Freaky Fangs, page 18
part #9 of Mystic Caravan Mystery Series
We rushed outside, following the noise to the spot by our trailers. Someone had built a bonfire in our absence, which seemed like a bad idea ... until I realized what Cole was doing. His magic swirled around the fire like a small hurricane, gathering bits of flame here and there before careening into the darkness. I couldn’t see where the flames were going, but every time they made contact a vampire screamed from the void beyond our sightline.
“That’s kind of cool.” I grinned at Cole as he continued to wield his fire power. “I didn’t know you could control regular fire.”
“I’m a man of many talents.” He winked at me and grimaced before sending another volley. “Unfortunately, I’ve only got another three or four rounds in me before I have to stop. It’s draining.”
I could definitely see that. On a whim, I moved closer to him and rested my hand on his shoulder. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do until I’d already started funneling magic into him. The addition of my power bolstered him a great deal, and his eyes went wide.
“Well ... that’s neat.” His smile widened. “Watch this.”
The new volley, fortified by my power, sent an array of blue fireballs into the darkness. I had no idea how he was aiming, but I smirked when I heard the vampires screaming. Sure, it shouldn’t have been funny, but I was always a fan of winning.
“Well, it looks like we’ve got a new toy.” Raven moved to stand next to Cole and brushed my hand away. “I want to try.”
Cole slid her a sidelong look but didn’t argue when she rested her hand on his shoulder. The magic they unleashed together was a luminous silver, and it glowed brightly as it flew across the field. This time the sound of the creature being hit was vastly different, almost like special effects from a horror movie, and I jerked my eyes to the tree line where the flames had hit.
“What was that?” Kade was breathless as he appeared at my side. “That didn’t sound like the others.”
I pinned Raven with a pointed look. “Was that a strigoi?”
Her forehead creased with concentration as she nodded. “Yeah. I tried to focus my attention on the negative energy patterns out there. It seemed to work.”
“Are there more?”
“A few, but they’re retreating already. They’re surprised by what we managed. They’re allowing the vampires to stay, but they’re trying to remove themselves from the situation.”
“There’s a reason they’ve managed to survive despite the hunts,” Cole noted. “Let’s see if we can get one more before they move out of range, shall we? Poet, add your power to the mix so we can cast a wide power net.”
I didn’t have to be told twice. My hands wrapped around his wrist as we worked together to build another fireball. This one had a silver core set within a blue orb, and it made me smile as we flung it toward the trees. The sounds that immediately emanated from that area told me we’d hit our target.
“We definitely hit it,” Raven said, releasing Cole as she moved closer to the dreamcatcher. “I don’t know if we killed it, though. The first one is mortally wounded. It won’t survive.”
I was impressed. “How do you know that?”
“It’s just something I sense.”
I took a stand beside her and focused on the hints of movement I could see across the flat plain. We hadn’t illuminated the field this time. It seemed as though we probably should, so I nodded at Cole and pointed to the stars. “We could use a little light.”
“You’re a bossy little thing, aren’t you?” he groused as he mustered another bout of magic. Despite getting help from us, he wasn’t an endless source of energy. He wouldn’t be able to do much more.
As the lights flared over our guests like a star-filled canopy, my gaze immediately went to a woman in front of me and slightly to my left. There was something familiar about her, though I was positive I’d never laid eyes on her before.
“She looks like Dante,” Kade said, moving in behind me. “Do you think that’s his sister?”
I cast a glance over my shoulder, my heart constricting, and then nodded. “She does look like him. It makes sense.”
“That’s the guy you met at Guntown Mountain?” Raven asked, pursing her lips when I nodded. “I could end his torment here and take her out.”
I considered giving her the go-ahead but then thought better of it. “Wait. He might want to see her one more time.”
“And then what?”
“I don’t know. I liked him. Just ... don’t kill her right now. In fact ... .” I trailed off, my inner danger alarm kicking into overdrive as I turned toward the west. Something was happening, something away from the action on this side of the fairgrounds. One of our own was in danger ... and it was of the mortal variety.
