Falter

by V. J. Chambers

  Azazel was lying next to me. I went to her, turning her over.

  She coughed.

  I knelt down next to her, brushing her hair out of her face. “You okay?”

  There was blood smeared all over her forehead. She’d taken a bullet there. I rubbed at it with my thumb, looking for an entry wound. But she’d already healed that up.

  “I’m fine,” she said.

  But she sounded weak.

  “You need blood?” I asked.

  “I…” Her tongue darted out of her lips, hesitant, eager.

  It was easier for her to heal with more blood in her system. Her expression was the only answer I needed. I loved that look on her face. How badly she craved me.

  I bit down on my lip—hard. Blood welled up. I tasted it as it filled my mouth—a metallic tang. I felt it dribble down onto my chin.

  Azazel made a tiny gasping sound, reaching for me.

  I lowered my face to hers.

  She darted up, capturing my lip between her own. She started to suck.

  It was my turn to gasp.

  Her hands clutched my shoulders, pulling me even closer.

  She lapped at the blood that was coming out of my wound in a greedy frenzy, and it made me crazy to see her like that. She was so completely at my mercy, completely involved in me. I was her world.

  I bit my tongue hard enough to make it bleed, and I shoved it inside her mouth, sweeping in to tease her own tongue.

  She bit me.

  I moaned.

  And her fingers dug into my skin at my shoulders.

  I pressed myself into her, my chest against hers, my pelvis in the cradle of her hips.

  She drank, sucking at me, and I could feel it flowing out of me—strength, power, life. I was ebbing into her. This was the best part.

  Her hands migrated lower, scrabbling over my back, cupping my ass. She wrapped her legs around me.

  I felt light-headed, like I was melting into her, like she’d drink me all up, and I’d flow into her. I ran my hand over one of her thighs, her hip, her waist…

  She sighed.

  Our mouths broke apart. I ran my tongue over my lips to see if the places I’d bitten myself had healed. They were working on it. I made a new wound, even as her impatient mouth worked at mine, searching for more blood.

  She groaned as my skin broke and the blood started to flow again. Her mouth latched onto me.

  She sucked me into dreamy darkness. There was nothing here but our bodies and her mouth, and she was drinking me. I was seeping out into her mouth. I felt weak and a little drowsy. Her body was soft and welcoming. It held me.

  And there was a noise as the door opened.

  I looked up with effort, tearing my mouth away from Azazel.

  She whimpered in frustration, reaching for me.

  Jude tumbled down the steps. I couldn’t be sure in the scant light, but it looked as though he’d been beaten up. His face was swelling. He lay at the bottom of the steps, his labored breath echoing against the concrete.

  Great. Of course he would pick this moment to show up.

  I moved upright, onto my knees.

  Azazel sat up as well, trying to get her mouth back onto mine, wanting more of my blood.

  I held her back. “Shh, sweetheart, that’s enough.”

  She was manic about it right after she stopped drinking. She never wanted to stop. I watched her inner struggle flit across her expression. She looked younger again. Damn it. We were trying not to do that. I wasn’t supposed to give her so much blood. But it was really hard to stop once we started.

  I ran my thumb over her bottom lip, wiping away a bit of blood that was there. I didn’t know if it was mine or hers. It didn’t matter. “That’s enough.”

  She shut her eyes. She nodded.

  Jude’s voice—caustic. “Sorry if I interrupted something.”

  I stood up. “How did you even end up down here? Weren’t you supposed to stay in the car?”

  “Yeah, they found the car,” said Jude.

  “Where is here?” said Azazel.

  “Basement of the travel agency,” said Jude. “Why’d you guys shoot that woman up there? That really pissed them off.”

  I shrugged. I looked at Azazel. “It was her idea.”

  She glared at us. “What? She was in the way.”

  “They were pissed off anyway,” I said. “In the grand scheme of things, I doubt one lady matters.”

