STEP (The Senses) (36 page)

“Simian. Do as you’re commanded. Now.” Damien held his breath, knowing Simian liked to act on his own accord
, and it was worse since he hadn’t called to him in so long.

Simian made a dive for Waleron, his massive hands striking out for Waleron’s throat. Damien barked out to him, but Waleron had disappeared in a flash
, leaving Simian striking at air.

“Simian!” Damien shouted again.

Waleron reappeared on the other side of the room, his face expressionless as if he’d expected the attack.

Abby’s low screech drew their attention.
Simian tilted his head and approached the bed. Damien stepped forward ready to attack his own Scar if need be, although he was uncertain who would win.

Abby hissed and swatted at Simian, her eyes wild and edgy as the beast came towards her with hunger in its eyes. She scooted backwards on the bed, her knees to her chest and her back against the headrest. She kept low and crouched, her eyes looking for an escape, but Simian’s enormous presence left little chance of it.

Damien held his breath, looking to Waleron and noticing his eyes were trained on Simian, ready to act in one solitary second.

Simian’s padded paws made no sound on the floor as he inched closer to the bed until his knees touched the mattress. Abby screamed and tried to dart past him, but despite
his size, Simian was quick and agile. He grabbed her forearm and brought her to a halt. She struggled, her flailing fists pounding on his chest.

“Simian,” Damien said, hoping like hell his Scar wouldn’t snap her neck.

Simian turned towards him and, for an instant, he thought he saw emotion from his Scar, something Simian lacked—aside from hatred. He always looked the same, mean and cruel, with a hate-on for females. But when Damien looked into his eyes, he noticed uncertainty and something else. Remorse? Could Simian feel that emotion?

Simian wrapped his arms around Abby to control her struggling, burying her head into his shoulder to quiet her screams. His large paw-hand stroked the back of her head then he did something Damien had never ever seen before
—he licked the side of her face.

“
Tell him to shackle her, Damien,
” Waleron said.

“
Goddamn it, Waleron.
” The thought of shackling Abby made his insides coil. “Simian, Abby is sick. We must help her. I need her shackled so she doesn’t harm herself.” Damien tried to use a calm approach with the way his Scar was acting. For some reason, Simian was protective of Abby, which could be beneficial or completely backfire.

Abby was quiet now, her limp body up against Simian’s, as he continued to stroke her head.
Come on, Simian. For once don’t be a fuckup.

Simian slowly lowered Abby back down on the bed then
, with careful hands, placed the chains around her wrists that were still attached to the bedposts. Damien noticed how gentle and caring he was, as if he knew that if he handled her roughly she’d react.

“
Get him to cover her face.”

He nodded
, knowing that what they were doing was for the best. Abby was dangerous right now. Starving and needing blood so badly that she’d kill anyone to get it. Luckily for them, she was also weak and still confused.

Simian grabbed the pillowcase off the pillow and went to lower it over Abby’s face. She
rebelled, flinging against the chains, her screams piercing. Simian backed away, his eyes wide and filled with—fear. Damien found it hard to believe, but Simian looked scared. But that was impossible. Simian didn’t feel that emotion.

“
I smell his fear for her safety,”
Waleron said.
“Simian has been with you these past months and has grown close to Abby.”

“
But that’s—”

“
Nothing is always as known, Damien. You know that as well as I. You have been vulnerable—Simian felt that. He can rise from sleep enough to know what is going on around him. Call him to you,
” Waleron said.

Damien had never seen Simian so calm before and it made him nervous
about the connection he held with Abby. More so, it made him jealous. The strange emotion came down on him like a gauntlet. How could he be jealous of a Scar? Christ, he was losing it. But seeing the odd bond between them made a dent in his stomach as if acid was eating away at it. Whatever it was he didn’t like it one bit.

“Come to me, Simian. Rest. Sleep. Be one with me.” Damien raised his hand, palm upright and he felt the stirring of heat in his skin as Simian moved towards him obediently. He almost made it, his form changing to the white light again and shimmering for several seconds as if in uncertainty. Abby thrashed against the chains
, then gave a high-pitched scream that had Simian planted back in form, his eyes dangerous as he quickly assessed the room.

“Fuck,” Damien swore beneath his breath. So typical of his life.
Nothing goes as planned.

Simian moved back towards Abby and she settled down, her scream ceasing and her body limp.

Waleron raised his brows. “Looks like we travel as is.”

Roarke grabbed her around the waist and hauled her to her feet. “Move,” he said, voice low.

“What the—” She had no time to react as he shoved her ahead of him, holding her hand and barreling out into traffic.

Car horns blared and breaks squealed. Swear words were yelled from the car windows. Roarke ignored them all as he towed her across the street.

“My car is around the corner. We need to run, sweetness.” He gripped her hand tight, half dragging her behind him as they turned down the first street, then into an alley. “Vamps and the woman from the compound,” he explained as he yanked open the passenger door of a black SUV.

Oh
God.

She had one leg in the car when she felt her body being flung through the air. Roark’s shout came at the same time as her scream. She landed in a painful heap on the rough pavement, scraping her palms.

“Rayne. Run. Get out of here,” Roarke shouted. His loud growl echoed as five vamps came down on him at once, their razor-sharp nails raking his skin, leaving long bleeding tears in his flesh.

She crawled to her feet, head dazed from the impact. She froze in fear and horror as she watched Roarke being mauled. No! They couldn’t do this to him.

