Garden of Thorns Read online

  Bringing my dart gun to my lips, I fire off a shot, narrowly missing the man.

  They both drop straight onto Duncan’s chest, fangs bared, yellow eyes brilliant in the dark night.

  I pull one of my orbs from my jacket pocket and launch it at the woman on top of him. It shatters against her cheek and she scrambles away, screaming in pain, holding her burning face.

  The wind instantly knocks from my chest as someone plows into me from behind, sending the both of us to the ground. They yank my arms behind my back, quickly tying them tightly together.

  “Got ‘em!” someone yells across the road.

  I’m yanked up to my feet, a strong hand holding me by the ropes around my wrists, and a hand fisted in my hair.

  Duncan is jerked to his feet as well, chains looped around his wrists, a stake held firmly to his back.

  “Aleah!” he yells, his eyes fixed on the form of the warehouse across the road.

  My human eyes strain to see through the dark, the only light coming from the half moon and the stars.

  But I see the form of Aleah being shoved in front of the doors, stumbling as someone yanks on her chains. A second later, Robert drops to his knees, not looking very conscious. And lastly Kai is pushed over, falling on his side in the dirt.

  “Well, well,” a voice calls, located up too high. As I’m marched forward, I search around for its source. And I see a figure walking along the roof of the warehouse, at the same time a huge door rolls back on the warehouse.

  And a dozen yellow eyes glow from within its depths.

  “I see some Born got a little jealous of our party,” the voice cuts through the night again. As we get closer, I make out the figure of a man, his features slowly coming into view. But his yellow eyes are unmistakable. “Just couldn’t stand to be left out of all the fun.”

  The man looks to be in his mid-forties. Well-kept hair is offset by a scruffy looking beard, peppered with silver. Crows feet spread out from his eyes, his entertained smile almost too wide for his face.

  He wears jeans, and heavy looking boots. A denim jacket is buttoned up to his neck. From one hand, he swings a stick. The end of it has a chain hanging from it, and attached to that is some kind of orb, with stakes sticking out of it in every direction.

  High school history lessons tickle the back of my brain to find the name of such a medieval weapon:

  A flail.

  “If you needed some company you should have found one of your prestigious Houses,” he says, sounding very dangerous and angry. “You won’t find much love here.”

  I look around, and slowly, the yellow eyes surround us. There has to be nearly twenty of them.

  “I don’t know what you think you’re doing here,” Aleah says, glaring up at the man on the roof. “But it’s going to get you killed pretty quick these days.”

  The man laughs, a quick, one-huff thing. “And who’s around to stop me?” He throws his hands out wide, as if displaying all the free run he’s gained.

  “Haven’t you heard about the King’s decree?” Duncan says, looking up, more bravery in his eyes than I expect to see.

  “King?” the man says. “See, I’ve heard legend about some king. But it’s a little hard to believe he’s real when he’s not around to slap me on the hand.”

  Heavy nostril breathing draws my attention to my left. Two Bitten slowly walk toward me, their eyes brilliant. Their nostrils flare and their fangs lengthen.

  “Leave her alone!” Kai suddenly bellows, lunging toward me. Two other Bitten throw themselves on top of him, taking him back to the ground.

  “So nice of you to bring a snack,” the man on the roof says. “But let’s save her for a little later, shall we boys?”

  The two eying me instantly stop, though they continue to stare at me with hunger in their eyes.

  “He’s their sire,” I say, staring back at them. “Their Debt is to him.”

  Aleah looks from the ones who stopped, to the man up on the roof. “What’s your name?”

  “Michael,” he says loudly, as if he’s very proud of the fact. “Michael Savage. And this is my band of brothers.”

  “Are they really brothers if they’re just slaves?” Duncan pipes up.

  A heavy fist meets him in his middle and he doubles over, nearly dropping to the ground but held up by the meaty man behind him.

  The Born are better and stronger than the Bitten. But right now Aleah, Robert, Kai, and Duncan are outnumbered six to one.

  “You tell your men to keep their damn hands off my cousin!” Aleah screams into the night.

