The Cowboy and the Vampire: A Very Unusual Romance (The Cowboy and the Vampire Collection Book 1)

by Clark Hays

“Sully, it’s nice to see you too, but don’t think you get to monopolize me on our little trip. I want to spend as much time with Tucker as possible.”

  Sully looked mystified and hurt until Lizzie tilted her head toward Tucker, who was mad enough not to notice. Sully nodded and smiled, then waited for Tucker and caught his arm. Tucker looked at him like he was a walking disease.

  “Now, my sweet cowboy, don’t get your bandana all knotted up,” Sully said. “If anyone should be jealous, it should be our queen. You are definitely my type,” he said, squeezing Tucker’s arm for emphasis.

  Tucker pushed him away and Sully winked at him.

  Lizzie giggled and stood next to Tucker. She wagged her finger at Sully in mock seriousness. “He’s sold goods, Sully.”

  Tucker nodded his head furiously. “I surely am sold goods,” he said.

  “He’s just having fun with you, Tucker,” Lizzie said.

  “That ain’t funny,” Tucker said, but realized how misplaced his jealousy had been.

  A group of eager young vampires pulled a small trailer into the parking garage and hitched it to the Land Rover, loading in a pair of coffins.

  “Would you like one?” Dr. Vesu asked Tucker. “There’s room.”

  “Uh, no. I think I’ll pass,” Tucker said. “Unless you know something I don’t about my treatment.”

  “Not at all, it’s just that they really are restful.”

  “I’ll take your word for it,” Tucker said. “But why do you use them anyways? Seems like just being in a dark room is good enough.”

  “It is, but the coffins are an extremely convenient way for our humans to move us by day, if necessary,” Dr. Vesu said. “Carrying what seems to be a dead man in a duffle bag or a cardboard box is usually reason enough to be stopped by the authorities.

  “Makes sense,” Tucker said. He yawned, and then opened the back door. “I think I’ll do like my Adamite ancestors have done for the last hundred years — sleep in the back seat.” Rex hopped in ahead of him.

  They bid their farewells to the city and left the skyline of Manhattan behind. Tucker sat in the back seat with his shotgun across his lap. They all breathed a sigh of relief when the Land Rover passed through the Holland Tunnel and made its way firmly into the particular busy loneliness of the interstate highway system. Only then did Tucker relax and stretch out.

  From then on, Lizzie and Sully stayed in the trailer by day while Tucker drove and at nightfall, Tucker slept in the back seat while they drove. This first night, Lizzie quickly traded places with Rex and lay beside Tucker. Rex sat in the passenger seat with the window open, comparing the strange and wondrous scents of the night wordlessly with Sully.

  They didn’t feed in front of Tucker. Lizzie could tell by the look on his face it still didn’t sit well with him. Not that she was feeding on humans. She couldn’t bring herself to take that step, much to Sully’s consternation. Dr. Vesu provided plenty of blood from his private stores, but watching her feed on the little pouches still left Tucker pale and rattled. As for larger animals, the savagery of the act upset him, but not as much as Sully’s little outings into the night. His forays were definitely not after animals, given that most of them occurred in metropolitan areas.

  When they stopped at a rest area, Sully took Tucker aside. “Tucker, I know you love her, which is why we have to talk. She has to feed soon, on a human. Her soul depends on it.”

  Tucker leaned on the car hood and silently gathered his thoughts. “If you think I’m going to encourage her to kill someone, you got a long spell to wait.”

  “She has to in order to survive.”

  “Now listen here. Against my better interests, I’m starting to like you. But don’t tell me what she needs to survive. She was doing just fine before you and your kind mucked everything up.”

  Sully sighed. “My kind had nothing to do with it. We tried our best to let her live a normal life. We tried, we really did.”

  “That may be true, but you failed. Things are bad now, but I cannot, with a clear conscience, turn her into a murderer.”

  “What are you guys talking about?” Lizzie asked, materializing from the shadows of the restroom and dabbing crimson from the corner of her mouth.

  “Nothing, darling,” Tucker said.

  “Why don’t I believe you?”

  “Come on, let’s get rolling.”

