Not bothering to put his clothes or other items away, Christian unloaded all the equipment he had brought with him. He always liked to check his supplies after arrival to make sure he wasn’t missing anything.
He stared at the objects lying on his bed. There were his custom handguns, two beautifully crafted weapons, one of silver and the other darker than the night sky. They were shaped like a pair of Desert Eagles, had a comfortable grip, and were designed for quick draws and firing. Despite their powerful design, they possessed very little recoil, allowing him the ability to fire rounds in rapid succession without his aim going askew.
He had earned these guns and his swords several years ago, after completing the most difficult mission he’d ever been given. The silver one was called Gabriel. The black one was Phanuel.
Sitting beside his custom handguns were his close-range weapons of choice: a pair of customized swords. Unlike most blades these had no classification. They looked like traditional European short swords, with twenty-three-inch-long blades and six-inch handles. The difference lay in the diamond-shaped pommels and crucifix crossguards. The swords’ names were Michael and Raphael. Both guns and swords were made out of Orichalcum.
Among the items he had laid out, there was also the sniper rifle. He had no clue what he was going to do with it, as he still could not fire it with any degree of accuracy. There was also a long scope with a tripod that he could use to observe the city from a distance, provided he could find a building high enough to use it.
The only other items on the bed were his holsters, the sheaths for his swords, the case for the sniper rifle, and several cartridges of ammunition. He didn’t have any grenades or explosives, though he did have two flashbangs in case he needed to make a quick getaway. He hopefully wouldn’t need them to deal with the succubus.
Once all of his weapons were accounted for, Christian stowed them where they would not only be hidden, but easy to access at a moment’s notice—under the bed.
While he did this, his thoughts turned to his target, and he reviewed the information he had on her. The succubus’s name was Eve Viava. Reports indicated that she had lived with a woman called Valerie Viava in New Shoreham, Rhode Island, until her fifteenth birthday, when her adopted mother was killed. Eve had disappeared, only to reappear several months later in a different town, under a different name.
A month later, the Church confirmed Eve to be a succubus, and Jeanne was sent to kill her. Jeanne disappeared and Sara was sent after Eve before being killed. Trekovski disappeared weeks later and Eve vanished again, not reappearing for nearly three years, having traveled across the United States to Seal Beach under the assumed name of Lilith Vie.
Sighing as he put away the last pieces of the dismantled sniper rifle, Christian stood up and moved to the bed. He then let gravity take him until his back hit the mattress, bouncing several times before settling down.
He wondered about the deaths of Valerie and Sara. Reports indicated that Valerie had been killed after having her throat torn out via a set of claws, and Sara was found floating in the Atlantic Ocean, her throat lacerated by claws as well.
Succubi didn’t possess claws, and their physical abilities remained within the boundaries of human limitations, which meant Valerie and Sara had not been killed by Lilith, but by someone else, or something else.
As he stared at the ceiling, Christian wondered if the strange feeling coiling in his gut was a premonition or just indigestion.
Chapter 7
A new day dawned in Seal Beach. The sun rose over the horizon, casting a multitude of colors across the sky and sea. Blue, red, orange, and varying degrees of purple made both atmosphere and ocean appear to be far more than their molecular composition would suggest.
It was at this time, as the sun began its climb, that Lilith Vie found herself taking a nice, hot shower. A satisfied moan escaped her lips as she stood under the warm spray. There was something innately pleasant about standing under the spray of hot water, allowing the warm droplets to caress her back and run down her body. It was one of her two biggest guilty pleasures.
When she finished, Lilith exited the shower and grabbed a towel off the rack. She wrapped it around her body, grabbed another towel, and used it to dry her hair.
Upon passing the sink, her eyes strayed to the mirror. It was fogged over, but she could still see herself well enough. Blue eyes. Blond hair. A button nose. A generously proportioned body. People often told her that she was the most beautiful girl they had ever met… well, other girls told her that—the few girls that bothered talking to her, at any rate. Lilith had never gotten along with her own gender, for one reason or another. And she didn’t even speak to men, for many reasons, but mostly because they always thought with something other than their heads whenever they were in her presence. The last time she had willingly spoken with a man had ended with…
Lilith shook her head, dispelling the unwanted memories. She had more important things to do than dwell on something that had happened in her past. As her mother always used to say. “You can’t change the past, but you can live in the present to create a better future.”
With her thoughts set and her decision made, Lilith exited the bathroom and walked into her bedroom. The cream-colored walls were lined with pictures of Lilith and the only friend that she had made since coming to Seal Beach. A window above her desk overlooked a small park, allowing rays of light to illuminate her room.
She walked over to the dresser, putting on her panties and a bra, then moved to the closet, where she pulled out a light blue sundress and grabbed a simple pair of sandals. For a moment, she thought about wearing the long, ugly overcoat that she had bought for the purpose of hiding her body from view. A glance out the window told her this wouldn’t be a good idea. It looked like it was going to be a warm day.
Besides, it’s early. I doubt there will be that many men out and about at this time.
