Damned and Cursed (Book 7): Four Centuries

by Glenn Bullion

  "Okay, that's enough," he said, stepping back. "I don't want beer on my clothes. So you're saying you're going to let this vampire live? You're going to leave whatever happens to him up to fate?"

  She nodded. "Yeah."

  "Well, I guess that's it, then." Jack admired the remote. "It's a shame fate's out to get him. You might want to stand back."

  Jack turned the dial as far as it would go. Steven's eyes shot open. He convulsed and let out a cry that would haunt Zoey for the rest of her life. His death was painful, pure horror, and she would relive it in her dreams.

  It took only ten seconds for his body to engulf completely in flame, but it felt like much longer. His screams died down as the fire consumed the oxygen in his lungs. Different parts of his body burst into flame. Hands, shoulders, cheeks. Finally, his body turned to ash, leaving only the military weapon behind.

  Zoey's lips trembled as she stood motionless. She couldn't take her eyes off what was left of Steven. The ash was still shaped like a body, although the wind played with it, threatening to take the ashes away. The thought saddened her. There was nothing left to bury of a vampire when they died.

  "That was everything advertised," Jack said. He picked up the weapon and tucked away the remote. "I'll cry when I have to give this back. Are you ready to go?"

  "You…killed him."

  "You're just nailing it tonight."

  Anger slowly pushed away the shock.

  "You were going to kill him anyway," she said, glaring. "No matter what I did."

  "Yeah. I thought I was doing you a favor, giving you the chance." He laughed. "That will teach me for trying to be nice."

  "Why? Why did you kill him?"

  "He'd seen my face. He was an enemy. I don't let my enemies live. Pretty simple, really. Let's get going. My daughter's probably bouncing around the plane like a pogo stick."

  The way Jack could murder someone, then talk about seeing his daughter, set Zoey on edge.

  "How does Victoria…even look at you?"

  "That's funny, coming from the stray covered in beer. Let's go."

  CHAPTER 18

  Victoria went straight to the refrigerator after arriving at her safe-house. Her shirt and shoes were off before she even reached the handle. Half a bottle was gone, and then she slipped her socks off. She tucked two bottles under her arm before heading to the bathroom. Her limp was already gone, and the wounds on her stomach were starting to close.

  She stepped into the hot shower, not bothering to remove her pants. Tossing her red hair behind her, she clenched her eyes shut as the steam surrounded her. Another bottle was drained, which she dropped at her feet. She shed the remainder of her wet clothes. Her strength returned, and with each drop, her dulled senses as well. The toll her body took was already a memory.

  Her mind, however, was another matter.

  She paced in the living room, wearing only a towel. Despite the night's events, she only knew fractionally more than she did several hours ago. The man who was certainly involved in the vampires' deaths at the Vermilion was dead. Murdered by mortals trained to kill, working out of a central location. But they'd fled and destroyed the evidence of their shelter behind. A simple slip of the tongue revealed Victoria was involved, somehow, but she didn't understand how.

  She didn't dare make any more guesses. Her backpack was still on the couch, where she'd flung it when she arrived. She pulled out her phone and glanced through the images she took of the scribbled notes.

  The biggest challenge was interpreting the writing more than anything else. The notes were written in a hurry, with no regards for penmanship. She sat at the desk and spent fifteen minutes interpreting.

  The notes were times and coordinates, along with the current date. A schedule for a single day. Were they tracking Victoria? Or perhaps vampires and places they were targeting, like the Vermilion?

  She entered the coordinates in the computer, letting the Internet do the rest. At first glance, the locations returned seemed random. A driving school. A deli. A clothes shop. But the town they were located in caught her attention. It wasn't Baltimore, like she'd assumed.

  Parkville, Delaware.

  Jack's town.

  Victoria frowned as she continued to enter coordinates. More shops and stores came up. She finally recognized them as Jack's property, businesses he owned. Were they interested in Jack? She knew the pair of them had made many enemies over the decades.

