by Heather Karn
Lee floundered for a response. He’d never been good at pop quizzes or tests, which was why I’d worried about him during the Interview. Either his fighting skills had been impressive or he’d finally had a good test day.
“Hurry up,” Raven barked. “Tell me what you know.”
“I’m sorry. I’m trying.”
Jackson chuckled from the last row of seats. “Need to phone a friend?”
Raven turned on me. “Koda.”
“Lee, we read about them in the ‘Creatures: Myths and Truths’ book this year. Fifth chapter. Page one hundred twenty-three. It was the right side of the page. It had a picture and everything.”
“Dude, Koda, I don’t have your memory. That means nothing to me,” Lee grumbled.
“Then I can’t help you. Oh wait, it was the thing Oz called a goopy mess.”
Lee smacked his forehead. “That’s right. Okay, ghouls natural forms aren’t really humanoid, but they look like some sort of swamp monster. They tend to hang around graveyards, eating the dead. However, when a ghoul becomes exceptionally hungry, or bored, they go after the living, and they always take on the appearance of the last person they ate or killed.”
“How do you kill it?” Raven asked Lee, though he stared at me. I could feel his eyes boring into my flesh while I tried to concentrate on the instructions the GPS gave me.
“Umm, the best way is to take its head off. Otherwise burning it is good, but it doesn’t always work. If that’s the case, though, why does Avery have a crossbow?”
Lee’s trainer chuckled. “A strike to the heart will sometimes slow them down. If it makes a run for it before we can catch it, an arrow to any portion of its body will do the trick so we can catch up without difficulty. So, boss, how’d you hear about this ghoul?”
“Luella called me. She saw it while on her date, but she wasn’t in a position to handle it on her own. Plus, somehow, she lost it. She’s searching for it as we speak, and we’re going in as backup to help her. I’d call in the local authorities, but most aren’t prepared to handle a ghoul, and since they’d likely call us in anyway, I thought I’d save us from having a larger headache than we do now and get a head start.”
“Gotcha.”
Shannon sat in the back with Jackson. She leaned forward so that her head was even between Avery and Lee. “How’re we doing this, then?”
Raven turned forward, watching out the windshield. We were almost to our destination so I was surprised when he directed me into a gas station parking lot. He had me park near the road so that the pumps were between us and the building.
When we were parked, he released his seatbelt and turned to Shannon. “Luella spotted the ghoul in an alley on her way to that club she likes, the Pearl Palace. We’re a few blocks from the club. If the ghoul’s still in the area, it’ll be close. Avery and I will head to the west. Shannon and Jackson will go east. Luella is already circling the area searching for its kills or dead meals. She’s also texted me a picture of its last victim, which I’ve sent to you so you can recognize it if you see the man.”
“What about us?” I asked Raven, not missing that he hadn’t assigned Lee and I a job.
He arched an eyebrow at me. “This is your first night as a trainee. You’ll stay in the car. If we need you, we’ll call you. You have your cell phones, correct?”
I patted my pocket where mine was tucked away and Lee held his up. After a quick phone number exchange, Raven tapped a note into his phone.
“We’re going to need to get you two Elite cell phones, uniforms, and training credentials. That’s another reason why you aren’t coming tonight.” He pinned me with a hard stare. “If you see something out of the ordinary, do not engage. Call or text me. If the ghoul leaves the area, do not follow it. Watch where it goes and contact me. And above all, do not leave this car. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, Captain,” I murmured, unable to hide the disappointment churning within me from my voice. Raven ignored it.
“Good. Now, the rest of us, move out.”
The group of Elite exited the SUV, heading in two different directions. Within a minute, they’d all blended into the darkness that waited outside the glow of the gas station. I’d never seen any of them fight, but knowing they were gone, and it was just me and Lee alone together, apprehension crawled up my spine.
“Well, if we’re spending the unforeseeable near future alone together, then I’m joining you in the front,” Lee announced before he stood and crawled from his seat to Raven’s empty one. “I can also see this becoming boring.”
