Blood and Metal

by Nina Croft

  “No,” Fergal said from behind them. “You promised she’d be safe.”

  “She will be, as long as her friends cooperate.”

  He held out one of the comm units to Tannis.

  “Hit the red button,” she said. “Skylar?”

  “Yes.” Skylar’s voice came over the comm unit. “You done?”

  “Not exactly. Actually, we’re fucked. We’re all prisoners and we’re going to be executed and if you come any closer they’ll do it sooner rather than later. So stay away.” She looked up and raised a brow.

  Hatcher nodded and tossed the comm unit to one of the guards. “Take them to the cells.”

  As they reached the door, Daisy twisted around to glance back. Fergal was leaning against the dais, his head bent. He didn’t look up as she was taken from the room.

  Would she ever see him again?

  Did she want to?

  Probably not, if his father succeeded in killing her friends. She would find some way to die, too, if that happened.

  The prison was still on full alert, and there were guards everywhere. They were taken back to the prison and locked in a large cell with absolutely no furniture, just bare walls and a door.

  As it locked behind them, Tannis turned to her. “So what the fuck happened?”

  Daisy did some more glaring, and Tannis frowned at the gag. “Wait a second.” She did some impressive wriggling thing and bent down, climbed over her bound wrists so they were now in front of her. Then she reached up and pulled off Daisy’s gag.

  She swallowed and licked her lips. Took a deep breath. Now she could speak, she wasn’t sure what to say. Except maybe sorry, and what good would that do? She said it anyway. “Sorry.”

  “So you should be. Who has the lock pick?” Tannis asked. “Someone must have thought to bring a lock pick.”

  “In my hair,” Devlin said.

  He bent down, and Tannis ran her hands through his ponytail, pulling free a long, slender lock pick. “Turn around,” she said, and he turned. It only took seconds, and his wrists were free. He repeated the process for Tannis and Rico.

  Were they going to leave her tied up as punishment for being such an idiot? She wouldn’t blame them if they did, but Tannis gestured for her to turn around, and soon she was free. She tossed the cuffs in the corner.

  Devlin was pacing the room like a caged panther. Rico stood by the door, leaning one shoulder against the wall as he peered out of the small glass window. Tannis stood in front of her, her hands on her hips, her eyebrows raised.

  “So,” Tannis said. “You were about to tell us what the fuck happened.”

  “I was?”

  “Yeah, because I for one would like to know how I just dived headfirst into a great big pile of crap. Is Cain working with this friend of his, with the Church?”

  “No! Fergal hates the Church. He would never work with them.”

  “Then what is it? He wasn’t a prisoner in there. It looked like he was pretty buddy with our friend Hatcher.”

  “He’s not. He hates Hatcher as well.”

  “So what happened? Come on, give us something here. If I’m going to burn in Hell’s fires, I’d really like to understand why.”

  “We were captured. Trying to find Fergal’s friend. Well, we did find him, actually. He was with Hatcher, but we still would have been okay, except Max Beauchamp was there as well. He recognized me.”

  “Shit.” Tannis scowled. “We should never have woken that bastard up. We should have left him orbiting that black hole for fucking eternity.”

  “Anyway, he told them who I am. And more to the point, what I am.”

  “Well, he never did forgive you for trying to eat his daughter.”

  “Hatcher was going to have me staked out in the courtyard to burn. Fergal…asked him not to.”

  “And why would Hatcher do anything for Fergal Cain?”

  “Because…” She hesitated. It seemed disloyal to tell Fergal’s secret. But they had to know. Without that, none of this made any sense. She took a deep breath. “Because Temperance Hatcher is his father.”

  Tannis narrowed her eyes. Devlin stopped pacing and turned to her. Even Rico straightened and took a step closer.

  “Say that again,” Rico said.

  “Temperance Hatcher is Fergal’s father. He hadn’t seen him since he was twelve,” she added quickly. “That’s when he ran away from home. It’s not as if they’re close or anything. He hates him. Hatcher didn’t know who he was until Fergal told him, and he only did that to save my life.”

  “Okay, that makes sense so far. But how did he come to betray us?”

