Building From Ashes (46 page)

“No, you’re right. We’re stubborn, secretive, territorial—”

“Violent. Cunning.”

“We move in a world that runs a lot like the human world did in the Middle Ages. Everyone is their own small kingdom, and there’s no central government or authority. This problem is going to be impossible to contain.”

“True.”

“Still…” He paused. “I suppose with my contacts and connections…”

She nodded. “Which are extensive.”

“And your innate ass-kicking abilities and penchant for pyrotechnics…”

“You say the sweetest things…”

They both trailed off, lost in their own thoughts. Finally, Carwyn laughed ruefully. “I told you we wouldn’t be bored.”

Brigid groaned. “This is a nightmare.”

“It’s very serious, but we do know a few things now.” He held up fingers as he counted off. “We know that humans who take it smell like pomegranates, which is a distinctive smell. We know that vampires who take it have increased strength and amnis—”

“At least at first.”

“And we also believe—not sure on this one—that the blood of your sire or your direct line can heal an immortal from the effects of amnis.”

“So earth vampires…”

“Are actually some of the most protected, considering we tend to have large clans and close ties. You’re protected as long as Deirdre is, and even my blood could help you.”

“Since you’re Deirdre’s sire.”

He frowned. “Is it too strange?”

She shrugged. “You’re a former priest who likes beer, professional wrestling, and ugly Hawaiian shirts. You gave up the priesthood after a thousand years and paid two dozen sheep and a draft horse so you could marry a slightly crazy fire vampire who’ll probably burn you every night.”

“Only if I’m
very
well-behaved,” he said with grin.

She rolled her eyes and elbowed him as he roared in laughter. “Carwyn, the fact that you sired Deirdre is hardly the strangest thing about our relationship.”

He tugged on her ear. “Have I told you how much I love you?”

“You have.” She snuggled into his side and stared at the growing light. She was already starting to feel sluggish. “You know what?” she murmured as her body began to tire.

“What?” He stroked her hair absently.

“I didn’t even call into work tonight.” She snorted. “I’m surprised Murphy isn’t banging on the door wondering where I am.”

Carwyn grunted. “If he has any questions, he can ask me. Besides, as soon as we’re able, we’re going to take a proper honeymoon.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. We may have had an unconventional wedding—”

“You could definitely say that.”

“But the honeymoon is non-negotiable. Beaches in moonlight.” He nibbled on her neck. “And making love in the waves.”

She smiled. “That will keep me cool. And hot. At the same time.”

“Ideas. I have many, many ideas…” He paused and she could feel his tension ratchet up. “Someone is coming toward the house.”

She froze, her senses reaching out cautiously for a moment before she relaxed. “It’s fine,” she said as she rose and walked toward the door. “Just one of the boys from work.”

“Not Murphy?”

“No, not Murphy.”

She was still smiling as she opened the door. She laughed for a moment, not even the sight of Jack dampening her happy mood. “Jack,” she said. “You’re never going to believe what I did earlier tonight.”

“Oh?” Jack smirked, and Brigid’s eyes widened when she saw a vampire step out from the bushes at the street. His amnis must have been weak, but then, Axel had been drinking from Emily for over a year. “Do tell, Brigid. I’m ever so eager to catch up on news.

She blinked and a scene flashed before her eyes.

A dark alley. Two vampires, one blond, one sandy-haired. Red frosted glass passing from hand to hand. A wicked laugh and a bright flash.

“It was you… Of course,” she murmured as Axel stepped closer. “There were always too many dead ends.”

Her head was swimming with exhaustion and shock when she heard a shout and a crash as windows shattered in her house. A loud buzzing sound came from behind her, and the ground beneath her feet rocked as she fell to her knees. Arms caught her as she fell and someone threw her over a shoulder.

No, no
! Her stomach roiled. She fought to stay awake, but the last sight she caught was the roof of her house falling in as her eyelids fell shut.

Chapter Thirty

Dublin

January 2013

Carwyn could hear before he could see.

