“No. You’re still as radiant as ever. Trust me. I’m not sure how I ended up like this, because I’ve done everything I can to resist it.” He groaned. His face twitched. The muscles in his arms flexed. “This power coursing through my veins is hard to fight. It clouds my mind. Sid, if you lose me, you have to put me down.”
“You’re not an animal.”
“No, not yet, but I don’t want to lose my soul over this. There’s a war inside me. I’m trying not to embrace what I have. That’s why my blood runs so hot.”
Sid pulled herself up to her knees. “You’re going to beat this. We’re going to beat this. Think of all the evil Kane has done. Use your power and turn it against him. If anyone can do it, you can. I know it.”
“I should be able to do anything, now that I have wings,” he said, flapping a membrane of skin that was attached between his elbow and lower back. “But I can’t fly too well. I more or less glide. I guess I’m a werebat. I guess that’s what I get for having a powerful imagination.”
Clutching the fur on his chest, she said, “You do wonderful things with your imagination. You’ve certainly never disappointed me, so don’t disappoint me now.” Wincing, she stood up. “Now let’s do what we have to do. Let’s find Kane and bury his ass.”
“So be it.” Smoke walked over to Cyrus and wrapped his long, clawed fingers around his neck. “You tried to kill my wife. You owe me.” He squeezed. Cyrus’s eyes bulged. “Contact Kane. Tell him the deed’s done.”
Choking, Cyrus managed to say, “You won’t kill me.”
With one arm, Smoke lifted Cyrus off the ground with ease. “Don’t be so sure.”
“Phone. Phone is in my pocket. But he usually calls me. It’ll ring between now and morning.”
Smoke set Cyrus down. He patted him down until he found the phone. The phone seemed really small in his hand. He tossed it to Guppy. “See what you can do with this.”
Rubbing his neck, Cyrus said, “I’m telling you, Smoke, Kane’s not going to lose. You can’t beat him. He’s a thousand years old! Maybe older. They win. They always win. They control everything. You’ve got to see that.”
“Somebody get me some duct tape so I can silence this man,” Calhoun said.
Asia pulled a roll of medical tape from her first aid kit. “This will do.” She started to unstring the tape.
Cyrus’s phone rang.
“Unknown Caller,” Guppy said.
“That’s him. He’s the only caller my phone doesn’t ID.”
“Don’t do anything stupid,” Sid said to Cyrus as Guppy handed the agent the phone. “You’ve done enough stupid today. Put it on speaker.”
Crowded by everyone, Cyrus answered the phone. “Hello.”
Kane’s voice responded. “Is the deed complete, Agent Tweel?”
“Yes. She’s dead. I’m working on disposing of the body as we speak.”
“Interesting. I’m sure that was very difficult, seeing how she was a former lover of yours,” Kane said.
Calhoun’s eyes turned big and white. He started to mutter something, but Asia covered his mouth.
“Now that you’ve finished your task, come down to the plant. There’s a full moon tonight. It’s the perfect time to run you through the process. As a matter of fact, why don’t you bring the body with you?”
“I, uh—”
“Just stuff her in the trunk if you haven’t dropped her in a river already. Yes, bring her back here. She’ll make a beautiful deader. Besides, I promised Allison some new company.”
“Yes, sir. I’m on my way.”
CHAPTER 40
Moving present company to a more discreet location under a bridge, Smoke told everyone what he knew about the Drake Energy power plant. He had a jump drive that he handed over to Guppy, who sat in his truck with a computer on his lap. His sausage fingers were working the keys.
“I don’t expect anyone to go in with me, but it’s all or nothing.” Smoke snapped a gun belt around his waist. Two pistols were holstered on the sides. “We aren’t going to get another shot at Kane. He’s the main mark. We have to kill him, but it won’t be easy. The plant has security everywhere, not to mention deaders and shifters coming in and out. We’re going to need all the ammo we can get. Mal, what do we have?”
“I’ve got a lot of everything: bullets, suits, vitamins. I’ve been storing up for this special occasion.” Mal slid open the door of his minivan. He took out a metal suitcase and set it on the ground. “Who wants one?”
