On Pins and Needles: Sierra Fox, Book 3

by Yolanda Sfetsos

  Papan finished getting dressed and we stepped closer to find the female vamp slumped over Ebony’s body. She ran her long tongue over the multitude of bites just about everywhere and didn’t seem to mind. I was glad Ebony wouldn’t look like a human pincushion forever.

  “Are they all staked?” Conrad said, meeting my eyes.

  “Mostly,” I answered, turning my attention to the vampires I’d taken down. I wanted to reclaim my spikes, and staking them would do just that.

  “That feels so good,” Ebony whispered. “Don’t stop…”

  A stabbing pain hit me in the chest when I turned my attention back to Ebony. Knowing Ebony ended up in this situation willingly was making me sick. How desperate was she to forget what happened in the Spook Catcher Council? In the process of wiping away her pain, she’d been brainwashed. Now that Cam was dead, would she remember Conrad?

  “Ebony, relax.” Conrad touched her cheek and she winced.

  “Who are you?” she asked, barely opening her eyes.

  “It’s okay, everything’s going to be okay,” he murmured. I’d never heard him sound so uncertain.

  Her eyes closed again while Narelle continued to run the tip of her tongue over the pinpricks on Ebony’s arm. I caught the vampire staring at Papan and stuck my hand in his. It only made her shrug and smile. I knew she was only interested in his blood, but she was creeping me out.

  I turned away from my best friend, the boyfriend she might not remember, and the vampire who was helping to heal some of the scars.

  Papan and I continued the task of staking the fallen vampires before they had a chance to wake up.

  Chapter Eleven

  I took a sharp right and Conrad cursed from the backseat. He wasn’t wearing a seatbelt because Ebony was still unconscious and sprawled out on his lap.

  “Jesus! Can you slow it down a little?”

  “Sorry,” I whispered.

  Papan gave me a quick side glance but didn’t say anything.

  Teleporting straight into my house would’ve been a lot better than having to navigate through the dark and mostly quiet streets of Serene Hills. But I didn’t have that power, so I concentrated on driving.

  The roads were still glistening from the earlier rain, which we’d found waiting for us after we left the club. I hadn’t minded a little drenching—it helped clear away some of the vampire gunk.

  Papan and I had walked back to the car, leaving Conrad and Ebony with Narelle until we got there to pick them up. It would’ve attracted too much unwanted attention to carry an unconscious girl wearing nothing but an oversized T-shirt down the city streets. It might be quiet in the suburbs, but in the city, nightfall didn’t mean pedestrian or car traffic slowed down.

  At least the creepy female vamp healed a lot of Ebony’s superficial wounds. Even if Ebony wasn’t awake yet, her breathing was steady. Her heartbeat seemed a little erratic but it hadn’t stopped. I’d come close to calling Roe, fearing we’d need him to inject her with another charmed adrenaline shot.

  “Where are we going?” Conrad asked.

  I peeked into the rearview mirror and found him cradling Ebony. All his strength seemed to be depleted, leaving only a broken helpless man who’d tried to rescue the woman he cared about—no matter what the personal expense.

  I’d misjudged him from the beginning, always waiting for him to break her heart. Yet he proved me wrong every time. Now Ebony didn’t remember him. Would her amnesia wear off, or had Cam permanently altered her memory?

  “Hey, did you hear me? Where are we going?”

  “To my place,” I said, meeting his eyes in the mirror. She probably needed to go to the hospital but we couldn’t afford the scrutiny.

  “No. We need to get her to a healer.”

  “I only know one healer, and I’m not taking her to Jonathan.” I wasn’t going to put her in any more danger. “Oren will know a spell or a remedy to help her.” I wasn’t sure if that was the case, but he’d told us to bring Ebony to him. Of course, he probably hadn’t expected her to be in such terrible shape.

  “I hope you’re right.”

  So do I.

  Papan placed a hand on my thigh. “Let’s get home.”

  I nodded, tightening my hands around the steering wheel and hoping it would keep them from shaking. Though the grip reminded me about the glass still embedded in my palms. Strange, I hadn’t thought about my own injuries until now.

