“Getting!” I yelled. “Darius, grab LaFont and let’s go!”
Darius did exactly that. In one motion he picked up Frances LaFont and flopped her over his shoulder in a classic fireman’s carry. With his free sword hand, he plowed through the snarling creatures, taking off the nearest vampyre’s head. The creature crumbled, twitching spasmodically, but it definitely didn’t get up.
And just like that, the red vampyres scattered. Later, when I had time to think, I remembered that they’d been hissing words of encouragement to each other, but after Stark and Darius figured out their weakness, those whispers changed. It seemed the creatures shared a brain and, Borg-like, the horde scattered, fading into the snowy darkness.
“Come on, Darius!” I called to him.
Hefting LaFont, Darius jogged across the circle, and ran right into Jack.
Jack hadn’t moved. He hadn’t followed any of the adult vampyres. He was still standing in the blackened ruins of what used to be a twisted rowan tree. Darius staggered to a stop not three feet from him.
“Jack?” he said, taking a step closer to the boy.
“I—I can’t.” Jack had his arms wrapped around his chest, like he was trying to hold himself together. His voice was his own, and not his own. It hit me hard when I realized who it reminded me of—Stevie Rae. When she was a red fledgling. Before Aphrodite’s sacrifice. When she had little to no control over her feral urges.
“Darius, don’t—” I began the warning too late.
“Can’t … Need to feed!” Jack hissed and gathered himself, obviously ready to leap on Darius. The Warrior’s eyes widened in understanding. His raised sword wavered, and for a horrible second I thought the Son of Erebus Warrior was going to get eaten by sweet, zombie Jack.
From the ridge above us, Damien screamed Jack’s name.
Jack hesitated just long enough for Aphrodite to run past me and jab him with something that had him collapsing to the ground in a jerking, spastic fit.
She looked over her shoulder at me. “Taser. I came prepared.” She made an impatient gesture at Jack and told Darius, “Well, put her down and grab him. Mother can walk.”
The instant LaFont’s feet touched the ground she whirled on Darius, lifting her hand to slap him hard across the face.
“No!” Aphrodite was on her in a heartbeat, grabbing her raised arm and getting right in her face. “He just saved your life.”
“My life wouldn’t need saving if you hadn’t summoned demons!” LaFont spat the words at her daughter.
My anger boiled over. “Your daughter didn’t summon anything. I did. Accidentally. I was trying to protect Tulsa. You interfered. You caused this!”
“Lies! You monsters killed my husband and took my daughter from me. Now you’ve loosed a plague on Tulsa!” Her slit eye gaze lit on Aphrodite. “May you rot in hell with the vampyres you love more than your own people!”
“Mother. Once and for all. I. Am. Not. Human.”
Aphrodite didn’t yell. She didn’t do anything except stand up to her bat-shit-crazy mom. But she shimmered with power in a way I’d never seen until that moment, as if Nyx had sprinkled glitter over her.
Mrs. LaFont shrank back from her, staggering several steps before turning and rushing off toward Twenty-First Street.
Darius started to follow her, but Aphrodite’s cool voice stopped him.
“Let her go.”
The Warrior paused. “But the creatures are out there. They could kill her.”
Aphrodite nodded tightly. “Yes. They could. And that would be exactly what she deserves.”
“You might want to rethink—” I began, but she stopped me.
“No. I might not. Let’s go, High Priestess. We have an emergency situation to deal with, and saving my mother is not part of it.”
“All righty then,” I said. “Let’s go.”
Like he didn’t weigh much more than a child, Darius picked up the unconscious Jack, and we headed up the stone stairs to join our friends.
Aphrodite pulled on my sleeve as we crossed the bloody circle. “I was wrong about the vision,” she told me, speaking softly and quickly. “It wasn’t Damien’s death that I witnessed.”
I gave her a question-mark look. “I don’t understand.”
“Nyx sent me a vision of my own death.”
I felt the jolt of shock and stared at her. “What the hell does that mean?”
“It means whatever this cluster fuck is, it isn’t as simple as us getting rid of zombie red vampyres and making sure Damien doesn’t lose his damn mind over zombie Jack. It means I’m at the heart of this mess, not Damien. And if a Prophetess of Nyx is being targeted, we could be looking at something much darker than we thought.”
“Ah, hell,” I said.
12
General Dominick
There was a dark, feral intelligence that went with the horde. It wasn’t a community consciousness, though they did share thoughts, as their psychic gifts were vast. At the moment they were released from the spell that rent the fabric of their world, transporting them to an alternative reality, two thoughts were foremost in their minds—feed and flee to the tunnels!
Dominick led them. He’d been the first to enter the strange opening, drawn by the scent of the blood of a High Priestess and by her intent as well. He felt her. He heard her. Dominick was well used to listening to the commands of a High Priestess. He was, after all, her second-favorite general.
As soon as the Warriors realized how to kill them, Dominick ordered his small army to flee. It was obvious where they were—Woodward Park in Tulsa. Only this Woodward Park was drastically changed from the one he knew, and not only because everything was carpeted with snow. The park looked off. Where were the old oaks? The mounds of huge azalea bushes?
Dominick pushed aside such inconsequential thoughts.
He was a Warrior. A leader of the Red Army. He had one job—to do his High Priestess’ bidding. He had only one desire beyond that: to feed.
And as this strange summons had awakened him and this small portion of his army in the middle of their coma-like sleep, so his need to feed was strong—so strong it even surpassed his confusion at where or when he really was.
He’d ordered his unarmed men to flee the barrage of arrows and the deadly sword the Son of Erebus wielded against them—against them! They must be part of a rebel pack. How had they captured the High Priestess? Where was her Red Guard? More importantly, where was she?
Dominick shook himself. Search for the High Priestess later. They must get to safety. They must find weapons. But first, they must feed.