by Bee Murray
We stared at each other for a moment before he let go of the oars and adjusted the placement. The motion — and the persistent smell of rotting fish from the tarp - proved too much for my fragile stomach. I hung my head over the side and threw up.
A soft hand rubbed my back and tucked my hair behind my ears in an act of sweet comfort.
“Oh Tuesday, what are we going to do?” he whispered as we floated and watched the distant figures gather in front of the inferno we left behind.
“We have to figure something out,” I choked out. “We can’t just hide —”
Vinnie rubbed a hand over his mouth and looked at me incredulously. “But hiding is easy,” he said.
“Not when your manager, the guy who’s in charge of your bank accounts and credit cards and everything else, was the one behind a plot to have you killed!”
He grimaced. “Good point.”
“Any ideas?”
“Well, we definitely can’t let those bastards live. Not after what they pulled.”
His face broke into an evil grin, and my heart leapt in my chest. I knew what to do, but I didn’t know if I was strong enough to make it work. But there wasn’t any time for doubts.
“Get me back to dry land and we will make a plan,” I said firmly. “Pisces maintains property all around the region. If I can get a hold of my people, I can get us to a safe house that is off the grid. Everyone involved in that little shit show thinks we’re dead, and we might have some time until the fire department releases their report.”
“Have I ever mentioned how hot you are when you’re all murderous and shit?”
“Save it,” I snapped. “We’re still neck deep in this mess.”
Vinnie grabbed my hand and brought it to his lips, sending a small jolt of fire all the way through me. His touch was comforting, and I needed all the comfort I could get right now.
Together, we rowed across the bay—partners again, for now. But all that could change in a heartbeat.
* * *
***
* * *
The last remnants of the warm fuzzy feelings I’d had on the beach evaporated by the time we landed on some abandoned dock near a downtown beach, and cold, hard reality had set in. The last eight hours had been…. eventful. We’d caused a riot and demolished a house. Now we were on the run from people who, hopefully, thought we were dead.
Knowing Vinnie was going to come out as a vamp when this was all said and done— No. I couldn’t think about that. But if I’d known, shit would have gone down a little differently.
We needed to get out of town. And for that, we needed wheels.
Thankfully, Vinnie had cash in his wallet and he’d snagged a burner phone and a data card from a corner store. But no one was answering the line at Pisces PR. Someone always answered that phone, and when every second mattered, it was incredibly aggravating.
If we couldn’t reach Pisces, I wouldn’t be able to use one of our safe houses. We would have to go underground without support, and that thought scared the crap out of me.
“Here we are!” Vinnie sang out, oblivious to the world of trouble we were in.
Men.
My feet hurt and every muscle in my body ached. The last place in the world I wanted to be was here, but Fate wasn’t really asking me what I wanted these days.
We stood in a dirty alleyway in front of an abandoned warehouse. Not my first choice, but that was my fault for letting Vinnie be in charge of directions.
“Where exactly are we?” I looked up at Vinnie, but he wasn’t paying attention to me. He frowned at a hidden keypad and then punched his finger into the buttons as though he was entering a code.
“What the hell—”
A soft electronic beep sounded, and a panel slid open. Vinnie ducked down and shoved his face in the box. After a moment, a metallic grinding noise filled the air and a large garage door slid open.
“It’s my garage!” he said with a wide grin. “You said we needed a ride.”
I peered into the inky darkness of the void that yawned ahead of us.
“I dunno—”
Vinnie didn’t wait for me, he just waltzed into the place like he owned it. Which… he did.
Ugh.
Aching feet and all, I hurried to catch up and huffed in disbelief when I stepped inside. The lights snapped on as we entered and illuminated the cavernous space with an eerie, green-toned light.
“This is your garage?” I asked dubiously. The building was the size of a regulation football field except instead of fans and sexy men throwing a ball around, it was filled with cars.
Shiny cars.
Expensive cars.
An absurd number of expensive cars.
“Uh, yeah?” Vinnie looked around and shrugged as if he couldn’t understand my disbelief. The only people who shrug at that kind of opulence are people who have lost all touch with the concept of money.
The thought made me irrationally angry.
“Gee, did you ever think to spend some of this money on, I don’t know, your community? How many kids could have had new books or donations to the Food Bank! Did you think of them, Vincent?”
He just looked at me with confusion written all over his face.
“You want me to give cars to… the library?”
I didn’t dignify that with an answer. There’s really nothing to say. This place was every gear-head’s wet dream. Gross. All I saw was inflated gas prices and douchebags who drove too fast through school zones.
Ugh.
We scurried past the sports cars and tiny sedans and headed towards the back where a fleet of SUVs shone darkly under the lights.
Vinnie was like a kid in a candy store. He stopped every few moments to point out something he wanted me to see, or rub his hand over a shining fender. Each time I said no, he pouted, and I hated myself for finding it the tiniest bit adorable.
But we didn’t have time for show and tell, and by the time I had to physically drag Vinnie away from a bright yellow Lamborghini, my patience was well and truly gone.
