by Ian Hall
Mary-Christine nodded, deep in thought.
Then she turned to me with those sweet kisses. “Give me an hour.”
I spent my hour wisely; ordered pizza and vacuumed the house while I waited for its delivery. Mary-Christine proved true to her word; she returned to my house in 63 minutes. The pizza still sat warm in the box.
“Ok, I’m with you.” Her face was stoic, her expression determined. “I hate to say it, but I’m convinced.
“So, spill the beans. What happened?”
She plonked herself down on the sofa, and I sat on the edge of the chair. “Well, there seemed little point in easing him into the subject, so I just came right out and asked if he’d got a report back about T.J.” She gathered herself up on her elbows. “He didn’t answer right away, and that got my hackles up right away; dad never hesitates. Then, when he did answer, he sounded vague, almost intentionally so. To me, it was obvious that he was making up a story. ‘Yes’ he’d gotten the report back, and the whole thing had proven to be a series of mistaken identities, wrong deductions from us, and one of his high-ups had known T.J. for over twenty years.”
I sat for a second. “So you think he’s lying?”
Mary-Christine gave a reluctant nod.
“Do you think he’s being manipulated? Blackmailed?”
“Oh my, Lyman. I hadn’t thought of that.”
“It doesn’t matter, we have to assume he’s been corrupted in some way, even if it’s just that he doesn’t trust anything from me right now.”
I sat up in the chair and leant over, taking her hands in mine. “Okay, babe, this is where you make your choice. You’re either with me and Mandy or with your dad. On the subject of Amos Blanche, there’s no middle ground anymore.”
Well she stood up, pushed me back onto the soft chair, and straddled me. Oh boy. Those kisses rained down on me, and my hands went fumbling. After a long making out, she pushed herself back from me, and wiggled her ass on my boner.
“I’m with you, babe; all the way.”
Well, you have got no idea of the willpower it took to push her off me and go to the next part of our plan for Amos. I gave up ‘next base’ for the cause, and it pissed me off slightly.
I told her the whole plan; her getting in the room with Amos, Mandy and I breaking in, everything. When I’d got through it all, she sat opposite me, her mouth open, and her eyes excited. “We’re going to invade Unicorps, and take him down?”
“Right in front of their eyes.”
This was serious stuff, and we both knew it. There was even a possibility that we’d be expelled from the Helsings for working outside the organization, but it would be worth it. Taking down the biggest vampire of the age was going to be one heck of an entry in our Helsing résumés.
“So what do you need from me?” Mary-Christine asked.
“Well, we need your dad’s pass card for the outside door. I don’t know if we can copy it, but I’m sure Reynolds will be able to find a way to do it.” I began to count off on my fingers. “We need three needle guns, and probably a fair amount of darts for them, all filled with coagulant, of course. And we probably need our pistols from the range, and some ammo. You just never know.”
She nodded as I spoke. “The gun stuff shouldn’t be a problem. The card might be. Do we really need it?”
“Yeah. I know the way from the doctor’s office to the execution room. But I’ve got to get inside the building first.”
“Okay, I’ll see what I can do.”
Well, we made out again after that, and let’s just say that it certainly wasn’t just a one way process. By the time Mary-Christine had to leave, she had to tuck in all her clothes, they were in such a state of undress. That had been a fun evening.
I phoned Reynolds. “I know I should have phoned earlier, but how did you get on the other day?”
“Oh, cameras front and back, both gone. And a camera mounted on the back window, seeing directly into the kitchen. Quite clever; they’d disguised it as a small wasp’s nest, you know, mud and stuff.”
“Ok. I have another question; can you duplicate a building’s entry card?”
“Me? No. But I have an associate who has all the gear. Anything big?”
“It’s a corporate building, we’re not doing anything illegal; it’s a prank against my girlfriend’s dad.”
“Yeah, just get it to me, I’ll get that done.”
We had the guns the next day, and Mary-Christine signed our pistols out of the gun club.
Then she came running in the day after; worry written all over her face. “Dad’s friend caught a vampire last night; the execution’s Saturday.”
