by Rob Cornell
But no way she could take on Mr. Silver.
“I don’t know what magic this is,” she said. “But if you want to see your ogre friend here live, you’ll take it somewhere else.”
Marty met Lockman’s eyes. “Kill this bitch, brother.”
The vamp chopped at Marty’s throat with her free hand. He coughed once and couldn’t draw another breath. “Another strike like that will crush his esophagus. A waste of good blood, but we have plenty more.”
Marty couldn’t speak, but he shook his head violently, the message clear. Don’t back down.
Lockman still held the cold in him, though the ice began to crack. He had distrusted and hated this ogre at one time. But somewhere along the way he had grown to respect him, admire his courage, even like him a little.
But the mission was more important.
The mission came first.
Lockman stepped forward. “This is your last day walking the mortal plane, bitch.”
She struck at Marty’s throat again then threw the ogre at Lockman. Unprepared for the move, Lockman fell backward under Marty’s huge body. They came face to face on the floor, Marty gasping for air that couldn’t pass to his lungs.
Lockman gripped Marty’s head in his hands. “Vera, do something. Help him.”
I’m sorry, but I am bound only to you.
“Well, I unbind you. I give you over to him. Please.”
It’s too late. My link to this plane has grown too tenuous. I won’t be with you for much longer.
Something in Marty’s eyes tried to communicate with Lockman. He rolled off of Lockman, chocking and gasping. He pointed up the stairs.
The vamp had gone, but she couldn’t be too far. If he wanted to take her down with Vera’s help, he would have to do it soon. Marty seemed to sense that.
Lockman gripped Marty’s arm with his silver hand. “I’m sorry…brother.”
The ogre squeezed his eyes shut. He stopped trying to breathe, though his chest continued to hitch.
The wall of ice broke and a tidal wave burst free. It was no use. Lockman couldn’t cut off his emotions anymore. Which left him with only one option. Use the emotion. Let it drive the mission. Let it carry him straight up to Jessie, through any vampire that stood in his way, and right to the fucking king.
He ran up the lobby stairs after the vamp, expecting to have to chase her up the stairwell to the floors above. No need.
She stood waiting for him at the entrance, Marty’s grenade launcher in her hands.
Chapter Fifty-Eight
Of course, Teresa hadn’t stayed in the car. Craig might be able to get away with that over-protective crap with Kate, but Teresa was a god-damned soldier. She had started across the grounds for the hotel and only stopped when she saw four of Marty’s brothers come out.
“What’s going on?” she asked when they met at the center by the fountain.
The brother whose name Teresa was pretty sure was Adam said, “Lockman sent us out. It’s a lost cause anyway. There’s too many of them, all fed with our people’s blood.”
“And you left Craig in there?”
“He’s gone insane,” another brother said. “He has a death wish.”
Teresa rubbed at her temples. One of her damn migraines wriggling back. “Where are the others? Marty?”
“Marty sacrificed himself to aid our escape,” Adam said. “Our other brothers fell in battle. We are all that’s left.” He hung his head. “It’s done. The chosen one is lost to us.”
No. This couldn’t end. Craig had a plan. Like she had told him, she trusted whatever crazy stunt he had in mind. It would work.
Stay frosty, Agent. We’re not done here yet.
Damn right. “Back to the car. Vera’s got to have something we can use to back him up.”
Adam took her arm. “We must go.”
“I’m not leaving him behind. I don’t know what your prophecy means, but if his daughter really is your chosen one, you have too much at stake. These vampires are killing your people by the hundreds. There won’t be an ogre left on the mortal plane.”
“Perhaps that’s a good thing. Our true place is at home.”
“Maybe,” Teresa said. “But you’re not going to get there by letting the vamps wipe you out.”
Adam raised an eyebrow. “You know of the return?”
She scrunched up her face. Sometimes these ogres said some damn strange things.
Realization dawned in Adam’s eyes. “You do not. Never mind.”
“What’s the return?”
“It doesn’t matter. We must go before either the local authorities or the vampires confront us.”
“Fine.” Teresa’s face burned. “Go. I’m staying to help.” She turned on her heel and marched back to the car. When she tried to open the door it held fast.
“Vera, let me in.”
She tried the door again. It did not budge. “Come on, Vera. Craig’s in serious trouble. I know you’re beholden to him or something, but you’ve got to trust me now.”
She waited to hear the lock snap, got silence instead.
“For crying out loud.” She leaned against the car, bracing her hands on the roof. The metal felt cold. Too cold for a humid New Orleans night. Like ice. Stepping back, she realized something she had missed when she first approached. Vera’s dashboard had been illuminated before, even though her engine was turned off. Now everything was dark. It didn’t mean anything. Or wouldn’t if this was a normal car.
“What is it?”
Teresa spun around. The brothers had joined her. “It’s Vera. I think she’s…dead.”
The ogres exchanged looks. Their eyes lit up. Not exactly the reaction Teresa expected.
“What is it?”
A corner of Adam’s mouth curled up. “Perhaps Martin was right about this Lockman mortal.”
Her nerves jittered as if overcharged on caffeine. “Why? What’s happened?”
