Awakening

Nausea rose in Sophie’s stomach. She focused so much on keeping her dinner down that it took her a minute to notice the pressure in her head that came from the darkness.

Whatever touched her mind was still and measured the Guardian’s intentions. It contained malice and a deep, unquenchable thirst.

She drew in a sharp gasp when she sensed three more.

Tristan, Aidan, and Jackson shifted to stand in front of them.

“How many?” Demetri asked without turning around.

Sophie started when he repeated the question sharply. “Four.” Four ungodly entities pressed into her mind. Shared space inside her.

“That’s the most I’ve known to guard.” Ruth shifted on her feet. Sophie could tell the number made her uneasy.

Demetri took a step forward.

Sophie felt the guards slink back and tried to pinpoint their locations in the barn. She shoved harder with her mind.

Unexpectedly, she saw herself. The image came so clear and sharp it made her queasy. She saw Tristan standing halfway in front of her with a fierce expression on his face.

Darkness invaded her every sense. She tried to swallow against the dryness in her throat. She was so thirsty. Anger and bitterness rose in her so swiftly she barely had time to contain it.

She’d pushed too hard. Now she was the one invading minds.

She looked through the eyes of the guards.

Sophie swayed on her feet. The sensation of looking into four minds at once disoriented her.

Lilli released Sophie’s arm and placed a hand to her back to keep her steady. “You okay?”

Sophie nodded. Lilli’s warmth and question jerked her back into her own mind. A hint of darkness still lurked, though. It made her wish for a hot shower to wash the unclean away.

“Go away,” one of the guards hissed.

Morgan shivered. The voice rasped again.

Aidan shot fire up his arms.

“We’re not going anywhere. We want the girl,” Ruth answered.

Jackson nodded.

“She’s dead.” The guard rustled the straw on the ground to the left and then rapidly moved to the right. He kept out of the light.

Alarm jolted through Sophie at his words. She reached out and searched for any sign that Katie was alive. A soft sigh of relief escaped when she sensed Katie.

Ruth glanced back at Sophie.

“She’s still alive.” The others relaxed at her words.

The hiss grew. “You can’t be certain.”

Demetri swung his machete in a warning arc.

The other three guards bulldozed their consciousnesses on hers. They shoveled in with black tentacles. She flinched against the onslaught.

A low growl started in Tristan’s throat.

The pressure subsided in her head.

Her fear didn’t.

Out of the darkness, seven yellow eyes stared. Beckoned them to come closer.

“The sun’s almost set.” Jackson jerked a thumb over his shoulder toward the doorway. “We should get this over with.” He stood tall and proud and looked ready for whatever lurked nearby.

“Light it up, Aidan.” Demetri pointed his weapon at the dark.

A small smile curved Aidan’s lips. Fiery light danced off his fingertips and swirled into four more balls that hung in front of him. He let them shoot into the darkness.

The darkness receded and so did the creatures.

“We don’t have much time,” Jackson said. The last of the sun’s rays settled behind the farmhouse.

“When the sun fully sets, the queen and her followers will be here for the sacrifice,” Sophie said, relaying information from the guards’ minds.

“Can you remember where you saw Katie?” Ruth stepped closer to the dark.

“She was in the back, in a corner. Handcuffed to a beam.” Sophie surprised herself when her voice didn’t shake. She certainly was on the inside.

The guards continued to hiss. It echoed off the walls and inside their minds. Then, it cut off abruptly.

In the silence, the black tentacles snuck into Sophie’s mind again. “He’s going for her. He’s going to turn her. It wasn’t in the plan, but we’ve pissed off the queen. She’s awake.” The words flew out of her mouth before she could think about what she said.

Ruth and Demetri plunged into the gloom.

Aidan hurriedly waved an arm, and two of the lights followed them.

“This is worse than being lost in the woods.” Lilli reached for Sophie’s hand. “I hate vampires.”

“Me, too.” Morgan shimmered and solidified. She cursed. “Why do I keep doing that?”

“You’re afraid, princess. It’s a normal emotion for us peasants.”

