Chapter 30
Chapter
Thirty
T here were no giant worms or vampires as we went back through the tunnels. I caught Thane’s gaze drifting down my body and I knew he’d noticed that something was wrong with my hip, but thankfully he didn’t comment or suggest that I hang back while he went after Brassick alone. Instead we jogged through the gloom to the intersection where I’d first emerged.
Thane’s nose twitched and he made several slow circles as he absorbed the scent. I watched; my sense of smell was better than most, but I was no match for a werewolf.
I wished the knot of anxiety in my stomach would disappear. Although Nick was safe, these unfamiliar tunnels and my lack of preparation made me feel as if I had no control and that wasn’t a sensation I was used to. I didn’t like it one jot; I trusted Thane but it was hard to yield to his werewolf senses and let him lead the way. In many ways, I was as much of a lone wolf as he was.
‘I can’t catch any scent from the vampire,’ he said after several moments.
‘But?’ I prodded .
‘But I can smell wolf blood. It’s faint but it’s definitely here. It must be what they took from Nick.’ He turned to the right. ‘The scent leads that way.’
So I’d made the wrong choice earlier. My irritation with myself grew, even though there was no way I could have known which way to go. ‘He’s got an hour’s head start.’
Thane shrugged but I could see the tension in his eyes. ‘We’ll catch him,’ he said with a confidence that neither of us felt. He started to move away. I swallowed my ego and followed.
For the first few hundred metres there was nothing of interest. We stayed silent until we reached another intersection then I waited while Thane sniffed the stale air. There were two heavy looking iron doors on either side of the junction; although they were unmarked, I was certain that they led to vampire-owned properties. The only way to keep these tunnels exclusively to anyone with fangs and a penchant for O neg would be to control the exits and entrances and that made it likely that every doorway led to a private property rather than a public place.
‘This way, I’m sure of it.’ Thane pointed left but despite his words he sounded doubtful. I gave him a long look. ‘The smell is fading and there’s only a faint odour clinging to the air,’ he admitted. ‘There are a lot of competing scents and no spilled blood to track. It won’t linger for much longer.’
‘Then we’d better get a move on and find that fucker before the trail vanishes for good.’
‘Amen to that,’ Thane murmured. We took off once more.
One turn started to look much like another. I noticed notches on some of the walls, doubtless markers for the vampires who used these tunnels, but the dark surroundings and similarities between one section of tunnel and the next meant that I had little idea of where we were. At one point I was certain that we were doubling back on ourselves. It didn’t help that Thane was stopping more often and seemed less and less sure of himself, though even the most skilled werewolf tracker would struggle down here.
We were forced to take cover twice as more giant worms and their fanged passengers passed by. The second time there was a procession as five worms carrying five vamps trundled by. One of the vampires lifted his head and his nostrils flared. I felt a shiver of fear that he had smelled us even when the strange parade had drifted past and disappeared.
I didn’t like the prospect of being discovered. I could handle one or two vamps, but if the alarm was raised and a whole host of the bastards came after us, we’d never get out. The more time I spent underground, the more my thoughts darkened – and the more my damned hip hurt. Once all this was over, I was going to start training again. Just because I was retired didn’t mean I had to grow weak.
We’d passed twenty-three iron doors when Thane finally stopped in the middle of a tunnel that, to my eyes, looked exactly the same as every other section we’d been through. He looked left then right, then pointed ahead. ‘There,’ he said softly. ‘In there.’
I moved to the rusty door he had identified; there was no number or name to indicate what it led to. I squinted as I examined it carefully. ‘Are you sure?’
He snorted. ‘Yes, I’m sure.’ I gave him a longer look. ‘Alright,’ he admitted. ‘I’m mostly sure. Can you do better?’
That was a hard ‘nope’. I pursed my lips and reached for the door handle. Although there was every chance that we’d set off a trap by opening it, we had little choice and I was keen to get out of the tunnel.
