Chapter Five
"You're sure you're okay?" Jack watched skeptically as Natalie wiped at her tear-streaked face with a scrap of material from her t-shirt. "We could go back to the hideout, rest up a little." Jack looked about as rocky as she felt, and she shook her head with real regret.
"I don't think I have that long. Whatever this
infection, curse, or whatever is, it's getting stronger, Jack. If I don't do
something now, I…" she trailed off, blinking fiercely to clear the tears
from her eyes. There had been enough of those already. "How do I look?" She
sniffed and held her face up for inspection
"Like hell." He held the sober expression for a few
seconds before it dissolved into a grin. "And beautiful. Though I'd say
you'll need to change before attending the ball, Cinderella."
"Well, I could certainly use a fairy godmother about now. Anything, to take away this hunger." She rubbed her arms with her hands, unable to meet his eyes. "I can't imagine dealing with this every day." She managed a small laugh. "I think I owe Nick a big apology."
"Well, I might have exaggerated a little," Jack conceded. "Not a lot, mind you. But it does get easier, with time." The strained, haunted look in his eyes told her a different story. "But yours I think we can cure. I've been thinking." He bit his lip, frowning. "The holy water thing might not work at all. You didn't make the choice to come across like we did, and if it is some kind of vampire blood running through your veins, it's a damned weak strain. The little I've read about black magic suggests that a curse is dependent on the strength of the caster. If we can kill the Hunter, we should break the curse."
"Something we were kind of planning on anyway," Natalie added. "Do you really think that could work? I have to tell you, the doctor in me really has a hard time with the whole 'curse' thing."
"Call it 'psychic influence'," Jack suggested. "Or a retrovirus with a built-in homing beacon. Whatever this thing is, our Hunter is the key." He rubbed his chin. "Which brings us back to our original problem. How do we find him?"
"I think I know." She shivered, rubbing her hands on her upper arms. "I can still feel him, Jack. Feel him calling for me. Part of me wants to go, and I think that somehow that's even worse than the hunger. He's so strong."
"So are you. But are you sure, Nat? If you let your guard down enough to track him, you risk losing control. And I have to tell you, it just keeps getting harder and harder to get that control back."
"Which is why you've been standing over there ever
since I stopped having hysterics."
"You got it. Like I said before, if I wasn't already on the ragged edge, no problem. But you are beautiful, and I am so damn tired. And hungry. And sore as hell. My losing control right now would be a very bad thing, trust me." He leaned back against the stone support and closed his eyes.
"I was about to say the very same thing." Sometimes the only thing left to do is laugh or cry. At her first soft chuckle Jack opened his eyes, and after a moment he joined her.
"We're a regular Bonnie and Clyde, aren't we, 'partner'?" He touched her cheek fleetingly and then turned to walk toward the platform. After a few paces he stopped and turned to look back at her. "You ready?"
No. I want to go home. I want to wake up and find that this has been a terrible nightmare. I want Nick to hold me in his arms and tell me everything will be okay. I want…
I want to live. "Let's go."
###
"Anything?" Natalie stuffed another piece of the candy bar into her mouth and forced herself to chew. It was a Payday, her favorite, but today it tasted like ashes. She swallowed the bite with difficulty and looked expectantly at Jack. He had hung up the receiver and was now standing in front of the pay phone, apparently lost in thought. Natalie waved her hand in front of his eyes.
"Hellooo. Earth to Jack. Come in."
He blinked and seemed to come back to himself. "Piedro hasn't heard from him."
Natalie had taken another bite, and was forced to spit it out as her mouth went as dry as cotton. "But Nick was supposed to be back by daybreak. That was ten hours ago."
"Yeah. He could have gotten caught by dawn and had to hole up somewhere else, but," he ran a hand through his shaggy hair, "it doesn't feel like him."
"Well, Nick's pulled disappearing acts before," Natalie said with a sigh. "But I agree, this seems a little out of character, even for him. Maybe he's just hiding out in somebody's trunk. Nick loses track of time, sometimes. Maybe he just couldn't get back to this Piedro's place before dawn."
"Maybe. But there's something else." He waited until a group of laughing teenagers went by, then continued. "There's been another death. The dead guy was apparently a big wheel in the local Community. One of his children found parts of him scattered all over his apartment."
"But the Hunter is here! Believe me, I'm real sure of that." The insistent call was still there, kept from the surface of her thoughts only by an exhausting effort of will.
"Yeah. I don't know how to explain it. Maybe there's more than one. Maybe the Church has decided to get back into the vampire hunting business."
"No," Natalie said immediately. "I can't believe that the Catholic Church would have any part of something like this."
"Tell that to the poor bastards who died in the Crusades." There was an edge of bitterness to Jack's voice that she hadn't heard before.
"Someone you knew?" How strange, even after knowing Nick for all these months, to talk to someone who'd seen history first hand.
