The more distance I put between the ETers, and us the easier it was to concentrate, except for Luke’s overwhelming fear and agitation. The monotony of the rooms drilled holes into my already aching brain—large metal tables, stainless steel sinks, more refrigerators, and cabinets. My father wasn’t in any of them.
“Was that doctor one of them?” Luke asked.
“A vampire? Yeah.”
Luke shuddered at the mention of the word “vampire. “Why was Dad after him?”
I took a deep breath. “Long story.”
We pushed on, deeper down to stairs leading back up to the ground floor. From the outside, the building above didn’t seem as vast.
“Can anyone bust these doors open?” I yelled. My voice was greeted with a return echo followed by unnatural laughter.
“No,” the faceless vampire whispered. “You’re trapped.”
“As if,” I called back, knowing the bloodsucker was near. “Come and get me.”
I was so ready to fry some vamp butt; I only needed a target.
“Don’t do that,” Luke whimpered behind me.
“What? Taunt them? I have to, or it’s going to stop us from finding Dad.”
Suddenly, I was ripped backward into a darkened room, my pen yanked out of my hand. I went to scream when fingers covered my mouth.
“Shhh,” a soft, warm breath tickled my ear in my ear. My body melted like taffy once I recognized Phil’s voice. “Don’t scream.”
I agreed and he let me go. “Have you been here the whole time? Where’s Sam?”
“Here,” she said behind me in the dark.
“What?” I swiveled around and ran for her voice. My arms squeezed around her neck upon contact. “You’re alive.”
“Get your brother in here,” Phil said in earnest. “Quick.”
Luke hysterically called for me in the hall, followed by a high-pitched wail. I ran out of the room to find him.
“It’s okay, Luke.”
He jolted around. The smoldering arms of a vampire were attached to his suit. “It’s not okay!”
I pulled off the crispy appendages and led him into the room, closing the door behind me. The exit sign illuminated a disturbing green glow over his wide eyes. His breath puffed in and out in quick succession.
“It’s okay. Just breathe.”
“It’s not okay,” he yelped. “You left me out there with that
thing
. Where’s the lights?”
“Take the pen from him,” Phil whispered.
“Who’s here?!” Luke stumbled backward and hit his fist against the wall.
The bright florescent lights assaulted the room. Sam and Phil hid next to a set of cabinets. I lunged for Luke’s extended arm and knocked the activated pen from his hand just in time.
“Damn, that hurt!” Phil nursed a spot on his leg where the laser nicked him.
Luke fell to the floor to seize the pen. I kicked it away and grabbed his shoulder, igniting a burst of red hot light.
“Argh,” I yelled and let go. “They aren’t going to hurt you. Calm down!”
He backed up against the wall, trying the door I’d closed behind us. I stopped it with my foot and grabbed his hands. He fought me and canvassed the room, his eyes wide. “Sam? What happened to you?”
She shrugged and smiled, a little too large, flashing her canines. Luke panicked again and pushed me hard against the wall.
“They aren’t going to hurt us. Just take off that suit before you hurt me again, or someone else for that matter.”
He shook his head and eyeballed Phil, terror exploding off of him in an invisible fireworks display. “No. They’re
them
!”
I moved to block his view of Sam and Phil. “They are not going to hurt you. Please stop freaking out.”
His fragile psyche bordered on hysteria. I looked to Phil for help.
“Luke. It’s all cool, dude.” He held up his hands. “I’m not like them and neither is Sam.”
She locked eyes with him and walked up slowly, taking his hand. Peace bounded from her invisibly. Luke’s shoulders relaxed.
Phil appeared behind me. “I think I gave her some mindreading juju like what Alora’s got.”
“What?” I swirled around.
“I had to ensure she wouldn’t die, so I … you know,” he cocked an eyebrow and smiled, waving his hand to highlight the puncture wound on her neck.
“You bit her?”
“Well, yeah.”
My mouth perched open. “You sucked her blood?”
“No,” Phil said adamantly. “I did not. You would have been proud of me. I just didn’t have any other way to inject her directly.”
He gave a weak smile as I contemplated what happened. He’d infused her existing venom with his. Ingenious.
“Is that why she didn’t die?”
“Die?” he asked. “Why would she die? I’m confused.”
“The doctor. They got him. I saw the ashes.”
