Chapter Eighteen
The Fort Miles Phantom
T
he sidewalks of Fort Miles were heavily populated with unsuspecting humans bustling around in the cool evening hours. Gabriel glanced up but could see nothing through the city lights.
He’d left Eileen at the hotel. She had been so understanding about leaving, that is, until they actually gotten here. That’s when the bickering started. She wanted him to call Jules almost right after they arrived, but he needed time. It seemed this fight with Jules was also going to put a strain on his marriage. And that aggravated him. He just kept thinking about how selfish Jules had been, how she’d put Eileen in danger.
Gabriel walked until he found an almost deserted park. He needed the space, the silence. The city was a bad choice for an escape. His thoughts suddenly came to a halt. Gabriel listened. The sound was unmistakable. The quiet slurping of a vampire drinking the blood of a human.
He sped toward the sound with practiced silence, trying to assess the situation. All he needed was some psychotic, human-draining vampire feeding out in the open to top off an already rotten day.
He slowed as he neared the far side of the small park. The trees shifted in what little breeze was blowing. This had to be the only place in the city where stars could be seen.
Silently, he approached a huge fountain with a man sitting on the stone side, a woman in his arms. To an untrained eye, it may have looked like an obscene display of affection, but Gabriel knew the truth.
He listened closely to the woman’s rapid breathing and racing pulse, to the soft sound of blood being sucked out of a human’s body. He waited a few moments more for the vampire to stop and release the woman. But the moment came when the women started to slump in the vampire’s arms. Her pulse and breathing slowed. That’s when Gabriel knew that this vampire was not intending to spare his prey.
“Stop!” Gabriel shouted and ran toward them. The vampire looked over his shoulder, smiled at him, and was gone before the body hit the ground.
Gabriel rushed forward to catch her, but he wasn’t fast enough. The woman lay on the ground beneath the stone ledge. He stepped out around the fountain cautiously. Soundlessly, he crept over beside her. As he approached he listened for a faint heartbeat. Nothing. He bent down and gently rolled her onto her back. Lifeless eyes gazed back at him. On her throat were two puncture wounds. He was too late.
Gabriel took a moment to close the woman’s eyes and offer a prayer for her soul. Then, he ran at full speed for several minutes.
KYLE
Hayley had left for Jules’s house and Kyle had the place to himself, a man cave. He was prepared to sit around and veg the female-less evening away with some form of visual entertainment. He was flipping through his options when there was a knock on his door.
He scrunched his face in an expression of displeasure and then stood to answer the door. He expected to see one of Hayley’s siblings looking for their sister. There were a lot of them and they all stopped over unannounced from time to time.
“We’ve been cast out,” Luca said as a greeting. He and the new kid stood in the doorway.
“Women,” Kyle chuckled.
“You want to go for a run?” Luca asked.
“How about pizza?” Kyle never passed up an opportunity to let the wolf out to play but his stomach wanted food.
“Run, then pizza,” Luca suggested.
“Let’s do it,” Kyle said, stepping back inside to grab his phone and keys. He locked the door and the three of them headed back down the stairs. “Are we dropping the minor off at the Den or…”
The teenager opened his mouth to speak but Luca answered instead. “Nope. He's going with us.”
“Great,” Kyle said but added, “since when do we willingly babysit?”
“I don’t need a babysitter,” Ricky said.
At the same moment, Luca responded, “Kyle!” He said this in Hayley’s favorite tone of voice.
“You watch out,” Ricky continued. “I may just run you into the ground old man.”
All three of them chuckled at this as they climbed into Luca’s Jeep.
In just a few minutes, Luca pulled up to the rusty gates and the woods in which they freely ran. Luca and Kyle took a running start and launched themselves over the fence in wide leaps. When they landed on the other side they turned back toward the teenager, who was standing, staring at them.
“Well, you coming?” Kyle asking, panting a little.
Ricky rolled his eyes and walked several feet to the gate. He pushed it open deliberately slowly as if to make a point that lunching oneself over a fence ceremonially when one could use the obviously provided entrance was simply ridiculous.
Once the boy had joined them, they walked into the cover of the woods together. Each one of them began to strip off their clothes to their own desired degree.
“Ready?” Luca asked.
“I was born ready,” Ricky said with a wicked smile.
With a howl provided by Kyle, the three of them took off at top speed. After only a few strides, they shifted simultaneously. Luca turned into a majestic silver wolf, Ricky a solid black one, and Kyle the standard gray. Kyle tripped on the landing, his muzzle connecting with the mud under his paws. He stood on all fours and shook off his fumble. Luca howled playfully, and the wolves ran further into the woods, escaping the human world and all that was happening in it.
