by Colleen Tews
BIRTH
OF A
Vixen
Shadow Faith
Book One
Colleen Tews
This book is dedicated to all those who believed in me. To my four beautiful daughters: Don’t let anyone make you into something you are not, which is wonderful. To Jeff Holland, my best friend and phenomenal editor. You are the greatest storyteller I know. And to my loving husband for loving me for being me.
Chapter 1
Memory loss wasn’t too big a price to pay when one got possessed by a sadistic thousand-year-old-vampire, but I hated not knowing what crazy shit she’d done. I sat on a cracked, vinyl bench in a filthy Winnebago and flipped through empty diary pages. The blasted book was last updated six days ago, no word from Thais. I slammed the book shut and stared at the gold engraved name, Angela Vista.
Massaging my temples, I repressed the anxious riddles that bounced around my cramped noggin. How many innocent people had she killed this time? Was there anything I could do to right her wrongs? The scent of dried blood mixed with stale cigarette butts stunted my ability to think straight. The weight of dawn’s fast approach reminded me how much I needed to relax and sleep.
As I got up the pearl sundress Thais dressed us in snagged on the tattered edge of the seat. A tear stretched an inch long. Without a sewing kit it was ruined. “Damn.”
I used a stepladder to reach inside the cupboard where the movies were kept. I discovered a fancy high-tech video camera I didn't even know we had. After some shuffling I found ‘The Princess Bride’.
I nabbed a dingy pillow from the trash-ridden floor. The TV/DVD combination player set rested against the wall behind the driver’s seat. I climbed onto the bench and popped in the show. Then curled up on the opposite bench and hugged the pillow.
The adventurous love story always made me feel better when I was younger. I longed to be swept away from the chaos that was my life. No more endless nights crisscrossing the country for contract kills. It was exhausting.
Instead, I saw myself on the screen. No, not me, it was Thais. Her short cut bangs and shoulder length blonde hair framed my face. Blue eyes sparkled behind gold lashes with a touch of emerald that refracted the small amount of light in the frame. The same pearl sundress I had on now clung to her puny preteen physique.
"Good morning, Angela. I’m sure you’re thinking to yourself what the fuck is going on.” She said and giggled. “I’ve been a bit too busy to sit down and jot down any notes. Besides, I thought why waste time writing everything down when you probably won't read it all. So, I figured I’d just make this little video for you. Enjoy the show. I know I will."
The camera panned back to reveal a hospital room. Monitors cast a neon aquamarine glow. They hummed and made small chirps as they kept watch over the sleeping patients. A streetlight splintered the darkness through horizontal blinds hung across a window that expanded the length of the room. There were two rows of beds, three patients on either side.
Thais walked to the child farthest from the camera. She slid the patient’s chart from the holder at the foot of the bed. "Maria Charlotte. Age: ten. Chief complaint-" She looked into the camera and took a dramatic pause. It zoomed in closer to her and the bed. “A sudden case of death." She let out a high-pitched giggle. “Bum, bum, bum.”
She tossed the chart across the room. Then she skipped alongside the bed to Maria. She leaned down and whispered something in her ear.
Maria's eyes popped opened. The sick child sat up. She looked hypnotized or drugged, probably both. She wore a white head cap and a white hospital gown with tiny multicolored bears.
Thais walked toward the camera operator. Her voice, a mere whisper beckoned the child. "Come with me, Maria."
The camera operator chuckled to himself. I immediately recognized the laugh. It was Jared, our getaway driver. He was the only vampire, other than Thais, that terrified me. Soon after joining El Diablo Cebo Jared and I came to an understanding. I wouldn’t knock “shave and a hair cut” on his cupboard while he slept and he wouldn’t rip out my spine.
Maria stood taller than Thais. They were both beautiful in their own way and each was separated by an illusion of life. Thais no longer gave verbal commands. Maria instinctively knew what Thais wanted of her and she responded in kind. They began to dance. Hands, palm out, each mirrored the other as they circled the middle of the room. Their eyes locked in a showdown.