Russ Davenport held his hands up. “As much as I’d like to think I’m brave enough to go in, well, that’s not happening. I’m not much of a lover or a fighter, but I’m more than happy to lend my brain.”
Asia grabbed a suitcase. Mal’s eyes widened when she said, “Let’s wipe them out so I can get back to routine dining.”
Everyone grabbed a suitcase. Cyrus was laughing. Calhoun socked him in the head.
“So, Smoke…” Guppy was looking at Smoke as he talked but obviously wasn’t sure what to make of him. “Are we going in by land or by sea?”
“It’ll be too slow to go in on the Potomac. No, I have another idea.” Smoke strapped on a smart watch-type device that Mal handed him. He cringed as he stuck in an earpiece. His enlarged ears must have magnified his hearing ten times. “Just don’t speak too loud into this. As for entering the plant, I might be going in by air. On my signal, we’re going to drive a wedge right in there.”
Sid had a suitcase. He opened it up and began gearing up with sharp weapons and guns. He pulled her aside. Her face was pale, and her heart beat fast. Too fast. “Sid, I’m not going to try and stop you, but, well, you know I’d rather go it alone.”
Loading special-tipped bullets into her magazine, she said, “Yeah, well, I don’t plan on raising our son without his father, either. I’ve got to pull Allison and Megan’s hind ends out of the fire too.”
“This is going to be our little Armageddon, isn’t it?”
“This is what heroes do.”
Smoke leaned in for a kiss and then remembered his hideous form and pulled back.
Sid eased her fingers behind his neck and slowly reeled him in. “You’re mine for better or worse,” she said just before she kissed him.
He responded in kind. When they broke it off, he said, “You’re excellent.”
“And I’ll never let you forget it.”
EPILOGUE
In the control center of the Drake Energy plant, Kane and Allison stood side by side, staring at the huge monitor in front of them. The only other people there were two analysts, Rich and Sherry. Both of them were slouched over their stations, unmoving and quiet, as if they were frozen. On the giant screen was a satellite image zooming in on the streets of DC. Cars were pulling out of the parking lot behind a building.
“Do you think he really killed her?” Allison asked Kane.
“I don’t know. The satellites don’t pick up images so well at night. But that’s okay. I’m pretty sure they’ll be coming here. On the one hand, Smoke will want to avenge his love. On the other, if she lives, it won’t be for long. But he’ll be coming. The bat is flying right into my trap. Sherry, bring up the shifter tracking screen.”
Sherry typed. A new screen popped up.
“Pan back,” Kane said. “My shifters are so stupid. I have all the new ones tagged like cattle.” On the screen were tiny blue dots lit up in a variety of places. There were names and locations that tagged the dots.
Allison stepped forward for a closer look. “That one says John Smoke.” She pointed at the bridge Smoke and Sid were currently under. “You’ve been able to track him the entire time and you didn’t tell me?”
“As a matter of fact, he’s been right under our noses. He was Mack Black. I knew it.”
“Why didn’t you take him out?” Her eyes flashed with anger. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You’re new to all this. Besides, I like surprises. This is what we do, Allison. For fun. But after tonight, the
game is over, and we’ll have to find new mice for the mousetrap.” He texted a message. “I’m not going to take any chances this time. I’m summoning all the shifters to the lair. When that pathetic band of mortals shows up, we’re going to watch them be wiped out one by one.”
The door to the operations center opened. Frank from Vegas filled the doorway. He wore a grey suit, a white shirt, and no tie. He stepped under the door frame and said, “Hello, Kane. You summoned me?”
“Yes, Frank. I want you to meet Allison.”
“A pleasure, Allison.”
Kane moved between Rich and Sherry’s workstations. Facing Frank, he pointed at both of them. “This is Rich and Sherry. As of today, their employment is terminated. Escort them out, if you please.”
“Certainly.” Frank walked up behind the man and woman. Their mouths gaped open. Sherry’s chin quivered. Rich’s eyes streamed with tears. Frank grabbed them both by the hair and dragged them out of the room, begging for their lives.
Kane shut the door behind them. Leaning against it, he said to Allison, “I have a sinking suspicion your sister lives. Do you think you have it in you to finish her?”
