by Jamie Davis
When he closed the door after Gibbie and Marian left, Dean heard Jaz mutter something under her breath.
“What was that?” he asked.
“I was just saying ‘what have I gotten myself into.’ This has got to be a first for a hunter clan and my father and mother must be rolling over in their graves.”
“Maybe it’s time for more cooperation between the clans and the good Unusuals in the community,” Jo interjected. “Most just want to live their lives without being judged for who they are. Only a very few are doing things that require the hunters or others to intervene. Why hold all of the group accountable for the actions of a minority?”
“Because that’s the way it’s always been, Jo. Because old habits die hard and I’m not sure I can overcome the prejudices of centuries, even millennia.”
“Does that mean you don’t accept me? I am a Wiccan, a witch. Do you accept me for who I am?”
Jaz looked at her and Dean saw her eyes soften as she looked at their grown daughter. He wondered what conflicting feelings she must have. They must be much more complex than his own. He didn’t have the preconceived notions about Wiccans that she did.
“I accept you, Jo. You’ve given me no reason not to. I’m sorry if I haven’t had the chance to tell you that. This whole situation with you and the revelation of who you are is still very new to both me and your father.” Jaz looked at Dean and he took his cue.
“Same here, Jo. It’s been slow, I know, but we’ve come to accept you for who you are, and know that we are some sort of family, dysfunctional as it may be.”
Jo got up from the couch, rushed over and gave Dean a hug, then turned to look at her mother. Jaz paused only a moment and then held open her own arms. Dean watched as their companionship gelled into the bond of a family. Jo and Jaz hugged there, tears streaming down both of their faces. Jo had needed this for a long time. Come to think of it, so had Jaz. Her family had been ripped apart by the explosion that killed her parents. She thought she was all alone in the world. This realization of what Jo and Dean represented for her must have given her back something she thought was lost forever.
Dean wiped some moisture from his own eyes, trying to do it without the two women noticing. He was unsuccessful, as they both turned and laughed at him. He started laughing, too. This was going to be alright. Whatever else happened, he too had a family again. That was something he had not felt part of for a long, long time. If felt good.
Chapter 13
Graadu, formerly Sam the construction worker, searched the construction site as he went about his mundane work. He would not ordinarily allow himself to do such labor as it was beneath him, but this time it formed a useful ruse to allow him to search for the other idol. He first went back to where Sam’s frantic mind told him he found the other two idols. There was nothing there, and when Graadu searched in the magical spectrum he found no trail leading to the location of the other missing figurine.
That was strange. He expected to find a clear trail to the third summoning idol if he didn’t find it near the same spot the other two had been found. That was not the case and it meant that someone had discovered the other one and knew what it was they had found. Knowing this, they would have taken pains to cover their tracks and cast a protection spell over it to prevent discovery. At least that was what he would do.
The demon lord knew the story of the destroyed building. He rather liked the idea that an entire hunter clan had been destroyed in the explosion and fire. Perhaps someone related to the hunters had discovered the idol. He decided to ask the foreman who was paying them to do their work here, clearing the property of the debris from the fire. He walked up to the foreman’s trailer and entered without knocking.
The foreman looked up at him as he entered. “Sam, what’s up? It’s not break time yet.”
“I need to know who is paying for this construction project. I need to know, right now.”
“Sam, I don’t like your tone. You know, you’ve been acting pretty strange since we started this job. I think you should go back out and get back to work. If you do that, maybe I can forget what an ass you’re being right now.” The foreman went back to work, ignoring the presence of his employee.
Graadu took a step towards the desk and pointed his finger at the insolent man. “I don’t like your tone.”
The foreman’s head jerked back and his eyes widened as he realized he could no longer breathe. His hands clutched his throat, then fell to his stomach as his diaphragm muscles spasmed and froze, stopping the process of inhalation.
“I think you should do a better job of recognizing your employees for the work they do. You should pay attention to their unique abilities, Mr. Foreman. Do you think you can do that?”
The foreman’s eyes looked at him, pleading with him to be allowed to breathe again. One hand reached out in supplication and the man dropped to his knees in submission.
“That is much better.” Graadu waived a hand and the muscular paralyzation spell stopped. “Now would you like to answer my question? I want to know who ordered this construction project and where I can find them.”
The foreman gasped, his hands clutching his throat while he drew in air. Graadu waited for a moment while the man gathered his senses again. These humans were so weak compared to what he remembered.
“There was a daughter of the family that owned this building. She survived the fire and is staying in an apartment building nearby. I don’t have the address, but she’s walked here in the past, so it can’t be that far away. The bills are all being paid by the insurance company and the paperwork is being handled by a law firm.”
“So, the hunter clan is not dead after all,” Graadu said to himself. “That explains the protection spell.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t understand?” the foreman said.
“You are very sorry. A very sorry example of humanity indeed. I don’t think I need to come here anymore. Please give me a raise, say double my current pay, and forward my checks directly to my home. I will not be coming by to pick them up.”
