by J. P. Rice
A bank of elevators appeared on the left as we continued down the walkway.
“That door over there. Open it,” he said, pointing with the gun at the golden handle of a door off to the right.
I rested my hand on the straight knob and pushed it down. The vampire jabbed me with the barrel again, reminding me not to make any hasty moves. I opened the door and saw Jonathan, handcuffed with his legs tied to a banquet hall chair.
There were about fifteen other vampires in the room, pacing about and whispering to each other. One of the vampires approached us, and asked, “Did you see the boss out there? He’s still not answering his phone.”
Pistol Pete, aka the young vampire behind me said, “No. He might not be answering because he’s on the run still. Give him some time before we panic.” He raised his voice, “Gentlemen. Everyone switch to the silver bullets that have been doused in holy water. And don’t forget to put on gloves.”
As his men huddled around two tables in the corner of the room, Pistol Pete led me over to a chair next to Jonathan.
He pulled a pair of handcuffs from his suit jacket pocket and dangled them in the air. “Extend your arms.”
I put my wrists together and pushed them toward him. The dull clicking sound of closing handcuffs rang in my ears and the cold metal tightened on my wrist. Pistol Pete secured the other wrist. Still holding the chain links in the middle, he stared at the cuffs and his lips moved.
He was casting a protection ward. If I could just distract him a bit, that could weaken the spell.
One of the other vampires across the room yelled, “Darrick, do you want me to tie up his legs?”
I added, “Yeah, maybe you should get some help. I’m a slippery bastard.”
Darrick’s lips stopped moving and he closed his eyes in disgust. “Just let me finish here and you can have at it.” He focused on the cuffs again and finished setting his spell.
Darrick flashed the gun in my face. He loved reminding me of that. The young vampire turned his back and walked across the room, joining his friends, who were greedily loading their weapons.
His little assistant raced over and tied my ankles and calves to the chair. I couldn’t tell what material he was using, but it looked and felt like rubber. Concentrating on my handcuffs, I shifted my vision. I went to the fourth dimension to detect the wards Darrick had set.
They weren’t that complex at all. The distractions had worked. As I focused on freeing the magical defenses, the door swung open and slammed loudly into the wall.
Three cops entered the room. The fourth officer pushed a man in a suit through the door. Holy shit. It was Grill Face. I started to smile as relief coursed through my body.
One of the officers said, “Gentlemen. We found this man down the street at Joey’s Cheesesteaks and while escorting him back here we noticed the blood bath right outside this building. On your property, gentlemen. Who has an answer for all that blood?”
Yes. I hoped the cops realized that we weren’t with these bozos.
Chapter 21
Darrick walked up to the officer, his hands in the air. “How much are we talking, my good man?”
The cop shook his head. “It’s a lot of blood this time. This won’t be easy to frame some people for. I mean, we can do it, but it’ll cost you.”
Darrick spoke softly, “Officer Goodblatte, we’ve been through this before. No need to negotiate. Just give us your number.”
What the fuck was going on here? No. They weren’t...
Goodblatte tossed his head back and forth. “This is at least a twenty grand coverup. I mean, I got three guys with me right here.”
Fucking dirty cops. Of all the luck in the world. Why couldn’t I get one modicum of it?
Darrick suggested, “Let’s call it twenty five. Sound fair?”
Motherfucker.
The corners of Goodblatte’s lips formed into a sleazy smile and his fat cheeks bunch up. “You do know how to take care of Philly’s finest.”
As Darrick called on his assistant to pay the officer, all the other vampires rushed over to Grill Face. They asked him if he was all right and they kept calling him boss. And I was just talking about luck.
The boss shoved everyone away and glowered at me as he stomped in my direction. His face was mangled and raw from the cooking lesson I’d given him earlier. But there was pure, unadulterated anger pasted from his angry, wrinkled forehead all the way down to his dimpled chin.
