Evan had explained that other than just getting the corpses off the streets, the purpose of the retrievals was to obtain a sample of the DNA of every modified vampire. The DNA was then analyzed and put into a database for Abe and his team of scientists to study. Lucy was pretty certain that her own DNA was in that database. It should have upset her, but it didn’t, not if it meant that someday she might understand a little more about herself.
The following afternoon, Lucy ran into Evan in the dining room.
“Hey Lucy, I sent over your schedule through October. I figured that’ll give us some time to figure out who you’ll be working with.”
“I already saw it,” Lucy replied. “Just curious though, I’m only paired with half the team. I guess those are my potential partners?”
Evan nodded. “At the risk of sounding sexist, I don’t pair women together.” Lucy frowned, but Evan continued. “It’s not that I think women are weak or anything like that, it’s just that while vampires aren’t picky about the gender of their victims, ordinary criminals are, and the idea is that we don’t attract any unwanted attention. Beyond that, Jordan is still pretty new himself, so I won’t be assigning him a new recruit for a while, and at this point I’d have a mutiny on my hands if I tried to take Johnny away from Saba.”
This left Lucy with Evan, Miles, Hugh, Lance, Edgar, Carlos, Dennis, and of course, Andre, who she noticed that she was paired with that evening.
“So what is this stuff anyway?” Lucy picked up the can that Tanya had just sprayed her head with, turning her hair honey blonde as if by magic. Lucy would once again be playing the role of partying college student, sorority style this time, so the blonde hair was a nice touch.
“My own invention actually!” Tanya explained with enthusiastic pride. “Light refracting keratin fibers. They bond with your own hair and give the illusion of hair color without having to go through the process of dying it. That’s the greatest thing about working here, actually. If I have an idea, I can bounce it off a scientist and possibly see it in action!”
Lucy was amazed. “You should be working in Hollywood.”
“Eh, been there, done that. Evan pays better.”
Despite being Sunday night, Bourbon Street was as packed as ever. The ride over had been awkwardly silent and Lucy was grateful for the busy night ahead, which would keep her from having to act as if she was happily in Andre’s company. To Lucy’s annoyance, Andre took the lead every time a vampire was spotted. A few times, she busied herself with creating a distraction, but for the most part, she felt she was just along as an observer.
“It’s kind of slow, would you get the van so we can start pickups?” Andre asked.
“I can’t,” Lucy replied honestly. “I don’t have a license and I’ve never driven a stick shift.”
“You’re joking right?” Andre did not look amused. Lucy shook her head no.
“You could go get the van yourself, and if anything happens, I’ll be here to handle it,” she suggested. “You know, like I’m supposed to?”
“I don’t think that’s-” Andre started, but Lucy cut him off.
“Yeah, I know, but at some point it’s not going to be possible for both of us to be in the same place at the same time. I can do this.”
Andre studied her silently for a moment, lips pursed and eyes narrowed. “Fine, but keep our channel of communication open. If a call comes in, I want to know what’s happening.”
“I always do,” Lucy said with slight irritation. Hunters were required to keep open the line of communication with their partner and the direct line the watchers used. It was basic information that Lucy had learned on her very first night of training with Mike. That Andre felt the need to remind her of this was annoying.
“I’ll be back to pick you up in a minute, we can do the retrievals together.”
“Of course,” Lucy sighed as Andre jogged away.
Figuring it would be best to stick to the populated areas, Lucy turned down St. Peter towards Bourbon. At the corner she paused, unsure of where to go next. Walking down Bourbon would be a safe bet, but if she had to move quickly, it wasn’t going to be easy with people milling about in all directions. She sighed, leaned against the building next to her, and pretended to send text messages, keeping her eyes on the foot traffic passing by, more out of caution against pickpockets than vampires, really.
“Hey there, beautiful.”
“I know my shoes are on Bourbon, I’m not giving you five dollars,” Lucy replied automatically before looking up to meet the ice blue eyes of a rather attractive vampire. Shit!
The vampire laughed at her. “Shoot, babe, I haven’t heard that one in years. I was just wondering why a pretty thing like yourself was standing here all alone with no handsome man to keep her company.”
“Lucy?” Andre’s voice questioned cautiously in her ear.
