the ones they recapture,” Doug sa
id to Mike. “I’ve seen security dragging some captives back to the barn.”

  “So Jack could be back in there?” Mike asked.

  “He could be, but I doubt it. He wouldn’t let them take him alive again.”

  “No, he wouldn’t,” Mike agreed.

  “But we’ve heard them killing people at night,” Mollie said.

  “Those are the Savages from the mansion. When they come out at night, all bets are off, and they don’t take survivors.”

  A tingle of dread ran down Mollie’s spine, but at least those monsters left the mansion at night. That meant they might be able to get in and see if they could find Aida.

  “Some of the security members are staying in the barn all day too,” Doug said.

  “That’s a new development,” Mollie said. “They didn’t stay at the barn before.”

  “Our escape probably changed the way they run things here,” Mike said. “They’re making sure they keep their prisoners on lockdown.”

  “Okay, so they’re at this mansion and the barn—”

  “And some are in the woods,” Doug reminded her.

  “And they’re in the woods,” Mollie said. “Aida wasn’t in the barn when we broke out, so if she’s still alive, she’s in the mansion. I have to get closer to it.”

  “We will,” Mike said. Taking her hand, he threaded his fingers through hers and squeezed it.

  Doug’s gaze went to their hands; a small smile quirked his mouth before he glanced away and tugged at the collar of his shirt as if he were suddenly uncomfortable.

  “Who’s Aida?” Doug inquired.

  “My sister,” Mollie said. “Those things came in and took her from the barn before they brought all of you inside. I’m going to find her.”

  “Do you think she’s still alive?” he asked Mike.

  Mollie bristled as she glowered at the two of them. “It doesn’t matter what he thinks.”

  Doug held his hands up in a pacifying gesture. “Believe me, I’ve been saying the same thing for years, but a few dozen Savages are crawling over the mansion and barn. Not to mention the Savages lurking in the woods, which I estimate to be eight judging by the ones I’ve seen. You killed two of them,” he said to Mike. “By the way, thanks for saving me the effort that would have taken.”

  “You were stalking them?” Mike asked.

  “Yeah. I wanted the crossbow. There’s a grouping of boulders about a hundred feet beyond where you jumped them. I was waiting for them to get there so I could corner them and they wouldn’t be able to run from me.”

  Mike loaded the crossbow and held it out to Doug who waved it away. “You killed them, it’s yours fair and square,” Doug said.

  “You’re better with it. Besides”—he hefted the quiver of bolts—“they make good stakes.”

  “You’re right; I am better with it.” Doug took the crossbow and settled it in his lap.

  “The other problem we have is that some of the vamps we let out are hungry,” Mike said before telling Doug about the vampires who attacked Mollie in the cave. “They’re dead now.”

  “I had no doubt,” Doug murmured, and his gaze flicked to Mollie. “If the escaped vamps are starting to turn Savage too, we have a big problem.”

  “We do,” Mike agreed. “And I bet if there are boats, which I’m assuming there are given we’re on an island, I’m betting they’re also heavily guarded by security and will be difficult to reach.”

  “Bastards,” Doug muttered.

  “Judging by the screams every night, I think a fair amount of the escapees might be dead,” Mollie said.

  “True,” Doug agreed. “And a good amount have been recaptured. It’s possible other vamps may have taken out some of the six remaining Savages patrolling the woods during the day too.”

  “One can hope,” Mollie said, and Doug smiled.

  “One can also hope that some of the Savages hanging out around the barn and mansion have also been killed. They all hunt at night,” Doug said. “I haven’t been close to the barn or the mansion since day two, so I don’t know if their numbers have dwindled, but I imagine a few of them have been taken out by some escapees.”

  “Most likely,” Mike murmured.

  Mollie glanced at her watch; it was after one o’clock. “We still have time before the sun sets. I’d like to see this mansion.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Mollie studied Mike as they traveled through the woods. Ever since they’d left the shelter of the spruces, he’d grown angrier and increasingly distant. His steps became more measured, his shoulders tenser, and she was sure she heard his teeth grinding together. The outline of his fangs against his upper lip was visible.

  Doug shot him wary glances, and the further they went the more convinced she became the two of them were keeping something from her. The knowledge irritated her, but she wasn’t going to confront them about it, not out here, and not when they were heading to where Aida might be located.