JULIANA
Three glasses of wine each and Jules was worried that she would end up cleaning both human and werewolf vomit out of her carpet. However, Monica had gone from perpetually depressed and crying at the drop of a hat to her happier self.
“So, what are we watching after this?” Hayley asked, her head lolled back on the couch, utterly relaxed.
“I’m up for anything, as long as it’s not a romance,” Monica answered.
“Of course not,” Hayley exclaimed dramatically, sounding a bit like her husband. “A nice action movie where there is a lot a running, and screaming, and explosions is much more appropriate at a time like this.”
“Maybe one where the guy dies,” Monica said, sounding playfully sulky.
Monica smiled and they both laughed just as Jules’s phone rang.
“Your man beckons,” Hayley said, picked up Jules’s phone and handing it to her.
“Sorry Monica,” she said after smiling down at the screen of her phone for a second too long.
“Whatever,” Monica said. “I’m going to find us a movie.” She stood and plopped onto the floor closer to the television, using the remote to flip through her list.
“By the way,” Hayley put her hand on Jules’s before she could answer Luca’s call. “I’ve known Luca for a while now and I have never seen him this happy. Be good to him Jules the vampire.”
“Okay,” she said laughing a little and finally answering the call. “Hi,” she greeted him, leaving off any endearing terms for Monica’s sake.
“Are you near a TV?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Just turn to channel nine.” His voice sounded rushed and was hard to hear. She guessed he was at a loud restaurant or something.
“Okay. Monica switch to channel nine for a second.”
“The news?” Monica groaned but did so.
Once the appropriate channel had been found, Jules saw a newscaster talking about the string of murders that continued to occur all over Fort Miles. Cause of death was blood drained through two small holes on each body.
“What is this? Some psychotic, practical joke? And who is this man caught fleeing the scene?” the newsman’s voice asked.
Jules cursed outright. The screen had flashed a security camera capture of Gabriel.
“What is it?” Hayley asked, looking up from her phone.
“Is Mr. Prentiss a killer?” Monica asked Jules.
“No. Of course not.” Jules was panic-stricken. It couldn’t be true.
“Then why do they think he is?” Monica said, pointing toward the television.
“I have to find out. Stay here, both of you. I’ll get you rides home.”
“I am not that drunk,” Hayley said, pointing to herself.
“Hayley.” Jules pointed at the inebriated werewolf girl. “Stay,” she commanded.
“Woof,” Hayley said and both Hayley and Monica were swept away in a fit of giggles.
Without another word, Jules grabbed her keys and walked out the front door. She reached the driveway, jumped into her car, and backed out quickly. She weaved through traffic. All she could think about was getting to Gabriel and uncovering the truth. The sound of her phone ringing pulled her out of her mind’s confusion.
“You hung up on me. What are you going to do?” It was Luca.
“I have to get to Gabriel. I have to get to the bottom of this.”
“I’m coming with you.”
“No. I need you to and take Hayley and Monica home.”
“You can’t go alone,” he said loudly.
“Yes, I can. If Gabriel really is doing this… even though I refuse to believe that… do you think he would hesitate before killing you?”
“Jules, but you…”
“Luca, I’m sorry but I’m not turning around. I love you,” she said before hanging up on him.
GABRIEL
Gabriel had run until he couldn’t anymore. There were now too many people around that might notice a passing blur. So, he walked at a brisk human pace until he arrived back at his hotel. He avoided meeting anyone’s eye as he passed through the lobby. Upon seeing that the hall was empty he bolted down it and into his room at vampire speed.
“Gabriel! What’s wrong?” Eileen asked with worry in her voice. He knew she was probably still angry at him. But he saw that anger melt away, most likely due to the expression on his face.
“Are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” she said, her tone full of only concern now.
“I feel like I did.” He passed her and walked over to the little refrigerator where they had stashed the blood they had brought with them.
“What happened?” She put her hand over the mouth of the glass before he could pour a bag into it. “Gabriel, stop it. What happened?”
“I witnessed a vampire draining a human.” He sounded shaken, though he tried to be steady. “I couldn’t save her.” His voice was strained as he got to the last word. Gabriel poured the contents of the bag into his glass and tossed the bag into the sink.
Gabriel dropped himself onto the plush couch. His mind raced as he went over possible courses of action in his mind. One thing was sure, he couldn’t do nothing. He took a long drink, longer than he normally allowed himself. With the blood came the calming of his frazzled nerves.