“Nixie!” I broke into a run, not bothering to look over my shoulder to see who was following. I could feel the pixie’s plight. She was projecting it for all of us to read. I didn’t need a lighted pathway to follow because her fear was like a beacon.
I skidded to a stop at the House of Mirrors. There, only twenty feet from the dreamcatcher line, was Dolph. He had Nixie gripped in his big hands, dragging her toward the dreamcatcher line. She looked dazed. Blood ran down the side of her face, but she wasn’t defeated. She slapped at him as he tried to drag her away from safety. It was a fruitless effort. He was simply too strong.
I didn’t think. I just reacted.
“Dolph!” I strode forward and extended my hands, placing them against his chest and jolting him back with a huge burst of magic. He flew a good three feet in the air before landing. He was still on our side of the dreamcatcher, but the malice burning in his eyes told me he’d joined the other team.
“Poet,” Nixie gasped, dropping to her knees. “He came up behind me, hit me over the head. I don’t understand.”
Of course she didn’t understand. Dolph had been her protector for as long as I could remember. He was fond of both pixie twins, but Naida was more self-sufficient. He protected Nixie as though he were a guard dog on the prowl, and now he’d betrayed all the trust he’d built over the course of several years.
And yet it wasn’t his fault.
“Are you one of them?” I asked as he glared at me. “Are you beyond help?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He wasn’t a graceful liar. “I was trying to save her. One of the vampires crossed the border and attacked. She’s mistaken.”
“Right. One of the vampires crossed the dreamcatcher and it didn’t alert.” I narrowed my eyes as I looked him up and down. “I’m sorry this happened. I don’t know if you’re beyond our help, but we’ll do our best.”
He snorted, disdain evident. “Oh, geez. Have you ever listened to yourself? You’re such an idiot. You’re outgunned. There is no winning this war.”
“The real Dolph wouldn’t believe that. I’m sorry we didn’t realize what was happening before.”
“I’m not.” He moved fast. I was always surprised at how graceful he was despite his size. He launched himself at me, catching me off guard as I moved to hop out of the way. A mass of snarling teeth and hair met his attack as Luke shifted and charged into the fray.
“And now we have the dog,” Dolph sneered, hands going for Luke’s neck. He managed to snag him, causing Luke to whimper and whine. “I know what to do with a rabid dog.”
Legitimate fear filled my heart as I turned to help Luke. Dolph could kill Luke with a simple twist of his neck. “No!” I raised my hands, ready to let loose a barrage of magic, but was too late.
Kade and Cole, coming from behind me, attacked Dolph with their combined magic. For one blinding second, Dolph remained on his feet, Luke’s throat clenched tightly in his hands. But he couldn’t sustain the barrage. Even though he was weary, Cole had enough energy to knock the big man down. Once on his knees, Dolph lost his grip on Luke, who rolled away.
“Don’t kill him,” I ordered, moving to Luke’s side as he shifted back to human form. “We might be able to save him. Don’t kill him unless you absolutely have to.”
“I’m not going to kill him,” Cole replied, smacking his hands together and letting loose an echo of magic that flew at Dolph and knocked him backward. “I’m simply going to put him under for a bit.”
“I think you already have,” Kade said as he moved closer to Dolph, his fingers going to the big man’s neck. He frowned when he made contact. “His heart is racing.”
“We’ll worry about that after he’s in a cage,” I replied, gracing Luke with a hug as he struggled to catch his breath. “That was very brave ... but stupid. I can take care of myself.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” He rolled his eyes and then grinned. “Did you see how I shifted on the fly like that? I looked awesome, didn’t I?”
“Like a movie star,” Cole agreed, moving to his boyfriend’s side and checking the marks on his neck. “You’re lucky he couldn’t get a better grip. He could’ve killed you and there wouldn’t have been a thing we could’ve done about it.”
“I like living on the edge.” Luke winked at him. “I’m fine.”
