by Skye Knizley
Levac lay on her bed, his arms behind his head and an uncomfortable look on his face. Raven smiled gently and straddled him, a jar of wild yam cream in her hand. She scooped out a generous amount and began massaging it into the bruise on his chest, giggling when he shied away from the cold of the ointment. With gentle hands she rubbed the healing potion into Levac's skin, trying hard not to tease the hair on his chest or comment about what she could feel under her bottom.
She rubbed the last of the cream into her hands when she was done and smiled down at her partner. "How do you feel?"
Levac blinked in surprise and moved his arms. "Actually it feels a lot better, what is that stuff?"
"A little something Marie whipped up for me," Raven said, sliding off of Levac and onto the bed beside him. "It's mostly wild yam with a few magikal enhancements. That bruise will be gone by morning."
"Thank you," Levac said, staring at the ceiling.
"You're welcome, Rupe," Raven replied.
She looked at the set of his jaw and how he was trying not to touch her and frowned. "What's wrong?"
Levac turned onto his side and looked at Raven. "For the first time in my life I am exactly where I want to be, and somehow it feels wrong."
Raven smiled and took Levac's hand in hers. She kissed each finger and then held it tight. "That's the cop in you. You're a damn fine detective, as good as my father. And that means you don't fall in love or sleep with your partner."
Levac lowered his eyes, but then looked back up again, his face flushed. "What do we do?"
"We've been partners a long time," Raven replied. "In a car day in, day out chasing down the bad guys. We've grown close and have feelings for each other. There is nothing that says we have to jump into bed with each other."
"Besides which, the last time you jumped into bed with someone, it didn't go so well," Levac said with a grin.
Raven hit him with a pillow. "That's beside the point! All I am saying is we aren't going anywhere. Let's just take it slow and see what happens, okay?"
"Okay," Levac replied. He then rolled over on top of Raven and kissed her passionately. When he broke the kiss he said, "I know where I want it to go. I've been in love with you since I first laid eyes on you."
"I know," Raven replied, tickling Levac's five o'clock shadow. "Just give us time, okay?"
Levac smiled and rolled back off of Raven. "What's our next move?"
Raven tapped her teeth with one nail as she thought. "Well, we know who our suspects are and we have a probable motive, but we don't know where they are or if their next victim will really be me or not. We're kind of in the dark. Any ideas?"
Levac pulled his shirt over his head and buttoned it. As he did so Raven noticed the bruise was noticeably smaller. "What about Aspen? You found a piece of the weapon and she seems to be some sort of witch or Wicca or whatever you call it. Maybe she can identify it and give us some clue as to what the weapon is? Maybe that will lead us to the weapon or at least whoever made it."
"It's worth a shot."
While Levac finished getting dressed Raven put in a call to Aspen. She got the voicemail on the third ring and left a message to see if she or Doctor Zhu had identified the weapon from the piece she'd found.
With nothing else to go on, the two detectives decided to grab an early dinner while they waited for any news from Aspen. Night had already fallen when they reached Tarsi's. Raven handed the keys to the valet along with ten bucks and followed Levac inside.
Though she and Francois had enjoyed a few meals there, the restaurant held nothing, but happy memories for her with its rustic Italian décor, fantastic smell, amazing staff and wine selection to die for. She'd been known to come just for bread sticks and a glass of wine.
Luigi Tarsi himself seated the couple. He kissed Raven on the cheek and whispered, "I like this one better than the last one. Not so much a pretty boy, eh?" He laughed and patted Levac on the shoulder before moving back into his kitchen.
"What was that all about?" Levac asked.
Raven smiled and tore a bread stick in half. "Luigi is an old friend. He was just saying that he liked you better than my last date, you're not such a pretty boy. From Luigi that's a huge complement."
Levac smiled and dipped his own bread stick in the waiting oil rather than saying anything.
