Bloodlust, page 18
But now, he was thankful. Because every wrong that gun helped commit was about to be reversed when he buried as many bullets as he could into the devil himself.
Sebastian was pulled from his reverie by knocking on the door. He grabbed the gun and closed the box. Hiding it again, he put the gun in the pocket of his coat and stood up to go to the front of the house.
Opening the door, Sebastian met eyes with too many fucking immortals. How had his life come to this?
“You ready to go?” Whitney asked. “You got your wooden stakes and garlic knots?”
“And silver bullets to match,” Sebastian sighed. They had instructed him to pack light — he couldn’t even bring a bag with him. But the thought of being in the same clothes for however long wasn’t really the priority in his head. He’d go nude if it meant getting Leona back safely.
The dark-haired man stepped out of the threshold of the front door and locked the place up. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
Though Sebastian had evanesced with Leona short distances throughout the city, they had never had the chance or reason to travel further than that. Doing so across an entire ocean made his head spin. Piper had carried him and Charlotte, and Whitney had carried Victor. Though Charlotte had shown great potential with evanescing as a new vampire, Piper and Whitney stressed that they would need their entire strengths to go against Gideon, and they couldn’t risk Charlotte or Victor tiring themselves out beforehand with the travel. Plus, this journey was one the older vampires had made countless times.
Not necessarily with two new vampires and a human in tow, but… first time for everything.
Sebastian had been sick practically the entire time, his nerves consuming him. His brain was whirring with constant worries about Leona. Was she okay? Was she hurt? Was she alive? Was she even at this psychopath’s castle? Both Whitney and Piper assured him this was a pattern, and this would be the most likely place she’d be. Gideon was far too arrogant to stay hidden from his home. But they had taken her multiple times before, they could do it again.
Whitney had not been able to get much information from Damien on the situation. She had briefly been in contact with him via phone when they landed in England, but that was it. He had hurriedly told her to go back home and not start this again, but she was having none of it. She knew he wouldn’t be there to fight against them, but he wouldn’t be there to fight with them either. She had also heard nothing from Theodore, which meant he was likely with Damien during their conversation and had heard everything. Usually, he was the most level-headed of the group, and stayed in the neutral zone. But… a fight with Gideon wasn’t something anyone wanted to be caught in the middle of.
The closest they were able to evanesce to Gideon’s estate was the outskirts of the woods surrounding the property. He would be able to sense and smell their magic otherwise, and the element of surprise was everything to their mission. All Sebastian could do was take in the scenery as they went on their hike through the forest. It was the only distraction his brain could latch onto in the moment.
He just prayed they weren’t too late. He hoped her spirits weren’t broken and that she knew in her heart they would rescue her.
He was also grappling with the fact that he was probably about to die. Closing his eyes, it took everything to keep his breathing calm. His friends were concerned, but they knew better than to bother him at the moment. They had tried, all the way up until they started their trek to the forest, to talk him out of coming. They’d probably try some more on their hike and before they eventually made their way into Gideon’s castle. Nothing they could say would ever change his mind.
He had been at peace with the thought of dying for years now — decades, even. Not that he ever thought his demise would come from a jealous, controlling vampiric overlord, but there were less cool ways to die, he supposed. Overall, he would be giving his life so she could get away, she could escape and be happy. Maybe with all of them combined, Gideon would finally be defeated and nobody would have to look over their shoulders anymore. If that was possible, then… he’d happily lay his life down for their futures.
The hike wasn’t as long as he predicted, given Victor had picked Sebastian up to speed things along. He hadn’t minded. Whatever got them there the quickest was what he wanted to do.
They hid behind a thick wall of trees, glimpses of Gideon’s castle poking through the foliage. Sebastian stared up at it, his heart racing. She was in there. He knew it.
And he was going to get her out.
