No Mercy (7 page)

Eyes bluer than mine focused on me. “What do you say about her offer?” he asked me.

Holding out my hand, Flynn handed me his drink.  He’d only finished half of it. Drinking it down like somehow it could swallow everything my father thought I should be, I said, “Why the hell not.”  And that was all that needed to be said between friends.  It wasn’t necessarily something I’d normally do.  But like that earlier girl said to him, maybe. 

At this point, I can’t keep this secret from my friend. “She told me to meet her at the house in ten.”

The surprised expression on his face couldn’t be hidden.  “Shit, are you going?” he asked.

Shaking my head, I said, “Yes, you?”

He shook his head and said, “No, she’s all yours. She didn’t ask me.” His tone was sly while he gave me that look of his that was all him.  It said with we’re bros.  And he was relinquishing this hoe.  And maybe she was a hoe, but for once it didn’t bother me much. 

Nodding, I hid my relief.  I didn’t argue with him because I really didn’t want to share.

A crack, then a scream had my attention turning.  People were moving, scattering like bugs from a can of Raid.

“Fuck,” Flynn said but didn’t move.  We were both scanning the area for the threat.  A blur of movement caught my attention.

“Vampire,” I said out loud.  In the may lay, I didn’t think any humans that were here would have heard me.

“The shifters,” Flynn announced.  They were changing and the shit had hit the fan.

More screams and I saw Sara run into the woods.  I pointed, Flynn’s eyes followed the line my finger made.  Then we moved like one unit, running all out. I couldn’t tell yet what she was running from. 

Chapter Nine
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Flynn

The suddenness of the attack had me confused for a second. “Adriana,” I said to Luke as we ran.  He nodded and I turned back to find her and her hateful sister.  Thinking about it more, I knew someone had to be on clean up.  There were humans at the party.  Humans who weren’t privy to the supernatural world.  Most likely I would need to use my mojo anyway to compel them to forget all that they saw.  I hated to leave him, but Luke could take care of himself.

When I made it back, a few were just making it to their cars looking a little bewildered.  I had no choice but to stop and say quick words to calm the situation down and send them home.  I had no doubts the only runners from the fray were humans not supernatural beings.

Bold and full of unused power, I even did a few group compulsions speeding up the process.  As it turned out, there weren’t as many humans as I thought or the rest were still down by the lake possibly hurt.  Whimpers on the deck led me to where I found the twins huddled in a corner. I forgot that I’d locked the house.  I wasn’t interested in people hooking up in my house.  If they had to pee, they could find a bush or something to relieve themselves.

Scared, the twins, now together as one in the face of danger, appeared to back away from me. “Adriana,” I said calmly.  Trusting me, she faced me.

My words may have appeared to be just that, but there was command in it. “There’s nothing to be frightened of. It’s was just a fight.  Go inside and get some sleep.  I’ll be there soon.”  She nodded her head in total compliance.  When Adelina nodded, I figured my luck was good with a two for one deal.  Unlocking the door, I sent them inside and locked the door behind them.

Moving fast, I headed back down the stone path to the cove.  Many shoe prints marred the ground where a party had been in full swing not long ago.  Just by looking, you wouldn’t know that a fight had begun here with the exception of a few bodies lying on the ground.  One by one, I check them.  Thankfully, all were only knocked out and dazed by the events.  So humans hadn’t been the target after all.  So who was? 

That was an easier answer than I wanted to admit.  Yes, it could be the shifters.  Yes, it could be Luke or I.  But really, the only thing out of place here was Sara.

I compelled the wounded leaving suggestions for the craziness of the night leaving bits of truth of the fight just taking away any thoughts of supernatural beings. With some bruises and no Luke around to heal, they needed some truth.  Sending them home, it was another relief that the fallen had only been a few human males.  Everyone or everything else was gone.

Noises rang out to my higher hearing from the forest.  Those sounds said that the fight had gone there.  On my feet again, I ran to confront whatever had attacked us.