  “Hatcher decided he was going to kill me anyway. For Fergal’s sake.”

  Rico snorted. “Don’t tell me—to save him from the love of a bad woman?”

  “Something like that. The thing is, he truly believes. I thought maybe he was just a madman, but he believes.”

  “They’re the worst type,” Tannis said. “But why do you think that?”

  Daisy tugged down the neck of her shirt and showed the brand of the cross. “Because he did this. Rico told me that wouldn’t happen except with a believer.”

  “Interesting. But it doesn’t help us. So Hatcher was going to kill you anyway, at which point, Fergal sold us out in exchange for your life.”

  “I tried to tell him not to. He was supposed to kill me if we didn’t get away, but he said he couldn’t and…” She blinked back a tear. “I’m sorry.”

  “Hey, not your fault.”

  “Yes, it fucking is her fault,” Rico said. “Falling for a fucking asshole like Cain. I always knew there was something dodgy about the guy.”

  “No, you didn’t,” Daisy said. “You practically threw me at him. Told me to let him tie me up.”

  “Yeah, well, what sort of decent guy wants to do that kinky stuff?”

  Both Devlin and Tannis raised an eyebrow. Maybe she wasn’t the only kinky one.

  “Are you okay?” Tannis asked, scrutinizing her. “Not hungry or liable to lose it in here? I don’t fancy being stuck in a cell with a starving vampire. I’d rather get it over with now.”

  “Thanks,” Daisy said. “But I’m fine. I had a guard when they captured us.” It seemed like an age ago, but it had actually only been a few hours.

  “Good for you.” Tannis looked around the room. “So anyone got a plan to get out of here?”

  Rico was back to peering out of the small window. “Even if we got through the door, there’s a whole unit of them waiting outside. They’d stun us and drop us back in here.”

  “Well, we have one advantage,” Tannis said. “I’m pretty sure Hatcher doesn’t know that we’ve”—she waved a hand to encompass Devlin—“taken the Meridian treatment. I wonder why Beauchamp didn’t tell him.”

  “Hmm, maybe he doesn’t want anyone to know there’s a source of Meridian on the other side of the black hole. Especially Hatcher, who, if you remember, went to an awful lot of trouble to destroy the Meridian in this universe.”

  “I think Beauchamp plans to go back,” Daisy said. “Something Fergal’s friend told him. Maybe he’s lying to Hatcher about his reasons why.”

  “That would make sense, but I don’t see how it will help us. Shit, you know I’m really not ready to die.” Tannis went still. “Just a moment, Callum’s trying to get hold of me. Let’s hope he has a plan.” She was silent for a minute, gazing into space, her face softening as she listened. Then she rolled her eyes. “He says he’ll offer himself to Hatcher in exchange for me. How sweet is that?”

  “Fucking nauseatingly sweet,” Devlin replied. “And not much help.”

  No, because no way would Tannis allow that.

  “They can bring The Blood Hunter down here under cover, using the stealth control, but they’ve still got to get through all those guards. Chances are, they’ll just end up in here with us.”

  “No way,” Devlin said. “Saffira stays on board. She’s not to set foot on this shithole.”

&n
bsp; “Don’t worry, I told Callum that wasn’t an option.”

  “What about if they get close enough to blast Hatcher from space?” Rico suggested.

  “Good idea. If we weren’t right slam underneath him. We’ll be killed in the explosion.”

  “It wouldn’t kill us. We’d all survive. They’d just have to dig us out.”

  “Or something would go wrong, and we’d be incarcerated in here for eternity. Nice.” Tannis went quiet again. Her lashes flickered closed as she communicated with Callum. Finally she sighed, opened her eyes. “They’re going into stealth mode. They’ll take up stationary orbit close by and wait to see if anyone comes up with any bright ideas. Worse comes to worst and they’ll coordinate an attack to coincide with our executions.”

  “That won’t do us much good if they decide to stake us out in the sunlight. I might survive long enough. Daisy would burn to a crisp at the first ray.”

  “Except they’re not going to kill Daisy. She has a boyfriend with influential fucking family. Jesus, Hatcher is really his father?”