  “Let me guess, show some respect for the Born, right?” Michael says as he squats down on the edge of the roof, a look of entertainment in his eyes.

  “Oh,” Aleah says with a chuckle. “It wasn’t like that before, but you’re about to make it.”

  He hops down from the roof, landing on his feet with ease. He saunters over to her, his gait casual and easy. “It’s been that way from the dawn of time, darlin’,” he says as he crouches down, taking her chin in his hand, forcing her face up at him. “Though I am surprised to see you’ve got one of us running around with your kind.”

  Aleah’s eyes flash red and she snaps her fangs at him.

  “Oh ho!” he says, snatching his hand away. “This one is a feisty one! I like her style!”

  “You have no idea what you’ve done here,” Duncan says, rolling his head back up, standing straight. “The creation of any new Bitten is punishable by death now.”

  “You know, I have heard about this mysterious King,” Michael says, turning away from Aleah. “That he lives somewhere over in Europe, far, far away. I also heard that this supposed decree was made six years ago. Six years, and here I am. Turned three years ago. No one but me killed my sire. I’ve made myself dozens of friends since, and no one has come after me.”

  “It’s not the way it’s supposed to be,” I say. My voice cuts through the night like a knife, all eyes turning to me.

  Michael turns, slowly walking forward. His eyes gleaming. Everything about him is a predator. “I assume you’re talking about the Allaway fellow.”

  I don’t say anything in return and he stops just two feet in front of me.

  “Yeah, I’ve heard about him,” Michael smiles. It’s a crooked thing, bigger and wider on the left side than the right. And it’s sickeningly charming. “Seems to me he’s either lost his nerve, his power, or his interest. Either way, I’m having a lot of fun.”

  “And what do you think is going to happen when you expose your kind?” I ask, holding his gaze without faltering. “When the people realize they have a reason to fear the night, and they come out with their pitchforks and torches? When the billions of them turn against the thousands of you?”

  He lets out an amused chuckle, his smile growing just slightly. “You surprise me, Mary Sue. A pretty, little young thing, running around with vampires, spittin’ fire.”

  “Not everything is what it seems,” I say without wavering.

  Michael suddenly stands upright. “Nobody touches this one,” he says as he looks out over the crowd. “I like her. I think I’ll keep her for myself, her fate to be determined at a later time.”

  Laughter rings out through the crowd. I swear they all shift just a little tighter and closer. Kai swears in Samoan, his eyes glowing and brilliant as he tries to fight against the now four men who hold him down.

  Oh, if only Ian were here.

  Every one of them would be dead by now.

  But I have to remind myself, as I look around at the faces of all these men. They don’t have a choice in this. They’re just doing whatever Michael Savage has told them to do.

  “Bring them inside, boys!” he yells, waving his hand as he walks toward the small house that sits off to the right of the warehouse.

  The man behind me roughly yanks me to the side, walking in the direction of the house. The bodies mass around us, walking us five hostages to the front door. Up rickety steps we rise and th
rough a squeaky door. The lot of us are herded into a smaller living room.

  Michael sets his flail on top of the piano against one wall and takes a seat in a high backed chair, propping his feet up on the coffee table. I’m roughly shoved down onto a couch, tumbling over. I glare at the man who tossed me, but he just offers an amused smile.

  Other Bitten force Kai, Duncan, Aleah, and Robert onto the same couch. We don’t really fit, and we’re all half sitting on one another. Each of them has a Bitten behind them, a stake held to their backs.

  “Now, isn’t this cozy?” Michael says with a smile as he looks around at the many bodies packed into the room. “Dixon, why don’t you go get us all something to eat?”

  A man in the corner nods his head and immediately heads out the door once more.

  “Now, how about you explain what you’re doing here, intruding on my land?” he says as he grabs a handful of nuts from a bowl on the table.

  “There’s been some problems—”

  “Not you,” Michael cuts Aleah off, giving her a harsh glare. “Her.”

