The volume of screams, grunts and inhumane growls filled the air. I knew from this that Inerra hadn't been lying about it being an army of rogues. The guards of the palace fought to defend it, leading to the creation of the bloodbath that Acera now sped through.
My eyes were forced to close as the wind whipped past at a terrifying rate. I'd never been in a situation quite like this. Hundreds – no thousands – of vampires were swarmed around me and I was running.
For once, I'd been the one convincing Acera that we had to flee and that it was the only option.
The forest was huge, stretching for miles. The autumn leaves were inaudible as Acera glided over them with his superhuman speed. He didn't make a single noise of complaint about the insane amount of strength he needed to carry his brother and mate whilst he had to sprint to safety all at once.
We somehow made it past the most densely packed area of the trees and appeared in a clearing. My eyes zoned in on the black Ferrari. I silently thanked Inerra for telling the truth about there being vehicles as Acera yanked the door open. I clambered down, turning round to face the treeline. I had no weapons, but at least I'd be able to give a premature warning.
"Charlie, get in. Now," Acera shouted at me. The hum of chaos grew louder and louder, bringing my heart to thud at an entire new level of panic.
I glanced at him as he – bless him – pulled the seatbelt over Inerra's limp form in the passenger seat. "Not until you're ready..."
His irritated orange eyes snapped to mine when some sort of animal leapt onto him. Then more of them appeared. I yelped, finding that at least twenty rogues had appeared, eyes wild and faces smeared in drying blood.
Acera was pulled back from the car in the struggle. I could see them slowly stalking towards me, knowing smirks pulling at their lips.
"Defenceless human. Don't miss those days one bit," one snarled.
Keeping my movements to a minimal, I edged back to the car, hand reaching inside where Inerra sat.
"What are you doing, human?" another teased.
In a flash, I slipped inside, slamming the door after me. I locked each door, awkwardly manoeuvring over the unconscious Inerra in the process. They started to scrape at the windows and roof. I was seeing black blotches around my vision.
"Shit, don't pass out," I hissed at myself, smacking myself over the head to clear the foggy darkness. "Deep breaths." I inhaled slowly and then exhaled once before I returned to searching the inside of the Ferrari for any weapon I could use.
All of a sudden, the back window was smashed through, a hand appearing. I groaned. "Cheap piece of shit this car is. Didn't think of a vampire invasion, did we Ferrari? Nooo, you were too preoccupied with how this baby was going to look and not how it would stand against a vampire apocalypse."
Muttering away faster now, I started to tear every compartment to shreds when all of a sudden, after ripping the leather seat to the right, I found a plank of wood supporting the wall of the car. My brows plucked together. They used wood in Ferraris?
Ignoring my amazement, I knocked at it, clawed at it and then tore it from place. I carefully separated the wood into two parts, both equally as sharp. For once, I had a backup stake.
I peered at the window. There was no one there. My eyes darted to every other one and then to the back. All that remained was a gaping hole where the vampire had punched through the glass. Where had they gone? Were they tricking me? Or had they found something more interesting?
Acera! I screamed at myself in recollection, recklessly fumbling at the lock and then kicking the door open and hauling myself out. The flat land was deserted. I wiped my forehead with the back of my hand, collecting the perspiration to then shake it off. I was still in a bloody skater dress.
I narrowed my eyes, scanning into the trees now, pivoting on my heel and looking over the roof of the car. There was no one here. Thinking of nothing else, I started to shout. "Acera! Acera, where are you?"
Was this a stupid idea? Aw wait...now everyone would know my whereabouts. Shit, I'm stupid. I'm supposed to be a slayer and in the rule book the first line is be bloody inconspicuous!
"Charlie! Get in the car!" a familiar voice roared.
I turned to the left just as he appeared in front of me, hands gripping onto me so tightly it hurt. "Ow," I whimpered. He only squeezed tighter, bringing me into an asphyxiating embrace. I momentarily sucked in some of his scent to assure myself.
Acera didn't move for a long second; too long a second. His body started to tremble. I tilted my head back, finding his face screwed up in a grimace.
"What's wrong...?" I started to ask breathlessly, concern coating my every word.
That's when I noticed the three stakes buried deep into his back. "Oh my god," I cried, wrapping my arms around him.
"Pull them out. Quickly," he pleaded in a low grumble.
I tugged on the first one and he hissed through his teeth. It finally came loose. The other two were much easier to remove. He heaved a sigh, pinning me to the car as he ran his fingers through my sweaty hair. His lips were at my temple. "Thank you," he mumbled, sounding exhausted, sending shivers through me despite the situation.
"No problem," I dismissed in a whisper, smiling slightly at how bizarre this was. A human like me having a pureblood like him and enduring situations where I had to pull bits of bark out of him on a regular basis really was something.
My smile quickly faded as my eyes absorbed four vampires stalking from the trees. Each held a stake. Aimed. Fired.
"Run!" I screeched, tugging on him and yanking the door open. A stake went right through the glass. I couldn't sit on this seat sprinkled with glass without cutting my legs open.
Acera snaked his arm around me, slammed the door and sped round to the other side of the car. He quickly got in, pulled the door after him and started the engine. I took a fistful of his hair, sitting in his lap all tensed up as he took off in an unknown direction.
Sweat dampened my outfit, trickling down my spine, making my palms sticky while my eyes searched through the back window. No one was following us. Every breath I took was as uncontrolled as the next. My heart had broken the limit for speed and loudness. It was positively crashing in my ears.
