If she hadn’t needed him so badly in this group, he would have made a good trainer with the next one. He was ready and he hated vampires. A twinge of impending danger arced through her.
“The time has come for this team to be put into action,” she said. “You’ve all trained hard. You’ve exceeded our expectations and have outdone any team that has come before you.”
The group let out a roar of accomplishment.
“Now comes reality. Tomorrow night we’ll head for the streets. Is everyone ready?”
They shouted in unison. “Yes, ma’am!”
“Good. I’ll see you all tomorrow night.”
She walked away. Sadness seeped into her deeper than ever before. It invaded every pore, every corner of her conscious mind. There was no doubt she’d created an impressive team of vampire hunters. And, like the teams before them, they’d be more than capable. But some of them wouldn’t survive. Maybe she didn’t physically kill humans, but whenever she trained a team, she felt as if she were leading lambs to slaughter. Granted, they were tarnished and worse for wear lambs, but lambs all the same.
And one of those lambs was John Brittain.
She heaved a sigh. As much as she hated admitting it, she missed talking to Britt. Oh, she saw him regularly, but she took particular care to avoid personal contact with him. Every night after he left the gym, she followed him, as she’d been doing for months now. It concerned her that he still had a vampire watching him. She could always drop in and confront the vamp, but as long as they didn’t know she was on to them, she had the advantage. She couldn’t afford to lose that advantage until she knew exactly why they were so interested in Brittain.
Now that Britt was aware of being followed, he took every opportunity to shake them and she was impressed at his ability to do so. He’d never shaken her yet, and she could sense that he knew he hadn’t. There was a constant aura of frustration surrounding him as he weaved his way home.
He’d probably be able to dodge her soon enough. His intelligence amazed her. His strength impressed her. But most of all his ability to make her feel scared the hell out of her. Hence, she avoided personal contact with him as much as she could, which had been hard tonight because she’d known he’d wanted her to speak to him. His thoughts were becoming almost palpable to her.
For now it was best to stay out of his way. Whatever was going on between them was just too complicated and it hurt too much when he looked at her as if she were a freak.
Even though it was true.
The moon rode high in the cloudless heavens the next night when the team met. Jess wanted to impart one last pep talk before they saw a wild vampire in the flesh. As usual, Britt stayed at the back of the group, his expression duly serious. Thank God he didn’t remember she’d nearly bitten him. The urge had been so overwhelming she’d almost succumbed. It had scared her so badly that she’d made a point to avoid him. Just looking at him now made her ache with regret. If he knew, he’d never forgive her. She could barely forgive herself.
“Lieutenant Vandermire, where are we going and how many vampires do you think we’ll encounter?” Terry asked, smoothing her half inch hair with both hands. It was a nervous gesture and the only sign she ever gave when she was worried.
“It’s hard to say. Could be one or two. Could be more. This is a new phenomenon. As I’ve mentioned before, vampires don’t usually congregate. Mostly they’re loners.” She could tell Britt was watching her and she didn’t dare look at him right now. She’d been feeling strange all day. Was it fear? Outside of the love she felt for her brother, she hadn’t experienced any real emotion for so many years she wasn’t even sure what fear felt like any more.
“Where are we going tonight?”
“The East Side. To a hooker’s street.”
“Hookers!” Tat rolled his eyes, “I thought we were going to fight not f…”
“Brophy!” He knew why they were going. His words were meant to disrupt. Her patience was beginning to wear thin. “If you can’t control your baser instincts, I’ll have to put you on charge. Either you toe the line, or you’ll have to take the consequences. So far you haven’t received a paycheck. Tonight’s the night to earn some honest money. Aren’t you interested?”
Brophy raised his shoulders. “Shit. I’m here for the freakin’ real-life video game. I don’t care about the money. When do we get to slice and dice?”
Jess watched Britt slide through the group until he had moved up behind Tat. He clamped one hand on Tat’s shoulder. Tat cringed, looking at Britt from the corner of his eye.