We both knew what that meant; after Saturday, Amos Blanche was next on the list. Our plan had begun.
The bad weather really started to pick up. Now the occasional snowflakes were interspersed with persistent drizzly sleet; my windshield looked like a frosted mug. I sat with the car off in a parking lot overlooking the Brick Street underpass. At a quarter to four I figured my “date” with this Chris guy had been called on the count of rain.
Just as I got ready to take off, I saw him coming up on foot. His hair, slicked back wet, and he wore only a thin coat. Still, when he saw me get out of the car, Chris smiled like the sun had just broken through. I’ll admit - my reaction to seeing him was likewise.
We met under the freeway. The wind howled overhead as we climbed the steep grade to a shelf above. There proved just enough room to tuck in and not worry about being spied from below. Gray cement walls were decorated with the usual graffiti that marked a popular teen hiding spot: “X hearts Y” and “Z wuz here.” Mixed in were several versions of the Harris High mascot along with slogans like “Go Vikings!!!!”
Made me think of the Everton Panther and some much simpler times. Before I knew it, I became overcome by this sweet-sour nostalgia. I found it hard to fall into the role of some high school kid, realizing how much I’d changed in such a short time. Y’know - not just the human-turned-vampire thing; all of it.
I could sense Chris seemed nervous, too. Oddly enough, that relaxed me.
As an icebreaker, he unzipped his flimsy flak jacket and produced two bottles of beer. A-ha! That’s what the wink had been all about!
He handed me mine and it felt warm after being smuggled inside his coat. I cracked the cap and let the fizz roll over my fingers. Chris tapped his bottle against mine and took a long swallow.
“I didn’t think you’d show up,” I said.
His smile got even brighter. “Oh yeah? Why not?”
“Well…it’s cold out here.”
“Don’t be such a pussy, Dallas,” he jibed. “Besides, this is nothing. My dad got stationed in Minnesota for two years…now that’s COLD.”
“Army brat, huh?”
“Hell yeah - up until three years ago when my dad retired. We moved around all over the place.”
“Why’d they settle in Arizona?”
Chris slid me a sly look like he’d just caught me with my hand in the cookie jar. “Family business…”
“Cute,” I retorted with a playful sneer.
“Nah, really. My mom’s from here and my grandparents own the hardware store up on Seventh. When they retire, she’ll take it over…see? Family business.”
“Then I s’pose someday it’ll be all yours.”
Chris surveyed the underpass like a king looking over his kingdom. “I’ll have the world at my feet, Dallas.”
I was taking a drink when he said that. When I laughed, the beer fizzled up my nose. Seriously - I’d never felt like such a dork my whole life. Of course, the ever-cheerful Chris got the biggest kick in the world out of it.
I rubbed my nose and tried to recover some dignity. “Judging by the way those girls were flocking around you today, I’d say you already have the world at your feet.”
“Peasants all,” he said, his tone a little biting. “Nah, I have much bigger plans in mind.”
That sent a cold shiver up my spine
that even the sharp wind couldn’t account for. Couldn’t help but wonder if those plans included signing on as a Blanche foot soldier. Chris certainly had the makings of a spectacular recruiter; as a human, his charm was irresistible. As a vampire, he’d be downright devastating.
I decided to press for more information. “What happened to your friends? Weren’t they gonna meet us here, too?”
“Eh. They’re native Arizonans; freeze to death when it drops sub-eighty.”
I seriously doubted the cold would be enough to keep two hulk-sized vampires indoors, but didn’t argue the point. As yet, I couldn’t tell if Chris had any idea of the company he kept.
“What’d you call them? Tank and... what?”
“Dozer.” Chris’s grin glowed victorious. “Yeah- their real names are Benji and Pritchard. Talk about cruel parents. So, I re-christened them - manned ‘em up a bit.”
“You’re big on nicknames, aren’t you?”
Chris shrugged. “Eh. Just trying to help those guys out. They wouldn’t stand a chance in Winslow going around with those handles.”
