I stepped to the drive and before I could even raise my hand in a greeting, the two sentries came on me, fangs bared. I was slammed to the ground as their bodies pounded me on impact. This was not the kind of greeting I was expecting. I felt the dark magic start to bubble up as it did when I was in grave danger but I pushed it back down. I didn't need to turn two more vampires to dust. I needed the coven's help and I couldn't take the chance of hurting anybody else. I stared into the eyes of a young man, pale and beautiful with blonde hair and almost white blue eyes. He reminded me of Chance, the resistance leader I so desperately needed to talk to. He bared his fangs again.
"You have a bounty on your head," he hissed. "You are ours. I could sure use the money, couldn't you?" he asked with a grin at his partner. His partner's eyes flashed with hunger and I realized I was in a lot more trouble than I had expected.
"I don't know what you're talking about. What bounty?" I asked through the pain in my lungs. I felt like I had finally cracked a rib.
"You killed two of ours. The Queen has issued a summons for you. Now, to take a bite of you first.” The hungry one slammed his fangs into my neck but I felt no pain. Confused he tried again but his fangs could not break through my skin.
"What the hell is this?" He hissed and I was able to lift my arm to see that my skin had turned to scales. Rockhard scales that apparently even vampires fangs couldn't pierce. This was new, I thought. It was gratifying to know that I still had powers that I was unaware of. The good-looking vampire sneered at me.
"So, you're Fae?" he asked me. I managed to shrug.
"Appears I am," I said. "What are you going to do about it?"
"If we can beat you, we can cause you some pain," the nasty vampire said and slammed his fist into my face. Stars broke out behind my eyes as the pain shot through my cheek. I had never been beaten up like this before. Before the unveiling and when I was a cop, there was a sense of decency and an unwritten rule that you did not beat up women. At least ones that carried guns. I had been lucky that even at the Academy and when I was on patrol I had never been hit in the face. I was thankful for that as the nasty vampire slammed me again. The back of my head hit the pavement and I passed out for a moment.
I came to when the pretty vampire slammed his foot into my gut and I recoiled from the loss of air. The pain was extreme and the black magic was unfurling. I had to get these guys to stop pounding on me. If they kept doing it then I would not be able to stop what would happen to them. And it was imperative that I stopped what would happen to them.
"Take me to Lucretia. Take me to Lucretia and I will tell her what I know. Take me to her," I croaked. I hoped that my voice didn't sound too beggy because I knew that men who loved feeding on women loved to hear them beg for mercy. But, the invoking of their Queens name brought them back to their senses.
"She said she wanted her alive," the ugly vampire hissed at the beautiful one.
"She didn't say anything about us not being able to feed off of her or beat her up," he said. "Roscoe had been my friend."
"The two vampires weren't cops?" The thought flitted through my brain as they dragged my broken and bruised body up the steps of their cute little West Hollywood bungalow and opened the door. I wished that they would at least carry me but I wasn't going to get so lucky. They dragged me through the hallway, down four flights of stairs, and into the vast underground network of rooms they had beneath the cute house.
I had never been into the inner sanctum before. I hoped that I would leave it, as I had never heard of anyone outside of a coven getting down to the Queen's quarters. News of my arrival had already filtered through the coven's vampires who appeared in doorways and down hallways. I gagged at the smell of death all around me. Goddamn, the vampire smelled bad. I don't know how anyone ever thought these creatures were sexy.
The two sentries dumped me at the foot of a woman whose alabaster skin made her look like a Grecian statute. Simon had mentioned that their queen was thousands of years old and by the look of her, I guessed she must have been around during Roman times. She still styled her hair in that weird curly hairdo that I'd seen on the statues of the women in museums of antiquities and she wore a filmy white dress. She didn't look human at all.
"I didn't say you could beat her up," she said tersely at the two sentries. Her voice held power. I cracked open my eyes and lifted myself up into a sitting position. Every part of my being hurt but I was proud that I hadn't lost control and gotten myself into a worse position than I already was. It was going to be a miracle if I actually survived this.
"You killed two of my soldiers," she said as she rose to her full height in front of me.
That's original, I thought. Why was it that powerful people always wanted to be taller. I smiled at my small joke. It helped me keep the panic at bay.
"I didn't know that the two vampires were yours. I thought they were LAPD. That's the way they presented themselves to me at least," I explained. My voice was croaky and I wished that I could have a glass of water. I wasn't going to ask her for something like that though. I scanned the white faces for my friend Simon but I didn't see him.
"That's what I heard," she said. "How did you kill them?"
"I can't tell you exactly because I don't fully understand my own power. I just found out I was half Fae after the unveiling. It's been an interesting time since then," I explained.
"You didn't have permission to do that," a voice I recognized came from behind me. It was Simon. Maybe he could get me out of this mess.
"I was only defending myself," I said. It was a lame excuse but it was the truth.
"I heard you were a detective," Queen Lucretia said. I wasn't expecting that turn of conversation.
"I am. I was," I said. "I didn't think I'd be able to practice much anymore seeing as I nuked two cops. When I was a cop, that was the worst thing that you could do."
