Gidion's Blood

by Bill Blume

  “Yes?”

  “I’m sorry it had to be like this, but I am looking forward to seeing you.”

  “I’ll see you at 8:30,” he shook as he forced out the last word, “Mom.”

  Then he hung up.

  He stared out the window. This wasn’t fair. He shouldn’t feel like the monster in this, but all they were doing was trading lies.

  “How much did you compromise?” Blood asked.

  “Yes, I’m fine.” He bit out the words as he turned to her indifferent gaze. “Thanks for asking.”

  “Stony Point is less than ten minutes away. How much did you compromise?”

  He considered how far away the Byrd was. “Probably twenty minutes away.”

  “Not much time.”

  “Downtown was only going to be a half hour by comparison.”

  She turned her attention back to the intersection down the street. “Ten more minutes was better.”

  “Well, when it’s your mom on the phone, you can make the call and plan the meet.”

  “My mother is dead.”

  “Join the club, Sweetheart.”

  Blood didn’t press the matter after that, probably just satisfied that he hadn’t called her “Muffin” again.

  They waited in the dark and the cold, crouched in their seats to stay hidden. Blood pulled out a book from a compartment in her side door and cracked it open. Given her enhanced eyesight, reading in the dark didn’t present a problem for her.

  “What are you reading?”

  She waited until she finished the page she was on and answered as she turned to the next. “Hunger Games.”

  With the car turned off, the dashboard’s display didn’t offer the time. Gidion knew better than to check his phone. Boredom almost pushed him to start a conversation with Blood, but he thought better of it.

  Blood looked up from her book. “Car coming. Two of them.”

  He kept low as he peered over the edge of the dashboard. A pair of headlights on the intersecting street drove by, followed by another pair.

  He wished he had her keen eyesight. The twists of the streets along the James River made them almost as difficult to navigate as the river. The curve of the road they were on had helped hide them from view as the two cars drove by on the intersecting street, but it was near impossible for him to discern anything about the passing cars.

  “Was it her?” His worst fear had been that he might have guessed wrong, that the house along the river wasn’t hers. If that happened, then they’d done all this for nothing.

  She sat up. “Shi,” she said, which going by her nod, meant the same as “Yes.”

  “How many did she take with her?”

  “Four.”

  “Four,” he said to himself. The number tasted bitter.

  He risked a check of the time on his phone. She’d left within fifteen minutes. She’d be in Carytown with plenty of time to let her guys position themselves and prepare an ambush.

  “Plan worked.” Blood sounded surprised.

  “Like a charm,” he muttered. Part of him was disappointed, and the realization that his mother hadn’t proven him wrong, that part of him had hoped she would, angered him more.

  “Leaves six.”

  “Actually, just three.”

  She slowly turned her head to fix her gaze on him. “When did you kill them?”

  “Dad and I killed three at the park.”

  “You tell me now?”

  He shrugged. “I was worried you wouldn’t find dealing with seven intimidating enough. I would think you’d be happy.”

  She shrugged as he had. “When I said your mother had ten, I counted Pretty Boy.”

  “You lying, fanged piece of crap. Are you seriously telling me there are only two left?”

  She smiled with obvious satisfaction as she opened her book to continue reading. “May the odds be ever in your favor.”

  Knowing only two vampires stood between him and Dad should have made Gidion happy. Unfortunately, all the past minute had accomplished was to make him wonder if the vampire to his left was the bigger threat.

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Gidion set the timer on his phone. “We’ll give them fifteen minutes and then go.”

  “Good.” Blood turned to the next page in her book. “Can finish this chapter.”

  He wondered if she was really that calm. Reading her wasn’t as simple as the novel in her hands. Up until Blood, he thought he understood how vampires thought. For whatever reason, she didn’t work the same as the others.

  He sent a text to Ms. Aldgate. ‘Getting ready to go in for Dad. If you don’t hear back from me in three hours, call the police.’

