The fog is almost on me.
Now there was panic creeping in. He felt it in her and realized the emotion was coming from him as well. He forced himself to shed all emotion. He couldn’t afford to think of her alone and vulnerable.
Look around you. I need to use your vision. Let me see exactly where you are in relationship to the fog.
He pushed into her mind, connecting to the pathways of her vision. At once he could see her predicament. The dense, unnatural fog was creeping toward her. She either had to allow it to envelop her or she had to let herself fall from the boulder.
Keep looking at the fog.
His tone left no room for argument. His tone, his power, every bit of ancient warrior and primitive predator was in his voice. He stared into the fog, using Teagan’s eyes. Even as he streaked through the darkening sky toward her, he narrowed in on the vampire making his way toward Teagan.
A fierce wind hit the fog, rushing through the dense, sticky trap to disperse it. At the same time, clouds burst open to dump rain on the vampire’s web in order to neutralize the acid hidden within the mist. A bolt of light shot into the mass of fog, lighting up the sky, illuminating the interior of the fog.
Like a deadly spider, the vampire was exposed, crawling cautiously toward the boulder and his prey. The bolt nearly pierced him, forcing him to spring sideways, screaming at the intense light hitting him. For a moment he was completely visible.
Teagan screamed and closed her eyes to block out the sight of the monster. His mouth was wide open in a hideous shriek, revealing his sharpened, stained teeth. His eyes glowed red and burned with a fierce need to rend and kill. He had hair, but it was dirty and hung in mats.
“This isn’t real. This isn’t real,” she chanted.
Open your eyes, Andre commanded. Relentless. Implacable. Forcing his will on her when it was the last thing he ever wanted.
The vampire shrieked again, and this time Andre heard the piercing cry of triumph. The lightning hadn’t struck him, hadn’t even slowed him down. He wanted his prize, the rich, fear-based adrenaline-spiked blood in the human. It would give him a rush, give him more power for the battle he knew was coming.
Open your eyes, Andre hissed a second time.
She obeyed. I have to let go. The boulder is slick now, making it harder to hold on to. The fog is coming. I have to jump.
Not yet, he cautioned. He saw the fall in her mind. She’d fallen many times bouldering and she knew what she was doing. He could help, floating her to the earth. Wait until I tell you. I am close by. He is dropping out of the sky toward you. Wait.
He felt her need to close her eyes, but he refused to allow it. He needed to see what was happening. He smelled the vampire now and felt the taint of evil in the air. He detested that smell and he knew, no matter how long he lived, he would never forget it. Just like the memory of his youth, that smell was locked into his mind for all time.
Do not take your eyes off of him.
More than anything else she wanted to look away, to jump and try to run, but Andre held her locked there, refusing to allow her to give in to her fears. He refused to allow himself to feel her terror, but he couldn’t drown out the hammering of her heart, and he knew that sound drew the vampire like a beacon.
Breathe, slow your heart, sivamet. Do not give him the satisfaction of hearing or feeling your fear.
He didn’t want her to shut down on him. He should have known she wouldn’t. She stared up at the rapidly descending monster.
Now.
Andre didn’t need to tell her twice. Looking down, Teagan made a visual with her landing zone then lowered her body as far as she could off the holds she was on. She let go with a small push off the slab and lifted her arms above her head to keep from hitting the rock as she fell straight down. She’d come off boulders before and she knew to keep her feet flat so there was less chance of twisting or breaking an ankle. She focused on relaxing, on keeping her body straight, and on softening her knees for impact. She fell like a cat, experienced, as if falling from this height toward the hard earth without a crash pad was the most natural thing in the world.
She expected to hit fairly hard. The fall was a good distance and she knew without the crash pad, most likely it would jar like a son of a bitch and she’d fall back on her butt. Two feet from the ground, she actually seemed to decelerate, as if time had slowed down and with it her. When her feet touched the ground, it was truly the softest landing she’d ever had.
“What the hell?” Teagan whispered, earning her another mouth washing from Grandma Trixie. “What the hell is going on.” If she was getting her mouth washed out with soap, it might as well be for a good reason.
Already she was on the ground, pulling off her climbing shoes and wiggling her toes to make certain she could run again. Grabbing her hiking boots and socks, she dragged them on as fast as she could.
The monster in the fog dove at her from above, his eyes burning right through her, streaking like a comet from outer space. She sat there, frozen for a moment while the thing just got bigger and scarier. Long, bony arms reached for her. Each hand had long, talonlike fingernails. They looked more like blades than fingernails and she was certain each was razor-sharp.
“This isn’t real. This is an illusion. This isn’t real. This is an illusion.” She chanted the mantra over and over.
“You will give yourself willingly to me,” the thing snarled, exposing his fangs as he pushed his will at her.
Her body jerked, notes in her head jarring and crashing, so far out of tune the sound hurt her ears. She didn’t take her eyes from the face. He was muttering something and he looked triumphant. She realized he believed she wasn’t moving because he’d forced a compulsion on her. She did hear a buzzing along with the jarring notes, but her mind refused to tune itself to the jangled tone. The sound made her stomach heave and bile rose in her throat.