Meg repacked her duffel bag and prepared herself for a potentially long walk. There was nothing else to do. She couldn’t just sit here, and Human Dante had taken away her ability to call his vampire counterpart.
Meg trudged to the river. She realized she had another decision to make. She had no idea where she was in relation to the village. It could be north or south of where she was. She could walk for days, only to discover she’d gone the wrong way. Meg chewed nervously on her lip and stared through the rain, trying to see if there was anything familiar. The only times she’d come into the forest, she had been either righteously pissed off at Beck or sleeping peacefully in his arms. She hadn’t been memorizing landmarks.
Ahead in the distance, she spotted a beautiful horse standing in the water, and her decision was made.
“Screw you, you cannibal horse,” she shouted at the kelpie and turned the opposite direction. It was enough of a sign for her. Decision made, Meg began to jog.
It might have been a bad decision, Meg decided half an hour later. She seemed to be walking toward the intensifying storm. The rain was pelting her. There wasn’t an inch of her that wasn’t soaked. She shivered as she hiked on.
After a few minutes, she heard a magnificent sound. It started like a slight whir, and there was no mistaking its man-made nature. Well, there was no mistaking its vampire-made nature.
She stopped and let the sound come to her. It didn’t take long. The hover bike was fast. The bike got louder. The sound seemed almost anxious to Meg’s ears. The rider was outfitted for the storm. He was in head-to-toe water-repellant gear. Even his eyes were covered with goggles. He steered the bike right toward her.
“Get on.” Dante had to shout over the noise of the storm. “We need to talk, sister.”
Twenty minutes later, Meg took the towel Dante handed her. Like everything else about Dante’s little camp, the towel was very high-tech. She rubbed her hair, and suddenly, it was dry. She didn’t question it. She was just grateful to be warm. The tent was toasty and dry. There were soft lanterns giving the room a nice glow. It was everything she could ask for.
“Where the hell have you been?” Dante asked, pouring himself a Scotch. “Do you have any idea how bad things have gotten while you were doing whatever it was you were doing?”
“Well, I didn’t go willingly.” Meg rubbed her hands together before shrugging out of her sweater. “Someone paid the Planeswalker to take me home.”
Dante’s mouth hung open slightly. “You went back to the Earth plane?”
“And then found my way back here. I didn’t even need a demon to help me, though I did come back with one,” Meg said proudly.
Dante sighed. “You came back.”
“Of course I came back,” Meg replied. The vampire had really believed she’d abandoned them. “I love them, Dante. I never wanted to leave them. Now, tell me everything. Are they alive? Has the hag been able to hurt them? How did you find me?”
Dante looked slightly amused as she pelted him with questions. “As far as I know, they’re still protected. I can’t get close. The storm is horrible. It’s kept the hag away, though she’s closing in. Once that blonde bitch gets into their hidey-hole, she’ll be able to slit their throats, and there’s nothing they can do about it. As for how I found you, I planted a locator device on your back that first day we met. Remember, I gave you a big hug and slapped you on the back? The locator device is small and burrows into the skin. I had a feeling you would be trouble.”
“You LoJacked me?”
Dante shook his head, seemingly unconcerned. “I don’t know what that is, sweetheart. However, I did make sure I could keep tabs on you. Don’t mention it to Ci, but I ‘LoJacked’ him a long time ago. I was too scared to try it with Beck. I do it to the people I care about. I like to know where they are.”
“So where are they?” Meg chose to set aside Dante’s questionable actions for now. They were fortuitous any way she looked at it.
“About a half a mile north. I don’t know what happened, but the twins took refuge in a small cabin in the middle of the forest. It’s covered with vines, and let me tell you, those vines have thorns. I tried to hack my way in while the hag was sleeping. The plants took exception.”
Meg pulled off her wet jeans and shirt. She ran the towel across her skin, marveling at the way it instantly dried her. “That’s Cian’s doing. He came into his power shortly before that asshole demon hauled my butt back to Earth.”
“Cian’s a Green Man?” Dante lisped a little around his fangs. Meg threw him a dirty look. “What do you expect, sweetheart? You’re half-naked. It would be rude not to get horny. Now tell me about Ci.”
Meg rolled her eyes and accepted that Dante was just Dante. She moved to her duffel bag and was pleased to find that everything she owned was not soaking wet. “All that legendary stuff about royal symbiotic twins is true.” Meg put on the soft, suede-like pants the village women had sewn for her, and her shirt and vest. “Cian is a Green Man. Beck can control storms.”
“Well, he’s not doing a very good job of it, is he?” Dante asked, referencing the raging storm outside. “It’s been like this since I got here a week ago. I came when your locator signal went off-line and I couldn’t get the computer I gave you to answer me.”
“About that, I’m going to need another one of those. Your human self stole mine, the little weasel. I have no doubt he is, even now, plotting something ruthless. He had that look about him.”
“Nice,” Dante said, showing off his fangs. “So you met the human version of me. How hot was I? I was really rich, but, like, on my own, right? I see myself as a self-made man.”
“You were sad and sweet and potentially very selfish.” Meg strapped her shoulder holster on. She thought about Human Dante. “Your life wasn’t as good there as you have it here. I’m actually a little worried about what you, the other you, is going to do with that computer.”
Dante looked vaguely pleased. “Probably something incredibly evil. I always thought I’d make a good super villain.”
Meg checked the .357. The weight felt good in her hands. “Speaking of villains, tell me the blonde bitch who’s trying to kill my husbands is Liadan.”
“Is that the chick Beck’s been banging?” He quickly corrected himself. “I mean was banging before he met his one true love and started being completely faithful?”
“You’re a good wingman,” Meg remarked. “And yes, I’m talking about Beck’s ex-honey. Please tell me I get to kill her.”
Dante took a long gulp of Scotch. Meg was sure it was top-of-the-line stuff. When he looked back, Meg saw the fear in his clear eyes. “If she doesn’t kill you first, sweetheart. She’s quite horrible. I saw her face, her real face. I wish I didn’t have to see it again.”
Meg checked to make sure the gun was loaded. She looked back at Dante as she placed the .357 Magnum in the holster and reached for the extra jacket the vampire had offered her. It was too big, but it would keep her dry. “You don’t have to. You point me in the right direction, and I’ll take care of her. It’s my responsibility, not yours. You’ve done your job.”
Those clear green eyes rolled back. “Stuff it, sweetheart. Don’t give me the lone warrior routine. I’m still a freaking vampire, and I have my pride. Besides, my cousins would kick my ass if they found out I sent their wife in to face a hag and her nasty little cat while I stayed safe and dry in my tent. I’m going with you, and that’s that. Now, since we’ve gone ahead and acknowledged that we’re about to die, how about some end-of-the-world sex? If we’re going out, we should go out with a bang and a really good orgasm.”
Meg pointedly zipped up her jacket. “You’re worried Beck and Ci will be upset if you send me in alone, but you think they’ll be okay with a little infidelity?”