  Jude shook his head in disgust. The swelling over his eye was already starting to fade. “I don’t know what the hell is wrong with you guys. We’re supposed to be killing vampires, and only because the regular justice system is no good to keep them under control. Why are we just shooting everything that moves?”

  “Not everything that moves,” said Azazel. “Just everything in our way.”

  Jude grimaced. “You two deserve each other.”

  I touched Azazel on the arm. “Hey, maybe he’s right. Maybe we’re being reckless.”

  “The way that lady was talking, the whole town works for the vampires,” said Azazel. “They’re all in on it. Besides, for all the hell we know, she was a vampire.”

  Azazel had shot her with herb-laced bullets, which meant that the shot had killed her, Nephilim blood or not.

  Which reminded me. “They took our weapons. Unless we can get them back, we won’t have any bullets with the herbs in them.”

  “Are you kidding?” said Jude. “We don’t have any bullets at all. Or guns, for that matter.”

  “We will,” I said. I gestured above our heads. “They still up there, you think?”

  “I guess,” said Jude. He looked confused. “They were cops, right? Why didn’t they arrest us? Why didn’t they handcuff us?”

  “Waiting for the vampires, most likely,” said Azazel. “Probably figured out that you guys have Nephilim blood. They want to capture you. Drain you dry.”

  Jude’s expression hardened. “Fuck that. How do we get out of here, Jason?”

  I smiled. “Here’s what we’re going to do.”

  * * *

  ~azazel~

  I banged on the door. “Fire!”

  Jason said it would work, but I had my doubts.

  “Sound a little more freaked out, baby,” said Jason, standing two steps down from me, with Jude right behind him.

  I took a deep breath. Freaked out? I tried to imagine that there really were flames licking up the steps, coming for us. I squeezed my eyes shut.

  And then I let out the hoarsest, most bloodcurdling scream I could imagine. “Fire! It’s coming up the steps! Please!”

  Jason gave me a thumbs up.

  I banged on the door in a frenzy. “Please, open the door!”

  This wasn’t working. Jason was crazy.

  But then the door opened. One of the cops stuck his head inside. “What fire?”

  I dove into him with all my strength, knocking him off balance.

  He teetered at the top of the steps grabbing for something to steady himself with.

  I shoved him from behind. He fell face first into Jason.

  Who brought his knee up into the guy’s chin as he fell.

  The man grunted.

  Jason slid the cop’s gun out of its holster. He shot the man in the back of the head and kicked the body down the steps.

  Then he hurried up the steps. “Behind me, guys. They’ll be coming. They heard that shot.”

  I eased in behind him as he opened the door, kissing him quickly on the cheek. “Nice job, babe.”

  He grinned.

  “Get a room,” said Jude, coming up the rear.

  Jason threw open the door to the basement.

  We were greeted by three uniformed officers, all with their guns out.

  Jason opened fire.

  Three shots. Three round holes just between their eyebrows. They all hit the ground before they could even pull the trigger.

  Jason handed me his gun. “Cover me?”

  I stepped forward, aiming
in a wide circle. Behind me, Jason knelt down to strip the weapons from the downed officers.

  “Looks clear,” I said. We’d emerged in the back of the travel agency. The store looked empty. Frizzy Hair was still slumped over her desk. Through the glass front, I could see that several police cars were parked, their lights flashing. Had we shot all of the police that belonged to the cars?

  Jason wrapped his arms around me from behind, kissing my neck. “Thanks.”

  Jude made an annoyed noise. I could see him out of the corner of my eye, on the opposite side of me than Jason.

  I thought of what he’d said to me this morning. He had no right to tell me stuff like that. How dare he make everything so fucking complicated?

  I caught his gaze with mine. Then, without breaking eye contact, I twisted in Jason’s arms, putting my lips full on his.

  Jude looked away. “Fucking A, Zaza.”

  Jason pulled back. “What is your problem, man?”

  “Let’s get out of here before you two start making out,” he said. “That’s all I’m saying.”

  “I’ll kiss her whenever I—” Abruptly, Jason grunted.

