Currently Unamed Story Pt. 2

    I sat up, and for reasons lost to me, I was sweating heavily.  Only able pull bits of last night to the forefront of my memory, I looked around my living room hazily and addressed my current state.  A slight buzz, so I was drinking… and Jace didn’t seem to be home or else I would’ve been in bed instead of on the couch.  The house was normal, from the flat screen TV against the wall to the wooden coffee table between it and the couch.  I spotted a key caked in dirt on the floor though; it looked like I might have used the spare to get in.  Turning around, I walked over to the sliding glass door and opened it to take in the mid-day air.

    I took a deep breath then stopped completely when I remembered locking the door behind me before slipping onto the couch last night.  I went into a cold panic when I heard the door of the fridge in the kitchen close with a clattering clink.

    My feet carried me shakily to the entryway where I found a man in a long, light brown leather raincoat leaning over my sink, his features other than his ridiculous height and short dark hair masked in his hunched posture.  He started running water as I slowly approached him; I then noticed a steak knife lying on the granite-topped island separating us.  Silently gripping it, I hid it behind my back as I inched closer.

    “I see you are up; or hear, rather...” he said, freezing me in place with dread.  I hung on his words, their sound taking the form of someone from one of those old black and white films; he sounded like a cross-between of a British guy and an American private investigator from the 1950s.  The man continued with what I could now assume was washing something as I brought up the courage to take a few steps closer.

    “G-get out.  I don’t want any t-trouble.” My words were choked and small, eased out like the air in a balloon.  The tap stopped and he wheeled around on his left heel to face me, his face young and cheerful with a grin that almost spanned the width of his face.  He wore a large pair of sunglasses that just about covered his face from the nose up; might have been safety glasses with tinted lenses for all I could tell.  He was even taller now that he was standing straight; he seemed like a cornstalk in a coat and shades rather than a person.

    “Pumpkin, I just needed a bite to eat.  I will be out of your hair as soon as I finish this apple,” he stated with a lot of superficial charm muscled in before biting into the green fruit and tearing away a large chunk of it.  He practically inhaled it before taking a step toward me, causing my panic to rise, and it seemed like I was watching the actions of someone else as my left arm lunged forward in a forceful thrust.  I could only stare blankly as he staggered back into the counter behind him, white plastic handle sticking out of his midsection on the right side of his ribs.

    “Ow.” He simply said, hollow and blank; it was like the knife was a little sewing needle that had pricked his finger, as he didn’t even look down at it.  His head was fixed on where I was, unmoving and not distracted in the slightest.

    “Tha-” He started, but gave up in a fit of wheezing and sputtering that followed a nasty sounding chough.  He dropped to his hands and knees, the apple falling with a dull splattered thunk along with his shades.  He rolled onto his back along the row of cabinets under the sink, while his left hand drifted over to the plastic grip jutting from his lower chest. With a grunt, a lot more wheezing, and a few coughs, he pulled the knife from his ribcage and sent it clattering away towards his feet by the end of the island.

    “Ugh, that how you greet all your house guests?” He spat, his words prefaced with a wheeze and a cough.  I blinked a few times, trying to process things.  His wound was slowly closing as the flesh knit itself back together before my eyes.  He stumbled to its feet with another fit of wheezy coughing.  I backpedaled into the wall behind me, now frightened that the burglar wasn’t even human, but instead some kind of crazy monster I’d thought only existed in movies.

    “W-what are you?!” I stammered as I slid down the wall in hopeless realization that running would be useless if he could keep going like that.  He took a step towards me, looking at me with eyes that reflected me in shades of hazel.

    “I am guessing that means you don’t know who I am,” he stated, keeling down on one knee to bring himself down to my level.  “Sorry, I thought he would have at least mentioned me once,” he continued while scratching the back of his neck.  I dared to raise a shaky brow in response, unsure who he had meant.  He blinked, large eyes set into his elongated face; he bore a striking resemblance to a feline’s features, but still very human.

    “Ah right, uh, how do I put this?  I am like the wolf man, but I can turn into other things as well; like a cat, or a bear, or other people,” he tried to explain to me.  We both swung our heads around when a click came from the front door, sending us both up to our feet when it opened loudly with the sound of rustling plastic bags following it.

    “Hey Abbs!  You here?” I was beyond relief to hear Jace’s deep tone ring out from the doorway.  I quickly rounded the island to put it between the intruder and me, and to put me within reach of the discarded knife on the floor.  I grabbed the knife, stood, and shouted in such a smooth motion that all he could do blink before he processed what had just happened.

    “In the kitchen, help!” Following a clatter of cans and wood, Jace filled the door I had entered through and the two of them looked at each other.  Jace then looked from the stranger’s blood stained coat to the bloody serrated blade of the knife in my hand.  He scowled before turning his head to regard the tall man who now hung his head like a dog that had peed on the rug.

    “Mont, what the fuck are you doing here?” Jace asked.  I dropped the knife, and the intruder answered him with a wince.  “Hey, I thought you said this was a safe place to crash a while back!” he replied.  I simply looked on as the two started back and forth as if I had left the room.

    “Yeah, six years ago when I bought it!  I told you about my girl living here now!” Jace retorted.

    “But, you never said she did not know about our work!” Both their voices were rising.

    “Fuck!  I was hoping to keep her out of this!  It’s bad enough that that fledgling found you out, but now you’re dragging her into this!”

    “It’s not my fault your girlfriend wakes up in the middle of the day and likes to stab people talking to her; I was just going to grab a bite and leave!”

