by Liliana Hart
By the time I was set to leave, the cocktail hour had come and gone and it was close to nine. I grabbed my helmet, keys and a half filled bottle of whiskey and headed to the door. “I’ll meet up with you around midnight?”
Beau followed close behind me. “Try bringing a friend or two.”
As if luring a handful of vamps was going to be difficult. I shook out my new-to-me leather coat that was sure to grab attention and shrugged it on. Holding up the whiskey, I shook it at him. “Not a problem. It’s party time tonight.”
“Nice. We haven’t done that technique in a while.”
I turned and faced him for the ritual. We hugged, and he said, “Love ya, brother. Stay alive.”
“Love you, too.” And I meant it, even if he did irritate me on a daily basis. “Ashes to ashes.”
“Dust to dust. God be with you,” he finished and we broke apart.
I locked eyes with him. “God be with you.”
Kitted out with the whiskey, a knife, a Glock concealed under my coat with an extra clip of twelve and a wooden stake, I left, climbed on my motorcycle and revved it to life.
I slipped eastward through the streets, zipping easily between cars. While in the area I’d last seen the woman, my gaze whipped right and left, searching every possible place she could have seen me confronting a vamp. Nothing.
It was getting late, so I headed over to the South End area of town and parked my bike in a dark, narrow alley between Exeter and Fairfield and headed on foot to one of several vampire hotspots, Copley Square. It was right in the middle of a vampire trifecta: Old South Church, Trinity Church and the Boston Public Library. Vamps may be evil personified, but they knew God existed and loved to piss on him whenever they got the chance. It had taken me a while to understand the allure of the library until one cold, snowy night a few months into our new monster-slaying gig, a sweet-faced girl I met inside the warm library took me to her place. I was bored and green and bucking my brother’s rules of engagement. Number one rule: Vampires are good at luring in the unsuspecting, and boy was I unsuspecting. I thought I was safe because everyone knows vampires can’t enter a building without being invited.
Ummm, no. That rule doesn’t apply to public spaces like the library, churches, theaters, grocery stores and the like. That seemingly innocent girl had a pale-skinned, blurry-eyed look most bookworms develop. I trusted her. I fell for her act until the moment she flashed a pair of lethal fangs. Ashing her had been one of the most depressing things I’d ever done. Lesson learned. Vamps loved gullible people. Thankfully, I wasn’t so gullible anymore.
I cut through Copley Park toward Trinity Church and noticed a trio of pretty people milling about the tortoise and the hare sculptures. I pegged them for what they were. It was easy. Normal people usually had one or two average looking friends in their group. Not Vamps. They were the snobs of the monster world. They only associated with and turned those who hit nine or ten on the beauty scale. Aesthetic snobs. Just one more reason to hate them.
The three looked my way. I palmed the whiskey bottle and upended it. I didn’t drink, but I stumbled a bit and acted like my brain had gone all liquid warm.
The trio took the bait and started after me. Three quickly turning into five. They hung back, assessing their chances and followed me around the church. I glanced in the tall reflective windows of the building I was passing to gauge their distance and was surprised to see my Viking warrior maiden landing on the sidewalk behind them. I whipped around, no doubt with a shocked look on my face. I glanced up. Where had she come from? The buildings lining the street were slick high rises.
The vamps reacted to my shock and turned. The armor clad woman slowly straightened and slid out her sword. No way was she rescuing me again. I let out a piercing whistle, gaining everyone’s attention. “Hey!” I pulled free my sword and puffed out my chest. “I got this.”
Her left eyebrow hitched up revealing her doubt.
“What?” I asked. “One bad night and now you think I’m a walking snack?”
She shrugged. Great. The hot chick thinks I’m a loser. That’s just embarrassing.
