by Мишель Роуэн
“Just stay here,” he said. “It’ll be over soon.”
“But Thierry—”
“Thierry wants to die. Everybody knows that. Save yourself, sweetheart.”
He didn’t mean to be cruel. He was trying to be helpful, and I knew it. I grabbed him and kissed him hard on the cheek.
“Don’t get stabbed again.” I slipped out from underneath the table.
“I’ll try,” he said sadly. “You too.”
I tried to find somebody I knew, but I was surrounded by unfamiliar faces that were filled with rage or fear or confusion. Where were Quinn and Thierry? Why couldn’t I find Barry and Amy? Did Veronique even know what was going on? I had to get to the office and warn her. I was close to the bar at that moment, and I used it to pull myself along through the crowd going in the opposite direction. I ran down the hallway and opened up the door, slipped inside, and closed it behind me. I looked around.
Zelda was right in front of me, smiling sweetly.
“Hey, Sarah.” She backhanded me across the face. “Glad you could join us.”
White stars exploded in front of my eyes. I fell to the floor and tried to scramble away from her, stunned by the pain from the blow. What just happened? I thought Veronique was looking after her. I looked up. Veronique was sprawled on the sofa, unconscious. There was a wooden stake protruding from her ample chest; her designer dress was ruined, and one expensive shoe was off, the heel broken and flung across the room. I crawled along the floor until I got to Thierry’s desk. Using it, I pulled myself up to my feet. My ears rang from the hit I’d just received. I never knew girls could hit that hard, but
Zelda wasn’t a girl. She was a three-hundred-year-old vampire with a chip on her shoulder. We weren’t the only ones in the room. Peter emerged from the corner and smiled at me.
“Nice little scene out there, darlin‘. Didn’t see that coming.”
“Yeah, well, I guess you don’t see much coming these days.” I noticed the familiar taste of blood in my mouth. “At least not out of your left side, that is.”
His smile vanished and was replaced by a scowl.
“Got anything to say to me?” Zelda asked.
“Nope.” I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of getting any more of a rise out of me. “Not a damn thing.”
She almost looked disappointed. Then she shrugged.
“Okay, Peter, I’m leaving now. I’ve done everything you’ve wanted.”
He stared at her. “Thank you. You’ve been most helpful. Although, I can’t say that I’m too thrilled about how this night is going so far.”
“Not my fault. So, how about my payment?”
“Your payment?”
“That’s right,” I said. “After all, our dear little Zelda only wants what’s coming to her.”
I almost felt that Peter and I shared a moment, but that was impossible because he was a psycho and the last time I checked—I wasn’t. A wide smile spread across his face.
“She wants what’s coming to her, does she?”
“Come on,” Zelda said impatiently. “I don’t have all night.”
Peter pulled out his stake and sank it into her chest. I scrambled farther behind the desk as I watched her expression change from greedy to surprised.
“But”—she looked up at him—“that’s not what I meant.”
She fell forward, mimicking the poor singer earlier. Her face smacked against the carpeted floor. But unlike the singer, who must have been much younger since she stayed in one dead but solid piece, Zelda slowly shrank and darkened, until there was nothing left of her but a pile of clothes, a stake, and a gross stain on the carpet that would probably require professional steam cleaning to remove. Peter bent over and picked up the stake. He looked down at the stain and shook his head.
Then he took a step toward me and flicked his eyes absently at Veronique.
“She’s a hot one. I’m glad she’s not dead yet. I plan on having lots of fun with her.”
I’d slowly worked my hand into Thierry’s top drawer, praying that I’d find what I was looking for. It had to still be in there. It just had to be. If it wasn’t, I was seriously screwed. I let out a little sigh of relief as I wrapped my hands around Thierry’s gun, the one he’d given me only a few short days ago to protect myself from Quinn.
Peter came closer until he was standing on the other side of the desk. “Yeah, we all get what’s coming to us sooner or later, don’t we, darlin‘? Now it’s your turn.” His grin widened as he reached for me.
“You first.” I pointed the gun at his chest and squeezed off a shot. The sound was deafening, and the recoil sent me crashing backward against the wall.
Peter took a step backward, too, and looked down at himself. Just like the singer he’d murdered earlier, a red stain blossomed out from the center of his chest. He dropped the stake and pressed his hand against the wound, as if that would make a difference. “Sorry,” I said. I actually meant it. First his eye, now this. He really should have known just to leave me the hell alone.
“You bitch.” His voice was so surprised it was almost sad.
“Sticks and stones, Peter.”
He took another step back and then his knees gave out. He collapsed in the middle of the puddle that once was Zelda, and I heard the last breath leave his body with a hiss. With shaking hands I put the gun back in the drawer and went to Veronique’s side. She was still breathing. Thank God for that.
“Veronique.” I glanced at Peter every couple of seconds, just in case he was planning on making another appearance, but he was pretty much as dead as he was going to get.
Wooden stakes in the hearts of vampires, lead bullets in the hearts of humans—they worked every time. I swallowed hard. I’d leave the freaking out about killing somebody, no matter how much they damn well deserved it, for another time.
“Veronique,” I said again and slapped her face.
