Darafer chuckled. "Don't be afraid. The bear cannot shift now." His eyes glowed like polished emeralds. "Even if he could, he would be no match for me."
Abigail sucked in a deep breath while the soldiers snapped the cuffs around Howard's ankles. Darafer could defeat a Kodiak bear? He had weird eyes, too, and the soldiers seemed to fear him. She had a sick feeling in her gut that he wasn't human. Then what was he? It was daylight, so he couldn't be a vampire.
He paced toward the back of the cave, then sauntered toward the entrance. "Sawat."
"Yes, my lord." Sawat came in and bowed.
"I count five prisoners."
Sawat grew pale. "Yes, my lord."
"And yet your report claimed there were six sleeping bags at the other cave. And I count six here. Is someone missing?"
Sawat shifted his feet. "The were-tiger may have escaped."
"Over the Leaping Tiger Gorge?" Darafer chuckled. "That's rich."
Sawat looked relieved. "Yes, my lord."
Darafer's face turned grim. "You screwed up. Go look for him in the gorge." He extended a hand, and a blast of air blew Sawat off his feet, through the air, and over the cliff. His scream echoed in the canyon, then abruptly cut off.
A chill skittered down Abigail's back. Her gut was correct. Darafer was not human.
He turned to the tall soldier and smiled. "Good news, Wu Shen. You've just been promoted."
Wu Shen bowed, his face ashen. "You are most kind, my lord."
"Don't mention it." Darafer gazed about the cave, his green eyes twinkling with amusement. "So . . . we have a shifter who can't shift, three vampires who can't teleport, and . . ." His gaze fell on Abigail. "And a loving daughter who can't save her mother."
She flinched.
He strolled toward her. "How desperate are you, Abigail Tucker? I could save her, you know. It might be fun to have your father indebted to me."
"Don't talk to him," Howard growled.
Darafer glanced at him and smiled. "The bear knows who I am." His gaze shifted back to Abigail and his eyes hardened. "You have something that belongs to me."
She shook her head. "I've never met you before."
He smirked. "I was there six years ago at your father's rally when a man sneaked in with a handgun. Unfortunately he had to brag about it and get himself caught. I hate human error." His eyes suddenly turned black, and she gasped.
He extended a hand toward her backpack. It unzipped on its own, and the plastic bag containing the Demon Herb flew into his hand.
He chuckled, his eyes returning to green. "They don't call it the Demon Herb for nothing."
Demon. She clenched her fists to keep from shaking. How could they escape from a demon? He seemed to know everything. He'd known instantly who Howard was. Who she was. Her chest tightened. He'd tried to use a man to kill her father six years ago.
Darafer removed the Demon Herb and sniffed it. "Best stuff I ever created." He shrugged. "I know. You're thinking only the Big Kahuna can create. That's true to a certain extent."
He twirled the branch of Demon Herb between his thumb and forefinger. "But I can take something He made and distort it, corrupt it. For centuries, I had a jolly good time mutating things into diseases and plagues. Then it occurred to me, instead of making humans weak and useless, why not do the opposite? Why not make something that actually turns humans into supermen? That I control, of course."
He stuffed the Demon Herb into his coat pocket. "Imagine how much pain and despair I can wreak upon the world when I control an army of supermen?"
"I thought it was Master Han's army," Howard grumbled.
"He provides the men. I . . . enhance them. The potion I make with the Demon Herb gives them super powers and a remarkable ability to heal." He waved a dismissive hand. "But I grow bored with the mundane details of gathering and training an army. I leave that to Master Han. You would be amazed how many humans are willing to trade their souls for the chance to be Superman."
He walked over to Howard. "How about you? Want to switch to the winning side?"
"Go back to hell," Howard growled.
Darafer smirked. "Who's going to make me?" He glanced back at Wu Shen. "Master Han can decide what to do with them."
"Yes, my lord." Wu Shen bowed.
"But keep the girl alive. She has good connections." Darafer smiled at Abigail. "Let me know if your father wants to make a deal. I could save your mother."
She lifted her chin, determined to be as brave as Howard. "Go back to hell."
He chuckled. "Actually, I think I'll go visit your mother. Such a shame she's about to take a turn for the worse." He vanished.
Abigail's heart plummeted into her stomach. Would he really hurt her mother? Of course he would. Wasn't that what demons did?
"He killed Sawat," Howard said quietly, looking at Wu Shen. "Next time he gets angry, it could be your turn."
Wu Shen's mouth thinned. "You think to sway me? Our bodies are Master Han's to command. It is an honor to serve and die for him."
"And the demon?" Howard asked.
Wu Shen looked away. "He owns our souls."
Howard snorted. "Then you had better hope you never die."
Wu Shen strode outside and stood on the ledge.
Abigail exchanged a look with Howard and nodded slightly. They might be able to get through to Wu Shen. She sent up a silent prayer that they would all survive. Including her mother.
Wu Shen walked back into the cave. "The sun is setting. The chiang-shih will need blood."
"There's bottled blood in the ice chest." She motioned to it. "I could give it to them."
He nodded. "That will be for the best. They would not attempt to attack you."
She hurried to the ice chest and removed three bottles. Then she settled on her sleeping bag next to Gregori.
As the last rays of the sun faded away, torches were set ablaze outside the entrance to the cave. Wu Shen lit the kerosene lamps as he gave more orders. Three soldiers unsheathed their swords and formed a line in front of the Vamps. Two more watched Howard.
The Vamps jerked and their chests suddenly expanded with a gasp for air. Their eyes opened.
"Listen," Abigail whispered.
Gregori reached for her, but the chain pulled tight on his cuffs. "What the - " He sat up, an alarmed look on his face.
J.L. and Russell sat up, and all three Vamps cursed under their breath and pulled at their restraints.
"We've been captured." Abigail unscrewed the top off Gregori's bottle and placed it into his hands. "Master Han's army arrived during the day."
"How?" J.L. asked, eyeing the soldiers.
"They're mortal." Abigail unscrewed J.L.'s bottle and handed it to him. "But with superhuman powers. They may have enhanced hearing," she added quietly, so the guys would be careful what they said.
"Shit," Gregori whispered, then guzzled down some blood.
"Howard has been captured, too." Abigail passed a bottle to Russell. "They have all five of us."
The guys were silent, but she could see a gleam of satisfaction in their eyes that Rajiv had escaped.
"They took all your weapons and put silver cuffs on you so you can't teleport. And Howard can't shift." She glanced at the soldiers. They didn't seem to mind that she was talking. "Master Han isn't working alone. He has a demon helping him."
"A demon?" J.L. asked.
"His name is Darafer. He's mutating the Demon Herb to make a potion that gives humans supernatural powers."
"So a nasty vampire villain has teamed up with a demon." Gregori gulped down more blood. "We're in deep shit."
"Could be worse," J.L. mumbled.
"How do you figure that?" Gregori asked, his eyes narrowed on the soldiers.
J.L. shrugged. "We could be dead."
"He's right." Russell pulled his hands apart, testing the chain. "As long as we're alive, we can fight."
"Exactly." Gregori finished the last of his blood, then tossed the bottle aside. "It's a shame they took all of our weapons." He gave the other Vamps a pointed look.
Russell and J.L. nodded and set their bottles down.
"And a shame they tied up Howard," Gregori said, his voice loud. "He's liable to get really pissed."