  He nods his chin at me, chewing the nuts slowly, studying me carefully. He’s testing me, seeing if I’m worth my weight.

  But he doesn’t know I’m far more versed in these politics than he is.

  “All of your kind is causing a problem in this area,” I say, raising my chin just slightly. To my surprise, the man who hauled me in here cuts the ropes around my wrists. Instead of rubbing them like I want to, I set them in my lap. “Born and Bitten. You know who Charles Allaway is, I’m guessing you know he’s supposed to be in charge of keeping all of the vampires under control in his region.”

  “Something stuffy like that,” Michael says with a smile, still chewing.

  “He’s weak right now, he doesn’t have the power to keep everyone in check,” I continue. I shift my hand just slightly, covering the pocket of my pants, slowly sliding out my compact dart gun. “So we’re trying to do his job for him.”

  “As I understand it, Charles is theoretically some kind of Royal, a descendent of this supposed King.” Michael drops his feet back to the floor, leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “And the five of you are just going to undermine his authority?”

  “There isn’t much choice anymore,” I say, holding his gaze. “If he doesn’t do his job, the Born and the Bitten are going to get your kind exposed. The King will be forced to deal with things himself.” I swallow once, sitting just a little straighter. “Trust me. You don’t want him getting involved.”

  Michael studies me for a minute, searching my eyes as his expression grows serious. “You’ve met the man, haven’t you?”

  “Yes,” I reply.

  He nods, continuing to look at me. “I believe you. This King is the real deal, despite how unbelievable it all sounds.”

  “Then I hope you understand why you have to stop what you’re doing?” I say evenly. “You’re putting more than just a few people in danger.”

  The man named Dixon suddenly steps back into the room, shoving a teenage boy in front of him. The kid stumbles onto the floor, looking up at all the eyes that suddenly flash yellow.

  The kid is human, apparently.

  “Hold up just a minute,” Michael calls loudly, holding his hand up when half of his Bitten step forward, their fangs lengthening. “From what we’ve just been told, doing what we’ve been doing is punishable by death.”

  Michael stands and looks around to those who have a Debt to him. They wait on him, on edge, ready to jump at the slightest command from him. “So when you drink, make sure you take it all.”

  It’s all they need. Nearly every one of them leaps forward, sinking their fangs into the boy, just before he lets out a terrified scream.

  I pull the blow gun from my pocket, placing it to my lips, and puffing, hitting the nearest man in the neck with a toxin, at the same time Duncan breaks free from his loosened chains and throws two of the orbs, screams instantly ripping into the air.

  I fire off three more shots, each needle hitting its mark, at the same time Duncan whips around, staking the man behind him. Kai leaps up, swinging his left foot and connecting with the head of the man who held a stake to his back.

  Aleah flips over the couch, hooking her chains around her own captor’s neck, pulling tighter and tighter, until the chains disappear into his neck.

  I turn my back before I can see her pop his head off.

  A man charges at me, but not before I pull the cure from my inside pocket and fling it at him. He goes down with a scream, as does the next man who rushes at me.

  Robert jumps, getting his hands in front of his body, and smashes the coffee table. He grabs the wooden shards, and flings two stakes, taking out the Bitten.

  In just a few seconds, we’ve taken out half of Michael’s Bitten.

  “Take them down!” he bellows, scrambling for his flail.

  Ten more Bitten rush toward us.

  “It doesn’t have to be like this,” I hiss as the five of us back toward the wall. The three Born with me are stronger, faster than the Bitten, two of them, and Kai, are still chained, and we’re still outnumbered. “Let’s talk, and no more of them have to die, Michael.”

  “Seems to me you’re still outnumbered,” he growls as he swings his spiked ball back and forth. His muscles are tensed, ready to spring.

  “Seems to me we took out half your men in less than ten seconds,” Aleah taunts. “And half of those were taken down by our human.”

  Michael’s eyes flash brighter as his eyes flick back to mine. A chuckle bubbles up from his lips, which quickly grows into a laugh.

  But it’s cut short, when one of his men lunges toward us. A fraction of a second later, Robert buries another table shard into his chest.

