Ryan held up a hand. “Back up a bit. What do you mean hunting?”
Selena sighed again. “Chelsea’s been turned.” She then went on to relate the events of the past few days, about how her little brother was in love with his sister and she’d demanded he turn her so they could be together.
Ryan rubbed a hand over his face and tried to digest the knowledge that his seventeen year old sister was now a vampire, out on the hunt for human blood.
“You can’t be serious,” was all he could think of to say.
“I’m sorry, Ryan,” Selena offered. “And I was never going to harm your sister. That was just an empty threat last night. I just really needed to make sure you would get me the vaccine.” She looked at the bag he carried. “I see you’ve done that.”
Ryan held the bag close to him. “I’m not giving it to you, Selena. I might need it.”
He expected her to fire up and demand he hand it over, but her response surprised him.
“It’s all irrelevant now, anyway.” She shook her head, her expression rather sad. Ryan almost felt sorry for her. “Everything’s a mess. Michael’s actions have destroyed all of my plans. He’s drawn way too much heat on us. Now I have two dead detective’s lying in my driveway.” She shook her head again.
“Selena?” Ryan said softly. “I need to find my sister. Can you help me find her?”
She looked at him, her eyes dark and moist. “I’ll help you. It’s the least I can do.”
Forty Two
Michael had one arm wrapped tightly around his younger brother, while his other arm held Chelsea. He swooped to the left and came down for a gentle landing on a lonely stretch of country road. He let the two go and stood there with his hands on hips looking all around.
“It’s a beautiful night for hunting,” he said happily, a smile splitting his face, his blue eyes bright even in the darkness.
Chelsea didn’t share his jovial nature. She was scared to death; of him and of what he wanted her to do tonight. She knew Travis was just as repulsed by Michael’s plan as well.
“I can’t do it,” Travis protested.
“Sure you can. You’re a vampire. It comes naturally. Surely you don’t want to spend the rest of your life feeding on kangaroos and pigs. There’s nothing better than human blood, little brother. As you are about to find out.” He grinned again. “And you know what the best part is?” He glanced at Travis and Chelsea in turn. Chelsea meekly shook her head. “Feeding on the fear of the one you are about to kill. That is truly exhilarating. Trust me.”
Travis shook his head adamantly. “It’s just not me, Michael.”
Michael turned his attention to Chelsea. “And what about you, delectable one? Aren’t you salivating at the mouth in anticipation of sampling the real stuff?”
“Not really,” she replied, her voice quietly spoken for a change.
The smile finally slipped from Michael’s face. “What’s the matter with all you people? We’re vampires. We kill people and suck their blood. I should have left you two wimps at home and come out hunting with Paul and Kelly. At least they know how to party. You two disgust me.” He eyed them with contempt. “And so does Selena.”
“You’re different to us, Michael,” Travis said, his voice edgy with nerves. “You’ve always embraced the lifestyle. Selena and I haven’t.”
“Selena used to.”
“But not like you. She’s always been on the fence. Me? I’m way over the other side.”
“That’s because you’re a pussy,” Michael spat contemptuously. “Too busy chasing love and romance instead of accepting what you really are.”
“I’m just not like you,” Travis reiterated.
“Well, tonight you two have no choice. Either you join me in the hunt, or I kill you both. Up to you.”
He turned his gaze away from them and looked off into the forest. Both Chelsea and Travis eyed each other nervously. They were both afraid of Michael and knew he meant what he’d just said. He would kill them in an instant if they didn’t do as he asked. If they didn’t comply, Michael would just get rid of them and turn some new people to have control over and indulge his sadistic nature.
Michael looked back at them and said, “Follow me.”
And they did as they were told.
* * *
Ryan sat in the driver’s seat and started the motor. Selena was behind the Ford and pushed as he gently applied pressure to the accelerator. The car lurched forward with a jolt, the tyres found some grip and Ryan edged onto the bitumen. Selena climbed into the passenger seat and together they drove down to the main road.
“How are we going to find them?” Ryan wanted to know, suddenly having a craving for a cigarette.
