My Precious Nightmare

21: Kidnappers of Kidnappers and Kidnappees

Some kind of commotion with crying kids was going on when Sky and Aster reached the apartment. Since Lane had to park the helicopter where, well, it wouldn't attract a vampire's attention they'd had to walk quite a bit before reaching it. Aster had planned on leaving Sky in the helicopter, but like hell she would listen to his smartass Dracula face. And since he was more intent on catching his prey than keeping her safe, he just said 'whatever' and jumped out.

Now that she was looking at the apartment building she had worn her feet walking all over for, the thought that Lea was in there brought new energy back to Sky with a zing like she'd thrown back three energy drinks at once—not that she had ever done that. Nor should anyone. That could kill a person. Totally.

As she tiptoed to Aster's side, the crying of the kids were muffled, either by walls or a door. She thought she spotted someone running down the stairs, then a door on the third floor opening and closing.

"Should we wait?" she whispered, trying to be super ninja-like, but Morianton just shoved her head into an alleyway and gave her a glare that said 'Move and I kill you.' She swung a fist towards his face, but he was gone and heading up the stairs before she'd even straightened her arm.

"Freaking vampire and his stupid, freaking super speed," she growled under her breath. Then she hesitated, glancing at the door that had just closed. The young mom there had been especially helpful in finding Husani, and her eyes had shined as she talked about him and his ability to make the most amazing medicines. An uncomfortable wriggling in her chest came as Sky wondered if she should have told Morianton about that little bit of information. It didn't seem to matter much at the time. A vampire who made medicine was still a vampire.

Even though she wanted to follow Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Armed, she wasn't stupid about her own capabilities. For all she knew, vampires had super hearing and her stomping up the stairs after Aster would ruin it all. Then not only might she never see Lea again, but Aster might have her for lunch. Again.

Oh yeah. She hadn't forgotten about that little possibility. No matter the amount of bravado and smash talk she threw at the guy, it was only to cover up the fact that she remembered the feeling of his fangs on her neck, or more importantly, the scarlet gleam to his eyes as he had yanked her down to them.

She had felt like meat. No. Like a perfectly grilled filet mignon in the hands of a man who had spent a month living on salads.

She shuddered and ducked back into the alley, which was too much like the one that had started it all. Graffiti spilled across one wall, spelling the name of some gang she couldn't decipher, as another gang had tried to cover it up with their own poor art. Leaves had gathered in the corners with bits of trash. Trash cans made black shapes in the darkness further down.

Sky wrapped her arms about herself. The black hoodie Lane had stuffed over her head was a size too small, and thin to boot. Summer was ending, and tonight had to be the first night of the season to get a nip of autumn chill.

In the quiet, her mind turned to thoughts she had valiantly done her best to avoid. Like, what if Lea was dead?

She shuddered and squeezed her arms until her knuckles popped. Before Lea she had been a crazy girl pretending to be a boy in a gang, living for the next fight and on a collision course with suicide. Her old man was barely a blip on the map of her life, as he worked, drank, and flailed in drunken rage. Her mom? Her mom was somewhere far away with a baby sister Sky had never met.

Lea had changed all that. She'd come into her life like a burst of sunlight. In Lea, Sky caught sight of all the good things she had lost faith in long ago. In Lea she had a friend and sister and safe place in one. With Lea, she stopped being a burden or an annoying kid and became an ordinary high school girl who played video games and talked about boys and, well, whatever.

There would be no Sky if there was no Lea.

Sky was well aware of the fact that having her existence hinged on someone else's was stupid and weak, or maybe what they meant by 'co-dependent.' But that's just how it was, and there was nothing else to it.

Shaking herself, she pushed off from the wall and peered around the corner. She thought she caught sight of movement on the stairs again.

Jeeze, what's taking that bloodsucker so long?

She scowled, squinting at the dark shape near the top. The door opened, spreading light onto a figure with wild hair and a lean stance. It looked a little too short to be—

Something large landed behind her. She spun, fists up, scream caught in her throat—

Aster Morianton was straightening, eyes agleam and little more than a smudge of darkness against the wall in all his black getup.

"...Damn stupid vamp, did you have to freak me out?" she hissed, before all her attention was sucked to the pale form in his arms. Completely ignoring the fact that he was fanged and didn't like her, Sky threw herself at him and tore the unconscious girl from his arms.

Lea's paleness practically made her glow in the darkness. Her long hair was unkempt and smelled strongly of lemon. She wore a too big set of T-shirt and sweatpants.

"What did you do to her?" Sky snarled, hugging Lea to her. Her friend had always felt to light, but especially so now.

"She wasn't coming, so I tapped her out."

Every hair on her body rose with her hackles. "You what?"

"Shut up!" Aster hissed, his bright eyes enough to cut Sky off short. "She's just unconscious, if your idiot brain had bothered to check her pulse or breathing you would know that."

Sky had already noticed the gentle rise of Lea's chest against her own. Heat blossomed to her cheeks, but that didn't mean he hadn't given her a concussion, stupid, murderous, rich ass freak of nature!

"Lane's called a cab," Aster continued. "Head down the street to the next bus stop."

Sky had just managed to shift Lea around to her back when Aster suddenly stiffened. He stepped towards her.

In that same moment, a solid, dark weight slammed into him. It threw him out of the alley, over the sidewalk, and smack dab into the middle of the empty street. Even as Sky looked on, huge, demonic wings shot out from the back of the man atop Aster. His eyes blazed a brilliant red that outlined the gleam of his bared fangs and wild fury.

Aster Morianton, having twice as much mass as his foe, kicked him off. The wings flapped, a swirl of color and limbs. They vanished.

Bones and flesh crunched right next to Sky. She jumped and screamed as Morianton flopped off the now cracked and crumbling brick wall. A blink later and he was up again, all air-cracking snarls and brilliant blue-violet eyes.

Sky only had long enough to register that they were under attack from the vampire who had had Lea when said vampire appeared before Aster in a blur.

She stumbled back, clutching Lea hard enough to make her arms protest.

The winged demon had Aster by the throat against the building. The way its lips stretched back from his teeth and his too-wide eyes gave it an inhuman, monstrous look of fury, and her heart seized for Aster, who looked painfully human next in comparison.

The lights of a car came around the corner, throwing surreal relief against the claws digging into Aster's throat.

Then the other monster's free hand shot forward like a spear into Aster's chest with a horrible snap of ribs. Aster's eyes shot wide, mouth gaping open like a fish.

The hand tore back out, holding in its fingers a thumping, flesh-like thing.