He might be a sadist with a violent streak a mile wide, but in the end, his human strength was no match for an adrenaline-fueled magepire. I kicked off his clinging hand and ran into the veil of dust.
My only goal then was to get as far from Cain as possible. As I ran, I saw bodies moving through the smoke. The sounds of combat echoed through the chamber. I kept going until my body slammed into someone. My hands flew up immediately to ward off a blow. The smoke cleared between us and I saw a stoic but familiar male face.
Tristan Graecus.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I yelled.
He grabbed my arm. “Saving your ass!” My father wore a black trench coat and jeans with Doc Martens boots. Quite a change from the medieval monk thing he had going on a few nights earlier.
“We have to go!” he yelled, struggling to hang on to me.
A werewolf appeared from the smoke and took a swipe at me. Out of nowhere, a flash of green streaked past me and attacked the were. Relief flooded through me as I watched Giguhl make quick work of the humanoid werewolf. If it had been a full moon, the victory would not have been so easy.
A female vampire rushed toward us. Her cherry hair was cut into a sleek bob, but her outfit was pure commando. The drab color and streaks of dirt were harsh counterpoints to the beauty of her delicate features. “T, we need to move!”
“Who the hell are you?” I demanded.
“She’s with me,” Tristan yelled over the din.
“Sabina!” Adam’s shout reached me. I turned to see him battling his way through the weres to get to us. I had never been happier to see the mancy. I threw myself at him. His arms wrapped around me automatically.
“Thank the gods we got here in time,” he said into my hair.
“How did you find me?”
“Lazarus, we’ve got to go!” Tristan yelled.
Adam nodded at my father. To me, he said, “I’ll explain later.” He kissed my forehead. “Promise.”
I nodded. Now wasn’t the time for talk. We needed to get the hell out of Dodge.
Tristan and the vampire started hacking through Cain’s thugs. Instead of arguing, I grabbed the gun Adam offered and took off. At my nod, Giguhl fell in behind us.
“Sabina!” Cain’s voice carried over the clash of weapons, the low growls of the weres, and the battle cries. The sound raised the hairs on the back of my neck. Wanting to get out of there suddenly became needing to get out. If I hesitated, I knew in my gut that Cain’s punishment would be swift and severe.
“Please tell me you know a way out of here,” I shouted to my father.
The vamp raised her free hand. “That way.”
A male vampire with a silver sword and female fae with a quiver and bow flanked us. I blinked, realizing they were the same pair I’d seen at the Spanish Steps.
Even with the armed escort, I didn’t let my guard down. Until we were clear of the catacombs and far away from Cain, I wouldn’t ever relax.
“SABINA!” Cain’s scream shook the walls.
Tristan turned. “Horus, Calyx, fall back and hold them off until we’re clear. Then run like hell.” The pair nodded and turned out from our phalanx. Behind us, the sounds of fighting renewed. “Hurry!” my father urged the rest of us.
Running. After all those years as a predator, I’d now been reduced to prey. My thighs burned with exertion and my heart pumped blood like a piston. Our pounding footsteps and the harsh rasps of our breaths echoed off the tunnel walls.
The sounds of battle became muted as we wound our way through countless twists and turns. Every now and then, Tristan would look back to make sure we were keeping up.
“Sabiiina,” Cain’s voice was taunting now. It crept through the narrow corridors like poisonous gas. Cold sweat and fear seeped through my pores.
Lowering my head, I dug in and pushed harder. Tristan’s vampire led the way. Next to me, Adam’s thumping pulse was a visceral sensation in my solar plexus. I focused on counting the beats to distract myself from the fear. I tried to remind myself that Cain didn’t have the magical skills of a mage or the preternatural speed of a vampire. In the end, he was simply a man.
“Why can’t you guys just flash us out of here?” Giguhl demanded after we’d run for what felt like miles.
“I won’t leave Calyx and Horus behind. We’ll flash out once they return,” Tristan said. “Just a little farther.”
The vampiress led us to what appeared to be a dead end. But then she held up the torch to show a scaffold set against the walls. A tall ceiling rose above this section of the tunnel, probably twenty feet high. She handed the torch to Tristan and started climbing.
“Where’s she going?” My voice was breathless and high from fear.
“The Christians built in skylights and airshafts during construction. Many have been closed or built over from above. She’s checking to see if this one is still open.”
A piecing whistle reached us from somewhere above. Then thin, blue light filtered down. The rush of air that accompanied the light smelled a lot like freedom.
Chapter 17
I leaned against the crumbling stone wall. Sweat and dirt coated every inch of my skin. Relief at losing our pursuers warred with resentment in my gut. I didn’t want to owe Tristan a debt for saving my ass. Especially when my plan to blackmail him into helping us had crashed and burned so spectacularly.
“That was way too close,” the female vampire said.
“Needlessly so,” Tristan snapped. He rounded on me. “I thought I told you to leave Rome.”
I raised my chin. “I am not yours to command.”
“Well someone needs to. What the hell were you thinking?”
I frowned. “With which part, exactly?”
Giguhl snorted.
“Your teammates filled me in on your ludicrous plan.”
I crossed my arms defensively. “At least I had a f**king plan. Unlike some people who are ready to surrender before the real battle’s even begun.”
“Your sarcasm is both unwarranted and unnecessary.”
“Your existence is unnecessary,” I shot back.
“Ouch,” the vampire chick said. “Can we put aside family dysfunction hour for a few minutes so we can formulate a plan to get very far away from here?”
I sucked at my teeth, daydreaming about telling both of them to go f**k themselves. But I knew that was only my battered ego talking. Plus, she was right; our hideout was not safe enough.
We’d taken refuge in a farmhouse a couple of miles from the shaft we’d exited. The stone was blackened and crumbling from years of exposure to the elements. The roof, such as it was, had gaping holes that exposed the clear night sky. The first pale streaks of dawn already decorated the horizon.