“So is Dolph, for now,” Kade said, straightening. “We’ve got to get him in a cage.”
“More than that, we’ve got to magically lock him in that cage,” I added. “He’s strong enough to break out. We need time to figure this out.”
“Then let’s get moving. I don’t want to risk him waking before we’re done.”
19
Nineteen
Starla’s eyes were wide when we dragged Dolph into one of the empty animal cages. It took three of us because of his size, and she watched with rabid interest. Max arrived not long after, the look on his face when he saw what was happening promising retribution.
“I heard from Naida.” He folded his arms across his chest and shook his head. “How did this happen?”
I wasn’t a fan of his tone. “How should I know? We’re doing the best we can. Don’t blame me.”
“I’m fairly certain I didn’t blame you.”
That’s not how it sounded. Of course, I could’ve been blaming me and simply assumed he felt the same way. “We don’t know.”
Max held my gaze for a beat and then strode forward to stare into the cage. “He’s not a vampire.”
“He’s not,” I agreed. “But he’s under their control. I think ... I think somehow the strigoi managed to infect him.”
“How? We didn’t see any the night he was injured.”
“Or we simply think we didn’t see any.”
“I don’t know what that means.”
“Poet is convinced that the strigoi are passing as normal vampires,” Raven announced as she entered the tent. She looked upset. “I don’t know what I believe, but ... I need to see something.”
She clutched a UV light — one we used to repair equipment at night — in her hand, and strode to the side of the cage. She dropped to an even level with Dolph’s prone body and unleashed the light, frowning when the intense rays hit the side of his face.
“What are you looking for?” Max asked.
“The strigoi have worms ... or snakes ... something that moves under their skin. He doesn’t have that, at least that I can tell.” She sighed and stepped closer to Starla’s cage, holding the light this time and frowning when Starla screeched and covered her face.
“It burns!”
“She’s definitely a vampire,” Raven noted. “There’s nothing special about her.”
“I’m not a vampire,” Starla shot back, petulant. “You need to stop saying things like that.”
Raven ignored her. “I don’t know what Dolph is. I just ... don’t know.”
“Which means you have no idea how to free him,” Max noted. “That doesn’t bode well for us.”
“We haven’t lost yet,” I argued, my heart rolling. “We need time to figure it out. There’s no reason to hurry. We just ... need time.”
“We only have a few days,” Max countered. “Whatever is going to happen will start ramping up.”
“I’m well aware.” I pressed the heel of my hand to my forehead. The walls were starting to close in on me and it wasn’t a pleasant feeling.
“You should get some sleep.” Max was calm as he regarded me. “The vampires fled after the magical showing before. They’re regrouping. We’ll keep sentries overnight, but I think it’s safe to turn in. The dreamcatcher will protect us.”
“It will protect us from what’s outside,” I countered. “These guys are already here.”
Max’s forehead wrinkled. “What are you saying?”
“Dolph is our strongman. We need to reinforce the cage with magic so he can’t get out. He’s strong enough to bend the steel bars if we’re not careful.”
“I had not considered that.” Max nodded, resigned. “You’re right. We need to lock down this cage. Then I suggest everybody get some sleep.”
“And then what?” Raven challenged. “The circus opens tomorrow. We’re going to be in big trouble if we don’t start figuring things out.”
“Then we’ll figure things out.” Max’s tone had bite, but when Raven arched a speculative eyebrow he softened and sighed. “We’ll do the best we can, Raven. I don’t have all the answers. Not now. Tomorrow is another day. We’ll figure things out then.”
I SLEPT HARD. I DIDN’T THINK it would be a possibility, but I funneled so much energy into Dolph’s cage that I dropped off the second my head hit Kade’s shoulder. When I woke the next morning I was in the exact same position. He was awake, his fingers gentle on the back of my neck as he rubbed soothing circles to lull me, and he stared at the ceiling.
“Did something happen?” My voice was rusty from sleeping so hard and I made an effort to clear it.
