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  Salvation

  Immortal Soulless Book Seven

  Tanith Frost

  Copyright 2019 Tanith Frost

  With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced in whole or in part by any means existing without prior written permission from the author.

  The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be distributed via the Internet or by any other means, electronic or print, without the permission of the publisher.

  For more information, visit www.tanithfrost.com

  Cover art by Jessica Allain

  This is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons living or dead, or places, events, or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are products of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

  * * *

  Salvation/ Tanith Frost

  First edition, October 2019

  For the wanderers and the seekers

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Author’s Note

  Acknowledgments

  Also by Tanith Frost

  1

  Something is wrong.

  It’s not just the flicker of the fluorescent lights outside this old gas station, though they’re irritating enough that I’d smash every last bulb if we weren’t trying to keep our presence quiet. And it’s not the wind in the trees, even if it rubs the branches together in gusts of creaks and clacks.

  There’s something else. Nothing I can see, hear, or smell, but that doesn’t mean it’s not there.

  I pace away from Daniel, keeping one ear on his end of his conversation with Miranda. As I open myself to perceptions that run deeper than my physical senses, the mid-December chill cuts through the navy-blue parka I lifted from the cabin where Daniel and I holed up after our narrow escape from our enemies’ underground lair.

  “No, they’re… I suppose you could call them that,” Daniel says. He sounds exhausted, but even if Miranda picks up on that, she can’t understand how badly off he really is. Sunglasses he found in a closet at the cabin can cover the dark circles under his eyes, but the shadows of his hood can’t fully hide the healing gash on his forehead or the nearly faded bruise on his cheek. He hasn’t told her any of this. He wouldn’t consider it important, especially compared to the other news he needs to pass along to our clan’s high elder. “Dead humans, yes. Moving about, chasing us… No, there didn’t seem to be much going on in their minds, but they’re fast, and sharp enough to know they want to hurt vampires.” He reaches up to rub the back of his neck and winces, then lowers his arm. “I’m not sure whether they’re a threat to the living. We should assume they are until we know otherwise, but I don’t think there’s any chance it’s a contagious—yes, exactly.”

  This is what I came to Ontario for—to find out what this enemy clan has planned for our own, to get Daniel the hell out of there after he was captured. None of it was easy. We left with only a vague idea of Tempest’s plans and the absolute certainty that they’re going to act within the next few nights. I nearly lost myself in the process, coming closer than I ever have to letting myself become a true monster, as cold and cruel as any vampire who’s walked this world before me.

  Yet here I am. Here we are. Not safe, but on our way.

  But that’s a big but.

  I move silently, creeping through the night, circling around to the back of the gas station from the far side. We were lucky to find a public phone Daniel could make this call from. Collect, of course—we left Tempest’s stronghold with nothing but the clothes on our backs and what was left of our will to survive. No cash, no credit cards. Finding the car we stole was a stroke of luck, but one full tank of gas won’t get us home.

  That’s Daniel’s concern for the moment, though. Mine is to watch his back. We’re still in enemy territory, and the odds of Lachlan letting us slip away are as good as nonexistent.

  I fed recently and am feeling strong despite last night’s stress and exhaustion. But I’m not at my best. I tried to stay up all day to keep watch, poking around in the cabin, searching for clothing and supplies when I was sure Daniel was asleep.

  I’m tired. I’m on edge. And I pity anyone who gets in my way tonight.

  It would be easier to feel what’s wrong if I closed my eyes, but I’m not about to risk it when we could have dozens of vampires hunting for us. The strongest among us have a range of gifts, and some, like Daniel, are eerily good at hiding the power that would allow others to sense their presence. Even a vampire like me, who feels not only the void that animates us but also other powers, can be fooled.

  Still nothing. Maybe I was wrong. It’s easy to let every moving shadow throw me into a panic when the world is this dangerous.

  I’m on my way back to Daniel when I catch it—not power, but movement in the darkness of the forest behind the gas station. It’s only then, with my focus on the right place, that I feel him.

  Vampire.

  Enemy.

  My right hand closes around the weapon in my pocket, one of four rough wooden stakes we carved late this afternoon from the legs of a kitchen chair using an axe and kitchen knives. Two of them are in the car; Daniel has the other. I pretend I didn’t see anything and continue my scouting.

  “We will,” Daniel says into the phone and raises his eyebrows at me. I’m being watched. I can’t say anything. Instead, I give the slightest nod over my shoulder and head back to the car. I don’t enter, but duck down out of sight on the other side, open the door, and close it hard. I hide my own power as well as I can, first letting the void rise to cover the werewolf fire that scarred me more than a year ago, then letting the void settle until I can barely feel it in myself. All the while, I watch from behind the rear bumper. A pale face flashes above dark clothes within the bushes. He has gaunt cheeks, blond hair spiked like Billy Idol’s. He’s focused on Daniel, who’s playing his part, acting oblivious to the danger and effectively holding the enemy’s attention.