  Miles fell behind as the rhythm and motion of travel became the standard. Such was the case when Tucker awoke in the back seat, surprised by the stillness, the lack of motion and the quietness of being parked by the side of the road. He stretched and stepped out into the cool morning, the sun barely up and, as yet, ineffective. Rex jumped out and peed on the tire, yawned, and stretched lazily. Tucker sighed heavily and thought about breakfast.

  After checking on Sully and Lizzie in the trailer, he took over the daytime driving shift. When he found a little town with an equally little restaurant, he went in for a cup of coffee and a plate of biscuits and gravy. Not bad, he thought, must be getting farther west. He pulled the map out and spread it on the table, tracing with his finger their route. They were making good time and so far, no sign of trouble.

  He looked longingly at the state of Wyoming. He made a decision, probably not his best, and after paying the bill, crawled back behind the wheel. Rex sat in the front seat and Tucker used the button to lower the power window on the passenger side. “Smell that, boy? I think it’s time for a little detour.”

  By the end of that day, the car and its load were no longer on a direct route to New Mexico. Later, when the sun set, and Tucker heard Sully and Lizzie rattling around in the trailer, he pulled over.

  Sully crawled into the front seat and looked at the odometer.

  “My, you’ve been busy.”

  Tucker nodded. “Yep.”

  Sully opened the map and clicked on the cargo light. “Where are we now?”

  Tucker sucked in his breath and stabbed his finger down. “I’d say right around here.”

  “But, but, that’s … we’re going the wrong way. We’re going north.”

  “Yep. Thought maybe we should swing through LonePine. Just for a day or two. See Dad.”

  “But they’ll expect us to go there,” Sully said. “They’ll be waiting.”

  “Like they won’t be waiting in New Mexico. Figured this might throw them off a little. Besides, I can’t leave Dad up there alone.”

  “That’s too risky,” Sully said. “Tell him, Lizzie. We can’t take chances like this. Tell him.”

  Lizzie, still outside the car, looked at Tucker with shining eyes. “I’d love to see LonePine again.”

  Sully snorted in disbelief. “But darling, it’s just not safe. Am I the only one with any sense left?”

  “Sully, it’s important to Tucker, and he’s important to me,” Lizzie said. “I’m going with him. You don’t have to come along.”

  “Not come along? My Lord, my God, my sweet, suffering Malthus; Lazarus would have my head. I have not been going to that ridiculous little church for three decades to miss out on the best part of this assignment,” he said indignantly, then continued in a soothing voice, “Lizzie, dearest, you must think beyond yourself now. You have tremendous power and Julius is very anxious to possess it. I hardly think that a detour to that ramshackle little ghost town,” he winced and looked at Tucker, “quaint as it might be, is critically important at this time.”

  Lizzie’s eyes seemed to suddenly catch the moonlight, as they flashed defiantly at Sully. “Get something straight. Nothing, I mean nothing, will come between Tucker and me. Got it?” Sully nodded, taken aback by the vehemence of her words.

  Tucker grinned. “Good, it’s settled. We’re heading to LonePine.”

  Sully swallowed audibly, then hurriedly studied the map. “This looks like the quickest route,” he whispered.

  Tucker smiled. “Don’t you just love road trips? Always unpredictable.” He got in the back seat and Lizzie crawled in on top of him.

/>   Sully looked at Rex and rolled his eyes.

  By mid afternoon the next day, Tucker pulled across the Wyoming border and gave a little whoop of joy. A passing truck driver blew his airhorn and waved and Tucker breathed deep, happy to be back in a place where people were naturally friendly and there was room for deep breaths. There weren’t many miles to go now and he figured they could get to LonePine before Lizzie and Sully returned to life. He put on his denim jacket so he could leave the window down and enjoy the mountain air, cooling quickly as evening approached.

  His pleasant reveries were interrupted by the harsh sound of a siren: A quick check of the rear-view mirror revealed a police car, lights blazing. The driver, Tucker realized, looked just like Melissa Braver’s little brother Bart. He was just a kid when Tucker spent time at the Braver place. Used to ride to the FrosteeTreat for ice cream, most of which Bart dripped on the seat of Tucker’s truck. Smiling at the memories, Tucker pulled the car and trailer over to the side of the road, but the tenor of their reunion was quickly redefined.

