Kiss The Night Goodbye

outside entrance somewhere up ahead.

What?she asked eventually.

The heartbeats have ceased.

Her stomach began to churn. Oh God… He's killed them?

I don't know. I certainly can't smell blood, and if he's killed them, I would.

Could they have moved back up top? The air is moving, and it wasn't before.

Maybe.He tugged her forward again. I've a feeling we'd better get to that pentagram while we can.

Dunleavy is weaving his net around us.

It's been around us the whole time.

Yes, but now it grows tighter.

They hurried through the darkness. Though Michael made little noise, her steps echoed, the sound slapping off the wet walls loudly enough to make her wince. One thing the Circle hadn't taught her was how to run without noise. Maybe she'd suggest it when—if—they got out of here.

They reached another junction. He barely hesitated before pulling her right. She had no idea where they were in relation to the mine or the town, having lost all sense of direction about twenty steps in.

They'd barely gone three steps when noise scuffed across the silence. She glanced over her shoulder.

Michael.

I know.

But—

I know.His mind voice was terse. They've been there for a few minutes now.

So why didn't you mention it?

Didn't want to worry you.

I thought you were going to stop doing that?

I said I'd try. I didn't say I'd stop completely.

Now, that was definitely the vampire she knew and loved. So when were you going to tell me we were being tailed? A heartbeat before they attacked?

Give me a little more credit than that.

Okay. Two heartbeats, then Amusement shimmered down the link. That's more like it.

She shook her head. So, is there anything else I should know?

Have I mentioned there's something ahead?

No. Her thoughts were more acerbic than annoyed. What?

There's one heartbeat. I think it's the last shifter.

Can we go around him?

I'm trying, but he's shadowing us. Remember, they know these tunnels. I'm only following instinct.

He tugged her right again. The walls began to close in, and the rough-hewn support planking gave way to natural rock. The air became danker, thick with the scent of age and disuse. Ghostly tendrils of slime appeared, sprouting from the ceiling like a living thing and slapping wetly across her face. It felt like the fingers of the dead grasping for her.

A chill ran across her skin, and she edged a little closer to Michael's back. This tunnel was way too similar to the one that had almost claimed her life.

Stone rattled behind them, the noise echoing harshly. The men were closer than before, and fear scooted through her. While she really did believe ten men weren't much of a match for her and Michael, the situation they were in now was far from normal, and she was without the benefit of her basic abilities.

Sure, she had her fire, but she didn't particularly want to hurt any of those who followed them, and that would hamper her actions and perhaps make it more difficult to protect herself.

The tunnel twisted and turned, leading them deeper into the darkness. The walls closed in, brushing her shoulders, tearing at her shirt. She bit her lip and hoped like hell they weren't being herded into a dead-end.

After a few minutes, the walls began to ease back. She felt no sense of relief. Though she could hear little beyond the harsh note of her own breathing, she couldn't shake the sensation that the men were close enough to almost touch.

The link sprang to life, wrapping around her fear, gently easing it away. They're not yet within reach .

How far, then?

A few minutes.

And the shifter?

Paralleling us.

What about the pentagram? How far away are we from that?Though she asked the question, she very much doubted whether they'd get that far. This all reeked of a well-laid plan.

If my sense of direction isn't leading us astray, we shouldn't be that far from it.

Good.

The tendrils of slime began to recede as warmth touched the air. Not that it was actually that much warmer. She shivered again, this time more from the cold than fear.

The tunnel began to open up, eventually leading into another cavern. Her footsteps seemed to echo forever, lending the darkness a feeling of enormity. Michael paused, and the sensation of wrongness hit her so strongly it felt like a punch to the gut.

There's something here, she gasped.

Magic. His mind voice was grim. We'll have to watch where we step.

It's on the floor?

To our right. I'm not sure what it is, beyond the fact that its source is evil.He squeezed her hand gently. This ability I'm siphoning is far too new for me to properly assimilate. You can't sense anything more?

Nothing beyond evil. But Dunleavy's spells have nulled my psi skills Then, by rights, they should have stopped my using them as well.

Not if he didn't know we could share.And considering they were only just discovering what was possible, it was hardly likely that Dunleavy could know. Even if he had read Michael's mind when he'd had him under full control, it wouldn't have mattered. Dunleavy thought she was Seline, not Nikki.

He tugged her forward again. The floor around them was littered with rocks and deeper, darker spaces that suggested holes.

Old mines shafts, Michael said. Looks like the miners decided to dig for deeper treasures here.

Right through the rock?

Rock wouldn't have stopped them if they were following a vein of gold.

It would have stopped her . But then, she'd never have been underground hunting gold in the first place.

Riches of any kind had never called to her—except when it came to the richness of emotion. Something she'd been afraid to reach towards for more years than she'd cared to remember.

They were barely halfway across the cavern when he stopped. She was just about to ask what the problem was when she saw it. Or rather, him.

The shifter that had been shadowing them stepped from the tunnel on the far side. In his hand was a wooden stake.

Fear leapt into her throat, and for a moment she couldn't even breathe. Then she raised her hand and called to the fire. It leapt to life, spewing from her fingers in a flaming ball that shot light across the cavern as it arced toward the shifter. He stumbled backward, eyes wide with fear that she could almost taste.

But her flames were not meant for him. They hit the stake and wrapped around it quickly. With a squawk that was barely human, the shifter dropped it. It was little more than ash by the time it hit the ground.

She tugged Michael's hand. We need to go.

It's too late for that.