Blood & Tears (Jane #3)

by Samantha Warren

  "One night, I was out on patrol with a vampire when we were attacked. I was wounded, badly. The vampire was wounded, too, but managed to take out our attacker. It was a strange lizard-like thing with sharp talons and a serrated tongue. He ripped off its head, then carried me back to the sanctuary. The thing had taken a chunk out of my side so large you could see my rib cage, and I'd lost too much blood.

  “One of the vampires, a doctor, sent a messenger to the head priest at the main sanctuary. He came over and they stood talking for quite some time. I couldn't really hear what they were saying, and I kept slipping in and out of consciousness, but I knew it wasn't good. I could feel myself growing weaker and they couldn't stop the loss of blood, though it had slowed a bit.

  "During one of my few lucid moments, a vampire I didn't know sat by the side of my bed. He explained to me that I was going to die and that my friend, the priest, had asked for permission to turn me. Because I'd been a part of their group for awhile, the request was seconded by several other vampires in the enclave, including the one who I'd been out with that night. They told me how the process worked. Took them a good hour or so because I kept blacking out. By the time they finished, I knew I was dead if I didn't let them do it. I gave my consent, then I was out again. When I woke up, hours later, they had done it. The priest took on the responsibility, as he was my closest friend."

  "Where is he now?"

  "America. He moved over with the first waves of settlers, on a special boat hired by the church. To set up the first approved sanctuary in the new land."

  "There weren't vampires in America before that?"

  "Oh, of course there were. Some of them were pretty vile, though. While the Native Americans may not have been the savages the white men made them out to be, many of their vampires were. There were a few good ones, though, and they were adopted by the sanctuary once they were evaluated. And, of course, vampires went with the Spanish when they discovered America."

  I felt my jaw drop and Felipe laughed, sounding much more like himself than he had minutes before. "What? You think Cortes destroyed the Aztecs with just a group of humans? No. He had help... unfortunately."

  I snorted. As a mortal, I'd been pretty gullible. Vampires, mythical creatures used to generate terror in movies and books, were, in reality, genius immortals who played a very important part in human society. "Maybe someday I'll get to actually take those history lessons I've been promised and learn something real about the world's past."

  He turned his head, his dark eyes shining in the headlights of a passing car, a smile on his face. "Yeah, I'll talk to Bellini about it. You need to know something more useful than how to kill a guy with with a stake."

  I laughed and leaned my head on his shoulder again. "What could be more useful than knowing how to kill a guy with a stake?"

  He kissed my hair and I closed my eyes, drifting off to sleep once more.

  SEVEN

  We switched places once more, Jax driving while Felipe and I sat in the back with the curtain closed to block out the sun. We arrived at our destination when the sun was still up. We parked several blocks away and Jax and Benton scouted the area. While they were out, us sunaphobics prepared for the coming attack. I pulled on my vest and belt, adorning them with all the essentials. As a last thought, I pulled a couple clips of incendiary rounds from the chest in the back and slapped them onto my vest. When Felipe gave me a what-do-you-think-you're-doing look, I just grinned at him. I really had no idea why I grabbed them, knowing we weren't supposed to use flame in the house, but they called to me.

  Jax and Benton returned to the vehicles as the sun was falling from the sky. When it had settled just below the treeline, Jax pulled open the curtain. He turned around in the seat and leaned on the armrest in the middle to give Felipe and I the rundown. I assumed Benton was doing the same in the other car.

  "So, here's the deal. There are three houses directly around the one we need to hit. Left, right, and one behind it separated by a fence. There are small yards in the backs of the houses, as well. In the front, we have two doors—the main double doors and a small door off to the side of the porch. Same in the back. One leads to the kitchen, the other to the basement. Most of the windows have thick black-out curtains, so we couldn't get a good look inside.

  "The house to the right is currently for sale. Lawn is overgrown, porch covered in leaves that haven't been swept. Looks unlived in. But there were kids in the yard on the other side and a swing set in the yard of the house behind. We need to be really careful or we're going to draw unwanted attention."

