Night Bites (17 page)

She continues to convulse a few more times, but the light is quickly fading from her eyes. Not wanting to be covered in werewolf gunk, I leave the knife and stand back. I decide to go ahead and untie Kent. While I am completing the task, I hear a bit of a splat as the silver has worked its way through her body to leave a mess I am not cleaning up.

“In a way, I am kind of sorry for your loss, Kent.” I tell him, after I finish untying his hands. The ropes have silver strands threaded through them and have left welts on his wrists.

“Betty was a good woman and I will miss her. Hopefully, with Sheila's skin we will be able to hasten her healing process,” he says and I can hear the tears in his eyes.

“We will leave you to it. If you need us for anything, we will be at the saloon. I plan on leaving early tomorrow evening. You can expect my bill sometime. I am not sure how I am going to get it mailed here,” I say.

“I will leave the amount your website said at the saloon tomorrow. I have a feeling it is going to be a long rest of the night for me. Thanks for coming. We really do need to look into getting a real sheriff for this town. I couldn't even find my missing person and she was in my own house.”

He has that right, but I don't feel like rubbing it in right now. I grab my knife and wipe it off a little on the carpet before sheathing it. What? The carpet is already way past any hopes of salvation. My entourage quickly vacates the premises and makes a slow trek towards the saloon.

“So, do days always end this exciting around you?” Dante asks with way too much glee in his voice.

“I haven't killed anyone in almost a month, so maybe not this exciting. The past week has provided me with a demon stalker and the grand experience of being kidnapped by a demented werewolf. I wouldn't exactly call things boring.”

“Cool, where do I sign up?”

“You have to talk to the man with the plan,” I say being vague. I seem to only have one and a half vampire guards at the moment. I don't know if I could trust Dante, any more than Smitty, but that is for someone else to decide. Right now, all I want to do is find Clyde and convince him that sleeping in his deluxe puppy bed is a good idea.

Chapter 22

It’s a family affair

When we get within five feet of the saloon, Clyde comes running out to greet us. I should say, he comes out to greet me, he growls at everyone else, especially the newcomer.

“You have a Hellhound, too. I would for sure list your life in the exciting column,” Dante says marveling at Clyde, but not getting too close. He might actually have half a brain in that head of his.

“Dante meet Clyde, Clyde this is Dante, be nice.” If I tell him that enough, maybe one of these times, he will listen. Like the other things I have tried convincing myself when it comes to Clyde, I doubt it will happen.

“Jonas, Walt, glad to see he left the bar in one piece,” I say making my way through the swinging doors.

“He was surprisingly well behaved. We may need to take Walt with us to serve as a permanent babysitter,” Jonas suggests.

If we have a babysitter lined up for Clyde, now all I need is to find one for Phee. I look over to Dante and consider the possibilities. Sure, Phee now has Sam to follow her around like a puppy dog, but I can just see them getting into all sorts of trouble together.

“Any ideas on why he likes you so much?” I ask turning back to the active conversation. I will leave my evil planning until later.

“Probably just senses our similar blood. I imagine he is friendly to anyone in your family,” Walt explains knocking me for a loop.

“Family? I thought you said you were just a friend of my father.”

“Astonishingly enough, we do keep on friendly terms. I would say we are each other’s closest friend.”

“Other than friends, what would you classify yourself as?” I don't know a bunch about my family, other than my dad is the current head of it. The Collective doesn’t exactly have the history of the monarchy on their approved reading list.

“If I had to classify it, as you say, I would go with brothers. I being, the younger, much lesser known, of the two.”

“That would make you my uncle?” I ask trying to grasp this situation. I look to Jonas for confirmation and he nods.

“Wait a second. Walt is a werewolf, last I checked. That tends to mean a sibling is a werewolf as well. How are you standing here as a vampire?” Dante asks. His questions and everything else around me currently don’t matter.  I keep staring at my supposed uncle.