“You’re thinking about calling Jules, aren’t you?” Eileen said softly as she sat down beside him and took his hand in her own.
“No.” The anger in his eyes flared. “And yes.” He dropped his head.
“Maybe we should, Gabriel. She would know what to do…”
“No,” Gabriel cut her off. “No, I can deal with this myself.” His voice was determined.
“You wouldn’t have to handle this alone if you weren’t so stubborn.” She crossed her arms. “Jules would know how to handle all of this.”
“No.”
“You are being ridiculous. She fell in love. There really is nothing to be mad about.” Eileen’s defense of Jules was expected and not without justification. However, Gabriel was his own man. Jules was his best friend. He would decide when to contact her.
“There is more than enough to be mad about Eileen,” he said, his voice not as level as he would have preferred. “Not only did she let herself fall in love with a werewolf, but she also lied about it.” Anger overtook him and he stood roughly, pulling his hand out of hers as he did so. “How can you not understand?”
“I do understand.” The anger in her voice rose as well. “I understand that you are allowing hate to dictate your actions!”
He couldn’t have this fight again. Not now. He walked into the bedroom and slammed the door behind him.
“Seriously!” he heard her scream at him through the door. Eileen must have thrown something solid at it then because the door cracked down the middle.
Still, Gabriel did not move toward it. A few seconds later, he heard the hotel room door slam. He knew he should go after her. He knew she wasn’t ready to be left in the human world alone. And yet, for some reason he didn’t quite understand, he let her go.
THE FORT MILES PHANTOM
He was walking the streets again on the way to nowhere in particular. He was getting a little tired of this quiet city. He might be forced to move on if things didn’t get more interesting soon.
He was halfway to anywhere when his call for interesting was met. He sensed her before he saw her, he could almost feel her panic. She was a young one. That was for sure. She was untrained in the ways of the world, he could sense it. He stood in his place on the sidewalk, humans skirting by him on either side. Then he spotted her. She was taller than average for a woman and strikingly beautiful, the scars on her cheek only adding to her vampiric allure. Dark hair hung long down her back, the copper skin of the natives of this land had not yet paled with years. She pushed and shoved through the throng, desperate to get away from the skin-covered blood temptations.
He paced her from across the busy night street until the opportunity to get through the speeding cars arose. One second cars were nearly missing him and the next he was standing in front of her, his hands on either side of her arms. “Come with me,” he instructed the overwhelmed and flustered vampire.
She said nothing as he took her hand and pulled her off her current path. He found a secluded alley and stopped them inside the cover of its darkness. “You can breathe,” he told her, his hands resting again on either side of her arms.
She took in a long breath.
“Now you let it out,” he instructed.
She met his eyes for the first time. Her eyes were still predominantly their original color. She was very young, but not a brand-new vampire like he’d originally assumed. She let a long stream of air out of her lungs.
“Better?” he asked.
She nodded but was still silently staring up at him. It happened with the young ones sometimes. He wasn’t a primordial vampire, but he was several centuries old.
“Yes, thank you,” she said. “There were just so many of them out there.”
“Several billion in the world I’d imagine,” he said, smiling.
“Something’s familiar about you,” she commented, looking up at him once again, her eyes narrowed in concentration. “But I know we’ve never met before.”
“Considering I was made a vampire hundreds of years before your human life began and considering I’m not someone you just forget, I’m guessing we haven’t.” He batted his eyelashes for effect.
She raised her eyebrows at him skeptically.
“I’m Nick, Nicholas as it were,” he said, dropping his hands and stretching one out toward her.
“Eileen,” she replied.
“So, tell me Eileen,” Nick began, “how is it that you have been a vampire for what forty, fifty years and still get thrown off by large quantities of humans that are not currently bleeding?”
“My coven doesn’t feed on humans,” she said.
Nick scowled. So, she is part of one of those new era, ‘humans are friends not food’ people. He was about to respond when a loud laugh pulled Eileen’s attention back to the entrance of the alley.
She made for the human-heavy sidewalk, but he grabbed her around the shoulders, keeping her concealed in the alley.
“Let me go.” She fought against his hold.
“Can’t do that, sorry,” he said, strengthening his hold against her resistance.
“But I’m so hungry.”
He empathized with the desperation in her voice. “Don’t worry,” Nick said. “We can fix that.”
CARSON
“Why exactly have you requested to meet in the yard?” Carson asked the stuttering imbecile of a tracker. He normally would not allow himself to be summoned by anyone and yet the man had said that the information he brought was sensitive. So here he was, standing in the front yard, waiting on this moron to spit out what he had to say.
