Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology) (39 page)

A couple of them nodded, but Adam just
shook his head. “No. What?”

“
It means everyone plays by
my rules,” Sarah said. “Got it? I’m the one who married a complete
stranger so we could all go home.”

Steven nodded. In the darkness, his
pale skin and huge blue eyes gave him the appearance of a teenager.
No one would’ve guessed he was at least her age. “Got it, boss. You
went through some tough times, just like we all did.”

“
Yeah. We were chased by a
dragon south of here,” Beth said. “Can you believe that? A
real-live dragon! Of course I guess it could have also been a
dinosaur that hasn’t gone extinct yet.”

Steven smiled. “Yeah…and I got it all
on tape!” He put his camera away in a giant bag and swung it over
his shoulder.

“
I wonder if that tops the
shape-shifters that turned from wolves into people,” Sarah
said.

“
Whoa!” Steven’s voice
raised another octave. “We need an entire expedition with at least
fifty researchers.”

“
We better go. I’ve already
made enough enemies in this place,” said Sarah as she scanned her
surroundings.

“
Tell me more about the men
trying to kill you,” Beth requested.

“
Define kill. If you mean
kill immediately, on sight, that would be King William’s men. If
you’re talking kill after a speedy and slanted trial, that’d be the
Immortals, some group called the Cardashian Court. If you’re
talking about execution for being a runaway bride, that would be
King Victor.”

“
Wow. Throw in the mafia, a
couple of Terminators, and a motorcycle gang, and you’ve got the
makings of a real epic film here. You think you have enough killing
machines after you?” Steven asked.

“
Let’s just hope the
shape-shifters don’t get mad. We lied to them too,” Frank said.
“The last thing we need are a bunch of pissed-off werewolves after
us. I guess you might say pissing people off is our
specialty.”

“
Well, that’s no news to me
when it comes to you,” Adam said, “but it’s not Sarah’s normal
M.O.”

Frank sighed. “Humph. In any case,
there are several angry mobs hot on our trail. You might think
twice before traveling with us.”

“
But you have the key,”
Adam said.

“
I guess you’re stuck with
us then,” said Frank. “I hate to interrupt this meaningful,
pleasant conversation,” he continued, taking a deep breath and
pointing behind him “but people with torches and pitchforks are
never a good sign, right?”

Sarah followed his line of vision to
the crowd gathering in the distance. Village people—and not the
kind who liked to sing about the YMCA—were closing in from all
sides, marching closer. Her gaze fell on the two men riding on
white horses, leading the congregation. The ruby ring on the finger
of one of them shimmered in the light as he lifted his arm to
signal. “And neither are Immortals,” she muttered. “I can see their
rings.”

Beth squinted. “How can you possibly
see that far?”

Sarah shrugged. “I guess being
Immortal comes with a good vision plan. How are you guys at
fencing?”

“
I’m no ninja,” Adam
retorted.

Sarah backed up a few steps and
glanced over her shoulder; they were at the edge of a steep cliff
with a roaring river below. “From the looks of it, maybe we should
be more worried about our diving skills. Everyone can swim,
right?”

People hurried in their direction, the
torches in their hands flickering in the breeze.

What the
heck? Why the sudden 360?
Listening closer,
she could make out some of the shouts.

“
Kill the
witch!”

“
Evil be
damned!”

“
Death to the
intruders!”

“
Save our
world!”

“
Make them beg! Make them
bleed! Kill them for their evil deeds!” shouted one particularly
creative mercenary who should have been equipped with a set of
pompoms.

She
groaned, irritated.
What makes them think
we’re witches? Did the Immortals tell them that?
She took a glance over the cliff and shuddered.
“Ready to do some nighttime cliff-diving, team? I know I’m not, but
it might be our only chance.”

“
Well,” Frank said, “we’d
better get to it while the adrenaline’s pumping. Let’s do
this.”

She looked at the others. “You guys up
for it?”

