Jacques took the lead, putting Jolie and Mathew between him and Flynn. They could only hope that the young vampyre would do what it took to keep her safe.
Then again, Death was licking at his back, reminding him she was there. Jolie would probably be safe. They might not be so lucky, if Death wasn’t fed.
Down the rickety stairs they moved, until another door blocked their access. Jacques used his energy to push it open, and as soon as he did, they were all assaulted with the telltale smell.
Death was there.
Lining the walls were bodies of decaying humans, strung up like sick ornamentation.
Apparently Zola could do horrifying just as well as Delina. She was one sick bitch.
“Shit,” muttered Flynn. “I guess we can figure out where all the missing people have been ending up,” he said, looking away from the carnage. Wasted life, like this, offended him on so many levels.
Jolie pushed past her mate to crouch beside a corpse. “All of their throats are torn out. We’ll have to torch this building. All we need is a nosy cop to get his hands on this…”
“Hey!” Flynn stated. “You fell in love with a nosy cop. That’s how I figured out what you are. I mean we are. I mean…never mind.”
“Exactly,” Jacques stated. “You dogged us and found the only picture of us on record from hundreds of years ago. We can’t risk it again.”
Flynn understood. The last thing they needed were the hunters playing in their back yard. Already, the tueur was sniffing around, and that was frightening.
“What’s arson among family?” Flynn asked, scanning the surroundings.
“I’ll do it,” Mathew offered. “I won’t mind burning down Delina’s hellhole.”
Well, that was the first glimmer of guardian they’d seen all day. It was a welcomed sight.
Flynn went to turn, but then he saw it.
“Wait!”
They all stopped moving.
“We have to move the bodies,” he said, pointing at the dead corpses strung up along the wall.
Jacques lifted a brow. “Why?”
Flynn had a hunch. “Just help me,” he stated, tearing the chains from the wall.
Jacques followed suit.
When they were done, they stepped back to stare at the wall. It was then that they saw it.
“See?” Flynn offered.
Now they knew what caught his attention. Smeared in blood was a message for Jolie.
“Oh God,” she whispered, reading the words.
Big Mistake coming here. I now have your family.
Jolie turned to her mates. “We have to go now!”
They didn't hesitate.
All four rushed from the room and out of the building. Mathew didn't look back as he lit the place on fire with his mind. It would burn to the ground in a very short time, hiding Zola’s sins.
Hopefully.
Inside the Hummer, they tried to calm her down. Both mates could feel the energy pumping off her. Jolie was pissed, and ready to make someone bleed.
“We’ll get there in time, Jolie,” offered Jacques, taking her hand while Flynn drove. “We’re not that far from the house, and we haven’t been gone that long.”
“I’ll rip her flesh from her body and feed it piece by piece to Death.”
Brogan wouldn’t mind watching that. Zola, and her dead mate, had been a pain in his ass for far too long.
It was a stressful drive home, and as they accessed the driveway, the house appeared to be still.
That scared them all.
“I can’t reach Chloe,” she said softly.
Both Flynn and Jacques tried to call for her, but to no avail. Their donor wasn’t answering.
“It’ll be fine, baby,” Flynn tried to reassure. “It’s probably just the time of the day.”
Jolie wasn’t so sure.
Her gut was a mess, and Flynn always told her to follow it when it was screaming like this.
Something bad had happened.
She was sure of it.
Once out of the vehicle, they raced toward the house. As Flynn booted the door open, going in first with his gun out, they saw the mess.
The walls were covered in blood. It looked like someone sprayed them, trying to change the color.
“Oh God,” Jolie whispered, as she walked to the prone figures sprawled on the carpet in the foyer.
Her heart sank.
“Clariel,” she whispered, as Flynn dropped down to feel her chest.
“She’s with death,” he stated.
Jacques was glad. “It’s okay, my love. She took some bad blows,” he stated, pointing at her throat and body. Then, he glanced at Mathew.
“I’ll take her,” he offered, without having to be told.
