Violet Midnight (Violet Night Trilogy) (21 page)

“Jake,” Emma yelled.

Rosa thrashed her head around as she bit her son’s neck like a rabid animal. Emma raced toward the creature mauling the love of her life. She grabbed Rosa’s hair with one hand and pried her fingers into her mouth forcing the lethal teeth from Jake’s neck.

Rosa clamped down on Emma’s fingers. Jake’s head tilted limply to the side, eyes fixed open, staring into space. His glowing arm flickered out.

Oh, God. Jake.

Emma ripped the tiny woman off Jake’s body and thrust her across the floor. Fueled by anger and love, she ignored the burning pain in her fingers brought on by Rosa’s vicious teeth.

Keeping Rosa in the edge of her vision, Emma looked to her left. Dark blood pooled around Jake’s head as it gushed from his raw neck.

Emma’s stomach churned. It took every ounce of her strength not to crumble to the floor. A second love lost to the Vamps.

No.
Emma must stay strong. Ava needed her. She tore her attention from the gruesome sight and resumed circling Rosa. Cynthia and Dylan stumbled toward the sliding glass door, dragging Greg with them. Ava still lay by the wall, curled in the fetal position, hands clamped over her ears.

“Marek’s dead,” Rosa wailed. “My Marek is dead.” She faced Emma. “Now we’re even.”

Her stomach roiled at the thought of Jake dead.
Please, Jake.

“Jacob should have been by mine and Marek’s side. You made me kill my own son.”

Rosa’s shoulders curved forward as her line of sight shifted to behind Emma. She knew Rosa eyed Jake’s body, but Emma refused to divert her attention from the Vamp.

“They’re both dead,” Rosa whispered through blood stained lips.

Crossbow.

“Just like you’re going to be, Mom.” The weapon landed in Emma’s hand, and she aimed it at the creature.

Rosa curled her lips back over her crimson-tainted teeth and let a vicious growl slide past her fangs. Rosa’s fingernails blackened and elongated into lethal weapons.

“You’ve ruined everything,” Rosa hissed.

“Oh, yeah. Sorry ‘bout that.”

Rosa moved so quickly, she seemed to disappear. Emma clicked off two bolts, hoping she’d sink one in Rosa’s chest by chance.

Rosa screamed, and her blur stopped next to Ava, but a bolt protruded from her shoulder. “Back off. Or I’ll snap her neck.” She held Ava by the throat.

“No. No. Okay. I’m done. I’m done,” Emma said. “Weapons home.”

Emma stood six feet from Rosa, weaponless, staring at the Vamp squeezing Ava’s neck.

She whimpered, nostrils flaring. “Em.”

No, not Ava. I can’t lose her, too.

Emma raised her hands. “Look, Rosa. No weapons. Come and get me. This is between me and you.” She held her bleeding wrist out and squeezed it, forcing blood to ooze and drip to the floor, hoping it’d lure Rosa from Ava. “Look, here. See, you know you want some. I
am
sweeter than a human, aren’t I? You’ve tasted it. Am I sweeter?”

Rosa tilted her head back, and a shrill laugh squeaked from her tight lips. “Oh, Emma, Emma. You have no idea who you’re dealing with. I am not driven to madness like these weak, rogue vampires in this town.”

Emma inched closer. “Take me instead, please.” She hated the hint of begging in her voice, but she couldn’t lose Ava. Emma would rather die anyway, now that Jake was gone. As long as it meant Ava was safe.

“Em,” Ava whispered.

“The humans are so weak, yet you spend your time protecting them.” Rosa leaned in and slid her tongue across Ava’s bloody cheek. “Protecting our food. But yes. I will trade. Come to me.”

“Release her first.”

“No.” Rosa let out a hiss and shook Ava. “Come to me now.”

Emma crept forward, running through her options in her mind—and came up blank. Ava would be killed, no matter what, Emma was sure of it. But there was no way she would go down without a fight. She—

An arrow whizzed by Emma’s ear from behind. It sent her diving to the ground, ducking for cover. Only it wasn’t an arrow. It was a bolt from her crossbow, and it sank into Rosa’s chest. Her flaming red eyes looked toward Emma, then off to the side. Emma whirled around. Jake sat up, holding the crossbow and his arm glowing.

“Jake,” she screamed.

Rosa hissed like a snake, her fangs long and still bloodied. Her bright, red lips turned ash gray. The fingers clamped around Ava’s neck disintegrated. She fell to the ground and scampered away from the dissolving Vamp. Rosa sagged to her knees, and they crumbled. One last screech echoed before she vaporized.

Emma jumped to her feet and rushed to Jake. “Oh my God. Jake.”

He coughed and shifted to the side, dropping the crossbow.

“How—?”

“Does Gabriel have a dark, buzz cut?”

Emma froze, her pulse strumming. “Gabriel.”

“He said it wasn’t time for me to leave yet.”

“Oh my gosh, Jake, I thought you were dead.”

“I was.”

“No.” Dylan’s voice cut into their moment.

Vamps descended on Cynthia and Dylan. Greg scurried away, toward Ava.

“No, it’s not our fault. Tell him. Tell him it was Rosa and Marek’s failure,” Dylan yelled as the Vamps latched onto him and Cynthia.

Emma cringed as one set of fangs crunched through the bones of Dylan’s wrist. The other sank his fangs into the traitor’s neck, while a third turned on Cynthia.

