Blood seeped from a gash on his forehead and also trickled out of his ear. I suspected it was the impact that had killed him and not my banshee scream. But I couldn’t worry about how he died. The bottom line was, I’d killed him. No question about that. I was racking up the dead bodies. At the abandoned airport in Illinois, I’d shot one of the SWAT guys who had a hand in Sam's kidnapping. I’d also played a role in my uncle Ray’s death.
But my feelings about my actions could wait. I was at war, a damn big one. Enemies were multiplying—Carly Aberdeen, Harriet Aberdeen, Rianne Aberdeen, Adam Emery, Roman Brown, and whoever else was part of their scheme to take down Sam Mason and me. Then again, maybe their plan was to annihilate the entire Vampire Navy SEAL team. I could see Roman salivating to gain power within the vampire government. My family’s goal was to make sure I never saw Sam again.
I stripped the rest of Rick’s gear—flashlight, another knife, two clips full of bullets, and his bulletproof vest. Then I searched him for his cell and came up empty. After a quick scan inside the van, I struck out. It was best I didn’t find it—tracking devices and all. Besides, we were in the mountains, so cell coverage had to be nil. Even if I called 911, I couldn’t tell them where to find me. I didn’t even know what fucking city or state I was in. We’d been traveling for hours, so I was certain I wasn’t in Massachusetts or anywhere near the naval base.
After slipping on the vest and loading the gear and the weapons into my coat pockets, I climbed down the hill a few feet and gasped when I laid eyes on Gary.
“Help me.” His dark eyes, wide with fear, glinted in the beam of the headlights. He hung on to a branch, the lower half of his body dangling over the side of a cliff. The enormous chasm below him didn’t bode well for him.
I shook my head. “I’m sorry. I don’t have the strength.” That was the truth. I would fall over with him, and I had babies to protect. Besides, even if I could save him, I couldn’t trust him. “Where are we?”
He struggled to pull himself up. If he was husky like his partner, he might succeed, but this dude had a slender upper build, and his biceps weren’t as big as Rick’s.
“Are you going to answer me?”
His features pinched. “Please. I’ll help you. I won’t take you to them.”
I squatted down and gave him a sad smile. I believed he was telling the truth. “I can’t. You know that.”
Tears pooled in his eyes. “Then do me a favor.”
I shrugged. Why not? The dude was about to plummet to his death. I should feel bad about that, yet I couldn’t muster up any feelings at the moment. “I’ll try.”
“My name is Gary Hutchins. I live in Naperville, Illinois. I’m a single father. My son is staying with my brother and his family. Can you tell my son, Owen, that I love him?”
Damned emotions hit me, clogging my throat. I could feel his pain as if it were my own. “I’ll try.” I didn’t know if I ever would or could.
He slipped a little. “I’m sorry about what’s happening to you. I was only doing the job to pay for Owen’s hospital bills.”
A deep feeling of regret blanketed me.
“We’re not far over the border in West Virginia. The place we were taking you is fortified behind cement walls. I’ve only been there once, but I was serious when I said you wouldn’t be found. Even if your people had been able to figure out where you were, they would never get past the walls.”
Maybe a human wouldn’t, but a Vampire Navy SEAL, and a powerful one at that, would. “Best way out of here?”
He tipped his head to my right. “Go back the way we came, but stay off the road. The van has a tracking device, so it won’t be long before they show up.” He inhaled a large breath, then let go, saying, “I love you, Owen.” His voice echoed as he slipped into the abyss.
Shuddering, I thrust the sad scene from my mind and focused on my own plight as I ran back to the vehicle and rummaged through it for any other supplies, like water and maybe a blanket. The temperature wasn’t freezing—I would guess it was in the forties—but that was still cold and could be a problem over a long period of time. The moon sat high in the star-ridden sky. My guess was that it was around midnight. That meant I had to stay warm until the sun came up, but I couldn’t build a fire. That would give me away. Before I put my survival skills into practice, I needed to move.
Aside from a bottle of water, I didn’t find much else. So I zipped up my coat, turned on the flashlight, and started my trek through the woods. Whether I would make it out alive or not, one thing was certain—I wasn’t going down without a fight.
7
SAM
Ilaid my weapons out on the bed in Jo’s guest room. I couldn’t bring myself to stay in my apartment last night. Layla’s fragrance drove me mad and only punctured another hole in my heart. Not quite twenty-four hours had passed since she’d been kidnapped, but it felt like eons. I barely slept, trying to figure out my next move. My plan to walk into the arms of my enemy was proving more difficult than I expected. I’d tried calling Carly several times, but to no avail. I didn’t have Roman’s number, and I doubted I would ever find it. The vamp used burner cells. I couldn’t blame him. If I were a criminal, I would do the same.
Regardless, we had no leads on where to begin. As much as I wanted to tear up the planet, I needed a place to start.
After we returned from Victor’s estate, I’d gone through videos of the news segments that Sawyer’s team had downloaded off the web, looking for a clue—a van, license plate, or something to give us that one tiny ray of hope that we could track Layla. I’d even grilled Wyman, since he’d been at the hospital, but the thorn-in-my-side human hadn’t seen her.
The tech team was still scouring the cameras around the city, surveilling hotels, rental homes, and even the Indian reservation. When I’d first met Layla, Roman had forced her into doing his bidding. He’d held Jordyn hostage until Layla could glean any info from me on Abbey. The phone Roman had used to call Layla led us to a warehouse on the reservation on the outskirts of the city. In the end, it hadn’t panned out. The fucker had been one frustrating step ahead of us—an intelligent adversary, for sure.
As far as the meeting with my father went, he had to postpone it until further notice, which was fine by me. We had several moving parts, and it was best to schedule a time to meet when he had all the facts and feedback from our sources in the field.
Regardless, my old man might not be available for several days. The Council of Elders and our human governmental partners were up in arms over the mayhem we’d caused at the hospital. At some point, I was sure I would stand in front of the council as they chewed out my ass before they threw me in the brig for a few years. Most humans were oblivious to our existence, and our laws punished those who outed our kind. Neither Hawk nor I had done it on purpose, but the council wouldn’t accept that excuse. The rules and regulations that governed my world were strict, and for a good reason. Anarchy would erupt if humans knew about our existence—if it hadn’t already, that was. My mug was on every fucking news station from one coast of the country to the other.
I snagged the sheath that contained my dagger and was wrapping it around my leg when Abbey’s strawberry aroma drifted in. I lifted my head to find her standing in the room.
