Page 76 of Bad Moon Rising
“Death trap.” Roman threw out a hand to steady himself against the wall and succumbed to coughing. He slid to his knees.
Nova’s world began hazing in and out as her lungs refused to work. She took Roman’s hand as a lifeline.
The door flew open.
“This way,” a male voice ordered.
None of them moved.
“Oh, for crying out loud.” The guy lifted Flynn as if he were weightless, then threw him through the door and did likewise to Roman. He lifted her and carried her through, placing her down gently. “Get up, boys.”
Roman coughed and sucked in air, yet managed a shaky stand. He bent at the waist and coughed spasmodically. A quick eye swipe and he held out a hand to help her up. Once standing, she propped herself against the wall and tried to see their rescuer but couldn’t through the steady tears blurring her vision. A few good wipes helped, even if the world remained hazy.
Was this Ky?
His voice sounded familiar, somewhat Spanish accented, which sent her heart racing even faster. He might know her.
Roman moved faster than a blink. He pinned their rescuer by his neck against the wall and growled low, menacing, “What the fuck are you doing here, Antonio? Is this your doing?”
The vampire’s teeth were out, and his eyes almost glowed in the light. “I’m saving your inept ass. If I wanted you dead, I would’ve left you in the stairwell. Get off me, or I’ll lose it, kill all three of you, or leave you here to die.”
She blinked, swiped across her face, and blinked again. The vampire? Antonio? He wasn’t in a suit this time, but dark tactical clothes. Wasn’t he an enemy?
No one moved.
“Why should I trust you?” Roman asked.
“Nothing is as it seems.” Antonio pushed Roman off as if the lycan’s strength meant nothing.
Roman moved as if to reengage, his chest still heaving with ragged breaths as he recovered from the gas.
Antonio hissed. “One more step toward me, and I’ll attack. I’m not interested in finding out which of us can kill the other. Since you can’t breathe, I’m pretty sure I’ll win. Stand down.”
They stared at each other for several endless seconds.
Antonio waved for them to follow him. “Let’s get out of this building before the second detonators explode. That gas was intended to stop you. The next explosion is meant to end you and hide your remains. We have to move.” Antonio sprinted up the hall into an office.
All three of them stared after him, none moving.
“So…he’s not a bad guy?” Nova asked.
“Hell if I know. I still don’t trust him,” Flynn said.
“Me either.” Roman made the first move to follow him. “We have to get out of here.”
Antonio strode to the back of the office where he yanked open the window and jumped onto the fire escape. Another detonation exploded before they reached the bottom of the rickety metal ladder, throwing them over a story to the ground.
“Get up,” Antonio hissed. He tugged her to her feet and then Roman.
Flynn managed to stand on his own.
“They’re watching the other side of the building. We have to make that tree line in the next thirty seconds, or they’ll know we have her with us.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
What was the vampire doing here?
Roman’s lungs objected to their workload as he jogged behind Antonio through a wooded lot up a street and into another wooded lot. He took Nova’s hand to help her keep up. She panted with a wheeze on each exhale. He hated that her lungs must burn every bit as much as his did. Every few yards, he glanced behind them. No one followed. Yet.
