Vampire Assassin League Bundle Five - Loneliness (24 page)

Evie’s heart lodged in her throat, effectively stopping any sound. Not that she’d have made one. Despite what all the movies showed. Not everyone falling to their deaths gave a long, slowly fading, scream. She didn’t have any breath to make one and couldn’t gasp another. She was really going to die this time. And not a soul knew where or how or when.

And why did plummeting down an unknown distance feel like floating? As if arms cradled her? There couldn’t be any gorgeous Persian hunks to save her this time. She’d already had that chance. She’d blown it. It seemed to take a hell of a long time to hit. But if she didn’t have her eyes shut, she could have answered all of it, rather than just squeeze everything in her body into a tight knot in preparation for impact.

The sensation of arms disappeared. A second later, Evie landed. Her feet took the jolt but that didn’t hurt as much as landing on her left hip. That was probably going to bruise. She rubbed at it absently as she rolled to her knees. She would have gained her feet, if there wasn’t a lot of fabric in the way. Damn harem garments. Damn door that had stolen her sandal. Damn fate. Damn everything. Damn. Damn.

The exquisitely sewn
chador
ripped, but finally released its hold on her legs. She stood. Looked about. It was pre-dawn. Or twilight. There wasn’t anything to see for miles except little stunted tree-things. Clumps of grass. Coarse dirt. And then the ground beside her left leg started rattling.

Evie reacted instinctively and instantly, reaching for, and grasping the rattlesnake beneath the head and then she flung it. She didn’t wait to see how far or where it landed. She was jumping up and down and screaming. And shuddering. And if anyone had been around, she’d have been hitting them. She was smacking fists at her upper arms before wrapping them about her.

Oh! She hated snakes! She hated them! Ugly, revolting, slimy serpents from hell!
Snakes
! Ugh! She hated them! She hated—

Wait a sec.

She’d just touched a real, live snake? A rattlesnake? She’d grabbed it and thrown it somewhere far away? Her? Evelyn Warner? She stared in the direction she’d flung it. Nobody would believe this. She didn’t even believe it and she’d just done it. She’d just saved herself. From a snake.

Her breathing calmed to a manageable level. Her heart rate followed, although each beat still carried the aching sensation. She winced slightly, rubbed at her arms, and took in her new surroundings. She didn’t notice when the shaking subsided and then stilled. She was evaluating her situation. It must be morning sun peeking over the horizon. The light gradually revealed nothing but miles of the same landscape. Hills that rose and fell. Some craggy. Some probably fit the terminology of mountain. It didn’t look like desert. That wasn’t sand beneath her foot. It was rough dirt. And bits of prickly stunted bushes. Wow. If she’d envisioned a purgatory, this was definitely it. Dirty. Dry. Desolate. And complete with creepy, crawly things like snakes.

And that’s when the sunlight touched her.

Holy shit!
She’d been sunburned before, but nothing this drastic. Or this rapid. Nor had it raised bubbles this quickly. Evie cried aloud in shock and pain before wrapping the
chador
about every bit of exposed skin. And still the sun burned. And scorched. And seared.

“Hello!”

Evie turned at the voice and squinted. There was a man in the distance. He was jogging toward her. A man. A real human being. He was waving an arm and dressed in khaki colored clothing that matched the environment. He wore a large hat. And he spoke English.

“Hello!” he yelled again.

She was halfway to him with one step and right before him with the next. His expression was ludicrous. It probably matched hers. She’d never moved that quickly in her life. But the sun was rising higher, and she was starting to smell something burning. She was terrified it might be her.

“I need shade!” She grabbed his lapels.

“Are you lost?”

“He told me he was a vampire! I didn’t believe it! I’ve been bitten by a vampire! Can you help me?”

“Um. I have a truck. Yonder.”

He gestured behind him to where an SUV was parked. Evie nearly sobbed with relief. A second later she was at the vehicle, yanking open a back door, and diving inside. The floor well of the rear compartment was shady. Dim. Cool. The relief was intense. Immediately. And euphoric.

He arrived some time later. She heard him speaking while he approached.

“...better alert Air-Med. I’ve got a live one. Yeah. Sun-stroke, maybe. Solo. Ill-equipped for hiking. Real looker. Yeah. And...don’t laugh. She said something about...eh. You’re going to laugh.”

The driver door opened. Evie slid back from the slice of sunlight that spiked into her hiding spot.

“Okay. Vampire. She said something about a vampire. Yeah. I know. We’re on our way.”

The springs beside her squeaked as he settled into the seat. The door shut. And then he was probably looking over the back of his seat at her. She had to guess. She wasn’t moving.

“Uh...Miss? You okay?”

