Hero Rising

by H. T. Night

“I know you will, Josiah. That’s who you are. I have always understood that about you. It’s one of the reasons I married you. You never back down from doing what is right. No matter how scared I get, I am so proud of you.”

  God, I loved her.

  I gave her another kiss, this one long and hard. Then I took off into the night.

  Chapter Thirteen

  I stopped in to see Sion before I left and I was glad I did.

  “You getting ready to take off?” Sion asked.

  “Yes,” I said.

  “Hold on! I made you something really fast. These guys are calling you Vampire Superhero. So, let’s give them what they want.”

  “What do have in mind?”

  Sion led me to one of his back rooms where he kept a sewing machine and a lot of other items that most men his age didn’t even own. He was an odd guy. But what could I say except that he was very unique? I noticed there was a large red jumpsuit near the sewing machine. Right above the suit was a hooded mask of the same color.

  “Is that for me?” I asked.

  “Yes, the special fabric will make it so you are almost like Superman. It would take a high-power assault weapon to penetrate that suit.”

  “Wow! How does it work?”

  “It’s magic. And Kevlar, and some other materials, with latex holding it all tight to your skin.

  “Why did you go with the red?”

  “It seemed like the right color. I mixed in some black.”

  “I noticed there was a picture of a bat on his chest.” I laughed at the sight of it. “Do you really expect me to go out in that ridiculous outfit?”

  “Either that, or get recognized, or worse yet, a simple bullet could kill you.”

  I wrestled with the idea, but in the end, I decided to take the suit with me. I put it on in Sion’s bathroom. I looked at myself in the mirror. I looked ridiculous. I looked like one of those guys who go to Comic Con dressed as their favorite superheroes. But I wasn’t dressed up as one of those make-believe superheroes. I was the real thing, several things: A man, a vampire and a werewolf.

  It didn’t matter how silly I looked. This wasn’t about me. I would have to do whatever it took to make sure Hector was returned to his life, safe and sound. I needed to stay optimistic. I mean… after all, it was a bullet-proof suit, no matter how silly the suit looked.

  I had a huge flight ahead of me, Not only was I going to the States. I was going to have to fly over most of them to get to New York City. I need to fly away from the coming dawn and the sun. I transitioned back and forth from my human form to the great white eagle.

  As I reached New York City, I decided to land in the Bronx and transition. There were a lot more open areas and I would less likely be seen. I had been to New York City a couple of times and knew each borough pretty well. I landed in a vacant driveway in an apartment complex that was across the street from Yankee Stadium. I transitioned into my Mani form. When I transitioned, I almost forgot I was wearing the superhero suit. It startled me when I looked down and was reminded what I was wearing. I didn’t need to be wearing the outfit yet. I might never need to wear it. What I needed was some regular clothes.

  I went to a local thrift shop. I took off my mask, so the store wouldn’t think I was planning to rob the place. It was pretty dead inside except for one older lady who was shopping near the back of the store. The cashier never looked up as I walked in. I quickly grabbed a couple of shirts and a pair of pants that I hoped would fit me. They might be a little snug. No tighter than my red costume. I walked up to the cashier and she was looking through a magazine. She rang up the clothes without a hello or anything. At the very end, she finally looked up at me.

  “Oh my, didn’t know it was Halloween,” she said.

  “It’s my work outfit,” I said. I was hoping she would think I was one of those guys who dressed up at Times Square and charged a dollar to take a picture with them.

  I asked her if I could use the restroom.

  “It’s in the back. It’s unisex, so lock the door.” I did a double take at her comment. I would lock the door, regardless of it being unisex or not. It seemed like an odd thing to say.

  I went into the store’s bathroom and changed. I put on a form-fitting light blue T-shirt and a pair of white slacks. It was a little too preppy for my taste. I looked like I was going to play tennis with someone named Biff.

