Chapter 2

-Down To Business-

Lassie leant to adjust Shawn's jacket for the fourth time. He slapped his hand away.

-Lassie, quit it. I'm not going to visit my Grandma.-

-No, for this is thousand times more compromising.- His pale face got even paler. -Sweet Justice, how can you always look so dastardly shabby?-

-Can't you chill a bit?-

-I'm going to introduce you two idiots to Victoria, Mistress of Santa Barbara, Wife of Bones, one of the most powerful and fiercest Masters of West Coast. Don't tell me to chill.-

Lassie finally adjusted the sleeve, pulling it hard enough to strap the stitches. He growled.

On his behalf, they were all quite nervous. Standing in a deserted parking with the prospective to meet a Supernatural mob lady tends to do this effect. And there was a reason even for him to act like a fretting Mom. Before the appointment with Victoria their vamp had imposed two conditions: decent suits and no weapons. Jules's pearls twinkled softly on the silk shirt. Gus had put on his Rep tie. Shawn had exhumed his jersey black jacket and black jeans almost totally clean.

Lassiter was in his black velvet suit, with the golden-buttons frock-coat, a pocket watch chain blinking across the waistcoat. For once the outfit was not his fault. He was second in command: once in the Court, he had to look powerful, fancy and not human at all. And velvet hided well the Glock.

Juliet walked to them in a click-clack of heels.

-Guys, c'mon. We're all pretty enough. The earlier we get in, the earlier we'll be finished.-

-Jules is right.- Gus noted. Better, squeaked. -I mean, fidgeting out here just makes everything worse.-

Both he and Lassie grunted an agreement. Shawn looked down at his All Stars. The Head Detective fell back on playing with his tie.

-Okay, rules. Walk behind me. Do not talk to anyone if not questioned, but keep your eyes high. And above all, above all, follow me. Follow me, Spencer.-

-Why are you looking at me?-

-Spencer. Stick to the rules.-

-Uh, okay. Gotcha. After you, Lord Lassiepants.-

He wasn't sure Lassie caught the sarcasm. He was still staring hard at the Court door. It was a very non-descriptive door, metal and plastic windows, ugly, the kind you find in high school gyms. Nothing said it was more than that except the rough crown sprayed in black on one corner. Shawn was pretty sure Lassie was staring at the crown and nothing else.

Then he straightened his back and strolled across the door, and Jules looked back just for a sec before following him. A breath, two, and they were both sucked in the shadows.

Gus walked to Shawn, he took a step. They both stopped by the threshold.

-It won't be easy, right?-

-I think not, buddy.-

Gus sighed. Licked his lips.

-But it'll be funny, right?-

-I fairly doubt it, buddy.-

The Vampire Court rose up a block away from Santa Barbara's oldest shopping mall. Court was probably much too fancy a name; it was basically an underground parking converted ten years before with a great deal of candlelight and velvet curtains, but vamps loved nice names even more than nice things. The four of them were walking along moist-smelling corridors, steps echoing. The neon lights had been blown off long before and lanterns flickered on graffiti and never-washed oil stains. Hangings scattered the walls, dainty maidens chasing unicorns next to broken pipes. Vamps are old, so they tend to border laziness: Courts are place to shelter or to hide thorny things, no more. A war would sometimes come, or a plague or a storm; there was no point in building something that would anyway fall. Shawn secretly agreed.

Lassie strolled along stairs and turns with grumpy ease and they all fell back like ducklings. They didn't see anyone, but there were shuffles around them, soft laughs, just enough to make Shawn peer at every side-exits on their path.

He cleared his throat.

-So, Wednesday. Lazy day, isn't it?-

-Spencer, shut up.- Lassie gritted out. -They are watching.-

Gus kicked his best friend's calf hard enough to persuade him.

They climbed down a last row of stairs and stopped in front of a massive double door. The right side of the wall was painted with the big blue F of the floor. A soft amber light filtered from under the shutters. Shawn didn't feel the rush of power, but he did hear whispering, saw the shadows of feet stretching across the floor. He straightened his back.

