CHAPTER TWENTY
Cash had insisted on coming. He felt useless and didn't like it much. He was in the middle of the two teams heading down the passage. His memories were intact for the first time in forever. But for the first time they really didn't seem all that important. What mattered most was helping these people survive this attack.
Jogging down the hallway, Cash stopped short as he stared at a wall hanging. The corridor was well appointed. The Kindred were used to living in style, even while walking between their mansion and the garage. There was something about the wall hanging that seemed a little too familiar.
"Come on, man. We don't have time to gawk at the antiques," one of the men towards the rear of the line gripped.
"Wait," Cash said. Catching hold of the corner of the tapestry, he lifted it up to reveal a large metal grate. The lock broke away easily in his hand. Opening it up, he found a stash of phosphorous weapons. "These might come in handy."
Turning to the man who'd scoffed at him, Cash handed him a rifle. Now things were getting a little more interesting. "Let's go."
OOOOO
The world seemed to be reduced to blood, torn tissue, groans and pain. Sandra studiously concentrated on her current patient. If she bothered to look up, she'd feel overwhelmed by the number still waiting. Dr. Luthen had taken to leaving the woman to work alone. There were too many patients and only the two of them to do the work.
"Ahhh," her current charge moaned. Sandra looked up at his face for the first time. He was very handsome, but then she was getting used to that. His blue eyes were staring at her through a haze of pain.
"Sorry," Sandra muttered as she turned her attention back to the damage done to the man's torso.
"It's okay," the vampire said.
Sandra got lost in treating the man's wounds again. She could feel the man's eyes on her the entire time despite any amount of pain she caused him. The longer she worked, the more the man's scrutiny was becoming uncomfortable.
"My name's John," the man said after a particularly violent outburst. He found watching the woman made the pain more bearable. The sounds around him in the library only made the pain more profound. It was nice to have a distraction.
"Good for you," Sandra responded. She wasn't really listening. The man made her a little nervous so she was trying to work as fast as she could. Besides, there were other people waiting for attention as well.
"You're human," John stated.
"You're a vampire," Sandra retorted. She'd mended what she could and was beginning to wrap him up. She wasn't really sure she needed to because vampires healed faster than humans but their supply of blood was quickly dwindling.
John chuckled quietly as Sandra taped his bandages in place. He still felt like death warmed over but he'd stopped bleeding. That was a bonus at this point. Giving in to exhaustion, John laid his head back down on the ground and allowed himself to slip into oblivion. Just for a little while.
Pausing long enough to the cover John with a blanket, Sandra quickly washed her hands and moved onto the next man. Were they winning or losing? It was hard to tell looking around this room.
OOOOO
Aaron was convinced all was lost. The enemy vampires were on the verge of breaking through the front door. The tribe was quickly running out of fighters. The others seemed to be pulling fighters out of their ass because there always seemed to be more.
Crouching behind the barricade they'd built in the entryway, Aaron allowed himself twenty seconds to catch his breath and come up with a new game plan. Around him he could hear his fellow vampires doing the same. There had been no communication from Cash and the others since they'd left the command post. There didn't seem to be much hope left. Even Michael was looking particularly dejected just a few feet away from him.
The pounding on the door resumed. Aaron wasn't sure why the vampires hadn't bothered to simply smash their way through the windows but he imagined that their feeble attempts to block them and probably some form of protection created by Luna himself were at work there. He was grateful for small mercies.
"Get ready," Aaron called as he adjusted his grip on his rifle. Taking one last deep breath, he popped up so that his head was just barely above the barricade. Beyond it he could hear the wood in the front door groan with fatigue. Aaron had to admit that he understood perfectly how the battered door felt.
Then the door gave one last groan. That sound was followed immediately by shattering as the wood gave way. Beyond it he could make out the horrible faces of the vampires. They were even uglier than Aaron remembered. Their pale faces were twisted into almost animalistic expressions as they charged through the hole they'd made.
"Now!" Aaron shouted as he opened fire on the first one. Around him he could hear the others shooting as well. It would probably be all for nothing but at least they would go down fighting. Gritting his teeth, Aaron aimed at the next intruder and the next, snapping off shots as quickly and as accurately as he could.
A heartbeat or a century later, Aaron wasn't sure, there was a low tone emitted from his rifle. Swearing furiously, Aaron glanced down at it. The charge was depleted. As if to prove the point, the next time Aaron pulled the trigger nothing happened. The vampires were still barrelling through the hole in the door. A quick glance around proved to Aaron that he wasn't the only one in that boat. Fear started to gnaw at his stomach.
More and more the rifles were running out. Soon the only sound on their side of the barrier was the firing of more ordinary weapons, hand guns and such. As soon as the type of weapon changed so did their ability to keep the vampires outside the door. Aaron pulled his handgun out of the holster on his hip and began shooting as fast as he could. They were about to be overrun.
