by Jon Herrera
Chapter Eleven
I WOKE UP and took a deep breath. That was a mistake, the air in the old mine was stale and dusty. The lid of the coffin was open and Katie was standing over me. I let my senses fill the room and there was someone else there, but he wasn’t moving either. I sat up and looked into Katie’s soft green eyes. She didn’t move.
I climbed out of the coffin and took a closer look at the Elf. She was still, but she didn’t seem to be injured, didn’t appear to be under some kind of spell. Clearly, something wasn’t quite right. I’m sure Sally could tell me what this meant. She was a much more dedicated Googler than I was. Of course, she might not be speaking to me at the moment. How attached to a car can you get?
“I think she’s asleep.” Gravel’s deep scratchy voice said from where he sat on the stairs. “She spent most of the day out scouring the countryside. We lost track of her a few times. She’s good, better than we thought she was.”
“Is there somewhere we can talk?” I said and walked around Katie. “Somewhere not too far away?”
Gravel nodded and slowly stood up. He was a lot bigger than I remembered. He walked softly around a corner and led me into a clean, modern looking room. It was a stark contrast to the rest of the mine. He pointed to a lunch table and waited until I sat down before he took his own seat.
“I’m at your service, Master Walengrave.” Gravel said without emotion. “If you need information, or to feed, or anything else. I’m here for you.”
I froze where I was sitting. That sounded a lot like the speech Katie had given me. A Werearmadillo would be good to have in a fight and I’m sure his blood was potent. I’m just not sure how many of these oddly subservient people I could fit into my life. Gravel seemed to read my mind from the look on my face.
“Service is an honor.” Gravel said and shrugged his hands. I noticed he wore a Damascus steel ring like the one I was wearing. “I’m new at this kind of thing. I’m not bound to you in the same way the Elf is bound to you. That could change, though, I suppose.”
I stared at the big, brawny man with his shaved head and jutting beard. He was at least six foot three and powerful in the way that all Weres are. He wore dark denim with a black leather vest and a red bandana hanging around his neck. His arms were bare to the shoulder and were covered with many tattoos. He didn’t strike me as the kind of man who would volunteer for this kind of honor.
“Are you under some kind of coercion, Gravel?” I said as I looked into his eyes and let my power flow into him.
“Yes.” He said simply. He put his hand out toward me. “But I am willing to be of service.”
I looked at his hand and ground my teeth together. I put my hand into his calloused fist and it closed around me like a vice. The now familiar shock of lines of power flowing from him to me and back again shook both our bodies. One more mouth to feed. I shook my hand free and rubbed my palm. I was lost in thought for a moment.
Gravel’s fist hit me right over the heart and sent me falling backwards. The blast of a shotgun split the air a moment later. I watched a cloud of small silver pellets swarm through the air. Right where I had been sitting a second before. Gravel tossed one of the small tables at the door. He threw his large body between me and my would-be assailant.
“Damn Vampire.” A voice rusty with age yelled into the room. “Your kind ain’t welcome here.”
“This is Wilhem, the Master of Fort Worth and he’s a guest.” Gravel said and walked forward with an air of authority. “We don’t usually kill guests.”
The old man looked at Gravel and frowned. I was a bit troubled by the word ‘usually.’ I stood up and dusted off my black jeans as best as I could. It was a lost cause. I looked out the door and saw a blur of motion and the old man disappeared. It wasn’t too much of a guess that the shotgun blast had woken Katie from her slumber.
Gravel and I rushed into the mine’s main room. We found Katie twisting the old man’s arm as she pinned his face into the dirt floor. The old man struggled for a moment and then gave up. He went limp in Katie’s grasp and did his best to blow dirt out of his mouth.
“You can let him go, Katie.” I said. “The danger seems to have passed for the moment.”
Katie pushed off the old man and walked over to me with a hard glare at Gravel. She pointedly put herself between the big biker and me. She surprised me by putting her arms around my waist and leaning her head into my chest. If Gravel had taken a similar pose on my other side, I would have screamed. The big man didn’t move.
