Page 23 of Wicked Thirst
“A store in the shit part of town.”
I followed as he yanked the door open and walked into a small corner store with half-stocked shelves, broken fluorescent lighting, and broken refrigerators. A lone man sat behind a counter with a register next to him. He didn’t look up when the door flew open. He just kept flipping through the magazine that seemed to hold his attention. I waved my hand in front of him, but he just flipped to another page. I sniffed the air thinking he’d be a vampire, but all I smelled was human blood.
“He’s very observant.”
“In this part of town, no one asks questions and no one looks twice.” Atlas pushed through the entrance and out into the cool morning air. He paused, glancing over his shoulder at me as I stepped out into the sun next to him. It was the day after Christmas and the air was freezing, yet when I felt the sun on my skin, I could feel the slight warmth in the rays.
As we walked down the street, I fell into step with him. I didn’t know where we were going or how he knew where to find Grayson, and I didn’t feel like Atlas was going to be forthcoming considering he’d just tried to ditch me by getting through the mirror before I could. He turned every corner like he knew exactly where he was going, like it was a maze and he had the only map.
The smell of blood filled the chilly air and I hesitated. Atlas gave me a sideways glance. “There’s always prey to be had here. Feral vampires and newborn baby vamps are drawn to this place. The weak tend to be easy prey.”
“The weak?”
We turned between two buildings, and there huddled in the shadows were groups of homeless people pressed to the walls. They had a messy encampment made of old tents, tarps, and boxes. The smell was overwhelming. But when we entered the alley, they all seemed to close in on themselves. They pulled tarps over themselves, zipped their tents, and huddled deeper into their boxes. Atlas looked at them, then pointedly looked at me.
“I see what you mean.”
Farther down, street workers huddled and lounged against the wall, waiting for night to fall. They seemed to just stand there waiting for a man to pull up and ask them to hop in. It was a dangerous life, but I didn’t dare judge them for their choices. Everyone had a story—a trauma or a responsibility. The smell of drugs, sickness, and other unsavory things filled the air. Atlas navigated the alley like he’d been here a million times before. He stepped over bodies and didn’t even look at the faces of the people who were barely speed bumps to him.
He turned once more, and we were in what looked like a maze of alleyways. Atlas paused for a moment, sniffing the air. A growl rumbled in his chest, and he threw his arm out, shoving me back behind him. I nearly fell over with how quickly he did it. I tried to peek over his shoulder to see what had alerted him. A low hiss escaped his lips as he narrowed his eyes at the dark corner. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust, but the second they did, Grayson leapt from the corner and hit Atlas like a truck. He wore only a pair of dress pants. His chest and feet were bare. Dirt covered his whole body, and his hair was disheveled like I’d never seen it before.
Atlas stiffened a moment before their bodies slammed together like two trains colliding on the tracks. Grayson snapped his teeth at Atlas as he wrapped his hands around his neck and they both flew back into the wall. The brick cracked around them when they smacked into it. Atlas wrapped his hand around the back of Grayson’s neck and spun around, slamming Grayson’s head into the wall. It didn’t even make him pause. Gray was as fast at Atlas, and the two of them spun around like a whirlwind.
“God damn it, Gray!” Atlas grunted as he threw a punch that connected with Grayson’s cheek.
His head snapped back, and his cheek split open. Blood ran down his face and he gave Atlas a fangy smirk. Then he hauled his fist back and jabbed Atlas in the face. His brow split open, and blood trickled down the side of his face. Atlas shook his head and hissed as he threw another punch. They traded blows back and forth, each one hitting harder than the last. I wanted to jump between them, but I wasn’t about to volunteer my face for that kind of beating.
Gray took a step toward Atlas. He planted one foot and then kicked him in the stomach with the other. The air whooshed from Atlas’ lungs, and he flew back and skidded across the ground before crashing into a group of garbage cans. They exploded into the air and made a huge crashing sound. Garbage flew in all different directions, and the sound of broken glass filled the air. When he rose to his feet, he shook the rubbish off his coat.
“Gray, I know you’re not yourself.”
Grayson chuckled and held his hands out to his sides like he was enjoying this. I stepped between them. “Grayson, stop. I know you know us.”
His eyes were wild, and his skin was that deathly pale that I hated. He tilted his head to the side, studying me. The muscles in his body twitched as he sucked in heaving breaths. He smacked his hands into the sides of his head and began pacing back and forth. He stared at the two of us as he paced, growled, and hissed in our direction. His eyes bounced from Atlas to me and back again. Agitation rolled off him.
Atlas’ eyes widened, then narrowed. “Do you know us?”
His words sent Grayson into a fury. He leapt at Atlas and threw him into the wall. Atlas hauled his fist back and cracked Grayson right across the face. He flew back into a dumpster, crushing it to a tiny, crumpled metal lump. Grayson grabbed the edge of the mangled dumpster and peeled two long pieces of jagged metal from it. He held them at his sides. They cut into the skin of his hands, but Grayson didn’t seem to mind. Blood dripped down the sharp edges and fell to the ground.
Atlas pulled his sleeves up and ran his hands over the long sword tattoos on his forearms. Red mist glowed around the tattoos, and they seemed to peel from his skin and fall into his hands. The blades were long and terrible looking as they glinted in the sunlight. Fear shot through my body, and I felt my hands begin to shake. If I didn’t stop this, they’d kill each other. They charged forward. Each one swung their weapons. Metal clanged against metal. Grayson slashed his piece across Atlas’ mid-section and a line of crimson flowed down his side, coating his shirt in blood. Atlas spun and slashed his sword over Grayson’s arm. Blood trickled down his arm and he lifted it to his face, taking a lick of the warm, flowing stream.
He grinned at Atlas and dove toward him. A moment before they collided, I saw the glare in Atlas’ eye, the way they focused on Grayson’s neck and the exact point he’d strike. His swing was strong and level as though he would take his head. Before I knew what I was doing, I dove forward and shoved Atlas back. Grayson slammed into my back and jabbed the metal forward. It breezed by me and went straight into Atlas’ rib cage. A loud oof rushed from Atlas, and he backed away with the metal jutting from his side.
Grayson’s hand snaked around my body and up to my neck. He wrapped his fingers around my throat and began to squeeze. He sucked in a deep breath, smelling my hair. He hummed low in his throat. “Hmm. Divine.”
I spun around and let my arm fly. My elbow connected with his jaw, and he soared across the alley. He smacked headfirst into the wall and dropped to the ground. Atlas was there with his sword poised at his throat. I leapt forward, shoving my shoulder into his side, sending him a few feet away. “No!”
When I turned back, Grayson was gone and I was alone with Atlas. When I faced Atlas, he stood there with two jagged metal pieces sticking out from his midsection. He glared at me and sucked in deep, sharp breaths.
“Trifle with your family, trifle with your deity, but do not trifle with me and the job I was meant to do.” He staggered and leaned up against the wall as he wrapped his arm around his midsection.
“We need to get you to the lab. Back to the doctors there.”
He shoved away from me. “I’ll see to it myself.”
“You almost killed Gray back there. You know that, right? So what the hell is your problem?”
“You! You are my problem.”
