Annihilate (Hive Trilogy #3)(55)
During our drive the boys all got lots of updates. Kyle was still blocking off alerts from other Hives, and Lincoln continued to confirm that the cure was working. In some Hives we had a 95% cure rate. New York had been one of the lowest at 70%.
“We should be good here, right? I mean Lucas is sort of in charge, and we already wiped out so many of their numbers in the last battle,” I said into the silent car. “Right?”
Carter leaned forward; he was in the seat behind Ryder. “Don’t underestimate Portland. Have you heard from Lucas?”
I had to shake my head. Despite repeated attempts to contact him, no messages seemed to be going through.
Carter didn’t say any more, but we all knew what he was thinking. Portland vampires hated me and the enforcers, and they had most likely killed Lucas and brought in reinforcements to their Hive. They would have been ready for war, even before the cure started making the rounds. Great. As if we weren’t in enough danger, we were heading for the town filled with vampires who had nothing but vengeance on their minds.
Chapter 12
The sun was sinking into the western sky, the last rays of safety brushing across Portland. We were camped out about two miles from the Hive compound. So far we hadn’t run into any special forces even though Lincoln said they were stationed somewhere nearby. They must be in hiding, waiting for some signal. The streets were empty enough that we wouldn’t have missed them. So far all we’d seen was a police van driving the streets blaring a message for the citizens of the city: “You are under martial law. Do not leave your homes, vampires are attacking the city. We will let you know when you can come out. Stay inside. Report any activity to 9-1-1.”
Ryder’s phone buzzed between us. He glanced down before bringing it to his ear.
“Lincoln,” he said quietly.
He was silent for many minutes, listening as the SWAT leader barked information at him. When he hung up, he swiveled around slightly so everyone could hear him. “The Army has been ambushed in the northeast part of the city. Some vampires got them on the road, and here’s the odd part. They emerged from inside a building which had been empty not five minutes earlier.”
WTF? How did they get in there with the sun still out? It just went down.
“Lincoln says more armed forces are on the way, but for now we’re all that stands between Portland and the Hive. Red alerts are going out across all news outlets, social media, and even text alerts are being sent. Lincoln said some humans from smaller towns in Oregon have come out to help fight. Which is a pain more than anything because they don’t have a chance in hell against vampires. All they’re going to be giving them is blood and targets to turn. So we not only have to keep the Hive contained until the Army manages to get through, but we also need to keep an eye out for any human heroes.”
Wicked. So it was eight of us versus hundreds. I had to ask him: “How the hell were they coming from inside the buildings? The sun just dropped.”
Ryder shrugged. “I don’t know, but Lincoln seemed livid. That area had been cleared already, so no one expected an ambush. They must have somehow preplanned this, hid inside buildings for a few days.”
Possibly, but it didn’t quite seem right. Someone would have noticed them surely. But if they weren’t already hiding in the buildings, how were they moving without going into the sun? And without being seen? As far as I knew, none of their ten houses’ superpowers included turning invisible. It was almost as if they were…
My stomach dropped when the realization hit me. My hands were shaking as I brought them up to brush my short hair off my face. “Oh fuck of all fucks.”
My dad raised an eyebrow at that one. “You know what’s up, Charlie?”
Without acknowledging anyone, I snatched the phone from Ryder and speed-dialed Lincoln. We didn’t have a second to waste. The moment I heard Blue Eyes’ voice, I said the two words that any Portland native would know.
“Shanghai tunnels.” I then hung up. I had no time to chat with the SWAT dude any longer.
The moment I mentioned the tunnels, color drained from the faces around me, and the entire sexy six burst into action with a collective “Fuck!”
I swallowed, hoping to hell I was wrong, but my gut was saying I was right. My mom took me on the tour of the underground tunnels when I was twelve. In the 1850s to about 1940, these tunnels were built under all of the bars and hotels in Portland. A drunk bar patron would be sitting in his stool one minute and the next minute a trapdoor would open and the man would be sucked down into the tunnels to be robbed and sold as a slave on a ship and taken out to sea.
Not the proudest Portland history, but these tunnels existed all over the city, and I would bet my life the vampires had connected the Hive to them. They were smart enough to ensure they had a way to stay out of the sun and still get around. Fuckers were probably in every one of the older building in Portland right now, waiting until the darkness hit to burst out and fuck up the city. Well, darkness had just hit and we were so screwed.
Even my father looked concerned. He stated the obvious: “We’re on the wrong side of the river.” The Hive and the airport were on the East side of the Willamette. The majority of the tunnels were on the West Side. We needed to cross the Willamette now. Holy shit, there must be over twenty spots where the tunnels came up into bars and businesses. Where would we even begin?