Page 35 of Gates of Rapture (The Guardians of Ascension #6)

Grace was suddenly in his mind. Marguerite said the Seattle Colony will be under attack.

When ?

Anytime .

I’ll let HQ know .

He moved to the large window to the left of the bed and pushed back the curtain to look outside. No movement except the wind in the fir trees. He looked down at his phone. It was only eight in the evening. He thumbed, then located the colony’s HQ phone and tapped the screen.

The phone rang.

The hidden colony HQ had a small working grid that constantly checked the perimeter throughout the mountainous terrain. A second grid checked the space beneath Diallo’s dome of moss-based mist.

There was no answer.

There was no answer.

He scrolled for Thorne’s number. The phone rang. Thorne picked up. “Marguerite just told me. I’m letting Seriffe know. We’ll mobilize. Get up here to Second as soon as you can, and make sure Grace is safe.”

“Shit. You must be right, and I think it’s already started. I couldn’t reach HQ.”

“Got it.”

When he tossed his phone on the bed, he realized that Grace had shut the water off and she no longer hummed.

Everything felt quiet.

Too quiet.

He turned to face the bathroom.

A shimmering next to Leto caused him to bring his sword into his hand.

Casimir.

“Thank the Creator. We’re under attack.”

“I’m here,” Casimir said.

Leto had blocked Grace’s sensations so he quickly reestablished his breh -connection. Then he knew. He could now feel the cold line of tiles that pressed against both sides of her back as well as her bottom, which meant she had backed up into the corner of the shower.

Leto. Her voice was suddenly in his mind. Bring your sword, she added. We have company .

To Casimir, he sent, Death vamp in the bathroom.

I’ve got your back. Casimir held his hands wide, and Leto could feel the power start to build.

Leto moved with blinding speed to the bathroom. Yet at the exact same moment, he felt three more large bodies fold into the bedroom, into the space he had just vacated.

He didn’t wait to see what happened, but he could hear the vibrations of the hand-blast. Bodies fell to the floor.

He found Grace pressed up against the tile, staring into the face of a warrior-sized death vampire.

Leto used the tip of his sword and pricked the death vampire right on the ass.

The pretty-boy turned around. “What the fuck,” he muttered, perhaps thinking one of his comrades was giving him a hard time.

Surprise.

Dropping into a fighting stance, Leto kept his gaze pinned on the death vamp. At the same time, he sent, Grace, fold to the basement. Then get dressed. I’ll meet you there in about three seconds.

She vanished. A moment later he felt the cold of the basement touch her wet skin and hair.

He raised his sword, which drew the death vamp’s arm up to meet steel with steel. But Leto had been a warrior a few thousand years longer than this sonofabitch. Folding his dagger into his left hand, he let it fly and caught the bastard straight through the neck.

At the same moment, he folded down to the basement. Grace wore jeans and a long green sweater that ended mid-thigh. She had on leather loafers. Good.

With a wave of his hand, he changed into clean flight battle gear.

To Casimir, he sent, I’m taking Grace to Diallo’s house, deep into the courtyard garden. Meet us there.

Done, Casimir returned.

He took Grace’s arm. “We’re going to fold to Diallo’s house, to the garden. I can’t raise the colony’s HQ on my phone. Casimir will join us there. I’ll block my trace so that we won’t be followed by any other death vampires who arrive here after we’re gone. Okay?”

She nodded.

Leto folded her in a quick flash through nether-space. He felt her feet touch down just as his did. They were where he wanted them to be, hidden by foliage. He blocked his trace. However, Diallo’s central courtyard was crawling with even more death vampires.

Holy shit, while he and Grace had been battling in his cabin, the colony had been attacked by death vampires. Why the fuck hadn’t the alarms sounded?

Crouch, he sent.

She was quick and ducked.

Leto, what happened here?

He looked up at the dome of mist. It’s simple. Greaves mapped and breached the colony.

The top had been burned away, just like at Nazca.

Another couple of seconds passed, and Casimir folded next to Grace. She looked up at him and nodded. There was nothing of the vampire Leto had known all those months ago. Casimir had been absurd, always taunting with sexual innuendo, always easy in his smiles. Now he was serious, even somber.

Casimir looked at Grace, but without flirtation. Right now, he even looked a little confused. Leto saw nothing to challenge in his demeanor toward Grace. He could only imagine what the redemption pools had been like to have taken the casual smirk from his face.

