Templar Vampires - Midnight Sun Part 25

Allie went cold even as she began to sweat, fear lumping in her throat. "I won't fight."

Her survival depended on her staying calm and rational. The Templars were going to find her.Sebastian was going to find her. That was a chant in her mind as she forced herself to hold onto hope. She couldn't let herself believe this was where her life was going to end. Not here. Not at this creature's hands.

The Templars wouldn't allow it.

He broke the rope and turned her back around. Allie watched in complete horror when he lifted her arm and licked her b.l.o.o.d.y wrists. She wanted to tell him he would know if she was the Daystar by taking in her blood, but she knew she was standing on a dangerous edge. He'd do exactly as he threatened if she pushed him.

Her death would be bad.

He brought her close to him and leaned down to whisper in her ear. Allie wanted to slap him away from her, but instead stayed stock still as her stomach turned with revulsion. "I want to hear my name on your lips. Say it. Say 'Daniel'."

She would rather eat broken gla.s.s. Nevertheless, her need for survival was strong. She didn't want to give this sick b.a.s.t.a.r.d the satisfaction of killing her. That meant, if he wanted her to call him by name, then that's what she was going to do. Even if it killed her pride to relent.

Better her pride destroyed than her life.

"Daniel." His name was poison on her tongue.

He let out a satisfied purr and ran his fangs over her neck. Her teeth bit down hard on her bottom lip to keep in her groan of disgust. She needed to keep her hands fisted at her sides so as not to attempt to try to fight him off.

"By the time I'm done with you, I'm going to know you bodyand soul."

Without warning, his teeth sank deep into her neck. Allie hissed, unable to let loose the scream of pain caught in her throat.

Instinct won over as she clawed at him wildly in her mad fight for life. When that didn't work to get him off her, she slapped at him, fighting like h.e.l.l to do everything she could to get free of him. His arms came around her like two steel bands. He held her so tight she was unable to move or even barely breathe, so crus.h.i.+ng was his hold. The feel of his fangs in her, of him pulling at her blood revolted her. With tears spilling down her cheeks, all Allie could do was accept what was happening and hold on to the vision of Sebastian that filled her mind when she closed her eyes.

As she felt her blood being stolen from her body she grew weaker and weaker until she was nothing more than a rag-doll in the vampire's arms. When he finally pulled his teeth from her, he released her.

Limp, drained, and repulsed, Allie dropped to the mattress. She felt as if this monster took a piece of her along with her blood.

A tear slipped down her face as cold tore through her. Too weak to wipe it away, all she could think was how this monster robbed a small part of her soul.

The next time Allie woke, she was again engulfed in absolute darkness. This time, however, she knew she was alone.Thank G.o.d . She didn't want to have another face to face with that renegade again. Not after what he did to her. Her skin crawled and she bit back a disgusted cry at the thought of his fangs at her neck.

Her entire body hurt and she was so weak she could barely move. s.h.i.+vering, she struggled to ignore the stench of the mattress, curling into herself in a vain attempt to keep warm.

"I think she's awake," she heard someone say beyond the door. She jumped at least a foot at the loud bang on the door. "You up in there?" The voice belonged to the driver who kidnapped her. He didn't wait for her to answer. "Yeah. She's awake." He yelled.

Only a few seconds later she heard someone fiddling with the lock. Dread ran though her, turning her body numb and causing her mouth to run dry, her heart thundering painfully as she curled tighter. When the door swung open her breath caught and she threw her arm over her face at the sudden flood of light hitting her eyes.

a.s.suming it was Daniel again, Allie didn't even bother to look at him. She kept her arm over her closed eyes, refusing to acknowledge him.

"Well, well, well," the vampire said from directly above her. "Seems you got yourself into a bit of trouble, didn't you, Allie?"

Allie lowered her arm and forced herself to stop shaking. She went even colder when she saw the icy hatred in Jude's silvery eyes.

Holy s.h.i.+t...

They'd turned Jude.