  We’d done the best we could of terminating every single bloodsucker inside the horrid room. They all deserved to be put out of their misery, and I agreed with the message Conrad wanted to send, but I still couldn’t help feeling a little disgusted with myself. I hadn’t even flinched when I’d staked the vampires, and actually went out of my way to eliminate the ones who’d held Papan down with silver. I’d temporarily become a killer, just like I did the night we escaped the Council Tower and Mauricio tried to end what he’d started.

  And just like that night, despite the disgust, I didn’t regret what I’d done.

  I’m just worried about what that means for my humanity.

  Surely I should at least be disturbed by how easy and premeditated killing monsters was becoming. Yet they were monsters. It wasn’t like I was going around murdering innocent humans. I was killing to protect myself and others. Besides, hadn’t I already decided to adopt the ”me or them” attitude because it was the only one I could afford to have?

  “Almost there,” I whispered, turning into my street and not bothering to signal when I reached my driveway.

  Papan jumped out of the car before I’d even turned off the ignition to open the door for Conrad. He offered to take Ebony from him, but Conrad shook his head and held on tighter.

  “I’ve got her, just lead the way,” he said. The haunted look in his blue eyes darkened.

  I stepped outside and didn’t bother locking the car. I didn’t even check our surroundings, instead ran up the concrete path and the stairs before rushing in through the front door. I dumped my keys on the hall table and called, “Oren, we’re home and we really need you!” I was actually surprised neither Oren nor Willow had heard our approach.

  Papan and Conrad followed me into the house as I crept past the living room. The TV was blaring, displaying an old sitcom from the 1980s. The strategically placed laughter seemed out of place in the empty room.

  A chill wound its way around me as I picked up the remote and switched the TV off. The sudden silence was too thick inside my ears. I dumped the remote onto the coffee table beside a bowl of half-eaten chips and can of lemonade.

  “Oren!” I called. He didn’t respond, and my heart drummed against my ribs. I turned to find Papan near the doorway leading into the living room, and Conrad standing behind him with Ebony still in his arms.

  “Did you two feel the protective shields outside?” I asked.

  “Yeah, they’re still strong,” Papan answered.

  “I didn’t have time to notice.” Conrad continued down the corridor, headed for the kitchen.

  “Something feels off,” I whispered, trying to shake the feeling.

  Papan nodded. “I can smell blood.”

  “What the fuck?” Conrad screamed.

  Both Papan and I hurried into the kitchen to find Oren slumped on the floor.

  My heart stopped for a second. “Oren.” I dropped to my knees beside him.

  Papan crouched next to me and pressed two fingers against the old man’s neck. “He’s still alive.”

  He was lying on his back, eyes closed. The laptop was still open on the kitchen table above him and the chair was upright.

  “Oren, wake up.” I slapped his whiskered cheeks softly, hoping to rouse him. “We need you.” I need you.

  “Oren, come on, old man…” Conrad was still holding Ebony.

  “What, what’s going on?” Oren blinked a few times, struggling to open his eyes. He moaned, cursed and made a move to sit up but didn’t succeed. “Damn!”

  The pressure on my chest lif
ted.

  “Take it easy,” Papan warned, pressing a hand against Oren’s shoulder to keep him prone.

  “What happened?” I asked, worried. “Why are you on the floor?”

  “I don’t know.” He made another move to sit up, and this time Papan and I helped him slump onto the chair. “I was working on the computer and then…” He ran a hand over the back of his head and it came away red. “Double damn.”

  “You’re bleeding!” I said. His white hair was dyed crimson. “Are you okay?” As I asked, my heart sped up and I had to gulp a deep breath. Willow. “Did either of you see Willow?”

  Everyone looked grim and shook their heads.

  Papan raised his nose into the air. “I can follow her scent.”

  “Please, see if you can find her.”

  He nodded and rushed out of the kitchen. The front door slammed shut only seconds later.

  I put a hand on Oren’s shoulder. “Are you really okay?”

