“We weren’t expectingyou,” the man directly in front of her said. His voice was rough, as if he didn’t use it very often. His hair was long and stringy, and his black eyes were sunken into his face. The man’s lips were so thin they almost seemed non-existent. His clothes were stained with… Myanin narrowed her eyes to get a better look at the stains.
“Is that blood?” she blurted out before she could think better of it.
The man shrugged. “Sometimes my dinner fights back.”
That’s when it hit her. “Vampires,” she growled.
“Give the djinn a cookie,” a voice said, three men down from the apparent leader.
“You said that I wasn’t who you were expecting,” Myanin said, deciding to ignore the baiting words. “Whowereyou expecting?”
The vampire’s head tilted at an angle that was creepy as hell as a smile formed on his lips, revealing his sharp teeth. “You don’t have to play games, djinn. You know who lives here.”
Myanin shrugged. “Maybe I like games.” She didn’t. “Maybe I like to play with my prey.” She did.
“You think we’re your prey?” The vampire chuckled; his head still tilted oddly.
“I think you have no idea who you’re dealing with.” Myanin pulled the double short swords that were on her back, concealed beneath her shirt. They came out with a satisfying sound of metal being rubbed against its scabbard.
“You think you’re going to fight all of us?” a different vampire asked. He looked like he was one pint of blood loss from blowing away. He must not be very good at catching his prey.
“I know I am,” Myanin corrected. “Less talking, more killing. I’ve got places to be.”
The head vampire took a step back and then gestured to two of his peons. They moved toward her, dropping low and circling her, no doubt trying to take her back and front. They thought that would make her an easy opponent. They’d clearly never fought a djinn before.
Myanin let the vampire who had been moving to her left take his position behind her, and the one directly in front of her grinned, as if they’d already won. She heard the vamp behind her move, and when his breath hit her neck, she bent forward. His body hit hers, and she wrapped an arm around the back of his neck, flinging him over her shoulder. As soon as he was on the ground, she ran one of her blades across his neck. Blood spurted out and the man gurgled. It wasn’t a death blow because she hadn’t decapitated him, but she was only just getting started.
The other vamp ran at her. His hands sported long claws, and he hissed like a cat. Did that really scare people? As soon as he was on her, Myanin ducked down under his reaching arm, turned, and stabbed the short sword in her right hand directly into his spine. Apparently, taking out two of their little group was code for everyone to attack because the battle cry rang out, and they all ran for her.
She noticed the head vampire didn’t move from his position. He simply stood, watching with his creepy grin. Myanin ignored him and focused on the vampires rushing her. She swung her blades with practiced ease. Killing wasn’t something she was unfamiliar with. She was diligent in her battle training, despite the fact that it had been a very long time since the djinn had fought in a battle.
Warm blood splashed onto her face as her weapons hit their mark. One vamp after another fell at her feet. When the only one left standing was the leader, Myanin stepped over the bodies, heading straight for him. Blood covered almost every inch of her. She gave him a sardonic grin.“Your turn.”
“I don’t want to fight you,” he said calmly, as if a djinn warrior covered in the blood of his comrades wasn’t marching straight for him with fire in her eyes.
“Really?” Myanin asked sarcastically. “Because siccing your dogs on me kind of makes it seem like you do.”
He shrugged. “I wanted to see what you can do. How powerful you are.”
Myanin could still feel the power of elder Lyra pulsing through her. She had no idea if that power was permanent. She spread her arms wide. “And what do you think?” she asked, curious about what he wanted with her.
“I think that you are exactly what our leader is looking for. You will be a more than adequate substitute for the one we originally came for.”
Myanin couldn’t help but laugh. “You thought you and your little baby vamps were going to take on the djinn that lives in this house?” She motioned to the structure behind her. “That makes me question your intelligence, and I don’t work with idiots, so…” She drew out the last word.
The vampire pulled out a card from the back pocket of his bloody jeans. When he held it out to her, Myanin noticed it was crisp and white, bloodstain free. How on earth did someone as filthy as him keep a piece of paper so white?
After several heartbeats, she put her swords back in their place and took the card.
“Call the number when you’re ready to join the right team.”
“Team?” Myanin raised her eyebrows.
He nodded. “Both sides are preparing for war. After this is over, one team will win, and the other will be destroyed. I suggest you call that number if you want to be on the winning side.”
The vamp walked past her to where the other vampires lay bloody on the ground. They weren’t dead and wouldn’t be unless their hearts or heads were removed. They’d heal eventually.
The vampire pulled a matchbox from his pocket and struck a match. He threw it onto the group of bodies, and they went up like a field of dry grass. It was a good thing Thadrick’s home was surrounded by nothing but old, deserted buildings. She’d just slaughtered a bunch of vampires, and now they were blazing like a bonfire. Those things tend to attract attention from humans.