She remained impassive and pretended she hadn’t seen what had happened. “The hookers, for the most part, are human. But female vampires have a tendency to bury themselves in hooker communities. They go unnoticed, have fresh food whenever they want it, and their pimps are a lot scarier.”
“Ugh. Takes away the joy from having a good…” Tat moaned aloud when Britt’s fingers dug even deeper into his shoulder. “Get off me, man. What are you, some goody asshole or somethin’?”
“I’m a cop. Just like you. We have to be better than the people on the street.”
“Oh, pu … lease. Where’d you get this guy?” Tat said, wrenching his shoulder from Britt’s grasp.
Britt watched Tat through narrowed eyes. Why would Jess want vermin like him on her team? The answer hit him, and suddenly his gut felt like putty. All this time he’d thought he wasn’t like Tat because his crime wasn’t premeditated. Who was he kidding? A killer is a killer, no matter the circumstances.
Before Randy died, Britt had been on the road to success. Life had been good. Hard to believe that in a mere two years it could spiral into such a deep pit. Bad enough being a cop killer. But now he was a cop killer stalked by vampires. How much worse could it get?
He turned his thoughts back to the mission. Except for Jess, and probably James, he’d never seen a real vampire before. His gut twisted. Did everyone else feel like he did tonight? Scared shitless?
Since Jess had shown her true self in his apartment that day, she’d been avoiding him. No doubt it had everything to do with his reaction to her. He’d been repulsed; there was no other way to put it. Another unnamed emotion slammed into him. But since then there’d been a subtle change in the way he felt about her, and he looked at her again.
Tonight she wore her black leather and those six inch spike heels. Hard to believe she could fight in those shoes, but he’d seen her do it. She had some sort of a weapon on her belt, one he’d never seen before. Her hair was pulled back in a French twist. How’s that for irony. Beautiful vampire wears her hair in a salon style while battling evil.
As he studied Jess, he was aware of the low thrum of voices asking questions, but he’d zoned out. He’d always done this as a cop. It was his self-preservation technique—his focus.
Speaking of focus, it wavered every time he looked at her. It had taken him hours to come to terms with what she’d told him that night. That she was a vampire. A member of a group of human predators who only remain alive by drinking blood. He’d even considered talking to a priest.
Like that would happen. Bless me father, for I have sinned. It’s been too long since my last confession. I’m now a murderer. Oh, besides that I’m also a vampire hunter.
He’d never felt so totally alone since his wife left him after he’d been charged with murder.
He shrugged, felt the muscles tightening in his neck.
“Everyone into the van.” Jess walked directly in front of him. He’d hoped for one glance from her, but she ignored him.
“I’m sorry, Jess,” he said under his breath. Never in his wildest dreams did he suspect she would spin around and look at him with a surprised expression.
Until that moment, he had no idea how far her abilities extended. His own fault. She’d been there for him, helped him out when Bergeron’s body had been found in his apartment building, and when the vampire stone had been mailed to him.
She nodded to him, acce
pting his apology. Suddenly he felt better as he gripped the doorframe and hoisted himself into the back of the van.
A short time later, then van stopped in a neighborhood that looked as if it had been forgotten by the civilized part of the city. They all got out and waited for Jess to give them orders. Even the buildings appeared to have lost their civility, old and damaged brick façades, crumbling and broken, much like the people who walked on the sidewalks.
“Pair up and work your way down the street,” Jess said. “I don’t want you confronting anyone tonight. Your objective is to identify a vampire—if you happen to find one. There might not be any here tonight. If you do spot one, do not approach the target. Return to the van. That’s an order.” She put her hands on her trim hips. “Another thing. Don’t leave your team member alone at any time. Stay together.”
“What if a vamp comes after us?” Tat asked, his voice as calm as if he were about to go on a picnic.
“If you have to defend yourself, use the methods you’ve been taught. Don’t forget, vampires are fast, they’re strong, and they’ve got powers of persuasion that can debilitate you if you aren’t on your toes.”
“Damn, I hate those creatures,” Griz spat. “Britt, you with me?”
