Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 142916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 715(@200wpm)___ 572(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 142916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 715(@200wpm)___ 572(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
That’s most likely why Elek has stuck to him like glue, Mataias chimed in. I met Odon once before he turned. He seemed strong and determined to hold out for his lifemate. There are few surprises left to us, but had I been a wagering man, I would have bet on Odon making it.
Benedek slowed his pace. They would need to throw off their attackers to gain even more of an advantage. Whoever the master vampire was, he commanded the fealty and obedience of nine underlings. That was quite a bit to rule when vampires were notorious for egos.
I believe we have two apiece, Lojos said. Benedek, don’t be greedy and kill them all before we have a chance to shift.
Benedek rolled his wide shoulders as he turned around and began to walk back toward the tree trunks where he knew three of the vampires had secreted themselves. I feel I might be rusty. And I could use the exercise. Time to get the party started.
Deliberately he stopped close to the root system where a fourth vampire lay in wait. Benedek brushed his hand along a trunk. As he did so, he opened a small laceration on his skin, just enough that the enticing blood of an ancient would fill the air with temptation. Keeping up his act, he cursed in his native language and shook his hand so that droplets of blood were dispersed in the air. Passing his hand over the cut, he closed the laceration and then looked down at it as if inspecting it.
He’d used the ploy often when several vampires attacked at once. Newly made vampires could never resist the lure, and it was difficult for more experienced vampires to pass up Carpathian blood. The blood was extremely powerful. Once tasted, the vampire could form an immediate addiction to it, often unable to resist the craving to the point where they forgot about fighting and only lived to get more of the blood however they could.
By carelessly cutting himself and seeming to be oblivious to his surroundings, Benedek appeared as if he might be unskilled.
The master vampire will caution them to wait for Odon and Elek to get into position, he warned the others. We should be able to pinpoint him when he does.
Two of the trunks closest but just slightly behind him and to his left began to split, black ooze running like a river of tears down the widening crack. A third tree began to rupture, the bark no longer healthy. The excretion was thick and slimy. Along with the sludge, beetles poured out of the opening.
The ground grumbled and moaned as if the wind could reach beneath the dirt to the tree roots. A black oily substance bubbled up in several spots as a host of beetles burst through the carpet of dead leaves and debris.
Two of the three vampires hiding in the tree trunks close to Benedek began to emerge from the trunks that split apart as they fixated on his blood.
Dark, fierce energy rushed at Benedek, pushing into the space around the trees and even to the root system below. Rage, stark and terrible, choked the very air, beat at the vampires emerging from the cracked and blackened trunks. It was too late for the master vampire to gain control of his minions. They were too far gone, drooling, long tongues darting around them, flicking in the air to try to catch the lingering drops of blood.
Ah, an old one, Benedek told the others. He travels extensively, always one step ahead of the hunters. He calls himself Frisi. He runs with another called Balan. Balan is a very experienced fighter.
Benedek held himself very still, every cell in his body aware of the lesser vampires ripping the last of the bark away so they could fully emerge. Long talons clacked together as they stepped onto the floor of the grove. Instantly, beetles swarmed up their legs, biting and boring into the rotting flesh.
I have the stench of this Frisi, Nicu said. He is close to you, Benedek. He sits in the tallest tree, a lizard about to get a visit from an owl.
Nicu might not feel humor, but he had it in abundance. Balan, the vampire who had taken over the body of the owl, suddenly dove from the branch where he had been observing the scene below, made a wide circle, seemed to waver midflight as if in a struggle, and then flew at the lizard, determined to eat it.
Benedek took a moment to admire the way the owl streaked through the night sky, avoiding the massive branches to home in on its target—the lizard. At the last moment, the lizard dodged the talons, lashing back with a whirling spear of fiery lightning that pierced the breast of the owl, knocking Balan from the sky. Black acid rained down on the floor of the grove, hissing and steaming as it splattered across the dried leaves and sticks.