  He nodded. “I’m just not sure what happened. Go ahead, look for Willow.”

  “Are you sure?” I was torn, didn’t want to leave him alone now that Papan was gone and Conrad had vanished.

  “Of course,” he said, twisting his neck this way and that. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  I hesitated, watching him squint a few too many times.

  “Well, go on…”

  “Okay. I’ll check downstairs.” I sprinted down the stairs and into the bedroom my sister was staying in. “Willow, are you in here?” I looked around, but found her backpack still open and the contents strewn on the end of the bed. Even her photo album was sitting on the bedside table.

  Not knowing what else to do, I checked the wardrobe and then made my way across the hallway to the bathroom, then the other two rooms. But she wasn’t anywhere, and she wasn’t answering my frantic calls.

  Where could she be?

  As I circled back towards the stairs leading to the kitchen, I noticed the laundry door was unlocked. I always ensured this door was locked.

  I made my way towards it, my pulse drumming. I opened it and stepped out onto the side path. She wasn’t to my left—which led to the front of the house—or to my right—which led to the backyard. I ignored my nerves and the fear creeping inside me to continue my search, starting with the backyard. I swallowed the lump in my throat as memories of the rainy, hot night the black dog decided to attack me in my own home flooded my mind.

  Terror crippled me, making my legs cramp up with every step. But I couldn’t stop.

  Someone had knocked Oren out and my sister was missing. I didn’t want to accept what it meant, but also couldn’t deny it. Yet why were the shields still up? I could feel them enveloping the backyard.

  I exhaled slowly and focused on searching.

  I could see well enough in the dark, so I trusted my eyes to check along the back fence. Willow wasn’t out here.

  I turned my attention to the lovely row of sunflowers already sprouting. They’d been a Valentine’s Day present from Papan, and now I tried to find comfort in them.

  Where are you, Willow?

  What the hell had happened while we were gone?

  The obvious reason trickled into the back of my brain but I refused to accept it. How could Maya know my sister was staying here? The shields around the house were the strongest Oren could conjure up and would not only keep any threat out, but hide Willow’s presence. After his protective barrier was somehow dismantled by Mauricio or one of the Obscurus, he’d gone out of his way to make them impenetrable. Yet, Willow was gone.

  I spun around and smacked headfirst into someone.

  “Ouch!”

  I didn’t hesitate or lose my balance. Even though the person in front of me was taller, I pushed my hands out as hard as I could, making contact and sending them sprawling to the grass. I flinched at the stinging pain on my palms.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  I looked down at my latest uninvited visitor. “Vixen, what the fuck are you doing out here?” This was something we didn’t need at the moment. “How did you get into my yard?”

  “The side gate was open, you dumbass.” She shook her head as if disgusted. “After what happened last time, I really would’ve thought you’d keep your doors locked.”

  “I asked you a question—what’re you doing here?”

  “I need to see Jason, but he’s not answering his phone.” Her eyes flashed with anger I knew was directed at me. She wasn’t wearing any of her action-chick get-up tonight and instead had on gray sweat pants and a matching hooded sweatshirt.

  “It’s no surprise with the amount of times you call him.” I looked at her face and her pallor seemed fine. Her usually-meticulously made up face was scrubbed clean, her hair hanging loose around her shoulders. She did have a nasty chunk missing from the side of her neck but the scar tissue was starting to seal it. “Go home, okay? I don’t have time for you right now.”

  Vixen got to her feet and stepped in front of me, using her height advantage. “I don’t care if you have time for me or not. I’m not here to see you.”

  “Strange. You went from wanting to kill him to having him on speed dial.”

  “There’s nothing strange about it.” She looked away. “I’ve been having cravings for shit I haven’t wanted in years. He’s the only one I can turn to. I need him.”

  I didn’t like the sound of her admission. “I said we don’t have time for you right now.” I pushed past her and headed back for the laundry door. I’d just gone toe-to-toe with a roomful of vampires and only suffered a reddened cheek, some sore muscles, and cuts on my palms, so this idiot wasn’t going to intimidate me with her empty threats. Willow wasn’t out here, and I wasn’t going to get any clues while fighting with this arrogant woman.