“We run a Lost Mining amusement park on the weekends.” Gravel said and helped the old man to his feet. “This is Earl, he plays an old miner. Sometimes he lets his imagination carry him away.”
“Back in the Old Days.” Earl said and fell into a pose with a bent back and a tilted head. “Miners found the odd vampire sleeping in a side shaft. Most vampires were not overly evil, but some were. Weren’t no Law back then, no Commission to tell folks how to act. So we usually just killed em on sight.”
“Not the way I remember it.” I said and looked around the replica mine. “And I don’t recall a lot of deep shaft mining around here either.”
“Poetic license.” Earl said and stood up straight. “Who’d pay to watch a machine break up big rocks into little ones?”
Earl dusted off his costume, picked up his shotgun, and left. We watched him go. I really needed to get out more.
“I’m guessing you’re here because of Carlo and the other vampires.” Gravel said and swiveled his head my way. “I can help with that.”
“Yeah.” Katie said and squinted at Gravel. “I’ve found out a few things as well.”
“WE DON’T WORK for Carlo.” Gravel said once he had righted the table and chairs in the meeting room. “At least not directly. Justin is our Alpha. He earns the Armadillos money by running a security company.”
“You mean he rents you out as muscle to the highest bidder?” Katie said.
“Yeah, said the slave.” Gravel said and smirked at Katie. “At least my gigs are all short term.”
“Maybe they used to be.” Katie said and smiled at Gravel.
“About Carlo?” I said in an attempt to steer the conversation away from the joys of slavery. “What can you tell me?”
“Carlo visits one of the old gravel pits at the road’s end outside.” Gravel said. “Vampires are living there. An Ancient and a couple of younger vamps Carlo sired with her.”
“I can’t go near a place like that.” I said and shook my head. “An Ancient would feel my presence instantly.”
“Did I mention the Armadillos run a Security Company?” Gravel said. “We’ve had them under surveillance for a couple of months.”
“I did some scouting.” Katie said. “Carlo has a lot of protection around that pit. A lot of Armadillos, though I couldn’t tell which pack they belonged to.”
Gravel picked up a remote control and pressed a button. A large screen TV on the wall came to life. Grainy black and white surveillance footage streamed across the screen. A collection of images featuring Carlo and a tall, thin female vampire. Victoria, an Ancient who used to be the Queen. Other vampires that looked a bit like Fredric came and went.
“How long has she been here?” I said. “I’m sure I would have remembered Fedor mentioning another Ancient visiting the area. The Old Ones love all the tiny rituals and details. She would have stopped by the Consulate.”
“Not that long. She showed up shortly after Fredric was killed.” Gravel said. “But she took over the place as soon as she got here.”
“I’ll bet she did.” Katie said. “Whose the master and whose the slave there?”
“Do you have any other footage?” I said and looked at the remote in Gravel’s hand. “Anything about Fredric’s death?”
“We looked into it.” Gravel said slowly and turned away. “It looks like Kilestra did it.”
“Take me back to my car.” I told Gravel. “I’ve learned enough for now.”
THE NIGHT WAS still y
oung when Katie and I headed back to Fort Worth. I told Gravel to answer when called, but that he could stay in Azle the rest of the time. He didn’t protest. He told me he would be available. This was the first good news I had in a while. I wasn’t looking forward to sharing a bath with Gravel.
“I think we could have some fun with Gravel.” Katie said and smiled at me. “But he needs to learn to take his responsibilities a little more seriously.”
“He did save my life.” I said and tried to keep images of Gravel and Katie out of my mind. I looked at Katie and she gave me her innocent face as the pornographic film in my head faded away. I turned my attention back to the road.
“So.” Katie said and leaned over until her shoulder bumped mine. “Who’s Victoria?”
“Someone kicked out of power when the New Queen took over.” I said. “An Ancient and a dangerous vampire. More important at the moment is finding out why she’s here. What’s going on that would make her drop whatever she was doing and come to live in a gravel pit in Azle.”
