Hearts in Darkness (Nikki & Michael 2)

"Then you will serve until you die. Just be there."

Ginger didn't reply. Cordell wheeled away, and silence returned. The color of the flame imp hovering above Nikki's head went from red to green. She splashed through the water and touched Ginger's shoulder. Almost instantly, she jerked her hand away. The heat was intense, burning her skin despite the briefness of her touch.

"You're burning up,” she said.

Ginger sighed and turned around. “This form cannot hold us much longer. If it burns, we die." She frowned. “Why? Wouldn't Ginger's death release you?"

"No, because this form was already dead when we were bound to it. It is our energy that gives it life. Yet it is our energy that kills it. Unlike the others, the spell that binds us can only be broken by his death." Did this mean that the flame imp that had been bound to the vampire who'd melted at the airport had actually lived? She remembered the steam and hoped so. But if it had lived, why hadn't she been able to see it? “Then Ginger wasn't a vampire, like most of the others?"

"No. We were an experiment, the first test. We have lived longer than even the undead, but our time nears its end."

Nikki frowned. “If Cordell can bind the dead, why is he using vampires?"

"He did not turn this body. We are forced to let him use us, but he cannot control us as fully he does his undead ones."

So where did Elizabeth fit into the scheme of things? From the brief glimpses she'd seen of the woman, and from what Michael had said, Nikki couldn't imagine her willingly kowtowing to Cordell's wishes. Unless, of course, he'd somehow forced a flame imp into her, as well.

"What did Cordell mean when he said he wants you to be ready for the ceremony?" Ginger shrugged. There was great sadness in her blue eyes. “He plans to bind one of us in his body." She raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Why?” Surely he knew that such a course would inevitably lead to death.

"His body wastes. He will die soon. He hopes the ceremony will give him new strength."

"And will it?"

"Yes."

Then they definitely had to stop it. “What type of ceremony is it? What does it involve?” Not that she knew a damn thing about magic or ceremonies, but anything Ginger could tell her had to be of some help in the long run.

"It is a blood ceremony. You must take a life to save a life." Rodeman, she thought with a chill. Maybe that was why he'd been so heavily drugged—to keep him passive until Cordell was ready to use him. They had to get him out of here. “We have to stop him."

"Yes."

The big question was how. Obviously, the first thing they had to do was get Rodeman to safety—something she couldn't achieve alone. But maybe Ginger could.

"Would you be able to lift Rodeman up?"

Ginger frowned. “We have done so, yes."

"Would you be able to take him from the cell back up to his room without raising much of a fuss?"

"Yes. His room has a hidden entrance. It is how we came down here.” She hesitated. “Why do you wish this?"

"If Cordell plans a blood ceremony, then Rodeman is an all-too-handy sacrifice. If we remove him, then we delay his plans and give ourselves some time to find a way to kill him." Ginger nodded. “We like this idea.” She hesitated, her expression changing from sadness to great joy.

“One of us is free."

Nikki frowned. “What do you mean?"

" She has died. The spell of binding has dissolved." Elizabeth, Nikki thought. Was Michael responsible? Was he okay? “How did this happen?"

"He who bears her taste killed her. We will trust him now. Help him, if we can." Fear swirled through her. She reached for the link, only to be met by silence. Michael wasn't blocking her, but he wasn't answering, either. Why? “Is he okay?"

"He walks away."

She licked her lips. If he could walk, he wasn't seriously hurt. Hopefully. “Where is he headed?"

"Down to the cave of magic."

"This the same place Cordell's going to?"