***

A number of sensations struck Grace all at once: Casimir’s odd presence beside her, the humidity of the garden, the terrible number of death vampires milling about and ready to fight.

She could feel Leto crouching without even looking at him because of the breh-hedden.

Earlier, while she was waiting for Leto in the basement, she had felt him throw his dagger at the death vampire.

Right now, when he pivoted on his heels to scan every inch of the garden, she could feel his battle sandals grinding against the hard pavers.

She peered through the shrubbery and started counting the number of death vampires, all restless, all moving as though they were hunting, even if their current job was to guard the courtyard. There had to be at least fifteen in the relatively small space. None of them spoke.

The war again.

She looked up. Remnants of the mist remained but mostly it was just gone, destroyed. In the distance, she could hear screams coming from the lane beyond Diallo’s house as well as the sound of a rhythmic drumbeat. Why was there the sound of a drum?

Creator help them.

To Leto, she sent, What do we do?

I’m not sure, he responded. I talked to Thorne. He said he was contacting Seriffe and would mobilize the Militia Warrior contingent at Apache Two. But I have a bad feeling about Diallo and Mei-Amadi.

When she shivered, he slid his arm around her waist. Sorry, he sent. But I think this is about to get worse.

It’s okay. I’ll manage. She thought for a moment. Do you think they have Diallo and his wife?

That’s what I think. Greaves would have ordered them to be either apprehended or killed.

Do you want me to look for them? She met his gaze. His blue eyes glittered in the garden shadows.

How will you look for them ? Wait, I can feel your obsidian power rising, up through your legs.

She nodded. Yes, that’s it exactly. I can do what I did for you in Moscow Two and when I searched out Nazca One. I can use the apparition part of this power to travel the house.

Won’t you be seen?

She shook her head. Don’t you remember? Even Greaves couldn’t see me. Just you and… Casimir.

She felt him tense then relax. She could feel him swallow, which was a strange experience all in itself.

He nodded, but turned to stare once more through the leaves. Do it.

She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. Steady me while I do this thing.

You got it. He tightened his arm around her. I’ll let Thorne know what’s going on.

Grace let her obsidian power flow. Because her blue flame was now fully opened, the rush of energy was like a flood.

She glanced up at Casimir and telepathically told him what was going on.

Be careful, he sent. He reached for her, glanced at Leto, then withdrew his hand.

Grace turned toward the house. She thought of Mei-Amadi, and her apparition-self moved swiftly through the shrubs and even past the death vampires.

She sped into the hall. To the left was the kitchen and dining room and another major hall leading to the bedrooms.

Shifting to face forward, she saw that the largest gathering of death vampires was in the front living room where she had sat with Leto all those months ago.

They were making a lot of noise, even cheering.

She found the pretty-boys grouped around a single death vampire on the floor.

He was engaged in copulation and was drinking a woman to death.

Oh, God. Mei-Amadi.

She froze for a moment as visceral memories pummeled her. She knew exactly what the woman was experiencing, the terror, the pain, and the rage combined. She felt ill.

Grace, are you all right ? Leto sent. You’re trembling in my arms.

His voice eased her. Yes, she responded. She drew close and saw that the lovely African-Asian woman was white-faced, near death. They have Diallo’s wife. But she knew what to do. She put her apparition-hand on the woman’s forehead.

Grace simply took her with her so that Mei-Amadi vanished from beneath the death vamp. With a rush of energy, she headed back to Leto. At the same time she gave him a brisk mental warning of what she had done.

When she arrived and Mei-Amadi materialized beside her, she collapsed on Grace. She was naked, bruised, and bloody. She was also weeping. Her sounds would bring the death vamps.

We’ve got to get her out of here, Grace sent to Leto.

He drew Mei-Amadi into his arms and sent, We’re folding to the Militia Warrior HQ in Apache Junction Two. The landing platforms. He glanced past her, and she could tell that he was sending Casimir a similar message.

Take her, Grace sent. I’ll follow.

As he dematerialized, he was shouting into her head. Grace, come with us now. This is too dangerous.

She shifted to meet Casimir’s gaze. He frowned heavily. You need to go with him, don’t you?

He nodded, but he looked pained. I hate to leave you here, but I’m Leto’s guardian. Will you be safe?

Yes. But I must find Diallo. She noticed movement to her right and saw that a couple of death vampires were headed in her direction. She couldn’t stay in the garden.

She considered all her options and looked up. I’m going to the roof. Come with me.