“Never mind that.” Earl was obviously regretting mentioning the name. “That’s not important right now.”
“You were so enthusiastic earlier about sharing information, but it seems you’re the one keeping secrets from the rest of us.” The Greek Hunter approached Earl. “MHI thinks they’re better than everyone else. You’re wrong, Harbinger. I think you are in league with the men from your government. I think you knew about this event beforehand.”
One of the Chinese took the opportunity to jump in. “It was your men that sounded the alarm. How do you explain some of them already being armed and fully equipped so quickly?” He gestured at me and Julie.
“I sleep this way.” I answered. “Doesn’t everybody?” The two questioners glowered at me. I couldn’t help it. I was born to be a smartass.
Julie however, was a peacemaker. “I woke up from a bad dream. I had a real bad feeling is all, and I thought I heard something out of place. So we geared up. That’s it.”
“Convenient.” The Greek Hunter walked threateningly toward Earl. “You take all of us for fools?”
“Them? No. You?” Earl took his time shaking a cigarette out of a pack and lighting it with his MHI Zippo. “Maybe . . . Back off, kid.”
“I should give you a beating, Harbinger.”
I didn’t know who knew about Earl’s secret here, but there were definitely rumors floating around about how dangerous he was. Many of the Hunters in the blasted room got sudden excited looks on their faces that read variations of oh, no, he didn’t or this ought to be good.
Earl simply blew smoke in the angry Hunter’s face.
“Sit down, idiot,” Lindemann shouted before the Hunter could take a swing at my boss. The German came over and shoved the Hunter back. “You are no match for him, and your stupidity is wasting our time.” That seemed to cow the man. He may not have known Earl, but all of the Europeans knew the man from Grimm Berlin. Lindemann turned back to Earl. “I lost a brother tonight, Harbinger. I would appreciate you focusing on the task at hand.”
“Sorry, Klaus. Accusations get my dander up.”
“Dying pointlessly has the same effect on me. What else do you know?”
“Hugo was the one that killed the monster today, and now this . . .” Earl waved his hand around the blasted room. “I think he brought something back with him from the desert. I just don’t know what, but I bet I know who does. I think Stricken set us up.”
“Stricken,” the Pole spat. “I will gut him like pig.”
“Get in line,” Earl said. “I should’ve considered this possibility. Today’s case wasn’t about a single creature, it was related to some kind of phenomenon. I assumed whatever it was had been left out in the desert, not dragged back here with us. This is my fault. I shouldn’t have made assumptions. I was distracted.”
“That doesn’t matter now,” Pierre Darne said. “My concern is that this may happen again.”
“It’s possible. One of my men travelled with Agent Franks from the Monster Control Bureau to where the creature originated from. Knowing what we know now, I think he might have experienced something related. Owen, report.”
“Can do.” I gave them the quick rundown about what I’d seen in Dugway. It only took a few minutes. I could tell that many of them were angry that they hadn’t heard this several hours ago, but we hadn’t known then that the damn whatever-it-was was here with us at the time.
“The ghoul . . . It appeared, attacked, and then was gone,” the Pole stated.
I knew where he was going. “Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? What happened here was far more elaborate. The thing that jumped on me only lasted for a few seconds, and there was only the one.” If my fists weren’t still sore from punching it I could almost have dismissed it as a figment of my imagination. “Tonight was a whole lot nastier.”
“I have a theory . . .” Julie began.
“I’ve got my own theory.” The Greek Hunter had decided he wasn’t finished and stormed back to the center of the room. “A portal appears and kills off MHI’s competitors. Then, since they were the only ones that were prepared, MHI banishes the creatures, saves the day, and I’m sure will claim the bounty. They are heroes. Their competitors are gone. It is all too convenient.”
There was a lot of murmuring at that. Most of the other leaders seemed annoyed or incredulous, but a few looked intrigued at the idea. “That’s ridiculous,” I said, sick of his crap. “You seriously need to shut the hell up before you get hurt.”
“You’re not in charge here. I don’t have to listen to you.”