It was around midnight when I pulled into the Wal-Mart parking lot. I shook my head in amazement, what did vampires do before the 24 hour Supercenter was born? I parked out near the middle of the huge parking lot.
“What are we doing here?” Katie said as she followed me into the store.
“Weren’t you complaining about my empty fridge the other night?” I said as I stopped to get one of the ginormous shopping carts. “You do eat, right?”
“Yeah, I eat.” Katie said and pouted. “But it wasn’t me complaining about your empty fridge.”
“Anyway.” I said and pushed the cart with that familiar sense of the hunter going after easy prey. “I need to get a house warming gift for Grandfather.”
An hour later, the cart was full of fruits, vegetables, and meats. And assorted things that go with fruits, vegetables, and meats. I was now standing in front of a display of blenders. I was having a hard time deciding between the blenders. Should I get the super blender with a dozen blades or a regular old style blender with one set of blades at the bottom? Katie walked up, dropped an armful of clothes into the cart, and looked at the food.
“You don’t really think I’m gonna eat all those vegetables, do you?” Katie said as she pawed through the carrots and broccoli.
“Well, you’re an Elf, right?” I said. “I figured you needed a balanced diet.”
“Uh, yeah. An Elf, not a rabbit.” Katie said and gave me a look. “Sally’s not a vegan is she?”
“It’s good for you.” I said and turned away from the dizzying display of blenders. “You need to eat a mixture of meat, vegetables, fruits and nuts. You’re a woodland creature aren’t you? Figure something out.”
“Woodland creature?” Katie said and put her hands on her hips. “I’m not a raccoon you hit with your car and decided to nurse back to health. I’m a person. I like cheeseburgers and French fries.”
“Fine.” I said and grabbed the expensive multi-bladed blender. I dropped it on top of all the other stuff in the basket. “What you don’t like, you can leave for Sally. And I’ll give part of it to Grandfather. To use in his new blender”
WE STOPPED OFF at the Mansion and filled up the fridge in my rooms. I had enough left over to fill Mother and Father’s fridge. And I still had a few things to take over to Grandfather. Mother and Father looked at the food.
“Very kind of you, Wil.” Mother said in a way that clearly said if she wanted food she’d do her own shopping. “Would you like me to prepare something for Sally or Katie?”
“If you want.” I said. “But I think you two should eat some of it. You need to keep your strength up.”
“Yes, of course.” Father said and cleared his throat. “You know we mostly eat out these days. After a couple of hundred years your Mother kind of got tired of cooking.”
“Didn’t you do the cooking for a while, Father?” I said and waited for the punch line I had heard a hundred times before.
“Yes, it was my cooking she was tired of.” Father said and laughed at his own joke. I laughed with him. Katie shook her head and walked out of the kitchen. I smiled at my parents and then turned away. I knew better than to try and feed on them.
I headed down the cement passage to the driveway and the Dodge.
Kilestra was leaning against the Dodge, staring up at the night sky. It was gray and overcast, but there was no real rain tonight. I walked quietly up to her and she looked at me. Her presence was like the comfort of an old coat.
“Did you find anything interesting in Azle?” Kilestra said and turned her dark eyes toward me. “It’s not a place I visit often. The streets are choked with armadillos.”
“Yeah, I noticed that.” I said and beeped the Dodge’s doors unlocked. “It seems Carlo has a hideout in one of the old gravel pits.”
“Makes a certain amount of sense.” Kilestra said. “Some of those pits are deep and all but forgotten.”
“I caught a glimpse of Carlo and one of his fledglings.” I said and joined Kilestra in leaning against the Dodge. “This one looked a lot like Fredric, as best as I can remember him, but I only saw him from the side. I also saw his other Maker. Victoria.”
“Really?” Kilestra said and perked up for a moment as she leaned into me. “She isn’t much of a hands-on Maker. I hear she leaves all that to Carlo.”