In the clearing I found myself in was a battlefield of humanlike or animal like creatures at each others throats.  Luke was in his element fighting a demon with the lethal skill of a natural born predator.  Even thought what he fought looked human, it wasn’t because it was holding its own.

Surveying the landscape, the shifters in their preferred wolf form battled with other demons or vampires.  Currently, there was only one that looked like it was in trouble.  Like the moon wanted me to know, her wolf eyes glowed green in panic.  The demon had her by the throat.  Tamera.  She wasn’t a bad fighter either.  Somehow, it had gotten the drop on her.

Without a second more to lose, I launched to where she was no doubt gasping for her last breath.  Tackling the demon, doing my best impression of an NFL defensive lineman, I wrenched the thing from her.

It hissed over its shoulder revealing to me it was the vampire.  I’d yet to see its face full on.  All I had now was a view from behind showing dark hair and clothing. Making a mistake of my own, I took my eyes off the thing for a second to check on Tamera. It caught a hold of my arm. With the power of ten men, it whipped me over his head and into a tree.  But not before, I’d seen she was alive.

“Damn, that hurt,” I muttered, hitting the ground hard. Shaking off the birdies that circled my head, I knew getting to my feet was a priority.  I double timed it knowing in a battle that was crucial.  The blur of movement gave me only a second to move before its deadly attacked landed the tree and not me.

With a well timed placement of an elbow to the face, I stunned the fucker before ducking another fatal blow.  We traded punches and kicks, landing each other or the poor tree we circled.  I feared the tree wouldn’t survive or at best have any bark left when we were done.  Where was a stake when I needed one?  The branches that were reachable were all too thin to be of any use.  Fist and feet were the only weapons at my disposal.

An uppercut to the jaw slid home against one of those deadly fangs and I felt the puncture into my knuckle.  “Christ,” I said as if the big guy would ever save me.

Hopping back to avoid a knee to the groin, the vampire continued our dance around the tree.  It was like round the fucking mulberry bush and all that jazz or maybe ring around the fucking rosy.  My blood was pouring out the wound faster.  I could feel it.  No time to bandage my wound and stop the flow.  If I didn’t keep up this attack and defend, I would be dead anyway.

“Flynn,” Luke cried out and I could have kissed the guy.  I knew what he meant to do and caught an arm of my assailant and threw him into the middle of the fray.  That wouldn’t have worked before because he would have come back at me.  But my man was about to light up the joint.  I wasn’t sure how that would affect a vampire, but I hunkered on the other side of the tree per Luke’s warning, not wanting to be sent to hell.

When I turned away from the light show that was about to happen, I saw Sara on the ground dead ahead with something crouched over her.  Its mouth was open wide as if it were an incubus going to steal life force.  But hell, this wasn’t a lustful situation.  No, what I was seeing was either a demon eater or a soul taker.  Even though there was a fifty fifty chance Sara was a demon, there was also the other possibility.  Human.  Like Luke, I couldn’t live with myself if I let something take her soul.  Luke hadn’t yet lit up based on the darkness that still shrouded me. I turned to look around the tree and saw the inner glow beginning on his skin.  Those closest to him would be affected by now.  I still had a shot, a second or two maybe.  If I waited, Sara’s life would be over, demon or not.  There was a well placed ditch off to her side and I thanked the heavens if they were listening for my good fortune.

Channeling my inner NFL player impression that worked earlier, I barreled down on a demon that had Sara’s lifeless looking body trapped underneath it.  It turned and before I could get an impression of its face it disappeared just when Luke went super nova on all of us.  My hands that had been primed for the demon now clasped Sara before I could stop my momentum. We rolled in the ditch just as the light beamed over head, cocooning us in a pit of darkness.

Sara wasn’t moving and I was busy catching my breath and not from exertion.  I’d nearly met my maker and I wasn’t exactly dressed right for the meeting.  I found myself chuckling at my own humor or was that nervous laughter from my near miss.

