“Affirmative,” I said. “The slight ridge gives us protection from the estate and errant gunfire. But if we like it, then so might enemy vamps. What if they’re already there?”
“We need to know what direction the attack came from,” Occam said.
I was already dialing Yummy again. “Hello,” a breathy voice answered. Relief surged through me. “Maggot,” she said. “What’s your ETA?”
I glanced at Occam. He said, “Ten if traffic is agreeable. SWAT will be at least thirty.”
“We won’t last thirty,” Yummy said. I heard a voice in the background and Yummy’s voice turned away from the cell. “No. You can’t give any more. Get out of here. I’m healed enough and you’re too much of a temptation. If you spot another human to feed me, send them my way. But protect Ming’s back trail.”
“Yes, my mistress,” the voice said.
“Ming has a way out?” I asked.
Back into the cell, Yummy said, “No comment. They breached the main house. Ming is safe, but I don’t know for how long.”
“What direction did they come from?” I asked, strapping my low-light/infrared headset in place.
“The ones I saw came from the south.”
“Nothing from Shaddock?” I asked. “Is he almost here?”
“Nothing. Not a word.”
Rick said into my earpiece, “We just got word that the Master of the City of Asheville’s clan home is under attack.”
Yummy must have heard it. Vampire hearing was better than human. “Shaddock’s home is under attack while he’s here, helping Ming? That is not a fluke.”
Into the earpiece, Margot said, “It may not be relevant, but I was just updated re the unconfirmed bureau reports on the invading rogue vampires. It suggests that over twenty vampires made their way ashore before, during, and after the Mithran change in leadership. LaFleur? Comments?”
Occam laid on the brakes as an ancient VW van coasted out of the way. We passed the rotting van at the speed of light. I yanked my seat belt tighter across my belly and wondered if prayer would keep me alive if we flipped at this speed.
“Similar intel came in earlier today,” Rick said, “and I just now opened the reports. Possibility of a number of vamps making their way to Florida. Three unknown vamps were seen one night in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The next morning a dozen teenagers down for spring break disappeared. Their families have heard nothing from them. We assume they were rolled and carted away. No further word or sightings. Local clans denied all knowledge and were cooperative with authorities. No indication vamps came up from Louisiana to the Appalachians.”
Margot and Rick had similar information. Maybe the FBI and PsyLED were sharing intel, finally. Looking into the darkness, I checked my headgear, twisting the knob back and forth, switching from the greenish illumination of low-light to infrared.
Occam took a hard turn that rocked the car. He said, “Lights and sirens off. Ingram and I are in the area of the clan home. Local marked units are stopping traffic behind us.Make sure they know that the rest of our team needs to get in and tell them to turn off the blue lights. That makes them easy to target.”
“Roger that,” Rick said.
“Ingram and I’ll take a leisurely drive to reconnoiter.” Occam braked hard to a laid-back twenty-five miles an hour and rolled down his window. I followed suit and muggy summer air billowed in. I wasn’t even under fire and I was cold and shaking. The heat felt good. I hadn’t even noticed the air conditioner running.
“Hurry,” Yummy said. “I’ve only got three rounds of ammo left and I’ve bled like a stuck pig. They can find me by the smell and I know they’re inside.”
“Where are you?” I asked. I took a breath and forced myself to calm. Took another. I began to steady. Began to ease. This was my job. I could do this.
“Over the garage,” Yummy said. “Low-ceilinged crawl space. It’s set for a secure sniper hide, but there’s no protection for me from inside, once the defensive team is down and the house is penetrated.”
We passed by the spot Margot wanted for a staging area. It was occupied by two vans, lights off, when there should have been nothing there but an empty lot. My heart thumped hard.Fanghead vans?I said, “Southern potential staging area is a no-go. Two twelve-person-sized panel vans are parked there. Nothing visible on low-light or IR. Kent, when you drive by, see if you can spot anything.”
“Roger that,” Lainie said.
“I see the clan home property,” I said. “What I can make out from the street looks peaceful. No visible bodies on low-light or IR. However, the security lights are out and the grounds are dark.”
“I smell blood,” Occam said. “Vamp and human. A lot of it.”
Rick said, “SWAT will take out the panel vans first. Set up staging area at the northern site.”
“Northern site. Copy that,” Occam said.
