Jonny said nothing as he quickly untied her. He doubted she'd bother thanking him. He pulled the hood off her next then pressed a knife into the palm of one of her hands. She was breathing steadily and seemed alert. He didn't have time to evaluate her completely. The vamps were headed his way.
"You need to leave. Fast," he whispered. He then stood, moving away.
There was a pause before he heard her stand behind him. His attention returned forward.
A flashlight blinded him briefly. Jonny's arm shot up to block the sudden light. More than one gasp of surprise came from the startled vamps.
"How …" one vamp started and then stopped.
"One chance," Jonny said. "You all have one chance to beg for mercy."
No one moved, least of all Ashley. He didn't need to see her to know she was probably more shocked than anyone.
"Kill him," one of the vamps said.
"Wrong answer," Jonny growled in a low voice. His magic worked best when he was patient and calculating. It was going to be difficult to remain calm when he was about to be attacked by half a dozen vamps.
The first two attacked from his left. Before he had the chance to react, Ashley was there. She moved too quickly for even him to track, and he found himself watching a heartbeat too long. He missed blocking the first punch from the vamp that launched at him next. The creature's fist smashed into his cheek, and Jonny was driven back a step. He lashed out without thinking. Black fire smashed into his attacker and sent the vamp crashing through the pane of glass of the front window. Jonny witnessed the shocked expressions of the evening crowd briefly before his attention returned to the hostile vamps.
Ashley knocked out her two and confronted a third.
Jonny killed one dead before it had the chance to strike then snapped the neck of the second. He smashed into the third with both fists and power, and the vamp dropped dead.
Ashley was done and breathing hard.
Cries for help came from outside the restaurant, and he saw the unmistakable blue uniform of police.
First things first. He couldn't leave any vamps alive.
"You have something against killing?" he demanded and bent down to touch one of the vamps she'd knocked unconscious.
"Yeah. I don't do it!" Ashley snapped back.
Jonny shook his head and went to the second. He felt her eyes on him. There was a time when he hadn't wanted to kill and another when he'd killed - and felt guilty.
Both those times had passed. He didn't feel remorse when it came to death, not anymore and no matter how hard she was glaring at him.