“Th-the… there is a-another traitor, sir,” he finally said.
“Kyle Cooper?” Carson asked, almost excitedly. He would love to have proof of his fall along with that of Luca Cain.
Jed looked back toward the house as if checking to make sure no one was nearby. Carson’s impatience was growing. However, every time Carson was about to dismiss the stuttering fool the man proved smarter and more valuable than expected.
“No… it… it’s the woman’s s-son.”
Carson stilled. “What did you just say?”
Jed once again handed his phone to his Alpha. “I picked up the vam… vampire at a house n-near the school. This was taken on the way t-to a human home.”
Carson studied the picture. Jed was not mistaken. He was holding proof of the boy’s treachery. The picture showed the boy standing at ease, conversing with one very bothersome, tiny, dead girl.
Carson felt like shouting. How deep did this anarchy run? Not only was Luca a traitor to the pack but he had dragged Demetria’s son down that path with him. He needed to eliminate these problems, and he needed to do it now. Caron’s hand tightened around the phone.
“I…” The tracker began to object.
“Have you mentioned this to anyone else?” Carson asked through a clenched jaw.
“Of… of course n-not,” Jed replied, reaching for his property.
“Good.” Carson handed the man back his phone. “Keep it that way,” Carson ordered and then waved his hand in dismissal.
“Ye-yes, sir.” Jed nodded and rushed away, seeming eager to be gone from this situation.
Carson’s mind was spinning. Luca was like a cancer spreading throughout the pack. It must be stopped. He had to ensure the safety of those loyal to him. This he must do, no matter what the cost. The hard choices were his to make and make them he would.
As if on cue, Kip pulled into the drive and climbed out of his vehicle. Cason took long strides over to him. “Is it done?” Carson asked.
“Um… no Alpha. I wasn’t able to locate Luca,” Kip said, looking downright mortified. He should be.
“Did you try?” Carson asked angrily.
“I drove around all day. I even went all the way to Fort Miles looking for him.”
“Idiot. The vampire is here. Why exactly would he be in the city?” Carson was outraged. Was this wolf just that simple or was Kip more clever than he’d ever given him credit for, finding a way to avoid his duty, while technically following orders? Was he a traitor as well?
Carson pulled forth every ounce of control he had as the Alpha of this pack and spoke after a long moment. “Find him. I do not care who gets in your way,” Carson snarled.
Kip paled. Everything in him seemed to be fighting against this instruction. This angered Carson greatly. His orders had to be obeyed. Carson backhanded the taller man across the face. The wolf stumbled back again his vehicle. “Do it tonight or you will suffer the same fate.”
GABRIEL
Gabriel heard Eileen’s phone ring. Apparently, she had left it on the counter when she stormed out of the hotel room. Gabriel walked from the bedroom, picked it up, and stared at the name of the caller. The whimsical ringtone died while Gabriel was still holding the small phone in his hand, starting at Jules’s name.
The phone rang again. The ringtone ended, and still, Gabriel hadn’t answered. He could imagine how upset and worried Jules must be by now. It was possible that Eileen had been right all along. He was being unreasonable. He didn’t have to forgive Jules but avoiding her was childish.
Gabriel’s phone started vibrating in his pocket. Finally, he chose to answer. Jules didn’t have to know he was the one ignoring her calls to Eileen. “Hello.”
“What is going on? Where are you? I saw you on the news.” Jules’s rapid-fire questions came out in place of a greeting.
“What do you mean, you saw me on the news?”
“The woman you found,” Jules explained, “the media has tied you to the murder.”
“Oh.” Gabriel was stunned. How did trying to help a woman connect him to her murder?
“I’m assuming that you didn’t do this.” Jules sounded almost accusatory. Her tone stung. This wedge between them needed to be mended sooner or later.
“Of course I didn’t,” he said softly, almost remorsefully.
“But it was a vampire.”
“Yes.”
“Where are you?” she asked again.
Gabriel hesitated for a moment. He could tell that she was in the car. He could hear the hum of her engine and the rolling tires. “I can handle this on my own Jules.” He spoke so softly that he wasn’t sure that she’d heard him.
“I know that Gabriel.” Jules spoke almost as softly. “But you don’t have too. No matter what you think of me, I will be there to help you.”
Gabriel considered this for a moment and then he said, “alright Jules. I’m at a hotel in downtown Fort Miles. I’ll text you the address.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
He lifted the phone away from his ear, preparing to hang up but then he thought the better of it. He needed to know her answer to his next question. He had to prepare himself. “You aren’t bringing the werewolf, are you?”
