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I'd never seen him in full demon form before. Fully eight feet high with glowing golden eyes and fur the color of burnished copper, he'd changed into a fox-man, rearing up on two legs, long muzzle bristling. But no shy fox this—no, he was a demon fox. His nose was black and wet, and steam poured out of his nostrils. As he grimaced, a full row of razor sharp teeth gleamed in the dim light of the bunker.
Instead of paws, he still had hands and feet, but they were fully furred with long, curling claws. Without thinking, my gaze traveled down his length. Whoa! No wonder Camille appreciated him, I thought, staring at his nether regions. Morio might not be a tall man, nor muscle bound, but he sure made up for it in other ways.
He grabbed goth-boy by the scruff of the neck and jerked him off of Camille. The vamp gave a frightened cry. For a moment, I thought I saw a spark of humanity peering out from behind those dead eyes. Then the fear disappeared and the vampire swiped at Morio, catching him across the upper arm.
With a loud yip, Morio raked his claws down the man's chest, gutting him wide. Delilah, who'd been watching from where she was guarding Chase, leapt forward and thrust her stake into the exposed heart. The vamp twitched, then vanished, ashes like the rest.
Morio turned to Camille and in a voice that echoed through the chamber, asked, "Are you all right?"
"I'm fine. He didn't manage to hurt me," she said, gazing up at him. "But you're injured."
As he slowly shifted back into his human form, Morio shook his head and picked up his bag, slinging it back over his shoulder. "I'll be all right. It's barely a scratch." He glanced at the gashes showing through the ripped clothing. "Don't worry about me."
The fight over, I glanced around the room. The other two doors caught my eye. Two more chances for vamps to be lurking, waiting for us. The smell of blood hung heavy, but I was still so impressed by Morio's transformation that I barely noticed. However if there were other vamps here, it would draw them to us for sure.
"Be careful—your wound is as good as a beacon—" I started to say, but one of the side chamber doors slammed open and two more bloodsuckers came through. "Bingo!" I rushed forward, along with Roz and we spun into action.
This time the fight was pretty much one-sided. Camille cast a blinding light spell in the room, which backfired in a sense that instead of a globe in the center of the air, the light shot out from her eyes, effectively eliminating her ability to fight. But Roz and I managed to take down the two vamps before the others could move in. The illumination flared and sputtered out to dwindle back into darkness.
"Hell. I felt like a Roman candle," she said, blinking.
"You looked like one, too," I said. "Any damage?"
She swallowed, then coughed. "My throat feels like I just chugged a bottle of Johnnie Walker, but otherwise I think I'm okay."
Morio let out a snort, arching his eyebrows as she glared at him. "Don't blame me. You know that was funny," he said, but she held up a hand.
"Shut up. I hear something." She raced to the other door and swung it wide before I could stop her. "Erin! I found Erin!"
I darted into the room, glancing around to make sure we were alone. Delilah was right behind me, and the boys behind her.
Erin was bound on the floor, her flannel shirt nowhere to be seen. So butch in the outer world, here she looked terribly frail and terribly hurt. Blood splattered the room. It looked like the newborns had been feeding off of her. The scent of fear hung heavy in the air, and my fangs automatically extended, the hunger churning like an ocean wave.
Camille knelt by her and felt for her pulse. She looked up, ashen. "She's dying. She's not going to make it. Even if we manage to miraculously get an ambulance here in five minutes, they won't be able to give her blood fast enough." Her eyes flashed. "I want them dead. All of them!"
I slowly joined her, crouching to stare at Erin's lifeless form. She wasn't gone yet. There was still a flutter of breath in her struggling lungs, but Camille was right. She was going to die.
Camille turned to me. "You can save her," she said.
"What? How? Even I can't get her to a hospital fast enough." Confused, I glanced around at the others. Roz and Morio had knowing looks on their faces, but Chase pulled a blank stare.
"You can," Delilah said, dropping by Erin's other side. "You can save her, Menolly. You have to—she didn't ask to die. She doesn't want to die."
And then, staring at my sisters, I knew what they were asking. "What? You can't mean it! You can't tell me you want me to turn her?" I leapt up and strode over to Roz's side. "I can't believe you'd ask me to do something I find so repulsive."
Camille gently laid Erin's head in Delilah's lap. She stood, eyes blazing, hands on hips. "What happened to you is totally different. You were tortured with every vile act Dredge could think of. Erin's been used as a feeding station, but she doesn't look scarred. And she didn't ask to be put in this position. Don't you get it? She's going to die if you don't do something now."
I stared at Erin's lifeless form. "People die, Camille. People live and they die. It's the way of the world."
"It doesn't have to happen," Delilah chimed in. "She doesn't have to be like those newborns. Look at Wade and Sassy—look at you! You're different. You choose to be different. You can help Erin from the beginning."
"Remember what Grandmother Coyote said?" Camille cocked her head. "Remember what she said at the meeting? You're going to have to do something you don't want to do. But I'll know it's right. And this is it. Turning Erin into a vampire is the right thing to do."
Frantic, I glanced at Morio for support. "Tell her she's wrong. This is just her desire to keep Erin alive talking."
Morio shook his head. "If Grandmother Coyote foretold this, then I have to back up Camille. Grandmother Coyote never says anything she doesn't mean."
Camille yanked me around, ignoring my hiss. "Trust me. Erin has a part to play in the future. You have to make sure she's around to do it. Turn her, damn it! You don't have to like it, you don't have to approve of it, but you have to do it."
