Dead Girls Don't Cry (25 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY

Armed with a quick primer on stealth attacks, Philip and I stalked our prey. He took them down, I staked them. Staking works to immobilize a vampire long enough to crack the neck and sever the head.

Philip preferred the messy way—head bashing.

Bathed in blood and brains, we dispatched six of them easily. They were traversing the outskirts, isolated, not expecting any resistance. Like I said – too stupid to live. Even then, I squashed any compassion (even if they were young vampires) and let pain drive my hand. I executed without hesitation. I didn’t enjoy it, but I wasn’t ashamed either.

For once the dust and rocks of the Martian landscape worked to our advantage. The dry ground greedily soaked up the blood. And the bodies were whisked away by the rogues who disposed of them over the side of the nearest crater.

Not so easy, the vamps inside the domes. We had no intel on which buildings they occupied. What we knew for sure, time wasn’t on our side. Soon, the fallen would be missed and our commando raid discovered.

Philip recalled the rogues, gathered the latest information, and dispatched them back into the colony. Phillip and I made our way to the greenhouse.

“I see them,” he whispered.

“We can’t use the front entrance. They’ll spot us.”

Philip scooped me into his arms, launched us upright, and hovered over behind tall corn stalks.

“Here, use this.” He handed me a ballpoint pen shaped device. “It’ll cut a hole in the dome’s force field. Click it like a flashlight.”

I depressed the little knob on the base and a faint blue line trailed out. I ran it along the side of the dome, creating a hole large enough for us to float through.

He took the device aimed it at the hole and clicked. The opening vanished.

Neat trick. Later, I’d worry about what other technology the rogues had ferreted away.

We surveyed the area from behind the corn. Plant laden trays rotated. Sprayers misted the root balls, the noise masking our presence. We headed toward the vampires' last location—the office.

Philip and I each took a side by the doorway. He poked his head in and out lightning quick. After a double check, he relaxed his stance.

“Stand down,” he said, motioning me into the office.

Two headless vampire torsos lay in a slick pool of blood. Their limbs twisted and broken like matchsticks. I scanned the room, locating the heads discarded in the corner.

Philip studied the handiwork. He commented, while pointing the torn skin around the neck. “Popped the head clean off. Spine cracked like a chicken wing. Whoever did this has a lot of rage. I like their style.”

Massaging my neck, I swallowed the lump lodged in my throat. For a moment, the vampire’s wild eyed stare and fearful grimace elicited sympathy.

Disgusted, I shook my head. What was I thinking? He was culpable in Ian’s death.

Philip searched the soldier’s pockets, frown on his face. After a thorough search he located their communicators and handed me one. “Maybe we can trick them during check in.”

A voice squawked loudly, startling me. I fumbled it but it didn’t fall.

“Team 7 report.”

“Team 7 here,” Philip said.

The voice on the other end hesitated. “Password?”

Philip cursed, then depressed the talk button. “Thalia is a fucking bitch.”

“Who is this?” demanded the voice.

Philip crushed the device in his massive palm. We ran toward the front entrance.

“It was worth a try,” I said as we exited the building.

Hell broke loose in the main dome. Bursts of gunfire broke the silence. The rata-tat-tat of automatic weapons pierced the newly repaired dome walls.

“Fuckers,” Philip said.

“Yup, each and every one of them. Now what?” We raced behind an empty shipping bin, out of the line of fire. A henchman ran outside, his back to us, gun pointed at the door. The rogues must have had him on the run. Thalia’s gun-toting vampire sprayed bullets indiscriminately at anything that moved inside the doorway.

“Pathetic,” Philip muttered. “She sends a cub to battle lions.”

Two of the rogues stalked the scared vamp, deftly avoiding the gunfire. They circled him like sharks scenting blood. One feinted left. The other feinted right. Together they charged him and tore his head off like paper.

A burp of acid rose up my throat. I swallowed. It burned all the way back down.

“We need to end this,” I said.

“Agreed.”

We swept through the rest of the colony, eliminating the remainder of Thalia’s men. We re-assembled near the crater to dispose of the rest of the bodies.

Something didn’t feel right. “This whole operation was way too easy. And Thalia’s men were as ineffectual as Keystone Cops.” I searched through the corpses. I had only seen one of Thalia’s men and he was notably absent from the pile.

