Fire Storm (21 page)

“Sleep helped,” Claris said in answer to Ari’s unspoken question. “I’m still numb. I just never expected him to die this way. He was a scientist.”

“He should never have been involved. I wish I had—”

“No, don’t blame yourself.” Claris clasped her hand. “Brando wanted to help. And Nathan was so caught up in the excitement he wasn’t thinking straight. After you left, he kept asking what we thought was going on.” Claris sighed. “He wanted to be part of it, and he thought the warlock was a friend.”

That was the trouble with civilians getting involved. They didn’t understand the treachery that bad guys were capable of.

“But going after him was such a crazy thing for Brando to do.” Claris’s voice was barely above a whisper.

Ryan walked up in time to hear her last words. “Crazy, maybe, but still heroic. He reacted like a true hero.”

Ari squeezed Claris’s hand. “It’s true. He died trying to save someone’s life.”

“He did, didn’t he?” Tears welled again and spilled down Claris’s face.

“And it’s a good thing that Mangi was there, or you would have been hurt too,” Ryan reminded her.

“Yeah, I know.” Claris wiped her face and glanced at the beaded curtain that led to the shop. “That’s why I ordered him the super-size veggie pizza he’s devouring up front.”

A new arrival walked up to express her sympathy, and Ari turned away. She wanted to check on Mangi and thank him herself. The little guy had come through in a big way and prevented this from becoming a worse tragedy than it was.

“Oh!” Sharp pain spiked through her chest, and Ari stumbled, doubling over, hugging herself. The room spun. Flashing images of impenetrable darkness, burning silver chains, a musty, damp smell.

The terrible, all consuming hunger.

“No, oh no,” she moaned. She sagged, held up only by someone gripping her arms. Then just as suddenly everything returned to normal. The pain receded; the room slid back into place. Ryan held her by one arm; Claris had the other.

“What happened? What’s wrong?” Claris demanded, her voice just short of hysteria.

“Ari?” Ryan had obviously been repeating her name. “Is there someplace she can lie down?”

“Upstairs. What’s wrong with her?” Claris and Ryan steered her toward the stairs. The crowd moved back to make way. Someone offered a glass of water.

“I’m all right.” Ari protested feebly, but she allowed them to take her upstairs. She needed a moment to process what had happened. She stopped at the top of the second floor landing. “It’s Andreas.” She took a ragged breath. “The bastards are torturing him. It had to be bad for him to lose control of his shields like that. I saw him bound with chains, felt his pain. His hunger.” She shivered.

“Oh, Ari, you have to do something.” Tears fed by raw emotion flowed down Claris’s face. “We can’t…” She choked and tried again. “We can’t lose them both.”

Ari swallowed hard, her own tears threatening. The idea of losing Andreas…of him being in pain… “Why are they doing this? What do they want?” She stopped the rush of pointless questions. “Claris, please stop crying. You’re going to make yourself sick. I’ll leave for Germany right after the service, if you think you’ll be all right.”

“No.” Claris clutched her arm, her nails digging in. “Go now. I’ll be OK. Andreas needs you.”

Ari’s frown deepened, her heart torn in half. She heard the sincerity in her friend’s voice, but knew the hardest days of grief were still ahead, days when Ari should be at her side. She glanced at Ryan.

“Go. We’ll take care of everything here,” he said. “Mangi will stay until you get back.”

She returned her gaze to Claris, her voice soft. “But I wanted to be at the service to tell Brando I love him. And to say good-bye.”

Claris hugged Ari’s neck, her eyes misting again. “He already knows,” she whispered in her ear. “And if he was here, he’d tell you to go.”

* * *

Twelve hours after they left Riverdale, Ari and Lilith sat in a rental car on a winding mountain road in Germany looking down on the O-Seven’s stronghold. Both women held binoculars in their hands and were scanning the heavy forest that grew within twenty feet of the castle walls. That last open area was kept completely empty, insuring any visitors would be spotted before they reached the massive front gate.

“I’ve never seen woods so dense and dark green,” Lilith commented. “Is that why they call it the Black Forest?”

Ari almost jumped at the sound of Lilith’s voice. She’d been lost in thought, lost in the dream she’d had on the plane. Even now she couldn’t let it go. Andreas had held her in his arms, and she’d seen shadowy pictures of the inside of a stone structure. Much like this one. Maybe it
was
this one. Had their magics somehow found their way to each other once again?