Lassie banged on the doors, just once, the metal vibrating deep all the way to the joints. They waited. The shutter cracked open, and someone got out of it. Someone big. Shaved head, ebony skin. Looking at him Shawn knew instantly that he was a young vamp and that even without the optional he could splat his head with a single slap. How comforting.

The big big man gave a long look at them. It had been some time since last time Shawn felt exactly like a ham roast, but luckily enough the giant sharply turned to Lassie. Their vamp looked even scrawnier beside him. Still, it was the guy to bow deeply.

-Greetings, Colonel.-

-Greetings, Maxwell.-

-Our lady is waiting for you.- Lizard-green eyes shot to Shawn's neck. - Are those yours?-

-Aye. They walk under my gaze, sleep under my hand. I bring them with no blood, and with no blood I will go back.-

Lassie said it all with the passion you use while reading a shopping list. He was actually terrible at passionate reciting, and that bad in a community made for most part by picky ex-courtesans. Shawn had seen him performing a vamp ritual just one other time, and it had been painful to see. Such a party-blooper. However it worked, because the giant looked up for permission, got up after a nod and didn't watch anymore any of the three of them.

-If you want, we shall go. It is not good to let the lady wait.-

-No it is not.- Lassie gave another curt nod to the doors. –Lead the way.-

-Yes sir.-

Maxwell the big guy spread out the double doors, and they stepped in along a short square corridor. Pale faces followed them along the walls. Some bowed slowly at Lassie; some snickered, cursing behind their backs. Shawn and the others were proceeding a bit too swift, so much that Gus almost bumped in Lassie's back twice. The creepiest thing however was the silence; as soon as they got there, and as they got nearer to the doors on the other side of the corridor, the voices around grew softer. Disappeared. When they got at the end and the big henchman bowed his way out, not a sound was echoing in the whole damn corridor. As banal as it could sound, yeah, Shawn didn't like it a bit.

They all gathered in front of the doors, peering from over Lassie's shoulders. All of them stared at the crown mark streaked on the door.

-Whenever you want, Carlton. We have you covered.- Jules whispered.

Lassie nodded. -Roger.-

He pushed open the door. It slowly cracked open. They took some steps in, one two three. They bounced all around like heartbeats. The doors snapped shut behind them, and for a moment there was just the dark, shadows stretching around and arms brushing hands.

-Son, here you are at last.-

All of them jerked towards the voice. Lassie just turned. On the left, far beyond, far deep in the crimson shadows, someone moved. The someone was sitting on a throne made of shards of stone and bones. A white claw rose forward. Blood eyes blinked at them.

-Here you at last.-

Happy freakin' Halloween.

The Master of Santa Barbara didn't look beautiful. Her thick dark curls flowed down her back, kept tight off her forehead by thin black gems. Her lips blazed red with no makeup at all. She had every mean to be beautiful, she was not. She was one of the vampires, one of the few, actually, that had been changed when they'd already lived a fairly amount of life. Magic just stopped, and Victoria had been stopped when she had been a full beautiful woman, already touched by time, already aging. That however had been a very, very long time ago. She was probably still beautiful, but above all she was Vampire. You wondered first other things. How fast can she drain me? Can I cry? How far can I go before she rips out my throat?

-Come, come nearer. Let me see you in the light.-

From the wide-eyed greenish look on Gus and Jules' faces they were not exactly eager to walk forward, but Lassie pushed his chin up and started for the throne dais. They inched forward behind him. Jules looked ready to throw up. It was probably her first time in a Vamps' court, and everybody knew they weren't good places for werewolves, even not-transformed like her. Her fangs flickered out.

Her what?

Lassie reached the dais and fell on one knee, the right wrist held high and bare over his head. – Greetings, Mistress. I thank you for the blood in my veins, I thank you for the beat in my heart-.

-Carlton, my dearest son. Get up, get up. No need for these formalities between us.-

She watched Lassie rising with care and turned to face them. Victoria was wearing a long dark gown, heavy silk cupping round arms and firm breasts. Lantern light beamed off chalk skin. Most masters tried to look as human as possible, hiding power under jeans and tailored suits, but not Victoria. She was too old to give a damn about it.

