Hot Blooded (Jessica McClain)

chapter 16

We made it to the bottom of the canyon unscathed by any more of Selene’s traps. A large stream cut through the gorge at the base. Selene’s fortress was on the other side and up the steep mountain face, according to the vamps. My eyes shot to the water as something bubbled in the center. “There’s something in the water,” I yelled. “Everyone step back!”

Naomi took flight as I turned to my brother. “Let’s try to find a place to cross before whatever it is breaks the surface.”

He shook his head. “No. We have to see what it is so we know what we’re up against. It might be a f*cking siren or a serpent with ten arms. We can’t risk it without knowing.”

“No way. Once that thing emerges it will be much harder to defeat. Let’s cross while we can. Most likely it’s something Selene has to conjure, so it might take some time to arrive. My guess is it was triggered once our feet hit the bottom of the basin.” I grabbed on to his arm. “It’s still not here yet; we have time. Come on. Let’s go!”

“I’m with you,” Danny called over his shoulder, trotting downstream. “Once that thing rears its ugly head we’re likely in for it. Best to get to the other side while we still can, and once we’re there we can fight it or just bloody run.”

“Ray, stay close to me,” I called as I started to jog. “If you can’t keep up, Naomi can fly you over.”

“Like hell she can,” Ray said, charging after me. “I’m not going into the sky again while there’s still breath left in my body. I’ll take my chance in the water.”

I snorted while I ran. “Yeah, like that will work.”

We jogged down the stream away from the bubbles. Danny called from ahead, “This part here looks shallow enough to cross and there are some rocks.”

“Go,” I yelled, motioning with my hands. “We’ll see you on the other side.”

Tyler trailed behind us reluctantly, eyeing the water. “I still think this is too risky,” he said. “We should wait and assess the threat.”

“Too late, mate,” Danny shouted as he flung himself from shore to the first rock. It was solid and he continued quickly, not wasting any time. He was over in less than ten seconds. From the shore he bounced up and down. “Come on, then! It was a piece of cake. We can scale the hill behind here and hurry away from the swamp monster without having to dirty our hands at all.”

I was almost to the third rock when a rotting smell hit the air, followed by a stifled scream from behind me. I twisted my body in one motion and tried to reach him, but it was too late. Ray was under the water before I had a chance to see what grabbed him. “What took him?” I yelled to my brother, who was charging up quickly behind me. “What was it?” I searched frantically in the water.

Tyler’s face was grim, almost sallow in the moonlight. “Jess, we can’t worry about it. The thing is occupied for now. Ray gave us a chance. Let’s not make his sacrifice in vain. Go!” He shoved me forward with two hands, but I held my ground, my feet locked in place. “Jess,” he said in an exasperated tone, “you can’t help him. He’s human, and this is our chance to escape. Whatever that thing was, it will kill him quickly. Now stop wasting time!”

Tyler was right, but I didn’t want to listen.

I turned and took a flying leap onto the next rock. “Dammit!” Once I reached the shore, I ran to where Danny, and now Naomi, stood, their faces set. The water hadn’t moved, not even a ripple. “Did you see what took him?” I asked. “If there’s a chance to save him, we have to try.”

“It was a Naiad,” Naomi said in a shallow voice. “One of Selene’s favorites, though I have never seen one on this continent. They guard her fortresses in Italy and Greece. The Naiad comes from the depths quickly to steal her prize with her long arms and cannot last out of the water for more than a blink of an eye. She will have already embraced him and taken his last breath. A Naiad steals life with greed. We will not see your friend again.” She shook her head sadly.

“I don’t know what a bloody Naiad is, but the thing I saw was hideous.” Danny shuddered. “It was seven feet tall with slimy seaweed hair. Its skin was gray and dead-looking and peeling off. Its arms were twice as long as its body. If that thing touched me, I would’ve gone to wolf instantly and snapped its head off.”

“Out of the water it’s a hideous monster,” Naomi agreed. “Under the water it’s breathtakingly beautiful, a gorgeous nymph with long flowing hair and angelic features, except for her arms. They remain twice as long as her body. Naiads hunt their prey from under the waters, entrancing those who look upon them, convincing the innocent they are drowning and in need of saving. All of Selene’s servants stayed clear of them and the waters.”

“If it can last only a few precious moments out of water, it dies if we can get it to shore?” I said. No one said anything. “Right?”

Naomi worried her lip, a gesture so human it looked odd. “Yes. Technically that is true, but a Naiad is a powerful being and will not be easy to wrest from its habitat. What you say is not simple, and believe me, your friend is already gone. We need not engage her now if she does not come for us. If we best Selene, then all her of spells, and those in her control, as this Naiad must be, will become null or will be freed. If we are forced to pass back this way, she will be uninterested in us if we stay out of her domain.”

The water began to bubble in front of us and there was thrashing beneath the surface. “Look. The water is moving,” I yelled. “Ray must still be alive.” I took off before I knew what was happening. My wolf snarled for me to stop. No. We don’t leave him behind. He deserves to live just as much as we do.

