Mermaids And The Vampires Who Love Them

33. THUNDER GETS HIS WISH

The crowd of over 150 human reporters continues to cheer for Darkins. Many are slapping the samples of Elixir of the Sea included in the original press kits onto their faces. They must've read the blurb in the glossy inserts about how the cream will give them the appearance of eternal youth.

Darkins stands next to me, waving at the audience like some kind of monarch. He doesn't even seem to notice I'm there—it's like I'm a tiny bug, not even worth swatting. He makes a small gesture, and a half-dozen of his guards walk toward the stage. "Oh, yes, my dear," says Darkins very quietly. "I not only switched the press kits, but I have also destroyed all of yours. Not very bright of you, hiding the press kits in the trunk of my limousine. I had to get in there for a change of clothes after you soiled my suit with your clumsiness. You were almost too easy to defeat. Barely any fun at all."

What? Darkins' trunk was the safe hiding place Cupid talked about? And what does he mean, 'clumsy?' I threw him into a window!

My classmates at the back of the room—about fifty of them, including Khione, Vang, Lily-Bella, Thunder, and his wolf-pack—watch the guards approach the stage. Lily-Bella nods at me and raises her sword-shaped wand. I shake my head and mouth, "Not yet." She nods back.

Pierce is pacing at the front of the stage, awaiting the guards. What's he going to do? Attack them all at once in front of everyone? I know he can, but doesn't he realize it will be on international television? I project this thought at him. He glances back at me in time to see Darkins grab my arm, trying to keep me in place, allowing the guards to catch me.

"Let go," I snarl, twisting in his grip.

"Don't think so, mermaid," he says out of the side of his mouth, still waving and smiling at the crowd.

Pierce glares at Darkins.

Pierce, I got this; I think at him. Don't eat anyone, okay?

Pierce frowns; his eyes focused on Darkins' hand on my arm. I can tell my boyfriend wants to relieve Darkins of every drop of blood coursing through his evil veins.

"Pierce, watch out!" I yell as the guards suddenly bound onto the stage behind him.

Pierce pivots, grips the torso of the closest guard, and tosses him at the others. The guards fall into a jumble of chaos. The audience of reporters is stunned. For a moment, it's quiet as they look at one another in shock. Once they've recovered enough, they grin. A story is happening before their eyes. They jockey for position, holding up their cameras to try to get the best view of the fight.

"Seize them, you idiots!" Darkins bellows at his henchmen, pointing at Pierce and me. The guards scramble up from their pile.

Darkins is squeezing my arm so hard, I can feel the bruises forming. I take that pain, clench my teeth, and—oops! Did I mean to kick him in the crotch?

Darkins goes down on his knees, clutching his 'parts' and screaming like a demented seagull.

The guards are about to grab me when Pierce blocks them. He crosses his arms over his chest and widens his stance. "Touch her and die," he says in a low, menacing growl that sends goosebumps prickling up my arms and neck.

The guards pause, look at one another, then Darkins, then back at Pierce.

"You fools!" Darkins says in a pain-enhanced, high-pitched, very satisfying squeak.

It's mayhem. One hundred and fifty cameras are clicking and flashing, and almost as many languages are being spoken into microphones. Our classmates in the back are trying to worm their way through the crowd to get to us. The noise is almost too much to bear.