He stood staring down at her with his usual smug expression. She slowly pushed herself into a sitting position, even as every bone in her body protested the movement. All she could think as she stared at him was, he had absolutely no reason to look so smug. If anyone looked wrong as a vampire, Jude did. He was stuffed with too much false bravado and overblown arrogance to make what he now was a good fit on him.

"Not nearly as much trouble as you seem to be in." Her voice sounded weak and thin, even to her own ears.

He smirked at her in the way that never failed to make her want to slap the taste right out of his mouth.

"I don't think so, Allie. I'm immortal and you, well, you're pretty much f.u.c.ked."

Allie wished she could stand, might have even attempted to if she thought her legs would support her. It galled her how Jude hovered over her.

"Immortal?" she asked casually. "Is that what they told you? I have news for you, Jude, vampires can die. Why do you think every renegade this side of h.e.l.l wants the Daystar? Besides, you're more f.u.c.ked than me at this point."

"Now how do you figure that?" The sarcasm in his tone left no room for doubt that he believed he was unstoppable now that he was a vampire.

Allie slapped on a smirk that could rival Jude's on his best day. "I don't have the Templars gunning for me. You do. And when they get you, it's going to get real ugly for you."

If Jude were smart he would have realized the threat. Obviously a few brain cells short of smart, he backhanded her hard enough to split her lip.

"You stupid b.i.t.c.h!" he roared. "I was bitten because of you. They know you have the Daystar. They thought to use me to get it from you."

Allie touched a finger to her lip and came away with blood. Jude's eyes narrowed on her mouth. She quickly licked the blood away and threw her hands up to protect her face when Jude went to hit her again. Much to Allie's surprise, Daniel grabbed his arm, preventing that second blow from coming.

"They'll be none of that, Jude." Though Daniel said it calmly, it was an order meant to be obeyed. "I'll not have her face ruined until I'm done with her."

Daniel's hot gaze raked over her, making her wish she was draped head to foot in baggy black wool instead of the low-rise jeans and white half-s.h.i.+rt that revealed way too much of her.

Jude yanked his arm away from Daniel and stepped back, obviously affronted but wisely keep his mouth shut about it. Her ex might be b.a.l.l.sy when it came to beating on a woman, but he was smart enough to know that against a vampire with some years behind him, he didn't stand a chance.

"She's not yours," Jude muttered pathetically.

"You don't think so?" He tilted his head and regarded Jude for a pregnant moment, a cool grin lifting his lips. "Take yourself out of my sight, Jude, before I'm forced to end you."

Jude took another step back when he saw a fire ignite in Daniel's eyes. She knew he wasn't used to being second fiddle. Not in a town where he was the prized son of Grant and Mich.e.l.le Summers. It hadto sting his pride something awful to have to bow down to someone.

Allie prayed the two of them would fight it out. Just tear each other apart in their ridiculous testosterone driven battle.

Much to her disappointment, Jude spun on his heel and strode from the room. His anger and indignation lingered after he was gone.

When Daniel turned his attention back to her, Allie wished he'd kill her. Fast and painless, over and done before she even realized what happened. She didn't want his hands on her again, erasing Sebastian's touch.

When he sat down next to her she instinctively moved to put more distance between them. Daniel wasn't too pleased by that. He took hold of her arm and pulled her back to him. "You don'tever move away from me. I own you."

To prove his point, he shoved her down on her back and climbed on top of her. At that moment, Allie didn't care one bit about consequence. All she wanted was for him to get off of her. His threat of a painful death went right out of her head as she fought him for her very life.

Even if she weren't so weak, she still wouldn't have been any match for his vampire's strength. He overpowered her easily, taking hold of her wrists and pinning them over her head.

"I like your fight, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to break it out of you."

"Get the f.u.c.k off me," she gritted out between clenched teeth.

He smiled, his fangs reminding her of sleek ivory daggers. Cold fear gripped her, disgust riding close on its heels as he ground his body against hers "The getting off part isn't going to happen." He licked her neck. "As for the f.u.c.king part, that, I can a.s.sure you, definitely will."

