Demonspawn (35 page)

Jenny, Tina, and Cindy took over for me with
Alicia. They helped her into the back of the minivan. Dave put a
hand on my shoulder. He was all business.

“Do we need to go in there and fuck people
up?”

Despite everything, I smiled. I couldn't ask
for better friends. They had no idea of what was going on, but they
put the pieces together. My crazy call to Cindy, seeing the shape
we were both in.

“It's all taken care of. Some guys tried to
mess with Alicia. But we beat the shit out of them.”

Cindy walked up to us. She looked concerned.
She put a hand to my face. I winced a little. “Damn, Alex. Are you
okay?”

“Yeah, I'm fine. I'm in better shape than
those two assholes in there.”

“Assholes? As in more than one?”

“Yeah.”

She was mad. “Dammit. Next time wait for us.
You can't be doing crazy shit like that by yourself.”

“I couldn't really wait. But thanks for
worrying, sweetie pie.”

I didn't expect the hug. She leaned forward
and wrapped her arms around my neck. I hugged her back, a little
nervous at the sudden touching. Dave was looking at us with a
smirk. I could tell by his look that he knew I had a thing for her.
Hell, it probably wasn't much of a secret anymore. But as long as
Cindy didn't know, I was golden.

“Come on, guys, let's get out of here,” he
said.

We agreed Alicia would stay with me at the
apartment. The drive was quiet. Alicia didn't say much. Shock,
maybe. She cried quietly. She sat in between me and Cindy. Cindy
had an arm wrapped around her and stroked her hair. Dave and Tina
tried to keep the mood light, just joking and carrying on.

The rest of us watched TV in my living room
while Cindy and Alicia were alone in the bedroom. I had to change
shirts once again. My damn wings were gonna cost me a fortune in
shirts. I caught everyone up on what happened.

“Should she go to the police?”

I shrugged. I didn't know what the hell to
do. I could barely talk from the soreness and numbness in my
face.

“I really don't know. We all probably should,
but I'll leave that up to Alicia. I did kind of fuck up two guys
and a bedroom.”

Jenny shook her head. “Man, I wish I saw
that.”

Everyone was surprised. I was always the calm
one. Always in control. I was afraid that I'd lost it so bad. I
really could have killed those two guys. And with the things I can
do, I couldn't let myself ever get that out of hand again.

“Cindy came and picked us up to go out. She
told us you two needed help,” Tina said.

“I'm sorry I messed up your night, guys.”

Dave waved me off. “Man, don't say stupid
shit like that.”

The bedroom door opened. Cindy walked out
with a finger to her lips.

“Sleeping?” I asked.

“Yeah. She cried for a while. She's just
shaken up. But she fell asleep.”

“The police?”

“She said no.”

I shook my head. I didn't know if that was a
smart thing or not.

Cindy went into the kitchen and messed with
something in the freezer.

“What do you guys think?” Dave asked. “Pizza?
Movie?”

I laughed. Everyone was dressed for a night
out, and it ended up with pizza and a movie. I was so sore, and the
day was so packed, I wouldn't have minded a night to myself. I
definitely could have used some time away from vampires. But I also
couldn't think of a better way to end it than spending it with my
friends.

And Cindy was gonna make it even better.

She came out of the kitchen with the phone
and a little ice-bag she made. She tossed the phone to Dave.

“Get some pizza.”

“Yes, ma'am.”

I was alone on the couch. Dave and Tina were
sitting on the loveseat, while Jenny sat on the floor and leaned
against Tina's legs. Cindy crossed the living room and sat next me
on the end. Then she tossed one leg against the back of the couch
and stretched out. She patted the spot in front of her.

“Come here.”

I looked at her. “Uh, dear? Shouldn't we save
our crazy sex stuff for when no one's here?”

She rolled her eyes. “In your dreams.”

I couldn't argue that. It would be a dream
come true. She grabbed me by the shoulders and gently dragged me
closer. Next thing I knew, I'm leaning back against her. She held
the ice-bag against my bruised cheek while rubbing my shoulders
with her free hand.

I can only imagine how tense I was.

