Page 23 of Marked for Redemption

At the truck, I put her in the last row along with supplies. Having her up front wouldn’t be right, and I didn’t want to chance someone sitting next to her. Four men rode in the car with me and four more followed in the smaller one. We drove around until there was an hour left before the sun would rise. This is where Renee would come in handy. There was a place for us to stay without worrying about the humans. She needed to keep watch to make sure nothing happened. I looked back at her and nodded, remembering what we’d discussed.

Hoping that I wasn’t making a mistake, I left her in front of the alcove as we moved deeper into the hut, making sure no sunlight was available. Sure that it was safe, I left her to make sure it stayed that way.

* * *

At nightfall, I woke to hear snide comments from one man. He’d been the same one that thought it was smart to say something to Renee while we were at the bar. He’d kept his mouth shut the entire ride here, but because I was asleep, he’d made a move. I sat up, watching him explain how well he’d treat her. She stayed quiet, looking out the window. I knew she had to be tired. I stretched the stiffness out of my shoulders from sleeping at an odd angle.

“Did you need something?” I asked him.

“No. I was just making conversation.” He smirked.

“Do it elsewhere. She’s forbidden to speak unless I allow it. Guess that makes it one-sided.”

“Yeah…” He looked at Renee and if I didn’t know better, I’d think the stupid male had feelings for her. They’d never met, but it didn’t dim the lustful expression he seemed to have when looking at her. Or maybe he just really wanted to see if I could rip his throat out.

He moved away, and I walked over to Renee.

“Anything?” I asked her.

“There was a group that passed a few hours ago. They were on foot, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to find them. I could see which way they went, but I think they were just hunters or gathers. There’s more where they came from.”

“How many?”

“From the packs they carried, maybe fifteen.” She kept her eyes outside as if she expected something to happen at any moment.

“How are you holding up?”

“Good. I’ll be better when this is over.”

She didn’t have added senses to see or hear when a threat was approaching. I understood the disadvantage, and she wasn’t used to it. It’s why I was calm and she wasn’t. There were still too many unknowns not in her favor.

“Let’s go.”

Renee exited first, getting into the back of the truck. The rest of us followed, ready to strike. She was right. Finding where they were hiding was easy enough after following the trail. Lurking in the distance, we counted around eighteen people. The horde they had set up was near.

When they were asleep, three men stood guard, but they weren’t quick enough for our younger vampires. We couldn’t afford to kill them. So, after knocking those three out cold, we took their weapons and tied them up. Then we ransacked each tent.

The one I went into had two guys. I knocked the one over who was awake and heard us coming. A quick jab to the face did that. He didn’t need to see or be without swelling to be a blood bank. The other wanted to fight. I pitied him at first, but when he grabbed a knife and tried to go for my heart, all bets were off.

A swift kick to the knees sent him buckling to the ground. Another sent him falling forward, face first, to the ground. I rounded them outside with the others while my males were still kicking ass. A quick count told me that there were sixteen here.

“How many of you are there?” I asked the guy kneeling in front of me.

“Eat shit.” He spat at my feet.

I understood we needed them all, but this one needed to be an example. I grabbed his head and twisted it hard and fast. One woman screamed as his blood sprayed onto her face.

“I’ll ask you since you’re being vocal.” I walked over to her. “How many?”

“Twenty-two. Twenty-one if you don’t count him.” She nodded toward the guy I’d just killed. Her tears were steady, but by the way her eyes widened, I could tell that she was still in shock and that her answers were on autopilot.

“Who runs things around here?” I asked her again.

“The guy you just… just…”

“Next would be?”

She glanced over at a man with a plaid shirt on. He shook his head once and looked at the ground.

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