I twisted the handle and the door opened without so much as a complaining creak. Nothing exploded in my face and no vampire was waiting for me on the other side. There was no sign of Brassick, just a long corridor lit by a strip light. So far so good. I stepped across the threshold and Thane followed.
We walked more slowly and quietly now. Remembering the booby trap that Thane had set off at the Galbraith house, I took my time checking the way ahead. It seemed inconceivable that there was nothing to stop us but we continued unimpeded. By the time we reached yet another door, I was more confused than concerned.
The ladder at the far end of the hallway was made out of wood and I could see scuff marks from where it had been used by numerous pairs of feet. I craned my neck but couldn’t see anything above me, so I beckoned Thane. He stepped past me and lowered his head to the wood. ‘Smells like vamp,’ he grunted. That was hardly a surprise.
‘What about Nick’s blood?’ I asked.
‘The scent is stronger now. This wanker is ours, Kit. He must have come this way – he’s somewhere above us. We can take him down together.’ He reached again for the ladder.
‘Wait,’ I said. ‘This feels too easy.’
‘Easy?’ Thane raised a disbelieving eyebrow. ‘We’ve been running around in the dark for hours. It might be the middle of the day, but there are still vampires in these tunnels. If any of them had spotted us, we’d be dead by now. Even Alexander MacTire would think twice about wandering through them.’
He’d think twice but he’d still do it. I shook my head. ‘Something isn’t right.’
‘I’ll go first. If there are any traps up there, I’ll bear the brunt of them.’
I frowned. ‘I don’t want you to get hurt.’ I didn’t want either of us to get hurt.
Something shifted in his expression. ‘Does that mean that you care for me?’ he asked softly .
‘I wouldn’t go that far.’
He grinned. ‘Perhaps if I get any booboos, you’ll kiss them better for me.’
‘I’ll give you a fucking booboo,’ I muttered.
His grin widened – until there was a sudden thump above us. We both stilled. ‘If you have a bad feeling,’ he whispered, ‘we can find our way out of here and try to locate this spot from above ground.’
We’d never locate the right building that way, not without a map. I shook my head. It was up this ladder or nothing, and I wasn’t walking away no matter how threatened I might feel. Nick was safe but that didn’t mean this shit show was over. ‘No,’ I said. ‘Let’s do it.’
Thane nodded solemnly then started to ascend the ladder.
My heart was in my mouth when he reached the trapdoor that led to whatever was above. It was the perfect spot for either a trap or an ambush but he didn’t hesitate; he flipped it open, hauled himself up and vanished.
I heard nothing, not a whisper, a shout nor an exclamation of pain.
Several seconds ticked past before his face reappeared. ‘All good.’ He winked.
I scowled back at him. ‘Did you deliberately delay as a joke?’
‘ Moi ?’
Ginger idiot. I returned his wink with my middle finger and he winked again. He’d clearly regained his humour now that Nick was safe. I wasn’t impressed, even if he was disarmingly handsome when he smiled.
I hoisted myself up the ladder; my hip pain had eased, though I suspected that meant it would hurt all the more the next day. Unless Brassick really did have an ace up his laced sleeve and I didn’t survive until the next day.
I pulled myself through the hatch. The basement we were in was of a similar size and configuration to the last one, albeit without an unconscious teenage werewolf in need of a blood transfusion or a squashed druid, a wheezing ogre and a sniffy vampire. There were, however, dozens upon dozens of dusty bottles of wine.
Thane picked one up and examined the label. ‘A 1926 Bordeaux,’ he said, holding it up so I could see it. ‘A good year.’
‘You like wine?’
‘You don’t?’
I shrugged: I enjoyed wine but I knew jack shit about it. I chose my bottles according to how pretty the labels were and whether the names were interesting. I wouldn’t have chosen the wine Thane was holding, not based on that font.
He returned the bottle to the rack and gestured to the woodworm-ridden door in the corner. I checked its frame carefully before inching it open. There was a soft creak and I caught a brief glimpse of a spider scuttling away from the corner.
