Tooth and Nail Page 4

  “What? Who?”

  “You think Early would miss a party like this?”

  Her eyes narrowed. “I invited you, not Early.”

  “Hey, don’t look at me. He already knew what was going on here. I don’t think your potion seller is as tight-lipped as you thought.”

  For a second, she continued to stare at me. Then her eyes snapped to Atwood. “Carlotta. Find Charles. Find out who he’s talked to.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Atwood bobbed her head, then she and Nolan hurried away through the mud.

  Lockhart turned and called to the four burly swains trying to pry Eventide’s body from the wreck of the pickup. “What’s taking so long? We need to get her out of there.”

  “It’s the mud, mistress,” one of them replied. “We can’t get any traction.”

  “Then take the truck apart if you have to. We don’t have time to… Mr. Turner, what are you doing?”

  I trudged around to the passenger side of the truck, where the vampires had managed to wrench open the door.

  “I’m seeing to the ogre,” I said. “Someone has to.”

  Lockhart started to argue, but her words were drowned out by a howl of wind. I took the opportunity to brush some safety glass off the passenger seat and climb inside.

  The smell of blood was the first thing to hit me. It was thicker in here than it was outside. I could see it smeared across the steering wheel and soaking through the ogre’s T-shirt. Maybe it was my imagination, but I thought it smelled a little different than human blood—it had an extra layer, musky and earthy.

  The ogre was glamoured—likely with the same sort of back-alley glamour he’d apparently been swiping from the potion seller. His skin looked vaguely human—if a little leathery—but it didn’t seem to fit quite right over his bones. He looked wider than any human had a right to be. His seat was as far back as it could go, but even when the truck was intact the poor bastard would’ve been driving with his knees up by his ears.

  He probably wasn’t any more comfortable now with a length of twisted metal driven into his abdomen. Even in death, his face was twisted in a grimace of pain. Glamoured like this, he lacked the prominent lower teeth that were indicative of his kind, but through the blood I could see a shattered bottom tooth that undoubtedly would’ve formed a broken tusk in his unglamoured form.

  My heel brushed against something on the floor of the car. I looked down to find a battered old duffel bag shoved beneath the seat. I pulled it out and worked the zip. A few XXXL T-shirts and a spare pair of jeans were stuffed inside.

  Thinking about the lack of footprints in the potion seller’s trailer, I turned on the light on my phone and shone it down at the ogre’s feet. Between the broken plastic and metal of the truck’s interior, I caught sight of the biggest pair of boots I’d ever seen on a man. They were smeared almost to the top with a thick layer of mud. I grunted. The big bastard sure hadn’t been wearing those to break into the trailer.

  There was a bloodied lump on the side of his head. It seemed too far back to have been caused by the crash. He hadn’t smashed his head on the windscreen or the steering wheel. Had Eventide struck him before she was killed? What the hell had happened to result in this mess?

  Of course, Lockhart would remind me that it wasn’t my job to answer those questions. But it was bugging me that nothing fit together quite right.

  Through the cracked windscreen, I glimpsed the burly swains outside as they threw their weight against the truck. The pickup shook beneath me, a dull thud running through the twisted frame. Hands reached down from above, grabbing Selene Eventide by the shoulders. A male vampire was clinging upside-down to the trunk of the tree, using his unnatural powers to give himself a better angle. As the truck groaned and shifted, the vampire hauled Eventide upward. Through the dark and the rain I couldn’t see what kind of damage the extraction was doing to her body, but I imagined I could hear her flesh scraping against the bumper, the sound transmitted through the truck.

  I sighed and looked the ogre over. We needed to get him out of here too. His glamour would start to decay soon, and it wouldn’t be good for anyone if some Unaware stumbled across the corpse of an unglamoured ogre stuffed into a crashed truck.