“Alex, would you relax?”

“Oh, I'm relaxed.”

She wrapped an arm around my chest and pulled
me against her. She handed the ice-bag to me and squeezed my
shoulders with both hands. Her face was right next to mine,
watching TV while Jenny flipped through the channels. It felt
great.

Dave looked at Tina. “I give you sex, and I
never get a shoulder rub.”

“Yeah, but you never give me
good
sex.”

Jenny laughed.

“I've known this dumbass since we were
sperm,” Cindy said. “So we can get away with stuff like this. He
knows I don't want him.”

“How about a kiss? No tongue?”

“Don't push your luck.”

I smiled. Dave gave me a fake look of
sadness.

Then she leaned close to my ear so no one
could hear.

“Maybe later.”

I laughed. If only she weren't joking.

We watched a movie while waiting for the
pizza. It was actually fun. I didn't know where to put my hands, so
I rested one on Cindy's leg next to me. She was in the same
situation, so she wrapped her arms around me and rested her head on
my shoulder. Wow. She was being a little too touchy. It felt great,
but made me want her more. That feeling I could do without. If we
were alone, I'd probably spill my guts to her.

About halfway through the movie the door to
my bedroom opened. Alicia gave us all a quick look before ducking
into the bathroom. We all looked at each other, then I got up from
the couch.

I gave the bathroom door a quick knock.

“What the hell? Can't a girl use the
bathroom?”

I knew she wasn't using the bathroom. And she
knew who was at the door. Sibling communication.

I cracked the door open.

“Alicia?”

She was splashing her face with water. She
saw me in the mirror and turned around. Her hair was a mess, and
her eyes were still red from crying. She gave me a small smile.

“I probably look terrible.”

“You always do.”

“Shut up.”

I closed the door and leaned against the
wall.

“You okay?”

She nodded. “Yeah, I think so.”

“You sure you don't want to go to the
police?”

“No. What would I tell them? Two guys, I have
no idea who or where they are, tried to drug and fuck me?”

I winced. The anger almost built up all over
again.

“Besides, I don't think they'll be touching
anyone for a while.”

We were quiet a second. She looked down at
the floor.

“You disappointed in me?”

“Huh? What the hell are you talking
about?”

“I keep messing up. The guy, he said his name
was Tom, probably a fake name. Anyway, he said he just wanted to
talk, away from everyone and the music. And I believed him. I'm so
stupid. What is wrong with me?”

I grabbed her by the shoulders. “Hey. You
don't keep messing up. And I'm never disappointed in you.”

She nodded, and looked relieved. I love my
sister. Scary to think our opinions matter to each other. We gave
each other a quick hug.

“How did you know what was going on,
anyway?”

“My little ghost powers. I'll
always
have your back. Now clean up, and come out and eat some pizza.”

We had a good time for the next few hours
before everyone started heading home. Cindy went back to her
apartment, while Alicia slept on the couch. It was an insane day,
but it made me realize how much my friends and family meant to
me.

I definitely needed some rest.

*****

I finally got some overdue sleep. It was past
noon when I woke up. Alicia was gone. She'd left a note on the
table saying she and Cindy had gone shopping. That was good. I
wanted to see Alicia relax as much as possible.

I took a shower and was half dressed when the
cell phone rang. I took a deep breath before answering. I doubted
Victoria was calling just to say hi.

“Hello?”

“Alex. It's Victoria.”

“I figured that.”

“Is everything alright?”

“Yeah. It was a crazy night. But it's all
fine. Everything okay on your end?”

She was quiet a moment. “Yeah. I, uh, took
care of William. Left him out for the sun.”

“Are you okay?”

“I will be. I grabbed his files and spent
most of the night looking them over.”

“Find anything?”

“I think so. They weren't officially missing,
as it hadn't been a day yet, but William was smart. He's got a
report that two people, Shannon Smith and Tom Zimmerman, went
missing a few blocks from where the butcher shop is.”

“Hmm. Shannon and Tom. Do you think-”

“Yes. I already looked into it. They were the
vampires we fought that night.”

“Okay. Do you think we can dig into their
lives? Try to figure out where they got bit?”

