There wasn’t a vampire here who could match them.
Most of the vampires converged upon Eliana, believing her the easier target because she was so much smaller. And female. Vampires always underestimated female fighters, the weaselly bastards.
Nick ducked the swing of the first vampire who ran at him. Swiveling, he swung his shoto swords and liberated the vamp’s head from his shoulders. The second vampire’s eyes widened in shock. Then his face contorted with fury as he swung two long bowies at Nick.
Nick blocked both blows, fended off more, and swept the first blade from the vampire’s fingers.
The vampire howled in rage, too far gone mentally to feel the fear he should.
Nick ran the vamp through, then decapitated him. He spun to face Eliana, who had already taken down the sleazy vampire and Jason. The other vampires hovered close, awaiting their opportunity to strike.
Bill circled around and came up behind her, wielding tactical knives. Face twisting in a sneer, he swung at her.
Nick blocked the asshole’s swing and positioned himself at Eliana’s back. “Coward!”
Shicks and tings split the night as he fought off Bill’s blades.
Someone cried out behind him before another vampire Eliana felled collapsed to the ground.
Nick’s blades flashed, fending off Bill’s and drawing blood as he opened the vampire’s carotid artery.
Eyes wide, Bill stumbled backward and fell to the ground.
Another vampire took his place.
Nick cut and thrust relentlessly, opening a brachial artery, a femoral artery, and lopping off a head.
The vampires dropped to the ground.
As soon as the vamps breathed their last breath, they began to shrivel up as the peculiar symbiotic virus that infected them devoured them from the inside out in a desperate bid to continue living. By the time it finished, there would be nothing left of them but clothing, jewelry, and dental fillings.
He spun to see how Eliana fared.
Her last vampire foe fell to the ground like a discarded rag doll.
Eliana turned to check on him, then glanced down. Blood painted the exposed skin of her stomach, chest, and neck. It also liberally speckled her face. “Well, crap,” she muttered in disgust.
He laughed, prompting her to shoot him a dirty look.
Leaning down, he tore a piece off a vampire’s shirt and used it to wipe his blades clean before sheathing them. “Any injuries I should know about?”
“No. How about you?”
“I’m good.” Reaching into his back pocket, he withdrew a pristine white handkerchief and held it out to her.
“Thank you.” She wiped blood from her forehead, cheeks, and chin. “How do you always manage to avoid getting blood on your face and neck?”
“I don’t. Tonight I lucked out. But I think height might be a factor. You’re shorter than most of the men you battle, so your face is more apt to be sprayed when you open their arteries.”
“Great.” She wiped her neck, then some of her chest before the handkerchief grew too stained to be of help. “Got another one?”
Grinning, he took the first from her and stuffed it into his pocket, then handed her a second. “I’m going to call Henderson.”
“Okay.”
Palming his cell phone, he dialed the head of the Midwest division of the human network that aided Immortal Guardians.
“Henderson,” Scott answered absently.
“It’s Nick. Eliana and I just took out eight vampires at U of H. No witnesses as far as I can tell. And I think we managed to avoid getting caught on camera. But you might want to double-check that. We also need a cleanup crew to come rinse the blood off the pavement and retrieve the vamps’ belongings.” When vampires had roamed alone or in pairs, the network hadn’t had to do much in the way of covering up their disappearances after Immortal Guardians killed them, particularly in a city this size that boasted so much crime. But eight males going missing on the same night might draw notice. Having their personal belongings would help Henderson and his crew identify them and concoct a reasonable explanation for each one’s absence.
“Okay,” Henderson said. “I can have someone there in five.”
“Great. Thanks.” He pocketed his phone. “Did you hear that?”
Nodding, Eliana cleaned her shoto swords and sheathed them. “Too bad it isn’t still raining. That would’ve at least gotten rid of the blood for us.” Again she grimaced. “And rinsed the stench off me. I shouldn’t have hugged that guy. I’m pretty sure he hasn’t bathed in weeks.”
Nick silently agreed. Eliana reeked. “Do you want to head home for a shower? I can stay here and take care of this.”
“Actually, I was hoping we could hang out for a while. Max is out of town, visiting family. So the house is too quiet.”
He smiled. “I think a lot of the Seconds are taking vacations. After the past few years, they deserve it.”
The Seconds, or human guards, assigned to live with Immortal Guardians sacrificed much for them. They conducted business for them during the day since most immortals could only tolerate limited sun exposure. They lent an appearance of normalcy for nosy neighbors. (Boy, he’d had some nosy neighbors in the past!) They also protected their immortals, providing backup when they needed it. And immortals had needed a hell of a lot of that in recent years.
Every Immortal Guardian was required to have a Second. Except for Roland Warbrook. That antisocial immortal didn’t trust anyone who lived with him not to kill him. Or at least he hadn’t until a few years ago. Nick still couldn’t believe a female gifted one had fallen in love with the cantankerous male and asked him to transform her so they could spend the rest of eternity together.
And every Immortal Guardian appreciated his or her Second.
Nick was no different. “Mine’s in Cabo.”
“Oliver isn’t home?”
He shook his head. Nick had insisted he take some time off. “You want to stay at my place tonight?”
“Sure.” She smiled. “Although I worry it might give the missus the wrong idea.”
Laughing, he bent and began to collect the fallen vampires’ weapons. “Your worry is unfounded. Kayla isn’t interested in me.”
Chapter Two
Kayla reviewed the material on her computer screen, then clicked Send Invoice.
“Done.” Leaning back in her chair, she indulged in a nice long stretch and glanced at the clock—3:27 a.m. And she wasn’t a bit sleepy.
She sighed. It hadn’t taken her long at all to inadvertently shift to a new sleep schedule. While she’d homeschooled Becca, she had steadfastly remained on the traditional rise early in the morning and go to bed at a “decent” hour schedule. But Becca was in North Carolina now. And Kayla had always been a night owl.
At the rate she was going, she didn’t think it would be long before she ended up going to bed when the sun rose. Fortunately, her job as a freelance editor and proofreader allowed her to work whatever hours she liked.
Rolling her chair back from her desk, she rose and left her home office, shutting the light off behind her.
It was quieter at night, providing a better work environment, so she saw little harm in the new schedule. Becca usually didn’t call until afternoon or evening anyway.