Must run faster! Must run faster!
I ducked a huge tree and found myself dropping to the forested ground. A bunch of needles and leaves flowed into my mouth, choking me on their dry, acidic flavor. It really needed salt. Or maybe a good red meat to go with it.
Someone scooped me up from my meal and raced down the woodland path with my midsection tucked against their side. I whipped my head up and saw it was Tegan. His hands were full of me, and a shining jewel wrapped in a metal necklace shimmered in his mouth.
Apparently, we were both eating out tonight.
A terrible screech made me look over my shoulder. Three witches flew at us atop their brooms, the same ones who had chased Tegan on our first adventure together. Tegan tripped over the uneven ground, and the harpies were able to gain ground on us.
I put my fingers in my mouth and gave a great whistle. The sound echoed off the trees, and I felt the familiar rush of wind as my broom flew toward us. My ride zipped through the witches, knocking them apart with its tailwind, and flew under Tegan.
He yelped as he was lifted off his feet. I grabbed onto the handle and pulled myself into the driver's seat, where I yanked the end upward. We flew through the canopy and up into the bright moonlit night. The stars twinkled at us as wild cackling followed on our heels.
Tegan tucked the item into his pocket and leaned toward me to whisper into my ear. “Hold her steady,” he instructed me as he turned around in his seat so our backs pressed together.
A bolt of purple magic flew past us, forcing me to jerk us to one side. “I don't think that's a good idea!”
“It will be!” he assured me as he raised both hands. Huge columns of fire burst from his palms and lit up the night sky.
The witches' eyes bulged out of their heads as a crooked smile slipped onto Tegan's lips. He flung his hands down, crashing the columns downward toward them. They screeched and separated, but tiny balls of fire flew out of the columns and shot at them with abandon. They couldn't escape the chaos effect and veered off course. The sheer number of fireballs forced them to dive into the trees, but the fire followed them like will-o'-the-wisps.
That gave me plenty of time to press my foot to the pedal, in a manner of speaking, and we shot ahead. The woods disappeared beneath us, and open country stretched as far as the eye could see. The far-off country wasn't what I was aiming for, however, as my path followed the road that snaked around the perimeter of the forest.
There. A carriage with a black horse but no driver or passenger. That changed when I landed us neatly beside the vehicle. Tegan helped me inside and hopped in behind me, where he cracked the reins. The horse sprinted down the road and carried us away from those horrible hags.
I crumpled lower in the seat and was glad when the woods were far in the distance behind us. “I think Domini is trying to get us killed.”
Tegan stared ahead as he nodded. “He's certainly not giving us any easy tasks, is he?”
I looked him up and down, and my heart gave a leap when I didn't see what I was searching for. “Do you still have it?”
He smiled and slipped his hand into his pocket, where he drew out the treasured item. “Right here.”
I took it and examined the fancy gem with its gold chain. “So much trouble for this. Why do you think the witches stole it from him?”
Tegan shook his head. “I'm not sure, but it must have some magical properties. Witches generally aren't interested in anything outside that.”
I slyly grinned up at my handsome companion. “I could think of a few things witches like.”
He chuckled. “I stand corrected.”
“So we just drop this off, and we're done with this job, right?” I wondered as I pocketed the item.
“And then we can have a proper rest,” he confirmed.
I sighed and admired the black night scenery. “I suppose at least we're seeing the sights. Well, what sights can we see.” Tegan's eyes glowed a little brighter. I glared at him and nudged his arm with my elbow. “Show off.”
“It's a gift,” he teased as we rolled over the countryside.
I leaned my head against his shoulder and closed my eyes. For one brief moment, things were perfect.
Then they weren't.
Kate! Tegan!
The voice was so loud and frantic that I nearly fell out of my seat. Only Tegan's timely grip on my shoulder stopped me from falling to the fast ground. However, he wasn't immune to the volume as he lost his grip on the reins. The horse sensed the lack of tension and took the wrong idea from it.
It bolted.
The horse let itself run free down the road, causing the carriage to bounce up and down over even the slightest of ruts. Tegan lunged forward and snatched the reins before they slipped over the front, and he pulled the horse into submission. The animal reared and whinnied, but obeyed his command and stopped.
We sat there for a long moment in confusion. Then it came again.
You fools! Come to me before it's-
The inner voice cut off. My blood ran cold as I looked up at Tegan. “That was Zahn, wasn't it?”
He nodded. “It was. He's in trouble.”
The mere thought made a chill run down my spine. Zahn wasn't just any vampire. He was the oldest one we'd ever met and a master of magic.
And now someone had forced him to call for help from us.
“So there goes our vacation?” I asked him.
Tegan sighed. “I don't think we'd rest easy until we found out what was wrong.” He looked down at me and smiled. “Right?”
I nodded. “Yeah. So off to Blutstein?”
“Off to Blutstein,” he confirmed as he tightened his grip on the reins.
Tegan didn't get a chance to crack them before a strange pressure exploded in our heads. I cried out and clutched my head in my hand as Tegan leaned forward and winced. The pain took my breath away for a moment, so I couldn't speak, but I finally managed to choke out a few words as the agony subsided.
“What…what the hell was that?”
Tegan lifted his head and frowned. “Domini.”
I blinked at him. “The blood contract?”
“He's demanding an audience,” Tegan explained as he cut the tip of his finger.
The blood floated upward in front of us and formed the congealed face of our employer, Domini. The man smiled and inclined his head to us. A deep, slightly garbled voice came from the bloody figure. “My sincerest apologies for the abrupt communication, but I was informed you were headed for Blutstein.”
“What's wrong with that?” I questioned him.
He chuckled. “Many things, but you would do well to stay away from there for the present time. Deliver the trinket to my messenger in the next town and take a break. You have certainly earned it.”
“And if we refuse?” Tegan challenged the man.
A slight pressure pulsed inside my brain, and a tick on Tegan's face told me he felt the same. “Then you will be disobeying our contract. I expect you to stay away from Blutstein and take your vacation. Do as I say, and I won't be forced into more drastic measures.” The bloodied face collapsed and splashed onto the ground between the carriage and the horse.
The pressure subsided completely, and I shook my head to clear my thoughts. “What the hell just happened?”
Tegan leaned back and furrowed his brow. “It looks like we're not welcome in Blutstein.”
“Was he somehow watching our thoughts?” I wondered.
Tegan nodded. “So it would seem.”
I furrowed my brow. “Then how are we going to find out about Zahn if we can't go to Blutstein?”
Tegan grinned down at me. “We're still going there.”
I cocked my head to one side. “How?”
He tapped his temple. “By not thinking about it and taking our vacation.”
I blinked at him. “Come again?”
He grasped the reins and gave them a crack, causing the horse to trot onward down the road. “We're going to take our vacation. It just so happens it will be near Blutstein, so we may as well take in the sights around there, as well.”
I lifted an eyebrow. “Will that work?”
“We're about to find out,” he told me as he cracked the reins again.
The horse broke into a gallop, and we sailed down the road to our next and greatest adventure.