“I’ll find them,” Selena sounded confident. “And forget the cigarettes. They’ll kill you.”
Ryan wasn’t really surprised that she knew what he’d just been thinking. He turned right on the main road and headed southwest, following Selena’s directions. As they traveled Selena would get him to stop every now and then. She would then get out of the car and just stand on the side of the road with her eyes closed as if meditating. Ryan didn’t ask her what she was doing. He just figured she must be tuning into some telepathic signal that he was unable to detect. One of the vampire gifts.
After the third time of doing this, Selena got back in the car and announced, “We’re getting close.” They drove on for a few more minutes. “Turn right just up ahead.” Ryan did, easing the car along a narrow, seldom-used stretch of road. “Stop here,” Selena said.
Ryan brought the car to a halt and Selena got out. When he joined her she held up a hand, signaling him to keep silent. Ryan took a deep breath and held it. He closed his eyes and listened intently. All he heard was a lizard scurrying across the leafy ground behind him and an owl hooting somewhere up in the tree tops.
Selena nodded toward the forest. “This way.”
Ryan retrieved the vials and chainsaw from the back seat of the car and followed the woman into the woods. Once amidst the canopy of trees he couldn’t see a thing. It was pitch black. Selena hooked an arm through his and guided him. No doubt she could see quite well with her superior eyesight.
“Do you think Michael will hurt Chelsea?” Ryan asked, keeping his voice low.
“I’m not going to lie to you. It’s possible. I wouldn’t put it past him hurting his own brother, either.”
Ryan gripped the chainsaw tightly. Regardless of the fact that he was Selena’s brother, he was determined to put an end to Michael if he somehow could. He knew that was going to be a close-to-impossible task.
Still Ryan couldn’t really see anything but the occasional dark shape that loomed before him. If it wasn’t for Selena’s guidance he would have walked straight into twenty or thirty tree trunks by now, not to mention obstacles on the ground that she helped him avoid.
The entire time they walked through the woods he ran every possible scenario through his head. Generally they ended up with him dead. In the end he decided his brain wasn’t going to be able to figure this one out on its own. He’d have to rely on his instincts. He knew from experience that his instincts wouldn’t let him down and they were dependable.
One thing he did have a strong feeling about was Selena. It was gnawing at him majorly. He knew that if she faced off with Michael tonight she was likely going to die. He didn’t really think she deserved that. It was Michael who deserved death. Tonight two innocent detectives had been killed in the line of duty, indirectly a result of Michael’s actions. Ryan also felt responsible for that.
By the time they reached the edge of a farm, he’d come to a decision. He was going to take a gamble because it felt right.
Selena let go of his arm as they paused, remaining in the shadows of the trees. Before them was a paddock where several cows grazed way off to the right. Ryan could just make out a farm house in the distance, partly obscured by palm trees growing all around it. To the left, nestled into the edge of the forest, was a hu
ge barn. He could see dim yellow light seeping through the gaps around its large entrance doors, and another smaller door on the left hand wall.
“They’re in that barn,” Selena told him.
Ryan looked at her in the darkness. “Are you sure?”
She nodded.
Remaining just inside the tree line, the pair stealthily made their way left and followed the curve of the trees until they were directly behind the barn. Ryan listened, but couldn’t hear any sounds coming from within. Selena had her eyes closed. After a moment she nodded.
“All three of them are inside,” she reported. “Michael, Travis and your sister. I also sense another presence, maybe two.”
While she was tuning into whatever it was that she tuned into, Ryan had quietly removed one of the injector guns from the bag. It was already pre-loaded with APHV. In a rapid motion he put it to the bare skin of her upper arm and pulled the trigger. There was a sharp click.
“Ouch!” Selena’s eyes snapped open. “What did you just do?” she demanded.
And then her eyes glazed over. She dropped to her knees and would have fallen flat on her face had Ryan not been ready to catch her. He placed her cold body gently on the ground. She was unconscious, but still breathing steadily.