-Oh, hello hello. Here are Carlton's little friends. You don't know how anxiously I wait for us to meet.- She let a finger wander in their direction. –Let's see, let's see. The gracious girl should be the officer, I suppose. And there I saw the heir of Guster House. And here.- She grinned.

-Here we have Henry Spencer's offspring, nevertheless. Hilarious. Trust Carlton to choose the strangest friends.-

-Well, yeah. He's such a cool kid at the kindergarten.- Lassie was surely glaring at him, but Shawn couldn't give a damn. Being cocooned by the Wife of Bones felt just too weird.

She laughed. It was a myth that vampires' laughs had otherworldly qualities echoing of everything from orgasm to death chariots guided by angry Valkyries. Like among humans there were good laughs and bad ones, and Victoria's was rich, pleasant like a mom's.

-Oh, my apologies, young Spencer. I forgot how proud men are not to be children anymore.- She rose a claw-hand again.

-Carlton, dearest, come here by my side.-

-I'd rather not, Mistress.-

-Come here, Carlton.-

Victoria's voice was just one step from a snarl. Lassie stiffened, mounted slowly up the dais, stopping by her, face blank. Shawn wondered how many time it had already happened. His guts twisted.

-Better, better my dear.- She smiled.-I see you've dressed for me. I remember this suit.- She gave a sharp trust to the watch chain, pulling him closer, rubbing all the way down his hip. Lassie's hands clutched along his sides. There was something disturbingly predatory in that touch, something that wasn't even a lover's brush. It was the way you touch a fancy knick-knack on your desk. It was property.

-Mistress, please. I think it's not appro-

-I tore all of this off death, boy.- The hand played with the waistcoat buttons, slowly, forcing out a shudder. -I can dispose of it as I see fit.-

-Su.- Lassie swallowed. Shawn didn't look at his eyes. -Sure, ma'am.-

-Good boy.-

Victoria let him go with a sigh. –Enough, Carlton. Talk freely.-

-Your call has been utterly surprising. May I ask you the reason behind such a honor, Mistress?-

-I think you can imagine some of it.- The Wife of Bones shot him a glance.

-Why are my children dying, Carlton?-

Lassie tightened his lips. –Victoria.-

-You told me to trust in your justice, back when I let you join that curious circus of freaks. You told me we would be protected like anyone of the day-folk. So what is your lot doing for us?-

-We're investigating, Victoria. Our necromancer would perform the ritual tomorrow night. We have bonds and times to respect.-

-So break them.-

-I cannot. If we want to live in the world again, we need them. We need boundaries we can demonstrate we can respect.-

Jules and Gus were throwing him alarmed looks, but Shawn had no desire to push in the conversation. Lassie was handling it pretty well, so far. The shit was still around ankles. Shawn brushed his back without thinking.

Victoria rose lazily from her throne.-Yes, of course. Ah, my dear Colonel, always the same passion, always the same song since so long a time.-

-I'm being serious, Mistress.-

-I wouldn't ever think the contrary. But I have responsibilities too, and I don't doubt about where my loyalty lays. I'm a old woman, Carlton.- The silk whispered along the chunks of bones of her chair. –At some moment of its path a being's ability at adapting and learning just dried. To me it happened centuries ago. I want to protect my kin, and know but one way to do it.-

Lassie's eyes widened in outrage. -You're saying you would pull the treat?-

She shrugged. -Blood for blood, dear. If it comes to it, I'll do what I have to do.-

-But you can't-

It was so sudden it wasn't even scary. Shawn just blinked, heard a whoosh of air and suddenly Victoria's hand was clutched around Lassie's throat. Her face dried off in fangs. His mouth gaped. She swept him off his feet, and flung him across the hall.

Lassie's body crashed into the wall, dropping down in a heap. Jules cried. They all heard the snap of spine breaking. Shawn felt bile rising in his throat.

