Her shoulders heaved as she pressed closerto the heat he radiated. Despite the memories battering againsther, his presence soothed some of her terror. She’d just found him,just found happiness and security again, and now she might lose itall. A vampire, maybe multiple vampires were out there, and theyhad come for her.
She took another deep breath of David’swoodsy scent, seeking to further calm the constriction in her chestas she fought to stay focused on the here and now, onhim.She didn’t care what she had to do; she would kill any who dared totry to hurt him. She wouldnotlose him.
She lowered herself to the floor before himand slid her arms around his neck, needing to hug him. “They’vecome to take me again.” David stiffened as she murmured these wordsto him. His arms locked around her waist. “I smell garbage. It’show the vampires in the warehouse smelled.”
Lifting Mia up, he set her on the edge ofthe bed. “Stay here,” he whispered.
“Like hell.”
Mia scrambled up behind him and hurried toher coat when he walked back toward the door. From the insidepocket, she withdrew her stake. David grabbed his own coat andpulled two stakes from its inner pockets. He also pulled out hiscell phone, typed a message into it, and slid it into hispocket.
Seizing the bag she’d packed, Mia unzippedit and dug around until she uncovered the small crossbow tuckedwithin. It was barely bigger than her hand, but it was stilllethal, and she intended to use it.
David glanced over at where Mia knelt by thebag, her eyes a vibrant red. Her jaw was set in determination;anger etched her delicate features. He moved away from the windowto kneel beside her again. No matter how badly he’d like to keepher out of this, he knew it would be impossible. She would fight tothe death before she allowed them to place her in chains again.
“Are you going to be able to do this?” heasked her.
Her lips skimmed back to reveal her fangs.“I’ll kill every one of those bastards if I have to.”
David wrapped his hand around the back ofher head and drew her close to kiss her forehead. “We’ll let themmake the first move. They most likely think we’re sleeping. Staybehind me as much as possible.”
He released her and rose to make his wayback to stand between the window and the door. It would beimpossible to keep her out of this, but he was determined to killhowever many vamps were out there before they could get close toher.
Mia took up a position directly across fromthe door and aimed the crossbow at chest level prepared to take outthe first bastard who tried to enter. This wasn’t their home, sothere would be no invitation necessary for the vamps out there tocome inside.
As the seconds ticked into endless minutes,her hand began to cramp and sweat trickled down her back to stickher shirt to her skin. She didn’t dare move a muscle as she waited,barely breathing. The vamps stalking them had to make their movebefore the sun rose. Vampires who killed humans for recreation, oron accident, became stronger from the kill, but they also becameweaker as more restrictions were placed on them. They becameincreasingly vulnerable to sunlight, holy water, crucifixes, haddifficulty crossing bodies of water, and with every kill, they hadthe increasing stench of garbage to purebred vampires.
These assholes wouldn’t be able to attackthem during the day, unless they planned to follow them all the wayback to Maine. Her heart sank as she realized it could be a longtime, if ever, if the vampires didn’t attack them tonight.
She glanced at David as regret descendedover her. He remained unmoving beside the door. The steady beat ofhis heart and his even breaths belied the lethal tension of hisbody. She’d just found a new family and home she loved with him.She refused to let it go.
No matter what it took, they’d kill thesebastards or she’d die trying.
A noise outside brought her head back towardthe door. She shifted her position as she steadied her grip on thecrossbow. Before she had time to take another breath, the door ofthe room burst open. Splintered wood showered her from the brokenframe. Mia ducked as what remained of the door soared over her headand crashed into the wall behind her with enough force to shatterthe plaster and shake the building.
She almost fired the crossbow before sherealized the first vamp had come in low. Jerking her hand down, shepulled the trigger. The tiny bolt whistled as it sped through theair and pierced the vampire in his forehead. He howled and flippedover onto his back. His feet kicked in the air as his hands clawedat the bolt. Another vamp appeared in the doorway, but before hecould jump out of the way, David grabbed his jacket and jerked himinside.
David’s handsome face was etched withruthlessness when he drove the stake through the vamp’s heart andyanked it back out. Mia caught a glimpse of the man with the beardthat she’d seen earlier before he spun away from the door.
Realization that the bearded man was also avampire dawned on her when his putrid stench hit her. A flash ofmemory rocked her on her feet. A picture of him heavier andlaughing, blazed across her mind, but she still couldn’t quiterecall who he was.
Mia shook her head to clear it of the image.She could piece it all together later; they had to fight. When shesaw another vamp duck away from the door, she realized the vampireshadn’t been waiting to attack because they wanted to follow themsomewhere. They’d been waiting for reinforcements.
David bent down and drove his stake throughthe heart of the vamp she’d shot, who was still kicking his feet onthe floor. Yanking the bolt from the vamp’s forehead, David tossedit to Mia before rising and cautiously poking his head out thedoor. He ducked back in time to avoid a machete that swung out ofthe darkness at him. The machete came so close that it glanced overhis ear, drawing blood that rolled down to seep into his shirt.
Rage burst hotly through Mia at the sight ofDavid’s blood, and the knowledge that another had hurt him.
The arm holding the machete lifted up, butDavid lunged forward and seized the wrist before the vampire couldpull back. He slammed the vamp’s wrist against the doorframe andsnapped his arm around. Bone cracked and splintered before it torethrough skin. The vampire howled and the machete fell from hisruined hand. The knife clattered as it hit the ground.
David kept hold of the vampire as hestrained to hear anything else. Two heartbeats sounded fromoutside, making it appear that there was only one more attackerwith the vampire David held. Mia crept closer to him and toward theother side of the door. She craned her neck in order to peeroutside. The vamp David held jerked in his grasp, trying to breakfree.
Placing his foot against the wall, Davidyanked the vamp around the side of the doorframe, twisted his stakein his grasp, and drove it into the man’s chest. Startled browneyes met his before the vamp collapsed next to the bodies of hisbrethren.
In the distance, a single set of footstepsfell heavily against the pavement as the last vamp fled. Davidpoked his head cautiously out and peered up and down the roadway.In the distance, he saw a man fleeing toward a car parked by theoffice building.
“Stay here!” he barked at Mia, then plungedout the doorway after the vampire.
“David, wait!” Mia cried.
