Chapter 23
OLIVIA
“Remember, you need to stay hidden until the announcer starts,” Rack said from the driver’s seat, his eyes flicking to me again in the mirror. “Not a second earlier.”
I nodded automatically, distracted by the outside world as it passed us by.
The city outside looked wrong now. Not wrong in shape, but wrong in detail.
Every crack in the pavement stood out sharper than before. Rust stains bled down brick walls in ugly streaks. Trash piled in alley corners carried sour, rotting smells strong enough to coat the back of my throat. Even the flickering neon signs buzzed loudly enough to make my ears twitch.
My nose wrinkled before I could stop it. How did I used to live here? How did I walk these streets every day and think this was normal? Even noble?
“Olivia.” Calix’s voice cut through my spiraling thoughts, low and careful.
I folded my arms tighter around myself and dropped my eyes to the floorboard, unable to keep staring outside.
“Via.” That name instantly snapped my head sideways to where Calix was watching me.
His brows had drawn together so tightly they almost touched, and one hand was absently rubbing his chest like he was trying to calm something there. “Are you sure you can do this?”
The question hit harder than it should have, and I swallowed hard.
Stop it, Olivia. You aren’t human anymore. You’re stronger now. Faster. There’s a monster under your skin waiting to survive. Use her.
I dragged in a breath and forced my shoulders down.
“Yes,” I said, hearing the edge settle into my voice as anger curled beneath my ribs, warm and familiar. “I’m ready.”
The plan was simple.
They’d drop me off near the back entrance by the Track’s underground garages while they pulled up front where the crowd waited.
Rack and Calix would bait Manshu publicly, riling him up enough so he wasn’t thinking straight, and when he turned to face that crowd as his name was called, I would be there.
Then I’d lure him into the underground garage beneath the bleachers, where Rack and Calix would be waiting, ready to corner him, take the weapon, and make him talk.
Simple, right? But every few seconds, Rack’s eyes jumped back to the rearview mirror again. He kept checking on me like I was going to disappear on him.
“It’s going to be fine,” I said finally, trying to ease the tightness pulling across his face. “If something feels wrong, I’ll run back home. Easy.”
“Yeah,” he muttered, but the way his fingers tightened around the steering wheel said he didn’t believe that for a second.
Beside me, Calix stayed quiet. Too quiet.
He sat with one elbow braced against the window, thumb slowly dragging over his lower lip while his gaze bounced between Rack and me. His face had gone smooth and unreadable, which I was beginning to learn was Boss Winstale mode.
The car rolled to a stop near the side entrance, and I opened my door once the locks clicked. I already had one foot outside when fingers suddenly wrapped around my arm.
“Please,” Calix choked out, his voice splintering apart halfway through the word. His throat worked hard before he forced the rest out. “Please… just be careful.”
His fingers flexed around my arm like he didn’t want to let go. “And if anything feels wrong, anything, just run.”
His eyes searched mine desperately. “Run as fast as you can.”
Something in my chest squeezed painfully, and I covered his hand with mine and gave it a gentle squeeze.
“You got it.” I smiled softly. “Besides, I’m good at running now. You taught me how.”
“Yeah…” A broken laugh escaped him before he whispered, “But you’ve never been good at running away from bad situations.”
His thumb brushed against my wrist once before his hand reluctantly loosened.
“Being brave is admirable,” he said quietly. “Tonight, I need you alive more than I need you brave.”
That wiped the smile right off my face. I nodded once, then I carefully pulled free of his grip and slipped out of the car.
The second the door shut behind me, their car rolled away toward the front entrance where crowds had already packed the Track.
I stayed hidden near the underside of the bleachers, listening. The roar of engines. Music rattling the metal beams overhead. Thousands of heartbeats hammered together.
Lark popped into my head, knowing she would love this crowd, this scene, but I’d called her before we left and told her and Nathan not to go to the Track tonight.
I couldn't tell them the details, but she knew it was going to get messy.
I also begged her to call Alto and tell his family the same.
I didn't want anyone I knew to get hurt.
That was why I couldn't blame Rack when he tried to argue that he needed to stay close to me tonight. He claimed he’d hover nearby “just in case,” but I shut that down.
Everyone knew Rack shadowed Calix constantly, and if Manshu noticed Rack was missing before the race started, he’d get suspicious and might call it off. What I never admitted aloud was the real reason I fought so hard for Rack to stay by Calix’s side.
