Pity and horror froze me for a second, before I realized that the guys were sprinting through the middle of the room, heedless of the threats on either side.
"Fuck," I muttered as I bolted after them, spotting a door on the far wall. I made that door my focus, trying to block out the horrific grunts and scrabbling claws as the monsters on either side of us struggled to break free and come after us.
My heart, already exhausted from all the threats tonight, just beat weakly inside my chest. It didn't even have the energy to panic. But my mind was on high alert. It was keyed up, darting from thought to thought as my feet slammed rhythmically against the cement.
Fucking hell, how huge is this lab? How many vampires are here? Maybe twenty? Thirty? What are they doing with them? The test tubes drew my eyes before I forced myself to focus on Andros' broad back. I needed to think about next steps. But worry and wonder about what the hell kind of evil lair this was kept intruding on my escape plans. I couldn't focus on stairwells or security cameras. My mind kept circling back to this one thought: They're using them like lab rats.
There were IVs stuck in the crook of each vampire's arm. And vampires of all ages and races appeared in this lab too. It made me think that the Pinnacle was testing their blood. Was it for the blood shields Evan and I had uncovered? Were they testing the cure? Or something else?
Fucking hell, I wished I had the time to stop. I bit my lip, glancing to the side. Maybe I could just swipe a computer, and take it with me. I saw a laptop ahead on the right that was closed on top of one of the metallic work tables. It gleamed like a little present, waiting just for me.
But no. No. I didn't know what kind of protections the Pinnacle had on equipment down here. I hadn't even known this room existed. I had no information on it whatsoever. It was too much of a risk. These computers could be spelled to erase their contents if their GPS changed locations, or worse, erase their contents and activate a GPS ping that gave away my location. That's what I would have done if I were in charge here.
Despite my logic, my feet still crept closer to the machine, drawn by possibilities. We had the serum. But what if there was more? I'd never thought about more than Matthew. I'd never needed to.
I shouldn't need to now. But still, my hand extended.
"Don't," a low, British voice called out. "They've written Luring Spells to get you to touch the machines. But touch them and a Sticking Spell activates. You won't be able to move until they find you, and they'll take their time. The last man waited three days. He was dehydrated and putty in their hands once they came."
I glanced up. In front of me, the guys lurched to a stop. Every single one of them turned, as did I, to see a man's silhouette in a dark corner to our right, tucked into shadows where the lights didn't reach. I lifted my hand and shot a weak bit of light in his direction. I immediately regretted it.
In that quick flash of light, a hiss had erupted and I realized the man was nude, well-muscled, blond-haired with scruff on his cheeks and chin. But I'd also seen that there was a band around his arms... arms that ended not with hands, but with claws.
Fear sizzled inside my chest.
I shot out a second flash of light to be sure.
And that was when I saw his fangs as he growled, crouching to avoid my light.
Holy fuck.
He was a vampire.
My heart skidded to a halt, reversed, and tried to get the hell out of dodge. But my head yanked my heart back. The man was a vampire.
But he'd spoken.
He'd spoken.
My eyes stumbled over to look at each member of my crew to verify that they'd seen and heard what I had. Shock was scribbled across every face.
Malcolm was the first to say anything. But he didn't speak to me. He asked the vampire in the corner, "What's your name?"
There was silence for a moment, and then I saw the vampire's head tilt in the shadows, studying us as much as we did him. A shiver ran down my spine. "Is that really relevant when you're in the midst of escape?"
I padded over to the guys and whispered, "We should free him."
Five sets of eyes scrutinized me.
Andros shook his head immediately, crossing his bulky arms. Evan's blue eyes looked conflicted and he bit his lip. Gray gave a huff.
"If nothing else, it will split their attention as they try to capture us," I rationalized the aching need in my chest to do right by this stranger.
"If we don't get eaten," Zavier hissed, running a hand through his dark, messy hair.
"Then free his arms and give him the means to free his legs," I argued.
"We are outta time," Andros grumbled. "Unless you want to stick around and be accused of murdering Claude instead of framing him for all this."
The vampire made no comment. He didn't argue for or against release. He just waited. But his silence was heavy and cold and spread goosebumps across my skin.
I turned to look at Malcolm. He was the logical one, the reasonable one. His eyes narrowed as he studied the vampire in the corner. "I want a name," he demanded.
"Callum," the vampire's smooth tone wafted back to us like cool fog.
"I want your promise that you will never attack us," Malcolm pressed.
"You have my word," the vampire gave a single nod that was hardly visible in the darkness.
Ice flew from Malcolm's hand, through the darkness and surrounded the chains at Callum's feet. Malcolm twisted his wrist and with a clang, the metal rings at the vampire's ankles fractured and hit the floor.
The blond vampire surged forward at lightning speed.
Prey instinct made all of us bolt toward the end of the lab. I was shortest and slowest and my brain screamed that I was an idiot. I was a fool. The guys and I had been nearly free and clear and I'd messed everything up because I was impulsive. Emotional.
Dammit.
The vampire's arms were still restrained but his speed was incredible. He was next to me in less than two seconds, his pale blue eyes peering down at mine.
"You are?" he asked, not even winded.
I considered giving him a fake name, but if he was about to sink his fangs into my neck, lying was a waste of energy. "Hayley," I said, straining to shoot forward and break away from him.
But Callum easily kept pace with me, and my eyes couldn't help darting to the side as I saw his claws scratch at the metal band encasing his upper body. They were so strong I saw the metal divot with each pass he made. He didn't even look down as he did it, his eyes were planted firmly on me. "I hope you can run faster than that, little Hayley," he murmured softly, "I really hope you can run faster than that."
My throat and chest were already burning. My legs felt like jello. I couldn't even laugh at the absurdity of his threat as the metal holding his hands hostages slowly started to shred and then bend upward with a creak around his wrists.
"Your word means nothing then?" I let my fury at myself color my voice and turn it into a snarl. Stupid idiot. Thinking he was a victim somehow.
"Oh, I won't kill you. But I can't promise they won't." That's when Callum yanked the metal band up over his head and tossed it aside. It crashed onto one of the metal tabletops and sent test tubes flying.
Fuuuuuuuuuuck.
My heart gave a desperate lurch and I shot whatever shadows I could around myself and the guys.