“Aidan.” Morgan narrowed her eyes at the back of his head. He followed Demetri.

Tristan and Jackson motioned them to move. They headed farther into the barn.

Sophie reached out her other hand for Morgan to take. No one wanted to face this alone, and at least for this small time they should count on each other.

Morgan sneered, her face cold, and set off with the guys.

Sophie ignored the fact that yes, it did hurt her feelings, and pulled Lilli along. She didn’t want to be caught out there when the queen arrived.

Even though she knew Tristan and the others were close and weren’t going to leave them, she sped up. Everywhere she looked she saw scattered human remains. They hung across the windows, the sickles, and the old, rusted tractor sitting in the corner. Above she could see the hay loft and briefly wondered what it held.

“Got her!” Ruth yelled.

Sophie dragged Lilli along until they reached the others. She slid to a halt next to Tristan and Jackson.

The lanterns Aidan had lit above them threw the old room into stark relief.

The end of the barn had an old square table with four metal fold-out chairs in one corner. A small twin bed, covered in a moth-eaten quilt, lounged opposite.

Sophie’s gaze darted back to the middle where the lead guard held Katie against his body. The other three stood in a half circle behind them.

In an attempt to keep from gagging, Sophie pressed a hand to her mouth.

“Jesus!” Morgan averted her face and breathed in hard through her mouth, and even harder out through her nose.

Lilli whimpered and increased her grip on Sophie’s hand.

Sophie forced herself not to look away. She owed it to Katie to keep that small measure of contact.

Katie’s eyes widened and her nostrils flared in fear when the vampire bent her head to the side and exposed the white of her neck.

“I’m wishing for that glitter now.” Aidan glanced sidelong at Ruth.

These vamps were definitely not attractive. Their bones hung gnarled and scabbed. Large patches of hair were missing from their heads. What was left hung in matted, greasy strands.

It took a moment for Sophie to realize that the one holding Katie had a single yellow eye. A hollow hole stood out where the mate used to be. Blackened burn scars covered his face.

Each of the other guards looked as if they’d suffered from the same disease. She guessed they had.

Sophie shook her head slowly. It struck new fear in her to comprehend the fact that vampires were real. Courage drained from her body. “The sun is gone,” the leader said. His body stooped under the heavy weight of the large hump that boiled on his back.

The vampire’s fangs lengthened.

Drops of venom formed on them.

Time was running out. She reached out for anything to stop the leader. Deep in his mind, she found his name from when he’d been human. “Augustus. Please, leave her alone.”

His yellow eye didn’t even blink. Instead, it pierced into her. He ran his tongue over Katie’s neck, a trail of green saliva wetting her skin.

Katie sobbed and struggled against the iron-clad grip. She didn’t look much better than Augustus, with her scratches and dirt-covered skin.

Augustus sneered at her effort. “She really is spirited.”

The reality of their situation hit them all at once. Vampires were real. And they wanted them dead.

If she’d had the courage to glare, Sophie would have. As it was, she had no clue how they were going to get out of this alive.

Jackson watched the three guards on either side, assessing them. He shared a calculated look with Tristan.

“The others are awake.” Augustus tilted his head back. His eyes glazed over.

Sophie felt the reverence he held for the queen. A heaviness grew in the air. She didn’t have time to warn the others before several more vampires surrounded them.

“Well, well. What do we have here?”

The voice that came out of the darkness lured them, soft and beautiful. The face that emerged matched that description. Long, blonde hair framed an angelic face and large blue eyes.

The eyes stared directly at Demetri and froze the air between them.

“Demetri, it’s been a long time.” The blue eyes flickered over the group. Her lithe body moved gracefully. She came to a stop a few feet in front of them. Her skin seemed to hum and glow beneath her barely-there black dress.

Augustus couldn’t take his gaze off the queen. His every feature melted into pitiful obsession.

Behind her came the rest of her coven. Six males, all dressed in suits and ties, stopped behind her. They wore expressions of boredom, as if this was something they dealt with every day.

“Let the girl go, Cairo.” Demetri’s grip tightened on his machete. His muscles jumped.