“Where’s Joel? The Australian Vamp,” I pushed aside the last body.

Philip’s head whipped around. “He’s here?”

“Yes. He was there when…” my voice cracked.

Unlike my family, the rogues knew what had happened to Ian.

“Bad news.” He rubbed his chin.

We returned to the hovercraft. I collapsed onto the nearest seat, body tired and achy. Fatigue threatened to flatten me out. Pregnancy and killing do not make a good combination. I hoped I hadn’t scarred the baby for life.

“Go to the base, wait for my orders.” Philip motioned for the rogues to go skyward and climbed into the hovercraft.

“You have a secret base?” I gaped at him. The vehicle sped away from the colony, heading back to the caves.

“That’s not important right now.”

“I beg to differ. I’m supposed to know about this. I’m—”

“Cherry! Listen. Thalia is here. On Mars.”

My mouth went dry and my throat closed. “Here?” I choked out.

“Joel is her personal bodyguard. And lover.”

“We’ve been tricked.” I stared numbly at the stars. Phobos had risen in the sky. I hated the stupid squashed moon.

“Hate her instead,” Philip noted my surprised reaction. “Your emotions are strong enough I can feel them.”

“I do hate her.” She had single handedly taken away nearly everything in my vampire life. My job, my house, my sire and Ian. I yelled out in frustration. “The bitch has to die!”

“She will.”

The communication panel beeped . I touched the screen, “Go. Jay you’d better have—”

My throat closed up at the sight of Thalia’s pinched visage.

“Hello, Cherry Cordial. Lovely family you have here,” Thalia sneered. Jay’s battered face was locked under her armpit.

He moaned, “Save yourself.”

Thalia punched him in the mouth. Flecks of blood splattered the view screen, “Quiet. You do not have permission to speak.” Thalia dropped Jay and gave me her full attention. “Come to me right now. Or I will behead one member of your family every hour you make me wait.”

A female from my family cried out in pain. Thalia’s smile was ugly. “Oh, Cherry, do be late. I like to have my fun.”

The screen went dark.

Oh yeah. That bitch was gonna die.

~ * * * ~

“I’ll enjoy killing her.” I snapped off another fragrant mint leaf and chewed it. Before leaving the colony, I had grabbed a fistful from the greenhouse. The bitter taste of mint calmed my stomach and reminded me of Ian.

A black hole appeared in my mind whenever I thought of him.

“Save some for the rest of us,” Philip said.

“Can’t promise that,” I said, knowing he meant Thalia and not the mint.

“Are you sure there isn’t another entrance to the caverns? We need a stealthy way in there.”

“No, I’m not sure,” I retorted “We don’t have the time to figure it out either.” A half hour had elapsed since Thalia’s demand. I wished the hovercraft moved faster. If we didn’t need to transport the supplies to carry out our plan, we could have flown.

“Think about it, why would she give you an hour? She has to know it takes about an hour to reach the caves.”

To make me run around like a chicken with my head cut off. I smacked my forehead. “I’m an idiot.” I uncovered the cuff and tapped it. “Kasia? Are you there?”

“Yes, Cherry.”

First things first. “Did you disable the other ship?”

“Of course. I fucked their shit up.”

I cringed, silently blaming Jay.

Philip barked out a laugh.

Kasia added, “They’ll be busy for a while, fixing their electronic systems.”

“Great. You can tell me the gory details after. Is there another way into the caverns?”

The bracelet hummed. “I don’t know. Did you ask my sister?”

“Lake Lady is your sister?” Seemed kind of obvious when I thought about it.

“Kyrene can help you better than I can.”

“We can’t reach her right now. The bad guys have invaded the caverns. They’re holding my family hostage. Can you contact her and patch us in?”

“Yes.” The cuff’s surface displayed Lake Lady – Kyrene’s – distraught face.

“Cherry, who are the others in the caves? They have hurt Jay. They have defaced the murals attempting to remove the gold and jewels.”

“They’re here to take me away and kill the family.”

“Not acceptable.”

No kidding. “Is there an alternate way in? A back door?”

“There are several.” Locations appeared on the cuff.

We decided to use the entrance closest to the colony.

“This entire time there was a doorway here.” I groused as we approached a large boulder in the middle of the rock studded plain.

