A Guardian's Love Page 6
“We drop by every night to see if she’s home safely and that she’s covered and warm. As a child, she used to kick off her blankets. It kept us busy covering her up every five minutes.” Jemima’s voice was calm, but her blue eyes showed an inner-turmoil. “The habit just stuck.”
Not knowing what to say, Paloma merely stared.
“We have raised her with so much love. Maybe we were too protective at times, adding to her being a little naïve, but we wouldn’t want to see her get hurt. She has a beautiful heart and a loving spirit.”
Paloma nodded. It was clear what Jemima wanted to say without actually saying it. She had anticipated this talk for a while now.
“I understand your concern, Jemima, and I can assure you that I will not let any harm come to her. I will protect her with my life.” It was true. After having been around her since she was a toddler, Inger had unwittingly placed a spell on Paloma’s heart, making it impossible for her to consider a life without her.
There was a slight shift in the air, and Tahlia appeared next to Jemima, her black eyes burning with a disturbing intensity. Paloma knew that Tahlia was still slightly annoyed at her for the kiss she and Inger had shared.
“I was hoping that I would find you tonight. We have something urgent to discuss. The Consortium found a possible link between your resurfacing and the revival of a vampire slayers group that had been dormant since the 16th century. Maybe you have information that can be helpful. We are meeting tomorrow night at the Melton Hotel. I will send Juan to accompany you.”
Paloma looked past Jemima to the balcony of Inger’s room. She had hoped to spend the next night with Inger, but she was trained to put duty before anything else. That was the code to which she’d been devoted for more than two millennia.
“I will be there.”
“Good.” Tahlia took Jemima’s hand and together they melted into the shadows.
†
“Ms. Marsden?”
Inger’s head jerked up and immediately became aware of muffled giggles. Standing in front of her, hands on hips, was Jonathan Warren, her Criminal Law professor.
“I take it you must be done with your test.” He held out his hand. “If I may.”
She had dozed off while taking her test. Damn! Her eyes quickly scanned over the test paper. At least she seemed to have filled in all the blank spaces.
“I’m waiting, Ms. Marsden.”
Inger sighed and handed over the paper before leaning back in her chair, ignoring the looks her classmates threw her way. After Paloma left this morning, she couldn’t go back to sleep and instead decided to study for the test.
“Had a wild night, did you?” A teasing voice said close to her ear.
She grinned at the girl sitting behind her. Marsha Bredenkamp was her next door neighbor. Blonde and beautiful, she was also one of the most popular girls on campus.
“Yep. I was up late studying.”
An unladylike snort came from Marsha. “Not from what I saw, you didn’t. I spied a hot blonde on the balcony with you, and she didn’t seem like the tutoring kind.”
Startled by Marsha’s revelation, Inger made a mental note to warn Paloma about coming to her room in the future. Her parents usually just materialized inside her room, but with the spells at the doors and windows, Paloma would have to be more careful during her nocturnal visits.
“I assume you must be done, too, Ms. Bredenkamp.” Professor Warren stared at them over the frame of his glasses. “If you will bring your paper to the front, please, I will kindly ask the two of you to leave the auditorium so as not to disturb the rest of the class.”
†
Stepping outside into the sun, Inger was so intent on reaching her room to catch up on sleep, that she wasn’t aware of the two men following her at a distance. Once she’d entered her dorm, the men stopped.
“We will have to come back with reinforcements. One of us will have to stay here in case she leaves her room.”
†
Her black eyes were pensive as Tahlia observed the way Pierre and Jonas interacted with Paloma. It felt like good to have them all together again. The four of them had fought back-to-back for centuries, and, over the ages, had developed a strong familial bond. Pierre and Paloma chatted softly with their heads close, while Jonas looked on with an almost tender smile. As soon as she had been aware of Paloma’s presence two decades ago, Tahlia had informed the Princes. It was a unanimous decision not to act on her sudden reappearance until Paloma initiated contact. Last night she informed them that she had met with Paloma. She wasn’t surprised when both Pierre and Jonas smiled at her. She knew then that she had made the right decision to break the agreement by approaching Paloma at the nightclub.
The doors swung open and Michael Jensen entered the room with Joan in tow. The minute they saw the tall blonde, they came to a stop, gaping at Paloma. Michael at least managed to recover quickly from his reaction, but not Joan. She stared at Paloma with reverence. Paloma’s silver eyes stared back blankly.
Tahlia almost smiled at Paloma’s demeanor. That look helped them many times as youngsters when they had to bargain with street vendors for prices. Paloma always intimidated the hell out of the merchants.
“Since we are all here I believe we can start.” Tahlia walked over to the gleaming oak table and took her seat. The rest of the group followed suit. Clearing his throat, Michael looked at Paloma.
“My name is Michael Jensen, and I’m the head of the Human Vampire Slayer’s Consortium.” Gesturing to Joan, he continued. “My colleague here is Joan Arcadia. She’s in charge of the research component of the organization and knows almost everything there is to know about vampire legends and history.”
Paloma nodded her acknowledgement.
