Chapter 42
The address Lio had provided led to an abandoned church on the edge of Genia.
It had clearly fallen into disrepair long ago, its windows boarded up, the gray stone stained black with water damage.
It had a basic square shape, with a roof that rose to a point.
A belfry jutted up the side, but there wasn’t a bell anymore.
A tall chainlink fence circled the perimeter with caution signs that warned trespassers to keep out.
I shivered against the cool dawn. The sun was only just peeking above the horizon, painting the sky a wash of pinks and oranges. Even now, the sound of city traffic was ramping up to a loud hum, though it was much quieter in this dilapidated part of Genia.
“Stay close,” Zola warned from beside me. “And don’t worry about me, no matter what happens. I can take care of myself.”
“She knows,” Hassan answered for me. Probably because he knew that if Zola mother-henned me one more time, I was going to have a meltdown. My entire body was clenched tight, and a dull ache had formed between my eyebrows. I pressed the spot, trying to ease the ache.
We’d gone over the plan more than once.
Hassan took me by the shoulders, looking me directly in the eye. “Use the element of surprise. Besides your voice, it is your biggest weapon.” I nodded. “Stay alive. Do what you need to, to get him out of there. But if it boils down to your life or his—“
“Don’t you dare, Hassan,” I hissed.
His expression hardened. “Laurent has lived a long, full life. He would never forgive us—or you—if you saved him only to die.”
I nodded and shifted my wrists, already chafed from my restraints. There was a small bow on the underside. I could simply tug the end and free myself. Until then, I was Zola’s prisoner.
Hassan nodded before disappearing into the shadows with the others.
Zola pulled me out into the open. She held me by the arm, her grip just short of painful.
I adopted a frightened expression, willing myself to feel it.
I couldn’t just look afraid, I needed to be afraid, to smell afraid.
Memories of my torture with the witches made everything I felt genuine.
My steps were heavy. Time seemed to slow as we approached the crumbling edifice. I wanted to rush in and end this, but equally wanted to turn and flee.
We stopped before the locked fence. “I’m here to make a trade,” Zola shouted, her voice floating out over the dim grounds. A small graveyard with crumbling tombstones lay beside the church, its gate still standing. An overgrown garden bracketed the entry path.
The hairs on the back of my neck prickled. I swallowed as shapes materialized from the shadows. They moved slowly, getting into position around the church’s exterior. My stomach squirmed.
There were too many things that could go wrong.
A tall female vampire stepped into view.
As her features sharpened, I immediately recognized her.
She said something in Italian and Zola answered.
Then she turned toward me and inhaled. A shiver raced down my spine.
She was from the opening ball, from House Bardanes.
“Hello, pet.” Her tongued darted out, licking her lips. “I cannot wait to play with you.”
“Eww,” I breathed, knowing she’d probably hear me.
“I haven’t got all day, Natasha,” Zola snapped.
“Tsk, tsk. So impatient, you young vampires.”
Zola didn’t seem all that young with her roaring twenties style and older manner of speech. But that made me wonder how old Natasha was.
Natasha sighed. “Very well then. Deukalion is expecting you. Come.”
I frowned, sharing a furtive glance with Zola, whose expression was granite.
Natasha slipped a key from around her neck and opened the lock, removing the chains on the gate. This was it—my last chance to run. But who was I kidding? I knew how well running from vampires went.
We walked through the gate and into the church yard. Other cloaked forms materialized from the darkness, their faces hidden. They stalked our progress. Every nerve ending in my body was charged. Zola and I were outnumbered.
I tugged against her. “Don’t do this, please?” I cried, keeping my voice low. “We’ll find another way to free him.”
“I don’t take orders from humans,” Zola snarled. “Now be quiet.”
“Please, Zola. He’ll never forgive you.”
“He will when it saves his life.”
Natasha snorted. “Poor pet, you really think you have any power here?”
The rotted wooden doors of the church swung open. Zola gave my arm another unfriendly tug. If she was frightened, I wouldn’t have known. We were walking into the heart of Lio’s stronghold and she looked as if she was playing a game of poker around a table at a speak easy—in black spandex this time.
We swept inside.
My chest tightened. I felt him—a faint pulse at the edge of my senses. Laurent was here—he had to be.
