“Who was that?” he shouted over his shoulder as the two of us ran at full speed, dodging rocks and trees until we were near where we’d started. Now we had no choice but to find a place to stay. If we stayed out too long, today would be our last, and while I was more than ready for that, I would not let my mate meet that fate.
“I don’t know, but they were not vampires,” I said, and was shocked by the truth. They moved nearly as fast as we did, but they were not a match for us when we ran at full speed. Finally, I slid to a stop near Blake’s truck. “Do you think you could find us a place to stay before the sun rises?”
He was on his phone and searching for somewhere safe as he slid to a stop. His fingers moved so quickly I worried he’d damage it, but he nodded and immediately ran to his truck. “It says sunrise is less than an hour. I found an old hotel nearby; we’ll just make it.” I slammed the door shut on my side just as he stomped on the gas, sending gravel flying.
He spun around just as the two who had chased us caught up. “Do not slow down,” I told him as he fought for control on the narrow, unpaved road. When I looked back again, they were not behind us, and I hoped the sun would keep them away the same as it would keep us from going after them. Because I had now added three more to the list of enemies that Josiah was at the top of.
“Where’s Elias? What happened?” Blake asked, and when he looked over at me, I would have sworn he was still human. His eyes were wide with fright and shock, but he kept the truck on the road and hurried to our destination.
“I’m not sure, but if I had to guess I’d say he was either working with someone else, or he was leading us into a trap hoping to benefit in some way,” I said, and thought about the fact he could read Blake’s thoughts. “It’s good we got out of there when we did. He won’t have a chance to read your thoughts, so unless they’re day walkers, they’re as stuck as we are until sunset.”
“Day walkers?” Blake asked and once again glanced at me.
“There were stories of vampires who had somehow made a deal with a witch to walk in the sun. But I never thought it was true, and I don’t know how any of it would work or what the cost would be for such a thing.” Why any witch would want to give that gift to a vampire did not make sense, which was why I dismissed the possibility when I first heard this story. But neither did the fact that Josiah had used my blood to turn himself. “We were lucky he couldn’t read my thoughts. I tried to trust him, but I couldn’t.”
“I really believed him and felt bad about his situation. Imagine being a child for so many years,” Blake said.
“Imagine being a child with more power than any human adult and being able to sense what those around you are thinking.”
“He said he couldn’t read all thoughts.”
“Thank whoever made that so. If he had read mine, he would have known I would not trust him no matter what he did. It’s strange his ability would be limited the way it seems to be.” I wondered if it wasn’t an accident or a cruel twist of fate, and if more was at work here than a child being changed.
We turned off the unpaved road and onto the wider paved road we’d arrived on. Blake sped up just as time was slowly running out for us. “We’re nearly there. Just a few more minutes.”
“Today would be a good day to finally die,” I murmured.
“Stop it, I’ve only just found you, and I’m not going to let either of us burn up,” Blake said, his hands so tight on the steering wheel I worried he’d tear it off. I reached across the seat and gently took one hand in mine.
“I’m sorry, love. I’ve always been a bit dark of thought, and sometimes it seeps into my words. Being with you is all that matters to me, but I won’t let you burn to save me. I’ve been dead for more than centuries than I care to remember.”
“Don’t talk about you dying. If you are destroyed, I want to be destroyed as well. Having a long life would be meaningless without you,” Blake whispered.
Imagining him burning to ash lit a fire in me I had never experienced before. I would protect him no matter what the cost.Better he be lonely than ash.
We were about to pull onto the freeway when there was a loud thud behind us and the tires screeched as Blake fought the wheel. “What the fuck?” he asked just as the back window was smashed and glass rained down on the two of us.
I roared as a hand reached through and tried to grip Blake’s shirt. “Don’t you dare touch him,” I roared and bent back the fingers on the hand. They tried to pull their hand away, but I used that momentum to slip through the window and landed in front of them,in the bed of the truck. The sun was just below the horizon, and my senses were screaming at me to get to cover. A man stood there, his eyes red and full of hate and insanity. “Who are you and why are you following us?” He tipped his head before smiling. Definitely not a vampire. I bared my fangs at him and crouched as Blake drove faster.
“You’ll know soon enough,” he sneered just as the first rays of the sun broke the horizon. He turned to look just as smoke started to rise off both of us. He looked at the hand he held up in the ray of light, and his eyes widened.
Faster than he could react, I tore his throat out and kicked his body out of the back of the truck. A vehicle behind us swerved to avoid him, but the next vehicle hit him before a flash of fire shone as he burst into flames. “Love, we need to hurry,” I yelled as I climbed back inside and used a jacket that had been behind the seat to cover the window.
Blake sped up before taking an exit and driving down a road that passed by a trucking business and a few older restaurants. Finally, a hotel sign was visible at the end of the street. He drove up to the frontand under the canopy where we’d both be shielded from the sun. After turning off the truck, he immediately spun to face me and took my face in his hands. “Don’t ever do something like that again. I was terrified he’d shove you out, or you’d burn up.”
My hand covered one of his and gripped it tight. He didn’t need to know how scared I was that the creature I’d destroyed would be able to do exactly what he imagined. “I won’t ever not fight for you,” I said.
“I know, and I’ll do the same.” He kissed me hard before jogging into the office and within a few minutes was returning with the card he’d explained to me was a key. “They gave us a room way in the back and away from the sun. I used the same excuse—that we’d been driving all night.” He immediately drove us where he’d indicated and parked right in front of a room. “We’ll fix the window tomorrow. There’s nothing to steal in the truck anyway.”
He grabbed his backpack, and we rushed to the door. He used the card, and as soon as the door opened, both of us moved inside. We didn’t have time to worry about being seen. We’d be dead if we were outside a minute more. We leaned against the door, our breath coming in quick, frightened bursts. I turned to face him, so fucking grateful we were both still alive.
“Marlon, what attacked us?” he whispered.
“I’m not sure. There is more to this than we know, and I’m sure Josiah is also tangled up in this—whateverthisis. I think there may be more going on than a human wanting to become a vampire,” I said.
“What do we do?”
“We rest, and as soon as the sun sets, we go see what we can find out.”