“We can try. They both worked at the same
place. Some place called Waylon Research. We should probably start
there.”

Waylon Research. The two words immediately
brought to mind the vampire in a cage at Bachner's hideout. He had
a security uniform with the initials W.R.S. on it.

Waylon Research Security.

“Oh shit,” I said.

“What's up?”

“The vampire. The one I told you Bachner had.
He worked there too, as a security guard.”

“Okay. Finally, we got something,” she said.
“Can you meet me there tonight? Say like midnight or one
o'clock?”

“You mean, like, break into the place?

“Exactly. I'll get the address, figure out
what I can about the building.”

“Do you really still need my help?”

“Yes, I do. Don't worry, after all this is
over, you'll get a big fat check.”

“I'm not worried about that, Victoria.”

“I know.”

I frowned. I just wanted life to go back to
normal. Hell, it was Sunday, and I didn't make a habit of being up
late before a work day. But I knew I wouldn't say no to her.

“Alright. I'll be there.”

“Thank you, Alex. See you tonight.”

I didn't see Cindy or Alicia for the rest of
the day. I guess they had a female day, which was fine by me, as my
mind was far away.

It was a restful day. But as the sun set and
I made myself dinner, I started growing more anxious. I hoped
tonight would be a simple night. I hoped we would go to Waylon
Research, Victoria would find what she was looking for, and we'd
head home. But what were the chances of that?

Waylon Research was out in the middle of
nowhere. A series of turns off the beltway led through a wooded
area and a gravel road. Through the trees up ahead I could see a
building surrounded by a fence and light posts.

The cell phone rang.

“Alex,” Victoria said. “I can hear your
truck.”

“Where are you?”

“Right by the fence. Far corner, by the light
pole. Why didn't you fly?”

I didn't expect the question. “Uh, cause my
truck still works?”

“You're making too much noise. Stop right
now, back up, and park in the woods somewhere.”

“Alright. Don't go nowhere.”

I did as she said. Once I killed the engine,
I realized there was no light at all.

It took me almost falling in the dark to
remember I had night vision.

I closed my eyes, and willed the darkness
away. Gray replaced black, while trees and bushes took shape once
again. I headed to the far corner of the fence, and saw Victoria
leaning against a tree in the shadows. She shook her head as I got
closer.

“You can fly and you're fireproof, but you
can't be quiet at all,” she whispered.

“Hey, give me a break. If I go ghost and
start walking through shit, I lose my night vision.”

“Poor you.”

I stood next to her and stared at the
building. Nothing really jumped out at me about it. Looked like a
typical office building. Plenty of windows, with a few office
lights on. An empty parking lot. Nice little sidewalk leading to
the front door.

“You notice anything weird?” I asked.

She nodded. “The security.”

I squinted. There was a lone security guard
walking around. One time I saw him talk into his radio. Looked
normal to me.

“What about him?”

“Just gives me a weird feeling. Security
guards don't usually walk around anymore. Most of them sit in nice
cozy rooms and watch monitors all night long. Hell, there probably
shouldn't be any security at all, at least not people.”

“Well, what exactly is this place?”

“Medical consulting. They basically improve
hospitals and medicine.”

“Okay then. What's the plan?”

She pointed to an open office window on the
fifth floor.

“We get in through there.”

“Uh, you can fly?”

“No. Don't worry about me. I'll meet you in
there.”

I shrugged, then vanished and walked through
the fence. I walked calmly across the parking lot, invisible to
everything. I passed the security guard and walked through the
front door.

There were plenty of offices, plenty of what
looked to be exam rooms. I didn't pass by a single person.

I walked through the door leading to the
stairs and started climbing. It was strange not hearing my own
footsteps. I felt a little guilty. Not just at the fact that I was
sneaking around, but that I was sneaking around so easily.

I got a little lost on the fifth floor. I had
to peek into office doors, as I had no idea of which office
Victoria was pointing to from outside. I got lucky, though. I
turned a corner and saw a light come on at the end of the hall. I
took a peek in, and sure enough, Victoria was sitting at a
computer.