“Who are you?”

“Well. You can call me Ranger Rick. Most of the ladies do.”

Oh. Double crap. He sounded flirtatious. Evie’s face fell. The sensation of burned skin accompanied it. That was kind of scary.

“Where am I?” she asked.

“Carlsbad.”

“Carlsbad...New Jersey?”

“Uh...no. Carlsbad Caverns National Park.”

She searched her memory. Sounded familiar. But why? Oh yeah. There was a Carlsbad in New Mexico, too.

“New Mexico?” she asked.

“Yep.”

“I’m in New Mexico?” Her voice rose slightly. He was going to think she was crazy. He wouldn’t be far off. She was thinking the same thing.

“Uh. Yeah. You okay back there?”

“Fine.”

“You need water?”

She should. Evie pondered it for a second. And then shuddered. Sounded horrid. She might gag. “No.”

“You should probably be in a seatbelt. I should probably enforce it.”

“Where are we going?” she asked.

“Ranger station. It’s a rough ride. You ready?”

Evie sniffed. Oh damn everything. She wasn’t going to cry again, was she? When had she turned into such an emotional mess? She should be satisfied. She’d discovered her location. It wasn’t a foreign country, although it felt like one. She was being transported to a place with real people and a phone. So, why did she feel so sad? Bereft? Completely grief-stricken?

The engine fired up. Evie rested her forehead against the floorboard, swayed with the ride, and held her fingers to her eyes. She tried not to think. Or feel.

It didn’t take long. Nor was it that rough. The blisters on her skin had sunk back into her skin and then disappeared. She had her emotions under control. And if the schmuck at the front counter hadn’t said anything, she might have been nicer.

“So. Hey. Is this the vampire chick?”

The unknown jerk followed his greeting with a chuckle that sounded like a baying donkey. Not that she knew farm sounds, but it was probably close. Evie kept her face averted and followed the backs of Ranger Rick’s heels. He took her to a white painted room with cafeteria table and chairs. A sofa. A television that wasn’t on. And a phone.

A real phone. With push button dialing and a receiver at the end of the coiled cord. Old-school. Like her grandmother still used.

“Make yourself at home. I’ll get you some water. Bottled. From the icebox.”

Ranger Rick could get her all kinds of water. She wasn’t thirsty. Nor was she hungry. She was heart-sore and leery and fixated on the phone. Evie regarded it for the longest time. There was a hum through the building associated with the air conditioning system. Subdued sounds of conversation. Laughter – probably at her expense. Everything sounded normal.

And completely alien.

Well. She’d achieved all her objectives. She’d even reached a phone. But something stopped her. Something vast. And wild. And completely overwhelming.

Daron.

He’d called it a mate-bond. That’s when it hit her. She knew exactly what she felt. She knew what she wanted. Needed. Craved. It didn’t matter where she was. Or what she was. Or what he was. Or anything else. What mattered right here and right now was Daron...and her love for him. Evie’s heart gave a stutter and for the first time since she’d left the harem place, no painful edge accompanied each heartbeat. She’d never felt such an emotion. It was awe-inspiring. Huge.

Oh. What a stupid time to figure this out, sitting on a curved plastic seat staring at a phone, and listening to National Park stuff happening all around her. People were talking. She heard it easily. The word vampire was being bandied about, amid a lot of throat-clearing and guffaws. Somebody was typing. Two music stations were playing, competing music genres.

Yep. Totally alien.

Now, what, Evie?

How in the world was she supposed to reach Daron? How did one contact a vampire? They probably weren’t listed. She regarded the phone again.
Crap
. She didn’t even know his last name. She could hardly ask Information for Prince Daron from the Achaemenid Dynasty. Well. She could, but it would just add to their perception about her. She had to think. Plan. She’d have to extricate herself from this predicament. Nobody was going to help her. Escaping a ranger station couldn’t be that hard. She wasn’t being held. She wasn’t a prisoner. She’d have to wait until nightfall, though. She couldn’t handle the sun. Damn her for not being smart enough to at least time the ride here! She didn’t even know what direction Ranger Rick had driven.

Her shoulders dipped slightly. She was such a failure. Again.

No.

She wasn’t thinking like that. Ever again. She’d managed to leave the Ecbatana Palace. She’d survived a killing fall. She’d saved herself from a rattlesnake. Reuniting with her mate shouldn’t be difficult, especially if he felt the same way.

Her heart did a swoop thing, making her gasp. He
did
feel the same! Her physiological symptoms had to be proof. And if they were physically linked...maybe, just maybe...their thoughts were connected, too?

Daron.

