Quinn lifted her head from where it had fallen against the window and blinked as she gazed at everyone in the RV. Lou sat across from her, his chin on his chest as he rocked from side to side with the swaying of the RV. They’d spent the day in the parking lot of the motel, and now Luther was back in the driver’s seat.
Sitting beside her, Julian had his head in his hand as he typed something into his phone. “What’s going on?” she asked when he scowled at the phone.
Lifting his head, his full mouth curved into an endearing smile that caused her heart to swell with love. “Just giving directions,” he said.
“Then why are you looking at your phone like you’re contemplating biting it?”
“It’s hard to give directions to a place when I’m not exactly sure where it is. I have to keep an eye out for the things I’ve glimpsed from Herb’s memories and try to guide the others through those.”
She knew not everyone was directly behind the RV, such a convoy would be impossible to keep together, and more than a little conspicuous. Julian had said they were going into the mountains, but in Pennsylvania that was a lot of land to cover. While touching something of Herb’s, he’d gotten a glimpse of a sign reading Pocono, so they were heading that way in the hopes of finding other markers.
It might be a long shot, but if anyone could figure it out, Julian could.
Chris’s loud snore drew Quinn’s attention to the couch he was sprawled out on. Melissa sat beside Luther in the passenger seat, her gaze on the GPS system. Now that Quinn was looking for it, she saw the glances Melissa shot Chris and the smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
It really did have to be love if Melissa found his snoring endearing.
The door to the bathroom slid open, and Dani emerged. Her damp, multi-colored, short hair stood up in a million different directions. “Where are we?” she inquired.
“Almost to the casino and racetrack,” Melissa replied.
Julian’s head lifted, and he slid out from the table. He braced his legs against the sway of the vehicle as he walked to the front of the RV. Quinn leaned forward to admire the way his shirt clung to the muscles of his back and the jeans hugging his firm ass while he moved.
Not the time, she scolded herself, but she still couldn’t tear her gaze away from him. He truly was magnificent, and he was hers.
Resting his hand on the bed above the driver’s area, Julian leaned forward to peer out the windshield. “What kind of track?” he inquired.
“I’m assuming the NASCAR track,” Luther replied.
“No,” Melissa said and held up a brochure. “I grabbed it when we stopped for gas an hour ago. “Mohegan Sun Pocono features a harness racing track.”
“Horses,” Julian muttered.
“Does that mean something?” Quinn inquired as she slid over to fill the space Julian had vacated.
“One of the images I got from Herb was of horse racing.”
“So he was a bit of a gambler and liked to play the slots?”
“No, I think I would have seen slot machines or tables if he was a gambler, maybe even heard the sounds of a casino. I didn’t see betting windows or racing programs either.”
“Then what would he be doing at the track?” Luther asked.
Julian frowned as he stared at the strip of road they drove down. “I think he was killing time.”
“Until what?” Dani inquired.
“This place we’re trying to find, it’s also used as a meeting place for The Commission. Maybe Herb arrived early a couple of times and decided to watch the races.”
“Or maybe he liked watching the horses and came early on purpose,” Quinn suggested.
“I think he did like watching them,” Julian murmured.
“Are we stopping at the track?” Luther asked as they approached the entrance for it.
“No, keep going. That was Herb’s own private thing. The Commission is something else entirely.”
Dani walked down to perch precariously on the end of the couch as Chris released a loud snore, muttered something, and rolled over.
Julian returned to stand beside Quinn and handed her his phone. “Can you tell them where to go while I try to figure it out?”
“Yes.” She took the phone from him and typed in directions to the large group message while he guided them onward.
When she finally lifted her head from the phone again, blackness and jagged rock formations surrounded them as the RV made a steady ascent through the night. The headlights bouncing over the asphalt revealed the smooth road twisting throughout the mountain passageway before them. The unsettling sensation that the rest of the world had ceased to exist descended over her as the only sound was Chris’s occasional snore and the hum of the tires on the road.
