GWYNNORE
“Dorian, take the roof,”King Belshazzar ordered evenly, sliding out of his seat, and grabbing for his luggage overhead. He started dropping weapons on his seat from inside his bag in a blur of speed. “You’ll be able see up there better. Get as many as you can. The rest of us will take a train car to protect.”
Dorian grinned and cracked his knuckles. “This will be fun.” He seized a few knives off the vacated seat. “I’ll take these just in case. You are always so prepared.”
“Shut up and go.” Bel pointed a gun at the ceiling. “And don’t get dead.”
“Never.”
Belshazzar smirked. “Never.”
I rolled my eyes and rose from my seat. “I’ll take the engineer. They’ll try to hit him first.”
“I’ll take the fuel car behind you. Get moving, little one.” Bel pressed into my back to hurry me up and glanced back over his shoulder. “Are you guys good?”
“Yes.” Kimber picked up one of Bel’s guns he had left behind for the others. “May I use this?”
“Click the safety off, and you’re good to kill.” Belshazzar lifted one of his black eyebrows, remarking, “You’ll like that gun better than your old one. But be careful. It’s got a bite to it.”
“I like biting.” She scanned the gun and quickly found the correct safety switch. Her smile was beaming, pleased with herself. “I think I’ll be fine.”
I grinned and hurried away through the cars in front of us, my soul mate hot on my trail. I stopped at the fuel car and said, “Be careful.”
“You, too.” Belshazzar bent, and, even though he was still frustrated with me, he pressed a gentle kiss on my lips—soft and sweet as sin. “I don’t want you dead.”
I snorted and raced to the next car.
The engineer jolted in shock upon my arrival.
I held my guns up in the air, away from his face. “I’m here to protect you. Just do your job. It’s going to get a little loud in here.”
His features crinkled nervously. “The Stronghold?”
“Yes.”
“I had worried about that.” He returned to his work, his back facing me. “Keep me alive, and you’ll stay alive.”
I turned when screams charged the air, and I peeked around the corner of the door. I stared in awe as vampires were blasted from their horses far into the air, no chance for survival from that height. My eyes rounded in amazement as hundreds of vampires went airborne.
It was literally raining vampires.
That was a new one for me.
Dorian was doing a bloody excellent job.
One thumped down on top of the engineer’s car, making me duck and flinch at the sound of bones crunching. His arm hung off the side of the roof right in front of me. I grabbed it and yanked him down, kicking his body over the side, the wind rushing around me.
“One down.” I took aim on the closest vampire. I squeezed the trigger. Boom, bitch. “Two down.”
“Three down?” the engineer asked quietly behind me, a knife suddenly at my throat. “Be careful who you ride with, dear.”
“Jesus Christ,” I cursed softly. I held my guns up into the air. “Are you shitting me, asshole?”
“I know who pays my wages. And it sure isn’t you.” The engineer prodded me forward toward the edge of the car, keeping the knife close to my neck. “You’re going to jump off this train now, right toward those riders. Understand?”
“Bel…little help here,” I mumbled softly, knowing he could hear me. I jerked and held still as the engineer suddenly dropped behind me, a tiny hole in the window of the door in the car in front of me. I shook my head and shoved the damned man off the train, enjoying watching his body tumble away into the dark. “Perfect shot to the head, Bel. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome!” he shouted over the wind.