  Felipe leaned forward, resting his head in his hands as he sighed. "Could they have picked a worse place to set up a coven? Good Lord."

  I patted him on the back and grinned. "You're just used to it being easy. It's time you work for it a bit."

  He tilted his head, looking at me out of the corner of his eye. Jax was trying desperately to suppress a grin and failing miserably. I smiled sweetly and kissed Felipe's forehead. By then the sun had sank enough for us to get out. "Come on. Let's go."

  Leaving our weapons in the vehicle, we went over to talk to the boys in the other car. They were dressed to the nines, too. We had parked on a stretch of road that was lined by two foreclosed houses on one side and a park on the other. At that time of evening, the area was dead enough that we didn't have to worry too much about being seen.

  After we had discussed minor changes to our strategy, I wandered away from the guys into the park. It was a small community lot with swings, a couple slides, and a sandbox. There were no kids and it looked a bit run-down. I noticed an empty syringe lying in the dirt next to an overflowing trash can and nudged it with my boot, frowning. I knew the States had problems like that, but it never had occurred to me that it was a worldwide issue. Saddened, I plopped down onto a swing, pushing off to set myself rocking gently. Before long, I felt a pair of hands on my back, nudging me forward whenever I swung back.

  "It's sad, isn't it?" Felipe's voice floated to me as I soared through the sky. "Parks are supposed to be filled with children. Not empty, rusted, and dirty."

  "Maybe that's why they chose this place."

  "Or maybe they made it this way. They've been here awhile, according to intelligence. A lot longer than the last place we hit. We've seen covens bring down entire communities before. Of course, it hasn't happened in a long time, but it does happen."

  We stayed at the park until the sun disappeared completely and the street lights came on, then we headed back to the vehicles. As we climbed back in, I glanced around. There in the park, near the swing set I had just abandoned, stood a shadowy figure. I'm sure it was watching us, but it disappeared when I looked away to tell Felipe.

  "Probably just a trick of the trees and lights," he said, kissing me on the cheek. I knew he was wrong, but said nothing.

  We drove the trucks to the house, parking in front on the opposite side of the street. Every house on the street had lights on inside, including the house that was our target. The curtains had been parted in the front room and I could see bodies moving beyond the window. I thought again of the odds we were about to face. Six of us against seventeen of them—five vampires, twelve humans. Frowning again, I pulled on the gas mask Felipe had handed me and saw Jax do the same.

  As I climbed out of the car, I screwed a silencer onto my weapon. No machine guns would be allowed this time. Single shot weapons that could be quieted were our only options in this populated neighborhood. I gazed around, examining the houses on both sides of the streets. In a couple windows, I could see families getting ready for bed or in their living rooms watching television. As my glance passed by a row of trees, I paused. A figure stood in the shadows. It disappeared the moment I blinked, but again, I knew it was there. Gritting my teeth, I turned back toward our target.

  Felipe's stern gaze flitted around the gathered group. Without a word, he lifted his hand, pointing to the house. Ado, Benton, and Ronin nodded and headed toward the house, slipping quiet
ly over the metal fence, fading into the darkness. After the agreed-upon time passed, Felipe took a step forward, heading toward the building. He slinked up the stairs, moving so silently even I couldn't hear his footsteps. He put his hand on the doorknob and twisted. It turned easily in his grasp, which made him frown. Within seconds, we knew why it wasn't locked.

  Three large, black beasts barreled through the door the minute it was opened, growling fiercely. The first one onto the porch lunged at Felipe. He grabbed it, wrapping his strong hands around its thick neck. The dog whimpered as it stopped and hung in midair. I barely had time to react when the second one jumped on me, knocking me to the ground. My elbow smashed against the concrete, making me clench my teeth against a stream of curse words. I put my arms up, pressing against the dog's neck as it tried to bite off my masked face. Instead, it snapped at my arm and clamped on. I held it there as I reached for my pistol with my free hand. My heart ached to shoot an animal, but it was clearly trained for violence and I had no choice.

