Tainted Blood

by Martin Sharlow

  No, he had to end this battle inside of himself. He would just have to win her over to him without using his abilities. The problem was, he had intended on doing it long range to start. Win her in her dreams, and then try to woo her in real life. It seemed like the best possible plan. Now, however, he wasn't so sure it was going to work.

  “Damn,” He mumbled as he walked over and grabbed his jean jacket. “I need a break from this.”

  An hour later Brian sat at a poker table across from six other people with a pile of chips stacked to his left and two cards on the table in front of him. So far, things weren’t going so well. He'd already lost over a hundred dollars in the short time he had been sitting at the table. A young guy dressed in a white sport jacket across from him, with short blond hair and a goofy-looking earring to match his perpetual smile, kept taking everything from everyone at the table. It didn't seem to matter what he had, the guy always knew what two cards Brian held.

  “I'll raise it $50,” the guy said as he put a couple more chips out onto the table.

  Brian looked at the table. A Jack of Spades, Queen of Hearts, and a Nine of Clubs sat on the table. Two people to the blonde's left folded. It was Brian's turn to act. He knew what he had as his hold cards, and they almost couldn't be any better. He had the Queen of Spades and the Queen of Diamonds. He had trips, and it was about time to put this joker in his place.

  Brian stared across the table at his opponent contemplating how much he should bet. He only came to the low limits to just blow off some steam and get his mind away from Heather. Instead, he found himself in a competition of wits with a hustler.

  “So, Friend, what exactly are you doing down at these blinds, may I ask?” Brian queried the young guy, hoping to throw him off his game and maybe get a tell at the same time.

  The blonde just shrugged his shoulders and gave him a big grin. “It's the only full table on the floor this time of morning.”

  A reasonable answer. Still, it irritated him that a shark was preying on the little fish here. That’s was fine, he would make him pay for his arrogance. Brian just called him and smiled.

  A Two of Diamonds hit the turn. The blond bet a hundred and fifty, and then just smiled and asked the waitress for a drink. Brian looked at the card and thought. He couldn't see how that card could help him in anyway. He had to be bluffing, or playing for a straight.

  It was hard to tell with this guy. All he did was smile and make jokes with the people around him.

  “I'll call.” Brian put his chips in.

  The river brought a 3 of Clubs. The blonde guy didn't even think about it. He bet four hundred without pausing. If it hadn't been for the fact that Brian was sure he had to be bluffing, that quick bet would have worried him. Brian had three Queens, so he wasn't going to fold it. Obviously, the guy thought he didn't have anything.

  “Let me help you.” The young guy began. “I'm guessing you got...let’s see, either Jacks, or maybe Queens. Am I right?” The guy's eyes twinkled in mirth.

  Brian didn't answer him and just put on the best poker face he could muster. When the young guy saw he wasn't responding he continued. “I got you beat. You may want to throw those away.” He smiled and sat back.

  Why would he tell me that if he wasn't bluffing? Brian thought. No one would take away a sure win if what he was saying was true, No he was going to nail him this time he was sure.

  “I'm all in.” Brain said as he pushed what was left of his stack into the pot. The blonde guy just smiled and shook his head.

  “How much more?” he asked. The dealer counted Brian’s chips up, there was only another hundred and twenty five the young guy had to match, so he did without much hesitation.

  “By the way, what’s your name? My name's Daniel.” He said, as he reached his hand across the table to shake Brian’s, ending it with a quick good luck after matching Brian’s chips.

  After all the chips were in, Brian flipped his cards over to show his two Queens. Daniel stood up and shouted “I knew it!” He flipped his two cards over showing the eight and a ten of hearts, and Brian watched as the dealer pushed all his chips across the table to the man named Daniel.

  “Better luck next time.” He smiled, “I told you I had you beat.” He said as he stacked up Brian's chips.

  “Would you like to buy in for more chips?” the dealer asked as Brian sat there, still stunned. He couldn't believe what just happened. Who played with an Eight and Ten of hearts? The guy obviously didn't know what he was doing, so that meant he had to be cheating somehow. Brian had heard before when he first started playing that some of the hustlers paid off a few of the dealers to fix the cards, and he wouldn't have been surprised if that was what was happening now.

  Well, two could play at that game.

  “Sir?” The dealer asked him again. “Are you going to buy in?”

  “Yeah. Give me a couple of hundred,” Brian said as he pulled out the last two bills he was carrying. He wouldn't have risked the last of his money normally, but he had a plan this time. The first hand he was dealt a Seven of Clubs and a Two of Hearts. Most of the people folded, then chuckles bet fifty like he always did. Everyone else folded until it reached Brian. The young guy looked right at Brian smiling his big stupid grin. Well, he was about to learn that cheating didn't pay against a vampire.

  “I'm all in.” Brian shoved his last two hundred in the center of the table.