  The reply was simple. ‘Make certain I don’t need to make that call. Be careful.’

  ‘10-4. No more texts or calls until after you see me or get a call from me.’

  He considered texting Andrea, but he couldn’t decide what to say that wouldn’t just make her worry. Instead, he went through and purged all of his text messages. If he got caught or lost his phone, he didn’t want to leave anything behind that might endanger Ms. Aldgate or Andrea. He wondered if Dad had done the same before the meeting at the park. The fact that Mom hadn’t gone after Ms. Aldgate at her house suggested he probably had. Mom might not have gained total access to the phone, though. There were ways to gain partial access without knowing the user’s pass code.

  Gidion distracted himself by going to Tumblr and scrolling through his feed. He found a picture from the old cartoon Gatchaman and reblogged it. He wondered if Dad was still wearing the wristband he’d given him for his birthday. He hoped so. The memories of watching that show with Dad weren’t tainted by what he’d learned in the past few days, and there was a comfort in that.

  A few minutes later, his phone played Jimi Hendrix insisting there must be some way out of here. Seemed appropriate.

  “You set?” Gidion asked.

  She raised a finger to silence him as she stayed focused on her book. A few seconds later, she snapped the paperback shut. She shoved her book into the slot in the door and climbed out.

  Even though Blood hadn’t run the heat in the car, the wind caught Gidion unprepared, leeching what little warmth his body still had.

  “Floor mat,” Blood said as a reminder.

  Gidion slid on his backpack and then grabbed the rectangular shaped piece of grey fabric from the floor of the car.

  The privacy fences worked to their advantage. No one could see them from the houses as they ran down to the intersection and to the left. Mom’s property was just three houses from here. The location also helped. This close to the river, they were far enough from any major roadway, so they weren’t likely to have anyone randomly drive past them. Lord knows, they made a sight. As if he wouldn’t look odd enough running down the street with a floor mat in his hands, neither Blood nor he bothered to hide their swords.

  Once they reached the corner of the brick fence surrounding Mom’s place, they paused just a second to make certain no one was watching, looking for any approaching cars, or someone out for a late night jog or walking their dog. The trees on the other side of Mom’s fence hid them from view of anyone inside the house. Exploiting the vampires’ lust for privacy gave Gidion and Blood their best advantage.

  “Let’s do this.” He draped the floor mat over the top of the fence. He placed it with the carpet side of the mat face down. The fabric snagged on the bits of broken glass keeping it in place. The rubber side of the mat protected them from the glass, and its thick ridges provided them with something to grip as they climbed.

  Getting over the fence turned out to be more awkward than Gidion expected because of his backpack. He carried most of their haul from the hardware store in there. He hoped that wouldn’t put him too off-balance if he had to fight, which was certain to happen.

  Once they both made it over, Gidion pulled the mat down and left it on the ground. They weren’t likely to leave this way, but they wanted the option. This was the easie
st part of their plan, getting over the fence. Everything from this point forward was a viper-filled barrel of question marks.

  They stayed in the cover of the trees as they worked their way towards the back of the property. They caught narrow views of the house. The front porch light was on, but none of the lights inside the front of the house had been left on.

  “Probably in the back of the house,” Gidion said. They’d studied the floor plans for the house that the real estate website had provided. The right side of the house was their best approach. The upstairs didn’t have a single window, and even though the downstairs rooms did, they belonged to the master bedroom and master bath. None of Mom’s guys were likely to be in those rooms. Of course, that assumed the master bedroom was being used for that purpose.

  Blood led the way through the trees, since her eyes were better-suited for navigating in the dark. They headed towards the backyard so they could see the rear windows.

  No lights were on in the back of the house either, except for the living room. The way that light flickered, it had to be a television.

  “You sure about how many goons she has working for her?” Gidion asked.

  She nodded. “Shi, a vampire betrayed her plans to the regional elder who herds nomads on the East Coast.”

  “Why did he betray her?”