  Each location had a length of time set aside for it. Sometimes only a half hour, others an hour.

  Her body froze when it finally hit her.

  She slid her chair back and leaned forward, the towel falling away. Ideas and theories clashed and meshed together. Not all of it made sense. A few whys were missing, as well as details in the middle. But suspects started to form, and one thought more than anything else.

  One of her inner circle was in danger.

  Victoria grabbed her phone, but only gave it a disappointed frown before tossing it aside. She moved to her backpack and reached for the magical rock sitting at the bottom.

  "Kevin," she said, picturing him in her mind. "Are you there?"

  Silence. She squeezed the rock tighter.

  "Kevin, answer me."

  He didn't respond. She clenched her eyes shut as she thought of another.

  "Jack."

  Ten seconds passed, and she was about to entertain other options when a voice returned.

  "Victoria. You know, I have a perfectly good phone sitting next to me. It does all kinds of cool shit."

  She sighed in relief at the sound of his voice. As much as she was worried about Kevin, one other person sprang to mind as well.

  "I don't think my phone is safe. Did you find Zoey?"

  "I did. We're on the plane now, about forty-five minutes away. I've made arrangements for your Jeep, too."

  She was afraid to ask her next question, but had to know.

  "Did she…kill him?"

  "No. I had to do it. She didn't have the ovaries."

  Victoria smiled, but also wanted to cry in relief. She shoved her feelings aside.

  "She didn't do it because she's stronger than any of us."

  "We'll just have to agree to disagree there. Like most things in our life."

  She sighed. Zoey was alive and fine. Jack came through, like he always did.

  Hopefully he'd be able to come through again.

  "Kevin's in trouble."

  "Glinda? What did he do now?"

  "Is he working at…." She checked the last set of coordinates noted, the last time they recorded his location. "Some kind of metal tubing warehouse?"

  "How should I know? I'm not his keeper. He's lucky I even let him in my front door. Wait a sec…Yeah. He did say something about working late tonight to run cable and hook up some computers."

  "He's not answering me. I think whoever is killing vampires here is also after him in Delaware."

  "Got it. Fill me in."

  Victoria didn't want to. Time was running short, and she was worried about Kevin. But Jack was her partner, and although she was nearly twice his age, he had a mind she would never completely understand. In order for him to be at his best, he needed all the information she had. She told him her theories, and what she'd planned to do.

  The plan was greeted with the worst possible response. Extended silence.

  "Victoria," he said. "Do you realize how insane your plan is?"

  She smiled. "Which part?"

  "The whole thing. You're putting yourself in danger. And if you're wrong—"

  "Yeah, but I'm right. What about your end? Can you get it done?"

  "I'm kind of in the middle of the sky right now."

  "Is that a no?"

  "I didn't say that."

  "Jack, please. Yes or no? Right now, Kevin could be—"

  "He's not. I've said it before. Glinda's an idiot. And he can't cook like me. But he's tougher than he looks. You're the one always talking about how powerful he is."

&n
bsp; "I know. But…I'm worried. They've been watching him all day, keeping track of his schedule. They didn't bother to check tomorrow. They're going after him tonight. Now."

  "Don't worry about Glinda. I'll take care of all that. You just worry about whatever stupidity you're trying to do."

  "Okay. I have to call Tony. Wish me luck."

  "No."

  The magical connection went dead. She allowed herself only one sigh, one chance to doubt herself, and come up with another plan. She was old and wise, but not perfect. Hopefully she wasn't making a mistake. She'd made plenty before.

  Worry slowly shifted to anger as she got dressed. Victoria had tried her best, but after failing to kill Kevin the first time they'd met she didn't try again. After such a long life she had a change of heart. It was wrong to simply kill something because of what they were.

  Now she protected Kevin for another reason. He was a good friend.

  The thought of harm coming to him, or anyone close to her, made her see red.

  It took nearly thirty minutes to cross the city toward her destination. Jack would be landing soon, and again she thought of Kevin. He always kept his magic close to him. For him not to answer was rare, but it did happen on occasion. That didn't stop her concern.

