by Ann Charles
She rolled her eyes at me. “Good thing you left your crown jewels at home, Princess Parker.” She scooped up some fresh snow, washed off the blood, and then pulled a white handkerchief from her coat pocket. “How about I wrap this around your hand until we can get you home and fixed up?” When I eyed her makeshift bandage suspiciously, she added, “It’s clean, I promise.”
“So you say.”
I watched as she wrapped my hand and tied a little knot with the tails to secure it.
“Does it hurt bad?” she asked.
The stinging had dulled to a low throb already. “No.”
“Good. Hold it above your head and wait here while I finish up.”
I leaned against the back fender with my wrapped hand held up in the air as she tromped back and forth with load after load. The snow continued to fall quietly, adding a fresh white layer to the world.
I did my best to keep Natalie company in between silently fretting about that voice I’d heard down in the basement of The Old Prospector Hotel. I really didn’t want to participate in any sort of expulsion of evil spirits from anywhere if I could help it. The last time we’d messed around with exorcising the Hessler clan, shit had gone from bad to worse.
Fifteen minutes later, my hand no longer hurt at all and Natalie was carrying the last load of wood over to the now chest-high pile next to the teacher’s house. The sky had darkened even more while the snow continued to fall, creating a world of muffled sounds and murky shadows. I stared up at the sky, watching big flakes swirl down toward me. Maybe Cooper’s party wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe he would actually …
A shiver trickled down my spine, only instead of chilling me, a rush of heat flowed out to my toes and fingertips.
I pulled my right hand from my pocket and frowned down at my fingers, wiggling them along with those on my bandaged hand. That was weird. They tingled still, although the heat had ebbed slightly.
My wound began to throb, worse than when I’d first cut it. I unwrapped the now-stained handkerchief, expecting to see fresh blood welling up again, but the skin had mostly closed over the cut. I gently poked around what was now a dark pink slash.
I’d always been a quick healer when it came to cuts for the most part, a characteristic that I’d recently learned had more to do with me being an Executioner than merely good genes. These days, though, my cuts were healing faster than ever. If only my bruises wouldn’t take so long to fade.
Another shiver zinged through me, this one leaving the hairs on the back of my neck standing. I pulled up my coat sleeve. Goose bumps dotted my arm. I could feel them down my legs, too.
“What in tarnation?” I muttered and sniffed, catching a whiff of something unpleasant under the cold, fresh air. I sniffed again. It was still there. Something rotten, definitely. I looked down to see if I was near a sewer vent, but the public sewer lines didn’t come this far up the street. Maybe there was a dead animal nearby under the snow.
Thump-thump.
I sniffed again, shuddering when the stench hit the back of my throat. Where in the heck was that smell coming from? I checked the bed of Natalie’s truck, seeing nothing but her ax and a plastic gas can, along with clods of dirt, wads of pine needles, and pieces of bark.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
What was that thumping? I pulled my hood off and cocked my head, listening, hearing nothing but Natalie’s breathing, a trickle of water somewhere under the snow, and my steady heartbeat.
I stepped away from the pickup, looking high up in the limbs of the two pine trees lining the driveway. That sound was like clumps of snow falling from a tree or rooftop.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
There it was again. I stepped carefully through the snow, trying to keep it from packing down inside my ankle boots. I reached out with my good hand to touch the bark of the taller of the two trees and then hit the trunk twice, using the wadded-up handkerchief around my hand to soften the blow. The soft whap-whap wasn’t the same as that thump-thump. A peek up through the tree limbs found them empty.
I stuffed the handkerchief in my pocket and frowned back toward the pickup.
Another flash of heat rocketed through my veins. The skin on my skull tingled now, as if I’d rubbed a balloon over my head and static electricity had turned me into the bride of Frankenstein.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
The sound was louder now. Rhythmic. I looked toward the house, hoping it was just Natalie stomping off her boots.
