by Alan Ryker
The spare bedroom had been her aunt's sewing room, but she'd let Keith keep his hunting gear in that closet. Jessica pulled out a rifle drag bag and loaded it with rifles, shotguns and boxes of ammunition.
Keith had preferred .45s. He didn't have another .40 caliber, and though she knew it had been the smart thing to do, she wished she hadn't ditched her Smith & Wesson. If she got the chance she'd go dig it up. Until then, she clipped the belt holster for the .45 Ruger to the small of her back. Beneath the loose western shirt it was as concealed as she could get it. She strapped a .32 revolver to her ankle, which the fatigue pants hid reasonably well. No one had ever walked into a fight complaining of having too many guns.
She shouldered the bag and clomped heavily down the stairs. Before she stepped out the door, she looked around at the house. The last miserable year had dimmed her happy childhood memories of the place, but hadn't erased them completely. Pictures of Keith and Irene. Pictures of her parents. She didn't know what Keith would think of her. He'd died saving her, and look at the trouble she'd brought down on herself.
She couldn't help but imagine he would be a little proud.
When she closed the door, she figured it likely would be for the last time.
Jessica checked on her dogs in their kennel. They'd been fed. They whimpered and barked, especially seeing Fatty standing beside her. She thought about shoving Fatty back in with them, where he'd be safe. She knew where the vampires slept, after all. But anything could happen, and she might need to track them again. So she took Fatty with her.
There was no trash service out there. She burned the combustible trash and stored the rest until she felt like hauling it to the dump, which she hadn’t yet. She went to that barrel and pulled out some of Keith's beer bottles. Then she headed back across the pastures.
Jessica wiped at the sweat that coursed down her face as she leaned the gun bag against the door of the old car. Jack got out and reached for the bag.
“No,” she said, stepping between.
“I was just going to toss that in the back seat for you.”
“I can do it. Don't let me see you touch a gun.”
He cocked an eyebrow at that, but didn't say anything.
Once Jessica had loaded the rifle bag across the back seat and they'd been driving for awhile, he said, “You're going to have to trust me at some point.”
“I don't know about that.”
“I can't help you if you don't trust me.”
“I've made it this far without your help.”
“The sheriff would have taken you and done who-knows-what without my help.”
Jessica nodded. “That was a help. And you did it without a gun.”
Jack ground his jaw a bit. “If I were trying to betray you, would I have done that? Would I be here now?”
“I don't know. I don't know much about you. I know that you helped me. I also know that while I've been killing vampires, you've been feeding people to them.”
Jack almost spoke, but Jessica talked over him. “I don't like arguing. If you touch a gun, I'll fucking kill you. That's it.”
Jack's mouth worked. After a few moments it looked like it had almost worked a few words up, but he set his jaw again. Jessica was glad.
“We should stay around here, tonight,” Jessica said. “We'll go back to Krendel come sunrise.”
Jack nodded. “So where to?”
“I've got a safe house a couple miles north of here.”
Her safe house was really a pre-fabricated tool shed that had been swallowed up by the trees growing along a creek on an unused parcel of pasture. Mr. Gordon had gotten too old to ranch, but was too stubborn to lease his land. The tool shed was still sturdy and on a concrete foundation, and had a tool chest that was so heavily loaded that Jessica couldn't estimate the weight. Jessica had found a vampire sleeping in it, and after dragging the creature out into the sun to burn, she realized that the chest would be a good place to put a stash of supplies.
She entered and lit the lantern. A few spiders had built webs since she cleaned it out, but it was still pretty tidy. She unlocked the tool chest and dragged out a bedroll, a camping stove and a couple cans of ravioli. She dropped in the bag of guns and re-locked the chest.
“This is a nice safe house,” Jack said. Jessica responded with a blank look, hoping that the stupidity of his own words would come to him. “Have you got many?”
“A few.” She had gotten the camping stove lit, and was opening the cans of ravioli. It was a bit of work. She'd gotten the can-opener two for a dollar.
