Wicked Love - Michelle Dare Page 0,64

unlocked, I slid inside and closed it with a quiet click.

It was very, very dark but I knew I was in a hallway. I kept walking toward a light source I could see at the end. Once I was close to it, someone jumped out and grabbed me from behind, wrapping their arms around me.

Shit.

“Where you going, little man?”

Little? No. I was six-foot-one and this guy was shorter than me. In hopes he was a vampire, I pulled the vial of holy water from my pants pocket and splashed it on his arms. He screeched and let go. When I turned around, I could see smoke rising from his arms, so I quickly jumped on him and pulled out my wooden stake, also dipped in holy water. “Where is Daniela?”

He snarled. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“A woman, she was here a half-hour ago. Where is she?” I held the point of the dagger at his throat and drew a little blood.

“All blood bags are either consumed or put in the dungeon,” he stammered out.

“Where’s the fucking dungeon, you leech?” I was trying very hard not to snap.

“Well, below the house, obviously.”

“Obviously,” I gritted out. “How do I get there?”

He looked up at me with crazed eyes. “Fuck you, little man.” Then, he bucked me off and jumped on me. While I was down, he bit into my neck and I yelled out so loud, I was sure someone was going to come running.

“Ow! You asshole!” I put my hand to my neck, and with the other, I stabbed him in the shoulder with my stake.

He jumped off me, but before he could get away, I tackled him. While he was face-down on the floor, I said, “Where’s. The. Door. To. The. Dungeon?”

“Kitchen door. Kitchen door!”

“Thank you.” Then I flipped him over and plunged the stake into his chest. After I jumped off, he turned to ash and clothing.

“Cool!”

It took me twenty minutes to find the damn kitchen, all the while growing weak from the blood loss in my neck. Thankfully, the first door I tried led to a dark, steep staircase where I realized the ‘dungeon’ was. It wasn’t hard to find Daniela sleeping in one of the cold, stone cells.

“Dani!” I whisper-yelled, relieved nobody else was around except a couple of other prisoners.

She blinked her eyes open. “Judson?”

“Yes, it’s me. How do I get you out of here?”

“Lurch has the keys,” she murmured.

I was confused. “Who’s Lurch?” I yanked on the cell door, and it opened up. “What the hell?”

She sat up and became more alert. “Wait. It was open the whole time?”

“Hell if I know… let’s just take it as a sign that ‘Lurch’ forgot to lock it and get the fuck outta here.”

“Agreed,” she replied, following me out. “What about those two?” She pointed to the other two cells.

It was then I noticed one of the prisoners looked very familiar. Unkempt blond hair. Crazed eyes. “Holy fuck. That’s Audrey’s killer,” I breathed.

“Are you serious?” Dani asked.

“As a heart attack.”

She bit her lip and looked around. “But we need to get out of here.”

“Not before I do what I need to do.”

“Oh, my God, Judson. You’re bleeding. Have you been bit?” she asked, panic in her voice.

I ignored her and walked up to his cell with my arms behind my back.

“Come here, we’re gonna let you out,” I said to the crazed vampire.

He slowly slunk over to me. “Who are you? You look familiar.” Even his voice sounded unhinged. He had definitely lost the plot and needed to be put down.

“I’m your guardian angel,” I lied.

He grinned and stood right in front of the bars. “Is that so?”

“No,” I said, grabbing him around his neck through the bars with one arm and reaching through with the other and stabbing him in the back. I prayed to whoever was listening that it would hit his heart.

“What have you done, angel?” he asked, true betrayal in his eyes.

“That’s for Audrey. You prick.” I let him go and he slumped to the floor of the cell. It didn’t take long for him to begin to crumble.

When I looked down at him, it was almost like there were two of him, my vision beginning to swim as I grew weaker. We raced up the stairs, snuck through the kitchen, and eventually found our way to the back door.

“Who was that?” Dani asked as we stepped over the pile of ash and clothing in the hallway.

“Guard dog, I guess,” I slurred,