Chapter Ten
Mick cautiously eased out the double doors and back into the smoky corridor, feeling his heart stretch then snap painfully as he bodily moved away from Beth. The sounds of fighting were dying down as Mick carefully checked each room for signs of Lance. The headless bodies of vampires lay scattered throughout the compound and the revolutionaries left standing were setting the bodies and rooms ablaze with flame throwers and accelerant to keep any incriminating evidence away from human eyes.
It had been a complete rout. While the nobility were numerous and well protected, the heavily armed revolutionaries were highly motivated and the surprise ambush well executed. They had lost some comrades, but it had been slightly more than an hour and the fight was almost over. Mick checked a grand dining room, which now contained a makeshift pyre at its center. The vast oak table and silk-covered chairs would have easily seated fifty in comfort and, overhead, a huge crystal chandelier glinted in the firelight. In the far end of the room, two revolutionaries cornered a noble, bewigged vampire who hissed ineffectually at his stalkers, fangs bared. In moments they had dispatched him without mercy and his body was thrown onto the growing bonfire with the rest.
The network of rooms in the compound was extensive. By no means was it as massive as the above ground palace, which boasted some 700 rooms, but the underground network was certainly huge enough and just as sumptuous. Mick estimated there were around 40 rooms all together, most of which were larger than his entire penthouse. The once lavish and well-appointed opulence was now blood spattered and smoldering, and the smell of blood and death permeated where perfume and incense once pervaded. Priceless antiques were swiftly consumed by flames and vampire corpses instantly turned to ash at the first touch of fire. Mick watched in interest as the bodies of what must have been the noble bloodline took longer to burn – not instantly turning to ash but combusting slower and hotter due to their unique ability to resist fire. Regardless of their immunity to fire, they were not immune to being beheaded – the revolutionaries had obviously been well informed, as not an enemy's head remained attached throughout the compound.
Mick continued to comb each room, taking care to search for more secret passageways in the process, but he was unable to detect Lance's scent in the fetid atmosphere. Back in the ballroom now, Mick started to lose hope at finding his foe. He was beyond anxious as he had no doubt Lance would make good on his threat to find Mick again and make him pay. As long as Lance was alive, neither Mick or anyone he cared about was safe. Including Beth. Lance had the means, and he had the malice.
Mick carefully walked through the ballroom, avoiding the sightless gazes of the dead. Bending down, he stroked the cold cheek of a beautiful woman in white - not even freshies had escaped the extermination - and Mick was horrified at the macabre scene. Suddenly, as if from his very soul, a bloodcurdling scream disturbed the tomb-like atmosphere.
Mick shot up – the garage!
He almost flew the sixty feet to the concrete area and the remains of the three still-burning vehicles. A woman screamed again.
In the far right corner, Coraline flung herself at Lance, scratching and clawing desperately at the hand he had encircled around Cynthia's throat.
"Lance, NO!" she shrieked.
Cynthia, even in full vampire mode, was as effective as a small kitten against Lance's vastly superior strength. He smiled chillingly, and in one small motion, flung Coraline like a ragdoll across the car park with his free hand. She landed heavily on the cold floor and lay still. Turning back to Cynthia now, he snatched the silver stake Yves had given her and, without a second thought, rammed it into her chest to the hilt. She, too, dropped and lay still. Unsheathing a dagger, Lance stood over the prone form of Cynthia and brought the blade to her neck.
Mick's rage roared up inside him. Fangs descended, his eyes flashed. He rushed at Lance, knocking the dagger from his grasp before he could finish off the prone Cynthia. Lance laughed at the challenge. Now fully healed from his silver wounds, he easily deflected Mick's well-aimed kicks, flinging Mick from him as if he were no more than an insect. Leaping up, Mick spun around with a round house kick, connecting with Lance's jaw, rocking Lance's head back. He followed up the blow with a deadly slice with his curved blade but caught only air as Lance slid easily out of harm's way.
Lance, in turn, whipped Mick off his feet with a single back-hand blow to the face. The world shifted crazily as Mick landed, back first, on hard concrete. Lance advanced, placing his foot on Mick's throat and pushing down with all his might. Mick, seeing stars, grabbed Lance's foot and strained, lifting it off an inch and gaining himself some purchase. He strained further and pushed Lance off, jumping back onto his feet in a light motion. He sliced with the blade again and again, but only found more empty space. Mick realized Lance was toying with him.
Coraline, conscious again and seeing the epic battle, repeatedly threw herself into her brother, only to be pushed roughly aside. Picking up a smoldering metal bar like a baseball bat, Lance aimed and struck Mick in the chest, bowling him over.
Coraline shrieked in soul-wrenching agony as Lance picked up the stunned Mick by the scruff of the neck and heaved him into the nearest raging fire.
