The Recruit Book Two (EBOOK)

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“Humans are so stupid, are they not?” The vampire grinned to his companion before staring down at the frightened couple bound to chairs.

“They send five to protect you. Five! As if five would be nearly enough when the dark lord wants you.”

He knelt in front of the woman and traced her tear-stained cheek with one long nail. “We’ve been watching you for weeks. We’ve been watching them for weeks. We learned to know their habits, their signs of weariness and their shift changes, and we used it to our advantage. Our dark lord taught us to be oh so patient and watch. He is a tricky one, he is.”

He stared at the woman thoughtfully. “I suppose that isn’t entirely the truth. We did, after all, have some help from our friends.”

He bounced to his feet and paced back and forth in front of them. “Of course, even the dark lord’s patience does have its limits. It’s why we’re here now. We grow tired of waiting for her.”

He leaned in and smiled at the woman, and she turned her head away at the smell of his rotting breath. “It’s why we’re going to kill one of you and use your blood to call for her. We’ll leave the other alive of course – she has to have some motivation to come home.”

“She’s dead! Don’t you understand that? Our daughter is dead!” the man said.

The vampire stood in front of the man. He leaned forward and breathed deeply. “I would like just a taste of you.”

“Don’t,” his companion warned, “the master will not be happy if you do.”

“Shut up,” the vampire snarled at him. “He won’t know if I take just a small sip.”

He stared at the man and then his wife. “We’ll kill the woman,” he said. “I bet she’s a daddy’s girl and will come running to comfort him in his time of grief.”

He stepped toward her and the man struggled against his bonds. “Don’t you touch her!”

The creature grinned at him, and the man shrank back as the vampire’s teeth lengthened into sharp points.

“What are you?” he whispered.

“Yes, just a small sip,” the vampire murmured. “I’m so terribly thirsty.”

He leaned towards the man, the fangs lengthening until they were protruding from his mouth. Before he could sink them into the throbbing vein in the man’s neck, barking could be heard from outside. As the barking continued, he sighed and rolled his eyes, standing straight and glaring at his companion.

“What?”

“Go outside and kill the fucking dog, you idiot!”

His companion turned and left the room. Faintly, the vampire could hear the back door slamming and he sighed and turned back to the couple. “It’s so difficult to find good help these days.”

* * *

The vampire stood on the back porch and stared into the yard. His night vision was excellent, and he quickly spotted the small, scruffy dog standing at the edge of the yard. It was staring into the bushes that flanked the yard and barking repeatedly.

He wondered briefly where the others were, but the shrill high-pitched barking was making it impossible to think clearly. The vampire winced and then flew across the yard, pouncing on the dog. It made a painful yelp as he snatched it from the ground and lifted it up until it was dangling in front of his eyes.

He sniffed, his face wrinkling with distaste. “I prefer human, but you’ll do for a quick snack.” He opened his mouth, his fangs popping out, and lowered his face toward the frightened animal.

There was sharp pressure on his back and a cold voice said, “Put down the dog, asshole.”

He hesitated and a gun was cocked and put to his temple.

“You’d better listen to her,” a tall, blond man said cheerfully as a dark-haired woman, dressed in a long trench coat and leather pants, circled around him. There was a sword in her hand, and it gleamed in the moonlight.

He lifted his lip and snarled at them, and the blond man made a tsking noise under his breath. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. I’m all for letting you live, because I’m just that kind of guy, but the hottie standing in front of you? Well, she’s been in a bad mood all day. She’ll probably kill you just for shits and giggles, you know?”

The vampire dropped the dog, and the woman in front of him caught it neatly with one hand before it could hit the ground.

He stared at her, a touch of fear trickling down his cold spine at her quickness. He had thought he would use his speed and his strength to overpower them but there was something in the way she held her sword, something in the way in which she had caught the dog with a silent, spooky speed that made him hesitate. He swallowed and forced himself to sound unafraid. “A gun won’t stop me.”

“That’s an excellent point,” the blond man said cheerfully, and the woman gave him a look of irritation. “What? It is an excellent point. Guns don’t kill vampires. Guns kill humans. But guns loaded with UV filled bullets? They kill vampires. And in a rather nasty way too.”

He cocked his head and smiled charmingly at the vampire. “Have you ever wondered what it’s like to burn from the inside out? I could show you – just make one wrong move and I’ll be happy to demonstrate.”

The vampire licked his lips nervously. “There’s no need for violence.”

The woman laughed. “That’s rich coming from you. Turn around.” She handed the dog to the blond man who took it without removing his gun from the vampire’s temple.

The vampire turned around, feeling the muzzle of the gun drag through his hair. “What are you -”

A look of shock slammed over his face as the woman thrust her sword further into his back.

“It’s only inches from the slab of meat you call a heart. Do you hear me?” she said.

He nodded.

“If you make one wrong move, if you even try to escape, I will puncture it. Now – move toward the house, nice and slow.”

* * *

“I bet your blood tastes like bananas.” The vampire traced the man’s neck with his fingernail. “Guys your age always taste like bananas. It’s fucking weird, right?”

The back door opened, and the vampire said, “Finally. Seriously, how difficult is it to kill one small dog?”

He patted the man’s cheek and grinned at him. “Sorry about your dog by the way.”

He turned around as his companion shuffled into the room. “It’s about time. Did you get lost in the – what he hell is wrong with you? Why are you -”

His companion made a sudden, sharp gasp, his back bowing, and then exploded. The vampire threw his hands over his face, crying out and falling back against the wall. Ash and blood rained down and before the vampire could stagger forward, she was standing in front of him, one hand gripping the collar of his jacket and her other holding a blood-drenched sword pointed directly over his heart.

“You,” he whispered.

“Me.” Her voice was a soft caress in the quiet.

"Please don't - "

The woman plunged the sword through his breast. He opened his mouth, a glut of foul-smelling blood came pouring out of him and she stepped back, yanking her sword free and turning away as he slid down the wall and exploded into ash.

The man and the woman, still bound to their chairs and their faces and bodies streaked with ash and blood, looked silently at her for a moment before the woman cleared her throat.

“Hello, Hannah.”

“Hello, Mom.”