Chapter 12

Lucy's POV The Mojave Desert stretched before us like an ocean of sand, blood-red in the setting sun. Vampires weren't meant for this environment – too much sunlight, too little cover, too far from the comfortable shadows of civilization. But Narla's trail led here, and I would follow it to hell itself if it meant getting closer to Avery. "Are you sure about this?" Tasha asked, adjusting her protective gear. We all wore specially designed suits that Rico's tech division had created—lightweight armor that protected us from sun exposure. "Desert's dangerous for our kind. One suit malfunction, and we're ash." "Narla came this way." I checked the GPS coordinates again. "Carrick's contact was certain." Carrick himself stood at the edge of our temporary camp, his silver-streaked hair whipping in the hot wind. "The contact's reliable. The question is: why would Xena's lieutenant risk crossing vampire territory in broad daylight?" "Because she wanted us to follow," I said grimly. The phan