  “Tucker,” Bart called out in a business-like voice, “keep your hands up where I can see them and remain in the truck.” He had his standard-issue police automatic out of the holster and pointed at the window.

  Tucker opened the door and started to climb out. “Bart, what the hell do you think you’re doing? It’s me.”

  Bart cocked the hammer. “If you take another step I swear to God I’ll put a bullet in your knee.”

  Tucker raised his hands, eyes wide. “Bart, have you lost your mind?”

  “No, but it seems you have. Now turn around and put your hands on the hood.”

  He did. Rex was sitting on the front seat, watching curiously through the open door. “Hey Rex,” Bart said, “how you doing, boy?” Rex thumped his stumpy tail. Bart kicked Tucker’s feet farther apart, keeping the muzzle of his automatic leveled at belt buckle height. He ran his free hand up Tucker’s legs, around his waist and under his arms until it bumped into the Casull. Bart’s whole body tensed and he gingerly pulled it free and dropped it, giving it a kick with his boot.

  “Jesus Christ, Bart, take it easy. That’s Dad’s gun.”

  Bart poked his pistol into Tucker’s ear. “Take it easy? I ain’t screwing around here, Tucker. I don’t want to have to shoot you.”

  “I don’t want that either, Bart. Just tell me what the hell this is about.”

  “Keep your hands behind your back.” He slapped handcuffs around Tucker’s wrists. “What’s going on is you’re wanted for questioning.”

  “Questioning for what? And can I turn around now?”

  “Yeah.” He holstered the gun and stepped back to regard him. “Murder. Seems you got into a little bit of trouble out in New York.”

  “I did. But I didn’t kill nobody. Not people, anyway.”

  “According the bulletin,” Bart said, “you’re wanted for questioning in the disappearance of one Elizabeth Vaughan. She’s plumb vanished and folks at her work are getting a mite concerned.”

  “Oh shit,” Tucker said. “Of course she disappeared, but she ain’t dead. Well, she is dead, technically. But I didn’t kill her. Julius did. Even though she ain’t dead.” He shook his head. “This ain’t coming out right.”

  Bart nodded. “Maybe you should wait for a lawyer. For the time being, let’s just say you’re under arrest. And anything you say …”

  “… can be used against me. I know, I know, I watch TV,” Tucker said. “But she’s not really dead.”

  “You can’t be kind of dead,” he said, leaning against the truck to put in a chew, then started petting Rex.

  “That’s what I used to think, Bart. But things ain’t so clear anymore.”

  “They’re pretty clear in the eyes of the law.”

  “Bart, how long have I known you?” Tucker asked.

  “Ever since you started squirreling around with my sister,” he said.

  “That’s right. Bart, you know me. You know I ain’t a murderer. I didn’t kill my girlfriend. I didn’t kill anyone. Anyone that wasn’t already dead.”

  He looked at Tucker for a while. “I think maybe I’ll take a look at your load.”

  The thought of an impartial observer with a badge and a gun finding two corpses made Tucker wince. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Bart. And don’t you need a search warrant or something?”

  “I just arrested you, Tucker. You ain’t got no rights.” Rex came out good naturedly and followed Bart to the back of the trailer.

  “I don’t think that’s how it works,” Tucker said.

  The sun was still perched dangerously far from the rim of the mountains, and Tucker hung his head and prayed for the earth to turn a little faster. Just my luck, he thought, by the time Lizzie and Sully rose up, he’d be in lockup, Julius would send his legions and his little trip home would be the end of them all. He hunkered down by the tire, the cuffs pulling against his wrists.

  Bart unlatched the back door and it swung open. He sucked in a breath and whistled it out. Sometimes the sight of a coffin will do that to people.

  “Tucker, you better start talking,” Bart said, his voice flat and flinty.

  There wasn’t anything to say, so he just listened to the thud of boot heels climbing in, felt the truck shift under the weight and heard the scrape of a coffin being opened. “Come on back here, Tucker,” Bart said.

  “I’m mighty comfortable here.”

  “I’m going to insist.”

  Tucker struggled up and walked around the corner. “Do me a favor, Bart. Just keep it out of the sun.”