“There’s a servants' entrance around the back,” Whitney said quietly, looking between them. “I’m unsure if he’s closed it off. We used it last time. If he hasn’t, it will lead us into the slave quarters, which is near the dungeon. Leona might be there. Unless he’s decided to keep her elsewhere. Best case scenario, we grab her before Gideon even knows we’re there, and we get the fuck out of there hopefully with all our heads attached to our bodies.”
“And… the worst case?” Charlotte asked, her eyebrows stitched together in concern.
“He finds us and kills all of us,” Piper deadpanned, folding her arms. “But thinking about that possibility isn’t going to do anyone any good. We need to focus. We need to be quiet. Sebastian’s scent is a problem. It will be a miracle if he hasn’t caught it already. He can’t move as fast or quiet as us. He’s a liability.”
“No offense taken,” Sebastian muttered with a roll of his eyes. “I know I’m not as badass as everyone here, but I have a weapon, I’m used to fighting, and I am quicker than most on my feet. I used to break into houses for money growing up. I know how to sneak around.”
“One of you needs to stay with Sebastian at all times. It might be enough to mask his scent,” Piper added, looking between everyone. “We’re going to go in and pray we can get to the dungeons without being seen. Then, we’re going to pray some more that Leona is actually there. If she isn’t, we’ll need to split up and go looking for her. Whitney and I will be able to catch her scent, so we’ll go in pairs. Well… one trio,” she said, glancing at Sebastian. “But we need to accept that Gideon will probably find us before we find her. We need to distract him long enough to get to her, then just try to make a run for it. Fighting him is useless.”
“You know he’s going to try to fight,” Whitney said. “There’s four of us now. Not two.”
“Five,” Sebastian cut in.
“Four immortals,” Whitney corrected. “And a gun. At the very least, a gunshot will catch him off guard and distract him momentarily. All we need is a moment.”
Piper looked at her dubiously, then sighed. “A moment is the best chance we have.”
27
Leona was surrounded by drained rat carcasses. It was all she had to survive. She was lucky Gideon had even allowed her that much. Her head had healed from his last violent attack, but her heart and spirit weren’t so quick to bounce back. She had told herself — and Gideon — that she would not lose hope, but… it was difficult. Ever since she’d entered into this immortal contract with her master, she formed a habit of fearing the worst. Because the worst was all that happened most of the time.
Taking a deep breath, she inhaled, trying to calm herself down. Then… she froze. Her eyes flew open and she inhaled again, catching a whiff of…
Sebastian.
Both fear and elation crippled her. She knew he was here, somewhere, and prayed it wasn’t Gideon who brought him in. Inhaling again, she caught the scent of Whitney, Piper… They were here, just like they always were. She turned her head toward the door and scrambled to her feet. If this was anything like last time, she needed to be ready to go. The first time, Gideon hadn’t locked her away, and it had been rather easy to slip out. After that, he learned from his mistake and imprisoned her when he wasn’t around. This time… no matter if he was there or not, she was bound.
She pressed her ear against the door, trying to listen for anything. She could smell Gideon near too, and her body felt colder than usual with the terror flowing through her. As she heard footsteps, she backed off, her face hopeful. As the door burst open, her eyes fell on…
“You fucking whore,” Gideon hissed, his eyes red and bright with fury. “I know your little friends are hiding around here somewhere. Are they in here?”
“No,” Leona said, trying to keep her voice even. “But they’ll find me eventually. I told you, you will lose. They’re here. My saviors are here to rescue me. Again. How many times do we have to go through this before you realize it’s pointless, Gideon? That is what loyalty is.”
Gideon grabbed her by the throat and tried to force her mouth open, a small vial in his hand with an amber, murky liquid sloshing around inside. She screamed and curled her fingers around his hands, barely keeping him off her. Eventually, she managed to get her hand on the glassware and crushed it, the contents pouring out on both their hands. When he pulled back, she took her chance and bolted out of the room. A rush of adrenaline pumped through her, despite her hunger, and the thought of seeing Sebastian and escaping was the main thing spurring her on.
