This is bad, Oberi whined.
“Shit. It’s Marcus from this morning,” Kallie hissed. “He wasn’t supposed to be here for another half hour.”
“We must’ve accidentally changed something,” I realized.
“Act natural,” she said.
Marcus approached us, along with Rishi. “I thought you were going to your dorm to get your grimoire.”
“I… did,” Kallie said quickly.
“Already?” Marcus sounded shocked. He must’ve parted from past-Kallie only moments ago.
“Yep,” Kallie stated confidently. “I ran into Charlie on my way back.”
Marcus paused for a moment, as if he was looking me up and down. “You look like you slept well. I’m still wiped from last night.”
Our night in death row felt like two nights ago, at least. Which didn’t make a damn bit of sense, because Kallie and I had only been time-traveling for an hour, at most. This was so fucking confusing.
“Yeah, same,” Kallie said quickly. “Have you seen Thaddeus? Or noticed Esther or Mad Dog roaming around?”
Marcus didn’t get a chance to answer before a deep voice came from behind us. “Who’s asking?”
Kallie whirled around. “Mad Dog. Just the criminal I was looking for.”
“Fuck off,” he growled.
“Kallie, do it now,” I hissed.
I sensed her magic welling up inside of her, but Kallie never got a chance to blast off the spell. Mad Dog swept toward her in the blink of an eye. One second Kallie was standing beside me. The next, Mad Dog had pinned her to the wall. Oberi barked loud protests.
“Get off her!” Marcus went to yank Mad Dog off, but he must’ve thrown an arm back, because Marcus landed with a loudthudon the ground. Rishi hissed.
Magic crackled in my palm, but I didn’t shoot it off, because I didn’t want to hit Kallie.
“You don’t want to mess with me today,” Mad Dog warned.
“If you want to hold me down, you might as well buy me dinner first,” Kallie said sarcastically.
Mad Dog drew a deep breath, as if taking in Kallie’s scent. “Something’s not right here. What kind of game are you playing, princess?”
Kallie spoke in a struggled breath, as if Mad Dog had her by the throat now. “No games… just saving lives.”
Mad Dog laughed maniacally. “You can’t save lives if you’re dead.”
We all reacted at once. I aimed my magic at Mad Dog’s back, while Oberi rushed forward and bit him in the leg. Marcus shoved himself between Mad Dog and Kallie, but the vampire was already moving in for the kill.
Marcus gasped, and a warm, sticky liquid squirted over the front of my face. A heart-shattering scream filled the hall— the sound of a devastated lover. Kallie’s horrified cry rivaled that of a siren as she screamed Marcus’ name.
Mad Dog dropped Marcus to the ground, and I lunged forward to grab the motherfucker. I was going to siphon all this asshole’s vampire strength and snap his neck in two.
But my hands met nothing but air. Mad Dog had vanished down the hall with his super speed, and I couldn’t catch him.
Oberi whimpered. Beneath me, Marcus gasped for breath. For a moment, it was like the hall was filled with dead bodies all over again.
Kallie dropped to her knees. “Marcus!”
I hurried beside her and pressed my hands to Marcus’ neck. Blood spurted from a huge gash in his artery, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. It wasn’t the kind of vampire bite that could change him, but the kind designed to kill. Rishi yowled loudly.
