Frankie’s lips purse, as if he has eaten something sour, but he doesn’t answer. Instead, he merely stalks back towards his little beastly friends. I’m going to name them Shadow and Fishy, and the triplets will be Biscuit, Tuna, and Spaghetti.
“What the fuck are they, and why aren’t they dead?” Vin snaps, some of his original ire returning as he glares at the disgusting creatures.
Frankie waves a hand at them almost dismissively, as if he can’t be bothered to introduce them. “Apparently, I have enough of Frankenstein’s blood in me for the monsters to think I’m their daddy.” He makes a face before quickly smoothing out his features. “They’ve been following me around ever since.”
“Aren’t you a cutie patootie,” I coo, crouching down beside one of the mangy mutts. He bares his teeth at me, sharper than those of a shark, and immediately lunges for me. I squeal and run behind Vin, using him for protection.
“Fucking pussy,” Vin seethes, shoving me away from him.
“Pussies are stronger than cocks,” I point out, eyeing the dog-thing as he drops back to his stomach in front of Frankie. “That’s what Violet always says.”
The mention of our missing mate immediately cools the light-hearted atmosphere. Vin, if it’s even possible, appears even more broody, and Frankie looks as if he wants to cut a bitch. Or a Mason.
“We think she’s headed to the hospital,” Vin states at last.
“After what Dimitri said, I think you’re right.” He nods once, already turning on his heel in preparation to leave. “I was headed there myself. Even if for some reason Dimitri was pulling Violet’s leg, we’ll all be together to travel to the main part of the city. There’s too many monsters for us to go on our own.” He releases a shrill whistle, and his beasts immediately begin trailing behind him like besotted puppies. To be quite frank, it’s weird as fuck to see.
Vin and I exchange a long, commiserating glance.
“We’ll get her back,” I say for the twentieth time in the last few minutes. His eyes harden with resolve, lips thinning. After a moment, he nods his head in agreement.
“We’ll get her back.”
Chapter 29
Violet
Flames immediately engulf the sides of the cozy diner, specks of red and orange and yellow eating away at the siding. Cal’s arms are iron vises around me as we both stare at the crumbling building in rapt horror.
“Holy shit balls,” I wheeze.
“He must not have known you were inside,” Cal murmurs, tone pitched in horror and disbelief. “But fuck, we could’ve died. I’m too pretty and young to die this early.”
All I can do is nod mutely. What if Cal hadn’t seen the grenade before Hux/Jack threw it? What if we had still been in the building when it exploded? Fire is one of the few things that can kill a vampire. After all, a body can’t put itself back together again when it’s decimated into ash. Neither Hux or Jack would ever be able to forgive themselves if they had accidentally murdered me.
“We should see if he’s still there,” I say, freeing myself from Cal’s arms. I don’t waste any time racing around the restaurant and towards where I had last seen my lover—lovers? The street, however, is barren, with no indication that Hux/Jack had ever been here to begin with. I have no doubt that Hux is steadily losing control, his need to find and protect me overriding his logical side. Even Jack won’t be able to handle a feral and completely unhinged Hux.
“He left already,” I whisper, feeling oddly bereft. All I want is to see one of my men and wrap myself in his arms. I’m driving myself crazy with worry. Are they hurt? Dead? Are they looking for me? Are they heading towards the city or towards the hospital? Question after question continue to bombard me from all sides like a twenty-car pile-up.
“Vi, we need to get moving.” Cal’s hand rests on my upper arm to guide me away from the roaring flames. “The fire is going to catch a lot of attention.”
“You’re right.” I nod resolutely, peering through the smoke. “We need to head to the hospital. Now.”
The next hour is silent as we venture farther away from the main city to an area of town decorated in cozy houses and hipster coffee shops. My anxiety threatens to implode with each step we take. Somehow, the lack of other monsters does little to soothe my jagged and frayed nerves. Shouldn’t there be others? Why are we all alone?
“I don’t like this,” Cal whispers, giving voice to my own thoughts.
“Maybe we should turn around…” I begin hesitantly, peering over my shoulder at the waning sunlight illuminating the numerous skyscrapers. If Dimitri’s wrong—or if he’s just fucking with me—then I have inevitably led Cal to his own death. “If we make it to the hospital and discover that’s not the way out of this hellhole, there’s no way we’ll be able to make it to the central part of the city before our time is up,” I implore. “So we need to make a choice. Trust Dimitri, or follow the rest of the monsters.”
We pause in the middle of the street, our chests heaving as we whip our heads from one direction to the other. This decision feels monumental, like that moment in chess when you have the capability to capture the other player’s king. Check-fucking-mate. But in this scenario, I’m unable to see the entire game board and the rules have been written in gibberish. One wrong move, and it’ll be game over for all of the players.
“Violet, you know Dimitri better than any of us. Can we trust him?” Cal stares earnestly into my eyes, beseeching me with just his look to trust my instincts.
But…
But what if my instincts are wrong? What if my decision leads to Cal’s death? I can feel myself balancing on a scale, one foot on either surface, but try as I might, I can’t get it to settle. It keeps tilting precariously in one direction. And I know immediately, unerringly, what we need to do.
“We need to get to the hospital,” I tell Cal at last, and I can only pray that my decision isn’t my final one. Cal smiles, nodding briskly, before we continue in the direction of the hospital, just barely visible through the smog.
“Cal! Cheese Curd!” a voice screams from behind us. We both turn to see Barret barreling towards us, a wide grin on his handsome face. He captures me first, immediately spinning me in a circle. His strong arms are like bands around my waist, refusing to release me.
“Barret!” I squeal, relieved to see him in relatively one piece. Besides a blood wound curving down his cheek, he appears to be unharmed. His eyes are alive with happiness and joy. “You’re okay!”
“Of course I’m okay,” he states, confused. “You’re looking at me right now.”
When he places me on my feet, he turns towards Cal with another beatific grin.
“Come here you, asshole,” Cal says, relieved, and Barret wraps the cupid in his arms, being extra aware of his feathered red wings. Cal gently grabs Barret’s chin and guides his lips to his own. The two begin to kiss tentatively at first, almost shyly, before Cal’s tongue snakes out and enters the Boogeyman’s mouth. It’s oddly erotic to watch, and I can feel myself begin to grow wet. When Cal glances at me out of the corner of his eye, I realize the bastard did it on purpose.