“Jessica!” my brother yelled, racing toward me. “Don’t do it!”

I dove headfirst into the stream.

It hadn’t looked that deep, but as soon as I hit the water I understood. This wasn’t an ordinary stream. It was an underground lake. What appeared to be a small river actually deepened into a big cavern underneath.

The water glowed.

A strange light issued from under one of the lips in the shoreline, but I had no idea why. The glow was tinted green, so possibly something phosphorescent. I swam down farther and spotted the Naiad with Ray. She had him around the neck and she was diving quickly. He struggled against her, forcing them to sink deeper. He had used his fists in some capacity, because the Naiad was leaking something green from an eye and appeared to be furious. As I took a stroke closer, she wrenched her head toward me and opened a mouth full of sharp teeth like a giant fish.

I had no idea how long I could hold my breath, but I knew I wouldn’t die of asphyxiation. Passing out from loss of oxygen now, however, would not be a good idea.

I followed, and the Naiad bared her teeth again in a soundless hiss. She stopped and brought Ray around. Her face was beautiful, just as Naomi had described, but her teeth were wretched—needle-sharp tips running in several rows like a shark. Her long arms looked grotesque, bending at multiple joints. They held Ray close, trying to contain his struggling.

I maneuvered myself into a position to tread water vertically, facing them. “Come and get me, you freak,” I screamed into the water. I could hear my voice, but I had no idea if I’d made any coherent sounds.

She paused and then swam closer to me to investigate, with Ray in tow, one arm still firmly locked around his neck. Her feet were webbed like flippers, even though they sported toes on the ends. That was creepy.

“What’s the matter? Too scared?” I said on my very last ration of air. I had to breathe, or risk passing out, so as she swam closer, rage and menace etched in her perfect features, I headed toward the surface with a big kick. I hoped she’d follow, because if she didn’t I was out of luck. My head crested the top of the water and I opened my mouth in a big gasp, taking in as much air as I could. Now that I was supernatural, my lung capacity was much bigger than the last time I’d dallied in the water, and I was relieved.

“Jess,” Tyler screamed. “Kick over here and I’ll pull you out!”

I turned my head to face the embankment and saw the three of them standing on the very edge. Worry strained Tyler’s features, Danny looked horrified, and Naomi appeared calm, as always. “I think the Naiad is following me. Once she gets here, I’m going to engage her,” I gasped. “She’ll let go of Ray to fight me. Grab him and pul—” My mouth filled with water as I was hauled under. The Naiad had my ankle and was tugging me deep quickly as she dove.

I reared my body against the current, using all my strength, and latched on to the slimy hand that was clasped around my ankle. It was hard to see in the murky water, but it appeared she still had Ray. I wanted her to fight me and let him go. My hand snaked up her forearm, which felt oddly rubbery, and once I got to the elbow, I pulled quickly backward, giving it a snap. She immediately let go of me and howled, which sounded like a screech that would shatter eardrums above water. Our momentum stopped and my eardrums gave a defiant pop. I tilted my head upward, but it was impossible to tell how deep we were because it was dark above and the strange green light down here was muted.

The Naiad recovered herself quickly, throwing Ray to the side like a limp doll as she came at me. We have to get to him, I told my wolf. Air was already becoming an issue once again. We need to get angry or we’re not going to make it. As the Naiad came at me, raging, my claws elongated and adrenaline shot through my system. Everything enlarged in an instant, including my arms. As she swam into my space, I brought my forearm up and sliced my claws cleanly across her face. I knew my actions were fast, but underwater they felt too slow.

My nails went through her flesh like razors slicing pudding.

It hardly felt like I’d connected, but her face broke open and deep lines of green slime oozed out. She arched back away from me, grabbing her face, her shrieks echoing through the water like a dog whistle. I didn’t hesitate; I dove down to Ray, who was floating a few yards below. I gripped him around the waist and kicked for the surface. I’d gained only a few feet when something latched on to my ankle again. One beat later sharp pain zinged up my leg. Did she just bite us? I asked my wolf. She’d either bitten me or pulled some kind of knife out of her seaweed dress. Blood started to flow from the wound in earnest. It would be just our luck if she had killer venom. My wolf snarled as the adrenaline we both channeled through our system spiked with a rush of power.

The Naiad had me around the leg and tried to tug me down again. With all the force I could muster, I tossed Ray upward. I had no idea if he would make it to the surface, and if he did, if they could grab him or not. I didn’t even know if he was still alive.

His body rose right as splashes came from above and three figures arrowed down into the water around us. Naomi took hold of Ray and bolted upward like a shot. Danny and Tyler moved toward us quickly, taking big strokes.

