Chapter 34 – Luna
Chapter Thirty-Four
Luna
The Faithful were a little uncertain about what to do next, seeing as Jack hadn’t started World War Three, and, as usual, my boss had no idea about the true scope of the situation.
“They were just going to kill you! No matter what!” I said, truly pissed off at one of them in particular. I hauled back and slapped Nilesh’s face, again. “That’s for tying me up without permission!”
He stood there and took it, then cupped his cheek. “You are really good at that.”
“It’s because I enjoy it,” I said, shaking my hand now that it stung. “Stupid angel jaw.”
“Luna, let the nice man be—wait, what?” Jack asked, his head whipping toward me.
“Yeah, you missed some things,” I cut him off, then turned back to Nilesh. “If you’re going to kill him, you’re going to have to kill me, and I’m still human, despite what the idiots in the back there think—”
“No one’s killing anyone anymore,” Nilesh said, batting his hands down, and I heard the sound of guns being reholstered.
“Okay, then, good, because they need to get to sleep pronto—”
“Is she always this bossy?” Paco asked Jack.
“One hundred percent,” Jack told him.
“We’re taking your van back to Vegas,” I told Nilesh, ignoring the other men.
“I’m commandeering it. You can have it back tonight.
Give me the keys.” Nilesh fished in his pocket, held them out.
I took them from him, and started walking to where the van was.
“We’re done here,” I announced, then flagged the two vampires who were lagging behind.
“I didn’t save the both of you so you could be comingled dust! ”
And at that, Jack started laughing, and so did Paco. I raced on ahead—Zach had already done what I’d told him to do—he was sitting inside the van’s cab, just waiting for me.
“I’m not entirely sure how to drive this, Luna,” he began.
“You’ll figure it out,” I said, but he wasn’t listening—he was looking to where I’d come from, and the at the two vampires walking up behind me.
“Sunshine?” Jack asked, bounding up to stand on the ledge outside the driver’s door and peer inside—some Faithful had given him another blood bag, which he’d bitten his way into, it was spattered on his chin and across his dusty chest. “Who talked you into this?” he asked, then realized his current state. “Oh God, I’m sorry—”
Zach’s eyes were wide, but when he smiled it was steady. “Don’t be—”
“I threatened his life,” I said, pulling Jack down from his perch, and shoving him into Paco’s arms again, so the other vampire could direct him to the sunless safety of the back of the van.
Once I’d heard the door click, I rounded to the van’s other side and stepped up and into the cab, tossing Zach the keys.
“But you didn’t threaten my life,” he said, after he got the engine to start.
“Doesn’t matter. I have a rep to maintain,” I said, and clicked my seatbelt.
Zach drove all morning, and it was a good thing we had Paco’s credit cards, because it ran through gas like a motherfucker—and at the end, when we’d gotten back into town, Zach had the good idea to park it someplace shady, which we did, and then took turns getting out and walking around to stretch, pee, and eat.
Then, when the sun started to go down, we made our way back to Jack’s little apartment complex.
Zach looked to me and gasped. “Oh my God, Luna—Sugar—”
“Don’t worry. I left her out a whole bag of cat food and a ton of dishes of water.”
He sighed with relief. “But—we’ve been out there for days. How did you know what to do?”
“My recent whole life has revolved around knowing what carnivores need,” I told him. “Not that I’m looking forward to that cat box.”
He gave me a gently confused look, after pulling us into a spot. “How did you become . . . all this?”
I inhaled to tell him, to give him all the rules I’d learned working with Rosalie and then some—and then I thought better of it and shook my head.
“It doesn’t matter, Zach. You’re never going to have to do any of it,” I said, and gave him my version of a comforting smile, then reached over to push his shoulder. “Go inside and take a shower. At least one of the three of you should smell pretty.”
He got out and did what he was told, and I made myself useful puttering, cleaning the litterbox, listening to Sugar be very unhappy, and . . . making ice. Because I had run out of useful things to do, but I still felt the need to do something.
’Cause if I was right—this was going to be my last night as me.
I’d always kind of pictured it as more of a bachelorette party situation—like where some of the girls who worked for Rosalie would pretend to be my friends and we’d hit the town and I’d get drunk and sleep around, knowing that the next time I woke up I would be a vampire.
Hadn’t really figured on it happening in a shoebox apartment on the slightly-bad side of town, but, beggars couldn’t be picky.
And the rest of my life on the far side of things was actually looking pretty bright—
There was a loud thump from outside.
“Oh, fuck!” I hissed, and then ran out to open up the back of the van, after giving the parking lot a cursory glance.
“Home sweet home?” Jack asked at seeing me, his bloody, dusty face the very vision of hope incarnate.
“You know it is,” I told him proudly. “Get inside—the both of you are eating in tonight.”