The Blood Order (Fanghunters Book Two) (26 page)

D
om watched on open-mouthed as Rufus first began speaking to the air before he rose to his knees and started crawling toward the mansion, which was swarming with armed mercs.

Dom threw his radio up to his mouth. "Rufus is still alive," he said into it in a frantic voice.

"Not for much longer if Blacklake see him,"
Trixie retorted.

"We better go help him!" Dom said without drawing breath, his eyes not leaving Rufus.

Trixie huffed. "
Don't you boys ever get tired of waiting for me to save you?
"

"One day we'll return the favor."

"You better."

From a tree across the yard, Dom watched her descend like a sleek panther. Her feet hit ground; she had a quick glance around. She spotted Dom in the thicket of bushes opposite. He gave her a thumb up. She cocked her own thumb toward the mansion. Dom nodded.
Good luck, Trix.

He remained where he was; he knew Trixie could handle herself. If she needed assistance, he'd join her ASAP. He focused in on Rufus again. He'd made it closer to the back entrance of the house. He stopped crawling for a moment, raised his head and began waving his fists on the air as if he was delirious. Dom shook his head. This wasn't looking good. Trixie was out in the open, and Rufus was drawing attention to himself.

Get down, Rufus, for Chrissakes!

In the next instant, the inevitable happened. Masked thugs came rushing out of the back entrance, guns at the ready. One of them stopped dead and pointed at Rufus. A couple of others joined him. They circled Rufus like he was a rabid animal. They poked their guns at him in a cautious manner; it was like they were scared of him.
I mean, yeah, they'd already left the dude for dead, now he was alive, so go figure that crap out.

One of the mercs decided to take the initiative. He raised his gun, aiming it right at Rufus' back. Totally oblivious, Rufus continued with his crazy arm waving, his bloodied face a portrait of rage. Dom gasped. He threw out a hand. "Rufus!" he shouted.

The thug was about to pull the trigger, when from nowhere, a black-clad blur flipped across the grass his way. Dom watched on with bugling eyes, his heart stopping dead.

Trixie hurtled toward him from the back like a juggernaut. In the blink of an eye, she was on him. Both her feet slammed down on his back, just as he managed to pull the trigger. He was thrown forward, taking his aim with him. A short burst of bullets showered the mansion wall, missing Rufus by a mile. The other two thugs were too slow to react. Trixie was already on her feet, her dart gun in hand. She fired a quick tranq into the meaty thigh of the nearest thug before he could raise his gun. She then set off on another round of gymnastic flips, just as the third got his finger on the trigger. The thug was caught out by just how fast she was in full flow. She somersaulted away, his spray of bullets following her, but not quite catching up. She sent him in a small semi-circle, before she doubled back, planted her hands on his shoulders and used him as leverage to flip over his head. She landed on her feet behind him and grabbed her dart gun from her belt. She shoved the muzzle into his upper back and let a dart go. The merc had time to yelp before she landed a kick in the small of his back, sending him falling forward. The original thug was by then getting to his feet. Trixie reloaded and sent a dart into his thick arm before he could get up. He went back down in an instant. It all went quiet.

Dom breathed a sigh of relief.
Man, she's good.

He'd never seen a human being move so fast. And he wagered neither had the thugs. She could literally dodge bullets she was
that
good. Watching her was like watching a movie. Unreal.

He looked around in a stupefied daze, realizing he was hiding in the bushes while Trixie was facing fully auto guns point blank. He suddenly felt like a bit of a douche.

I better go help her
.

He took tentative steps out of the bushes. On his way, something scraped on his arm. "Ow!" he groaned, looking down to see a small series of scratches on his forearm. He sucked at them as he turned his attention back to the mansion. Trixie was already rushing to Rufus' aid. Dom cleared himself of bush tangles and scuttled across the grass, past the menacing helicopters. He stared at them in disbelief as he went by. "And you call this a pact? Christ!"

A sound then made him start. His head snapped around. More mercs were spilling out of the back entrance, Trixie had her back to them. His eyes bulged. "Trixie!" he shouted and began running toward the mansion. "Behind you!"

Trixie whirled around, just as a merc threw a boot into her face. She caught it full on and went sprawling. A surge of rage burst up into Dom's chest. He upped his sprint, grabbed his dart gun, and began firing it off in the direction of the mercs, jabbing it on the air with each shot. He caught one in the neck, sending him down. The others spun in Dom's direction, just as his feet touched the porch. Guns whirled Dom's way; he stopped sharp. He gulped, his eyes widening.
Christ, what have I done!

With a fearful shriek, he threw up his dart gun and fired off an instinctive shot. He got one in the shoulder before he had a chance to pop his gun. Dom caught a glimpse of the muzzle of the other's gun; it was like a dark tunnel to Hell.

Dom's heart lurched.

Without thinking, he threw his dart gun in the face of the merc like it was a brick. It hit the thug square on the head with a clunk. The merc put his hand straight up there, taking his finger off the trigger of his gun. Dom took a second to suck in a lung of air before he steamed into the merc with a roar. He tackled him like a quarterback, juggernauting into his chest. The impact sent the thug reeling. He fell back and slammed into the concrete, Dom falling down on top of him with an
ug!

Dom took the initiative. He sat astride the thug and began raining punches on the sides of his head, hoping to knock him unconscious. The merc's meaty head swung from side to side, but his eyes still burned with anger.