“Says the man who knows how to fight,” I murmured, keeping my eyes peeled. “At least Raven had us park in a lit area.”
“Why? Light doesn’t affect where a ghoul will and won’t go.”
“No, but I can see.”
He shrugged. “That’s true.” Lee was silent for a few minutes as we kept watch for anything suspicious. “So, you’re a vamlure, huh?”
That was so not a discussion I wanted to have with my brother at the moment, but it appeared we’d be discussing it whether I wanted to or not. I was a captive audience. Or rather, we were trapped together in the car, and I knew my brother. He wouldn’t drop the subject until we’d thoroughly discussed it.
“I didn’t know, I swear.”
He nodded. “That’s what you said at dinner, and I believe you. It also doesn’t change how I feel about you. It was quite the shock, and it will be for Mom and Dad. Who knew that the woman they adopted you from wasn’t even human? That’s crazy.”
“Raven thinks she could’ve been human and my dad was the oddball. But now I wonder under what circumstances she died,” I mumbled, my brain fighting to pay attention to the present. “And I want to know who my father is. Maybe that has something to do with how she died.”
“Maybe. When we get the chance to talk to Mom and Dad, we’ll have to ask. I don’t know much about vamlures, though. Want to tell me anything?”
I shrugged, peering over at him. “There’s not much to tell, yet. I still don’t know all there is to know about what I am. Raven says he’ll teach me. Apparently I haven’t finished maturing yet, and for me to do that, I have to drink blood. Then I can be all super killer like Raven.”
Lee grimaced. “That’s right. Vamlures are similar to vampires. You have to drink blood to fully change into one.”
“I’m nothing like a vampire,” I growled, and Lee held up his hands as if surrendering.
“Easy, Koda. I didn’t mean anything by that. I just meant that you drink blood just like they do. Where are you going?”
He stared as I unbuckled my seatbelt and reached for the door handle, passing the car keys to him. “I have to pee. There wasn’t time before we left, and I didn’t think about going then. I’m just going to go inside the gas station and come back out. I’ll be five minutes.”
“You heard Raven. We aren’t supposed to leave the car.”
I gave Lee a stern stare. “You want me to wet myself while we wait? It could be hours, and it’s not like I’m going inside to look for trouble. I’m looking for a bathroom.”
“Well, you’d better hurry,” he murmured. “Because I guarantee the moment you step into that bathroom, Raven’s going to call and need us or show up and you aren’t here.”
I crawled out of the SUV. “Knock on wood because if you jinx me, I’m going to kick your butt. I’ll be right back.”
Slamming the door on whatever comment Lee was going to make, I crossed the parking lot, staying on alert for trouble. Nothing charged at me from the shadows, but every little sound caught my attention, even the pulsing of the overhead lights as I passed through the gas pumps. When I reached the building, I released a breath I hadn’t known I was holding.
The place was immaculate for a gas station. The floors were so clean they shined, and I stared down, almost able to see my reflection. Even the junk food and other oddities inside were neatly stacked where they belonged. A thin, dark skinned man wiped down the co
unter as I searched for the bathroom. The gold ring in his nose reminded me of the ones I’d seen in pictures of bulls in our history books. I’d never understood that look, but he could’ve been a bull shifter. They were rare, but they existed. That didn’t explain his need for hygiene. Bull shifters weren’t exactly known for their cleanliness.
The cashier’s eyes met mine and I called a hello before making a beeline toward the back of the building where a sign announced the restroom’s location. He responded with his own greeting before going back to cleaning. Without a doubt, the bathroom would be spotless, and when I stepped inside, I was rewarded for my assumption. If I was going to break Raven’s rule about leaving the SUV, I’d enjoy the experience of a germ-free bathroom.
A few minutes later, I exited the bathroom and headed toward the exit. The night clerk was no longer behind the counter, but was mopping the floors near the bathrooms. Since the floors were also spotless, I blamed his need to mop on him being a germaphobe. Waving goodnight, I turned my back on him and headed toward the door.