  When it slumped down on top of me, I rolled it off, its blood staining my vest and the sidewalk beneath it. My arm hurt, but it would heal. Jax was heading onto the porch, having dispatched his own opponent. Felipe's dog lay on the porch, head on its paws, still breathing, tail wagging. I looked at Felipe questioningly and he just grinned. The door was wide open now, and I found it hard to believe that no one bothered to find out why their guard dogs had suddenly burst onto the porch in a fury. I looked to Felipe and he nodded, lifting his weapon. I readied mine and stepped through the darkened doorway.

  Inside to the left, I found a living room. Three couches held as many humans, all passed out. Their bare arms showed tracks along their veins and empty syringes littered the tables and floors. They wouldn't be moving for quite some time, so after searching the room I headed back out into the hall. Felipe stood guard at the door as Jax searched the kitchen. The refrigerator was nearly empty, stocked only with several bags of blood. Some knives sat in a butcher's block on the island in the middle of the room and Jax pulled out the biggest one. He hefted it, testing its weight, then grinned at me as he stuck it into his belt. Shaking my head, I headed back to the hall.

  We could hear the rest of the team moving through the other side of the house and waited by the stairs. A minute and a half later, Ado and Benton appeared in the hall. Ado kicked in a door and we could hear the wood frame crack. Felipe rolled his eyes and clenched his teeth, but said nothing.

  "Anything?" Felipe asked when they finally joined us.

  "Nada." Ado double checked the clip on his gun, even though he hadn't used any bullets. "Ronin is guarding the door to the basement. I brought a flamethrower, so he can torch any nasties that come out."

  Felipe glared at Ado, clearly irritated by the flippant disregard of Father Bellini's orders. He took several deep breaths before turning to Jax. "Guard the door. The rest of you, upstairs."

  As we headed to the stairs, I noticed that some of the wood paneling along the wall in the hall didn't seem to match quite right. I went to the spot and tapped on the wood. My knock was answered by a hollow echo and a smirk crawled across my face. I looked back at the boys. Felipe was nodding, a faint smile of approval on his face. He beckoned me back to the stairs and ordered Jax to watch the hidden door, too.

  "No one in or out."

  "Got it." Jax saluted with the butcher's knife and stood at attention.

  The rest of us headed upstairs. In the first bedroom were two more humans, both passed out with tracks on their arms. I shook my head. I couldn't imagine what drinking from these people must've been like. Since then, I have tasted the blood of a severely intoxicated man, and let me tell you, it was not pleasant. I make darn sure that my targets are not hyped up on anything stronger than alcohol.

  Two more blood donors were asleep in the next bedroom. We had them bound and gagged before they were awake enough to open their eyes. As we moved to the last bedroom, we heard some very unsettling noises that had Felipe, Benton, and Ado grinning at each other like the boys they are. As they bent over double trying to stifle their childish giggles, I rolled my eyes and peeked through the door. My expectations on what I would see were actually a little too low. On the massive bed in the middle of some very expensive-looking sheets rolled a vampire and a surprisingly flexible human female. Tied to the oak bedpost, blood dripping from wide holes on her neck, hung another young woman, stark naked.

  I pulled back from the crack in the door and looked at my teammates. The hopefully curious looks on their faces made me want to laugh, but I just set my mouth in a grim line, shook my head once, and cocked my weapon. It took less than a minute for us to prepare and burst through the door like true vampire hunters, but the evil rogue had already finished his business and was feasting on his partner. When the door banged open, smashing against the wall so hard the brass knob stuck in the plaster, the vampire's head whipped toward us, fangs extended, eyes so bloodshot I couldn't see the whites anymore. He crouched over the bleeding girl and, in classic B-movie-vampire style, hissed like a really angry cat, red drops spraying across the sheets and carpet in disturbing fashion.