Pursing my lips, I stepped across the threshold. A narrow set of stairs loomed above me. I could hear an old clock ticking and several thumping footsteps, followed by a mutter. I tensed. Was somebody else here as well as Brassick?
The footsteps moved closer and I realised that he was pacing the room next to the ground-floor landing while talking to himself. ‘Everything is good, Brassick,’ he said. ‘Fine and dandy. There is nothing to worry about.’
I smiled humourlessly: he had everything to worry about. I glanced over my shoulder at Thane, who dipped his head to indicate that he was ready. Moving as quietly as possible, I climbed the stairs.
Brassick was still talking. ‘There will only be one demon and it can’t possibly eat all that much.’ He paused as I reached the top of the stairs. He was in the kitchen, a large room with high ceilings. Although there were windows, they were shuttered against the sunshine.
My gaze hardened. He appeared to be decanting blood from a tin receptacle into empty wine bottles. That had to be Nick’s blood. ‘I wonder what a demon’s favourite food is,’ he mumbled.
‘I expect that they’re rather partial to vampires,’ I said aloud.
Brassick’s back stiffened though he didn’t turn round immediately. ‘ You . You followed me through the Understream? Really?’ His astonishment revealed exactly why we’d managed to sneak inside so easily: the vampire was an idiot.
‘You’re braver than I thought you were,’ he went on. ‘If you’d been spotted by one of my kin, you’d already be strung up and suffering from a thousand cuts. Literally.’
I wondered if that was what had happened to Thane when he’d been caught down there. Maybe it was better not to know. ‘That’s what you call those tunnels? The Understream?’ I asked. ‘What are the worm things called?’
‘Worms,’ he said. ‘What else would we call them?’
Ask a stupid question, get a stupid answer.
‘What about the boy? Is he alive?’ Brassick demanded.
When I didn’t answer, he finally turned and his dark eyes met mine. He glanced over my shoulder and spotted Thane. ‘Number Three,’ he whispered, his face lighting with recognition.
Thane growled. Both of us knew what that number had to refer to: Thane was the third on Umbra’s list of lone werewolves whose blood could be used to bring forth a demon.
‘You killed Paul and Alice,’ he snarled.
Brassick’s brow creased. ‘Paul was the tall wolf with the long hair? Yeah, he was Number One. Alice, I suppose, was Number Two.’ He splayed his hands out in a mock-conciliatory gesture. ‘We didn’t mean to kill them but some of my colleagues were … over-enthusiastic about their work. Sadly, Number One died of blood loss. We tried to take a few pints from him but we misjudged how much he could stand to lose. Accidents happen.’
‘And Alice?’ Thane spat.
‘Number Two put up more of a fight than we expected and she died when we tried to take her off the street.’ The vampire shrugged his bony shoulders. ‘You did well, Number Three. You managed to escape but we got two full pints from you before that happened. Your donation to our cause will make all the difference.’
Then he smiled. ‘Not as much difference as Number Four, of course, but he’s special. Teenage blood is so much more useful.’ He smacked his lips. ‘And tasty.’
That was too much for Thane and he pushed past me, quivering with a bitter lust for vengeance. Brassick’s reaction was swift. He raised his arms and transformed into a cloud of black smoke before Thane reached him. His bat wings flapped rapidly as his tiny body rose out of Thane’s reach.
I was already at the door, closing it so that Brassick couldn’t escape no matter what form he chose to take.
Thane jumped up, sweeping his arm as high as he could in a bid to knock down Brassick’s bat body.
‘You can’t get away,’ I called. ‘You might as well give yourself up and face the consequences of your actions.’
The bat fluttered left and right before descending, then there was another smaller puff of dark smoke and Brassick’s human form reappeared. ‘I can’t do that, dear woman. What would the demon say?’ He bared his teeth and displayed his glistening fangs. ‘But if you won’t let me take flight, let’s fight instead.’ And with that, he sprang at me.