“No, I’m alone,” she replied then ended the call.
Relieved, Gabriel rolled the tension out of his shoulders. He had no choice now. Jules was coming. Together they would get this rogue vampire situation sorted out and, with any luck, some time away from Aboit and that dog would open her eyes to his concerns.
LUCA
Once Luca, Kyle, and Ricky had eaten their fill of pizza he’d dropped Ricky off at the Den. Then he and Kyle made their way to Jules’ s house to pick up Monica and Hayley, upon Jules’s request.
When they arrived, both girls were fast asleep on the sofa, a movie continuing to play with no one watching. Kyle stopped Luca with his arm and then he himself crept into the room, looking down at his sleeping wife for a few seconds too long. He seemed enchanted by the delicate drape of her hair and the way her chest rose and fell slowly. Then Monica sorted in her sleep. Luca and Kyle laughed in unison and both girls sat up, startled.
“Don’t scare me like that,” Hayley grumbled, smacking Kyle’s leg with a soft thwap.
Monica threw herself back down onto the couch, her head resting on her arm. She looked toward Luca.
“You ready to go home?” he asked, raising his eyebrows at her.
She nodded and yawned at the same time in response.
“Come on then.” Kyle reached both hands out toward Hayley, who took them and allowed herself to be pulled from the sofa.
Monica sat up and looked around. “Let me clean up before we go.” This sounded more like a question than an instruction. She started to stand and then dropped back down. Luca was by her side in an instant.
“I’ll do it. You sit.” Luca walked around the couch and started to clean up the mess the girls had made.
“Keys Hayles?” Kyle asked.
“Kitchen counter.” Hayley pointed.
Kyle nodded. “You want help?” He motioned around them.
Luca looked around the room and then shook his head. “No, you guys go. I’ll finish up and take Monica home.” He gathered up discarded carryout boxes, paper plates, and drinking glasses.
“Are you coming back to the apartment after?” Hayley asked.
“I should probably show my face at the Den,” Luca replied.
Hayley nodded.
“Good luck,” Kyle commented and then they were gone.
It took only a few minutes to get Jules’s house back in perfect order. He walked through the house, locked the front door, and made his way back to Monica. Her tipsy state had her almost passed out on the couch once again. He chuckled and held out a hand to help her onto her feet.
She took it but let it go once she was fully vertical. She stumbled, and Luca caught her by the shoulders. “Okay let’s go.” Luca gently guided Monica through the back door and locked it. He placed the spare key back in its hiding place and the pair walked to the Jeep.
Monica was fairly quiet on the way back to her house, Luca was just hoping she didn’t end up vomiting all over his Jeep’s upholstery. To his relief, she seemed to be looking a little more stable once they reached her driveway and he dropped her off.
“Do you need me to come inside with you?”
Her hand rested on the door handle a moment and then she spoke, “I think I’m good.”
“Goodnight Monica.”
“Night.”
He waited until the front door was open and she waved back at him before he backed out of the drive.
The night sky was dark and the roads back to the Den were almost completely deserted. It was a peaceful drive on a quiet road around the preserve. That was, until a large vehicle appeared right behind him, their headlights reflecting off his rearview mirror and into his eyes. Luca would have sworn it hadn’t been there a second ago. He thought it looked like Kip’s truck, but he couldn’t be sure in the dark, despite its close proximity to the Jeep’s backside.
Luca tried speeding up. He tried slowing down but neither resulted in the truck going around him or backing off even slightly. He sped up again. And again, the truck paced him. He had to slow as he approached the place where the forest road curved, with a steep drop on his passenger side. The truck sped up, filling the lane beside him. It paced him a moment and Luca looked to his left. He was startled when he saw the driver. It was Kip. He was looking out his passenger window at Luca with an unreadable expression on his face.
Luca was about to give him a what the hell look when Kip swerved, slamming into the side of the Jeep. Luca countered, trying desperately to stay on the road. He was just about to slam on the brakes when Kip slammed into him again. This time, Luca lost control. He swerved unavoidably, and the Jeep’s tires skidded off the road, hurling down the steep drop he’d slowed down to avoid. The front tire must have hit something because the Jeep flipped. It all happened so fast that not even Luca had time to react. The soft top of the jeep gave easily, and the weight of the car came down on Luca’s body.
Luca’s consciousness waned. All he felt was pain and pressure. He registered that there must be a cut on his forehead as blood began to drip into his eyes. He looked down at the parts of his body that he could see and noted that there was a long gash running along his abdomen. But then, everything went dark.