“No. At least not that I’ve heard.” He brushed his lips against my forehead. “I thought maybe you might sleep a bit longer. It’s not even seven yet.”
“I slept enough.” I meant it. I felt recharged, though I knew that feeling wouldn’t last forever. “We need to start making plans.”
“I thought you were going to try to convince everyone to leave at a certain time. That’s what Cole said.”
“We will, but we can’t guarantee that’s going to work. We need to come up with a backup plan.”
“I’ve been thinking about that.” With his free hand he stroked his morning-stubbled chin. He was one of those men who woke looking effortlessly handsome. It was a bit annoying really. “That light Raven had last night. Did it actually burn the vampire?”
I nodded. “They don’t like UV rays. If we were to find their nest and somehow expose them to the sun we could kill them all at once. But they’re in the caves so that seems unlikely — at least without a whole truckload of explosives to move that much rock.”
“Yeah, but UV lights can help us turn night into day. They make units that are much bigger than the small one Raven was carrying.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning that we can light up the entire area if we need to and burn anything that tries to cross the dreamcatcher.”
It was an interesting idea. “You mean lure them in and then light them up.”
“It’s just an idea.”
“It’s a good idea.” I cuddled closer to him. “I know we have to get up and face the day — which really means facing Dolph and what’s going on — but I want five more minutes of this.”
“I was hoping we would do this forever.”
I grinned at his sappy expression. “We’ll start with five minutes. Then ... well ... then we need to figure out what’s going on with Dolph. There has to be a way to get him back.”
“And if there’s not?”
I didn’t want to think about that. “Let’s just assume there is and go from there.”
LUKE PICKED UP BREAKFAST SANDWICHES from McDonald’s for everyone so we skipped the meal preparations for a change and went straight to the animal tent. Starla was down for the count — the sun dragging her under — but Dolph was awake and alert.
“Has he said anything?” I asked as I dropped into a chair.
“He’s just been sitting there and glaring,” Raven replied, accepting the sandwich Luke dropped in her lap with a curt nod. “I’m not sure what to make of it. Nellie is insistent that we’ve made a mistake. He’s melting down.”
I was worried about that. “I’ll talk to Nellie. Where is he?”
“He went to shower and change. He kept vigil all night.”
“Well, at least he didn’t try to let him out or anything,” Luke said as he provided me with a sandwich and hash browns. “That’s something, right?”
“He couldn’t break the wards we put on this cage even if he attacked with a magical ax,” Raven replied. “He didn’t have a chance of letting his friend out, which I think is another reason he’s pouting.”
“He’ll be fine.” I was adamant as I bit into my sandwich and chewed. “Dolph is his best friend. It’ll take some adjustment but we’ll figure it out. I promise.”
“If you say so.” Raven crossed her legs and leaned back in her chair. Her gaze was speculative as she looked Dolph up and down. “There has to be a way to burn whatever this is out of him. Burn being the operative word.” She slid her eyes to Cole. “You have fire magic. Can you sense anything inside of him that you might be able to eradicate?”
Cole looked legitimately amused by the question. “Last time I checked I wasn’t a doctor.”
“That doesn’t mean you can’t fix him.”
“I’m also not a mind mage,” he persisted. “I don’t know how to read people the way you’re suggesting.”
Raven scowled. “Then what good are you.”
I shot her a dirty look. “He’s doing his best. Don’t take out your attitude on him. I know you’re fond of Dolph. It’s not Cole’s fault this happened. It’s not anybody’s fault. We just made a mistake in not realizing what was happening.”
“I am no more fond of Dolph than I am of you,” Raven shot back.
“And I know you love me beyond reason.” I flashed a smile and then went back to staring at Dolph. He seemed to be taking it all in ... and he was afraid. Of what, though? Was it us? Did he think we would kill him? In truth, if we had no other choice and I was reasonably assured we couldn’t get him back I might do exactly that. We were nowhere near that point, though.