  “There you are!” Papan grabbed me and pulled me inside. “Did you find her?”

  “No, but I found a pest,” I replied, stepping out of his embrace. “What about you?”

  “I followed the scent to the bus stop at the end of the street before it faded.”

  “Damn, what does that mean?”

  “Jason!”

  He cocked an eyebrow and looked over my head. “What the hell?”

  “Yeah, that’s the pest,” I said.

  “I had to see you.” Vixen tried to step around me but I pushed her back. “What the hell, bitch?”

  “This is my house, you asshole. If you can’t respect me, then you’re going to have to get the hell out. Actually, I’ll make it easier for you.” I shoved her outside and slammed the door in her face.

  She banged on it.

  “Go away!” I turned to trail Papan back to the kitchen.

  “She really has to learn to take a hint. I told her I would help when the next full moon cycle hits,” Papan said as he climbed the stairs.

  “Don’t worry about her. We’ve got more important things to deal with. How’s Oren?”

  We stepped back into the kitchen so the old man answered me himself. “I’m a lot better than poor Ebony,” Oren said.

  I looked at him, and he did seem livelier. Yet, I was still worried. “Are you sure you’re fine?”

  “Yes, I am.” A small smile teased the edges of his mouth. “It’s nice to know you care.”

  “I care,” I said, looking away. Seeing him hurt on the kitchen floor had affected me a lot more than I expected, but I wasn’t in the mood to discuss this. “Where’s Ebony?”

  “She’s on the couch with Conrad watching over her.”

  “Were you able to help?”

  “I dabbed some salve all over her scars and bites, but I think she may need holy water to disinfect and purify her body. It looks like you guys are all out.” His eyes were serious. “I don’t think we can do anything to force her to wake up, though. I’ve tried a few spells but she seems to be in some sort of preternaturally-induced coma.”

  “What does that mean?”

  He shrugged. “It could mean that losing so much bloo
d in such an unnatural way helped her slip into it. Or it could just be her body’s way of shutting down long enough to fully repair the damage. I don’t know if any of the vampires exchanged blood with her, but constantly being bitten can be as bad as an overdose.”

  “Will she wake up?” I swallowed. “And more importantly, will she wake up still human?”

  Oren fidgeted. “I don’t know, Sierra. We’ll have to wait and see what happens.” He looked down at my hands and then at my face. “What happened tonight? I couldn’t get an explanation from Conrad. He’s taking this pretty hard.”

  As much as it was partly Conrad’s fault for introducing her to such a dark world, Ebony was an adult and had gotten herself into this situation. If he hadn’t divulged any details about what happened, I wouldn’t either. “All hell broke loose inside a vampire club.”

  “And that’s putting it mildly,” Papan added.

  Oren looked at Papan’s neck, where he wore a burn-mark necklace from the silver chains. “You two need to sit down for a few minutes and let me take care of your injuries.”

  “What about yours?”

  He dismissed it with a wave. “It’s not as bad as it looks, but I took care of it. Now it’s time to take care of both of you.”

  No point in arguing with him. So we sat around the kitchen table and let him get to work. I insisted he take care of Papan’s injuries first because mine weren’t so bad. I watched as he first cleaned the burns and then dabbed a familiar green ointment along Papan’s neck, following it all the way around and beneath the longish length of his hair. My werewolf was brave and even though he winced a few times, he sat mostly still.

  “It’s probably best not to cover it. Let it get some air,” Oren said as he finished up. “Your lycanthrope genes will heal the rest.”

  While he’d been working on Papan’s silver-induced injury, I’d kept quiet. My mind racing with a thousand thoughts about what we’d been through tonight and everything that lay ahead. It wasn’t over yet.

  “Your turn,” Oren said, stepping in front of me. He grabbed my chin and turned it slightly. I tried not to shiver at his very cold touch. “This doesn’t look too bad. The redness will probably be gone by tomorrow. Show me your hands.”