holder. I remembered something and
picked up the phone again.
“Troy? Are you still
in New Orleans... good. I need the usual brought to us. Let say the
corner of Barracks and Royal Street in,” I looked at my watch,
“eight hours. Oh, and have the guest room nearest mine set up at
the house. And fill the closet with clothes— for a girl. I’ll
text you the sizes later…anything. Thanks.” I hung up.
“If they hurt her, I
swear I will eliminate their entire clan.” It was hard to remain
angry at Luke when his concerns were so genuine.
I shook my head. “They
won’t. Not until they get what they want from LaLaurie at least.
She’s their insurance policy.” I can only imagine what LaLaurie
would give them in return. Most importantly, why would she want Ana
dead? I never questioned the reasons when a supernatural wanted a
human dead. They were often irrational and complex. But Ana was so
innocent, so far removed from our world.
When we arrived in New
Orleans, I took a mental note of the damage. The hurricane had hit
all of five weeks ago and the place was still a disaster. I knew the
vampires would be rejoicing. It was filthy and the prey was easy.
Downtown was much the
same as before the storm. This was the New Orleans I knew. I could
still navigate the streets based on directions I learned over a
hundred years ago. There was something comforting about that, and I
was glad now that I had bought the house here.
When I turned onto
Royal Street, Troy was waiting just as instructed. Luke rolled down
his window.
“Sir,” Troy slipped
a duffle bag inside and disappeared without another word.
Up ahead, I saw a black
limousine parked outside the LaLaurie Mansion. I identified one
person inside, the driver. The back was empty. Damn. How long had
they been there? I parked in an alley up the block and deserted our
car.
“I’ll take out the
driver, you just find Ana,” I instructed Luke. Luke nodded and
disappeared in a blur.
As I was pulling the
driver's body from the car, I heard Ana’s scream. No. I left
him in the street as I vanished inside the house. The house was
steeped with LaLaurie’s presence. My ears were ringing and I
marveled at the irony. LaLaurie would have to be destroyed. But we
would have to take care of that later.
I listened for any
signs of Ana or Luke and located them up a flight of stairs. I
disappeared into the master bedroom. The room was empty; the
balcony’s French doors were open. The wind blew white curtains,
revealing Ana, Luke and one of the Vasquezes outside. Luke was
hovered over the lifeless body of the young Vasquez, an arrow
sticking out of his chest. Ana was crouched on the ground, her face
looking in horror at her blood-covered hands. I appeared at her side,
helping her to a stand. She was alive! And the blood wasn’t hers.
Something in my chest finally felt whole again. Nothing mattered
anymore. I didn’t care about Luke or the kiss; Ana was looking up
at me with relief and happiness, yet she was hesitant, afraid.
“Hayden, I…” her
eyes brimmed with tears.
“Shh…”I pressed a
finger to her lips. They felt incredibly soft under my touch and
there was nothing I could do but kiss her. She responded instantly,
her lips moving against mine. I didn't care where we were, I needed
this. I needed her. I heard the breaking of glass and then felt the
change in temperature. I turned from Ana to see Luke inside, smashing
the lanterns on the floor and lighting anything flammable. Luke
closed the French doors behind him as the fire roared to life.
“What are you doing?”
Ana yelled, her eyes searching for another exit.
“Do you think others
were called?” I asked when I understood what Luke was doing. The
supernatural would be curious and it could get ugly if others showed
up.
Luke went over to the
balcony railing, preparing to jump. “I don’t know, but I am not waiting around to find out.”
I agreed. “Let’s
go.” I picked up Ana, cradling
picked up the phone again.
“Troy? Are you still
in New Orleans... good. I need the usual brought to us. Let say the
corner of Barracks and Royal Street in,” I looked at my watch,
“eight hours. Oh, and have the guest room nearest mine set up at
the house. And fill the closet with clothes— for a girl. I’ll
text you the sizes later…anything. Thanks.” I hung up.
“If they hurt her, I
swear I will eliminate their entire clan.” It was hard to remain
angry at Luke when his concerns were so genuine.
I shook my head. “They
won’t. Not until they get what they want from LaLaurie at least.
She’s their insurance policy.” I can only imagine what LaLaurie
would give them in return. Most importantly, why would she want Ana
dead? I never questioned the reasons when a supernatural wanted a
human dead. They were often irrational and complex. But Ana was so
innocent, so far removed from our world.
When we arrived in New
Orleans, I took a mental note of the damage. The hurricane had hit
all of five weeks ago and the place was still a disaster. I knew the
vampires would be rejoicing. It was filthy and the prey was easy.
Downtown was much the
same as before the storm. This was the New Orleans I knew. I could
still navigate the streets based on directions I learned over a
hundred years ago. There was something comforting about that, and I
was glad now that I had bought the house here.
When I turned onto
Royal Street, Troy was waiting just as instructed. Luke rolled down
his window.
“Sir,” Troy slipped
a duffle bag inside and disappeared without another word.
Up ahead, I saw a black
limousine parked outside the LaLaurie Mansion. I identified one
person inside, the driver. The back was empty. Damn. How long had
they been there? I parked in an alley up the block and deserted our
car.
“I’ll take out the
driver, you just find Ana,” I instructed Luke. Luke nodded and
disappeared in a blur.
As I was pulling the
driver's body from the car, I heard Ana’s scream. No. I left
him in the street as I vanished inside the house. The house was
steeped with LaLaurie’s presence. My ears were ringing and I
marveled at the irony. LaLaurie would have to be destroyed. But we
would have to take care of that later.
I listened for any
signs of Ana or Luke and located them up a flight of stairs. I
disappeared into the master bedroom. The room was empty; the
balcony’s French doors were open. The wind blew white curtains,
revealing Ana, Luke and one of the Vasquezes outside. Luke was
hovered over the lifeless body of the young Vasquez, an arrow
sticking out of his chest. Ana was crouched on the ground, her face
looking in horror at her blood-covered hands. I appeared at her side,
helping her to a stand. She was alive! And the blood wasn’t hers.
Something in my chest finally felt whole again. Nothing mattered
anymore. I didn’t care about Luke or the kiss; Ana was looking up
at me with relief and happiness, yet she was hesitant, afraid.
“Hayden, I…” her
eyes brimmed with tears.
“Shh…”I pressed a
finger to her lips. They felt incredibly soft under my touch and
there was nothing I could do but kiss her. She responded instantly,
her lips moving against mine. I didn't care where we were, I needed
this. I needed her. I heard the breaking of glass and then felt the
change in temperature. I turned from Ana to see Luke inside, smashing
the lanterns on the floor and lighting anything flammable. Luke
closed the French doors behind him as the fire roared to life.
“What are you doing?”
Ana yelled, her eyes searching for another exit.
“Do you think others
were called?” I asked when I understood what Luke was doing. The
supernatural would be curious and it could get ugly if others showed
up.
Luke went over to the
balcony railing, preparing to jump. “I don’t know, but I am not waiting around to find out.”
I agreed. “Let’s
go.” I picked up Ana, cradling
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