He slowly lowered Abby onto the bed then, with careful hands, placed the chains from the bedposts around her wrists. I noticed how gentle and caring he was, as if he knew she’d react if he handled her roughly.
“Get him to cover her face,” Waleron said.
I nodded. What we were doing was to save her life—if we could. Abby was dangerous right now. Starving and needing blood so badly that she’d kill anyone to get it. Luckily for us, she was also weak and confused.
“Cover her face, Simian.”
Simian grabbed the pillow, pulled off the pillowcase, and tossed the pillow aside. He went to lower it over Abby’s head when she rebelled, flinging against the chains, her screams piercing. Simian backed away, his eyes wide and filled with—fear. Fuck. My Ink didn’t have that emotion. What the fuck?
“Yes, it’s fear,” Waleron confirmed, “but it’s for her safety. Simian has been with you these past months and has grown close to her.”
“But that’s—”
“Nothing is always as it seems, Damien. You know that as well as I. You’ve been vulnerable—Simian has felt that. He can rise from sleep enough to know what is going on around him. Call him to you,” Waleron said.
It made me nervous about the connection he held with Abby. “Come to me, Simian. Rest. Sleep. Be one with me.” I raised my hand, palm upright, and felt the stirring of heat in my skin as Simian moved toward me obediently.
He almost made it, his form changing to the white light and shimmering for several seconds, as if uncertain. But when Abby thrashed against the chains and gave a high-pitched scream, Simian pulled back from the light and went into form again.
“Fuck.” Now what?
Simian leapt to Abby and she calmed.
Waleron raised his brows. “We either kill her or your Ink keeps her controlled. She needs to be taken back to the Talde house.”
ROARKE’S HEAD JERKED UP and he leapt to his feet. “We need to move. Now.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me to my feet.
“Roarke. What is—?”
“Black licorice. Vampires are near.”
Oh, God. I knew how deadly they were and, despite Roarke being a Grit, if there were too many of them, they’d easily defeat us.
We jogged across the park, heading for the street. He pulled me out into traffic, ignoring the honking horns. “My car is around the corner. Run.” His hand tight in mine, we ran down the street to the next block and down an alley. “Shit, I can scent her. Jasmine. She’s close.” He yanked open the passenger door of a black SUV. “Get in.”
I had one leg in the car when my body was flung to the side and into the air. Roarke’s shout came at the same time as my scream. I landed on my hip on the pavement, my breath knocked out of me.
“Rayne, run. Get the fuck out of here. I’ll hold them off,” Roarke shouted. His loud growl echoed as what looked like five vampires moved in on him. One leapt and his razor-sharp nails raked down Roarke’s face, leaving a trail of blood.
Oh, God, Roarke. I scrambled to my feet, then hesitated as the vampires surrounded him. I heard them hissing and Roarke’s bellow as he tried to fight them off.
How could I leave him to die? But I couldn’t fight five vampires. Someone had to help him.
“Damn it, Rayne.” I saw him leap on a vampire and snap his neck. “Run.” Blood sprayed from his mouth as he yelled at me.
“Hold him still,” a female’s voice echoed in the alley. I backed away, my eyes now on the woman walking toward the fight. “Grab the girl.”
Three vampires left Roarke. He went wild, eyes blazing as he pulled a blade from his boot then slashed it across the neck of one of the vampire’s holding him down. The body went limp and collapsed to the ground.
“Roarke,” I screamed in warning as a vampire jumped from a garage rooftop and landed on top of him.
I had no choice. I had to run.
I ran.
Ragged breath came up behind me as hands clamped down on my shoulders and yanked me backward. I jerked my elbow back and hit something hard, hearing a sharp crack, but the hands remained locked on me.
“Serafina, rise to me,” I cried out.
“What the—?”
“Serafina, rise now,” I raised my voice.
Footsteps ran toward me. “She’s calling to her familiar. Her Ink. Stop her,” the female shouted.
I screamed Serafina’s name again, the burning expanded in my shoulder as she awakened.
“Kill it,” the female voice shouted. “Her right shoulder.”
How did she know where my Ink was? “Serafina! Rise. Now.” I struggled against the vampire who had his arms locked around my chest as he dragged me toward the woman I now knew was called Jasmine.
“No,” Roarke bellowed as he shoved a vampire off him as he stabbed his knife into the chest of another and ran for me.
White strands of what looked like string, shot through the air from the woman’s fingertips and wrapped around Roarke’s body like a spider’s web. He tried to shove them off, but every time he moved, the thin strands tightened.
“Fuck,” he shouted.
He was paralyzed. Roarke fell to the ground, blood seeping from his wounds to soak into the fibers of the webs.
“Roarke. No, Roarke.” I fought against the steel hands holding me prisoner, but it was useless. “Let him go.”
“He should have listened to me,” the woman said as she came toward me. “I thought his little reminders were enough.” She stopped in front of me then grabbed my shoulder.