He took hold of both her wrists in one hand. With his other, he shoved her s.h.i.+rt up. Everything in Allie went cold, her mind rejecting what was happening.

His hands on her, running over her stomach, inching toward her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, his mouth above hers, saliva dripping from his fangs, her mind snapped and she did something so utterly ridiculous it had Daniel laughing down at her.

She screamed.

Chapter Twenty-Five.

At the exact moment the sun set behind the mountains, Sebastian, Constantine, and Raphael headed out to find Allie and Lucian and bring them home.

With some "gentle persuasion" they convinced Tristan he had to stay behind with Lexine. The last thing they needed was for the Guardian to be caught in this fight. Like Constantine liked to remind him, his fight was coming soon enough. Before leaving Seacrest, the Templars made sure they were strapped with enough weaponry to take out a small village. Along with their swords and daggers, they added some firepower to their a.r.s.enal. The guns might not be able to end a vampire, but bullets would hurt like h.e.l.l. Hurt enough to stun should they find themselves in need of a few seconds to gain an upper hand.

None of them were so arrogant as to believe they were indestructible. The things that could take out an ordinary vampire could take them out as easily. The sun had the power to burn them to dust. A blade could take their head as quickly as it could a renegade's. And anything holy would cause as much damage to them, as Sebastian's knee, which was burnt to the bone proved.

Much to Sebastian's frustration it took the better part of three hours of driving down roads no more than dirt trails before they finally found the house Constantine saw in his mind. Driving up the narrow road, Sebastian peered through the black of the night, broken only by the pale glow of the half moon. His gaze lit on the large white house standing in the distance. Old and dilapidated, set in the middle of a huge barren field, it stood out against the desolate backdrop.

They pa.s.sed under a leaning wooden archway that readDouble D Ranch . The barn long since collapsed into a heap of rotting wood. The tremendous stable looked like it wasn't going to make it through even one more harsh mountain winter. But what caught, and held, his attention was the sleek silver Lexus and white Lincoln Navigator.

Leaving the Charger behind the truck, Sebastian got out, the stink of death crept around him, mingling with Allie's fear. Good G.o.d, it was everywhere. Death, fear, and pain thickened the air. They filled his senses until he thought he'd be dragged down by the weight of the them.

Constantine followed him, and took a deep breath. He grunted with frustration and voiced what they all already knew. "Lucian's not here."

Raphael, usually so blithe, had the look of the warrior he was. Gone was the easy smile and seductive gleam in his eyes. Replacing it was the hard edge of the Templar Knight he had been in life. Everything about him proclaimed his intent to cut down those renegades who dared to harm those closest to him.

These renegades made a detrimental mistake thinking they could strike against the Templars and not bring down their wrath, complete and without remorse.

"At least we found Allie." Raphael's tone was tight. "We'll get our girl out of here and then we'll find Luc."

Constantine's muttered curse gained Sebastian's attention. A second later he went sick with dread when a scream broke through the night.

There was no mistaking it was Allie. That knowledge slammed into Sebastian like a hammer to his gut.

Everything feral in him came to the forefront. All he fought to suppress over the centuries rose like a violent storm. It broke his thin hold on humanity, flaring to life the feral instinct in him to protect his mate.

The need to spill the blood of his enemies was an all-consuming hunger needing to be fed.

With a vicious snarl and a bellow of rage, he shrugged his shoulders and loosened his duster only enough so he could pull free his sword. Grasping the hilt, he welcomed the weight of the weapon, which was more of an extension of his own arm than a separate ent.i.ty. "He's mine," he declared just before he broke into a dead run toward the house.

Who "he"was didn't need to be clarified. It didn't matter who hewas specifically. Hewas the b.a.s.t.a.r.d hurting Allie.

As far as Sebastian was concerned, taking out the p.r.i.c.k who pulled that scream from Allie was non-negotiable.

