“Body!” I said, pointing. “Two o’clock.” It was lying on the side of the road, in tall, decorative grass, and it wasn’t showing much on IR. “Pull over and put the car between the house and me. I’ll examine it.”
Occam braked and backed up, cutting his lights. “Make it fast.”
I opened the door and slid from the car, weapon in hand, a silver-lead round in the chamber. I switched on my tiny penlight and took in the body. “Female. Throat torn out.” I bent closer and opened her mouth, looking for vamp fangs on their retractable hinges. “Human. Deceased. She’s wearing pajamas, so she might be a local. Cool enough to have been here a while.” I was proud that my words made sense and my voice was steady. Strangely, seeing the body had smothered my panic.
“They probably took over a house near Ming’s and drained the inhabitants,” Rick said.
I slid back into the car and closed the door. Buckled up. Occam looked at me, his lips asking silently,You okay?
I nodded. Lying. I wasn’t panicky now, but I wasn’t okay. Occam had to be able to smell my sweat but didn’t say anything as he progressed along the road, one hand on the wheel. His weapon was on the edge of the open window, ready to fire with his maimed left hand. It would be an awkward shot, but better than nothing. “Northern staging area just ahead. Slowing,” Occam said. “No sign of vehicles. Turning in. Tell SWAT we have an acceptable staging area, but there are three occupied homes between us and the target.”
“Copy,” Rick said.
Yummy whispered, “I hear footsteps. Too soft to be human. I count two Mithrans coming up the stairs.”
“We can’t wait,” I said.
“Ingram and Occam. Stay put,” FireWind said.
I wanted to scream. “Respectfully, sir, we just found a dead body,” I said, hearing the fury and disagreement and fear in my words, “indicating imminent danger to human inhabitants.” A thought hit me. “Send a unit by with lights and sirens. Maybe it’ll startle them away.”
“Negative,” Rick said to me. “I will not endanger my team. Or the local LEOs.”
“No time,” Yummy whispered. I heard the cell placed down with a soft clatter.
“Passing the southern perimeter,” T. Laine said. “No live or undead bodies at the panel vans perseeingworking, butpsy-meter shows presence of Mithran energies. Permission to disable the vans?”
“Arcane or mundane means?” FireWind asked.
“Either.”
“Come on, come on, come on,” I whispered to the night and to Yummy.
“If you can disable the vehicles without danger to yourselves, yes,” Rick said.
“Okay, boss. Going in,” Lainie said.
Over my cell I heard two shots fired, close up. The particular but distant ululation of a vamp dying. Thumping sounds. Shots fired from farther away. Then a final shot, Yummy’s last round. Then nothing. I wanted to scream or throw things.We were right here. We could have done something.
A full minute later, her voice rasping from physical activity, T. Laine said, “Vans can still drive, but they won’t track properly with multiple tires slashed in the sidewalls.” Her car door closed softly in the background. “Drive,” she finished.
Over the cell came a peculiar sound like a titter of drunken laughter. “Day-am. I’m a better shot than I thought,” Yummy whispered.
Relief shook me like a child’s rattle. Tears filled my eyes.Thank you,I mouthed to the night and to God. I was pretty sure I had been praying—for a vampire, of all the strange things in my life.
Yummy said, “I took their weapons and the last of their blood. I now have a total of six rounds and a measure of healing, but it’s not enough. I’m leaking and we have more troubles coming. Humans on the way. And they are not friendlies.” I heard shots in the distance over the cell, staccato. And the sound of voices pleading, barely heard. “They have our humans hostage. I’m going in.”
Rick said, “Tell her no. SWAT is nearly there.”
“I heard,” Yummy whispered. “Rick LaFleur, if you can hear me, I’m not one of yours, but you can call this fanghead recon. I’m at the top of the stairs. I count ten human heartbeats and smell two enemy fangheads. Can’t get any closer without them catching my scent or sound. Backing back to my sniper hole.”
Rick cursed softly. Occam’s hands tightened on the wheel. This passivity was probably making his cat crazy.
“Can you get out?” I asked. Occam’s headlights illuminated a raccoon waddling in front of the car. Three juveniles gamboled behind the mother. They all disappeared.
“Not without walking through the hostages.”
“Can you punch your way through the floor into the garage?” I asked.
