That shut me right up, until I saw Ryder open his mouth and I swung around to him. “Don’t even think about it. I’m going! This is my fight. I’m the cure for a reason.”
“Well, in that case ….” Becca stepped forward, but before she could say more, everyone in the room let out a resounding, “NO!”
She dropped back onto the couch. “Fair enough,” she said, scowling at all of us. Which honestly looked so adorable on her bespectacled face.
There was no more arguing. It looked like everyone besides my mom and Becca were hitting the city. I had a brief thought for Tessa, and hoped Lincoln had stashed her somewhere really safe. Preferably not in any Hive cities.
Ryder was all business now. “Okay then, time to suit up. We need full gear, plus the cure weapons and extra darts.” He was already in his black enforcer gear, weapons practically dripping off him.
So freakin’ hot. Give me a man with a big gun any day. Actually, just give me Ryder. He was way more than I could handle, and would keep me on my toes forever.
When I reached his side, he captured my hand and I lifted my head so he could press his lips to mine. The moment I tasted him my legs went weak and my heart started fluttering. He caught me around the waist, and for so many moments I was lost in everything that was Ryder. The strength, goodness, and warrior personality was one part; the other was the way he treated me, how he stared into my eyes like I was the only one in the world. The intensity he loved me with was breathtaking, and I would never be ready to give it up.
“We’ll have our forever, Ryder,” I said, pulling back slightly, our faces so close I could see every facet of silver and black in his eyes. “I love you.”
With a low growl he pressed his lips to mine and we were kissing again, and it was only when more than one throat cleared that I realized the rest of our group was standing around us, geared up and ready to go. I didn’t even blush when we pulled away from each other. No regrets. Hope they enjoyed the show, because there would be many more in the future.
It took me about five minutes to gather my shit, hug my mom and Becca goodbye, and then we were out the door and into two vehicles. Not as horrible as beige POS, but still plain, non-descript sedans. It was late afternoon and we were in a race to beat the sun.
“Do we have extra cure in the trunk?” I asked Ryder. I was in the passenger seat, no need to worry about rambunctious cure hunting humans today. The radio had informed us that all humans, unless those specifically trained to handle this type of situation,were on lockdown. Homes and offices were being barricaded, and armed forces were gathering in the streets.Curfew was in effect, no one was allowed outside during night hours.
During our drivethe boys all got lots of updates. Kyle was still blocking off alerts from other Hives, and Lincoln continued to confirm that the cure was working. In some Hives we had a 95% cure rate. New York had been one of the lowest at 70%.
“We should be good here, right? I mean Lucas is sort of in charge, and we already wiped out so many of their numbers in the last battle,” I said into the silent car. “Right?”
Carter leaned forward; he was in the seat behind Ryder. “Don’t underestimate Portland. Have you heard from Lucas?”
I had to shake my head. Despite repeated attempts to contact him, no messages seemed to be going through.
Carter didn’t say any more, but we all knew what he was thinking. Portland vampires hated me and the enforcers, and they had most likely killed Lucas and brought in reinforcements to their Hive. They would have been ready for war, even before the cure started making the rounds. Great. As if we weren’t in enough danger, we were heading for the town filled with vampires who had nothing but vengeance on their minds.
Chapter 12
The sun was sinking into the western sky, the last rays of safety brushing across Portland. We were camped out about two miles from the Hive compound. So far we hadn’t run into any special forces even though Lincoln said they were stationed somewhere nearby. They must be in hiding, waiting for some signal. The streets were empty enough that we wouldn’t have missed them. So far all we’d seen was a police van driving the streets blaring a message for the citizens of the city: “You are under martial law. Do not leave your homes, vampires are attacking the city. We will let you know when you can come out. Stay inside. Report any activity to 9-1-1.”
Ryder’s phone buzzed between us. He glanced down before bringing it to his ear.
“Lincoln,” he said quietly.
He was silent for many minutes, listening as the SWAT leader barked information at him. When he hung up, he swiveled around slightly so everyone could hear him. “The Army has been ambushed in the northeast part of the city. Some vampires got them on the road, and here’s the odd part. They emerged from inside a building which had been empty not five minutes earlier.”
WTF? How did they get in there with the sun still out? It just went down.
“Lincoln says more armed forces are on the way, but for now we’re all that stands between Portland and the Hive. Red alerts are going out across all news outlets, social media, and even text alerts are being sent. Lincoln said some humans from smaller towns in Oregon have come out to help fight. Which is a pain more than anything because they don’t have a chance in hell against vampires. All they’re going to be giving them is blood and targets to turn. So we not only have to keep the Hive contained until the Army manages to get through, but we also need to keep an eye out for any human heroes.”
Wicked. So it was eight of us versus hundreds. I had to ask him: “How the hell were they coming from inside the buildings? The sun just dropped.”
Ryder shrugged. “I don’t know, but Lincoln seemed livid. That area had been cleared already, so no one expected an ambush. They must have somehow preplanned this, hid inside buildings for a few days.”
Possibly, but it didn’t quite seem right. Someone would have noticed them surely. But if they weren’t already hiding in the buildings, how were they moving without going into the sun? And without being seen? As far as I knew, none of their ten houses’ superpowers included turning invisible. It was almost as if they were…
My stomach dropped when the realization hit me. My hands were shaking as I brought them up to brush my short hair off my face. “Oh fuck of all fucks.”
My dad raised an eyebrow at that one. “You know what’s up, Charlie?”
Without acknowledging anyone, I snatched the phone from Ryder and speed-dialed Lincoln. We didn’t have a second to waste. The moment I heard Blue Eyes’ voice, I said the two words that any Portland native would know.
“Shanghai tunnels.” I then hung up. I had no time to chat with the SWAT dude any longer.
