Page ii
"Oh, damn it," Elkins said. Within the bar, a vampire was digging his face into the bartender's shoulder.
"So what do we do now?" Gordon asked. "We're outnumbered."
Elkins moved toward his truck; a key was pulled from his pocket to unlock the metal box attached the back of it. "Seeing how you're a hunter, I really do hope you brought some weapons," said Elkins as he lifted the box open, revealing a large assortment of weaponry. "You do know how to kill these bastards, right?"
Nodding his head while glancing at Elkins' weaponry, Gordon began walking back to his crimson-colored car. "I keep my guns in the trunk; I also got my hands on a nice machete not too long ago," he said with a smile as he opened up the trunk to his car; weapons were laid out, only covered by a large, black, cloth.
Putting a pistol into his pocket and taking the large machete from his trunk, Gordon walked back to Elkins. "I hope you realize that guns aren't gonna do shit," Elkins told Gordon as he pulled a jar of red liquid from his storage box.
"What is that?" Gordon questioned as Elkins just smiled.
"What the hell are you doing?" shouted the bartender right before the vampire grabbed the man's face with his free hand and slammed it into the counter. The man fell unconscious to the floor, blood oozing out onto the floor.
"Oops," the vampire chuckled as he looked back to his two female companions. "Five second rule, right?" he smirked as he grabbed the man by his collar and pulled him up.
The vampire opened his mouth to start feasting on the other shoulder. "Hey, what about us?" said one of the other vampires.
"We can't just go around killing everyone," said the male as he looked back; his mouth soaked with dark red blood. "But y'know what…we probably shouldn't leave any witnesses either. All right, no one leaves this bar alive unless they're with us!" he shouted before he bit into the bartender's neck and ripped out a large chunk of flesh.
Before panic could ensue the doors to the bar flung open and Elkins tossed a bloody throwing knife to the male vampire; the knife was razor sharp and easily sunk into his neck.
"Aah!" yelled the vampire as he let the dead bartender drop to the floor. "Who the hell…?" he muttered. He changed his vision to Elkins who had taken a few more steps forward, but stopped walking.
Elkins tossed another bloody knife in the direction of one of the female vampires. The knife toss was quick and without warning; the female used her long nails to repel the weapon. Blood from it was left on her nails, which she put to her nostrils. "Adam…" she warned. Her eyes focused on the male vampire. "This is dead man's blood."
"Well, shit," Adam cursed. He made a move toward Elkins as Adam pulled out the knife from his neck. Gordon quickly drew his pistol and shot the vampire several times. Adam moved back from the gunshots, letting the knife drop to the ground. "Oh. That tickled," Adam said as he continued to smirk. Gordon curled his fist to the remark.
This vampire was the same one that had taken his sister, Rebecca.
"They're hunters, Adam!" yelled a female vampire.
"I know," he said with a scowl. "Violet, Jess…get out of here, now. Get back to the kid. Who knows how many others have discovered us?"
Jess was quick to move away from Adam but Violet stayed. "C'mon!" Jess said to her as Violet shook her head. "I'm not leaving without him."
"Fine," Elkins said as he pulled another bloody knife from his pocket. "You and him get to die together."
Adam fell to his knees. The blood of the dead pumping through his veins felt like poison. It was getting harder to stay conscious.
"Damn it, girl!" Jess cursed as she grabbed Violet's arm. She then broke through a window, and the two vampires made their escape.
"Stay here, Gordon! Make sure he doesn't get away, we may need him!" Elkins ordered as he rushed out of the bar.
The other people inside of the bar took the time to flee as soon as Elkins left.
"You God…damned…son of a bitch!" yelled Gordon as he kicked Adam in the stomach. The vampire gripped his stomach and fell forward.
"Y'know...I knew it was you the second you walked into the bar," Adam said as he pushed himself up from the floor. "Once we smell you, we never forget that scent."
"Where is Rebecca you bastard?"
Adam chuckled. "Oh? Your sister? Well…if you really want to call her your 'sister' anymore," he tilted his head up to look Gordon in the eyes. "If I were you, kid. I wouldn't bother looking for her anymore."
The violent noise of tires screeching drowned out the sound of Gordon, who removed the machete from its sheath.
"Go ahead," Adam said, "kill me. You'll never find our nest. Won't your, 'daddy,' be mad with you?" He chuckled again as he said this.
Gordon grabbed Adam's hair and slammed his head into the floor. He pressed his hand into the back of Adam's head to keep it in place. Gordon placed the machete's blade against the back of Adam's neck with the other hand.
"You tell us where your God damn nest is right now! Or I swear to God I'll kill you!" Gordon screamed as Adam quickly responded with a laugh.
"Do it then, you little bitch!" he said. "I just wish I was there to see your face when you see your sister has been transformed! Your sweet…innocent…si—"
Suddenly, Gordon grabbed the machete with both hands and sliced clean through Adam's neck. Blood squirted to the side as the vampire's skull rolled over. Adam's detached head looked up toward the ceiling.