Once dressed, she stepped into the apartment’s living area. Like most two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartments, the living room and kitchen were a single area, rather than two separate rooms. The only way to tell where the living room ended and the kitchen began was where the tiles shifted into carpet.
“Good morning, Lilith.” Somebody was already in the room when she entered; it was a woman who looked to be a few years older than her. Maria Longfield, the only person she could call her friend.
The two of them had met only two months before, back when Lilith had first moved in. Maria had already become one of her favorite people—which might have been due to her deplorable lack of friends, but Lilith liked to believe that it was simply because they got along so well.
Maria’s long brown hair was tied into a ponytail, and she was wearing her running clothes: black skort and a red sports bra with black straps. On her feet were a pair of expensive-looking running shoes. Lilith knew that her friend had those shoes custom-made for her.
“Morning, Maria.” Lilith greeted her friend, with a bright smile. “Going for another run this morning?”
Maria gave her with a quick smile, before looking back down at the Garmin watch on her wrist and pressing one of the buttons on the side.
“That’s right, I have to run twenty miles today.”
Lilith shook her head in envy and admiration. Maria was one of those hardcore athletic girls. In high school, she had been the star runner of her cross-country team, and upon graduating had been given a full scholarship by the University of California, Irvine. She was in her last year there, a senior majoring in Health and Science, and minoring in Health Informatics.
“I don’t know how you do it,” Lilith told her honestly.
“Dedication,” Maria replied in the “duh” kind of tone that she used when someone said something that she thought was stupid, or at least lacking in common sense. “You could do it, too, if you had the dedication to train with me every day.” Her eyes twinkled at Lilith and a mischievous smile quirked her lips. Lilith felt an apprehensive chill run down he
r spine. “Perhaps you could even start training right now. Why don’t you run the first two miles with me?”
Sweat formed on Lilith’s brow, both at the mere thought of running two whole miles, and at her friend’s invitation. She had no desire to run several miles, or even a single mile, ever. She wasn’t the type who enjoyed working up a sweat. If she wanted to get out of this, she would have to think fast.
“Oh, I would love to, really, but, uh, would you look at the time! I really should be going now! Work and all that! Bye!”
Without waiting for a response, Lilith slipped out the door and headed down the stairs. Maria’s muted laughter reached her from behind the closed door.
She and her two roommates lived on the second floor of a small apartment complex less than twenty minutes walking distance from the beach. It was a nice place to live. Everything was well maintained: the grass was trimmed, the buildings were clean, and the play area for children looked brand new, despite being nearly ten years old. Lilith really did love it there.
Perhaps what she loved most about this complex was its lack of men. It was an all-female complex owned by a former sex-abuse victim. Discovering an apartment complex that didn’t allow men had been difficult, but well worth the effort.
She did wonder why her two roommates lived there. Maria had a boyfriend—or at least she had when Lilith last checked. They might have broken up already, as her friend discarded the men she dated about as often as she changed her running shoes. And Stacy… the less said about that girl’s sex life the better.
Checking her watch, Lilith saw that she had half an hour before she needed to be at work. With that in mind, she decided to grab a bite to eat at her favorite local café. In her haste to leave her apartment, she had completely forgotten to eat breakfast.
***
Christian sat bolt upright in bed, his body covered in sweat, his hair matted to his head, and his chest heaving. His mind was haunted by last night’s nightmare, the same one that he had been reliving ever since the Catholic Church rescued him from the ashes of his hometown.
Even now, he could feel the blistering heat of the flames as they burnt his body, and the repugnant scent of fumes as smoke filled his lungs. It was something that he had lived with ever since it happened, and it was probably something that he would never be able to get rid of. Such was the price he paid for having committed the sin of living while everyone else had died.
Wiping the accumulated sweat from his forehead, Christian stood up and entered the restroom. As he waited for the water to heat up, he glanced at himself in the mirror, studying his haggard appearance and the bags under his eyes. He looked away with a grimace.
He did not complain about his appearance. Haggard though it was, this, he felt, was part of his punishment. In some ways, Christian thought he was getting off too lightly. So many people had lost their lives because of him, because he hadn't been strong enough. Looking a little sleep deprived was not nearly punishment enough.
His shower took longer than usual. While his mind was alert and his body wasn’t aching from the abuse he so often put it through, he didn’t have any real desire to leave. His body, it seemed, wished to remain under the steaming water blasting against his back. It soothed him. The water washed away not just the sweat that covered him like a layer of oil, but also swept away the last vestiges of his troubling dream.
However, he knew that at some point, he would need to leave, to return to the cold world outside of this small space. And the sooner he finished taking his shower, the quicker he could begin his mission.
As he scrubbed himself down, a plan formed in his mind. There was a lot that needed to be done. He had to do some more scouting, find out where this succubus lived, and come up with a plan to confront her. That would the hardest part of his job, but it was something that he would save for later.
The first thing he would focus on was getting a feel for the city and studying its layout. He had done a bit of that yesterday, but there was still a lot of ground to cover. Seal Beach might have been small, but it was still a city of 13.4 square miles.