Time was wasting, and I didn’t dare think of what might happen if they caught us. The first SUV we came across was the one I wanted. It looked like a car fit for ferrying around a president or head of state, or possibly the leader of a cartel. Knowing Vinnie, it would be outfitted with all the latest technology and defense mechanisms.
“That one!” I barked at Vinnie, tapping my foot impatiently while he searched the wheel well for the key box.
“This one is great! It has heated leather seats and a snorkel.” Vinnie’s exuberance dimmed slightly when he saw the look on my face. With a quiet beep, the behemoth was unlocked, and I climbed in. The leather seats were buttery-soft and I let out a satisfied sigh as I settled back against it. OK, fine. Some luxury is worth it.
It’s the best we can do. It won’t stand out as much as the Lambo, but rolling around Seattle in a tricked out rig like this will draw some attention. I only hoped that people would assume we’re the badasses who shoot first and ask questions later. Maybe then we’d be able to get out of the city unmolested.
Maybe.
Vinnie wisely kept his mouth shut while he carefully backed out of the parking spot and drove down the aisle towards the open garage door.
The digital clock read 04:00 a.m. and gray streaks of dawn already decorated the sky and mingled with the darker black of the smoke that still rose from the direction of Vinnie’s destroyed house.
Shit.
“Get in the back. Sun’s coming up.” I ordered.
I jerked my thumb toward the bench seats behind me. From one glance, I could tell that the window-tints kept the sunlight out. Smart boy.
“We still have a couple hours,” Vinnie protested immediately. “I can at least drive us out of the city!”
My vision narrowed, and little black dots of frustration appeared at the edges of my vision. This was not the time to play petulant rockstar.
“Get. In. The. Back.” I forced the words through g
ritted teeth and grabbed for the wheel. If he didn’t comply, I’d have to rip the keys out of the ignition.
I had no more patience left.
Vinnie picked up on my tone and eyed me with trepidation before he sighed in defeat and put the vehicle in park.
In a flash, he was out of the car. He tapped on my window with a cheeky grin before he opened it for me.
I slid out of my seat and fixed him with a furious glare. Anger, lust, and half a dozen other emotions churned through me but I didn’t have time for any of it. I stalked past him and his hand snaked out and captured me. He hauled me up against him roughly and I grunted in frustration.
“What are you thinking about, Tuesday?” His voice rasped in my ear and I had to stop myself from rubbing up against him like a cat. Freaking vampire pheromones.
“Nothing,” I lied. Every minute we wasted out here was another minute we were at risk of being discovered and another minute closer to true daylight and vulnerability.
I hardened my resolve as his hands moved over my back. “Look, pal. I did not just blow up a house and fake the death of the most popular pop star on the planet, only to be captured by the bad guys because said pop star couldn’t follow some simple instructions. Now. Give me the keys and get. In. The. Back.”
His eyelids drooped in defeat and he trailed a single finger down my cheek. I shivered despite myself, caught in his trance.
Vinnie’s soft laugh in my ear brought me back to reality and my face flooded red. Thankfully, he didn’t press his luck. He smirked at me as though he knew every single one of my secret thoughts and then dropped the keys into my outstretched hand.
He climbed into the back of the rig and I slammed the door shut after him and took a moment to shake out my limbs and stretch my arms.
If Vinnie was determined to throw me off my game, he had another thing coming. I was a woman on a mission.
I climbed into the driver’s seat, pulled my tangled hair back, and tucked it up underneath a ball cap I’d swiped from the warehouse before I shoved the keys into the ignition.
It wasn’t the best disguise, but it was something.
With any luck, we’ll have made it through the city and be well on our way to the Olympic Peninsula by the time any of the dust, literal and proverbial, had settled.
My luck had been in short supply lately, so I had to hope that Vinnie had some saved up.
We were gonna need it.
12
TUESDAY
“I’m going to need blood,” Vinnie called out from under his nest of sun-protection blankets in the back seat.
I groaned aloud. I’d forgotten about that. Food was one thing, I could survive on coffee and cookies if I had to, but Vinnie couldn’t. Freaking high maintenance vampires.
I could probably donate one or two feedings before things got weird. When he fed off me back at the house, it hadn’t been that bad. Something in the back of my mind also whispered that Vinnie could probably make a feeding much more enjoyable if we weren’t in the throes of a full-blown crisis. And that part of me was very curious about what exactly that might entail. One hears things… fascinating things…
Shut up, Tuesday. Not. The. Time.
Business face.
“Where do you go to get blood?” I yelled back. It wasn’t as though there was going to be a road sign or a symbol on a gas station that meant “Blood Here!”
“Uh, well, Patricia used to get it for me. But a butcher, maybe? Blood banks don’t exactly deliver… Maybe a hospital if there’s one nearby?” He sounded completely unsure of himself, and I closed my eyes and counted to ten while cursing him again for being a spoiled celebrity.
Also… Did he really just suggest sneaking into a hospital to steal blood?
I was mildly horrified, but given our current situation, it’s not as though I could lay claim to any moral high ground.