“Ms. Soleil, we thought you dead for almost 500 years. If I may ask, how did you escape the ambush staged by the slayers?” Joan was still staring at Paloma with awe.
“I killed them all and then I went to ground.” Paloma answered calmly. Tahlia saw the slight shiver that ran through Joan at Paloma’s curt reply.
“What do you have for us, Joan?” Jonas was looking at Joan with a slight frown and Tahlia wondered if Jonas felt intimidated by Joan’s reaction to Paloma. Over the centuries, many straight women have fallen prey to Paloma’s dark sensual charm, and both Jonas and Tahlia knew that Joan wouldn’t stand a chance if Paloma were to set her sights on the researcher.
Joan blushed lightly and flipped open the file lying on the table in front of her.
“About 800 years ago a clandestine organization of human slayers operated in Europe, hunting rogue and Royal Clan vampires alike. An Italian nobleman Columbus Mercredi headed the group. He had a score to settle after his only daughter was seduced and killed by a rogue vampire. Already a firm believer in the occults, he formed a group recruiting killers from prisons across Europe and trained them to hunt vampires. In their search, they butchered vampires and humans indiscriminately. The last official recording of their operations was in 1530 when they claimed to have killed Paloma. No reference to them appears in any literature from the 16th century onwards.”
She reached for her glass of water and took a quick sip. “About fifteen years ago the group’s operation was reactivated. Our European branch started tracking the group and found their head office in Naples, coincidently right at the spot where their predecessors had claimed they killed Paloma. The Euro branch alerted us that the group was infiltrating the U.S. With so many coincidences, we thought it a sound idea to investigate the link between the group and Paloma.”
Tahlia turned to Paloma. “Why do you think these people might be hunting you?”
“Prior to our battle at Naples, I had been aware of the group’s operations as they had killed a few of my warriors.” She rubbed over her eyes. “I went after them and destroyed their cells, leaving my calling card so I could flush out the remaining members. The battle at Naples was actually an ambush. Mercredi and his son managed to escape. I thought they would not
be able to regroup after the blow I had dealt them. Last night, however, I captured one of their members at a bar downtown. He is locked away safely until I figure out what to do with him.”
Tahlia’s gaze sharpened at hearing that. She wondered if Paloma would’ve come forward with the news had she not been invited to this meeting.
Michael cleared his throat. “Maybe you can bring him to us for questioning. He will be locked up safely and no one will get to him without my permission.”
“These men are cold-blooded killers, and I do not trust you to be as effective in getting him to talk. I know how to make them talk.” Paloma’s voice sounded flat.
Michael looked to Tahlia, silently begging her to step in. Tahlia nodded and turned to Paloma.
“You will keep the slayer with you, but will only question him in the presence of me, Jonas, or Pierre. We want him alive.” Her black eyes bore into Paloma’s until the Assassin nodded. “Good. Michael we will let you know as soon as we have any information. Until then I suggest we keep our eyes open. Joan, ask the Euro branch for the top structure of the organization. We need to know where to hit to weaken them.”
Coming to her feet abruptly, she walked over to Paloma. “I want you to come with me. Inger has been kidnapped.”
†
A wave of nausea washed over Inger when she tried to lift her head and she slumped back. Slowly opening her eyes, she found that she was in the trunk of a moving car. The last thing she remembered was getting on her motorcycle, ready to leave for her weekly dinner date with her grandparents. She’d heard a sound behind her, but before she could turn to inspect the source of the sound, her head exploded, and everything went black. The car was speeding. Even if she screamed, she doubted anyone would be able to help her.
This time Jemima’s voice was icy.
The car came to a stop and after a short while, the trunk popped open. The men were dressed in dark suits, and one of them had an antique crossbow aimed at her chest. They pulled her roughly out of the trunk and dragged her to a nearby steel cage. The heavy door slammed shut after the men unceremoniously pushed her inside.
She looked around and saw she was in a large warehouse. Three more men brandishing crossbows guarded the cage. Once secured, the men completely ignored her, literally turning their backs. She carefully studied the interior of the warehouse. The place was empty except for the steel cage that was her cell for the time being. The men stood around, some smoking. She tested the cage door, knowing even before she did that it would be useless. She had heard the heavy door latch earlier. She looked around again. She had to do something instead of sitting here like a caged animal. She studied the men closely. They all had one thing in common. They all looked very inconspicuous, almost as if they wanted to blend in without drawing any attention to themselves. And then there were the crossbows. Who in this day and age walk around with crossbows? Maybe I’ll get more answers the old fashioned way.
“Now that you have me, I would like to know what you intend to do with me.”
One of the men, a dull looking fellow with cold grey eyes, turned to look at her. Inger was taken aback by his obvious hatred.
“Shut your mouth, bitch. You will speak only when spoken to!”
“Well, then, you don’t know me at all, mister,” Inger snapped, thoroughly miffed by the man’s insulting remark, but before she could continue with her tirade, the air in the warehouse shifted. A dark, oily manifestation of evil filled the space. She saw the men look behind her. She slowly turned to see who the newcomer was. Whomever he was, Inger knew that his presence spelled danger for her.