“Have you needed them much?” Jack asked.
“Sit down,” Jessica said, gesturing to a sleeping roll. “I don't like it when people hover.”
“Sorry.”
Jessica dumped both cans of ravioli into the little pot, then fell back onto her bedroll and leaned against the corrugated tin wall.
“Convenient to have a creek right there,” Jack said.
Jessica nodded. She could see his discomfort. The lamplight whetted his already sharp features. Shadow slashed high up under his eyes, where his cheekbones sat. He was handsome, for an idiot. And a traitor to the human race.
“I'm not proud of what I did,” he said.
Jessica didn't nod that time.
“It was all so sudden and strange, and my family… We have to protect them. Once Willie finds out I helped you…” He looked at her, pleading for understanding with his eyes.
She sat up, pulled the .45 from where it dug into her back and sat it in her lap. It was apparent from the expression on Jack's face that he didn't know she'd done it out of discomfort, not as a threat. Fear widened his eyes. Good.
“There's nothing we can do right now. I'm sorry about that. We can't face three vampires at night. But tomorrow, we'll kill them.”
Jack nodded and stared at the pot of ravioli. He flicked his eyes up at her. “How do you do it?”
“Chop their heads off and let 'em burn.”
“No, I mean, you're younger than me, and this is what you do.” He looked around at the small, dusty building they sat in. “I've been hiding because I have to. How did you choose this?”
She shook her head. She stirred the ravioli. “I didn't, really.”
“A vampire killed your family, didn't it?”
She nodded.
“You don't have anyone?”
She shook her head.
“See, that's what I don't get. You think I'd be helping you if I didn't have family here?”
Jessica scoffed. “Probably not.”
“No. Hell no. What do I care about you?” He leaned forward. “I'm normal. I don't want to tangle with monsters that'll drain the blood right out of me. I want to live. I want to get the hell away from them. What about you?”
Jessica speared a ravioli with her fork and held it to her tongue. Not hot, but at least not cold. She put it in her mouth and chewed while she scraped some onto the floor for Fatty. Finally she said, “Are you looking for forgiveness from me? You want me to say I understand? Forget it. I can't forgive you. The people your vampires have been draining, ask them.”
He shook his head. “I know. You're a hardass. But who are you trying to get to forgive you?”
Jessica took another bite of ravioli and tossed him a fork. “Shut up and eat. I made this for you. I'm barely hungry.”
After a couple more bites, she turned and stretched out on her bedroll with her .45 and her machete beside her. She didn't like that there was more to Jack than she'd first seen. She didn't like that he was trying to figure her out, and that he asked questions with answers she didn't want to think about.
Fatty lay with his back against her, facing Jack. Not that Jessica was terribly worried about him. He was a coward.
“Turn the lamp down when you're done,” she said. Exhausted, she sank into sleep easily.
Chapter 8
Willie arranged to meet the sheriff on a dirt road. He couldn't blame him for not wanting to regularly be seen wi
th them. The general public didn't know they were vampires, but they thought a lot of other things about them that a lawman wouldn't want to be associated with.
“You just let her walk away?” Douglas asked. The sheriff probably couldn't hear it, but Willie could make out the thrum of a deep growl in Douglas's throat as he spoke.
“There wasn't much I could do. The whole café was watching.” Sheriff Yoder leaned against the hood of his car with his arms crossed. Willie could see that it was a position of habit, and usually one of power, except that the sheriff kept folding and unfolding his arms. “Besides, I thought Jack was on your side.”
“Jack disappeared awhile ago,” Willie said. He pressed at his chest through his stained white t-shirt, where the vampire's claws had punched between his ribs. The wound was nearly healed. He'd almost miss it.
“I guess we'll have to teach him what happens when you cross us. Go pay his mama a visit,” Douglas said, smiling.
At night, lined by thick hedges, the dirt road was dark. But Willie could see Sheriff Yoder perfectly, the way he sprang up off his car.
