As the sun finally set, natural light no longer reaching the depths of the canyon, the lights of the buildings turned on. The multicolored beams radiating off the dwellings and places of business magically illuminated the sprawling canyon, and Alex marveled at the beauty of the sight. He was especially awed when they drove through stretches of road that took them straight through the cliff walls, and within these dark tunnels a myriad of lights surrounded them, floor to ceiling, making Alex feel as if they had left the surface of earth and had somehow been instantaneously transported to an unknown dream world a million miles away.
Ever farther into the city Moody drove them, turning this way and that along the smoothly paved road, deeper and deeper into this underground labyrinth that seemed to stretch on indefinitely. Leaning forward to capture every fascinating detail, Alex became mesmerized by this hidden metropolis, one that appeared much more modern than Eville, and in some ways not entirely dissimilar to regular cities from the “other side.” Certainly, there were plenty of bizarre structures to gawk at constantly, but many of the buildings surrounding them were constructed in a fashion relatively similar to what Alex would call a “normal” house or business. Additionally, multistory buildings, some of which could easily be termed skyscrapers, crawled up the canyon’s walls, filled with many hundreds of lit rooms towering above the traffic.
As the stars in the night sky high above the canyon’s great walls slowly stepped out, and Moody worked her way deeper into the city, Alex noticed a gradual change taking over the surroundings. The streets became darker, light posts were positioned less frequently, or in some cases vandalized. The attractive buildings from only a few miles back were now replaced by dilapidated, misused structures, ill-kept and covered in graffiti. Trash could be seen piled up carelessly along the street or in front of homesteads, and the few citizens brazen enough to be walking about took on a decidedly untrustworthy appearance, giving the immediate impression that they were up to no good. Even in Serene’s fascinating world there were slums, poverty and crime to be found.
“Quasimoody, dear, pull over here if you would please,” Serene said at last, in the roughest looking neighborhood they had yet encountered. “This is a good spot to get out on foot.”
As the hunchback brought the vehicle to a gentle stop, Alex leaned forward in his seat to gaze distrustfully at the filthy buildings and oddball characters bumbling about the dimly lit street. Catching his attention in particular, just next to their vehicle, lying atop a mound of refuse, was an especially gnarly looking goblin, asleep, passed out from too much booze, or knocked unconscious, Alex knew not which. The ratty creature’s thick, black tongue hung lazily from its wide mouth, while his floppy ears twitched every now and again to shoo off the buzzing flies circling the disgusting sight.“You want us to get out here? Right here?” Alex asked dubiously, pointing toward the goblin.
“Certainly,” Serene explained, “this is as fine a place as any for Quasimoody and you to proceed with the mission. Now, here is the fee for the forger,” she added, removing the stack of souls from her handbag. “Put it somewhere out of plain sight. Stuff it in your pants or something. I’ll leave you in charge of the hand-off.”
“Really? Wonderful. Thanks. And just what about you?” Alex asked.
“I shall stay with the vehicle, naturally.”
“Naturally. And why exactly are we heading out alone, I might ask?” Alex asked with heat. “Just what are you going to be doing with the pickup that’s so important while we’re out there with all the muggers, and drug dealers, and freaking rapists…and who knows what else?”
“Come, come, you’ll be fine, silly boy. I don’t know where you get these outlandish notions. I believe you have an entirely corrupted opinion of the situation. Why, these folk aren’t so bad they’re just…,” Serene trailed off searching for the right words, and as she did so the goblin turned on its side and vomited a massive green pile of filth onto the ground. “…a bit rough around the edges is all. A tad uncouth, you could say. Salt of the earth, you know.”
“Let me get this straight. You want Moody and me to go out there in freaking ghetto-ville, at night, with this huge wad of money, and walk blindly into some criminal forger’s home we know next to nothing about? All the while you get to sit on your ass in the truck with the doors locked?”
“Bah! You make it sound as though it’s dangerous out there. You’ll be fine. Besides, the forger’s apartment is just around the corner. You should only have to walk seven or eight blocks.”