Allison nodded. “It will be done.” She held up her hand. Her fingernails grew long and razor sharp. She transformed into a deadly exotic tigress right before his eyes. “I guarantee it.”
Smoke Out: Book 10
CHAPTER 1
Under the bridge, Cort Calhoun loaded his big Alaskan handgun. He slipped round after round into the Ruger wheel gun. He was a big black man with short hair and scruff on his face. He reminded Sid of the defensive tackle Reggie White.
“Those bullets aren’t going to do you any good, Cort.” Out of the aluminum case she handed him a semi-automatic pistol. “You’re going to need one of these.”
Cort squinted an eye. He took the Glock semi-automatic. It looked like a toy in his hand. “I can barely fit my finger inside the trigger guard.”
The night brought hard bits of snow from the sky. Traffic rumbled over the bridge overhead. Everyone was still present. Mal Carlson, the one who fit people with their gear, was helping Asia into a sweetheart suit. Smoke stood beside a Ford Bronco, going over plans with Sam and Guppy. Russ Davenport, the reporter for Nightfall DC, sat inside Sid’s dad’s old truck, holding a gun on Cyrus Tweel.
Cyrus caught her eye and mouthed the words “You’re going to die.”
“You were engaged to that geek?” Cort popped the cartridge out of the Glock. He thumbed out blue-tipped bullets. “You, to him? That’s like a princess actually marrying a frog, with glasses.”
Sid showed a part smile and part grimace. “They say love is blind, and I didn’t even love him like that. Honestly, I don’t know. I don’t get it. Just a phase.”
“Yeah, a stupid phase. I never understood women and the bad decisions they make. Sometimes, I see these pretty ladies and these ugly guys. The faces ought to match up better.”
“It’s not all about looks.”
“True, but then again that’s coming from someone married to that big-eared thing over there.”
Smoke, still in his bat-man form, popped his head out of the Bronco’s door. “I can hear you, Cort, all too well.”
“So? You’re still ugly. It’s not like I was trying to hide it. Anyway, what do these blue bullets do?”
Sid’s smile hurt. “They’ll rip through steel and shifters.”
“And sweetheart suits too,” Cyrus yelled out of the truck. “Just make sure you don’t miss the mark, like I did. Aim for the heart. Of course, in Sid’s case, it turned out she didn’t have one.”
Russ jammed his gun into Cyrus’s ribs. “Shut up.”
Mal made his way over to Sid and produced some bullet clips filled with cartridges. The bookish man said to Cort, “Is that a forty-four magnum you’re carrying?”
“Yep.”
Mal handed over the cartridges. “These should do.” He started to walk away.
“Wait a second.” Cort had a bandolier of bullets around his waist. On it, there were two small leather pouches. He pulled out two round cylinders with six bullets in each. They were speed loaders specially designed for his hand gun. He started loading the bullets into the speed loaders, alternating between blue, red, and green tips. “What do the green bullets do?”
“Paralyze,” Mal said. Cort opened his mouth. Mal cut him off. “And the red tipped are explosive.”
“Why would I want to paralyze them?” Cort said. “When I shoot, I shoot to kill.”
“The shifters come in all shapes and sizes, Cort. Some things are more effective on some than others.” Sid snapped both of her Glocks with extended clips into her polymer holsters. “Shoot the deaders in the heart. A regular bullet will stop them unless they have armor on. The peacoats are the same, just people, but they probably have Kevlar underneath. As for the shifters, well, I guess you’ll know when you see them. Most of them are kinda ugly, like Smoke.” She grinned Smoke’s way. Face out of sight, he waved his hand. “Mal, do you have a suit that fit him?”
“Yeah, I think he got it stretched over everything. I’m surprised it didn’t rip. It was supposed to be Smoke’s. He needs his vitamins too.”
“Vitamins? Look, I eat all my fruits and vegetables. I don’t need any Centrums or One A Days. I’m a healthy eater.”
Sid glanced at his belly, which bulged over his belt a fair bit.
“Beer has plenty of good health effects,” he said.
