He glanced back. The ten supersoldiers were closing in. Time to slow them down. He shot an arrow at one holding a torch, and the soldier let out a yelp and fell over, his torch tumbling to the ground.
The flames quickly spread, drawing the attention of the other guards. One of them kicked the fallen soldier into the flames to smother them.
What a shithead. Russell notched another arrow into his crossbow as the fallen soldier thrashed and screamed. A second later, his arrow put the burning soldier out of his misery, and three seconds later, another arrow took out the shithead.
“It’s an ambush!” one of the supersoldiers yelled as he dove behind a tree.
The other soldiers scrambled for cover and quickly extinguished the torches. A dark, tense silence fell over the forest.
Russell readied another arrow, waiting for one of the eight remaining soldiers to venture out. A quick glance toward the woman, and he groaned inwardly. Instead of running, she’d crouched behind some bushes. His sudden appearance must have confused her. She was breathing heavily, twisting this way and that in a frantic attempt to discern his location.
Just run away, he pleaded with her silently. I have this covered.
From her belt, she pulled out a knife. Apparently she was afraid to trust him. He couldn’t blame her. If you trusted no one, you tended to live longer.
He turned his attention back to the eight soldiers. On the far left, one darted to the cover of another tree, too quickly for Russell to take him out. He aimed an arrow at him, waiting for him to make another move. Meanwhile, to the right, another soldier dashed to a tree. The group was obviously trying to surround the woman, and eventually they would if she didn’t make a run for it.
The guy to the far left made another move, and this time, Russell wounded him in the shoulder. He was still alive, but his sword arm would be useless.
Rustling sounds emanated from bushes and trees as the remaining seven soldiers attempted to encircle their prey. The woman slipped her knife back into its sheath, then leaped from her crouch into a full sprint. Russell paused a second, amazed by her speed and grace, but quickly came to when he realized the soldiers were dashing after her. He shot one with an arrow, then noticed another aiming a pistol in his direction. Just as the sound of gunfire echoed through the woods, he teleported away and landed in a tree ahead of the woman.
The six remaining soldiers were gaining on her fast. Enough of this nonsense. Just get her out of here.
He jumped down to the base of the tree. Hidden behind it, he could hear her approaching. Her steps were light, as if she barely needed the ground, but her breathing was louder and tinged with panic. He stepped out, directly into her path.
Her night vision was excellent, for she spotted him immediately and skidded to a stop so fast that she fell back onto her rump.
Russell lifted his empty hands to show her he meant no harm, but within a second, she was back on her feet with her knife drawn and pointed at him. Once again, he was amazed by her speed and gracefulness.
“Friend,” he whispered in Chinese. Her face was partially blocked by her raised knife, and he tilted his head to get a better look.
She pivoted to check on the soldiers behind her. When Russell stepped closer, she whipped around to face him.
He blinked. She was stunning. And not one of the warrior women of Beyul-La. If he’d ever met this woman before, he would have remembered her.
Her golden eyes widened as she looked him over.
Who the hell was she? “Friend,” he repeated and motioned to the crossbow on his shoulder. “I helped you.”
She sheathed her knife but retained her grip on the handle. Apparently she wasn’t ready to completely trust him. Smart girl. He was still tempted to wring her neck.
The glint of metal behind a bush caught his eye and he grabbed her, pulling her behind the tree with vampire speed as a knife whooshed toward them. With his back pressed against the trunk, he felt the tree shudder with the knife’s impact.
“Let me go,” the woman whispered, tugging at his grip.
He considered complying. After all, she wasn’t his problem. And she’d destroyed the best chance he’d had at killing Han in over two years.
I am not responsible for her, he thought, but he made the mistake of looking at her. Big, golden eyes, flickering with emotion. A beautiful face, vibrant and alive. Delicate, but determined. He had a feeling she was near panic but holding it together with sheer willpower and courage. Something twisted in his undead heart.
I’m going to regret this. He tightened his hold on her, then teleported, taking her with him.
As soon as Jia felt solid ground beneath her feet, she pulled away from the man’s grip. It was dark, too dark to see, even with her excellent night vision.
“Careful,” the man said in Chinese. His accent was odd and his voice gruff, as if he didn’t speak often.
She pulled her knife from its sheath, ready to strike if he attacked her. From his scent and the fact that he’d teleported, she knew he was a vampire, but he might be a good one, like her friends Jin Long and Dou Gal. This man seemed to be on her side, but when it came to vampires, appearances could be deceiving. Until she’d met the good Vamps, she’d thought they were all evil.
“Don’t move,” the man grumbled. “I’ll light up the place so you can see.”