If Manshu tried to shoot Calix before the trap was sprung, Rack needed to be there.
I knew, deep in my bones, that if Calix got hurt while Rack wasn’t beside him, he’d never forgive himself for it, and that would break my heart. I’d eventually blame myself, and no one wanted any of that.
Listening to aimless chatter while I waited was getting taxing. I could only listen in if it wasn't all about who was hot or how rich they were, so I let my brain drift to FangTech just to keep myself from spiraling.
I began to think about the next project I wanted to build at FangTech. Maybe this time, Calix and Rack could show me how rune spells were made and how they attached it with elemental magic. If I understood the process better, I could probably come up with a better product with that in mind.
What if Calix actually hired me? The thought made excitement flutter low in my chest. That would be my dream.
“Aaaarrreeee yooouuuuuu reaaaaaaddddyyyyyy?!” The announcer’s voice exploded from the speakers, and the crowd answered with a deafening roar.
I had pushed off the wall, preparing to move into position, when suddenly, an arm slammed around my throat.
My body jerked violently as I was yanked backward against a hard chest.
“Look what the fuck I found.” Hot breath brushed my ear.
I twisted around, my elbows driving backward while I clawed at the forearm crushing my neck, but the hold only tightened.
“Manshu said you were dead. Guess he’ll wanna know he didn’t finish the job.”
My pulse exploded. This was already not going to plan.
Don’t panic. Don’t panic. You’re a vampire now too. You can do this.
I drove my heel down with every ounce of vampire speed I had. Bones cracked beneath my foot with a splintering snap. The arm choking me vanished as the person howled, folding sideways to clutch his ruined leg.
“Fucking bitch!”
I didn’t wait. The second his grip loosened, I launched myself sideways. My body skidded hard across gravel as panic shoved adrenaline through my veins.
Distance. I just needed distance.
The demon staggered upright again, shadows clinging to him until moonlight finally slid across his face. Recognition hit me immediately.
The same demon who’d wrapped himself around Manshu after the race he won. His face had that same hungry look, except now there was no flirting in it. Only murder.
I planted my feet, ready to run, just like Calix told me, but my entire body violently jerked forward.
Agony tore through my stomach, and a strangled sound ripped out of me before I could stop it. Not again.
“You know,” a voice purred against the back of my neck, “I should be pissed you found someone to turn you…”
My breath hitched sharply. Manshu.
His claws protruded from my abdomen, his black nails slick with my blood. A rough hand grabbed my breast hard enough to bruise while he pressed closer behind me.
“But honestly?” He laughed softly near my ear. “I think I like you better like this.”
His fingers flexed inside me. White-hot pain exploded through my torso, and I bit down on my lip so hard I tasted blood, but I refused to give him the scream he wanted.
“Now that you’re not as fragile,” he murmured, “we can actually have fun.”
I twisted violently, trying to wrench free, but he only lifted his hand higher. His claws dragged upward inside me, and my body slid farther onto them.
A broken grunt escaped my throat.
“Easy,” he mocked. “Wouldn’t wanna rip you open too fast.”
My vision blurred for a second. Don’t scream. Don’t let him hear it.
“Good job calling me,” Manshu said over my shoulder as he approached the demon. “If I hadn’t heard your bitch ass whining, I never would’ve caught this pretty little fish.”
The demon straightened slightly despite his broken leg.
“But, Boss—”
Manshu snapped toward him instantly. “Get the fuck out before I kill you too.”
The demon froze. Manshu stepped closer, his voice becoming deadly. “And don’t think sucking my dick makes you special.”
The demon’s face tightened immediately. Humiliation flashed across it before he limped backward without another word.
Manshu twisted his claws inside me again, trying to wrench a cry out of me. Instead, I laughed. The sound came out wet and shaky, blood coating my tongue as I coughed.
“You really treat your hook-ups like shit,” I rasped. “No wonder nobody sticks around.”
His grip paused. Good.
It was purely a guess on my part, but I would say just about anything to upset him and show that he didn't scare me anymore.
“And first in line we haaave Maaaannnshuuu! Our previous winner!”
The announcer’s voice thundered overhead, and my pulse leapt. Calix. Rack. They’d be coming soon. I just needed to keep him occupied.
Manshu started dragging me toward the darker alleyway behind the building instead of the bleacher’s garage entrance.
No. No. No. That's the wrong way! Panic thumped in my chest until I thought of a solution.