The sound in the entryway was deafening. Still, Aaron could plainly hear his own heartbeat in his ears. It was accelerating rapidly. Then it was drowned out by another, louder sound. The vampires trying to get through the door paused for the briefest of moments. Some even turned to look behind them. Then they were falling over each other, desperately trying to get out of the doorway, back out into the night.
"What the hell?" Aaron gasped. He'd run out of bullets. He was just preparing to meet his maker. Now it seemed things were the other way around.
As the last few vampires were gunned down at the bottleneck that the entrance had become, Aaron was only moderately surprised to see Cash and his team mates through the narrow opening. A ragged cheer went up among the remaining members of the tribe as the realization that they had won dawned on them.
"What the hell?" Michael asked as he came up beside Aaron. Around them the other members were slowly rising out from behind their barricades, those that could, while others were being rushed off towards the library to have their wounds tended to.
"I'm sorry we took so long," Cash stated as they made their way through the sea of bodies that were left behind. While he moved forward, he was careful to not step on anyone. He wasn't willing to disrespect even their dead bodies that way.
"Better late than never," Aaron quipped. He could have kissed the younger man at the moment. Even in the carnage of the room and all around, he could have danced. They'd made it. Beyond all reason, they'd survived the attack.
At that moment there was an incongruous noise. After the sounds of dying and pain, it took Aaron a moment to realize what it was. A phone was ringing, incessantly. Rather than repeat the same statement again, Aaron wandered over to where it hung on the wall. Damn but this place was dated.
Picking it up, Aaron was well aware of the absurdity of the whole thing. Who the hell would be calling them? "Hello?" he said, looking at Michael and the others as they began the grim process of dealing with the dead.
"This is Julian Luna," the voice on the other end stated. "I wanted to check to see how you were making out in your new home."
"Ahhhh..." Aaron said, his mind temporarily going blank. How did he describe all of this in twenty words or less? He could feel Michael looking at him while he organized the disposal teams. There was question in his expression.
"Is everything all right?" Julian asked. He knew he was speaking with Aaron but he could also tell that something was amiss. He was also well aware that something was wrong.
"Well, we were attacked by a large group of those vampires, like the one that made us," Aaron finally got out. He wasn't sure Michael and his people would appreciate him outing their presence to the Prince.
"Is everyone all right?" the Premagin demanded. Aaron would have been pissed off if he hadn't heard the concern under the brisk tone.
"No, everyone is not all right. We have several wounded. Dr. Luthen and Sandra are trying their best to deal with them but we need more supplies," Aaron stated. If anyone had the resources to save those that had been injured, it was the man on the other end of the line.
"I will be there as soon as I can," Julian stated. Then the line went dead.
"What the hell was that?" Michael asked. The question was completely out of character for the vampire but the whole situation had set him a little off edge.
"The man who owns this house, our benefactor, he's on his way here," Aaron replied.
"I feel safer all ready," Dean growled as he and the taller boy picked up a body between them. They weren't completely unscathed by the whole episode but they were in better shape than most. The faster they could get the house looking as it was, the sooner the whole thing would be over. Dean hoped.
"Dean," Sam said, grinning at him. He understood completely but the man really was trying to do his best for them.
"Well, it's true. Now he shows up after all the fighting is over," Dean grumbled as they left the room, the body still hanging limply between them.
"Is it over?" Sam asked.
Listening to the two Aaron realized he wasn't sure it was over either. There could be more of the monsters waiting in the wings. They could be waiting until the tribe thought they were safe before attacking again.
"We should go check on the doctor," Michael said. It was a good a place as any to go. He wanted to check to see how his own people had faired. Although, at the moment, he wasn't sure there was much difference anymore between the two groups.
"This way," Aaron said. He wasn't sure the other vampire knew his way around.
OOOOO
The library was in turmoil. The number of wounded was beyond anything Aaron could have imagined. Luckily, though, the doctor and Sandra had kept them all alive. Judging by the marks on Sandra's arm and Dr. Luthen's he realized that they had been using any means necessary to keep them with them.
"Is it over?" Sandra asked. She and Luthen had stopped in their ministrations long enough to see who had come inside. They knew it wouldn't have been anyone out to hurt them, Gabriel would make sure of that.
"I think so," Aaron responded. Behind him he felt Cash. The man was hovering. Apparently he couldn't think of anything better to do. After saving their asses, Aaron didn't mind.
"God, I hope so," Luthen said, wiping a hand across his brow. Both of the humans were pale. They'd been feeding the most desperate cases from their arms after the blood supply had run out. It was that or face losing some of the men. Neither of them could stomach the thought.