No other cars came toward them, and she refused to look too closely at the side of the road as she was pretty sure it fell away into nothing. The metal guardrail gleamed in the headlights; its yellow reflectors appeared every few feet. She seriously doubted the rail’s ability to keep the RV from plummeting over the edge if Luther ever lost control of the lumbering vehicle. She may be immortal, but the prospect of smashing off of rocks all the way to the bottom of the mountain was as pleasing to her as having her fingernails ripped out. She’d actually rather have her fingernails ripped out.
She saw no lights following behind them in the mirrors of the RV, but the road was winding…
Rising to her feet, she kept Julian’s phone in hand as she walked to the back of the RV. She knelt on the bed there to pull the curtain aside. Blackness swallowed the road behind the vehicle. The red taillights barely pierced the dark as the RV made its way forward. The hair on her nape rose, and a tremor went through her fingers.
Had the vampires abandoned them? Had they set them up to go forward to their deaths at the hands of The Commission?
Many of the vamps believed in the prophecy, in her. She’d seen that in the awe on their faces when she’d shown them what she could do, but that didn’t mean they were willing to fight and die for her. In many ways, death was more frightening for an immortal than a mortal. After so long a life, and many of those lives entailing brutal acts, few immortals believed they would be received by clouds and angels when they met their end. She certainly didn’t expect to be welcomed into heaven, if there was one.
She really hoped the vamps were back there somewhere, following her directions instead of sitting at the track placing bets and drinking beers. This was supposed to be a beginning and an end. The beginning of a new and stronger relationship between vampires, Hunters, and Guardians. The end of an enemy she’d never encountered before Herb and his Hunter, but an enemy that she’d feared since birth.
If the vampires abandoned them tonight, and they somehow managed to survive going after The Commission, she knew Julian would ruthlessly hunt down and slaughter every vampire who had betrayed them.
“What is it?” She turned to find Julian standing in the doorway, watching her.
“It’s like we’re all alone up here,” she whispered.
“Like it’s the end of the world and we’re the only ones left?”
“Yes.”
“They’re back there,” he said.
“How do you know?”
“Because they know it will mean their deaths if they’re not.”
Quinn gulped. “Julian…” Her voice trailed off when his arctic eyes landed on her.
Then his gaze went beyond her. She turned to watch as a dim splash of light illuminated the road behind them a second before the RV slid around another curve. Julian’s phone vibrated in her hand, and she glanced down at it.
“What does it say?” he inquired.
“Behind you. It’s from Vern.”
“Good.” Julian turned away from her and made his way back to the front of the RV.
Quinn leaned against the wall. If she’d still been human, she’d be taking deep breaths in order to calm herself. Now all she could do was tell herself over and over again that it would be okay. They would get through this. She wasn’t sure she believed it though.
***
Julian directed Luther off of the twisting mountain road and onto another road that cut a pathway up the mountain. Sparks shot from the passenger side mirror when the RV scraped against the rock walls surrounding them.
“The Commission wouldn’t set this up as a one way in and out,” Luther murmured.
“No, they wouldn’t,” Julian agreed. “The Commission may be the most vicious bastards I’ve ever come across, and from me, that’s saying a lot, but they’re also some of the most cunning.”
“They wouldn’t still be alive if they weren’t,” Luther said.
“I think we should stop here,” Julian said when the rock walls finally gave way to reveal woods. The area was large enough that they would be able to maneuver the vehicles around if it became necessary to get away quickly.
Luther pulled onto a large swath of cleared grass and parked the RV. The headlights illuminated thirty feet of the grass and dirt roadway before Luther doused them. Turning, Julian’s gaze fell on Quinn sitting at the table with Chris by her side. Chris had finally woken up again five minutes ago. Quinn’s fair skin was paler than normal, her scars more clearly visible as she held his phone like a lifeline.