“I thought you said they were natives…”
“Native Arizonans - somewhere back east. But, they just moved to Harris this year…family business, of course. Just like you and about fifty other kids.”
“Seriously?” That got my mind reeling. I mean, how many of the Blanche mob had relocated to Harris since Alan’s takedown?
Chris scoffed at my literal take. “No - not seriously. But, there’s been quite a few. Lots of oddballs, too…”
I tried to stay casual, but my interest definitely had been piqued. “What do you mean ‘oddballs’?”
“Well. You saw the Mize brothers; their skulls are as thick as their necks. Then there’s Bald Eagle - real name’s Arnold - he’s got this condition called alopecia; not a hair on his body …from what he’s told me. Real quirky kind of guy, not too friendly. So, I felt sorry for him - took him under my wing, gave him a cool nickname, and now at least he’s not walking around with a great big target painted on his ass.”
I ran through a quickie mental replay of the school cafeteria. Sure - there were a lot of bodies and even my vampire brain wouldn’t have registered each and every face. But, a guy like the one Chris described would’ve stuck out like a sore thumb.
“I didn’t see him,” I said nonchalantly.
“Yeah. Eagle misses a lot of school; like I said, he’s a little…off.”
“Then why do you hang around with him?”
Chris drained his beer as he thought about it. “I figured if anybody needed a friend, it was that guy.”
“So, you’re like, the patron saint of school weirdoes or something?” I teased.
“Eh. Just the new kids; hell – I’ve been the new kid most of my life. So, I know how rough it can be.”
“Doesn’t look to me like you’re the type who has trouble fitting in.”
Chris scoffed at that a bit. “Nah, not so much. For me, all that moving around was a good thing in a way. Taught me how to make friends quick since there wasn’t much time to waste. But, on the other hand, I never got to hang on to any of those friends either; so, in a way I’m really kind of a loner, Dallas.”
Well, shit. It wasn’t enough Chris oozed all gorgeous and charming. Now he had to be sweet and tragic, too? All I wanted was one reason to NOT like this guy; so, I did the girl-thing and tried baiting him into offending me.
“Is that why you talked to me today? Thought you needed to rescue another misfit?”
“Oh, please,” he said in mock defense. “A girl hot as you will be running the school in a week. Nah, my motivations for wanting to meet you were totally selfish.”
Alright. I felt ready to rip off my panties right there. Then I heard Lyman’s little voice in my head, scolding me about “thinking between my legs.” Sometimes I hated that twerp; especially when he was right. I’d gone to meet Chris for answers. So, I kept up with my questions.
“Any of these new kids with the last name of Kester?”
He squeezed one eye shut in an exaggerated think. “None come to mind. Why?”
I tried to be coy and play it off. “Y’know…family business.”
It didn’t go over as well as I’d hoped. Chris’s smile thinned, replaced by a thoughtful expression.
“Hmm. You’ve got me curious, Dallas. Something tells me you know my friends better than I do.”
Speak of the devils. A car pulled up under the freeway and stopped; two tires up on the curb of the walkway. One of the Mize brothers - I couldn’t tell Tank from Dozer - stuck his head out the passenger window.
“Hey, Chris! Pool down at The Tavern. You in?”
He rolled his beer bottle up to the cement wall and nudged me with his shoulder. “What do you say?”
One look at the unsmiling face in the window told me the invitation hadn’t been meant for both of us. I couldn’t say for sure if the Mize boys knew who I was. But, they knew who I wasn’t - not some new girl who just happened to transfer into their school.
I’d invaded their turf. And I found myself way outnumbered.
“I’ll have to take a pass this time,” I said.
Chris’s disappointment seemed obvious and endearing. I started to feel at ease that - at least for now - he was clueless about his buddies’ agenda for him. All I could hope was that I got to him before they did.
“Well…since we don’t have any classes together, wanna just plan on meeting up at lunch again tomorrow?”
I didn’t think I could pull off another cameo in the cafeteria. “No promises.”
