A few more recordings and I come across another one from the same man.
“The bodies are really piling up, aren’t they? More are going to come unless you accept outside help.” And he lists a number.
Immediately, I type the number into the system. Untraceable. Of course, it is.
Another five recordings before the man comes up again.
“Look. Stop being so bloody difficult. If you’re dealing with vampires, you’re dealing with it poorly. They can level an entire city in a week if they want to. Never mind that it’s been centuries since they’ve last done that, but the capability for that level of destruction remains. The victims have twin parallel slashes, don’t they? They conceal their bite marks, but if you know what to look for, you can see the slight marks of fangs. Haven’t you guys realized yet what you’re up against?”
My teeth set on edge. Who the Hell is this guy? How the Hell did he know about the marks on the neck? We never released that info to the press.
Maybe he’s a vamp, too.
A guy enters the station as I pick up the phone. His black hair is slicked back with enough gel that he must go through seven bottles a week. Not a single hair grows on his cheeks, chin, or upper lip. The trench coat he’s wearing has me wondering if he’s hiding something.
Another cop approaches him. While they talk, I return to punching in the numbers the man left, keeping an eye on the polished guy.
Who reaches into his pocket.
And removes a phone.
“Hello?” I hear in my ear.
Seriously?
“Your trench coat makes you look like a sorry excuse for a PI,” I respond.
The strange guy laughs into the phone and disconnects the call. Without hesitating, he walks straight for me as I slowly place my phone onto the receiver.
“No one called, so I came here to offer my assistance,” he says, holding out his hand. “I’m—”
“I’m afraid we don’t exactly need your assistance,” I say, ignoring his offer of a handshake.
“I’m afraid that you’re mistaken.”
“Look…” I glance around, trying to shake this feeling of intense dislike for the man. It’s irrational. I have no reason to want him gone, but I do. And I’ve learned a long time ago to not ignore my first instincts of a person. My goon radar is going off like crazy right now. “I don’t know what you think you know, but—”
“Your ignorance will get people killed,” he says calmly as if talking about the weather or something else mundane.
“Not on my watch.”
“On your watch, do you know how many people they have killed?”
“Buddy, I think you need to—Where do you think you’re going?”
He’s blown past me, walking with purpose despite looking all around, obviously searching for something.
The vamps.
I stomp my way over to him and grip his bicep. Wow, rock hard. That surprises me. He looks a little too thin to be overly muscular. Maybe his trench coat is making him seem smaller than he actually is.
“I think you need to leave.”
He sighs. “I’m trying to help. Allow me to introduce myself as I tried to do already, but you so rudely cut me off.”
“I… Fine. What’s your name?”
“It’s not so much my name that is important,” he says with a broad grin.
His teeth are dazzlingly white, his lips full and a pale red. His eyes are a nice, normal shade of blue. They’re an almost comforting sight after the detestable harsh redness of the vamps’ eyes I’ve stared into for so long now. Their repugnant gazes disgust me, but I have to try to pry answers out of their fangs.
Their rotting fangs.
I really do think they’re dying without blood.
“It’s my job title,” the guy says.
His whole arrogant and pompous stick really can’t be shoved farther up his ass.
“Which is?” I ask, a little skeptical and maybe a little hostile, too.
But I am proud of myself. I haven’t rolled my eyes yet.
“Vampire hunter.”
Chapter 32
Is he serious? He can’t be serious.
“For real?” I ask, disillusioned.
“For real.” He glances around and reaches to open his trench coat.
In a flash, I grip his arm and shove him into an interrogation room. I back him up against the back wall, my elbow at his throat.
“You armed?” I demand, furious and thoroughly provoked.
“Of course,” he says as if I’m stupid for asking. “Do you honestly think I would come into a building that might be housing vampires and not be prepared to protect myself and others?”
“Don’t move,” I demand aggressively. “Arms up.”
“Putting my arms up will require moving,” he says dryly.
I so want to slap the smug smirk off his face. Kinda starting to loathe this guy.
He sighs and makes a show of lifting his hands. I open his trench coat. He’s packing a strange gun, a large stick with a burnt end that almost looks like a torch, and a perfume vial.
My elbow still against his throat, I gingerly remove the vial from the pocket. “What’s this?”
“Mixed oil,” he says calmly, “with rosemary, peppermints, and cinnamon. It’s a vampire repellent. Sometimes, I’ll add clove instead of the peppermints.”