The vamps rushed me in the misbelief I was less lethal. That just added to my irritation. I swiped my sword, beheading the most eager one. His ashes hadn’t even reached the ground before I embedded the blade into the next one. He grabbed the sword and fell back, yanking the weapon from my hand. Gurgling sounded before he exploded, and my sword clanked to the ground. Through the thickening gray haze, I encountered a woman. She grabbed my arm, but I twisted around, snapping hers behind her back. With my free hand, I grabbed my stake and shoved it between her ribs. Ash clouded my vision. I blinked through the dust, and when I turned to face the last two, the Viking warrior maiden took them both out just before they reached me. Ash floated in the air like dirty snow. I took a step through it and growled, “I told you, I got this.”
She swept her hair over shoulder, and the silver beads she’d braided into her hair clinked against her armor as she looked me up and down. “Who exactly do you think you are?” she asked, in a very intriguing light-as-air British accent.
She couldn’t be serious. Who was I? “I’m the normal everyday guy. See?” I plucked at my clothes. “Normal jeans. Normal t-shirt.” I swept my hand in her direction. Appealing as the metal vest and thigh hugging leather leggings were, she had some warped sense of normal pointing her finger at me. “I’m not running around dressed like Thor’s girlfriend.”
She looked all offended. “Thor isn’t real. He’s a made-up god.”
“I know that.” I wasn’t a brainless heathen. I gauged her in the same way she gauged me, except my eyes hovered over her metal breastplate—I’m a dude. I was fascinated by the craftsmanship as well as what it was hiding. “What’s your deal, other than playing at being a Viking warrior maiden?”
I half expected her to disappear, like before, but she surprised me. Again.
She slammed her sword home. “My name is Anara, and the only deal I’ve ever had ended poorly. Some people don’t lose graciously.”
“That’s funny, because I’m one of those people.” I re-hid the wooden stake and picked up my sword. A heavy layer of ash covered it and I wiped it clean before sheathing it. “You’re playing a dangerous game, Anara. You could get seriously hurt.”
“I doubt that. This isn’t a game. And, I’m not as normal as you.”
My lips twitched. Peeking over at her, I said, “Clearly.”
I stood six feet, two inches. She looked to be about five feet, six inches, not the biggest fighter I’ve ever seen, but definitely the most skilled. We stood face to face. She had the most unusual coloring I’d ever seen. Everything about her was pale, which made her appear fragile, but I knew better. Her features were delicate and impossibly beautiful. Unreal. Dreamlike even. I wanted to touch her, stroke her skin, feel the strength of her body against mine.
Whoa. I needed a reality check. My hormones were raging after winning the fight. My jaw tensed and my hands flexed against my sides as I fought for control. My instinct to touch her had me going down a dangerous path I couldn’t allow myself to follow.
One might think I was the kind of guy who got all fuzzy brained over a pretty face…well, that was me, but not anymore. I’d been burned too many times by the supernatural “pretty” people, seen things no human could make sense of for me to believe anything just because she was gorgeous. I was more like my brother than I wanted to admit. I didn’t like secrets, and this warrior maiden was a walking enigma.
It took me a moment to refocus. When I did, I found her pale blue eyes assessing me. The icy color should have left me cold, but they caused a flush to sweep my skin, almost daring me to come near. “Dare, double dare,” I muttered under my breath and took a step closer. She smelled clean, reminding me of shiny things and hot New England summer nights. “You’ve got my attention. What do you want?”
She didn’t back up. Not even when I scowled down at her, and my scowls rivaled Beau’
s. She stood calm and unaffected before me. “Can I trust you?”
Her tensely whispered question brought a smile to my face. “No. And I doubt I should trust you. After the show you just put on, my gut says you’re not someone I should be messing with.” But I really wanted to.
“You’re right.” A heavy sigh escaped her. “I never should’ve allowed you to see me, but things have changed. I wouldn’t be here if it were my choice.”
“Are you working for the vampires?” Blunt and to the point. That’s my style. I studied her intently, her every blink, twitch and breath.
“Those unholy creatures?” Surprise and horror mixed on her face. “What manner of man would think befriending them was a good idea?”
“An evil one.”
I had shocked her. Insulted her even. Her eyes clouded with indecision. Her lips softened and parted. Her breath suspended in her throat. When she finally spoke, it slipped out on a sad note. “I’m not good, but I’m not evil either.”