The pair enjoyed the quiet dinner, making small talk and occasionally touching fingers like teens on a first date. Raven learned that Levac was originally from Los Angeles, having moved to Chicago as a child. His favorite TV show had been Columbo and he'd always wanted to be a police detective. He'd joined the force after getting a degree in theater arts, something his mother had always wanted him to do. She'd wanted him to follow in Peter Falk's shoes and be a detective on television or movies rather than on the streets of Chicago.
Raven laughed when Levac did his Columbo impression on the waiter while ordering his meal and couldn't help, but squeeze his hand in delight; Levac didn't seem to mind.
The pair enjoyed several courses of delightful Italian food along with a carafe of wine, then lingered over coffee, still chatting and becoming more acquainted with the sides of each other they'd never felt comfortable asking about as partners.
The evening waned and, against Levac's objections, Raven paid the bill and the pair left the restaurant. While they waited for the Bass to be brought around, they both checked their messages. Levac had nothing of particular interest, but Raven had a text image from Aspen. She'd drawn a picture of what she thought the murder weapon was and hypothesized that it was made from a high-carbon steel. Very sharp, but also very brittle. Raven couldn't help, but stare at the drawing of the massive double-headed axe. Based on her measurements the axe was well over nine feet long with a four-foot wide blade.
"Jesus!" Levac said, looking over Raven's shoulder. "Who in the hell could carry that?"
"Our killer," Raven replied. "And perhaps a demon named Angul."
* * *
Raven dropped Levac back off at his Nash, and after she made sure his old car would start, headed home herself. She drove sedately, for her, enjoying the night air and some heavy metal on the Bass' amazing stereo. Suddenly there was a call on the radio so loud it made her jump and jerk the steering wheel, almost spinning out.
"261 in progress, Acacia Park Cemetery, nearby units respond," a dispatcher she didn't recognize said.
Raven sighed. She was almost right on top of Acacia and a 261 was rape. She picked up the microphone and responded, "Seven Baker Eleven responding to 261 in progress, one block away."
"Roger, Detective Storm, got you down for the 261, I have two units on their way, the caller said there were multiple perps on the east side of the park," the dispatcher replied.
"Thanks," Raven said. "Seven Baker Eleven out."
She turned on the reds and blues, but left the siren off so as not to scare away the perps. She parked on the lower east side of the park and climbed out, her vampire eyes scanning the area for any heat signatures or signs of life.
Acacia Park Cemetery was a mid-sized cemetery of gothic design, surrounded by a thick stone wall with two main gates, one on the north side and one on the south. The park dated back to the 1920s and was the final resting place of several of Chicago's most notable citizens.
Raven's thermographic vision picked up nothing, but background heat, but she figured the wall might be thick enough to block anything on the other side. With a quick look to confirm she was alone, Raven leapt over the wall and landed silently on the other side. She could see the dim shapes of several headstones shedding residual heat from the day's sun, the faint dull red of dormant trees, the brighter yellow of evergreens and a bright yellow and red blob to the north. By the shape and how hot it was, it had to be the victim, but there was no sign of any rapists.
Raven frowned and did a slow circle, searching for any other signs of life. She saw none and their absence heightened her senses. Something was very wrong.
She had just started toward the p
rone figure when she heard the loud scraping sound from the night before, only this time it was like steel grating on stone. It was a sound that ran up her spine and punched the terror button before running away to hide. She shivered with fear and could feel the blood pounding in her head. She pulled out her pistol and it nearly tumbled from her fingers.
This isn't real, she told herself. It's that sound! Just focus!
She tried to shrug off the paralyzing fear, but it was like trying to shrug off the Sears Tower. She staggered away from the sound, twice falling into the grass as she struggled toward the figure she could see lying between the headstones. When she reached her, she realized it was Aspen, bound, gagged and unconscious.
Raven untied the young woman and tried to wake her up, occasionally glancing behind her to see what the hell was making the noise that was terrifying her so.
"Come on, kid, wake up!" Raven tried, slapping the girl as gently as she could in her terrified state.
Aspen awoke with a start, one hand going to her face. "Raven? What happened? Where are we?"
"You were used as bait to get me here," Raven replied. "Something is stalking me, it has a fear effect that is terrifying me."
