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I could understand the vampire’s desire to lash out at those who had hurt him, but no child should have to pay for the sins of their parents.
And the fact that Mason was made me so damn angry it was all I could do to resist the urge to race out of here—to somehow find the monster responsible for this and end it. End him.
Aiden swept the light slowly around the small chamber. “Are you seeing any signs of magic?”
“No, but there has to be something here, as we should be smelling Mason’s rot given how close we are.”
“I think it’s something of an understatement to say I’m glad we’re not.” The flashlight’s beam centered on Mason again. “So, a head shot?”
His voice was matter-of-fact, but there was something underneath it, a timbre that spoke of abhorrence—both at what had been done, and what he now had to do.
I nodded, my mouth suddenly dry. Mason’s head did have to be removed, and not just to stop the vampire from using him again, but also for the safety and sanity of his parents. They’d already gone through enough heartache—they didn’t need to know their child’s remains had been given life via magic so he could be used as a weapon against them.
But knowing what had to be done was a totally different matter to actually doing it.
Aiden handed me the flashlight, his expression giving nothing away. Nor did he say anything. He simply raised his gun and took aim.
I wanted to look away, but resisted the desire. Not because of some macabre need to watch the shattering of bone and decaying flesh, but because it somehow felt disrespectful to do anything else.
While this rotting vessel might no longer hold life, it was always possible Mason’s soul had not moved on. Some didn’t, especially if they were killed before their time. And while I wasn’t Belle, and had no way to see or contact him even if he were here, I could at least offer him a prayer of peace.
Which was what I did as Aiden fired.
Six shots. That was all it took. Six quick shots to finish what time and decay had already started. With no head and shattered legs, he was now beyond the reach of magic, no matter powerful.
“I’m going to enjoy killing this vampire,” Aiden said softly. “And nothing, not the IIT or anyone else, is going to stop me. Not after this.”
I touched his arm lightly; I might have well been touching steel. “I think you’ll find the IIT won’t argue with that sentiment. They want this ended every bit as badly as you do.”
“Perhaps.”
His gaze met mine, his expression cold—angry. Not at me, not even at the IIT, but rather the situation. At the deaths and destruction that had shattered this otherwise peaceful reservation.
The insights, it seemed, were back—although it didn’t really take psychic powers to guess at his emotions and thoughts right now.
“Do we need to do anything about the rest of Mason’s body?” he added.
I shook my head. “He needs to be reburied, of course, but we’re running out of daylight and it probably wouldn’t be wise to retrieve him until tomorrow morning.”
“Agreed.” He plucked the flashlight from my grip and stepped around me. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
By the time we’d exited, the shadows were beginning to close in. René was squatting against a tree on the far side of the clearing, but rose as we approached.
“Everything okay?”
“Yes.” Aiden handed him the flashlight. “But the mine is now a crime scene, so don’t go in there.”
“So it was gunshots I heard?”
“Yes.”
Aiden’s tone remained as neutral as his expression, but the anger and frustration continued to vibrate through him. It might be under the surface and very well controlled, but I suspected it wouldn’t take much for it to be unleashed.
“I’m going to place a clearance order on the entire area for a day or so,” he continued. “So if you’ve got anything expensive at the mine you’re working, I’d grab it. But be out of the area before sunset.”
René nodded and left.
“What are the chances of the vampire returning here tonight?” Aiden pressed his fingers against my spine and guided me toward the somewhat vague path that had brought us up here.
