Vertigo Vampire: a Supernatural Thriller (The Specials Book 2)

by Tricia Owens

I couldn’t tell if the Count had heard me until I could: the vampire abruptly halted, his pale face turned to the black figure crouched six feet from Elliott’s body.

  “Look what they made from you,” I told him, faking a vicious glee that was the opposite of what I felt at the moment. “It doesn’t matter if you go after Nathaniel and his father. Dead or alive, it won’t change the truth: this thing exists, and it’s a mirror of you. I’m sorry to say, Count, but it’s hideous.” My laugh was breathy with exhaustion. “It’s a good thing Elliott won’t live to see your awful vampire child, because I’m sure he’d hate it. And you.”

  “That is not my child.”

  Despite the juddering and shaking, the room felt preternaturally still and silent. I wasn’t the only one who stared at the vampire dressed in blood red.

  “I was turned,” the Count said, his voice beginning to rise. “I did not ask for this. I did not desire to lose my humanity. I did not give permission for the horror that is my body to be re-created in another!”

  The anguish that spilled out of him left me speechless. I saw with sudden clarity what previously only Elliott had seen: the Count was a man who had been torn from his humanity. He was a monster, but he was an unwilling one.

  The tarry child vampire slunk across the floor, its movements not quite crab-like, but not like any human’s. It drew to within six feet of the Count and seemed to bubble there, as though unsure what form to take.

  “I feel it in my mind,” the Count murmured. He raised a pale hand but didn’t touch his own head. He fisted his hand and forced it down by its side. “I did not ask for this connection. I do not want it.”

  The black creature stepped nearer still, its head bowed and hands clasped in front of it, its pose almost repentant. I looked to Nathaniel. He watched the scene intently, his brows pulled into a V of tension. Farther away, Taurus’s fists were thrust in front of him, ready to launch another kinetic energy blast.

  But all three of us held still as the vampire hybrid extended a hand shyly toward the Count.

  “I can feel it,” the vampire repeated, almost absently. “I can hear it. I endure enough madness as it is. You had no right to subject me to more.”

  With a tilted head, he reached out as well, his fingers and the hybrid’s hovering mere inches apart. The expression on the Count’s face was almost…tender. It was then that I knew: I’d made a mistake.

  I opened my mouth to shout at Taurus to blast them, but before I could, the Count whirled into motion. Black, tar-like goop burst from the hybrid as the vampire tore it apart with clawed hands and even his fangs. The Count was a creature possessed, snarling like a wild animal as he shredded the V-Recode hybrid to pieces.

  But separating the creature from itself didn’t kill it. The splotches of black twitched and curled where they fell. Some of the larger pieces began to slide across the floor to merge with other pieces like single cells becoming multi-cellular. I had no idea how to stop it or how to kill it. It wasn’t alive in a sense that I understood.

  Fortunately for all of us, the Count did understand. With a low-pitched snarl, the vampire began to scoop the blackness off the floor and shove it into his mouth. I couldn’t decide if I was horrified or in awe as he slurped every last piece of the hybrid that had been created from his flesh. When the last piece had been ingested, his body shuddered violently and he bent at the waist as though he would vomit it all back up.

  But he kept it in and eventually straightened again, though to my eyes he seemed weaker. Or maybe it was only that his supernatural ferocity had dimmed now that I’d seen what I had. After a moment of utter stillness, as if to ensure he was fully recovered, the Count glided across the floor to where Elliott lay sprawled. I tensed, but the vampire made no move to touch him.

  “One day,” I heard him murmur—and I was probably the only one close enough to do so—“you will say yes.”

  He vanished then, and the vacuum he left behind was like a hole in the heart.

  Chapter 15

  I was burning up with fever. I tried to hide my condition but Nathaniel shifted directly in front of me and noticed it right away.

  “What’s happened to you?” He dropped to his knees beside me. He didn’t look so great himself. Dark semi-circles hung beneath his eyes and his skin was drawn and pale.

  “What happened to you?” I countered. “You look terrible.”