"Maria?"
"Yes Mistress." She spoke without emotion.
"What do you want out of life?" Her words poured from my lips onto your skin. I expected them to freeze and harden Maria. I clenched my knees to my chest and shivered at the thought of that kind of unnatural chill coming from my mouth.
"I want-" Maria's robotic answer caught in her throat. "I want to die."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, Mistress."
“Why?"
"It hurts." The contact broke long enough for Maria to miss a step. She winced as if in pain. A tear caught the light.
"Then I shall give you what you desire." Thais leapt onto her. My small body covered Thais' newest victim. She rode her down to the floor by sheer force. The mental connection they shared shattered with the thrust of my fangs into her neck. A thin crimson line slid down the child’s skin. As Maria shrieked blood spread and created a dark stain against the hospital gown.
Jared laughed full and long. He used the camera to zoom-in as close he could without missing the best of the show.
The other children in their beds slept unaware. They could have been dreaming of candy and lollipops, or of one day being well enough to be sent home with their families. Maria was incapable of sharing their dreams tonight. Death had come knocking.
Moments passed like decades as Thais drank. She lifted her blood-smeared face to the camera and smiled. Her bloody fangs glistened in the light. Then she returned to Maria. "Do you still want to die?"
Her face paled. Her chest heaved once, twice, and her lips parted as she attempted to speak. "I don't, I don’t want to die. Please. I want my mommy. Please find my mommy. I want to live." Innocent tears streamed down her cheeks, moistening her lips. It was then that I saw her fearful eyes were the same shade of brown mine used to be before the leaders of El Diablo Cebo manipulated my body to resemble Thais.
She stroked the child’s cheek. "You poor, sweet, thing. I am your mommy, and I am going to give you the greatest medicine the world has to offer in order to make you all better."
"No." I said. I clambered over the table and reached for the power button. When I heard Maria speak again I froze.
"You're not my mommy. I want my mommy." Her voice rose into a high pitch like a mouse pleading to a tiger's better nature.
"You don't want mommy's medicine?" The gleam in Thais' eyes blazed; lit from within by her lunacy and power.
"Get away from me." Maria shoved and kicked at Thais with all the vigor of a rag doll. She screamed louder and louder, over and over, but to no one came to her rescue.
Thais laughed in her face. "Silly girl, I am going to give you the greatest gift in the world and you try to push me away. Gee, where have I seen this before?" She looked at the camera as if she saw through the screen. "Maria, be still." Without turning away from the camera, she commanded the little girl to stop screaming.
Her arms went limp. Her legs stopped kicking. She lay there, silent, cradled in my -no Thais’ lap.
She removed Maria's cap and revealed her balding head. Short, brunette curls protruded from her scalp. Thais stroked her head. "Sweet little girl death is the greatest medicine in the world. Did you think I was going to make you like me? You don't deserve that kind of reward. You
are simple. You are weak. Your own body can't even stand the way you are. Why should I spend the rest of eternity with you as my playmate when I have Jared over there to work the camera while I toy with simpletons such as yourself? No, I am going to kill each and every one of you so you can have the greatest treatment possible and make my world a little cleaner from your diseased life." She smiled one last toothy grin at the camera, at me, before she snapped Maria's neck. She tossed aside the lifeless body like an unwanted toy. She proceeded to break the rest of the children’s necks as they dreamed of happier times.
When she finished destroying their lives Thais walked back to the camera. "This is what you are, Angela, and the sooner you realize this the happier we will both be. You are a killer. That is why I picked you. I saw it in you from the moment you were born and your mother held you for the first time. I saw it when you held me as I died. Stop hiding from the truth.” She stood proud as she smoothed out the dress.
The screen cut to black. Pink tears of horror and grief for those poor children spilled onto the dress. If I thought God listened to the prayers of the damned I would ask for help to destroy Thais for good. I was on my own.