"Way before my time. But I've talked to a couple of survivors. As far as human killers go, the Church has had some of the best." He shrugged. "But you didn't ask for a history lesson. All Piedro could tell me was that the guy was killed in the same way as the others, and at roughly the time you got jumped at Nick's."
"So there are two."
"Yep. And, believe it or not, that's not the only bad news. Piedro says that the Enforcers have shown up. And once they found out that Nick was in town, they got real interested in him. He's isolated himself from the Community, made no bones about not liking the night life, and started hanging around with the food supply." He grinned, as if to show that no insult was intended. "Which makes Nick a likely turncoat, in their eyes."
"What about his cell phone?" Damn it, Nick. How many times had she sat around, waiting and hoping that he was okay? It would be just like him to have gotten so involved in his case that he forgot all about her. Them. Forgot all about them.
"All I get is a 'this phone is not in service at this time' message. Which means we've got zero ways to trace him through it."
"It could just mean that he forgot to charge it again." Unreliable, untrustworthy vampires, whispered something in the back of her head. If the vampire Community was still that important to Nick—after all the time they'd spent trying to free him of all that—then he could just save himself. Or not. She swallowed convulsively, trying to get the bad taste out of her mouth.
"Or that it got broken somehow," Jack agreed. The worry in his eyes said what she was already thinking. If the Hunter hadn't gotten to Nick, then the Enforcers very well could have. Nick was tough, but so, apparently, were the other victims.
"Maybe we should go to New York," Natalie suggested, her chest tightening with dread while at the same time some nasty thing inside her chortled at Nick's possible (probable?) fate. "Nick doesn't know anyone there, and he doesn't know what's been happening here. Maybe we could find a way to help."
"And by the time we got there, you'd be fighting for the other team."
"Jack!"
"You know it's true. Look at you. You can barely keep a rational conversation going now. What's it going to be like in a few hours?"
"It shows that much?" Natalie leaned back against the cement wall and closed her eyes. "You're right. I feel like I'm fiddling on somebody's roof about now. The slightest wrong move, and I'm going to come crashing down, and God help anyone in the way. If you're smart, Jack, you'll get out of town while you still can."
"If I don't clear my name of these murders, I'm as good as dead anyway. Besides, how could I leave you behind?" There was something in his slight smile that she couldn't read through the clamor in her head. "I promised Nick I'd keep an eye on you. I may not have many friends, but I do try to keep the ones I have."
"But—"
"So that's settled. You ready to press on?"
"I guess. No, wait. You were going to call the Raven."
"I did. You were in the bathroom, doing whatever it is you women do in there."
"Must have been a short conversation." No makeup, no hair brush, and only harsh, gritty public restroom soap had made her attempt to look respectable a crashing failure. She'd settled for washing her hands and face and tying back her wildly tangled hair with a rubber band she'd found. It wasn't pretty, but it was quick.
"Unfortunately. I got through to the owner, but as soon as she heard who I am she shut me down. My bet is that the Enforcers were there, or had just left. I did tell her about you and Knight, but neither of us wanted to talk about where you and I are right now. Revenants and Enforcers on our tails might be more than even Bonnie and Clyde could handle."
Natalie sighed. "At least Nick will know we're alive, if he calls Janette. And he probably will." Despite her own best efforts, the French vampire still had a powerful hold on Nick. It wasn't jealousy on her, Natalie's, part. It was just that Janette never failed to remind Nick of his own life, and all the…things…they had shared. Nick needed to put all of that behind him if he was ever to become human again. Honestly, Natalie had no reason at all to be jealous of that dark haired, pale skinned little…
"Nat." Pulling herself back to the present, Natalie nearly stumbled as Jack dragged her toward a waiting subway train. "Come on. You're sure he's north of us?"
"Yeeesss. But I don't know how far, Jack. He could be a block or a mile away." She let him lead her onto the train.
"So we get off at the next stop if we have to." Looking over his shoulder, Jack urged her to the center of the train. The doors closed behind them and they began to pull away from the station. After a minute Jack relaxed and released his grip on her arm, but his face remained pale and set. "Man, I hate these things. Too crowded."
"So what was the rush?" It wasn't the Hunter, she was sure of that. He was somewhere up ahead, calling to her.
"Remember what I said a minute ago? About our…infernal affairs guys?" Natalie nodded, her eyes widening. "I caught the feel of one. Well, two, I think. Coming down the stairs into the station. And if I could feel them you can bet they knew I was there." He grinned tiredly. "I should be the one warning you off. They're after me, not you."
"Come on, Clyde." Holding her dark impulses down with both mental hands, Natalie took Jack's arm and gave it a little squeeze. "I'd say we're the most popular people in town at the moment. Sought after by all the most influential people. How could I break up something like that?"
His grin widened. "Bonnie,
###
"Here. We need to get off here." Natalie pushed against the train doors, then slapped at them in exasperation when they failed to open. "Jack, we need to get off here! We're passing him by." She hit the stubborn door with one fist and blinked in surprise as a network of cracks spread outward in the Plexiglas panel beneath her hand. There was a low whistle from somewhere in the car and then a soft babble of voices that made her realize how quiet the car had gotten. A hand closed over her wrist.
