Be My Valentine

by Niall Teasdale

  ‘Come back here tonight,’ Pat interrupted. ‘I’ve already got someone in to cover the top bar. We can sit down there, drink, and chat. Bring Mike and see if Leeanne can come. Might as well have a crowd.’

  ‘Okay,’ Dione agreed, starting for the small kitchen. ‘I’ll see what I can do. But right now, you’re going to have food and the tender care of a trained medical practitioner.’

  ‘Want me to get the “naughty nurse” outfit out?’ Lisa asked, grinning.

  Pat opened her mouth to say no, because that was really the last thing she wanted right now, and then stopped. ‘Well… It couldn’t hurt…’

  ~~~

  ‘You are supposed to be having a night off,’ Lisa commented.

  Pat dragged her eyes away from the Candle’s bar, which was actually operating perfectly well without her. ‘I am. I just…’

  ‘It’s a good thing, in a way,’ Dione said. ‘Once upon a time, Pat was a hippy, and now she’s a responsible businesswoman.’ Dione had elected to sit as close to the wall in their booth as she could get, rather than on the outer edge like Pat. Dione preferred the shadows and Pat could not keep herself from worrying about her club.

  ‘I’m sure they can manage without you for one night,’ Leeanne said. She was beside Dione with Mike sitting beside her. ‘You’ve had a… busy day or two. Stressful. You should rest. Doctor’s orders. Right, Doctor Tully?’

  Lisa grinned. ‘I concur with both diagnosis and suggested treatment, Doctor Drake.’

  ‘I feel like I’m being ganged up on,’ Pat said.

  ‘Dione and I could recommend house arrest too, if you like,’ Mike said, grinning.

  ‘I am being ganged up on. So, I was thinking… You guys knew about Silas before he helped get Evan out of here, right?’

  ‘Yes,’ Dione replied.

  ‘So putting Evan downstairs was basically a trap.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘For Silas?’

  ‘For Silas and his CIA friends. I wanted to know as much about them as possible. Mary is going over the copies she took of their hard drives and phones.’

  ‘And the FBI get nothing,’ Mike added, ‘since Mary made sure their equipment was blanked.’

  ‘And you didn’t tell me about any of this because?’ Pat asked.

  ‘Would you have believed it?’ Dione asked in reply. ‘Could you have kept quiet about it knowing that we thought Silas was working for the CIA? I mean, not only was he your creator, but the last time you saw him, the chances of him working for any form of government were slim.’

  ‘I was having thoughts about him before this,’ Pat countered. ‘Though… It seemed more like he just wanted me to himself. He didn’t like you, but then he wouldn’t have liked any Hunter. I’m not sure. I feel like I should be pissed about this, but you might be right.’

  ‘And the plan was not supposed to result in you being taken away with Evan,’ Mike added.

  ‘But that turned out well,’ Leeanne said, grinning. ‘You got proof about Silas and you saved Mike from him. I owe you for that.’

  Pat grinned back. ‘Well, I already told Mike what he could do to repay me.’

  Leeanne blushed. ‘Yeah, he did mention that.’ Rallying, she added, ‘With what Lisa’s always telling me, I’d go for it, but I wouldn’t want to cast Mike aside to join your harem.’

  ‘Very self-sacrificing of you. Okay, so Evan’s awaiting his punishment, and I guess you’ve sent a message to the CIA… Anything outstanding or can we get back to normal around here?’

  ‘I think that’s everything,’ Dione said. ‘The ghouls were definitely CIA and we’ve had no sign of more activity. Word is being put around that we caught the Valentine Killer, and we’re making sure people know he was a one-off, a bad choice to be turned into any kind of vampire. I think the noise should die down soon enough. It’s already looking busier in here.’

  ‘Yeah,’ Pat agreed. ‘Things seem to be returning to normal.’

  ‘There was the mysterious bloodless corpse,’ Mike said.

  ‘Vampires do leave those.’

  ‘This one was a vampire. All its blood extracted, hands and head removed.’

  ‘Oh. Why would someone suck the blood out of a vampire? We can’t drink vampire blood.’

  ‘I suspect,’ Dione said, ‘that it was either Cartwright’s special task force, or otherwise related to Societas, or it was the CIA again. Winthrop was able to determine that the body was a transylvanian. Obviously they didn’t want him identified. It has all the hallmarks of a warning killing, but there have been no new rumours of Societas activity here.’ She frowned. ‘There is one other possibility… But, unless we can identify the body, that one’s a bit of a dead end. No pun intended.’

  ‘Good, because that would be bad. Just one thing left to do then?’

  Dione nodded. ‘But that has to wait for the final verdict from the Concilium.’

  ‘Not that they’re going to change their minds.’

  ‘No. Evan’s fate is pretty much sealed. It’s all over bar the chopping. On the other hand, tomorrow should be fun.’

  ‘Oh? Why?’

  ‘Let’s just say that the FBI are in for a surprise…’

  20th March.

  ‘They’re gone?’ Dione asked. ‘Both of them?’ Mike was amazed. Even he believed that the vampire was shocked.

  Special Agent Gallows looked unimpressed. Then again, he had been pretty massively pissed off when he walked into the office. ‘Both of them. Apparently, two U.S. Marshals turned up last night with an order to move both of them to a federal prison.’

  ‘Let me guess,’ Mike said, ‘no such order and the IDs didn’t check out.’

  ‘It all appeared kosher to the guys on the desk,’ Adams said. He was being more reasonable about things. He was angry, but hiding it better. ‘We have the forms. It looks like someone paid a lot for the forgeries. We’ve put out pictures to… well, everywhere. No sign of either of them at the ports or airports. We suspect they may still be in the city. Whoever took them will likely keep them hidden until the heat dies down and then move them.’

  Dione nodded. ‘Whoever was behind the original cell. Cleaning up the mess I’d expect. They certainly seem to be connected.’

  ‘We… had noticed that, yes.’

  ‘Yeah,’ Gallows more or less growled. ‘Someone connected is leaning on–’

  ‘Internal office politics,’ Adams interrupted, ‘which you wouldn’t be interested in. We’ll take it from here.’

  ‘If that’s how you want to play it,’ Dione said. ‘Give us a heads-up if you find them.’

  ‘Sure.’