  I made my way to the 167th Street Terminal and got on the ‘4’ train and it took me to Grand Central Station. After that I took a quick shuttle and found myself in Times Square.

  I had a hard time finding a hotel in Times Square, but found one near 48th Street called Sanctuary. It was a nice hotel right next to a Catholic church, but it only had one bed. It was the fourth place I stopped in. I decided to take the room at $450 a night. I hope this wasn’t going to take too long. I knew Tommy would have a million jokes about us sharing a bed.

  After I got myself settled, it was nine o’clock in the evening. Perfect time for a vampire. I’d written down the number from whoever that asshole was who had called about Hector.

  But before I called them, I wanted to talk to Sion. He had promised he would do as much research as possible to track down the kidnappers. He was also being very cautious though and when he picked up my call, he didn’t say a word.

  “It’s me, Josiah,” I said.

  “Josiah. Good. This is your new number?”

  I paused and I told him. “Yes, it is. Got any news for me?”

  “As a matter of fact, I do,” Sion said. I could tell he was excited.

  “Tell me what you know,” I said, a tad annoyed that he held back even for a moment. I was eager for him to let me know.

  “I managed to trace the phone to a hostel in Manhattan. A place near Times Square.”

  “That’s good because that where my hotel is.”

  Sion continued, “It’s called ‘The Main Stay,’ and usually students or military guys stay there for a few days at a time.”

  I frowned. I knew a little bit about hostels and I knew they always kicked you out right after breakfast. But Hector couldn’t be outside during the day any more than I could.

  “How can he be staying there?” I asked Sion. “And with a bunch of other people who are likely vampires themselves?”

  “That I don’t know,” Sion answered. “Maybe they’re holding him in a basement or something.”

  I thought about this. “Well, there’s only one way to find out,” I said.

  “You going there tonight?” Sion asked.

  “Probably. Tommy’s flying out here and I need to get him from the airport first. Then we’ll see what we will see.”

  “All right, Josiah. I’ll keep my research going. I did find out there are a couple of outcast vampire clans on the East Coast. I’m trying to find out a little more about them.”

  “Good,” I said. “Listen, I have to get going. The next time I call you, it will probably be from Tommy’s phone, since I think that’s a safe line to use.”

  “You never know,” Sion answered, and I could hear the doubt in his voice. “If these guys know who you are and who Hector is, they might know about Tommy, too.”

  “Well, keep this number for now. Call me if you come up with anything new.”

  “I will. Good luck.”

  I hung up thinking that if this clan knew about me, Hector and Tommy, they might know Sion was a close friend, too. But, even if they did and tried to get to him, Sion was on an island full of Mani who were loyal to me. He would be fine. It was me and Tommy who were in enemy territory.

  My hotel wasn’t far from the heart of Times Square where they sell same-day discounted tickets. I was hungry. I felt kind of bad that I was going to have to find something to eat, but I wanted to keep up my strength. Also, I was still waiting for Tommy to call.

  He did call, just as I ordered dinner from a local deli.

  “I’m here, just landed,” Tommy said.

  “Okay, good,” I said. “Can you tak
e a cab here? I would come get you, but it would be faster if you just came straight over.”

  “Right.”

  I told him where I was staying and he said he’d be there in about forty-five minutes. I wolfed down my sandwich and potato salad in about five minutes and sat there, drumming my fingers and wondering how to kill the time until Tommy got there.

  I decided to check out The Main Stay hostel. I didn’t want anyone to recognize me, so I bought a hoodie and wore it out of the store. I put some dirt on my hands from the street outside to make me look a little more downtrodden.

  It was a small place, I observed from across the street. Young people came and went and there didn’t seem to be anything fishy about the place. I was leaning against a lamp-post and I was pretty sure no one had taken a second look at me.