-Don't you dare, brat.- The Mistress roared, her face torn in reds and whites. -Don't you dare to talk back to me. Just because I let you play cops and robbers with your little fuckers doesn't mean you don't belong to me anymore.-

-Carlton!- Juliet growled and dashed forward. Shawn set out an arm to clutch her.

-Let me go, Shawn.-

-No.- He gulped. -If we do something we're dead.-

-He's my partner.-

-No, Jules.-

Juliet stared back at him and her eyes were bright with amber. The hand against his arm was shaking. He suddenly knew she could tear off his shoulder without breaking a sweat.

Oh, shit.

Breaking a vamp's back was an allowed punishment. If Juliet shot now, they would be the attackers, and a horde of vampires would flow on them in a damn breathe. If a young werewolf attacked the Master, they were all basically fucked.

Jules snarled again, baring fangs. She slowly licked her lips. He didn't let go.

-Okay, Spencer. Okay.-

She stepped back, breathing hard. Never looking away from Lassie's back. Neither he did.

-Oh, such good bunnies.- A clap of hands made them flinch. - It's sweet to see some lads still know the hold ways.-

Shawn turned back to the dais and the monster over it. He talked as soon he got enough air.

-Well, that was showy, ma'am.-

-Necessary.- She replied. Victoria's face had changed again, the fangs hidden deep, face pouty. Pretense at its place, never again. –He is mine, boyo, and mine to train.-

-Maybe yes. I'd advise you to stop it, how- dammit, Shawn, focus –however.-

-And why so?-

-We're kind of a big deal in the city. I'm pretty sure things are hairy enough even without throwing in fancy killings.-

-Was that a treat, young Spencer?-

Victoria lashed in front of him. His hand ran to his back. The blade strapped under the jacket felt suddenly heavier.

-Don't, boy. Or no one of you would leave this hall.-

Shawn licked his lips. His hand fell back.

She snorted loudly, but it didn't really matter. The main thing was getting everyone out of there. The main thing was keeping them all in one piece. Victoria laughed, and praised him and teased a bit more, but Shawn's attention was all for the motionless spot against the wall.

-Very well. I think I've quite made my point.- She waved at them with a frown.-Now up. Go pick the other bunny.-

-Thanks, Mistress.-

He swallowed. Jules walked back to him, a soft growl humming deep in her throat, shaking air like a diapason.

-Can I go?- she whispered.

-Now yes.-

She shoved him away and ran to Lassie. He was still where he'd fallen. She crouched by him and brushed his face, saying nothing. Victoria was not a forgiving Master, especially with her favorites. Especially with Lassie. Not all the scars on his body came from his battle days. Vamps could survive a lot of things, but that doesn't mean they didn't hurt as Hell. Surviving a badly broken back, feeling a crashed skull repairing itself was not something bodies are made to bear.

Jules pushed him up, slowly, talking softly. Shawn couldn't see him behind her shoulders, but he glimpsed misshaped angles, a blue eye blinking across blood. But it was blinking.

-O'Hara. I'm okay.-

She promptly ignored him.

-You think you could walk?-

-In less than ten minutes.-

-You want to wait here?-

-Not a chance in Hell.-

She touched his cheek again. They mutually decided she could do it, and Jules draped his arm around her shoulder, pushing him up with relative ease. Gus inched slowly towards the detectives. Shawn didn't let his gaze wander off Victoria.

Never close your eyes, kid.

-Can we go now, Mistress?-

-Sure. Get out.-

It was the moment. Jules stumbled towards the exit, Lassie's head bouncing weakly against her shoulder. Gus fell behind them. Shawn tried hard not to skip past everybody like a bad sissy version of Roadrunner. The door never looked so far.

-Not all of you, bunnies. The human stays here.-

Shawn stopped midstep. He took a deep breath. So this was how it ended. Well, it was a pity, but he couldn't really complain. He supposed there could be worse deaths.

Gus was almost out and turned for a second. They shared a look.

-Of course, Ma'am.-

His buddy understood and brought them out. Shawn fell back in bloody darkness, the doors clicking softly behind his favorite people. They were alone. He was sure his heart was about to snap out of his chest.