Chapter 2
I watched the crowded city streets of Kent through the Winnebago’s black spray painted windows. As Jared turned the Winnebago off of state route fifty-nine onto South Lincoln Street, one man in particular stuck out with a cardboard sign strung across his shoulders. The message he broadcasted to all those that paid attention read, ‘Beware the end is here!’
"What was the name of that guy we have to see for that thingy we are supposed to do?" Kaelanna asked from the front passenger seat as she picked dried blood out from under her fingernails with her teeth, then spat out the window. The only things crazier than her red, curly hair were her golden eyes.
John, one of our bullmastiffs, rested his large square head on her armrest. He stared out the side window at all the pedestrians as we drove up to the campus. She scratched the top of John’s head above his black muzzle. “See anything yummy? I do.”
“Grump.” Jared said. The sound of his voice sent a chill down my spine.
Jared’s pale head was speckled with a permanent five o’clock shadow. He tilted down the sunglasses that protected his eyes from the headlights of oncoming traffic. His reflection in the rear-view mirror glared at me. His black t-shirt read ‘Bite me!’ imprinted in white cracked lettering across his colossal chest. The sleeves were cut off which allowed his bulky arms to bulge in a strong relaxed definition. I darted my gaze to my diary and fought back the image of him in that room with Thais.
We rode up the steep hill that paralleled the university. The street’s bumps and potholes wreaked worse havoc on us in the camper more than railroad tracks. But we were used to it; Jared drove over anything.
Kaelanna laughed. "His name is Grump. What kind of name is that?"
"It’s the kind of name that gets you the Primus seat in Kent." Guillermo leaned into the front cabin. He sat across the table while he skimmed over the contents of a manila envelope Counselor Thromdin had given him. The pages contained information on every vampire in the city including our prime target.
He reminded me of a lawyer studying his latest case, dressed in a white button down shirt tucked in pressed navy blue khakis that were held tight into place with a black leather belt. The only thing that made him look like he belonged with us was the steel-toed boots.
"If Thromdin is right then Grump is from Kaiser House. It’s a very predominant House in this region of the country. They usually have mafia ties, but according to this he appears to be all on his own. There is no real history in this about him outside the area. It's like he just popped up one day, impressed the hell out of people, and took over." A crinkle between his eyebrows deepened every time he turned a page. "I don't get it."
"Don't get what?" Kaelanna rolled her eyes.
"How he got so much power so fast without any backing. Something's not right. I don't know."
"Maybe he's just that nice of a guy." I said. Guillermo scoffed at me. Kaelanna strained her neck back toward me and arched an eyebrow. I fought the urge to slouch in the seat. "What? He could be."
She laughed at me. "Right sweetness, you just keeping thinking that way. No one becomes Primus by being nice. You have to be an ass to control assholes."
I shrugged off her pessimistic attitude. In spite of everything I tried to maintain a glass half-full perspective. It got tougher every night.
Jazz nudged my forearm. The moisture from her muzzle soaked into the white, cotton stitched sweater coat I wore over a green pastel dress.
I petted her salt and pepper coat. She rested her head in my lap. The tip of my ponytail brushed the top of her head. "You believe my theory don't you Jazzy. He could be a really nice guy after all. It's not like we've been hired to kill him, right?"
Jazz puffed air from the side of her mouth.
“Yeah, maybe you're right. We'll have to wait and see."
She barked then left to cuddle with Ransack, our other bullmastiff, on the beanbag. "Silly puppies."
I got up to retrieve my black half-inch pumps from the bathroom. As I opened the bathroom door Jared hit a bump in the road. I ricocheted into the video cabinet and fell into the bathroom.
"Oh, Jesus fucking Christ, Jared, come on man. Give us a little warning next time for fuck-sake." Guillermo yelled at Jared and came to help me up.
"You okay?" Guillermo squatted onto his heels. He examined me for injuries. Of course there were none to be found. I was fine. My ego was a bit bruised, but that didn’t stop him from chuckling at me.
