Taboo (A Tale of the Talhari Book 1)

by Heather Elizabeth King

  “Because he’s not human,” she reminded herself. “And we don’t mess around with people who aren’t human.”

  She walked around her house for a good thirty minutes, remembering the feel of his body on hers, the heat of his fingers as they wrapped around her wrists. His eyes as they stared into hers.

  She sighed. She was obsessing and she knew it. She had to get her mind off Alaric and focus. If she didn’t, she was likely to do something stupid. There were monsters in Lynchburg. Actual monsters that killed people. That needed to be her main concern.

  After an hour spent trying to find a book that might help her, she gave up. She wasn’t gonna find what she needed here. Maybe she’d find what she needed online.

  She started up the stairs to boot up her laptop, but came back down and packed it in her laptop bag. She didn’t have any books on the supernatural here, her focus was history. Plain, clean old history. But there were all types of books at the office. Also, once she hooked in to the magazine’s net, she’d have access to hundreds of libraries throughout the world.

  She got out her cell phone and dialed Alaric’s cell, but nobody answered. So she left a message saying she was going into the office to do the research he’d asked her to do.

  She rushed up to her bedroom, showered and re-dressed in jeans and a black tee-shirt. That done, she slid back into her sneakers.

  She knew what Alaric had told her, but in her shoes, would he wait around for someone to get back with him? Hell, even after he did call her back he’d probably just order her to stay inside and wait for him to drive her downtown to the magazine. She could do that herself. And if she had to drive around the block ten times before she could find a parking spot on the street in front of the building, that’s what she’d do.

  Chapter Six

  It took her ten minutes to get to the magazine and there was a spot out front just waiting for her. The magazine was downtown in a four-story, brick building. There were a number of businesses inside, but hers was on the third floor. Chisolm, the owner of the magazine, had rented the space, remodeled it so it looked like a posh, upscale New York magazine office, and set the magazine there. It was wonderful to look out of her office window and see people walking the sidewalks, the colorful kids’ museum, runners and bikers.

  She tried the main door, but was surprised to find it locked. On a Friday afternoon the building should not have been locked this early.

  “Oh, you’re here too.”

  She swung around, fists clenched.

  A man, a little taller than her, stood behind her. His brown hair was oiled to within an inch of its life and combed over a protruding forehead. He held a briefcase in one arm and a set of car keys in the opposite hand.

  “Benny. You scared the crap out of me.”

  Benny was one of the magazine’s staff writers.

  “First day of Friday Cheers. Everyone left early to beat the traffic. You know how it gets down here.”

  She’d forgotten. Friday Cheers was a summer long event that included live music, beer, wine, and lots of dancing. It was a Lynchburg tradition and people looked forward to it. It didn’t start until five-thirty, but often by five-fifteen people were jockeying for position in the parking lots. By six, traffic was a nightmare. People parked and walked to… she closed her eyes. They walked to Riverfront Park. Where Cora had died.

  “It’s that time already. I forgot,” she said.

  “Believe it or not, Chisolm let us leave early. From what I understand, everyone turned in their stories so he let us leave during the mass exodus of the rest of the building.” He looked down at his briefcase. “Well, almost everybody. I left a research book at home and had to go back and get it before I could finish my story.”

  “Why not finish the article at home?”

  “Chelsey, Ariel, and Becca.”

  I understood at once. Benny had three kids, all under ten.

  “It’s like a zoo at home.”

  The front door had been white at one time, but was brick red now. The glass panes inside the door were scuffed, but clear enough for her to see that inside the building it was dark.

  Benny unlocked then pushed the door open, held it for her, then stepped inside. He locked the door behind them and Sydney couldn’t say she minded.

  “Closing the office early is unheard of for Chisolm, even because of Friday Cheers,” Sydney said. “I wonder what got into him.”

  Benny shrugged. “Who knows? But why look a gift horse in the mouth.”

  They got into an elevator together. She pushed the button for the third floor and he pushed the button for the fourth.

  “I’m going to my office. If you’re gone by the time I finish, I’ll lock up when I leave.”

  “A okay,” he said.

  She’d left her office door unlocked last night, so she went in and quickly got settled. She had a small coffee maker in the corner of the room that she used to brew hot water for tea. She filled the coffee pot with tap from the hall bathroom and set the pot to brew. That done, she took out her laptop and booted up. As the water boiled and her laptop came on she went to the library to retrieve whatever books she could find on the supernatural.

  In minutes she was walking back to her desk, arms laden with books that she dumped on the desk top. She poured herself a large mug of tea then sat down to work.

  Almost instantly her eyes went to the chair where Cora had been sitting yesterday. It probably still had the imprint of her body. And today, Cora was dead. It still didn’t seem real. And it seemed somehow cruel that she couldn’t talk about it with anyone. She had to suffer in silence. But this was the best thing she could do for Cora, figure out who…what had killed her.

  She scoured the net, online libraries and the books, but couldn’t find anything helpful. She looked at pictures of various monsters, studied myths and folklore from a variety of countries, and came up empty.

  By the time she stopped to look out the window she saw that her tea was cold and it was getting dark.

