Blood Lust: A Supernatural Horror (27 page)

Joria stood and looked at me
. “After breakfast, we can settle down to a more leisurely session of lovemaking.”

Suddenly, I wasn’t as tired as I thought.
It was amazing how the prospect of hot sex could rejuvenate a man.
I reached out and grabbed a towel.

“Let’s eat fast,” I suggested only half in jest.

****

I left Joria
just
before noon
and
returned
to my apartment for a second shower, a shave and a change of clothes.
Our lovemaking session had revitalized me. It had been a long time since I had been involved with a woman, since I had wanted to be involved with one. Joria was beginning to work her way under my skin. It was a good feeling. I actually smiled as I returned to the station
for my meeting with Captain Bledso
e
. I was late but I didn’t give a damn.

My good mood was short lived
however
.
Captain beckoned to me from his office as I walked in the door
. He was not alone
. Talmund Driscoll, the Mayor’s chief of staff, a prick of the first
order
, stared at me through the office blinds
.
Driscoll’s
constant sneer and tiny moustache reminded me of a
Pekinese. I almost expected him to lift his leg and p
iss on the desk
to mark his territory.

“Detective Hardin,” he said as I walked in
, his voice just the right balance of warmth
coloring his condescension
to keep me from slapping
the smirk off his face.
“We were just discussing you.”

His high-pitched voice
grated on my nerves but he
was as smooth as oil
, a born politico
.
I smiled at him. “I knew my ears were burning for some reason,” I replied.

“It seems you have
made
a habit of playing outside the rules.”

“Yeah, an old habit. I always colored outside the lines in Kindergarten.”

The captain shot me a
n irritated
warning look
,
which I
promptly
ignored.
I didn’t tolerate idiots and
I was in no mood to kiss ass
.

“The Mayor is concerned about this so-called vampire of yours. Word is beginning to spread. It is having dire consequences on our tourist trade.”

“Good,” I s
napped
. “We need fewer people around for my ‘so-called vampire’ to eat. I suggest we evacuate the
whole damn
city.”

He looked at me aghast.

The captain spoke up. “He was kidding, of course.” H
is eyes
shot
daggers at me.

“Of course,” I said
reluctantly
.

“I was just telling the captain that your, ah, escapades are fueling the news. We don’t need this. I suggested you be removed from the case; then I learned you had been
removed
but continued to work on your own.”

I tried to keep my contempt for this piece of crap under control
but didn’t do a good job
. “Look, I lost my partner, a friend and two uniformed officers to this figment of my imagination
, not to mention its
five
other victims
, almost six
.
The creature wants to kill me and it won’t leave me alone just because you
don’t like the publicity
.
You and the Mayor can
sit with your thumbs up your ass
all day
long
but this creature is going to rip the heart out of this city.” I looked at Captain Bledsoe. “Now there are two of them.”

His face paled
, either at my going off on Driscoll or the idea of two creatures
. “Two?”
he moaned.

I nodded. “I killed two juveniles
last night
, but one
is still
out there somewhere.”

Driscoll
brushed off my revelation as an annoyance
. “We have a competent SWAT team. They can handle the creature
s quietly and efficiently
. Your cowboy antics are causing more problems than they are solving. I hear you involved a Brazilian national in some
mismanaged
capture scheme. That is
entirely
unacceptable. If the State Department got wind of this, there would be hell to pay. From now on, you are out of the loop.”

Before I could protest, he turned to the captain.

“Your career is on the line here
as well
,
Captain
Bledsoe. Keep this maniac off the streets. I don’t care if you have to lock him up. Do you understand me?”

The captain wiped his forehead
with the back of his hand, swallowed
and nodded. “I understand.”

Driscoll swept out of the room
as if
he owned it. I was sorely tempted to pull my weapon and shoot him
in the ass
just
for the sheer pleasure
.
Instead, I said, “The Mayor has a nineteen-year old daughter, doesn’t he?”

Driscoll
turned
and
stared at me. “So?”

“Tell him to keep her away from
balconies or they’ll be zipping her up in a cadaver bag.”

He sneered and spun on his heels so fast I thought he might trip over his own feet.

Captain Bledsoe turned to me. “
Jesus, Hardin!
You’ve
just
used
up
the last of your nine lives. That stunt in the parking garage was the last straw. You’re off the case. This time I mean it. If you persist in sticking your nose in, I’ll see to it that you
spend
some time behind bars for interfering with a case.
Damn it, Hardin! Why can’t you just take some time off and let someone else handle this?”