The next part of his plan he wasn’t so certain about. He replaced the used vial with a fresh one and made certain the other gun was loaded. After removing his jacket, Ryan placed the tip of the gun against his arm and hesitated. Marks’ words from earlier echoed in his head. It could be lethal. Also, he wasn’t sure what response he would have to the serum even if it was safe to inject. He figured it would have a different affect on him than it had Selena, as she was a vampire and he wasn’t. Hopefully it didn’t knock him out too. He needed to be awake, not in a coma.
Ryan pulled the trigger, felt a short, sharp burst of pain, then experienced the sensation of the fluid being injected into his arm. Now he waited, half expecting to feel suddenly drowsy and to pass out. A minute went by and nothing happened. He expelled the used vial and placed a fresh one in the chamber. It was as he did this that he noticed a change in him.
He could see quite clearly in the darkness and the forest was now alive with sounds he couldn’t detect before. Insects buzzing and little critters crawling along the ground. He took a deep breath, checked on sleeping Selena again, then stood up. His head felt so clear and his mind was extremely alert. Ryan flexed his muscles and felt strength surge through him like he’d never possessed before. He looked at the small drop of blood that had formed on his arm. It was the vaccine that had heightened all his senses and made him feel invincible. He wondered if it was a temporary side effect, or permanent. Then another thought dawned on him. If the serum could turn a vampire back into a human, then possibly it could turn a human into a vampire?
No. He was sure that hadn’t happened. He’d gone through no turn of any kind and his body was still putting out warmth. He was definitely still human and not a creature of eternal night.
With the chainsaw in his left hand, the gun in his right and the bag of vials slung over his shoulder, Ryan glanced down at Selena one last time before leaving the cover of the bushes and creeping up the side of the barn, where he paused outside the closed side door. Inside he could hear the sounds of feet shuffling. Ryan temporarily stuffed the gun back into his waistband and nudged the door open a few inches.
The first thing he saw were bales of hay stacked up to the left just inside the door. A bare light bulb hung down from the ceiling on a long cord. The floor was made of wood, carpeted with loose straw. Standing in the centre of the barn were Travis and Chelsea. Ryan’s heart stuttered when he saw his sister. Even from his position just outside the door he could see she looked different. Her eyes shone a weird shade of amber mixed with their natural blue, and the skin of her face looked extra pale. She was holding Travis’ hand and the pair looked very nervous.
Ryan got down low and edged his way inside the door, hoping like hell it didn’t creak and give him away before he was ready to announce his arrival. Adrenalin was pumping through his veins and he could still feel the effects of Becker’s serum. That was good. He’d need all the help he could get.
In a crouch he peeked over the hay bales and spied Michael. It was the very first time he’d laid eyes on the evil brother and something about the man/vampire looked menacing and very scary. On the surface he appeared normal enough, but there was something extremely evil emanating from within, like some sort of malevolent aura.
Kneeling on the floor, as if awaiting execution, was a middle-aged man dressed in a grey bathrobe. He had bruises on his face and blood dripping from a mouth wound. Lying motionless on the floor behind Michael was a woman, possibly the captured man’s wife. Ryan wasn’t sure, but she looked like she might be dead.
“This is how you do it,” Michael said, staring intently at Travis and Chelsea. “This is the last time I’ll show you. After this we move onto the next house and you two are going to feed.” He paused for effect. “And you know what happens if you don’t.”
“You won’t kill me,” Travis said bravely. “I’m your brother.”
“You don’t deserve to be called my brother, Travis. You’re a major disappointment. You always have been.”
Ryan placed the bag of vials on the ground and put the chainsaw on top of the pile of hay. He gripped the pistol in both hands and steadied his aim by resting his arms on top of a bale.
Michael grabbed the man by his thinning hair and latched his fangs onto the man’s throat. It all happened so quickly that Ryan barely had time to react. He fired the gun, striking Michael in the back of the head. The vampire flinched from the bullet’s impact, but didn’t let go. Ryan stood up and fired again, hitting Michael in the shoulder. A third bullet struck him in the head again. The vampire finally released his victim, but it was too late. The middle-aged man slumped down to the ground, dead.