For Mick, the world seemed as if in slow motion. As he sailed through the air towards the fire, he thought not of his impending death, but of Beth. In those few split seconds before the flames engulfed him, they lived a lifetime of happiness. They met as mortals, the way it should have been all along, a mutual investigation the catalyst of a karmic encounter. Soon they were dating happily, each realizing how lucky they were to find the other in a sea of meaningless unions. They sizzled over and over with passion, their union the ultimate meeting of mind, body and soul. Three children followed their simple wedding on the beach - the girls all blonde and bubbly like their mother, their boy - serious as his hazel eyes and twice as smart. Older, they meet middle age together, taking quiet joy in each other and watching their children grow. Grandparents now – holding hands and reminiscing on a lifetime of love and laughter, meeting quiet death within days of each other. An amazing life, all of it more than any one man could ever hope for. Mick smiled peacefully as he met the inferno.
He landed in the searing flames with a thud and threw himself out like a frog in boiling water, his body on autopilot as his mind acknowledged the pointless action. The searing pain hit as his clothes caught fire, spreading to his skin which bubbled and melted. He smacked at the flames on his body, wondering when the pain would stop and he would simply turn to ash – alive one second and dead the next, without leaving so much as bone to evidence there had ever been a living being here at all. He held his hands up to his face – morbidly curious to watch the end of his over-extended life. He waited, the flames on his clothing almost extinguished as the pain disappeared. But the end never came. He marveled as his skin reformed and mended before his startled eyes. He was healing!
Mick quickly extinguished the rest of the flames, his clothing now showing gaping holes where it had burnt through, but the skin underneath was untouched and good as new. When Coraline had turned him all those years ago – had she passed on more than just vampirism? Was Mick's ability to heal a result of the royal bloodline? There was no other explanation. No wonder Lance was so pissed off at his initiation into the family.
Taking stock, he hid in a space behind the roaring flames, Lance and Coraline ignorant of his survival.
Lance, considering the fight well and truly over, grabbed the sobbing Coraline by the throat. "You brought this down upon us!" he roared. "You must be punished for your treachery!"
He pulled Coraline up by the hair and sunk his gleaming fangs into her jugular. Crimson spurted from the corners of his mouth and ran down his chin as her panicked heartbeat hastened her death. In only moments, he cast her lifeless body aside as if it were nothing more than garbage and wiped his mouth.
Primal, animalistic rage bubbled up from Mick's inner core, overflowing in a tidal wave of hate and wrath. He bellowed, leaping the flames in a single bound and slamming bodily into Lance, sending them both tumbling to the concrete floor. Mick clutched his deadly knife – the blade still warm from the fire - and swiped at Lance. Lance, boggling from Mick's resurrection, rolled out of the way just in time to avoid the blow. He, in return, kicked at Mick's face, connecting with a stunning blow to his cheek. Mick rocked back, but immediately recovered, his anger making him immune to the pain. Lance, confident the powerful blow should have floored Mick, frowned in bewilderment. He kicked out again, connecting hard. This time Mick didn't even flinch. Lance scrabbled away from the advancing Mick like a crab across the floor, clutching at his body and face in disbelief. "NO!" he screamed.
Mick smiled chillingly as he detected Lance's changing scent. Coraline's blood was doing its work – Lance was becoming human! She was right, the cure could be introduced through a human bloodstream...
Lance, realizing what happened, attempted to flee from the charging Mick – making a run for the garage exit. Finding it blocked by rubble, he spun around wildly, seeking another way out. Mick closed in swiftly, a well aimed kick to the stomach sending Lance flailing through the air. He landed awkwardly and Mick heard more than one bone snap. Lance yelled in pain. Mick walked over to the broken body slowly, enjoying closing in on his kill even while knowing he shouldn't. He picked Lance up by the scruff and punched him square in the face, pulverizing his nose. Blood spurted down Lance's semi-conscious face. Mick struggled to reign in his temper – despite his better judgment, he was enjoying making Lance suffer and wanted his pain to last. Sanity eventually winning, Mick took his scalpel-sharp blade and poured his rage and hate into one clean stoke, severing Lance's head from his body and ending it quickly. It was more than Lance deserved.
Taking the bloody body and head, he threw them in the flames, watching as they slowly combusted. Feeling his rage slowly burn away with Lance's body, Mick suddenly remembered Coraline. He rushed over to her, crouching down and cradling her to his chest. "Coraline?" he questioned, lightly shaking her. He listened carefully in the now quiet garage, her heartbeat was very faint, but she was alive. He shook her some more, and she eventually opened her eyes just a slit.
"Mick?" she whispered, confused. Her face was so pale it was almost white, and her lips had a bluish tinge.
"It's me," he said softly. Coraline smiled and touched his cheek lightly. "I'm sorry," she whispered. With extreme effort she moved her hand to her bodice and took out the cure, pressing it into his hand. "A wedding present."
Mick paused, hardly daring to touch it, then took the cure. "Thank you ... You're going to be ok, Coraline. I'll get Cynthia, she can …" Mick made a move to go to Cynthia. He could never turn Coraline, not even to save her life, but Cynthia could.
"No," Coraline sighed, interrupting him. "Stay with me. Please."
Mick nodded, tears forming.
"You were right," she said after a spell, peacefully lying in Mick's arms. "We were never meant to be …"
"Coraline, I …" Mick started.