  “Whoa! A little tilt there?” Daniel asked as he searched Brian’s face for some kind of tell. Brian locked eyes with him, and said.

  “Why don't you call me and find out?”

  The young man stared at him for a second, obvious confusion showing for the first time on his face that morning. “Alright...I'll call.” Brian watched as he counted out his chips.

  When the dealer said to flip their cards over Brain quickly flipped his card over, still looking into Daniel's eyes and said

  “You should fold, you're beat.”

  The dealer reached for the young man's cards to flip them over, but Daniel kept his hands on them so that he couldn’t.

  “Sir, I need to see those.” The dealer said while he still tried to retrieve the two cards.

  “No.” Daniel responded. “He's right, he's got me beat.” Without showing the two cards, he tossed them to the dead zone. Brain had to stop the dealer from looking at them with another suggestion; otherwise the man was still going to show them.

  Apparently.

  Brian wasn't sure they were allowed to do that, yet it looked like that was his intent. This made Brian sure the two of them were in cahoots. Why else would he try to violate house rules to see what Daniel threw away?

  A woman's sudden high pitched scream put an end to the next round. “It's a werewolf!”

  5

  The crowd was dispersing when Brian was finally able to make his way to where all the commotion had been coming from. The way had been blocked by more than one curious passerby. The scene itself was less than spectacular. Three security guards stood around one lone woman. Her dark curly hair hung around her shoulders in a mess. Brian supposed it was because of her constant need to fling it back over her head each time she wanted to emphasize a point in what she was saying.

  A quick glance around the entrance where they now stood showed no sign of the supposed missing werewolf. From what he could overhear as the three men questioned the young woman, Mary, at least that's what she said her name was, had been walking towards the casino through the front parking lot. Where, apparently she ran into a large figure hulking around by some service vans near the entrance. She said it was larger than any man she had ever seen. Its entire body was covered in thick black and gray fur, and its head was like a giant wolf, filled with fangs from the way she told it. The only reason Brian was able to hear any of it was because the poor woman was forced to repeat it over and over again as each guard kept asking her the same questions she already answered for the last one. He could see the fear and desperation in her eyes quickly becoming repl
aced with anger and frustration. Who can blame her? Brian thought.

  All too soon, one of the guards noticed Brian's eavesdropping and broke away from the other two, in an attempt to drive him away. Brian didn't resist, what would be the point? He already had all the

  information he needed, and he doubted the poor woman would have much more to share with the three stooges questioning her.

  Now the question that remained to be answered was what he was going to do about the werewolf. From what he could remember, werewolves were used as assassins by whatever group they were a part of. Brian would have loved to know more about that group, but there didn't seem to be a repository of information about them that he was aware of. That was if he didn't count his aunt. The less he saw of her the better, or at least that was what Brian preferred. If he had to, however, he would do whatever he needed to do, even if that was to ask his aunt. Until then he needed to get his hands on some silver, the sooner the better.

  Without the silver, he decided that checking the outside with the assassin still about was probably not the best idea right now. A quick walk to the nearest help desk gave him the answer he needed. A gift shop was in the building, but the clerk had no idea if they sold any silver there. She pointed the way and then made an off handed comment as he turned to go, something about “what does he needed it for, the werewolf?” He almost turned around to comment, but at the last second decided he didn't have time for it.

  It was a stupid that he felt a bit embarrassed as well as irritated as he heard the clerk giggle as he walked away. He wanted to turn around and tell her, “Yes, actually,” but he knew that would just be a mistake.

  Anyway, it really didn't matter what she thought. Brian was sure she would scoff if he told her he was a vampire, so what was the point? Now all he needed to do was go collect his money from the table, cash out and go buy some silver.

  The blonde guy named Daniel was already gone when he got back to the table. He could tell that the dealer had been taking out his blinds while he was gone, as his stack wasn't as full as he remembered. That shouldn't be too much of a problem he thought. It shouldn't be too hard to make back whatever he lost later. That was, as long as he didn't run into anymore cheaters.

  The casino gift shop was small and crowded with all types of knick-knacks. Just getting inside the door without knocking anything over turned out to be a challenge. Brian supposed that it would have been easier to do if it hadn't been for the couple that had insisted on getting out just as he went in. Oh well, he guessed the people must have been in a hurry.

  The shop clerk informed him that the only actual silver they had were the silver plated spoons that they sold to the tourists. The things were so tiny that Brian doubted they could be used for much of anything, let alone stabbing a giant werewolf in the heart. Nevertheless, he decided he would feel better carrying something made of silver, rather than go outside holding nothing. Maybe at the very least it would burn the wolf at its touch, like some of those TV shows he'd been watching lately. He didn't remember that happening in his last encounter with one, but...that had been much smaller.