"They were not cops. They were my foot soldiers. I want to know who hired them away and got them killed. Do you hear everyone?" her voice rose and I felt its power. I could see the coven members step back into the shadows, fear over their faces. The queen knew how to control her minions.
"The bounty was to keep her alive," Simon said and squeezed my hand. I hadn't noticed him coming up alongside of me but then I couldn't really see well out of one of my eyes.
"I want you to find out who hired my two men. Find them and nuke them just as you did them," she said.
"As I said, I don't really control that part of me. And I really am not prepared to be killing people for someone else," I said. I was not about to kill anybody for a vampire queen.
"Fine. Give me the name and I'll do it myself. I can't be having my soldiers killed willy-nilly. Nor are they for hire," she added and balefully stared around.
"I'll do that on one condition. I need to get into the San Fernando ghetto and I worry that whoever hired your men is part of the LAPD or city government. I was able to go into the ghetto unmolested before this but I don't think that's going to be possible now. Could you please spare Simon to help me get there?" I wasn't about to give away that I already knew who had hired the two vampires. I needed to get into that ghetto to investigate Marcus's death and Simon was my only ticket there. I hoped he would understand that I needed him desperately and would not hold it against me for asking for his help.
"Why do you want Simon?" she asked me.
"I trust him. He's my friend and I didn't think you would mind if I asked him for help." I didn't like asking for favors from anyone, especially the vampires, and I hoped that me doing this for her would make us even. That was the hope at least.
"I want to know who hired my men," she reiterated again.
"I volunteer to go with her with your permission, your highness," Simon said. "I would love to help Mabry in any way that I can. As you well know, she helped me with the whole Jason fiasco. She also kept our coven out of the whole mess which I know you appreciated." He had told me that Lucretia was having some issues with the higher ups
. I didn't entirely understand the vampire hierarchy but I guessed that they had their own small government like appointments where Lucretia might be the most powerful queen in the city of Los Angeles but she held nothing against the guy who supposedly ruled all of the West Coast. I could see the power radiating out of her eyes and could imagine that she would want that kind of power for herself. They all did. That was the problem with power. It corrupted everything it touched.
"Fine. I give you leave to help Mabry Wildes and get her into the San Fernando Valley ghetto. However, if she does not find out who hired those two men, the burden will fall on you."
"I understand that, your highness. We will make sure to find out who did this to you."
"I don't think you understand what the consequences will be if you fail," she said in a quieter voice. Simon and I looked at each other. This didn't sound good. When powerful people use the quiet voice that meant they were about to drop some real shit on your head.
"If you fail, you will receive the true death," she said. I heard gasps all around me and didn't entirely understand what was happening. How could me not finding who hired her stupid vampires cause my friend to have a true death? He squeezed my hand and I understood that something else was going on here. Something I didn't understand but he did. I hoped that he would fill me in as soon as we got the hell out of this place. I waited for him to respond.
"I am sure of Mabry's talents. She will not fail you, nor will she fail me." The darkness felt as if it was closing in on me as Simon took me by the arm and started to lead me toward the stairs going back up to street level. I needed to stay silent until we were well out of earshot. Vampires had a keen sense of hearing and anything that I would tell Simon the Queen would know about. I was dying to know what the hell was going on but there would be time. I was elated that I would be getting to the San Fernando Valley although worried that my broken body would cause me greater pain. Jesus those two vampires had really railed on me.
"I think I have a couple of broken limbs," I whispered to him on our third staircase.
"We're almost out of here," he said. "Doesn't your Fae blood take care of those kinds of things for you?" he asked. I shrugged. I had no idea what my Fae blood did. I felt too stupid to admit that to him so I didn't say anything at all. I gritted my teeth as my body screamed in pain for the remainder of the staircases. Jesus how far down in the ground do these things go?
"My car is only up the street. You think you'll be able to make it?" he asked me. He must've seen the pain radiating in my face.
"I'm really bad at pain. I've never gotten a beating like that before," I said.
"I'm surprised you're even alive," he said. “I got there just in time. Roscoe and Mark had been lovers and he took it really hard when we found out that he had died."
"Was it the pretty one or the ugly one?" I asked and he laughed.
"My car is there," he pointed at a slick, black SUV. He'd come to his own since the last time we spoke.
"Nice ride," I muttered as I limped over to it. I was so happy to be outside and breathing fresh air. I didn't think I'd get the stench of death out of my nose anytime soon.
"You didn't think I wasn't going to drive that beater Ford forever, did you?" he asked.
"What's going on?" I asked. "I didn't mean to endanger your life."
"It wasn't you. Lots of political maneuvering going around. I'll tell you another time. First, let's get you to the Valley."
I grimaced as I got in the car. I was still in an enormous amount of pain, but the ribs were no longer feeling cracked. Maybe there was something to this healing Fae blood after all.
7
The sun was just coming up on the horizon as we drove down Laurel Canyon Boulevard towards the main guard gate into the Burbank section of the San Fernando Valley ghetto. I didn't fully understand how vampires could walk the streets in the day and, as if hearing my thoughts, Simon pulled up his sleeve and showed me his glowing skin.
