“But what?” Dylan asked, looking around the room.
“Get out of here,” Karma yelled to the others. “Someone grab Delanie and go as fast as you can. Dylan, Johnson, let’s go.”
She grabbed both men and pulled them from the bedroom just as the first in a series of small explosions went off.
“RUN! NOW!” She yelled and pushed them both toward the door as the room behind them became engulfed in flames.
“KARMA!” Nevaeh shouted as smoke poured out of the front door.
“Go!” Karma shouted again, and pushed the two men out of the house, just as the flames brushed her back.
Pain ripped through her as she felt a hand grip hers and pull her through the door.
“She’s on fire,” Dylan yelled, as Baxter pulled off his jacket and smothered the flames covering Karma’s back.
“I’m okay,” Karma managed to say before darkness engulfed her.
“She’s going to be okay,” Nevaeh told Dylan a few minutes later as they watched the burns on Karma’s skin heal.
“I know, but I hate seeing her hurt in any way,” he responded and sighed.
“She saved us,” Johnson said, sitting on the grass beside her.
“Here,” Baxter handed Dylan his shirt. “I soaked it with a bottle of water. It’ll cool the burns and help them heal faster.”
“I’m okay,” Karma muttered, and everyone snapped their heads toward her.
“Hey baby,” Dylan said with a soft smile.
“I’m okay,” she said again, and looked at everyone. “But I need blood.”
“Here,” Delanie said and held out her wrist.
“I’ve never drank from anyone other than Dylan before,” Karma said, and looked at Delanie.
“You need human blood,” Baxter told her.
“I know,” she said and flinched at the thought of drinking from someone’s vein.
“You can torture and kill without a second thought, but you flinch at the thought of drinking from someone?” Martin said and chuckled.
“Fine,” Karma said and grabbed Delanie’s arm gently after the girl sat beside her on the grass. “I’m sorry if I hurt you.”
“It’s okay,” Delanie said and watched as Karma’s fangs elongated. “Just don’t kill me.”
“Promise,” Karma said and bit deep.
After taking a few large gulps, Karma pulled back and looked at Delanie.
“Thank you,” she muttered before sliding her tongue across the bite to close it.
“How do you feel?” Dylan asked, looking at her back. “The burns have healed.”
“I feel like I’m half naked,” she responded and everyone around her chuckled.
“Here,” Dylan said as he pulled his shirt off and handed it to her.
“Thank you,” she replied after she slipped it on and stood up. “Is everyone else okay?”
“You were the only one hurt,” Dylan nearly growled.
“Good,” she said and kissed him softly before pulling away. “Let’s get out of here then and I’ll show you what I found.”
“You had time to find something?” Delanie asked, bewildered.
“Yep,” she responded. “Let’s get back to the house, and I will show everyone.”
“Let’s go then,” Dylan said, but pulled Karma into his arms instead of heading toward the SUVs. “I love you, but if you ever do something like that again, I will tie you up somewhere with silver rope.”
“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” she replied and nipped his lip before pulling away and grabbing his hand. “Now let’s go.”
Chapter Eighteen
“What is that?” Nevaeh asked, taking the small, oddly shaped piece of metal from Karma’s hand.
“It’s a piece of steel,” Karma said and grinned. “Smell it.”
“What am I supposed to be smelling?” Nevaeh asked, and Karma shook her head.
“Baxter, smell this,” she said and handed the piece of steel to him.
“Horse,” Baxter said with a confused look on his face. “Where did you find this?”
“Back at the house before Dylan walked into the bedroom,” she answered. “I think it’s from a horseshoe.”
“Could be,” Baxter mused.
“There’s a couple of riding stables in the area,” Jensen said as he looked over the maps. “One to the North, and one near Disney.”
“The Disney one would be too busy, even this time of year,” Martin told them. “Disney is always busy, no matter where you go.”
“You’ve been to Disney World?” Dylan asked.
“The wife and I took the kids there just after it first opened,” he told them. “That was the last thing we did as a family before I was changed.”
“You guys make me feel so young,” Karma said, and Harrison chuckled.
“And they make me feel old,” he said and looked at the vampire he trusted more than he’d ever trusted anyone in his life.
“Okay, you’re old and I’m young,” Karma said and grinned. “We all know this already. Now what we need to figure out is where this came from.”
“A simple call to both stables will tell us what types of shoes they use for their horses,” Johnson told them. “And I looked up the numbers already. Who wants to call?”
“I’ll take the Disney one,” Karma said, and Johnson rattled off the number to her.
“And I guess I’ll take the other,” Nevaeh spoke up.
“Make sure you both tell them you’re with the VEB,” Baxter reminded them.
“Yes, Boss,” Karma said and stuck her tongue out at him before dialing the number.
As they made the calls, Dylan looked over the maps again and frowned.
“Neither stable is overly convenient to the house Crompton was staying in,” he said almost to himself.
“Do you think there could be somewhere else he picked up that piece of metal from?” Delanie asked, looking at the maps, too.
“Maybe, but I have no idea where,” he responded.