As she rounded a corner, she was suddenly grabbed. She thrashed against the person, until a familiar voice brought her out of her fearful trance.
“Leona!” Piper gasped, gripping her as tight as she could so she didn’t run away. “Where is Gideon?! We were going to come to find you, but we heard him come and broke apart so he didn’t find us. We needed to throw him off Sebastian’s scent.”
“Where is Sebastian?!” Leona practically shrieked in fear. “He’s down there and he’s pissed. We have to find Sebastian and get him the hell out of here before Gideon—”
“Before Gideon what?” a dark voice said from the other side of the room. Leona and Piper both turned to look at him, and Leona’s eyes widened. Gideon stood, Sebastian on his knees beside him, struggling under the grip the vampire had on his head and hair. “Aww…” Gideon tutted, poking out his lower lip. “Didn’t quite go to plan, did it? He was much easier to chase after than you, flower. And I met your new friends,” he said, glancing toward Victor, Charlotte, and Whitney. “I would say the backup was a good call, but… bringing a snack along the way probably wasn’t the strategy I would have gone with.”
“Let him go,” Leona said shakily. She tried to step toward him, but Piper kept her pulled back. “Let him go. Now, Gideon.”
“Why in the hell would I want to do that? He only just got here, Le, I want to give him a grand tour. Bloke didn’t even have the decency to knock on the front door,” he pouted, before dragging him across the room. Sebastian grunted in pain and brought his hands up to claw at Gideon’s vice above him. Gideon walked through to the open foyer, then tossed Sebastian in front of him like he weighed nothing more than a doll. Sebastian tumbled and braced himself on his hands and knees, his head screaming from the pain.
“Ah, ah,” Gideon said, putting his hand out as Leona, Whitney, Piper, Charlotte, and Victor quickly followed behind him. He glanced over his shoulder, then turned so he could face all six of them. “He stays over there. You stay over there. That’s how the rules work,” he said, pointing to either side of the room. “I want you all to have a good seat to watch our brave, darling Sebastian’s final act.”
“I’m not afraid of you,” Sebastian said, causing Gideon’s attention to whip to him.
“You really are stupid,” Gideon laughed, turning his body completely toward Sebastian. Leisurely, he strolled over to him, his fingertips arched together. “Why are you so hellbent on protecting her? You know you’re nothing to her, don’t you? Nothing but a momentary distraction. She tells me you don’t want to be turned. If you were smarter, you’d abandon them and be here with me. Let me teach you about this life. Not the sentimental ways of women,” he said, sneering at Leona, Whitney, Piper, and Charlotte. “I see they’ve already corrupted this one,” he said, nodding to Victor. “You sure? It’s not too late to choose the right side, Beliveau.”
“You’re fucking insane,” Sebastian bit back.
“Pity. It’s a shame, really. I’d like to see what someone like you could do as an immortal. Having said that, you’re too annoying to be kept alive,” Gideon said. “Your courage, though, is conflated with idiocy, I’ll give credit where it’s due.”
“I don’t need to be an immortal to kill you,” Sebastian spat. “Anything can be killed. You just have to know how to do it.”
Gideon threw his head back and a laugh bellowed from him. “Is that so? Please, enlighten me. How do you kill me?”
“Rip you apart. Burn you. Poison you. Maybe some other things. Let’s test my theory,” Sebastian countered, reaching behind him. He pulled out his gun and aimed it toward him. “What about a half dozen bullets to the head?”
Gideon raised his eyebrows. “Color me impressed, human. This is a first, I’ll admit. It looks like a nice firearm. You’re confident in using it?”
“Confident enough to fuck your creepy face up,” he growled, cocking the gun and moving his finger back over the trigger.
“Do it then,” Gideon said. He smirked and tilted his chin up arrogantly, holding his arms out. “Will you quit stalling after this performance is over? Leona isn’t exactly going to leave willingly without you.”