Off to the side of the house, movement higher up the hillside under the trees caught my eye. I squinted through the falling snow. Was that a coyote? No, it was bigger than that. Maybe a cougar.
“Uh, Nat,” I called out.
A blast of adrenaline lit me up. My muscles tightened all the way up my spine. My heart started to gallop. I zeroed in on the shape moving under the trees while the snowflakes falling around me seemed to slow, almost hovering in the air.
I watched the trees and caught a glimpse of whatever it was as it skulked closer, keeping to the shadows. What I saw spurred me to take a step backward in the snow.
What the shit? That was nothing like any of the usual predators found in the hills.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
Whatever was up there was making its way closer through the snow. I leaned forward, listening, and heard it breathing. Ragged, growling huffs. The stench in the air was thicker now, sticking to the back of my throat.
A check on Natalie found her midway down the drive, walking in slow motion toward me as she brushed off the front of her canvas coat. Her mouth was moving, but the low, whooshing sound in my head drowned out everything but the thump-thump that was growing louder and louder.
I returned to the trees on the hillside behind the house in time to see a long-limbed figure clear the tree line. Whatever it was, it was coming fast, even in my slow-motion world. Its loping, thump-thump, four-limbed stride kicked up whirls of snow as it headed straight for me. Its guttural, raspy breath rumbled in my ears.
Holy fucknuts! I needed a weapon. Something to swing at it. Something to …
Natalie stepped front and center into my vision, her forehead creased in worry as she stared at me. “Violet?” Her voice came from far away, as if she stood high up on White Rocks across the gulch instead of six feet away in the driveway.
I leaned to the side, watching the creature coming down the hillside behind her. I could see it more clearly now. It sort of looked like a … a human. I cringed. But not human. Its arms and legs were too long and gangly, along with its neck and face, reminding me of a piece of licorice that had been stretched a little too far. It moved all wrong, too. Unnatural, with an odd, loping gait through the snow on its elongated arms and legs.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
Shaking out of my shock, I yelled, “Natalie! Run!” and started toward her so I could shield her. But the toe of my boot caught on a clod of icy snow. I stumbled to my knees.
An ear-piercing yowl cut through the growing darkness, sending a fresh batch of heebie-jeebies crawling over my skin.
Natalie flinched and turned toward the creature. Her eyes widened, her jaw dropping in horror.
I struggled back upright and rushed toward her. “Get down!” I yelled, diving for her as the long-legged creepster lunged into the air.
We crashed into the snowy yard with me on top, her pink earmuffs flying off her head. I heard her Oof at the same time I saw the creature reach for me. I bowed my back, feeling its long fingers brush across my coat. But they didn’t make purchase.
The thing came down with a hard thud on the other side of the drive, its arms and legs tangling as it tumbled and smashed head-first into the pine tree I’d been pounding on moments ago.
Crack!
Globs of snow and pine needles rained down on it.
“What the fuck?” I heard Natalie say from under me.
Snowflakes were falling at regular speed again. Normal sound had returned to the
world.
I rolled off her and pushed to my feet. “Did that thing crack its melon open?”
Before she could answer, the creature pushed up on all fours again, shook its hairless, deformed head several times, and then cough-snorted out something dark and globby onto the snow.
“Oh, gross,” Natalie whispered behind me.
I scowled back at her, saying under my breath, “You need to get out of here before it attacks again.”
“I’m not leaving you with that … that …” She slowly moved up next to me, her shoulder bumping mine. “What the hell is that thing?” She kept her voice so low it was hard to hear her. “It almost looks human.”
I knew exactly what it was even though I’d never seen one before. “That’s because it used to be human. It’s a Nachzehrer.”
And boy howdy was this one ugly bogeyman.
The creature shook its head again, like something was loose inside. Then it looked skyward and pulled its lips back, showing off an impressive set of pointy choppers as it hissed up at the falling snow.
Natalie took a step back, hauling me with her. “Do you see all those teeth?”