The ponytail had loosened and fell in front of my eyes. With a head bang I flipped the tail back into place. It needed redone but at least it was out of my face.
"Up we go." He grabbed under my arms and lifted me.
"Why does all of this stuff always happen to me? I swear I must be cursed."
"I can't argue you there. Let's see what we can make of your hair."
"No. No, I got it. I may look like a nine year old, but I'm not. I've got it." I smacked at his hand. "Thank you, though."
"Okay, but for the record we've got about five minutes till the meeting. Get it done before we get out." He reached back into the bathroom. Then handed me the shoes. "Are those what you were after?"
"Yeah, thanks."
"No problem short-stack.” He ruffled my hair. “Now get ready. We have to present ourselves tonight before we go hunting."
"You mean before I have to go all freaky-deaky and become someone else to kill the leader of a revolution." Not one of the favorite highlights of my life. Though, I was grateful for the amnesia that went along with being possessed.
"You got it."
Once I had the shoes on I pulled out the loose hair tie. Then, without the use of a mirror to avoid seeing Thais, I replaced the ponytail after a few swipes with a brush. The very sight of her sometimes triggered her to bubble up from my psyche. My bangs fell straight down and tipped my eyebrows. Presto, I was ready to be presented to the Primus. I finished in the nick of time.
Jared turned into the parking lot. He drove through the open gate and found space closest to the exit on the opposite side of the lot. It was the best spot for a quick get-a-way.
Parked out of sight of mortal eyes Jazz invoked her House’s power to shift. Her bones snapped, crackled and popped back into pace. Blood and bodily fluids splattered on the floor. Her ebony skin stretched, tore and stitched itself back into her human form. Short spiky hair that matched her fur stuck out all over her head.
The sounds made me twinge. “I doubt I’ll ever get used to that.”
“Give it a couple more years.” Jazz said, her voice sounded scratchy.
She threw on a worn green and black flannel, buttoned halfway, and black jeans that clung to her legs tight. Steel-toed boots finished the outfit.
Guillermo slipped on a matching navy blue sports jacket to hide the gun attached to his belt. Kaelanna and
Jared packed weapons also. She carried a little gun attached at her waist. Jared had a submachine gun in a duffle bag and a sawed off double barrel over and under strapped to his back. Jazz never needed to carry anything special. She preferred the hands on approach.
I had the 9mm in a purse. I believed there was an extra weapon in the duffle bag for my more vicious persona.
From a bird’s eye view the auditorium, the student center, and the school store looked like a giant hook. This gave the illusion of one building. The auditorium came first. The tall red brick building had windows the length of the entire wall. Matching pillars supported the second floor’s overhead extension. The extra width of the second floor created a canopy that covered the entirety of the brick pathway we walked up to the end of the hook. It bridged the gap where a cement path separated the actual student center’s Hub and the auditorium that came from the courtyard and led to other parts of the campus. A few decorative gardens, full with tall, green feather reed grass that whipped and danced in the frenzied night air’s rhythm.
There was an outside picnic area on a concrete landing. Steps led down into the heart of the quad. Two lampposts in the courtyard were lit. An artistic, stone tri-level fountain sat silent on the opposite side. As a group we crossed the courtyard, passed the fountain and headed toward the double glass doors of the library.
The library was a daunting, cream building. Large concrete bricks created the library’s impressive appearance. The library hovered over the rest of the campus as if it watched over us.
This time of night the library was empty. As we crossed the faded lobby carpet, I noticed multiple cameras were spaced at ten-foot intervals from one another, each one pointed in a different direction. In the far right back corner were two metal, cream-colored elevators that would lead us to the tenth-floor meeting rooms.
"Showtime." Guillermo depressed the button.
The double doors opened to a hallway with robin's egg blue carpet, white walls and a picture of a gymnast on a balance beam. Strong, forceful voices eclipsed the soft rock ballad being played in the overhead speakers. The meeting had begun. From the sound of things, it wasn’t going too well.
