Vampire Hunters, #1

by Trudie Collins

  Scott raised an eyebrow at Craig. “She sounds mad.”

  “Her mother has that effect on her.”

  “Somehow I don’t think it was her mother this time. Should we go and watch?”

  Craig shook his head. “Trust me. We’re better off staying out of it.”

  Sarah strode onto the balcony, slamming the door behind her. “I guess Sarah is home,” JD said then instructed Katie and Jonathon to take a break.

  When he turned around and looked up at Sarah he could almost see steam rising from the top of her head. He momentarily considered telling her he would see her in his office later, wondering whether it was safe to have the confrontation in a room full of weapons, then decided he would rather have witnesses around.

  “Come on down,” he said.

  Sarah slid down the pole, walked up to him, balled up her fist and punched him in the face, hard. “If you ever pull a stunt like that again I will walk out of here and never come back. Got it.”

  He rubbed his chin. “Got it.”

  “Good.”

  He watched her turn her back on him, walk away and climb up the steps. He waited until she reached the balcony before speaking. “Anything else you wish to say?”

  “Thank you,” she said through gritted teeth.

  “Sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.”

  “I’m not going to say it again you smug son-of-a-bitch.”

  “A word of advice. You might want to have your hand looked at. Doc isn’t here, but Silvia is. At the very least, put some ice on it.” She stormed out, but didn’t slam the door this time.

  JD rubbed his jaw again as he turned his attention to Jonathon and Katie. “Well, I can definitely say her training is paying off. That actually hurt.”

  Jonathon was doing his best not to laugh. “What did you do to her?”

  “What she wanted. I got her mother off her back. I guess she didn’t like my methods.”

  “How are you planning on punishing her for that little display?” Katie asked.

  “For hitting me? I’m not. You could say I asked for that. For calling me a smug son-of-a-bitch? I’m not sure yet. I may have deserved that as well. Now, enough standing around. Do the exercise again.”

  JD didn’t see Sarah again until dinner time. She was sitting at the table with her right hand bandaged. Craig was cutting up her food for her while trying not to laugh.

  “How’s the hand?” he asked as he took the seat next to her.

  “Hurting.”

  “Are you sure it isn’t broken?” He looked over at Silvia, who shook her head.

  “No, just bruised. It will be a few days before she can use it properly though.”

  “May I?” he asked, holding out his hand, palm up. Sarah moved her hand closer to him and he undid the bandage.

  “You certainly did a good job there didn’t you,” he said as he inspected the swelling. The knuckles were completely black.

  “Nobody warned me your jaw is so solid.”

  “Nobody else has been stupid enough to hit me,” he said as he redid the bandage. “Don’t think this will get you off training.”

  “Don’t worry, I know you better than that.”

  “I presume you’re staying here tonight.” She nodded. She did not want to drive home until her hand had started to heal. “I will let you off the 5am session. You’ll be too much of a hindrance. We can spend tomorrow working on your lack of skills with your left arm.”

  She didn’t rise to the bait. She was in a lot more pain than she was letting on and was too busy concentrating on hiding it.

  “What exactly did you do?” Simon asked. “Sarah is refusing to discuss it.”

  “That,” JD said, “is none of your business.”

  Craig gave a questioning look at Sarah. “I’ll tell you later,” she whispered to him.

  As soon as the meal was finished, she took him to her room and told him everything. Well, almost everything. She neglected to mention the kiss on her cheek. By the time she had finished, Craig was rolling on the bed with laughter.

  “The annoying thing,” she said, “is that he has successfully stopped my mother from trying to get me dating so I have to be grateful to him.”

  “Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ll back up your story if your mother contacts me. Not that she does any more, thank God. I also promise not to tell any of the others. They would have a field day with this.” Then he saw the look on her face. “What else is bothering you?” he asked.

  “She approves of him. She gave me the third degree, asking all sorts of questions I had to either avoid or make up the answers to.”

