Refugee (The Captive #3)(25)

Aria seethed as she continued to glare at him. Screams erupted in the night, pulling her attention away from Gideon as she searched for the source. A chill swept down Aria’s spine as more shouts pierced the air. On the street, people began to run; their heads were barely visible through the glass as they bolted forward.

Both Braith and Gideon leapt to their feet. “Stay here,” Braith commanded.

Aria sat for a bewildered moment, disoriented by what was going on, confused by the sudden eruption of chaos into this peaceful setting. She remained still for only a moment before she jumped to her feet and followed swiftly behind the two vampires. They had to push and shove their way through the confused and frightened crowd packing the building. Being smaller, she was far more adept at moving in and out and around the people and things.

They were stepping onto the street when she arrived at the door. Standing behind the glass, she watched as more people fled past, some were bleeding, others were carrying their children and still more were stumbling around and disoriented. Aria was nearly taken out as two people slammed into the door, shoving it open as they tumbled inside in a breathless heap.

She grasped hold of the man’s arm and helped him to his feet. “What’s going on?” she demanded.

His eyes were wild, rolling in his head. Blood trickled from his forehead and into one of his eyes. “The Forsaken Ones,” he gasped.

Dread trickled down her back as one ran past the building. It appeared more grub-like than man-like with its nearly translucent skin, hairless body, and nondescript features. It was in much worse condition than the ones they had encountered in the desert. Is this what happened to the vampires after years of banishment and starvation? A shudder rippled through her, nausea twisted in her stomach at the thought.

More of the creatures appeared, their heads swiveled slowly back and forth, their nostrils flared as they scented blood in the air. They were twisted and demented in a way that not even Caleb had been. And they were heading straight toward Braith.

Her breath exploded out of her. She released the young man as she leapt over some broken dishes on the floor and shoved through the door. The chilly air hit her but it didn’t rob her of her breath anymore. Braith was about fifty feet away, his head swiveled toward her, and his jaw clenched as he came back at her.

“Get back inside Aria!” he shouted.

“You need my help!”

“You don’t even have your bow, get back inside! We’ll be fine!”

“I’ll get it!”

“What?”

Lifting the hem of her dress, she tucked the ends of it into the attached belt. Braith, seeming to sense her intent, started for her. She didn’t have much time. Running, she bolted up a set of stairs next to the building, jumped onto the railing and leapt at the top of the wall. Her fingers scrambled, and nearly lost purchase. By sheer luck and pure determination, she was able to keep her hold and pull herself up. Panting for breath, she knelt on the roof and peered over the side.

Braith was standing on the street below, fury radiated from him as he stared up at her with clenched fists. She was going to get an earful later, but she didn’t care. “I’ll be right back!” she called to him as she rose to her feet and raced across the roof of the building. She jumped onto the wall and leapt across the space between the buildings. They weren’t the same as her trees, but she was able to navigate them with relative ease as she raced back to Gideon’s house.

Some of the creatures started to follow her, but the others continued to filter through the streets hunting for prey. The screams of the maimed and frightened increased as she moved deeper into the fray.





CHAPTER 6





“What the hell was that?” Gideon’s amazed whisper was close by his ear.

Braith was seething, his hands fisted as he watched Aria leap from one building to another. “I’m going to kill her myself.”

“Well let’s worry about getting to her, in order to kill her first,” Gideon muttered.

Braith’s attention was brought back to the street and the creature’s filtering down it. He would have to get through them in order to reach her, and he had no problem doing just that. They were the sickliest looking vampires he’d ever seen, but their desperation made them far more volatile than many things he had encountered.

The streets echoed with screams, the scent of blood hung heavily in the air as the creatures stalked through the town, looking for more victims. Most people had already fled to safety, taking shelter in the buildings. Some still scrambled to get out of the way, others had not been fortunate enough to escape. Some of the creatures were trying to drag their victims behind them.

Their eyes were a glowing red. Braith assumed it was a permanent condition, one caused by their desperate need for sustenance. Two charged at him, one broke away, squealing as it raced down an alley after some unknown quarry. The other one was so pale that it was nearly transparent. These creatures seemed to no longer move about in the day, but remained hidden until nightfall when they searched out whatever kill they could find in these desolate lands.

It launched itself at Braith with an eager screech; its overgrown fingernails were hooked into lethal claws. Braith managed to catch its arm and pull it swiftly down. It bounced off the roadway with a sickening crack of bone. He found no pleasure in the mewl of pain it released; in fact he was hesitant to kill the thing. He didn’t know what it had done to merit banishment, knowing Gideon the punishment had been deserved, but this thing was pitiful.