Obsessed (Book #12 in the Vampire Journals) by Morgan Rice

Immortalists caught in the bottleneck had flown up
over the tunnel and were ready to rejoin their pack. Their group was stronger
again, and now they had the open air to glide through.
    “Now what?”
Caitlin cried, her heart leaping into her throat.
    The road was
beginning to widen, indicating they were approaching civilization of some sort—a
village or town. But first there were rows upon rows of fields and farm yards.
    Caleb twisted
the handlebars and the motorbike veered into a field of corn. Caitlin realized
what he was doing. He was heading straight for an open barn. He was hoping to
maneuver the Immortalists through difficult terrain.
    The bike whizzed
into the first barn.
    It was filled
with cows. They lifted their heads and mooed their disapproval as the bike
roared through. But, Caitlin noted, the Immortalists weren’t behind.
    “They’re not
stupid enough to follow,” she cried. “They’ll just fly over the roof.”
    “I know,” Caleb
replied.
    Then he hit the
brake and twisted the handlebar, making the motorbike screech and turn sharply
on its side. Caitlin gripped on for dear life. When the bike righted itself
again, she looked up and saw that they were back facing the way they had come.
Caleb was trying to outsmart the Immortalists.
    They raced back
out the barn. Caitlin glanced over the roof top. Sure enough, the Immortalist
swarm was racing over the roofs in the wrong direction, expecting them to
emerge from the other end of the barn. She watched as they realized their
mistake and came to a sudden, angry halt, before doubling back on themselves
and racing back the way they had come. They were still coming for them, but
Caleb’s maneuver had brought them a little bit of breathing space.
    Caitlin held on
tight as Caleb steered toward another barn. This one was full of pigs. The
stench was unbearable.
    “You can’t trick
them twice,” Caitlin shouted in Caleb’s ear.
    But this time,
Caleb didn’t turn the bike around. This time, as he drove through the barn, he
knocked open the gate locks of the pens. The pigs were smart enough to know
that an unlocked pen meant freedom, and they rushed for the gates, causing a
stampede.
    Caleb burst out
the other end of the barn. Sure enough, the Immortalists had been expecting him
to pull the same trick as before. They were all waiting to pounce at the
entrance of the barn. But instead of Caitlin and Caleb, they were confronted by
a herd of pigs.
    Caitlin couldn’t
help but laugh at the sight, as she turned back and watched the Immortalist
army grounded by nothing more than a gang of stinking pigs.
    “Have I told you
recently how much I love you?” Caitlin called into Caleb’s ear.
    Caleb laughed
gleefully and maneuvered the bike back onto the main roads, heading once again
in the direction of the village, and leaving their pursuers behind in the
wrecked farm yard.
    “So you were
going to tell me how to get to Egypt?” Caleb said to Caitlin once they were
driving steadily again.
    “Actually,”
Caitlin said, “I was thinking of a detour.”
    There was a
pause. Then Caleb said in a strained voice, “A detour?”
    “Yes.” Caitlin
cleared her throat, feeling a little awkward. “To Florida.”
    In the pause
that followed, Caitlin could almost feel Caleb’s frustration radiating off him.
First she makes him fly to Boldt Castle to find Scarlet, then she changes her
mind and tells him they have to go to Egypt to find a cure for vampirism, and
now she was talking about Florida. She was putting her poor husband through the
wringer and pushing his trust to the maximum.
    “Should I even
bother asking why?” Caleb muttered.
    “We need to get
to my grandmother’s attic,” Caitlin replied.
    “Why?” came
Caleb’s clipped response.
    “When I was
talking to Aidan about the sphinx, something triggered a memory inside of me,”
Caitlin replied. “I can’t quite put my finger on it but I know that my
grandmother had all kinds of artifacts in her attic. I