Blood Prophecy

CHAPTER 21



Lucy


The fire died all too soon.

We were left choking on smoke with a burning vehicle and half a dozen screeching Hel-Blar. I was out of arrows and there were only a few stakes left between us all. Even Kieran’s bottomless cargo pockets weren’t turning up anything to help us right now.

“Kieran, can you make a run for it with Lucy?” Nicholas asked. “You can take one of the Jeeps,” he added as Logan tossed Kieran his keys.

“I’m not leaving you guys,” I sputtered. “When did you fall and hit your head?”

“Lucy, you’re out of arrows and we’re out of options.” He darted a quick glance at Quinn, who was behind me.

I grabbed a fistful of Nicholas’s shirt. “I’m not leaving you, you big dumb idiot.” I whipped my head around and shot Quinn a glare. “Take one more step. I dare you.” I knew full well he’d planned to sneak up on me and toss me over his shoulder. He paused, knowing equally well that I’d damage him if he tried.

He did it anyway.

I was suddenly airborne and then draped over his shoulder, which dug painfully under my ribs. “It’s just faster this way,” he said.

I shifted, cursing. “Put me down, you undead asshat.”

“Just trying to save your ungrateful life,” he shot back with grim cheer. I punched him right in the ass since I couldn’t reach any other part of him. “Ready, Kieran?”

All I could see was the melted snow at his feet. The clacking of jaws got louder and the smell of burning metal and rubber was noxious. I coughed. Quinn dashed ahead, Kieran running all out to keep up. And then Quinn stumbled to such an abrupt halt that I swung uncomfortably, getting queasy. I held onto his belt as all the blood rushed to my head. “What’s going on?” I tried to peer around. “Hello?”

“Mom,” Quinn said, startled.

“Thank God,” I said, feeling like we might have a chance for the first time that night. “Put me down.” I pinched his butt this time instead of punching it.

He jerked. “Ow.”

“Well, put me down.”

“I thought I told you boys to keep that girl at home,” Helena said.

“On second thought, it’s safer up here,” I muttered. Quinn released me so fast pain flared up my legs when I hit the ground. I turned around, gulping. “Hi.”

Helena flicked us a warning glance that had Quinn and I stepping closer to each other for self-preservation. Liam was behind her, eyes glistening. “Solange? Nicholas?” Helena whirled and we were out of her crosshairs for the moment. “Isabeau found you,” Liam said, his voice clogged with tears. “Thank God.”

Aunt Hyacinth, Sebastian, and Marcus were fighting off the Hel-Blar. Kieran’s car was still burning. Duncan slid behind the wheel of Logan’s Jeep and hit the accelerator, aiming for them like Kieran had earlier. It was like watching a game of vampire Frogger. Uncle Geoffrey was already inspecting Solange’s wound. He was about to pull the arrow out when Isabeau jerked violently. She’d been sitting so still, we all jumped in response.

She swallowed thickly. “I couldn’t stay any longer.”

Logan reached down and sliced the ribbon in half, helping her to her feet. She looked exhausted but energy crackled off her at the same time. “Don’t,” she warned Uncle Geoffrey. “She’s still fighting for control.”

“Is she . . . all right?” Helena asked, as if she was afraid of the answer. She touched Solange’s hair. Liam had his arms around Nicholas as if he meant never to let go. I knew just how he felt.

“She is stronger than we thought,” Isabeau answered wearily. “She has been fighting off this spirit since before the coronation.”

“We had no idea,” Helena said. Her fangs poked out from under her lip. “We thought she was just adjusting. Badly.”

“I believe the spirit of Viola Drake has been trying to gain a foothold since Solange’s birthday.”

“Viola Drake?” Liam asked.

“Damn it, how could we not know that?” Helena snapped. “And who the hell is Viola Drake?”

“We can’t stay here,” Uncle Geoffrey interrupted.

“We won’t know for certain until she wakes up tomorrow, but I am almost certain she will prevail.” Isabeau straightened. Even though I could see she was so tired she wanted to slump against Logan, she wouldn’t let herself. She dug her fingers into Charlemagne’s fur. “I did what I could to help her.”