“Your friend is quite clever. He purposefully invoked the angel’s oath of protection.” He looked toward the hotel. “Those vampires are all dead.”
Teresa couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She’d seen her share of crazy mojo, but these ogres were talking about a whole new level of unbelievable. She wanted to machine-gun them with questions.
The explosion stopped her from asking a single one.
They all turned toward the sound. It had come from inside the hotel.
Adam pulled free the last mag on his belt and slammed it home. “Regroup brothers,” he nodded to Teresa, “and sister. We’re going back in.”
Chapter Fifty-Nine
The grenade’s detonation had thrown Lockman to the other side of the mezzanine and into the wall. He felt splinters of wood in his back. When he looked down at his arms he saw the silver had cracked in spots.
Vera’s power was weakening.
He stood, brushed himself off, and stared down the vamp bitch. “This is where I say something smart like, ‘Is that all you got?’”
“And this is where I kill you.” She pulled the trigger on the launcher, the sound of the grenade popping out of the barrel like a cork from a wine bottle.
Lockman crouched low and dove under the grenade’s arc. The explosion’s shockwave pushed him sideways and through the railing around the mezzanine. From there he fell to the lobby floor. The landing knocked the wind from his lungs. Chips of silver broke away like egg shell. The strength he had felt while tearing through the vamp army withered.
I’ve held as long as I can. This plane can no longer hold me.
“I’m sorry, Vera.”
Goodbye, Craig Lockman.
He felt the breeze once more, this time blowing out from him. Out his ears, his nostrils, his mouth, and his pores. More of the silver crackled and fell away. As each piece dropped to the floor, they melted and evaporated, leaving nothing behind.
The vamp bitch sauntered down the stairs, her gross excuse for a mouth curled in what he could only assume was a grin. One fang stuc
k out over her lip. “All magic is only temporary,” she said. “But mortals are always weak.” Once she cleared the stairs, she tossed the grenade launcher aside. Hands on her hips, she stood over Lockman and gave him the vamp version of a look of pity. It pretty much looked the same as all their ugly expressions.
“You wasted your life tonight,” she said. “Your daughter is lost to you.”
Lockman huffed through his nose. He imagined driving a stake through this vamp’s heart—better yet, lopping off her fucking head with an ogre sword. While these thoughts ran through his mind, the vamp pinned his head to the floor under her boot, the sole of which was ironically and uselessly coated with silver dust.
The dust.
“How much weight do you think I’ll need to apply to squash your head?”
He raked a hand along a dry spot on the floor, scooping up as much of the powder as he could. The vamp was so focused on torturing him, she didn’t see the dust coming until he threw it up into her face.
She shrieked and backed away, rubbing at her eyes as her face sizzled and smoked. The effect didn’t last long. The ogre blood healed her even as the dust stuck to her skin burned away the new flesh.
Lockman tried to get to his feet, but the aftereffects of Vera’s transformation left him too weak and feverish.
She bared her fangs and lifted her clawed hands. Her nails grew long and yellow. “This is where I say something like, ‘Is that all you’ve got?”
Something moved behind her, but from his angle, Lockman couldn’t see what. Another vamp?
Then a shard of wood shot out from the middle of her chest. Blood spattered outward. The vamp’s eyes went wide, the yellow irises flashing at first before going dim. When she opened her mouth, blood almost as thick as mud rolled out. She turned slowly, allowing Lockman to see who stood behind her.
Teresa, lip curled, hands fisted at her sides, stared back at the surprised vamp. “Say you’re sorry to my sister in vampire hell.” She cocked back an arm and gave the vamp a solid right hook to the jaw.
The vamp staggered backward and fell into a wet pile of her brethren, the impact driving the stake up further through her chest. A minute later her melted form blended with the vamp guts beneath her, the only mark of her presence the shard of broken railing laying on top.
Teresa looked around the lobby as Marty’s surviving brothers formed up behind her. “Do I even want to know how you made this mess?”
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
One of the brothers stepped forward. “Vera?”
Lockman nodded, which must have said it all for the ogre.
The brother bowed his head. “She served you well.”
“You’ll never hear me say there’s no such thing as angels.” It took some doing, but Lockman managed to get to his feet. The floor tilted under him and he started to go down. Teresa showed up at his side and caught him. “Going to take me a sec to recover, I think. That was some serious mojo.”
Teresa hugged him. He thought he heard her sniffle, but when she pulled back her eyes were dry. “You fucking prick. Next time, tell me what you’re doing.”
The brother who asked about Vera cleared his throat. “We still have to rescue the chosen one.”
Lockman remembered Vera’s earlier scan of the hotel, how the large energy source had disappeared. He pushed it aside. He couldn’t assume anything. If they still had Jessie, he had to get her. “Based on what Vera saw, there’s a group of vamps on the top floor. Probably generals or knights or whatever a vamp king might call them.”
“Probably originals, too,” Teresa said.
“No army,” Craig added, “but still a powerful challenge. Especially if we want to extract Jessie without harm.”
Someone gasped.
One of the ogres stood at the base of the stairs, looking down.
