Kissed by Ice (10 page)

The first vamp peeled off the ceiling and dropped to the floor. The scent of death and decay stung my nose. I knew I wasn't really smelling it. To an ordinary human, a vamp smelled no different than anyone else, but my Hunter senses allowed me to smell the monster beneath the thin veneer of normal.

The vamp hissed at us, flashing long, yellowed fangs.

"Its eyes are red." Haakon sounded stunned.

"A human is in control of the nest." Normally a vampire nest was controlled by the strongest vamp, but once in a while a human used otherworldly means to gain power over a nest. In those cases, the entire nest's eyes turned red. I had no idea why.

"Shit."

I braced myself as the vampire rushed us, but it was Haakon who took it out. One shot from his UV gun, and the beam drilled a smoking hole in the vamp's brain. The thing dropped in its tracks like something out of a zombie movie. There was a howl from above and three more vamps dropped to the floor, followed by a fourth.

Another shot from Haakon's gun drilled through the breast of one of the vamps, taking out the heart. It burst into dust. And then the rest of them were on us.

One of the vamps flew at me, long hair whirling about her face. I knew it was a female only because she was half-naked from the waist up. Not out of sexiness, but because; her clothes had practically rotted off her. She was old. Really old. Definitely not a soul vamp, but still controlled by a human.

She slashed at me with long, ragged fingernails. I punched her in the jaw with my left hand. Honestly, it barely grazed her, but the fire singed her skin black from jaw to cheekbone. She screeched in pain and anger, leaping back. I gathered the Fire in my hand and hurled it through the air like a baseball. She dodged the flame, sneering at me as it splatted against the rock wall and sizzled out.

She came at me again, but this time her eyes were on my left hand as she weaved slightly to make a more difficult target. Clever minx. Maybe someone was at home in there after all. She was so busy watching my left hand, she forgot about my right. I slashed out with the knife, the sharp blade parting the skin along the side of her throat nearly to the bone. Black blood spilled over what remained of her clothing, her screech this time more of a gurgle. She stared at me in shock. Her hesitation was all I needed. I threw another fireball straight at her chest. She exploded in a cloud of dust.

I didn't have time to celebrate as another two vamps were on me. I had no idea what was happening with Haakon, and I didn't have time to check. I was too busy fending off my own attackers.

One came in high while the second went low, trying to take out my legs and get me on the floor. I knew if that happened I was probably dead, so I did a duck, dodge, weave thing and managed to stay out of the vamps' reach. The second one got a little too close, and I swiped at him with my blade, cutting a long furrow down his arm. He snatched back his arm with a hiss.

"That's what you get for messing with a Hunter."

He wasn't amused. He snarled and came at me again at the same time the other vamp made another play for my leg. I kicked him in the face and followed up with a fireball at vamp number two. The fire ball missed. My foot didn't.

Vamp Number One flew backward, blood spurting from his nose while Vamp Number Two rushed me again and got a blade across his chest for his trouble.

I tried to throw another fireball, but the thing sort of fizzled. Was I running out of energy? Could Fire do that? I had no idea. I'd never tried throwing multiple fireballs before. In fact, the only time I'd thrown a fireball before was by accident.

Vamp Number One was back, fangs bared. He grabbed my left arm, ignoring the serious damage the Fire was doing to his hand, and flung me across the room and into Number Two's arms. A sinewy arm locked around my throat and squeezed. I struggled to draw in air but I was out of luck. Time to stop playing.

Grabbing his arm with my left hand, I waited for the fire to burn him. Only it didn't. Apparently I was completely out of juice. Shit. So, I stabbed him in the thigh with my blade. I must have hit the femoral artery because blood sprayed everywhere. The vamp howled, his arm loosening enough for me to draw in a breath.

I reached down for the Fire again, but what came out was something completely different, something I'd never seen before. A surge of something icy and blue spilled from my metaphorical center out through every pore, mixing with whatever was left of the Fire. For a split second, I was blind, deaf, dumb. There was nothing but me and the swirling, frigid blue.

My vision cleared, and I realized the entire dome was filled with swirling clouds of white. I winced as it touched my skin, leaving a small red mark. Steam. What the hell?

