Part 22 (1/2)

”Better you than him.”

In one swift move, Lucian zipped from one side of the room to the other, shoving his fist through Anna's chest and into her body.

”Witches are disposable. There are plenty of them. Do you know how hard it is to find a Heelian?” He tore her heart from her body.

”No!” I screamed. I tried to run to her but Eli stopped me with an arm around my waist, holding me close. I tried to push away, I needed to get to her.

”You can't help her, Ruby. She's gone.”

Her body fell to the ground with a heavy thud. Her eyes didn't close, they were open, staring at the floor. Lucian ran his tongue over her heart and cringed slightly.

”I never have enjoyed the taste of witch, they're too ... acidy.” He dropped her heart on the floor. Nausea radiated through my stomach and I became dizzy. There was so much blood. There was also a heart on the floor, an actual bleeding, pulsing heart. I closed my eyes in hope it would magically disappear.

”Open your eyes!” Lucian demanded.

I did as I was told.

”I want you to see what you did, what you always do. You cause nothing but death, and for as long as you're alive, you will continue to cause death.”

A tear rolled down my cheek as the reality of his words. .h.i.t me. It was true, people died around me.

”Liam will be your driver tonight, just to make sure you don't try anything stupid. See you there.”

A depressing silence fell over the room as everyone headed for the front door. I didn't move. I felt like I should apologize to her, or at the very least, say goodbye, but I couldn't. I couldn't bring myself to go any closer. It was too much.

”It's okay, Ruby. It isn't your fault.”

”It is,” I sobbed. ”I told Hunter. I trusted him and it backfired.”

”He's not the same person anymore. Use tonight as a lesson, no matter how nice a vampire is, no matter how many times they claim they still have their humanity, don't trust them.”

My lungs shuddered as I took deep sob-filled breaths. I couldn't see now, tears blurred my vision. Eli stood beside me. He didn't touch me, which I was thankful for. It was enough for him to just stand beside me. I cried a river, the tears flowed down my cheeks and didn't stop until they hit the wilted collar of my s.h.i.+rt.

”She was so young,” I whispered. I ran my fingers along her hair, caressing it gently.

”Get up. Let's go,” Liam ordered.

I stood up and rubbed my eyes. It was time to put my game face on. These monsters would pay for what they did to Hunter, Eli, Anna, and I. I might be able to control my anger now, but I couldn't promise that I would later. If they hurt Mr Aleksandrov or any other guardian, I would make them suffer. I would kill them all, painfully and slowly. No one else will die because of me.

Road Trip.

There was no moon in the sky, everything seemed so dark. There were no shadows, only the light projected from the high beams in front of us. Liam drove fast, so fast it made me nauseous. He didn't care for speed limits or his safety, nothing would kill him. If we crashed, he'd heal.

It was one of those quiet car rides after a particularly horrible argument. Hot flashes rolled through me after absorbing Mithras's power to energize myself. Eli noticed how uncomfortable I was but all he could do was send me apologetic glances and cool bottled water. I couldn't sleep, knowing there was a vampire in the car with me. I a.s.sumed Eli felt the same, he didn't even blink for too long. He stroked his stake with his thumb, prepared for any situation.

As the hours wound down and it got closer to sunrise, Liam drove even faster. He was desperate to meet the others at the rundown service station, as they had planned. If he didn't make it on time, he'd be incinerated by the sun. I'd do it myself, but I needed to get to Gerald Harbor and warn Mr Aleksandrov ... somehow.

As planned, we rolled into the abandoned service station an hour before dawn. Without a word, Liam climbed out of the car and Eli and I watched as he leaned up against a rotting wooden post.

”Where are the others?” I whispered.

”They're here, waiting somewhere.”

Sure enough, a dozen vampires appeared from the wild, neglected bushland. As Lucian stepped out, I could feel his eyes pierce right through the car and into my soul. He was still p.i.s.sed about Mithras and I couldn't shake the feeling that maybe my punishment wasn't over.

Lucian and Liam spoke momentarily and then Liam made his way back to our vehicle. He stalked around to Eli's door and opened it.

”Here's the address, put it in the GPS. We're going to ground. If you don't make it to Gerald Harbor by nightfall tomorrow, we will kill Ivan and all of the guardians. Is that clear?”

”Crystal,” Eli growled.

Liam pushed on Eli's chest so he was pressed against the seat. Liam's eyes narrowed in on me.

”There's girl who's going to visit her aunty next week ... what's her name?” Liam rubbed his chin with his finger. ”Mila?” He noticed my heartbeat quicken. A wry smile spread across his face. ”Yes, that's it. If you mess this up, I will personally rip her heart from her body and force you to eat it.”

He turned and disappeared into the forest with the rest of them. Once we were sitting comfortably in the front of the car and Eli had programmed the GPS with our destination, we sped off along the deserted highway.

As the sun peered over a distant mountain, Eli pulled the car over. Other trucks and cars zoomed past, making our car sway.

”What's wrong?” I asked, suddenly panicked.

Eli rested his head on the steering wheel, breathing deeply. I'd never seen him so vulnerable. He seemed so stressed and worried.

”I just needed a breather. I have to regroup my thoughts and come up with a new plan.”

”No, Eli, you heard him. If we try anything -”

”I'm not going to send my fellow guardians and Mr Aleksandrov into an ambush. I have to do something. If only you hadn't -” He bit his tongue.

”I'm sorry,” I whispered.

”We'll discuss it later. For now, let's just figure something else out.”

”We could always call Mr Aleksandrov from a payphone.”

”I've already thought about that. I don't have his number. It was in my phone.”

”I have it.”

He turned his face towards me.

”It's in my bag. Mila gave it to me. She thought we might have access to phones at Lucian's.”

”Perfect. We'll call Ivan at the next service station. Which should be ...” He poked at the GPs screen.

”... two hundred kilometers away. If we stick to the speed limit, we can be there in about two hours.”

He pulled back onto the highway and we drove steadily toward our destination. It had been three weeks since I was been alone with Eli inside his car. It seemed like an eternity ago.