by Shéa MacLoed
"Sun's coming up. The vamp isn't going anywhere," Kabita said. "So, we meet back here in one hour."
I didn't bother pointing out that since I didn't have my phone, I also couldn't tell time. No watch. It didn't matter. The town was so small, it wouldn't take even close to an hour to search it. I nodded in agreement.
"I'll take the east side," Kabita said, nodding toward the side of the street with the market.
"I'll go west." Haakon moved off toward the cafe/bar.
"I guess that leaves north for me since there's nothing south. We would have seen it." But I was talking to myself. The others had already disappeared into the pre-dawn gloom.
I continued along the main street running through town. Beyond the market and bar, more of the low cinder-block houses marched neatly on either side of the road. Narrow dirt tracks crossed the street in a couple places, creating haphazard blocks. About three blocks from the intersection stood a lonely one-pump gas station that had seen better days. A hand-painted sign noting the price of gas leaned against the side of the building. By my calculations, it was in the neighborhood of five dollars per gallon. Holy crap.
Past the gas station, the houses thinned out, the lots growing increasingly larger until we were back to jungle. After a while I stopped walking. I'd gotten no sense the vamp was near and there was no way to tell where he might have gone. I turned around and walked back into town until I came to the first dirt crossroad. There was no street sign to tell me the name, just a track headed east, disappearing between two houses. On the west side, the dirt track was even narrower. More like a trail. My guess was it led to the ocean. I took the road on the east side.
A cat glared at me from its precarious perch on the fence post next to the road. It blinked glowing yellow eyes and flashed a bit of fang. I wondered if it sensed the Darkness in me, or if it didn't like people in general.
Ignoring the cat I moved farther down the road between a second pair of houses. These faced the dirt road instead of the main street. In one, a light glowed in the front room, so I hurried by as quickly as possible. The last thing we needed was to get the locals riled up about strangers lurking in their yards.
A few more feet, and the road dead-ended onto a second dirt track running parallel to the main road. This one was slightly wider, big enough for a small car to pass, as if someone planned to pave it in the future but hadn't gotten around to it yet. Potholes had been filled in with pebbles and sand, making walking marginally easier. Like the main street, this one was lined with cinder-block houses in varying states of disrepair. Clearly the town was not on the tourist map, and it showed. Either people didn't have the money to fix up their houses, or they didn't care.
I still hadn't caught any sign the vamp was nearby. There was only so far it could or would walk, especially since it had been close to daylight when it hit shore. It would have gone underground somewhere nearby. Of course, it could have left at nightfall. It would have had several hours to get out of town before we arrived. I sighed. Might as well check the north end of the street while I was here.
I walked past more of the cinder block houses with more of the same overgrown yards studded with fruit and palm trees. The thick air was fragrant with the scent of frangipani and other tropical flowers. I really wished I was here on vacation. And that Inigo was here with me.
I shoved that thought down ruthlessly. Thinking about Inigo would only take my mind off the task at hand and send me tumbling down a very dark hole. I needed to stay focused.
I was nearly to the end of the street, about to turn back, when I felt a little tingle at the base of my skull, so faint I nearly missed it. The street was a dead end, no driveways or anything to indicate houses deeper in the jungle. I frowned, moving to one side of the street and then the other. The tingle was stronger on the east side, definitely. Stepping off the road, I moved cautiously through the heavy undergrowth. The tingle grew stronger, turning into an outright painful grip on the back of my skull. The vampire was close.
Branches and vines swiped at my bare arms. I wished for my jacket, but I'd left it back on the ship. I hadn't wanted it to get ruined by the sea water. Besides, it was far too hot for a coat of any kind, despite what Haakon seemed to think. I winced as another branch slapped my arm, raising a welt, no doubt.
At last I broke into a small clearing just as the sky above was lightening, and the horizon was turning pink. The grip on my skull was fierce now. I had to be right on top of him.