He was breathing heavily, snarling actually, as he came to a stop right in front of me and leaned down. “Look at what you did to me, you menace. Where is the portal?”
It smelled worse than it looked. “Sorry about that. I left that bag on the street. Turns out it was a different duffle bag I was looking for.”
He stood up and backhanded me across the cheek. My head whipped to the side and pain ran from my ear to my chin. He said, “Wrong answer. Before I kill you out of anger alone, tell me where our portal is.”
Jonathan interjected, “Your portal? Theft does not equal possession.”
The boss turned to the vampire. “It most certainly does in our world. And you know that.”
“Well, it appears that you don’t have it in your possession anymore. So take your righteous indignation and shove it up your ass,” Jonathan taunted him.
The boss took two steps to his right and blasted Jonathan in the jaw. “Shut your face. I’ll deal with you next.”
I tried to study the wards on the handcuffs while Jonathan had the boss distracted. Under the pressure of the situation, I couldn’t find any compromised area in the structure.
“Hey, asshole, look at me,” the boss shouted at me.
Oh shit. I looked up from the handcuffs at his gnarly visage.
He raised his right eyebrow and said, “Stop fucking around. Tell me where the portal is or you’re going to die right here.” He turned over his right shoulder and yelled in the direction of the vampires, “Hey, who wants to take target practice?”
A few men stepped forward, holding revolvers in their hands and sporting wide grins on their faces.
The boss rubbed his fingers together, appearing to be deep in thought. “Wait a minute. There were more of you. Only one body from your side is lying over there. That means at least one man has escaped. And I know he has my portal.”
Jonathan said, “See there you go again calling it your portal. It’s not yours.”
The boss sneered and went after Jonathan again. He reached out with his sausage fingers and grabbed Jonathan by the neck. His forearm flexed, and Jonathan gagged and choked, his face turning the darkest shade of burgundy.
This attack gave me more time and I found an inconsistency in the defense ward that I exploited, canceling the protection spell. Now I just had to slip out of these cuffs. The problem was I had no fucking clue how I was going to do it.
I started to gather in as much strength as I could. Calling on the Dagda, I mentally asked him to project some of his strength into me. I recited a few strength spells and could feel my power swelling. Jonathan was turning purple, so I yelled, “Hey sweetheart, don’t forget about me over here.”
The boss removed his hands from Jonathan’s throat and stared at me with crazy eyes. “Oh, I got time for the both of yous. I hope you don’t have anywhere to be.” He belly-laughed and unleashed a straight right fist that cracked me in the chin. It sent shockwaves up my jaw, aggravating the pain from the previous punch.
Anger pulsed through my body, feeding into the strength I was seeking. I was almost ready to try my most daring magic act yet. “Is that the best you can do, you fucking skirt?” I asked and spat a wad of blood on his shoe.
“Oh, you’re gonna pay for dat,” he promised, drawing his fist back.
Jonathan said, “Don’t give him all the attention. I’m feeling neglected over here.”
The boss turned to Jonathan, then looked back at me, confused as to whom he should hit.
He punched me on the left cheek and the
n hit Jonathan right under his left eye. I said, “You’re making me angry. I think you should stop now. You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry.”
Another look of confusion came over his grizzled face. “The fuck is wrong wit ya. You ain’t green and you ain’t the Hulk. A minute ago you was beggin’ for me to hit you. Now, you think I’m gonna stop.”
I fed off the anger, letting it burn inside me, fueling me for the great escape. Anger was a great motivator. “I’m a complicated guy. What can I say?”
“You can say where the fuck the portal is, or else.” He drew a knife out of the inside pocket in his jacket. He pulled the blade out of the black handle and locked it into place.
“Or else what?” Jonathan asked.
He pointed the blade at Jonathan. “I’ll get to you. The two of yous are a couple of fucking clowns if I’ve ever seen ‘em.”
I drowned out his words as he continued to berate Jonathan and me. Focused on the task at hand, I needed to be prepared equally in body and mind. I got angry. And turned it into strength.