She shook her head slightly and placed her fingers lightly on his lips. Smiling again, she mouthed be happy before closing her eyes for the final time. Her heartbeat slowed, and then stopped. Mick hugged his wife to his chest and broke down into wrenching sobs.
They stayed that way for a while - husband and wife in one last embrace. Eventually, Mick dragged himself off the floor and, wiping his tears, walked over and pulled the stake from Cynthia's chest. She took a wrenching breath and coughed. He helped her sit up as she slowly came back to life. When she could walk, he took her over to Coraline's body.
"Is she …" Cynthia breathed, wide-eyed.
Mick nodded. "Take care of her," he choked, before turning his back and walking away. He heard Cynthia crying over the body of her friend as he left what would forever be a concrete crypt.
+
ONE YEAR LATER
Beth hummed to herself as she wrapped Mick's gift and carefully placed it on his place setting at the dinner table. She was expecting him home to the penthouse at any moment, after he finished tying up some loose ends on an investigation they had just completed.
The last year had been a blur, but a happy blur. She remembered her relief at seeing Mick climb out of one of the blast holes into the Paris dawn, bruised, burnt and bloody, but alive. She had held him as he sobbed over the loss of Coraline – not asking questions and not feeling threatened as he expressed his deep loss. He deserved her support to grieve as he felt fit, and she gave it, willingly. Soon after, the revolutionaries had rejoiced when Yves had climbed out of the cavern and held the head of King Louis the 16th aloft. For good measure, they had set charges and collapsed the entrances to the underground palace. Beth had no idea if the vampire abode had ever been discovered, if it had – it had been kept from the media.
The first couple of months had been an adjustment, and Mick finished grieving before Beth had finally moved in. Spending a lot of time together just talking and feeling out their new relationship, Mick had shared his thoughts as he fell to what he thought would be his death in the fire. He had relived his fantasy of their perfect life together and Beth, happy to oblige, had given him his simple beach wedding - albeit under a marquee to protect the sun-sensitive. Then, on their wedding night, he had taken the cure and become human once more. It seemed appropriate - he had come full circle. While he had thought of taking the cure straight away, he wanted to be certain that Beth was ready for a lifetime with a normal man – sans the perpetual coolness of the dangerous vampire. She had assured him that she would love him no matter what he decided. And she had - and still did.
Their wedding night had been amazing not only because Mick had been reborn as a human, but because they had finally come together, two mortal souls pledging their hearts, minds and bodies to each other – fully and completely, without any holding back. Beth shivered as she remembered the no-holds-barred passion of that night and every night since. In her wildest dreams, she could never have imagined life and love could be so amazing!
Josef still came to visit under cover of night. At first he didn't know what to do with the human Mick, but as time went on they fell back into their easy camaraderie. He even helped on investigations when Mick felt there was 'something vampire' afoot. They hadn't convinced him to take the cure, and Mick doubted they ever would. But in the meantime the rest of the compound sat in Mick's safe and the vampire population remained ignorant of its existence.
After their wedding, Beth has resigned from the DA's office and joined Mick, forming St John Investigations. Now one of the most popular private investigative services in California, they worked side by side helping the people of LA and beyond.
What the future held? Who knew, but Beth was blissfully happy and thankful for every day she spent with her husband.
She smiled as she heard his key hit the lock. Strolling in, he swept her up in his strong arms and kissed her soundly. "Hey, you. Smells good!" he commented, wandering over to the pots simmering on the stove. Beth, aware of how much he had missed food over the last fifty-five years, had taken a gourmet cooking course so she could delight Mick with amazing meals whenever she was not working. Fortunately, they had no problem burning off any extra calories in the bedroom.
"What's this?" he asked, finally spying the gift laying neatly on his plate.
"A present for you," Beth said, pouring him a glass of red from the Napa Valley and handing it to him. She put the bottle away.
"Thanks!" he said, excited – he loved presents and Beth's were always thoughtful. He took a sip of wine and set about opening the wrapping. "Mmmm, that wine's good – you're not having any?" he asked Beth as he got busy.
"No, don't feel like it."
Mick finished his unwrapping and stared in confusion. Beth's gifts were usually good, but this one was weird. She seemed to have given him some kind of strange plastic thing. It was a white stick, about four inches long and had a clear plastic cap on one end and a window about halfway down on one side. The window had a pink plus sign in it. Not wanting to offend, he gave her what he hoped was a convincing smile of thanks.
"You have no idea what it is do you?" Beth giggled.
"Ah … not a clue, no," he admitted.
"And you're a private investigator? Scary."
Mick rolled his eyes as Beth came and sat on his lap, wrapping her arms around him. "It's a pregnancy test," she whispered into his ear.
Jolted, Mick picked it back up and looked at the pink plus sign again – the penny dropping. "Are you …? Are we gonna be …?" It was hard to even let himself think it, he never thought something so wonderful would ever happen to him. He and Beth had discussed it, but neither of them knew if Mick was even capable of fathering children – whether his years as a vampire had rendered him permanently infertile.
Beth nodded, tears in her eyes. "You're going to be a daddy, Mick."
THE END