Her eyelashes fluttered open and she stared up at me. “Sarah. What happened?”
“Don’t move. You’re hurt.”
She looked down at the stake and her eyes widened.
“I’m going to have to pull it out,” I told her.
I touched the stake, but she pushed my hands away. She wrapped her own hand around the base of the wooden weapon and pulled it out of her chest in one quick, sickening motion. She didn’t even scream. She gingerly sat up on the sofa.
“If I had a nickel for every time I’ve been staked”— she glanced at me wearily—“well, I’d only have about twenty cents. But still, it’s never a fun experience.”
“You’re going to be okay?” I was surprised she’d been able to remove the stake all by herself. She was one tough cookie.
“No, I’m not.” She looked down at herself. “This dress was one of a kind. I’m very upset.
Let’s shoot the hunter again, shall we?”
“You saw me shoot him? I thought you were unconscious.”
“I was, but I see him lying there with a hole in his chest. It’s obvious what happened.”
I smiled and helped her to her feet. We stepped around the mess that once was Peter and
Zelda, and I opened up the door to peek outside. Everything was quiet. Too quiet.
“Maybe you should stay here,” I told her.
She shook her head. “No. Let’s go.”
We slowly made our way out to the main club area. It was mostly cleared out. The fight was over. There were a few bodies on the ground. Some vampires, a few hunters. Some were moving, some weren’t. It looked like a dimly lit, smoke-filled war zone with makeshift nurses and doctors tending to the injured.
George rushed toward us with a huge smile on his face. “You’re okay!”
“Yeah. And you, too.” I smiled back. “You stayed safely under your table?”
“No. I got out and kicked some ass. It was more fun than I thought it would be.”
“Good for you.”
“Sarah.” Quinn made his way over to join us at the bar.
He was limping, and there was another cut on his forehead to match the one his father had given him earlier on his cheek.
He grabbed me and hugged me tightly. I was so glad he was okay that I almost burst into tears.
“You look like hell,” I told him.
“You look like heaven.”
I rolled my eyes. “You honestly have to start working on your pickup lines.”
He grimaced. “I don’t think I’ll be picking anything up for a while, but I’ll keep it in mind.” He glanced at Veronique. “Who are you?”
“Veronique.” She extended her hand and then winced in pain.
He took her hand but didn’t shake it. “Nice to meet a fellow battle-scarred soldier.”
She shook her head. “I’m not planning on scarring. My injury should heal up fine.”
He let go of her hand. “It was just an expression.”
Amy and Barry joined us. Barry was cut up, too, but smiling. Amy hugged me.
“Glad you’re okay,” I said to her.
“You too.”
“No hard feelings?”
“None. We’ve been friends too long. I just want you to be happy for me.”
I looked at Barry and he met my gaze. “I love her. I know it seems fast, but sometimes life’s just like that.”
“Fine.” I smiled at him. “Then congratulations, you two. When’s the big day?”
“We’re leaving tonight,” Amy said. “We’re going to elope to Niagara Falls.”
“You’re going to Niagara Falls for your wedding? That is so cheesy. I love it.”
Amy paused. “This means I won’t be able to go to Mexico with you.”
“I kind of figured that. After everything that’s happened, I might just skip it myself. I mean, a vampire in Mexico? How weird would that be?” I glanced around. “Where’s Thierry?”
George turned around in a circle. “Don’t know. Haven’t seen him since the battle royale took place.”
My breath caught in my throat and a tear streaked down my cheek. “Shit. Please don’t tell me that they killed him.”
Quinn touched my arm. “No, he’s not dead. He fought hard against the hunters, but he’s not dead. I saw him leave through the tanning salon five minutes ago. He didn’t say where he was going.”
I let a long, shaky sigh out slowly and wiped my face. I tried to smile.
“You care about him, don’t you?” Veronique said. “You’ve denied it before, but you can’t fool me.”
I bit my bottom lip. “Look, I know he’s your husband and—”
She waved me off and laughed until it hurt so much she had to stop. “It’s okay. We were married a long time ago, but we haven’t been man and wife for so long, I forget even what it was like. I have had many lovers since then, and I certainly don’t expect that Thierry has remained faithful to me. Now, dear girl, answer me. Do you care for him?”
I sniffed. “Yes. But I just figured that since you came back after all this time, you were interested in getting back together with him.”
She smiled, but it didn’t hold. Her expression turned serious. “I came here because it was requested of me. Thierry asked me to come.”
“Why?”
“There’s something you need to know,” she said gravely. “Thierry plans to end his life; he’s weary of living. There’s nothing in it for him anymore. Six hundred years is a long time.”
“I know that already. But why did he ask you to come?”
“He knows I have an excellent head for business. He asked me to look after the clubs he owns, to either run them myself or sell them to another who will keep them open. He didn’t want his employees or clientele not to have a place to count on being here. I agreed, because I feel a sense of responsibility to him. I sired him, after all, and he was my husband at one time. I’m also searching for direction in my own life now. I, too, am weary, but not ready yet for it all to end. I don’t know if I’ll ever be. This seemed like the perfect answer.”