Shaking her head, Beth grabbed Sarah’s
arm, her eyes filled with unspoken terror. “Sarah, I…I can’t! I
can’t do it.”

“
Now’s not the time to wuss
out on me, Beth.” Sarah gave her a shove forward. “This is your
life we’re talking about.”

“
They’re getting closer!”
Adam said.

“
JUMP!” Sarah
yelled.

“
I can’t!” Beth
screamed.

“
Beth, you have
to!”

“
No, I mean I really…I
can’t because…because—”

“
Why not? C’mon! You can do
it!”

“
I can’t because I’m
pregnant!” she said, shaking her head. It wasn’t exactly how she
wanted to break the news to everybody.

“
Oh my gosh! Jump then, for
the sake of your child. If you don’t, they will kill you. They’ll
kill all of us, because we’re not leaving you behind.”

Beth’s eyes wavered as she glanced
over her shoulder. “Looks like I don’t have a choice.” Taking a
last breath and wiping the tears from her eyes, she
leapt.

“
GERONIMO!” Steven yelled
as he jumped into the air, realizing the mob would have no idea who
he was paying homage to with his yell.

Sarah shot a glance over her shoulder
at her Immortal pursuers. If she wanted to survive in that mad
world, she had to know what to look out for in the future. They
weren’t wearing the colors or bearing the crests of King William or
King Victor. Their pale skin shimmered in the bright light of the
moon. She could discern their eye color, hazel and green, even from
such a distance, as well as the ruby-red glint of their Immortal
jewelry.

“
You’re going to the
Cardashian Court!” the blond one yelled.

“
Like hell I am,” Sarah
mumbled. Daggers flew inches from her face. Before she could move
aside, one pierced her right shoulder blade. Another one flew into
her chest, inches from where the arrow had pierced her flesh
before. She spun around and jumped just as another one plunged deep
into her back.

Chapter 14

Jumping off a sixty-foot cliff did
seem ridiculous, but Sarah knew they had no other choice. Tumbling,
cold water gushed into her mouth and soaked her clothes, pulling
her under the surface. She pinched her nose, fighting the sensation
to draw in her breath, her lungs on fire. With deliberate, long
pushes of her legs and arms, she broke the surface and spewed out
water, her whole body screaming for oxygen. She took giant gulps of
air as she gazed up. In the distance, the dark shapes of the
Immortals rose against the almost black sky; they were still
mounted on their fancy white horses, looking down on her from their
place atop the high cliffs.

She smiled and waved her hand. “So
long, suckers!” Sarah’s vision sharpened quickly. From this
distance, she thought she could even see deep lines forming around
the blond guy’s mouth, his eyes two glimmering flames of
anger.

Suddenly,
his voice rolled across her mind. “My name is Ethano. You’ve been
summoned by the
Cardashian Court
to be tried for the crime of claiming Immortal
status without permission. This is forbidden by King Taggert, and
now you must be judged. Know that I too, can easily jump over this
cliff. I recommend that you stop fleeing, because you will be
caught and tried eventually, one way or another.”

“
I’m sorry I broke your
laws!” shouted Sarah. “Truly, it was an accident. I didn’t know
anything about the Immortals or this world of yours!” Gasping for
breath, she swam toward shore until her feet touched the ground
beneath her. Sarah waded through the waist-high current that pulled
at her hips and legs with a violent undertow. Pebbles and sand
shifted under her feet. She climbed out, shivering as a cold breeze
ran over her body. Piercing pain radiated across her chest and
back. She bit her lip and held back a moan. Finding her friends was
more important than focusing on a little discomfort—or a lot of
pain. She took another deep breath and forged ahead. “Frank!” she
called through the moonlight, stopping midstride to scan the area.
Shadows stretched and shifted in the trees. Squinting, she peered
closer until she could make out figures in the distance, hopefully
her friends, leaning against black boulders, catching their breath.
She raced over, calling out their names.

Frank grabbed her arms. “Are you okay,
babe?”