“The better to eat you with,” I whispered.
We both took another step back as the Nachzehrer stood upright on its legs.
“Jesus! It must be eight feet tall.” Natalie’s voice had a slight quiver.
“Or more.” Even its toes were gangly, moving like individual fingers.
“What’s it wearing?”
“Saggy skin.” So saggy, in fact, that everything south of its nipples and north of its knees was nothing but folds of flesh. Although the skin looked dried and scraped, jerky-like. An old leather sofa left out next to the curb too long came to mind.
“That doesn’t look like skin to me,” Natalie said.
“Fine. Why don’t you go touch it and tell me what it is, then?”
She elbowed me in the ribs. “How are we supposed to kill it?”
It took a lumbering step toward us, its teeth still bared, its huge hands swiping aimlessly at the open air.
“There is no we about this,” I said, trying to remember if Dominick had mentioned the creatures having a weak spot during his history lesson this morning. “You need to get the hell out of here and let me handle it.”
“As if I’m going to leave you alone with this … this …” She pulled me back another step.
“Nachzehrer,” I finished for her.
“More like nightmare.”
The Nachzehrer swiped at the air again, reminding me of King Kong taking swings at airplanes from the top of the Empire State Building. It took another lumbering step into the yard, sinking to its ankles in the snow. The fiend’s head whipped side to side. A long, pink tongue pushed out between its meaty lips, pointing in one direction and then another. The end of it curled slightly as it bobbed up and down.
“What is it doing now?” she whispered.
“I don’t know. I’m not a freakin’ monster-ologist.”
But if I were to guess, I’d say it was “sniffing” the air like a snake.
“ ‘Monster-ologist’?” She huffed quietly. “Is that the best you can do?”
“Until my brain is done hiding under the bed, yes.”
The Nachzehrer blinked repeatedly as it looked left and right. It reached out again, swiping the empty air. Then with a grunt, it lowered onto all fours. It stood completely still, aiming its long slimy tongue toward the trees and then the house.
“I don’t think it can see us now,” I whispered. “That hit to the tree trunk must have knocked something loose and temporarily blinded it.”
“Hey!” Natalie yelled suddenly, making me almost wet my pants. “Asshole!”
“Shhh!” I turned into a statue, waiting for the Nachzehrer to turn our way. Instead, it took another step toward the forest, reaching out blindly in front of it.
My breath rushed out as relief made my knees rubbery. “What the hell is wrong with you?” I asked without looking her way.
“I was testing its hearing. The sucker didn’t even flinch. It must be deaf and blind.”
“How can that be? It must have heard us unloading wood and come for us.”
“Maybe it was just passing by and saw us.”
I frowned at her. “I don’t think so. This thing is trained to hunt Executioners. It must have picked up my scent somehow.” I reached in my coat for my cell phone, but I’d left it in the pickup. “We need to radio the others. I don’t suppose you have your walkie-talkie handy?”
Her gaze was still glued on the creature. “What walkie-talkie?”
“The one Coop wants us to use now to communicate instead of our cell phones.”
It was her turn to frown at me. “He didn’t say anything to me about a walkie-talkie.”
Oops. Maybe he didn’t intend to give his girlfriend one, which was a really dumb move on his part if that were the case. Super dumb after not including her previously in our group texts.
“What about your cell phone?” I took a different tack.
“It’s in the truck. Did you get a walkie-talkie?”
I hesitated as the Nachzehrer turned in our direction, its tongue curling in and out as it “sniffed” the air, or whatever the hell it was doing.
“Did you?” she pressed.
“Yeah, but I left it at Aunt Zoe’s.” I thumbed toward her rig. “We need to step lightly and make our way back to your truck.”
“What about that thing?” She plucked her earmuffs from the ground and hung them around her neck. “We can’t just leave it here at Ms. Gaucho’s place as a ‘welcome home’ pet.”
