Vengeance and Vampires- The Complete Series Box Set

by Alicia Rades

  Venn’s fists tightened around the steering wheel. “He must’ve. The vamps who work for her worship her.” He sounded hopeless.

  “We’ll get it back,” I said in determination. “We’ll crash the nest, find Cowen, and get your locket back.”

  I twisted in my seat to look at Fiona, but she bit her lip in uncertainty. I glanced to Venn, waiting for him to agree with me. He just stared straight ahead at the road, looking furious.

  “What?” I demanded. “That’s the next logical step, isn’t it?”

  “No,” Venn said in a clipped tone, but he didn’t care to elaborate his blatant disregard for the idea.

  “If we’re going to run straight into a vampire nest, we might as well forget about the locket,” Fiona said. “We could just break into Matias’s and rescue Sondra instead.”

  Except you’re forgetting one thing…

  I hated that that was where my mind went first, that I needed to get into Maliya’s to face Cowen. Obviously if they had the choice between helping me and rescuing Sondra, I was clearly lower on their priority list. But still… I felt an incredibly selfish need to convince them to reconsider.

  Venn and Fiona sounded hopeless, but I was still determined as ever. Come hell or high water, I was tracking down the Soulless. And that started with crashing Maliya’s vampire nest.

  14

  “I’m leaving.”

  The words didn’t sound right coming out of my mouth. They should’ve felt perfectly natural. I hardly knew Venn or Fiona, so what was this guilty sensation doing in the pit of my stomach?

  “Leaving?” Venn’s face paled.

  We stood on his porch. Fiona had already gone inside, but I couldn’t bring myself to join the family. We couldn’t help each other anymore. I’d managed on my own for years, and one way or another, I’d manage this alone as well.

  I shrugged. “Yeah, I mean, you have to go rescue Sondra. I have to find Cowen. This weekend has been fun…” If you can call it that. “...But I have work tomorrow, and—”

  “Rae, we haven’t made any decisions yet,” Venn said, like I was crazy to consider leaving. “I told you I’d help you.”

  “I know,” I replied, “but you’ve already helped. I can figure the rest out on my own.”

  “No,” Venn said sternly.

  I took a step back and crossed my arms. “You don’t think I’m strong enough to handle myself?”

  “That’s not what I meant,” he insisted. “I’m not going to go back on my word. I want to help you.”

  “I told you I’m not a damsel in distress,” I reminded him. “I don’t need a knight in shining armor.”

  Venn laughed so loud that it caught me off guard. “Believe me, I’m no knight.”

  No, of course he’s not.

  I didn’t want to leave. For the first time in years, I’d met people I could actually get along with. But there were more important things in life than friends.

  “Come inside,” Venn suggested. “We’ll get everything figured out.”

  “No,” I protested with a sigh. We no longer shared a common goal. There was no solution. “I’ll just slow you down. Besides, I have nothing to offer you. I can’t even cast a decent spell, so I’m not sure why you want me around—”

  “Is that what you really think of yourself?” Venn asked.

  He stepped forward to close the distance between us. He stood only inches from me. My breath suspended in my chest, but my heart pitter-pattered against my rib cage. What was it with my body lately? It totally betrayed me every time Venn got within inches of me.

  “You think we don’t want you here?” he asked.

  I couldn’t look into his eyes—his gorgeous dark brown eyes. “Well, yeah. Why would you? We barely know each other.”

  Venn reached up to brush the hair out of my eyes. His touch was like a warm summer breeze across my skin. Calming. Inviting. Desirable. Damn it all if I didn’t welcome the gesture. I caved and looked up at him. He gazed down at me with a soft expression, like he was looking into the eyes of someone he knew, someone he felt comfortable around.

  My mouth grew dry the longer I stared up at him. I didn’t know what it was about the way he looked at me, but it made my fingers quiver and my knees grow weak. Something in his eyes tugged at my heartstrings, making me feel at home—like this was where I was meant to be.

  Was it Synchrony talking?

  Don’t be ridiculous, Rachel. It’s called lust.