  “Making that many shifts takes its toll. But I’ll live. You, I’m not so sure about.” He gently guided me to lean forward as I rested on one hip. “My god, Arrow,” he exclaimed. “Your back.”

  “Good thing I’m current on my shots.” It was an effort to keep my eyes open. Exhaustion rolled through me like the waves of an ocean. “Tower thinks my healing factor is working overtime to kill off the contaminants from the V-Recode hybrid. I got some of it in my mouth yesterday.”

  Horror rounded his green eyes. “Is that why you came home looking like you’d been run over?”

  I laughed tiredly. “Sort of. I’ll explain it later. What matters is that my temperature is up. That’s a good sign. It means my body is beginning to heal. It’s just taking longer to come up to speed while it’s fighting off this other invader.”

  At his continued worried look, I reached up and cupped his cheek. “I’ll be fine. I’m positive it’s working.”

  “You’d better be fine,” he whispered fiercely. “I need you.”

  And I need you, Nathaniel. To keep convincing me that what we’re doing is truly right.

  The scuff of a shoe over rock prompted Nathaniel to lean away from me. Taurus stared down at the two of us, his expression blank.

  “Elliott’s awake,” he said gruffly.

  Nathaniel helped me to slide over to my friend. Elliott sat up with a moan and blinked blearily around him.

  “Where am I? I was in the Skyline Bar.”

  “You’re beneath the Sinistera,” I told him as I stroked his cheek. “The Count tried to use you to get us to open the basement doors, but then had a change of heart and saved you instead.”

  “I don’t know how I got here, but…that sounds alright.”

  I laughed, the rush of relief leaving me boneless. “Yeah, it’s alright.”

  Elliott suddenly jerked. “Sheridan! What happened to Sheridan! I Tased her in the bar.”

  I was shocked, but Nathaniel took it in stride. “I’ll find out.”

  His form began blinking around the room again, ledger in hand, before he disappeared completely. The stilling of the basement was a monumental relief. Even Taurus sighed and his shoulders sagged as tension bled away.

  “I’m leaving,” he told us, in a way that made it seem he felt obligated to let us know.

  I gave him a nod. “Thank you for your help, Taurus. We needed you.”

  I didn’t mean only today, and I could tell he understood that and didn’t particularly like it. I didn’t regret the pressure on him, though. The time for selfishness was over. Either we did something about the government’s crimes or we needed to declare our guilt in assisting them. I didn’t think Taurus was interested in the latter, but it would take some pushing to get him on our side.

  “I wish I hadn’t missed everything,” Elliott murmured after the KE specialist had left. “I feel like I was baggage.”

  He rubbed at his throat, trying to be subtle about it, as though he were scratching the skin. I understood what he was looking for, though. I’d looked for it on him, too.

  “He didn’t bite you,” I told him softly. “What he did today was pretty impressive. He’s into you.”

  Elliott blushed and burst into laughter. “That sounds so silly for a vampire.”

  “I guess. Doesn’t make it any less true. He’s more human than I realized.”

  “He never wanted to be a vampire, Arrow,” he said, searching my eyes as if to see if I believed him. “He’s looking for a cure.”

  “I hope one exists.”

  Of course, I was thinking of the scientists as I said i
t, who had lied to the Count in order to gain access to his genes. Had they ever had the intention or ability to reverse his condition? If I could, I would find out, if only to return the favor of saving Elliott’s life today.

  Outside of that, though, the Count remained a problem to the Sinistera.

  “Sheridan told me the scientists tried to use mind control on the Count,” Elliott said as if reading my mind. “Did you see that happening?”

  “Actually, I did, now that you’ve explained it. It seemed like the vampire hybrid acted like an antenna, allowing the scientists to reach through it to the Count. I think they might have amped up his hatred of Nathaniel and Mr. Tower, driving him to attack them even when the chance of success was slim.”

  “Do you think that’s why Dr. Day brought the hybrid into the hotel? To plant the antenna on the property?”

  “Makes as much sense as anything.”

  Elliott turned his head. “So that’s the basement, huh?”

  I joined him in staring at the double doors which had once been guarded by a statue.