He also needed to know the succubus’s routine. He couldn’t devise a plan to exterminate her without knowing her daily schedule. That meant knowing where she went, what she did, which routes she took, and what time she took them. Unlike how he dealt with vampires, werewolves and demons, he couldn’t just attack this one at night and kill her in battle. He needed to be subtler, more cunning, get in close to kill her quietly when she least expected it.
By the Almighty, he hated assassinations. He didn’t have the talent for it. Why couldn’t Samantha have just given him another vampire to kill?
Christian dried off quickly. Exiting the restroom and walking over to the dresser, he grabbed his clothing for the day. He pulled on a plain white t-shirt and tossed a checkered gray button-up shirt over it, leaving it unbuttoned for a casual appearance. Then he put on blue jeans and a pair of black sneakers with white stripe. Once dressed, he looked at himself in a mirror that hung from the small closet.
The clothing he wore had been Claire’s suggestion. She had somehow discovered that he was going on a mission outside of his normal mission parameters—he smelled Tristin’s hand at work—and suggested this outfit.
He had to admit, Claire had good taste in clothes. He should be able to blend in perfectly. He would have to thank her when he returned.
Nodding to himself, he headed out of the hotel.
He didn’t bring his weapons. Christian felt naked without them, but he knew that carrying them in town was out of the question. It would be odd enough having two guns strapped to his thighs. He didn’t want to even think about the kind of reaction he would get if people saw a pair of swords on his back. Until he decided to make a move on the succubus, the weapons would remain locked inside his room.
That didn’t mean he was going completely unarmed. He had a butterfly knife hidden in his left shoe. It wouldn’t do much against a werewolf or a vampire, but he felt better having something to defend himself with.
He pulled out his tablet as he walked and accessed Google Maps. He located a small café not far from the hotel. It would be a good place to have breakfast before getting the lay of the land.
***
Upon entering The Crema Café, Lilith took a quick glance around. The combination of dark-brown and cream-colored walls created a nice contrast. Gray tiles made the floor seem mundane, were it not for the many tables and booths strewn about the interior, all of which were made of multi-colored glass. Like most bakeries and restaurants, the entrance was composed almost entirely of glass, allowing prospective customers to peer in before deciding to enter.
A large glass display near the register showcased the many different baked goods and desserts sold there. Behind the counter, people walked back and forth, preparing for the day; putting bread rolls and donuts into the ovens, using a large mixer to create batter and frosting, and decorating a variety of cakes.
Because of the early morning, few people were present. Four local residents sipped their coffee while reading the morning newspaper. It looked as if she had beaten the morning rush.
Even better, there were only two men, and they were huddled in a booth near the back. So long as she didn’t get near them, they wouldn’t try anything—at least, that was her hope.
“Oh, Lilith. I see you’ve finally decided to come pay us a visit again.”
Lilith was shaken from her thoughts upon hearing the familiar voice. With a smile, she turned toward the elderly woman with gray, nearly white hair, and brown eyes. Her features were youthful, though she did have several wrinkles around her eyes, crows’ feet, and a few along her mouth. Those few wrinkles came from smiling. They were the wrinkles of a woman who was content with her life. Lilith hoped that she could look like that when she was this woman’s age, as it would be proof that her life had turned around for the better.
“Auntie Kay,” Lilith greeted. Kay Carmella wasn’t really her aunt, but everyone
who visited the café called her that. She was also one of the few women who didn’t resent Lilith, which made her one of only three adults that Lilith conversed with regularly.
“It’s been a while since you last visited.” Auntie Kay’s congenial smile put Lilith at ease. “At least a week. I was beginning to think you’d never come back, though I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t, considering what happened last time.”
“I’m really sorry about that.” Lilith tried to not let her guilt show. “If I had known that my presence would cause so much trouble, then I―”
Auntie Kay held up a hand. “There is no need to apologize. You couldn’t have known what would happen, nor could you have known about my new employee.”
“Yes, but―”
“The fault is mine for not telling my employee that he wasn’t allowed to go near you. I know how men react around you, and more important, I know how you react around men. Yet I foolishly forgot to inform him to keep away from you. Had I said something before you arrived, that incident might have been avoided.”
The incident Auntie Kay referred to had happened the week before. Lilith had come in and ordered her usual fare before sitting down at a table. A young man working there saw who the order was for and, thinking that he could chat her up, decided to bring the food to her.
The disaster that followed was one Lilith wished to forget. She was sure that the young man whose pride, ego, and face that she had bruised, wished he could forget it as well.
Lilith shook her head. She was grateful that Auntie Kay was willing to stick up for her, but it had been her fault, regardless of what the aging woman or anyone else said.
“So, the usual?” asked Auntie Kay.
“Yes, please.”
“It’ll be up in just a few minutes. Why don’t you find a spot to sit down and wait?”
“Thank you.”
As Auntie Kay moved behind the counter and disappeared into the back, Lilith walked to a table—one as far from the men as possible. She sat down and crossed her legs. Placing her hands in her lap, she tried to make herself inconspicuous.
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