  Then I saw someone who stuck out. She was a vampire for sure; I could tell by her pale complexion and by the way she carried herself. She had seen battle. Women who had fought for their lives carried themselves differently. Even Lena had it. It was just a way about them. A confidence. She looked to be about twenty, but her eyes were the eyes of a very wise, savvy woman. Her demeanor was so collected that she acted as if she had nothing to fear. She entered the hostel as if she’d done so a hundred times before. Some of the others who entered kind of checked out the place before entering, to make sure it was the type of place they wanted to stay. Not her. There was no hesitation in any of her decision making.

  Interesting, I thought to myself. At least one was a female. Just then, I noticed an older man walking towards me. I didn’t think he was homeless, but his clothes were worn and he was scrawny. I acted on my instincts.

  “Hey, sir,” I said.

  The man stopped and looked at me suspiciously. “What do you want, mister?”

  “You want to make an easy hundred dollars?” I said to the old man.

  “Hey, screw you. I don’t take drugs and I’m not into kinky shit.” The man paused, trying to read my face. He was street-wise. Exactly what I needed.

  “Me, neither.”

  “You aren’t some kind of pervert?” The old man gave me a look that made me unsure what side of the fence he was on about me being a pervert.

  I laughed and said, “Nope. All I want is for you to check yourself into that hostel across the street for a night.” He looked doubtfully across the street and then back at me with curiosity now. “I want you to stay there one night, and observe everything you can. You look like a sharp guy.”

  I had a little more of his interest now. “What do you know about the place?” I asked.

  “It’s just a place where people stay,” he said. “Why do you want me to check it out?”

  “I can’t answer that,” I said, “but I can tell you that you would be doing a good thing. I’m not going to rip them off or anything.”

  The old man smiled and looked away. “Yeah, right. Hey, are you a cop? ‘Cause you have to tell me the truth if I ask that, and you have to tell me what I’m getting myself into. And you have to protect me.”

  How could I get this guy to trust me? “What’s your name, sir?” I asked him.

  “Harold,” the man answered.

  I shook his hand. “My name’s not important,” I said. I couldn’t tell him my real name and I felt bad about that. But I was protecting him as well. He didn’t need to know the name, Josiah Reign, any more than he needed to know what I was planning. Still, I tried to keep myself as honest as I could without risking the mission.

  “What’s the deal?” he asked.

  “Look, Harold, I’m trying to help someone. Really. I just need to know the layout in there. What kind of people run it, what kind of people are staying there. The layout of the place. All you have to do is stay there for one night and you got yourself an easy hundred dollars. You could buy yourself a pair of shoes with that,” I commented, looking down at the holes in his sneakers.

  “A hundred for a whole night?” Harold was no fool, I could tell. “That’s like twelve hours, man. That’s barely minimum wage. Give me two-fifty and I’ll do it.”

  I rolled my eyes. But in all fairness, when he pointed it out, he was right. “I’ll give you two hundred,” I offered.

  “And you add the fact that I’m kind of going undercover for you. You really want me to do a good job, it’s two-fifty. I really don’t need to get into any trouble with a stranger. You’re not from around here, are you?”

  I didn’t want the old man asking any more questions. He was street-smart, which was a good thing. And really, Hector was worth much more than what I was going to pay this guy.

  I pulled the money out of my pocket. “Okay, two-fifty.” I’ll give you a hundred dollars now and the rest later.” I pulled out a hundred extra; I didn’t know how much it would cost to stay there.

  He eyed the money. And me.

  “You get this now, and the extra hundred-dollar bill is for you to pay for the room. If there’s any left over, get yourself a good meal.”

  The old man looked both ways before he took my money, snatching it from my hand. Apparently, he understood it might look like some drug deal was going on or something. To be honest, I wasn’t used to doing business out in the open either. It made me feel a little like a gangster.

  I gave him the name of the hotel I was staying at and I got his cell number from him. Of course, he could take the money and run, but he would have another hundred and fifty in his young pocket if he followed my instructions.

  “I’m going to call you tomorrow,” I explained, “around ten. You’ll be out of there by then. We’ll arrange a place to meet and I’ll give you the rest then. All right?”