“The Disney stable uses coated steel for their shoes,” Karma said and frowned. “I don’t think this is from there.”
“And the other one uses aluminum shoes,” Nevaeh added.
“Back to square one,” Baxter said and sighed.
“Maybe not,” Dylan called out from where he’d wandered into the kitchen. “Come look at this.”
“What?” Karma asked, walking up behind him.
“This,” he answered and turned the laptop toward her. “It was a wild west show. It closed down a couple months ago, but I remembered seeing a sign for it when we were heading to the area we found Maggie.”
“I know that place,” Caia said from the living room where she’d been playing cards with Gina. “Mom took me there once when I was nine or ten.”
“Do you remember exactly where it was?” Dylan asked her.
“Yes,” she said and walked to one of the more detailed maps. “It wasn’t far from my school and I passed it every day on the bus.”
When she located her school on the map, she traced backwards toward her house until she found where she was looking for.
“Here,” she said, tapping on what looked like an open field on the map. “They had this entire area set up like a town you would see in an old Western movie.”
“Let’s go,” Delanie said and started heading upstairs to get her things.
“No,” Karma stopped her with a simple word. “We should wait until morning.”
“Why?” Delanie asked, not understanding why she would want to wait.
“Two reasons,” Karma told her. “One, we’re all exhausted and need to get a few hours sleep before we walk into what could potentially be a deadly situation. And two, they would expect us to come at night. Very new vampire cannot be out in the sunlight. It won’t kill them, but it does blister their skin, so if Jackson has been turned, he will be inside tomorrow morning, and less likely to get injured or killed in what will likely be a battle like none we have had befo
re.”
“Two very good points,” Baxter said and looked at the group. “And I have a third. We will need the rest of the team with us when we go. We will not be able to handle more than a few dozen vampire with just us. Even new vampire can be lethal if trained.”
“In the past we’ve found they have very little training, but that may not be the case now,” Jensen said and locked eyes with Karma. “And we don’t want to lose any of the team.”
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Karma asked him.
“Because we all know you, and we know you will run into the middle of a fight to protect any of us,” Martin said and smiled at her. “If we lose you, or Dylan, we’ve lost you both.”
“I know that,” she said and looked at them all before turning and starting up the stairs. When she reached the top, she called back down to them. “Next time, I’ll just let you die.”
With that, she disappeared into the bedroom she had claimed for her and Dylan and shut the door loudly.
“I guess she told us,” Nevaeh said and chuckled.
“Sometimes I forget she’s only eighteen,” Harrison said and grinned. “Until she pops out with that attitude that is.”
“She’ll get over it,” Martin said and looked at Dylan. “Let’s get a plan set so we can rescue your brother.”
“After we do that, I’ll go talk to her,” Dylan said and frowned a little. “That is, of course, if she doesn’t stake me.”
Chapter Nineteen
“Where are you going?” Delanie asked Karma from the front door.
“Shush,” Karma said and motioned for Delanie to come outside. “I’m going to check out this place where Jackson may be.”
“Alone?” Delanie asked. “And without a vehicle?”
“I can run faster than any of the vehicles we have,” Karma reminded her. “And yes, alone. I can be there and back before anyone else even notices I’m gone.”
“Not happening,” Delanie told her. “I’m coming with you.”
“You’ll just slow me down,” Karma replied.
“Either I come with you, or I yell for the others right now,” Delanie countered.
“Fine, but if we get caught, or killed, it’s your fault,” Karma told her and started walking down the road.
“Are we walking?” Delanie asked.
“No,” Karma responded. “But we cannot take one of the vans or SUVs. They’ll hear it start and be out the door before we can pull out of the driveway.”
“Then how are we getting there?” Delanie asked.
“Those,” Karma responded, stopping in front of a house about three doors down from the one they’d rented, and pointed at the motorcycles sitting in the front yard with a For Sale sign in front of them. “You do know how to ride, right?”
“Of course,” Delanie answered, and Karma grinned before she walked up to the door and knocked.
“May I help you?” A woman in her mid-thirties asked when she opened the door.
“Yes, ma’am,” Karma responded and smiled sweetly. “How much for the bikes?”
“Five hundred for the pair,” she answered. “They were my husband’s, and are in perfect condition. He ran off a few months ago with his secretary, so I’m selling all his shit.”
“I’ll take them both,” Karma answered and pulled the cash from her pocket.
“I’ll get the titles for you,” the woman said and walked away. When she returned a moment later, she handed Karma three pieces of paper. The titles for both bikes, and a receipt for the sale.
“Thank you,” Karma responded with another smile.
“Oh, here are the keys,” the lady said and handed her two keychains. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, and thank you,” Karma responded.
“Be safe on those. They’re fast,” the woman said before shutting the door.
“I hope so,” Karma responded as she walked down the steps and looked at her purchases.
“Red or black?” Delanie asked, looking lustfully at the red one.
“Black,” Karma replied and tossed Delanie the key to the red one. “It matches my personality better.”
“Sweet,” Delanie responded as she slid onto the red one and started it. “Let’s go.”