Evie closed her eyes. Concentrated. Repeated the name again, drawing it out. And then she did it again, concentrating. Focusing. Bringing an image of him so clear, she felt him.
Daron
. Again. And again.

“Hi there. A little bird told me to bring you water. Of course, he also said you were hysterical and severely sunburned.”

The door opened at her side, interrupting her efforts. Evie opened her eyes and turned her head. It wasn’t Ranger Rick. It was some big guy. Much more muscular than her rescuer had been. He wore the same khaki attire. He had a badge on his shirt pocket. Evie didn’t look any higher. She didn’t care. She looked back at the phone.

“Oh. So, now you’re going to be uncooperative?”

“Where is Ranger Rick?”

“Working out map coordinates. Doing his report. We have work to do now. We could use your help.”

“How?”

“Drink up. I’ve got a few questions for you.”

Evie eyed the water bottle. It was so cold, the liquid was opaque. Drops of condensation were puddling at the bottom, making a ring on the table’s surface. She still wasn’t thirsty. “About what?”

“Let’s start with your name. Address. Occupation. And then we’ll work toward location of the bat attack.”

“Bat attack?”

“Yes. See. Name’s Craig. I’m the supervisor. My job is to oversee operations. One of my rangers rescues a woman dressed like she’s playing a part in Arabian Nights who claims a vampire got her, and well. It’s my job to check that out. I’m thinking you may have been bitten by a bat. If that happens, we try and find the colony before the media circus starts. And looking at you, I’m going to guess we’re going to have quite a large one.”

“Excuse me?”

“Lady. Please. I need some information. We’ve got to find the bat colony you may have disturbed. For public safety...and your health. I hear rabies shots are unpleasant.”

“So are you,” Evie replied.

He sighed. “Look. Lady. Help me out here, okay? I’m understaffed and under-funded. I could really use your help before the Air-Med Chopper gets here.”

“Air Med?”

“Listen. We don’t have much time. Rick said you were hurt. Delusional. I have first aid here. I don’t have resources for delusional. You gonna tell me your name or not?”

Evie cocked her head. She could hear the distinct sound of rotator blades from a helicopter. She was surprised he couldn’t. Oh. This was bad. They were moving her? Maybe to a hospital...or worse. A psycho ward? How would Daron find her? She closed her eyes and renewed her efforts at reaching him.

The phone at his hip vibrated. Daron reached an arm beneath his burnoose without taking his eyes off the building complex before him. He really didn’t have time for VAL right now. He had the strangest pain in his temple, and he could swear it felt as if Evelyn was right beside him. He’d even checked twice. The area on both sides of him was as desolate and empty as before. A helicopter was landing, too. That was going to alter things. He’d have to act. He wasn’t going to be able to wait for Evelyn to decide. He slid the front of the cell phone open as he moved it to his ear.

“Yes?”

“Ah. Prince Daron. There you are. Everything all right? Things progressing in the direction you want them to?”

“Everything is fine,” Prince Daron replied.

“You see, Nigel? Just listen. We worried prematurely.”

“Just ask him, Sir.”

“What should I ask him, Nigel?” Akron asked.

“Well, I’d start by asking why the hell his mate is going around raising red flags all over the state of New Mexico. That would do for a start.”

“She isn’t doing anything,” Daron replied.

“The airwaves all over the Southwest are buzzing with the word vampire, and your mate isn’t doing anything?”

“This is interesting. You know where she is and what she’s doing?” Akron asked.

“Of course. I’ve been watching her all day. She’s safe. She’s in the Carlsbad Ranger Station,” Daron replied.

“You see, Nigel. He’s got it under control. He’s watching her.”

“Watching her? Did I hear that right? He’s watching her? If he’s toying with her like he does his assignments, I’m about to have a really big problem with a really old Persian prince. And I don’t care how sharp his scimitar is.”

“I am not toying with her. She will come to no harm. I am making certain of that.” Exactly as he’d done when he’d caught her fall and cradled her all the way to the ground. It had been akin to ripping out his heart to release her, too.

“You’ve got the hottest mate I’ve ever seen, and she’s in some ranger station? While you’re...what? Watching the outside of the building from somewhere? And that is what you call
not
toying with her?”

“She...uh...she.” Daron swallowed in order to finish it. “She left me.”

“Well. Maybe you shouldn’t have dropped to a five.”

Daron growled.

“Perhaps there’s another reason, Nigel,” Akron spoke up.

“You know, he had to wait over two thousand, four hundred years for a mate. That’s over 28,800 months, 124,800 weeks, 876,000 days. And over 21 million hours. I’m not even going to tell you how many seconds. You have calculators. I have Lizbeth. Thanks, Love.” Nigel’s voice faded. “Oh come on, Lizbeth. Allow me to call you that just this once. You’re ruining my image here. Fine. I’ll pay the price.”