One by one, rogues dropped from the sky. Grim faced with steel in their eyes, they each nodded to me, ready for battle. They shared one noticeable thing in common – besides killer attitude.

“Philip, hand me your knife.” The sleek handle slapped into my waiting palm. I clutched a hank of my long red hair. Memories of Ian’s hands stroking the silken locks assaulted me. For a brief moment, his voice whispered in my ear,
I love you
.

Pain closed my eyes. Deep inside, a bit of my soul blackened and died.

With a sharp tug of the blade, I sliced upward, severing the hair. I sawed and cut until the hair was shorn close to my skull. A pile of red tufts blanketed my boots. In turn, each rogue took a few strands.

Philip raised his fist in the air. “For Ian.”

“For Ian!” We shouted in unison. Wind gusts scattered the clippings, blowing them across the Martian landscape.

No one commented. They waited on me. I approached the rock. As with the ship, a portal appeared in the rock’s side. Stone steps led downward.

There would be death tonight. I prayed it was only the enemy who perished.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

We padded silently down a rough-hewn tunnel. Phosphorescent walls brightened the passage, the eerie radiance providing enough light to see a few yards ahead and no more. Flashlights clicked on, enhancing visibility.

The dry and musty air dried my throat and burned my eyes. Puffs of dust lifted with each of our footsteps until a haze obscured our view.

Someone sneezed, followed by an insistent shush. The tightness of the space failed to register. Claustrophobia paled in comparison to the grief engulfing me. An occasional tingle from the baby honed my focus. Survive, save the family.

“Drop straight ahead,” Philip warned, extending an arm, stopping our advance.

“How far?” I scooted to the drop off and gazed into the endless black.

“Kyrene, what is this canyon?”

“An extinct magma chamber. You must cross to the other side.” Nerves gutted my belly. Time was slipping by.

I thrust forward in flight and the others followed. Strong updrafts reeled me out of control, flipping me on my back. After a bit of trial and error, I stabilized my position and made it to the other side. Last. Several of the rogues flashed me admiring smiles as if I had passed a secret test.

Safely across, we proceeded down another tunnel and emerged into more familiar territory – an antechamber Ian and I had visited before. Piles of equipment were strewn across the floor. Smashed components and mangled machines smoldered in the room’s center.

The hall of murals lay on the other side of the door. The rogues moved into position, including two hovering by the ceiling. Philip’s muscled arms strained as he slid the heavy door open an inch at a time.

We snaked down the hall. One group split off in the opposite direction.

I stifled angry curses when I saw the murals. Scrapes and gouges marred many of the pictures. Assholes.

Following Kyrene’s map, we avoided the main chamber where the blue walkway resided. Instead, we approached a plain alcove tucked into a far corner. The bracelet pulsed and an opening appeared. We traveled through several connecting rooms. Kyrene’s map pointed us to another path leading to the lake. If I spent a million years in the caves, it wouldn’t be enough time to learn every secret.

Philip signaled all stop. Each rogue around me tensed. Two moved forward with blurring speed. There was a muffled grunt, then a figure was tossed at my feet.

“Sire, please,” he wailed and touched my boots. Trent’s arrogant face twisted. “Please, help me. I’ve been running around avoiding Thalia. She’s captured my men. And Pearl.

His
men? “Shut up, Trent,” I pressed my fingers down on my eyelids, stemming the urge to slap him. I glanced at him again. Why did he care about Pearl?

Philip hoisted Trent onto his feet. His massive hand around locked around Trent’s throat. “Do not speak again.”

Philip turned to face me, “Your orders?”

“He’s coming along. We can’t leave him here.” As much as I’d love to abandon him, I couldn’t risk him squealing if he was captured. Besides, I was his sire and head of the family, he owed me his obedience.

We continued forward until we were one door away from the lake. “Kyrene, what’s happening?” I asked. Better to be informed than enter the situation blind.

Kyrene transmitted images from her viewpoint. My blood boiled and my heart ached. Each member of the family was bound and gagged. They had been roughed up.

Jay had received the worst punishment. In addition to the beating, Thalia had him collared and naked at her feet, his hands and feet trussed like a Christmas goose. Acrid smoke drifted across the lake. Kyrene’s head panned to the right. My house! Burning. Again.

I snarled.

We readied ourselves to open the door. With a glance from Philip, the rogues faded into the darkness.