“Well, I’m wearing an automatic shotgun while you’re just wearing tighty-whiteys, so you might want to start.”
There was a reason that Julie was our negotiator. She stepped between us. “I can assure you MHI had nothing to do with this.” Despite being frustrated, she was still trying to hold together the fragile alliance she’d helped form earlier. “If we were trying to get our competitors killed, why’d we sound the alarm and start an evacuation?”
“I don’t understand your plot yet, but it wouldn’t be the first time MHI has opened a portal. The bastard Ray Shackleford did it once.” He said, glaring at Julie. “It wouldn’t surprise me to find out that his daughter followed in his footsteps.”
Wrong answer. My wife lost it. Julie extended her fingers and ridge-handed him in the throat. The Hunter opened his mouth, but all that came out was a long wheezing noise. Julie stepped back as he reached for her, but you don’t go very far without much oxygen. He doubled over, clutching his neck as his face turned red. He’d gone full-on purple by the time he laid down on the floor and concentrated on not passing out.
He was still breathing, just not well. “Wow . . .” I said. “What’s that little tiny fragile bone in the neck called?”
“The hyoid. Don’t worry. I pulled it. He’ll be fine, but the next person that brings up my parents won’t be.” Her accent tended to get a little stronger when she was under stress but trying to hide it. Julie looked around the room, seemingly calm. “Anybody else want to accuse me of witchcraft? Because we can get that nonsense out of the way real fast.” The Hunter from China was quiet as Julie stared him down. “Good.”
The big Pole boomed out his pirate-captain laugh. “I think our friend here needs some fresh air.” He grabbed the downed Hunter by the ankle and dragged him effortlessly toward the door. “And maybe also a medic.”
Dominance established. “As I was saying before I was interrupted, I’ve got a theory . . .” Julie checked to make sure nobody else was going to say anything. Nobody was that stupid. “I think the spider, the ice ghoul, and these armored things were all caused by the same phenomenon. One of our men found the video the victim in Nevada had been watching before he’d been killed. It was called Terrorrantula.”
“I love that one!” The Australian leader proclaimed. “It was mostly sheilas running around with their clothes off, but there was a giant spider in it. Not a very convincing one, but I see where you’re going.”
“Giant spider shows up in Nevada to somebody that probably had giant spider on the mind. Hugo kills the spider, and then monsters from his past appear in his room. My husband saw a specific type of ghoul, and even though he wasn’t familiar with it, Agent Franks seemed to be. Four events, three of which we know the victims had some knowledge of the thing that manifested. We don’t know what killed the other victims at the first attack site, but I’m betting whatever it was came from one of those people’s imagination or memories.”
Pretty and smart, plus a mean sucker punch. I’d married up. The Hunters exchanged glances, there was some mumbling, but nobody could outright reject what she’d said. It was a bizarre idea, but this was a bizarre business. “That’s quite the theory,” Pierre Darne said. “All conjecture, but slightly more likely than MHI trying to sabotage their competitors.” He held up his hands defensively and smiled. “Only joking, Julie. Please do not hit me.”
“Oh, Pierre, you’re far too charming.
Anybody have any better ideas?”
Nobody had any. The Chinese Hunter then asked, “Assuming you’re right, then the question becomes, what’s causing these events?” Oh, now he’s rational and non-accusatory.
“Or if it is going to happen again? Hell, who are we kidding? With our luck, when will it happen again?” I said. “Holy shit, if we’re talking about monsters appearing out of people’s imagination, can you think of a worse place to be than around a bunch of Hunters?” That was a sobering thought.
There was a sudden commotion at the entry hole. “Harbinger!” VanZant burst into the room.
“What is it, John?” Earl checked his watch. “Feds here? Took ’em long enough.”
“Yeah. We’ve got Feds.” VanZant was out of breath. “But they’re not coming inside. They’ve formed a perimeter around the parking lot and ordered all the first responders back. Nobody in or out. There’s an MCB agent with a bullhorn saying anyone that tries to leave the casino will be shot.”
