THE MORNING BROUGHT a magic wave and even harsher cold. I opened my eyes. The sky above me was crystalline blue. I pulled back the blanket, leaving the warmth Curran and I had shared through the night, and sat up. Pure white snow stretched as far as I could see, sparkling in the morning sun like crushed crystal.
Beautiful day.
Curran jumped to his feet. I rolled one blanket up, he rolled the other, and we checked the backpacks.
Andrea watched us. “Both of you have your business faces on.”
“We have someplace to be,” I said.
“Rise and shine,” Curran called out.
The rest of the group awoke instantly, all except Ghastek, who seemed dead to the world. One, two, three . . . Naeemah was missing. Well, we rescued her, she helped us get out of Mishmar. I suppose that made us even. Hopefully Landon’s vampires had let her pass.
Andrea was on her feet. “What are you doing?”
“I have to visit Roland,” I told her. “He has Robert and Christopher.”
“Robert is dead,” Thomas said, his voice raw.
“There is a possibility he isn’t,” Curran said.
Thomas froze. A muscle in his face jerked. “Then I’m coming with you.” Thomas grabbed his pack.
“You can’t go,” Curran said, his voice calm. “If you go, he dies. Roland’s condition, not ours.”
Thomas dropped the bag and moved forward, the line of his shoulders set. His eyes turned green. His nostrils flared.
Curran blocked his way.
For a second I thought Thomas would collide with him, but the alpha rat stopped an inch from Curran. The two men squared off. Thomas was six three and built like he could push trucks over, but in a fight Curran would break him.
Gold drowned Curran’s irises. “Look at me. This is a direct order. Stay put. If you go, you go through me.”
The two of them stared at each other for a long moment.
“Stand down,” Curran said, his voice quiet.
Thomas turned on his heel and swore.
“There are vampires south of us,” I said. “I’m going to set a blood ward. It will protect you as long as the magic holds. Jester Park is less than two hours away by car. Stay put. We will be back.”
Ghastek sat up on his blanket. “What’s going on?”
“And if you don’t come back?” Andrea asked me.
“Then you may have to fight your way out,” Curran said. “Roland’s people promised us safe passage, but I don’t trust them and you shouldn’t either.”
“How many vampires?” Jim asked.
“About two hundred.” I pulled Sarrat out of its sheath, cut my arm, and began making a circle around them in the snow.
The color drained from Andrea’s face. “Two hundred. Piece of cake.”
“Will someone tell me what’s going on?” Ghastek demanded.
The last drops of blood connected with the first. The magic stretched from me, pooling over the circle of blood. I severed the tie. A wall of red shot up and vanished. The blood ward was set.
Behind me the snow crunched. I turned. Landon strode toward me, his tattered red cloak like a ragged red wound against the snow.
Ghastek opened his mouth and closed it again.
Landon stopped a few feet away. The wind tugged on his cloak and long dark hair.
“I’m coming with her,” Curran said.
“That’s not possible,” Landon said.
Curran grinned and I felt an urge to step back. “Is Roland afraid of what I might do? Am I that scary?”
“Baiting me or him will accomplish nothing,” Landon said.
“Tell him that if he ever loved my mother, he will understand,” I said.
Landon murmured something under his breath. We waited. The wind bit at us with icy fangs. When they described dramatic standoffs in the snow in stories, nobody ever mentioned freezing your ass off. I hopped up and down, trying to warm up. If this got any more dramatic, pieces of me would start falling off.
“He’ll see you,” Landon said.
Ghastek rose.
“Mr. Stefanoff,” Landon said to him. “Your services and conduct during these events are greatly appreciated. Once the magic is down, a car will come to retrieve you.”
The familiar roar of an enchanted engine rocked through the plain. A silver Land Rover slid from behind the distant trees, heading for us. Curran and I began walking toward it. Landon caught up.
“You’ve used Kalina’s name,” Landon said. “For your sake, I hope you’re the real thing.”