“Oh, is that all?”
“Come, come. Quasimoody can more than handle herself. And it’s really very safe. Isn’t that right, Quasimoody?”
Moody grunted in reply as she reached under her seat, groping about for a few moments, eventually pulling out a handsome hunting knife with a blade no less than eight inches long. The hunchback calmly slipped the sheathed weapon into the front of her pants so that the hilt would be clearly visible to all who might walk near.
“Hey, look at that. I feel safer already,” Alex groaned, pointing at Moody’s waist.
“Think of this as an adventure, my boy! Honestly, I thought you’d be tickled pink that I’m sending you out with some company.”
“So your first inclination was to send me out here by myself, I take it.”
“The thought had crossed my mind. We really shouldn’t be seen together publicly. And of the three of us, you are the least recognizable. Having you go out on your own makes the most sense. But, considering you’re unfamiliar with the area, I deemed it best to have both of you meet this contact of Stephen’s. We don’t want you getting lost down the wrong alley, now do we?”
“Well thank you for being so considerate,” Alex replied. “Or, how about this, you go out there and get the stupid passports (or whatever they are), and Moody and I hold the fort here in the truck?”
“Preposterous! Can you imagine a sophisticate such as Lady Andromeda Divine stepping foot into this neighborhood? I do believe it is more than obvious that my luxurious gown clashes with the local riffraff. I should be singled out in an instant.”
“See, now there I think you’re wrong. You’d fit in just fine standing over on that corner down there,” Alex argued, pointing up the block. “Just hike your dress up a bit and flirt with anybody who walks your way and you’d be perfect.”
“Now, now, just because you’re in a foul mood doesn’t give you the right to turn uncivil. You, on the other hand will fit in nicely. Your attire is suitably…Bohemian.”
“Bohemian? Listen, you picked this freaking clown suit out, remember? Moody, are you going to help me out or what?” The hunchback in response sighed loudly, opened the door, and hauled Alex out along with her.
“There! That’s a good lad!” Serene chirped, sliding across the bench to the steering wheel. “Now, I’ll drive this old beast around the neighborhood, passing this spot every…oh, ten or fifteen minutes. If I’m not here when you arrive after the exchange just wait for me. I’ll turn up eventually.”
The truck’s door slammed shut with a crunch, and Serene drove off with her arm stretched out the window, waving a cheerful goodbye. It was chilly out, and the air smelled stagnant and foul. The goblin atop the trash heap had begun snoring loudly, and Alex noted with disgust that the green pool of vomit next to it was bubbling noxiously.
“Yeah, real nice place Lady Divine brought us. We’ll have a lot of special memories from this one. If Serene had brought her camera I could take a precious memory of this puking goblin. It’s what we call a Kodak moment where I come from. We could blow it up and place it on the mantel. Wouldn’t that be great?”
“Just stick close to me and don’t look anyone in the eye,” Moody commanded. “Can you handle that? I’m not any more thrilled about this than you are. Let’s just get it over with. And keep your damned mouth shut for once.”
Alex nodded with a last aggravated sigh, and stepped apace with the hunchback farther down the street. Even with Moody strut
ting along confidently only inches away, a face frightening enough to intimidate someone several times her size, Alex immediately felt profoundly vulnerable and anxious in this sinister environment. While amongst the oddballs of Eville, never once did he feel as though they were particularly dangerous, or possessed the strong intent of inflicting harm on anyone. Creeping along these darkened streets, however, he could literally feel the aura of treachery beating down upon him from behind every door and shaded window. Whispered conversations echoed out of the dank shadows in filthy alleys, planning, scheming with evil intent. The few passersby along the street would shiftily glance at him and Moody as they drew near, the dishonest wheels in their mind spinning, laboring to connive some way to cheat or swindle. Thugs loitered about under streetlamps or on doorsteps, sizing up the two strangers, contemplating if they might possess anything worth taking — after slipping a knife in their backs, that is.
