Page 58 of Her Midnight Stalker

At least ten more vampires round the corner, charging forward.

Ren completes his transformation, rushing forward and knocking Alistair back off of her. In a quick motion, she hums an incantation, creating a swirling blue energy in her right hand that coalesces to create a vial of water. Seeing the vampires charging forward, about to overwhelm me, she throws the vial at me.

I briefly worry that it may shatter, killing me instantly, but my reflexes are strong enough, I’m able to catch it. I open the vial and splash three of the incoming vampires with it, then cap it off and charge forward with my extra stake, impaling them as they struggle against the holy water.

Rory charges forward, attempting to finish Alistair with the stake, but he has already found his footing, and he leaps out of the way, before he collects himself. His eyes grow red, and my jaw drops, as his form shrinks, cloak and all, and he shrinks into the form of a bat.

“No fucking way,” I growl, staring at the bat that flies to the distant cavern, then enlarges itself back to the Alistair I know.

I was certain that was just a myth, or a bit of folklore.

I swear I see a smug grin cross his face at my look of confusion. Even at a distance, obscured behind the stalagmites that cover this cavern floor, he watches me from beside the bonfire, sneering.

More vampires cross the cavern threshold, and I can feel Alistair taunting me, looming over me with the threat of Quinn’s demise. He has exhausted his trump cards, and now he only aims to taunt me, destroying the one thing that matters to me more than anything.

I charge forward through the vampires, stabbing them one by one. By now, they’re swarming. I wonder where they’re coming from, before I see another distant tunnel, filled with Moonlight Sentinel operatives. They’re pouring through that tunnel, charging forward at an alarming rate - all willing to die for this simpleton’s jaded, single-minded cause.

Ren and Rory pick up the rear. I can still sense life in Quinn - she’s fighting hardily. We only need to defeat Alistair in time and get her back to the base.

And I remember, in Rory’s book of incantations, a simple but potent teleportation spell, requiring the blood of a vampire.

I just hope she’s practiced it. Quinn’s life will depend on it.

34

QUINN

The venom works its way through my system, as I watch my lover and my best friend fight for their very lives from a distance. The world around me turns feverish colors at a regular rate, and I can feel my heart pulse rapidly, as unbearable pain shoots through me. Staying sane and alive with this poison attacking my body is almost impossible.

I only wish that Caspian were able to stay with me and hold my hand through this uncertain time. For the longest time, I had begun to doubt that he would show up at all… began to dread what might happen to me, if I died alone in this cave, with nobody to mourn me.

Stay strong, I remind myself. We can still win this.

The odds seem unbelievably stacked against them - against us. In our fight, it’s three people - a fledgling spellcaster, a werewolf, and a vampire - against a herd of vampires.

And the other side isn’t playing fair.

I’ve watched as they’ve worn impenetrable armor, turned into bats, and…

I shudder to think what that vampire would have done to me, had Caspian not arrived on the scene and crucified him. He always muttered to me about how no other vampire would take me - how he was mine alone - and I suppose he’s honored that today.

The amulet Caspian gifted me sits far beyond my reach, in a pile of bones. I can feel it calling out to me. For the past several weeks, it has been a constant source of hope - an unyielding reminder of Caspian’s single-minded focus on me.

“Now, Rory!” Caspian calls out, pointing toward the singular tunnel through which all of the Moonlight Sentinels pour.

Ren aims a concentrated blast of energy toward the ceiling above the tunnel, and the cavern shakes, from the ground beneath me to the walls around me, leaving pebbles and boulders falling. I wonder what Rory is thinking - dread that this entire cavern might come crashing down around us.

And I would most certainly be crushed, because in my situation, I’m dead weight. I can no more move than I can speak coherent sentences.

But thankfully, the focus of the blast is narrow, bringing down only the rocks above the tunnel. The three of them might have bought us some time - but they still have to tangle with Alistair and at least a dozen more vampires.

My vision blurs, as the pain running through my body intensifies. My mind is a scattered fever of memories, hallucinations, and images playing out in realtime.

Watching the scenes unfold before my eyes, I’m no longer sure what’s real. The only thing I have inside me, that I can take confidence in, as my mind clouds and gives way to delusion, is what I feel for Caspian.

Fire unfolds and stretches out from Rory’s fingers, filling the cavern with cascading light that knocks rocks loose and scorches through vampires. I watch as Caspian becomes a great shadow, standing strong against the light, battling the vampires, as Ren’s unearthly howl fills the room, echoing tremendously.

Alistair becomes a great shadow of a bat, casting sideways against the cavern walls, which flicker from the light of the bonfire. He flies upward and swoops down, tackling Rory to the cavern floor, where she struggles to get back up.

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