by Howe, A. E.
“Subcultures?”
“You might call them cults. There were strange idols that they worshiped. The descriptions in the letter that was sent to my university in Hong Kong were reminiscent of items I uncovered in the mountains near Tibet. The department head recognized the relationship and forwarded the letter to me.” He spread his arms. “As you see, I am here.”
“Who do you think killed Brock?” Josephine asked.
“Maybe he died by accident like the sheriff said.”
“Unlikely.” Josephine shook her head.
“Yes, you are probably right. I don’t know, and I don’t really care. I am concerned for my life since obtaining the secrets in your letter, but I don’t have any thoughts about pursuing justice for Mr. Brock. During the short time that I got to know him, I never got the impression that he cared anything for me,” Zhao said bluntly.
“But you are here answering our questions.”
“I am a man of honor. We made a deal.”
They let Zhao go.
“We didn’t learn much,” Josephine said, frowning.
“Perhaps. But I believe that one of them is responsible for Brock’s death.”
“Several of them are here under somewhat odd circumstances—stealing letters or running off with what should be someone else’s job.”
“Hardly motives for murder.”
“No. I think we know what the motive is. The pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. What we have is a whole group of people who are willing to be deceptive and who want, or even need, to find those artifacts.”
“True. The trouble with the two murders is that the whole means, motive and opportunity method is useless. They all have the means and opportunity. On top of that, they all have the same motive. Gold.”
“So how do we catch a killer if we can’t use the usual investigative methods?”
Blasko looked thoughtful for a few minutes, then took Josephine’s hands in his. “Don’t go to the island with them tomorrow.”
“You don’t have to worry. I won’t leave you unprotected again.”
“I’m not worried about myself. But when they return to the island, I want to go. We need to talk them into waiting until tomorrow evening.”
“That’s going to be a hard sell.”
“They’re tired. The heat will be miserable during the day.”
“Only Neith looked like she escaped getting sunburned,” Josephine agreed. “Why do you want to go?”
“I have a plan… or at least the beginnings of a plan. But I’ll need to be there.”
“Maybe they’ll go for it. Like you said, they were all looking pretty bushed.”
“How did they get out to the island today? Which boat did they take?”
“I think they used the one Donavan rented. Remember, he offered to take me for a ride in it,” Josephine said and watched a small flash of red appear in Blasko’s green eyes. She found it very satisfying after his performance with Neith.
“Do you know which one it is?”
“Maybe. I watched them load up and leave this morning.”
“Point it out to me and I’ll try to buy us a little insurance in case we can’t persuade them to go along with our plan.”
“What’s your plan?”
“Not now.” He stood and pulled her up with him. “Walk out on the balcony with me.”
The moon was almost directly overhead and shone enough light on the town for even Josephine to be able to see the boats at the dock.
“It’s the boat on the far left with the stripe down the side,” Josephine said, pointing. “Do you know anything about boats?”
“Not a thing. However, having owned a car for more than six months, I’ve learned that it doesn’t take much for an engine to fail.”
Josephine chuckled. “Well, don’t do anything that will leave them stuck out in the Gulf, and remember that whatever you do has to be fixed by dusk, otherwise none of us will be going out to the island.”
“Yes, you’re right,” Blasko said in a way that suggested he clearly hadn’t thought it all through.
“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?” Josephine asked doubtfully.
“Of course. Let’s go try to talk them into going tomorrow evening.”
Blasko rapped on Captain Hume’s door, which was opened by an unhappy-looking Donavan. Inside there were blankets and bedrolls spread around the floor, while the treasure hunters sat sprawled here and there, sipping various cocktails.
“Care to join us? We’re all hoping that we can drink enough to get a sound night’s sleep,” Hume said with a tired smile.
“I’m not drinking so much that one of you all can slip out without me noticing,” Donavan groused.
“I would very much like to go out to the island with you tomorrow,” Blasko told them. “However, as you know I have a rather severe allergy to sunlight. It would be most convenient if you could wait until dusk to leave for the island.”
For a moment everyone just stared at Blasko, their faces stunned.
“Are you out of your ever lovin’ mind?” Donavan broke the silence.
“Actually, if you think about it, you might do better if you avoided the heat of the day,” Josephine argued.
“I can see not leaving until the afternoon,” Jamila said.
“Yeah, but not dusk. We don’t have enough lanterns or flashlights. ’Sides, you can’t get the big picture at night,” Donavan said.
“I agree with Mr. Donavan. Darkness would hamper our efforts,” Neith said.
“Not that we had much luck today,” Hume admitted.
“You were all mighty sunburned,” Josephine pointed out.
“We’ll leave at three. I’m sorry, Baron, but we can’t wait until dusk,” Donavan said, taking on the air of leadership, if not the actual authority.
There was a little more back and forth, but the decision had been made.
Back on the balcony, Blasko looked at Josephine and said, “Plan B it is.”
Josephine embraced him, then remembered his wound. She touched the spot on his chest gently and asked, “Are you well enough to go out tonight?”
