Yew Queen Trilogy, стр. 36

Chapter 24

I stormed over, my gaze locking on Kaippa, but my words were for my friend, a friend who had no idea she was chatting it up with a vampire. “Get away from him, Hekla.”

How had he ended up here? He couldn’t leave the castle without my fancy aura nearby, so he must have been following me since I’d left.

Hekla paled at my tone and immediately took three steps back. She knew I wasn’t playing. “Who is he?” she asked, ignoring Kaippa’s grin.

“Bad news, that’s who.” I got in Kaippa’s face. “You don’t have a lure, asshole. So all I have to do is outrun you, and you’re magical toast.”

“Good luck with that, human.”

“Freaking out over here.” Hekla gripped my sleeve and stared at Kaippa. “Please tell me what on God’s great green earth you are talking about.”

“Vampires are fast.” Kaippa grinned, showing his fangs.

Hekla jerked, shocked at his teeth. His hand flashed out, and he snatched her before I could even think about moving. A smear of blood showed where his fingers held hers.

Whose blood? What was he doing?

I grabbed Hekla’s arm and tried dragging her away, but Kaippa just laughed and held on.

Hekla’s face relaxed into the smile of a drunk. “I think I want to talk to him for a minute, Coren. Just a sec. I’ll go into the movie in a bit. ’Kay?”

“Not ’kay. This dude is not a good guy.”

Kaippa pouted. “I’m hurt.” He stepped close and whispered into my ear. “I’ll only take a taste, like I did with you. And then I’ll release her, and you can escort me back to the castle. Deal?”

“No deal. I thought you were good to go. And how are you doing this to her right now without biting her?” I looked around. Where had the ticket booth lady gone? Where were all the normal tourists and locals milling about? The street in front of the theater had become a ghost town, and I fully suspected Kaippa of somehow rigging that right up.

“That’s my blood,” he said. “It is a bit of a…how would you say it? A stiff drink.”

“That just soaks through her skin and intoxicates her.”

“Yes.” He raised an eyebrow as if I should have been impressed.

If I ran off and tried to outdistance my aura’s effect on him, I’d be leaving Hekla in his arms. But surely, he’d run with me. I would take off toward the castle and hope he left Hekla where she stood, grinning like me during the last Wine Down Main Street event.

I glanced at him, then I spun and took off in the opposite direction.

Panting, heart racing, I didn’t look back. I focused on getting around the back of the buildings on Main so I could reach my motorcycle. I had the keys in my pocket. If I got on that, he wouldn’t be able to stay close enough to avoid turning to ash, right? But if he flew, said plan would not work. But would he fly out here where Hekla could see him? I guessed no one else would see him because that’s how it had worked with Lucus, Hekla, and my blissfully ignorant neighbor. But why would Kaippa care about Hekla seeing his bat wings? He wouldn’t.

Damn.

But my motorcycle was the only thing I could think of. All the other Main Street businesses were closed for the night, and even if I could break in, well, Kaippa could too. There was no getting away unless I made it to my bike and burned some serious rubber.

Fumbling with my keys, I flung myself onto my bike, chucking my helmet because there was NO TIME. I jammed the key into the ignition and started the engine without a hitch even though my hands were shaking like crazy.

“Please be long gone, Hekla. Please just run,” I whispered into the wind that hit my cheeks as I tore down the road.

Passing the stuffed parking lot behind Gray’s bar and restaurant, I tried to look over my shoulder to see if Kaippa was nearby or, even better, a nearby cloud of ash.

But I didn’t see him. At all.

“Where are you?” I hissed as I rounded the corner of a dumpster and headed onto 4th Street. I raced down Main, rounded the square in record time, and zipped up 3rd, trying to lose him. My bike tore past Cherry Manor and its supposed ghosts, and the traffic light turned red. Before the minivan at the cross street could get its bulky self moving, I dashed through the intersection, running the light and praying no cops would make this even more difficult.

I had to make it to Hillsboro and a long straight run where I could speed up. At the turn onto Hillsboro from Bridge Street, I veered around a Jeep and a green Porsche and hit the gas.

Dodging cars and trucks and running red lights, I practically flew down Hillsboro with no chance to peer backward to see if Kaippa was on my tail. A siren started up.

“No, Mr. Police! I have no fight with you, sir!” I called out despite knowing the cop barreling down on me couldn’t hear a thing. I had gone full crazy lady.

Police lights flashed blue and red in my side mirror, but I didn’t slow at all. I raged down the street, heart racing as the Publix grocery store and Walgreens whizzed by in a blur. Then