Chapter Nine: Desperate Measures
Two days passed without any word from the kidnappers. Gabriel had his whole staff trying to find where they went. Alberto tracked down all the individuals who had been at the zoo that day, but so far no names were connected to any sort of anti-vampire literature or actions. The humans who had attacked Angel and killed the guards had hidden their trail in garlic. It utterly blinded vampire noses.
Gabriel had never felt so helpless before. There were no leads to follow, no skulls to crack. The prisoner who had been found on his grounds all those months ago during the Blood Moon knew nothing. Even the normal Take Back the Planet blather on the internet had gone silent.
If they did end the child growing within Naya, would they get Ivanna back? Gabriel refused to consider that the kidnappers may have already killed her. It was too horrible to think of, to never see that little girl's smiling face again or hear one of her off-key songs. Ivanna had become the life of the palace. Everybody loved her.
As much as it broke him to think of ending Naya's pregnancy, if that was what it took to get Ivanna back then he would do it. He had frozen his sperm on the night of the full moon. They could artificially impregnate Naya again if she was willing. And, despite his son's strong heartbeat and the kicks he felt on his palm through his mother's skin, the fact was that he didn't know the baby. He loved his little son already, but he didn't know him.
He knew Ivanna, and the choice was clear, as much as it hurt.
He hadn't been able to talk to Naya about it. She hadn't left her room, lying in bed sobbing whenever he went to see her. Her pain hurt worse than anything, and he cursed his uselessness.
At least Angel was recovering, though her distress was almost as great as Naya's. She blamed herself, though Gabriel had tried to convince her it wasn't her fault. It was his. He should have given them more guards. He should have taken the threats more seriously.
"My king?"
Gabriel looked up from where he had been sitting at his desk, his head in his hands, immobilized by fear. Alberto stood in the doorway, his hand firmly latched around a woman's arm. From the strong beat in her chest and the smell of blood about her, the king knew she was human.
"What is it?" Gabriel had never heard his own voice so broken before.
"This is a human pregnancy doctor."
Gabriel stiffened, but he nodded. "Naya has decided it's time, then?"
Alberto shook his head. "We are running out of time, but I thought of a way to try to end this. Sometimes humans cannot give birth, and so the doctors will cut them open. And other times the babies are born early, and yet survive."
The king leaped to his feet, adrenaline coursing through him. "Naya is seven months pregnant. Could you cut out the baby now so that they both could survive?"
The doctor's eyes were wide and confused. "Y-yes, my lord. But the baby will need to be in an incubator, and it will have many medical needs that—"
"But he can survive. If we take the baby out, he can survive, but we can tell the people that took Ivanna that Naya terminated the pregnancy and get her back." He raised shining, hopeful eyes to Alberto. "Thank you."
The vampire nodded. "I'll take this doctor to get everything she needs to perform the task."
Gabriel nodded once at him and quickly left his office. He fairly flew up the stairs to Naya's room, brimming with excitement and hope. There was a chance now that they would not have to sacrifice their child to get Ivanna back. It would work. It had to work. What sort of monster would keep a little girl from her mother?
Naya was not in her quarters. She wasn't in Ivanna's room or the bathroom. Gabriel tensed. He had reassigned her guard, since she never left her room, and they were needed to try to track down Ivanna's whereabouts. Where could she have gone? The anti-vampire humans could not have gotten in here–if they had, they would have come after him, not her.
The cellphone in his pocket rang. Gabriel felt the bottom of his stomach drop out. Somehow he knew what Naya would tell him before he even saw that it was her calling him.
"They called me," she whispered. "They said that they would release Ivanna if I gave myself up. They want to make sure our son is dead themselves. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
"Naya," Gabriel choked out, his head spinning. "Naya, they'll kill you."
"I know. But it's better me than Ivanna. They'll kill her if I don't. Gabriel, I'm sorry. I love you. I love you so much."