“I’m fine. I’m more concerned for you. You might have been hurt, or worse, this afternoon. When Anton comes back, let him do his job.”
“I shouldn’t have brought us here.”
“There is a purpose to it all. We just don’t always see it.” He pulled away from her. “I’m going to see Carter.”
“Do you think there’s anything that can be done to help him?”
“I honestly don’t know.”
He leaned down to kiss her, then swung his leg over the balcony railing.
“You do know that the hotel has a door?” she reminded him.
Blasko just waved and climbed down the side of the building with an unnatural grace.
Chapter Twenty-One
Blasko rapped on the door of the cabin and was surprised when it was opened by a sober Carter. The bag was still on his arm.
“You’re back?”
“Josephine said she’d seen you.”
“Thanks for letting her know that I’m turning into a human octopus.” Carter’s words dripped with sarcasm.
“I thought someone should check on you. But since we’re talking about Josephine, we still haven’t addressed the matter of that book you sent to her.” Blasko stepped in close to Carter and shut the door behind him. His attitude was menacing.
“Josephine needs to know what you are.”
“She has always known.”
“She knows what you told her. I’m not sure you fully understand your own situation.”
“You mean to tell me that there is something about vampirism I don’t already know. Me? I’ve lived with this for hundreds of years, yet you are going to educate me?” Blasko said with derision.
“You can learn a few things from books,” Carter said, backing away from him.
“I agree. But books are written by men, and men lie for their own purposes. Yo
u think you can tell the difference between a printed truth and a lie?”
“I know a—” Carter was about to say that he knew a monster when he saw one. Instead, he reached with his good hand and felt the hideous thing that lurked inside the bag. “Maybe I’ve been a bit… judgmental in the past.”
Blasko advanced on Carter again. “Don’t get between Josephine and me. You are her cousin, and maybe you even mean to be her friend. But if you want to be our friend, you had best respect who we both are. Is that clear?”
“I suppose I can see your side.” Carter’s bag of tentacles grew even more agitated. He tried to restrain them with his other hand. “I have my own monster to deal with.”
The hopelessness in his voice reached through Blasko’s anger and the vampire relaxed. “I have a plan for catching a murderer and you’re a big part of it,” he told Carter. “Once that’s done, I give you my word I will do everything I can to help you save yourself from that thing.”
“Including looking into the Necronomicon and any other grimoires that we may find?”
“Yes. But you will have to do what I tell you.”
“Do I have any other options?”
Blasko spent the next hour going over his plan with a reluctant Carter. Shortly after midnight, they had settled all the details to their mutual satisfaction.
“There’s one other part of the plan that I need your assistance with,” Blasko said.
“What?”
“We need to sabotage the boat that the treasure hunters are using so they can’t go out until dark.”
“I don’t know much about diesel engines.”
“You know more than I do. We will wait until the moon sets. The docks will be shrouded in darkness. With my eyesight, I can see to work on it, but I’ll need you there to offer advice.” Blasko had a hard time admitting that he ever needed help with anything, but he couldn’t convince himself that he had the slightest clue how to disable an engine.
“We’ll need some tools,” Carter said.
Blasko realized that he hadn’t thought even that far ahead, and patted himself on the back for thinking to ask for Carter’s help.
“There is a box under the sink in your kitchen. That’s where I found the… ah… instrument to conduct your surgery. I’ll meet you back here when the moon sets.”
“Where are you going now?”
“To stir the pot a little,” Blasko said with a grin that would cast a chill on any man’s heart.
“I don’t think—” Carter started, but stopped when Blasko raised his hand.
“Trust me.”
His tone left Carter with no doubt whatsoever that what Blasko had in mind was dangerous and stupid. However, Blasko’s stern expression convinced him that there was nothing he could say to stop the vampire from whatever reckless enterprise he had in mind.
Back outside, Blasko headed with a determined step toward The Dragon. The “R” on the sign was still burned out and Blasko remembered the shrine to a god named Dagon that he’d seen on the boat last night. He doubted that it was a coincidence.
Several of the odd locals were standing around outside the bar. Startled, they stopped talking when Blasko approached. He ignored them, not breaking his stride as he stepped onto the curb and up the coquina stone steps into the bar.
There were half a dozen customers inside. The bartender was a bald man who towered over the cypress bar. He looked up and almost dropped the glass he was polishing when he saw Blasko. There was an odd green glow to the lighting in the bar, but the corners were dark enough to hide the features of the men seated in the booths.
“What do you want?” the bartender managed to say after recovering from his shock.
“A drink. Isn’t that your raison d’être?”
“What the hell are you talking about? I want you out of here.” The angry man reached for something hidden under the bar. With lightening speed, Blasko moved to the counter and reached over, clasping the bartender’s hand in an iron grip.
“Leave your hands where I can see them,” Blasko ordered. He could sense movement behind him. “And if I feel so much as a finger touch me, I will separate your arm from your body. Tell them to go back to their seats. I am only here for a glass of wine and a friendly chat.”