  She dialed a number as she drove. It didn't take long for Tony to answer, the busy life of the gentleman's club in the background.

  "Tony, it's me."

  "Victoria? Is everything okay?"

  "No. Listen, I know what happened to Olivia. And the girl she was with, Trish. I know everything." It was a slight lie, but she knew she sounded convincing.

  "You do? What's going on? Look…I've heard a few other vampires have gone missing."

  "I know. It's ugly, Tony. I just killed two people who tried to kill me. I'm on my way to the club now."

  Another slight lie. She was already at the club, crossing the parking lot. She flashed Dave a bright smile before stepping inside. Tony was sitting at a table alone, doing paperwork out on the floor instead of in his office. The club was less crowded than usual, but still had a sizable audience. Two dancers worked together on the stage. Tony looked up at her, then back at his phone, confused.

  "I'll talk to you as soon as I get there," Victoria said, and hung up. "Everyone! Can I have your attention?"

  Only Tony rose to his feet. Her voice didn't carry over the music. The dancers also did an excellent job at attracting attention. She stood on a chair near the front and waved her arms.

  "Everybody!" she shouted. "Turn off the music!"

  It took effort for the patrons to turn their heads, but they finally managed. The dancers stopping their hypnotic movements, as well as the music, helped.

  "I'm very sorry, but we have to close early," she said. "There's been a shooting down the block, and I want to close up and get everyone home. For their own safety, and before the street turns into a zoo."

  It wasn't the best lie she could invent, but it did no harm to all the hard work Tony had done with his club. Sadly, the mention of a shooting didn't get the Baltimore natives running. Eventually there was movement, but also accompanied by long faces and grumbling. Victoria ran through the dressing room, rallying the dancers to get dressed quickly.

  Tony and Bree were the last to leave. Victoria smiled and gave Bree a reassuring hug. Tony stayed behind another moment, apprehension in his eyes.

  "What the hell is going on?" he asked.

  "I need your phone," she said, holding out her hand. "And don't worry. I'll cover all the damage."

  He handed over his phone, but his worry had turned to panic.

  "Shit, Victoria, what are you going to do?"

  She patted him on the shoulder and nodded toward the door.

  "You'd better get going. Make sure no one stays behind. No one. I need this place empty."

  "That won't be a problem. You've already scared everyone half to death."

  Victoria locked the door behind Tony. Closing her eyes, she took a moment to enjoy the silence. It'd been a while since she was at a club with no one around. The place was perfect for the fight she knew was coming. The lighting was still low, with only the stage brightly lit. There were plenty of tables and chairs, makeshift weapons and obstacles. The bar was also perfect. She took a few minutes to clean up the alcohol left on the tables. She didn't know what kind of battle awaited her, but any kind of gunfire could set the place ablaze.

  Sitting and kicking her feet up, she used Tony's phone to call a few very important contacts, get other pieces of her plan in motion. Another thirty minutes passed. She didn't bother watching the front door, but instead kept her ears focused on the back. That was where they'd come in. After her third call she glanced at her clothes and laughed to herself. Already during the night she'd ruined one set of clothes and been covered in blood. She shouldn't have even bothered showering.

  Vehicles pulled up outside. Victoria closed her eyes, focusing on her hearing. Heavy vehicles, either trucks or vans, two or three of them. She couldn't tell how many men there were. They moved in pairs after silently removing the back door to Tony's office. Professional and organized.

  The door to Tony's office opened, and instead of the barrel of a gun pointing out, or a flamethrower, the tip of a crossbow led the way. They wanted to take her alive, with minimal damage.

  Victoria had been waiting patiently, next to the door.

  She attacked the first man she saw, who wore all black with a protective mask. Grabbing him by the vest, she tossed him across the room, sending him crashing into a table and chairs. She turned to see a pile of men, all caught by surprise in Tony's office. The one in front had a crossbow aimed at her chest. She twisted just in time, allowing the bolt to pass harmlessly and strike the floor behind her.