"That's part of the truce that we have with the wizards and mages ruling the states. We keep out of their way and give them law enforcement help from our covens, and they give us a magical spell that allows us to walk in the light. I don't know exactly how it works but it activates the moment the sun crests the horizon. It feels weird, like little insects crawling on my skin but I love being able to see the sun again. I don't complain," he said.
“Is there a way that you can put a spell on yourself to hide yourself?" he asked.
"No, unfortunately there isn't. There's a spell breaker that happens in all the borders into the valley. It doesn't allow any concealment spells to keep working as you cross the threshold one way or the other. I don't really know why they need that if the humans don't have magic. I guess they really want them to stay within its borders," I said.
"So how do you want to do this?" he asked.
"I don't think I should hide in your trunk, if that's what you're thinking. They will search the car either way. I'm hoping that maybe we can say that your queen has vouched for me and that we're going to pick up some supplies from the mob that rules Burbank?" I had just made that up as I hadn't been entirely sure of what tact we should take. Even though I considered Simon a friend I didn't fully trust him as he was a vampire and I didn't know if he'd be willing to lie for me. Especially now that his life was in danger because of me. Vampires were never to be trusted.
"That sounds good. I don't think Lucretia will mind using her name seeing as theoretically we are on coven business," he said. He pulled up to the guard entrance and I couldn't help but slide lower in my seat.
"Naming coven?" the vampire guard said as he noticed Simon’s skin. He peered over at me and nodded.
"West Hollywood coven with Lucretius Queen. World covenant business to meet with Capt. Fedorov," he said. I was surprised that he knew the mob leader’s name but then I guessed the story I had come up with was plausible. I knew that the vampires traded blood with the mob that ruled the human portion of town. Where else were they going to get that kind of material? The ruse worked and we were driving away from the gate in no time.
"So you know Fedorov too?" I asked.
"I have stories about that guy," Simon said. "Where we going to?"
"You know Magnolia Boulevard? It's where El Porto's bakery used to be before the unveiling. Down that street is an Italian restaurant and headquarters for the resistance here in Burbank. Let's go there."
"I know where that is," he said as we made our way past broken down storefronts and empty streets. The ghetto was looking more and more desolate every day. I had heard that 3 million people had been put into the small space but there is no way that so many people could be living here.
"How are your blood supplies?" I asked him.
"They’re scheduled," he said. I could see that he was thinking the same thoughts I was.
"Doesn't look like millions of people live here does it?" I asked.
"Looks like a ghost town," he agreed.
"I know that there's been disappearances but they've kind of petered out. That's why I haven't been getting as many cases as I had before. Most of the humans were gone from the LA basin. I was going to see if I could drum up some business here in the ghetto but it's empty."
"We’re not talking World War II type of situation here are we?" he asked. He was voicing exactly what I was thinking. But, that's not possible. Where was all the blood coming from?"
"Is the blood that you’re drinking synthetic?" I asked him.
"No way. It's refrigerated but it's the real thing. I've had the synthesized blood before and it's gross," he said as he turned onto Magnolia Boulevard. The thought that so many millions of people had just disappeared was unsettling. The resistance would have to know what was going on, I thought. I mean, they were the resistance after all. Maybe that's what Marcus had come across. What was happening to all the humans? There was no way that they'd be able to hide so many dead bodies though. I thought back to the ovens and gas chambers in the concentration camps
in World War II. There was evidence. But we saw none of that. We didn't see any smoke on the horizon. The Mojave Desert was just out there but I couldn't imagine the powers that be holding onto such a big secret like that.
The Italian restaurant could be smelled from several blocks away. I knew that it had once been one of the most popular places here in Burbank but now it had been closed. There had been many food shortages that had closed restaurants one by one. I knew that that Italian restaurant had managed to hold on the longest but it, too, was shuttered. Now it was resistance headquarters. And reeked of olive oil and tomato sauce. Simon pulled his SUV over and I scanned the empty street.
"I don't think I can get ambushed again," I said. I was feeling much better after the hour long drive but I was still creaky and a bit weak. I could've been in much worse shape, and if it wasn't for my spectacular healing process that I didn't even know I had, I would probably be in the hospital now. I did have two purple eyes however. I wasn't pretty.
"Who are we looking to meet here?" Simon asked. Something inside of me didn't want to answer him. I didn't know him that well. But he would be meeting the leader of the resistance, and I didn't realize that the vampires had such close connections with the mob. The use of Fedorov's name made me a lot more suspicious about my friend than I wanted to be. But he was the only reason that I got here in the first place. I could have easily died in those caves underneath the cute little West Hollywood house. And he had stuck his neck out for me. I sighed and plunged ahead.
"His name is Chance. I only met him once but he seems to be the leader of all things resistance," I said. I kept my eyes peeled as we got out of the car and went to the front door. I pounded as hard as I could and it didn't take long before someone opened the door. And that someone was Felicia, the bitch that had caused me so many problems the last time I was here. Crap.
A Case of Magic: An Urban Fantasy Novel (The Wildes Chronicles Book 1) Page 5