The two walked forward two blocks and then took a right. As they proceeded farther down the street a man came into view whose presence stood in sharp contrast to everything they had previously seen in this rotten neighborhood. Leaning against a rusting mailbox was a tall, handsome figure. Unlike the dirty, rag-covered impoverished they had seen crawling about this den of misery, he was clothed in a striking three piece suit, expertly tailored, immaculate, shiny shoes on his feet, and atop his head was a black fedora. Wisps of cigarette smoke curled outward from his raised hand, and as he brought his fingers to his lips and inhaled, the burning flicker illuminated a face clean shaven, and a pair of cold, soul-piercing eyes staring straight at them.
As Moody and Alex drew nearer to this figure he stood erect and focused his attention on the newcomers, his eyes narrowing shrewdly. Alex instantly felt a chill rush through him, slicing down his entire spine, and his heart impulsively began pounding in his chest. His hands started to shake, and noticing this he quickly thrust them into his pockets, hoping the man hadn’t yet had time to notice. He tried his best to act oblivious to the man, determined to avoid eye contact, focusing on the dim street before him. Yet once they got within arm’s reach of the stranger, the figure took a step forward, blocking their path, and glared at Alex. Alex instinctively glanced back at the man for an instant, directly into those stabbing gray eyes, and then bowed his head, eyes turned to the cracked sidewalk at his feet. The man then focused on Moody, blowing a long, thick stream of smoke down toward her face. In response, the undaunted hunchback lifted her head and confronted him with a defiant look that said “You want a piece of me?” For several anxious seconds Moody and the man stared into each other’s eyes, the man probing, guessing with every subtle shift of his gaze, while Moody held his icy stare, brazenly undaunted. All the while Alex stared at his feet, not a clue what he should do next. Having taken a thorough scan of Alex and Moody from head to toe one last time, the suited man peered farther down the street from whence they had come, as if he expected to see someone or something trailing behind. At long last, apparently satisfied, the man spat at Moody’s feet, sneered at Alex and the hunchback, and stepping back, took his place against the mailbox, sending a small shower of ashes drifting down from his cigarette with the flick of a finger.
Moody casually slipped her arm in Alex’s, gave the mysterious man a final filthy look, and continued down the street once more as if nothing had just happened. After they had stepped several yards away Alex turned to Moody, his eyes wide with unease. “U-E-L?” he mouthed silently, his lips trembling. She shook her head quickly, her own eyes reflecting unmistakable alarm and doubt. Feeling positively terrified now, having seen the confident look on Moody’s face suddenly vanish, Alex mouthed, “I want to go back.” Moody sucked in her lower lip for a moment, contemplating as she strolled forward at a steady pace, and then shook her head again. Alex cursed under his breath and sighed as Moody’s grip around his arm tightened and continued down the street at a quicker pace.
The situation only became more alarming as they proceeded across the next couple of blocks. They passed two more men wearing similar suits, each of whom carefully scrutinized Alex and Moody. Additionally, at least three more such men could be seen on the opposite side of the street. Alex didn’t need to know who these men were to understand that they were dangerous and there for a reason, which in all likelihood was to seize Serene and her employees. Adding to the palatable sense of dread was the realization that since passing that first stranger, all of the locals seemed to have vanished. The street had become deathly quiet, more unsettling than the whispers previously emanating from the shadows.
They had traversed five blocks since exiting the pickup, when a tingling sensation set in on the back of Alex’s neck, an undeniable, inexplicable awareness that he was being followed, despite neither hearing nor seeing anything to suggest it. Slowly he began craning his neck to the left, as though he were going to speak to his companion, while he strained his eyes to reach as far back in his peripheral as possible, hoping to verify his suspicion. Immediately noticing his movement, Moody grunted and shook her head, flashing a stern warning with her green eyes. “Don’t look back,” she murmured.
“I think we’re being followed,” he mumbled in her ear.
“We are, dummy. Keep walking and shut up.”