  “I don’t think good things are in there,” I said, feeling hollow all of a sudden. When Nathaniel was near, it was easy to believe him and have faith in him. But out of his presence, my old suspicions took over. Behind those double doors might be the evidence I needed to expose what had been done to my grandmother. That wasn’t Nathaniel’s priority, though. I didn’t blame him for caring more about clearing his father’s name, but our disparate interests might be a problem in the future when tough choices had to be made.

  The room shifted again. I murmured unhappily and shut my eyes. I was at my limit for shifting. I needed the world to be calm.

  Nathaniel appeared, standing over us. “Sheridan is fine. She’s been conscious for a while. She’s been looking for you, Elliott. She said she hopes to speak with you when you’re feeling better.”

  “That’s nice.” Elliott studied his hands in his lap. “I guess we’ll see.”

  Without knowing what had happened between my two friends, I could only squeeze Elliott’s shoulder in support. Nathaniel’s eyes lingered on that touch, and I huffed a laugh to myself. Of all the times for him to be jealous.

  “I think,” I said quietly, “I’m ready for a nap.”

  “Go on then,” Nathaniel encouraged us as his gaze moved to Tower, who was beginning to stir. “I’ll clean up down here.”

  Would he leave the double doors unguarded? I smiled wearily to myself. If I were him—and knowing me—I would make them all but impenetrable.

  Epilogue

  Taurus didn’t look up when someone pounded on the door of his room.

  “Go away,” he growled. “I’m off the clock.” He’d had enough ‘fun’ without getting paid.

  “It’s me, sweetie pie. Let me in.”

  He inwardly groaned. “I said go away.”

  “If you don’t let me in I may have to get creative.”

  “If you burn down my door again you will regret it for the rest of your life, Calia.” He meant it, and he knew she knew he meant it, which was why lightning didn’t strike.

  “Pleeeease?”

  Taurus hated her. He hated everything about her because she was nothing but a manipulative bitch who used everyone around her to satisfy her needs. But he also hated Calia because every once in a while, like now, he caught something from her—a twinge in her voice or a flicker of her expression—that hinted that she was simply broken. And if there was one thing Taurus couldn’t stand, it was broken things.

  He strode to the door, unlocked it, and flung it open. He did it so violently that it struck the wall beside him and bounced back until it hit his foot. Calia, standing posed in the hallway, didn’t bat an eyelash at the dramatics.

  “I knew you liked me,” she said with a wink and a pop of her ever-present pink bubble gum.

  “I’m about two seconds from strangling you, Calia. What do you want?”

  Her violet eyes took a look over him that he couldn’t honestly claim wasn’t effective. “I came to see if you wanted company, sweetie. I know how lonely it gets in this big ol’ hotel.”

  “What. Do. You. Want?”

  She sighed theatrically. “Christ, fine, I wanted to talk to you about something. But not in the damn hallway. Back up and let me in, you big oaf.”

  “You’ve got a real way with people, Calia.”

  “Like I care what people think of me.” She sauntered past him and into the room. After a quick look around, she threw herself onto the bed. “Hey, hot stuff,” she purred as she lay on her back and looked up at him. She curled her finger in a come hither motion. “Let’s have some fun.”

  “Not interested,” he muttered. He shut the door reluctantly, not wanting to encourage her, but unwilling to let the other Specials learning that he’d allowed her inside. They were in competition with each other for Tower’s jobs, so any suggestion of an alliance was viewed with a jaundiced eye.

  “You’re a hunky side of beef, but you’re about as fun as a cow carcass.” She rolled onto her side, head propped on an elbow. She used the end of her red braid to tease her lips. “You’re not still mad that I beat you to the bonus from the Peerage job, are you?”

  Actually, he was, but he wasn’t about to give her any incentive to taunt him. “You have five seconds, Calia.”

  “Fine, fine!” She sat up, her expression all business. “I’ve got a problem with our so-called Head of Security.”

  He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. “Tell me something the entire hotel staff doesn’t know. You’re a pretty girl, Calia, but your jealousy makes you ugly.”

