Warriors of Poseidon 03 - Atlantis Unleashed

message to the four corners of the region.”
    Justice looked at Alejandro. “Are you satisfied?”
    “I can live with it. Can I shoot him again?”
    Justice shrugged. “Your town, your call.”
    The vamp screamed, then fell to the ground and started crying red, bloody tears. “No, please no. I can‟t spread the message if I‟m too wounded to move,” it blubbered.
    Alejandro stepped forward and kicked the vampire in the face. “You have killed the last of my people, you undead bastard. Mind that you never, ever return or I will personally cut your balls from your body.”
    “Yes, yes, I mean, no, no, whatever you say,” the vampire gibbered and Alejandro motioned to his men, who put even more distance between themselves and the vamp.
    “Then go, and don‟t forget to spread that message,” Justice said.
    Still sobbing, the vampire backed away from them, dragging its wounded leg, greenish brackish blood pouring down its face from its broken nose. “Yes, yes, yes,” it kept saying until it reached the trees, and then it gave one harsh cry of rage or defiance and sped off into the night.
    They stood staring after it for several long moments, and then Alejandro raised one of his arms and stared at the globs and spatters of vampire slime that coated his sleeve and skin. “So, about that trick with the water you did earlier on the burning houses. Does that work for a shower?”
    Justice laughed and channeled the water that came so eagerly to his call. “All part of the service. Exploding vampires; hot and cold running showers.”
    As they washed themselves the best they could under the gentle, welcome rain, Justice realized he still faced his most terrifying encounter ever.
    He had to go apologize to Keely.
     
    Keely cleaned herself off with water from a bucket before she went in to Eleni, so as not to traumatize the child even more. She was so angry that it was surprising that the water didn‟t boil into steam the second it touched her skin.
    Questions crashed through her mind, faster and faster. Did she love him? Did she love him?
    He was a stupid, blind, sorry excuse for a human being. Or Atlantean being. Or what the hell ever. Damn him, anyway. Did she really have to say the words? Hadn‟t she proved how she felt about him, over and over? What about that hours-long sex romp in the jungle? Did he think she went around having wild sex in jungles all the time?
    Energy sizzled up the nape of her neck even before the sound of his footsteps alerted her to his approach. “Stay away from me, Justice,” she warned. “I‟m in no mood right now. I just killed my first vampire—my first anything—and that‟s pretty traumatic. Then I had to deal with you and your stupid questions.”
    “Keely,” he said. Just that. Just her name.
    But there was so much pain and longing in the sound that she bowed her head, surrendering her rage to a gentler emotion. The anger disappeared as if she‟d never felt it, and she carefully considered what to say, still with her back to him as she knelt by the bucket.
    “Justice, I know. I know you‟re fighting this battle, and I know that you sometimes can‟t control the Nereid, but I kind of need for you to take some things on faith. Can you do that for me?”
    She waited, but only heard silence. A healthy dose of mad started up again and she stood up, kicking the bucket over in frustration. “Look, you have to meet me halfway—”
    She whirled around, ready to give him a very detailed list of grievances, just in time to see his eyes roll back in his head as he fell backward to the ground. She jumped forward but wasn‟t quick enough, and his body and head hit the dirt with two solid thumps that had her wincing in empathy. Oh, man, was he going to have a headache when he woke up. He‟d told her using the Nereid power drained him. She had a feeling that the shock wave trick had used huge amounts of his power and energy.
    She heard more steps running toward them, and then Alejandro rounded the corner and skidded to a stop. There was a long silence as he stared back and forth between Justice and Keely.
    “I must revise my opinion, Dr. McDermott,” he said gravely, although there was a certain glint in his eye. “You are far too much woman for me.”
    “I didn‟t do this,” she protested, but he just nodded, holding up his hands as if in surrender.
    She couldn‟t help it; she started laughing helplessly. The terror, anger, and exhaustion had drained her completely.