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Not wanting to scare him, I forced myself to speak. “No, I’ve never been back there.” A wave of horror swept over me at the thought of setting foot back in the cavern. I’d thought myself over the fear. Dredge was dead. I had staked him. I was free. Or, at least, I thought I was free.
“I’m so sorry. Menolly, I should never have asked. I’m so stupid.” Somehow, Chase’s contrition was worse than the question he’d asked.
“It’s not your fault.” I hurried to reassure him. He’d asked a simple question. The fact that the question had hit me so hard worried the fuck out of me.
The others had noticed our conversation and stopped. Camille and Delilah surreptitiously moved to stand behind Chase, and I realized—again, with a touch of horror—that they feared I might attack him.
Feeling both mute, and muted, I shook my head. “I’m okay. Just…I never…nobody ever asked me that before. I’ve never thought of going back. Ever.”
Camille stepped back. Delilah, more slowly. But Chase didn’t flinch. He just stood there, his gaze softly fastened on my own, and held out his hand. I stared at his fingers, warm and pulsing with blood, and a thirst welled up in me that I didn’t like.
“Take my hand. I trust you.” His words hit like a ton of bricks, and I realized he was offering me something that few mortals would ever dare. Trust that I wouldn’t hurt him, that I wouldn’t fall prey to my nature.
I swallowed my thirst and tentatively took his hand, entwining my fingers in his. I didn’t like touching people—or being touched unless it was on my own terms. But this was important. He squeezed my hand and I returned it, though cautiously. I could crush his fingers with one quick grip.
And then the moment passed and the tension lifted. As I let go of his hand, I gave him a silent nod, and he smiled.
“You can never go home again.” Delilah looked at me. “But that’s not what we’re doing. Even if we go back to the house, we’re not going home. We’re going to…the place we were born.”
Shade slid his arm around her waist. “You have a home Earthside. And if you return to Otherworld, you’ll build a new home.” And then, everything was normal again, and we continued down the street.
But something still felt off. I sidled over to Camille. “Use your senses. Something’s wrong.”
She stopped, and I could feel the swell of magic as she started to close her eyes. But before she could do anything, a crash broke through the night as a large group of men emerged from the shadows of the nearby alley.
They weren’t Tregarts, they were Fae, but one look at their faces and I realized that they wouldn’t be any picnic to deal with. Armed with long knives, they were dressed in black to cloak themselves within the shadows. The leader, at least I thought he was a leader, was slender, with long dark hair pulled back in a ponytail, and a silver bandanna wrapped around his head. Silver chains draped around his neck, and in his hand, he circled a nasty-looking serrated blade at us. But that wasn’t what made me nervous.
As he approached, I knew what he was. There was no mistaking the grace and fluidity with which he moved. A rogue jian-tu. Which meant he’d be more flexible and quicker than anyone in our group except for me. He and his group arced around us in a half circle, cutting off our path.
“Hand us your valuables, my lovelies, and we’ll let you go.” His voice was light, and though it had been some time since I’d spoken our home tongue, it was familiar and smooth on the ears.
“I advise you to let us pass. You have no clue just whom you’re dealing with.” Shade spoke up, pushing beside Delilah.
“A group of class acts, I imagine. A group of well-to-do’s. You’re obviously not from the crusty side of town, so perhaps you’d penny up your goods and we’ll let you go without further harassment.” The leader let out a throaty laugh.
“Really, then?” Quick as a cat, Delilah’s dagger appeared in her hand. At the same moment, Trillian pulled out his blade, and Camille backed up, sucking in energy. By now, I could tell when she was working up a spell. Vanzir had blade in hand, and Roz was holding something small but, no doubt, deadly. Shade disappeared in a puff of shadow and smoke.
I just smiled, letting my fangs descend. “Are you sure you want to take us on, pretty boy?”
“Crimsy, they have weapons.” One of the henchmen backed away a step, but the others—about twelve in all—moved forward.
“Leave my name out of this, you dolt.” The leader—apparently Crimsy—took one leap and landed in front of Delilah. His blade swept around and she barely had time to duck.
“He’s a jian-tu. Be careful!” I leaped, flipping head over heels to land by his side. Crimsy whirled around, and his eyes lit up.
“Well met—another jian-tu, and a bloody girl at that. Come on, let’s do it, love.” He gestured to me with his dagger, and I circled him around, away from Delilah, who was already beset by another one of the gang. I knew better than to take my eyes off him. I remembered my training, and chances are, he did, too.
“You’re going to find out just how bloody.” I launched myself into the air and flipped over his head, landing in back of him. As I hit the ground, I whirled to send one stiletto boot heel into his back, knocking him forward.
Crimsy rolled into a front somersault, springing to his feet. He immediately tricked into a back flip with a twist, spinning as he hit midair so that he landed facing me. As he tossed his dagger from hand to hand, his gaze never left mine.
I licked my fangs as the scent of blood filled the air and a scream rang out, cut short. I didn’t recognize the voice, so I assumed it was one of them rather than one of us and kept focused on my own fight. Crimsy didn’t flinch, either.
“Seriously, you should have targeted a different group.” I gave him a cold grin and then was down, my right hand touching the ground as I spun like a break dancer, my foot gliding in front of me to slide behind his heels, catch hold of his legs, and bring him down.
Crimsy landed flat, his hands reaching above his head to push himself up again, and within seconds he flipped back to his feet. He did a flat spin, scissoring the air with his legs, and managed to clip me in the nose. Startled, I tripped backward and rolled to my feet as he landed, coming for me, dagger aimed directly for my heart. The fun was over; he was intent on killing me now.
I’d had enough play as well. I leaped on him, all finesse gone, and took him down, slamming him to the ground. The surprise that filled his eyes told me he had never tangled with a vampire before, and I had a momentary flicker of doubt.