“No garlic?” I ask sarcastically.
“Garlic doesn’t make for a nice perfume when you’re planning on being around other people, but technically, yes. Garlic is an irritant to vampires as well. Mosquitoes and other bloodsucking creatures share the same irritants as vampires interestingly enough. I’ve discovered that they—”
“What are you?” I interrupt, skeptical. “Some kind of vamp guru?”
He grins broadly. “You could say that. Do you mind removing your elbow? It’s quite bony.”
I glare but comply. “The smell really keeps them away?”
“Have you ever burned special candles to keep bugs away? It’s the same. Ingesting garlic doesn’t help really. If a vampire has you in his or her grasp, they’re gonna suck your blood regardless of the garlic. Yeah, it’ll give them indigestion. How many people eat things they know will bother them and pop a Tums or two? It’s like that. I’m trying to work on a lotion that will cause their hands to—”
“What’s the gun?” I ask.
“You like it?” He removes it and hands it to me.
It’s shockingly heavy and looks like a cross between a steampunk toy gun and something out of a sci-fi flick. I point it at him.
He winces. “Watch it,” he complains.
“This doesn’t handle bullets,” I comment, looking it over. There’s a trigger. Other than that, there’s nothing like a real gun as far as loading and discharging bullets and casings.
“No. It’s my own design. It fires a UV blast.”
“So the sun really does kill them?”
“No, I’m afraid not, but it does weaken them at least. It kind of… how to explain this? It almost turns them into a human. They can walk around in the sun, but they don’t have access to their super speed and super strength. They retain their fangs, but they won’t go after humans because a regular bullet might be enough to end them. I think. I’m not sure. I haven’t spent a lot of time around vampires in the daylight because I’m too busy taking them out.” He grins broadly.
“Who the Hell are you? How did you get wrapped up in vampire hunting?” I pause. “Wait, don’t tell me you’re a descendant of Van Helsing or something like that.”
“I won’t tell you that because it’s not true. My background isn’t important. My name will mean nothing to you, but it’s Blake Damon.”
I lift an eyebrow. “That’s your birth name?”
He flushes. “I was born Blake Flack. You can just imagine how grade school was for me. High school was even worse. I legally changed my name, thank you very much.”
“Don’t blame you,” I murmur.
“So you mean to tell me that I’ve been trying to get answers out of the three vamps we captured—”
“You captured three? How on earth did you manage that?”
“With silver. A lot of it.”
“Ah. Silver works wonder, yes. So does gold. Fire can slow them down, just like UV, but back to the elements, the only one they can handle is iron. Well, maybe oxygen, too. I’m not sure of how much they breathe, and all of that. I know a fair amount, but not enough. You can never know enough, honestly. And—”
“And you need to stay here so I can call the lieutenant.” I step back, grab my cell out of back pocket, and call him. “Sir, you need to come here immediately. Yes, I know I ordered you to… Yes. You know I wouldn’t call if… Fine. A guy here is claiming to be a vamp hunter, and I believe him.” I disconnect. “He’ll be here in five.”
It’s actually only three minutes later, but it’s three minutes too late. While my back was turned, the damned vamp hunter left the vial on the table and escaped out the door. I raced to the cells, and my worst fears are confirmed.
He killed all three vamps, and now he’s gone. No one saw him leave. I don’t have time to look at the bodies in depth, and I have a feeling I don’t want to. Once I peek in and see they’re dead, that’s enough for me.
We’re in the middle of the search for that accursed “vamp hunter” when the lieutenant enters. His pale face changes to pink to beet red to an unnatural purple when he sees the bodies.
He bellows with rage and fury, “You let him—”
“I did learn some useful intel.” I try to smile, but I’m so pissed at myself for turning my back to him.
How in the Hell had I not heard him leave? And we had the vamps chained up for him, so they couldn’t have fought hard against him at all. Maybe they had been too weak to even bite him. None of the three moved in the past day. They were, had been, fading fast, almost becoming vamp corpses before our eyes. Then again, if he hunts vamps, he has to know how to go undetected.
“This is my fault. I own that, but, Lieutenant Reynolds, we have to form a new unit. We must learn more about the vamps and to keep Bethlehem safe. Please. We can’t let this go. There might be more lurking in the shadows and—”
The lieutenant holds up a hand and then nods. “Request granted. A new unit will be formed.”