  There are no plumes of breath to give the enemy away, and I still wouldn’t be able to see him if I didn’t know where to look. He’s a good hunter. And he has no idea that he’s just become my prey.

  I slip into the bushes behind the car and circle around through the trees, moving as quickly as I can without making any noise, alert to signs that he’s not alone. They must be spread pretty thin to have someone searching this far out, but I’m not going to let assumptions fuck me over if I can help it.

  Heavy leather jacket. I won’t have a clean shot at Billy Idol’s heart from behind. That’s fine. I don’t want to send him to oblivion until we get some information.

  He’s still watching Daniel as I creep up behind him, stake in hand. He’s like a cat watching a juicy bird on the lawn, choosing the right moment to pounce. But he’s too late. I scan the parking l
ot one more time to make sure there are no humans around to hear the commotion, then come up beside him and tackle the vampire to the ground, forcing him deeper into the cover of the forest.

  He obviously didn’t feel me coming, but he recovers quickly. He’s strong, as we all are, and quick. He throws punches with one hand while the other reaches into the pocket of his jacket.

  “Like hell,” I mutter. My fists aren’t large, but there’s more power behind them than most enemies expect when they size me up. The punch I land on his nose is enough to make him pause for a split second, just long enough for me to pin his wrist and drive my stake through the exposed skin below the armour-like cuff of his jacket. He snarls, bucks, and throws me off—but I’ve got his gun.

  I roll to my feet and train it on him. “Hands in the air.”

  Very original, Aviva. Well done.

  Billy remains on the ground and lifts his hands above his head, palms up.

  “Sit up. Slowly.”

  He complies, not shifting his focus until he glances behind me. I’d look, too, afraid that he had a partner who’d decided to join the party, if Daniel wasn’t letting me feel him clearly. I shiver as the void channelled through him moves over my skin. He’s so good at hiding his true self that it’s still a shock when he reveals this—his true nature, dark and cold and hungry, the monster hiding beneath a beautiful exterior that looks human until you notice the predatory chill in his hazel eyes and the graceful strength in every movement.

  “Everything good?” I ask him without taking my eyes off our new friend.

  “Relatively speaking. What have we here?” Few words, spoken like regular conversation, but there’s a threat in his voice that makes me glad I’m not the one lying on the ground.

  You don’t piss Daniel off. Not if you don’t want to see what really lies beneath the surface.

  “That’s the question, isn’t it?” I prod Billy with the toe of my boot as Daniel steps into view beside him and takes off his sunglasses.

  “I know this one,” Daniel says. “He spends a lot of time among Tempest’s higher-ups. Dressing down tonight, I see. Suits you.”

  Billy just sneers.

  “Speak up, now,” I tell him. “I can probably guess who sent you, but I want to hear it from your lips.”

  He glares up at us. “You’re not going to make it out of here. Everyone is looking for you.”

  “Everyone? No one’s planning anything else? Little vacation to Newfoundland?” Daniel crosses his arms. And I mean, sure, he looks a little funny in the oversized red parka he’s wearing—like Santa Claus shaved his beard and hit the gym hard last year—but nobody’s laughing.

  “The fuck would I know about that?”

  Daniel chuckles, low and cold, and delivers a kick that would have a human peeing blood for the next week. It won’t injure Billy anything like that badly; we vampires are made of stronger stuff and have little need for most of the organs we held on to after our death. Still, he snarls and rolls onto his side. We do feel the pain.

  Daniel crouches and rubs a hand over his jaw. “What do you think, Aviva?”

  “I think it’s possible that he doesn’t know anything. He doesn’t feel as powerful as most of the higher-ups. Lachlan might not tell him shit.”

  Billy glowers at me but doesn’t seem to have anything to add.

  “No,” Daniel says. “But he spends time with them. He probably keeps his ears open. Anyone who survives for long in Tempest makes a habit of it.”

  My fingers tighten around the stake. “We need to get out of here.”

  “We will, soon enough.” Daniel forces Billy onto his back and holds his arms over his head, and I drop to my knees, pinning his legs. Poor old Billy is struggling, but I grit my teeth and hold him down for long enough that I can unzip his jacket, leaving his chest vulnerable beneath his black t-shirt.

  His deep blue eyes go wide, showing the whites. Something inside me awakens—something dark, something that responds to this enemy’s fear and wants nothing more than to watch him piss himself here on this forest floor.

  “No, don’t,” he gasps. “I—I can tell you something. I can help you.”

  Daniel frowns down at him. “You have ten seconds to convince us.”

  “A plane.” Billy pauses and takes a longer and harder breath than a dead man should reasonably need. “I overheard something about a plane leaving tonight. Going to Newfoundland, like you said.”

  New-FOUND-land. I may not be from the island, but I’ve been around long enough for it to grate when people mispronounce it like that.