“You can't do that. The deal is you don't kill anyone in my county.”
“We been betrayed, and that can't get around,” Douglas said.
“I understand, but you can't—”
“I can!” Douglas roared. His fangs burst forth.
Amy Yoder stood quietly in the background. Willie had been watching the sheriff's eyes occasionally flick over to his daughter. They did again at that moment, with a sort of pleading look in them. She remained blank, except that the sudden excitement caused her mouth to bulge a bit with her fangs.
Amy didn't speak. That wasn't her place. He and Douglas made sure she knew that.
Willie calmed himself for a moment as he restrained Douglas. He let his own fangs retract. When he began speaking again, blood trickled from his lips where his needle-sharp teeth had suddenly pressed into them. “Don't worry Sheriff. Jessica is our first concern. When we find her, we'll find Jack and give him his without causing you fuss.”
The sheriff nodded and relaxed a bit. “That's how I see it, too. And this girl is a known trouble-maker and currently a drifter. If she goes missing it won't raise alarms. But that's the key. She has to 'go missing.' I can't snatch her up in front of a bunch of witnesses.”
Douglas gently pushed Willie's hand away from his shoulder. They rarely touched each other. Willie wanted to rip Douglas's hand off as it pressed at his own. He knew that Douglas felt the same way.
Douglas said, “You talk about 'can' and 'can't' too much. What we need to discuss is what the hell you're doing to get this settled. We can handle this easily enough ourselves, but it ain’t gonna be quiet.”
Sheriff Yoder adjusted his crossed arms again and smirked. “Don't bullshit me, boy. If you could handle Jessica Harris easily, you would have. She's got you all scared.”
Before Douglas could get himself riled up again, Willie said, “For everyone's sake, let's just get this dealt with.” He turned to leave, and Douglas and Amy followed.
“Amy,” Sheriff Yoder said. He pressed off the hood of the car and walked towards them. “How are you doing?”
“Fine.” She turned and continued walking.
Yoder watched her, and Willie watched him. Sorrow creased his face. Willie could tell that the weight was getting to be too much for him. He didn't know what they'd do with the sheriff once they were done with him, but the time was coming.
Jessica Harris, though, was the immediate concern.
They ran through the pastures. Willie kept a slower pace than he otherwise would for Amy's sake. She wasn't as fast as he and Douglas. Douglas pulled ahead.
The path Jessica Harris had taken away from their front door practically glowed. Willie could have followed the scent with his eyes closed.
It led them to a mostly-collapsed barn, with wood so dry and weathered it was like balsa. Douglas shifted a pile of debris and picked something up. As Willie jogged to his side, he saw that it was a very small semi-automatic pistol.
Douglas laughed. “This is practically insulting. Look at this tiny thing.” He pointed it at an errant sunflower, stuck the tip of a massive claw into the guard and pulled the trigger. The sunflower disappeared, and the gun kept going, climbing up. “Holy shit!”
“Fully automatic,” Willie said. “That's not insulting.” Jessica had earned her reputation.
“I'm keeping this,” Douglas said, carefully sliding the gun into his pocket.
“What possible use could you have for that?” Amy said.
“Being awesome. Shut up.”
Amy didn't say anything more, but Willie watched something flash across her face before it went blank again.
“What else she hide?” Willie asked.
“Bigger gun. Serious.” Douglas held the pistol up and twisted it back and forth. He once again delicately fit the tip of a claw in the guard and pulled the trigger. When only one bullet came out, he seemed disappointed. “I don't know. Maybe a .45?”
Willie took the gun from him. “.40. Says so right on the slide.”
“Asshole.”
Willie shrugged and chucked the gun into the long grass. On the one hand, it was crafty of her to go into town without anything that'd get her into trouble, on the other, he'd certainly prefer to meet an unarmed vampire hunter. He was confident in his strength, but he figured there was a good chance that a few .40 caliber bullets through the head or heart could end him regardless.