“
We have to…to keep going,”
Sarah said, breathing heavily. “They’re…they’re coming over the
cliff. They’re…right behind us!”

“
Sit down for a minute,
Sarah,” Beth ordered. “You’re hurt, and you need to catch your
breath.”

“
No. There’s no
time.”

“
But I don’t see anybody,”
Beth said, looking back.

Sarah glanced up. The two Immortals
had disappeared into the darkness. Maybe Ethano didn’t want to get
wet after all, but she was sure he’d come a different
way.

“
Sit down! You’re drenched
and shaking,” Beth ordered, guiding her to a nearby
tree.

Sarah shook her head. “No! We don’t
have time for this nonsense. They could reach us any
minute.”

“
Oh my Gosh! Are
you…bleeding?” Beth held her hands up to her face, smelling the
dark stains covering her pale skin. Her blue eyes shone big and
bright in the dim moonlight. “Sarah, you could be hurt bad. It’s
too dark to tell for sure, but you’re in no condition to go
anywhere.”

“
I’m sure your condition is
more delicate than mine,” Sarah whispered in her ear.

“
I’m fine. Now drop it,”
Beth hissed. “I’d rather not talk about it right now.”

Sarah regarded her intently. She was
sure Beth was hiding something, because most pregnant women she
knew were happy to tell the world about it.

“
Dude, is that blood?”
Steven said, inching closer.

Sarah looked down and noticed she’d
been hit three times.

Adam shook his head. “We’ve got to
find a doctor. You’re bleeding like a stuck pig.”

“
A pig, huh?”

“
Sorry.”

“
It’s just a scratch
anyway. Don’t worry.” Sarah gripped the dagger tightly and moaned
as she pulled it out.

“
Stop that!” Beth grabbed
her hand and pulled Sarah to the ground, elevating her feet with a
rock. “If you elevate your legs above your chest, it will slow your
blood loss.”

“
We don’t have time for you
to play nurse,” Sarah said.

“
Well, I’m all up for
playing doctor if you want,” Frank joked.

Sarah rolled her eyes at him and
offered Beth a grateful look. In spite of the seriousness of the
situation, she decided to let Beth have her way. Helping everyone
else was what her friend did. She just couldn’t help
herself.

Beth rolled her eyes. “I know you’re
not used to taking orders, especially now that you’re a queen and
all.” She smiled. “But this time, Your Highness, you need to listen
to one of your humble servants who knows a thing or two more than
you do about anatomy.”

“
She’s right,” Adam said.
“And quit trying to pull out those daggers. We don’t even have a
medic here.”

“
No use to call 911. Sarah
will be over it before they get here,” Frank said, placing his
hands over Sarah’s wound to apply pressure.

She
glared up at Frank. “I’d really like to know why I’m the one
getting shot at with arrows and having daggers thrown at me. Last
time I checked, putting this stupid ring on and marrying that king
was
your
dumb
idea. What did Jules call it? A
fool’s
plan?”

He lifted his hands and peeked at the
wound. “I’m sorry, Sarah. Really, I had no idea we’d get in so
deep.”

“
That’s the problem,” Beth
hissed, pushing his hands away. “The Frank I know never thinks,
just acts on his impulses. Maybe he’ll learn one day that
consequences are part of life.”

“
Look, can we just stop all
this bickering and chitchat and do something?” Adam said in a
frustrated tone. “Beth, Sarah’s gonna bleed out or get an infection
if we don’t figure something out, and I’m pretty sure there’s not a
Walgreen’s around here for bandages and peroxide.”

Beth touched her forehead, then took
her pulse. “It’s rapid. Her skin’s cold, pale, and clammy. She’s
going into shock! We have to control the bleeding and keep her
warm. Better yet, we need to get her through the portal and to the
closest ER!”

“
She’ll never live that
long!” Adam pushed Frank out of the way and frantically applied
more pressure, making Sarah cringe in pain. “Look out, Frank. Let
me take over here. Maybe I can do something other than make jokes
and wait for some magic cure.”