Authors: Crystal-Rain Love
He shrugged. “I pick the women at random, but she seemed to call to me. Ironic she'd be the mother of a Blood Revelation mate, huh? As for making it look like a vampire's work, I do that for revenge. Eventually, word will leak out about the fang marks. Soon people everywhere will be hunting vampires."
"Revenge for what?"
"Trying to kill off my kind."
Rialto! Seta! Aria has been abducted! I'm sorry, but I have failed you.
Rialto's heart jumped into his throat and its beat roared in his ears as his mouth went bone dry.
Christian? What happened?
It distracted me, tricked me so that I left her unattended for just a minute. That was all the time needed for her to be taken. I'm so sorry, Rialto.
Rialto closed his eyes as an overwhelming sense of anger and fear rolled through him. He started to will it away so he could remain focused, but realized it was not his own emotion he was feeling. It was Aria's. He felt a mental tug, as though she were pulling him toward her.
I can feel her. She's calling for me mentally. Can you tap into the link?
No
Then keep your senses open. We're on our way back to Baltimore. When we get closer, you should feel us. Follow us. The killer is Carter Dunn. Find out what you can about him.
I will. Hurry.
You know we will
Rialto severed the link and looked at his mother. Seta gazed back at him with unmasked fury in her eyes. “Let's go get this demon,” she growled. She waved an arm, spoke an incantation, and Culla Wasser's body disappeared, along with the blood that had pooled around it, leaving no evidence of her execution.
They had barely left the manor when Rialto's legs buckled, his energy spent from the run across two states. “Dammit, this can't be happening now! I just drank from Aria a few hours ago."
"Your body is growing more dependent on her blood, Rialto, forcing you into changing her over. I'll have to carry you if you want to make it to Baltimore."
Rialto glared at his mother, backing away when she reached for him. “You are not carrying me around like a baby."
She sighed. “Come on, Rialto. We don't have time for this. Oh, to hell with it, I'll teleport us. It'll take some of my strength away, but obviously Christian has drunk living blood or he couldn't have contacted us. He'll help us fight."
Rialto stepped into her embrace and leaned against her for support as she closed her eyes and said the words that would zap them back to Baltimore within a fraction of the time running would take.
Once they arrived, Rialto led the way, following the pull of Aria's emotions, sensing her location from signals she probably wasn't even aware of sending, but they were weakening. “I think the killer is draining her, Mother. Her signal is getting weaker."
"Then let's hurry or both of you will die."
Suddenly, Christian's voice was in his head.
216 Rouge Road. The home of Carter Dunn, great-grandson of Alfred Dunn. That seems to be where you're heading.
Good work, Christian. Are you prepared?
I have lived this long without killing. I hope to continue, but I will do whatever it takes to save Aria and defend my friends
We'll see you there.
Rialto and Seta broke the link to preserve their energies, knowing they wouldn't have time to replenish any by feeding. Besides, feeding wouldn't help Rialto. They trekked on, faster now that they had a destination. Rialto tried to hold it together as he felt Aria weakening, fearing he wouldn't get to her in time.
They reached the house, a white-brick single story, and quickly crossed the large yard to peer inside the windows. The house looked empty, but there was no denying Aria was inside. Rialto could feel her.
"Oh, what have they done to you, Eron?"
"What?” Rialto looked at his mother. She seemed to wither against the side of the house.
"I can feel him in there, what's left of him. He's nearly been destroyed."
"We'll save them both."
"Look!” Seta pointed to boarded-up basement windows which could barely be seen above ground. “That's where they are. I can feel it."
"Let's go."
"No!” Seta grabbed Rialto's arm before he made a dash for the front door. “You're not strong enough, and with what we're going up against, I can't fight this battle alone. We have to wait for Christian."
"Somebody say my name?” Christian appeared behind them with a struggling man hog-tied over his shoulders. “Give it a rest, Porter,” he said, dropping the tawny-headed man's body to the ground with a thump and keeping him in place with his foot when he tried to stand.
"Damn you, you bloodsucking leeches. I'll kill you all!"
"Oh, great,” Seta muttered. “As if we weren't going up against enough, you decided to bring your own archenemy."