In the center of the clearing stood what looked like a garden shed made of cinder block with a corrugated tin roof. The building had been painted green, like the jungle around it, including the roof and door. There were no windows. It was a bit small, but it was a perfect place for a vampire to hide from the sun. Behind the shed swelled a small hill thick with trees. We were in the foothills of the mountains.
A smile quirked my lips as I strode toward the shed. It was probably close to the hour mark, but I didn't care. That vamp and I were going to have it out here and now. I was going to get the info I needed, and then I was going to dust the asshole. Kabita and Haakon could just wait.
Gripping the brass doorknob, I gave it a twist. It turned easily, but the door didn't open. I gave it a good shake, but it didn't budge. I bit out a curse. Deadbolt, of course. From the inside. I felt the door. It wasn't metal, which was good. Harder to burn metal. Unfortunately it wasn't wood, either, which would have been easy to either kick open or burn down. It was some man-made resin shit. I gave it a half-hearted kick. No way that thing was coming down easy. I'd have to burn it. If it could burn without killing me from the fumes. I laid my palm flat against the door, closed my eyes, and willed the Fire inside me to rise.
"What in Valhalla do you think you're doing?"
I spun around with a yelp, tiny sparks jumping from the tips of my fingers. Haakon stood a few paces behind me, glaring, arms crossed over his massive chest.
"I'm opening this door," I said. "The vamp's in there."
"You were supposed to come meet us."
"I had better things to do. How did you find me?"
He gave me a look I couldn't quite interpret. Instead of answering, he strode toward the door, nudged me out of the way, and did the same twist-jiggle thing I'd tried.
"It's bolted from the inside," I informed him in my haughtiest tone.
He didn't exactly roll his eyes, but I swear I could feel him doing it in his head. "Stand back."
"Really?" I propped my hands on my hips. "Who do you think you are? Thor?"
"Do I look like I make a habit of carrying power tools? Stand back."
With a sneer, I moved back a few paces. "Have at it."
"Thank you, kind lady. You are too good to me." Now who was the one being snarky?
Haakon rolled his shoulders, stretched his neck from side to side, and then gave his knuckles a good crack. Was he going to punch the door? He'd break his hand for sure.
He drew one leg up and let go a kick that would have done a ninja proud. The door flew off its hinges and crashed against the opposite wall before slamming to the floor of the shed, sending up a small cloud of dust. It all happened so fast, I barely had time to blink.
"Show off," I muttered.
Haakon gave me a serene smile. "After you."
"Such a gentleman." Thank gods he wasn't like Jack, insisting on going first. Never mind I was the expert on vampires. Hunting them anyway.
I wondered what waited for us beyond that doorway. I would have given anything for a UV gun or my machete, but all I had was a knife. I smiled a little. And my powers. I didn't like using them if I didn't have to, but they came in handy at times like these.
Cautiously, I poked my head through the open doorway. All I could see was the inside of an empty shed. Other than a few cobwebs hanging from the ceiling and a dirt floor, there was nothing. Except I could still feel that tightness gripping the back of my skull. There was definitely a vamp nearby.
I stepped through the doorway and paced t
he small room. Nothing.
"Anything?" Haakon's head appeared around the doorjamb.
"No…." I frowned. "Wait a minute." I paced back across the small space. Yes. Something was definitely off. One side of the shed floor felt and sounded like a dirt floor should: solid. The other side, however, had a slightly hollow sound as I walked across it. And it felt—I pushed down with my right foot—yes, there was definitely a slight give. "There's something here."
Haakon joined me, his massive frame taking up most of the small space. He knelt down and brushed the palm of his hand over the dirt. "I think there's a trapdoor here."
I stepped back and let him scrape away at the dirt with his hands. Sure enough, there was the outline of a door.
"The vamp's down there," I said. I had no doubt it was true. The pain in my head hadn't gone away.
Haakon nodded. "He didn't cover this door himself. He had to have had help." He didn't say it, but I knew he meant help of the human variety.
"I'm guessing his maker."
Haakon frowned. "Another vamp wouldn't have risked getting caught in daylight."
"I mean his human maker."