  Daisy nodded.

  “Poor kid.” Tannis ran a hand through her short spiky hair. “Okay, that’s it for now. But search your brains, children, because dying aside, I really don’t want to give Hatcher the satisfaction of killing us.”

  Daisy didn’t want to, either. She was responsible for this, but she could see no way out. Exhaustion washed over her. She almost didn’t recognize it—vampires didn’t get tired. But she suspected it was more emotional than physical. Even if she lived—and she didn’t want to if everyone she cared for was gone—Hatcher wasn’t going to let Fergal see her. No doubt she’d live her existence in a cage. How long would she last without feeding? Vampires didn’t die of starvation, but they could lapse into a coma-like state. Something to look forward to, anyway.

  She leaned against the wall, then slid down so she sat on the floor, her legs stretched out in front of her. Tannis was pacing as well now, positively fizzing with suppressed energy. Devlin was the same—if they weren’t careful they’d collide.

  Rico was outwardly relaxed, but she could sense the tension coiled inside him.

  The weird thing was she wanted to see Fergal again. She wasn’t happy about it, but she craved him with a deep yearning. The hours passed agonizingly slowly. She dozed on and off, letting the conversations drift over her.

  “Someone’s coming,” Rico said, straightening from his position by the door. “And it looks like your boyfriend.”

  Daisy scrambled to her feet as the lock clicked in the door and it swung inward. She tried to force down the smile that tugged at her lips; it seemed to be inappropriate. Obviously, Tannis thought so as well, from the scowl on her face.

  There were two guards at his back, but Fergal stepped through the door alone and it shut behind him.

  Was he a prisoner? He wasn’t restrained.

  A low growl broke the silence. She’d been staring at Fergal, drinking him in; now she flashed a quick glance at everyone else. The level of menace in the room was tangible.

  Both Devlin and Tannis were glaring at Fergal, but it was Rico who had growled, and his lip curled up in a snarl. His whole body was tense, as if he was ready to leap. Daisy took an instinctive step forward to stand between Fergal and the vampire.

  Rico raised an eyebrow. “You plan on protecting him?”

  She nodded. Just hoped she didn’t have to. Rico would rip her apart, but maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing. She stood up straighter and almost dared him.

  The snarl changed to a grin. “Okay. Maybe we’ll hear what metal boy has to say first. Then we can decide if you’re going to die protecting him.”

  “None of this was Daisy’s fault. She would have burned before betraying you. I wouldn’t let her.”

  “Sweet. So what are you doing here now?”

  “I’ve come to collect Daisy to watch the execution.”

  “Nice idea for a date,” Rico drawled.

  “Hatcher insisted.”

  “I’ll bet. The sadistic bastard. I’m surprised he let you in here.”

  “He’s feeling merciful. He thinks he’s won.”

  “And has he?” Tannis asked.

  “Not yet.”

  Daisy had been keeping an eye on the others. Now she turned to study Fergal. His face was drawn, lines of pain bracketing his mouth. And his eyes were strange. Black spots whirled in the silver depths.

  “Are you okay?”

  Fergal almost shook his head—but that would hurt way too much. That she could still ask after all he’d done. He knew part of her must hate him, but her green eyes were soft with concern. For him.

  “Fergal?”

  He shook off the warm fuzzy feeling. Not because it didn’t matter, but rather, he had more important things to dwell on right now.

  “I’m fine,” he said. Which was a total lie. His head was on the verge of exploding. Or imploding. And it was too soon.

  Another hour, Stefan had said.

  He just had to hold on.

  He’d tried to talk Hatcher out of the execution or at least into delaying it. But there was no budging him. This time he wanted to make sure it was done. But he had settled on sunset, so Daisy could watch.

  “So what happens now?” Tannis asked.

  He glanced around the room. With the exception of Daisy, who looked on the point of breakdown, none of the others appeared particularly concerned. Pissed off, maybe, but not worried. Though pissed was probably too mild—the room positively pulsated with bad vibes.

  “The execution is set for sundown.”

  “Nice,” Tannis said. “I suppose the fires will look prettier in the dark.”

