Like a dog trying to shake a flea, he jerkedat his leg and pulled the gun off his back. She clung like atoddler refusing to release their parent and yanked at his legagain. It didn’t stop him from firing.
She winced as the bullets tore chunks out ofthe concrete walls and bounced around the room. A few hit the glassof some other cages, but they didn’t do any damage as theyricocheted off again.
Vampires howled and beat at their cages asmore shots rang out. She searched for Kyle but couldn’t see him.She swore his cell had been right there. Now, she didn’t know ifthat was his old cage or his new one. It was impossible to tellwhile her head still pounded from the guard’s blow, and the retortof the gun deafened her.
Melanie threw herself into the guard,knocking him forward. He cried out as his next shot went into thefloor.
Before either of them could recover, the gunwas suddenly torn from his hands and thrown aside. The guard criedout a second before a blur of motion crushed the side of his face.Blood erupted from the guard’s mouth as his head shot to the side.He stumbled back and tripped over her. As he was falling over her,he was suddenly yanked away.
The guard soared across the room beforecrashing into one of the cages. The vampire inside leapt toward theglass and clawed at it like a cat scratching a post.
Arms wrapped around her and lifted her. Shefound herself staring at a bare chest with red marks slashing itand dark red and black color seeping across it. Even with all thosegruesome marks and strange color, she knew that chest; she’d runher fingers over it countless times and traced the faded white scarnear his heart.
And now that once beautiful, solid chestlooked like Frankenstein’s monster. Her head tipped back, and alump lodged in her throat when Kyle’s red eyes latched ontohers.
For a second, she didn’t know what to make ofthe look in his eyes. Then, his hands clasped her cheeks, and hecradled her face with such tenderness her heart melted and tearsburned her eyes.
“Melanie,” he breathed.
Kyle couldn’t believe she was in his armsagain. When she slumped into his grasp and hugged him, he crushedher against his chest. Something inside him shifted and twisted ashe held her.
He’d never felt anything so right. Holdingher calmed the raging insanity building inside him since he stoppedaging, but it also inflamed his desperation to change and protecther.
And if he was going to protect her, then hehad to get her out of here. She was in danger; they were trapped inthis place, and if they didn’t get free soon, he would lose herforever.
“How do we get out of here?” he asked.
She blinked at him as she tried to focus onhis words, but the ringing in her ears and head made it difficult.“What?”
“How do we get out of here?” he enunciatedmore clearly.
She pointed at the elevator. “We have to getLucy. She’s on the fourth floor.”
He realized she was having trouble hearingwhen she shouted the words. Clasping her elbow, he hurried her tothe elevator. When he stepped inside, he saw she’d hit the door'sopen button.
“Stay here,” he commanded.
Kyle rushed back to where he’d tossed thegun, but before even grasping the weapon, he saw it was useless.He’d bent the barrel when he ripped it out of the man’s hands. Theother guard he’d taken down lay a few hundred feet away, but he’dheard the click of the man’s ammo emptying a second before heknocked him out.
There was no time to lament the weapon.Turning, he raced back to the elevator and closed the doors beforehitting the fourth-floor button.
When the doors closed, he clasped her cheeksagain and kissed her. He hadn’t realized he was dying until hismouth claimed hers, and she imbued him with vitality and strength.He’d been dry and broken without her, but the touch of her lipseased that.
Melanie’s knees went weak as she leaned intohim. She still couldn’t hear or think right, but she couldfeel, and she felt this to the center of her soul.
Any doubts they were doing the right thingvanished. They might all die trying to escape this place, but she’drather die with him and Lucy than without them.
Melanie buried her disappointment when hepulled away, but then she realized the doors were open and theywere exposed. She braced herself for gunfire or some sort ofattack, but the fourth floor was empty, except for Lucy runningdown the hall toward them.
Melanie never would have guessed heranti-workout, anti-sport, anti-sweat friend could run so fast, butLucy sprinted like a runner hearing the gunshot.
When Melanie stepped toward her, Kyle restedhis hand on her arm, keeping her back. He searched the hallway forsome sign of someone coming behind Lucy but didn’t see anyone, andshe was the only heartbeat he detected.
And then, a sneaker squeaked on the floor andsomething shifted. His vision sharpened as another pulse thudded inhis ears.
Lucy dashed into the elevator as someonerounded the corner at the end of the hall. The end of a rifle swungtoward them a second before Kyle shoved them into the corner of theelevator, near the instrument panel. He hit the button to close thedoors as a bullet slammed into the back wall.
Melanie closed her eyes as she hugged Lucywhile Kyle stood protectively against them. “Which floor?” Kyledemanded as more bullets rattled the closed doors.