“What?” I got off the bed and went to the remains of the balcony. Far below, the flashing police lights had formed a line and were blocking the strip. Men in blue windbreakers, surely MCB, were ushering people from the parking lot and stringing up caution tape. “What’re they doing?”
“They’re surrounding the place.” Earl’s voice was completely flat. “We’ve been quarantined.”
* * *
“Do not come any closer,” the man said, his voice amplified over a loudspeaker on one of the police cars. I couldn’t see very well since there were a lot of spotlights pointed at me. I could safely assume there were also guns pointed at me. “The disease is not dangerous, but it is very contagious. Stay calm and stay in the casino. Do not panic. You will be safe inside the casino. Representatives from the CDC will be here shortly with medicine.”
Man, that was lame. “Cut the crap,” I shouted back. “I’m with MHI. Let me talk to Franks or somebody in charge.”
“Go back inside for your own safety. The disease is not dangerous, but—”
“Oh, come on! It isn’t a disease, it’s a . . .” I was the only person standing in the parking lot. There weren’t any bystanders to spill the beans on monsters. There were probably Las Vegas cops in range of my voice, but it was hard to tell with the lights. “You know what it is. See this?” I gestured at my armor. “Who else dresses like this? I know you’re watching me through a scope. Crank up the zoom.” I pointed at my happy-face patch. “See? I’m MHI. I know what’s up. Let me talk to Franks or Archer or somebody that has a clue. We’ve got a situation in here.” I began walking toward the cars.
“If you come any closer we will use force.”
“Just get Franks.”
“I’m warning you. Don’ t come any closer.”
“Listen, asshole—” I jumped when the bullet struck the pavement three feet from my boots. Fragments pelted my armored shins. “Shit! Okay, okay, I’m going back inside.” Turning, I walked back toward the front entrance. “Son of a bitch.”
There still hadn’t been any official word from the government as to why they’d locked us in here. All we knew was that they’d worked fast, completely containing the casino in less than half an hour from the initial alarm. The agents that had been staying here had been seen receiving calls and practically running out of the place. Someone had given them an order to pull out within minutes of the event. Who that someone was, and what they knew, was still a mystery.
My radio hissed in my ear. “Told you that would happen.”
She had warned me this wouldn’t work. “Thanks, dear. Any luck?”
Julie and a few other Hunters who had brought sniper rifles had gone up to the roof to get a better picture. “None of our regular MCB contacts are answering. They cut the landlines a few minutes ago. I wouldn’t be surprised if they get a jammer here soon and shut down everything else. I think they’re instituting a complete communications blackout. I got off a message to Grandpa in Alabama, so at least somebody on the outside will know what’s happening.”
“Aw, hell. I’ll be there in a second.” I took one last look at the outside. As far as I could tell, the authorities had locked this place down tight. Other people had tried to leave from some of the other exits, but they’d been turned back too. Some of the anti-Hunting activists had even been turned back with a tear-gas canister, and a Hunter from Jai Jiwan Security from New Delhi had a nasty welt from a rubber bullet. The fact that they’d launched a real bullet in my general direction wasn’t a good sign that they were getting more patient.
The main lobby of the Last Dragon was in complete pandemonium. In addition to the hundreds of Hunters and assorted hangers-on that were here for ICMHP, there were also a bunch of hotel employees and some construction workers who were still finishing the upper floors. There were also a handful of non-ICMHP guests trapped, people who had been in the casino gambling when everything had been locked down. Luckily there weren’t that many of those at four in the morning, comparatively speaking, but it was still another hundred or so angry and frightened people that had no idea what was going on. A large percentage of them had gathered in the lobby, trying to figure out what was going on, or to loudly demand that they get to leave. I heard that an armored car was blocking the exit ramp of the parking garage and a couple from Florida had popped their tires driving over a set of spike strips and then been herded back inside by men with guns and gas masks. They were especially pissed off.