“They did?” Phil’s brows creased. “It’s not Dr. V. We took him to the storage building at the boardwalk like you asked. Nick’s with him.”
“I’m so confused.” I pressed my hand to my forehead. “Then who did they kill inside?”
Phil shrugged. “Beats me. We got here. Nick had Dr. V, so we transported him via sky D’Elia to the boardwalk like you wanted.”
“You captured Dr. V?”
“Well,” Phil curled up the corners of his lips. “Sorta. Nick actually did.”
I sobered up immediately at the thought of the doctor being locked up in a cage, the same cage I was in not too long ago. “And my dad?”
“What about your dad?”
“You didn’t see him?”
“I’m kinda avoiding vampire hunters,” Phil snorted, looking to Sam for confirmation. “I don’t think there’s anyone
human
here, besides those freaks in the suits and you two. There aren’t even that many vamps.”
Sam let go of Luke, who took a deep cleansing breath and dropped his shoulders. “We only came back to get Todd and once I see him, he’s going to get it.” Sam slammed her hand into her palm.
“So, do you think he might be here?” I questioned “Did some vamps escape? Could he have been captured by Todd’s coven? Where would they take him?”
Phil held his hands up in surrender. “I don’t know.”
“Why then didn’t Nicholas text me or call me and tell me? I’ve been worried sick.”
“Dude doesn’t know how to use the phone. I’ve had to show him every time,” Phil said, his smile a little too bright. “His amnesia is deep, let me tell ya.”
I shook my head, overwhelmed with decisions and details. A wave of bloodlust hit, warning me more vampires were clued in on our location.
“I guess we should go to the storage facility and decide what to do with the doctor.”
Phil shrugged. “It’s your call. We don’t really need him around anymore.”
“True.” I shifted my weight. Something about executing Dr. Volynski apart from the heat of battle didn’t feel right. I threw my hands up in the air. “Fine then, let’s get out of here.”
Phil gestured toward Luke. “Not until he takes off that vamp smokin’ suit. I don’t trust him.”
I turned to Luke. “You have to take it off.”
“No.” He folded his arms across his chest. A red glow emanated from his biceps.
I put my hand on my hip. “Then you’re going to have to stay with the ETers. I’m leaving with Phil and Sam to find Dad. And the way we’re traveling, you can’t wear that coat.”
“How are we going to travel?” Luke said, curiosity piqued.
“You didn’t say we’d be flying!” Luke screamed, clawing onto Sam like a cat about to be given a bath.
I laughed as Phil and I flew together just a few feet away.
“This is awesome!” I yelled into the night sky. The cold air whipped my hair around my face, bringing back fond memories.
“I’ve missed this,” Phil whispered in my ear.
“Me, too.” I squeezed his hand that rested firmly against my stomach. “You’ve been a little busy to cart me around these days.”
He hummed and my heart warmed at his nostalgia. Even in the midst of chaos, his presence made me feel safe and whole with his body pressed against mine, his arm around me. I’d always cherish him as one of my closest friends.
“Lucky for me Nick lost his memories, huh?” he teased. “Or that reunion might have turned out really ugly”
“Yeah.” I smiled as he chuckled.
Out of the corner of my eye, though, I caught him watching Sam. A feeling of admiration and attraction stirred from within him, surprising me.
I tried to shake it off and rested my head against his cheek.
“So after all this, you gonna stick around? Or run off somewhere? There’s nothing really keeping you here.” A twinge of sadness gripped my heart at the thought of him leaving, but things wouldn’t remain like this if Nicholas regained his memories.
“I guess I could travel the world. See stuff. Maybe Sam will want to come along?” I stopped the gasp in my throat before it escaped. “What about you and Nick? The fab four could travel together.”
His suggestion gripped my stomach. He and Sam? Together? I wasn’t so sure I was on board with this.
“Ummm. I do need to finish high school,” I spit out.
“You could join the dark side and quit like me,” he suggested, his voice brimming with husky sexiness that made saying no difficult.
“No. I could not. That wouldn’t go over well especially with my dad and his line of work.”
The thought of my dad made my stomach somersault. We shouldn’t be talking about the future. We should be focused on finding him before it’s too late.
“It’s fun, Parker,” Phil sing-songed. “You know you want to and I’ve got plenty of venom to share.”
