The Blood In the Beginning

by Kim Falconer

  Daniel Bane’s words came back to me, taunting now instead of reassuring. ‘I’ll look after Cate.’ He’d convinced me VIP was a floorshow, drug-free and completely safe. All lies? Heat rose to my head, and Joey sprang. I slammed him with an uppercut, knocking the daylights out of him. He hit the floor as blue siren lights whirled outside the building. How long would it take for someone to let them in? I did need a squad car full of cops, but what were the chances they’d storm Poseidon based on my sampling of Joey’s blood? They’d lock me up and throw away the key, at least until morning. I grabbed my phone and tapped Rourke’s number. He could help.

  ‘I’m sorry. The phone you are trying to reach is switched off or out of service. Please wait for the tone to leave a message.’

  ‘It’s Ava. Call me!’

  Damn it. I couldn’t let these cops delay me, and without Rourke to give me a hall pass, they would. Hang on, Cate. I’m coming. I pocketed my phone and tied my hair in a quick ponytail. There was no plan. No backup. Just a tidal wave of adrenaline, and not enough time. I grabbed my gun, extra ammo and combat knife, strapping the sheath to my thigh. I shouldered my pack and slipped into the hall. The cops would be out of their car by now, so I ran the other way, to the fire escape in the back of the building, then out into the night. It was a short sprint across the neighbouring lot and down the next street over. My only thought was to storm Poseidon, and bring Cate out alive.

  * * *

  The glare of the streetlights dimmed. The sky paled. I was still running, the blocks flying by. I reached South Broadway and hung a left. Not like I had a bus schedule in my pocket. It felt like Cate’s life was slipping away. Do something! I scanned the cars lining the street until I spotted a Cortina a block ahead. It was the first car I’d learnt to drive, courtesy of Isaac, Betty Smathers’ son. He’d also taught me how to start a car without a key. That was about to come in handy. I slammed to a halt, breathing like a bellows. The Cortina was a 1982 model, good condition, by the look of the exterior. Old enough to not have a car alarm. Without a second thought, I gloved my hand in my hoodie, smashed it through the driver’s side window, upped the lock and opened the door. A dog barked, but other than that, the street stayed quiet. ‘Don’t worry, little car. From here on, there won’t be another scratch.’

  I got into the driver’s seat, brushing glass away. What I needed was a flat head screwdriver and a high speed drill. My knife would have to do. There wasn’t time to knock on doors, asking to borrow tools. I positioned the tip of the knife two-thirds the way up from the keyhole, steadied it with my left hand and slammed it home with the heel of my right. I pounded until the blade was deep enough to take out all the lock pins. Then I jammed the knife in the ignition and turned. The little darling fired straight up. ‘Okay, maybe a bit more of a scratch, but that’s it.’ I revved the engine and dropped the clutch.

  Yeah, I jacked the car. Not proud of it, but if the blood vision was right, my friend’s life was at stake. Or she was dead. Both possibilities made me crazy. The Cortina lurched toward the sparse traffic, jolted and slammed to a halt. Stalled. I rubbed the whiplash out of my neck. It had been a while since I’d been behind the wheel. I twisted the knife again. She started straight back up. Good girl. The nearest house lit up. A screen door slammed. Uh oh. A guy with a baseball bat ran toward me. This time, I revved, eased out the clutch and took off down the street, a little jerky, but I managed to grind through the gears. ‘Sorry,’ I said, over my shoulder.

  The sun cracked the horizon, blinding me. I flew down the deserted streets, keeping to the top end of the speed limit. A cop on my ass, while driving a stolen car, was not going to make my future any prettier. Or Cate’s, if I didn’t find her in time. No sign of a green Subaru. I fished out the phone and tapped Rourke again. Message service. ‘Rourke, if you get this, I’m at Poseidon. The floorshow’s real. They’ve got Cate.’

  When I reached the intersection a block from the club, I sped down the street, swerved in front of a milk truck and slammed to a halt parallel to those tall black doors. A second later, they cracked open, one security guard stuck his head out. That was my cue. I unclipped my safety belt and jammed the gears into reverse.