“You know I can’t do that.” Cairo smiled. The beauty of it clashed with her dead eyes. “The girl is ours. We will use her in a ritual for our lady.”

Sophie shivered at the mention of the lady. That horrible laughter filled her mind. The visions threatened to pull her in.

Cairo’s blue-eyed gaze settled on her, and she cocked her head to the side. Her golden hair spilled over glowing shoulders. “You can sense us.”

Tristan growled again.

Cairo barely spared him a glance and again focused on Sophie.

Sophie resisted the urge to run and hide. Cairo held a lethal curiosity for them. One that could destroy them.

“We want the girl,” Demetri repeated.

The guys tensed when Cairo looked over them again. “Who did you bring me, Demetri?” she hissed. “Would the dark priestess be happy if I killed them?”

Aidan moved to strike, but Demetri shook his head harshly. His jaw set, and he stared across the small space at the queen.

Ruth risked a sympathetic glance in his direction. In it Sophie read love and sadness.

What was Demetri’s story?

A shrill scream slashed through the silence.

Katie had suddenly found her will to live. The echoes of her shriek pounded against Sophie with so much anguish it almost brought her to her knees. Instead, she rushed forward.

Augustus placed his fangs on the side of Katie’s neck.

Sophie snapped back and forced herself to remain motionless.

Cairo’s lips curved in amusement. She watched from the sidelines with her coven. Everyone went still. The bored expressions on the male vampires’ faces turned hungry with excitement.

Sophie watched their pupils expand to take in any sliver of movement in the barn.

Jackson struck first. He hit the group of beautiful vampires with an invisible force that knocked them back and off their feet.

Cairo bared her fangs. Her eyes narrowed and her lips thinned.

Demetri and Ruth jumped on the others. Their bodies moved in sync as they attacked.

“Crap!” Sophie looked from one group to the other. What good would being a psychic do now?

Aidan stood in between them and the advancing vampires. They stalked them. Wanted to taste them.

In her mind, Katie’s terror spiked. Sophie faced Augustus. Her own terror mixed with Katie’s as she watched Augustus and his ugly partners.

Augustus’ one eye widened.

Sophie looked back to see what he was so afraid of. Tristan’s body became lean and long and swathed in golden fur. Dark brown hair sprouted from his face and head and formed a mane. When he finished, he was five hundred pounds of mature lion.

Sophie thought he was beautiful.

Tristan tilted his head back and roared. The rafters shook.

Sophie flinched at the sound.

“You’re not human.” Augustus took a few steps back. He dragged Katie across the floor.

His cruelty was too much to bear.

Something brushed past Sophie and left the air shimmering. Lilli leaned against one of the beams, her face ashen. It was easy to forget that Lilli, having no visions, wasn’t exposed to this type of violence.

Still invisible, Morgan grabbed Augustus by the greasy strands of hair and jerked back hard.

He hissed and swung out. His hold on Katie severed, and she fell to her knees.

Augustus’ fist connected with Morgan’s shoulder, making her solidify. His eye gleamed, and he wrapped his hands around her throat.

Katie crawled toward the barn wall.

“Morgan!” What was she supposed to do?

Tristan swept by her. His large body prowled toward Augustus. In an instant, he pounced. Razor-sharp teeth tore into the vampire’s blackened flesh. He growled from the back of his throat and pinned Augustus to the ground.

Katie knelt with her shoulders hunched. Morgan crept to her.

Sophie and Lilli rushed to join Morgan. Behind them chaos reigned, but all Sophie saw was Katie’s unfocused eyes. Breaths rattled her chest, and her clothes hung in tatters. Sophie frowned at the number of scratches and bruises that marred her skin.

“Lilli,” Morgan pleaded. Worry for Katie lined her face.

Lilli placed a hand on Katie’s shoulder, making her flinch. Her eyes rolled back, and she slumped forward.

“Is she dead?” Morgan whispered.

Lilli shook her head. “No, she passed out. Too much was happening for her to process.”

“Look out!” Morgan screamed.