“Funny.” Lucy shot the vampire what she hoped was a flirtatious smile. “I was wondering where you got those rad contacts ‘cuz that shade of blue can’t be natural.” You get that Andre? Lucy hoped silently.
“I’m on my way.” Andre’s voice was clipped.
“Good genes I guess,” The vampire said and smiled. “Can I buy you a drink?”
“Actually, I’m on my way home.” She gestured back up St. Peter. The vampire’s grin widened.
“The least I could do is walk you home, these streets aren’t safe for beautiful ladies on their own.”
“I suppose not, but I should warn you, I have mace, and deadly aim.”
The vampire laid his hand over his heart. “My intentions are honorable, Miss…”
“Tiffany.” Lucy smiled brightly and began walking back towards Dauphine Street, while formulating a plan in her mind.
The vampire, Allen, or so he called himself, rambled incessantly, peppering his commentary with compliments meant to infatuate Lucy. For her part, she smiled and acted interested, flirting as though she were a pro. When she found the house she was looking for she stopped. It was the house that she, Hugh, and Lance had followed a vampire into weeks before, and she knew the side yard would be pitch black.
“Well, thank you for walking me home, Allen,” she smiled seductively.
“Here?” He raised his eyebrows. “This is your home?”
“Yep!” She nodded emphatically.
“Lucy, what the hell are you doing?” Andre’s voice was becoming more frantic.
“Interesting.” The vampire fished a key ring out of his pocket and inserted an old key into the lock on the wooden fence. “Looks like I have the keys to your place then.”
Shit damn double damn! Lucy cursed herself silently. It hadn’t occurred to her that the vampire she had killed weeks ago might have a roommate. Time for plan B then.
“Oh,” she said and batted her eyelashes innocently. “I guess I was wrong, this is your place. I don’t suppose that drink offer still stands?”
Andre let loose with a string of unintelligible curses in what Lucy thought sounded like French. She could hear the van’s engine rev.
Allen the vampire’s eyes crinkled in amusement. “After you, doll.”
Lucy slipped inside, waited for Allen to close the gate, and grabbed his hand. “I can’t see a thing,” she giggled. “Lead the way.” Under the distraction of her actions, she had readied a CPA in her right hand. As Allen stepped into the small garden, she lunged, burying it into his back. He went down noisily, crashing into a metal patio table. All of the sudden the garden was bathed in light and the back door opened. Lucy crouched, pulled the spent weapon from the vampires back, and stuffed it into her purse.
“What the hell’s going on back here? Al, that you?”
Lucy took a deep breath, but remained crouched and turned to look over her shoulder. Another vampire. Much to her chagrin, this one was built like Hugh. She put on an apologetic smile.
“He passed out. It’s my fault. I challenged him to a drinking contest.” She stood unsteadily and turned to find herself staring at
the very broad chest of the vampire who was now inches from her.
“Al’s loss, ma Cherie. Why don’t you come on in?” The vampire grabbed her arm and pulled her towards the stairs. “And party with us?”
Lucy reached for another weapon and froze. Four more vampires, fangs already exposed, were standing just inside the enclosed back porch.
“Distraction, Lucy, I’m right outside the front door.”
Lucy had never been happier to hear Andre’s voice. She began laughing hysterically. “Party? You’re just a couple of dudes with plastic fangs and it ain’t even Halloween yet. Dang, that’s weak! Here, I got some stuff to get this party started for real!” In one fluid motion, she stabbed the vampire holding her and gasped at the unexpected pain in her arm. As the vampire dropped, his nails, which were as sharp as razor blades, had scraped along her arm ripping open the skin like paper.
The pain had cost her precious seconds as she found herself being knocked to the ground. The new vampires were already breaking her flesh before she had time to pull another weapon. Fighting through the pain, she lifted her legs and forced the already convulsing vampire off of her. As she rolled to her feet, shaking off the waves of dizziness, a crash from inside the house caught the attention of the remaining vampires.
“Hey!” she rasped, coughing up a mouthful of blood. “Where ya going? Thought we were going to party?”
