Light of Dawn

by Angela Colsin

  Ulric had the feeling it was going to be one of the longest rides of his life.

  Chapter 12

  The sun was setting.

  Ulric had taken less populated back roads to make the ride go faster, and after nine hours of having a mostly uneventful trip—besides a traffic jam ironically outside of Charlotte, North Carolina—they'd just passed Columbia.

  He could've made it to Tallahassee that night, but with Charlotte being hunted, he wasn't sure they'd arrive until dawn at the earliest.

  Now, with the last rays of sunlight illuminating the sky, Ulric's instincts were coming to life, making him particularly aware of the fact that Charlotte was in more danger. Considering the intensity of those instincts, he knew for certain he'd not only kill to protect her, but he'd do so viciously.

  She was currently dozing in the passenger's seat, the lull of the drive soothing enough to knock her out a few hours prior, and Ulric looked her over from time to time in thought.

  Should he tell her anything about the way he felt? Or that she might be able to transition? He felt no need to hide it, but considering she'd only just learned about her fae heritage, adding by the way, there's a chance you'll become immortal one day and be my mate probably wasn't wise.

  No, she'd been through enough, and more information should be offered slowly to help her adjust.

  Now that night was upon them, Rozdra was rousing from where she'd been curled up in Charlotte's lap. She drew Ulric's attention, looking up at him with her head cocked to the side as he inquired in draconic, “You like her?”

  She let a chirp that made Ulric smirk. In the same language, he admitted, “I'm growing fond of her as well. I'm just not exactly sure what that means yet.”

  It was scarcely populated that late evening, with a storm brewing overhead in the distance. Ulric could sense the lightning in the clouds as he drove on, and Rozdra did as well. She yawned with little sparks of electricity shooting from her mouth, then perked up when the sound of thunder hit her ears.

  Knowing the wyvern would want to stretch her wings, Ulric lowered his window and let her climb across his lap.

  “Ulric?”

  Charlotte's voice was groggy as she lifted her head and rubbed her eyes. Once Rozdra took off, he put the window up, asking, “Sleep okay?”

  “Yeah. What time is it?”

  “Nearly eight o'clock. We just passed Columbia.”

  She stretched her arms over her head and yawned. In the process, Ulric couldn't help noticing how her jacket stretched taut across her breasts, the hem rising just above her navel, showing off her curves. He nearly let a groan with the desire to learn them as thoroughly as he knew his own.

  Thankfully, she lowered her arms and distracted him with a question before he forgot himself.

  “Where's Rozdra?”

  “She just went out to fly into the storm ahead of us.”

  “Won't she get lost?”

  “No, her carrier was enchanted to serve as a beacon, so she always knows where to go.”

  Charlotte nodded in understanding, then looked up at the clouds as light drops of rain began to dot the windshield. The storm wasn't too powerful yet, but it was building strength over time.

  “It's gotten dark,” she pointed out.

  “I was considering getting a hotel for long enough to see if anyone's still on your trail.”

  “You don't think they've lost me?”

  “It just depends on the situation. Maybe so, but maybe not.”

  Charlotte pursed her lips, looking outside again while Ulric watched a set of headlights in his rear view mirror. The same car had been following them for nearly ten minutes, and with the lack of others on the road, he became suspicious.

  The car was a ways back, and he tested his theory that they were being followed by changing lanes. A few moments passed, and surely enough the car changed with him, meaning vampires were likely driving it.

  Ulric needed to find a more populated road if he didn't want to come under attack, but the nearest exit ramp was still five miles away.

  A lot could happen over that distance.

  “Are you wearing your seat belt?”

  “Yeah, why?”

  “Just making sure,” he answered vaguely, wanting to give the impression of merely being cautious without spooking her.

  The rains started going a bit harder and thunder rumbled overhead when he noticed a cloud of vapor traveling down the roadway behind his car, one that was catching up quickly despite his current speed.