  Alaric would have a cow if he knew she’d been out this late. And truth be told, she didn’t want to be out so late after what happened last night in the park. It wasn’t likely anything bad could happen tonight with all the people gathered for Friday Cheers, but she wasn’t taking any chances.

  Again, she looked at the chair Cora had been in less than twenty-four hours ago. How could her friend be dead? It didn’t seem possible.

  Forcing her eyes away from the chair, she looked at the clock. It was time to pack it in and head home.

  She booted down her laptop, poured the excess water in the coffee pot into the bathroom sink, and then shoved her laptop into its bag. Maybe she’d get home before Alaric realized she’d ignored his dictates and had left the house.

  She froze when something overhead scraped the floor.

  She stared at the ceiling. “Is that you, Benny?”

  For a moment, only silence greeted her. Then Benny called, “Yeah. I’m about ready to pack it in, though. How about you?”

  “Me too. It’s gonna be dark soon.”

  “Okay, be right down.”

  She had enough time to secure her bag and grab her purse, then Benny was jogging down the stairs.

  Again, something scraped along the floor upstairs.

  He paused mid-step and turned to look behind him. She looked up.

  “That wasn’t you this time,” she said, rather stupidly.

  “No, it wasn’t.”

  They continued to stare, then Benny moved, clearly about to start back up the stairs.

  She rushed to him and grabbed his arm. “No, let’s just leave.”

  “It could be an intruder.”

  “Then we call the cops. Are you equipped to deal with an intruder?”

  He stared up the stairs, then shook his head. “Okay, let’s go.”

  Sydney debated using the elevator, then discarded the idea. If something was in the building the stairs were safer.

  She followed him down t
he first flight of stairs, careful to look over her shoulder every few seconds. Benny was moving at a fast trot so she had to jog to keep up with him.

  Pausing, he turned to her. “You hear that?”

  She did. More movement from upstairs.

  “Someone is up there. I hear footsteps. More than one person. And…and…and growling. Who the fuck is growling?”

  She slapped a hand over Benny’s mouth, sensing he was about to panic. “It’s okay. Just go.”

  He shoved her hand away. “A growl, Sydney. Someone up there growled.”

  “Okay, so keep moving. Come on.” She grabbed Benny’s hand.

  She started forward again, trying to move quickly, but Benny was walking on his tippy toes.

  “What are you doing?” she demanded in a hiss.

  “Trying to be stealthy.”

  “Speed wins out over stealth. You were running before.”

  “That’s before it growled. My legs feel like weights now.”

  On the landing, she looked over the railing down to the first floor. When she didn’t see anything she started down the next flight. “Fast but quiet,” she mouthed.

  Benny nodded.

  On the next landing they paused long enough for her to look over the railing and down to the first floor again.

  “All’s clear,” she mouthed, then nearly fell down the stairs when something behind her spoke in a low, guttural voice. It sounded as though it could have come from the depths of hell.

  “The master will be so happy.”

  Benny screamed.

  She looked over her shoulder and screamed too. A creature was on the floor above, staring down at them. This one had a snout where his nose should have been; thick, wet lips; and a husk growing out of either side of his nose. Oh, and it had wings.

  Benny jerked free of her and half ran, half fell down the last flight of stairs.

  Sydney was a lot more agile than Benny, she just ran.

  The thing behind them growled again. Its footfalls seemed to echo off the walls as it raced down the stairs after them.

  It wasn’t the same thing she’d seen last night, the thing that had killed Cora. This creature was different. Instead of skin it had thick tufts of brown hair, instead of hands it had claws. This didn’t look like a vampire, it looked like a werewolf. A Hollywood version, but more grotesque. More horrible than anything any mind could conjure.

  She looked over her shoulder again and nearly fell down the last three steps. There wasn’t one creature, but three.

  Three. Each more hideous than the last. Along with the wolf man was a piggy looking man and a pale, vampire like thing similar to what she’d seen the night Cora was murdered.

  On the first floor Benny sprawled face first onto the floor. He struggled to get to his knees. She jerked him up by one arm and pulled. Either he was gonna run or she was gonna drag him.

  The beasts were coming down the stairs after them. Again, she screamed.

  She should have listened to Alaric and stayed home.

  Another growl sounded from behind them. The sound of footfalls closed in, and the whisper of guttural voices excited by the hunt.

  Benny was on his feet and running so she let go of him so she could run full out.

  She could see the entrance, see the front doors. See the setting sun cast dim light in the foyer.

  Then despair sucked the breath out of her. Benny had locked the doors when they’d come in. There wouldn’t be enough time to unlock them before the creatures were on them.

  Then, behind her, Benny screamed.

  Chapter Seven

  Sydney turned in time to see a pale hand grab hold of Benny’s shirt collar and pull. His arms windmilled, trying to balance, but he fell to the ground. At the last moment he broke his fall with an arm.

  The wolf man howled from somewhere. He wasn’t on the stairs anymore. She didn’t like not being able to see him.

  The pig man held Benny easily, despite Benny’s flailing and kicking.

