“I’d rather ride in the trunk than wait in here.”
After examining the steel chains that were fastened into plates and bolted into the concrete wall, he smiled. “Back up.”
Adair moved to the far corner of the cell.
Hand gripped hand at the base of the first chain, he wound it around his fists and braced his foot against the wall. Every muscle in his body strained at the effort.
The concrete gave way and the steel plate wrenched out of the wall, debris flying from the force of it. He did the same with the other chain.
A frown drawing his brow, he wrapped the loose chain around his wrists to avoid dragging the steel plates on the floor. At the steel gate, he inspected the lock.
He stepped back and slammed his foot into the lock with a blunt kick.
With a resonating clamor, the gate swung open, the steel bar that had locked it snapped in half.
Cringing, Adair strained to hear upstairs. “They’ll have heard that.”
He shook his head. “I hope so, but these walls are pretty thick.”
Adair ran for the credenza and grabbed her purse from under it. The creak of wooden steps rattled in her ears. “They’re coming.”
Bennett nodded. “Not to be bossy, but would you mind backing out of the way again?”
She shook her head, watching as he swung his chains like lassos.
The moment one of Cambria’s crew appeared in the doorway, Bennett released a chain and it cracked into the first of them. With his new weapons, he slammed the steel of one into the next vampire while wrapping the other chain around the next.
The next pair ran straight for her. Adair spun out of their grip and lowered to kick the legs out from the nearest. Dodging another, she readied to pounce. As another ran for her, she sprang up and wrapped her leg around his neck, spinning them to the ground and twisting until he collapsed. The last of them dove for her again, but Bennett’s chain launched and struck it in the back of the skull.
He flashed her a devious wink as he stood over the pile of bodies at his feet. “Come on.”
She nodded toward the cellar door she’d come in through.
Bennett said, “I’m getting what I came for.”
Glancing to the exit and back at him, she ground her teeth and let the acid of too many raspberries burn the back of her throat. “You’re crazy.”
Footsteps silent, they eased up the stairs, and found the main floor dead quiet. She followed him up the next flight of stairs, seeing the destruction from his last trip through.
Without a word, she nodded to the far door at the end of the upstairs hall. He sniffed the air and nodded in agreement. On seeing the padlock over the door, she reached into her purse and pulled out her tool.
Only a faint squeak of metal against metal, she clicked open the lock with a few easy twists. Bennett smiled knowingly.
She followed him into Cambria’s bedroom. Soundly asleep in an ornate canopy bed as old as she was, the ancient one didn’t seem to notice their approach. At the round table near the fireplace, a collection of books waited, a more recent map folded as a bookmark in the book on top. Bennett silently stacked them.
The ancient one had left her clothes in a pile on the floor next to the bed. Adair slipped her hand into the pocket of her pants and found the key to Bennett’s chains. Adair grinned as she held it up in satisfaction, eliciting an adorable double-dimple smile from Bennett.
Without a sound, she snuck toward the door, but heard movement from the bed.
Cambria’s voice broke the silence. “Take the key, but leave my books please.” She bolted up out of bed and was across the room so fast, they didn’t have time to react.
With rapid fire fists, elbows, swift kicks, the ancient lashed out and knocked Bennett back against the far wall.
Ducking, not quite matched in speed, Adair spun with a helicopter kick and knocked Cambria’s feet out from under her. Cambria popped back up and growled, aiming straight for Adair.
Bennett leapt to his feet and threw a steel plate at her.
Too fast, Cambria dropped to the ground, dodging the blow.