With fangs exposed and dripping fresh blood, Michael glared at Ryan. “Who the hell are you?” he demanded.
Travis and Chelsea hadn’t moved. They just stared at Ryan as if he was some sort of ghost that had materialized out of nowhere. Ryan flicked Chelsea a quick glance, but couldn’t read her expression. He returned his attention to Michael, who had blood streaming from the bullet wounds. Ryan fired at him a fourth time, then a fifth and a sixth. Michael danced under the impact of the bullets fired in quick succession, but he didn’t go down. When Ryan went to fire again, the gun just clicked uselessly. The magazine was empty. He tossed it aside, reached behind him for the chainsaw and pulled the cord. The saw roared to life.
Ryan stepped away from the door and moved courageously toward Michael. The vampire, blood still streaming from the bullet wounds, eyed him curiously as he approached. A sadistic smile curled the corners of his mouth. Ryan brandished the saw in front of him. For some strange reason he didn’t feel afraid. He kept his eyes trained on Michael. The vampire backed away from the body on the floor. Next thing Ryan knew Michael was up in the air, hovering just below the ceiling, floating effortlessly.
Chelsea and Travis still hadn’t budged. It was like they were transfixed and rooted to the spot. Maybe Michael had some sort of power over them? Ryan chanced at glance at his sister. There was fear in her eyes. That glance cost him dearly.
Michael was upon him in a flash. He moved so quickly that Ryan hadn’t seen him coming. The next thing he knew he was flying through the air, the saw falling from his grasp. He crashed into a pile of hay and a bale toppled onto his chest. He pushed it off and sat up. Michael was standing right in front of him, looking down at him like he was some annoying little insect that needed to be squashed.
He grinned, fangs still jutting down from his upper jaw. “I know who you are,” he said. “You’re Chelsea’s brother. Come to her rescue, have you?”
“Leave him alone,” Chelsea called out.
Michael turned toward her, which gave Ryan just the break he needed to grab the chainsaw. It buzzed on the groun
d to the left of Michael’s feet. He grabbed it, gave it a rev and swung the lethal blade in a wide arc. Michael sensed what was happening and put out a hand to ward off the blow. The saw sliced the hand clean off. Blood pumped from the stump. Michael swung viciously and his right fist connected flush on Ryan’s jaw. The strike was so hard that it should have shattered his jaw in ten places, or at least knocked him unconscious. Neither happened. Ryan was dazed and knocked flat on the ground, but he still felt surprisingly alert. He got to his feet and leaped up onto a pile of hay bales, a feat he would never have been able to accomplish before the vaccine injection. Miraculously the chainsaw was still held firmly in his grasp.
Michael came after him. He didn’t bother leaping, he just flew. Ryan jabbed at the vampire’s midsection with the blade, but Michael easily evaded the strike. Ryan tried again, and once more Michael ducked out of reach.
Trying desperately to act purely on instinct and not think clear thoughts that the vampire could read, Ryan took a chance and lunged forward with every ounce of strength he had. Michael reacted a fraction too late. As Ryan flew through the air, holding the chainsaw out at full stretch in front of him, the curved end of the blade caught the vampire in the abdomen, just below the sternum. The blade churned through flesh and bone and drilled a hole clean through him. Michael dropped to the ground, the saw still stuck in his body.
As Ryan fell, he narrowly missed landing on top of Michael. He hit to the ground with a thud just to the right of him. Quickly he got to his feet, placed a foot on Michael’s hip and wrenched the chainsaw free of the vampire’s body.
He could feel the effects of Becker’s serum beginning to wear off. Pain wracked his body now and fatigue was quickly enveloping him. To exacerbate things further, the saw was starting to sputter. It was running low on fuel.
He quickly touched the slowing blade to Michael’s neck and managed to cut halfway through it before the chainsaw died completely. Michael was weakened drastically, but still alive. Ryan could see the stomach wound healing rapidly before his very eyes. The bullet wounds were already completely gone, leaving nothing behind except the holes in his clothes.
Night Realm Page 27