Jolie pulled a prone Chloe into her lap. Her eyes filled with tears. First, they nearly lost Mina, and now Chloe too.
Then Flynn saw him.
“Tommy!” He raced to his friend’s side, touching his wounded body. “He’s a mess.”
Jolie knew they needed to act, and fast. Zola was on a mission to destroy the entire family. “Flynn, we’ll clear them out. Take Tommy to his room, and then check on Cari and Camille. Wake them, and she’ll help Tommy.”
He didn't hesitate.
Mathew took Clariel and headed for the stairs.
Jacques went to pick up Chloe. Jolie waited until her other mate, and Mathew, were out of ear shot. “Don’t. I need her. I have a plan.”
He knew he wasn’t going to like it.
In fact, he was pretty sure when Flynn heard about it, the shit was going to hit the fan. Jolie had that look on her face, and it wasn’t pretty.
“What is it?”
“I know where she’ll go,” Jolie stated. Zola was a horrible bitch, and that meant one thing--killing innocence.
“Where?” Jacques asked.
Jolie told him what she suspected. From the look of distaste on his face, she knew he was just as appalled as she was. Then, she shared her plan.
“That’s crazy.”
Jolie was aware, but it would work. It had to work. What choice did they have?
“I need you to trust me and play sentry. Please, Jacques?”
Oh, he was going to be on Flynn’s shit list for this one, there was no doubt.
Instead of fighting her, he agreed. “Okay, but I’m kicking in the door if you need me.”
Jolie held Chloe’s damaged body in her arms. At the nursery door, she pushed to open it with her foot. She was both pleased and distressed that she’d been right.
There was Zola.
It looked like Flynn wasn’t going to be finding Cari. She was in Zola’s arms, limp like a rag doll. Only, she wasn’t alone. Ariel was being held by her leg, like she was nothing of value.
Jolie wanted to make her bleed.
“Just you, Jolie, or I take this baby and kill it now. She has a soft little head, and it won’t fair well against the wall.”
Jacques gave her a look. It was now on Jolie’s shoulders. If her plan failed, it could be bad.
“Close the door, Jacques,” she ordered.
“Yes, like a good lap dog, Master Jacques,” she sneered.
He wanted to kill her for that alone.
When the door was closed, Zola used her energy to seal it. Jolie wouldn’t be leaving.
“Ah I see you found my ‘welcome home’ gifts.”
Jolie glanced down at Chloe in her arms. “Yes, I did. Was all this necessary? I would have met you alone, and we could have…discussed this.”
“I wanted to make a point.”
“Which is?”
“You’re a bitch who needs to pay for what you’ve done. You killed my mate for a filthy human. So, I’ve killed a few humans in retaliation.”
Funny, Jolie pretty much thought the same about her. “Your mate betrayed mine, and Flynn nearly died.”
“So?”
“That’s the problem, Zola. You have no morals. You walk around thinking that they’r
e less than us, when they’re not. We’re all equal, and they matter.”
She laughed. “And Chloe? Does she matter too?”
Jolie said nothing. In this plan, Chloe was the big surprise finish. When Jolie was done, Zola wouldn’t be laughing anymore. She’d be weeping in pain.
It was due.
“I’m going to kill you, and then take out the rest of the family. Know who I won’t kill? The detective. He can suffer for the rest of his life knowing I butchered you and Jacques because of him. I don’t picture him living long. I bet he eats his gun to be with you two. Awwwww.”
Yeah, over her dead body.
“I've been watching you. I see how you both look at him. He matters, and I’m going to make him bleed for ever entering our family.”
Jolie took a step forward.
Zola held up Ariel. “I’ll crush her skull.”
She stopped moving.
“We have to finish this now.”
Jolie was well aware.
“Let’s begin,” Zola hissed, her sick twisted laughter filling the room.
Jolie concentrated on calling to Chloe, trying to get through. When Zola tossed Ariel’s limp body carelessly into a cradle, she knew there wasn’t much time. As soon as Zola realized she was screwed, she’d go after the children.
