Born Into Flames Read online

  “Sure, but… he’s a big ass dude.”

  Kaine laughed. “Little piratita has a point. Last chance to run with your tail between your legs, bitch.”

  “Didn’t your mommy ever tell you not to use that word?” Valerie asked, and didn’t wait for a response before diving into the attack.

  She had pretty much only ever used the large European-style sword she had grown accustomed to, but that was back on the blimp with Captain Bronson, so she would have to learn how to use these pirate swords fast. They were thinner, with a slight curve. As she brought one attack after another at Kaine, she began to appreciate these blades. She could move faster than she ever had with the claymore, and she imagined she looked damn cool doing it.

  Even with her skills and speed, hitting him was hard though. For one, he was much quicker than his size would suggest, and even though she was strong, that didn’t mean she had the perfect sense of balance. When he caught her off-guard, she went toppling over.

  That’s when his minions leaped in to join the fight, and he did nothing to stop them.

  Valerie found herself covered in vampires, some trying to scratch with claws or strike with blows, others brandishing weapons and trying to get clean shots.

  “Forget this,” Robin said, and came in swinging her sword in Valerie’s defense. Her moves caught Kaine’s eye and, as Valerie killed one vampire after another, she couldn’t help but notice him staring at Robin in a very lustful way.

  So it was that she took great pleasure in killing the last vampire and then taking Robin’s hand for a slight squeeze. It was enough to tell him she was off limits. Not that it would matter, since he’d be dead soon, Valerie thought. Still, couldn’t let him die thinking he could have accomplished more in life than was realistic.

  “That’s how it’s done!” Cammie said, tossing a pirate overboard who had apparently attempted to attack her. Now it was just their friendly pirates, them, and Kaine.

  “What are you even doing here?” Kaine asked, eyes now showing that he finally understood the predicament he was in.

  He took a step back, pistol pointed at her chest. She advanced.

  “You couldn’t just let me have it?” he asked. “Your damned quest for revenge demands you hunt us all down until it’s completely over, is that it?”

  “Not at all,” she said, feeling the balance of her swords as she advanced. “You could’ve retired to a hut on the shore, lived out your life eating fish and sucking the blood of chickens, but instead you became not only part of the problem, but, from what I hear, a major pillar of the problem. I mean to watch you all collapse, until the roof comes tumbling down.”

  “I should’ve taken you that night, after Donovan turned his back.” The man took a step toward her now. “I could’ve, you know. You were weak then, just like you’re weak now.” At a push of fear from her, his eyes widened, but he didn’t back down. “Oh, maybe not physically or with this magic or whatever you want to call it, but mentally? You’re just the same young, stupid vampire you were back then.”

  “Oh, cut out his throat and jam it into his eye socket,” Cammie said. “Stupid prick.”

  “This one’s asking for trouble,” Kaine said, turning his attention on her.

  “Nuh-uh,” Valerie said, stepping between the two. “You’re my kill.”

  “Uh, guys,” Martha shouted from the rear of the ship. The others all looked, but Valerie had to keep her attention on the man before her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw what they were all looking at—a dark form rising up from past the tall building they had been aiming for earlier.

  “That’s the Prince’s air ship,” River said, and this time Valerie glanced up to see one massive airship, flanked by three more all with their Gatling guns at the ready. For a moment she thought that it was coming for them, but then it started veering off toward the land to the west.

  “The hell…?” she started to ask, but a flash went off at her side, and a bullet tore through her cheek. Dammit, that hurt.

  As she was coughing up blood, she turned in time to see Kaine’s cutlass as he swung it for her head. She brought up both swords to block the strike and push it aside, and was glad she did, too, because the force knocked her backward. If it had hit her, it could’ve cleaved her in two.

  “You want the slavers, you need the Prince,” Toiya shouted and made her move to attack Kaine from behind, he was quick, but Valerie was quicker. As he turned to dodge Toiya’s blow and then shoot her point blank, Valerie thrust one of her swords, connecting with the arm and driving into his chest.