Her admission intrigued me. I took another step closer. She still didn’t back away, only looked down, defeated by her past mistakes. I could relate to that feeling. I raised my hand and it hovered close to her cheek. She closed her eyes, and I slowly drew the tips of my fingers from her temple to the tip of her chin. Her skin felt like polished ivory, warm and smooth and exotic. I slowly swept them down her throat to the base of her neck were the armor met her pounding vein. I leaned forward until my lips were less than an inch from her ear. I paused. Did she have any idea how hard it was for me not to press my lips to her skin and follow the trail I’d made?
She let out a ragged breath, one that had been coiled inside her. She licked her lips and tilted her head toward me. It was an invitation. One a smart predator would use to lure its prey.
I blinked hard.
What was I doing? I didn’t know jack about this woman, and I was ready to fling caution to the wind. She was reeling me in with her soulful act, a technique I used all the time. “Sounds like we’re two of a kind,” I whispered and then yanked away.
Her eyes fluttered open, something so sad, so lonely about them that I couldn’t look away. “I hope so. I need to trust you.”
The weight of her words pressed down on me. She needed help. Badly. Wasn’t that my job description? Helping those who needed help the most? Sure, she was a walking meat slicer, but a minion for the vamps? I couldn’t see them allowing her near them. Everything about her screamed capable, except her eyes. They showed her vulnerability, making it hard to step away
I gave her a little nod. “You can trust me.”
She said something in a language I didn’t quite catch and then said, “Come with me.”
I was an idiot and obviously not as immune to a pretty face as I thought. Even with that knowledge floating through my mind, I followed her like a puppy begging its new master for a bone.
After traveling more city blocks than I expected, we came to the Charles River near Longfellow Bridge. To the left was a tiny marina where a collection of small candy-colored boats were moored. The slap of water against the tiny hulls soothed the taut edges of the night. Hunkering within the cool shadows, Anara pointed to one of the sailboats. There was nothing unusual about it. Nothing that would hold even a speck of interest to anyone passing. I didn’t get it.
A frown settled between my eyes, and I asked, “You want to go out on the river?”
“No. It’s what’s in the boat.”
I couldn’t even guess what that could be. We climbed through the security measures and approached. Nothing looked out of place. Every detail fit the location, right down to the boat’s gentle dip and roll on the river.
Anara stopped in front of one painted with a bright yellow stripe, its sail neatly folded in the stern. She knelt and rapped her knuckles against the side. The knock echoed, yet nothing stirred. She knocked again, more insistently. The sail shifted until the tops of two small heads appeared sporting matted and lank blond hair.
“It’s her,” an excited, high-pitched voice said. “I told you she’d find us again.”
“Shhh,” the other said. The pair didn’t move, only stared wide-eyed over the sail.
She brought me to see two little girls?
Anara sighed and stood, crossing her arms over her chest. Did she know how intimidating she looked? Nudging the boat with her foot, she announced to the girls, “I’ve brought someone I want you to meet.”
“He looks like one of them.” I heard fear in the older girl’s voice. I put her at nine, maybe ten. The younger girl sunk lower until all I could make out were her eyebrows.
One of them? Who did she mean…? Wait, the little girl thought I was a vamp? A frown snapped between my eyes at the insult. “I’m not a vampire.”
Whispers fluttered back and forth, but I distinctly heard the older one say, “Bad people don’t tell the truth, Baby.”
“But I like his face,” the smallest one said. “And I’m cold, Sage.”
“He’s handsome, just like the others,” Anara agreed, slanting a quick glance my way before turning back to the boat’s occupants, “but I can vouch for his mortality.”
My oddly out-of-place Viking warrior maiden thought I was handsome? Well now, that was encouraging news. Not that I didn’t know what I looked like. I had what people called dangerous good looks, but not all women liked that kind of thing. It was nice to know Anara did.
Confused whispers sounded from the boat. “Mortanaly? What’s that mean?”