  “I’m not surprised. He can be very charming when he wants to be. What’s wrong with that?”

  “Why did she never approve of Alex?”

  Craig put his arm around her and she leaned her head on his shoulder. “That’s easy. JD has a successful career and earns lots of money. Alex didn’t. Your mother will only ever approve of a son-in-law who is a doctor, an engineer, a lawyer or an accountant. Anyone who could earn bucket loads. All she cares about is how well off your husband could make you, not how happy. Don’t dwell on it. It’s just the way she is and there’s nothing you can do to change her.”

  Whether he was going to say more, she never found out as the hunt alarm suddenly rang through the house. He kissed her forehead. “Gotta go.”

  “Be careful,” she said as he left her room.

  Craig quickly got changed and was the last one to arrive at the front door. Everyone was dressed in their hunting suits, their swords on their backs, an excited atmosphere surrounding them, as usual.

  “We’re headed to a house tonight,” JD said. “Half a dozen vampires are there. I told Sanctuary 7 that we can take care of them ourselves, so we’ll have no backup. Don’t prove me wrong.”

  “When have we ever let you down?” Simon asked.

  “I want no injuries tonight,” JD continued. “No sprains, no breaks, no cuts. If anyone is stupid enough to let themselves get bitten, they will not enjoy their punishment, so don’t take any risks. Protect each other.”

  He grabbed a set of car keys, told Scott the address, and all six hunters headed out.

  They arrived at a small cottage in the middle of a quiet street. Lights were on in some of the windows and, behind the closed curtains, movement could be seen.

  “Are you sure we have the right address? Craig asked.

  JD nodded and pointed to the front door, which was ajar. They could see no sign of forced entry as they approached and the noise from a TV was coming from the front room as they silently entered.

  They split into two teams to search the house; Simon, Scott and Craig remained on the ground floor while JD led Jonathon and Katie up the stairs. Craig eased open the door to the lounge and glanced inside. There were two corpses on the floor and a third, still twitching body on the sofa, beside which knelt two vampires, their fangs inserted into the suntanned flesh. All three victims were young men, probably university students, Craig thought, based on their ages and the way they were dressed.

  Hearing movement behind her, one of the vampires, a middle aged woman, turned around. Simon stepped forward and beheaded her with one swift cut of his sword. Craig moved to stand to the right of the other vampire, who turned in his direction. Scott thrust his sword into the vampire’s back and through his heart. When he withdrew his sword, the body slumped to the floor. Craig raised it up again, pulling it by its hair, allowing Simon easy access to its neck.

  “Two down, four to go,” Scott whispered as Craig examined the victim. Though the body was still warm, he could find no pulse. He shook his head and all three of them left the room in search of more vampires.

  Upstairs, JD, Jonathon and Katie found three vampires in the first bedroom they came to, feeding on a young couple who were naked in the bed. They were quickly disposed of and the victims checked for any sign of life. They were still breathing, but one look at the damage done to their necks told JD that they were be
yond saving.

  With a signal, he told Jonathon and Katie to leave the room. The next bedroom was empty. Clothes littered the floor and books were strewn untidily across a desk, but there was no sign of life. Or death.

  The last vampire was found in the third bedroom, feeding on a young lady. She was struggling, trying to push the child off her neck. The creak of the door made the boy turn around and he appeared to be ten, twelve at the most.

  He snarled at the newcomers, blood dripping from his fangs onto the carpet, then launched himself at Katie’s throat. Katie was fast, raising her sword before the young vampire could reach her, but JD was quicker, slicing through his stomach as he came close to Katie. The vampire slumped, but before he could sink onto the ground, JD slashed again with his sword, neatly removing his head from his shoulders.

  JD sent Jonathon and Katie to check the rest of the upstairs while he went over to the victim. She was unconscious, but he could find a strong heartbeat and her breathing was deep and regular. She must have fainted. JD inspected her neck. There were two small puncture wounds, which were bleeding, but weren’t life threatening. The vampire must have been inexperienced to have not caused a deeper incision.