  He groaned, staggering back, but then pulled the sword out and tossed it to clank across the deck.

  Behind him, the large man from the pirate tunnels collapsed, and Toiya screamed, running for him.

  This son of a bitch just made their situation worse, because now Valerie decided she was going to have to let that woman take the final blow.

  When he lunged with his good arm, Valerie was there with a strike, and she sent the arm flying with a swift, clean cut right through the bicep.

  “No healing from that, asshole,” she said, and then clocked him with the hilt of her sword right on the nose.

  He fell backwards and onto his butt, dark blood pouring out over his face.

  “You won’t catch him,” Kaine said. “Nobody flies this ship but me, and since I’m about to die…”

  “Wait, fly this ship?” she glanced over to Martha, who nodded. “This ship turns into a blimp?”

  Martha nodded, but motioned to Kaine. “I think we can figure it out, but first, do you mind?”

  “Actually, I think someone else should get to do it.” She walked forward and kicked Kaine back so that he lay flat on the deck, then stabbed her sword downward and into his good arm, so that he was pinned there.

  He shouted in pain and anger, spitting at her, but she simply stepped back and waited.

  Finally, Toiya looked up, catching on.

  She was too furious to smile, but a hint of excitement at the idea of being the one responsible for bringing him to justice shone in her eyes.

  When Valerie saw that the woman held a machete, she was about to intervene and ask someone to lend her a sword, but it was quickly clear that was unwanted. Toiya went to town on the vampire, hacking and slashing and loving every shout of pain or gurgle of blood from him. The rest either watched or turned away from it all. When it was over and Toiya sat there, covered in blood, a dead vampire before her, Martha told Valerie that the two, Toiya and the large man, had some on-again-off-again relationship.

  She suspected something of the sort.

  Just to be certain, she walked up to Toiya’s side, took the machete, and gave the neck of Kaine’s corpse one last chop, separating it from the body. Next, she took both and tossed them overboard.

  That out of the way, she looked to Martha and said, “Get this ship into the air.”

  Martha nodded and began shouting orders, and soon, they were pulling aside trap doors and pulling levers, then disconnecting masts, so that the inner part of the ship actually disconnected from the outer hull. Beneath them was a separate deck, this one with a large balloon waiting to be inflated.

  “This is insane,” Valerie said, shaking her head.

  “Greater things were accomplished at the expense of slaves,” Robin said.

  “God, you’re a downer.” Valerie bit her lip, nodding. “And soon, all that will be taken care of.”

  “How…?” Cammie asked, staring at the disappearing blimps. “Captain Bairne must’ve told them we’re coming, right?”

  “He might’ve been ready to move anyway,” Martha offered. “Doing a delivery run, bringing slaves out here, even. That’s the rumor I’ve heard, anyway. Could be coincidence, or could be he decided to make his move earlier when he heard about you all.”

  The group soon had the balloon up and beginning its inflation process, but Cammie and Royland were discussing something. Valerie nodded at them and cleared her throat.

>   Cammie glanced over, hesitated, then said, “We’ve been thinking.”

  “What about Captain Bronson?” Royland asked, watching the blimp fill with hot air.

  “And this place,” Cammie added, glancing around. “We leave them now, who’s to say they don’t just revert back to the way they were under the Prince?”

  “Sounds like you’re going somewhere with this, Cam?” Valerie asked.

  “I’m just saying. If you all go take out the Prince, and this Kaine guy is pretty much gone, these people will need leadership, someone to keep them in line.”

  “And that someone would be?”

  Cammie shrugged. “Maybe me?”

  “Maybe us,” Royland cut in.

  For a moment, the two looked at each other, and then Cammie grabbed his hand and squeezed. “Maybe… us.”

  Valerie couldn’t help but laugh. “Only you two have the ability to be romantic on a pirate ship covered in guts and gore.”