“Uh, yes, certainly. I’ll do it right away.”
“You will notify me immediately the next time this huntress, the daughter, comes here to the construction site. I must find her new abode. She has something that belongs to me. That must be where she is hiding my property.”
“As you say, I will call you on your cell phone as soon as she arrives.”
“Very good, puny man. If you continue to serve me well, I may spare your life when I arrive in my true form to take over this city.”
The foreman bowed from his position kneeling on the floor, pressing his head against the trailer’s floor in supplication. He did not see his former employee, now his lord and master, leave. He stayed there for several minutes more then got up and began the paperwork to approve the pay raise and forward the checks to his master’s address.
Outside the trailer, the demon lord cast about with his inadequate human senses to try and get a sense of who had cast the protection spell. If he could track down the spell caster, he could get them to remove the spell, or destroy them, whichever was most efficient. Either would suffice, but a powerful spell caster could be a strong ally. It was important he take care not to anger this one, unless there was no other choice.
Graadu thought for a moment, standing outside the foreman’s trailer. Then he made up his mind. He would return home. Sam’s wife, Jill, was still at home where he had left her. She would not leave, he controlled her completely. She was an entertaining plaything, but perhaps her life force would be useful in helping to track down this spell caster. He would have to think on that while the rest of his plans went into effect.
The vampire he created should have started feeding the previous evening. It would have taken two or three days of the transformation to be complete. The feeding frenzy and subsequent turning of dozens of other vampires would be a welcome bit of chaos to start off his conversion of this city to his will. It was time to activate his other creat
ions and see what havoc they could create in this weak and modern human world.
Chapter 14
The last several days had passed in a daze for Sandra. She had gone home from Sam’s Dungeon Masters game feeling a little ill. Because of that, she had called in sick for work in the morning and spent the day in bed. One day led to two and then three. Her boss called, asked how she was doing, and said that he was going to need a note from a doctor since she had missed so many days in a row.
Sandra rolled out of bed on the fourth morning after the game and decided to go to the urgent care center. That was when she noticed the changes. While she had never considered herself fat, she knew she was a little overweight. It was something she had battled all her life. It had a lot to do with her sedentary lifestyle and her job as a computer programmer. She sat behind a computer all day long and had little opportunity at work to exercise.
That was why she was so surprised when she stumbled into the bathroom on that fourth morning to take a shower and saw what stared back at her in the mirror. It was such a startling change she checked behind her for the stunning naked woman staring back at her in the reflection. There was no one there.
Staring downward, she looked over her body. Sandra noticed her breasts were higher, firmer and maybe a little larger. Her waist was more defined and she had definitely lost some weight. Her legs even looked a little longer and she loved the shape and definition she saw. She was so stunned she stood there for five minutes, running her hands over her body and curves, trying to understand the transformation that had occurred.
She had to go see a doctor now. She had lost way too much weight, and lost it too fast. While she liked what she saw in the mirror, she was confused by it and a little scared what it meant. Without thinking about it, Sandra showered, applied make-up, put on a tight-fitting red dress she hadn’t fit into for years, and headed out to the urgent care center. She had the strange feeling that she had to always look her best whenever she went out.
The ride on the Elk City Metro Bus from her apartment to the urgent care center by the hospital took the usual twenty minutes, but for Sandra it was anything but usual. She could feel everyone watching her, taking in her every subtle movement. The bus driver kept checking her out in the mirror above his seat and she resisted smiling at him after the first time. He had nearly driven the bus into a line of parked cars. If she weren’t so frightened by all of this she would have enjoyed it. She was a beautiful woman, with all the assets she could want in this sexist world.
The bus dropped her off at the medical center complex and she walked to the next block to get to the urgent care center. Several times, she saw men, and women, stumble or trip on the sidewalk as she passed them by. They should pay more attention to what they were doing.
The receptionist at the urgent care center didn’t look up as she walked up. The bored woman just pointed to the clipboard on the counter and told Sandra to sign in and wait for her name to be called. Sandra scrawled her name and walked over to the seating area to sit down. Four different men stood up and offered her their seats in the packed waiting area. That had never happened before. She had to admit to herself, she could get used to this kind of treatment.
She nodded to the closest of the men and sat down there. He stood there smiling down at her and she smiled back. When he didn’t move from where he was standing after she sat down, she told him to sit down over there, waving her hand toward the other side of the waiting room. Without skipping a beat, he spun around and went to where she had indicated with a wave of her hand and sat on the floor, staring back at her as if he were thankful for the opportunity to follow her commands. How odd, she thought.
Sandra waited for her turn, aware of the attention from every adult in the room. She noticed the children paid no attention to her, or at least not any undue attention. The adults, however, all watched her every move and those who had their names called, seemed to be reluctant to leave and get their medical needs attended to, looking over their shoulders as they left the room. The staff had started to notice her as well. The nurses who came out to call in new patients acted disappointed when they called a name and it wasn’t hers.