“Put down Cari, and I’ll face you.”
She contemplated it.
Jolie found the little glimmer deep within Chloe’s body, and she fed energy to it. Her plan was going to work.
She could tell.
“On second thought, no. She’s my insurance that you’ll be well behaved and not just blast me with energy. You can’t get a good shot in without hurting the child. We both know you’re too soft to endanger a precious little vampyre.”
“I won’t be soft with you, Zola. In fact, I’ll make you scream for me in ways you can’t even imagine. You’ve caused unimaginable pain, and you’ll pay dearly.”
Zola laughed before placing a knife to Cari’s throat. “Then, shall we get started?” she asked, right before sending out so much energy that Jolie nearly went to her knees.
Chloe fell from her arms as they tingled with Zola’s power.
“I see you’ve feed well today, Zola,” she said, shaking her head as she tried to focus.
“Yes, I did. Detective Gress is really tasty and quite enjoyable. He screamed for me again. You should have seen the look of terror on his face when he realized I wasn’t done with him.”
There was anger that the man had suffered yet again. Jolie couldn’t wait until the perfect moment. She was going to make Zola’s life a total hell.
It was a matter of time.
“What’s wrong, Mistress? You seem very weak.”
She didn't say a word. Jolie was too busy trying to reach Vanth. Her focus had to stay on the hidden demoness. She was going to be her ace in the hole.
“You’re not going to beat me. I’ve fed well, I’m growing in power, and you’re nothing anymore. You once were a great leader, and now you’ve become soft. You should have killed me. Had you, then none of this death would have happened. You screwed up.”
Jolie wished she could call Death, but that would mean sacrificing Cari too.
She couldn’t do it.
More energy hit Jolie, and she simply sucked it up.
“Come now, Jolie. You used to be stronger than this,” Zola taunted, trying to cook Jolie’s flesh right from her bones. The anger was growing, and she could use that to kill her old mistress.
Jolie ignored her words, she was in touch with Vanth, and it would only take a few seconds.
Zola stepped closer, striking Jolie across the face. Her claws tore at her flesh, filling the room with the scent of blood.
“Fight me!” she ordered, when Jolie wouldn’t move. “I want you to suffer!”
Instead, Jolie simply tracked her with her glowing lavender eyes. “I won’t touch you, Zola.”
The deranged woman screamed.
“Oh, but I know someone who will.” Jolie took a step back, giving the demoness some room. “Vanth! I call you forth. Come to me!”
The room filled with something dark and dangerous. Then, Chloe’s eyes popped open--only they weren’t blue.
They were black as night and swirled in red.
The demoness of Death was there, and she looked pissed.
“Yes, Mistress,” she asked in her unique voice, as the room was filled with the sound of fluttering wings.
Zola looked around, and then stared at Chloe, who was now standing. “What the hell is she?” asked Zola, moving back.
Jolie laughed. “This is my demoness. You think Jacques was a lap dog? You haven’t seen anything yet.”
Zola went to carve Cari to pieces.
“Please contain her, Vanth,” she requested.
“Yes, Mistress. It would be my pleasure. Did she harm Chloe?”
“Yes, she damaged her.”
That was all it took.
Vanth snapped her fingers, and invisible bonds wrapped around Zola, tightening to the point of pain.
The vampyre screamed, trying to move further away from the now morphing demon. Gone was Chloe’s petite form, and in its place was something bigger.
Unholier.
Far scarier.
“You have wings!”
Jolie laughed, not even batting an eyelash. She’d died before, so she knew what Vanth looked like. If Zola could see her true form, she wasn’t long for this world.
“You’re not leaving this room. You shouldn’t have pissed me off. I let you live, and you should have taken that as a sign to stay away. I’m done screwing with you,” she said, picking Cari up from the floor. She gently cradled her in her arms.
Zola screamed in pain, trying to send out what little energy she had left. When it failed, the tears began falling. “Please.”
