"Right now I don't give a shit about you or the rules." There was a soft twang, then a grunt, and the weight of her would-be protector hit her. She grabbed him reflexively, saw the wooden arrow sticking out of his chest and the fingers of flame beginning to spread from the wound. Dead for real this time. Tears stung her eyes, but she blinked them quickly away. Now was not the time to do anything more than survive. Surely those in the control room had to realize by now that something was wrong. All she had to do was hang on until they got here. She dropped the vampire's body and retreated, saw Lenny raise the crossbow a third time. She swore and dove sideways, rolling past the cover of a box. There was a thud against the side of it, then a rush of air, and suddenly he was on her again.
His weight pinned her, his fists smashing towards her face. She blocked the blows one handed then reached up, splaying her free hand against his chest.
"Burn, you bastard,” she said, and reached for the flaming power that surged through her veins, imagining him burning but not dying.
Fire exploded through her, around her. The force of it ripped the vampire free and flung him across the room. His screams filled the room, his body a blazing comet as it hit the far wall and disappeared behind several boxes.
Nikki took a deep, shuddering breath, then climbed to her feet and walked the rest of the way to the window.
She'd passed their damn test.
Now they could explain what the hell was going on.
Chapter Two
Michael leapt over the banister and hit the floor with enough force to jar his spine. Grunting, he pushed upright, and saw that the door was still closed. He swore viciously and punched the intercom button on the side of the doorway.
"Camille, get this door open!"
"It's not responding. He must have jammed it from the inside."
"Then I'll just have to break it."
"Be careful. The spell—"
He released the button, cutting off the rest of her warning, then clenched his fist and hit the door with everything he had—physically and kinetically.
For too many seconds, nothing happened. Then, with a screech that sounded like a live thing dying, the door exploded inwards. Wood and metal fell around him as he ran inside. The smell of burning flesh hit him immediately. Lenny's screams pierced the muggy air, the beat of his heart loud and erratic. Beyond that, further down the room, two more heartbeats. Human heartbeats, suggesting Nikki and Jon. The slower beat of a second vampire's heart was nowhere to be heard. Obviously, Marcus was dead.
He swore under his breath and ran swiftly around the boxes, heading for those two beats. Nikki knelt next to Jon, her hand on his shoulder, pressing a T-shirt into his wound. She glanced up as he approached, a mix of anger, confusion, and fear warming her expressive amber eyes.
"What took you so damn long?” She grabbed Jon's free hand and placed it against her makeshift bandage, then stood, thrusting her bloody hands on her hips.
Her anger burned through his mind, and he almost laughed out loud in sheer relief and joy. There wasn't much wrong with her if her temper was this high.
"Surely you could see what was going on in here?” she continued tartly.
"We did.” He grabbed her, pulling her into a hug that was as fierce as it was loving. “And I'm sorry, but Lenny barred the door. It took a while to force my way through. Are you all right?"
"Yes,” she said, her words muffled against his chest and at odds with the trembling in her body. “It was Jon who got hurt and...” She hesitated, her voice catching. “The other vampire was killed." He held her away from him, his gaze sweeping the length of her then coming back to her face. Her left cheek was swollen and beginning to bruise. He gently brushed a tear away from her cheek. “Any loose teeth?"
"A couple,” she admitted.
He saw the blood on her teeth and knew she'd probably cut the inside of her mouth as well. He pulled her into his arms again, brushed a kiss across her mouth and glanced down at Jon.
"Thank you."
Jon nodded. Pain still lingered in his blue eyes, but Nikki had pulled the white ash out of his shoulder, and the healing process would have begun.
"Thank me by finding out how that bastard got a cross bow and white ash in here. I thought we had spells set in the foyer to detect such things?"
"We do, but all spells can be countered if you know how.” What they had to find out is how someone like Lenny, who had no apparent knowledge in magical law, had managed it. And what his connection to Nadia might be. Michael had no doubt that there would be a connection. Two attacks, both using magic to get around the spells interwoven in this building, and both performed by people with no talent in magic—that was more than just a coincidence.
"You need a hand up?” he added, offering Jon a hand.
Jon's good hand clasped his, and Michael hauled him to his feet. “You'd better head to medical for a checkup, just in case those arrows were tipped with something." Jon nodded and walked away. Michael pulled back from Nikki and brushed the sweaty strands of dark chestnut hair from her forehead. Her skin still burned with the heat of the flames she'd directed at Lenny.
“You'd better get down to medical, too."