  They could keep their secrets as long as they didn’t interfere with trying to save Aida.

  Doug held his hand up to halt them. “It’s only about half a mile that way,” he mouthed and pointed ahead.

  They fell into a single line with Doug in front and her in the middle as they continued through the trees until they arrived at the edge of the woods. Mollie crouched behind a small tree to study the building across from them. About fifty feet of green grass separated them from a massive, gray stone structure. Mollie gawked at the mansion, and her head tipped back as she tried to take it all in, but that was impossible.

  The primary structure was three stories tall, with at least a dozen dormer windows. The length of it was easily the size of two football fields as two-story wings spread out from each side. The mansion looked like something out of a romance movie. It was too beautiful for the evil it housed behind the arched, covered windows and intricately carved wood front door.

  For the first time, Mollie considered the possibility they might never locate her sister. How would they ever get in there? And if they did get inside, how would they find Aida? And if they did discover her, how would they get her out again and then off this island?

  When her head started spinning, she lowered it into her hands and rubbed her temples. No, she would find Aida, she had to. She didn’t know if she could take another loss in her life.

  But even as she thought it, doubts swirled in her head. What if Aida is already dead and I’m risking my life and theirs for nothing? But what if she’s still alive and I leave her here to die a miserable death?

  Tears clogged her throat, but she refused to shed them. If it were just her, she wouldn’t hesitate to go inside; she could never live with the not knowing if she didn’t at least try to find Aida. But Mike would go with her, and from what she’d seen of their friendship, she believed Doug would too. Could she risk their lives if her sister was dead?

  If something happened to Doug or Mike while they were helping her, she would never forgive herself, but she’d hate herself until the day she died if she abandoned Aida. She was damned no matter what she did, but she couldn’t leave here without trying for Aida.

  Mike rested his hand on Mollie’s shoulder as her rising distress beat against him. “It’s okay.”

  When she lifted her head to look at him, tears shimmered in her eyes. Those tears tore at him. She was his mate; he was supposed to make sure she experienced only happiness and security, but she’d known only melancholy and death since coming to this island.

  Mike drew her into his arms, and when she lowered her head to the hollow of his throat, he buried his head in her silken hair. Her sweet scent assailed him as he ran his hands over her hair to soothe her. Her hands slid under his arms and dug into his shoulders.

  “I’m going to find out what happened to her,” he vowed.

  He’d sensed a cracking in her. If he pushed, he might be able to convince her to leave the island, but it would destroy her if she did. She would survive this place if he found a way to
take her from here, but she would never be the same, and he’d lose her anyway. He’d rather have her torn from him while she was fighting than watch her rot away until nothing remained of her.

  Lifting his head, he met Doug’s gaze over her shoulder. His friend stared back at him before turning away.

  * * *

  “I hear them leave the mansion and barn around eight every night,” Doug said when they were settled in the cluster of spruces again. “They howl like wolves on the hunt when they leave, or at least I assume it’s when they leave, as I haven’t been close to either of the buildings near sunset. I don’t have a death wish.”

  “So, you don’t know if they all go out to hunt at night?” Mike asked.

  “No, I don’t.”

  Mike slid Mollie’s hair through his fingers while he contemplated Doug’s words. When they returned, he’d spread the quilt across the small space for her to lay on as she looked exhausted, but she’d nestled against his side instead and rested her head on his chest. She hadn’t said much since they left the mansion and returned to the forest.

  “When they go out tomorrow night, we’ll attempt to get into the mansion,” Mike said to Doug. “Tomorrow during the day, we’ll search for Jack and try to get our hands on some more weapons. We’ll both have to feed before going in there.”

  Mollie lifted her head and turned to look at him. “I’m going into the mansion too.”

  “No, you’re not.”

  “Yes, I am,” she insisted. “You’ll need more than the two of you in there, and Aida doesn’t know you. If you manage to find her, she might be too scared to leave with you.”

  “Then I’ll carry her out of there.”

  His stubborn refusal grated on her nerves, but she forced herself to remain rational. It didn’t matter what he said; she was going in there. However, she preferred not to fight him every step of the way. “You can’t carry her; you'll need both your hands free to fight anyone who tries to stop you, and you don’t know what she looks like.”

  “Does she look like you?”