Chapter 9: Shadows in pursuit
Leonardo’s POV
The city was drowning in twilight, the sunlight swallowed by the encroaching night. From my penthouse window, I stared down at the restless streets below.
New York. A city full of arrogance.
It pulsed with energy.
The mortals scurried about, blind to the predators that lurked in their midst.
A world of distractions, filled with their pointless ambitions and fragile dreams.
I swirled the dark liquid in my glass, the ice clinking softly against the sides.
Austin and Vanessa should have been here by now.
They knew the stakes.
Yet they hadn’t arrived.
A sharp knock at the door.
I didn’t turn. “Enter.”
The door eased open, and a man stepped inside.
He was one of my best scouts—trained, efficient, incapable of failure.
And yet today, he had failed.
“I couldn’t find them,” he reported, his voice betraying a tremor.
I turned to face him for a moment, staring deeply into his eyes.
My grip on the glass tightened.
“Both Austin and Vanessa?”
“Yes, sir.”
Silence stretched between us.
I turned back to the window, my thoughts coiling in fury.
Dark and unforgiving.
They had gone without me.
Austin. Vanessa.
Fools.
The glass in my hand shattered. Shards bit into my palm, warm blood streaking down my fingers, but I barely felt it. The pain was insignificant compared to the fury twisting in my head.
The scout flinched at the sound but didn’t step back. He knew better.
“How long have they been gone?” I asked, my voice deceptively calm.
"The satellite feeds are still processing the data," he said quickly. "It seems we lost track of them a few minutes ago."
My eyes sharpened. “Lost track?”
He hesitated. “If they’re already deep in the Amazon, we... we can't know if they’re still alive.”
They had chosen the jungle?
Ah. Austin's father's journal had given them the path.
Did they have any idea of the unpredictable dangers lurking on the route to the portal?
Did they think they could maneuver around me in such a place?
Fools.
“Should I send a recovery team?” he asked.
“No.” I halted his words with a cold voice.
Absolutely not.
This was no task for humans.
“You can leave now,” I said, dismissing him with a flick of my bloodied hand.
The man hesitated, then bowed slightly before disappearing through the door, leaving only the scent of sweat and nerves behind.
As soon as the door clicked shut, I slammed my fist against the desk, sending papers and shattered glass crashing to the floor.
They had failed me.
I swept an arm across the desk, knocking everything to the ground.
Especially Vanessa. What a foolish being.
My breaths came sharp and uneven as I forced myself to still. My fingers curled into fists, nails biting into my palms.
They had no idea what was coming.
But they would. Soon.
I turned away, crossing the room with measured steps. Near the bookshelves, I pressed my fingers against a hidden panel in the wall. A deep mechanical click echoed through the penthouse.
A fingerprint electronic lock appeared, glowing faintly. I pressed my thumb against it.
The system buzzed, then clicked. A concealed door slid open, revealing a dark passageway beyond.
I stepped inside.
The descent was silent, the air growing colder with each step.
This was where I kept them—my true enforcers.
The ones who moved in the shadows.
The ones who carried out my will with absolute viciousness.
My vampires.
The chamber was vast and dimly lit, the scent of blood and steel lingering in the air. Rows of figures stood in silence, their eyes faintly glowing in the darkness. They did not breathe, did not shift. They were waiting.
The moment I stepped forward and sat on the high stone chair, they stirred.
“Gather around, brethren,” I commanded, my voice echoing through the chamber.
From the shadows, they emerged.
One figure stepped into the light first—Felix.
He was my most trusted, my most loyal. His golden eyes flickered with curiosity, his lips curling into a slight smirk.
“Lord Leonardo,” he murmured. “What do we hunt tonight?”
I leaned forward, my gaze sweeping across my gathered warriors.
“Austin and Vanessa have tried to escape me,” I said, letting the words settle and sink deep.
“They believe they can walk this path without me. They believe they can claim the last artifact on their own.”
A hush fell over the chamber.
Then—
A low growl rippled through the room, predatory and eager.
“They are wrong.”
Felix’s smirk widened. He stepped closer, his golden eyes gleaming with amusement.
“Did they surprise you, my lord?” he asked.
I exhaled sharply. “Surprise? No. They disappoint me.”
I stood, my posture quieting their growls to listen to what I had to say.
“We leave now. They have a head start, but it won’t matter. By the time they realize their mistake, it will already be too late.”
Felix’s grin sharpened. “Don’t worry, my lord. We will remind them why no one defies you.”
I nodded once. There was no need for further words.
With a mere flick of my wrist, my vampires moved, vanishing into the night like ghosts.
The city lights blurred beneath us as we moved.
The mortals below had no idea of the storm about to be unleashed.
We arrived at my private airstrip in under ten minutes.
The jet’s engines roared as we climbed higher, darkness swallowing the jungle below.
My men had boarded without hesitation.
Felix was the last, stepping in with his usual smirk, wiping his blade like it was a routine chore.
The doors sealed, and the hum of the engines deepened.
I sat by the window, arms crossed, eyes locked on the endless green below.
Austin and Vanessa had thought they could control the artifact.
They were wrong.
Only I could wield its power.
Felix leaned back, tilting his sword so the jet’s light gleamed along its deadly edge. He studied it for a moment, then—without a word—extended it toward me, hilt first.
A gesture of respect.
I took it without hesitation, letting my fingers curl around the grip. It was perfectly balanced, sharp enough to split bone with a flick of the wrist.
Felix grinned. “This will be fun.”
I didn’t smile. My gaze stayed on the jungle below, already picturing the disastrous hunt.
“Not for them,” I murmured.
The hunt had begun.