Page 50 of Box of Frogs
‘Not yet,’ I cautioned. I glanced at her. ‘I’m not sure if what I’m doing is the right thing, Julie. But you’ve been looking over your shoulder for too long. We need to turn the tables on these hunter bastards so that you’re safe once and for all.’
‘How are we going to do that?’
‘Right now,’ I said, accelerating away from the house, ‘they don’t seem to think you’re dangerous, regardless of your vampire ethnicity. We need to change that. We need to make them so afraid of you that they won’t dare to come near you again.’
‘I’m not sure I like the sound of that, darling.’
I braked, stopped the car and looked at her. ‘If you want, I can take you back to the safety of your house right now. The hunters won’t be able to enter and you’ll be fine. Until the next time. Or the time after that. Or whenever. You said yourself that it’s only a matter of time before they manage to get hold of you. They got damned close the other night.’ I gazed at her. ‘We can do that, if that’s what you prefer. At the end of the day, you’re the boss.’ I licked my lips. ‘Or we can change things and take control. We can stop them from bothering you ever again.’
Her eyes widened fractionally. ‘How on earth are you going to manage that?’
My answer was quiet but determined. ‘By making them so afraid of you, that they’d rather sell their own mothers to the bogeyman than come within a hundred miles of you.’
‘But I’m not scary, Madrona. I’m a cuddly vampire, not an evil vampire.’
I held her gaze and bared my teeth. ‘But I’m not cuddly.’
Julie shivered. Actually shivered. Then she nodded, albeit with some reluctance.
I started the car again. Excellent. If ever there was a time to really be an evil bitch, then this was it.
***
The last place I wanted to end up was back on the busy motorway. These quiet country roads were just what any self-respecting villainous mastermind would wish for. Therefore, instead of continuing straight, I turned right into an even narrower road. When the hedgerows on either side started to close in and the road tapered into a single-lane track, I pumped the air with my fist. This was perfect. I flicked the headlights onto full beam until I found what I wanted then I stopped the car and reversed a hundred feet or so.
Julie placed a manicured hand on my arm. ‘Is this really the best spot?’
I grinned at her. ‘Hell, yes.’ I killed the headlights and turned off the engine. ‘Take the GPS tracker. Just up there, there’s a gate leading into a field. You go up and wait there. I’ll deal with everything else from here.’
‘It doesn’t seem entirely sane,’ she said, doubt colouring her voice.
‘I’m the Madhatter, Julie. I don’t do sane.’ I reached across and opened her passenger door. ‘Now go.’
She skittered off, heading for the gate I’d pointed to. She’d be off the road and safe while I dealt with whatever was to come. I watched her slim figure until it was swallowed up by the darkness, then I got out of the car and selected my own perfect spot to wait.
Strategically speaking, I wasn’t sure I could have done better. Julie’s car was waiting at the apex of a curve in the road. Without its lights on, anyone coming up behind wouldn’t know it was there until it was too late. As they’d already be following the GPS tracker, which was a short distance ahead with Julie, they would be driving cautiously but still moving. They’d crash into the car and I could take full advantage of their resulting surprise and distress. Honestly, it was a wonder that I’d not yet been snapped up by the human security services or the Fey equivalent of SWAT. Even with crippling amnesia, I was clearly a natural at this sort of thing.
Choosing to wait behind the car rather than in front of it, where I might get hurt by flying metal and glass, I pressed myself into the hedge. Then, with the same focused energy that I’d utilised back at the house, I listened. A smirk of triumph flashed across my face when I heard the distant engine.
I didn’t have long to wait. Whoever was after Julie was hot on our tail and gaining speed. The engine noise grew louder and louder. I held my breath and hunkered down. A motorbike passed me. Collision in four. Three. Two— The bike came to a screeching halt.
What in gasbudlikins had just happened? How had they known the car was there? My mouth twisted. I didn’t have time to fret over it now, though; for Julie’s sake, I had to act.
I sprang away from the hedge and sprinted forward, just as the biker disembarked. I tightened my muscles, praying that I’d recovered enough to alter time again. When the very molecules in the air seemed to hum, I knew I’d achieved what I needed. All the same, I didn’t slow down. While the biker remained frozen, trapped by the time change that didn’t affect me, I ran up the road, arms outstretched. I would do whatever was needed.
The gap closed. He was a safety-conscious vampire hunter and wore a helmet so unfortunately his head was off limits. I aimed for his chest instead, more than prepared to wind him before ripping out his lungs entirely. My hand thrust out – and then the biker lashed out, caught me on the shoulder and flipped me hard onto my back. My spine bounced off the road and agony shot through my limbs.
The biker loomed over me. Perhaps if I truly were a superhero, I’d have been able to get up but the pain was too much. No matter how hard I willed it, I couldn’t make myself move quickly enough. There was only time for one thing.
‘Run, Julie!’ I screamed. Then I braced myself for the end. Make it fast.
The biker flipped up his visor. Familiar green eyes blinked down at me. ‘Who’s Julie?’ Morgan enquired. ‘And what on earth are you doing?’
My mouth dropped open. All I could do was stare. Morgan tutted loudly and presented his hand. I reached up, allowing him to help me up. As soon as I back on my feet, however, I shook off the pain and grabbed the lapels of his leather jacket. It was almost impossible to believe that he was involved in all this but I wasn’t about to deny the evidence in front of my eyes.
‘You,’ I hissed. ‘All along it’s been you? Impressive. That’s one way to avoid detection. Blame me for being the bad guy when all along you’re the one who’s really the face of evil.’ I tightened my grip. ‘Just tell me why, Morgan. Why do you want her so badly?’
He watched me with a blandly curious expression. ‘I really don’t have the faintest idea what you’re on about, Maddy. What fascinates me is that you think you can best me in a fight.’ He glanced down my hands, which were still gripping his jacket to the point where my knuckles had turned white.