  Harold sighed. “Man, you really messed up my plans for tonight. But I guess my friends will have to wait.”

  “Well, you can make it up to them with the money you’re earning,” I said. “Remember to memorize faces, and names of the staff there, and any layout of the building you can get. How many floors are there? Is there a locked room or basement? What’s off limits? That sort of thing. Can you do it?”

  Harold pocketed the money. “Sure, man, I can do it. It’ll be a piece of cake.”

  Suddenly, my cell phone rang. It was Tommy.

  “Okay, go. Do your best and you won’t be sorry.”

  He turned to go.

  “Oh, and Harold?” He looked back at me.

  “Thank you,” I said simply.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Tommy was waiting for me in the lobby when I entered the hotel. I could tell he was excited but he was trying to hide it since he didn’t want to draw any attention. He waited for us to get into our room to talk.

  “Where’s my room?” Tommy asked.

  “This is it,” I answered.

  “Then where is your room?”

  “You’re looking at it.”

  “Are you kidding me? We are sharing a bed? And a very small bed at that. This feels like we are in a closet.”

  “I took this room because there is only one window in the bathroom. I asked for a room with no windows and this is all they had.”

  “I forget you vampires have to worry about those things. Still doesn’t explain why we are sharing a room.”

  “The room cost $450. Plus, it will be good for us to be together, just in case things go down. I’ve got your back. You’ve got mine. From inches away.”

  “There will be no going down…and I repeat, there will be no going down by either of us on this venture.”

  “You wish, Tom.”

  “You wish it more, Josiah,” he ribbed me back.

  “We will sleep opposite each other,” I said.

  “It doesn’t change the fact that our groins are going to be eye to eye. Sleeping opposite just means I don’t have to smell your stinky vampire breath.”

  “Don’t forget my breath is also part werewolf,” I said jokingly.

  “That’s even worse. Your vampire-dog breath must be hell for poor Lena. How does she even kiss you?”

  �
��She’s never complained. And look who’s talking about being a werewolf. You’re a purebred, man, not a mutt like me.”

  “Ha, you got me there. You know what I say, Josiah? If we are going to do this, we go full bore. We are going to sleep naked and spoon all night. And there will be none of this front of the spoon bullshit. We will be taking turns being the front of the spoon. I’m not into holding someone all night and get no love back.”

  “You’re such a clown, man. Even after all these years.”

  “Humor is how I process a dangerous situation. You know that.”

  “Yes, I know.” Tommy was an interesting cat. He used humor in every situation. It was his way of dealing with stress and anxiety.

  Tommy decided to switch gears and finally listen to what I had to say. “So, what’s going on? What’s the latest?” he asked as he threw his duffle bag onto the floor and sank into a chair.

  “Sion found out where Hector is being held,” I said. “He’s in a hostel just down the street.”

  “Excellent!” Tommy said. “When do we go get him? Let’s go now.”

  “Not so fast,” I said. I was trying like hell to be rational about the whole situation. And I hadn’t forgotten about my promise to Lena to be careful. “We need to scout out the place first,” I explained.

  “What is there to scout out? We just go in and get him out. Kick whatever ass we need to kick and be done with it.”

  “It’s more complicated than that,” I said. “There are a lot of Tandra there and we don’t want to hurt them. I don’t want to hurt any more of them than I have to.”

  “We don’t have to,” Tommy replied as he got up from his chair and started pacing around. “We’ll just clear out the place. Make them leave. Then take down whoever is holding Hector hostage and get him and leave with him.”

  I sighed. “Tommy, I’ve hired a guy to check the place out.”

  Tommy looked at me like I was crazy. “You hired a guy? A Tandra?”

  “Yes,” I said. “I decided I needed to know a little more about the place, and who is in charge, and Hector’s exact whereabouts if I can. We need an edge, and this was the idea I came up with.”