“Ansley? Oh my god, Ansley?!” Daisy shrieks.
Her eyes open, and they’re now golden. A halo of light hangs over her head for a moment, then dissipates like smoke.
“It seems there’s pieces of more than one soul in me,” she stammers. “This one had a sword. And she knows how to use it.”
“Then fight by our side,” Hayden calls to her, killing a vampire and turning around. “Let’s go upstairs.”
We weren’t the only ones transforming. The mating ritual apparently had a ripple effect, capturing Ansley in its power as well.
“Ansley, you’re like… a Viking Warrior Princess or something. I almost want you to pillage me,” Daisy crows. “Oh wait, does this mean I’m transforming too? Am I going to become a vampire?”
“I don’t think you’ll be biting one to protect Ansley from them,” Remy chuckles. “You might have to bite her to keep her away from the vampires.”
“Hmmm,” Daisy seems to be considering her options. “I should have bitten one of the hot ones. These are all old and… in pieces. Gross.”
We get to the top of the stairs, and we come to a stop. Vampires are gathering in the hallway. We must be close to something worth protecting. These are a mix of ones like we just foughtdownstairs and makers old enough to disguise their hideous appearance, in addition to some that don’t need to do that yet.
One of them steps forward. Slender, hair slicked back. Probably the kind of illusion that makes it easy for him to lure girls back to his nest.
“Xander,” Hayden snarls. “Leave him to me. We have unfinished business.”
“Hey! He’s the one who kidnapped me!” Daisy shouts.
Ansley moves quicker than any of us expect, sword raised, and with a swipe of it that splits the air with a streak of fire, she slices Xander’s head off, spins the sword, and impales his heart. His mouth is contorted midscream as his body and head, separated by a few yards, both erupt in
“No, he doesn’t have business with anyone,” Ansley says, tossing his body towards Daisy. “If you want to bite one, bite him.”
“Ewwww! He doesn’t even have a head anymore!” Daisy squeals, jumping over the body, but stopping short.
“We have bigger problems!” Hayden warns, and the rest of us rush forward.
Ansley’s not Wonder Woman, despite how she looks. She gets overwhelmed by vampires and has to retreat when there are too many, but she kills so many that her blade is soaked and dripping with blood. The smell of burnt flesh hangs in the air. Fresh blood drips from our fangs as we tear through the vampires surrounding Ansley and crush their hearts.
But there are still vampires to kill.
We form a half-circle to keep Ansley and Daisy behind us. Hayden and Ansley fight in tandem; he moves to let her strike and protects her when she’s vulnerable to an attack.
We got this.
We’re going to fucking kill them all.
CHAPTER 34
Ansley
I have no idea what happened.
One minute I was scared, the next my vision went white and my sword caught fire.
Then I transformed, a piece of a soul pushing forward. I don’t know how I knew it was a soul, but I just did. Same as my vision, when I saw Jaxton. Except I didn’t look like this in my vision. This is different. So, what does that mean? Could my vision be wrong?
“Okay, I… bit him,” Daisy says. “I don’t really have fangs, but I got some skin. Dead skin. Yuck! I can’t believe I thought he was hot.”
“They’re still living beings, technically,” Wyatt explains calmly while killing a vampire. “They breathe. They still have beating hearts. Their food is just blood, though, and it withers them. Makes them rot. Like being addicted to a drug.”
“Am I going to wither and rot?” Daisy moans. “Wait, no. I have Ansley’s blood, right? And she’s… this Viking Warrior Princess, so do I get to be one too? Come on, how does it work? Do I have enough blood running down my chin? Should I have one of you hold one so I can bite him?”
“Wait,” I call to my friend, taking a step back. “My vision wasn’t like this. I didn’t look like this. That means something could be wrong. We should still be careful. Maybe no biting vampires.”