She closed her eyes for an instant, trying to bring back those images. She wanted to see more. What was happening to him now? Was he thinking about her, wondering why she hadn’t come for him?

She forced herself to focus on her task and answer Lilith. “Sounds logical.” She moved her binoculars a little further to the left. “I’ve counted at least a dozen areas of movement. How about you?”

“Yeah, the werebears are everywhere. They aren’t taking any chances on someone wandering onto the castle grounds. Oh my God, did you see those wereraptors at the gate? They’re as nasty looking as I thought they’d be.” She dropped the glasses to her lap. “The castle is indestructible, and I don’t see a single weak spot in their defenses. “

Ari sighed. “I don’t either, but I hoped you’d see something I’d missed.” She leaned back and deposited her binoculars on the back seat. “Let’s go to the hospital and talk with Sophie. When I called the nurses’ desk, they said she could have visitors. I want to warn her about the warlock.” She put the car in gear and drove down the mountain. In her last view of the O-Seven’s stronghold through the rearview mirror, the fortress seemed to be looking back and mocking her.

* * *

Sophie’s face lit up in a broad grin. “Ari! I’m so glad you came back. Greta told me what happened with Rebekah and that you’d gone home.” The priestess was sitting up in bed, an IV still connected to her arm. Her head and one shoulder were wrapped in bandages. “I know I look a mess, but it’s not so bad. The drugs keep me happy, and the doctors say I’ll make a good recovery.”

“That’s great news. You look a whole lot better than when they loaded you into the ambulance.” Ari glanced at Lilith standing in the doorway and gestured for her to join them. “I brought my friend Lilith, and we’re hoping you’re up to a little shop talk.”

“Oh, yeah. I’m ready for anything that’s not magazines or TV. Pull up a chair. I may giggle now and then from the drugs.” She grinned. “But I can still think. Pretty much. What’s on your mind?”

Ari pulled a chair close to the bed. Lilith returned to the doorway, where she could still hear but also see into the corridor. She took her guard duties so seriously.

“Before we talk about anything else, I need to warn you about the Kirsch brothers. At least one of them is working with the O-Seven.” Ari explained what had happened in Riverdale, including the role of the warlock.

Sophie’s sunny face clouded over. “Good Goddess! I’m so sorry about your friend.” She sat up straight. “I remember now. The last fight with the vampires has been so hazy for me, but I think I tried to warn you. I saw a warlock in the forest. He was a Kirsch, but too far away to identify which one. You realize they’re twins, don’t you?”

“I’m not surprised, although they aren’t quite identical. Up close, I can see differences.”

“Mostly personality. I dated Gerhard for a while, ages ago, before he developed such a huge ego. At the time I could tell them apart, but they’ve both changed over time.” Sophie grimaced and shook her head. “I didn’t realize either of them was capable of this. Why would they betray us?”

“He said he wanted to be on the winning side.”

Sophie’s jaw tightened, revealing the stern face of the warrior witch she was. “The slime. Well, he is wrong. We will never let the vampires defeat us. I can hardly wait to get out of here and show him.” She glared at the IV in her arm. “Nurse! Nurse!” she shouted.

“Shh, calm down, Sophie. This might work a little better than shouting.” Ari reached across the bed and pushed the nurses’ station button. “Why do you need the nurse? Are you in pain?”

“I want this IV off.” Sophie held out her arm with the dangling tube.

The nurse sailed in through the open door. “It’s not going to happen. Not yet. The IV stays right where it is until the doctor says otherwise. And keep your voice down. You’ll disturb the other patients.”

“Call the doctor then,” Sophie ordered.

The nurse put her hands on her sturdy hips. “I know it’s the drugs talking, but if you don’t lower your voice, I’ll have to ask your guests to leave.”

“We can come back at a better time.” Ari stepped out of the nurse’s way.

“What’s it to be?” The woman continued to give Sophie that no-nonsense look.

“OK, but I hope he comes soon.”

“The doctor will be here in good time but don’t expect that IV to be out today. We’ll see about tomorrow.” The nurse approached the bed, fluffed the pillows, and pushed the button to lower the head. “If you lie down, your friends can stay a few minutes, but you need to rest.”