The doors slammed closed behind us.
I caught the scent of mold and something sweetly putrid that made my stomach turn. My nose wrinkled in disgust. We passed through a modest entryway, proceeding into the nave. Most of the pews were either broken or missing. The altar was mostly intact, with a large, tarnished cross.
“You received my note.” The words were soft but confident.
Lio materialized from the shadows. I jerked, whirling in his direction, only to wince at the pain in my arm.
Zola’s grip on me tightened, as if she thought Lio might rip me away from her at any moment.
He could, with his inhuman speed. He could grab me and sink his teeth into my throat before I took a single breath.
Zola and I were nearly helpless here. Outnumbered ten to one. The shadows loomed with bodies, all waiting in silence.
I had no idea if I could use my abilities on this many vampires, even with Zola’s help.
I certainly didn’t want to gamble on it.
Besides, I couldn’t act yet. I needed to know where Laurent was.
I needed to know that Lio wasn’t going to double cross us.
I forced myself to take in details—a door to the left of the altar, boarded windows that might break under pressure, the rotting wooden beams overhead that looked ready to collapse.
“My, my, what a scent!” Lio made a show of inhaling, breathing me in. It felt violating, like he was taking something of mine I hadn’t offered, something intimate. His eyes darkened. I watched the change come over him, one I was familiar with. His features began to morph, fangs elongating—
“I brought the girl, just as you demanded,” Zola snapped. Her voice didn’t waver. “But I do not see Laurent. Was I mistaken to believe you would honor your word?”
Lio’s gaze snapped away from me. The pressure in my chest eased. I took a deep breath. “I always keep my word,” Lio scoffed, then motioned with his head. One of the vampires peeled away from the wall and retreated—to retrieve Laurent? I didn’t dare watch, keeping my eyes on the greatest danger.
Lio stepped closer to look at me.
He looked exactly as he had in Laurent’s memories. I’d only seen flashes of him over the past few weeks. Now I had the chance to truly look at him. I hated what I saw, the way his face had changed. There was no evidence of the laughter and smiles he’d once worn like a second skin.
His hand darted out, taking my chin, lifting my face to catch the dim light seeping through the broken windows. The sun was just beginning to rise. Still, most of the nave was cast into shadow.
My stomach roiled at his touch, his closeness. He smelled of rotting wood and iron.
“You are a pretty thing, aren’t you. Blood and beauty. Hm? Perfect.”
I hissed, wrenching my chin from his grasp. He clicked his tongue, but his expression promised that I’d pay for that later. My eyes darted over our surroundings, frenzied, as if I would spot Laurent.
“You won’t get away with this,” Zola promised. “Laurent will never forgive you for betraying him.”
Lio barked a laugh. “Me? Betray him? Oh no, darling,” he sneered, “I was the one betrayed.”
Zola huffed, showing exactly what she thought of that. She flexed her neck from side to side, as if stretching with irritation. “How long is this going to take? I’ve got an appointment with my dressmaker later. Where is Laurent?”
“Always such a snarky little thing, aren’t you?
” He slipped his hands beneath his collar.
Before I could blink, he pulled free a chain, the blood ruby dangling on the end of it.
It glistened in the light. Zola went rigid.
A soft breathy inhale was the only sign that she wasn’t completely paralyzed.
Still, it happened so quickly I didn’t know how to react.
I opened my mouth, only to snap my lips shut.
Every instinct tempted me use my voice. But if I did that, Lio would know what I could do. He’d find a way to use his numbers to silence me. I needed to get to Laurent. More importantly, I needed to separate Lio from his main forces so that our own could sweep in and take them down.
Seconds passed.
My pulse roared until my ears felt submerged beneath the sea. I was fighting the ocean’s current, trapped in that pivotal moment of indecision. Did I take a breath? Let the water rush in? Or fight against the pain? Hold out for just a moment longer?
I blinked, trying to clear my vision.
“When I consider my time under Laurent’s care, I don’t see every moment as a loss.
I did discover some secrets, after all. This one was my favorite.
You’ve seen this before, yes?” Zola only made a choking sound.
“It was a shame when he managed to free you. It certainly slowed my plans. But no matter, it all worked out in the end.”
A vampire stepped forward. “Shall I take the girl?”