Magick Rising (25 page)

full dark just descending, Paul should be emerging about now, and she

wanted to see him before he saw her.

Had
to see him first.

Just before reaching the top of the slope, she paused, snapped the

flashlight into the attachment on the crossbow, then loaded an arrow. That

done, she handed Rurik a stake. “Can you use this if you have to?” she

asked. There had been a time when she would have said no—a time that felt

a lot longer ago than it was.

“If I have to.” He took the stake and stared at it for a moment then

tightened his fist around it. “Let me go first.”

“We’ll go together.” Hayley wasn’t about to argue. Stopping Paul was

all that mattered. She pushed herself to the top of the hill, listening for the

crack of a branch, a flicker in the growing night, any clue.

Rurik moved away from her. “I’m going to check by the tunnel.”

He headed toward the darkening tunnel entrance. The final rays of

twilight lingered on the western horizon. With luck, Paul wouldn’t have

abandoned his safe darkness yet.

She proceeded with caution. No way was she making the same mistake

twice. This time she’d be ready.

As she swept the area, her flashlight beam illuminated nothing more

than barren trees and bushes, large fallen boulders, and the overgrown ruts

that had once held railroad rails. Had Paul already left, intent on finding his

next meal?

A sound of a scuffed pebble caught her attention, and she swung her

flashlight around to see Rurik facing Paul by the tunnel entrance. Good

Lord, what was Rurik doing? Trying to talk to Paul again? Was he insane?

It wasn’t working. Paul seized Rurik’s neck, pinning him against the

hillside. With a gasp, Hayley launched an arrow toward Paul’s back. The

arrow bounced off the rock beside him.

But it was enough to distract Paul. He released Rurik and leaped at her.

She managed to reload and release another arrow. This one hit his chest, but

not through the heart. Damn, why wasn’t this working? Though Paul roared

in pain, he continued toward her.

“Damn and blast.” She tossed the crossbow to the ground, losing her

light as well, and grabbed a stake. Would she have enough time to strike

before he ripped her throat open?

Rurik tackled Paul before he could reach her, and the two of them slid

down the hill, vanishing into the darkness. Hayley rushed to the edge, trying

to pinpoint the sound of the thrashing in the distance. “Rurik?” Was he all

right? Why hadn’t he just staked Paul? “Rurik?”

What if Paul killed Rurik? What if she was forced to stake Rurik? Her

chest constricted. Could she do it again? Stake someone she knew? She’d

have to.

The thrashing quit, and her heart filled her throat. “Rurik?” She

clenched the stake, searching within the growing darkness that wrapped

around the wilderness.

Only silence answered her—so thick and deep she heard only the

uneven sound of her breathing.

Oh, damn. Moisture blurred her vision. Rurik had to be dead. Why had

she let him come along?

She turned away, blinking rapidly.

“Look out!”

She caught a brief glimpse of Paul in mid-leap from behind her before

Rurik grabbed her, wrapping his arms around her as he jumped down the

slope. How had they gotten back to the top without her hearing it?

Rurik held her tight, trying to protect her, as they tumbled down the

steep rocky slope, but even so, stray branches caught at her hair, and sharp

rocks dug into her.

They reached the bottom with a bone-jarring thud. Unable to move for

a moment, Hayley remained on top of Rurik. The feel of his solid body

beneath hers was far too enjoyable. “Are you all right?” she whispered,

raising her head to look at him.

“I’m fine.” A wan smile lifted his seductive lips. “Are you?”

“I’m good.” Her wounds were bleeding again, but she could deal with

that.

As a distant sound reached her, she pushed to her feet, grabbing one of

the stakes that miraculously remained tucked in her jeans. Her already fast

pulse increased even more. “It’s Paul.”

Rurik cocked his head as if listening. “He’s not near us. I think he’s

heading for the city.”

“How can you know that?”

“Remember, I’ve been studying vampires. I know how they think.”

She hesitated, recalling his earlier question to her. “And who did you

lose?”

A flash of pain crossed his face. “Everyone.”

Resisting the urge to hug him, Hayley turned toward the car. “Come on.

I need to get to town before Paul.”

She parked her car by the hotel then stepped out. Where to start

looking? Near the forest edge?

Rurik reached for her hand. “Let’s walk,” he said, tugging her toward

Manitou Spring’s main street. “We can make targets of ourselves.”

Hayley resisted for only a moment. He’d risked his life for hers. She

should be able to trust him by now.

“Good idea. Head for the west side by the trees.” The night held a

distinct autumn chill, but she ignored it. Paul was proving far more difficult

to stop than she’d expected.

Of course, if Rurik hadn’t interrupted her at the cemetery, she’d have

staked him then. That way worked much better than having to find and kill a

vampire who’d fed.

Small shops lined the main street, hawking everything from standard

tourist fare to a store of nothing but Irish items, most of them closing for

the day. Good, that would mean less people around for Paul to attack.

Two women left a Mexican restaurant on the corner and glanced their

way, their gazes going immediately to Rurik. Who could blame them? He

looked good.

“Why are you helping me?” The thought burst from her.

“I know vampires.”

“How?” Everyone she met denied the existence of vampires or was a

victim of one.

He hesitated. “It’s a long story.”

“We have time.” At least until Paul made an appearance. Though far

more interested in the man beside her, Hayley kept her gaze focused on the

dark corners of buildings they passed, the trees in the distance. Paul had to

find them and not someone else.

“Relax.”

She glanced back to find Rurik smiling at her.

“Paul will be here. He is
moroii
now and won’t be thinking clearly.”

“Mor . . . what?”

“
Moroii
, a dead vampire.”

“Of course he’s dead. We both saw him climb out of his grave.” Hayley

shook her head. “Are you implying there are
live
vampires?”