“I don’t know. Be quiet, Baby. I got to think.”
I squatted and gave them my best smile, the one I used to give my mom to get an extra helping of chocolate pudding or permission to stay out later than she thought was wise. “I’m human. Pinky swear.”
The younger one popped her head into full view and giggled. “That’s silly. Girls don’t pinky swear with boys.”
“Ouch,” I whispered under my breath. I may be handsome to them, but apparently I lacked basic girl knowledge, something I could have sworn was not my problem. I didn’t like the direction my reputation was taking, and I cleared my throat, changing tactics. “No pinky swearing. Noted.” I glanced at my hand. “We can spit and shake on it if you’d like.” I made to spit in my palm but stopped when a stereo of disgusted squeals sounded.
Sage made a gagging noise while Baby giggled even harder. “That’s just gross.”
Anara’s hands settled on her hips. “I don’t lie. He is who I say he is.” The adorable twist of discomfort that played out on her face caused a twinge of pity to well up in me. She waved them forward. “Now come forth from the boat. Please.”
The use of please was clearly an afterthought. Anara was used to giving orders and being obeyed instantly. Something told me these girls weren’t the instant obeying type.
A moment of indecision hung in the air. I stood and stepped back, giving the girls some space. Finally, after a lengthy conversation—I could only hear half of their words and strange girly noises coming from the boat—the sail shifted and buckled as they struggled from beneath the heavy canvas.
“Anara,” I said, liking the sound of her name. It was different. She turned my way, and I motioned her closer. She stepped in front of me, a perfect picture of strength and determination, but I was still confused. “What are we doing here?”
She blinked as if my question was just as stupid as offering up a pinky swear. “To introduce you to Sage and Baby, and for you to take them.”
“Take them where?”
“Home.”
She needed help transporting them? I guess I could help her out with that. I’d have to go get Beau’s car first. “Where’re their parents?”
“They’re poor orphans.”
How very Oliver Twist. My eyebrows shot up. “Then where do they live?”
“With you.”
The pair of little feet jumped on the pier at the same time my voice nearly choked with shock. “What?”
“There mother is newly…recently…”
Anara glanced uneasily at the girls. “She’s…”
“Dead,” the older girl said, her voice flat. Cold even.
Baby slipped her hand into her sister’s. “Anara took her to heaven.”
I had no doubt my gaze held the horror I felt when I looked at Anara. “You did what?” I didn’t care if I sounded accusatory. What exactly had she done?
Anara leaned closer, her voice hard and for me alone. “Vampires attacked their mother. I tried to save her, but I couldn’t.” Her feet shifted. Guilt entered her eyes as she glanced at the sisters. “Before their mother died, I promised her I’d find her daughters and make sure they were safe.” What she told me next made me groan. “She believed they were being hunted.”
A dying promise to an apparently poor, homeless mother had nothing to do with me. I pulled away. “Why can’t they live with you?”
Sage snorted at that. “Wow, he’s pretty dumb.”
“Hey.” I scowled at the pint-sized snack. “Mind your manners.” For someone who needed help escaping the edge of society, she sure was heading toward being left here and forgotten.
“Ryan.” Anara hesitantly touched my arm, the action so quick it was over before it registered in my brain. She motioned for me to follow her a few feet away. Her whisper held a note of desperation. “I don’t have the means to take them.”
“And you think I do?” I hissed back. “We should turn them over to the authorities.”
“We can’t. They’ve seen the evil that lives in the shadows, an evil most people have no idea exists. The world will not treat them kindly now. You know that.”
Yeah, they’d be labeled crazy in no time and put through all sorts of therapies to cure them, which would really mess them up. I rubbed the back of my neck. “I don’t know about this. I can’t just take on a couple of kids out of nowhere. They need stuff.”
“They just lost their mother. They need each other. They need to feel safe. If their mother was right, and they’re being hunted, they need you.” Her eyes grew soft, pleading. “Ryan, I’ve watched you. With you, they will be safe. I have no doubts. Please. They have nowhere else to go.”