Kaden tensed up so hard he was nearly shaking with the desire to leap through the doorway and tear the other vampire apart. Stay calm, stay calm... He kept himself in check as the door creaked open. Wisely, Cedric stood back, well away from Kaden as he stalked through the doorway without so much as glancing at Andrea. His combat boots, socks, and shirt lay in a pile where they'd been left after the vamps had stripped him to prepare for his torture, and Kaden went to them without permission.
Cedric watched, a creepy, satisfied smile on his gaunt face, as Kaden tugged on the long-sleeved turtleneck and boots. His weapons had been taken away at some point, but his captors had missed the razor-thin obsidian blade Guardians lovingly called the "demon-biter," that Kaden had hidden in his boot. The weapon was treated with holy water, which lost most of its effectiveness once dried, but the black stone reacted with the residue, leaving behind a caustic bite when activated by the blood of an evil entity.
Covertly palming the weapon, he swung around to Cedric. "Where are the humans?"
Cedric gestured to one of the tunnel entrances. "That way." Again, the guy wasn't stupid, and he waited until Kaden moved toward the tunnel before falling into step behind him.
They'd only gone twenty feet when Cedric plowed into Kaden, struck from behind by Andrea. Kaden crunched into the wall, the impact bringing dust and stone down around him. Cedric wheeled around, Andrea's stake impaled in his shoulder. Roaring in fury, Cedric lunged at Andrea. Kaden's heart no longer beat, but it lurched with terror as Cedric's fingers closed around her throat.
No! Two weeks of torture and five years of self-loathing fueled Kaden's strength, and he attacked, a whirlwind of unrestrained vengeance. A veil of red sliced down over his vision as he caught the other vampire with an arm looped around his neck.
In a smooth sweep, Kaden slashed Cedric's throat with the demon-biter, savoring the hiss of the holy water as it reacted with the vampire's blood. Andrea, in a coordinated move that reminded him of what a great team they made, plucked the stake from Cedric's shoulder and plunged it into his chest.
A godawful squeal rose from Cedric's body. The air around them heated and shimmered, and then the vampire flamed to ash. While the dust still swirled, Kaden swept Andrea into his arms.
"Thank God," she murmured against his chest.
"We're not done yet." He smoothed his hand down her spine, loving the way her muscles rippled under his palm. He wished they were anywhere but here so he could spend time touching her the way he wanted to. The way she deserved. "We've got to save the Guardians."
She nodded and pulled back, leaving him with an aching chest full of regret. Silently, they gathered what weapons they could from the dungeon and headed down the tunnel Cedric had indicated. It was dark, the walls seeping moisture from cracks in the rough stone, but his vampire vision allowed him to see as well as if it had been noon on a clear day. He might not like the fact that he was a vampire, but he had to admit that the enhanced peepers were a nice upgrade.
Sounds drifted from the far end of the tunnel. Talking. Laughter. Some whimpers. The sound of fists striking flesh.
Kaden crept into the shadows at the entrance to a large chamber. Inside, two vampires circled three male Guardians who were sitting in the middle of the floor, bound and gagged. Every once in a while, a vampire would kick or punch one of them, and while Kaden watched, the female vamp leaned over and licked the blood dripping down one of the Guardian's cheeks.
Kaden signaled to Andrea, and on the finger count of three, they went in. He took down the male vamp before the guy knew what had hit him. Even as his vampire flamed, Andrea's joined the fireworks show.
"That wasn't so bad. We kicked ass." She holstered her stake with her trademark sexy, confident shove home. Oh, yeah, he definitely appreciated a hot chick who knew how to handle wood. Pun intended.
But now wasn't the time to admire her warrior skills, or the way her full lips quirked in a satisfied smile, or the satin wisps of hair that curled around her flushed cheeks. Nope. Not the time.
He casually adjusted his erection with the heel of his hand, because clearly, his dick was not listening to the whole, not the time, thing.
"No, not bad," he acknowledged through clenched teeth. "But there are at least thirty vamps in Cedric's clan. They could show up at any moment." He knelt beside Zach, one of the newer Guardians in the North Portland Aegis cell, and sliced through his ropes as Andrea did the same for brothers Trey and Matthew.
The moment the three were released, they closed ranks, all glaring murder at Kaden. "Vampire," Trey spat. "You let yourself be turned."
Their weapons lay in a pile in the corner, and Matthew snagged a handful of stakes. Kaden didn't bother to stop him, but Andrea put herself between the Guardians and him.
"Stop it." She jammed her fists on her hips, looking all fierce and cute. "He just saved your lives."