  In full kamikaze mode, I twisted around and revved again, hit the pedal and flew backward toward the other side of the street. The Cortina’s engine screamed, RPMs maxed. The car bumped over the centre strip and into the unsuspecting storefront opposite Poseidon. Glass fell and metal screeched. It must have been a stationery store, judging by the amount of paper confetti flying around. As it rained on the car, I sucked in some deep breaths, psyching up for my next move.

  Rossi! Not sure why he came so vividly to mind, but I pulled out my phone and punched through a text. In case I never came out, might help to let the Mar half know where I’d gone. Poseidon has Cate. I’m getting her out.

  He must have been watching the sun rise because he answered straight back. Wait. This is over your head.

  Going in now.

  The phone rang and I switched it off, tossing it in the back seat.

  Before the debris settled, I floored it, jamming the stick shift into second. Yeah, it was going to be a spin start. The black doors opened a little wider. Two heads peeked out this time. I couldn’t see their expressions from here. Didn’t care.

  I razzed the RPMs, feathering the accelerator, then tucked my chin to my chest and dropped the clutch. With eyes shut and pedal to the metal, the car spun, then rocketed off the kerb, across three lanes, and over the centre strip. The tyres barely touched down before I screamed past the lanes flowing the opposite way. The odometer clocked fifty mph when I clipped the far kerb and catapulted straight into Poseidon.

  My vision blazed like a supernova. An earsplitting crack ripped through the air as I hit the doors, then all sound dropped to a rumble. Time slowed. I was suspended, unable to feel my foot on the accelerator or my hands clamping the wheel. Blood rushed in my ears, my heart pounding a single beat.

  The two security guards, moving in slo-mo, jumped away from the doors, aimed guns at my head and fired. I wasn’t the only one in kamikaze mode. Bullets riddled the windshield before the car slammed both men. Their guns spiralled away, and the guards crumpled under the chassis. The brick wall either side fractured, spraying in every direction.

  Sounds fell like an avalanche, punctuated by shattering glass and splintering wood. The Cortina’s airborne wheels zinged. The windshield shattered, fragments spitting everywhere. The foyer air hit my face. I sucked in a breath. Get out! Out! Out! I kicked open the driver’s door and launched past the flying rubble. Everything hung in unreal time, except for me. I accelerated through the air like a missile.

  Instantly the world rushed back, full speed. My hands covered my head. Land on your feet! No such luck. I hit the ground on my side, stopping the forward motion with my head as I skidded toward the wall. White light flared. I welcomed it, the pain snapping me into focus. The plan was simple. Find Cate. Get her out.

  The car collided with the back wall, flames bursting to life around it. Hot air burned my eyes. Holy hell. I’d taken out the entire entrance, letting the rising sunlight blaze in. I stood, shook myself and walked over the rubble to the elevator. When I reached it, the bell chimed and the doors slid open. Crap.

  Four off-duty security guards, mid-conversation, froze. They must have been heading home. No earphones. Bags over their shoulders. Shades on. Mar, every one of them, I guessed. It took them a moment to comprehend the hole in the wall, and the burning car. Slowly, their eyes turned to me.

  ‘Hey, guys.’

  They dropped their bags and attacked.

  I darted back to the centre of the foyer. The Poseidon boys spread out, staying in the shadows. In the back of my mind, I heard Rossi’s voice as he argued with Teern. She’s stronger than us by day. Time to put that theory to the test. I charged at the guy closest to the light, doing a handless cartwheel and landing half a foot from his face. Before he could react, I grabbed his shirt and h
eadbutted him, cracking his shades in half. As they fell apart, I slammed him with an elbow to the eye socket. He staggered back, into the beams of daylight and fell on his ass. I leapt and pounded him into the ground while the others swept in. The guy beneath me was putty, so I jumped up to face the next.

  He was ready, punching me rapid-fire. I blocked, backing toward the burning car. No way was I letting him fry me like a piece of bacon. On his next punch, I dropped, spinning my leg around in a full sweep. My boot clipped his ankle. He went over backward and I followed him down, hammer fisting his head into the concrete. He wasn’t getting up.

  ‘Bane isn’t going to forgive and forget this time.’ Jason and my old buddy Raphael were on me.

  ‘Who says I’m giving him the chance?’

  They laughed and grabbed my arms.