Several anxious yards they continued, and then Moody turned left and began crossing to the opposite side of the street toward a small, dingy apartment complex. Pretending that he was looking both ways to check for traffic, Alex seized the opportunity to shoot a glance back where they had come from, and for a fraction of a second he thought he saw the silhouette of one of the well-dressed men, maybe two, yet the vision seemed to dissolve into the shadows the moment he laid eyes on it. Moody must have seen it too because she quickened her pace, hauling Alex up the stairs into the apartment complex. Hurriedly she swung open the rickety entrance door, pulled Alex inside, and shut the door behind them.
“This is bad. Crap. Serene owes me big for this,” Moody hissed, cautiously peering through a window adjacent to the entrance. “Damn that crazy harpy.”
“What’s going on?” Alex whispered with unrestrained anxiety. “Who are these people?”
“And to think we were worried about running into UEL agents.” Moody stepped away from the window, took a deep breath, and gazed up the stairwell leading to the units above. “Damn it. Well, little man, the short of it is this neighborhood is completely infested with vampires of the worst kind, and I’m willing to wager Serene’s chest that every freaking one of them is rounding up their buddies to come pay us a visit.”
Chapter 10- Scarab
“Vampires?” Alex asked, timidly peeking over Moody’s shoulder out the window. “How can you be so sure?”
“I can smell their stink from a mile away, for starters,” Moody replied.
Alex sniffed the air. “Is that metaphorical, or is this like when you said that I had some weird ‘Othersider’ odor? Back in Eville, I mean?” Moody rolled her eyes, pushed Alex aside, and searched as far off in each direction as she could through the window’s limited visibility. “Well…maybe it’s all in our heads…we’re just being paranoid. Maybe…maybe they’re not looking for us,” Alex added hopefully. “If they really wanted us…well, wouldn’t they have done something by now? Why not grab us when we were on the street? I mean, what are they waiting for?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know,” she mumbled back, biting her lower lip in anxious thought. “But for once this isn’t a case of you being a paranoid little sissy. These guys are definitely following us with great interest. The only thing I can figure is that they’re biding their time, hoping that Serene shows up, too. She’s the one they would want, not us. But how they knew to wait for us here…I don’t know.”
“But don’t vampires like Serene? Isn’t she sort of a…I don’t know…celebrity among them with her Varlic?”
“These aren’t your normal vampires, little man, and they ain’t here for Varlic. They have to be CN. I’m positive.”
“CN
?”
“Cosa Nosferatu. A very old, very powerful organization of vampire families who you do not want to screw with. Even the UEL can’t control these guys. The fact that they’re here is very, very bad news.”
“So like…they’re… vampire mafia?”
“I know you’re out there. I can feel you,” Moody continued, her face nearly pressed to the glass, eyes straining into the shadowed alleys outside. “Serene, what the hell have you stirred up?”
“So what do we do?”
The hunchback sighed heavily, panned down the street one last time, and then stepped away from the window and leaned her back against the door. Alex anxiously waited for an answer, imagining that at any moment now the door or window would burst open and a pack of stylishly dressed vampires would swarm them. It was a horrible feeling, finding himself in a frightening, unfamiliar city, possessing no knowledge whatsoever of the fiends following them, and being virtually powerless to do anything about it. All he could do was wait and hope that his friend would come up with a brilliant plan. The seconds ticked painfully by, Moody alternately tapping the hilt of her knife nervously, staring up into the stairwell doubtfully, and gritting her teeth in frustration. “Well,” she at last broke the painful silence, “there’s no way in Hell I’m going back out this front door. We’re not getting anywhere that way. So…the way I see it…whether they’re waiting for us to come out of these apartments, or waiting on more of their kind to arrive, it doesn’t really matter now. They’re holding, so we should take advantage of this window of opportunity.”
“Ok.” Alex nodded in agreement.
“So…this is the place where we’re supposed to meet the forger. I say we haul ass to the fourth floor as quickly and quietly as possible and do what we came here to do, hopefully before they come barging in. And…if we’re lucky, considering the nature of his businesses, maybe this guy upstairs will have a clever way out of this mess…back door, side exit…something. Anything is better than charging straight out the front. That’s all I got.”
Eville's Most Wanted Page 8