Hand-to-hand combat wasn’t my speciality. Most of my work had been conducted from the shadows and from a distance, not close up, but there had been the odd occasion when I’d needed to fight with my fists and I knew I could hold my own. I was delighted to show Brassick exactly what I was capable of.
He swung at me with his right fist and I ducked to avoid the blow. I raised my leg to retaliate with a kick but, to my chagrin, Thane beat me to it. He grabbed Brassick by the scruff of his neck and hauled him back before my foot could connect, then slammed his fist into the side of the vampire’s head.
It was going to take more than a single punch to bring Brassick down. He staggered back a few steps and reached for the drawer behind him, pulled out a long-bladed knife with a serrated edge and thrust it forward.
The blade sliced into Thane’s upper chest. Although the wound was only superficial, there was enough blood to soak the front of the werewolf’s shirt and his face tightened with pain.
Thane threw another punch, side-stepped to avoid the blade and blocked me from attacking Brassick. There was a smacking sound as the edge of his fist connected with the vampire’s jaw. It was a powerful blow but Brassick did little more than smirk. He delved into his pocket and withdrew something. I tensed as he opened his fingers to reveal a small pile of herbs that he blew into Thane’s face.
Thane’s howl was like nothing I’d ever heard before.
‘You didn’t really think I wouldn’t have kept some wolfsbane back, did you?’ Brassick smiled. ‘This really is extraordinarily powerful stuff.’
Thane’s knees gave way and he fell to the floor. Shit.
I vaulted over his body. Brassick slashed the knife through the air, catching my arm and cutting through my flesh. Blood dripped from the wound but he’d not cut anything vital.
I took a step backwards and my hand stretched behind me onto the worktop until my fingers curled around one of the blood-filled containers. I smashed it against the marble, sending a spray of blood across the kitchen, then I jabbed the jagged glass at Brassick.
He waved the knife at me before angling it downwards: he meant to hurt Thane in the same way that he’d hurt Nick, to draw my attention away and force me – again – to make a choice. This was why it was better to work alone; I didn’t have to worry about anyone else’s health and wellbeing when I was by myself.
In an ideal world, I’d have brought Brassick to his knees then questioned him properly about his demonic plans, but Thane’s vulnerability didn’t allow for such niceties and there wasn’t time to come up with a useful alternative. I needed to end this as quickly as possible.
I leapt upwards again, this time not aiming for Brassick but jumping onto the kitchen counter. I smashed more of the glass containers containing Nick’s blood then kicked the sealed wooden shutters as Brassick stabbed downwards. ‘Left!’ I shrieked at Thane.
He rolled in the nick of time, although the kitchen knife still slid into his shoulder. He grunted loudly. I kicked the wooden shutters again and only then did Brassick register the threat. He abandoned Thane and turned to me. ‘Wait,’ he said. ‘Don’t?—’
I didn’t hear the end of the sentence as I kicked the shutters once again. The third time was the charm: the wood splintered and, although the shutters didn’t bounce open, I’d done enough to cause the vampire mortal damage. A bolt of sunlight blasted through the crack and landed squarely on his forehead.
The results were almost instantaneous.
The patch of pale skin hit by the sunshine blackened and I actually heard it sizzle. Brassick’s mouth opened in a silent scream and his eyes widened and momentarily glowed red. He dropped the knife as his body stiffened into a rigid, scarecrow-like figure then he jerked and, bizarrely, grinned. Before I could draw breath, his flesh burst into flames as if he’d been doused in accelerant.
I threw myself at Thane, grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the way as the vampire combusted. The last thing I saw before Brassick’s bones turned to ash was him forming a circle with the thumb and index finger of his right hand. He used the middle finger of his left hand to slash through it, a burning facsimile of the red graffiti that Umbra had sprayed around the city.
A beat later, there was nothing left beyond a pile of burning ash and bone.
Umbra were finished.