Forged in Flame (5 page)

“You got it.” She turned and started mixing the drink. Nicholas looked around the coffee shop, his eyes scanning the few humans who sat at tables scattered around the room, their focus on their own affairs. “That’ll be four fifty.” The barista’s voice broke into his thoughts.

When did a cup of coffee become so complicated and costly?
He shook his head and laid a ten on the counter before picking up his drink, enjoying the warmth that spread through his hand. He didn’t bother waiting for change, just stepped to the side of the counter and with a quick glance over his shoulder, walked behind the curtain. At the end of the long, dark hallway a single yellowing light bulb cast jaundiced light on an entrance to the stairwell.
Well, this feels like a setup for one of those horror movies that Eric adores,
Nicholas thought as he strode down the hall and took the stairs two at a time. When he reached the second floor, the horror movie atmosphere disappeared.
 

Filled with warm, modern furnishings, the room decor included low tables in light wood tones. Brushed steel accented tables set in the center of colorful clusters of chairs, sofas and, much like the space downstairs, almost empty. The sun had not yet set, and most of the vampires in the city would still be hunkered down in their safe rooms at home, waiting for nightfall. Nicholas found the vampire he sought and made a beeline for the table where Daniel sat, staring into a steaming cup of coffee. His Enforcer didn’t even look up when the Assassin sat in the chair across the table from him.

“Daniel?” Nicholas said when the other vampire ignored his arrival. “You requested my assistance with a situation?”

“I did.” The Enforcer’s voice held no emotion.
 

Nicholas saw that purplish green circles had formed underneath Daniel’s dark brown eyes. His black hair had become a disheveled mop, and a deep frown tugged at the edges of his mouth. One of the longest serving enforcers. Despite being a throwback to the previous Lead Enforcer’s ways, he was still damn good at his job.

The elder vampire pushed his drink to one side and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. “You’ve called me here, so tell me, what’s going on?”

“There have been deaths.” Daniel shook his head. “Too many deaths.” His stare remained on the coffee as if he could divine the future from unseen patterns in the foam.

“That’s why I’m here. Come on, man, talk to me. Why did you call me in?” Nicholas said, making a mental note to send Michael or Adain to cover the territory. Daniel needed a break once this latest crisis had been resolved.
Maybe Morgan is right, it would seem that everyone does need a vacation every now and again.

“I can’t get close to him. I
think
I know who he is and where he is, but every time I get close…” Daniel slammed his hand on the table, making the coffee cups rattle and jump in their saucers. “…he’s gone again like a fucking ghost.”

“That’s why you called in the big gun. I’m here to help.” Nicholas sipped his coffee. “Start from the beginning.”

“Three weeks ago, a body washed up on Baker Beach, drained of blood. The locals wrote it off as an accident because of the long, deep cut on the arm. Two days later, a woman was found in an alley off one of the most popular club hangout areas. Again, no blood. Her throat had been slashed. Three days later, another one showed up, made to look like a suicide. You get the picture.” Daniel sighed and waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. “I started asking around, trying to get a fix on who might be responsible. When I found the culprit, I was going to give them the old
clean up after yourself, the Enforcers aren’t your mommy
speech, but I can’t find him. I think I’ve focused on the right guy, but I can’t get close enough to confirm it.”

“What do you know about the killer?” Nicholas asked, trying to keep his spooked Enforcer on track with the facts.

“He’s sloppy. There’s a Medical Examiner, Samantha, who knows about us. She has done what she can to hide our involvement, but without her, there would have been serious questions.”

“Why do I get the feeling there’s more to the story you’re not sharing?”

“Two more deaths happened in an apartment complex on the fifteenth, eight days ago. Our Renegade, and he didn’t even bother cleaning up. Some fang marks appeared on one of the bodies, but Sam is playing it up to the PD as a fetish or some kind of ritual. I found a set of obvious ones on the woman in the apartment, but covered them up.”
 

Nicholas sighed and nodded.
It’s a complication but sounds like something we can deal with.
“Who do you think it is?”

“Like I said, I’m not entirely sure I’ve pinpointed the right guy. However, I believe it’s most likely one of Samair’s people.” Daniel sipped his coffee and sighed. “He sired someone named Jayson a few months back. The rumor mill says the kid has gotten completely out of control.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah. That’s why I called you in. Dealing with nomad renegades is hard enough, but when your suspect is sired by the Lord of the City, it’s a whole new can of bullshit.”

“When you consider that we’re talking about Samair, the situation escalates to an entirely new level of crap. This is not what I want to deal with right now.” Nicholas stared into his coffee until his eyes lost focus and everything went blurry. He shook his head and tapped his finger on the table for several seconds. “Does anyone else know I’m in town?”
 

“No, I didn’t think it would be wise to advertise that the Assassin was coming. Thought it might freak the kid out, make him go to ground. At the very least, it would put everyone in the city on edge. ”
 

“Good thinking. I want you to keep this meeting a secret. Don’t tell anyone I’m here until I give you the go-ahead. Not even your own people.” Nicholas sipped his coffee and leaned back in his chair. “Is there anything the victims have in common, or some detail you’ve thought of that we can use to track this guy?”
 

“Nothing I know of, and the human authorities don’t seem to have any clues either.”
 

“Do you have any trustworthy contacts within the police department? Can you think of anyone else who might be able to help?”
 

