The soldier came toward them with the syringes.
Gregori assumed a martial arts position, and beside him, Russell and J.L. did the same, although their movements were severely hindered by the damned cuffs.
“Stay behind us,” he whispered to Abigail.
Master Han lifted a hand. “Calm yourselves. You must be sedated so we can remove the cuffs and teleport you.”
“We don’t have to do a damned thing for you,” Gregori growled.
“The sedative will not harm you,” Master Han replied. “But your refusal will cause your friend great harm.” He motioned toward Howard. “I do not care if this one lives.”
Gregori fisted his hands. Shit. What choice did they have but to cooperate? They needed to keep Howard alive. And they needed to stall for time. Without the ability to teleport, there was no way to escape this cave, not with that crowd of soldiers out front. But if they allowed Master Han to move them to another location, it might be an easier place to escape. And with their imbedded homing devices, Angus would still be able to track them down.
One of the vampire lords murmured in Chinese to Master Han.
“You.” Master Han pointed at Abigail. “You will come closer.”
Abigail stiffened and gave Gregori an alarmed look.
He turned to Master Han. “Leave her alone, and we’ll cooperate.”
“You’ll cooperate, or we’ll kill this one.” Master Han gestured to Howard.
Gregori glared back. “If you harm her, I will kill you.”
Master Han chuckled, the sound echoing eerily behind his mask. “I have no interest in her. It is Lord Ming who wants her.”
Lord Ming said something in Chinese, and Gregori shot a questioning look at J.L.
“He says she has a virgin neck,” J.L. whispered. “He wants to be the first to bite her.”
“You asshole.” Gregori lunged toward Lord Ming at vampire speed, stretched his hands and cuffs apart, and rammed the silver chain against Lord Ming’s neck. The silver sizzled against his skin.
Lord Ming jumped back, crying out in pain, while two soldiers knocked Gregori down and pointed their swords at his chest.
Master Han leaned over him. “You do not bear my mark. I would not regret killing you.”
“The feeling is mutual,” Gregori gritted out, wishing he could rip the golden Frisbee off Han’s face and cram it down his throat.
“Gregori.” Abigail rushed toward him with tears in her eyes. “Please—”
A soldier grabbed her and pressed a knife to her neck.
“Excellent. I believe everyone will be in a more cooperative mood now.” Master Han turned to the soldier with the syringes and gave him an order in Chinese.
The soldier approached Russell and J.L. and motioned for them to sit. After they sat, he stabbed the syringes in their necks, and they both slumped over.
Gregori’s eyes met Abigail’s. His chest tightened. She looked so pale and scared.
“I love you,” he whispered as the syringe plunged into his neck. The cave spun around him, then went black.
Abigail sank up to her chin in the tub of hot water. Maybe if she was real quiet, they would forget about her.
She’d been at Master Han’s compound about twenty minutes, she estimated. The three vampire lords had teleported Russell, J.L., and Gregori away after the silver cuffs had been removed from their unconscious bodies. She had no idea where the guys were. She closed her eyes and pictured Gregori’s face, remembering the love he had whispered and the worry in his eyes.
The soldiers had knocked Howard on the head so hard, blood had run down his face as he slumped over unconscious. They’d removed his silver cuffs, then Lord Liao had returned to teleport him away.
Lord Ming had returned for her. He’d grasped her arms with his nasty yellow nails, and his breath had smelled foul as he’d pulled her close.
Even now, she shuddered when she recalled it and reached for the soap to lather up her body for the fifth time. Lord Ming had teleported her to a courtyard where about thirty soldiers were practicing martial arts by torchlight. Wu Shen and his hundred soldiers were still by the Yangtze River, she assumed, since they couldn’t teleport. Hopefully it would take them a while to travel back to Master Han’s compound.
When Master Han materialized in the courtyard, the small group of soldiers stopped and prostrated themselves on the ground. He said nothing, just turned and walked up the steps into what looked like a Buddhist temple.
Lord Ming dragged her inside a one-story building that ran the length of the compound. He steered her down a hall, then shoved her into a room where a group of three women resided. A harem, she figured, since the women were all young and pretty and had bite marks on their necks.