  “I’m not jealous!” She stabbed a finger at him. “If I hear anyone say that I’ll fry their brains in their skulls.”

  “Whatever. Why are you here? Three seconds.”

  “I think Arrow isn’t just a Special. I think she’s weaseled her way into this place.”

  “Two seconds.”

  “Her grandmother and Dr. Febrero worked together!”

  Taurus stared at her. “What are you talking about? Who’s her grandmother?”

  Smirking, knowing she now had him hooked, Calia lay back on the bed, her bare, tattooed legs curled invitingly on the bedspread.

  “The grandmother is a big shot from the war. One of the freedom fighters. She knows where The Architect’s father is but Arrow’s keeping her drugged up so she won’t tell anyone. Arrow’s using that leverage so Tower and The Architect cut her in on their plan to overthrow the government and rule the world. Oh, yeah, and use us schmucks to make the noble sacrifice.”

  Taurus frowned, thinking about how close Arrow and The Architect had seemed down in the basement. He didn’t agree with Calia’s assessment that Arrow was using leverage. Well, not the kind that Calia seemed to think. Arrow had The Architect wrapped around her finger, but for a different reason.

  Taurus didn’t give a shit, frankly, who boned who. Nor was he interested in all this anti-government garbage that they spewed. The Drowning War had occurred when he was a kid and he’d been taught not to think too much about old news so he didn’t. He just wanted to earn money. That was his sole reason for everything at this point. However, if the side jobs that Tower and The Architect wanted him to run put his income earning potential at risk, Taurus was going to have a few words with someone. He hadn’t signed on for a suicide mission masquerading as a resistance movement.

  But like the rest of these jerks, I’m handcuffed. The Sinistera has me by the balls.

  “So what if any of that’s true?” he said with a grunt. “I can’t do anything about it and neither can you. You’re beating your head against a wall if you try.”

  “I think you’re wrong.” Her gaze sharpened in a way that Taurus found both sexy and scary as hell. He knew to keep away from the crazy ones, so he wasn’t touching Calia, but sometimes it was fun spin in her wild orbit for a little while.

  She sat up, uncaring that her miniskirt had ridden up, revealing the edge of her panties. Or
maybe that was intentional.

  “You and I need to team up,” she told him, holding him gripped in her intense gaze. “We watch that bitch and see if she has any secret meetings with Tower or The Architect. That’ll be proof that she’s up to no good.”

  “Then what?” he asked, humoring her.

  “Then we go grab granny and hold her hostage until they cut us in on the deal. You can be the Minister of Muscles and I’ll be the President.”

  She grinned, but the sick thing was, Taurus knew for a fact that Calia would do it. She’d break the old woman’s back if it gave Calia some kind of advantage.

  “What happened to you?” he couldn’t help blurting out, letting his incredulity show. “Who messed you up like this?”

  Her expression went blank, but he thought he saw a wobble shake her lips right before her mouth curled down in an ugly sneer.

  “I could ask the same of you, Buffalo Head,” she spat. “You’re not here because you like cleaning toilets.” She slid off the bed. He backed away, sensing that her intent to flirt had been replaced by a hunger to fight. “Where’re you just come back from?” she challenged, giving him another once-over, but her intent different this time. Dangerous, like she was gathering blackmail material. “Did it have anything to do with the roller coaster ride the entire hotel just took?”

  Taurus cursed himself for being an idiot and giving her even a moment’s time. This was the result: her trying to get the dirt on him so she could use it against him.

  “Your time is over,” he told her. He strode to the door and held it open. “Get out.”

  He was prepared for the unpleasantness that would ensue if she insisted on staying—namely bolts of electricity flying every which way—but to his relief, she stormed out. In the hallway, she turned, of course, unable to leave without a parting shot.

  “You’re going to want to remain on my good side, Taurus. I think you’re hot, so you’ve got some wiggle room with me, but a big chest only gets you so far. You and I are the only non-idiots in this place. We need to be a team, otherwise Arrow and her pals are going to screw us over big-time. You think about that. You’ll be thanking me later.”