  “Please stop!” I yell as my eyes widen in horror. Another innocent is dead, never to live again. “You need to stop or I will kill you myself! They don’t all have to die!”

  Michael’s eyes widen, his jaw clenching. He takes one step forward, standing straight. He swings his bat back and forth. “You, a tiny human, are going to threaten me?”

  I pull out a stake in one hand, holding my loaded dart gun in the other.

  “You think you can kill me?”

  “I know I can,” I say, my gaze steeling.

  Michael takes one more step forward, and I bring my blow dart up to my lips. I gather my breath, ready to blow at any second.

  A laugh breaks from his chest, just one huff. But then it’s followed by another. And soon he’s absolutely losing it. Full-bellied, face toward the ceiling.

  But I don’t relax. I’m holding that breath in, prepared to fire toxins into his body.

  “Holy shit, this has taken an interesting turn,” he finally says, taking in a deep breath. “I have to say, I never expected this. To get absolutely schooled by a little blondie human.”

  A smile curls on one side of his face as his eyes fix on me once more. “I’m absolutely intrigued.”

  My brows furrow. My hand curls a little tighter around the stake in my left hand.

  I just about loose my dart when he stretches his right hand forward.

  “Whoever the hell you are, little girl,” he says, cocking a smile. “Count me in on your team with whatever you’ve got planned.”

  No one moves for a second, no one says a word.

  “Are…are you serious?” Aleah says, her tone absolutely disbelieving. “That’s all it took? Penny kicking your ass?”

  Michael looks over at Aleah, his face just as shocked. “If someone like her can kick my ass, she sure as hell has my interest. I’ve got some learning to do, apparently.”

  “Just like that?” Duncan questions, not convinced.

  “Just like that,” Michael says with a smile.

  There’s something about him that reminds me of Markov. Deadly. A wild cannon. A slave to his thirst. And absolutely mad.

  “Prove it,” I say, standing a little taller, only pulling my dart gun away from my li
ps slightly. “Tell all your men to line up against that wall.” I nod my chin to the one by the front door.

  Michael studies me for a moment longer. Suddenly he swings his bat over his shoulder, the spiked ball hanging dangerously in the air just above his back.

  “You heard her, boys,” he says loudly. He turns to them. “Line up.”

  Without hesitation, each and every one of them, the nine that are left, line up single file against the wall. Right behind the body of the now dead boy they drained in just seconds.

  “Watch him,” I say to the four at my side. They all crouch just a little deeper, their hands ready for action. Kai hisses at me under his breath, begging me to be careful.

  I slip my blow dart back into my pocket, though I keep the stake in my left hand. Reaching inside my jacket, I produce a needle, full of the amber tinted cure.

  “You can’t do this to them,” I say, shaking my head. “Slaves aren’t friends. They aren’t family.”

  “Worked fairly well the last three years,” he says. “But you seem to have a better way.”

  I don’t know about that, but whatever the hell I’m doing, it seems to be having a magical effect on Michael.

  “You have to let them go,” I say as I step over a body and stop in front of the first man. I sink the needle into his shoulder, depressing the plunger. Instantly, he hisses in pain, doubling over.

  “What are you doing to him?” Michael demands, lunging forward two steps.

  Instantly, Kai is in his face, pressing a stake to his chest.

  Oh how the tables have turned quickly.

  “I’m freeing him,” I say, moving on to the next Bitten, who stands in line, his eyes wide and scared as he watches his fellow brother curl on the floor in pain. I plunge the needle into the next arm. He collapses too.

  “She cures them,” Aleah says, the slightest hint of reverence in her voice.

  “No shit,” Michael says in shock as his eyes dart back to the two men on the floor, curling in pain. “Didn’t know that was possible.”

  “It’s not, so far as the rest of the world knows,” Aleah says, giving him a deadly look.

  Michael smiles again, chuckling in amusement. He shakes his head. “Don’t know what you’re taking about. I didn’t see nothing.” He winks at me, just as I depress the needle into the next man’s arm.