I pushed my wrists together as the boss blathered on about respect or a dying generation or something like that. A vision of the Hulk entered my head and the green giant wouldn’t leave.
A rumbling scream started in my belly and erupted from my mouth as I yanked my hands apart. A flash of silver sparked in my eyes as the chain links broke and freed my hands. Calling fire to my fingertips, I brushed them down the legs of the chair, cutting away my restraints.
The vampires across the room noticed the commotion and started to aim their revolvers at us. They were a little timid because the boss was right in between Jonathan and me. Now on my feet, I raised my right foot and booted the boss in the stomach, causing him to fall onto his back.
With him out of the way, I conjured up a protection shield and placed it in front of Jonathan and me. The vampires began firing, bullets pinging off my shield. Since we were safe for the moment, I looked at Jonathan’s tied-up legs and noticed complex wards had been set on them.
I explained, “It will take me more than a few minutes to bust up these spells. Just walk with the chair and stay next to me. Can you see the shield in front of us?”
“Yes. It’s taking a beating.”
“Just stay behind it and you’ll be safe. It should be strong enough to get us out of here.” I pulled two red winter hats out of my back pockets and handed one to Jonathan. As I put the other one on my head, I instructed, “Put it on. It’s looks stupid, but it will save our lives.”
Some of the vampires moved over to blockade the door, so I assumed that was our only exit. As we slowly moved toward the door with bullets slamming off our protection shield, I called on two fireballs, one for each hand. I didn’t need one to get jealous of the other.
I didn’t mold the balls as much as I normally would since this was aimed more at intimidation. With one quick underhand motion, I launched both balls at the exit door. Panic appeared on all their faces as the fireballs zoomed through the air, heading straight at them. There was no honor among these vampires they pushed and shoved each other to get out of the way.
The fireballs buzzed by, one missing everyone because a vampire jumped over it at the last moment. The other one skimmed a vampire’s back and they simultaneously slammed into the doors, blasting a big hole in them.
The men scattered around the room, worried another fireball attack could follow. I tried to hustle for the door, but Jonathan was struggling with the chair connected to his body. I slowed down to make sure Jonathan was still protected by the shield. Shifting my vision, I realized that we needed to hurry. This shield wasn’t going to last much longer. And until it was fully destroyed, I couldn’t conjure another.
But that would leave us extremely vulnerable, so we had to haul ass. “Jonathan. Just hold onto me and try to hop behind me. Grab onto my back and shoulder.”
Although Jonathan probably looked like a rabbit hopping behind me, this worked better than him trying to run. I kicked the smoking doors open and we moved out into the hallway. I shifted the shield around so that it would protect us from behind as we walked backwards toward the front door.
Several vampires stepped out into the hallway and the firing squad picked up again. I thought they would have gotten frustrated and given up by now, but they kept shooting. The shield was highly compromised and a well-placed shot could shatter the entire thing. I moved Jonathan in front and started pushing him toward the final exit.
Hop-a-long Cassidy and I wormed our way down the hall and neared the front door. The sound of shattering metal nearly caused me to go deaf as the protection shield finally gave way. Jonathan leaned to the right and grabbed the doorknob.
He turned the knob and pushed the chair toward the door, twisting his body back toward the gunmen. I heard the repeat action of the firing revolver. Without thinking, I threw my left arm out to my side to protect Jonathan’s face.
Pain pierced my left arm and blood spurted from several places. I couldn’t tell where or how many times I’d been shot because my arm was already drenched in blood. My breathing became erratic and bright colors streaked into my vision.
Standing in the doorway of the vampire’s compound in Philly, I thought I would die. I waited for the next shot to hit me and wondered what was taking so long. As I waited, something yanked my shirt and pulled me outside the building.
I fell into a pool of blood, next to Jonathan, who still had the chair attached to his backside. We scrambled to our feet and I heard the door open behind me. I turned around and wanted to see the face of my killer.