She began chanting Serafina’s name in her mind. She’d always called to her aloud and wasn’t sure if it even worked with mere words in her head. Over and over, she called to her as she backed away from the horrid site.

“Damn it
, Rayne, get the hell out of here.” Roarke’s voice was barely audible, blood pooled on the pavement as he desperately fought them off.

“Hold him still,” a female’s voice echoed in the alley.

Serafina rise to me,
Rayne continued to chant in her head.

It wasn’t working.

“Grab the girl,” the woman said.

Three vamps left Roarke. He went wild, eyes blazing as he pulled something out of his pocket then ripped it across the neck of one of the vamps holding him.
The body collapsed to the ground, head rolling several feet away.

A shiver coursed through her body at Roarke’s undeniable fury. His eyes blazed with wrath and every muscle contracted, ready to explode in vengeance. His emotions leaked into her, the fear for her, his pain and rage. Blood soaked the front of his torn shirt and ripped jeans. His face had long jagged scrapes that dripped blood.

“Roarke,” she screamed in warning as a vampire jumped from a garage rooftop and landed on top of him.

“Damn it, Rayne,” Roarke yelled. “Get out of here.”

How could she leave him behind?

They needed help. She had to get help.

She ran.

Ragged breathing came up behind her. Hands grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her to a stop. She jerked her elbow back and hit something hard
, making a sharp crack.

“Serafina, rise to me,” she cried out before it was too late.

“What the—”

“Serafina
, rise now,” Rayne raised her voice, no longer caring that anyone heard.

Footsteps approached. “She is calling to her Familiar. Her Scar. Stop her,” the female shouted.

Desperation escalated as she screamed Serafina’s name again, feeling her Scar shift as if she were stretching her long limbs and cracking her knuckles before doing as requested.

“Kill it,” the female voice shouted. “Her thigh.”

“No,” Rayne cried. “Serafina! Rise. Now.” Serafina slowly moved down her leg. She struggled against the vamps holding her arms.

“No,” Roarke bellowed then came barreling towards the vamps holding her.

He had no chance. White webbing shot towards him, strands wrapping around his body like a spider’s web. He fought against them, a fierce growl and limbs flailing viciously, but every time he attempted to move, she could see the thin strands tightening. He was paralyzed. Roarke fell to the ground, blood seeping from his wounds to soak into the fibers of the webs.

“Roarke. No, Roarke, no.” She fought against the steel bands of hands, but it was useless. “No. Let him go.”

“He should have listened to me,” the woman’s voice said. Rayne heard the shuffle of feet behind her then the smell of Lilacs as the woman came up beside them. “He joined the wrong side.” She grabbed her leg.

“No,” she screamed trying to kick out at her, knowing what she was about to do. “No. Serafina move. Now.”

A sharp steel blade descended and tore through her jeans, the skin pierced by her lack of care. She kicked and struggled violently against their hold, knowing that Serafina’s life was in the balance.

The knife slid into her leg and she cried out in both pain and horror. The blade ran lateral
ly across her inner thigh.
Serafina,
her mind cried out. Her childhood friend—her only friend.
No, don’t let her die. Please.

Her body sagged
, and struggling became moot as Serafina’s movements stopped. Blood slipped down her leg, the pain nothing compared to the thought of losing Serafina when she’d just gained her back.

Tears ran down her checks as she looked up at the woman. “Why?”

“It should have been done long ago,” she answered.

“Rayne,” Roarke said as he again tried to get free of the Lilac’s
webs, desperation in his eyes. “Jasmine, don’t. Don’t do this.”

“Put her in the car,” the Lilac said to one of the vamps
, who quickly yanked her forward and shoved her into the back seat. His hand was on the door to slam it shut when a vamp screamed a horrid shrill and fell to his knees, clutching his neck where a two-foot metal pole was embedded.

“Let her go,” a deep voice laden with fury shouted from the end of the alley.

Rayne didn’t know whether to stay hidden in the car or make a run for it, but she figured whoever it was had to be on her side. She dove for the door, but her arm was caught in a death grip by a vamp and she was forced back.

The Lilac jumped into the front seat and started the engine, while two vamps tried to fend off flying metal poles whirling towards them.

The car slammed into reverse.

Her open door hit the alley wall and bent
, then snapped under the pressure.

A pipe went through the front windshield, narrowly missing the Lilac’s face, and went straight into the vamp holding her arm.

The Lilac made a horrid screech and pressed her foot to the floor, and the car swirled backwards faster.

Rayne looked down the alley and her heart stopped.

Kilter.

He stood with his feet braced, knife in one hand and metal spear in the other.

“Kilter, watch out. Webs,” Roarke shouted.

Webs shot out the side window and went straight for Kilter. Rayne leapt forward and reached over the car seat, grabbing the Lilac around the neck. The webs went in all directions then dissipated.

“Bitch,” she shrieked, then jammed her elbow straight back into Rayne’s cheek.

Rayne dove for the open door, but something had hold of her ankle. Webs were crawling up her leg, tightening as she kicked to get free.

A horrendous bang sounded and the car made a sudden veer to the side then slammed into a brick wall.

****

So thirsty. Her throat screaming for relief, something that would ease the scratched surface that made it agony to swallow. She was disoriented and confused, her mind in a swirling bleak abyss. Not knowing who she was or what was happening to her body, the single thought of blood overriding all other needs.

She caught glimpses of Damien, uncertain if he were real or imagined, her vision like a haze of fog. The smells around her had intensified
: the cedar wood of the floors, the cotton sheets washed in Tide, and the familiar male scent of Damien.