A strong, cold wind slapped at her, threatening to knock her down, so she went back inside the cave. She helped Howard unroll sleeping bags for everyone. Three of the bags were placed far in the back of the cave, then a folding screen was stretched in front of them. The south-facing entrance of the cave would keep any direct sunlight from coming in, but the Vamps still preferred it as dark as possible.
Howard lit an oil heater, and the cave warmed up a little. They sat and waited for the others to return.
They’d finished off two boxes of donuts before the guys came back, looking exhausted and cold. From the grim looks on their faces, she could tell they hadn’t found the third plant.
The Vamps helped themselves to bottled blood from the ice chest. Rajiv guzzled down a bottle of water.
“Sorry.” Gregori sat next to her, close to the heater. “We scoured the south side of three mountains, but couldn’t find it.”
J.L. drank some blood. “It’s already daylight in Japan, so it’s too late to teleport back. We’ll have to wait till tonight. As soon as we wake up, we’re outta here.”
“I’ll hunt for the plant while you guys sleep,” Howard offered. “Rajiv and I can take turns.”
“Are you sure we’ll be safe here?” Abigail asked.
J.L. yawned. “We’re hundreds of miles from the last place.”
“And that was a vampire army,” Russell added. “They can only come after us at nighttime.”
J.L. passed his satellite phone to Howard. “Keep calling every two hours. It’ll be forwarded to a Vamp who’s awake.”
Gregori patted Abigail’s knee. “When we wake up, I’ll take you back to Kyo’s place. You can have a long, hot bath.”
“Sounds wonderful.” She leaned close and whispered, “I need to relieve myself.”
“I’ll take you.” He hefted himself to his feet and grabbed a flashlight.
They didn’t venture far from the cave. He turned his back so she wouldn’t feel embarrassed, but she was glad to have him nearby in case any wild animals decided she looked tasty.
Back in the cave, she and Gregori washed up in one of the buckets of water the guys had stashed there before her arrival in China.
She yawned. She was too tired and cold to even worry about sleeping next to a dead body. She dragged her sleeping bag to the back of the cave and cuddled up beside Gregori.
It was well past noon when she woke up. This time she didn’t freak at the sight of Gregori lying so still beside her. She brushed his hair back from his brow and tucked in his blanket.
Howard was out searching for the plant while Rajiv guarded the cave. He’d heated some water on a kerosene stove to make tea. She ate a breakfast of hot tea and stale donuts.
Three hours later, Howard came back empty-handed and grumpy. He stuffed down six bear claws, guzzled a bottle of water, then decided he should descend the gorge to fill up their wash buckets with fresh water.
“You crazy,” Rajiv said. “River long way down. Too hard for a bear.”
“You want to bet?” Howard growled. “Just because it’s the Leaping Tiger Gorge doesn’t mean it’s just for tigers.”
Rajiv scoffed. “I’m not going down there. It’s too big. River too crazy. Let the Vamps teleport there for water.”
Howard grunted. “I’ll show you how it’s done.” He grabbed a bucket and headed for the entrance.
He stopped with a jerk. The bucket fell from his hand and sloshed water on the cave floor.
He ducked down. “Holy crap! I don’t believe this.”
“What?” Rajiv ran forward.
Howard pulled him down. “Don’t let them see you.”
“Who?” Abigail’s heart pounded as she eased forward. She hunkered down beside the two shifters, and her heart shot up her throat.
On the other side of the gorge, on the crests of the mountains, Master Han’s army was gathering. More and more of them lined up along the ridge, all dressed in white. The ends of their red sashes fluttered in the wind.
Her blood ran cold. There had to be a hundred of them! “How—how can they be here in daylight? I thought they were vampires.”
“Maybe they different guys,” Rajiv suggested. “Maybe Master Han have a vampire army and a human one.”
Panic threatened to burst inside her. She fisted her hands and squeezed her eyes shut. Don’t lose it. You’ll just make things worse if you lose it. She opened her eyes, and the army was still standing along the ridge.
“How they find us?” Rajiv asked. “How they get here so fast?”
“I don’t know,” Howard said softly. “But they’re here, and we have to deal with it.”