As I stared at his unmemorable features, his pale forehead turned red. His eyes went dead and he fell backwards. Another vampire stepped outside, only to be mowed down immediately. Glenda and Del Rubio had us covered from the rooftop. Delirious, I walked with Jonathan across the bloody entranceway and hit the sidewalk.
Euphoric visions appeared in front of me. It was a bunch of no good demons. I reached out and tried to grab them. The winter sun gleamed down, stinging my eyes and causing me to see white polka dots.
Jonathan said, “Mike, come on. Don’t stop now.”
His words didn’t help much for the pain that now engulfed the entire left side of my body. But I continued up the sidewalk as the people gasped and shrieked at the bloody wizard and the vampire with a chair stuck to him.
I spotted the getaway car up ahead and a surge of adrenaline rushed through my systems, giving me a temporary boost of energy and focus. I looked down at my arm, dripping with blood, and my heart began to pound against my ribcage.
Glenda and Del Rubio rushed up behind us, scaring me at first. A chill rushed through me and I shivered, my bloody arm hanging at my side. I collapsed to the ground.
Del Rubio asked, “What the fuck happened?”
Jonathan said, “Never mind. These ties around my legs have wards set on them that we need to break before I can get in the vehicle.”
Glenda said, “I can get those off once we stop. Mike’s losing a lot of blood. Is he going to be all right?”
Jonathan answered, “Start working on the wards, Glenda. Del Rubio. You call Dr. Evans and tell him we are stopping by. Tell him it’s a gunshot victim so he can prepare. He’s been shot in the forearm and biceps. And, oh shit, he’s bleeding from right below his collarbone. I think they hit the subclavian artery with how much he is bleeding. Tell him to be ready. And then prepare a few tourniquets for his arm.”
The adrenaline wore off quickly with all the gunshot talk. Everything slowed down in my head until it came to a sudden stop. I couldn’t tell if I was awake, dreaming or dead. A quick peek over my right shoulder revealed the pack of demons were still on my tail.
Glenda said, “He’s leaking way too bad. There’s traffic backed up out the ass. He’s not going to make it to the doctor’s house.”
“There is a way that we can boost his healing and regenerative powers,” Jonathan hinted.
Glenda objected, “You can’t turn h
im. You just can’t.”
“If we don’t, he’s going to die,” Del Rubio added.
“What would you do?” Roman asked.
Glenda answered, “Between being dead and being one of you, that’s a hard choice. There, you’re free.”
Jonathan said, “Thank you for removing that chair. Should we let him die or should we give him a boost?”
“Fuck. He can’t die. That’s too much traffic. I guess you should do it,” Glenda stated.
Jonathan explained, “It’s going to take all three of us since he needs our regenerative and healing powers fast. And I don’t even know if that’s going to work. We will all bite him and then merge some of our blood with his. Let’s get him into the vehicle and then do this.”
My body seized up, muscles tightened, and my mouth ran dry. The demons closed in on me with their arms extended.
Jonathan continued, “And we all agree right now that we aren’t going to tell him about this.”
Roman said, “That’s fine, but he’s going to figure it out at some point.”
“Once he starts to turn, it’ll be obvious,” Del Rubio added.
Glenda asked, “Why don’t you want him to know?”
Jonathan answered, “We all know how the self-righteous bastard is. He’ll say that he could have survived without it and will always hold it over our heads. You all know it’s true. I’ll figure out something to tell him. But for now, your lips are shut. Okay?”
A chorus of voices said, “Okay.”
I felt like I was floating on a cloud, high above all the trivial problems of the earth’s surface. So free. So far away from responsibility.
Jonathan spoke, “He’s starting to go into spasms. We need to hurry. Fangs out, gentlemen.”
The world went dark, but I could feel the demons pinching me, then biting me, piercing my skin and sinking their jagged teeth into my flesh. The darkness began to lighten and settled on red. Blood red. Then everything stopped. No pain. No suffering.
Chapter 22