  ~~~

  ‘Where is the spy guy?’ Mike asked as he rode down in the elevator with Dione. ‘I assume Evan is at the Concilium place.’

  ‘Yes. The CIA man should be in Atlanta by now. He’ll be held there for a couple of weeks and then released.’

  ‘Huh, so much for watching transport hubs.’

  Dione smiled. ‘Vampires have been transporting people under the radar since before there was radar. He’ll be dumped on a street. I’d imagine he’ll contact his superiors and they’ll bring him in and debrief him. The CIA will get the picture, which is that they shouldn’t mess with us. Or that’s the hope.’

  ‘They don’t strike me as the kind of people who take a hint. I mean, how long were they trying to kill Castro for?’

  ‘Hmm… Yes, you have a point.’ Dione stepped out of the elevator and started for the heavy door which was already opening. ‘Well, for their sake and ours, let’s hope they’ve learned from their mistakes.’

  23rd March.

  ‘News of Evan is getting around,’ Dione said to the assembled SCU team. Even Juliana was there to hear the round-up reports. ‘Pat says that attendance at the pascua is back to near-normal levels. The Candle was humming on Friday and Saturday.’

  ‘The S-Net buzz is fairly positive,’ Mary reported. ‘There are a number of discussion threads floating around suggesting th
at anyone thinking that valentines were inherently dangerous has to be an idiot.’ She presented a sour expression and added, ‘Several of those were by people previously jumping on the “valentines are dangerous” bandwagon, but they’re adding to the volume I suppose. Basically, we’re back to normal, or what passes for normal on the internet.’

  ‘What did you get off their hardware?’ Mike asked.

  ‘Still working through it all, but they weren’t reporting to Langley or Fort Meade, or any of the other regular places. We’ve got a fairly isolated cell of operatives brought in specifically for this job. I found evidence that they’ve been hunting for Evan since at least Mexico. They also had a lot of information on us which they must’ve collected while they were here.’

  ‘That doesn’t sound good.’

  ‘No, but I don’t think they transmitted much of it back to their HQ. There was an email sequence requesting and confirming the ghouls, so that absolutely confirms their involvement in that incident.’

