“You and I are going to talk,” I said, narrowing my eyes at Ash.
He sighed and moved away from where I stood, keeping his eyes on the vampires we’d left staked on the ground. There was nothing left of the other vampires, nothing but dust and ash.
“Right, then,” Ash said, nudging the female vamp with the toe of his boot. “What should we do with these two?”
I crouched down beside the vamps and shone the flashlight along their bodies. Now that the only thing they had left to plead with was their eyes, they’d grabbed hold of their glamour, making them look like young fashion models. I guess trying to plead with empty eye sockets was less effective.
But even with the vamps staked into immobility, I was careful not to hold their gaze. The last thing we needed was to become mesmerized into setting them free. That would not end well.
I slipped on a pair of gloves and, wrinkling my nose in disgust, proceeded to run my hands through their hair, down their bodies, and inside the pockets of their clothes. All I found was a strange ridge of scar tissue on the small of their backs.
“Help me roll them over,” I said.
I flipped the female vamp face down and dragged one of my arms across my forehead to wipe sweat from my eyes.
“What the blue blazes is that?” Ash asked, pointing at the male vampire’s lower back.
There, like a tramp stamp, on the back of both vampires, was a strange symbol like a fleur-de-lis.
“They’ve been marked,” I said. Ash raised an eyebrow, and I continued on. “Some vampire masters mark their people.”
“Like branding cattle,” he said.
“Yes, except a cattle brand would set a fanghead on fire,” I said. “Not a smart thing to do to one’s property. So instead, they use silver.”
“Bloody hell, they carve their mark into the vamp’s flesh and pack silver under the skin?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said, snapping off a picture of the markings with my phone. The pictures might help us identify which vampire master we were dealing with.
Ash dragged over the last vamp, one of the ones to pour out of the tunnel. I’d nearly forgotten about the vamp, since he was nearly real dead. His head dangled oddly, partly severed from his body. I grimaced, but at least there wasn’t much blood. This vampire hadn’t fed recently.
Ash unceremoniously rolled him over, face first into a puddle, and pulled up the man’s shirt. My eyes widened as I leaned down for a closer look.
“That’s interesting,” I said, shining the flashlight on the vampire’s back.
“Is that a lion?” Ash asked, tilting his head to the side.
That was a good question. Better yet, why was this marking different from the others?
“I wonder what the different markings mean,” I said, taking a picture of the lion shaped symbol.
“Maybe different ranks within the nest?” he asked.
I brought my sword down across the vamp’s neck, finishing him off, and went over to do the same to the other two.
“Maybe,” I said with a shrug.
I sheathed my sword and began sifting through the ash.
“What are you looking for now?” he asked. “I thought you already searched the bodies.”
“Fangs,” I said, voice tight.
“What bloody for?” he asked.
I looked up and held his gaze. His brow wrinkled, but my emotions were too raw, too confused by the night’s events for that kind of sharing. Some things are best left unsaid.
Eyes never leaving his, I lifted the necklace of fangs from inside my shirt and let it hang out for him to see plainly. I shrugged with one shoulder and looked away.
“We all have our secrets,” I said.
He winced.
“Aye, that we do, love,” he said, wearily. “That we do.”
*****
After retrieving the fangs, and kicking the piles of ash into the canal, we began the slow trek up the embankment. I was moving stiffly, the wounds in my leg and side bothering me more than I’d like to admit.
“Those vamps knew who and what you were, and they knew your weakness,” Ash said.
“My weakness?” I asked, frowning.
“Aye, love, that idiot drive you have that has you rushing headlong into danger at the slightest hint an innocent human might be in harm’s way,” he said.
I grunted, cheeks warming. Oh, that weakness.
“If I had a weakness, which I’m not admitting I do,” I said, scowling at Ash. “How could they know that? I only just arrived in the city. Even I didn't know I was coming here until a few days ago. It’s not like my being here is public knowledge. And someone would have had to meet me, or have eyes on me, to know whether or not that ruse of theirs would work.”
That left an informant.
“Well someone told them about you,” he said.
It had to be one of my fellow Guild brethren or the one supernatural gossip who knew that a new Hunter was in town.
"Damn, Natasha," I swore, shaking my head. “Looks like I need to have a chat with a certain rusalka.”
“That can wait,” he said. “Let’s go get you cleaned up.”
I snarled and he backed away, hands in the air.
“Fine, your bloody funeral,” he said.
I stomped down toward the docks, forcing myself to stand up straight as I walked. Interrogations don’t go so well when the person asking the questions is hunched over in pain. I lifted my chin, palming one of my knives. I wanted answers and the rusalka was going to give them to me.
Chapter 21
“Last I checked decapitating vampires wasn’t part of college curriculum.”
-Jenna Lehane, Hunter
The talk with the rusalka didn’t turn up much. She was dead. Something was going on here, but I didn’t have enough pieces of the puzzle. Not yet.
I was bone tired, and the gash in my side was starting to throb. I needed to sterilize it before infection set in. It’s not like I’d been crawling around the cleanest places this evening.
But first, Ash and I were going to have a little talk. As we passed through the Burg, I led us to the bench where I’d eaten frites my first day in Bruges. Ash sat, but I stayed on my feet.