"I thought it was better we knew where he was,” Christian said with a shrug before turning back to the man who Rialto deduced was Jonah Porter's brother. “Now, Jake, if you want to get your brother out of here alive, I suggest you shut up and forget about all of your pent up anger against my kind, seeing as how we're the only ones who are going to help you."
"Well, pardon me for being pissed, but when someone decides to suck on my neck I'd prefer they have tits!” Jake spat as he tried to undo the ropes around his wrists.
"Hey, you were the only thing available or I'd have been choosier,” Christian responded, kneeling down to unbind Porter's ankles. “So, Rialto, what are we dealing with here?"
"A man named Carter Dunn,” Rialto answered.
"A man?” Jake laughed. “I can handle this myself."
"A man who has been reborn, fathered by a demon that was possessed by the devil himself!” Seta snapped, looking down at Jake Porter in disdain. “If you want to survive this night, you will do well to follow commands, mortal. This man has already managed to capture one of the oldest vampires around, and is skilled enough in the dark arts to have blocked his trace from the victims’ bodies, even from me, a vampire-witch."
"A witch and a vampire, huh? Killing you will be a twofer."
Rialto issued a warning growl. “We're not your enemy, fool. If Carter has taken your brother, you'll need to be on our side if you want him back. We can't focus on destroying Carter Dunn if we have to be watching for you over our shoulders."
"Okay, I got it,” Jake grumbled. “We're dealing with a souped-up demonic bastard. I'll side with you this once, but if my brother doesn't make it out alive, neither do any of you."
"We're getting everyone out,” Seta promised.
Jake nodded. “So what's the story? What exactly are we up against?"
Seta answered. “Alfred Dunn's son, Patrick, was a child molester. Eron killed him and Alfred hunted him from that day on until he died from old age. Apparently, Alfred learned of some dark magic which allowed him to plan his reincarnation. He made a pact with the devil and was reborn as one of his granddaughter's twins."
"That's sick."
"Vengefulness tends to make people crazy.” Seta gave Jake a pointed look before looking at Rialto. “Are we ready?"
"We have to be,” Rialto answered, staring at the house intently. “She's slipping away.” He looked at Christian, who had untied Jake and was helping him to his feet. “Are we all together on this?"
"Yes,” Christian answered. “What's the plan?"
Aria struggled to see behind her while Carter taunted Eron with a fork-like tool. “Leave him alone! Haven't you hurt him enough?"
"Not nearly enough,” Carter said and gave Eron one more poke with the tined instrument in his hand before coming back to the table. He stopped and threw his head back, sniffing the air. “Ah, they've arrived."
"What are you talking about?"
He looked down at Aria, mouth curved into an evil grin. “Didn't you realize you were bait? I can't have vampires knowing my secrets, hunting me down while I try to perfect my serum. I must kill all of you, thanks to Curtis and his idiotic notion that he should let you view my journal."
Aria glared at Curtis, who had yet to utter a word or look her in the eye. “Why do you hate vampires so much?"
"Because that one killed me.” Carter pointed to where Eron hung from the wall. “Once I reached Hell I became a member of Lucifer's special army. It's my job to stop the vampires and preselected bitches like you from destroying our kind."
The man was completely insane, Aria decided. “You're really psychotic."
"Psychos only think they've seen the devil,” Carter said with a wicked smile. “He flows through me.” Carter turned for the door which would allow him to exit the basement laboratory. “Watch them, Curtis, and if you help them in any way you will be a ball-less traitor, more so than you are now.” He laughed as he left the lab.
Aria glared at Curtis with all the strength left in her. “I'm dying, Curtis, and the only man I've ever loved will die too, and it's all your fault."
"I'm sorry,” Curtis cried, finally raising his head to look at her. “I didn't mean for this to happen. I was trying to help when I gave you the journal."
"Why didn't you just tell me your brother was insane?"
"Because there are two souls in me, Aria, and they battle each other every day."
"What the hell is he talking about?” Jonah asked, his words laced in pain. “He's as crazy as the other one."
"He's Alfred Dunn,” Eron rasped, his voice barely audible. “I finally figured it out."
Aria started to ask Curtis if that was true, but a wave of dizziness washed over her and she blacked out. But not before realizing the drops of her blood spilling into the bucket beneath the table were coming much slower.