They can’t swim very well, I told my wolf. We have to get out of here before the Naiad takes an interest in them too. I twisted my body around in the water and grabbed the Naiad’s hair. It looked blond and normal, but when I touched it, it had the texture of kelp. Her head was full of nasty, slimy seaweed. I wrapped it up in my fists and wrenched her off my leg, where she’d been gnawing. “Get off of me,” I yelled into the water.

Tyler and Danny reached us, and without hesitation, each of them grabbed on to one of her arms and pulled. She shrieked and turned, trying to escape.

Danny twisted his body to the side hard, yanking off one of her arms in the process. He made a face as he tossed the arm away.

Her insides were green and putrid as they oozed out of the gaping wound.

Tyler and Danny both stopped, letting go of the underwater ghoul simultaneously. She floated unmoving, appearing dazed. I kicked toward her, grabbed her good arm, and tugged her behind me as I started swimming. I motioned up and we all kicked toward the surface, me with the Naiad in tow.

I couldn’t leave her down here to regenerate, no matter what Naomi said about Selene’s powers. This could be the Naiad’s natural habitat and that’s why Selene chose to have her hidey-hole in this location. I, for one, did not want to worry about getting back in the water.

We were almost to the surface.

I could see the stars blinking through the last of the water when Danny punched my arm frantically. I turned and followed his gaze.

“Holy shit,” I mouthed. There, coming up from the depths, were a swarm of Naiads, looking like a united underwater Barbie doll army. “Go! Go!” I yelled, a mass of bubbles erupting out of my mouth, releasing the Naiad I held. She immediately sank toward the oncoming troops. I hoped she warranted needing help. And lots of it. There was no reason to keep her now.

Tyler and Danny were ahead of me.

I saw the rocky shelf and kicked toward it frantically. If we didn’t get out in the next thirty seconds, we’d be Naiad dinner. Tyler and Danny climbed out, and right as I braced my hands on the shelf, two sets of strong arms yanked me out of the water in one quick motion. They tossed me onto the embankment with enough gusto to leave me reeling. Tyler turned, still standing ankle deep in the water on the shallow shelf. “What the f*ck were you thinking? Huh? You could’ve die—”

He crashed down, sliding across the stone, his nails digging in hard to slow himself.

“Tyler!” I lunged toward him. Danny beat me to it, taking hold of his wrists. Tyler was almost completely underwater. Danny kept him just above the surface, straining against the pull of the Naiads. I joined Danny and grabbed his other hand. “Kick your legs!” I shouted. “They aren’t as strong as we are.” I scrambled into a good position, using the shore to brace myself.

Tyler thrashed in earnest and all around us the water started bubbling and moving. Green kelp strands, as thick as Christmas ribbons, broke the surface, betraying the monsters beneath.

I readjusted and slid my hand down farther, dipping under the water to grasp Tyler’s biceps. I pulled with all my strength, my wolf snarling in my mind, my muscles flexing tightly. All at once Tyler soared out of the water in a rush. Danny and I staggered backward, not missing a beat, backing up onto the shore as fast as we could, dragging Tyler along with us.

As we watched, hundreds of heads broke the surface, only to duck down again in the blink of an eye.

It was only a matter of time before one streaked out to grab us.

Or more than one.

I bared my teeth at them and snarled. “We’re not going easily, you know!” I growled to the masses. “Do you hear me? Did you get a good look at Goldilocks? Do you want to end up like her?” I had no idea if they could understand me. So far none of them seemed to be coming after us. How could Selene control, or conjure—or whatever it was she did—an army of Naiads? It seemed impossible.

“Hurry,” Naomi urged from somewhere above us. I turned and saw her on a high ledge halfway up the hill. “They cannot risk their lives by coming out of the water this far. You will be safe if you can reach us.”

Tyler gained his footing and we all started to run.

“How many supernaturals exist that we have no knowledge about?” Danny cried. “How can we best things we don’t know exist? It’s a bloody minefield around here.”

I heartily agreed. “If this is the beginning of a war, the wolves are going to need an extensive education in all things supernatural.”

Wolves were way too confident about their place at the top of the food chain. A Naiad who occupied a remote part of the world didn’t constitute any alarm whatsoever. But it certainly did now.

“Did you see the size of the ones that surfaced?” Danny said as we continued to climb upward. “I think the one we bested was a wee one.”

“You mean a baby?” I craned my neck around to look back at the stream, but there was no trace of them. “No wonder all she knew how to do was bite me and scream. If that was the baby, there’s no way we’re going head-to-head with a grown-up.”

“Come. Just a little more over this rise,” Naomi urged. “We will be safe here.”

Naomi stood on a shallow ledge just above us, a limp Ray laid out next to her. It was the second time I’d seen him passed out at her feet. Had only one day passed? God, it felt like a lifetime. “Is he alive?”

“There is a faint heartbeat.” Naomi nodded. “He seems to be a strong-minded human.”

“He’s a pigheaded sonofabitch,” I said as I pulled myself onto the rocks. “But it looks like it’s working in his favor this time.”