  Venn glanced down at my fingers with a look in his eyes that said he wanted to take my hand in his. I suddenly felt myself itching to accept that offer, but he didn’t make the move. Maybe he thought it was too soon for that type of physical contact. To be fair, it was too soon for… pretty much anything. But I still felt like I should be melting into his arms.

  It’d been way too long since I had a boyfriend.

  “Please don’t leave yet,” Venn begged. “At least stay for food.”

  Was this guy a mind reader or something? Because in my book, free food was always a good reason to stick around. Somehow, he knew exactly what to say to make me reconsider. But still, the stubborn part of me refused to accept. If I stayed, I wasn’t sure I’d ever leave.

  “Teagan’s a great cook,” Venn pressed. “You won’t regret it.”

  Damn Venn with his temptation of a home-cooked meal. It totally beat another afternoon of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

  “Okay,” I caved. “I’ll stay for lunch, but after that, I really do have to go home. I can’t stay.”

  “I know,” Venn said, but it didn’t sound like he was actually agreeing with me. It was more like he was just telling me what I wanted to hear. Venn turned and opened the front door. He stepped aside so that I could enter first.

  He might not be a knight in shining armor, but he sure is a gentleman.

  The sound of voices in the kitchen caught my attention, and Venn gestured toward the back of the house. We crossed through the dining room and stopped in the doorway to the kitchen. The delicious smell of lasagna filled my nose.

  “It’s true?” Ryland asked Venn. He leaned against the counter with his arms crossed. “Cowen took our locket to Maliya?”

  Venn nodded. “That’s where Genevieve tracked him down to.”

  Teagan peeked into the oven door and then slammed it. I was glad to see she was doing better, but she still looked pale.

  She pulled off her oven mitts and threw them on the counter. “I can’t believe this!”

  “I say we’re better off launching a rescue mission into Matias’s,” Fiona said.

  Ryland frowned at her. “And if we’re caught without the locket, we’re all dead.”

  “We’re dead if we try to get the locket from Maliya, too,” Fiona countered.

  Teagan looked deep in thought. “Not necessarily.”

  Wait. They were still going after Cowen?

  “What do you mean?” Venn asked.

  The anger etched on Ryland’s face melted away, like he was catching on to what Teagan was saying.

  “Wouldn’t they see us coming?” I blurted.

  Everyone turned to look at me.

  “I mean, because they have the locket,” I explained. “It can predict the future, can’t it?”

  Venn shot me a questioning glance, as if to ask how I knew about it at all, but then he looked to Fiona in realization.

  “They wouldn’t see us coming,” Ryland answered. “Not unless they were watching for us.”

  “Which they could be,” Venn pointed out. “They know we want it back.”

  Fiona threw her hands up in the air and sighed, as if she was so done with everyone’s crap. “And this is why we don’t have a chance.”

  “Matias’s security is twenty times stronger,” Ryland said. “From the moment we step into the building, there will be eighty floors between us and Sondra. Not to mention the cameras on all floors, security guards, restricted areas… The list goes on.” He turned to Venn. “You’ve said yourself
Maliya’s place is in serious need of a security update.”

  “Yeah,” Venn agreed, “but who needs a security upgrade when no one’s stupid enough to break in?”

  “Not to mention that we already know our way around Maliya’s mansion,” Ryland continued, like he hadn’t heard him.

  I stood silently, wanting so badly to agree with Ryland but not sure if I had a place in the conversation. If we didn’t make it to Maliya’s, I would never get a chance to confront Cowen.

  Venn’s jaw tightened. “You can’t be serious. We’re not doing this.”

  “Oh, really?” Ryland challenged, straightening. “And I suppose you’re going to stop us?”

  Venn scoffed. “If you want to run straight into an active vampire nest, be my guest. But we both know you need me to navigate the mansion, and I’m not helping.”

  “Fine,” Ryland said with a shrug. “We’ll go without you. Of course, that makes our chances of survival very slim, but—”

  “Stop it, Ryland,” Venn demanded. “I know you’re bluffing. I’m not an idiot.”

  “You’re acting like an idiot!” Ryland boomed, making me jump.

