Burned to a Crisp

The scene wasn't pretty when she climbed out of her car, cameraman right behind her. It was dark and poorly lit. She felt a shiver run up her spine as they approached the body. She couldn't really see much of it as it was obscured by a sheet.

"Can you get closer?" her cameraman asked. She inched a few steps to her left.

"Is that good?" she asked. He nodded and noised the camera on his shoulder. She took a deep breath and held the microphone up in front of her.

"Good evening. This is Beth Turner reporting live from BuzzWire," she began.

"Tonight we bring you the most recent discovery in a string of brutal and bizarre murders. The police have not confirmed if it is a serial killer or not but they are sure they are onto something," she continued.

"As more develops we will keep you updated. Thank. This Beth Turner for BuzzWire," she concluded and heaved a sigh. She still wasn't used to reporting live like this. And to be honest, after what she'd reported last time, she was still rather freaked out. Her cameraman busied himself with putting the equipment away and she looked around, expecting Mick to show up. He wasn't there and a part of her was sad about that.

"Hey Carl. Do you know anything new?" Beth asked, catching the detective by the arm. He let out a sigh.

"No, Beth. Nothing new. Just the same MO as the last victim. Burned alive and decapitate," he answered. Beth tried to keep her gag reflex in check as Carl peered down at the body, or what was left of it.

"Oh…oh God," Beth gasped, stumbling back a few steps from the charred mass at her feet.

"Still no sign of the head lieutenant," one of the other officers called.

"Was…was the head cut off before the body was burned?" Beth stammered.

"We don't know, "Carl answered.

"Look Beth, I know you want your story but please, you need to step away from the body," he said. She nodded and walked back to the car. She climbed into the passenger seat and they headed back to BuzzWire.

On the other side of town, Mick sat in his apartment, staring at the webpage before him. Beth's latest video had just been uploaded to the web. He watched it, his eyes taking in the background behind her. It was dimly lit and out of the way but still somewhere someone would notice the body. He got a glimpse of the body and shivered. He would need to see the body himself to determine if his suspicions were true or not. The first body didn't raise alarm in his mind. But this did. Two bodies turning up in this manner was another. He closed the browser and grabbed his keys. Ten minutes later he walked into the morgue and ran into Guillermo.

"Do you have the body the cops just found?" Mick asked.

"Yeah…it's….you're just have to see it for yourself," he answered and led Mick into the next room. He uncovered the body and Mick recoiled. He inhaled and was hit with the scent of vampire.

"It's definitely a vampire," Mick said softly.

"Yeah…and they must have pissed off someone real bad to decapitate and barbeque them," Guillermo commented with a shake of his head.

"Keep me updated if anything changes…like they find the head," Mick called as he sprinted from the room. His suspicions had been right, which meant the first body was most likely a vamp as well. With a determined stride he headed for Josef's penthouse. He grew impatient as security took their sweet time letting him in. When he finally reached the top of the building he found Josef sitting in an armchair sipping a glass of blood. The elder vampire looked up and set his class down.

"What can I do for you my friend?" he asked.

"I think we may have a rogue on our hands. That or a really pissed off human who knows we exist," Mick said. Josef just stared back at him. That was not was he was expecting to hear tonight.