  A half snort-half laugh escaped me before I could clap a hand over my mouth and I had to turn away. I waved my other hand, the one holding the pistol, at the vampire in surrender and leaned against the wall, giggling. "I'm sorry, sorry. That's just the funniest thing I've ever seen. I mean, even Blade wasn't that bad."

  The vampire's eyes narrowed to bare slits and his lips curled up over his teeth in the perfect imitation of a doberman. He launched himself at me, but before he'd even left the bed, he had three bullets right through his brain. Now, shooting a vampire in the brain will not usually kill him. He'll eventually heal and be right as rain. But it sure as heck will slow him down enough to shove a piece of pointed wood through his barely beating heart, which is just what I did. Using the wall for leverage, I launched myself at his stumbling form, having pulled a stake from my belt during my laughing fit. The sharp point pierced his bare chest, our combined momentum forcing it easily through the flesh. The ribs protecting the heart shattered audibly and I cringed as I heard the sickening sound of the wood sliding through the organ.

  The stake continued all the way through the meat to protrude out his back. His forward motion stopped completely and I stepped back as he gripped the wood feebly. He fell to his knees, unable to stand any longer. Ado stepped forward, sword in hand, and, in one clean swipe, lopped off the vampire's head. It rolled backward, coming to a rest face-down at the foot of the tied girl. I checked her vitals, but she was gone.

  The woman on the bed clutched desperately at her throat, which was bleeding profusely. When we had interrupted them, the vampire had his teeth sunk deep into her artery. When he pulled back, he neglected to remove his teeth and a large chunk of her flesh came with him. The hole was too large to stem the flood of blood and she was dead within seconds.

  Snarling with disgust, Felipe led us out into the hall. Before we reached the stairs, we felt the house shake and heard the sound of shattering wood. Moments later, Jax's pained scream bounced off the walls, echoing loudly in our super-sensitive ears. Without pausing for even a microsecond, Felipe and Ado tore around the corner and down the stairs.

  EIGHT

  The thud of a body hitting a wall came to Benton and I as we raced down the stairs behind the others. He reached the landing before me and I grabbed him, yanking him back. I didn't want him in the middle of a fight between seven vampires, no matter how talented he was. With a grip on his arm, I pinned him gently against the wall.

  "Stay out of this, Benton. Find Jax. Help him."

  His eyes narrowed and his lips puckered. I could tell he was ready to fight with me, but suddenly, his face softened and he just nodded. Releasing his arm, I headed down the stairs. The hidden door was reduced to splinters, a gaping hole leading to the dark basement. Felipe and Ado were engaged in fierce one-on-one battles with two very buff vampires. Jax was crumpled against the door
to the porch, blood dripping from his nose and mouth. As I headed toward the battling vampires, Benton knelt beside Jax. He pressed a hand to the fallen man's neck. I looked to him and he nodded. Relief flooded me and I turned my attention to the task at hand.

  Felipe had his vampire well in hand, but Ado was struggling. His opponent was a thick-necked, red-headed brawler with a scar running from his forehead down over one eye. He snarled and spit like a dog trained for battle. Ado's shirt was already torn and he had a nice gash on his shoulder. His gun lay tucked against the wall and I leaned down to pick it up. As I did, I saw Ronin out of the corner of my eye.

  He was standing at the back door, a female vampire in hand. He had a rip in his pants and his thigh was bleeding, but he definitely won the battle. Her right arm was bent at an awkward angle, her cheek was swollen and dripping blood, and she was moaning, on the verge of slipping into unconsciousness. He hefted her by her shirt and the back of the jeans she was wearing and launched her down the hall as easily as if she were a bale of straw. She flew through the air before thudding to the ground and sliding several feet across the wood to crash into Ado and his opponent.

  The two combatants went down in a heap, with Ado rolling away as the other vampire's feet tangled into those of the now-unconscious woman. Snarling, the burly man tossed her away and she landed heavily halfway up the stairs. She began slipping back to the floor, but her hand gripped an intricately molded baluster and she pulled herself up to the landing, where she promptly passed out again .