"Angul?" Aspen asked, suddenly shaking with fear.
Raven nodded, again looking over her shoulder. "I think so. Can you hear that noise?"
Aspen shook her head. "No, only its intended victims can hear the drag of its axe. Listen to me, Ray, the fear isn't real!"
"I know," Raven replied. "I'm trying to stay in control."
Aspen got to her knees and looked Raven in the eyes. "You're going to have to fight him with your eyes closed."
Raven looked at Aspen and for the first time saw the wisdom in the young woman's face. "What are you talking about?" she asked.
"I figured out why some of the corpses were colder than the others. I can't explain right now, but whatever you do, don't look at it! Remember that the eyes are the windows to the soul!"
Raven nodded and half turned. By the moonlight she could see the demon approaching, its axe trailing behind it like a telephone pole. "Get out of here, Aspen. Get clear!"
"I don't know how!" Aspen replied. "I don't even know where I am!"
Raven turned back, her eyes now glowing blue. "Can you tumble? Did they teach you tuck and roll at the academy?"
"Of course but what does…"
Aspen's question was cut off by Raven grabbing the smaller woman around the waist and throwing her over the wall. Raven heard the girl land safely if not gracefully and a faint voice say, "Thanks, Ray…good luck!"
"Don't run far, call Levac and my mom if this goes bad," Raven replied, turning and looking back at the creature's shadow. It was getting closer and the noise was getting louder. Her vampire side was letting her keep the terror under control, but only just. She ejected the magazine from her Automag and reached to replace it with the one loaded with cold iron, but the fresh magazine was gone.
Shit! I must have dropped it when I fell, she thought, her terror rising.
From the shape of the demon's shadow and ever growing size, she knew it was almost on top of her. She put the normal magazine back in her pistol and closed her eyes tight. She could hear the demon breathing, its breath coming in deep, painful rasps as it dragged the axe. She could also hear chains jingling and she could only imagine a musclebound, grey-skinned denizen of hell covered in chains, barbwire and nails, all the trappings of the underworld in one murderous package.
She stood and backed away from the noise, concentrating on both the sound and on seeing the creature with her thermographic vision. Though her sight was mainly blocked by her eyelids, she could detect hints of movement as shades of yellow and blue, could see it getting closer step by painful step.
"Raven Storm!" it said, drawing the name out like it had eighteen syllables.
"That's me, big guy, you've found the right girl. But I'm not just going to roll over and die. You're going to have to come get me!" Raven replied.
She fired the Automag at where she thought the creature's head might be and was rewarded with the sound of the rounds smacking into hardened, scaly flesh. She could hear the heavy thud of the demon's boots as it staggered backwards and she ran toward it, hoping to catch it off guard. The demon wasn't nearly as slow as it should have been for something so immense; it swung its mighty axe with both powerful arms, catching Raven with the flat of the blade and sending her sailing sideways into the wall. She collapsed to the ground and spit out a gobbet of blood. Her ribs and hip aching, she wiped her mouth on the back of her hand.
"Fight without seeing," she muttered. "Right. Easier said than done, kid."
Relying on one of her famous hunches she pulled out her sunglasses and switched to her normal vampire sight. The night stood out in bright black and blue, with a feint glow from the demon's twin hearts beating in the night. Chains wrapped its body and as she suspected huge nails protruded from its legs, shoulders and hideous head, all serving as anchor points for the shriveled corpses of the damned that hung from it like totems. Raven grimaced at the hideous shape and stood, her vampire healing taking care of her cracked ribs.
"You are one ugly looking mud-sucker," she said. "Okay gruesome, let's dance!"
Angul charged forward, his footfalls shaking the ground, his axe held over his head. Raven holstered her pistol and ran toward him, her fear beaten into submission. As he swung his axe she ducked under the massive blade and lashed out, kicking his knee as hard as she could while simultaneously grabbing one of the pieces of chain and pulling on it as hard as she could. The barbed wire tore at her hands as the demon toppled over. She managed to rip free a six foot length of metal, a rusted piece of cold iron that held the demon in the pit until some bloody great fool summoned him.
