Scorched Ice (Fire and Ice #3)(42)
“Sorry,” Julian apologized as the man’s watery brown eyes ran over him.
Keeping Quinn’s hand in his, he led her from the diner and out the door behind Devon and Cassie. He searched the night for any hint of something hiding within the shadows created by the trees swaying in the breeze. Scenting the air, he detected only the crisp aroma of water from a nearby river and snow still on the highest peaks of the mountains. The chill of the April air made his lip curl, but he had to admit the freshness of it was welcome after nearly a week in the RV.
Certain there was no one waiting to ambush them, he turned his attention to the van he’d seen Vern climb into. The streetlights at the edge of the parking lot illuminated some of the van, but most of the windows were tinted enough that he couldn’t see who was in the back of it.
“I’m going to talk to Vern. Wait here,” he said to the others.
“I’m coming with you,” Quinn replied.
Julian hesitated but nodded when her eyes narrowed on him. Her hand warmed his as they walked across the parking lot toward the idling van. Vern was leaning back in the driver’s seat, his large frame stretched out as much as he could get it when Julian stepped up to the open window.
Prue sat in the passenger seat, one of her bare feet propped on the dash as she painted her toenails. Her silvery blonde hair swayed about her shoulders when she glanced at him before returning her attention to her toes. In the back of the van, Hadie sat with four other vamps, all of them stared at him with a mixture of curiosity and fear.
“Boss,” Hadie greeted and pushed back a lock of her strawberry blonde hair.
“Hadie,” he replied. He nudged Quinn back when she leaned forward to peer inside the vehicle. He could feel the daggers she stared into his back before she pinched him. Gritting his teeth, he focused on Vern. “We’ll be parking about a mile down the street from the house. We’ll pull into the first place we can find to put the RV where it won’t be noticed.”
“You got it,” Vern said and leaned forward to start the van. “Just so you know, there are some vamps coming to Maine tomorrow night who might prefer to see you dead.”
Quinn’s power crackled against him as anger radiated from her. Reaching back, he enclosed his hand on her free one. He drew it forward and tucked it against his stomach. Her ability sizzled against him before dying out in a sputtering flicker that drew Vern’s attention. Vern raised an eyebrow but refrained from saying anything before he shifted his attention back to Julian.
“There are many who would prefer to see me dead,” Julian replied, and wasn’t surprised when the vamps in the back nodded their agreement. “There’s only one who might be able to succeed in killing me, and he’s standing right over there,” Julian pointed over to Devon. They didn’t need to know that Cassie would be perfectly capable of taking them all out, as might Quinn. “If they want to take their chance at me, they can have at it. I’m always up for a good fight, and I’m more than happy to kill someone.”
“Julian,” Quinn whispered, and he squeezed her hand.
Prue finished with her toes, twisted the top back onto the nail polish bottle, and turned toward him. “We’ve got your back, Boss.”
Julian bit back a smile when the others chimed in their support. They said that, but he wouldn’t be stunned if most of them turned tail and ran at the first hint of danger to their lives. He didn’t blame them. He hadn’t earned their loyalty yet, and even if he did, there were always those who would save themselves first.
For most of his life, he had been one of those too. He would have stopped to save Devon, but the rest of the world could have burned for all he’d cared. After Devon had turned against his more nefarious nature and stopped killing, Julian would have gladly burned him too.
Now, there were more than a few he would fight to the death for. In some ways, it made him stronger than he’d ever been in the past. It also made him far more vulnerable than ever before. He would take the new vulnerability for the love and friendships he’d discovered.
“Let’s go take care of this,” he said to Vern.
“Are we really going to take them out if they’re Commission and Hunters?” one of the vamps in the back asked.
Quinn’s body became rigid against his. “It is always open season on any member of The Commission,” he replied. “However, if you come across a Hunter you think might show some signs of understanding that you’re not there to kill them all, then no, don’t kill them. However, we will all do whatever is necessary to survive if our lives are in peril.”
“Let’s get this over with then,” Hadie said.
Julian stepped away from the vehicle and walked with Quinn to Devon’s sleek black Challenger. For this ride, he didn’t plan to climb into the RV again.
CHAPTER 16
If someone had told her two months ago she would be standing shoulder to shoulder with a group of vampires outside a member of The Commission’s house, she would have told them they were dreaming. But then, if someone had told her five months ago she’d be mated to a vampire and friends with Hunters, Guardians, and vampires, she would have told them they were insane and run as far from them as possible. Yet, that was exactly where she found herself now.
Sometimes it felt as if years had passed since she’d met Julian; at others, it felt like yesterday. Her life had drastically changed since December. She didn’t regret any of it, but she’d really like a chance to get her bearings instead of feeling as tossed about as a ship on the Bering Sea most days.