  “Calm down, love,” Teagan said, reaching for him.

  Ryland shrugged her off without even looking at her. His eyes were still trained on Venn beside me. “I mean it. What’s your plan, Venn? Leave Sondra to rot in Matias’s tower? You know he won’t let her go without getting what he wants. And if we don’t show up with it, he’ll force her to work for him or kill her. Or are you planning to barge into one of his highly-secured skyscrapers and bust her out without anyone noticing? We can’t handle Matias on our own, but we can handle Maliya. Besides, once we hand off the locket to Matias, it’s not our problem anymore. Maliya will go after him, and Matias will let Sondra go free.”

  “You really think that?” Venn asked flatly. “You know Maliya doesn’t play fair. It won’t matter if we don’t have the locket; she’d still kill us for stealing from her.”

  Ryland shrugged. “Then I guess we’re just going to have to get in and out of there without getting caught.”

  Venn gritted his teeth, his nostrils flaring. His skin rippled as if he was fighting the urge to shift.

  “Maybe…” Fiona said cautiously. “Maybe Ryland’s right. Maybe this is our only option.”

  “See?” Ryland pressed. “Even Fiona agrees with me.”

  Teagan sighed and shot Venn a somber expression. “I agree, too.”

  I would’ve put my vote in, but it would’ve been a selfish vote. And I was pretty sure my vote wasn’t needed anyway.

  Venn fumed, pressing his hands to his face and then raking his fingers through his hair. He took a long inhale and then let it all out in a whoosh. “I can’t believe we’re doing this. Fine. I will help you. I just hope you know what you’re getting yourselves into.”

  Hope surged through my chest.

  We’re back in business!

  15

  Sneaking into a vampire nest in the dead of night should’ve scared the shit out of me. Instead, my heart pounded in exhilaration. This was way cooler than sitting on rooftops hoping to find trouble. This time, I was causing trouble. And I was pretty darn proud of it.

  We waited until nightfall to crash the nest. Vampire nests were packed during the day since they were all sleeping to avoid the sunlight that burned their flesh. At night, vamps were either working or hanging out at bars or casinos, giving us the perfect opportunity to slip inside unnoticed.

  According to Venn, most of Maliya’s business took place inside the mansion, but the worst of her henchmen would be out “recruiting” blood slaves or making deals. The place wouldn’t be completely empty, but there’d be significantly fewer vamps to risk running into. Plus, Venn guessed that we’d find the locket near the sleeping quarters, which would be virtually deserted by now.

  How he knew so much about Maliya’s mansion, I didn’t know. By the look Fiona shot me when I started to ask about it, I was pretty sure it was a story for another day.

  We were all dressed in black, making us almost invisible against the night. The moon was high above us, casting a dull glow across the forest, just enough to make out the shadows of the trees. Ryland, Fiona, Venn, and I wove through the trees, careful not to make any noise. Teagan hadn’t wanted to stay behind, despite the fact that she still looked like she needed rest, but Ryland insisted on it. He finally convinced her when he pointed out that her human heartbeat was enough to break our cover.

  The mansion was tucked in the forest a half-mile off the road just outside of Nocton. The trees stopped at a brick wall surrounding the property.

  “You’re up, Rae,” Ryland hissed through the darkness.

  I didn’t think Ryland trusted me, not when I agreed to play my part only if Venn helped me navigate the mansion after we retrieved the locket. Ryland was adamantly against that, saying he wouldn’t let Venn hang back for me, but Venn insisted it was his own choice. Ryland finally caved, since I was their only hope of avoiding security cameras and alarms.

  I jumped and shifted mid-air, grateful to be back in my own enchanted clothing. I flapped my wings until I was high enough to perch on the edge of the wall, which stood at least ten feet high. I already knew what the mansion would look like from the image I saw in the salt at Genevieve’s, but that quick glance wasn’t enough to truly prepare me for the beauty of the property.