“It will probably go back up in the trees.” At least I hoped it would. I was not prepared for a cage match at the moment, not with Natalie’s life at risk if I failed at my job.
“Violet!” She growled out my name. “You have to kill it right now.”
“According to Dominick, killing a Nachzehrer requires severing its head.” I grimaced at the leggy beast as it took another step toward the trees.
“Decapitation it is,” she said, as if it was a done deal and I should sign on the dotted line.
“I don’t want to.”
“Why not?”
I held my arms wide. “Because it’s my day off.”
“Oh, for the love of all things hairy.” She grabbed me by my coat lapels and hauled me close until we were nearly nose-to-nose. “We are not leaving until you kill that thing.”
“Your pupils are really big right now, Nat. It’s kind of creepy.”
“Quit trying to change the subject.”
“Fine! What am I supposed to kill it with? I left my weapons at home and my patented laser glare needs new batteries.”
“We’ll have to improvise.”
She pointed toward the woodpile. “You could bash its head in with a piece of firewood.”
I recoiled, pulling free of her grip. “Jiminy Cricket, Natalie. Do I look like a basher of heads?”
“Oh!” She held up her index finger. “What about my ax? It’s in the bed of my pickup.”
I rubbed my jaw. “I don’t know about that. I’ve never been much of a lumberjack.”
But it was too late. Natalie was already tiptoeing through the snow toward her pickup.
I cursed under my breath, following her. “I’m not dressed for a decapitation.”
She made it to the truck and scowled back at me. “Do you hear yourself?” she chastised in a loud, bossy voice.
We both looked at the Nachzehrer to make sure it still wasn’t hearing or seeing us. The thing was about to round the corner of the house and disappear from sight.
“Snot bucket! This is going to ruin my good boots.” Not to mention my supper if that thing exploded like the chimeras back in Slagton when I’d killed them.
She scoffed at me. “All of the killers in your family line just rolled over in their graves, even the lousy ones that died young.”
I narrowed my eyes. “That’s a low blow.
”
“Zoe is going to kick your ass if you don’t do your job right now.”
“Fine. Hand me the stupid ax.”
After I took it from her, she pointed at my hand. “Where’s your bandage?”
“The bleeding stopped so I took it off.” I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out the blood-stained handkerchief, holding it out to show her.
A loud screech pierced the air.
We both whirled toward the Nachzehrer.
It was loping toward us on all fours again, its tongue pointed straight at me.
“The handkerchief!” Natalie yelled at the same time I shouted, “My blood!”
I dropped the handkerchief as the nightmare bore down on us.
“It’s coming too fast, Violet!” Natalie reached for me, but I shoved her aside with enough force to send her stumbling into the snow.
She was right. The son of a bitch was going to hit me hard. I hefted the ax and planted my boots, readying for the collision. A warm calm rippled through me, filling me with steady confidence. I focused on the Nachzehrer, hearing its rasping breath, along with the crunch of snow with each step.
The thing grunted as it pushed off the ground, flying through the air with its long arms and fingers outstretched. Its tongue had pulled back into its mouth, leaving pointy teeth bared in a face-stretching snarl.
I gripped the ax, locking my jaw.
But before I could swing, something slammed into me from the side, sending me flailing into the snow.
The Nachzehrer careened toward the back of the pickup, crashing into the open tailgate. The metal hinges ripped free with a loud screech.
I sat up, digging snow out of my collar. “Dammit, Nat! I had that.”
“No way. It would have smashed you into my truck, leaving you flat as a pancake.”
She scrambled to her feet and held out her hand for me, checking out the back of her truck. “Ah, shit! It took off my tailgate. Those aren’t cheap, ya gangly cocksucker.”
I took her hand and let her pull me upright. Grabbing the ax out of the snow, I crept over to where the Nachzehrer lay in a tangled heap of saggy flesh on the road behind her truck. More blackish goo oozed out of a huge gash in its shoulder. Its right arm dangled by just a few muscles and strips of leathery flesh.