Jake jumped to his feet and let off three well-aimed arrows, and the Vamps were dusted; however, along with them, Cynthia and Dylan.

“We lost them,” Jake said. A twinge of disappointment tainted his words.

“They were pretty much Vamps, though, don’t you think?”

“But they were human, maybe if they’d—”

“Cynthia and Dylan made their choices, Jake.”

Emma turned toward the familiar voice. Gabriel glided toward them, a big grin filling his face.

“You did well,” he said. His smile permeated his beautiful brown eyes. A subtle glow encapsulated him.

Ava rose to her feet, gaze fixed on Gabriel. How could she not? He was mesmerizing, to say the least. Greg hobbled toward Ava, staring at Gabriel as well.

“Come here.” Gabriel waved them to him.

They ambled to the center of the room, next to Jake and Emma.

“What’s happening? Am I dreaming?” Ava asked, her voice distant and small. “Who are you?” she whispered.

“You’ll know me someday, Ava, because you will do great things in the future.”

Emma looked at Gabriel, then back to Ava. Her eyelids fluttered, and her body slumped to the side. Emma caught her unconscious friend and hoisted her up.

“And Greg. You’ve seen much tonight, haven’t you?” Gabriel’s hypnotic voice sang out.

Greg bobbed his head up and down, apparently stunned silent.

“I put Ava in your care. Treat her well.”

As Ava had fallen unconscious, so did Greg. Jake scooped him up into his arms.

“How are you here?” Emma glanced from Jake to Gabriel. “What’s happening?”

Gabriel glanced upward. “He let me help out. It wasn’t Jake’s time.”

Jake stepped close enough to Emma that his heat radiated over her body. “What happens now?”

“Let’s get these two home, don’t you think?” Gabriel waved his hands and both Ava and Greg disappeared. Emma swayed forward at the sudden loss of weight from her arms.

“Whoa, where’d they go?” Jake asked.

“They’ll wake up in their beds tomorrow morning thinking all this was a strange dream.” Gabriel grinned. “That would have been a really big mind-wipe, don’t you think?”

Emma laughed. “I guess so.”

“Give me your hand.”

She lifted it toward Gabriel. The tips of his illuminated fingers touched hers, and a flash of heat stung her wrist and neck as the wounds healed.

“Well done.” His stare pierced through her. “
Hunter
.”

He turned from Emma and faced Jake. “You, too, Jake. Take care of her.”

“I will.”

“Wait,” Emma said. “What do we do now?” Jake’s arm wrapped around her shoulder.

Gabriel’s gaze shifted from Jake to Emma, and he smiled. “There’s always work to be done, isn’t there?”

“Work to be done?” Jake said.

“Rest for now.” He smiled and faded away, leaving Jake and Emma alone on the floor of the vast room.

Weakness crept into Emma’s legs, and she slumped to the floor. Jake guided her softly, and she leaned into him as he sat next to her, cradling her in his arms. She was so done being strong for right now.

“It’s over, isn’t it?” Emma whispered through the thickness in her throat.

“I think it is,” Jake said, his voice soothing and soft. He caressed her hair and whispered, “For now, anyway.”

“Dylan said ‘Tell
Him
…’ any ideas on what that means?” Emma asked.

“Like Gabriel said, there’s always work to be done.” He pressed a kiss to her temple. “After a little rest.”

“Jake, your parents—”

“Shhh, they weren’t my parents. I mean, maybe biologically, but that’s it. They’re nothing more than a pile of dust on the ground. As they should be.”

She grazed her fingers across his neck and swallowed the lump in her throat. “I watched you die.”

“I last heard you screaming before everything went black. But Gabriel appeared in the darkness and touched my neck.” He squeezed her tight. “He brought me back to you.”

Tears spilled, Emma couldn’t hold them back any longer. They were filled with joy that Jake was alive and with her, but a hint of fear about the mysterious
Him
Dylan and Cynthia alluded to.

But that was a worry for another day. Hopefully many days from now.

“Can we get out of here?” Emma asked.

“Gladly. We should go check on Ava and Greg, too,” Jake said.

“Together, though, we’re not going to be apart any more. Okay?”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” he said, as he helped her to her feet.

She cupped his cheeks and captured his attention. She’d wait no longer to say the words she should have said days ago. “I love you, Jake. I’m so glad you found me.”

He leaned in and kissed her on the lips. “I love you, too, Em.”

Driven to write, Lynn Rush often sees her characters by closing her eyes watching their story unfold in her mind. Lynn Rush is a pen name that is a combination of two sources – Lynn, the first name of her mother-in-law, who passed away and Rush – since the author is a former inline speed skater and mountain biker. All of Rush’s books are dedicated to Lynn, her namesake.

Rush holds a degree in psychology from Southwest Minnesota State University and a master's degree from the University of Iowa. Originally from Minneapolis, Rush currently enjoys living in the Arizona sunshine by road biking nearly 100 miles per week with her husband of 16 years and jogging with her two loveable Shetland Sheep dogs.

ALSO BY LYNN RUSH

Wasteland (Wasteland #1)

Awaited (Wasteland #2)

Prelude to Darkness (Wasteland #.5)

Lynn loves to hear from readers!

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www.LynnRush.com

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~~~See you in the paranormal~~~