  Jonathon re-entered the room and told JD that the top floor was clear. Craig climbed the stairs and gave the same news for the ground floor. JD nodded, then told them to go downstairs and wait for Sanctuary 1 to arrive. He then sent Katie to search the house for any alcohol. She came back with a bottle of whiskey in one hand and half a bottle of vodka in the other.

  He took the vodka and poured a little over the unconscious young woman. This woke her up. She opened her eyes and screamed. “Drink this,” JD said and handed the whiskey bottle to her. She grabbed it and drank deeply. After what she had just been through, he could hardly blame her.

  When she paused to take a breath, he took the bottle from her, placed it on the bedside table, then put one hand over her mouth while the other held her nose, preventing her from breathing. As soon as her struggles stopped, he released her, smiling when she took a breath. She was unconscious, but not harmed.

  Hearing movement behind him, he looked up to see a middle aged man had entered the room. He recognised him as a member of Sanctuary 1, but couldn’t remember his name.

  “She does not need medical attention,” he told the newcomer. “When she wakes up, hopefully she’ll think she just had too much to drink. Even if she tells anyone the truth, they won’t believe her. She reeks of alcohol.”

  “It’s the best you can do for her,” the man said. “At least you managed to save her life. She’ll probably call the police when she comes round, seeing as all of her house mates will be missing and bloodstains will be found in the lounge and some of the bedrooms. Not much we can do about that I’m afraid.”

  JD nodded. “I’ll leave you to it.” He left the room, collected his team and headed back to the Sanctuary. Overall it had been a good hunt. Yes, four people had died, but one had been saved and six vampires were dead. It was better odds than they usually got.

  Is she ready?

  One Friday night, when Sarah arrived at the Sanctuary for her usual training session, she found the others were celebrating.

  “What’s the occasion?” she asked.

  “JD has flu,” Jonathon said. He was unable to keep the smile off his face.

  “Why is that a cause for celebration? Aren’t you supposed to be sympathetic?”

  Jonathon shook his head. “No training. While he’s out of action, we get some time to ourselves.”

  “So I came here for nothing?” Sarah said. “Someone could have let me know.”

  “No, you came here to have some fun. Katie’s grabbing the poker chips. We have a couple of hours before dinner. I hope you brought plenty of cash with you.”

  JD was too ill to make it out of bed for dinner, so Silvia said she would make him some soup later.

  “I feel sorry for whoever gets to deliver it,” Craig whispered to Sarah. “JD hates soup.”

  “Really,” she said thoughtfully. Then she volunteered.

  “Did you not hear what I just told you?” Craig asked.

  “Of course I did. But did you really think I would pass up the opportunity of torturing him for a change?”

  Sarah had a smile on her face as she walked into JD’s bedroom a short while later, a steaming cup in her hand. “I have a delicious cup of soup for you,” she said. “Now sit up so you can drink it.”

  “I don’t like soup.” He sounded so weak she almost felt sorry for him. Then she remembered his stunt with her mother.

  “I don’t care. You have to drink it. Silvia’s orders.”

  He managed to pull himself into a sitting position and she handed him the cup. “Now be a good boy and drink it all up.”

  He took a sip and winced as it hit his taste buds. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

  “Being able to boss you around for a change? Of course I am.” She paused for a moment, then said, “You’re going to make me pay for this when you’re better aren’t you?”

  He felt too ill to even think about it. “No.”

  She grinned at him. “Can you manage or do you need me to feed you?”

  “Don’t push your luck.”

  She was laughing as she left the room.

  Later that evening, Jonathon went to check on him and take him a hot drink.

  “Do you know what your little protégé is doing right now?” he asked as he sat on the edge of the bed.

  “My what?” There was no need to ask who he was talking about.

  “Well she is, isn’t she? I don’t recall you spending this much time with any of the rest of us.”