  And then I heard the sound of the shot.

  Maybe they happened at the same time. I can’t be sure. But my brain processed it slow.

  Jason doubled over, clutching his stomach. “Fuck.”

  Someone had shot him, I finally realized.

  I lifted my gun, stepping out from behind him.

  There was a man at the door. He wasn’t a police officer. He wore a leather jacket and jeans. His hair was curly, and tendrils of it wound around his collar. He had piercing eyes, and he fixed me with a penetrating stare. “Azazel Jones, I presume?”

  I shot him.

  The bullet shattered the bridge of his nose, burrowing into his head.

  He fell as his face exploded in red gore.

  I turned. Jason was on the ground. He was gritting his teeth.

  Jude was kneeling next to him.

  “I’m not healing,” said Jason.

  “Fuck,” I said.

  I ran for the man at the front of the store. I picked up his gun. Emptying the chamber of bullets, I realized they were ours. We’d made these bullets. He must have gotten them from our weapons. I shoved the bullets into my pocket.

  I ran out of the door in front of the store, looking around.

  But the street was totally empty and still. Nothing even stirred. It was as if all the people had known to hide.

  “Jude,” I yelled.

  “Yeah?”

  “Check the dead police for keys. And watch it. We don’t know if they’re vampires. They might not be dead.” We were going to take one of these police cars and get out of here.

  “Got it,” said Jude.

  I ran back to Jason. He was curled up in a ball, noisily sucking air through his clenched teeth.

  “Baby, you got to get up,” I said.

  He shook his head. “No. No way.”

  “You have to.”

  Jude jingled keys above his head. “Keys.”

  “Help me get him up,” I said to Jude.

  “Just leave me,” Jason said. “I’m not moving anywhere.”

  “Come on,” I said. “You have to.”

  Jude and I hauled him to his feet.

  Jason shrieked. “Motherfucker, how do regular people deal with this?”

  I guessed Jason had never been shot when he had the leaves in his system. But he had eaten them regularly for five years back when Kieran and Eve were controlling everyone’s minds. The leaves didn’t only suppress Nephilim powers, they suppressed all kinds of magic.

  Piercing Eyes was stirring at the front of the store. He was clearly a vampire. Dammit. Why had I taken the bullets out of the gun? On the plus side, he wasn’t armed. On the negative side, I only had bullets that would slow him down.

  He pushed himself up on his knees, wiping at the blood on his face.

  “Stay down,” I said, fumbling to support Jason and aim my gun at the same time.

  Jude, Jason and I edged our way out of the store.

  Piercing Eyes smiled at me, his face still streaked with blood. “There’s nowhere to hide here. They’ll all report to me if they see you.”

  We took slow steps past the man.

  Jason moaned.

  “Do you have Grace?” I said.

  His smile widened. “Surrender yourself to me. Find out.”

  “I don’t think so,” I said. I was trying to aim my gun with one arm, and my arm was starting to shake. I hoped he wouldn’t notice.

  He started to stand up. “We don’t need to be enemies, you know. I think we might be able to help each other.”

  “Don’t move!” I said, gesturing with the gun.

  He kept moving. He struggled to his feet. “At the very least, would you stop killing people? They have families. They’re loved—”

  I shot him again.

  He collapsed.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  “For shit’s sake, Azazel,” Jason yelled. I’d just gone over another bump in the road, as I was speeding out of town in the cop car we’d stolen. Every time I went over a bump, Jason said swear words.

  “I’m sorry.” I winced, looking over my shoulder. “Hold on, okay?”

  He groaned.

  I shot a glance at Jude. “How long does it take for the herb to wear off? Do you remember?”

  “Watch the road,” said Jude.

  I snapped my head back forward. The road was narrowing ahead of me. We were going back into the woods. “I think it takes a day. Do you think he could die before that happens? Before it wears off?”

  “He’s not going to die.” Jude sounded a little annoyed about it too.