“I think we are fresh out of hospitals, Vincent. You’re gonna have to hope that the butcher at Food Mart has something for you. Can’t you just…. I dunno, suck the blood out of a raw piece of steak or something? Would that work for you?” My mind raced for options, but nothing came immediately to mind. The image of Vinnie attacking a piece of raw beef was entertaining, and I grinned to myself. I should buy him one anyway.
When Vinnie didn’t answer my steak question, I sighed and made an executive decision. After all, he’s the one who basically employed me to run his life until this was over. I don’t spend a ton of time out of the city, but I wagered 24-hour supermarkets weren’t super common once you got out in the boonies. The idea of dealing with a crowd was nerve-wracking but the parking lot of the Food Mart was almost empty and I sent up a silent prayer of thanks.
“What else do we need? We’ll have time to get more provisions later. But blood, food for me, maybe some toothbrushes? Anything else?” I opened my notes app on my phone and started making a list.
“Condoms. Big ones.”
I froze, and every nerve in my body erupted.
“Uh, that’s presumptuous of you. Don’t vampires need to be invited first before they come inside?” I retorted.
Vinnie was silent for a second before he laughed uproariously from his blanket nest.
“Well played, baby.”
I just chuckled darkly and frowned at my phone. Love that he thought I’m kidding. Ugh. He has to be screwing with me. The last thing either of us needed right now was an… entanglement. No matter how curious we might be.
“Ok. Stay out of sight, I’ll be right back.” I held out my hand and Vinnie grumbled something I couldn’t hear before he dropped his wallet into my hand. I pulled out a wad of cash and threw the wallet back in the general direction of the blankets.
Without waiting for him to say anything, I bounced out of the car and beeped the lock as I hurried towards the entrance.
Butcher.
Snack aisle.
Wine aisle.
Definitely wine. Whiskey if they have it.
And… headache meds. And shampoo. All of those.
I grabbed a basket and started throwing things in it as I navigated the long aisles toward the butcher’s counter and rehearsed what I was going to say.
Blood pudding?
Need it for soup?
Just give me the blood!
Nothing was going to make me sound less like a freak or a serial killer. Or someone buying supplies on the down low for a vampire in hiding.
I swallowed thickly, crossed my fingers for luck, and rang the little bell for service.
“Can I help you?” The butcher glared at me from across the counter and I gulped. My skin buzzed with nerves.
“Uh, yes. Can I get… a packet of sausages, two pieces of salmon, some pork chops, a steak, and onegallonofblood, please?” I smiled sweetly at the grumpy old man and tried to stay as calm as possible.
“You want sausage, salmon, chops, steak... and blood?” He repeated as he raised an eyebrow at me.
Nothing beats a 24-hour grocery store at 4:00 a.m. amiright?
“Yes, sir!”
Bright and cheery. Bright. And. Cheery. Totally normal requests.
The man gave me a long measured look before nodding and wrapping up my order. He placed three styrofoam cups with lids next to my order of meat and I handed him cash. He just grunted and slapped a ‘paid’ sticker on my purchase and went to go back to whatever he did in the back.
My heart lightened considerably.
Maybe everything would be okay.
My hope lasted until I got to the checkout stand with the rest of my supplies.
The TV next to the customer service desk was on and a small crowd of employees crowded around to see what was happening.
My blood froze in my veins as the news camera panned over the destruction left in the wake of the explosion I’d orchestrated. Fire crews were still trying to put the blaze out. To my utter horror, my official Pisces PR headshot had been included in the report, right next to a publicity photo of Vinnie, and a candid papara
zzi shot from the vampire support book club meeting. Right before the violence had erupted.
That was fast. Too fast. How had they connected us? So much for that iron-clad NDA Baldwin forced me to sign.
There had been no time to fully disguise myself before we got in the SUV and started driving. By then, there was nothing available except for the battered baseball cap I’d shoved down over my hair when we’d fled the city and the pair of dirty coveralls I’d found hanging in Vinnie’s garage and jammed into my tote bag. I looked around the displays for any clothing that I could add to my meager collection, but there was nothing, not even a t-shirt.
Gods help us.
Forty-eight minutes.
Forty-eight soul-sucking minutes of freedom. Gone in an instant.
Worse? It was all my fault. I had been too busy thinking about safehouses and planning the big picture to remember the little details. Necessities like bathrooms, breakfast, and… blood. It was a rookie mistake and I could kick myself for making it.
If only we’d been able to get to one of the official Pisces safe houses within the city. I would have had a network ready and willing to help me buy anything and everything we might have needed. But we were out on our own, and it was becoming more and more clear that our time was already running out. I needed to get my head in the game or we would not survive this.
No one noticed me standing in the checkout line and I weighed my options. I could wait patiently like a normal person, buy my groceries, and walk calmly back out to the vampire fugitive who waited in the SUV. That would be what normal people do.
Or?
Or I could make a run for it. These people probably won’t chase me down for some stolen groceries. If I kept my head down, I might avoid most of the cameras. We could just drive out of here.
Drive… In our very recognizable, obviously expensive, SUV.
God, we’re gonna die.
“Be with you in a minute, hun!” An older woman slowly made her way toward my station, but my anxiety spiked when her eyes rested on my face just a little too long. I made my decision.