Kilestra let her eyes turn blue with power as she looked into me. Her face was cool and impassive as ever, but I felt a hint of concern.
“You’re still not well.” Kilestra said and tilted her head like a dog listening to a distant sound. “The poison seems to have taken up permanent residence inside you.”
“Yeah.” I said and looked off into the night. “Some kind of military smoke grenade infused with The Little Death. I’ve developed a taste for Jackie. She had a vision about our attraction, but, as usual, she didn’t give me anything I could use to stop it from happening.”
“Damned Seers never tell you what you need to know.” Kilestra said and shook her head. “The Little Death is almost a myth. Someone with deep pockets was behind this. Were you the attacker’s target?”
“Maybe.” I said. “Fedor got the blunt of the attack. I just happened to be in the wrong place.”
“Were you?” Kilestra said and looked back toward the Mansion. “Your little Elf was there. The Little Death didn’t have any effect on her, did it? I don’t trust her.”
“I’m not sure I do either.” I said and raised my eyebrows. “Jackie mentioned my scars during a vision, but didn’t mention how I got them.”
“Scars? Magic or silver or holy water, take your pick.” Kilestra said and then pulled my hand up to look at the Damascus steel ring. “And why are you wearing this? I saw some of these when I was in Mexico not too long ago. There was an Ancient that was cranking them out like there was no tomorrow. He seemed intent on giving one to everyone he ever met. I didn’t accept one. He said something about your saving his life. He wasn’t all that pleased about it.”
“Beth gave it to me.” I said and looked at the ring. “She did mention some Ancient. She didn’t seem to know his name.”
“I don’t either.” Kilestra said and frowned. “Ancients and their damned mind tricks. You know, The Little Death is pretty old school, the kind of thing an Ancient might use.”
“Explains why I never heard of it.” I said and rubbed my forehead. “Does it also explain why I can’t seem to feed on humans?”
“I’ve looked into it. The Little Death’s main power is its ability to keep a vampire hungry.” Kilestra said and frowned. “In ancient times it was used to torture New Bloods to help them see the wisdom of joining the fold. Big recruitment tool when the Commission was first getting under way. You won’t find that in the official records, of course.”
“No, I guess not.” I said. My stomach gave a twitch and I felt that eternal hunger. A vampire can’t starve to death. We can suffer the madness of hunger and decide to go out into the sun one morning.
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br /> “Talk to Ravenhawk.” Kilestra said and scratched at her ear. “Alchemists created The Little Death from some secret recipe handed down by some God or another. Alchemists and Witches aren’t all that different.”
“Sure it wasn’t a Goddess that created the recipe?” I said and had a small vision of Desiara working some magic I couldn’t understand.
“I’m not an expert.” Kilestra said and looked at me. “I suppose it could have been a Goddess. I always thought it was just a good story to scare baby vampires with.”
“Katie pointed out a passage in an old book about Elven Gods.” I said and looked at her evenly. “Wouldn’t know anything about old books, would you?”
“A bit.” Kilestra said and smiled without showing her teeth. “I’m having a hard time reading one I acquired recently. Think you can get your pet to help?”
“Think you can be a little nicer?”
Kilestra smiled and crossed her arms, clearly amused by the idea that she needed to be nice to anyone.
“Does it worry you that everyone still thinks you killed Fredric?” I said and decided not to think about my imminent madness for a bit.
“Not much.” Kilestra said and walked toward the tall grass that surrounded the Mansion. “Your info’s been interesting. If you keep up the good work, I’ll give you a reward.”
“Oh really?” I said and let my mind fumble with the possibilities for a moment, then shook my head to clear it. “I had a vision of you the other night. You were with Fredric and he was reading a spell book of some kind.”
“Sneaking around in other people’s minds isn’t polite.” Kilestra said and smirked at me. “I’m not sure it’s a spell book. I think he was just looking at the pictures. I might let you see it someday. Depending on how this all plays out.”
“Then what is it?” I said and looked toward Kilestra. She was already gone.