“Talk,” I said, narrowing my eyes and sliding into a fighting stance.
The rusalka was dead, but that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be any interrogations tonight. Ash wasn’t leaving that bench until I got some answers.
“So, you’ve caught me out, eh?” he asked.
He sat fidgeting with his hat and I nodded.
“You’re a Hunter,” I said.
“Good, it’s better you know,” he said. “I’m a dreadful liar, especially when a pretty girl is involved.”
I ignored the compliment, recognizing it for the distraction he intended. Ash wasn’t getting off that easy.
“You said you were a university student,” I said. “But last I checked decapitating vampires wasn’t part of college curriculum.”
“You noticed that then?” he said, wry grin on his lips.
“Yes, I also couldn’t help but notice the blade you used to do it with,” I said. “And I’m pretty sure most students don’t carry swords in their guitar case.”
Ash sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
“Look, I used to be a Hunter,” he said. He looked down at the dew damp cobbles and sighed. “That’s where I learned to use a sword…and how I know about supes.”
“You left the Guild?” I asked, eyes wide.
He winced and rubbed the back of his neck.
“I know I owe you an explanation, but can we do this tomorrow?” he asked.
“Fine, but you have some explaining to do, buster,” I said. “I want answers, not fiction.”
“Understood,” he said. He pulled himself to his feet and put the rumpled fedora back on his head. One of the feathers was bent at a funny angle as a result of our battle with the vampires, and suddenly all of the cuts, holes, and tears on that silly hat made sense. “But l
et’s get you back to the Guild before someone notices you’re bleeding.”
I was wearing black, and we hadn’t met any humans walking around on the streets this late at night, but Ash was right. It would be foolish to stay out here with a wound I couldn’t explain. If the local authorities got involved, they’d probably also notice that my sword wasn’t some cheap replica, and that Ash and I were both packing deadly weapons. The Guild had the kind of clout that could get us free eventually, but I didn’t fancy the idea of a night in jail.
I grunted and hurried toward Genthof which eventually became Carmersstraat, the street the guildhall was on. We walked in silence, both of us deep in our own thoughts. When we reached the Guild, I turned to Ash and cleared my throat.
“Are you coming in?” I asked.
“No,” he said, shoving his hands into his pockets.
“No you won’t, or no you can’t?” I asked.
I wanted to know more about his break with the Guild. The Guild was my family, my life. I couldn’t imagine just up and leaving it.
“I’m no longer an active member of the Guild, Jenna,” he said. “I…I’m not welcome here. And the Guild is good at keeping out those it doesn’t want inside its halls.”
I sighed. That was true. The Guild was built on rules. If Ash was no longer a member, he wouldn’t be allowed beyond the threshold. I could just imagine what a prick someone like Chadwick would be if we just strolled inside.
“Okay,” I said. I shrugged, but winced, the motion tugging the ragged gash on my side. “See you around.”
“Good hunting, Jenna,” he said.
“Good hunting, Ash,” I said.
I walked into the guildhall, for once feeling more alone inside its walls than the first day the Guild had shown up and rescued me from another five years in the child welfare system. Somewhere in this building was a traitor, perhaps the same person who’d sold me out and given the vampires the information they needed to set up that ambush.
The door snapped closed, cutting off the light from the street and the last glimpse of Ash, the man who’d just saved my life—a man who had once been a Hunter. I shook my head and limped toward the infirmary. I was too damned worn out to figure out what it all meant.
Chapter 22
“It’s amazing how fast you can run with enough adrenaline coursing through your veins.”
-Jenna Lehane, Hunter
Simon Chadwick, my local Guild liaison and downright pain in the ass, stepped out from behind a marble column and halted my shuffling walk across the lobby. I tried to straighten, but hissed at the pain in my side.
“Where have you been?” he asked. “Do you have any idea what time it is?”
“It’s late, Chad,” I said. “Give it a rest.”
I wobbled on my feet, the room beginning to spin. I limped over to the stairs. That way I’d have something to grab onto if I passed out.
“What’s that?” he asked. “Are you injured?”
He scowled and pointed at the blood dripping from the gash in my side. I may have survived the ambush, and won the fight, but the vampires had left me a parting gift.
“It’s nothing,” I lied.
“Foolish woman, you’re bleeding all over the floor,” he said. “Don’t you realize you’re wounded? Come on. We better get you cleaned up.”
I sighed, but I didn’t have the energy to argue. I was pretty sure that I needed stitches and the ones I’d get in the infirmary would be better than what I could accomplish with a first aid kit up in my room.
“Fine,” I said.
I grit my teeth as Chad led me down to the infirmary. He lectured me the entire way, and by the time we made it inside, I was ready to strangle the prick.
“Take a seat over there,” he said, indicating a bed draped with a white sheet.
“I’m sure Martens doesn’t want blood…” I said.
“Shut up and sit down,” he said, cutting me off.
I frowned, but managed to limp over to the infirmary bed. Chadwick disappeared into the back room, and I waited for Doc Martens.