The back of the warehouse was dark and if someone didn’t know what to look for, they wouldn’t have seen the shifting shadows. Inger gasped as a gangly human shape stepped out of the inky darkness. Whatever she was looking at might once have resembled a human being, but that must’ve been a very long time ago. It was the scariest creature she had ever seen.
Inger had come face-to-face with a living nightmare. The creature in front of her reeked of violence, hatred, and death. Its face, contorted by bloodlust, stared at her with unconcealed hunger in his deep-set eyes. Inger felt a shiver run down her spine. Ambling forward, the creature approached the cage. The closer it came, the more terrified Inger became.
“So, you are the daughter of the Vampire Queen.” The creature’s voice was raspy and every syllable pronounced in a halting manner.
“Why did you bring me here?”
The vampire stretched his tall frame and Inger saw the muscled wings growing out of its back. “You, my dear, are our bait and my snack while we wait for the Assassin to come to your rescue.” The creature glided over to the gate, and, with a flick of his hand, the door swung open. His elongated claws reached in for her.
With her hands bound together tightly, it was impossible for her to dodge his grasp. The claws curled around her throat. Inger screamed when the tip of a long nail broke her skin and she felt a sticky wetness running down her neck. The creature tossed her against the bars and touched the tip of his blood-stained nail to his black tongue.
“Ah, so sweet and uncontaminated—just the way I like it.” She felt the nausea build up again when the creature stuck out its black tongue to lap the last bit of blood from the tip of his claw. “I will enjoy every last drop of you. But first we need to get your parents here.” He reached for her again, but this time he stuck his nail deeper into the wound in her neck making Inger scream in agony. “That is right; make sure they know where to find you.”
Suddenly pandemonium broke loose.
Chapter 5
One moment she was lying on the cage floor and the next, someone was cradling her in a tight embrace. Her nostrils were immediately assaulted by the scent of blood and she turned her face away to press it into the warm body holding her. It was Jemima. Looking up into Jemima’s face, she found the blue eyes were tender. Her mom was here. Everything was going to be okay.
“I need to close the wound in your neck, honey.” With a quick flick of her tongue over the oozing wound, the blood flow stopped and the wound began to close. Jemima reached down to Inger’s hands and quickly untied the rope binding her. “You need to get out of here, Inger. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
When Inger looked over Jemima’s shoulder, she saw two blurring shapes moving around the warehouse picking the men off one by one. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the creature attempting to slink away and pushed out of Jemima’s arms.
“He’s getting away, Mom.” Jemima nodded and was gone so quickly that Inger blinked repeatedly to clear the blurriness the sudden movement caused. A deep growl of hatred sounded, and Inger stumbled to her feet. She needed to help her mother. The thought, however, didn’t last long.
With her blonde hair flowing loosely, Jemima gracefully dodged the creature’s claws. She was so fast it actually looked as if she were in two places at once. She ducked and sidestepped the creature’s attacks with supple ease. The rest of the fight was over and Tahlia and Paloma were busy getting rid of the bodies. The only action was between Jemima and the creature.
This was the first time Inger had seen her mom fight, and she was awestruck by her skill and agility. With her tall body encased in black leather, Jemima moved around the renegade, successfully slipping in deep slashes with her elongated claws, whilst staying out of the monster’s reach.
With spittle running down its deformed chin, the creature reached for her, but the space where Jemima had been a split second ago was empty. She popped up behind the vampire, and, with glowing red eyes, grabbed it by its wings and swung it into the air.
Before the creature could gain enough momentum to flap its wings for stability, Paloma joined in. She bounc
ed into the air and grabbed the renegade by its throat, pulling it down until it crashed onto its back. She anchored him to the concrete floor by sitting on him, her knees smashing down his wings. Paloma grabbed his wrist and brought it to her mouth. She ripped through the tough flesh with her fangs and sucked on the monster’s wrist.
Inger felt her stomach turn and quickly stumbled away from the grisly scene.
“There are too many of us to defeat, Assassin. We will not rest until all of you are destroyed,” the monster grated out. He was powerless against Paloma’s superior strength.
Paloma lifted her head and threw the wrist and hand away from her as if they were contaminated. A slow trail of dark red blood trickled down from the corner of her mouth.
This time Inger lost the battle and gagged violently. She fell against a soft body as strong hands stroked her back gently.
Tahlia studied her worriedly. “He did not hurt you too much, did he?” She didn’t wait for an answer, but pulled Inger tighter against her. A deep shiver ran through Tahlia, and Inger quickly looked up at her mother.
A single red tear ran down the Vampire Queen’s cheek. Shocked to see her strong mother so vulnerable rattled Inger and she reached out and wiped the tear away. She pressed her face into Tahlia's neck, overwhelmed by emotion.
Attuned to her lover’s emotions, Jemima quickly walked over to where they stood. She kept her back to the creature and Paloma, shielding everyone else from witnessing this private moment. Inger gave her mom a grateful smile as she held tightly onto Tahlia. She knew Tahlia, like Paloma, wouldn’t want anyone to be privy to what might be considered a weak moment. Inger pressed her lips against Tahlia’s cheek.