Page 84 of Alpha Power

Luther blurred to his side and flipped him onto his back, ramming a foot into his throat to keep him still.

Arturo struggled, kicking his legs out as he grasped Luther's foot and tried to shove him off. "You won't get away with this," he gritted. "She'll kill you."

Luther ground his foot harder into Arturo's neck, applying enough pressure to make his face turn red. "Who? Who will kill me?"

Heat seeped into the air, making Zamorra’s temperature spike and sweat run down her spine. Magic crawled over her skin, dark and full of power and then Arturo burst into flames, combusting in a field of red and black fire. A deafening scream escaped his lips, the smell of burning flesh coating the air as he quickly began to burn away.

Luther cursed, fumbling back on one leg while the other went up in flames. He flailed it wildly, trying to put it out before the scolding hot fire travelled any higher.

Fire was a death sentence for vampires, one of the only few ways of ending their immortal life permanently, but this was no ordinary fire. It was laced with dark, volatile magic making it even more lethal.

"Quit laughing and help!" Zamorra barked to her uncle, who was watching with humour in his eyes.

"Why? If he dies, you're free."

Zamorra scowled and ran for the window, yanking down the thick black curtain hanging over it. Vamp One and Vamp Two latched on to one end and helped her carry it over to Luther.

"Get down!" Zamorra shoved Luther to the ground and flung it across his burning leg. They patted furiously, working fast to put the flames out before they progressed any further. But no matter how hard they worked, the fire wouldn't die. No. It continued to travel higher and panic quickly set in.

Singed hair and burning flesh reached her nostrils as Thaddeus walked over, studying the scene with playful eyes. He waved a hand through the air, a faint red glow emanating from his skin before the fire died out completely.

She blew out a breath in relief.

"Your concern was unwarranted my lady, it would take a lot more than a little mage fire to kill good ol’ Luthy here," Thaddeus smirked.

"That doesn't mean it doesn't fucking hurt, Thaddeus," Luther growled, rising to rest on his elbows.

He tilted his head slightly, staring at his charred leg with a look of annoyance. All of a sudden all those layers of skin, tissue and fat quickly healed over, restoring his leg to perfect condition. Right before her eyes his leg came back together and she saw a beautiful, intricate tattoo etched into his skin. From what she could see it ran down the entire length of his leg, a complex design of black ink she had never seen before.

She wondered how much of that tattoo ran across his body. Was it just the one leg? Or full body?

She never saw him out of his expensive suits, so her imagination was running a little wild with it. She had a weakness for tattooed men.

"Don't be such abambina. See, you're fine."

The ashes of Arturo floated in the air around them like leaves falling in the springtime, fizzling away until there was nothing left of him at all.

Frowning, Luther got to his feet. He studied the scorch marks on the hardwood floor before he glared at Thaddeus.

Thaddeus raised his hands in surrender. "Don't look at me like that. I didn't do it."

"Then who did?"

"How in tarnation would I know?!” Thaddeus shrieked. "There must have been a self-destruct spell hidden deep within him. It activated when I destroyed the camouflage spell."

So much magic, so many spells. She was… so lost. Magic was not her forte. She didn't have a lot of experience with mages or spells. Thaddeus was the first mage she had ever met above lower-level status, and it was abundantly clear how he got to such a high rank.

"It's really quite ingenious when you think about it," Thaddeus continued, ignorant of Luther's foul mood. "Destroy the subject in the event someone discovers the spell. Brilliant." He tapped his chin, pursing his lips in thought. "I really need to find this mage."

Red mist and lightning enveloped his entire body and then he disappeared without another word.

Creaking floorboards came from her right and Maddox stepped to her side.

"And where were you?" Zamorra frowned.

"What could I do? That fire woulda killed me."

"So you just hid in the corner like a little bitch?"

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