“Um. O-kay…then meet me here after school? Same bat time…”
I smiled my best for him. “Same bat channel.”
“At least tell me your real name, Dallas.”
“Tomorrow. That way I’ll be sure you’ll show up.”
Chris kissed my cheek before slipping down the incline. “Oh, you can count on that.”
Mandy seemed distracted. I tried to pin her down to a definite time. “So are you going to be back soon? The plan’s getting close.” I helped Mary-Christine take down some of the photos as I talked. There seemed little point in keeping the scraps on the walls; we didn’t need them anymore.
“Just tidying up some loose ends,” Mandy said. “It shouldn’t take long, I’ve got just the guy here that will fit the bill.”
“Okay, we’re counting on you.”
I flipped the phone shut. “Seems Mandy’s priming our target.”
“Superb.” Her tone sounded dry, and I made a big effort to ignore it.
I tried to remember as much of the route between the doctor’s office and the execution area, and drew it on the biggest piece of paper I could find. Then it got stuck on the wall as part of the plan.
The executions were always on Saturday, so the plan was, after we give Dave the vampire sacrifice, to get me to Atlanta on Thursday or Friday sometime. But Atlanta lay seventeen-hundred miles away, and a twenty-five hour car journey.
“That means you and Mandy together in car and hotel for a whole three days.” Mary-Christine shook her head. “It doesn’t matter how much I trust the two of you, I don’t have to like it.”
“I don’t see how we can get our equipment to Atlanta without driving.”
“We could ship it.”
“Yeah, we just ship guns to ourselves.”
We organized in silence for a few minutes.
“Why don’t you ask your guy, Reynolds?” Mary-Christine asked, standing up suddenly. “If he’s as experienced as you say, he’s probably done stuff like that before.”
Well, I dialed his number, and in less than thirty seconds, I flipped the phone closed.
“FedEx.” I spread my hands in its simplicity. “He says we just mark on the box ‘To be picked up at depot’, and the package just sits there for three weeks. If it’s not claimed, it’s shipped back here.”
Mandy’s brows furrowed. “That seems too easy. There’s no problem in shipp
ing guns?”
“Nope, Reynolds says that gun shops and competition shooters do it all the time.”
“Ok.” Mary-Christine took a sheet of plain paper, and wrote: ‘Put guns in box and ship - FedEx’. Then she pinned it on the wall. “Another piece of the puzzle completed.”
I grabbed a swivel chair from the ‘outside’ cellar, and wheeled it to the center of the safe room. Sitting down, I used my pointy finger to follow the plan on the wall. “So; we get the vampire, give him to your dad. You tell him you want to be in on the execution; you’re old enough, there shouldn’t be a problem. Mandy and I fly to Atlanta early Friday morning. We hire a car. Mandy and I break into the building early Saturday morning. We hide in the furnace room ‘til you guys arrive. We hit Amos with the coagulant gun, and execute the vampire who’s already there. Then we proclaim ourselves to be the saviors of the whole Helsing species, and we execute Amos.”
“Wow.” Mary-Christine had followed my finger. “Sure sounds a lot when you say it like that.”
“And you know what we do now?”
“What? Snuggle? Make-out?” she did those little jumps on the spot that made her chest do amazing things. They jumped around like a couple of rabbits in a sack, but I tried hard to ignore the whole show.
“No, my little honey-badger, we don’t make-out. We take every part of the plan and analyze what could go wrong. And we set up our safeguards to avoid mistakes.”
So that’s exactly what we did for the rest of the night. By the time I walked Mary-Christine home, the wall had grown in paper coverage. We had looked at the whole plan, and there were two glaring areas of potential screw-up.
The first wasn’t really crucial; the vampire takedown. We had both done it before, and we now had the added ‘muscle’ of Mandy Cross to help us. If we messed up the vampire takedown, from what Mandy said, there’d be more fish in the sea for a second bite at the cherry.
The hardest part would be the break in. Now, I know Mandy is a vampire, but none of the two of us were consummate professionals in the breaking-and-entering business, and we only had one chance to pull it off.