Fade Into Black - Shadows of the Night 5

Chapter 39

Hi,

Whether you're team Alexander or team Andy, whether you like Andy or not - you'll love Andy's POV in this chapter. Okay, well, at least I do! ;-) It was so much fun to write and I can't wait to hear what you're thinking. What the hell's going on in New York? Any ideas? Let me know :-)

Lara

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Chapter 39

ANDY

Marrok wasn't going to let any vampire into his den, least of all the head vamp. That was clear. I thought Alexander was going to invite him into one of his clubs and do business on his turf. I was wrong.

Negotiations – or whatever the hell they were having – were made in one of the head vampire's fancy cars. A black BMW X5 with sun protected, bulletproof glass and layers of armor plate under its outer skin. Barely recognizable as such. Custom made. It must have cost a fucking fortune.

Alexander was good. No one was going to hear or witness what he and the Fade pack's Alpha were saying.

The street had come back to life, now crawling with subtle motion. As if the faceless collective had been holding their breath and a sigh of relief had come with the absence of the two leaders. Some of Marrok's wolves were gathered around one side of the car, facing a congregation of what I assumed were Alexander's most trusted vamps on the other side.

The wolves moved in sync – together, never alone, the occasional flare of yellow brightening their eyes. Yeah, they were not comfortable with a group of vamps so close to the gates of their den. The way I saw it, this could blow up any minute.

It tore through the street like an acoustic, auratic whip.

I turned, blinked. For a moment I thought someone had fired a gun. But no, it wasn't a shot. Not a gun by any means. Shadows exploded with more obscurity. I went into second sight, limbs tensing, ready to move and shift gears into action.

The planes of reality slid away, unfolded like a deck of cards flattened on gray felt. Patches of light red and darkness where the vamps were grouped around the car. In second sight they looked like a set of chess figures waiting to be picked up and used for a checkmate.

I turned my attention to the other side. Something was approaching. Whatever was coming was dark. The weight and cold of the grave crept into the streets like palpable fog.

Vampires.

The sound of thudding on asphalt. A wolf dropped. Snarling and the sound of claws on asphalt.

Fuck. We were under attack!

I crouched low, scanning the street in second sight. Vampires slipped in like shadows, coming out of thin air. And they were only attacking the wolves, not Alexander's vamps.

I stilled. Had Alexander set the wolves up?

Someone, coming from the side. I turned and he was already there, pummeling into me with the force of a sledgehammer. Years of training kicked in. I turned, still in the air, back poised and ready for the fall. The contact with asphalt still knocked all the air out of my lungs.

No time to think. Move!

I got up, ready to do some damage. He slammed me back into the ground. For a moment I couldn't see. Blood on the tip of my tongue. I blinked and my vision sharpened painfully.

Vamp. Blond, short hair. Pale, brown eyes larger and darker than any human's would have been. The male vamp reeked of blood and unwashed clothes. Decay in the widest sense of the word.