  Charlotte saw it too, asking, “That's not fog, is it?”

  “No,” he replied. “Just hold on.”

  “Shit,” she grumbled, grasping the handle above the door when Ulric switched lanes to evade the cloud of mist blanketing a section of the highway now. But sadly, the move simply delayed the inevitable as the vapor caught up a moment later, engulfing the vehicle and his vision beyond the hood.

  But it was a straight shot down the road, and Ulric knew whatever vampires were forming the mist would lose energy quickly if they continually followed him in that form. So any attacks made would come soon now.

  He also had to wonder how willing they were to risk the life of their mortal target when Charlotte could easily be killed in a car accident. As he had the thought, the roof of the car suddenly jolted, and Ulric was about to warn her to stay down when the sound of metal screeching interrupted him.

  Without warning, the passenger side door was ripped off completely. The mist had faded away in the process, telling of the fact that there was only one vampire hiding within it, but Ulric was more concerned with his newly missing car door that left Charlotte vulnerable.

  Not a moment passed when a hand with long red nails came down from the roof and clutched her throat. The vampire gripped her tightly enough to cut off the startled yell she was about to emit, and Charlotte grabbed the wrist in a struggle to remain inside the vehicle.

  Immediately, Ulric's rage surfaced, horns jutting from his temples with his canines growing sharp, and he retaliated by turning the wheel suddenly. In response, his car veered to the right and skidded across the pavement with a loud screech of rubber.

  The fist left Charlotte's throat in the process as the undead creature above them attempted to hang on. So Ulric made sure to slam on the breaks at a point that would likely sling their enemy off his car completely.

  As they came to a screeching stop, the front of Ulric's vehicle turned to face the opposite direction, and his headlights illuminated the car that had been following them all along, slowing to a stop not far ahead.

  There were two men inside, and it was hard to tell if they were vampires, or merely daywalkers under the control of the one who'd just attacked. In either case, Ulric focused on the blonde vampiress behind his car now as she stood on the road where she'd been thrown.

  Grabbing his transmission, he threw the vehicle into reverse and punched the gas, backing up toward her.

  The vampire stood there until he was right on top of her, then disappeared from sight by jumping upwards and flipping over the roof of his car, coming down onto the hood so hard she dented the metal beneath a boot and a knee.

  Briefly, Ulric thought he recognized her face, but didn't try to figure it out right away. Instead, he used the speed he'd gained in backing up to turn around swiftly, feeling Charlotte smacking into his side in the process.

  The vampiress reacted by punching her fist into the metal of the hood to hold on with one hand, and with the other, she pulled a gun from a strap around her thigh to aim at Ulric.

  He turned swiftly, ducking over Charlotte protectively just as the vampire pulled the trigger. The bullet shattered the windshield before tearing its way into Ulric's shoulder along with a shard of glass that embedded itself into his upper arm, and another sliced the side of his neck open.

  Ulric growled in pain, but continued covering Charlotte when the car was still moving, now veering off of the road out of control, and the ride was anything but smooth. A
long the way, another loud, metallic screech sounded as the power went out and the engine stopped running right before they spun to a jarring stop over what felt like grass.

  And everything grew silent.

  With only the sound of the storm overhead and drops of rain pattering onto his dashboard from the broken windshield, Ulric finally looked up. They were settled just off of the highway beyond a few trees on a shallow incline, and their attacker was no where in sight.

  Realizing this, he quickly checked his neck. Thankfully, the glass had only sliced the skin open without lacerating any arteries, otherwise he'd run the risk of losing consciousness from blood loss, and staying alert was important now—particularly when he heard a woman's voice, laced with a British accent, coming from the near distance.

  “No one needs to die tonight, Draconian. I only wish to speak of the mortal in your company.”

  Lillian Deavlis, Ulric thought. This was an actual challenge. She was a magistrate of a vampire faction called the Rymid, though she'd formerly been a member of the Kalar—the same faction responsible for Ulric's enslavement so long ago.