“You’ll need the vitamin. It’ll make you feel like Superman, but it doesn’t last long.” Mal handed Cort a small cylinder of pills. “Don’t take them all at once.”
“I don’t want to feel like Superman. I want to feel like Luke Cage, Power Man.”
“You will, minus the steel-hard skin,” Sid said.
“Yeah, you know your Power Man. Girl knows the books. I like that.” Cort stepped closer to her. “You know, if your husband doesn’t make it, I’ll look out for you.”
“Not happening. And he’ll make it.” Sid slid knives into her boot sheaths. “What if you don’t make it, Cort?”
He showed an illuminating smile. “Fine by me. I’ll be dancing in heaven with the angel ladies then.” He started a little waltz. “That day will be here soon enough, one way or the other.”
“Mal!” said Asia. “We need to stop at a drive-through on the way over. This suit is making me very hungry.” She was pulling the collar on her suit. The suit enhanced her little curves on her tiny little frame. “Don’t look at me like that. We have business to do.”
Cort took a knee. He laced up his boots, revealing some knives of his own as he did so. “So, who’s this man we have to kill?”
“Kane.”
“Cain like in the Bible, or the bad Kane guy from Robocop 2? I love Robocop. Or is it the wrestler?”
“He’s not as cool as the wrestler. More like Kane from Robocop 2.” Sid’s stomach turned sideways. She’d been with that monster. It tore at her sleep at night. She’d never rest well again until he was dead. “He’s a big blond, well-dressed, kinda like a pro wrestler. “
“Does he turn into some kind of monster too?”
“I don’t know.” Sid had never really thought of it before. Kane appeared the same all the time, but she couldn’t rule it out. “As always, expect the worst. Oh, and one more thing, don’t kill my sister. Leave her to me.”
“What does she look like?”
Sid pulled up an image on her phone. “This.”
Cort leaned over. His jaw hung. “Damn. No offense, Sid, but she makes you look like a dog.”
She punched his arm.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean it. It was—”
“A quote,” Smoke said. He’d snuck in behind Sid. “From Ted Baxter, off of Mary Tyler Moore.”
Cort nodded his chin. “The man-bat knows his MTM.”
CHAPTER 2
“So what are we going to do with this worm?” Russ asked Sid. The heavyset reporter in a brown trench coat was sittin
g behind the steering wheel. “Nobody’s out tonight. I say we drop him in the river using those cinderblocks over there for a flotation device.”
Standing beside the passenger-side window, she said, “No, that’s too good for him.”
With his hand cuffed to the car door, Cyrus said, “Kane’s expecting me, Sid. If I don’t show, he’ll kill me. He’ll kill Rebecca.” His neck strained. “You know that. She’s innocent of all this.”
“No one’s innocent.” Smoke’s body brushed against Sid’s back. “But we don’t have much time to fool with. Kane’s very particular about how he controls things. He’s going to be expecting Cyrus with your body. How do you want to play it?”
“I thought we were just going to bust in there and hit them with everything we have?” she said.
“We’ve been talking,” said Smoke, standing close to seven feet tall, part man and part bat, nodding Sam and Guppy’s way. His nose crinkled when he spoke. “It would be best to assume at this point that Kane knows we’re coming.”
“Oh, bravo,” Cyrus said. “Listen to that. I told you Kane was more than a step ahead of you, and now you listen. It won’t matter though. He’ll kill the both of you. Unless, of course, you let me take you in. Once again, we can all be on the same team.”
“Boy, this guy really is a piece of work.” Russ pushed the gun deeper into Cyrus’s ribs. “I don’t want to get your truck all dirty, but I do want to shoot this guy.”
Cyrus pushed back against Russ. “You’ll never shoot anybody. You’re a tabloid journalist. Huh. Are all of you a bunch of complete idiots? Haven’t you figured it out yet? You can’t win! The Drake isn’t some elite gang of thugs. They’ve been around for centuries. Longer. They’re part of something that mortals can’t comprehend. Unless you’re one of them, you’re better off fleeing. You’ll live longer that way.”
“Life on the run isn’t my style. You know that, Cyrus. I like to face my problems head-on,” said Sid.
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