  ‘Not that we suspected otherwise,’ Dione said.

  ‘No… I haven’t found anything yet suggesting that they were responsible for that drained transylvanian.’

  ‘Have we got anywhere with identifying him?’

  Mary shook her head and Winthrop said, ‘The DNA tests have come back negative, as expected. He is not in any of the systems we have access to.’

  Dione frowned. ‘No one matching his description reported missing?’

  ‘Not yet,’ Mary replied. ‘It’s possible that he will be, but nothing yet.’

  ‘We could check transients again,’ Mike suggested. ‘See if anyone left suddenly, unexpectedly.’

  ‘Worth a shot,’ Dione agreed.

  ‘You said there was another reason someone might have done it. In the Candle, you mentioned something and then didn’t elaborate.’

  ‘A reason for sucking the blood from a vampire?’ Winthrop asked. ‘Oh, well, there’s magic.’

  Juliana raised an eyebrow and got in before Mike could say it. ‘Magic is real?’

  ‘Magic certainly exists,’ Winthrop replied. ‘Exactly what it is, how it works, why some people can invoke its power and not others… Those are very open questions. What is known is that it revolves around blood. Blood taken from a living being, much as vampires need live blood to continue their existence. Since vampires somehow take live, human blood and… concentrate it, vampire blood is significantly more potent than ordinary human blood which has resulted in some unfortunate turns of events in the past.’

  ‘Magical bloodlines were routinely cut off when we discovered them,’ Dione said. ‘We would wipe out entire generations of families to eliminate the threat. The biggest part of that threat comes from someone converting a magician, but covens using vampires as sacrifices has been something of a problem too. However, we haven’t had a coven operating anywhere I’ve heard of in the past couple of centuries.’

  ‘There was actually quite valid conjecture that the last of the magical bloodlines had been eliminated,’ Winthrop added. ‘It’s possible that our mystery vampire was part of a magical ritual, but relatively unlikely.’

  ‘So we look at other avenues first?’ Mike asked.

  ‘Yes,’ Dione replied. ‘We’ll start looking after Evan is finally dealt with. Maybe we’ll have more to go on by then.’

  ‘Do we have a date for that?’

  ‘Unless someone in the Concilium raises an objection, it’ll be dawn on Wednesday.’

  Mike nodded. ‘Would it be inappropriate for me to ask to be there?’

  Dione looked at her partner for a second. ‘It’s not an especially pleasant event, but I think it’s worth you seeing at least one of them. If you’re sure, I’ll pick you up around six a.m. on the day.’

  ‘I’m sure,’ Mike replied. ‘If I’m going to consign people to execution, I think I should be able to see it through to the end. If I can’t do that, I don’t think I deserve to be here.’

  25th March.

  ‘There are actually three methods of execution mandated by the Summus Concilium,’ Dione explained as she drove through the gloom of an early-morning New York. ‘Beheading is considered the norm, and also the most merciful.’

  ‘I suppose it’s quick,’ Mike said.

  ‘Usually. Fire is mandated for particularly serious infractions of the rules. The vampire is fixed to a metal grate over a fire and burned to death. It can take some time and it’s very painful. Finally, for members of the Societas Draconistarum, there’s exposure. They’re pegged out in the sun until they burn to death. It’s reserved for transylvanians, obviously.’

  ‘Neither sounds very nice.’

  ‘They aren’t. Our Concilium voted by a narrow margin to burn Evan to death; however, the final verdict on how sentence is carried out falls upon the Hunter responsible. I consider anything beyond beheading to be revenge, not justice. I refused their suggestion, even for someone like Evan.’

  Mike was silent for a second. Then he said, ‘Good. I’m not a great believer in the death penalty, but if it’s vampire law, and I admit vampires are different, I’d rather it be quick and relatively painless.’

  ‘My thoughts precisely. And you’re right, vampires are different. Imprisonment does not really work. Originally, vampires could be entombed rather than ended. That even allowed for a change of mind if new evidence came to light. Unfortunately, it frequently resulted in the vampire being dug up and freed by friends or followers. The practice was abandoned sometime during the Dark Ages.’ Dione pulled the car over into a space beside an apartment block on Park Avenue. ‘Come on, time to go to work.’