I felt really bad for the hotel employees. It was the night shift that had been stuck here, and they didn’t know any more than the guests. I walked past a few managers that were being browbeaten by angry customers. Since none of the people that had instituted the quarantine were actually in here with us, and there wasn’t anyone effective to yell at, they were shouting at whoever looked like they might have some authority.
“You there, security guard. I demand to speak to your supervisor!” A large old lady rolled up to me on her mobility scooter. “This sort of treatment is completely unacceptable. I want to speak to him immediately.”
I looked down at my armor. It had started out coyote brown, but a few years of abuse, tears, rips, burns, stains, and replacing various ruined parts had left it a mottled modular mess of different-colored pouches and stab-proof sheets, some of which I’d color-corrected with spray paint. Hell, I was wearing a kukri that was damn near a short sword. Even after repeatedly hosing down room 1613, I still had sixty rounds of 12-gauge in a drum and four magazines, a few 40mm grenades, two handguns, and six spare magazines of .45. As a big dude, when I was geared up, I looked particularly enormous. I would have to be the most heavily equipped security guard in history, but in our current circumstances, it was as reasonable an assumption as any. “Ma’am, I don’t work here.”
“You’re not security?” I shook my head no. “Police? The army?” Still no. She looked very displeased. “What are you?”
“I like clothes with lots of pockets.”
She made a noise that sounded like harrumph, then gunned her little scooter away, searching for someone else to feel her terrible Lark-powered wrath.
Earl had commandeered one of the ICMHP conference rooms to serve as Hunter Central. Trip met me on the way in and tossed over Abomination. If I had been wearing it when I’d tried to talk to the cops, it probably wouldn’t have been a warning shot. Earl was at the opposite end of the room, talking to a small group of people. “What’s going on?”
“He’s talking to casino management, trying to get them up to speed.”
“What’s he telling them?”
Trip smiled. “Surprisingly, a lot.” Normally we tried to keep things on the down low as much as possible to keep the MCB off our backs. “Earl seems really dead-set on protecting everyone he can. Not that he hasn’t always been willing to risk his life to protect the innocent and things like that. But I think he’s changed . . . It’s like he cares more.” Trip, the stalwart goody-two-shoes of our organization, seemed really pleased by this develo
pment.
“I take it you approve?”
“Well, yeah . . . I just hope Earl Harbinger isn’t getting soft in his old age.”
We both laughed at that absurdity. Earl Harbinger made Clint Eastwood look like Mr. Rogers. As a general rule, the more a situation sucks, the more humor you can find in the little things. Then I had a very somber thought. “Last night when we thought it was just a stupid spider in the desert, Earl could tell himself that his girlfriend wasn’t really missing. But after what we just saw . . .”
“I don’t know, man. If it was something like what appeared to the German, then she might be gone. I talked to the girl that was with Hugo. She said he jumped out of bed screaming Nachtmar, Nachtmar, and then one of the big metal things just rose up out of floor and started hacking him with a big rusty sword. That’s all she could get through, before she just kind of stared off into space repeating so much blood over and over.”
“That’s an awful introduction to this world.”
“I don’t know of any good ones. As for Earl’s girlfriend, werewolf or not, if that’s what happened to the Unicorn team . . . He seems to be focused on working right now, but whatever we’re up against, if it killed someone Earl cares about, I almost feel sorry for the thing. Almost.”
I’d prefer to have another great Old One gunning for me than an angry Harbinger, and if what was going on wasn’t caused by something that could be killed, then I would really hate to be Stricken. “Speaking of merciless badasses, you heard from Holly yet?”
Several MHI employees had been out when the monsters had appeared, including some of our most experienced people and our entire Las Vegas team, who had actual houses to sleep in, but Holly was the only member of my team outside the quarantine. “I left her a message but she didn’t answer. I’ll try again.” Trip pulled out his phone, then frowned at it. “That’s not good. I’ve got no service.”
My phone was also showing no signal. I checked my radio. “Com check. Can anybody hear me?” Nothing but static. “They’re jamming us. Damn it, Julie called it.”