  Up close, the creature was far worse than the wolf man. It had a husk growing out of each side of its mouth, long, floppy pig ears and a snout, but eyes that were disturbingly human. It towered over Benny, and had to outweigh him by at least two hundred pounds. Unlike the wolf who wore nothing but fur, this creature wore overalls and a frayed, bloodied, wife beater.

  And its voice. The sound of its voice turned Sydney’s blood to ice.

  “The master will kill you slowly for ruining his plans,” it said.

  Sydney stumbled back a step. She wanted to cry out, but her throat was frozen.

  It turned then, and began to drag Benny up the stairs.

  Benny fought, he punched and kicked, but the creature was too strong for him.

  A lone metal chair sat against a bank of windows to her right. She ran for the chair, lifted it with one hand. She let loose with a war cry and charged.

  The pig man spun around, screeched.

  The sound of shattering glass startled her. Then like magic, the weight of the chair disappeared.

  “Stupid girl.”

  Movement flashed by her in a streak of black. Alaric was there, with the others.

  Alaric used the chair she’d been about to use, and slammed it down on the pig man’s head. The head burst open and green sludge exploded out of it. A bit hit Sydney’s shirt with a splat.

  “The hell?” she said, looking down at the goo.

  Benny dropped to the floor, unmoving. He’d passed out.

  Joshua ran to the right and dispatched the wolf man while Rhonda and Trina took down the last one.

  It had all been done so quickly and efficiently that Sydney wondered for a moment if the beasts had actually been viable threats.

  “What are you doing here?” Alaric’s face had turned an unpleasant shade of red, his lips were curled back over his teeth.

  Sydney stepped forward to face him and found herself looking at his chest. She took a step back and craned her head backward. “Research. What does it look like?”

  “I told you to stay home.”

  “I came to the office. How was I to know they’d be lying in wait for me?”

  “You shouldn’t have come here. Do you have any idea what would have happened to you if we hadn’t come?”

  Sydney frowned, bitterly. “Yes, I know.”

  “Yet you came anyway.”

  “I’m not a child you can boss around. You told me to find out what these things are, see if there’s any background for them and what may be drawing them to Lynchburg. I came here because there’s a better library and the intranet is connected to hundreds of libraries throughout the world.”

  “I ordered you to stay home.”

  “I am not your subordinate, Alaric. You don’t order me to do anything.”

  “If you had any common sense you’d listen to me and I wouldn’t have to waste half my time rescuing you.”

  “Then don’t. You don’t have to waste another minute rescuing me.” She turned on her heel and marched toward the doors. Unfortunately, her exit was ruined by the fact that the doors were still locked and she couldn’t launch herself through any of the windows as they had.

  Alaric came up beside her. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  She didn’t look at him. She was too angry to look at him.

  “Let me out,” she said, staring at the door.

  “Sydney—”

  “Let. Me. Out. I’m going home. You don’t have to worry about saving me anymore because I’m getting to the bottom of this myself.”

  “I can’t let you do that.”

  She turned on him. “It’s not your choice. Now let me out.” She slapped the door with the palm of her hand for emphasis.

  He stood there for a moment, then pushed the door open.

  It slid wide, as though it hadn’t been locked.

  She marched out onto the front steps, and to her car, so angry she could barely think straight.

  How dare he speak to her that way, she thoug
ht as she drove home. How dare he treat her like a misbehaving child. She might not have super powers, but she was mentally able to make decisions for herself. Who the hell did he think he was?

  Back at home she fumed for a good thirty minutes, stomping around the kitchen and muttering under her breath.

  When someone knocked at her front door she swore. She was not in the mood for company.

  When she opened the door and Alaric was standing on the other side, she tried to slam the door shut in his face. But she’d forgotten that in addition to being able to jump really high, and being really strong, he was also fast.

  He reached in and stopped the door almost before she’d even tried to slam it.

  The door was in his hand and he stared at her. “Look. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have spoken to you that way.”

  She met his stare with a glare.

  “You scare me. You run toward danger like you’re immortal. It’s like you think nothing can hurt you. I’ve caught you twice attacking one of those things and it terrifies me.”

  “Why do you care so much?”

  “It’s my job to care. But that’s still no excuse for me to talk to you the way I did. I’m truly sorry.”

  She could feel her temper coming down, feel her face begin to cool. “Thank you.”

  “Can I come in?”

  She looked over her shoulder at her house, then shrugged. “I was about to make dinner. I haven’t eaten since breakfast.”

  “Need any help?”

  “No.”

  “I’m trying to apologize.”

  She shrugged again. “Okay. Come in.”

  She walked through the dining area and into the kitchen. It wasn’t very large, but it was roomy enough. She had lots of counter space and room for a table. It was only her, after all, so she didn’t need much.

  “What can I do?”

  She ducked into the fridge and took out soy sauce, an onion, a clove of garlic, fresh green beans, carrots, and broccoli. “Can you chop up the garlic while I chop the onions?”

  “That doesn’t sound too complicated.”

  She gave him a cutting board and knife, then grabbed a large pan from the cabinet. She poured in a tablespoon of oil and two tablespoons of soy sauce. She put the pan on the stove to heat.