  “There ain’t no sun, it’s set,” Bart said, and Tucker realized gratefully he was right. He prayed that Lizzie wasn’t going to tarry in the netherworld tonight. He and Rex watched as Bart opened the coffin wider. “Jesus Christ,” he exclaimed. “This must be your girlfriend. She’s real pretty, Tucker.” He held his fingers to her neck to search for a pulse. “And real dead.”

  Rex jumped up on his hind legs and licked her face.

  “I can explain this,” Tucker said.

  “Let’s do it down at the station.”

  Tucker looked forlornly at the night sky “I’d rather do it right here.” Bart shrugged and pointed at the squad car.

  In the car, Bart listened politely and attentively to everything Tucker had to say. When he got to the part about vampires, Bart smiled and nodded and even acted interested. Tucker stretched the story out as long as he could, even going back a couple of places to emphasize certain things about vampires, all the while waiting for Lizzie to make an appearance.

  At last, he ran out of words. Bart smiled patiently and started the engine. “Bart, what’re you doing?”

  “Taking you to jail.” He pulled the radio loose and held it up to his mouth. “Dispatch, this is one-one-two.”

  “Go ahead, Bart,” the radio crackled.

  “I just picked up …” There was a tapping on the window, like a raven gently rapping. Bart looked into the beautiful face of Lizzie, smiling down into the car.

  “If you two are almost done, we really should get going,” she said.

  “Jesus H. Christ,” Bart shrieked and the radio slipped from his hand. “She’s dead. She’s dead,” he stammered. “There wasn’t no pulse …”

  “Bart, you broke up, Bart,” dispatch crackled. “Please repeat.”

  Tucker slumped forward in the seat and sighed with relief. “I told you, Bart. I told you she was dead.”

  “If she’s so dead, how come she’s standing right there?” he stammered. Lizzie smiled and waved, shielding her eyes from the headlights. Bart paled considerably and Tucker raised his wrists up, nodding toward the handcuffs.

  “Can I go now?”

  “How the hell am I supposed to write this up?”

  Lizzie leaned regally, impatiently against the Land Rover and watched as Bart drove off, leaving Tucker standing beside the road. “About time. You want me to drive?” she asked.

  Tucker rubbed hi
s wrists and looked cross. “Took your own sweet time getting out of bed. I could’ve been hauled off to jail by now.”

  “It’s not a bed, honey, it’s a coffin. Besides, I figured he was a friend of yours.”

  “Hell, sweetheart, everyone around here is a friend of mine.”

  “What did he say?”

  “He said he was going to pretend none of this happened. He said he was going back to the station and break that rule about cops drinking on duty. He said we had three weeks before he called the FBI. And he also said you was real pretty.”

  “Really? That’s sweet. I’m just glad Sully didn’t come out. I can only imagine what he would have thought then.”

  Hearing his name, Sully slammed the trailer shut and wandered over to the front door. “Good evening, Tucker, how was your day? You must be exhausted from all that driving.” He took a deep breath. “Smell that air. It’s so invigorating, so pine-scented. Where are we?”

  Tucker crawled back behind the wheel, muttering. “We’re outside of LonePine. God’s country. And I call it God’s country because until only recently, there wasn’t no vampires here.”

  “Tucker,” Lizzie said, nudging him in the ribs. If Sully heard, he chose to ignore it.

  After New York, LonePine looked small and lonesome. The lights of the main street, those that were still on as they pulled into town at nearly 10:30, were few and far between. There was no traffic, other than between the town’s two bars.

  Tucker’s eyes glazed over and Lizzie took his hand and gave it a squeeze. “Ain’t it beautiful?” he said.

  “It’s something, all right,” Lizzie said. “Looks just the same as the first time I saw it.”

  “Something to be said for things staying the same.”

  She swiveled to face him, the conversation taking a turn for the worse. “Change is good,” she said, cutting him a hard look.

  “Whoever said that probably had it bad to begin with,” Tucker suggested, still unaware of the underlying discussion they were having.

  “Or maybe they just didn’t realize things could get better.” She let go of his hand as he reached for the gear stick to slow down for the turn onto Dad’s road.