He is bigger than my father and I don't see any similarities that jump out. I guess the general complexion is the same. I don't know, maybe if I squint I will see it. I try and it doesn't help.

“The fact that we look nothing alike has helped keep my existence relatively quiet. I was born the spare and have always been well aware of the fact. If you want, I will show you my mark, but you have to show me yours.”

“Have you ever wished it was in a more convenient place?” I ask. I might actually have someone who understands my plight.

“I have never been asked or had to show it and since you are here and alive, I doubt I ever will. You are the new heir and I hear you are pretty resilient.”

“The bits of this conversation I am piecing together are hurting my brain,” Dante interjects. Can’t someone shut him up? “Not only are you a descendant of a werewolf with vamp fangs, but you are also a Gentry. You really need to show me where to sign up to join your crew. It must be like Freaky Friday every day at your place.”

“As I said, see the man with the plan.” Doesn't he have somewhere to be? “Since you are family and all, do you happen to know anything about my mother?” I ask Walt. I think it has become the first question I ask anyone that even vaguely has heard of my father. So far, I am batting a big fat zero, but this guy is supposedly family. He should have the dirt. My current mission is over, so he cannot side step my questions now claiming I have other priorities.

“I take that to mean you have taken care of the skinner already. I am pretty sure I indicated we wouldn’t have any of these conversations until that bit of nastiness was over.”

“Yeah, yeah. It was Debra. She was faking her injuries. She is dead now. On with your story,” I say trying to hurry him along.

“I was out of the country on a mission when you had to have been conceived. I do know your father didn't know about you until he infiltrated the Collective. If he would have known, he wouldn't have allowed you to be raised by them.”

I have heard that same story from Daddy Dearest. I thought wolves tended to be able to sense when their offspring were conceived. I am talking just after the deed is done, lying in bed catching their breaths, ability to sense if the little swimmers hit their target.

“Did he ever say anything about the woman who gave birth to me?”

“No. He had a lot of little flings back in those days. Apparently, all except one were with werewolves. I believe he has found out more about her, since he has really started looking recently. From what I have heard, he isn't happy with what he has been able to piece together. He wants to try to explain it to you before he tells anyone else.”

“I guess I will just have to wait until he comes for his visit,” I say sulking. If Aaron had spent more time with me over the years, he would realize keeping me waiting isn’t a healthy life choice. It doesn’t help when I wander upon people like Walt, and potentially Jonas, that I think should be able to give me information and I get nothing from them.

“It is for the best. I know Jonas was joking about the babysitter thing, but I am really thinking about coming with you guys when you leave. It will give me an opportunity to teach you more about the wolf side of your roots and tell you all kinds of embarrassing stories about your father.”

That cheers me up a little. “I would like that. There won't be any issues with Alex, will there?” I turn to ask Jonas.

“No. They haven't officially met, but they will get along fine. Having more people around that we can trust in the months leading up to your birthday is a good idea,” Jonas insists.

“Am I going to turn into the sparkly unicorn you always used to tease me about?”

“Maybe. It is unsure exactly what will happen, but we do expect something.”

“I was joking,” I say not expecting that as his reply.

“I was not,” he says with an evil grin.

“I am already a werewolf, vampire, magical elf or something, hybrid. What more could happen to me?”

“Just like your vampire and werewolf sides came online, your something else line is supposed to rear its ugly head,” he explains.

“But the other two components were activated by bonding with those species. I don't have room in my life to bond with anyone else.” Now I am whining. This is all my stupid mom's fault.

“I don't think this will be like the other times. Aaron just thinks it is something that will happen. Whatever your mom is, he seems to think her kind doesn't have mates,” Walt explains.

That is a bit of a relief. With my luck, a new mate would have been even worse than the great annoying one, Alex. It would probably be some Kent wannabe that couldn’t keep his little brain in his pants.

“So, do you think you can be packed and ready to go by six tomorrow evening?” I ask Walt. “I would like to leave as early as possible once dusk starts settling in.”

