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“Then we need to move faster.” Ash turned toward the door. “She’s using them as a distraction to get the army out of the palace so she can take it from the inside!”
As they sprinted down the hall, a portal opened in front of them, and dozens of vampires ran out. Ash kicked the first one in the chest, and he flew back through the portal. When another attacked her, she dodged his punch.
She caught his hand and broke his elbow. As the vampire screamed, she retrieved her obsidian blade from her boot and rammed it into the base of his skull. That severed his spinal column and brain stem, and he dropped to the floor.
Ash took on another, and Luca fought two. He grabbed one by the throat and slammed him into the wall before decapitating him. The blade caught the second bloodsucker and took a chunk out of her neck. He dropped the sword and ripped her head the rest of the way off by brute force.
“Damn!” Ash exclaimed.
Luca shrugged. “That’s your lesson for the day. They are easier to decapitate if you take a chunk out of them first.”
“Duly noted.” She rushed toward a vampire who was about to attack Ivanna.
The duchess dove into the fight alongside the others. She hadn’t trained in hand-to-hand combat as long as Ash or Luca, but a few weeks with Viktorija were more intensive than most training programs, so she held her ground.
Ash threw her knife, and the blade pierced the throat of a vampire reaching for Ivanna. It wouldn’t kill him, but it would distract him long enough for Ivanna to make her move. In seconds, he and the other two vampires she was fighting were down.
“Where did the rest of them go?” Ash asked. They’d only taken down half of those who had come through.
“They probably fanned out throughout the palace, searching for weaker victims,” Luca offered.
“Or they’re searching for more of their kind to group up with to attack in larger numbers,” Ivanna added.
“I’m gonna go with that one,” Ash replied. “That doesn’t matter. We have to secure the palace. Luca, tell the others and prepare for the attack. Ivanna will cover me while I get this portal closed.” Ash dodged a vampire who leaped through the portal, then moved behind him and swept his legs. She leaned down, ripped his arm off, and used it to clothesline another charging vampire. She laughed. “We’re fine. We’ve got this.”
He had no reason to doubt her, and it would be pointless anyway. He had a responsibility to his people, so he needed to move his ass.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
New Therian Palace, Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Kittania and Mikhail had herded the servants and the Therians who were unable to fight in a secure chamber. They listened to the battle raging outside. The frantic mutters of the people huddled in the room were a steady buzz, even though occasional explosions shook the palace to its foundations. Viktorija had refused to stay, insisting it was her duty to defend the palace. Kittania felt the same pull her daughter had.
Kittania raised an eyebrow. “Are you up for one more fight, old man?” she asked her father-in-law, her tone cajoling.
Mikhail laughed. “I’m not that old yet, little girl. Let’s get out there and show them how it’s done.”
Ordering the servants to barricade the door behind them, the pair slipped into the hall and made their way to the closest armory. They would need weapons if they were forced to fight before they could change. Kittania had never been so grateful for her daughter’s warlike nature. She’d insisted on placing caches of weapons all over the palace. They soon found an untouched stash and retrieved sharp dragon-forged blades.
Properly armed, Mikhail and Kittania cut through a swath of vampires and hostile Therians while they searched for Luca and Viktorija. As they prepared to move from one hall to another, Kittania caught the scents of more vampires. She rounded the corner first and saw a line of them moving down the hall just as she was tackled to the floor.
Kittania saw Ash on top of her, looking concerned. “Are you okay?” the girl demanded breathlessly, even though she didn’t need to breathe very often.
Ash stood and offered Kittania a hand. “I think so. Whatever was that for?” she asked. Her voice was testy, and she didn’t care for the vampire’s glare.
Glancing at the approaching vampires, who were fighting Mikhail and Luca, Ash pointed at the wall where the queen’s head had been moments ago. There was a battle axe buried in it, vibrations from the impact still shaking the handle. Had Ash not tackled her, her vision would have become a reality. Viktorija ran around the corner and jumped into battle with Luca and Mikhail.
“We now know how you would have been decapitated,” Luca’s voice was calm and cool as they finished off the wave of enemies. “Ash is here, and once again, she saved all our asses. If she hadn’t insisted she go ahead while we stayed to fight the vampires, you’d be dead.”
Kittania nodded. She had misjudged her son’s mate for the last time. Vampire, human, witch, or what else she was, Kittania was glad Ash was on their side. “I seem to keep underestimating you. I’m sorry for that, and thank you for saving me.”
Before they could say anything else, another group attacked. This time, Kittania was prepared. The queen mother smiled, and her eyes flashed. With the confidence and grace only a queen could manage, she stretched her arms to the sides, her fingertips brushing the walls as she called on her power.
A lightning bolt arced across her chest, then another. Dozens sparked and raced down her arms into the wall, jumping out where she willed them to. She too had the ancient magic of the high throne. Until Luca officially brought Ash into the Therian empire and the magic accepted her, Kittania would retain it. She had a few tricks up her sleeve that didn’t involve changing to her other form.
The lightning caused the vampires’ bodies to seize, and Luca and Mikhail finished them off. The queen heard rapid footsteps behind her and scented vampires coming from the other side. Calling the lightning back, Kittania turned and thrust her hands toward the new enemies. A thick bolt shot out of each hand, arcing from one vampire to the next. A moment later, their ashes covered the floor.
The group moved through the palace, watching each other’s backs as they cut down enemies. Luca spoke to his mate. “Can you see what Nadya is doing? I need to know where to go.”