The king's knees buckled and he collapsed onto the bed. This couldn't be happening. Sacrificing his child was pain enough, but Naya? It was unthinkable. He had to stop this. It couldn't happen. Tears pooled in his eyes and he clutched the phone tighter to his ear as if he could seep through the speaker and pop out on the other end.
"Naya, where are you going?"
"I can't tell you." A sob. "I love you. Please, please forgive me. Take care of Ivanna. Take care of yourself. Please."
"Naya," he tried again, but there was a click and then silence. Gabriel felt his world being dismantled bit by bit until he couldn't breathe. "NAYA!"
***
Alberto was able to trace Naya's cellphone. The head of security tried to convince the king to stay behind while he led three dozen vampires to find Naya and bring her back, but Gabriel was having none of it. The moment they had a lock on Naya's location, he armed himself with guns and knives. His natural strength and speed were once enough to take out an entire human army, but with the development of technology he had to be ready for anything.
He was well aware that this whole situation could very well be a trap, but he didn't care. Naya was too important. If she died, then he would hunt down every last one of those vile creatures, or die himself in trying.
Naya was in an old warehouse. Guns immediately started blazing as the vampires burst in, but they had come prepared; the silver bullets bounced harmlessly off Kevlar vests and bulletproof riot shields. Gabriel charged forward, his men in a tight formation behind him. He could smell Naya and Ivanna both, faintly, and ignored the human warriors lining the walls. Alberto broke away with a dozen vampires, leaping onto scaffolding and over barriers the humans had built to protect themselves.
Screams followed Gabriel as he followed the scent of his human through a rusted door. He entered a long hallway. The scent of explosives met his nostrils, and he waved a hand at his men. The demolition experts surged forward, quickly finding and disarming the bombs that had been placed in this hallway.
Gabriel didn't slow his pace.
He only stopped when he came to a locked door. He could sense Naya laying on the floor inside, Ivanna beside her. Gabriel stopped breathing and he slammed himself against the door, but it wouldn't budge. He heard someone speaking behind him, but couldn't spare a thought to hear what they were saying. The steel was unforgiving, no matter how hard he rammed into it.
A strong scent of gunpowder met his nose and the sound of gunfire erupted all around him. Dozens of human poured into the hallway, firing weapons at the vampires. One lobbed a grenade at them, but Gabriel easily swatted it right back at the human had thrown it; the explosion rocked the room, filling it with smoke.
Gabriel snarled, lithely leaping into the fray. He drew the knives from his belt, slicing across the throats of the humans who were nearest to him. The scent of blood wound its way to his head, and he lost himself in the battle. His vision filled with red and he cut his way through the humans, howling his fury.
It was only after they were all dead that his bloodlust faded. Gabriel looked at the carnage around him, regret welling in his chest–he had become king to stop this kind of destruction. And here the humans were, forcing him to battle once again. Why couldn't they see he only wanted the best for them?
Tossing aside his knives, Gabriel rushed back to the door that separated him from Naya. Alberto had caught up with them by this time, and together they crumpled the steel.
Gabriel rushed inside, dropping to his knees. "Naya," he breathed.
Her heart was still beating, her breath deep and even. Ivanna's as well. Relief broke over Gabriel like a flood. He ripped off his Kevlar vest and put it on Naya, just in case.
"My lord—" Alberto started.
"Carry Ivanna to the vehicles. Quickly," Gabriel ordered, gathering his love into his arms. The heartbeat of their son was strong, and tears filled the king's eyes. He brushed them away quickly–until they were safely back at the palace, there was no place for emotions.
Naya stirred as he stood, and he pressed a quick kiss to her temple. His men gathered around him as they headed back outside.
As soon as the sunlight touched his face, he heard the distant crack of a gun. Something burned into his chest, piercing his body. Pain lanced through him and he stumbled. When he looked down, he saw a hole in his chest, inches above Naya's body.
His knees buckled and everything went black.