Vampire Emeritus (Part #3) ✔

Chapter 30: Downward Spiral

My veins cracked with anger, "Excuse me?"

Tina laughed in my face, "Yeah, Chloe, maybe it's best if you sat this one out, too."

But I wholeheartedly ignored her, my gaze firmly glued to Ian, unwavering, demanding an answer. Ian glanced around, avoiding me.

"What the hell do you mean I'm not coming?" I shouted, anger licking my insides like burning fire. "Of course, I'm coming."

"Chloe-" Ian tried, but I cut him off.

"Don't you 'Chloe' me." I stood up, energy bursting through my limbs. "Tina and Sheila are one thing, but I've been a vampire for three years. I can handle a fight. Hell, I've fought vampires before."

"I agree with Ian." Thomas jumped in. "You're way too unreliable and impulsive to fight."

My gaze cut through him, "And you're too big of a wuss, but I'm not cutting you out."

"Chloe." Ian raised his voice. "If we want to win, we have to keep this strictly professional. Vilmus is not a joke. If there are two hundred vampires on his side, the odds aren't in our favour. We don't have enough manpower-"

"And I'm a vampire!" I shouted, then wilfully lowered my voice, realising I sounded hysterical. "You're going to need every vampire on your disposal if you want to win-"

"Which means I should fight, too." Tina jumped in.

Thomas stood up, "For once in your life, shut up."

"I get it." Ian lowered his voice, his lips parting. "I know you want to be there and fight, but if you're there, I won't be able to concentrate on anything else. If something happens to you while we're underground-"

"You're damsel-in-distressing me." I put my hands on my hips. "That's sexist."

"I agree." Tina murmured. "I get that some of you are older than the invention of the wheel, but this is the 21st century, we can fight if we want to."

"Tina, you're not helping." I growled and waited for Ian's response.

Ian took in a sharp breath, "I won't be able to do what I have to do if you're there, Chloe. Please, stay out of this."

I opened my mouth, ready to fight him, when I realised everyone was staring at us, probably thinking we've just got together and we were already arguing. I closed my mouth forcefully and decided to argue with him later on, when no one would be listening.

With a pout on my lips, I sat back on he bed and crossed my hands on my chest.

Tina grabbed my forearm, "We're going to fight, aren't we?"

I held Ian's eye-contact, "Of course we are."

"Can we move on?" His eyes escaped to the papers on the coffee table. "We have to come up with a plan."

"Alright." Caiden glanced at me briefly before he squatted in front of the coffee table and turned the screen towards him. "I can try to find the layout of the tunnels, but I doubt it's there."

"You know, there's something else we can do." William jumped in suddenly. "Vilmus is surrounded by vampires, right? His followers."

"Yes." Caiden answered. "And we should assume they're all vampires. I doubt he'd keep humans around."

"Except for food." I smiled.

Caiden's eyes jumped to me, then back to the screen. What was his problem?

"We have a tape of Vilmus threatening us, don't we?" William sat on the couch and took papers in his hand, but I was pretty sure he was pretending to read.