  I rose like a jack-in-the-box, wrenching my left arm free and slamming it into Jason’s jaw. As he fell, I used his shoulder as a pivot point and did a nose dive, letting my left leg fly up. My heel clocked Raphael in the face, but that didn’t slow the big guy down. ‘You’re dead, Sykes.’

  A low growl rose up in my throat. I snapped back to land on my feet. Jason was up and coming at me, Raph right with him. I tucked into a backward roll to stand in the midst of the beaming sunrise. I don’t have time for this. Warmed on one side by the sun, and the other by the incinerating car, I pulled my gun. They hesitated. Jason tapped his ear, as if to speak into his headset, but he wasn’t wearing one. I aimed past him at the Cortina’s petrol tank and fired two quick shots. It exploded, flames jumping to the ceiling, shrapnel flying. Jason went down burning.

  Raphael ran up the side of the wall. I aimed at him but he was already dropping down on me. My knees buckled. Pain shot up my legs as I hit the concrete slab. He pinned me down, grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked my head to the side. ‘You know what we’re going to do, Ava?’ He licked my cheek as his thoughts penetrated my mind. We’re going to fuck you before we drink your blood so the whole crew can relive your pain, over and over.

  I don’t think so. My gun was pressed into his heart and I squeezed the trigger, firing three times. His body was a silencer, deadening the sound, the kick slammed my spine into the rubble. I pushed him off and struggled to my feet. The elevator door was still open. I walked in, took a breath and pressed VIP.

  * * *

  I had a minute to cool down. This ride is what started the nightmare in the first place. I pulled out the second clip and popped it into my pistol. An image of Cate flashed into my mind, her body chained to the wall, eyes rolled up into the back of her head. Don’t let it be too late. I tried to steady myself with slow deep breaths. It didn’t do jackshit. With my other hand, I grabbed my knife from its sheath.

  They might not sense me coming, if I watched the mental broadcasting. My thoughts had been spinning off in every direction. Could others read them? Could I read theirs? I shut my eyes and saw Cate again. A new surge of adrenaline shot through me. I was ready to tear the building apart to find my friend. It felt out of control. Too chaotic. Unschooled. I couldn’t do a thing about it. Blood pumped through me like lava under pressure. Hyped to the max. Maybe I’d gotten a hit of whatever Joey was on when I tasted his blood. Maybe not. I was only a hair this side of crazy. I knew it, and I was going to make it work for me.

  As the elevator passed club level, I shut down my mind, containing thoughts into a tight, whirling ball of light. Then I opened a window outward, a one-way conduit, reaching toward every active mind in the building. Words, fragments, ideas flashed, hitting me like a semi-automatic. Too much! I tried to dial it back, filter. Nothing worked.

  The thoughts raced by, a million miles per second. I stood in the middle, eye of the hurricane, until my whole body shook. I had images alright. Dead bodies, torture, wicked evil. Cate chained to the wall. Heat rose. The pressure slammed my head. I sucked in a breath and screamed, punching my fist into the wall. The metal warped, leaving a pocket in the smooth surface. I tried to control the hyperventilating. The elevator hit the bottom floor and I crouched, ready to blast my way to Cate.

  Slowly, the doors opened.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  It took a moment for my eyes to adjust. The lights were dim, the air smoky blue, aromas sickly sweet. Bubbles rose from the giant aquarium, rushing up in force but vanishing before they reached the surface. The giant eels gaped at the mouth of a cave. Rays hovered over the sandy bottom like stalled cars. Sharks circled. I picked up the scents of violence, sex, lust, blood and a hint of remnant longing, but all that was coated in a glutted stupor, a lethargy smothering the room. I stepped out of the elevator.

  No heads turned as the doors closed behind me. The music sounded ethereal with a techno beat, like rain pounding on a tin roof, or the sea crashing into a wall. I glanced at the tank. What was that, buoyed up in the bubbles? A boot? Foot? A flash of silver swept by, rolled and engulfed it before I could be sure.

  The strobe lights blinked on the empty stage where two workers in grey jumpsuits packed up. There were a dozen people lounging around the dance floor, reclining on couches or sitting at tables lit with glowing oil dishes. The soft light made caricatures of their faces, eyes nearly closed, mouths slack. The walls amplified their profiles to giant, monstrous shadows. A few couples, some same sex, some opposite, leaned against each other, shuffling in the centre of the room, slow-dancing to the ambient drone. The place was dead, coated in molasses, thick, sticky and brown. I straightened and scanned the perimeter, searching for Cate.