  “You didn’t need it. You started training before you could walk. So what is she doing?”

  “She’s training. She’s roped Craig into helping her out seeing as you’re out of action.”

  “It’s good to hear that one of my students takes training seriously.”

  “We all take it seriously. We know that if it wasn’t for you pushing us so hard we would probably all be dead by now. We just like to rebel against you whenever we can.”

  Jonathon stayed to keep him company for a while, until the alarm went off.

  Doc was waiting for them all by the front door when Craig got there. He was the last to arrive. They usually got a lecture from JD before going out on a hunt, so this time Doc took on the responsibility.

  “Be careful out there. Remember you don’t have JD watching your backs this time. Don’t take any unnecessary risks. He will personally dismember you if you get injured because of carelessness.”

  Sarah watched them leave, then wondered what to do with herself. She always worried about them when they were on a hunt. This time they didn’t have JD to look after them so she would worry all the more. She needed something to occupy her mind.

  She went to JD’s room and nervously knocked on the door. It was open, so she could have walked straight in, but it felt wrong doing so.

  He was lying in his bed, an open book beside him. “Hi” he said as she walked in. He tried to smile, but didn’t have the energy.

  “Do you mind if I stay here for a while?” she asked. “I hate being alone while the others are hunting.”

  “I can understand that,” he said and shifted over to make room for her beside him.

  She picked up his book and read the title. It was To Kill a Mockingbird. “I haven’t read this since high school. From what I remember it was quite good.”

  “I’m working my way through some of the classics, though why most of them are classed as such I have no idea. I’ve been trying to read it all evening, but I’m finding holding the book is too exhausting. And yes I do know how pathetic that sounds.”

  Sarah didn’t laugh at him. She could remember how bad she felt the last time she had the flu.

  “Then I have the perfect solution.” She stole one his pillows, propped herself up and began to read to him. After a while, his breathing became
deep and even. His eyes were closed and he looked calm and peaceful. She stopped reading and moved to get off the bed, but his voice stopped her.

  “I’m not asleep. Carry on reading.”

  She did as instructed until she heard the front door open. She marked the page, dropped the book on the bed then ran to her own room. There was no way she wanted to be caught in JD’s room; she would never hear the end of it.

  Jonathon went directly to JD to give him a report. Everything had gone well. Hunters from Sanctuary 5 had also turned up and the two teams worked well together.

  “Simon didn’t come back with us,” Jonathon said.

  “Why not?”

  “He’s knocking off Jane from 5.” JD was too tired to complain about his brother’s phrasing.

  “Rumour or fact.”

  “Fact.”

  “Why has he never brought her here?”

  “Oh that one is easy to answer. She’s scared of you.”

  “Keep me informed of the situation. If it becomes more serious we might need to consider getting her moved here.” While JD didn’t approve of members of the same fighting team getting involved, he would rather have Jane move in than Simon move out, should they decide to live together.

  “I will,” Jonathon said, then left his brother in peace.

  ————————————-∞————————————-

  A few weeks later, JD got the opportunity to broach the subject with Jane and Simon himself. Simon was out for the evening and everyone else was in the TV room watching a film when Sarah’s phone rang. She didn’t recognise the number so she stepped out of the room to take the call.

  “Don’t say my name until you are alone,” she heard Simon’s voice say.

  She ran up to her room and shut her door. “What’s up?”

  “I need a favour and I don’t want the others to know, so I thought it best to call you from Jane’s phone.”

  “Okay,” Sarah said, unsure where it was going.

  Simon then explained the situation. He and Jane had decided to go skinny-dipping in a local lake. Unfortunately, they had been followed by someone from Sanctuary 5, who decided to steal their clothes. Thankfully they had been left their towels, phones and car keys, but there was no way they wanted to turn up at either Sanctuary wearing just towels. Sarah could understand why. Simon asked her if she could bring him some spare clothes and lend some of hers to Jane. They were about the same size.