  Before heading back to his apartment at the motel, Brian made a stop at a local pawn shop in Reno. The cabby knew of a place he was sure would have at least some silver rings. He even said that he knew of a few recent people desperate for cash after losing badly at the casino that he took there to hock their jewelery. To the cabby’s credit, he was right, the shop was full of silver rings and bracelets that Brian could use if he knew how to melt them down and recast them into some sort of weapon.

  The shows always make it look so simple to melt down silver and recast it into silver bullets. Brian shook his head at the thought. Hell, I don't even know how to make a knife, let alone bullets.

  In desperation he waved down the clerk, who seemed to be pretty absorbed into some sports magazine he was reading. The man smelled of old coffee and cigarettes as he walked up to Brian. He leaned across the counter towards Brian, making him feel a bit uncomfortable.

  “Yes sir, can I help you?” He said, as he put on that used car salesman look. Brian wasn't sure exactly what that look was, but it was the first thing that came to mind as the clerk opened his mouth and began to speak.

  “Ahm, yes, I'm loo--” Brian began before being cut off by the smelly old clerk.

  “After all, it's not like I was doing anything important, like maybe trying to pick my horses before the next race or anything.” The man said in what now Brian recognized as a Brooklyn accent. He was pretty sure the man had not started with it, but actually evolved into it as he slowly built up momentum.

  “Alright--” Brian tried to respond.

  “So please, go right on and tell me what you need! I'm sure whatever trinket or bauble you want to sell me is more than worth my time and my money.” The man just stopped, folded his hands in front of himself and leaned on his elbows, so that he was literally stretched out across the counter and looking up at Brian’s face. It was the weirdest sensation Brian ever had, looking down in the now blank face of this clerk. He wondered if the owner knew how this guy acted or talked to the customers.

  He was about to say that, when it occurred to him that this man was most likely the owner. After all, who else would hire such a rude and smelly old man? He decided in the end to just ignore the man's outlandishness and instead just get to his questions. However, he was a bit tempted to ask the man if there was anything unusual going on up in his nasal cavity right then. After all, he was sure the clerk had a perfect view of it.

  “I'm looking for silver.” He began, before being cut off by the gruff man. Again. That was getting irritating.

  “Well, it's all right there,” he waved his hand to encompass a glass case full of rings, necklaces and bracelets. “I'm not sure why you had to bother me just for that.” The man said almost to himself as he began to turn and walk back to his magazine.

  “No, um, Sir...” Brian spoke up trying to stop his departure. “I'm looking for something bigger.”

  The man paused, then then turned around and eyed him up and down. “Bigger? How so?”

  The temptation to just suggest the man was slowly becoming more and more appealing, as Brian was starting to tire of the whole conversation. “Well, I was going to tip that cabby when he took me home, on second thought he doesn't deserve it.” Brian mumbled to himself.

  “What's that?” The clerk asked as he moved closer to hear what Brian was saying.

  “I need a sword.” Brian spoke up.

  “A sword?” The man whistled at that. “What do you need with a sword?”

  “Just for display at my home.” Brian answered quickly.

  “Well if I had it, I'd sell it to you. A silver sword would be worth a nice bundle.” The old man smiled to himself, evidently thinking on what he could do with that much money.

  “Well, anything else that you have that’s pointy?”

  The man stopped and stared at him again. It felt like the man was scrutinizing Brian. As if he were trying to see into his soul for a second. It was looking as if he was going to have to push the old man and be forced to suggest him. What was he thinking, shopping for a sword? It was the stupidest idea ever.

  “I do have a silver set in the back.” The old man said. “Been sitting back there for years. Haven't had anyone that ever wanted the damn thing. Worst purchase I ever made.”

  “A silver set?” Brian perked up. Could it actually be real, or was it one of those fake plated ones? It really didn't matter, probably.

  “Well, I suppose there are pointed things in that, if you're looking for forks.” The man laughed like he'd just made the most hilarious joke.

  “Sure, bring it out and let me have a look.” Brian said eagerly.

  Forks weren’t much of a weapon, but it was better than the miniature little spoon of plated silver he was now carrying in his pocket. The old man told him to stay put and not to touch anything while he was gone, and then disappeared into the back. Several minutes p
assed before the man returned carrying what looked like an old dirty sheet wrapped into a bundle. The sound of kitchen utensils rang through the room as he dropped it on the counter and then begun to unwrap it.

  “What the hell?” The clerk snapped as he looked at the sheets contents. “Damn it. I told that boy to leave this alone!” He started yelling at himself. “I'm going to--”

  “Is this it?” Brian asked as he picked up a knife from amongst the various spoons and forks. His quick count as it rolled open was twenty seven. That should make some interesting weapons, and if he were right, as he usually was when it came to counting, there were five knives in the mix.

  “No, there was a lot more here before. A whole lot more...” The man's voice drifted off as he sadly shook his head, surveying the pile of silver.

  “What do you want for it?” Brian asked as he tried to test the balance of the knife.