That couldn’t happen. But if he was inside this tomb, taking his last breaths because she was standing here hesitating like a frightened child, she’d never forgive herself. With quiet resolve Ravyn closed her eyes and focused on the blood thumping through her veins. She didn’t know why, but blood was the key. It pumped life into her and that life was built on an energy given to her by her ancestors, exacerbated by the dagger. That energy was all she needed, it was all the power that it would take and...her fingers fumbled over something. She didn’t hesitate, didn’t try to look closer to see what, just pulled and had to stumble back as the heavy door jolted free with a loud creaking sound.
Heaving a deep sigh, she kept pulling on the door. Steele put his hand on the part of the door over her head and pulled with her so that the creaking grew louder but the door opened wider. An acrid stench filled her nostrils and she frowned into more darkness.
Bring my dagger to me.
Ravyn stopped at the woman’s voice, looking around to see where she was, but only seeing Steele.
“I heard it too,” he said and she felt marginally better. “She’s talking to you, but I can hear it. I think because I heard it in my dream.”
“Not because she’s somewhere close waiting to drop down on us and rip our throats out?” she asked because that seemed like a more viable scenario.
“She’s reaching out to you, the part of her that is a witch, to the part of you that’s one too. You were both in my dream, linking me to this and to you on a preternatural level. You can answer her without speaking.”
How was he acting like a teacher when they were staring into a freaky-ass tomb in the middle of the night? She had no clue but what he said sounded right, so she looked into that darkness and could once again see. There were stairs and she took them one-by-one. I’m coming to get you, Temptra.
The words just rattled around in her mind and the woman’s sick laughter followed.
It was at the bottom of those steps that shit got real for Ravyn. The stench was much stronger and the rows of mummies marching toward her were freakier. She stopped dead in her tracks before turning around to see more were behind her. They moved like they were in a trance, green eyes peeking through the ragged cloths that circled around them, jagged sharp teeth in the slash below the eyes that she presumed was their mouth. Oh joy, she’d come all this way to be a feast for some dirty old mummies.
“We’re right behind you.” Reese’s previously jovial voice was rock solid now and she took pleasure in knowing that the cavalry was here for her and for Steele.
You won’t stop me.
She continued her exchange with the crazy vamp lady and walked forward, straight toward the mummies. When she was close enough to smell their stale stench, she reached down to her side and pulled the dagger from the sheath she’d mounted to the belt loop on her jeans. Warmth immediately spread through her body and before she could blink dust was filtering in the air, the sound of thumping, punching and screeches rending the air.
Come to me, Temptra said. Your destiny is waiting.
Her destiny. Okay, great, now she had a destiny. Well, she was coming whether she was ready for it or not. The others were fighting off the mummies, clearing a path for her to get through and once she did, she saw Cree lying on a huge slab of rock. She didn’t think, just acted, running the few feet toward him, coming to a violent stop the moment Temptra stepped out from behind a wall, fangs extended, eyes glowing red. Her nails were as long and sharp-ended as her teeth and as she stood behind the slab of rock she flexed her hand over Cree’s throat.
“You’ll bring that dagger and come with me or I’ll rip out his throat. Yes?”
She really was a beautiful psycho up close and personal and Ravyn let her words settle in her mind.
“No,” she answered simply. “That’s not how this is going to work.”
“Calling my bluff,” Temptra said, lowering her hand.
Ravyn’s heart beat so loud it drowned out that humming and sent rapid messages to her brain to stop this madness and run. Get back to Safeside where she was safe, where things were good. But...there was no Safeside without Cree. He hadn’t left her in the store that night when the enforcers were beating her and she wasn’t going to leave him now.
“Doing my job,” she snapped back, her hand clenching the handle of the dagger tighter.
Steele’s voice entered the conversation. “You’re never going to raise them, Temptra.”
She opened her mouth wider, teeth seeming to elongate farther. “Don’t get in my way, Drakon. You’ll regret it if you do.”
“We’ll kill all of you. We’ve done it before,” he said icily.
“Then I’ll take this human with me first!” Temptra let loose a wild cry as she reached down to Cree’s throat.
All Ravyn saw was red, draping the walls, covering the floor, on her hands, on Cree’s face. She screamed and raised the dagger, thinking of sliding it across Temptra’s throat. And in the next second she was behind the Dhampir, her arm around the woman’s chest, the tip of the dagger pointed at her jugular.
“You die!” Ravyn whispered in her ear and was