“Let’s just find my dad first, deal with Dr. Evil, and—” I gasped, completely forgetting about the real news, about Cain coming to town.
“What? What’s wrong?” Phil gripped me tighter.
“I got a visit from Alora tonight. And Scarlett. They had a big cat fight in my front yard. Alora said the necklace was his and he was coming to get it. We have to hide. If he finds Nicholas, or any of us, we’re all dead meat.”
“Whoa. Slow down. What are you talking about?”
“Cain! He’s coming here! We’re all in a lot of trouble.”
I explained what happened at the house and Phil didn’t say much more, but the great deal of protectiveness he exuded spoke volumes. I crawled underneath it to feel secure until we arrived at the boardwalk.
Down below, the Ferris wheel spun empty. The apocalypse was upon us, ready to rip our world apart. Good thing tourists knew and stayed far away. Phil swooped me down just outside the storage structure.
Sam did the same and Luke lay down and kissed the sand. “Firm ground.”
“Come on,” I said and pulled his hand to help him to his feet. His adrenaline rush fed my desire to get to Nicholas.
As we opened the door, memories of being captured here not too long ago worked a heaping dose of guilt as I stared into the doctor’s eyes. He was quite a bit older than I imagined.
Nicholas got to his feet with his cell phone in hand. Frustration that could register on the Richter scale rolled off him in abundant loads. “I don’t know how to work this thing.”
I ran over to him and hugged his neck, noting he was more roughed up than normal. He kissed me on the forehead and wrapped his arm around my waist.
All of us stood and stared into the cage at the old man, feeble and scared. On the inside he was much more confident than I would have liked, though.
“Please,” he begged, his Ukrainian accent very prominent. “Please don’t kill me. I will do anything.”
Lies.
“I think you’ve done enough. Actually, we should just do everyone a favor and stake you right now,” I suggested.
“Please. I am not your enemy. The epidemic wasn’t my fault. My partner, he stole my research and began to create an army behind my back. He wanted to take over and rule.”
His act, tremendously convincing, softened everyone but me. I read through his perfect lies.
“Nice try.” I turned to Luke and held out my hand. “Give me your pen.”
“No.” The calculating hardness of the doctor’s voice gave away the coldness inside him. “That would be disadvantageous, especially to Samantha.”
Sam moved closer into Phil’s side.
“We’ve taken care of that. She’s no longer
yours,
but thanks for caring.” I clicked the pen on and pointed the light just above his cage.
The doctor ducked. “Mixing venom I see. Tricky business, playing with physiology you know so little about.”
Truth.
I moved the light a little closer to his head, tempted to singe a few of the hairs on top.
“And if you kill me, I can’t fix your mistakes if something goes wrong. All the secrets die with me.”
I clicked off the pen and raised a brow, trying to remain visibly strong. “What do you mean?”
“Depending on the venom line, it could strengthen or be of a detriment to the subject. How are you feeling, Samantha?”
“How do you know my name?” she asked softly.
“You’re my child. Why wouldn’t I know you?”
I took a deep breath and looked at Phil. He remained stoic though inside he was terrified as was Sam. Luke and Nicholas stood motionless, both waiting for me to make a move. Problem was I didn’t know what to bargain with anymore.
I pulled my eyes into slits. “Then I guess we have no choice but to hold you hostage.”
The doctor smugly settled in on the floor as if he was there by choice. “Well, until my men find me, which they will because you absolutely smell divine.” He inhaled in. “I guess we’ll be getting to know one another.”
Unlikely.
I gritted my teeth and looked to Nicholas. “I need to talk to you.”
He ticked his head towards the door and held out his hand as a guide. Once outside, I grabbed him and hugged hard. “This has been the worst day ever. My dad is missing. Please tell me you saw him.”
“He is?” He caressed my shoulders. “I didn’t. Sorry. It was quite chaotic. I grabbed the doctor and the others went after a decoy.”
The tears seeped out from my weakened exterior and I bit my lip to stop them. I wanted to scream. I wanted to hit something. I wanted my Nicholas back so he could tell me what to do.
“We’ll find him,” Phil said from behind me. “I’ll fly Nick so we’re faster. Sam can stay here with you and Luke as a guard. We’ll regroup before sunrise and move Dr. V. to the house where Sam and I can watch him. No one’s going to come for him during the day.”