“What else? Get everything,” he said.
He and Douglas shifted around more rubble, but didn't find any more weapons. In a silent moment, Willie heard Amy shuffling quietly back over to them. He imagined he knew where she'd gone. He found it very interesting.
Back at their sagging old house they sat on their sagging old furniture and discussed their options.
“We need to get her now. What are we doing sitting around? Come daybreak, we're stuck underground and she's free do whatever she pleases.” Douglas had himself worked up such that he could barely speak through his gnashing maw.
“There's nothing we can do right now. She left by car. We can't track her,” Willie said.
“We could go to her house.”
“We could, but she won't be there. She's smart. So our time is better spent discussing what we're gonna do when she shows herself again.”
“And end up stuck in that hole in just a few hours?” Douglas gripped the arms of his chair, his claws digging into the upholstery.
“The bunker is safe.”
“Yeah,” Gabe said. He leaned against the wall, shirtless as usual. “We'll protect you. What can a little girl do against us?” He nodded at Big Charlie.
Douglas's eyes went wide and even blacker. Willie wondered if he'd have to intervene. “You two idiots are going to protect us? She sent a vampire right past you, down to our front door. It was dead before you even knew what was happening. Then she came knocking to check on her handiwork, and you provided her refreshments before sending her on her way.” Douglas stood and approached Gabe, who flattened himself against the wall. “That makes you worse than useless.” Douglas stepped quickly to Gabe and stood toe-to-toe with him. His mouth stretched unconsciously, his lips spreading to accommodate the sizeable teeth. Drool slipped from the corners of his mouth.
Gabe's knees started to shake, then he slid to the floor.
Willie watched. He thought about stopping Douglas, but Gabe really was a bit useless. And the scene was interesting. He wanted to see how far Douglas would go. These were Douglas's closest human companions. He wasn't behaving rationally, but he rarely did.
Willie watched Charlie, too. The big man's internal struggle showed itself in small movements. His arm kept twitching, as if he wanted to raise it. His mouth kept almost opening, as if he wanted to talk sense into Douglas. But he couldn't seem to quite bring himself to shift that horrible attention away from Gabe and onto him.
Amy lounged on the couch, smiling. A rarity. Sh
e said, “That's enough, Douglas.”
Douglas turned his murderous gaze on Amy. She didn't move, kept her relaxed position, but Willie could see and smell her tension.
“This is bullshit,” Douglas said. “I'm going to look for her.” With that he ran out the door.
“He's got a point,” Amy said. “For all we know, she could send in an army of super vampires. She seems capable of just about anything. I mean, she walked right up to our front door.”
Willie nodded. “You're right. But we have to wait for her to make her move.”
“We shouldn't have riled her up in the first place.”
“Woulda shoulda coulda.” Willie turned to Charlie. “You two are gonna strap yourselves to the gills and you're gonna guard us. You're not gonna sit around playing video games and jerking off.” Gabe hadn't yet collected himself off the floor. Willie looked over at Big Charlie. “I can smell what you feel. I can smell what you think. If you even consider abandoning us, I'll feed you to the dogs. Now you two prepare yourselves and get some sleep. Amy and I have things to discuss.”
Willie led Amy down into the common area of the bunker.
“Douglas seems to be going off the deep end,” he said.
Amy stared at him blankly, as she usually did. But he saw her eyes working, scanning his face. He practically saw her brain working behind her eyes. Weighing. Calculating. Detecting treachery.
“He seems worked up.”
That was a good answer. She'd agreed with him, but hadn't dedicated to anything.
“Too worked up. He's letting the animal take over.”
He could tell she was trying to remain blank, but he sensed more than she could have thought possible. Right after the change, Willie had marveled at how his senses had sharpened, but they'd been butter-knife dull compared to what they'd become. He watched the tiny muscles twitch around her eyes and mouth. He hadn't lied when he said he could smell thoughts. Amy wasn't as easy to read as a human, but he could smell her confusion in her chemistry.