"Nat. We can't get off here. The Toronto transportation people aren't big on impromptu stops for their subway trains." She tried to pull free, and couldn't. She could feel him, getting further and further away. "Come on. Sit back down. We'll get off at the next station."
"I don't want to wait! I want to find him. Now." She spat the words out through gritted teeth. Why couldn't anyone understand? How stupid were they?
"Nat, you're scaring the straights. Come on." He slipped an arm around her shoulders and guided her back to her seat. "We'll get off at the next stop. It's only about half a click away. He's not going to lose us." The pressure of his arm was the only thing that kept her in her seat. She wanted to pace. Better yet, to pull the emergency brake and get out of this damned train right now.
"He's getting away," she said, explaining as if to a retarded child.
"No he's not. Now, tone it down, Natalie. You're losing it."
"Am I?" Natalie closed her eyes and rubbed at her temples. She had a raging headache, and the dim but certain conviction that she was surrounded by slow-witted sheep. "God, this is hard."
"Tell me about it." He released her shoulders and settled back into his seat as the train began to slow. His face had taken on the narrow, angular look that Nick had when her favorite detective had been abstaining for too long. "Let's get out of here before we both decide on a hot lunch."
###
It wasn't what she had expected. The insistent, nearly overpowering pull had led her, not to some fancy condo or a house on the hill, but to an abandoned, broken-down warehouse. Not exactly where the rest of Toronto's power elite lived. Then the sour reek of decomposing flesh hit her, cramping her stomach, and Natalie understood. Powerful he certainly was, but this Hunter would need more than a spacious backyard to hide the smell of what he was cooking.
"Get back." Jack pulled her back into the alleyway, and after a moment a uniformed guard shuffled by. He didn't look far gone, and to someone outside the field might have passed for a living man. But he wasn't, and Nat held her breath until he had passed them by and rounded the corner of the fenced yard. Only then did she let out a slow breath and relax her tight shoulders.
"Well, I'd say we've come to the right place," she said. "So, what's the plan?"
"Plan? I thought you had one." Jack was leaning against the other wall of the narrow alley, his gaze never leaving the warehouse. It was dark out, with only a sliver of moon in the sky, but she could see him clearly.
"Hey, I'm just the bloodhound. So to speak," she added dryly. "You're the one with centuries of experience in this stuff, not me."
"Well, two centuries, anyway. And I've got to admit, I've never run into anything quite like this." He sniffed, then wrinkled his nose in distaste. "Lots of dead stuff in there, but I'm not picking up any revenants except for the guy outside. Maybe he's run out."
"So few?" Nat asked dubiously. "Somehow I thought he'd have more."
"Me, too. Maybe he'd got them out cruising for us. Or maybe he sent them somewhere else." He'd turned to look at her, and now turned away, suddenly unable to meet her gaze.
"Like New York." Where Nick still hadn't checked in, drat the man.
"The thought did occur. It would explain how the attacks in two cities could happen so close together, but I can't imagine him having that good of control over that kind of distance. These don't strike me as being that big on independent thought."
"You're right." Natalie sighed in relief. The idea of these things getting on a plane to New York was ludicrous. Nick was safely aware from the Hunter.
"Of course, it might be possible to get them to obey someone else."
"Thanks, Jack. You really know how to cheer a girl up." At his blank look she smiled tiredly. Nick would have to take care of himself. "Forget it. So, what's next?"
"I want to go inside and take a look around. Maybe find some evidence of how he's been tracking the dead elders. If he's in there alone, I should be able to take him." He nodded decisively, but there was doubt on his face.
"I so know you're not going to tell me to wait outside," Natalie warned the dark-haired vampire.
"Not a chance. You're going in with me. Once we know where he is, I want you to get behind him. If he spots me before I reach him, you'll be the distraction. Knock over some boxes, scream, do the hokey pokey, whatever."
"Hot him with a really, really big stick." Natalie gestured as if holding a baseball bat.
"I'm not sure that's such a good idea, but it's up to you. Just remember, he's not going to see you as one of the good guys, even if you are mortal. You're then enemy. Or maybe a pet. You do not want to be captured by this guy, Nat."
"No kidding." Natalie shivered, partly in response to
the idea of being this creep's plaything, but more from sheer effort. It was
so hard to resist his call, even while she flinched away in disgust from what
he—and she—wanted. Unable to completely rid herself of the violent imagery,
Natalie focused on how good it would feel to cave in the Hunter's head with
her old Louisville Slugger. But would it feel as good as bathing in the
vampire's blood? Or eating his heart? She bit her lip until she tasted her
own blood. No. Anything but that.
"You ready?" Jack asked. He looked nervous, which was somehow comforting. He was counting on her. Needed her. She nodded, forcing down her own fear.
"Let's do this."
End of Part Five