  “So, that’s a yes?”

  “You’re right, after all.” Valerie watched the balloon inflate, observing the pirates going about their tasks. “These men and women, they aren’t evil. They just need direction. We’ll pursue the ship, put an end to this piracy, and leave you two to ensure the eastern hub of their operations is no more. New York will trade with you, or we’ll figure out some sort of system, but piracy will not be part of it.”

  “How about the clothes,” Cammie said, twirling in her pirate dress. “We can still wear these, right?”

  Royland chuckled. “I’m going to make damn sure you do.”

  “Oh, is that right?” she grinned the way only Cammie could.

  Valerie had to roll her eyes. “Shit, you two are becoming no better than Sandra and Diego.”

  “Says the lady with commitment problems,” Cammie retorted. “I mean, at least I pick a team, even if I play in multiple lanes. You’re like that old school game of pong. You’re the ball, right… when you going to flip back to the other side?”

  Everybody stared at Cammie, completely lost.

  “You… have no idea what I’m talking about.”

  Valerie shook her head. “I got the gist of the insult, if that was an insult, but… pong?”

  “Oh, forget it.” Cammie rubbed the back of her neck, glancing away, then looked back. “I… actually don’t know. I once heard this old guy giving someone that speech, and I had no idea what it meant. So, figured if I use it enough, someday someone will know.”

  “Cammie, I’m going to miss you.”

  “Ahhh.” Cammie released Royland’s hand in favor of a big hug from Valerie. When they were done, Cammie winked and said, “A bit more, to satisfy your curiosity?”

  “God!” Valerie said, punching her friend in the shoulder.

  Cammie laughed and took a step back, then said to Royland, “Don’t try to sexually proposition her, she gets violent.”

  “Or maybe he’d get what he asked for, just to make you jealous.”

  Royland took a step back and an intense anger flashed over Cammie’s face, but was gone a second later, replaced with a confused, skeptical expression.

  “Whoa, kidding,” Valerie said, hands up in surrender.

  “We can skip the hug,” Royland said, even though Cammie was blushing.

  “They give you any trouble,” Valerie said, “Just kill ‘em.” She watched the two walk to the side of the ship to join a few of the other pirates, who were staying behind and were loading into the rowboats.

  “You know how we do it,” Cammie said, and started to climb overboard. “Oh, and for the record, I knew you were joking. And I wasn’t jealous.”

  “Right.”

  “Okay,” Royland said with a laugh.

  “What? I wasn’t!”

  As they laughed, she repeated it a couple more times while disappearing over the side.

  “Hey, Cam,” Valerie shouted.

  “Yeah?” Cammie’s voice carried over, losing itself in the wind.

  “Tell Bronson and his family, I’ll be around.”

  “You got it.”

  Valerie stood there, on the deck of this pirate ship-turned-blimp that was now, effectively, hers. It would be weird, not seeing them again for who knows how long. There was too much of that going on lately. Too much saying good-bye to people for the sake of making the world a better place.

  But with the things she had been a part of, even if just tangentially, when with the Duke… it was like she owed the world. She damn well meant to see that payment fulfilled. And so it was that, when Robin stepped up next to her, every ounce of her said to pull away, to not open herself up to yet another person who she would only have to, eventually, say good bye to.

  Robin seemed to notice, because she paused a foot away, one arm at her side, the other crossed over her chest so that she held herself in a half hug.

  “You sure we won’t need them?” Robin asked.

  Valerie considered the question. “Who knows? An army of pirates, men and women with guns and swords, and then there’s the whole slaver thing and who knows how many of them will be on our side. Yeah, I’d say we could use them, but… nothing’s been too big to handle so far, so we’ll see.”

  The last of the spare pirates departed, Toiya going with them—she didn’t want any more suffering, if possible.

  Martha gave the order and the air ship’s balloon rose into the air, fully inflated now, and the anti-grav technology kicked in to give them that extra boost.