  “Because your mother is a fool.”

  “She’s no fool, just driven by emotion.” The desire to defend his mother surprised him, but Dad had talked about her enough for him to know something of what she was like. Dad worked with logic and precision. Mom drew him out of his shell as much as he’d tempered her. Wasn’t surprising that they’d fallen into self-destructive lifestyles after they were forced apart.

  “Emotions will end her and her followers.” Blood led them deeper into the backyard.

  Gidion still felt that urge to defend Mom, but he already knew the reasons Blood was being paid to finish her. Mom was far too young. At a minimum, bloodsuckers needed at least twenty-five years to qualify as an elder. Never mind that she was building a coven out of the nomadic vampires she’d met over the years, although she’d probably turned a few of them herself which would explain why some of them were shades.

  Most male vampires were expected to travel, and only a few were welcomed within a coven. Nomadic vampires paid heavy tithes which were given to the covens and intended to finance safe houses. Judging from Bonnie and GQ Drac’s emails, the covens were gouging the nomads. Mom’s plans would turn Richmond into a haven for nomadic vampires outside of that system and deny the covens that revenue. In a strange way, he was proud of her, because her plans were intended to start a revolution. She’d assumed that once she had her coven in place, the other vampires wouldn’t be willing to risk exposure for a war.

  Mom hadn’t counted on two things: Gidion being the hunter who took out the previous coven and Blood being hired to kill him. Once she found out about Gidion, it changed everything. If the vampires hadn’t already brought in this assassin to finish him, they might not have considered the option to use her against Mom until it was too late. They would have had to acknowledge Mom’s coven. That would be like the United States or China being forced to recognize an upstart dictatorship in some third world country as a legitimate government.

  Mom’s only hope was to take out Blood first and collect the bounty. With two million dollars, she could pay the East Coast elders enough to overlook her sins.

  He pointed to a spot along the edge of the tree line that was equidistant between the house and the edge of the James River. From here, the river looked like warped, black glass. It was riding high, too, after all the recent rain. Blood led them through the dark, gnarled path of exposed roots and fallen branches to the place he’d indicated.

  “This work for you?” he asked.

  She smiled.

  With that, he slipped off his backpack and zipped it open. “Keep an eye on the house.” Among their purchases had been a small spray bottle. He sprayed the bottom of the selected tree trunk, and the scent of gasoline pushed Blood back a few steps. If that hadn’t made him smile, the memory of how he’d used this same technique to burn down the previous coven’s home did.

  He pulled out a lighter, the kind that came with a long wand and a trigger, and offered it to Blood. She glared at him. “Where is my thirty dollar propane torch?”

  “I got the torch for me. You thought it was a waste of money.” He wiggled the lighter in his hand for her to take it. “Besides, this lighter keeps you farther from the flame. Given that you’re more flammable than I am, I figured you’d prefer something that would make you less likely to go poof.”

  She snarled as she snatched it from his hand. “Plan had better work.”

  He winked at her and took off through the trees headed back towards the front of the house. Counting on the limited number of windows facing his direction, Gidion sprinted from the trees to the side of the house. From there, he moved cautiously towards the front. Azalea bushes, well-groomed into boxes, lined the edge of the house. The tallest bush was placed at the corner of the house and was shaped more like a Christmas tree. He sprayed the tallest bush with the bottle of gasoline. He hoped both of the vampires still here were watching TV together in the back of the house, or he might find himself attacked at any second. Their heightened sense of smell wouldn’t miss this if they were anywhere near the front of the house, not to mention their heightened sense of hearing. The spray bottle wasn’t loud, but it was probably loud enough for a vampire without any other sound in the room to distract him.

  He looked in Blood’s direction. Even with the moon out, he couldn’t see her. The blue flame of the micro torch hissed to life. He waved the torch in a slow arc to signal Blood to start her fire, too. Turning his attention to the tall bush, he pointed the flame at it making sure not to get too close. The gas probably wasn’t necessary to set the bush or tree on fire, but given the recent, heavy rain, he didn’t want to take any chances. Besides, they needed these fires to be big and easy to see from a distance. The gasoline ensured an impressive show.