“…realize what’s happening to you, Axel.”

“Jack said I shouldn’t talk to you.”

It was Brigid’s voice, but it echoed. Where were they? He kept his eyes closed, trying to remember.

“Someone is coming toward the house.”

“It’s fine… Just one of the boys from work.”

“Not Murphy?”

“No, not Murphy.”

“Jack, you’re never going to believe what I did earlier tonight.”

Shattering glass and a sharp pinch on his neck. He’d been so occupied trying to sense who was approaching from the front that he’d forgotten to check the back. He’d been entirely focused on Brigid. A bright flash of light followed by blackness. What had hit him? Had he actually been… unconscious?

“Axel, we were friends. I know you didn’t mean to hurt Emily, but she’s dying now. And you’re ill. You must know that something is wrong. You must know that he’s lied to you.”

She continued speaking calmly. She didn’t sound hurt, so he kept his eyes closed and tried to sense around him, slowly filling with dread when he realized where they were.

Under water.

Of course they were. Jack and Axel were both water vampires. Brigid and Carwyn were definitely not. A ship? A freighter, perhaps. Surrounded in a chamber that echoed like metal. They were probably in a cargo hold of some kind. His amnis creeped out, looking for some trace of his element to connect with, but he could feel nothing. They were far from land. The only energy he felt was Brigid’s warm fire across the chamber and the rippling, unsteady energy of their captor.

Why wasn’t she attacking him? If she could get away, he could tear a hole in the belly of the ship and escape.

Carwyn finally opened his eyes, still keeping them lowered to avoid notice. He caught movement from the corner. In the corner Brigid was tied up with what looked like wire, her arms, legs, and neck secured by a thin gauge metal cutting into her skin. A line of blood trickled down her throat every time she spoke and a long electric cattle prod was pointed at the base of her neck. He stifled the growl that rumbled in his chest and concentrated on his own surroundings.

“Jack says he knows how to cure me. He says that the condition is only temporary. He watches out for me.”

“Think, Axel, have you ever seen him drink from a human who had taken the elixir? Did he ever use it on himself? Think about human drugs. Did the dealers—the smart ones—ever use? No, because they knew not to use the shit they sold, Axel. Why do you think Jack’s never taken it?
Think
.”

From what Brigid had told him, Axel thinking
before
the elixir was hit or miss. After was going to be practically impossible. Still, he would let her reason with him while he tried to get his bearings.

How the hell had they taken him? Nothing had ever knocked him out before, but Carwyn had a feeling the electric gadget that was pointed at his mate had something to do with it. Normally, any electronics would short out in close proximity to them. But a contraption made to electrocute? Well, that might be an entirely different thing. It didn’t matter. Whatever the reasons, it was keeping Brigid from fighting back, which meant she was afraid, which made him furious.

He could feel his anger mounting and Brigid started to talk faster. “Axel, I don’t want you to get hurt.
Think
. That vampire you have locked in the corner is going to get out, no matter what kind of cage Jack has put him in, and he is far more powerful than either of us. After all,
the metal’s not very thick
and there appears to be a
distinct gap
in the frame that connects it to the freighter hull. If he happened to pull it open, we would both be at his mercy, even though
he’d need to be very careful
to not rip open the hull of this leaking old bucket whose rivets appear weak from age and probable past structural damage.”

Axel sounded even more confused than before. “What are you talking about, Brigid?”

Of course, she could sense him now. Carwyn kept his eyes closed and stifled a smile.

“And if he gets out or you poke me with that cattle prod, then I would feel threatened, which would make me burst into flames in a small space, killing all of us. I don’t think
any of u
s wants that to happen, do we?”

A warning for them both. Carwyn’s previous optimism dampened, but didn’t flee.

They were trapped in an old freighter, which was leaking and unstable. Their hosts, being water vampires, would be quite comfortable and far more powerful surrounded by their element. Brigid would be at her weakest in water. Carwyn would also, despite his age. Add that to Brigid’s natural volatility and they were in an interesting situation.

