Veso Read online

  Movement caught his eye to the left and he saw a human running their way. He was far off but gaining ground. It was one of the men he’d seen earlier. He snarled, accelerating more. They hit the water and Glenda gasped but she clung tight to him. The back wheel spun a bit on the other side but they got clear. He turned the wheel, picking up speed.

  Something sailed past out of the corner of his eye. It was a dart. The bastard was firing at them. The human could hit Glenda on the back of the dirt bike. It would probably kill her if they used enough drugs to put a VampLycan down. He saw a large rock and drove toward it. He stopped hard once they were on the other side of it, leaving the engine running.

  “Let go and stay here.”

  He tried to stand but Glenda was still wrapped around him tight. He cursed, adjusting her feet until she straddled the seat.

  “Brace your legs,” he said. “Hold the bike up.” He climbed off, keeping it upright with his grip.

  “I can’t drive one of these.”

  “Just hold it up. Grip the handle bars but nothing else.” He figured those instructions were clear enough. She did as asked.

  He stepped back, leapt up onto the boulder, and peered over the top. The human was running, following the tracks from the tires. It took a few minutes for him to get within range.

  Veso lunged at the running bastard. The man never even saw him until they impacted together, hitting the ground with the human under him.

  Rage gripped Veso and he punched the human in the face hard. Bones broke. He didn’t give a damn anymore if the human was under a Vamp’s control. The stupid bastard had fired at Glenda. He’d bet his life that the master had told the idiot not to do that, knowing a full dose of drugs would likely kill her.

  The human stopped moving but he still breathed. Veso leaned forward, grabbed the dart gun, and climbed to his feet. He was tempted to shoot one of those darts into the unconscious jerk. He spun away instead and pitched it out of sight.

  He rounded the boulder and returned to Glenda. She looked terrified.

  “It’s fine.” He gripped the dirt bike. “Get off so I can drive. I took care of the problem.”

  “You killed him?”

  He shook his head as she climbed off and he threw a leg over, taking his seat. Glenda climbed on again, this time lifting her feet and wrapping her limbs around him without having to be told. He worried about her feet hitting the wheel, or worse. There was a lot of vegetation she could slam into. It wasn’t very comfortable with her heels against his lap but he’d rather risk his nuts hurting than her breaking bones or losing toes.

  He skirted the mountain, going around it after all. He had to slow when he found where a rainstorm had caused a landslide. The ground had long since dried but a lot of rocks had come down. Every mile they drove, though, was one they wouldn’t have to walk, and each one took them closer to VampLycan territory.

  They made it around the damaged section and he sped up, the grass slippery with the extra weight on the back of the dirt bike, but he recognized more landmarks. Part of his job was learning the outer territory around his clan. There was an old logging road somewhere ahead. He kept going in the direction of home and finally came across it. He headed north. It was more of a dirt trail now from years of not being maintained, but he spotted recent tire tracks as he followed it. It was probably how they’d driven him away from home.

  He stopped the dirt bike, studying some of the deeper tire grooves. It hadn’t rained recently; those had to have been made when the road was heavy with mud. It meant someone had been using it weeks before, when the last storm had hit. Another heavy rainstorm would have muddied the road again and erased them better.

  “Damn. How long have those bastards been in this area?”

  “What?” Glenda hugged him tighter.

  “Nothing.”

  He took off slow again to avoid jarring her too much, then picked up speed, alert for an attack. It would be better to leave the logging road but he worried about Glenda. The terrain was pretty coarse and her safety came first. They wouldn’t have expected him to steal a dirt bike though. It was possible they hadn’t bothered to set a trap up ahead.

  A few miles later, the engine sputtered and died. Veso cursed, using his bare feet to slow the coasting down to a stop. They were close to VampLycan fences. He looked up at the sky. It would be dark in a couple of hours. They might make it.

  Glenda relaxed her hold on him. “Why did you stop?”

  “We ran out of gas.”

  “Shit.”

  “Climb off.”

  She made cute little sounds as she did, groaning and then rubbing her ass with both hands. He got the urge to do it for her but resisted. He’d want to fuck her if he put his hands on her to massage out her aches and pains.

  He pushed the dirt bike off the road and laid it down out of sight, then returned to her. “Give me the backpack.”

  She took it off. “My pleasure. I think the straps left permanent indents in my shoulders.”

  “We’re almost home, Glenda.”

  That didn’t seem to comfort her when she frowned, her gaze locked with his. He reached for her and touched her cheek, stepping closer. She didn’t say anything though. It bothered him.

  “What is it?”

  “What happens when we get there? It means there’s a lot of people like you, right? In other words, they probably hate humans as much as you do.”

  “I would never allow anyone to harm you, Glenda. I’ve told you this.”

  “Can you blame me for being nervous and leery?”

  “You’re smart. You fashioned a tool with your bra. You got me free despite being weak and not having claws. You’ve faced so much already. This will be the easy part.”

  “I love how you can compliment yet insult me at the same time. Nice skill there.” Humor laced her voice. “You’re such a dick. I also think you’re full of shit, and nobody like you is going to be happy I’ve been your sidekick on this misadventure from hell.”

  He chuckled. “There’s a tall fence we must climb. Dwell on that.”

  “Great. Fantastic. Is it barbed wire?”

  She did amuse him. “No.”

  “There’s a bright side. I won’t be heavily bleeding when I meet other half-Vampire people so hopefully they won’t want to eat me.”

  “I’m the only one who gets to do that.”

  Her eye widened.

  He let her go and backed up, removing another bottle of water from the backpack. He let her drink first, then he finished it off. “Let’s get moving. The boundary fences are ahead but we’re still in for a walk before we reach home.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Veso suddenly stopped and Glen slammed into his back. It was irritating how often he did that and how she could never stop fast enough. She didn’t have his super-fast reflexes.

  “What is it now?” she whispered so he didn’t grumble at her. That lesson had been learned. “The wind? Did an animal fart? You’ve stopped fifty times in the past hour at least.”

  “Shush.” He cocked his head. “Someone comes.”

  He reached back and gave her a not so gentle shove toward a tree. She didn’t need to be prompted again. She hid behind the thick trunk, immediately wondering where Veso had gone when he didn’t follow. She looked around and her mouth parted in surprise. He was above her in the branches. How he’d gotten up there so fast was a mystery. She plastered herself to the rough bark and stared up at him.

  He suddenly jumped and she muffled a gasp. It had to have been a fifteen-foot fall.

  A snarl sounded from the other side of the tree, and then she heard a man’s deep voice.

  “Goddamn! You scared the shit out of me, Veso!”

  “Lavos! It’s so good to see you.”

  Glenda peaked from behind the tree. Veso and another man were hugging. That wasn’t something she’d ever expected to witness. The new guy was tall, muscled, and attractive looking. They parted, Veso’s back to her, and she couldn’t