“There is nothing here I really need to bring. I just need to throw my armory in a bag and then I will be ready.” The guys in the circles I travel with know how to pack. I would take a bag full of guns over clothes any day.

“Has the man with the plan decided if I get to come with?” Dante asks in a voice that makes me envision him hopping around like a little girl asking for a pony.

“You can come. I will have to do a few checks before you are allowed into our inner sanctum, though. With our large force of vampires and werewolves, you should be safe from Alan. I don't think even he is dumb enough to try to take us on,” Sebastian tells him.

“So, what is the deal with this Alan person?” Other than Collective people, I haven't heard of really anyone Sebastian doesn't get along with, especially if the person has fangs.

“It is a bit of a long story. Alan is around a century younger than me and hates that fact. He wants to take over things and, so far, hasn't been anywhere close to beating me in a fight. He has spent many of his years creating people like Dante to become a soldier in his fight against me,” Sebastian explains.

I look over to Dante and nothing about him really shouts killing machine. He is tall like the other guys, but he doesn't have the body mass that they do. He isn’t as wimpy looking as Sam, the underdeveloped werewolf, but his light coloring does give him a wussy look.

I look back at Sebastian and he nods. “Exactly. Dante was not a fighter when he was human. He was a freaking poet. How can you take an intellectual mind like his and try to warp it into a brainless robot set on destroying whatever you point at?”

Just my favorite type of person, the kind that likes preying on the meek. “I take it Dante fought back against the scallywag.” I have decided I am in a pirating mood. Shiver me timbers and thar she blows. Okay, I think that is about enough of that. At least, I only thought them and didn’t say anything out loud.

“The best I could,” Dante says answering for himself. “It is a little hard for a new vamp to fight back against a centuries old one. Plus, there were all those early years of hating what I had become. Back then, people were starting to become aware of paranorms, but there were still a lot of people like me that didn’t believe.”

I always wonder what it would be like before the world, as a whole, knew about us creepy crawlies. I don’t guess it was much fun for the paranorms that had to hide their true natures for fear of persecution.

“It seems you are going to be one of us now, which means you will have our protection. It is something many people try for, so you better respect it and not use the things you learn against us,” I say staring him down.

“He will take a blood oath like every vampire that comes in contact with you,” Sebastian adds.

“Whoa. You guys are really serious about this if you are evoking blood oaths.”

“Believe me, it isn’t something you will want to take lightly. Ask Marcus about it if you need a little extra motivating. Sebastian can be a mean son of a bitch when he is crossed,” I say as I pick Demon Dog up. “It is time for bed, Clyde. Let’s go see how nice and comfy that new bed is.”

Sebastian laughs and moves to follow us. “I am telling you he is going to end up in the big bed curled next to you. We are going to have to leave him with Walt if we ever want to try to get some special alone time together.”

I am not looking for alone time now, so testing that theory is going to have to wait. Right now, I am focused on a task and I am going to accomplish it.

When we get to our room, I put Clyde down and open the door. “Bedtime, Clyde.” He looks up at me and then runs over and jumps on the big bed. He must be part jackrabbit because that jump looks a little too high for someone of his stature.

“No, puppy bed,” I explain picking him up and putting him on his padding. It is a nice little bed, really it is. He looks up at me flashing red eyes and then smiles his goofy looking grin.

He moves around a little and then settles down. See, it wasn’t that hard. Time for mommy to get some sleep herself.

Chapter 23

His bark really is worse than his bite

The morning, or midafternoon, dawns and I feel Sebastian breathing down the back of my neck and breath from another source in the front. Clyde.

I look down and sure enough, he has tucked his little body in close to my chest. I guess I know what the smile was all about. He was just lulling me into believing he was going to sleep. I bet after my first snore he hopped up to join us.

I hope Night Owl City has an opening in Hellhound obedience school. I think the idea is probably just some more wishful thinking on my part.

“At least, he isn’t growling at me this morning,” Sebastian whispers into my ear.