Page 110 of Twisted
“I know.And I know them.Plus, I have magic.They don’t.”
He looks into my eyes and shakes his head.“I know I can’t stop you, but I can try.”
“Devon, come on.I have to go.I don’t know what they’re doing to her.And this is going to go one of two ways.You’re going to let me go, or I’m going to cast a sleeping spell on you and go anyway.”
“Fine,” he sighs.“Go and leave the helpless human.”
I don’t have the time or mental capacity to address his little dig.“Thank you.Just stay home and I’ll be back with Mabel soon.”
Grabbing the map, I smudge the herbs over the location to mark it.Then I use the bathroom, put my hair in a ponytail, put on a jacket, and head out.I blindly grab a set of keys again, not realizing which car they belong to.I hit the unlock button, making the lights of Xavier’s G-Wagon flash.I open the door and throw my stuff inside.Adrenaline floods my system when I plug in the address into the GPS.I’m not far, but I know the drive is going to feel like ages just like the plane ride.
My mind starts to get away from me and I begin to fear what the hunters are going to do to Mabel.A lot are old-school Bible thumpers, cherry picking which versus they like to follow, and an eye for an eye is a favorite amongst a lot of them.
Xavier killed two hunters.Are they going to kill two of our vampires?
Parking a couple blocks away, I shove my keys in my pocket and call Xavier.He doesn’t answer.I go down a block and try again.Still no answer.Turning my phone on Do Not Disturb, I put it in my jacket pocket and zip it up.
“Of fucking course,” I whisper to myself when an abandoned warehouse comes into view.I’ll give Larissa one thing: she’s predictable.There are clear signs of a struggle outside the door, with scuff marks in the gravel and a bent doorframe.At least Mabel didn’t go in without a fight.There’s something else on the ground, and I almost pick it up but stop at the last second.It’s a little vial, and I only see part of the name but it’s all I need to know what was in this vial: carfentanil.
Holy shit.They’re not messing around and this stuff is dangerous.It can knock out an elephant and will definitely take down a vampire.They’ll heal in a matter of seconds to minutes but if they’re injected over and over, you could, in theory, keep one sedated.
Needing to scout out another way in, I go around the back of the building.Voices float through the night air and I recognize Larissa’s right away.
“How much longer before we can kill the bitch?”a guy asks and I inch closer, breathing as quietly as possible.There is an old broken window I can peer through.I’ll risk being seen, but I need to know what I’m walking into.
Silently, I creep up, moving like a cat in the night, and look inside.Larissa, Dale and Randall are inside.Dale and Randall are armed like they’re going to swarm a government building, and are dressed in dirty Carhartts and flannels to boot.
“She’s making me nervous,” Dale goes on.
“Dude, she’s comatose,” Randall says, smiling as she talks.
“Yeah, but can’t the others find her?Vampire senses or something?”
“They haven’t yet,” Larissa quips.“I don’t see what’s so impressive about the Malus vampires.The Order is going to regret not letting us kill those losers.”
Looking past them, I take in the surroundings.We’re in an old meat processing plant and there is a walk-in freezer behind Randall.Dale keeps looking in that direction.Mabel is in there, most likely drugged to high-heaven.
I step back, mind racing as I come up with a plan.There are three of them and one of me.I’ve never killed a human and I don’t want today to be the day, and really, I don’t want Larissa to die.I called Xavier…it’s only a matter of time before he shows up—with Theo and Zeke.I want to save Mabel, and if I want to give any humans a chance at getting out of here alive, I need to go in.
Now.
Taking a deep breath, I go to the door I saw in the front and kick it open so it loudly clanks back on its rusty hinges.
“Larissa,” I call and step inside.There’s a hallway with rooms that used to be offices on one side separating us.
“Stay here and watch the vamp,” Larissa tells the guys.“I’ll deal with her.”
My footsteps echo throughout the empty building.“You know you could have just called.You didn’t have to go to this length to get my attention, but you did always have a flair for drama.”
“Hmm,” she chides.“I knew it wouldn’t take long for you to come.Besides, this was so much more fun.”
“What are you doing?”I ask, shaking my head.“You’re going to get yourself killed.”
She crosses her arms.“Is that a threat?”
“No.You have no idea who you’re messing with.And Mabel—that’s like stealing candy from a baby.If you think the Malus vampires are no threat, then why didn’t you go after the head of the family?”I shouldn’t put ideas in her head, but it’s too late now.
“Whatever.”She squints her eyes at me.“I’ve had a change of plans.Instead of this exchange, I’m going to hand your little vampire friend over to the Order.I thought mental illness got cured when people were turned but apparently not because that little whore is insane.Maybe that’s why you like her.”