“Thank you,” Liam whispered.

“I’ll have to sedate her, if you think she might still be dangerous,” Uncle Geoffrey said. “But we have to get her home. The Hel-Blar aren’t the only danger out tonight.”

“We’ve got Huntsmen on our tail,” Helena explained tersely.

“Good,” Kieran broke in. “They can take care of the rest of these Hel-Blar.”

“Good thinking.” Helena nodded approvingly. She might not eviscerate him for not getting me back to school, after all.

Uncle Geoffrey took a wickedly long syringe out of his black leather case. It was stuffed with vials of blood, bottles of Hypnos, stakes, and restraints. Apparently they’d been prepared for just about anything with this exorcism. He injected Solange with the sedative and then pulled the arrow out in one quick tug. Blood pooled in the wound. She slumped forward bonelessly. Helena caught her, lifting her up as if she were a baby.

“We’ve got three Jeeps,” Liam said. “Should be enough room for everyone.”

“I’ll go back to the caves,” Magda said.

“It’s not safe out there,” Liam argued, but Magda had already swung up into a tree and was leaping from branch to branch.

“She’ll be fine,” Isabeau assured him. “But I’ll go back with you, just in case I can help Solange more.”

“And I’ll take Lucy and Kieran back,” Nicholas offered. Kieran tossed him Logan’s keys.

Liam clasped his shoulder. “Hurry home.”

A fire truck siren wailed in the distance. “That’s our cue. Let’s get out of here and let the Huntsmen do their job.”

Uncle Geoffrey’s nostrils flared. “They’re nearly here.”

Liam looked at his sons. “Ready?” They nodded. “Go!”

Helena had already taken off with Solange, who hung limply, blood dripping from her shoulder. The Hel-Blar howled, straining to get past the others to get to her. They went mad with pheromone poisoning and their natural feral hunger. The stink of rot mixed with toxic smoke. I covered my nose and mouth with the collar of my sweater and made a run for it, Nicholas and Kieran keeping pace.

On either side of us, the Drakes fought back. The sound of bones breaking was audible, even over the murmur and hiss of the fire. Duncan did a 360 with his vehicle, sliding into perfect position. Helena tossed Solange in the backseat, then flipped up onto the roof as the others piled in. She kicked viciously at any approaching Hel-Blar. Liam escorted the second carload with equal ferocity.

Nicholas loped ahead and by the time I reached the Jeep, the passenger door was open and he was sliding across the hood to the driver’s seat. Kieran dove into the backseat behind me and I slammed my door shut. As Nicholas peeled away, I saw the first of a group of Huntsmen break out of the cover of the trees. They were armed to the teeth and more than capable of dispatching the remaining Hel-Blar. The other cars shot in the opposite direction, toward the farm.

Nicholas sped past Kieran’s smoking car and turned off on the first side road, to avoid the approaching fire trucks. We were far enough away from town that it would take them at least another five minutes to get here. Kieran called in the location as we bumped along the dirt road. The Helios-Ra were equipped to deal with officials if the Huntsmen took off before they finished the job.

I rubbed my side. “I think Quinn broke my spleen.”

“Which is nothing compared to what his mother will do to mine,” Kieran said, tilting his head back.

“Don’t worry,” I assured. “She’ll tire herself out kicking my ass first.”

Nicholas rolled all the windows down until the cold wind created a little hurricane inside the car. I pushed hair off my face to glance his way. His jaw was clenched tight.

“You okay?” I murmured.

“Fine.”

“Oh, cause that’s convincing.”

“Need my nose plugs?” Kieran asked casually, but I could see him reaching for his last stake.

Nicholas opened the skylight as well. He stopped grinding his teeth as the wind tunneled around him. “I’m good,” he said, and this time we believed him. I shivered, turning up the heaters.

“You couldn’t have sat in a car like this with both of us a few weeks ago,” I pointed out.

