Cass
I'd left the rest of our group in the Troposphere to start a blaze, heading off to spread fire through the rest of the town. Whilst the escaped Vs were still distracting the Hunters, it had worked fine. But now their numbers were dwindling, and the Hunters would soon come looking for us. And nothing was more important to me at that moment than finding Larkspur for Jameson.
I hadn't waited to find out how badly injured he was, but if he wasn't fighting, then it had to be serious. Nothing would keep him from this battle unless it was life-threatening. Which was why, as I flew into the burning hotel, speeding through the foyer which had yet to be touched by the flames, I made my way to the garbage chute.
It was only a faint scent, concealed behind walls and doors, but I trained my senses on it. I flew down corridors, into a dark servant's hall that led under the main foyer to an industrial-sized kitchen.
I hurried through the empty room, finding a large metal trap on the wall. I yanked it open and the vile scent that washed over me was nearly overpowering. If I could still have been able to retch, I would have been heaving.
I grabbed a tea-towel from a hook and wrapped it around my nose, tying it behind my head. Better, but not nearly good enough.
I tried not to think about the sticky green substance that coated the edges of the chute as I removed my heels and shimmied into it. I shut my eyes, disgusted by what I was about to do as I let go of the hatch.
I shot down at high-speed, my vision a blur. After a second, I dropped from the bottom of the chute, falling into a mountain of sludge inside an enormous skip.
I sank several inches into it and for a second, I simply screamed my disgust. Garlic filled my senses, making me lightheaded as I waded through it. In the skip beyond the food waste was another for general waste. If only I'd found my way to that chute, I wouldn't have been covered up to my elbows in compost.
I dropped into the next skip, digging through it. My senses were drowned by the decaying food. I focused as best I could on the scent of Larkspur. I'd only smelt it once, when Jameson had uncapped the acne tube it was in. I focused on that memory, shutting my eyes, letting it fill me up and block everything else out.
It smelt like pine with the faintest floral hint. Jasmine...
My eyes flew open as I caught the scent. I scrambled through the waste, throwing it aside in huge heaps until my hand found the tube. Silky smooth and as full as it had been on day one.
“Yes!” I squealed, climbing out of the skip and dropping onto the concrete. I didn't fancy crawling back up the food wastage chute, so headed toward a door and ripped the lock off it before exiting. A stairway took me back upstairs and I grumbled to myself about having not found that way in. I circled back to the foyer, hurrying across it, the smell of burning drawing closer.
Out on the street, shots were being fired. I glanced toward the battle, spotting Kite, Twyla and Sakura amongst those fighting the Hunters. No Mercy. Had she scampered off like a frightened mouse already? I hadn't expected her courage to last long. She was a Helsing right to her core. And she'd get off this island the second she could. Perhaps she was already on a boat, sailing her way home.
I kept my head low, running in the direction of the orange building Jameson was hiding in, trying not to imagine all the kinds of horrible injuries he might have. Varick and Selena wouldn't have left him alone if they'd feared for his life though. I was certain.
I reached the door to the building and cursed. Silver.
I called out to Jameson, but there was no reply. Doing a quick circuit of the building, I figured I had no choice but to climb it and try to find another way in. Stuffing the Larkspur between my cleavage, I bashed my hand into the nearest wall, ripping a handhold into it. I did the same with my feet as I moved, gouging great holes in the orange brickwork as I climbed. It didn't take long before I'd scaled the building, the wind tangling with my hair as I ran toward a door atop it. Not silver thankfully. I ripped it open and darted inside, taking a spiral staircase down, down, down-
Oomph.
I hit the floor, a heavy body pinning me to the metal walkway.
“Cass?” Jameson wheezed, rolling off of me, evidently having used the last of his energy to stage the attack.
I sprang to my feet, assessing his wounds whilst he muttered something about me smelling terrible.
I dropped to my knees, taking the Larkspur from my bra – Jameson watched with a filthy grin – then squirted some onto my hand.
“You're here.” He smiled dreamily then passed out.
I frowned, gently applying the cream to the jagged wound down his neck and chest, running it over the bruises on his ribs. From the time I'd spent with him in the last V Games, I knew the Larkspur took almost fifteen minutes to heal wounds like this.
I spent that time removing the worst of the grime from my body, ripping off the bottom half of my dress and using the inside to wipe down my arms. I chucked the shredded clothing into the furnace, watching as it went up in sparks.
Jameson soon stirred, sitting upright, his eyes bleary. My heart fell into a steady rhythm once more and the tension went out of my shoulders. His chest was completely healed and perfectly shining under the light of the fire.
My heart beat harder than it had since before I'd been turned. My relief at him being alright spilled over and I threw caution to the wind, launching myself at him. He caught me at the last second, dragging me into his arms and pulling me into the most intense kiss of my life. The heat of the room was nothing compared to the fire coursing through my veins. I was alive for a moment. Perhaps more so than I'd ever been as a human.
I pulled away, keeping my eyes closed and my forehead rested against his. “That was because we might die.”
“I'll take it,” he growled, pushing me to my feet. Before I could escape, he stole another kiss, leaning me against the burning railing. His hand slid around the back of my neck, holding me in place – not that I was going anywhere this time.
When he pulled away, his hooded eyes stirred up some long forgotten emotion inside me.
“That was because we might live.” He smiled greedily, stepping away but keeping his hand locked around mine. “Now let's go kill some Hunters.”