  The building was old and seemed to be a genuine apartment block, except that the doorman was a vampire and, upstairs somewhere, one of the suites was reserved for the use of the Concilium when it met. Dione did not lead Mike to the elevators, but instead opened a door marked ‘No Admittance’ and started down a flight of stairs on the other side. Then it was through what appeared to a perfectly normal basement with various utilities in it, to another door which had a key-code lock on it, down more stairs… and into a dungeon.

  There was no other way to describe the place. It had brick arches and iron-barred doors, and it looked sort of squalid. Mike saw half a dozen cells, one of which held Evan, still in the suit he had been wearing when he was captured. Dione ignored him for now and continued on to a solid door made of heavy oak at the end of the corridor. Beyond that was a larger room, maybe twenty feet by twenty-five, but still bare brick. At one end of the room, the bricks were covered in darker stains which attested to its purpose. Light came from several tall candle stands around the room which gave a rather spooky air to the proceedings, casting much of the room into shadow.

  The Concilium was waiting for them and, before anyone else could speak, Leo stepped forward, offering his hand to Mike. ‘Detective Williams,’ Leo said. ‘Dione told us of your reasons for wanting to see this. I consider it a further demonstration of her good judgement that her partner wishes to see this through to the end. Many of her partners have preferred not to witness this part of the proceedings.’

  Mike took Leo’s hand, always a slightly risky business considering Leo’s crushing grip. ‘I don’t believe I’ve the right to do the job unless I’m willing to see the result, sir.’

  Leo’s lips twitched: he was aware that Mike was pressing the formality for the rest of the Concilium. ‘Commendable,’ he said.

  ‘Let’s proceed,’ Dione said. ‘Does anyone here have any reason to stay the execution of the valentine known as Evan?’ There was silence and Dione nodded. ‘The Concilium has recommended that Evan be burned. As the Hunter who will carry out this order, I am enacting my right to refuse that recommendation. Evan will be put to the sword.’

  For some reason, Mike had expected someone to object to that, or at least grumble. The response, from Leo, seemed almost formulaic. ‘The Concilium accepts the Hunter’s judgement. The Hunter’s mercy is noted.’

  Dione bowed her head
to the assembled audience. ‘I will return with the condemned.’

  No one spoke while the Hunter went off to retrieve Evan from his cell. Mike was actually rather pleased with the atmosphere in the room. The Concilium had made a decision to end another vampire and they did not seem to be taking it lightly. The silence continued as Evan was brought in, his hands tied behind his back, and Dione escorted him to the other end of the room, the end with all the dark stains.

  Mike had sort of expected Leo to say something then, but it was Dione who stepped in front of Evan, between him and the Concilium, and spoke. ‘Evan, you have been judged guilty of crimes against the community of vampires. This judgement is final. Do you have anything to say before sentence is carried out?’

  Evan’s brow furrowed and he looked down for a second. Then he raised his chin and the candlelight seemed to add fire to his eyes. ‘You talk about rules and crimes against the community. You all have no idea what you’ve got. We’re vampires. We’re the top of the food chain. We can do anything. You’ve all spent so much time hiding in the shadows that you’ve forgotten what you are.’

  Dione slid her katana free of its scabbard and held it lightly at her side. ‘Your final words are noted,’ she said. ‘But just for the record, you have no idea what a real vampire is.’ Then she moved, her sword carving an intricate arc of silver in the light from the candles before she took a single step forward and the arc bisected Evan’s neck. For a second, it seemed almost as though she had missed. Then Evan’s body crumpled, his head peeling away to bounce once and then roll across the brick floor. More stains were added to those already there as blood began to soak into the porous surface.

  Flicking blood from her sword, Dione sheathed it in one fluid motion. ‘Sentence has been carried out. If the Concilium will excuse me, my partner and I have work to do. Michael…’

  Mike followed as Dione swept from the room. ‘That’s not something I’ll forget soon,’ he said. ‘You didn’t seem best pleased with how that went.’

  ‘He was right, in a way,’ Dione replied. ‘Modern vampires have forgotten what being a vampire is all about. Usually I think that’s a good thing, but not always. And killing innocents was never part of the deal.’