Page 53 of How to Entice a Fiend

And when I feel like this is starting to become endless, I stumble across the dirt road the vampire mentioned. I don’t want to get too close to it, in case they’re traveling along it, but I speed up in the hope of reaching the location.

When I see a building coming into view, I slow down. Ender’s not going to be pleased if he wakes up and finds that I’ve wastedall of his effort to get away just to go right back to the building we’d been held in.

Ender is confident that if I waltz into it, I’m going to get immediately slaughtered, but I’m pretty confident that if I don’t, he’s going to die.

Now the question is… do I take him with me or do I leave him out here?

They would likely assume if I was coming here, I’d go for a vehicle, not want to getinthe building, right?

“Fuckity fuck fuck…” I whisper.

Well… let’s see what happens.

I quietly move toward the building, well aware that it might not even have anything inside that I can use. Hell, it might have that horrifying vampire inside. They might throw me a little welcome party and commend me on how stupid I am to waltz right in uninvited, but if I don’t do something, Ender is going to die.

When I step close to the window, I listen. There’s really no reason for anyone inside to be trying their hardest to be quiet. And the building is quite large. If they’re in a different area, they might not even hear me enter.

Slowly, I lower Ender to the ground. He doesn’t stir at all, which concerns me greatly. I push on the edge of the window and find that it gives. It’s really not surprising. These vampire types seem to think they’re above everything.

With the window up, I reach back down and try to carefully hoist Ender through it. This is rather hard with the jingly cuffs that restrict my movement, but I slide him through and follow after him.

If they broughtmeto this building, they brought me here for a reason. They didn’t come for Ender. No. They came into my hotel roomforme. Ender was just a bonus this Abel person seems quite pleased to have. They wouldn’t take me to adifferent location hours away for no reason. They would take me where they needed me, which is how we ended up so far from home.

I keep moving, not quite certain where I’m going. When I reach a room filled with boxes, I slow down. Hoisting Ender up a bit higher, I peer into a box and realize that luck is with us on this fine day.

Now, I just have to find a way to use that luck.

I have my doubts they’d assume I’d be dumb enough to come back here, and the place seems fairly empty as I move through it until I find the very room I’m looking for. I carry Ender over to a table and lay him down on top of it.

Then I shut the door and lock it before sliding a cabinet in front of it. It’s not like it’ll stop vampires, but it could hopefully give me more time, even if only a second. I hurry over to the containers stacked in the corner and search through them until I find the items I need. I grab the powder and pour it into the liquid just as I hear a noise outside of the room.

I freeze, terrified I’m going to make a sound. I hold the vial carefully, but the contents have to be stirred together. They can’t sit like this or I’ll have to start over.

As quietly as I can, I slowly roll the vial.

I’m not even sure if this will work, but hopefully it does something. Footsteps sound outside the door. They’re getting closer. If they try to get in here when I’m not ready, this will all have been for nothing.

“You smell that?” a man asks.

Fuck.

The voices alert Ender and his eyes snap open. I quickly shake my head and he looks at me in confusion before glancing toward the door, likely wondering what the hell I’ve tossed him right into.

“That is odd,” a woman says outside it.

I can’t move or these fucking shackles will alert them that they’re right.

“I think they’re in here. Contact Abel,” the first voice says.

Ender’s look is enough to show me his disbelief over the fact that we’ve ended up in the very same spot he fought so hard to get me away from.

I nod at the gun I’d set on the counter.

He moves so silently it’s like he doesn’t move at all as he slides off the table and grabs the gun.

“Open it,” I mouth, but evidently, he doesn’t understand what that means.

I try pointing with my finger, but even such a small motion causes the slightest clink.

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