    I cleared my throat loudly, grabbing both of their gazes.  “Hey, both of you shut up!  Let’s just start from the top; Jace, who is this and what is it you do?”  I questioned with a commanding tone, which took all the guts I had that weren’t tied up into knots.

    “Well uh, this is, Mont.  He and I go… hunting.” He was shifty and seemed to be dodging the subject.  I would have none of that, finding some crazy courage I hadn’t known I’d had.  “And just what do you two hunt, huh?” I let my pissiness soak my question as Mont cut Jace from answering.

    “We are vampire hunters, okay?  We go after monsters and demons of all kinds and kill then, with sharp and pointy things.  We can deal with the lover’s dispute after Jace and I stomp out the vampire nest forming at the bad end of town.”

    I frowned. “I’m coming with y’uns.” I simply glared at Jace when he started to protest.

    “What?  No, ‘What do you mean vampires?’ or anything?” Mont asked, scratching at the back of his neck again.

    “No, this sounds like the kind of crock full of ass that I’d need to see for myself.  I think you’re bull-shitin’ me to the moon over here.”

    “Well then, let’s go Jace.  I would not want to disappoint the woman on the first night out in nine years.” With a face splitting grin, and a pat on Jace’s back on his way out, Mont led us to and old beat up muscle car that wore a scratched and worn down coat of red paint.

    “Still drive this old junker?” Jace turned to Mont as he unlocked the doors and swung one open with a strained creak.

    “Hey, this car is older than you are; show a bit of respect for my old girl.”

    Jace scoffed and walked around the other side and entered the vehicle, with another squeak that greeted my ears; followed by the door I opened whining in protest itself.  The musk of spent smokes and whiskey mixed with mud met my nose when I sat down and pulled the door closed with a grunt.  With everyone seated, I reached over my shoulder for seatbelt that wasn’t there.

    “Hey, where are the seatbelts?” I frowned at Mont’s reply.

    “Oh, those went after the time we got pinned by them when a vamp’ used his telekinetic powers to trap us in the car.” The car started up with a sputtering whir that turned into a low growl as it lurched forward into life.

    I sat in semi-silence as the junker lightly rattled along down to the old steel mills and the warehouses that had been all but left to crumble when the mill’s business dried up there; the place was probably empty, and looked perfect for vagrants to hide out in.  I saw the whole place come into view through the windshield while Jace and Mont started to talk about their plan of attack.

    “Well Mont, let’s hear the plan.”

    “Oh you know, the usual; kick in the front door and fight whatever attacks us first.” Jace sighed and shook his head.

    “Why’s it you’re the cocky one?”

    “Why is it that you are the cautious one?” They both laughed lightly as Mont parked the car.  Jace turned to me and gave a look that cocktailed threat with fear.

    “Just stay here; we’ll be back in a bit.” I sighed and nodded, giving Jace cause to let out a held breath as he and Mont exited and rounded to the back, their conversation out of earshot.

    “Like hell I will.” I whispered under my breath, waiting for the two to leave for the warehouse with axes and knives in hand.

    Once they had entered the building, I noticed an eerily familiar mop of black hair rise from behind some nearby crates, a pair of amber eyes peering out and contrasting her dark silhouette as it crept through the shadows toward the warehouse wrapped in a heavy looking black cloak.  I sat in place, rigid and unable to move, even if I had wanted to.  The figure seemed to smoke as it darted from the shadow cast by the setting sun into the warehouse through the door those two left hanging open, now out of sight.

    I gathered what courage I’d had left and clambered out of the car, collecting an old style knife, that was surprisingly light, from the trunk that was still open.  I looked at the small thing in my hand, finally realizing why it felt so light; the blade was made of silver, gleaming brightly under the sun and it seemed the crossed part and handle were also made of the same material, just with a band of leather wrapping the handle.  It was plain in design; I liked that, simple things were coming at a premium.

    The trunk whined when I closed it, then I took in a sharp breath and light steps to the still open door.  As I got closer, I could hear voices coupled with the smell of burning wood and something… else.  I couldn’t place the smell, but it was horrible.  Somehow though, I staggered into the main space to see Jace and Mont pointing axes at a weasely pale man dressed in black under the light given off from barrels full of burning trash.

    “I don’t know, I don’t know!  Some heavy hitter or something, I didn’t exactly go and ask; that’s the quickest way to getting dead!  I only know who I’m supposed to be bait for.” His voice was panicked and high strung and beads of sweat rolled down from his short black hair to his chin.  I then noticed the rotting wood framed and cracked mirror behind him, reflecting just his clothes, Jace, Mont, and I.  Another set of hollow black clothes came through the door behind me and leveled a gun over my shoulder at the weasel guy while I froze in place, too scared to move an inch as the other three still didn’t know we were here.

    “Yeah, and who’s that?” An ear breaking sound rang through my right drum, leaving it ringing as the weasel was sent through the mirror with a following symphony of shattering glass and splintering wood.  A calm and even tone answered Jace’s question, filled with pride and an accent I couldn’t place.

    “Me.” Jace and Mont whipped around to face the black clothes behind me as I realized where I was in this whole situation.  Mont broke the second of silence as he spoke to Jace with a tone of apology.

    “Um, I didn’t know this would happen.” Jace was standing rigidly in place, eyes fixed over my shoulder as he showed outward signs of utter panic across his fire lit features.  All was topped off with beads of sweat rolling down his bald head.

    “Really, so you thought something like this wouldn’t happen if you brought an innocent girl to work with you?” My invisible captor’s tone took on a sort of smart ass effect, filled with sarcasm as it sighed.

    “What has happened to hunters these days?” It asked under its breath, just loud enough for the room to hear.  Mont frowned, and I took my chances and decided to do something really stupid.