"They got in their car before I could get 'em," said Elkins as he walked back into the bar. His eyes were immediately drawn to Adam's dead body. A sigh came from Elkins' mouth. "You know…when I said 'make sure he doesn't get away,' I thought you knew that I—"
"He wouldn't tell me where their nest was," Gordon stood up straight and wiped the machete blade on his pants. "I know the location of some abandoned warehouses and barns. Depending on which way their car took off, I think I can tell you where they're staying."
"Down Bovok Street," Elkins quickly replied.
Gordon continued to wipe his machete against his pants for a few more moments. "All right. I know where it is. Let's go," Gordon told him. He walked past Elkins and out of the bar.
"No crazy stunts, though," Elkins warned as Gordon simply looked back at him. "I understand you want revenge for them taking Rebecca, but don't risk your own life in the process."
At that comment, Gordon felt a sudden sting of animosity. How could this random person understand a shred of his anger? Something had taken his only sister away from him--possibly forever--and this man thought he understood him?
Gordon took in a shaky breath. All that he knew about this person was that he, too, was a hunter, and he could be of some assistance. "Is there any way to turn a vampire human again?" he asked.
Elkins shifted his gaze to the pavement. He sighed. "Not that I've heard of."
"Adam said that my sister was no longer herself."
"I wouldn't trust him one hundred percent. Vampires, demons…they all lie to mess with your heads. That's how they get their kicks," Elkins explained.
"Yeah," Gordon said. He swallowed his anger that continued to rise within him. "I know. I'll just have to hope."
Gordon and Elkins stepped out of their respective vehicles. As the two looked at the large abandoned barn, the sky was getting noticeably brighter. The sun was starting to rise.
Elkins pulled a flask from his pocket, opened it, and poured it on a dozen, small, throwing knives. "Here; take some," he said as he looked at a car parked near a door to the barn. "That's their car. It's probably a trap."
"Maybe," Gordon said as he took a few knives, placed them in his pocket, and drew his pistol. "Doesn't matter, though. I don't think they're expecting us."
"Don't doubt a vampire's intellect. They're clever."
"So what should we do?" Gordon asked.
"Walk in through the front door and kill every fang we can find," Elkins said with a chuckle. "Hopefully they won't expect the front-door tactic."
Slam!
Elkins kicked the door and it flung open and crashed into the wall.
"Reee!" came the shriek of a distorted vampire who emerged from a door.
"What the hell is that?" asked Gordon. The vampire's physical appearance didn't look like a healthy human.
"A human turned into a fang," Elkins said as he threw the knife into the vampire's neck. It sunk in quickly and the vampire stopped and fell to its knees; it gave a howl of pain. "Sometimes the transformation doesn't go so smoothly. These vampires have probably been taking people to turn them. Locking up the ones who weren't one hundred percent ready, and whatever humans they want to save for a snack."
Elkins walked toward the vampire and grabbed its hair with one hand, and gave a hard swing with the machete, cutting its head off clean as blood splattered against the wall.
"They're hiding. I think they let all the fangs loose," Elkins said as he looked back to Gordon. "We need to split up. Don't untie anyone, and don't set any of them free. They might be pretending to be human. Follow my orders this time, Gordon."
"I understand…but," Gordon said with a sigh, "if you see Rebecca, remind her of me. Try not to kill her."
"I'll knock her out if I can. But I won't make any promises," said Elkins as he moved away from the dead vampire and through an open door.
Gordon sighed again and cracked his neck. He walked up a flight of stairs and held two bloody knifes between his fingers.
Walking slowly, Elkins made his way into the dimly lit room. A very light sound caught his ear and Elkins turned quickly. He brought one arm out and slashed with the machete. Violet was directly behind him and jumped backwards, and the tip of the machete made a small cut in her clothing.
"You took Adam away from me!" Violet said with tears in her eyes. "I could smell his blood on the other hunter's clothes! You bastards! I'll kill all of you!"
Elkins took a few steps back as his eye caught the sight of a small boy who hid behind a pole. The boy blinked and his eyes flashed yellow. Elkins threw a bloody knife in the boy's direction, but Violet quickly knocked it away with her own hand. "Don't you dare hurt Luther!" she screamed as the boy fully hid himself.
"Your son I'm betting, right?" Elkins said with a scowl. "He's the fourth vampire that ate that poor girl," he gave a sigh as he pulled out another knife. "I'm afraid all of you must die. I can't leave any remains."
Violet gave a loud shriek toward Elkins as she ran toward him. The hunter pulled back his hand to toss the knife, but Violet came in quickly and grabbed Elkins' wrist. "I'm going to enjoy hearing you two beg for your lives!" she shouted. Summoning up all of his strength, Elkins made a stab for Violet's stomach with his hand that held the machete.
To be continued…