Acera managed to find the path Inerra must have taken to get the car into the clearing. I gripped five stakes and they shook, too.
For a long time, neither of us spoke. I couldn't think of anything to say. We were together again and yet something else had to go wrong. If I ever found a way to kill The Purest, I'd quite happily stab him repeatedly afterwards and then sprinkle his ashes in the toilet.
The wind howled at an annoying pitch due to the smashed, open window. When, eventually, Acera decreased our speed a little and switched onto a main road, the wind cut off for a while.
I let out a long, exasperated sigh, rolling my head to the side so that it rested against his. I still had him. We were together despite me being kidnapped by Inerra and having an entire rogue army nearly kill us both.
His cool hand moved from gripping the steering wheel to peel the stakes from my hand. He tossed them into the back compartment and then, both without his hands on the wheel or eyes on the road, pulled me further across his lap so that my back was against the driver's door. He slipped his arm around me, fingers just managing to reach the wheel. His other, free hand was taken by both of mine and I held it to my chest before resting my cheek against his shoulder and bringing his fingers to my lips. He was warmer than he'd been when he'd nearly died. I much preferred him like this – not dead.
"Acera?" I murmured sleepily.
He hummed softly, sounding equally as tired.
"Where are we going?"
His fingers laced through mine, then pulled back and flipped my hand, revealing my palm. He took to following every line with a delicate pinky. I shivered before I could help myself. As he spoke, I could hear his smile.
"Scotland."
I arched a brow, but because I was so tired it just slumped back down again. I shifted a little in his lap and sighed, enjoying the way his frame was so comfortable. "And why is that? There isn't much glorious sunshine there, or white beaches, or anything, really."
"And you're the expert. I've been on this planet much longer than you. I used to live in Scotland, actually, with Dremos, Sora and Katria. We stayed in a really beautiful house in the Shetlands for a few months."
"I've been on this planet much longer than you," I mimicked.
He responded by poking my side with a slender finger repeatedly until I was squirming when it tickled too much. I yelped, bolting upright and caging his hand between mine. When I pouted like a stuck-up brat, he leant in and caught my lower lip between his teeth. It was the first thing he'd done since we'd been reunited that got my blood racing and my toes curling. I was overwhelmed with the urge to pleasure him senseless.
He groaned as my fingers delved through his hair and traced his chest. He was still shirtless. I remembered I'd thrown his clothes in the footwell.
"Wait a sec," I commanded, wriggling my body down between his legs and the wheel.
"Whoa, what are you doing?" he gasped, grabbing my arm as I came face to face with his groin.
My face burned, mouth a wide O. When I stared at him, I found a nervous twinkle in his eye and then, even stronger than that, the lust burning there. My breath caught. His lips were a deep, bruised red from my fierce kisses, glistening in the dim light of the car. His orange eyes were darker, sultrier.
"Clothes..." I mumbled under my breath, reaching behind me to pluck his black shirt from the floor. I crawled back up him, legs straddling his. His lids fluttered when I pressed myself against him. My mouth teased the kisses from him as I fed his arms through his shirt sleeves. He reached for me when I shuffled back a little, practically whimpering.
"One minute," I told him, eyes brighter than ever. Taking my time, I started to do up the buttons. His body tensed occasionally and he pursed his lips to fight from complaining about the space between us. I decided to leave the top three undone purely for my own selfish desires.
I glanced over my shoulder to find that we were no longer on the road. The engine had stopped and we were now engulfed in darkness other than the dim lights of the dashboard. A smirk laced my lips.
"Is one minute up yet?" he said through his teeth, eyes so dark they were unrecognisable.
I slowly leant forward and pressed my lips to his. Arms circling me, he hauled me right up against him, winning a soft moan in my chest. He smiled slightly before tugging me across his lower half. We both choked on noises of approval. It never felt this good. Not with Inerra or Jake.
My hands claimed his shoulders as he rocked me against him slowly. Each time our bodies met at the same point, we'd moan. His playful tongue dominated and so I ran mine under his fangs, successfully making him shudder. His fingers dug into my waist, moving me quicker over his lower region. Faster. And faster.
"Ohhh," I praised in a sigh, tilting my head back. He immediately cupped the back of my skull with one hand before running his cool tongue over my neck. His fangs grazed me there and I could tell what was going to happen next. I continued to rub myself on his lap, feeling his every reaction
"I love you," he told me breathlessly, fangs sliding inside of me.
My body turned rigid at the intrusion. A part of me was terrified, but the stronger side of me relaxed after a moment. I melted against him, knotting my fingers in his hair as he started to suck, drinking full mouthfuls of my blood. It didn't hurt anymore and soon the pleasure overtook any sorts of pain.
"I love you too," I howled quietly, eyes squeezed shut.
He carefully removed his fangs, licking over the bite before kissing me once there. My head lolled onto his shoulder as I caught my breath. His hands slid up my thighs beneath the dress to lay flat against my bare back. He touched his lips to my jaw, urging me to face him. I did as he wished and slid my nose in next to his. My heart had a low, rhythmic thud to it for once as his breath fanned my lips.
He moved his arms from beneath the material and reached for the hem of the dress as if he was going to lift it off.
"Urgh, please, spare me," a sardonic voice grunted.
I jerked my head to find a pair of narrowed blue eyes trained on us. I'd never felt so awkward in all my life and as Inerra smirked, I registered the hurt in his gaze.