He tried not to smile. This was more fun than he’d had since almost being burned alive in the Caucasus Mountains the previous year! But Brigid might worry.

Axel said, “Jack will be back soon. Don’t light up, okay? By the way, it’s really good to see you, Brigid. You’re looking very well. Is the big earth vampire your boyfriend? That’s good. Have you seen Emily? How is she? She stopped returning my phone calls, and I don’t like it.”

Poor sod was so lost. Had he always been this dumb?

“She’s not well, Axel.” Brigid spoke in a softer voice while Carwyn thought. “If you help us out of here, then I’ll take you to see her. I know she’d love to see you.”

Thank God they had exchanged blood. For a young immortal like Brigid, that would be more helpful in keeping her grounded and in tune with him than anything else. Though blood exchange wouldn’t give her the ability to sense his emotions or thoughts, it did mean that their amnis was in tune, which would give them a greater awareness of each other while fighting.

She knew he was awake. It was evident in the tone of her voice. “I know you said he’ll be back soon, along with
the four guards with weapons
that I saw, but surely you can help me out. I know you’re not a bad person. You didn’t want to hurt Emily.”

Chapter Thirty-One

Surely, he had to be getting the message. She’d been dropping enough obvious hints about who they were up against that anyone less stupid than Axel would certainly have muzzled her. Brigid could sense when Carwyn woke, but he stayed still and she didn’t know how rattled he still was from the shock of the cattle prod they had used to take him down. The punch of his massive elemental energy when that had shocked him must have been enough to rock her neighborhood.

Brigid had woken at what must have been nightfall, arms and hands tied with wire that cut into her skin. One wrist felt like it had been cut to the bone. Her immortal body kept trying to repair itself, healing around the wire, but then she would twist again and her flesh would tear. It was painful and she was losing more blood than was comfortable. She should have been stronger, but then normally, she would drink a few bags of blood when she woke.

Tonight’s view hadn’t been the comfortable refuge of her bedroom, curled up with her new husband and enjoying his attentions. This night had been cold metal, twisted wire, and the view of a vampire she had hoped to never see again. Even if he was an idiot, she would never forgive Axel for poisoning Emily like he had.

“Of course I didn’t want to hurt Emily, but I can’t help you,” he whined. “Jack says he has the antidote to make me better. He says if I cooperate that he’ll make Emily better, too. See?” His voice sounded like a child’s seeking approval. “I only want the best for her. She’ll get better as soon as Jack gets rid of the people standing in his way. Then he can take charge of Dublin and get all the supplies of the elixir he needs. That’s what he says. He just says that we have to take more. That as long as we keep taking it—”

“It’s not going to help you. And Emily will be dead by then. Who did he say would send him more elixir?” Maybe, if nothing else, Axel knew who was making it. Jack may have been the elusive Dublin connection, but she doubted he was manufacturing the drug. That had to have been someplace else. It had all become so clear once she made the connection. Jack had been her guide to the city and its nightlife for years. She knew he was ambitious, but had no idea that he ever would have betrayed Murphy the way he had. He held little regard for humans other than as a source to sate his hungers. And if there was one person who would have been able to steer her in the wrong direction, make promising leads turn into dead ends, it was Jack.

Which also meant that he had taken part in Ioan’s death.

Every comforting embrace he offered, every understanding shoulder now sickened her. She thirsted for his blood and her fangs grew long in her mouth.

If she could just get Axel to untie her…

Carwyn peeked from the corner of his eye again before he raised his head. Axel was staring at Brigid, completely ignoring him. He looked up to take in their surroundings, which were exactly as Brigid had described. An old, leaking ship and a cage that looked like it was used to transport animals.

The idiots. How weak did they think he was? Even if he was underwater, he was still a thousand years old. The only thing that truly worried him was Brigid bursting into flames. Though the air was damp, there was no doubt a shock would be quite explosive. He didn’t think she could hurt herself, but burning
him
to a crisp was definitely a possibility.