-What do you want, Mistress?-

-Oh, don't get so bold all of a sudden. I do not want to kill you.-

-Really?-

-Really.- she said. –In truth, I just want you to consider an offer, young Spencer.-

He should say no and try to slip away. He should get the Hell out of there and see if everyone was okay.

He turned. Shawn, you damn cat.

-An, offer?-

-Yes.- Victoria was walking around, with no sound. –I've observed you for a long time, bunny. I know how they call you. The Hunter that Does Not Hunt. Charming. Sly. A child with no magic, raised to kill magic. And that now, loves it more than his own kind.- She sighed. –I fear you would have been a much better vampire than my Colonel.-

-Geez. Look, ma'am, Lassie could have a lot of flaws, but I don't think it'd be very nice to fire him now.-

Victoria shook a long white hand. -Don't get me wrong. Carlton has been a wonderful choice as a companion. He's beautiful, clever, a great leader, a remarkable soldier. But, he is good.-

-Well. It's kind of the point.- Shawn said. -We are the good guys, ma'am.-

-No, bunny.- Victoria stopped in front of him. -You work with the good guys. It's an entirely different thing.-

Shawn frowned slowly. -I fear I don't understand.-

-It's simple. Carlton thinks about justice, then about his people, then about himself. He is good. You are not. Not bad, but very aware of being a thing of flesh. Very frail. Very tearable. If things required it, you'd do anything to keep it that way.-

-I'm not a hunter, Mistress. I've never killed.-

-Yes, you're right. But I've observed you before. One of your friends was bleeding against a wall, and you didn't even try to reach for him. You just thought about the best way to keep everybody alive.-

-This doesn't mean anything.-

-This means everything.- She stared right at him, red red lips curling. – You can choose, anytime, anyway, Spencer. You are not driven by a greater call. You are free. More than any of them. Maybe now you choose to be good, because your loved ones are on that side, because it's funnier to play. But that alone means you could also choose not to be.-

Shawn stumbled. It all rang too close. It was all too fast. He squinted.

-Are you offering me a job, ma'am?-

-We could say that.- she said. -You don't have to answer me in this moment. I've been here for a long time, I can wait a bit longer. But things are changing, bunny dear. New rules rose. Old died. You could use a friend like me sometimes soon.-

Shawn swallowed, trying a smirk. -I really doubt you have ever been a friend for anyone, Mistress.-

Victoria grinned. That grin would haunt him all the way out of that place.

-Smart kid.-

When Shawn got home that night dawn was breaking. He dragged himself across the door, half-stumbled on his own shoes as he took them off and his mouth felt full of sawdust and ketchup. On their way from Victoria's Court he and Gus had insisted on stopping at the Taqueria. They had driven there in silence. Jules was on the backseat, shoving Carlton's head down every time he tried to get up. He would heal, he was already healing. But vampire bones are actually still bones, so if they break they need to reassert and clack back in place, and it hurts like Hell. Shawn had been extremely careful at not looking backward more than necessary, but he still heard Lassie hissing, Jules's hushing as things clacked and snapped and cracked inside him. It sounded a bit like sugar tablets snapping. Snap snap snap. There was not a thing they could do to help and no one had intention to leave the others, so they did stop at the fast food. Shawn had ordered just a pineapple smoothie. Gus had taken the fries with shaking hands. They had been less than one step from being chopped in pieces and Lassie was bleeding on the Blueberry seat, and they all knew it.

Shawn dropped on his couch and got himself nearly stabbed. He took off the blade from his back holster with a deep sigh. Full metal, holy carvings. His fancy Hunter blade.

Fuck yeah Shawn. Fuck yeah.

His phone started to buzz in his pocket. He took it out with a second sigh, checked the ID caller. He shoved it at the other end of the couch. Shawn slumped on his side. The blade fell clacking on the coffee table, between a pack of M&Ms and the remote control. The phone kept buzzing.

-No, Pope.- Shawn closed his eyes.

–Not this night.-