Piper’s eyes widened and she gripped Leona’s hand. The plan had been to have Sebastian distract Gideon while she got Leona out, and the others were responsible for getting Sebastian out in the commotion of it all. As much as she knew Leona loved Sebastian, she was there for her, not him. If he died, well… Leona would get over it eventually. Whitney was safe because of Damien. Gideon hadn’t killed her yet and she highly doubted he’d start today. And she could adequately protect Victor and Charlotte. Piper, however, hadn’t accounted for the long list of supernatural abilities Gideon possessed and the link they all shared. She felt a fool.
“Go!” Sebastian yelled, knowing their plan was compromised. He squeezed the trigger as many times as he could, the gun echoing loudly throughout the room.
Six bullets pelted Gideon and he barely did so much as sway back. Two hit side-by-side on his forehead, another above his mouth, two on either side of his neck, and the last above his sternum. Some blood came out due to the impact, but Gideon didn’t look much more bothered than if a mosquito had landed on him.
“Bravo,” Gideon said, plucking the crushed casing of bullets out of his skin. His body began to morph back into his pristine state. He wiped the blood from him and licked it clean. “I’m sick of playing these games with you,” he said, turning to look at the rest of them, who were bolted to the ground by the force of his gaze. “All of you die tonight. And Leona will live with it for the rest of her miserable existence.” Sebastian was hurriedly reloading the gun. He knew it was pointless, but he wasn’t going to stand there and do nothing. Short of running at him and trying to tackle him or throw a punch, he was out of options.
Just as he was about to fire more rounds, Gideon lunged for Victor and Charlotte first. The blondes struggled against his grip, screaming and cursing to get him off. Piper, Leona, and Whitney were working together to pry him off their friends. Gideon reared his hand back and bat Whitney off him, letting go of Victor in the process. He still had Charlotte held tight in one hand. Leona and Piper managed to hold on and continued tearing away whatever they could of Gideon. Whitney rushed back toward him and bit his ear, ripping it off in a gush of blood. Gideon roared in pain and jerked his head back, bashing Whitney in the forehead. Once she was off him, Gideon’s left hand joined his right in clamping around Charlotte’s throat. It was a struggle with Leona and Piper still hanging off him. The grip made Charlotte cough violently, then she raked her nails down his hands, failing to loosen his grip.
Sebastian was by Victor and Whitney’s sides, checking if they were okay. They seemed dazed from Gideon’s strength, but otherwise unharmed... for the most part.
“Sebastian, go hide. Go far away from here. Leave the castle and hike back, go find civilization and get yourself home,” Whitney panted.
“I’m not leaving!” Sebastian snapped. He was angry with the lack of confidence in him. He didn’t have their powers, but he would not abandon them in any circumstances. He looked around and tried to find anything that would help. The room was decorated with things he’d only seen in movies or history books. Suits of armor, ancient artwork, sculptures. He spotted some thick cable wrapped around some of the pillars of art Gideon had. As Victor and Whitney went back to help Charlotte, Sebastian ran to the pillar and began prying the steel cable off. Soon, he had a long piece in his hands, and he darted back to the group. Launching himself, he hooked the cable around the front of Gideon’s neck and yanked back with all the force he could muster. It was enough to catch the vampire off guard, and his grip faltered from Charlotte. She coughed violently, her neck purple and her eyes red with blood. She rolled over and gasped, trying to get her vision back in check.
Sebastian’s attack didn’t do anything except piss Gideon off more. He threw Sebastian off him and he hit the stairs in the middle of the room, the marble cracking under the force of his body. He cried out in pain and tried to push himself up, but he knew several things were broken.
“ENOUGH!” Gideon boomed, the shockwave of anger sending everyone else flailing back. As they recovered, he stormed over to Sebastian and picked him up by the throat. Sebastian groaned in agony and mauled at the monster’s wrists to try to get some airflow. Gideon slowly lifted him up, his feet dangling off the ground.