No one took the bait. Praying that Andre was holding his own, Lucy armed herself with two fresh weapons and charged into the house. Andre had already killed one of the vampires and was struggling with the other two. Lucy lunged forward and stabbed one, but tripped over a chair and went down hard, slamming her head into the corner of a marble table. Momentarily blinded by the pain, she pushed herself up and blinked rapidly. Andre had killed the last vampire and was standing in the middle of the room staring at her, his back to a staircase.
“Andre, behind you!” Lucy gasped. Another vampire, identical to the Hugh-sized vampire she encountered outside, had leapt over the banister aiming for Andre. He dove out of the way as the vampire crashed into the sofa, just inches from where Lucy knelt. On instinct, she jabbed her remaining weapon into his leg and stood, getting a good look at the vampire for the first time. “Jesus! What the hell is that?”
Lucy jumped back, putting as much distance between her and the creature as she could. The vampire looked more like a demon out of Lucy’s worst nightmares than any vampire she had seen before. His skin was black. Not figuratively, but a matte coal color that seemed to absorb the light around it. His long hair was the same drab shade, and his fingers and bare toes were tipped with thick, silvery nails that ended in razor sharp points.
“That,” Andre sighed, “is proof that the ES is once again here in New Orleans. We have to get out of here now. Help me load them up.”
They loaded the van in silence. Between the five vampires that they had killed earlier in the night, and the seven from the house, the back of the van was filled to the roof.
“You’re bleeding!” Lucy noticed a nasty gash on Andre’s shoulder as he took his seat behind the wheel.
“It’ll be fine,” Andre dismissed her concern and started the van. “What were you thinking? You passed four alleys that would have been dark enough to dispatch that vampire. Why did you come here?”
Lucy shrugged weakly. She made a mistake and she knew it. “I remembered this house. Hugh and Lance and I killed a vampire here. I assumed the house would be empty now and the yard was convenient.”
“Lucy in this job assumptions don’t just make an ass out of anyone, they can get you killed!” He stole a brief look in her direction. “Look at you, how many times did you let a vampire bite you?”
“Once, okay?” Lucy shouted. “Once and I didn’t do it on purpose! I created a distraction, I killed one of those mutants and another one jumped me. Do you think I get some kind of a thrill from being bitten? I may heal faster than you, but it hurts just the same.”
“You were reckless!” Andre shouted back. “You have to stop thinking of your blood as a weapon.”
“Look, I admit, going to that house was stupid and I didn’t consider the consequences. But if you’re going to criticize me at least make it for something I did!”
“Calm down Lucy,” Andre hissed. “Getting emotional is also a good way to get killed. Accidents happen, but you don’t see the rest of us coming back covered in bites. You should be training to avoid these attacks.”
“What is this really about?”
“I just told you,” Andre replied tersely, which just angered Lucy more.
“Yeah, recklessness, whatever. Bull crap. You started in on me from the moment we met. You criticize everything I do. From the way I hunt, down to what I feed my cat. It’s like you’re deliberately picking fights with me because you want me to screw up! Why is that? Is it just because of what I am?”
“First of all, telling you sugar is bad for your cat isn’t criticism, its advice. And secondly, no, it isn’t because you’re a vampire. Yes, I admit I was shocked at first, but Evan’s decisions are not mine to question. I’m sorry to burst your bubble Lucy, but I’m not treating you any differently that I’d treat anyone else. You may have a gift, but little else right now. This isn’t the movies, Lucy. You are not the chosen one.”
“That was just hateful!” Lucy gasped. “I’ve had just as much training as you. I didn’t ask to be the way I am and I certainly don’t think I’m special! But I’m certainly not going to apologize for any advantages I have because of it!”
“And if you grow to rely on that then you are going to end up dead or with a dead partner. If no one else has the guts to say it to your face, is it so bad that I do?”
Lucy wanted to rip into Andre with a scathing reply, or at least throw something heavy at him, but they had pulled into the garage and Evan was already waiting for them at the loading dock, his face grim.
“I want to see the bodies, and then we need to talk.”
With the assistance of two lab techs, they unloaded the vampire corpses onto stretchers and into the morgue freezers.
“Jesus H, haven’t see one of these in years,” one of the techs exclaimed as they pulled the black skinned vampire out of the van.