  “And?” Daniel asks. He looks down at him, trying to make eye contact, but Bill here refuses, going so far as to squeeze his eyes closed.

  It seems someone in Tempest figured out Daniel’s other gift. And we tried so hard to hide it, too.

  Daniel rests his knees on Billy’s wrists and pulls out a knife I didn’t realize he was carrying. It’s small, but sharp, and does the trick as Daniel presses it to Billy’s throat, releasing a few drops of his pale, dead blood. “We’re going to need you to do better than that. Look at me.”

  “You don’t know what they’ll do to me if I help you.” Billy’s voice trembles.

  Daniel’s jaw muscles flex. “I do. Believe me. If you help us, this ends relatively painlessly for you. If not, I swear we’ll deliver you to them ourselves on our way out of the province, and we’ll make sure they know we owe you one.” He knows what he’s threatening. He saw members of our clan—vampires whose safety he was responsible for—tortured and facing God knows what else before Bethany decided she wanted to study him. “Now, look at me.”

  Billy opens his eyes slowly, one at a time. As soon as his gaze is locked on Daniel’s, he relaxes.

  “Good,” Daniel says, his voice soothing. “We’re friends, right? You want to tell us everything you heard. I bet you’ve been searching for a way to hurt those higher-up vampires who think they’re so much better than you.”

  Billy grits his teeth. “Not one of ’em earned what they’ve got. Not one works as hard as I do.”

  “Of course they don’t. Assholes, every one of them. So why guard their secrets?”

  I watch, keeping silent so as not to break whatever spell it is that Daniel weaves when he does this—when he changes minds and alters memories, subduing weaker enemies, making them vulnerable to attack, to forgetting what they were doing before they looked into his eyes. It’s not a unique gift, but it’s one I don’t think I’ll ever get used to seeing in action.

  Billy’s still fighting it—I can see it in his eyes. “There’s an airfield not far off,” he whispers. “Very private. Couldn’t say where. And you’ll never make it in time even if I could tell you. Plane’s leaving tonight, going to… I don’t remember. Swan Lake or something.” He lets out a hysterical bark of a laugh, and a tear leaks from one eye. “I hope Lachlan catches both of you and makes you suffer.”

  Daniel looks to me. “I’ll call Miranda back, see if they can have someone scan satellite images from the area to find what we’re looking for. They can’t very well put an entire airfield underground.”

  “Good.”

  Neither of us moves. Daniel and I both know what needs to be done. In the past, I’d have left him to it, letting him bear the shame and guilt he’s always seemed to feel less acutely than I do when it comes to harming enemies. It wasn’t so long ago that he had to snap a human’s neck because I froze, unwilling to kill her when she was so clearly intent on killing me. It was nothing to him and everything to me.

  But that was before my time in Tempest, before I learned to be harder, stronger, and more ruthless than I ever thought myself capable of.

  Daniel’s got enough blood on his hands. I won’t ask him to do this for me. Not when I’m capable of taking this burden on myself.

  Something shifts within me as I let myself become more like Ava—my own Mr. Hyde, the aspect of myself that kept my secrets and embraced the ambition and darkness that served me so wel
l during my time in Tempest. She feels no shame about seeing this enemy pay for trying to hurt us, and she sure as hell doesn’t have any problem with doing what she must to make sure Daniel and I both get safely back to Maelstrom even if it means this asshole is snuffed entirely from existence.

  We vampires possess no souls, have no hope of heaven. No hell, either, which is probably a blessing for all of us at this point.

  I brace myself and plunge the stake into Billy’s heart as quickly and cleanly as I can.

  Billy gasps and bucks beneath me. His skin wrinkles, his blue eyes pale, his hair turns grey and then white. Daniel and I release him and back away a few paces, leaving him free to arch his back and move as he wishes as the strength drains from his muscles.

  “Damn you to hell,” Billy gasps. Then his body crumbles to ash that fades to nothingness before the wind has a chance to carry it away.

  Daniel clenches his fists and squeezes his eyes closed, then digs the car keys out of his pocket and gathers the clothes Billy left behind.

  I don’t quite catch what he says as he turns his back on the scene of our crime, but it sounds a lot like, “Buddy, we’re already there.”

  2

  “Think that’s it?”

  Daniel glances around. “I don’t see any other planes. Either we’re right, or we’re fucked.” He sounds not at all concerned about this.

  So maybe his will to survive hasn’t fully recovered, but the fact that he’s here is something. It means he’s let go of the lies he told himself during his time in Tempest, that he’s decided to trust Miranda again. It can’t have been easy. He had to get to a place where he could tell Lachlan, without lying, that he’d turned his back on Maelstrom and everyone there including me. That meant letting his lies become truth. I only dipped my toe in those waters and nearly lost myself. I can only imagine what it’s taken for him to come back after giving up completely.