“Yeah, sure, Griz.” Britt fell into step with him. He wanted to look back and see where Jess had gone. There were only six team members on this mission, so he assumed she’d be keeping an eye on them, just as he knew she kept an eye on him every night. It bothered him that Jess felt the need to follow him at night. That she thought he couldn’t take care of himself. But no matter how hard it was on his male ego, she was probably right. Fighting full fledged vampires would not be easy, and she’d been around a lot longer than him. She knew their habits and their weaknesses. As much as he wanted to be strong for her, to prove to her that he was her equal, right now he knew it wasn’t true. Might never be true.
He pushed thoughts of Jess away and concentrated on his surroundings. This was the most rundown part of New York Britt had ever seen, and he’d seen some pretty bad places. They passed a courtyard where dealers openly pushed their wares. Some sad addicts didn’t get more than a couple feet away from the dealer before taking their hit and sprawling onto the ground where they dropped.
“Britt, we haven’t had a chance to talk much,” Griz said.
“No, that’s true.” Britt didn’t want to talk right now either. He wanted his wits about him. “Listen, why don’t we meet for a beer one night this week? We can talk then.”
“Yeah, that’d be great.” Thankfully, Griz had picked up on his subtle reminder that it was concentration time.
The sidewalks were strewn with refuse and sleeping vagrants. Alleys opened their dark maws every few feet, making Britt wish he had Jess’s night vision. Anything could be hiding in the blackness.
Suddenly, he sensed he was being watched. A three story building loomed on the other side of the street. A crumbling brownstone with broken windows. Looking toward the skyline, he thought, Yeah, you’re up there. But was it friend or foe? He wasn’t sure.
“Hi, honey, lookin’ for a little sugar?” A tattered, toothless hooker approached, doing her best to entice them.
Griz growled deep in his throat, making his name even more appropriate. “Get lost,” he spat out in a disparaging tone, surprising Britt.
“Cool it, Griz,” Britt said in a low, even voice. “We can’t judge her. We don’t know what caused her circumstances.”
Griz grunted and folded his massive arms across his chest. They looked like Bluto’s arms, the burly character from the Popeye cartoons.
“No thanks,” Griz said gruffly to the hard-worn woman.
His attempt at toning down his rudeness didn’t work. The hooker looked as if she might start cursing.
“Actually, we’re meeting someone,” Britt said, knowing in “streetwalker speak” this meant they had regulars.
“Cheerio, then,” she said resignedly and continued down the street in her skintight miniskirt and torn pantyhose.
Britt sniffed. The air was heavy and scented liberally with the stench of poverty. Eau de garbage and rotted wood if his sniffer was correct.
Griz hadn’t said a word since their slight altercation. “You okay, Griz?”
“Sometimes I think hookers are even worse than vampires,” Griz admitted in another growl.
Griz’s comment probably came from a gut reaction to the woman’s condition. Given his basically kind nature, Britt didn’t think Griz would be able to cut it as a vampire hunter. Even though he had the strength of three men and seemed committed to this cause, Griz just didn’t have it in him to be a killer. Britt swallowed hard. Unlike himself.
“Let’s continue and see what we find.”
Jess watched Britt and Griz from the roof of the building. She’d seen Britt look up to where she hid and smiled at his intuitiveness.
The minute a young male hooker stepped out from the alley’s dark crevice Britt knew what he was. When Britt and Griz weren’t uninterested in what he had to offer, the hooker didn’t try to hide the fact that he was a vampire. His elongated teeth were evidence of his proclivities. Britt touched Griz’s arm and the two men turned back toward the van, just as they’d been told to do.
Not bad. And it only took him a split second to realize what the hooker was, even before he saw the teeth. He had latent talents that surprised her more every day.
Now to find out what Tat and Terry were up to. She made a run across the roof of the building and easily sailed to the roof of the next one and then the next one. She found James on a rooftop two blocks down.
“How’re they doing?” she asked, leaning over the edge of the building to view their pupils who had foolishly stopped in front of a dark alleyway.
