“We are not here to cause problems for you. Or . . . um . . . disturb you,” I said.
The figures slowed their approach, stopping about ten feet from me. Laughter flowed through them—not nice laughter, but dark and throaty. Wet with blood.
The middle one lifted his hand, rolling it so his palm faced upward. “You trespass on our land, cat.”
“Well, to be fair, we’re hiding from the dragons that would like to eat us.” Sweat trickled down my spine. Funny, I was less afraid now that I could see the wayward spirits. “Did the Ice Witch send you?”
The middle one swiveled his wrist all the way around so the palm faced up once more. “She did not.”
I wasn’t buying it. “Then why did I smell the ocean?”
Laughter again followed my question.
“Who are you talking to?” Maks growled at me.
Right, unless he was a sensitive, he wouldn’t be able to see or hear them. He might pick up on a few things, but not enough to truly grasp what was happening. To be fair, not many supes could see ghosts, either. Most likely he just saw the fog and felt the presence of the spirits. “Keep quiet and let me work here.”
Lila peered out from my hood. “Vamps, all three were vamps when they were alive.”
The figures shimmered and then became clearer, as if her naming them had given them substance.
“This ground is cursed.” The middle one took a step closer. “But so are you, aren’t you, cat?”
“Yeah, that shit sucks,” I said.
He solidified further so there was no seeing through him. If I hadn’t seen it happen, I wouldn’t have known he was dead. Maks said nothing behind me—even now he saw nothing.
“We are here to warn you, cursed one.” He smiled and his fangs flashed through the mist that curled between us. “The Ice Witch did not send us, but she sent her spirits to watch you. They cannot enter here. We have no love of her, so we will warn you. This one time.” He held up a single finger. “This is our haunt and we protect what’s in it.”
“Ah, you don’t like sharing?” I almost smiled. Almost. But thought better of it at the last second. First rule in chatting up a ghost. Don’t piss them off, don’t make them think you’re making fun of them.
He took a step closer and I could see the color of his hair, a white blond, and his eyes a sharp blue. “Don’t push me, kitty cat.”
I swallowed hard. “Got it. Sorry, it’s hard not to be a sass mouth.”
“I can see that.” The dead vamp drew a breath and then shook his head. “The witch wants your hide, cat. And not everyone around you is as they seem. Betrayal. Death. Battle wounds. They are coming for you. Nothing is as it seems. The emperor is rising, and he will bathe our world in blood.”
“Fun,” Lila whispered.
“And you’re warning me because?” I asked.
“Because the Ice Witch tried to take our souls. She tried to use us to attack you and that is not acceptable. We are not pets to be controlled,” he said. “But she cannot control a vampire, not even when they are dead. That is not within her ability. Other spirits she’ll manipulate and use to track you. I think a dark shadow will find you when you leave this graveyard.”
The more he talked, the clearer his features became until I could see even the individual lashes on his eyelids. I had to swallow again; he was gorgeous. Too bad he was dead. And a vamp.
They bit. A shiver ran through me, maybe that wouldn’t be so bad.
“Basically, this is just a big fuck you to her?” I arched an eyebrow, I couldn’t help it. The vamp grinned.
“Something like that. And I’ll admit, I have a weakness for strong women.” He lifted a hand and ran it through a single lock of my hair. “Though I prefer redheads.”
I didn’t bat his hand away because he wasn’t really touching me. “I’m not that strong.” Ahh, I needed to keep my mouth shut.
The dead vamp smiled. “Strength has little to do with the powers you are given, cat. The strongest person I knew was weak by way of her abilities. Her strength came from her heart and the determination in her very soul.” He took a step back, the smile lingering on his lips. “We will keep the other spirits at bay so you may rest. But when you leave this ground, you will no longer be safe from them. And they will follow you; they have your scent.”
My mouth tightened. “Thanks. For the warning and everything.”
That bit about the emperor was more than a little disturbing. Seeing as he was supposed to be just a story, not a real creature at all.
He bowed his head. “We are protectors of our world. You and I, no matter what others may tell you. I think you’re going to find out the hard way where your strength lies, cat.” He took a step back, and then another and another until his body blended with the mist and then he and his two friends were gone. The sensation of being watched eased off until it was nothing more than a tickle along the back of my neck.
I blew out a breath of air I didn’t realize I’d been hanging onto. I turned and bumped into Maks.
“Seriously, what just happened?” He barked the question, snapping me out of the fog I’d been literally standing in. I held up both hands and made a shooing motion with them.
“Dude, back the hell off. We’re safe for tonight.”
Lila put her mouth to my ear. “You going to tell him about the spirits following you?”
I shook my head.
“Who were you talking to out there?” Maks had a sheen of sweat across his brow. “I mean, I could hear you talking but it was like you were far away.”
“I was chatting with the dead that live here. The guardians of this place are going to look out for us tonight. After that, we’re on our own.” I slumped by the fire, exhaustion hitting me hard. Escaping near death did that to you.
Lila moved so she was on one shoulder and I could lean against the stone wall. It was cold but solid and that gave me a little comfort. With my front to the fire and my back to the stone, I let the fatigue take me. “Sleep while you can, Maks. We’ve got a long ride ahead of us.”
“We aren’t taking shifts?” The disbelief in his voice was straight up shock.
“No, I trust the one I spoke with, and I have a feeling this could be the last time we both get a full night’s sleep.” I closed my eyes and behind the lids saw the vamp with the blue eyes smile and wink at me. Yeah, he’d have been a ladies’ man for sure. I sighed and sleep rolled over me.
But not before I heard Maks mutter, “This is fucking nuts.”
I woke to the smell of cooking meat and my mouth instantly filled with saliva even as my nose twitched with the rancid scent of burning hair. I leaned forward, eyes blinking to clear away the last of the sleep. To my left, Maks was still out cold, and Lila hovered above the fire, a whole rabbit cooking on the coals.
“Figured I’d get breakfast.” She fanned her wings, which set the flames higher and a sizzle of charring hair flicked through the air, thicker this time.
I moved closer and pulled a blade from my thigh strap. “Here, it looks done.” I stuck the point through the back leg and dragged it out of the fire. Using both knives, I sliced it open and cut off hunks of meat that was overcooked in some parts, and almost raw in others.
“You don’t want the skin? That’s the best part.” Lila hopped on the stone beside me. I peeled the skin off where I could and handed it to her.
“Yeah, not so much. You can have it all.”
She grabbed a hunk and threw her head back, dislocating her jaw like a snake to get it all in with a few good head tosses. I looked away in time to see Maks’s face rapidly greening. I handed him a leg and thigh of the rabbit that was mostly done.
“Breakfast. Courtesy of Lila.”
He shook his head and I gave him the best death eyes I could. Do not offend the small, acid-spitting dragon, idiot man.
With every muscle twitch screaming reluctance, he took the leg and I cut the second one off for myself. The meat was pink the further in I got, and the innards were still there, but that didn’t bother me. I’d eaten my fair share of small rodents that were still squirming.