"You know, it would've been really great if you'd let me bring some of my weapons,” Jake said angrily as the four crawled through the living room window, staying vigilant as they entered the house.
"Shut up, Porter,” the three vampires said in unison while they studied the room. Besides a large heap of books, some ratty old furniture, and statues of demons and humans in various sexual poses, the room was bare.
"Porter and Christian, find the basement and get everyone out. Seta and I will handle Carter. He probably already knows we're here."
"Score one point for the vampires,” Carter said, stepping into the room. “Now excuse me while I kill you."
He threw his hands up and chanted something that sounded dark and menacing before fire sprang to life in his palms. He hurled the flames toward them, but Seta quickly stood in front of the group and threw up her hands, redirecting the flames back at Carter.
Christian and Jake ran to the left, leaving the room in search of the basement as Rialto and Seta stayed behind to battle.
"A witch, eh?” Carter asked after shielding himself from the fire. “You'll be fun to kill."
"You'll die trying, anyway,” Seta retorted and threw a ball of energy at Carter, ramming him against the wall and pinning him there with an invisible weight.
"She's fading!” Rialto cried, feeling Aria slip deeper away.
"Go to her!” Seta shouted over the roar of energies spiraling around her. “You're of no use to us if you're both dead. Save her and save yourself!"
"Will you be all right?"
"Yes! I can hold him off by myself for a little while."
Rialto ran out of the room, following Aria's scent to the basement below. He entered the subterranean room to find Christian removing Eron from where he hung on a wall. Jake Porter stepped over the body of Carter Dunn's beaten twin and started to remove his brother's manacles.
Aria lay on a metal table in the middle of the room, two tubes in the side of her neck leading to a bucket below the table. She was bleeding to death. “Aria!” Rialto ran to her and stared down at her in horror. Her skin had begun to darken when he'd left her earlier, but due to the blood loss it was now a deathly pale. Her lips were dry and cracked, and dark rings had formed beneath her eyes.
"She had already lost too much by the time we arrived,” Christian said apologetically as he approached them. “I don't think putting her blood back into her will help. Her organs have most likely started to shut down. There's only one way to save her now."
Rialto nodded, understanding he had a choice to make. He either saved Aria, or he died with her. “My mother needs help."
"Of course.” Christian gestured for Jake to follow him, and together they left the lab, Jake helping his brother to walk.
"What are you waiting for?” Eron asked from where he lay on the floor. “Save her."
"It's not my choice. It's hers,” Rialto answered as he removed the tubes from her neck and covered the holes with his hand, feeling her barely throbbing pulse.
"She's nearly gone,” Eron rasped.
"I know,” Rialto said, feeling tears well into his eyes. He held Aria's hand in his much larger one and spoke her name. Her eyelids fluttered open, widening when she saw him standing over her.
"Rialto.” She tried to smile, her green eyes sparkling with a hint of tears as they met his somber brown ones. “I knew you'd save me,” she said weakly.
Rialto swallowed past the ball of emotion lodged in his throat and shook his head. “You've lost a lot of blood. We were too late."
"But you're here now.” Her forehead wrinkled in confusion. “You can save me now."
Rialto's head and heart ached with the choice being forced upon him. He'd only sired one other vampire, and she went mad. Antonia hadn't deserved what happened to her, and the thought of the same thing happening to Aria clawed at his insides.
"I'm not Antonia,” Aria said, seeming to read his mind. “I want the gift."
"It's not a gift, Aria. It's a curse."
"Rialto—"
"Listen to me.” He bit his lip, knowing he didn't have much time to search for the right words. Instead, he looked into her trusting eyes and spoke from his heart. “I love you, Aria. In the two centuries I have walked this earth, I've never felt a love so pure and strong. I don't want to let you die, but whether or not you stay with me isn't my choice."
"Rialto—"
"No, wait.” He placed a finger over her parched lips and prayed for the time he needed. He could feel her fading away quickly. “I can save you if I share my blood with you, but by doing so I'll turn you into what I am. You'll be a predator, Aria. You will have to drink human blood to survive, and you may eventually be forced to kill. If you can handle the knowledge of that, then I will save you right now. Can you handle the loneliness of outliving everyone around you? The thought of being a monster, an outcast? Can you live in my darkness?"