“But you didn’t say anything to try to talk Thierry out of what he wanted to do?”
She paused. “No. It’s his decision. I don’t think anything I could have said would have swayed him otherwise.”
“I need to talk to him. I need to know where he went.”
No one said anything.
Anxiety filled me, spreading evenly through every part of my body. “He’s gone to do it tonight, hasn’t he? Where? Where did he go?”
They all glanced at one another.
George shook his head. “Sorry, he didn’t say.”
I exhaled and it sounded shuddery and hopeless.
“I can’t deal with this. After everything that’s happened, I can’t lose him. I just can’t.”
I felt a hand on my shoulder. It was Veronique. She smiled at me, and there was more warmth in her perfect features than I’d seen before. Or maybe I just hadn’t been looking hard enough. “If there is one thing I’ve learned after all of my many years, it’s this: when the world has gone mad and you feel the most lost—that is when you must trust your heart to lead you where you need to go.”
I blinked at her through my tears. “That is the lamest thing I’ve ever heard.”
It may have been lame, but I knew it was the truth. The one thing I’d trusted during all that had happened to me was what my heart told me, be it right or wrong, and at that moment my heart was telling me it wasn’t too late.
“There is a reason why those as old as I do not sire fledglings.”
I closed my eyes. Thierry had said that sires and fledglings have a bond, sometimes heightened by age. Okay, he wasn’t my real sire, but goddamn it, this had to work. I cleared my mind. I focused. It was like being at Missy’s wedding again searching out the other vampires. A Spidey-sense.
But there was nothing. Nothing.
Nothing. And then… I opened my eyes.
“I think I know where he is. I need somebody to give me a lift. Right now. There’s no time to waste.”
Barry stepped forward. “My car’s out back. Amy and I were going to leave now, anyhow. We’ll drive you anywhere you want to go.”
I let out the breath I’d been holding. “Thanks. You’re growing on me. A little.”
“The feeling’s mutual.”
Amy and Barry went to the black door to leave. I turned to the others.
“Thanks, guys. For everything. Wish me luck.”
Quinn grabbed my wrist. His eyes were sad, but he was trying to smile. “Good luck. I mean it.”
I kissed him, just a quick kiss, but I meant every bit of it. I wanted him to know how much he meant to me. If things had been different, then who could say? But they weren’t. I wanted to be with Thierry. And I had to stop him from what he was planning on doing. I blew another kiss to the others as I backed away toward the door; then I turned around and followed Amy and Barry out to the car. I directed them to the Bloor Viaduct—the bridge where Thierry and I had first met. Where the hunters had chased me. The Don River raced underneath, cold and dark and foreboding. I got out and slammed the car door. I quickly scanned the bridge. I couldn’t see him, but I knew he was there.
“Should we wait?” Amy asked.
“No. I’ll be fine. You guys go.”
“You’re sure?”
“Positive.” I turned away, then glanced back. “Thanks, guys. Sorry I’ve been such a bitch.”
“You can’t help what you are,” Barry said, and then the little bugger winked at me. “Good luck. Bring the master home in one piece.”
I nodded and watched them drive away; then I turned to focus my attention on the bridge, scanning the length of it. For a moment I thought that I’d made a mistake. He wasn’t here at all. I’d put all my eggs in one basket and I was wrong. He was lost to me forever. But then I saw him. Halfway down, past the protective bars and on a suspension beam, just standing there surveying the night that surrounded him. He didn’t look at me as I approached, but he must have known that I was there.
“Thi
erry!” I called to him.
I saw he had a wooden stake in his hand. So he was serious this time. This was it. If I couldn’t find a way to stop him, he was going to do it, once and for all. End a life that had spanned more than six centuries. Seemed like an event that the papers and the six o’clock news should cover. An event of great importance. But how did they know? He’d just be another jumper. Nobody to lose any sleep over.
He glanced at me and shook his head. “You shouldn’t have come.”
I climbed up on the cement barrier and crawled out to meet him through the opening in the metal bars he’d made last week. There was a time when being this high up would have paralyzed me. I wouldn’t have been able to function—scared of falling, scared of dying. But the first time I’d been chased out there was for fear of my own life, and this time it was out of fear for his. My fear of heights seemed to vanish in times of great stress. Finally I was standing, balanced on a metal slat a little more than an arm’s length away from him. His eyes didn’t look silver now, it was too dark. They were expressionless, dark pools that matched the water so far below us.
“Nice view,” I said.
“Leave here, Sarah. You can’t stop me.”
“Who said I wanted to stop you?”
“Pardon me?” He looked surprised.
“I said that I didn’t come here to stop you.”
“That is a surprise, Sarah. But you have never stopped surprising me since we first met. So tell me, why, then, are you here if you did not have it in your industrious mind to stop me?”
I pulled Peter’s well-used stake out from the back of my powder blue sweatpants. I’d put it there for safekeeping. Definitely not a comfortable thing to carry around, especially when sitting in the back of Barry’s car—but you do what you have to do.
I blinked at him. “I’ve come here to join you.”
“What?”
“I’m going to kill myself, too.”
“Please, Sarah, be serious. I am in no mood for your jokes.”