“Me neither,” Evan replied. “But I have a bad feeling these won’t be the last we see.”
“So what happened?”
They were sitting in Evan's office. Thankfully, he had given them a chance to shower and change before the meeting, so Lucy looked no worse for wear. Andre, she noticed, had bandaged his arm, but the blood was already seeping through.
“It was my fault,” Lucy spoke as Andre opened his mouth. He closed it with a slightly surprised look. “Andre went to get the van and I was alone, near a bar on Bourbon, and I was approached by a vampire. I thought I had a good idea using the yard where we’d run into a vampire before, but I was wrong, like, six more vampires in the house wrong.”
“I sent you the address of the house,” Andre added.
“Already checked it out. The owner lives in Paris, it’s listed as a rental property,” Evan sighed. “We’re going to have to keep an eye on that property. ES is going to realize that two of their ranks are missing in New Orleans. Now, Andre, don’t try to lie to me, have you been to medical about that arm?”
“Not yet,” Andre sighed and put his hands up in a futile gesture. “But I suppose if you’re through with me…”
“I don’t want to see you again until you’re stitched up.” Andre nodded and left. Evan looked at Lucy. “Injuries to report?”
Lucy smiled wryly. “Claw to the arm, vampire bite, and I managed to brain myself on a marble table. I may regret saying this, but Andre’s probably right. I need more training.”
“We never stop training, Lucy. While it’s not good news, your actions tonight did reveal some interesting developments. But Lucy,” Evan said with a concerned look, “I do hope you realize how dangerous what you did was.”
Lucy nodded,
her eyes down cast. “Yes sir.”
“I’ll see about getting you some extra time on the course. Maybe get a few of the team members to teach you some more martial arts moves. You seem to be doing well with those. We’ll talk more about that later, go on and get some sleep.”
“Thank you sir,” Lucy said and stood up to leave.
“One more thing, Lucy.” The corners of Evan’s mouth twitched up slightly.
“Yes?”
“Call me sir one more time and I’ll tell Andre you admitted he was right.”
Lucy bit back a laugh. “Got it, boss.”
Chapter 15
True to his word, Evan set Lucy up on a training schedule with Lance and Michelle. Every day, she spent an hour working out and an hour learning martial arts. On her days off, Lucy began jogging five miles just to prove to herself that she could.
As she was paired with all of the eligible bachelors, as she was calling her potential partners, Lucy observed that Evan seemed to be cycling some of them out. She was getting updated schedules on an almost daily basis. Carlos and Edgar had been weeded out almost immediately. While both had been pleasant to work with, Lucy heard through the rumor mill that they made a formidable team, especially in the rougher areas where Evan wouldn’t send her. Evan himself, Miles, and Lance had all been cycled out as well, leaving Hugh, Dennis, and to her dismay, Andre. Lucy clung to the hope that Evan would pair her with Hugh. Though they clashed regularly on social issues, Lucy genuinely liked Hugh. She also liked the security of being partnered with someone who was as physically impressive as the ES vampires she had seen. Not that there was anything wrong with Dennis, but Lucy suspected, and the rumor mill confirmed, that there was more to he and Michelle’s relationship than simply work partners. As for Andre, Lucy could think of several reasons that Evan would pair her with his nephew, not the least of which was his reputation for pairing clashing personalities. Because of this, she refrained from voicing her issues with Andre in front of Evan.
Her nights hunting were almost uneventful after the night she and Andre uncovered the ES vampires. Wherever the ES were, they were keeping a low profile, which had everyone, especially Evan, on edge. Halloween was fast approaching and Evan had scheduled all hunters that night, explaining that vampires took full advantage of both Halloween and Mardi Gras, and the general chaos that surrounded both events. Evan had a gut feeling that if the ES had something up their sleeve, Halloween would be when they would reveal it. Because of this, he ordered all hunters and their families to temporarily stay in the residential wing. Suddenly the common areas were full of people Lucy hadn’t met before, including Abe’s wife, Claire, Jordan’s parents and little brother, Lou’s husband, and Lance’s younger sister, who did not possess the hunter’s gene. Lance explained that he was adopted and his sister had been a surprise to his parents.
The Eyes of the Sun: The Complete Trilogy Page 15