"Come on, go to sleep!" Dom demanded through clenched teeth, swinging another punch around; it smacked into the side of his head. The thug was unyielding. He remained wide awake, struggling beneath Dom like a fish fresh out of the river. Dom landed another blow and the thug's head went the other way, but still he wouldn't go to sleep. Dom's knuckles throbbed.

"This is getting annoying," he declared. He turned his head to the side. Trixie was still on her back, watching on. "Pass me my gun, would'ya, doll?" Dom asked her.

Trixie huffed. She got to her feet and dusted herself down. She then went and snatched up Dom's dart gun. "Don't call me doll," she said as she handed it to him.

"Thanks, Patricia," Dom replied with a wink.

Trixie's top lip curled up.

Dom turned back, aimed, and shot the thug in the crotch. The merc's back straightened under the impact.

Dom sucked in air through his teeth. "That's gotta hurt!"

After a few more seconds of struggling, the thug's eyes rolled up and he finally went to sleep.

"Nice one, Rambo," Trixie said before she clicked a couple of smoke grenades and threw them beyond the broken doors. "Now get ready to shoot some rabbits."

Dom frowned in confusion.
Rabbits?
Once he realized what she meant, he jumped to his feet and stepped back. Trixie was already prepared, a dart gun in each hand, aimed at the back entrance. In no time, the room beyond was lost in a sea of smoke. Then, out they came, coughing and choking behind their balaclavas, staggering out of the smoke like drunken werewolves cutting through fog. Trixie waited till they were fully exposed and caught them in the height of their disorientation. She began pulling the triggers of both dart guns, pummeling them with darts as they spawned from the mist. In moments, the tranq floored them. One or two tripped over the bodies already lying on the patio like it was the set of a slapstick movie. Dom grabbed up his own gun and began shooting alongside her whenever one staggered out. It was too easy, like shooting giant paper targets. He watched them in satisfaction as they dropped under the toxins they pumped into them. After a while, they stopped coming out. Dom was disappointed.
Just as I was getting into it.

Still, they both waited with their guns at the ready regardless, just in case. While he aimed, Dom had a quick body count. He made it twelve, but there could be more.

"I think that's all of them," Trixie declared, trying her best to gaze into the smoke inside the mansion.

"You take care of Rufus," Dom suggested. "I'll wait here in case there are any more."

Trixie lowered her dart guns and went straight to Rufus' side. He'd collapsed again, coughing, his breathing wheezy. She put an arm around his neck and lifted him off the floor. She stared down at his broken, bloody body with sorrowful eyes. "Can you hear me?" she asked him.

Rufus' eyelids flicked open. His pupils zoned in on her and he gave her a brief nod.

"Where's Vincent?" Dom asked over his shoulder, his attention still focused on the doorway.

"He already told me that these Order mercs took him away," Trixie swiftly answered.

Rufus nodded as best he could, his pupils zoning in and out.

"Rufus. Rufus," Trixie repeated, giving him a small shake. Rufus zoned back in on her. "Where did they take Dad?" she asked him.

Rufus shook his head in response and closed his eyes. He then pointed a shaky finger toward the helicopters stationed on the grass.

Trixie glanced at them. "They took Dad away in one of those?"

Rufus nodded.

"What is it they want?" Dom asked.

Rufus shook his head before he collapsed in a heap.

"We gotta get him to a hospital," Dom said, turning his attention away from the mansion now that the smoke was starting to clear and no more thugs were heading their way.

"You're kidding, right?" Trixie retorted.

"No way. Look at him, he's been lit up like a tin can at a shooter alley."

Trixie shook her head. "Hospitals are the last place we need to be. Order will be all over them. We have to get him over to Sun."

"Okay, but what about these guys?"

"Don't worry, they'll still be here when we get back!"

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

E
ddie was already waiting for them at the entrance of Sun Enterprise when they arrived. Dom got them there in quick time, screeching to an abrupt halt just ahead of Eddie. Trixie jumped out of the car and rushed to the back door. Dom threw his door open.

"What the hell happened?" Eddie asked in a frantic voice as he rushed over
.

"Me and Trixie were jumped on the job," Dom answered, slamming his door shut. "We were lucky to escape."

Eddie puffed his cheeks. "Christ. Jumped by who?"

"Mercs," Trixie said as she approached them both.

"Mercs? You mean mercenaries?"

"Yeah, they're called Blacklake. The Order sicced them onto us," Dom said. "Looks like shit's got serious."

Eddie had a rueful nod. "Great. Just as I get started on the job."

"They attacked the mansion. They took Vincent."

Eddie's eyes widened. "Oh man..."

Dom gave him a grim nod. "Yeah, Rufus got shot too. You gotta help him."

Eddie looked beyond him to see Rufus sprawled across the back seats. His jaw dropped. "Oh my God!" He raced up to Trixie's side and stared down at Rufus
.
His face was beaten, he had bullet wounds in his chest. "Christ, is he still alive?"

"Barely," Trixie said.

"How many times was he shot?" Eddie asked as he continued with his stare.

"Never mind!" Dom exclaimed. "We need to get him inside to the medical unit!"

Eddie's fixation snapped. He grabbed his cell and made a call. "Hey, it's Eddie. We got a situation at the entrance. Get the med team down there ASAP!"

Eddie put his cell away and ran his hands through his hair. "Man, this is bad."

"You're damn right."