Shrieks reached my ears as the vamps were engulfed in clouds of steam. I couldn't see what was happening, but clearly it was causing them tremendous pain. I stepped back, touching the stones of the wall behind me. They were slick and strangely cold despite the heat of the steam.

I listened carefully to the retreating footsteps of the vampires. They were escaping through the tunnel. Clearly the steam was causing them enough pain they were willing to risk sunlight to get away from it. I'd never heard of steam being used as a weapon against vampires. Perhaps it should be explored further. I made a mental note to mention it to Tessalah.

The steam began to clear, sinking toward the floor. The air turned chilly. How odd. Then I heard something. Haakon. He was shouting, but I couldn't make out the word. And then it came to me.

"Run!"

# # #

I stared at him dumbly for a moment before realizing the vamps weren't the only ones headed for the tunnel. Haakon was moving like the hounds of hell were on his heels. What on earth? I glanced around, trying to figure out what was going on. And then I saw it.

As the steam sank to the floor, it cooled and turned liquid, spreading pools of water across the floor. Up from the earth bubbled tiny springs which grew bigger by the moment. The walls were dripping with water. No, make that streaming with it. Water gushed around the fitted stones and through the narrow cracks. There was already a couple of inches of water on the floor, and even as I watched, it climbed higher. One of the burbles suddenly burst into a geyser, followed by another and another. Plumes of water burst through the floor, shooting to the ceiling. I was already drenched to the skin, as wet as I'd been when I climbed out of the ocean. The water was to my ankles now and climbing fast.

"Move it," Haakon shouted. His hair had turned dark with wet, plastered to his head.

"What the hell?"

"No fucking clue, but unless you want to drown, you better move your sweet ass."

I moved, ducking through the tunnel, I sort of crab-walked as fast as I could. By the time I was halfway through, Haakon close behind me, the tunnel was already half-filled with water. The vamps were nowhere in sight. I was starting to worry we wouldn't make it out in time.

I saw daylight ahead. We were close. By now the water was up to my chin, and panic was making my heart pound. I'd have probably been sweating if I wasn't nearly submerged. My movements were awkward against the slippery mud and rocks. A chunk of wet earth fell out of the side of the tunnel and plopped into the rising water. The tunnel was collapsing. I crawled faster.

I was inches from the exit when a sudden gush of water swept through the tunnel, filling it to the top. I barely had time to hold my breath before I was completely underwater. Gathering every ounce of will I had left, I forced down the rising panic and rushed forward, bursting up and out through the trapdoor opening. I drew in deep lungsful of air, gasping and sputtering. I hauled myself out of the tunnel as quickly as I could, knowing Haakon was behind me, still underwater.

I heaved myself onto dry ground and lay gasping for breath next to the little pool which had formed inside the shed. Outside the sun was climbing in the sky, the light taking on a faint greenish tinge as it filtered through the lush leaves. Where had the vampires gone? Had they stepped outside and immolated? They must have. I didn't see them anywhere.

The water surged, and Haakon popped to the surface. He, too, hauled himself out of the water and sat, legs still dangling in the pool, gasping for breath.

"What happened?" I asked again.

He shook his head, drops of water spraying around him. "One minute we were fighting the damn vamps, next there was steam everywhere. It was burning them, so they ran. And then… water."

"Maybe we triggered a booby trap?" I suggested lamely. I knew better. I'd caused the steam. And the water. I just didn't want Haakon knowing about it quite yet.

He frowned. "Maybe. Where'd they go?"

"Outside, I'm guessing. They should have burned, but I don't see any dust."

He staggered to his feet and out the door. "No. No remains. They didn't dust. They were pretty old vamps. My guess is there was enough cover they made it into the denser forest before they burned."

"Damn." I hauled myself slowly to my feet and joined him outside. "That is not what I wanted to hear."

"Not to worry. I can track them." My face must have reflected my misgiving. He shot me a scowl. "You doubt me?"

"Um, well, not
doubt
exactly…"

He grunted, turning his back on me to scan the trees around the shed. He carefully walked the perimeter of the small clearing, searching for tracks or something.

"Where's Kabita?" She hadn't been with him when we joined up, and she must be worrying by now.

"I didn't see her in town. She's probably still back at the rendezvous point."