A second later, my hand went to Sara’s throat and not to kill her.  I checked and she had a pulse.  Too bad, no mouth to mouth, because that kiss earlier had been a doozie.  Sitting up, I cradled her in my arms.  “Luke,” I shouted from the ditch where I had a clear view into what had been a war zone. 

His head whipped around like he was worried I hadn’t gotten away in time.  “Hell,” he said. His eyes focused on the girl in my arms.  Commanding like a chief, he said, “Get her back to the house, I’ll handle the rest here.”  I wasn’t his soldier, but we understood each other.  I had his back and wouldn’t leave if he needed me.

While he surveyed the ground, I also caught sight of the wounded.  All the shifters seemed to have survived and no demons remained.  Luke’s little clean up show was perfect for our after war party.  Feeling a bit light on my feet, I knew I was still bleeding. If I didn’t stop it soon, I would need someone to carry us both home.  I moved with as much speed as I could muster.

Relieved that I’d made it back to the house, I used my last bit of strength to carry Sara to my father’s bedroom on the lower level past the kitchen area.  With the twins upstairs, I just didn’t want to go there.  I didn’t have much strength at this very moment to do any mind scrubbing.

Once I placed her on the bed, I collapsed on her other side.  My hand was bleeding bad. I think the damn vampire hit an artery.  If I’d been human, I would probably be dead by now.  Holding my hand up and propping it against the headboard, I only hoped the elevation would stanch the bleeding.  Not knowing how much blood I lost, I found myself drifting into blackness.

Chapter Ten
-
Luke

Chris was the only shifter to turn back human and stand before me. “Thanks for that.  Although we aren’t demons, that light of yours isn’t a picnic.”

“Sorry about that,” I said.  I didn’t tell him that if he didn’t have any demon properties, that light would not affect him at all.

Continuing, he said, “It looks like we are all okay.  And because we heal better in animal form, we’re going back to the compound to rest up.  We will circle by your place in the morning after we’ve healed our wounded.”

“Yeah,” I said shaking my head in agreement.  Watching Chris shift back so easily was odd. I’d heard tales about shifters and weres but seeing it was something to behold.  The shifters had such a smooth transition that didn’t look painful.  In opposition, I wouldn’t have wished lycanthropy on anyone.  Their shift, the weres, was really painful if rumors were true.

After they trotted off, I did a sweep of the ground to make sure nothing was left.  Broken branches and a tree that had been stripped of bark were the only evidence of what went down here.  When my nose told me a lot of blood had been spilled in the direction Flynn had been, I followed the trail to investigate.  I couldn’t be sure a demon wasn’t left unaffected by my angel light. 

What I saw was a heck of a lot of blood that led to the ditch Flynn found himself in.  That meant one of two things.  He or Sara was bleeding really bad or worse, they both were. 

Just when I was about to take off to make sure my best friend and the fascinating girl were okay a leaf cracked like it had been stepped on. 

On autopilot, I summoned my gift from within me and it began to leak out of me as I turned around.  My skin held the faintest glow when two humans kneeled before me.

“Forgive us, my lord” they said in unison heads bowed on one knee.  My light tucked itself back inside my pores.

Holy hell, these two did not think I was the second coming, did they. “Who are you?” I asked.

The one on the left lifted his head. “I am Gaius, my lord.” His hair was a muddy brown color blending with the tree bark.  His face was sincere.  If I had to guess, he didn’t have trouble with the ladies.  “And this is Phebe,” he said, extending a hand out to his side.  A face too young and too innocent looked at me like I was God’s gift and that was creepy even for me.  Her hair was a mix of dark blond and light brown from what I could tell in the moonlight.  She had a sweet face that didn’t belong in these woods, holding a blade half her size. Her partner held a similar one.

Gaius spoke up, “We saw your light.  We’ve been trailing the demon and its carnage all the way here. We didn’t expect,” he paused. “No, we never expect to come into your holy presence.”