“Do you have a point with all these numbers, Nigel?” Akron asked.

“I’m making an impact statement here, Sir. And following it up by saying that when I find my mate I am not just letting her up and leave.”

“I think it was very honorable of the prince.”

“Well, I think it was short-sighted and stupid. She’s his mate. He only gets one. When I get my mate, I’ll hogtie her before I’ll let her leave me.”

Akron chuckled. “I am heartily looking forward to that momentous occasion, Nigel Beethan. You have no idea. I believe it could be one of the most edifying spectacles of my existence.”

“You’re supposed to be on my side here, Sir.”

“We have a side? Truly? What is it?”

“The prince has his mate. He allowed her to leave him. And I’d really like to know why. What did he do? And why the hell did he just let her go? And, while I’m at it, how long do I have to wait, anyway?”

“Nigel. This is not about you. It’s about Prince Daron. And his immediate problem. And unfortunately, we have taken too much time. We’ll call you right back, Your Highness. New cell.”

The phone went dead. Daron set it on the ground beside him and had another one palmed before it vibrated. Akron was speaking as the link went live.

“Oh...sometime between now and seven hundred and twelve years.”

“Seven hundred and twelve!”

“You asked for a number range, Nigel. There you are. A number range.”

Oh, come on, Sir. I have to wait seven hundred and twelve years for my mate?”

“In comparison to Prince Daron, that amount is a pittance. Your Highness? You back on the line?”

“Yes,” he answered. He was focusing on the building. Something wasn’t right. Medical Evacuation helicopters were emergency vehicles. This one had shut the rotors off and was just sitting there. Perhaps that meant Evelyn didn’t need it. His heart lightened slightly. And another semi-painful flash arced through his head, right behind his eyes.

“I don’t know what you did, Your Highness, or when. I only know that the consequences of allowing your mate to leave are multiplying while you are apart.”

“I told her about us. About mating. I told her about eternity. I told her about grief and death. I think she wanted to call her family.”

“Ah. Interesting supposition. Entirely accurate, actually. Strangely enough, there are several avenues for her to do just that in the ranger station, and yet not one call has gone out to New Jersey. Not a word of that particular state has even been mentioned. Don’t you find that odd, Prince Daron?”

“They’re denying her access to the phone?” Anger made his voice sharp.

“No. I believe she has decided that she no longer wants to contact her family. That is the impression I am getting here. So. I really need to ask, why aren’t you doing anything about it?”

“I’m waiting for a sign.”

“Really? What sort would you like, Your Highness?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never had a mate. And I have the worst pain in my head.”

“Ah. Good. That’s a good indicator that you aren’t a complete failure at telepathy. You are simply right at the bottom of the learning curve.”

“Telepathy?”

“Your mate has been concentrating and saying your name for about...oh...eight minutes by my clock. I don’t know what else she has to do. I heard her easily. Why else do you think I’d be calling you?”

Daron flashed up from the ground. He had to consciously stop his progression skyward. He’d never felt such joy. Light. Wonder.

“Your Highness! Prince Daron!”

Akron’s voice was a bit louder than usual. Daron glared at the cell in his hand for a moment before answering.

“Yes?”

“Before you run willy-nilly into the ranger station, I need to give you some advice.”

“She’s my mate. She wants me. I don’t need advice.”

“It’s not that kind of advice. You know it could be true. A newly mated vampire is about as helpful as a — never mind. You have another problem.”

“Where?”

“You are near a small Hunter camp, Your Highness. It’s excellent country for it out there. Easily overlooked by authorities. The moment the word vampire came across the scanners, you earned trouble. You’ve got a rogue killing team with you in their sights. They’re young. Cocky. Inexperienced. And looking for bragging rights. Bagging you and your mate would be a major coup. Has a helicopter arrived at the ranger station by any chance? In the last few minutes?”

“Yes. But it’s a medical evacuation helicopter. It was ordered. I heard them.”

“They’re going to transport your mate out of the vicinity, and that doesn’t worry you?”

“I was just about to go down there when you rang.”

“Ah. Good. There is a prince on a white charger buried somewhere in your personae. We’d better send a 4-D Team. Nigel, call up Red. They’re in the area. Something about a Las Vegas summit. And see that The Prince’s jet is fueled up and ready for departure.”

“A 4-D Team?” Daron asked.

“That is not a medical helicopter, Your Highness. I understand the medical transport is just leaving the city and is still en route.”

Daron dropped the phone. An instant later he was at the side of the building. Listening. Primed. And for the first time in over two millennia, he was scared.