“Back away from him,” the bartender said, trying not to cry out from the crushing pain as Blasko tightened his grip. “No one’s going to talk to you, mister.”
“Then it’s going to be a lopsided conversation.” Blasko released the bartender’s arm as he heard the men behind him return to their booths.
“I was involved in a fight down at the docks last night. I won’t argue about why, but both parties came away with some nasty wounds. Maybe I was at fault.” Blasko shrugged and looked around the room at the men lurking in the shadows. “Either way, the man’s sons tried to exact revenge on me this afternoon. Fair enough. But a woman that I care for very much was also in the room. If she’d been hurt, then we would not be talking. As it is, I say that we’re even. Any man who doesn’t feel that way needs only to send a message up to the hotel with a date and time at night for us to meet. Is that understood?”
There was a thick silence in the room. Blasko heard a small scuffle as a young man hidden in the darkness started to move, but the man sitting with him put up a restraining hand.
“Mister, I think you’re out of your depth,” the bartender said, rubbing his arm.
“Give me a decent red wine.”
“We got ale.”
“That will do.” The drink would do nothing for Blasko except to wet his throat, but he knew that standing at the bar and drinking the ale would punctuate the message he wanted to send.
With an ill will, the bartender poured Blasko an ale.
“One more thing. This was the second time that my lady has been involved in an altercation with a man from this island. If there is a third time, I will not worry about who gets hurt. I will storm through this town until there is not an able-bodied man left to stand at this bar.”
“Bold words,” said a man in the back of the room.
With a speed and accuracy that stunned everyone, Blasko hurled the glass he was holding at the darkness and hit the man square in the forehead, sending him backward against the wall, squealing in pain.
Again the bartender made a move for whatever weapon he kept below the counter, but as soon as he saw Blasko spin toward him, he fell back against the wall with his hands up. Blasko turned back toward the others as he heard movement from that direction, freezing the men in their advance. They shrank away as he faced them. Their malformed, fishlike faces gave Blasko a moment’s hesitation, but he held his ground. Even in the darkness, he could tell that these men were the very young and the very old ones of the island.
“You better not be here when the fishermen come in,” the bartender hissed.
“Tell them what I said.” Blasko pulled a gold coin from his coat pocket and tossed it onto the bar before doing his best to saunter out. The men who’d been watching from the door scuttled away from him.
With one ear trained behind him, Blasko walked away to wait in the darkness until it was time to return to Carter’s place. The energy he had expended had left him tired, and the wound in his chest was aching. It hadn’t healed as quickly as he’d led Josephine to believe.
Finding a spot where he could watch part of the town without being observed, Blasko settled down by an old live oak tree to rest. He observed a few figures moving about, including several near The Dragon. He could imagine the conversations among the locals and the consternation that would result. Would they come after him? Or would they decide that the cost of a confrontation wasn’t worth the price?
He and the town were both experiencing the classic dilemma of the predator—what price are you willing to pay to protect your territory? For Blasko, the territory in question was his and Josephine’s lives, and there was no price too high. For the strange villagers, the question would be: what was the cost of ignoring him com
pared to the cost of confronting him? Blasko’s objective at the bar had been to convince them that he was capable of inflicting a high price for any further attacks on him or Josephine.
Blasko wished that the blood of the locals wasn’t tainted with whatever poison had mutated them into fishlike creatures that had to hide in the dark. If he could draw strength from them, he’d be in a much better position to protect Josephine. As it was, one show of strength had forced him to rest, and he knew that he couldn’t admit his weakness to Josephine. She would insist that he feed from her again, and too much of that would not be prudent.
Watching the docks, Blasko became confident that he and Carter could get down there and do what they needed to do without being detected. Eventually he pushed himself up from the ground and started back toward the rented cottage.
“I’ve got the tools,” Blasko said, retrieving the metal box from underneath Carter’s kitchen sink.
Carter looked nervous and his bagged tentacles undulated erratically. “How am I going to see anything in the dark?” He swatted at his mutated arm and added, “The changes go halfway past my elbow now.”
“We’ll get it fixed…” Blasko said, not able to keep the doubt out of his voice. “Somehow. And don’t worry about seeing. I’ll just ask you questions about what I see. Any attempt on our part to use a lantern or a flashlight would be seen from a thousand yards away in the dark.”
“You don’t know a thing about engines and you’re going to describe the parts to me, and I don’t know much more than you. This should work great.”
“Don’t worry so much.” Blasko said, reaching out and grabbing Carter’s arm to push him out the door. When he realized that he’d touched the mutated arm, he jerked his hand back reflexively. “Sorry.”
“It creeps me out too,” Carter said, following Blasko into the street.
The vampire guided Carter through the dark streets and down to the docks. As they got closer to the water, Blasko noticed that Carter was jerking about oddly.
“What’s wrong?” he whispered.
“The damned tentacles are flailing about. I don’t know what the hell’s going on,” a frustrated Carter hissed back. Blasko saw that he was trying to control the mutated arm and not having much luck. “It’s like the damned thing is getting excited.”