  Dropping to one knee, she let out swipe after swipe. She avoided the mask, but his pants offered minimal protection. Her claws ripped through the material. Then, his flesh. His partner behind him stepped forward, aiming through the lead man's arm and waist, and thrust out a handheld Taser. He caught Victoria on the cheek, sending fifty-thousand volts into her. She stumbled back and fell on her side. Her body felt numb for a moment as a pair of men stepped over their fallen partner into the club.

  One of the assailants hovered over her and aimed his crossbow. Another mistake. He should have fired from the safety of the doorway, but wasted the two seconds to approach her. She kicked his knee, bending it backwards with a crack. He shouted in pain and fired a bolt into the ceiling as he fell. The next man up did the right thing, aiming carefully from behind the doorway. But Victoria had already pulled the screaming man with the broken leg on top of her. Holding him up with one hand, the bolt ripped through his chest, the tip stopping in front of her nose. His body went limp. Victoria placed her feet on his back and launched him like a missile. He collided into three of his partners.

  She rolled away and slid across the floor behind the bar. A bolt barely missed her shoulder, lodging in the wall behind her. The men didn't pursue, choosing instead to stay behind in the office and rethink their strategy.

  A moment later the front door flew open. She could smell the flash grenade being arched back, hoisted into the air. A rather effective weapon against vampires. The noise hurt their sensitive ears even more than mortals.

  She emerged from behind the bar, eying the grenade. It didn't take much effort to catch it in mid-air and redirect it into Tony's office instead. The detonation stung her ears, but disoriented the mortals far worse.

  Victoria charged the line of mortals coming in through the front. She could have dragged the battle out as long as she wanted, even won it. But she didn't think Kevin had that kind of time. She took down two men with ease, turning their crossbows and knives on each other. A third man caught her with a blade to her thigh, making her stumble. A bolt finally struck her, piercing her stomach.

  Falling to her knees, she looked down at her wound. Every movement brought pain and discomfort. The men continued to work their way inside. On
e took careful, deliberate aim at her chest with his crossbow, and pulled the trigger.

  The world stopped around her, along with her beating heart.

  *****

  Jack held the magical rock in his hand as he leaned back in one of the many seats available in his customized 717 airplane. He turned Victoria's words over and over in his mind, only pausing to take a quick drink of water. Several rows ahead sat Zoey and his daughter, Tiffany. Most of the regular seats had been removed, replaced by items found in any normal house. A couch, recliner, television, and most recently, a bed. The two laughed and talked as they passed a tablet back and forth. Tiffany was showing off her photography collection, and Zoey, also interested in the arts, was eating up the conversation. They seemed to be getting along, and Jack wasn't sure if he liked it. Given the late hour, Tiffany should have been asleep, but instead had traveled with him the past two days. It would be difficult getting her on a regular schedule once again.

  He'd nearly stood up to parent his daughter, tell her to get some sleep, but decided against it. Victoria still ate at him. He didn't have all the details, hadn't been through what she had. He wanted to take her at her word when she said she knew what she was doing. But he knew her, better than anyone. Someone she cared about was in danger. That sometimes led to her putting herself in situations where she didn't have the advantage. She would take risks, be vulnerable.

  Jack didn't have that problem.

  He stared at the magic trinket Kevin had given him. The thought of the witch nearly made him smirk. Silly and stupid, at times. Sometimes an amazing lack of awareness for the power he wielded. But Jack had no doubt Kevin was capable of handling anyone that came to harm him. He'd seen it before.

  Still, concern ate at him. Kevin was still young, and he wasn't immortal. He also lacked a certain killer instinct.

  He stood up and headed for the cockpit, passing the bed. Zoey quieted down as he neared, but Tiffany rambled on. He leaned into the open cockpit and nodded at his pilot.

  "A slight change of plans," he said. "Land at BWI, but then I need you to get immediately back to Delaware." He lowered his voice as he glanced at Tiffany. "And call my driver and babysitter."