A chill breeze shifted the white curtains that hung between the bed, making them wave and dance. I shivered, seeing a dead man walk past the infirmary door. It was strange, but until now I hadn’t noticed that the only ghosts in this building were down in the lower level. The morgue always attracted the dead, but it seemed odd that I’d never seen any ghosts in the dormitories.
I was jolted out of my thoughts by the clatter of metal instruments as a metal pan was tossed onto a rolling tray beside the bed. Chadwick stood over me, rolling up his sleeves, a strange glint in his eyes.
“Come on,” he said. “Let’s have a look.”
I frowned, trying to make sense of his words. He shook his head and gave a quick, disgusted snort.
“Why, Lord, do you test me like this?” he asked, turning his gaze to the ceiling. “Women are so…so stupid.” He turned his attention back to me and sneered. “I need to take a look at your wounds. Lift. Your. Shirt.”
“Wait…where’s Martens?” I asked.
“He’s down in the garage, passed out drunk in the hearse, the freak,” he said. He shook his head, a hard smile on his lips. “I don’t know how he can sleep in that thing. The man’s not right in the head.”
If Chadwick thought he was going to get to play doctor, he wasn’t right in the head either. I winced and put a hand on my side, feigning a twinge of pain. It wasn’t hard. My entire side was on fire.
Chadwick’s lips parted and I swear he started panting as his eyes slid down from my face. I was pretty sure my pain turned him on. While Chadwick’s eyes strayed to my chest, I palmed a knife in one hand and managed to grip a wooden stake in the other.
I shifted my weight, ready to bolt, and bit the inside of my cheek, determined not to pass out. I had a feeling Chad would just love having a vulnerable woman fall into his lap. I shuddered and lifted my chin.
“Get fanged, Chad,” I said. “If Martens isn’t here, I’m heading to my room. He can take care of the cuts in the morning.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” he said, nostrils flaring.
“Get out of my way, Chad, or I’ll scream,” I said.
“Go ahead and scream,” he said, a smirk on his mottled face. “We’re all the way down in the basement. No one will hear you.”
He leaned in aggressively and I could smell garlic on his breath. Maybe if he brushed his teeth, he might have more luck with women. He reached for my boob and I growled. No, probably not.
I slashed at his reaching hand and drove the blunt end of the stake into his manly bits. He dropped, collapsing into a ball on the floor. I knocked the rolling tray of medical instruments over onto his head and ran, my boots squeaking on the recently polished floors.
I ran, gripping my knife and stake in white knuckled fists, the pain from my wounds forgotten. It’s amazing how fast you can run with enough adrenaline coursing through your veins.
I could hear Chad’s guttural roar of rage coming from the infirmary as I made my way across the lobby. Hands shaking, I reached for the door to the outside. I blinked, only now realizing that I had to put away one of my weapons in order to turn the knob.
Shaking my head, I hastily shoved the stake into my belt, twisted the doorknob, and burst out of the guildhall—and into Ash’s waiting arms.
Chapter 23
“Never mess with a Hunter, not unless you sleep with one eye open and both hands on your weapons.”
-Jenna Lehane, Hunter
I pushed away from Ash’s chest and raised my knife, holding the blade out between us.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“Jenna, are you okay?” he asked.
“What are you doing here, Ash?” I asked, voice going shrill.
“I never left,” he said, hands wide. “I just…had a lot to think about.”
It was still dark out and I realized that less than thirty minutes had passed since saying goodnight to Ash. I??
?d asked him about his relationship with the Guild, and he’d said it was complicated, a story to share at a later time when we weren’t exhausted and I wasn’t bleeding on the front steps. He’d been out here battling his own demons, unaware of what was happening to me inside.
I faltered, the knife in my hand wavering.
“I…” I said, choking on the words.
“Jenna, did something happen?” he asked, his tone uncertain.
I looked away, blinking away traitorous tears. I swore I wouldn’t shed another tear for the Franks of the world, and here I was blubbering. I took a deep breath and tried again.
“Chadwick he…he,” I said. I bit my lip, cheeks burning.
“Bloody hell,” Ash said.
He pulled me into his arms, mindless of the blade in my hand. I tensed, but when all he did was hold me, I closed my eyes. He held me like that until I lifted my head and pushed slowly away.
“We need to get out of here,” I said. “He’ll look outside eventually.”
Chadwick was probably tearing through my room right now. I shuddered and turned away, heading down the empty street.
“That’s a bunch of bollocks,” Ash said. “He’s the dodgy bastard. He’s the one who should be out on his ear. You don’t have to leave.”
The muscles in Ash’s neck were corded, and he held his guitar case in both hands. The message was clear; he was willing to draw his sword to defend my honor and my right to stay. It was kind of sweet, especially coming from Ash, but I shook my head.
“Please, Ash,” I said. “I don’t have the energy for a fight. Just help me find someplace safe where I can crash for a few nights, preferably something cheap without a curfew.”
“I know just the place,” he said. “But Jenna? Chad will get what’s coming to him. You have my word on it.”
Never mess with a Hunter, not unless you sleep with one eye open and both hands on your weapons.
“Yes,” I said. “Yes he will.”
Chapter 24
“You never know when the monsters will come, and when they do a good Hunter is always prepared.”