Hearts in Darkness (Nikki & Michael 2)

Time to kill the fiend. He took a step toward Cordell, then stopped. Nikki hadn't surfaced, and the churning water had calmed.

He cursed and jumped into the pond. The water was icy, its touch numbing, snatching away the pain of moving his shattered limb.

It wasn't just the imp's light making the water look red. There was blood, and lots of it. Fear slammed through him. He reached for the link, but was met by silence. Her terror was gone, replaced by an odd sort of peace.

It was the same sort peace that he'd felt in her once before when the specter of death had almost claimed her life in the mine collapse Jasper had arranged.

She can't be dead. Surely he would know. She was part of his heart, part of his soul. All that mattered to him. Surely he would know if she had died.

He kicked his feet, twisting around, diving one-handed to the depths. The pond was deeper than it looked, the water as dark as hell itself. She could be anywhere. He didn't care. He'd search for an eternity if that's what it took to find her.

His hand brushed against cotton, then skin. He grabbed her hand, kicking upwards, dragging her back to the surface with him.

Cordell hadn't moved. Michael kicked toward the edge until he could stand and dragged Nikki out of the water, thrusting her onto her side. She coughed, water spewing from her mouth. He dropped beside her and touched her neck. Her skin was like ice, and she was shivering so hard that her teeth were clashing together violently. Her pulse was fragile and weak, but at least she was alive. The weight lifted from his chest, letting him breathe again.

Then he saw the slash in her sweater, the raw welts on her skin. Cordell had tasted her, fed off her. Fury washed through him. For that alone, the bastard would die.

He rose and hobbled towards Cordell. The fiend moved. Lightning split the night, arcing towards him. Michael dove away, landing with a grunt on his left side, jarring his broken arm. A sea of red swam before his eyes, and a scream tore up his throat. He gritted his teeth, and the scream became a hiss of pain. Sweat rolled down his forehead, stinging his eyes. He blinked it away and, supporting his right arm with his left, rolled back to his feet.

Cordell had propped himself up against a rock. His breathing was labored, his face little more than flesh stretched over a death mask. The magic was sapping his strength, taking him beyond the restorative powers of his vampire heritage. Maybe it was only the flame imps’ energy that had kept him alive this long.

"You cannot defeat me, vampire. My magic will outlast your strength. When you collapse, I will feed off you. Then I will use the blood of your woman to complete my ceremony."

"I will see you in hell first, Cordell.” He walked towards him, watching the fiend's eyes, waiting for the next attack. The more Cordell used his magic, the weaker he became. All he had to do was stay out of the path of the lightning and wait for Cordell's collapse.

Lightning split the air, weaker than before. Michael dodged, felt the sizzle of energy burn past his ear. Cordell raised his hands. “Any farther, and I blast your girlfriend." Michael clenched his fists but didn't stop. Cordell's last blast had been weak and wouldn't have held the strength to even reach Nikki, let alone hurt her. The man was bluffing. Cordell's eyes widened in fear, but he wasn't staring at Michael but past him.>Cordell was going kill him, she suddenly realized. Michael's death would be the final step in the binding.

"No!” She jumped to her feet and tore the knife from Cordell's hands, thrusting it away into the darkness. Then she turned her energy toward the fire, scattering the flames as far as she could. The flame imp darted away into the darkness.

"Bitch!” Cordell's voice was high and filled with murderous fury. Lightning arced towards her. She dove to the right, hitting the stony ground with bruising force. The rock exploded, the sound almost deafening. Deadly shards of debris sliced through the air, through her skin. She yelped and covered her head with her hands, rolling away.

Magic burned a warning through the night. She glanced up quickly, saw another streak of lightning cutting towards her. Looking around wildly, she saw the boulder to her left. Scant cover, but all she had. She scrambled towards it. The air seemed to howl behind her and heat bubbled across her skin. She screamed and flung herself sideways.

The ground exploded, thrusting her into the air. She twisted as she fell, thrusting energy wildly at Cordell. She hit the ground with a grunt and, for a minute, saw nothing but stars. It hurt to breathe let alone move, but move she had to if she didn't want to be an easy target for the lightning. She thrust up, biting her lip against the scream of pain that tore up her throat, and staggered away. She searched the cavern for Cordell. He was hovering in midair, legs and arms dangling like a broken puppet. His chair righted itself, then he was turned and set back down. Ginger, she thought, and wondered where the imp was.

Nikki?

Michael's thought was little more than an agonized whisper, but at least he was waking. I'm here. I think I've stopped Cordell's ceremony for now, but I'm going to need your help to stop him completely. She couldn't bring herself to say the word kill, even though she knew that was what they'd have to do. She didn't want to think of herself as a murderer, even when it came to ridding the world of someone as vile as Cordell.

He rolled several feet forward then stopped, glaring at her through red-rimmed, glassy eyes. “You will pay for what you have done here tonight. I will taste your soul, and I will make you my slave."

"That's been tried before, and by a vampire stronger than you'll ever be.” She clenched her fists against the energy burning across her fingers. Right now, she had to give Michael time to regain consciousness. Had to keep Cordell talking.

There's a knife near your right hand, Michael. Use it to cut the remaining rope. To Cordell, she said. “Why don't you just give it up? Your game here is over." He smiled, revealing yellow-stained canines. “The game is never over until the clock hits zero." He flung out his right hand. Energy ripped towards her. She dove away, felt heat cut across her leg, burning deep. She hit the ground with a grunt then scrambled to her feet. Pain surged up her leg, a white-hot ache that churned her stomach. She swallowed against the rising bile, glancing down. The lightning had finished what the wraith had started—sheared off her jeans at the calf, and made a two-inch wide welt bloom around her leg.

Rock scuffed behind her. She spun and saw Ginger approaching, a club held high above her head. She saw the anguish in the other woman's blue eyes and knew Cordell was forcing this action on her. The club arced towards Nikki's head. She wrenched it away kinetically, then knocked Ginger back, thrusting her hard against a wall. She slumped to the ground and didn't move. Nikki turned to face Cordell. Why in the hell wasn't Michael moving?

I think Cordell has broken my right arm. His thoughts skimmed hers, warm and reassuring but still very distant. Yet his pain throbbed through her, as did the concern he was desperately trying to hide. I can't grab the knife, Nikki.

Oh God. Maybe his legs were broken as well. Maybe she'd have to cope with Cordell alone ... She tried to remain calm. If they'd combined their powers to beat Jasper, surely they could do the same to destroy Cordell.

But if Michael had any control over his kinetic abilities, wouldn't he have used them to lift the knife and free his arm?

She clenched her fists. She had to concentrate on one problem at a time. Any more would overwhelm her at the moment. How about your legs?

They're okay. I'm okay. It's just ... my arm.

I'll try to free you.