God damn, in all the chaos, Lockman had forgotten. He joined the ogre’s side. The other brothers and Teresa gathered around as well. Together they stared down at their fallen friend.
“Martin,” the ogre that found him said, “you were as much a warrior as a shaman. The strongest Gulogich I’ve ever known. Rest with your brothers and sisters now.” He pulled back his rifle’s bolt handle. “Let’s show these motherfuckers the light.”
“How are we for gear?” Lockman asked.
Teresa lifted her own rifle. “You’re looking at it.”
A brother pulled loose his sidearm and tossed it to Lockman. A .500 Smith & Wesson Magnum that deserved the coveted Hand Cannon title.
Lockman turned the weapon from side to side, admiring. “What happens when we run out of ammo?”
“We move to steel.” From a sheath strapped to his back, a brother drew a sword near as long as Teresa was tall. A straight blade with an ornate hilt, it looked like something out of Medieval times. Who knew with these supernaturals? It could have been from Medieval times.
Lockman smirked. “What was your name again?”
“On this plane I’m known as Adam.”
“You are one badass motherfucker, Adam.”
The ogre showed his teeth. “I know, right?”
With a nod up the stairs, Lockman said, “Let’s move.”
They trudged up the stairs and back into battle.
Chapter Sixty
They made it to the fourth floor before running into trouble.
While some of the lights in the stairwell worked, most were broken and the vamps had no reason to fix them since their night vision was better than average. This meant plenty of shadows in the corners of each landing before the next turn in the staircase. The ogres took point with Teresa close behind. They had the big guns, no matter how huge Adam’s sidearm looked in Lockman’s hand.
The problem with shadows—vamps could hide in them as if part of the shadow itself. That’s why they didn’t see the vamp until they were right on top of him.
The vamp, fat around the middle like a beer drinker instead of a blood drinker, materialized from his shadow like a gathering mist. He grabbed the closest ogre and sank fangs right into the jugular. The ogre coughed, tried to get his rifle between them. The vamp tore a fist-sized chunk from the ogre’s neck with enough force to yank the ogre off his feet.
Ogre flesh still skewered on his fangs, the fat vamp turned for his next victim and got a chest full of silver rounds. The vamp shook as the automatic fire chopped at his body, the holes smoking like steam from a manhole cover. He staggered back to the wall, then used the wall to launch himself forward.
The ogre unloading into the vamp kept firing while the vamp pounced on him and tried to snap at his throat. The rifle barrel jerked up in the struggle and obliterated the vamp’s face.
It leapt away and morphed back into the shadows.
The brother fired after it, chipping the floor and wall until his mag ran dry. “Fuck.” He tossed the rifle down and drew a curved sword identical to the one Marty had used at the brothel.
“Fall back,” Adam shouted.
They hurried down to the landing at the third floor. Adam and the two brothers who still had ammo took position at the base of the stairs leading down to their landing. They crouched and aimed up the stairwell.
The sword-wielding ogre, Teresa, and Lockman fell back to cover the stairs leading from the floor below, just in case. It wasn’t inconceivable that a vamp would jump out a fifth-floor window and circle around back into the building.
The group’s labored breathing echoed back at them in the silence.
“Just the one?” Lockman whispered.
Adam sniffed. “Doubt it.”
“Anyone have a flashlight?”
No one answered. Looked like out of all the equipment Marty had loaded into Vera, he didn’t think to include a single flash light. Lockman noticed the night vision goggles hanging from one of the brother’s belts. He tapped the brother on the shoulder and pointed to the goggles then tapped a thumb against his own chest.
The bother nodded, unhooked the goggle
s, and handed them over.
Direct light was really the only way to break through a vamp’s shadow glamour, but night vision might pick up movement. He fitted the goggles over his eyes, duck walked up behind Adam, and peered up the stairs. The shadows cleared in the green vision the goggles gave him. No sign of any vamp, though. Of course, the shadows he looked at now weren’t the ones the fat vamp had materialized from. Those were on the next landing up by the entrance to the fourth floor. If they decided to advance, hopefully Lockman would see some sign of it when they reached the next landing.
Nothing for a good minute. Lockman grew antsy. The longer they held position, the more they risked getting attacked from behind. But the damn stairwell was the only way up. Not like they could call down one of the broken elevators.
A small spark went off in Lockman’s head. He pulled the goggles off and offered them to Adam. “No guarantees they work, but worth a shot.”
Adam nodded and took the goggles. “I can tell by the look of you, you have another plan.”
“Pieces. I’ll need to borrow Teresa. Can you hold here, keep their attention?”
“A few vamps we can handle. What have you got in mind?”
“Another way up.”
Chapter Sixty-One
“How are your climbing skills?” Lockman asked as he led the way back down to the lobby.
Teresa gave him a sidelong glance. “You know, earlier when I suggested scaling the walls, I was being sarcastic. We don’t have the equipment for that.”
They reached the lobby floor, the wet stink of coagulating vamp juice worse than a troll fart. Lockman pointed toward the open elevator shaft. “I don’t know why I didn’t think about this before.”
“That’s a long climb.”
“It’ll be good for you.”
She cursed under her breath.
“At least I’m telling you the plan ahead of time.”
