The Hellhound's Crusade

Chapter Four

Lachian 

The minute Veronica said that Cyrus left Nashville this morning the girl bolted out the door. I had to stay behind to find out exactly where he was heading next. Finally, after ten minutes of arguing and me throwing another couple of hundred dollars at her, Veronica finally divulged that Miami was the next stop on his tour. As I walked out of the room I texted Kalli to let her know. But now, instead of heading straight for the truck, I’m lingering. My eyes scan the crowd for her. Hoping to catch even the slightest glimpse of her. 

After doing a full lap of the place I give up. There would be no reason for her to stay behind. It’s obvious that she is on a mission. But what? She had said she was a hybrid so her lifespan would be considerably longer than most. Even if the other half of her was human. What the hell could she want with Cyrus? 

Walking back into the liquor store I grunted a goodbye at the old seer and left. Pressing the button on the key fob I heard the truck doors unlock and I got in. I pulled out my phone and entered the address Veronica gave me. Another f*****g club. This s**t is definitely starting to get old. 

Before I turned the key in the ignition I took another look around. Unwilling to admit to myself that I was looking for her. It had been almost two hundred years since Cora died. The moment she passed I regained all of my memories and shifted. After running from the plantation that night I continued to live the majority of the time in my supernatural form. The fear of being caught and returned to my owner paralyzed me. It was rare that I would allow myself to shift and when I did I made sure to be far enough away from civilization that I wouldn’t encounter any humans. 

It was when I finally decided to integrate back into society that I truly realized the mistake I had made. There was no way for me to know the horrible curse that was bestowed on me. I can still hear the screams of the first woman I touched, the only woman I’ve touched, since Cora. The guilt I felt for her and the disgust for myself forced me right back into isolation. 

The sound of the passenger's side door opening and slamming shut pulls me from my thoughts. Her scent is already engraved in my memory which is why I don’t react. The two of us sit in silence for more than a few minutes before she finally speaks. 

“Where are we heading?” She asks. 

Slowly I turn my head to look at her. “We?” 

“Did I stutter?” When I don’t respond she lets out a sigh and continues. “Look, for whatever reason, we are both after the same person. So far it looks like we’ve both been unsuccessful. Maybe working together -” 

“No.”

She doesn’t argue, only eyes me up and down. “How did you escape the Underworld?” 

“With the exception of Cyrus, no one has ever escaped. I was allowed to leave.” 

Her eyes widen in shock but she quickly composes herself. “You mean kicked out?”

I shake my head no instead of speaking. 

“Rumor has it that Hades never allows anyone to leave freely.” 

“What would you know of it?” 

I try my best to keep my answers vague while making sure I don’t look at her. Once again her scent is stirring feelings that I’ve buried deep inside of me. My mind screams out words like mate and mine. But I know it’s wrong. Despite her performance back in the club, it doesn’t appear that she has any sort of pull towards me. 

“You’re right, I don’t know what I’m talking about. The truth is my car won’t start,” she says with a slight pout. 

“Not my problem,” I responded before leaning over and opening her door. “Out.” 

The corners of her lips turn up in a smile as she rests her hand on my forearm. My skin instantly heats up under her touch and once again I’m aware of how unaffected she is by it. 

“Your mouth is telling me to leave but your -” she pauses and looks down at my lap. She c***s her eyebrow and I know it’s because she can see the outline of me growing harder by the second. “- your eyes are telling me to stay.” 

More forcefully than I intended I grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward me. Her entire upper body is now draped across the center console. I stare into her eyes long and hard before dropping my nose to her neck. I breathe her in deep and her scent leaves me feeling intoxicated. There is more than one reason why she should be afraid of me. If she is, she hides it well. There is not an ounce of fear in her that I can detect. Exhaling, I muster the restraint to speak finally. 

“I don’t have time to babysit a little girl who’s running around the country in search of immortality. Find a vamp to turn you. It’ll be less trouble.” 

The smirk she gives me is the only sign that there may be more to her story. For all I know she’s probably hiding just as much from me as I am from her. She glances at the dashboard. My phone finally connected from when I started the truck and the directions and ETA are visible to her. 

“Miami, just over nineteen hours. A trip like that alone would take you two days, considering you’ll have to stop to rest. But together, we can drive straight through.” 

Fuck. Pushing her away from me she falls back into her seat and I let go of her wrist. She’s right. If I go alone I risk missing Cyrus, again. I look down and notice for the first time a small black bag between her legs. This stubborn girl isn’t going anywhere unless I physically remove her from the truck. Fine. In less than a day, I’ll be in Miami and hopefully, that’ll be the end of it. 

“What’s your name?” I ask before giving in. 

“Elena. You?” 

When she said her name there was the slightest bit of an accent that she quickly corrected. 

“Lachian.”

“Hmm, short for Appalachian. Am I right?”

Unwilling to answer her for no particular reason other than pure stubbornness, I place my hands on the wheel. It’s my way of telling her I’m done with this conversation. “Shut the damn door.” 

She pulls it shut without taking her eyes off me. When I finally glance at her she gives me an irritating smile that tells me she’s used to getting her way and I’m no exception. I pull onto the road and watch her out of the corner of my eye as she settles into the seat. 

“Wake me when it’s my turn to drive.” 

Elena

The moment I saw him walk into the room I knew what he was and where he came from. Even if the two of us weren’t alone I’m sure I could sniff him out in a crowd. Normally I would see his kind as a kindred, definitely not equal, yet similar nonetheless. But in this situation, he could very well be a threat. For longer than I can say, I’ve been taking every precaution to hide my true self from all sups. So there was never any worry that he would be able to sniff out my true identity. 

When I snuck into that room in search of Veronica I knew there could be a chance that someone would come searching for her. So when he walked in I was prepared. What I wasn’t prepared for was him telling me he was looking for something different than her usual services. Now that piqued my interest. 

It had occurred to me that there might be others trying to find Cyrus. But I assumed the majority of them would be sups trying to steal the ambrosia that he so cleverly smuggled out of the Underworld. The amount of money he has made so far selling immortality to the humans is enough to put a target on his head. Leeches, the whole lot of them. Which is why I’m trying to find him before they do. My reasoning is personal and goes beyond the possibilities of wealth.

But is that why he came? Is it the money he wants? There was only one way for me to find out. Pretend to be Veronica and use what I’ve got to pump him for information. Men are predictable. Get them turned on, make them feel wanted and suddenly they’ll tell you everything you want to know. Usually, before they even realize it. And I almost had him. Until the real Veronica showed up and ruined my plan.

The moment I found out Cyrus was out of Nashville I left. A new plan was already forming in my mind so there was no need to stick around to hear what city he was heading to. Walking straight to my car I quickly grabbed my bag and then waited, positioning myself so that I could see him when he exited the liquor store. 

When I let myself in the truck he wasn’t even surprised to see me. Or if he was he didn’t let on. As a matter of fact, he seemed more annoyed than anything else. Quickly into our conversation, I realized he was a hound of few words. Almost impossible to read. In fact, if I hadn’t watched his eyes glow red or seen him harden from just one simple touch I would have thought his abrasiveness was real. The moment he gave into me is when I knew it was just a really good act.

This road trip should be interesting. It’s only a matter of time before I get him to confess the real reason he's after Cyrus. A smile I can’t stop spreads across my face as I think of all the things I’ll do to him.  After all, the strong ones were always my favorite to break.