Chapter 31
Jack saw the attack coming, and stepping out of the way, he used his forearm to block the stake, hitting Frank’s arm with his, jarring the weapon free, and in one smooth motion, he spun Frank around so that his back was pressed against Jack’s chest, the knife poised against his neck.
“Take me in without harming me?” Jack screeched. “I knew that was not true!”
“Calm down, Jack,” Aaron said, hoping his own voice sounded as tranquil as it needed to. “We can still work this out. There’s no reason for anyone to get hurt.”
Aaron heard the sound of footsteps behind him and turned to see Ward had finally managed to find their location. Having the leader on sight now, Aaron gestured for him to take over, but Ward shook his head, an indication that he wanted Aaron to continue to run the situation. At this point, it didn’t seem to matter which Guardian did the talking; Jack was in control.
“I thought she might be my last victim,” Jack shouted, climbing up on the bottom edge of the railing behind him, dragging Frank, who was struggling but making no progress, backward. “I thought I’d spilt the blood of the guilty for the last time. Now, I have at least one last opportunity to show the world that the unjust will always get what’s coming to them!”
Aaron looked at Vicky, who had moved to block any exit Jack might try to make out the other end of the pedestrian path, but it seemed evident that was not his intent. He knew exactly what Jack would do, and he could see no way out of this situation without losing Frank.
“Do it,” Ward whispered harshly just over his left shoulder, as if he could tell what Aaron was thinking.
“We’ll lose him,” Aaron reminded him.
“No we won’t,” Ward argued back.
Aaron had no idea how that could possibly be true, but seeing no other options, he gave a signal to Vicky, one they’d used lots of times over the years, and she called, “Hey, Jack! Do you get off on being such a pompous ass, or is it ramming your knife into innocent victims that gets your knickers in a wad?”
The brash remark worked. Jack was shocked and turned to face the blonde beauty. Using the split-second distraction, Aaron launched himself at the Vampire, aiming for his exposed right shoulder, which if he hit correctly should jar Frank free and cause him to lose the knife.
It worked—almost. Aaron hit him in the right shoulder, but Jack was cleverer than most of the Vampires they had encountered in the past, and the Ripper used Aaron’s momentum to help him embed the knife in Frank’s throat. Though he was unable to pull the weapon across and slash the jugular, which would have clearly been his preference, blood began to spurt from the wound where the knife still stuck as Frank was released and slumped forward onto the ground.
Aaron had known there was a very good chance that whatever action he took would get the Hunter wounded or killed. He could only hope that whatever damage was done, having a good physician standing next to them on the bridge was enough to prevent Frank from passing, but Ward had given the order, and Aaron had taken action. Now, with the momentum of his launch, he realized Jack was not as anchored to the bridge as he had hoped, and careening off the Ripper’s shoulder, Aaron found himself flipped into the air.
Time seemed to slow a bit. He could see the waves of the East River churning below, far, far below. He heard Frank gasp as he fell to his knees on the bridge, Vicky’s scream, and the rush of footsteps in their direction. Finally, he heard the laugh of the devil as Jack assumed Aaron was about to go head first into the river alone. It was the last part that would be inaccurate, and as Aaron fell, he reached out and grabbed the only thing he could get a grip on, Jack the Ripper’s neck.
He was strong enough to haul the monster over the side of the bridge with him. The laughter stopped, and Jack struggled for air against Aaron’s clenched palm. He could tell from his expression Jack was shocked that Aaron had been able to pull him over the railing, too, and as they fell, the Ripper struggled to free himself while Aaron attempted to get into position to destroy the demon once and for all once they hit the water.
Making contact with the choppy waves at that velocity was enough to shatter bone for ordinary people. For Aaron, it was enough to jar him and momentarily take his breath away. The water was certainly cold in the spring, but it wasn’t the temperature change that made him lose his breath; it was the sheer power of making contact with what felt like a concrete block.
Luckily, Jack was stunned, too, and even though he continued to struggle to get free, Aaron used the split second he gained in recouping his bearings to wrap his legs around the taller man’s waist. He had one of the Ripper’s arms pinned against his side as well, the other scratching and clawing at Aaron’s arms, one of which had ahold of the dark brown hair atop the Vampire’s head while the other encircled his neck.
Aaron brought his elbow down hard into the soft area between Jack’s neck and shoulder, an attempt to stop the desperate movements. It seemed to slow the Vampire down, but he wasn’t going to be defeated that easily.
The waves crashed against them, occasionally forcing them beneath the surface of the salty water as they struggled, but the East River could claim neither of them, and as Aaron tightened his grip on the Vampire’s waist, he could feel his opponent’s strength begin to fade.
This man had killed at least a dozen people, maybe more, over the last three years. He’d mutilated, slashed, dismembered, and decimated the bodies of each of his victims. They’d been too late to stop him from murdering the woman he’d disappeared with tonight, but Aaron was certain this particular Vampire would never have the opportunity to kill again. With all of his remaining effort, he began to twist, and though Jack’s free arm continued to swipe at his captor, his strength faded. Aaron pulled up, and in one fluid motion, the Vampire’s head came free. Rather than a shriek, Jack the Ripper let loose a haunting moan that filled the night sky and was likely audible to his friends atop the bridge who seemed so far away now that he was floating along in the East River.