James turned to her, fully involved as a vampire. That meant things weren’t going smoothly. Something must be happening on the street and James needed his superior abilities. His teeth were bared and his pupils were like orbs of onyx with slivers of silver illuminating them.
“You’ve arrived just in time. Tat has instigated trouble. There are two vampires moving in. Terry did as she was told. She tried to stop Tat. It’s apparent she’s worried, but she’s following orders and staying with that idiot, even though he doesn’t deserve it.”
Jess looked down into the alley again. A female hooker had apparently gone for a seasoned male vampire. By the look of him, he’d been around. A lot longer than Jess, who was still fairly young in vampire years.
Let’s go,” she said, diving off the side of the building and settling out of sight behind Tat without making a sound. He was completely unaware they were in trouble.
“Tat, you shouldn’t have approached that vamp. She didn’t run away scared, you know.” Terry said, hands on her hips and her voice angry. “Don’t you realize the strength they have?” “Let’s go.”
“Nuthin’ the Tat-man can’t handle. Besides, that whore was scared. Let’s go down this alley and prove we aren’t going to let them get away.”
“You’re an idiot,” she said, “and you’re going to get us both killed.” It was then Terry spotted Jess and James. Waiting behind a stack of old boxes, in a spot where the approaching vampires wouldn’t be able to see them, Jess motioned for her not to give them away.
James waited silently beside Jess. They didn’t have to vocalize what they’d do next. They’d worked together long enough to know each other’s moves.
The two vampires who had been hiding behind Dumpsters were quietly moving along the alley toward Tat and Terry. They thought they were just moving in to vamp a couple of tasty human morsels. Surprise. Surprise.
Idiot that he was, Tat started walking toward the predators. Overconfident as usual. Fed by delusions of being stronger than the approaching monsters, he was obviously unaware of what he was getting into. The big vampire’s eyes were glowing, something Jess had never seen before. She had no idea what caused it, and a sick feeling in her chest spread out to her limb
s. With technology improving just as quickly in the vampire world as in the human world, there was no telling if glowing eyes meant these vampires had developed something new. An advantage over the cops? Over other vampires?
By the time the two vamps were in full view, the glowing-eyed predator’s teeth were bared in almost sensual pleasure at the sight of the idiot who thought he could take them on.
“Stop right there.” Jess’s voice reverberated through the air, low and commanding. She and James stepped out of the shadows.
Tat turned toward her, his movements jerky, irritated. His eyes glittered angrily. “Shit, lady, can’t I have a little fun?”
“I told you not to approach anyone.”
“I’m here to fight. I’m not some candy-assed ex-cop who’s afraid of his own shadow.”
Jess’s eyes narrowed. This man had just screwed himself. He consistently refused to follow orders, and now he was being insubordinate. He was off the team. Her gaze shifted from him to the vampire moving in on them.
“You’re in over your head, Tat,” Jess curled back her lips and let him see the full truth of her vampirism.
“Damn!” He backed away from her. If she scared him, wait until he realized the full scope of what was slinking toward him. The maddening part was that Tat wouldn’t have stood a chance, and Terry would’ve been lost too. They’d come a long way in their training, but they still had some crucial lessons to learn before they took on vampires who wanted to kill them. Tat’s kind of stupidity got people killed.
The male vampire arched his shoulders and bared his teeth. His nails were long and black. He was about Griz’s size. The biggest vampire she’d ever encountered. Thankful that James was with her, she somersaulted over Terry and Tat and landed between the vampires and her team members.
It was unspoken; she would fight the big guy. As senior officer and senior vampire, it was her responsibility.
She glared at the vampire, bared her teeth, and sprang into the air, kicking her spiked heel toward his heart. The spike automatically extended another four inches when she became airborne. She missed his chest and impaled his arm. As soon as the silver spike penetrated his flesh it recoiled back into the shoe’s heel. A safety feature Sampson had added so she couldn’t get hung up. Good thing in this case, since she’d missed the mark.
Grave Illusions Page 7