I was a step away from the exit when my feet stopped. My heart leapt to my throat and my stomach sunk as my fingers twitched. They readied to grab the knife at my thigh when a whisper of movement behind me alerted me to the man’s location. Breathing in deep, I caught Lee’s eyes as he stared at me from the SUV, his eyes narrow and questioning.
Too bad I was too far away to explain to him that the man outside the bathroom wasn’t wearing the nose ring, and my nose had picked up the foreign scent of blood that was hidden under the smell of the cleaning chemicals.
Chapter 7
My hand gripped the hilt of the knife at my thigh and pulled it loose as I turned to face the clerk who had moved closer so that he stood no less than five feet away from me. He took a look at my shaking dagger and grinned, eyes flashing a sickening yellow before returning to the deep brown of the deceased clerk. Why did my trembling have to give my fear away?
What Lee hadn’t told Raven during his interrogation about ghouls earlier in the car was that ghouls moved much quicker than humanity had previously thought. With the ghoul so close, I’d never be able to open the door and run out before it killed me, even though I stood right in front of the door. If I could fight it off enough to injure it, I had a chance to make a run for it. If it didn’t kill me first.
The door rattled, and I whipped around to find Lee on the other side, yanking on the handle with all the strength he possessed, but to no avail. It was locked, and my brother wasn’t strong enough to rip it open. Heck, neither was I. Lee looked up from the door with a forlorn expression that turned to panic the next second as his eyes widened.
I’d been stupid. In fact, I was an idiot, and if this creature killed me, I deserved it. Turning to face the ghoul, who I never should have taken my eyes off, I didn’t have time to duck or dodge the mop handle flying at my face. It hit with a solid crack against my skull. Stars exploded in my vision, and I stumbled backward from the blow as my brain fought to focus. When the ghoul’s human hand wrapped around my arm, my brain instantly cleared, and my eyes met his.
The knife was still steady in my grip. Somehow I’d managed to keep hold of it when the mop handle had hit me. With all the speed I could muster, I aimed a strike at the man’s wrist. A howl pierced the air as the blade sunk deep into the ghoul’s faux human flesh, and dark, green blood spewed from the wound. It wasn’t enough to cause serious damage to his body, but it did force him to release me.
I stumbled back until I collided with the door and had nowhere else to go in that direction. A knock on the other side threatened to steal my attention from the already recovered ghoul. I refused to fall for that distraction again. Lee’s faint voice yelled through the glass to me.
“I called Avery. He’s on his way.”
Yeah, a lot of good that would do. I’d likely be dead before backup arrived. Between me and Lee, it had to be me stuck inside the gas station with the ghoul, and of course the ghoul had to stop for a meal at this particular gas station. It was just my luck, or lack thereof.
Another grin split the ghoul’s lips to show off teeth way too sharp to belong to a human. Swallowing hard, I readjusted my grip on the knife, ready for the ghoul’s next advance. But nothing prepared me for it.
He moved faster than any creature I’d ever seen. I barely whipped my head out of the way before his fist connected with the glass door where my face had been. The glass spiderwebbed but didn’t shatter. I didn’t take time to aim, but shoved the knife toward the ghoul. It hit its mark. The ghoul cried out again, and this time while it was distracted with pain, I ducked around it, racing for the other side of the building. If I could keep it distracted long enough for Avery and Raven to arrive, I could survive this.
That plan lasted as long as it took the ghoul to throw the mop at me again, this time at my legs. They tangled up in the handle, and I slipped on the wet, slick floor. I landed wrong and one of my wrists gave out, forcing a cry to escape me. Before I could regain my footing and run again, the creature grabbed my ponytail and hauled me to my feet in one swift move that left tears burning my eyes from the sting of my scalp.
The ghoul’s gaping jaws grew wider and he lunged, closing the few inches separating our faces. In a last-ditch act of desperation and stupidity, I raised my hand between us to stop him. It did, but instead of closing those teeth around my throat or face, they sliced through the skin and muscle of my hand, and the powerful force of his jaw threatened to crush the bones.