She spun the chain the way Bowen had showed her so many years ago, ignoring how it tore her skin as she wrapped it around her body, turning it into a weapon.
In front of her, the demon was regaining his feet, using the axe as a cane. Raven watched his knee heal and knew she would have to do more damage and do it faster, or find Angul's vulnerable spot to take him down; maybe he had an Achilles heel.
The demon turned and swung his massive axe again. Raven tried to block the shaft and ended up tumbling through the air and crashing painfully through a hundred-year-old headstone. She gripped her re-broken ribs and coughed blood. "Note to self, don't try blocking a twelve foot axe."
Angul laughed, a terrible rumbling noise from the very pit of hell, a laugh that only Vincent Price could truly appreciate and Raven had to fight back another wave of terror.
No! She thought. This is why dad and his friends taught you all that shit, so you could protect the city from things like this. No one else can do this, stand up and fight!
Part of her really just wanted to crawl into a hole and hide. The rest of her slapped that part as hard as it could and she once again turned to face a creature three times her own size.
It was moving slower, she had damaged it with her kick to its knee, but knew that was only temporary; the demon regenerated quickly. Drawing on her training, she spun like a top and kicked the end of the barbed chain. The barbed metal flew straight at the demon's head, gouging a chunk out of its face and tearing one eye loose in a spray of puss-like blood.
Raven skipped backwards and spun again, wrapping the chain back around her body as she moved, readying the weapon for the next attack. She leapt over the fiend's back-hand axe swing and struck again, the chain striking like an angry cobra, ripping chunks of flesh from Angul's torso and arms. The demon reared back in pain and Raven cartwheeled away, staying out of range of Angul's massive axe and gathering her weapon around her body once more. Blood now flowed from dozens of cuts in her skin, but they were nothing compared to the demon's suffering and the sight of the monster in such pain strengthened her resolve.
"Not used to someone fighting back, are you, tiger?" she taunted.
The creature roared, "Stooooorm!" Its hellish voi
ce echoing throughout the graveyard. But its ability to frighten her was gone. The vampire in her knew this creature could be beaten.
"You don't scare me, Angul. You're going back to the pit and then I'm finding the bitch that summoned you and sending her to meet you, you will make one butt-ugly couple," Raven snarled.
The dhampyr bared her fangs and dove forward, sliding on her knees beneath another wild axe swing and between the demon's legs to pop up behind him. She kicked him in the lower spine, shattering the vertebrae. She followed this up with a roundhouse swing of her chain that crashed into the monster's right arm, tearing flesh from bone.
The demon roared in pain, turning to find Raven. She sidestepped the now slow-moving axe and kicked it as it passed causing it to fall from Angul's weakened arms and crash to the ground, one blade wedged against a gravestone.
"That's going to cost you, Angul," Raven said. "I thought you had an axe to grind with me!"
The demon ignored her and tried to mash her with one massive fist, punching at her with the skill of a champion prizefighter. Raven blocked, dodged and backpedaled, occasionally looking over her shoulder to make sure she was moving in the right direction. When she was close enough to the axe, she leapt forward, over the demon and onto the path behind it. She ran forward as it turned to follow then turned back again, charging the demon as fast as she could. She gathered her strength and hurdled over the demon once more, this time catching its neck with her chain. Her weight and momentum pulled the demon off balance and it staggered backwards, falling onto its own blade. He screeched and gurgled in terrible pain, flame flowing from the wound, but still he fought to stand.
Raven wrapped the chain twice more around the fiend's neck and pulled, neatly sawing his head off. The head fell to the ground with a thud and the whole creature burst into white hot flame. Raven shielded her face with one bleeding hand and said, "Tell Lucifer Raven Storm sends her regards!"
She watched the fire for several minutes before dropping to the ground beside the smoldering form. Blood still dripped from the cuts and bruises on her body and her ribs were cracked and broken for the fifth or sixth time in as many days. She could feel her regeneration trying to do its job, but she just didn't have the energy. She lay next to the fire and wondered which way she was going.