Finally one came out and called her name. She stood and walked as fast as her heels would allow to follow the nurse holding the door for her. She was led to a room and the nurse took her vital signs, her hands lingering whenever they touched her skin. It wasn’t unpleasant and Sandra found that she was enjoying the physical contact with the woman. Sandra wasn’t gay, but she found herself thinking about what it would be like to take this woman to bed. After the vital signs were finished, Sandra just told the nurse she hadn’t been feeling well and needed a note for work. The nurse said the doctor would be right in to see her. She kept her gaze on Sandra until the moment the door closed.
Sandra looked up a few moments later as the doctor entered the room staring down at his clipboard. She noticed how attractive he was and as soon as he shut the door, she stood, took the clipboard out of his hand and pulled him into an embrace, kissing him with passion she had never felt before. He protested only briefly before becoming almost limp in her arms, succumbing to her attack. She continued the prolonged kiss until his body weight was too much for her to hold and he dropped to the floor.
She leaned back on the exam table, feeling energized and full of life. She could count the pores on the doctor’s face, her senses had sharpened so much. Part of her was concerned about what was wrong with the doctor, but only a part of her. Mostly she wanted more. She wanted more of whatever she got when she kissed that doctor.
Sandra walked to the door and opened it part way and stuck her head out in the hall way. “Hey nurse. Could you come in here for a moment?” She ducked back inside.
“Yes Ma’am, what can I do for you?” the nurse asked as she entered the room. She stumbled over the doctor slumped on the floor and started to scream, but was cut off by Sandra’s embrace and kiss. After a moment, the nurse’s eyes rolled back in her head and Sandra let her fall to the floor.
“Wow,” she said to herself. “I feel juiced. I could do this all day.” The thought intrigued her and she pulled the nurse out of the way of the door and repeated her request for help.
* * *
———
* * *
Dean and Barry were back in the station still cleaning up from their first call of the day when the radio tones sounded again on the overhead speakers. It was Dean’s first day shift back on duty since his two days off, helping Jaz and Jo set up the Cert team to track down the demon. Now he was back on duty and trying to clear his head and get his focus back on doing his job. The next ambulance call was another opportunity to do that.
“Medical Box 822, syncopal episode, Elk City Urgent Care Clinic,” came the dispatcher’s voice over the radio.
Barry looked at Dean and winked. “This sounds like an easy one, boss. Maybe this will help you shake off the funk you’ve been under since you came in for work this morning.”
“You just want me to take over patient care for a change. Well, no chance. You’re still the probie here, albeit not too much longer.” Dean planned on notifying headquarters after this shift that Barry was ready to come off his probationary status as a new Station U paramedic. That would make them essentially equals and offer Dean the opportunity to get back to direct patient care, rather than observing his partner at work all of the time.
“So, you’re finally ready to let me off the leash?” Barry asked.
“You’ve earned it. I was going to contact the Chief about it today.”
That put a bounce in his partner’s step and Dean watched as Barry got a big smile on his face while the two of them walked into the ambulance bay to load up and head downtown for the emergency call.
While he was making the brief drive downtown, Dean wondered why the staff at the Urgent Care Center didn’t take their patient over to the hospital themselves? They were located right next door. It didn’t make much sense and it set his Unusual c
autionary radar off, if that was a thing. A syncopal episode was a fainting spell. It was often caused by a blood pressure problem or other cardiac problem that affected the blood pressure. This should have been relatively easy to stabilize and take next door to the ER.
Dean pulled the ambulance up and looked at Barry as he slid the gear lever into park. “Be careful on this one, Barry. I’ve got a feeling there is more going on here than we’re getting over the radio.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m not sure. Call it a hunch. Just be on your guard, okay?”
“Got it. Be ready for anything.”
The two paramedics gathered their gear and walked through the double doors into the waiting room of the Elk City Urgent Care Center. There was no one in sight. The waiting room was empty and there were no receptionists or nurses behind the counter at the far end of the room.
“Hello?” Barry called out. “Paramedics here. Does someone need assistance?”
The door leading back to the examination rooms opened and out walked a stunning woman in a tight red dress. “I need some help, gentlemen. I think you two are just what the doctor ordered.”
Dean felt the voice pull at him, while her stunning looks fixated his eyes on her approaching form. She was beautiful and he had to be close to her. He would do anything she wanted, do anything she asked. He was disappointed when the woman went to Barry first. She walked right up to him and pulled him into a passionate embrace. Her hands reached up and pulled Barry’s face to hers so they could kiss.
Dean watched fascinated as his partner exchange a very intimate kiss with this woman. It went on for a long time. Something tickled at the back of his brain. Why was she kissing the paramedics? This wasn’t some scene out of a porn flick. Life didn’t happen this way. Without thinking why, Dean dropped the bags he was carrying and ran over to his partner, tearing him out of the woman’s embrace.