“Bossy, isn’t she?” Sophie rolled her eyes as soon as the nurse left. “But they’ve been good to me. I’ll talk with Greta about Warin and Gerhard. Rebekah isn’t taking my calls.” She sighed in exasperation. “She knows I don’t like her turning you out. I can’t countermand her orders until I’m back on my feet, but I’ll keep my promises. We may not be much help. Our losses were heavy this time.” Her lashes closed, then popped open with an effort. “There might be another way. Find a troll named Grogan. There’s an old story…might be true…about a tunnel…” Sophistrina was asleep.

Ari put a finger to her lips, and they tiptoed out of the room.

As she and Lilith exited the hospital’s main entrance a few minutes later, she tried to temper her excitement. After all, Sophie hadn’t been sure there was a tunnel. Still, it was hard not to be encouraged. This was the first inkling of good news they’d had. “She had to mean an underground access to the castle. This could be our way in. And we could take a fighting force with us.”

Lilith looked at her sideways. “Sufficient forces to fight a castle filled with vampires, raptors and werebears?”

“Well, maybe not,” Ari said sheepishly. “But a way in, which was more than we had.”

“That’s true.”

Ari opened the car door but paused when her phone rang. Unknown caller. Hmm, 5:30 p.m. She calculated quickly. Doubtful it was anyone from home. The services for Brando started thirty minutes ago. The realization hit like a body blow, and her response to the caller was subdued. “Yes.”

“Ms. Calin? It’s Ramon.” The Italian werefox leader sounded agitated.

“Is something wrong?”

“I’ve lost contact with the foxes inside the stronghold.”

She closed her eyes in disbelief. “Both of them?”

“Yes, if they were discovered, well…they’re dead.”

“How’d it happen? I thought they were in almost constant contact with their partners on the outside. Isn’t that how it works?

“Sort of. It’s more of an awareness until they deliberately choose to communicate. But it was suddenly cut off. Those on the outside attempted to establish a link, but it was like they’d been snuffed out.”

“Let’s not jump to conclusions. Would their partners have sensed intense fear or pain?”

Ramon hesitated. “Maybe. But what else besides death would cause a sudden telepathic failure?”

She thought about the blackout the warlock had created in Riverdale. He would know she’d come after him. What if he’d used something like it to shield the castle as a precaution against infiltration? This might have nothing to do with the foxes, except it interfered with their telepathy. She didn’t want to raise false hopes, but it was plausible.

She told Ramon what had happened in Riverdale.

He heaved an anxious sigh. “I hope that’s the answer. The scouts I sent aren’t only my best, they’re my friends.”

“Ask the partners to keep monitoring. And let me know if they reestablish contact. I’ll be in touch with you as soon as I have a new plan.”

“How long?”

“I don’t know. Give me a few days.”

“The woods are full of werebears and trolls. My scouts are having a tough time dodging them.” He clearly didn’t want to agree to further delay. “If you can’t come up with something in forty-eight hours, I’m saving the people I can by pulling them out.”

Dammit! She shook her head. She couldn’t blame him for making his own people a priority, but she didn’t have to like it. And she was tired of being understanding. She disconnected, climbed in the car and slammed the door. As soon as Lilith entered the passenger door, she vented. “Forty-eight hours. I hate freaking deadlines, and I hate not being in control. Why can’t just one thing work out right?” She frowned at Lilith. “I need more time, but Andreas may be running out of time.”

“Why? You mean because they've had him so long?”

“Well, that too, but I was thinking more about why they kept him alive in the first place. What if his only use to them was to keep Gabriel and the Riverdale vamps under control?”

The corners of Lilith’s mouth sagged. “Since their plan failed, they wouldn’t have any use for him now.”

“Yeah. That’s what I thought.” A flash of suffocating fear made Ari reach out for that small spark that was Andreas’s life. It was still there.

* * *

How do you find a troll? Ari had no idea where to start. The forest surrounding the O-Seven’s fortress was filled with them, but since they were on the vampires’ payroll, she wasn’t likely to find any help there.

“Do you think this troll will talk to us?” Lilith asked.

“We’ll worry about that once we find him.” Ari sat with her hands on the steering wheel, thinking about the next step. They were still in the hospital parking garage, and she hadn’t turned on the engine. She dropped her hands. “I don’t know where to drive. We can’t just wander aimlessly through the countryside.”