Stonehenge was even more impressive in real life than in all of the pictures Cadence had seen over the years, though it was a little difficult to see in the middle of the night. By the time they arrived in several SUVs and parked far enough away that they wouldn’t be announcing their location to Holland, it was past eleven, and Cadence was rushing to get everyone into place. Still, when she finally had a chance to look up at the towering structure, she stopped for a moment to take it all in. How in the world the ancients had managed to stack those enormous rocks in such a way that they’d stood for so long she didn’t know. She only hoped they didn’t end up getting knocked over tonight. Of course, if that did happen, she wouldn’t feel so badly about it as long as she met both of her objectives in the process.
Stewart was refusing to walk, so Cass was levitating him alongside them as they covered the open ground nearing the landmark. There wasn’t much coverage here, so she had no idea how to completely conceal themselves from Holland, but then, she couldn’t see any opposing forces either.
“I’m guessing the portal will open in the center of the circle,” Christian said beside her. She’d have to trust him on this one, which didn’t make her feel confident considering the last time she’d trusted him had been a disaster. “It won’t matter where the Guardians come out, but getting Stewart in there will be tricky.”
“Right. I was just going to throw him, but he doesn’t seem like he wants to go. That’ll make it harder.” Too bad she couldn’t trick him into running in like he’d tricked the Guardians. She glanced over her shoulder at the squirming professor. She’d reinforced the initial handcuffs and shackles with a whole lot of duct tape. He was still fighting to free himself, grunting and groaning against the tape on his mouth.
“I don’t know why he wouldn’t want to go,” Christian muttered sarcastically. “I’m sure he’ll figure out a way to free himself before the demons come for his soul.” He laughed like a villain in a movie, and Cadence imagined Stewart wouldn’t last for more than a few minutes in his current state unless the portal somehow dissolved the stickiness on the tape, which she doubted.
“Why don’t you let me float him in?” Cassidy asked not seeming to have any trouble whatsoever with moving the Vampire.
“I would, but I’m probably going to need a shield from you. Holland’s going to give this everything she’s got. And I don’t want any shifting or super strong Vampires if we can help it.”
“Heather can do that,” Cassidy reminded her.
Cadence’s eyes flickered over to the other Hybrid who was walking alongside Brandon and Dax on Cassidy’s other side. She wanted to trust her, especially since she’d thrown the shield at the Colosseum, but her powers were untested. “I’m sure she’ll help. If you see me struggling with Stewart, you can lend a hand, but I think I can do it.” She sized him up. He didn’t look that heavy, despite being short and stocky. She could easily lift over a thousand pounds and toss it the length of a gymnasium. Surely, she could get one wiggly Vampire into a portal.
“I think we’ll find out soon enough,” Christian said, walking away from her. She’d positioned him on the other side of the portal while Hannah would go all the way around to the far side, and Kaycia would take the northern side of the structure. With them spread out and accompanied by at least twenty-five Hunters and Guardians each, Cadence was fairly confident she’d manage to pull this off—unless Holland had something up her sleeve she hadn’t shared with them yet.
Her entire team was in position by a quarter till midnight when a heavy silence fell over the area. Cadence couldn’t put her finger on what had changed, but the stones themselves suddenly seemed to be vibrating. She turned to catch her sister’s eyes, which were wide, and instead of grunting, it sounded as if Stewart was laughing.
They came up over the perimeter in a solid line, shoulder to shoulder, walking through the night like an army straight out of hell. Cadence had no idea that many Vampires were still in existence after their recent raids, but then, she imagined Holland would’ve had time to make more. They’re pace appeared to be a leisurely stroll, but Cadence knew it was a mirage and they were closing in fast.
It was easy to pick Holland out of the group even though she wasn’t anywhere near where Cadence was positioned. Across the stone pillars, close to where Kaycia and her people were readying their weapons, the Vampire Queen floated in, her dress a long red, billowy kite that blew out behind her, reflecting every bit of light from the heavens so that she looked like a dancing flame. Her hair was longer than usual and drifted out behind her as well, and with her eyes glowing, she looked more like a demon than a Vampire.
In front of her, Cadence noticed a scampering creature running along on all fours. As it came into focus, she noted the red skin and bald head and realized Holland had brought her baby to the bloodbath. She shook her head, wondering at her enemy’s confidence. That demon child wasn’t getting out of here alive if Cadence had anything to do with it. More like a devil than a child, she could only imagine the havoc the thing could wreak if given the opportunity. And it was headed straight for her.
Cadence saw Hines as well, though he was hanging back like he always seemed to do. His face was puckered up in earnestness, like he’d rather be anywhere in the world than approaching a team of Hunters and Guardians when the portal was about to open. Perhaps he had a better understanding of what could potentially befall anyone who was sucked up into it—or hurled in—than his leader.
“All right, then. Let’s get this show on the road,” Cadence said to everyone through her IAC, and all around her gunfire rang through the night air. She was aware that Kaycia’s team had already let local authorities know there would be some sort of reenactment going on out here. None of them should show up for at least a little while, so Cadence wasn’t worried about that. She crossed her fingers that Cassidy and Heather could do enough to block Holland’s power so that the Vampires would go down easily, but as the first spray of bullets hit their targets, no one seemed to be slowing.
“What’s happening?” she asked her sister.
“I don’t know for sure, but I think Holland’s drawing some sort of power from the stones,” Cassidy explained. “I’m not sure there’s much I can do about that.”
“Can you tap into it?”
Her sister’s eyes enlarged for a second and then closed as Brandon stepped between Cassidy and the line of Vampires. “Yeah,” Cass finally said, and with the next barrage of gunfire, some of the Vampires actually went down. There were enough that it didn’t matter, though. It was going to be a long night.
An explosion on the other side of the stone structure reminded her that they had grenades. Christian must’ve used one. Shrieks from the Vampires began to fill the air around her, but the first line was closing in on their location now, and some of the LIGHTS team members were forced to turn to blades to combat the enemy forces who sprang at them with a strength that could only come from their Queen.
She had stopped short of the line held by the Hunters and Guardians, and Cadence could see well enough through the dark to know Holland was concentrating. It didn’t seem to be taking much out of her to strengthen these forces, especially since she could use the energy from the stones to make herself even stronger. Cadence needed to find a way to shut her down, but that would have to wait until after she handled the portal opening.