"Luna is on his way here," Aaron said as he scanned the room. Every corner, every inch of carpet was occupied. Were there really that many of them? Aaron was immediately struck by the thought that the house wasn't big enough. And there was no way in hell he was going to live in a cave.
"Really?" Luthen said. He had turned his attention back to his charge. The man was one of the last brought in. He needed blood and a little time. Hopefully with Luna's arrival they would have lots of both.
"The cavalry is on the way," Sandra scoffed. She too turned back to John. The man was one of the worst wounded. While he was healing well for a vampire, he too needed more blood.
"Let's hope so," Aaron stated.
OOOOO
The Calvary did show up. Luna came in with six helicopters. They were loaded with blood, medicine and enough reinforcements to keep the fight going on for another three days, maybe more.
Standing on the front lawn of the property, surrounded by pyres where the dead vampires were being burned, Aaron was actually a little happy to see the dark haired man. Cash, who had been his shadow since the fighting stopped, grinned widely and stepped towards Luna.
"Cash?" Julian asked, not quite believing what he was seeing. After the reaction he'd gotten the last time the two of them were together, he'd thought his friend was gone for good.
"Yeah, I'm back," Cash replied. It was a definitely irreverent response but he couldn't help himself. Amid the black smoke, orange flames, the smell of diesel from the helicopters and the smell of burning flesh, he couldn't remember ever being so happy. Letting his reserve down for three seconds, he clasped his friend and Prince in a hug. Julian was only too happy to return it.
OOOOO
Also on the helicopters were the Premagins for all of the clans. Julian had decided to stop putting off the inevitable. He was shocked to find yet another group of vampires that were not part of clan, except their own. The realization that there were not one but two renegade clans shook the vampire hierarchy to its foundation.
Amid much pressure from Cash, Julian realized that he couldn't force them to integrate with the others. The clans were all ready looking down on them, like they would a human. Well, except maybe Sandra and Dr. Luthen. While the humans knew too much, they had also kept a great many vampires alive. That lone had kept them human.
That led to a whole other range of problems. When it was suggested that the two clans be separated, both Aaron and Michael had refused. They'd fought beside each other. If there was anyone in this world they trusted it was each other. Luna was just a little above the other Premagins in that department.
"Well, the house isn't big enough for all of you," Luna protested. The Premagins, Julian, Michael and Aaron were seated at the kitchen table. All around them the others were still working to clear the damage done by the numerous battles that had taken place.
"We are not going to buy up a subdivision so that you can all have your own houses," Lily added. She understood the comradry among the two factions but the complications went beyond that. She was still all for splitting them up.
"We aren't used to being that far away from each other," Aaron stated. He had no idea what to suggest either. He just knew that splitting them up, even with a few walls, wasn't going to go over well.
"What, you want a communal living space? Other than a gymnasium I don't think we're ever going to find anywhere large enough," Lily said. The last thing she wanted to be doing at the moment was arguing with these two.
"Enough," Luna growled. The tension in the room was palpable. And it wasn't going to get any better until they came up with a solution that worked for all of them.
"They're being unreasonable," Lily spat.
"Stop it," Luna growled. "We aren't splitting them up. That is not an option. We need to figure out something that will work. Clearly, there are forces that even we are unaware of at work here. We still need time to investigate who or what created all of you. However, I'm not going to leave you here. This place isn't safe either."
"What would you suggest then?" Aaron asked. The only Premagin he looked at besides Luna was Cash. The others just irritated him too much.
"We will have to find a location that is suitable to all of you. If I have to build it I will. In the mean time, I would like you all to come back with me to my own home. It's large enough to accommodate all of you with only minimal crowding," Luna said.
"Julian," Lily gasped. That was not the option she was considering. Trying to use mind control on them was a better possibility to her. The other Premagins voiced their shock as well, with the exception of Cash. He loved the idea. He too lived most of the time in Julian's house.
"There are still things to be considered but this is the best option for now. We will start ferrying everyone in the helicopters, starting with the wounded," Julian said. He wasn't going to deal with any more discussion. This was as good as it was going to get for now. The problem of the two tribes had not been solved. He honestly wasn't sure that it ever would be. For now he had to content himself with the thought at least they were all safe. He owed them that much for bringing Cash back to him.
For the first time in what felt like an eternity, Julian looked across the table at his chief of security and friend. He was Cash's respect for him and love reflected in his friend's face. For that, Luna would give anything.
"Let's get started."
THE END
A/N: Hello! Anyone out there? Yeah. This took WAAAAY too long to finish. I'm terribly sorry. I'm also terribly sorry for the sucky ending. It's the best that will currently come out. My muse has been on permanent hiatus so finishing this has been like pulling teeth...without anaesthetic.
I may in future do an epilogue. That is currently my intention but I will have to wait and see what my muse does. I'm at its mercy right now.
Thanks for sticking with me.
Susanne