He gave me a look that said I'd clearly lost my mind. "What are you talking about?"
"Tell you later. Right now we've got a vamp to dust."
# # #
Beneath the trapdoor a rough ladder made of two-by-fours stretched down into the darkness. Unfortunately, it didn't stretch quite as far as I would have liked. The space under the shed floor couldn't have been more than about four feet high. It was hardly more than a crawlspace. Claustrophobia reared its ugly head. What was with me and all this underground nonsense lately? I'd had more than my fill beneath the streets of Paris.
Taking a deep breath, I descended the ladder into the tight space. Before crouching to fit beneath the floor, I slid my knife from the sheath in my boot. I still had my wrist sheaths as backup, but there was no way I'd be able to get a knife out of my boot in that small space. How Haakon was going to fit, I had no idea. I had even less of an idea how I was going to fight a vampire with so little room.
The smell of damp earth tickled my nose. I squatted, placing my left hand flat on the bare earth for balance. That was all it took. Deep within me my Earth power stirred, unfurling like a vine reaching for the sun. Of all my powers, it was the newest and least under control. Without my bidding, it seeped out of my pores, shimmering over my skin like a green mist. All around me plants began to sprout from the dirt, never mind we were underground and away from sunlight.
"What the hell?" I hadn't realized Haakon was so close behind me. "Is that you?"
"Umm…." How to explain this? "Sort of."
"Well, stop it. The last thing we need is to be fighting weeds and a vampire."
I was about to comply when I noticed something. The plants around me shimmered with the same greenish light as my skin. I'd expected it to end in a wall about the same place as the shed wall above us, but it didn't. The shimmer of green continued several feet into the darkness.
"Haakon, this isn't just a hole. I think this is a tunnel."
"Wonderful." He sounded about as thrilled as I felt.
"Come on, big boy. Let's see where this leads."
# # #
Leaves and flowers tickled my bare arms and face as I crawled through the near blackness of the tunnel. I'd managed to shove my Earth power back down where it belonged, but the plants themselves—the plants I'd made grow underground—still gave off a strange green luminescence. Thank goodness, because I wasn't sure even my superior night vision could have seen anything down here.
My knees were sore, and my palms stung from sharp rocks liberally scattered in the dirt of the tunnel. It was hot and sticky and far too close for comfort. My heart pounded in my ears, my breath coming in short gasps. I was close to a full-blown panic attack, which was sort of embarrassing to admit, even to myself. Hunters were supposed to be fearless. Clearly my brain hadn't gotten the memo.
I sensed Haakon close behind me. I couldn't imagine how he was doing. He was far bigger than me. It was a wonder he even fit in the tunnel.
Up ahead I saw where the shimmer of green ended in a gaping hole of black. "I think we're close," I whispered. Haakon tapped my boot to let me know he'd heard. I took a deep breath and crawled the last couple of feet.
The darkness was so complete, I couldn't see a thing. There was no green shimmer of light from plants. Even my night vision wasn't working. I cautiously stood up. My head didn't hit anything.
"You can stand up," I whispered. "At least I can."
There was silence for a moment. "Me, too. We didn't angle down, so we must be under a hill."
The hill behind the shed. Clearly someone had taken advantage of that little quirk of the landscape. "You got a light? I didn't exactly come prepared for underground exploration."
"One moment." There was a rustling sound followed by a snap, and then a dim, bluish light filled the space. Haakon held the glow stick high. We were standing inside what looked like a large, underground dome made of carefully placed rocks. And from the ceiling….
"Holy shit," I breathed, staring at the seething mass.
"You got that right."
We hadn't just found a vampire. We'd found a whole damn nest.
Chapter Ten
"Oh, hells bells, this is so not good," I hissed. "There are way too many of them. Where the hell is Kabita when you need her?"
Haakon didn't answer me. Probably realized my question was entirely rhetorical. "Looks like at least half a dozen. Maybe more."