Music to my ears. I’m almost shocked he agreed so readily. Some of my feelings of inadequacies and guilt fade away, given way to excitement and eagerness.
Maybe now, we can hope for some semblance of peace for the future of Bethlehem, one where vamps aren’t an issue, or at least we can protect the citizens from them. How long the vamps can be kept a secret, I’m not sure, but for now, we will do our part.
The battle is won. Round two, coming up.
Clarissa’s story continues with When Wolves Howl!
And if you’re ready to start another series, why not check out Magic Incarnate? Book One is free on all platforms!
Please consider leaving a review if you enjoyed When Vamps Bite! I love to read my reviews. Thank you!
Until next book,
~Nicole
Other Books By Nicole Zoltack
Bedlam in Bethlehem series
Cops plus Supernatural Creatures
The Vampire Hunter Tribulations
Magical Hunters Academy trilogy
A school for paranormal teens to train to fight evil creatures
Magical Prison trilogy
A fairy tries to free her twin from prison and save the world
Rebel, Supernatural Bounty Hunter trilogy
A human hunts supernaturals
Magic Incarnate Series
Magic + Faith + Teens
Heroes of Falledge trilogy
A superhero struggles to find love and save his town
Age of Dragons Series
A tale of lost magic and dragon riders
Once Upon a Darkened Night Series
Twisted Fairy Tales
The Queenmaker Series
YA Female King Arthur Retelling
The Winged Beast Chronicles
Dragons enslave humans.
Magical Awakening written as Nicole Beyer
Friends attempt to save a friend from a magical sickness
A Magical Sickness
A Magical Adventure
A Magical Misadventure
A Magical Awareness
A Magical Journey
A Magical Odyssey
A Magical Disaster
A Magical Crisis
Beyond Boundaries
Can love cross class boundaries?
Masked Love
Starry Love
Standalones
Moonstruck
Gender-bent Cinderella set in NOLA
Dark Hunt
Vampires vs witches vs humans
Bloodlust
Epic fantasy with forbidden love
Not on Her Watch
A military romance
The Test of Time
Unpredictable time travel
Love Before Honor
Medieval knight. Regency lady. Magical Christmas.
Joy to the World
One lady. Two dukes, one an imposter
Christmas Kisses
Two gentlemen, only one Lady Anna’s mother approves of
Starving for Love
The Little Mermaid with a zombie twist
Guns and Fangs
A vampire huntress turns into that which she hates
About the Author
Nicole Zoltack is a USA Today bestselling author who loves to write romances. Of course. She did marry her first kiss, after all!
When she’s not writing about knights, superheroes, or witches, she enjoys spending time with her loving husband, three energetic young boys, and precious baby girl. She enjoys riding horses (pretending they’re unicorns, of course!) and going to the PA Renaissance Faire dressed in garb. She’ll also read anything she can get her hands on. Her current favorite TV shows are The Witcher and Stranger Things.
Sign up for her newsletter to learn when her next book is released as well as excerpts, cover reveals, and giveaways!
For more information
www.NicoleZoltack.com
[email protected]
Acknowledgments
First and always, I have to thank my husband. I’m sure it can’t be easy being married to a writer, and I am so appreciative of all the support over the years. I love you, Todd! Thank you to my wonderful children for understanding that Mommy has work she has to do, but she still does and always will love you!
To some of the best writer friends a girl could ever have. You know who you are and I can’t wait until we can retreat again!
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention my wonderful street team. You keep me going, and I’m writing for you and for all of my fans. Thank you for all you do for me!
And finally, I want to acknowledge my readers. You are why I write. As long as you keep reading, I’ll keep writing. So please keep reading, all right?
Author’s Note
Hi, readers! I absolutely hate proofreading errors. My editor, proofreaders, and I try to find them all, but sometimes, a few will slip through. If you find any, please feel free to email at [email protected] or message me on FB with the errors. I’ll correct the file as soon as I can get to it!
Oh, and if you’d like, feel free to tell me anything else you like—something about the stories, the characters, if there’s any story you would want me to tell?
Finally, if you would like to join my beta reader team or my ARC team, be sure to mention that too!
I’m off to write the next book!
~Nicole
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When Vamps Bite: A Mayhem of Magic World Story (Bedlam in Bethlehem Book 1) Page 23
