Darkness Rises(108)

Étienne laughed. “Which part?”
“All of it. Being so strong and fast. Being able to see so much. I can’t believe I can walk around in the dark without a flashlight now.”
Grinning, he shook his head. She had been immortal for a couple of weeks now and had made the adjustment beautifully. She wasn’t even squeamish about infusing herself with blood, though he suspected that would have been vastly different if she actually had to drink it.
“I can hear everything,” she marveled. “Which can be kinda creepy. I’ve never paid much attention to wildlife, so I don’t know what animals are making the sounds I keep hearing and I’m hearing a lot of sounds. And the smells . . . So many! Good and bad.”
“It’s heady, isn’t it?” he asked.
“It really is.” She leaned into him and sent him a flirtatious look. “You smell very good, by the way.”
“As do you.”
“Those vampires,” she said, “on the other hand, do not smell good. They smell like . . . old blood or rancid meat or something.”
“Excellent.” He had caught their scent only seconds before she had. “How many are there?”
Her nostrils flared as she drew in a deep breath. “Four.”
“How far away?”
“That one’s harder.” She bit her lip. “A mile?”
“Almost two.”
She swore. “I’m still having a hard time judging distance.”
“It will become easier as you grow more accustomed to your heightened senses. The vamps are also traveling quickly, so that can throw you off.”
“Oh.”
“Sounds like they’re headed for Keenan Stadium. Let’s see if we can’t keep them from tearing it up for shits and giggles. That’s a saying, right?”
She laughed. “You can ease up on the slang now. We’re together.”
He grimaced. “I just don’t want you to think I’m too old for you.”
“I don’t. And, if I ever had—which I didn’t—one night in bed with you would have convinced me otherwise.”
“Minx. Don’t arouse me before a fight.”
“Why not? It might distract the vampires.”
He laughed. “I guess it would. Let’s go.”
Holding her hand, he sped toward UNC’s football stadium.
Halfway there, he stopped short, jerking Krysta to a halt, too.
“Ow,” she complained, rubbing her shoulder. “Maybe we shouldn’t hold hands when we run at preternatural speeds.”
“Forgive me,” he said absently, senses on high alert. He raised her hand to his lips. Do you smell that? Answer me with a thought.
She sniffed the air. Her brow furrowed. Is that . . . gun oil?
Yes. Let’s head up to the roof. He motioned to the building beside them. Since she hadn’t had much experience with jumping yet, he lifted her into his arms and nimbly leapt up onto the roof.
I really want to learn how to do that, she said as he lowered her feet to the asphalt.
Étienne pulled the infrared scope from his pocket and raised it to his right eye.
Is it mercenaries? she asked, scanning the darkened campus with her sharp brown eyes.
It took him a moment to confirm it. Yes. Even with the scope they’re hard as hell to locate. There are two in the bushes there. He pointed. Two more on that roof nearly hidden by the air-conditioning unit. Another on that one. More on the ground. They must be wearing that camouflage netting I’ve seen hunters wear. Without the scope, I can’t differentiate them from the foliage.
Wow. These guys are determined. How many are there?
I don’t know if I’m seeing them all. There don’t seem to be nearly as many as the last time. Maybe a dozen.
He drew her over into the shadows beside the air-conditioning unit and handed her the scope. I don’t think they’ve spotted us yet.
So, what’s the plan? she asked as she peered through it. What are we supposed to do with them? Wait. What’s that clicking noise?
Shh. He listened. Counted the clicks until they stopped. What time is it?
She consulted her watch. 3:00 AM.
They must have been ordered to check in at the top of every hour. They were clicking their walkies to give a head count and let their leader know they’re still in position and that all is well.
How many clicks were there?
A dozen.
Why do you think there are so few?
I don’t know, and we’ve run out of time to speculate. The vamps are almost here and we can’t let the mercenaries get them.
What do you want to do?
He needed to read the minds of the soldiers before he killed them to ensure none possessed any information. The current assumption was that they wouldn’t. But he wasn’t comfortable with letting the opportunity go by. And then there were the tracking devices he and Krysta both carried. You take care of the vampires.