Page 36 of Ouch! My Vampire Doms Don't Sparkle
Staring directly at him, I wait.It doesn’t matter whether or not hewantsto get involved.What matters is that he alreadyisinvolved.By coming into my territory without Will’s or my permission, he opened himself up to danger.He should’ve listened to Neve and reached out to us.
With a sigh, he says, “All I’ve heard is Gaius pissed off a bunch of motherfuckers in Europe.Some of us think he’s looking to claim new territory until things die down over there.”
Interesting.Powerful people make powerful enemies.For the longest time, I thought Gaius had amassed so much power as to be invulnerable.It sounds as if that isn’t the case, after all.
“Do you know who he pissed off?”I ask.
“No.The chatter is just rumors, man.Can I fucking go now?”
“Yeah, sure.Stay out of trouble, don’t call attention to yourself.You have my permission to remain in the city.”
“Thanks, man.”
I step to the side to allow him to pass at the same time the air whistles past my arm and a stake lodges into his heart.
What the fuck?
Maxim’s eyes bug out in shock and he staggers back against the brick doorway behind him.
It’s too late to save him, he’s already gone.I whirl around, taking cover behind a parked car, wedging myself between the bumper and a dumpster it’s parked next to.
Another stake arcs through the darkness.It’s coming from one end of the alley, and it’s quickly followed by another, this one from the other end.Fuck, I’m boxed in.
Maxim’s corpse is quickly turning to dust.He’s beyond my help.However, he’s my only chance at a weapon.I dive across the few yards that separate us, snatch the stake from his chest, and rush back to my cover.Impact, then pain in my bicep—they got me in the arm.They must be shooting stakes from a fucking crossbow or some shit.
I’ll have to lure them down.
That means playing dead.
I shove my torso under the car.There’s more cover here from shooting stakes, anyway.If I turn just right, I can get my phone from my pocket.Will could be here in ten minutes if he hurries.
I reach for my phone to text Will, but stop when I hear something.Footsteps, which would be too soft for human ears to discern.Vampires.
They’re coming to check if I’m dead.One from the top of the L-shaped alley, and one from the other side.
The best thing I have going for me is surprise.
When the first guy arrives, I recognize him immediately.Big, muscular build and wavy brown hair reaching to his shoulders, styled like a mullet.He’s one of Gaius’s, one who attacked me the other night.Here to finish the job, I guess.I should’ve known there was more to that altercation than simply giving a message.It was a warning.
Followed by an assassination attempt.
Fuck me.This could be the end.
Mullet tugs on my leg.Immediately he knows I’m not dead, because I’m not turning into dust.He pulls again, this time harder, dragging me from beneath the car.As soon as my arm is free, I swing up with the stake.
He blocks me, forearm to forearm, then twists so he can grip my wrist.He’s huge, twice my size, and hauls me toward him.He gets me in a headlock, lifts me up.Damn, this fucker is tall.
His slender friend advances, jerks the stake out of my hands, holds it aloft.He points the sharpened wood directly at my chest.
I can’t escape, no matter how I twist and turn.There’s nothing to do but brace for the impact, for death.
I’m going to fucking die, and Will and Autumn will never know what happened to me.
11
Autumn
“Little love,” Will says from behind me.