There was no way he could talk her into staying behind. The last thing he wanted was for her to be anywhere near the clutches of The Commission. What they would do to her if they discovered her true heritage and what she was capable of…
He refused to think about it. If he did, he would take her from here right now. They’d never been this close to ending The Commission before; he couldn’t turn away from this chance. The vampires would never trust him again if he abandoned this plan and he would be putting her life more at risk if that happened. The vamps now knew what she looked like. They would come for her and try to use her.
“After Herb’s encounter with us, anyone here will know we might be able to track them to this place,” Luther said to Julian. “They know of your ability and Herb would have told them that he found us.”
“I know,” Julian said while he walked to the back of the RV. Headlights filled the bedroom as Vern’s van pulled up behind them.
“They could have fled from here,” Quinn said.
He turned back to her, memorizing every one of her proud features. “From what I’ve glimpsed of this place, it is pretty fortified. They can make a stand here against us, which means they will have stayed.”
“Are you sure about that?” Lou asked.
“Yes. Also, The Commission would love nothing more than to have my head on a platter along with all of yours. They’ll take this opportunity to end us if they think they can.”
More color faded from Quinn’s face, and her eyes became the color of molten gold. “Julian—”
“It’s never going to happen,” he said with a flick of his wrist. “Besides, they’re only expecting us. They have no reason to know, or to ever think that we would be working with a large number of vampires. They believe us to be hated by all of them. No matter how prepared they think they are here, they’re about to learn they’re wrong.”
Quinn bit her lower lip as her gaze traveled to the night beyond the windshield. She slid from the booth and walked over to the sofa where Dani sat. She waved her hands for Dani to rise. The young Hunter jumped up, and Quinn lifted the top of the sofa to reveal the stash of weapons stored inside. Reaching in, she pulled out an assortment of stakes and slid them into the ankle holsters she had within her boots.
“They’re human; guns will work,” Lou said to her.
“I’m not entirely positive about those vamps either,” Quinn replied. “There’s no way I’m not going to be prepared for anything and everything. I had a harsh reminder of that lesson in the hotel.”
She pulled out knives and more stakes, which she discreetly tucked against her sides before removing two handguns. Looking at her, no one would know she carried an arsenal strapped to her, but years of training and hiding from nearly everyone had taught her how to keep everything concealed well.
Judging by the determined set of her jaw, Julian didn’t think she would hesitate to kill any threat she encountered this time. Hunter or not, human or not. It wasn’t only her life on the line anymore, and she would destroy any who tried to hurt those she loved.
She strapped the guns to her sides for everyone to see, a distraction he realized from the rest of the arsenal on her. The others rose to gather their own weapons when she stepped away from the couch.
“How good are you with a gun?” he asked her when she came to stand by his side.
“Good enough to make someone bleed and, hopefully, die,” she replied. “I was trained with all weapons, but firearms were never my strongest point.”
He rested his hand on her shoulder, drawing her haunted eyes to him. “Use the guns first against them.”
“I don’t plan to get close enough to use anything else if I don’t have to.”
He squeezed her shoulder before releasing her. Stepping closer, he examined the remaining contents stashed beneath the sofa before pulling a small handgun free. He’d far prefer to tear out their throats with his fangs, but he had Quinn to worry about now. If something happened to him, she wouldn’t survive it. Going for the kill from farther away was the safer option for all of them.
He ignored the remaining stakes. If the vampires dared to try to double cross him, they’d pay mightily for their mistake, but it wouldn’t be quick unless it was necessary. He pulled his shirt over the gun to cover it. As much as he hated the cold, he wouldn’t be wearing a jacket tonight. The cumbersome material might only get in the way, and he needed to be able to move freely.
“Are we ready?” he asked as the others finished strapping their weapons discreetly onto them.
“Ready as we’ll ever be,” Chris said.
Turning to the door, Julian pushed the handle down and stepped into the crisp air as the wind whipped down from the mountains. A shiver ran down his spine while his gaze searched over the rocks and trees around them. His ears perked when a small clicking noise sounded from a hundred feet away.
Cameras. His prey already knew they were coming.