Rurik said nothing, and Hayley released a bitter laugh.

“The only good vampire is a destroyed vampire,” she added. “They’re

murderers—all of them.”

“Are you so sure of that?” Though Rurik’s voice was quiet, a hint of

danger lingered beneath his words.

“Very sure.” Obviously, he hadn’t seen as many victims as she had.

A sudden shiver swept over her, and she paused, listening. Normal

night sounds surrounded her. Music from the tavern, a crowd of friends

laughing, cars cruising the street. All normal. Yet she couldn’t shake the

uneasy feeling that disaster was about to strike. Well, of course it was. A

vampire was on the loose.

She continued along the main street, her steps brisk, her senses alert.

Paul was near. She’d bet money on it.

Her chest tightened with unspoken terror, and she froze. Was it Paul?

Or . . .

What if it was
him
? The Destroyer?

She eased a stake from her jeans, measuring each step forward. She’d

never reached a town before the Destroyer had left. Until this one.

A shrill scream ripped through the night. Hayley raced toward it, her

heart in her throat. A small fenced park ringed by trees backed up to the

mountain slope, and she dashed inside.

A man held a woman in his arms, his face buried in her neck.

“Let her go.” Hayley rushed forward, the stake held high.

The dim lighting prevented her from seeing the man clearly as he

dropped the woman to the ground and bolted. Anger lent her speed, but he

was faster, vanishing into the shrubbery before she came close to reaching

him.

“Damn.” She resisted the urge to follow him. The woman mattered

more now.

Turning, she spotted Rurik kneeling beside the woman, his hand

against her neck. He must have been right behind her.

“She’s still alive,” he said. “Get some help.”

Using her cell phone, she quickly called 911. “They’ll be right here.”

She knelt beside Rurik. The woman’s neck had been ripped open, and

blood oozed from beneath the hand Rurik had clamped against her throat.

She recognized the work of a new vampire. “It wasn’t him. It wasn’t the

Destroyer.”

Rurik tensed. “Who?”

“The Destroyer. He’s the one who murdered my sister.” Hayley stood

and turned away. “I know his style by now.”

“The Destroyer murdered your sister?”

“And turned her into an undead creature.” Hayley whirled back. “Is this

woman going to die?”

“I don’t know. She’s losing a lot of blood.”

The cold lump in Hayley’s stomach spread its chill through her veins.

She didn’t want to have to kill another vampire. Each battle reminded her of

her own fragile mortality. “Promise me something, Rurik.”

He looked up, his expression concerned. “What?”

“If this hunt doesn’t go well and I’m likely to become a vampire

myself . . .”

“What?”

“Destroy me first.”

“I WON’T promise that.”

Rurik sounded more offended than surprised. Hayley knelt down

before him again. He had to understand how important this was to her.

“Please, Rurik. That’s my worst fear—thinking I might end up as one of

them.”

His dark gaze bored into her. “You don’t understand.”

She understood all right. Death was better than becoming a

blood-crazed undead creature. “Promise me.” She gripped Rurik’s shoulder

with fresh urgency. “
Promise
me.”

He hesitated for several long moments then nodded. “Okay.”

“Thank you.” The relief eased her tension. She could endure anything

but that.

Hearing sirens, she rose to her feet. Help had finally arrived. “I’ll go

meet them.”

She and Rurik didn’t reach the hotel until nearly two hours later.

Though she’d told the police a man had attacked the woman at least a dozen

times, she knew they didn’t believe her. They insisted it had to be an animal.

Hadn’t they learned their lesson about that?

And Rurik was no help. He’d only arrived in time to see Hayley running

after someone . . . something and to confirm the woman was down when

they got there.

Rurik brushed her cheek when she paused by the hotel’s front steps.

“Will you be all right?”

“Once I get cleaned up, I’ll be fine.” She eased away from him. His

tender touch created too many sensations. Things she didn’t want to feel.

Didn’t dare feel.

“Promise me you won’t hunt Paul any more tonight.” The concern in

Rurik’s voice wrapped around her, warming her more than she liked.

“Not tonight.” The darkness gave Paul the advantage. “I’ll head out in

daylight and see if I can pick up his trail. He might bed down in the cave

again.”

Rurik grimaced. “I want to come with you, but I’m busy tomorrow.”

“That’s okay.” She found his presence too much of a distraction as it

was. “Good night, Rurik.”

He caught her hand, refusing to let her put any more distance between

them. Flames smoldered in his eyes. “Would you like me to come up?”

“No.” The word burst from her in alarm. He was too damned sexy. She

might trust him now, but she sure didn’t trust herself around him. Especially

in a room with a bed.

A slow smile crossed his seductive lips. “Very well.” He closed the

distance in a heartbeat and stole a lingering kiss. “Sleep well.”

“I . . . good night.” Hayley tugged her hand free and ran inside, her

heart thudding against her ribs. Sleep well? Not if he appeared in her

dreams. He already invaded her thoughts far too often. Far better she didn’t

think of him at all.

“Hayley.”

She jerked her head around to see Dane approaching, another man

beside him. Dane’s warm smile only added to her inner turmoil. She liked

him, yet his presence seemed dull after time spent with Rurik.

“Hi, Dane.” She kept her tone brisk, wanting to escape to her room

more than indulge in conversation.

Dane frowned. “Is that dirt on your clothes? Are you all right?”

Dirt and some blood from Paul’s latest victim, but he didn’t need to

know that. “I’m fine. Just fell down. I’m going to clean up.”

Dane nodded then motioned toward the man next to him. “I won’t

keep you then. I just wanted you to meet a friend of mine, Barnaby Collier.

He’s visiting for a few days.”

Barnaby took Hayley’s extended hand and raised it to his lips in an

oddly old-fashioned gesture. “The pleasure is mine.”