Pain had my vision fading to black, but I refused to go out like this. My free hand gripped the hilt of the long blade attached to my other thigh and freed the knife from the sheath. This time, I took careful aim and swung at his neck. Blood sprayed from the open wound. The creature’s mouth released my hand to cry out as it raced to stop the bleeding. Loss of blood wouldn’t kill the ghoul, but it would weaken it enough for me to end the creature. The head was still attached to the body, which meant it could heal in a matter of minutes. My only chance at survival was to take the head off, and until the job was done, I refused to think about what that meant.
With the ghoul distracted, I kicked its human legs out from under it so that he landed in the same puddle of water I had seconds earlier. A thud against the door threatened again to pull my attention away from the creature, but I wouldn’t be distracted, even when a second thump followed the first. Brandishing the knife like I never had any weapon before, I crouched beside the ghoul and tried to find an opening to its throat. With the creature’s hands still covering the wound, there wasn’t a clear place to slash.
Grabbing a boot knife, I planted the blade in the top of the ghoul’s head. It shrieked, and both hands raced to pull the knife out of its skull, leaving just the opening I needed to finish the job. With the long blade in hand, I hacked at the gaping slit in its throat, which was already healing. The ghoul’s attention was back on me, leaving the knife in its head as it tried to grip my hand fisted around the blade slicing at him. There was so much blood his hands slipped over mine. Even the knife handle was becoming hard to grip.
It didn’t matter. I didn’t give up, and with a final, well-placed strike, I severed the last bits of flesh between head and body, separating the two. A weak cry escaped me when the ghoul’s limbs thumped against the floor and it quit moving, but I shrieked when the glass of both doors and all of the windows imploded into the gas station. None of the shards hit me. They flew around me, like I was surrounded by some invisible shield.
In a matter of seconds, a raging bellow filled the air and I was hauled off the ground. Strong arms held me against a solid chest as I was carried several feet away before being set down on my knees since my legs wouldn’t hold me. It took long seconds to recognize the face of the man who was forcing me to look at him. When I saw the rage in Raven’s eyes, I didn’t know whether to curl up in a ball or run from the room. If I could have, my flight or fight instincts would likely have had me running.
He shook me as his mouth m
oved again, and this time I registered his words. “Did it hurt you?”
“I…it…yeah,” I squeaked.
Instead of holding up my hand to show him the wound, I turned to the gas station’s entrance to find Shannon standing in the empty doorway, her short body tense as she focused on the scene before her. Avery knelt over the gruesome sight of the dead ghoul, still in human form, blood pooling around him and the headless body. Raven forced me to look at him again, and there wasn’t time to warn him before I puked all over both of us. Another wave fought its way up my throat, but this time I emptied the contents of my stomach onto the pristine floor as he carried me, racing toward the back of the building. By the time Raven deposited me before the overly clean toilet in the women’s bathroom, I was heaving uncontrollably. Raven held me so that I wouldn’t collapse on the tile floor in my weakened state since I could barely grip the toilet to stay upright. Tears boiled over, sending hot waves down my cheeks to drip from my chin after I finally stopped retching.
“I’m so…so sorry,” I stuttered, trying to stand when the last of the vile filth left my body in the most humiliating manner possible. The wreak of bile and whatever else was in my stomach permeated the room, and our clothing from my first explosion. My breath hitched, and a fresh wave of tears sprang from my eyes.
“Luella,” Raven called, his voice an odd mixture between cold rage and gentle compassion. The blonde woman who had called in the ghoul sighting appeared in the bathroom doorway wearing a short, thin strapped dress with the tallest heels I’d ever seen. When she opened her mouth to talk to Raven, she threw a hand over her mouth and nose and stepped outside to take a breath of clean air without gagging.
When Luella returned, she twisted the faucet handle, allowing a stream of water to fall from the tap and swirl down the drain. With a twist of her hand, the water flowing out changed direction to float mid-air, completely under the control of Luella’s will. When the Naiad had sufficient water for her needs, she cut off the stream of water so that it flowed down the drain once again. With awe, I watched as the large water bubble she’d created cut itself into thin strips, which attacked us with gentle ferocity.