  He'd hunted her before, but she'd proven to be a slippery target. With the thought in mind, he reached into his jacket and tugged out his runed dagger, then looked down at Charlotte, who'd pushed herself up with him.

  “Charlotte? Are you okay?” Placing his fingers under her chin, he gently lifted her head to look for wounds, but she appeared to be completely intact.

  Despite this, she muttered, “No.”

  Ulric couldn't blame her, taking her hand to put the hilt of his weapon against her palm. “Get in the back seat,” he instructed, “and if anyone comes over, make sure they're acquainted with this.”

  At that, he turned to go, but Charlotte grasped his jacket, saying quickly, “No, wait.”

  Ulric looked back, seeing concern in her eyes. Despite the situation at hand, he liked knowing she'd overcome her initial dislike enough to care what happened to him now.

  Offering an arrogant smile, he merely stated, “Just trust me, sweetness.”

  She pursed her lips at him as he climbed out of the car. While Ulric didn't have too much faith in Charlotte's actual skill with a blade, she'd be able to defend herself long enough to allow him time to intervene if any vampires attacked her, which was all he needed.

  In the meantime, maybe he could find out why they wanted her so damned badly to begin with.

  “Why can't this just be a dream?”

  Charlotte muttered the words to herself after Ulric got out of the car, making quick work of her belt, and climbed into the backseat. But she kept her eyes on him outside, approaching the blonde vampiress who'd prevented them from traveling any further.

  With the passenger side door missing, Charlotte could hear every word spoken as Ulric addressed the female by name, proving they weren't strangers.

  “I thought I recognized you, Lillian. It's nice that you came out of hiding to pay me a visit, but I'm surprised all you want to do is talk.”

  “Don't get me wrong, I'm not only interested in talking. But tell me, why is the mortal so special to you? Just another job?”

  “Let's just say it's my business,” Ulric replied, “but because I'm protecting her, you should reconsider your course of action.”

  “I already have,” Lillian admitted. “That's why we're talking. The mortal with you is in high demand, but when we learned you were protecting her, I decided to come see what might be negotiated.”

  She didn't get any closer to Ulric, her countenance businesslike as she added, “So I make you an offer to know the locations of several Kalar lairs in this realm, just waiting to be destroyed. There's always a bounty on them as I'm sure you know.”

  Charlotte listened to the conversation while looking around the area in order to make sure it was still clear of enemies trying to sneak up on them. Everything was quiet however, so she focused on their talk, having no idea what a Kalar lair was, or if Ulric might actually be persuaded to hand her over if this Lillian could offer him something better than her own deal promised, praying that wouldn't be the case.

  He said to trust him, so here's the moment of truth.

  Lillian didn't smile or even bat an eyelash as she additionally informed Ulric, “You should also know that if you turn the mortal over to us, she won't have a horrible experience.”

  Charlotte couldn't see Ulric's face, so she had no idea what he was thinking, but before her worry took over, he grated his next words as if he couldn't have been more amused or disgusted at what he was suggesting.

  “You honestly think I'd actually negotiate with your kind, or that I'm stupid enough to hand her over believing she'll be content?”

  “What the Kalar did to you, Ulric, is not of any interest to me.”

  “And what should be of interest is the fact that I'm going to rip out your dead heart with my bare fucking hands.”

  “Good luck. You'll need it when, upon your failure, I'll return you to the Kalar to relive your captivity.”

  Charlotte still had no idea what Lillian was talking about, but whatever it was must have hit a soft spot because Ulric snarled angrily, wasting no time attacking faster than she could keep track. As he moved, his body ignited with electricity, but sadly, she was unable to see more than the initial confrontation because a mist engulfed the car, blocking the fight from her view.

  More vampires, she thought, staring at the mist while flashes of energy surged on the other side of the cloud like lightning, followed by a gunshot and a loud growl. Did she just shoot Ulric?