Vanth glanced over at her mistress, her black and red eyes rapidly blinking. “Did she hurt you or the babies?”
Jolie patted her midsection. “No, they’re fine.”
Zola struggled. “Babies? You’re having children?” she asked, her face full of anger. “You’re spawning?” she hissed with malice.
“Yes, I am--twins.”
“I should have come directly after you and cut you open. I should have killed your future, like you killed mine.”
Jolie ignored the anger. Zola’s fate was sealed. “Not only am I having babies, Zola, but I’m carrying Jacques’s baby too.” She let it hang in the air.
“Impossible. He can’t breed.”
“He did. I’m carrying the first known vampyre child born of two vampyres.” Jolie rubbed in the torment to make Zola suffer for hurting her family.
“It isn’t fair!” screamed Zola.
Jolie just shook her head in sympathy. “Zola, Devin betrayed our family. I could have harmed him far worse, but I was merciful. I won’t be with you.” Jolie’s eyes flashed to deep black, as she grinned wickedly. Now that Cari was safe, she could unleash Death.
The black tendrils crept to the surface, working their way toward the captive vampyre.
She owed Death more blood.
It was time.
* * * H a r c o u r t e * * *
Flynn finally searched for his mates, except only one was waiting calmly outside the nursery. The other was nowhere to be found.
“Where is she?”
“Inside with Zola.”
There was a scream.
Flynn stared at his mate like he was crazy. “What?”
“She has this under control,” he stated, hoping that wasn’t a lie. If it was, Flynn might never forgive him again. After all, he let her go inside…alone.
“Are you out of your mind? You let our pregnant mate take on a crazed vampyre alone?”
“She’s not alone.”
“Who’s in there?”
“Cari.”
He stared.
“Ariel,” Jacques offered, ticking them off his fingers.
“C
hildren?”
“Oh, and Vanth.”
There was another wail.
“Ohhhhh.”
“Yeah, she’s got this one under control. Jolie is safer in there with Vanth than anywhere else on this planet.”
Jacques was probably right.
Before he could speak, there was a wave of power. It rolled through the wall, and right past them.
“Holy shit! What was that?”
“That would be Vanth getting pissed off.”
Flynn went with honesty. “I still hate this.”
He patted his mate on the shoulder. “We can’t baby her too much. This time, she had a plan, and it was a good one. We can’t negate who she is.”
“I know. I just don’t like her having to do this. It soils her heart. Afterwards, Jolie feels dirty.”
“Yes, I know. I love that you hurt for her, Flynn. Thank you for being part of us.”
They listened to another scream.
“Is that blood?” he asked, pointing to the wall. It was bleeding through from the other side.
“I do believe it is.”
He didn't know what to say. “Jesus.”
“I’m pretty sure he’d be appalled,” he teased, but then he saw the disgusted look on his mate’s face. “Don’t worry, Flynn. She’ll be okay. We’re killers, not human. Please don’t forget that or judge us by human standards. We’re first and foremost predators who will kill to survive--as we have for centuries.”
“What am I then?” asked Flynn, curious what his mate really thought about him. At one time he was sure he was a cop and would hunt down killers, and now he seemed to be in the gray area. Who was he kidding? He was a killer now too.
“That’s not up to me. You will forever be part of us, but ultimately, you are still Detective Flynn Brogan until you decide otherwise. You live in both worlds equally. You need to decide what you are and pick a side.”
He was right. Flynn was trying to hold on to some of his humanity. Maybe it was inadvertent, but it was still there. “It’s hard.”
Jacques patted his shoulder. “I know. I have faith in you. While you’re becoming more like us, I don’t doubt that you’ll find a happy medium. Who do you want to be, Flynn?”
He was about to answer when the screaming began.
Then the door opened, and out stepped Jolie, covered in blood. Quickly, she closed the door behind her.
Dangerous Retaliation (The Harcourte Vampyre Society Book 4) Page 50