“Where are they going?” Trent demanded, voice thin and reedy. “Why did I accept this mission? My life is total shit.” Dark malice gleamed in his eyes. Fangs extended as he spat out, “This is your fault. You whore!”

Patience in shreds, I backhanded him. “Silence.”

“Another word, I’ll remove your tongue.” Philip ran his blade along Trent’s throat. Shivers racked Trent’s body, bravado drained away.

“Let’s go.” I led us through the opening. We appeared on the opposite side of the lake. The burning house a small beacon on the horizon. We took cover in the dark shadows.

Trent sniffled. Blood smudged his face. God, he made me sick.

I rounded on him. “Do not make a sound.”

Anger blazed in his eyes. His nostrils flared. I didn’t give a shit if he didn’t want to follow my orders. If we didn’t have Thalia’s ass to kick and a family to save, I’d be laying the smack down on him.

Philip dropped his pack on the ground and assembled a long range sniper rifle with enough power to blow Thalia’s head to bits. The concept of honor didn’t factor into the equation.

I cared more about my family than allowing Thalia the chance to see her death coming.

The ammo clip slid home with a soft click. Philip, prone on the ground, lined up the shot. He looked over his shoulder. “Ready, when you are.”

We’d have one chance to take her out. Otherwise, I’d be pulling the trigger instead of Phillip. I raised binoculars to my eyes.

I was so intent on the Thalia’s imminent death, the soft giggles behind me failed to register. I turned around in time to see Pearl wielding a shovel. The flat blade cracked across the top of my skull. White stars exploded. The ground rushed up to greet me before I blacked out.

~ * * * ~

A violent gush of cold water dumped on my head. “Wake up, bitch!”

I jerked. Ropes painfully pinned my arms behind my back. A haze of sand and blood obscured my sight. I blinked rapidly.

Pearl stood over me, blonde ringlets, frazzled and wild. Malicious glee darkened her blue eyes. “How’d you like the shovel to the head? Queen Thalia says I can give you another if you back talk me.”

Water dripped off my face, clearing my vision. I counted the number of boots in my line of sight. There were a lot. Philip wasn’t near me. I hoped to God he was still alive.

Trent sidled up to Pearl and planted a kiss on the side of her neck. She moaned and arched into his back.

“It was you.” Pain drummed in my head. The words loud to my own ears. “You tried to kill me on the ship.”

“Damn right I did,” Pearl said.

The events in the cargo hold hit me with blinding clarity. “Trent let you out of the containment box. And when I caught him ravaging you, it wasn’t really rape. And you let loose the spider bots.

“I found those in a cargo box,” Trent interjected proudly.

“Give yourself a gold star,” I said. How could I have been so blind? I should have questioned why Trent and Pearl’s minds were so blank. “You’ve both been working for Thalia this whole time?”

“Too bad you’re so dumb and slow, Cherry.” Pearl laughed. Trent spun her around, cupped her ass and they started making out like two horny teenagers.

Gross. I searched the crowd. Where the hell was Thalia? I expected her to be gloating over me. “Do you mind? You two are making me sick.”

Pearl lunged at me, one hand clawed at my throat. The other gripped the tufts of my short hair and twisted my head sideways. Fangs brushed my skin. Pearl growled against my neck, “Jonathan should have chosen me. I was a better lover. I didn’t turn him away from my bed like you did.” Her mouth widened, teeth pricking my skin.

“Now Pearl, it’s sacrilege to take the blood of a sire uninvited.” A chilling voice rose up behind us. The boots shifted around, clearing a path, for Thalia.

Dressed in a white leather cat suit, she strutted toward me. Super bitch. Two stiletto boot tips stopped short of my nose. “Raise her up.”

With a hard yank, I was on my feet. Sharp pokers stabbed my brain and nausea cramped my stomach. I forced my eyes open and bit back the pain.

“You look a fright.” Coldness marred her smile as she evaluated my bedraggled appearance. “Bring her along. Too bad you cut your hair, it makes dragging you to your execution a lot less fun.”

Thalia knocked my legs out from under me. I twisted, so my shoulder would take the brunt of the fall, instead of my abdomen. I grunted on impact. Blinding pain stabbed into my collar bone.

Pearl and Trent snickered. Pearl gave me a small finger wave. I vowed to rip Pearl’s finger off and make her eat it by way of her nose.

