“Hmm,” Takashi said noncommittally. Looking for a little bit of comfort, he took off his suit jacket. It swung heavier than it should as he folded it. He investigated the pocket and found a long key.Anton gave me an escape. Would walking out of the basement be so simple? Was it a test? Remain and the punishment would be called off, leave and face worse?If I time this to Roger’s attack, I’ll be able to use the chaos to escape.
But Takashi didn’t know exactly when Roger would arrive, just that it would have to be before dawn. “Dennis, are you sluggish yet?”
“Great, you’re already crazy enough to ask weird questions,” Dennis grumbled.
“You’ve only been a vampire for a matter of weeks. You should be able to feel the dawn before I will,” Takashi replied.
“Oh, he won’t know the difference since he’s barely been fed,” Phyrull said. “However, I could tell you easily.”
“Or you’ll tell me what you think I want to hear,” Takashi countered.
“If what you want to hear is whether or not dawn is approaching, then I would tell you the truth,” Phyrull replied. “But I would have a condition.”
“A demon deal is not a condition,” Takashi said.
“Not even if all I want is for you to unlock my door?”
“What’s to keep you from latching onto me and making me your thrall?” Takashi asked.
“Ouch!” Phyrull pouted. “I get plenty of bewitching done outside these walls. I don’t need to charm you into being my puppet.”
“Need and will are two different things,” Takashi replied.
“Fine,fine. What if I promise none shall feel my charms until noon in this blasted time zone?” Phyrull offered. “Will that condition work for you?”
“Yes.”
“The first crest of light is soon, but dawn will not banish the grays of night for another forty minutes,” Phyrull said.
With a retreat planned and vampires as part of the attack, then Roger would have to arrive soon. If Takashi moved quietly enough through the house, he might be able to leave without anyone the wiser.Except for Katie. Except if this is a trap. And I can’t leave Zack.
Roger wasn’t going to leave without Zack, and if Takashi connected with any of the teams, then he might be able to persuade them to aid him. He’d be able to get Zack and Katie and lead them out himself.
Carefully, Takashi reached through his bars and slid the key into the lock. One twist and the lock was undone. Using his sleeved arm, he pushed the door open. He immediately went to Phyrull’s cell and unlocked it as well, stepping wide from the door.
“Thank you, my good sir,” Phyrull said cheerfully. He saluted quickly, then took the form of a werewolf in its hybrid form, bulky, hairy, and with claws and a snout, but still on two legs. He bounded off for the next door, and there was a crash as he opened it. Soon, he was running down the hall, turning the corner toward the exit.
“Don’t draw attention,” Takashi called after him, no idea if Phyrull could hear him at that distance or over the noise of the other, less human prisoners.
Takashi turned toward Dennis. The young man bore little resemblance to Zack, but this was his cousin. From what had happened the last time Takashi was down in this basement, he knew Dennis had been cruel to Zack in the past. Zack had beencontent to leave him down here, suffering as Phyrull made him relive his sins.
Conditions were already terrible, and should Anton or Seamus survive, whoever was remained would have to endure more. Roger had intimated that he was going to burn the house down. Dennis might very well die in the rubble if left behind.
But he might deserve it. Zack had promised to help Dennis when he was able to, but that didn’t mean Takashi owed this man a thing.
“When you spoke to Zack, you said you fucked up,” Takashi said as he slowly approached the door. “What did you mean?”
“Seriously? You want to stand around talking when we could be running?” Dennis tried to grab the key from Takashi’s hand, but the silver bars stopped him. He hissed and backed away from the door, only to come right back up to it.
“When I have the opportunity to fully drink a life, I often choose one of a bigot,” Takashi said coldly. “They aren’t hard to find, and they are often damaging their families.”
“Zack told you what I said to him when we were kids?”
“I deciphered it from context,” Takashi replied. He took a step toward the exit. When Dennis remained silent, he took another three.
“My dad was the one who kept saying that kind of crap to me,” Dennis shouted with a groan of frustration. “I took it out on Zack. I took it out on a lot of people. But do you want to know how I landed in here? I went looking for my boyfriend. Only I never called him that to his face because I was a fucking coward. The last conversation we had was a fight about how if I wasn’t brave enough to tell our team that we were an item, then he didn’t want me watching his back. He died and maybe he wouldn’t be gone if I’d been braver. But I can’t take any of it back. Please, please don’t let me die down here.”
Takashi zipped back and unlocked the door. He was prepared to abandon Dennis and hurry toward his freedom, only Dennis could hardly stagger from his cell.