  “You’re certain we don’t need Bronson or someone to fly this thing?” Valerie asked. “We could still send for him.”

  Martha headed for the wheel, but paused to say, “This isn’t the first ship I’ve been on. It won’t be the last.”

  Valerie nodded, ready to take a chance on this woman, and went to the ship’s bow to look out to watch the ocean as it would soon disappear from sight. For how long, she had no idea.

  With a jolt, the air ship was up and soon moving through the sky, in pursuit of the Pirate Prince. None of that other stuff mattered right now. All of those emotions. No, it was time to kick butt and make the world right again.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Outside Old Manhattan

  Diego cast a wary glance at the horizon where, although it was still night, hints of dark blue signified the coming sun. With the amount of vampires they had out there with them, this outpost had better show up soon or they’d have to head back, and fast.

  “Something crawl up your butt and die?” Platt, one of the vampires from the elevator, asked, giving him a grin.

  “He’s worried for us,” Bryant said, then pulled a black face-mask out of his pack. “Dude, worse comes to worse, here we go. Put these badboys on, ain’t no big thing.”

  “I just don’t want to have to explain to my girl why I let so many of you die out here, that’s all,” Diego said, playing along. It felt good to joke—took the seriousness off the situation. “Not that she’d be worried about you all, just expects better of me.”

  “Funny boy,” Platt said, grinning. “Listen, these jerks out here don’t show up soon, I’m going to go looking for some squirrels or something, just to say I killed something.”

  “Whoa, what’d a squirrel ever do to you?”

  Platt pursed his lips, thinking about that. “Fine, no squirrels. Bastards are too cute.”

  Diego shook his head with a laugh. “How about no killing unless it’s necessary?”

  “Meh, I guess.” Platt licked his lips. “Just been a while since I had a drink.”

  “You like the taste of blood?”

  Platt adjusted the rifle slung over his shoulder. “Like it? I adore it.”

  Diego glanced over at Bryant, who shrugged and gave him a nod. “You two got issues.”

  A vampire ran past them in a flash, stopping to speak with Brad and Felix, nodded at their response, and took off back the way she came.

  “Scout?” Diego asked, and Bryant nodded.

  “We must be close then,” Die
go said, and was about to excuse himself to go speak with Brad and Felix, when—

  KABOOM!

  Everything lit up, debris flying in all directions, and an intense heat came over Diego as fire licked his skin. At first, he was simply disoriented, and then a whistling sounded.

  “Shit!” he shouted, leaping for cover as the artillery landed near where he’d been standing.

  Again with the explosion and debris, and this time accompanied by gunfire.

  “Ambush!” someone was shouting, and then Diego saw their mistake—they had been coming up under a ridge, and the enemy must have sent others in a different direction to distract the scouts, while staying out of their enhanced line of sight here.

  Men and women screamed as they charged in on the vampires and Weres, and soon, the night was filled with wolves darting among the attackers.

  Diego maintained his human form for now and turned, aiming in on a man, but was surprised to see the guy was not only nude but for a loin cloth, but had no weapon. His hair fell over his shoulders and stuck out in a mess, and his eyes were wild.

  Instead of shooting him, he brought the butt of his rifle into the man’s face, instantly dropping him.

  When he looked around, he saw that more attackers were the same as this one, some completely nude, others in ripped jeans. None of them were what you’d expect of real attackers.

  Then it hit him—these were just whackos, the crazy people who lived outside of the city walls. Somehow the faction leaders had corralled them into this spot to attack. But they must have known that it wouldn’t do any good, a bunch of whackos against Weres and vampires.

  So…

  “GET OUT OF HERE!” Diego shouted, and began running to get out of what he was sure was the target zone.

  There was no question when, a moment later a man appeared in the middle of all the others, explosives strapped to his chest, and he laughed like a hyena in heat before the explosion hit and took out everyone in its radius.

  Luckily, most of the Weres and vampires had heard Diego and, while not putting it all together, followed his lead.