  Most of the back wall was empty, manacles hanging limp. I blinked at the painting hanging behind the bar. It was Rachel’s, the one of Daina and her severed feet, the copycat murderer reflected in her tear. I steeled myself and kept looking. There were four columns set in front of a dais that ran the length of the building. Chains hung off of them as well. Some still held limbs, minus the torso. Vomit rose to my throat. I swallowed it down. I spotted Cate, pinned to the wall, just like the vision. Her head was cocked to the side, leaning on her shoulder, body stripped naked save for a necklace of pearls. One wrist hung free, blood dripping from it into a goblet on the edge of a small round table. I watched for her chest to rise and fall. Didn’t see it. Next to her, leaning against the wall, sat Daniel Bane. His eyes were hooded, watching me. My muscles rippled as I rolled my shoulders and pointed my pistol across the room, directly at his face. ‘Bane!’

  Heads snapped to attention. His security guards, six at least, converged on me. Three blocked my line of sight, so I let off a few rounds. It didn’t drop them, but they stumbled. Bulletproof vests, or Shen Mar? Billy was ten feet away, showing a lot of teeth. I aimed at him and two others jumped me. My gun hand windmilled ninety degrees while my knife came up. I thrust my arms out like a scarecrow as both guards, unable to slow their momentum, connected full force. In the same instant as the knife impaled flesh, I pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the target’s neck, snapping it as he flew back. The blade sank into the other’s sternum and into the meat of his heart. He fell off the blade, blood gushing out of his chest as he fell to hit the floor. The rest of the guards pulled their guns and aimed.

  ‘Don’t shoot!’ Bane commanded. She’s mine.

  Too late. I took one in the leg. Must have been a graze. Pain seared through me, but I didn’t go down.

  Bane held up his hand. ‘Ava, dear.’ He drawled out my name. ‘I wasn’t expecting you tonight.’

  ‘What have you done to Cate?’ I tilted my head toward the manacles with severed limbs. ‘To them?’

  The guards stepped closer. Bane picked up the goblet and took a sip. Cate’s blood spattered on the table, no longer captured in the glass. ‘You mean this?’ His hand ran up her arm and over her breasts. ‘It’s not your concern.’

  ‘You’re wrong, Bane. I know what you’re doing. Living on their memories. Feeding bodies to the sharks when you’re through.’ I waved my knife hand toward the aquarium. ‘Not any more.’ I kept my gun pointed at his head and
started walking. A step later, I spotted a customer who looked like he’d have to be carried out. ‘Rourke? What the hell?’

  ‘You shouldn’t be here,’ he hissed. ‘I can’t help you.’

  No shit. I fought down the rage. ‘Get out, and take these people with you.’ My voice was so low it shook the table, vibrating the liquid in the half-empty glasses. I turned back to Bane, not waiting for a response. He waved his hand, an absentminded gesture. Billy and the others holstered their guns and ran at me.

  I rolled and fired until my clip ran out, then started coldcocking them with the butt of the pistol before finishing them with the knife. Three were down when I felt teeth sink into my shoulder, tearing out flesh like a pit bull. I spun into the pain, arcing my knife over my head and driving it into the attacker’s throat. It slid deep between cervical vertebrae. Blood sprayed like a fire hose from the wound. For a moment I couldn’t see through the sticky hot fluid running down my face. A wave of nausea hit as I realised it was my blood he was barfing over me.

  I scrambled out from the wet gore as a baseball bat swung at my head. My hands came up to protect my face. Searing pain hit me as it cracked my forearm. I screamed and the gun flew from my fingers. Pain curled me into fetal position. Laughter hung over me, and the bat clattered to the floor.

  Billy grabbed my face like a basketball, and lifted it until the side of my neck was against his lips. ‘You’re mine now, Ava.’ He said the words softly. His breath brushed my skin, making hairs rise along my arms. But then he hesitated, glancing back, like he needed permission. Bane said something in the background. It was too muddled to make out. I didn’t try. All I could think of was Cate dying on that wall, alone. I couldn’t let it happen.