There had been plenty of chatter on the Intelligence Assistance Communicator, or IAC, recently, so it was no surprise to Aaron McReynolds to see Cadence and her friends arrive at the Eidolon Festival. He believed he had brought enough of his team with him to sufficiently cover anything that might arise, although he was hopeful that Holland and her clan would be particularly careful considering who Cadence was and how obligated he was to provide her with unconditional protection. He was, however, extremely surprised to see Carter pull such a bold move and whisk one of Cadence’s friends away like that. The Vampire should have known that would not be permitted. Nevertheless, he took her, and that livened things up beyond a typical peacekeeping operation.

As soon as Drew had danced her way into the parade, Aaron began organizing his team, calling in backup immediately. He knew from his vast experience that this would most likely activate Cadence enough that she would track Carter down. He was thankful she had sent most of her friends back to the car because it made it easier to protect them and gave him less subjects to worry about inside the perimeter.

After she bumped into him during her frantic search for Drew, he knew there was no stopping her Transformation. Rather than attempting to trail Cadence through the woods, he used the IAC infrared to track her and reach the destination simultaneously. If necessary, he was ready to step in on her behalf, but clearly, she needed no help defeating Carter, which was a shocking testimony to her strength and power. Now, as she began to realize what was happening around her and attempt to escape, his role became even more difficult. On the other side of those trees, a legion of vampires was just recognizing what had happened here, and they would all be willing to do whatever it took to bring her down.

Using the IAC, he was able to communicate to his team without speaking aloud. Therefore, Cadence and her friends had no idea the magnitude of the operation unfolding around them. His primary objective was to get Cadence, Jack, and Kash home with no harm befalling any of them. However, she was his main concern, and if that meant losing someone else along the way, so be it.

“Eliza, Jamie, Elliott, pick up on the other side of these trees. As soon as they’re clear, I need to hear some engines.” The orders were clear, and he knew his team would respond appropriately.

* * *

Jack scooped Drew’s limp body up, and Cadence began to lead them out of the woods. Her instincts started to kick in, and she knew exactly where she was going. However, she was also well aware of the fact that her friends were not keeping up with her. She did her best to keep pace with them, wondering why they were running so slowly. The man in black did not follow them. Conversely, as they wound their way through the woods, they were suddenly surrounded by a group of similarly dressed persons, and Cadence realized they were being escorted.

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Approaching the edge of the woods, she could plainly hear the music from the band. She could see that the dancers continued. If any of those individuals happened to be vampires, and somehow, she seemed to know which ones were, they were presently unaware that she had just destroyed one of their own. While it seemed more reasonable to slowly walk out of the woods and nonchalantly exit the festival, hoping no one noticed the body Jack was carrying, every fiber of her being was telling her to run, sprint, fly out of that place as quickly as possible. It was all she could do to slow down enough for her friends to keep up.

Suddenly, there was a loud rumble drowning out the music and causing the entire back section of dancers to pause mid-step. As if materializing out of nowhere, three jet black motorcycles came screeching out of the night, flying toward them. Jack and Kash jumped back into the woods, clearly a bit alarmed, but Cadence could plainly see they were there to help. The drivers were dressed in black.

They motioned impatiently for the three friends to get on. While it was extremely difficult for Jack to keep ahold of Drew and still hold on to the back of the rider, he managed by throwing her small body over his shoulder, despite the unbelievable speed they began to travel. Cadence jumped onto the closest bike, barely glancing at the driver, and held on as tightly as she could, and she realized she was actually traveling more quickly than the other two bikes.

The motorcycles seemed to be a tip to the vampires that something had happened, and it did not take long for the redheaded woman to show her pale white face. Cadence was concentrating on watching where they were going, unsure exactly how her driver was managing to weave through some of the tight spots they were passing through. However, a blood-curdling scream pierced the night sky, causing her ears to ring, and she knew without even turning her head that this must be the woman with the steel gray eyes. She squeezed the waist of her driver more tightly, and he somehow found a way to make the bike go even faster.

* * *

From his vantage point, Aaron could see that Eliza was struggling to balance the bike and maintain her speed with Jack and Drew’s body behind her. In fact, she almost wrecked twice just navigating the tents. He could see that Elliott had almost made it to the Suburban with Kash before she had even exited the grounds, and Jamie was long gone with Cadence. “I’m struggling!” she called in to Aaron, and he began to contemplate exactly how to get her assistance. Just as she made the call, Holland and her band of cronies began to ascend on her. “I don’t know how I am going to get Jack out of this alive.” Her voice sounded panicked, which was unusual for her, an indicator the situation was serious.

Aaron had not planned for Drew’s body to be extracted when he had made the plans to use motorcycles. However, he knew it was important to Cadence, and he thought they could do it. Now, with a clan of vampires closing in on Jack’s tail, the idea didn’t seem like such a great one.

Holland’s anger had made her strength grow immeasurably, and now with each leap she took closer to Eliza, it appeared as if she was flying. Aaron knew he needed to find a way to slow her down. His position near the woods, where he stopped to coordinate his forces, was so far away from the exit, he didn’t know if it was possible to catch up to the infuriated Vampire now. However, he was also fueled by emotion and was capable of moving even more quickly than she was.