  “You’ll be taken from here to the square at the front of the building.”

  “The one used for speeches.”

  He nodded. “There will be a priest present, so if you want to ask for forgiveness there will be an opportunity—I suggest you take advantage.”

  Tannis frowned. “You do?”

  “I’m thinking between you there are a lot of things to ask forgiveness for. It will delay the execution, if nothing else.”

  “Good point. Rico alone could keep them busy all night.”

  “Exactly.” He thought some more, trying to see past the headache. What else did he need to cover? “Are you in contact with the ship?”

  “I’ve…contacted Callum.” She tapped her head, and he realized she meant telepathically. “They’re in orbit, waiting for…” She shrugged. “Anything, I guess.”

  “Good. I’m going to try and provide a diversion.” That was one thing to call it. He wished he had more idea of what would happen. Whether it would even work, or whether his brain would go up in smoke before he had a chance to do anything useful. But there was no point in worrying about that. This was the only option.

  “What sort of diversion?” Devlin asked.

  “I’m not sure yet, but a big one. You’ll know it when you see it. Make sure your people are ready.”

  “They can come in and land on the podium,” Tannis said. “Stay in stealth mode until we have to go. Come out when we need the extra power to take off. I take it Hatcher still doesn’t know we’re Collective.”

  “No, but your ashes will be spread to the wind. It’s doubtful there will be anything left to regenerate, so I strongly suggest you try to avoid the whole burning thing.”

  “Fucking good idea,” Rico said. “What a plan. Why didn’t we think of that?”

  This could really work. He was actually starting to believe it. If he could stay alive long enough, and if Stefan was right, and if Daisy would…

  Daisy peered at him, her expression doubtful. Did she suspect what he was doing? How could she? Even he didn’t really have a clue what he was doing. But he had to put her mind at rest somehow. He needed her cooperation, and he suspected he wouldn’t get it if she knew what he was about to do and what the consequences would be. Stefan had been very clear on them. He turned to Tannis.

&nb
sp; “Is that job offer still open?”

  Her eyes widened. “Well, you’ve certainly got balls, anyway.”

  “Of fucking steel probably,” Rico said.

  “Yeah.” He glanced at Daisy. Some of the fear vanished, and she was looking at Tannis expectantly. “So?” he prompted.

  “If we all get out of this alive, consider yourself crew.”

  Why the hell did that make him want desperately to come out alive? Well, obviously that wasn’t going to happen. But maybe if things worked out right, Daisy and her friends would. He nodded. “Good. We need to go,” he said to Daisy.

  No one had mentioned Hatcher. But if they got the chance, he was betting they’d kill him on the way out. Not his problem.

  He banged on the door, and the guards opened it from the outside. After ushering Daisy through, he paused and turned slightly to speak to Rico, keeping his voice low. “Will you make sure she gets away safely?”

  “Why don’t you do that yourself?”

  “I may be a little…incapacitated.”

  “You’re not coming along?”

  “I somehow doubt it.”

  The vampire cast him a long look. “And I take it Daisy doesn’t know this is a suicide mission on your part.”

  “No, and I’d rather she didn’t find out.”

  Rico pursed his lips and gave a curt nod. “Consider it done. I’ll make sure she leaves with us.”

  “Thank you.”

  He released his breath, some of the tension oozing from him. Strange, but he trusted the vampire, and there were few people he had ever trusted in his life. He followed Daisy out of the cell and waited while they cuffed her again, but this time in front of her body.

  Her face was expressionless, and she appeared almost serene. She trusted him to rescue her friends, thought he was some sort of fucking hero who was going to save the day.

  In which case, he’d better make sure he did.

  “How long until sunset?” she asked.

  “Forty minutes.”

  Obviously, Daisy couldn’t go outside until the sun had set, but the guards led them to a small room off the main corridor of the building. There were no windows, but there were a couple of chairs.

  Two guards stayed with them, positioned on either side of the door. Fergal could have taken them, but what was the point? Instead, they sat in silence. He leaned his back against the chair and closed his eyes. The loop was a constant buzz in his head, like a dam holding back the flood of awakening brains, all hammering at his skull.