Chapter Fifty-Six
It was a relief to see out of the corner of Denne’s eye that Allhan was out of the house with his sister. She saw them go flying over the railing, and knew, though there were images of t’On out there, the real one, the one who could actually kill, was somewhere inside.
The Tretary was not leaving without her.
As Denne and Vishous traded stabs and jabs with the blur of t’Ons, she was aware she could create a confusion herself by splitting and projecting her own form, but there was no chance to calm down and do the trick.
She was deep in the fighting, eyes rolling around the busted-up living room, her body torquing this way and that—
A bullet caught her in the shoulder.
And that gave the real t’On’s position away: He was in the dark hall off the kitchen.
Abruptly, she stopped in the midst of the violent chaos and faced him.
Between one blink and the next, she knew what to do. She grabbed the front of Vishous’s jacket and shoved him so hard, his heavy body fell into a backward stumble—and before he could recover his balance, she raced after him and grabbed him again. Pushed him again.
Grabbed him one last time.
The third and final punch to the great Brother’s chest broke the railing and took him off the porch. As he barked a curse at her while falling into thin air, she didn’t wait to see where he landed.
Racing back to the kitchen, she jumped behind the island and settled down. With her breath pumping out of her, the only thing she could smell was her own blood mixed with gunpowder.
She might not have learned how to cook at Sal’s after all these years.
But she sure as shit knew what gas stoves did.
Stretching her arm over her head, she cranked every single gas burner on.
Then she abruptly stood and whistled between her teeth so loudly her ears rang.
t’On appeared a pounding heartbeat later, but he was smart. He took cover behind the jamb of the archway in from the hall.
“Tell them to leave the house,” she ordered. “And you can have me.”
“I can have you now.”
“No. You can’t. The Brotherhood will die to protect me.”
“You’re not that important.”
The hell she wasn’t.
If Allhan and I live through this, I’m going to be a member of the fucking family, she thought.
“I am of royal blood.” She smiled at him coldly. “But I don’t expect you to know what that means.”
The nasty expression on his face was exactly what she wanted: “I’m going to make you suffer.”
She took a step back, put her hands up, and lied: “I have a loaded gun on me. If you tell them to get out of the house, I’ll put it down and you can take me. But you have to order them to leave.”
She’d already run out of bullets.
“Why would you sacrifice yourself for a bunch of mere vampires.”
“Because I’m interested in a helluva lot more than money. Another thing you wouldn’t know about.”
She took a second step back.
“Stop,” he ordered her as he kept his own gun up and steady. “If you try to jump, I’ll shoot you and I don’t miss.”
“I’ll unarm myself and I won’t run. Just tell them to get out of the house. All of you, all over the property, tell them to go or you’ll kill me. They’ll listen to the yous.”
Fuck, he wasn’t going to do it.
Except then she heard, everywhere, as if in stereo: “I have her. You will leave or she will die.”
Denne swallowed through a tight throat. “Now count down from five. Otherwise they won’t believe you.”
t’On’s black eyes shifted around. But he was so smart. He stayed behind the jamb while, out in the living room, images of him paraded around with the very gun he had in his palms.
“You got this,” she whispered to herself.
“I’m going to enjoy killing you,” t’On said in an evil tone. Then more loudly, and in that weird stereo, he continued, “Five… four… three… two… one—”
At the last second, she flicked the Bic she had taken out of Vishous’s pocket and tossed it at the stovetop. As a wall of flame burst up between them, she took two running jumps—
And flew.