  Despite her worries, Charlotte didn't let her guard down. If the vampires wanted her, they wouldn't just use the open door to get to her. Lillian ripped one off with her bare hands, so what was stopping her companions from doing the same?

  But they chose the easy route. Another vampire appeared at the passenger's side, and Charlotte gasped as a thud sounded behind her in addition. Looking back, she saw the silhouette of a man crouched on the trunk, leering at her through the dying cloud of vapor with a pair of glowing, blood red eyes.

  Just as she'd spotted him, the other reached in and pushed the seat forward before he grasped her wrist, lunging with his fangs bared.

  Startled into letting a scream, Charlotte instinctively did as Ulric instructed, swiping her borrowed weapon up to catch the side of the vampire's neck. Though she only sliced the skin, he reared back with a snarl of pain, and she took her chance to thrust the weapon forward as quickly as possible.

  The blade found its way into the vampire's left eye, a few inches of steel becoming lodged in his socket. Blood spurted as steam rose from the wound while the vampire snarled in agony. He quickly released Charlotte's wrist, jerking away, and the reaction startled her into loosing her grip on the weapon, which remained embedded in his head.

  But when he grasped the handle to attempt pulling it out, it only burned into his hands, preventing him from doing anything but leaving there.

  The runes etched into the blade must have been like holy symbols, but Charlotte was barely given the time to think about it when a section of the rear window was busted out next to her. Jolting from the sudden movement, Charlotte swung her face back in time to see the second vampire reaching for her.

  Her first instinct was to get out of the car, but her enemy never made it very close when Rozdra returned from flight.

  The wyvern moved in swiftly, landing on the vampire's shoulder. Digging her talons into his flesh, she lunged at his neck, sinking her fangs in deep with a bright display of sparks flying everywhere in the process.

  The vampire seized up as the current traveled through his body, and Rozdra held on for several moments before she gruesomely ripped his throat out. Their enemy collapsed to the trunk, bleeding profusely from the gaping hole in his neck as the wyvern stood on his back, her wings spreading with a loud, triumphant shriek.

  Charlotte smiled in gratitude, then tried to discern Ulric's fate, looking ahead of his now broken down vehicle to
see him walking toward it. His horns were still jutting from his temples, eyes and markings glowing, and he scowled over the state of his car.

  Apparently, Lillian had punched a hole into the hood when they'd spun off the road and damaged the engine, so they were without transportation now. But Ulric didn't seem to be hurt, and Charlotte waited until he announced that the coast was clear to join him outside, asking on the way, “Did you kill that woman?”

  Ulric stepped over to the vampire she'd stabbed with his dagger, placing his boot on the man's chest as if to hold him there. “No, Lillian only wanted to distract me, and when it didn't work, she took off.” Motioning at the wounded vampire, he asked with a smirk, “You did this?”

  He seemed proud, and she resisted the urge to grin while nodding her head just as Rozdra landed on her shoulder to perch there. “Yeah, and Rozdra killed the other one. Are the marks on that dagger like holy symbols?”

  “Somewhat. They're protection runes.” After explaining that, he crouched over the vampire to grasp the handle of his blade, his voice taking on a menacing edge as he inquired, “How did Lillian find us so quickly?”

  “Figure it out yourself, Draconian,” the vampire sneered.

  Snarling, Ulric promised, “I will,” and jerked the blade from his eye socket before stabbing it into his chest.

  Charlotte cringed, but didn't draw her eyes away from the sight as the vampire tensed up, smoke rising from the wound. Ulric wasn't done either, grabbing a fistful of hair before hacking his head off, blood spurting everywhere.

  “Is that … the only way to kill them?”

  “Yes. Leaving the heart or the head allows them to regenerate. Might take a few days away, but they won't die. So if you only have time for one, always go for the head. They can't walk away without it.”

  “As if they're not a big enough pain in the ass already,” she grumbled. “Not to mention they ruined your car. So now what?”