Great. I'd handled that many before, but not on my own. I'd always had Jack. Or Inigo. I shoved that thought ruthlessly aside. Haakon would have to do. He was a Sunwalker, after all. And if Eddie was right, a former Viking. I was pretty sure he'd know a move or two. I stared at the knife in my hand. Damn, I could really use a machete right about now.
I had something else, though. Something most Hunters didn't have. Something that was far more deadly than a blade. I had Fire.
"Um, you might see something kinda weird," I told him.
"You mean weirder than you glowing green and making flowers sprout out of the dirt?"
"Possibly."
He gave me a look. "Fantastic."
"Just don't freak, okay?"
"I am not in the habit of 'freaking,'" he said stiffly.
All righty then.
With my eyes still fixed on the ceiling and the mass of hibernating vampires, I reached down into that place where my powers dwelled. They raised their heads, eager to get out. Smoke twined around Fire. Earth shimmered with green. Under them all was the black, roiling mass of Darkness. I frowned. Beneath the Darkness, lurking just out of sight, I could have sworn I sensed something else. Something new. I shook my head. I must be losing it.
Refocusing my energy, I coaxed Fire from its lair. I didn't have to work too hard. It surged out of me, flame spreading down my left hand like a fiery glove.
"Holy shit," Haakon echoed my sentiment from earlier.
"Told you."
We didn't have time to discuss it any further. The vamps above our heads began to stir.
I tightened my grip on the knife, fervently wishing I had one of Tessalah's flash bang grenades. They were like the regular flash bangs the army used, but with a little extra UV juice. Enough to disable the entire nest. Heck, at this point I'd take a plain old gun with plain old bullets. I wiggled my fingers a little, the flame dancing merrily in the dark. I'd have to make do.
I glanced at Haakon. He had a blade in one hand and a gun in the other.
"How the hell…?" He lifted an eyebrow. I shook my head. "Never mind." I might have known he'd have a way to keep a UV gun operational underwater. I was going to have a talk with Tessalah after this. If I survived. The Fire inside me laughed.
The first vamp peeled off the ceiling and dropped to the floor. The scent of death and decay stung my nose. I knew I wasn't really smelling it. To an ordinary human, a vamp smelled
no different than anyone else, but my Hunter senses allowed me to smell the monster beneath the thin veneer of normal.
The vamp hissed at us, flashing long, yellowed fangs.
"Its eyes are red." Haakon sounded stunned.
"A human is in control of the nest." Normally a vampire nest was controlled by the strongest vamp, but once in a while a human used otherworldly means to gain power over a nest. In those cases, the entire nest's eyes turned red. I had no idea why.
"Shit."
I braced myself as the vampire rushed us, but it was Haakon who took it out. One shot from his UV gun, and the beam drilled a smoking hole in the vamp's brain. The thing dropped in its tracks like something out of a zombie movie. There was a howl from above and three more vamps dropped to the floor, followed by a fourth.
Another shot from Haakon's gun drilled through the breast of one of the vamps, taking out the heart. It burst into dust. And then the rest of them were on us.
One of the vamps flew at me, long hair whirling about her face. I knew it was a female only because she was half-naked from the waist up. Not out of sexiness, but because; her clothes had practically rotted off her. She was old. Really old. Definitely not a soul vamp, but still controlled by a human.
She slashed at me with long, ragged fingernails. I punched her in the jaw with my left hand. Honestly, it barely grazed her, but the fire singed her skin black from jaw to cheekbone. She screeched in pain and anger, leaping back. I gathered the Fire in my hand and hurled it through the air like a baseball. She dodged the flame, sneering at me as it splatted against the rock wall and sizzled out.
She came at me again, but this time her eyes were on my left hand as she weaved slightly to make a more difficult target. Clever minx. Maybe someone was at home in there after all. She was so busy watching my left hand, she forgot about my right. I slashed out with the knife, the sharp blade parting the skin along the side of her throat nearly to the bone. Black blood spilled over what remained of her clothing, her screech this time more of a gurgle. She stared at me in shock. Her hesitation was all I needed. I threw another fireball straight at her chest. She exploded in a cloud of dust.