“Can’t see or hear any guards,” whispered Ava.

“There’ll be some further inside,” predicted Max.

“Let’s find out.” I slipped in through the front entry, avoiding stepping on the papers or anything else that would make a sound. Behind me, Ava and Max moved just as stealthily. Like the factory, it smelled of must and mildew, and also of an ammonia-like scent that was distinctive to mouse urine. I sure hoped Ava wasn’t one of those people who got freaked out by the squeaky little shits. The last thing we needed was her squealing.

Both she and Max followed me through the arched entry of the reception area, which led to a long hallway. Still, I couldn’t sense any guards. Sticking close to the wall, we silently advanced down the hall – pausing each time we came to a room, peeking through the open doors. Nothing.

As we neared a junction deep inside the building, I heard the slight scuffling of feet. Halting abruptly, I held up a hand, listening hard. More scuffling, followed by a gusty sigh.

We were too far away for me to pick up the vampire’s scent and be sure it wasn’t one of our own – it wasn’t likely, but it was possible. As such, my gift wasn’t the best to use or I could accidentally kill one of ours. I turned to Max and mouthed, “You move on three.” Then I looked at Ava, mouthing, “You on four.”

She seemed surprised but gave me a curt nod. I held up four fingers and then slowly began the countdown. The instant I dropped my third finger, Max acted, stripping the vampire’s senses. Once I dropped the fourth finger, Ava seemed to fucking vanish. Hearing the tell-tale snapping sound, I knew the vampire hadn’t been one from The Hollow. I rounded the corner, Max close behind me.

Ava was staring down at a pile of ashes in a way that said ‘good riddance’. “He was covering the stairs. Now he can’t.”

Moving as silently as before and staying close to the wall, we scurried up the stairs until we reached the first floor. I stopped dead on reaching the doorway, causing the others to halt behind me. There were two piles of ashes on the wooden floor.

Peeking around me, Ava whispered, “They must have been guards. If they were ours, there would have been some kind of uproar.”

She was right. If the guards had found and destroyed intruders, they would have loudly alerted the others, and guards would be searching the place far and wide for more of us.

“If vampires are guarding the stairwell, maybe it’s because the nest is on a higher level,” mused Max.

“My thoughts exactly.” I continued up the next set of stairs with Ava and Max again behind me, heading to the second floor. Abruptly, I froze at the sound of harsh panting. Someone was in pain and trying hard to breathe through it. Then there were running footsteps nearing the stairwell.

“I’ll get you out, just hang on,” said a familiar voice.

I rocketed up the stairs, finding Evan’s teleporter, Ian, scooping up one of his squad members – whose leg was broken in at least three places. Max winced.

“He got hurt fighting the guards. I’m taking him to The Hollow, and then I’ll be back. I haven’t yet found the nest, but I can tell you they’re not on this floor.” Ian then teleported away, knowing better than to waste time chatting.

“Then we keep going up.” I’d only advanced a few steps when suddenly Sebastian appeared right in front of me. “Christ, I almost fucking killed you,” I whispered abrasively. He didn’t seem to care.

“We have a problem.”

“Another one?” mocked Max.

Sebastian ignored that. “We have found the nest, but it is not going to be easy to reach them. There is a bomb – a psychic bomb.”

“What’s a psychic bomb?” Ava demanded, echoing my own thoughts.

Sebastian didn’t answer until he’d teleported the three of us to a large room where Evan and one of his squad, Trent, were waiting. A loud gasp flew out of Ava as she noticed her nest slumped all over one another, unconscious. Surrounding them was a thin blue ring that occasionally flickered and produced a low hum.

She swallowed hard. “What the hell is that?”

“It’s a rare gift, but it’s a fucking good one,” replied Evan. “It allows the vampire to surround something with what’s referred to as a ‘detonating ring’. As you can see, the ring is slightly visible, but it’s a psychic construct. One that’s linked to the vampire who made it. It acts as a sort of tripwire. If something crosses the ring, he’ll know, and then he can cause whatever is inside of it to instantly explode.”

Max skimmed a hand over his head. “Well, shit.”

“We still have to get to my nest,” insisted Ava. “There has to be some way to do it.” I placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it comfortingly.

Sebastian pulled his cell phone from his Armani pants – he always dressed well, even for assignments. To be fair to him, he probably hadn’t anticipated that Sam and Jared would ask him to partake in it beyond spying on Diane. “If you will excuse me for a moment, I must contact someone.”

“Who?” asked Ava.

“One of The Hollow’s researchers. They have been gathering information about gifts for centuries. If there is a way around this gift, they will know.”

I held Ava to my side as she watched Sebastian closely, most likely trying to eavesdrop on his conversation. I wanted to tell her that everything would be okay, that she didn’t need to worry, but I didn’t want to lie to her. The fact was that this could be really, really bad.

The second Sebastian ended the call, she burst out, “What did they say?”

“The only way to deactivate the ring would be to kill the vampire who created it. If someone in the warehouse manages to kill him or her, that would work, but I would rather not wait around in the hope that this will happen soon. The researchers believe that although it is not possible to cross the ring without alerting its creator, it may be possible to teleport inside it without his or her knowledge.”

Ava stiffened. “May be possible?”

“It is a risk. It could be that an attempt to teleport inside the ring actually alerts it’s creator. And the nest would then be destroyed before your very eyes.”

Horror flashed across her face as she again swallowed hard, casting a longing gaze at her brother.

“Ava, if we don’t take the risk, Diane will use them against Sam,” Evan pointed out, his voice sensitive. “We still don’t know what she wants. But even if Sam gives it to her, I’m betting Diane won’t hand over the nest. She wants Sam to suffer. The best chance these vampires here have at surviving this is if Sebastian tries to save them.”