Over the ages he bled and killed for G.o.d. He killed to protect the lives of his brothers-in-arms. He fought for so many reasons, but never for love. That was the one thing he never believed in enough to shed blood for. Until Allie. For her he was willing to bleed himself dry. For her he was willing to walk through the fires of h.e.l.l.

Leaping onto the porch, Sebastian slammed his shoulder into the door. The old, dried wood splintered off the frame and crashed to the floor in pieces as two renegades met them with katanas. Sebastian ended one with nothing more than a single cut of his sword, severing the vampire's head. He exploded into dust before he even hit the floor.

Constantine took on the second renegade. This one was more experienced with his sword, giving the Dragon, if not a good fight, at least one that wasn't ended in less than ten seconds. Constantine was able to make quick work of him, ending the vampire in a few strokes of his blades. When the renegade was reduced to dust, Constantine broke through the cloud bodily to follow Sebastian up the stairs.

Raphael turned his back to the fight and guarded the entrance. Here was where he would stay, primed to prevent any other vampires from entering while Sebastian and Constantine searched for Allie.

As Sebastian climbed the steps to the second level two at a time, he saw Allie's ex-boyfriend at the top of the stairs. He and two other renegades stood before a closed door. Sebastian sensed Allie inside. She wasn't alone. A renegade was with her and she was terrified.

He narrowed his eyes on Jude, drawing back his sword to strike him down. He stood in front of a closed door. "Get the f.u.c.k out of my way."

Jude, too stupid for his own good, gave Sebastian that same arrogant smirk he gave to everyone. The other two renegades, knowing the threat Templars were to their immortality, wisely took a step back.

"He's not going to let you have her," Jude announced arrogantly.

Sebastian c.o.c.ked a brow at that. He leveled his blade at Jude's neck. Allie's ex looked like he was going to s.h.i.+t himself. "He doesn't have a choice."

With a violent shove, Sebastian sent the blade clean through Jude's throat. The tip of it embedded in the plaster with a solid thud. Pinned to the wall, Jude's eyes went wide with shock as he grabbed at the blade. He lost two fingers in his frantic bid to pull the sword free.

The digits burst into dust before they even hit the floor.

Sebastian hissed with pain when he was stabbed from behind. He felt the blade being pulled free just as he gave his own sword a vicious jerk to the right. Jude tried to scream as blood pooled in his throat. The gash was enough to end him. The moment Jude turned to ash Sebastian pulled his sword from the wall and turned to his attacker. He deflected the young renegade's blows, though he couldn't get in a quick killing blow. The renegade proved a good fighter and had surprising agility. Unfortunately for the renegade, what he lacked that Sebastian possessed was the determination to get to Allie. He wasn't about to let anyone stand in his way while she was being hurt.

Able to call on that determination, Sebastian drove the renegade back with one hard shove and kept him there as he showered down a rapid succession of blows. Unable to match skill with a Templar, the vampire quickly tired and got sloppy. He dropped his sword and it was all the advantage Sebastian needed to get in the killing blow.

Swinging his sword around, he severed the vampire's head in a brutal, but clean, blow.

Ash exploded around him as the vampire disintegrated. Bleeding from his stomach wound, Sebastian lunged for the door. Another renegade thought to stop him by throwing a dagger at him. It caught him in the left shoulder. He pulled the dagger free and spun on the renegade and hurled the dagger back at him.

His aim was true. The dagger landed in the renegade's throat. Choking on blood, the vampire stumbled back. Sebastian lunged, stabbing the renegade in the chest. With a fierce growl he took hold of the dagger and used it to take the b.a.s.t.a.r.d's head.

Sebastian caught sight of Constantine, just as he impaled the youngblood he was fighting with his daggers. Pinned to the wall, the vampire snarled and tried to pull himself free.

"You're f.u.c.ked now, aren't you, boy?" Constantine taunted.

"Screw you," the renegade spat out.

Pulling the dagger from the renegade's right shoulder, Constantine held it against the vampire's throat.

"See you in h.e.l.l."

In one swift motion, Constantine cut deep enough to sever the head. He stepped back carelessly when the vampire went to dust.