  The flame caught, the bush erupting with a loud gasp. Gidion jumped back, worried for a moment he might get burned. Satisfied with his act of arson, he checked on the second fire near Blood. Flames engulfed the base of the tree.

  If the vampires were in that back room, it wouldn’t matter what was on the TV. They wouldn’t miss that tree going up in flames.

  The fires got the desired reaction. He heard two voices, both men, yelling at each other. They came from the back of the house. Gidion crouched in front of the house. His position allowed him a slim bit of space between the corner of the house and the bush so that he could see what was happening. This was a case where the vampires’ keen eyesight worked against them. Vampires were great at seeing in the dark, but the bright light of the fire would blind them and render Gidion little more than a shadow in the background. He saw them run towards the tree trunk, still together. They hadn’t noticed Gidion’s fire yet.

  One of them yelled at the other to grab the hose. They’d expected that. Under normal circumstances, they might have been willing to call for the fire department. Vampires couldn’t fool around where fire was concerned. Unfortunately, Gidion’s fire right up against the outer wall all but ensured the fire department would check inside the house. Despite his careful application, some of the gas had made it onto the house and the flames jumped onto the wall. These vampires couldn’t risk any humans going inside the house, not with Dad being held prisoner.

  The shorter of the two ran for the back of the house again, but then he saw the fire Gidion had set and they both stopped. Both of them cursed. Gidion held in one of his own, because the tall one ordering the small guy around was already on his cell phone. Didn’t take many guesses who was on the other end of the line, and it wasn’t 911. He’d also hoped these guys would be shades like Mom. No such luck.

  The good news was that the plan split up the two. The taller goon headed for Gidion’s f
ire. The closer he got, the more Gidion realized this guy was really tall, close to six-and-a-half feet. Just great.

  Gidion drew his sword and ran for the cover of another tall bush on the other side of the front door. There weren’t many hiding places here, and no room for retreat. The three-car garage jutted out from the left side of the house. His hiding place positioned him almost right on the inside corner of the “L” formed by the garage and the front of the house.

  Jesus, he hoped this worked, because he was going to need all the advantage of surprise he could manage, but his hiding place left more than twenty feet between him and where the vampire would be.

  “What do you think I’m trying to do?” The Less-Than-Jolly-Fanged-Giant shouted into his phone as he rounded the corner. “Just hurry up and get here!”

  Bushes rustled, followed by a shrill squeak as the vampire turned on the garden hose. The spout was just a few feet from the right side of the front door, the same side as the bush that was on fire. Water gushed from the hose. Then the sound of water spilling out changed. The vampire must have pressed his thumb to the spout to create the spray. Gidion assumed that required both of his hands. Even if it didn’t, he’d be forced to use his gun one-handed while fighting the fire, and that didn’t work as well as the movies suggested.

  Gidion ran from his hiding place with his sword drawn. He kept his trap shut, but that didn’t silence the clap of his feet on the brick driveway.

  To his relief, the vampire used both hands to handle the hose, but he heard Gidion the second he launched from his hiding place. Gidion worried about getting shot. What he hadn’t expected was to get sprayed with the hose when the vampire turned to look in his direction. The blast of water was by chance at first, buy Jolly recognized the advantage and aimed the frigid water at Gidion’s face. The attack blinded him for a split second. The spray went away, his vision restored, and he saw the vampire reach into his jacket. Already committed, Gidion finished the charge. He swung his sword, wishing he’d brought something longer than this wakizashi.

  His swing caught the vampire’s forearm before he could pull out the gun. The strike sliced deep into the arm, but it wasn’t enough to sever it. Given how quickly vampires could heal, that made his attack little better than a paper cut. The vampire retreated, and without his gun. Gidion pressed the attack.