And freaking the hell out, no doubt. "I think I'd better get her. We're going to need her if we're going to tromp through the jungle after those things."

He shrugged, clearly still focused on his self-appointed task. I shook my head. Men.

# # #

Finding my way back to town was marginally easier than finding the shed had been. I found Kabita lounging at a tiny round table outside the cafe/bar, sipping a drink and catching some rays. One silky black brow rose at my approach, but she said nothing. Just took another sip from her white mug and let out a long sigh.

"They really have excellent coffee here." She looked completely at home, but I noticed her eyes never stopped scanning the street. Watching. Waiting. She may have seemed relaxed. She was anything but.

"Uh, yeah, sure," I said, wishing I had the time to sit down and enjoy a cup. I was running on fumes. "We found the vamp. Sort of."

She glanced at me over the rim of her mug. "Sort of?"

"Well, turns out there was a nest." I gave her a quick rundown of what had happened, up to and including the flooded tunnel and the nest escaping into the jungle.

She let out another long sigh when I'd finished. "Why me?"

"Excuse me?"

"Never mind." She took a long last swallow of coffee, threw a few bills down on the table—I had no idea how she'd kept them dry—and strode down the street in the direction I'd come from like an avenging goddess. "Let's go dust these assholes."

I raised both eyebrows at that. Kabita never swore. Well, almost never. It had to be pretty serious if she was pulling out the potty mouth.

"Haakon is trying to pick up their trail." I was pretty sure she could hear the doubt in my voice. Wasn't like I was hiding it. Haakon may be a Sunwalker and a Viking—well, former Viking—but he wasn't a Hunter.

"Good." She picked up the pace with me trotting along behind her. What was with people and this fast walking crap lately?

I took the lead, showing her the way through the jungle to the clearing where Haakon waited. Except when we got there, there was no one else in sight. Just the empty shed with water still burbling out the open door.

"Where's Haakon?"

I gave an irritated growl. "I told him to wait here for us. Jackass probably decided to go all manly and follow the vamps on his own. Idiot." I ignored the fact I'd virtually done the same thing myself. I strode around the edge of the clearing, looking for the spot where Haakon had entered the jungle. Sure enough, he'd practically left a giant, flashing neon sign for us to follow. Apparently Vikings had never learned the fine art of blending in. I shushed the inner voice that told me he'd deliberately made the way obvious so we could follow. "This way."

Haakon had left a wide swath through the jungle. Broken branches and vines, bruised leaves, and trampled underbrush clearly marked the way. I really hoped he'd done it on purpose. Otherwise he was just about the klutziest person I'd ever met.

A giant spider web hung suspended between two large palm trees, its occupant glaring at me. I really am not fond of spiders, so I skirted it as quickly as I could. A low-hanging vine slapped me in the face, its lush green leaves glossy in the dappled sunlight. I batted it away. All around was a profusion of wild color from pink, yellow, and peach hibiscus to the purples and reds of wild orchids. A bird called somewhere in the distance, and I could have sworn I heard the chatter of monkeys.

Kabita and I must have gone about two miles before we caught up with Haakon. The sun was high overhead, and breathing the jungle air was like inhaling soup, heavy and thick and way too hot. My body was screaming for a bottle of cold water.

He was crouched behind a clump of bushes. He waved us over, placing his forefinger on his lips. So now he wanted quiet? We scurried over and crouched beside him.

"What the hell?" I hissed. "I told you to wait for me."

"And I found the direction of our quarry. I knew you'd be able to follow."

"Uh, yeah. You left a freaking highway out there. A blind man could have followed."

He gave me an exasperated look. "Not me. The vampires. They were more worried about getting caught in the sun than being subtle."

"No shit."

"Why are we here?" Kabita interrupted our spat.

"Take a look." Haakon nodded in the general direction of the bushes.

After exchanging a glance, Kabita and I craned our necks to see around the shrubbery. We were at the edge of the jungle. Below us sprawled a small town built along the hillside, staggered so nearly every house had a magnificent view of the blue waters of the bay below. Beyond the bay, the ocean sparkled in the midday sun. Someone nearby was barbecuing. The scent of charcoal smoke and roasting meat made my mouth water and my stomach grumble. I hadn't eaten in a while.