  “You don’t know that,” I said.

  “Look, we’ve got other problems,” said Jude. “The people in this town are apparently all working together, and they’re after us. Plus we don’t have any way to contact Boone. And we’re no closer to finding Grace.”

  He was right.

  “We’re fucked,” I said.

  “We need to hide out someplace.”

  “Can we go back to the rental house that Boone found for us?” I said.

  “You just going to park this car out front?” said Jude.

  “No, I guess not,” I said. “We’ll hide the car somewhere…”

  “They can probably track this car,” said Jude. “I bet it’s outfitted with GPS. We should ditch it.”

  “Ditch it? Then we won’t have a car.”

  “We’ll get another car,” said Jude.

  “Okay,” I said. “We can do that.” I nodded. “We’ll just find a parking lot, and we’ll…” I looked at Jason in the rearview mirror. “Baby, can you hotwire a car right now?”

  Jason grunted. “I don’t think so.”

  “Jude, do you know how to do it?”

  “You mean you don’t?” Jude asked. “I thought he taught you this stuff.”

  “I never thought…” I chewed on my lip. “Maybe you could walk me through it, Jason?”

  “Everything’s kind of… fuzzy right now,” Jason muttered.

  “Oh my god, Jude,” I said. “He’s going to die. We have to do something.”

  “He’s going to be fine,” said Jude.

  I stepped on the gas pedal as we began to climb a winding hill.

  And the car sputtered.

  And died.

  “What the fuck?” I said.

  Jude leaned over me. “We’re out of gas.”

  “We’re what?” I said.

  * * *

  Jude and I propped Jason up against a tree. All three of us were breathing hard. We’d stepped into a small clearing in the woods, and the sun burned cheerily down on us through the opening in the leaves.

  I wasn’t sure how long we’d walked. It had felt like hours, but I was pretty sure it hadn’t been that long. We were far away from the cop car, though, which we’d had to abandon on the side of the road.

 
; Jason leaned his head against the trunk of the tree. His skin was pasty. We’d tied his shirt around him as a makeshift bandage. But he’d soaked through it while we were walking, and we’d used Jude’s instead. It looked like that one was almost soaked through too. I wasn’t sure if my shirt was big enough to tie around him. It didn’t matter, of course, because I couldn’t take my shirt off in front of Jude. I mean, it wasn’t like he hadn’t seen me without a shirt—

  Jude’s mouth on my nipples, his teeth grazing them. Moans escaping my lips.

  —but that didn’t mean that I should let him see me like that again. Even though I was sweating like crazy, and I envied that both of the guys could be barechested.

  I settled down next to Jason. I touched his face. “Hey, hang in there.”

  “Don’t make me get back up again.” Jason’s voice was strained.

  I peeled Jude’s shirt away from Jason’s body, looking at the gun shot. It didn’t look good. He was losing so much blood.

  “You’ve got to try to give him blood,” I told Jude.

  “That’s not going to work,” said Jude.

  “How do you know?” I said.

  “Because we’re not human,” said Jude. “I mean the blood works on humans, but it’s not going to work now.”

  “The herbs in Jason’s system make him like a human,” I said. “When I had the herbs in my system, then blood healed me.”

  “Yeah, but that’s you,” said Jude.

  “Just try it,” I said.

  Jude sighed. “Fine. Find me something to cut myself with.”

  I hunted around until I found a sharp rock.

  Jude used it to cut open his wrist. The minute I smelled his blood, I wanted to jump him. I remembered the way he’d fed me his blood after we’d…

  Suddenly, I didn’t want his blood at all. I only felt sick.

  Jude put his bleeding wrist to Jason’s mouth.

  Jason made a face. “The smell, no, I can’t drink that.”

  “You have to,” I said.

  Jude shrugged. “We can’t force him.”

  “The hell we can’t.” I jammed Jude’s wrist into Jason’s mouth.

  Jason’s eyes got big, and he resisted for a minute. But then I could see that he was drinking the blood.