I made a fist and tap
p
ed it against my thigh
to control my temper
as I spoke. “I watched Lew and Melody die. I found all five bodies. I can’t get th
ose
image
s
out of my head. How can I sit around while more bodies pile up? Half the force doesn’t even believe in this creature and the other half think they can kill it with a
night stick
. If you take me off the case, we’re going to lose more men
and more young women
.”

“I’ll risk it,” he snapped. “I need this job. I just bought a new house. I’d like to retire one day before I’m old and gray and not be a greeter at
local
Wal Mart. You heard that prick Driscoll.
There’s an election coming up soon.
If the
Mayor
loses, he
won’t
go away quietly. You and I will go
down
with him. He’ll see to that.”

I sat down. I could see I had lost
the argument
. “At least keep me in the loop.”

He nodded
slowly
. “I’ll keep you apprised of the situation, but you’re off the case, you and your Brazilian girlfriend. Now, get out of here for the rest of the day. Tomorrow you start helping Matthews with his drug case.”

I sighed. It could have been worse. Matthews was a good cop
.
Bledsoe could have sent me down to Vice
, the hell hole of the department
.
“Do you have anyone tailing me, a black SUV?”

“No one, but I wouldn’t put it past the Mayor.”

I left with my tail between my legs for the captain’s benefit, but I didn’t leave beaten. If it cost me my shield, I was going to kill that damn creature and its
double
-
damned
offspring.

I decided to return to Joria’s. I was dist
urbed when
she
did
n’t
answer my persistent knock.
I inquired at the desk and they informed me they did not see her leave.
Even though it was daylight,
I
grew concerned
for her safety
. Using my badge, I cajoled the desk clerk into
opening the door
to her room
with his
electronic
passkey
.
Her room
was empty.
Her clothes were neatly folded in drawers
and hanging in the closet
.
Her notes were
stacked
on the table
beside the rem
nants
of our breakfast
.

“You sure she didn’t step out?” I asked
the desk clerk
.

“No one saw her and she didn’t call a taxi
,” he swore. T
here was nothing
of interest
within walking distance
of the hotel except a convention center and a few
law firms
.
The door leading to her balcony stood open. I braced myself for what I feared to find and walked outside. I exhaled my pent up breath with relief when I saw no blood or signs of an attack. Then I
noticed
the fresh scratches on the concrete
railing. My head reeled.
No blood
, I repeated to myself like a mantra
of hope
. The creature had not killed her
outright
but I
did
n’t
like the conclusion I was drawing
. T
he
Chupacabra
had taken Joria, not as food, but as bait
to lure me
. I h
ad killed two of its
precious
offspring. Before, it
had been
merely
toying with me like a cat playing with a mouse. Now, i
t wanted revenge.

Revenge
.
That was an emotion I could understand, my link with this foul creature. We were two adversaries taking stock of our oppo
sition
. It had sensed my weak spot and made the first move. I knew the creature would not have returned to the
sanctuary
. Too many cop cars would be there
by now
searching the basement. It would return later,
though,
after the din had died away.
Of this, I was certain.
T
hen I would have to make my move.

I wanted to do something
immediately
but t
here were
just
too many places in the city where the creature could have taken
Joria
. A search would
be
useless
.
So would
a
report
of
her disappearance to the authorities.
I had to hope and pray the creature kept her alive and unharmed until I could free her.

Outside, I saw the
black
SUV parked in its usual
spot
. Thinking they might
know
something
about
her disappearance, I walked
briskly
toward them to confront them.
One of them spotted me and pointed. The SUV pulled out, but not before I managed to kick the passenger door hard enough to dent it. It felt like I had broken a toe, but I felt better for it. As they sped away, I shot them the bird.

I
still
had
the Pfeifer .60 I had commandeered from Smitty and had ammunition left. After having seen it in action, I felt certain it was capable of doing the job if I got the
right
opportunity.
I
was sure
the captain would
carry out on his threat if he even thought I was still on the case.
I had to elude my fellow officers while waiting for the opportunity to finish the job I had started. First, I had to ditch the black and white.
It was too obvious and could be traced with its Lo-Jack system.
I drove it to a carwash, paid for a full wax job and walked away carrying the Pfeifer in its case. A few blocks away, I hailed a taxi and had
the driver
drop me off
downtown
a few blocks from
a
twenty-four hour
cinema
. I noticed the irony of the
trilogy
on the marquee
–
Dracula
,
Black Sunday
,
and
Nosferatu
, chosen, I assumed because of the gory headlines of late
. Perhaps I could pick up a few pointers from the professionals.