“I’ve been through worse since,” he replied quietly. I winced and reached for his hand. He held on tightly, weaving his fingers through mine.

“Anyone else think evil should take a vacation so we can catch a nap?” I asked lightly, trying to ease the tension. The lights of Violet Hill got closer and Nicholas slowed down to the speeding limit. He pulled up to the curb in front of Kieran’s house.

“Hell of a night,” Kieran said in way of a good-bye as he got out.

“Hey,” I said, leaning out the window as he walked away, limping slightly. “Are you going to the farm tomorrow?”

He paused. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” He turned his head. “Call me and tell me if she’s okay.”

We watched Kieran walk up to his front porch, covered in soot and mud.

“Think they’ll work it out?” Nicholas asked.

“The emo twins?” I asked. “They love each other, so yes. Plus, I plan to smack their heads together.”

We drove back out of town in silence, until Nicholas pulled over just before reaching the school. He switched off the lights but kept the car running so I wouldn’t freeze with the open windows. I unbuckled my seatbelt so I could turn to face him. I felt weirdly shy. Now that he was safe, I could really see the changes in him. His smile was just as serious but it carried a certain darkness it hadn’t before. He’d been pushed, the way soldiers at war are pushed. What if everything about him had changed, including the way he felt about me?

“Why is your heart racing like that?” he asked, rubbing his thumb over the pulse on the inside of my wrist.

I swallowed. “Adrenaline.”

He tilted his head. “You know I can smell when you’re lying.”

“Hey.” I scowled. “No vampire superpowers allowed.”

“I never agreed to that.” He smiled his endearingly crooked smile and it nearly batted away my doubts. “What’s going on inside that busy little head of yours, Lucy?”

“Nothing.” He just stared at me until I squirmed. “It’s stupid,” I mumbled. “Especially considering the night we just had.”

“Tell me, anyway.”

“You’re different.”

I felt him pull back slightly. “Different how?”

“Not in a bad way, you’ve just been through so much.”

“And?” He prodded.

“I’m still just me. What if . . .” I shrugged, feeling even dumber now that I had to put it into words.

“You little idiot,” he said, half laughing. “You’re the only thing that saved me. Again. You keep saving me and you don’t even know it.”

His words melted the iceberg in my chest. We stared at each other for a long time. His gray eyes were like smoke. He still had scars on his neck and arms. But he was here. We were together. There was so much to say but no words to say it with.

We reached for each other instead, falling into a kiss so deep and necessary it made every awful thing we’d just been through bearable. His mouth was wicked, nearly desperate. I traced the muscles in his arms, over his chest. I couldn’t get close enough. He dragged his lips slowly down my throat and I shivered down to my toes. I could barely catch my breath.

“You got rid of your glasses,” he said softly, running his fingertip down my nose.

“You kept fogging them up,” I teased, still kissing him. His lips curved under mine, and then the playfulness was gone and he leaned over, pressing me into the seat. He nipped at my mouth, teasing and tasting until my head spun, until my lips tingled, and my knees melted. Our tongues touched, his hand fisted in my hair. I pulled him closer. It wasn’t close enough. I wiggled to make more room in the cramped seat and smacked my elbow on the console. The pins and needles in my arm distracted me. Nicholas pulled back slightly.

“Ouch,” I said, ruefully. “I guess I should go before my detention turns to an expulsion.”

There was a promise in his gray eyes. My cheeks went hot. His thumb traced my lower lip, his gaze dropping back to my mouth. He kissed me once more, a soft lingering kiss that stole every coherent thought right out of my head.

He eased away and it took a long moment before I felt I could remember how to work the door handle. “I’ll get out here. You definitely can’t be on campus right now with all the extra hunters and Huntsmen. On the plus side, I’ll be perfectly safe.”

“Text me anyway when you get inside.”

“Okay. And I’ll be at the farm at sunset for when Solange finally wakes up.”

“Don’t you have class?” he asked, his hair tousled from my touch. “And detention?”

I snorted. “Yeah, like that’s going to stop me.”