  I faced the West corner of the mansion, where the windows were dark. A vast garden surrounded by a manicured lawn stretched out toward the back of the property. It met up with perfectly trimmed bushes lining the side of the building. The front exterior was lit up like there were tiny little stars embedded into the brick. A long driveway circled the fountain near the main doors and seemed to go on forever before it reached a big iron gate by the road. The mansion itself was styled with white brick, and several towers with balconies reached up three stories. The building was divided into at least five different sections, each one bigger than the last. It seemed to go on for miles.

  The property was quiet. Almost too quiet.

  This is going to be a piece of cake.

  Once I had a chance to take in the grandeur of the mansion, I turned to focusing on the smaller details. I spotted two security cameras hanging from the wall, pointing at the lawn. Another was secured next to the balcony doors looking over the garden. I scanned the area again, just to make sure, but it looked like I only had three security cameras to deal with.

  I launched myself into the air and landed on the wall beside the first camera. I shifted back into human form and balanced myself on the edge of the wall above the camera. My feet dangled on either side of it. I grabbed the camera and twisted slowly, making sure not to make any sudden movements. I didn’t want to catch anyone’s eye if they were watching the security footage. The camera pivoted on its mount with ease. I pointed it toward the opposite end of the lawn and then shifted back into my raven form and did the same with the other two security cameras.

  I glided over the top of the wall and circled around my co-conspirators. As soon as I cocked my head at them, they sprang into action. Ryland laced his fingers together and helped boost Venn over the wall. He landed quietly in the grass on the other side. Next, Fiona stepped into Ryland’s hands, and she pulled herself over the wall. Venn helped her down on the other side.

  Ryland backed up and took a running start. He launched himself upward and just barely caught the top of the wall with the ends of his fingers. He pulled himself up easily. Frankly, I was impressed. This guy must’ve been a champion at chin-ups. He jumped down from the wall and rolled onto the grass to slow his momentum.

  Nobody spoke. Instead, we communicated through small hand gestures. Venn pointed to a balcony on the second level, and Ryland shot him a thumbs up. Then Venn gestured to one of the five chimneys. I nodded before he, Ryland, and Fiona hurried away from me across the lawn.

  The plan was simple. I’d fly down the chimney to get inside undetected. Meanwhile, Ven
n, Ryland, and Fiona would climb the balcony. Once I reached the target room, I’d unlock the door from the inside to avoid triggering any alarms.

  I flapped my wings and rose high above the mansion, my eyes fixed on the chimney. My heart pounded, partially because I feared what might be at the bottom of it—perhaps a room filled with hungry vampires—and partially from the thrill.

  Bring on the vampires.

  Without hesitation, I dove into the deep darkness. The chimney was cramped. It certainly wasn’t wide enough to spread my wings. Despite clawing at the bricks to slow my fall, I spiraled downward, slamming into the sides and picking up mounds of soot as I went. I landed at the bottom in a pile of ash with a hard thud. The wind knocked out of me, but I ignored the burn in my chest as I righted myself, prepared for whatever might be waiting for me.

  I was relieved to see that the room was empty. I stepped out onto a brick base that surrounded the fireplace. The room was dark, but I could make out shadows of bookcases and a long desk in the corner. It appeared as if I’d entered a study, which was exactly where Venn had told me I’d end up.

  I shifted back to human form, ignoring the soot in my hair, and hurried to the door. I opened it a crack and peered down the hall. It was deserted.

  Slowly, I pulled the door open and scurried down the hallway to the door on the end. It was open, revealing a long flight of stairs leading to the basement. I descended the stairs, my footsteps far too loud in the empty stairwell. At the bottom, a long, dark hallway stretched in front of me. The only light seeped in from an open door toward the end of the hall.

  My heart pounded, and I welcomed the adrenaline. It’d be nice to get in at least one vampire ass-whooping tonight. Except for the part where Venn told me to avoid a fight unless absolutely necessary. And even then, he didn’t want me killing any vamps. He said it’d only earn me a target on my back. Not like that was anything new, but I’d do my best to follow his instructions.

  I inched forward, making sure my footsteps were soft as I passed door after door. I counted each door as I went, knowing I needed to pass three on the right before I reached my destination. I only crept closer to the door with the light on.