“No. The guy who used to assist me once in a while retired a few months ago and, despite being born and raised in New Orleans, his partner isn’t exactly the type who believes vampires exist. It’s something I’ve been working on, but…” Daniel shrugged and took a sip of his own cold coffee, “…you know how those things go.”

“I do recall.” Nicholas chuckled.

Soon after becoming an Enforcer, his predecessor had given him the mantle of the Lead Enforcer. For a few decades, it had caused some strain among the older members of the corps. One of the changes that Nicholas had instituted was reaching out to select members of local law enforcement and trying to get them to assist when possible. A number of the partnerships had gone beyond assisting, as with Elizabeth and Eric, but others remained nothing more than business arrangements. Nicholas wrapped the coffee mug in his hands, enjoying the warmth while he contemplated their next move.
 

Daniel glanced at his watch. “Anything else, boss?”

“In a hurry?” he asked. When Daniel nodded, Nicholas chuckled. “Got a hot date?” A wry smile turned up one corner of his mouth.

Daniel smiled. “Actually, I do. Not all of us are old married guys.”
 

Nicholas smirked and tilted his head to the left. “At least I’ve got a hot wife.”

“I’ll take the fifth on that.” Daniel chuckled, “I like my head
riiiight
where it is, boss.”

The Lead Enforcer smiled and nodded toward the door. “Get outta here. Have a good evening. Go unwind. You need to relax. I’ll check in with you in a couple of nights.”

“You’re going to lay low that long?” the younger vampire asked. He knew that once word got out that the Assassin was in town, the Renegade would go to ground, and their task would become even more difficult.
 

“I want to stay under the radar as long as possible.” Nicholas sighed and gazed into his coffee cup as if he’d find something in the liquid that would solve his problems. He picked up the spoon and started stirring it, watching it swirl around in the mug.
So, I’ve got a renegade on the streets of one of the largest cities in the states. Because Daniel’s always been so good at his job without need for my services, I really don’t know my way around town.

Across the table, Daniel stood and picked up his empty coffee mug. Without a word, he offered Nicholas a quick bow and turned and left.
 

Nicholas frowned as he picked up his coffee, glancing at the dark liquid, and set it back down, leaving about half of it behind.
I’ve got access to a highly skilled investigator if what Elizabeth said is to be believed. All I have to do is make sure Morgan brings him with her when she comes to San Francisco.
He sighed and stood. Making his way out of the coffee shop, he looked both ways down the street, turned left and started walking aimlessly through the city.

 
Tradition dictated that the Enforcers use nothing more than their wits and preternatural abilities to hunt down renegade vampires. However, the advance of human technology and communication had rendered many traditional methods obsolete. By the time a problem came to his attention, more often than not, the human authorities were already working the case.
 

Each passing decade made remaining hidden more and more difficult, not just for vampires but for all preternatural creatures. If technology continued to progress, preternatural creatures wouldn’t be able to hide much longer. There had been a time when a vampire could kill several people without being noticed. Now, however, if a vampire left more than one corpse lying around, it was possible they would be found out and not necessarily before the Enforcers could resolve the issue.

Daniel opened the car door and slipped behind the wheel. He took a moment to verify the setting of the mirrors as he put the seatbelt on and started the engine. The classic Detroit engineering marvel rumbled to life, purring like a big cat. While waiting for the engine to warm up, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. She picked up on the third ring and within a few moments he had made arrangements to pick her up in half an hour. A smile of anticipation crossed his face. Phone back in his pocket, Daniel eased the car into the flow of evening traffic.

Half an hour later he pulled up in front of one of the typical cookie cutter Victorians that dotted San Francisco like dandelions. She waited for him on the front steps. Petite with brown hair and eyes that reminded him of milk chocolate, she jogged down the stairs and slid into the passenger seat before he even had a chance to cut the engine.

“Why didn’t you wait? I would’ve gotten the door for you. It’s the proper gentlemanly thing to do,” Daniel said, a hint of teasing in his voice as she settled into her seat. Her perfume filled the car with a feminine floral bouquet.

 
“There was no point.” Her voice sang out smooth and melodious even as she scolded him. “You wouldn’t have found a parking space, not at this time of night. I just saved you from having to drive around the block fifteen times looking for one that doesn’t exist. If you’d like to do the chivalrous thing, I can get out and we can start again.” She put her hand on the door handle and waited a moment.

 
“Oh, I don’t think that’ll be necessary.” Daniel reached over, his arm crossing her body as he secured her seatbelt, brushing his fingers against her hands in the process. “Just know that I’m kind of an old-fashioned guy. I like to do things for my dates when I take them out on the town.”
 

“Well then, I suppose it’s a good thing that I’m a little bit of an old-fashioned girl.” She smiled and settled back in her seat.

Daniel returned her smile, checked over his shoulder and seeing his opening; he pulled into traffic, heading down the coast. He hoped she would enjoy herself because he wouldn’t be partaking in the meal. While vampires could eat, he didn’t care for the ramifications that came with it.
 

“So, would it be considered rude to ask where we are going?” A hint of shyness came through in her voice as she smiled and a slight blush appeared on her cheeks.

“Maybe not rude, but certainly presumptuous.” Daniel signaled left and waited for an opening into traffic to enter the freeway.