Thalia’s goons erupted in laughter. I must have spoken out loud. Rage colored Pearl’s cheek a hot red. She hocked and spat in my face.

“Enough now, Pearl. I’ll let you have her head as trophy.” Thalia pulled the rope. “Someone fetch me my sword.” Thalia waltzed ahead as if she were walking a dog.

I lurched forward, dragging behind her. Rock abraded my exposed skin. Panic pumped through my body. Death was imminent if I didn’t find a way out of the situation.

The rogues. There must be some of them out there.

“No one is coming to rescue you. I have Ian’s strays. Including the fine one with the scar. I might keep him as a pet.” Thalia picked up speed, hastening my arrival to the chopping block.

Think. Rock transitioned to sand
. Kyrene
, my mind screamed.
The baby. Oh, God. Save the baby.

I writhed on the ground, shifting sides so I could see the water. Air aggravated my raw exposed muscles, the skin worn away like ground meat.

A gentle ripple of lake water followed alongside several yards from the shore.

Too quickly, we reached the others. I knew the family was close by the muffled gasps and sobs. Emotions shattered my inner mental shield and flooded my mind. Despair. Sadness. Fear.

Jay’s anger came through loud and clear. His cuts and bruises had healed. Blood matted down his hair and dirt crusted his bare skin.

“I’m okay,” I lied to them. I was in a pile of deep shit. If I didn’t save myself, and soon, my whole family and the colonists would be doomed. Thalia would either kill or enslave them.

I angled my face to the ground and whispered, “Cuff, wake up.” Warmth spread across my wrist. Relief choked me. This could work. It had too. “Burn through the restraint. Without anyone seeing it.”

Heat bit into my arm and hand, the pain intense. Skin burned off, leaving tender exposed flesh. I clamped my mouth shut and moaned as quietly as I could. The pressure pinning my arms eased. One hand was almost free. “I need your help when the time comes.”

Thalia straddled me from behind and pulled me onto my knees. “Shall I make you watch while I execute your family?” Her men selected Lemmy out of the crowd. “This one is old and weak. How about him?”

“No. Me first.” I gritted my teeth, hoping she would agree. “I’m responsible. Kill me as an example and take them into your fold.”

“And why should I?” Thalia walked in front of me, hands on hips, the sword tip scraping the ground. The same weapon that murdered Jonathan. I tore my gaze away and blinked back tears. A fine leader I turned out to be.

“I did it. I arranged to have your mother, the true queen, killed.” I spoke loud enough for everyone to hear, then lowered my voice to a bare whisper. “We both know the truth. You killed your mother.”

Thalia, snarled in warning. “Do not speak such things.”

“I’m willing to die for my family. Honor the old ways. My family has wealth and power. I will freely give it to you.” Jonathan had once told me he was extremely rich. Dirty, rotten filthy stinking rich – with both money and information stashed in accounts worldwide. Without my cooperation, Thalia would never locate the funds, let alone be able to access them. She could steal the family bond, but she couldn’t forcefully extract bank account information from my brain.

Greedy desire flashed across her face. “Very well. They live. You die. Right now.”

The sword arced in the air.

My left arm shot up, cuff intercepting the blade. Metal clanged against metal. An electrified blue force field bubbled over me. The shield molded over my body, coating me like amour. Only my head and hands were uncovered.

Thalia cried out, charged then swung again. The impact repelled Thalia’s follow-up strike.

I rolled out of the way, untangling the rest of the rope as I went. The sword crashed into the shield. The metal acted as a conduit. Blue lightning surged into Thalia’s body. She collapsed, twitching on the ground.

Within seconds, her limbs flailed. Damn.

Wasting no time, I crashed into the nearest group of goons, scattering them like bowling pins. I cut Phillip’s restraints with a shot of power from my fingertip. The captured rogues were next.

“Free the others.” I moved to down the line, zapping away. I reached Jay and freed him.

“Damn Cherry. Did you know the cuff could do that?”

“No.” I yelled out to the family, “Fight! This is our home. No one is taking it away!”

With an angry roar, former strippers turned into warriors, clawing, punching and biting the opposing force, fighting alongside the rogues. If only Ian could be here to see it. I turned in time to see Pearl and Trent in the distance, running away. Those cowards would—