“Try to keep up,” Karma said before she peeled out of the yard at full speed.
As the cooler night air whipped around her, Delanie let the freedom of being on a bike surround her. She had been riding since she was thirteen, and had never felt more free than when she was racing down the road, or through the fields, on a bike.
Staying on Karma’s tail wasn’t difficult, and before she knew it, they’d covered the twenty miles between their house and the area where the wild west show had been held.
When Karma slowed and pulled to the side of the road, Delanie followed her.
“We need to go on foot from here,” Karma said and looked at the bikes. “Let’s pull these into the trees so they’re hidden.”
“We won’t be as fast on foot,” Delanie pointed out.
“It’s only about half a mile from here,” Karma responded. “If we get any closer on the bikes, they will know we’re coming before we’re there. On foot, we can enter silently.”
“Good point,” Delanie responded.
“Keep your weapons out and ready,” Karma told her after they walked the bikes off the highway and into the trees. “They could have patrols out.”
“Okay,” Delanie said as she pulled two of her Kunai from her belt.
“Ready?” Karma asked after pulling her Sai from their sheaths.
“Let’s do this,” Delanie said and grinned.
“Silently,” Karma told her before heading off in the direction of the abandoned show grounds.
About a quarter mile from their destination, they encountered the first of the patrols. Karma took him out quickly, and silently, before turning to Delanie and nodding.
Delanie returned the nod, and they started off again.
Less than a hundred feet later, they encountered two more vampire. After taking them out, they moved on, but didn’t make it far before they were surrounded.
“Well, look what we have here,” a tall, blonde female said from directly in front of Karma.
“Trespassers,” the male beside her said. “Should we kill them, or take them to the boss?”
“Kill them,” one of the others answered.
“You can try,” Karma challenged as she looked around them. There were eight that she could see, but she didn’t sense more in the vicinity, so she wasn’t too concerned.
“You think you can take us?” Delanie asked, gripping her Kunai as she moved and pressed her back to Karma’s.
“You’re human,” one of the ones she was now facing pointed out.
“Very observant,” Delanie responded. “Did you figure that out all by yourself?”
“Let’s see if you’re so cocky after I’m through with you,” he snapped and lunged.
When she struck out with her Kunai, he fell at her feet, and gaped at her for a second before dying.
“Now,” the female said and the other seven charged.
Karma quickly took out two with her Sai before grabbing a third by the hair and ripping his head off before he could bite Delanie as she fought two more.
“You’re good,” the female commented as she looked at Karma. “But are you good enough?”
“Guess we’ll see,” Karma responded as she twirled her Sai.
“Put those away, and fight me on level playing ground,” the female said and Karma grinned.
“Sure,” she replied and slid her Sai into their sheaths.
“The rest are dead,” Delanie called out as Karma and the female started circling each other.
“Good,” Karma said, not taking her eyes off the female. “Stay alert. There could be more.”
“Ready to dance?” The female asked.
“Sure,” Karma replied. “But first I need to know the name of my dancing partner.”
“Mitzy,” she responded.
“Well, Mitzy,” Karma said and grinned. “It was nice knowing you.”
“And your name?” Mitzy asked.
“Karma,” she answered, and Mitzy hesitated for a second.
“You’re the one.”
“The one?” Karma asked, watching her closely.
“The one who ruined everything for us,” Mitzy told her.
“Oh, yeah, that was me,” Karma responded and grinned.
“I’m going to kill you now.”
“Stop talking and do it already,” Karma told her and grinned when Mitzy shifted.
When Mitzy jumped up and over her, Karma flipped the opposite direction and landed on her feet before Mitzy noticed she’d moved.
“Need to be a little faster,” Karma told her. “You’re having problems keeping up.”
“Bitch,” Mitzy spat and lunged for Karma.
Grinning, Karma caught her in the jaw with her fist, and sent her flying back into a tree.
“You’re still too slow,” Karma taunted and Mitzy growled.
“I’ll show you slow, bitch,” she said and crouched.
When she lunged again, Karma drove her fist straight through Mitzy’s chest and wrapped her fingers around the vampire’s heart.
“You’re a lousy dancer,” Karma commented before pulling her heart from her chest.
After she dropped the still beating heart on the ground, she pulled a knife from her boot and sliced Mitzy’s head off.
“That was kinda fun to watch,” Delanie said from where she was standing.
“Let’s get out of here,” Karma said as she saw lights coming on from the direction of the old show grounds.
“Yes,” Delanie said, and they started running.
When Karma heard footsteps behind them, she grabbed Delanie and tossed her over her shoulder before sprinting forward at full speed.
They made it to the bikes in seconds, and were on the road before anyone could find where they were.
A few miles later, Karma pulled to the side of the road and scanned the area behind them.
“That was close,” Delanie said, and Karma nodded before taking her eyes off the road behind them.
“Let’s get a little further away from here, then we need to find a place to clean up before heading back to the house,” Karma said, and Delanie nodded.
Delanie's Fury (Vampire Huntress Saga Book 3) Page 9