  Forcing down my reluctance to touch the body, I leaned over and braced my shoulder against the ogre’s huge chest. The length of metal in the ogre’s gut didn’t look too deep—maybe I’d be able to pull it out myself. I wrapped my hands around the spike and…

  I paused. Something had tickled the back of my neck. I turned around and looked into the ogre’s face, still frozen in a grimace. Swallowing, I eased myself closer to him and turned my head to the side, bringing my ear to his peeled-back lips.

  A shout rang out through the night, carrying even through the wind and the rain. I jerked upright to see the burly swains reaching into their coats for their weapons. There was a heavy thud as the vampire who’d been clinging to the tree trunk leapt onto the crumpled hood of the truck and dropped into a crouch.

  I threw myself out of the truck as another shout of alarm went up. A couple of swains appeared out of the darkness, running back toward the main collection of vampires and servants. Lockhart strode to meet them. Her words were drowned out by the rain, but I could see one of the swains pointing back into the darkness, toward the line of ramshackle properties.

  I tried to catch the attention of the vampire and swains that’d been extracting Eventide from the wreck of the truck, but they darted past me, heading to rejoin the rest of the group. I saw Eventide’s headless corpse lying discarded in the mud next to the pickup.

  I grunted a curse, glancing back at the ogre. With no choice but to follow, I unhooked my truncheon from my belt and trudged through the mud toward the gathering vampires.

  Flashlight beams swept back and forth in the direction the fleeing swains had pointed, trying to pick something out of the darkness. Several swains had pistols unholstered. A couple of vampires crouched low, ready to spring. Lockhart just stood at the center of it all, straight-backed and staring.

  There had to be nearly a hundred feet between us and the fences that marked the back of the trailer park. A hundred feet of little more than tall grass and mud.

  Somehow, they were on top of us before we knew it.

  5

  A shape loomed up out of the darkness off to our right, within spitting distance of the swain guarding the flank. Before anyone could let out more than a strangled cry, three more hulking shadows rose up around us, forming a loose semi-circle around our group.

  None of the figures were less than seven feet tall, and yet they’d appeared as if from nowhere. Their shoulders were so broad I was surprised they could find clothing in their size. As flashlight beams snapped toward them, I saw that three of them were glamoured, but one was in his natural form. He stood six inches taller than the others, his heavy woolen coat straining to contain his bulk. His lower jaw jutted forward, and from it protruded a pair of large tusks that stretched skyward. His skin was brown and thick like old leather. It seemed to absorb the light of the flashlights, rather than reflect it. Only the raindrops that dampened his skin gave him any shine at all. Heavy brows lowered as his eyes swept across us. Huge hands tightened into fists.

  It was only then that I noticed that the other ogres were all armed. One, a glamoured female ogre with the build of a Russian weightlifter, was holding a shotgun that looked like a toy in her hand. One of the other ogres carried a sledgehammer in each hand, while the fourth bore what looked like a heavily modified hunting crossbow. It didn’t escape my attention that the heavy bolt loaded into the crossbow looked a lot like a wooden stake.

  In a panic, several of the armed swains brought their weapons to bear.

  Lockhart’s voice rang out. “Hold!”

  The swains froze, but several of the vampires were less quick to heed her order. They remained crouched in fighting stances, muscles coiled beneath mud-splattered formal wear.

  Lockhart strode forward from
the pack of vampires, heading right for the biggest bastard. The unglamoured ogre glowered down at her, rain dripping from his brow. His expression was mirrored by the rest of his ogre buddies.

  Lockhart stopped a few paces from the big ogre. Somehow, she managed to look up at him without giving the impression that he was towering over her. “My name is Sonja Lockhart. I—”

  “I know who you are, vampire,” the ogre rumbled.

  “Then I’m afraid you have me at a disadvantage.”

  The ogre’s nostrils flared, expelling steam. “I am Holdfast, of the Mother’s House.”

  Lockhart inclined her head. “It is a pleasure to—”

  “Where is One-tusk? Where is my nephew?”

  “I’m afraid that—”

  “Where is he?” Holdfast boomed. His voice was like a thunderclap. I could feel it deep in my chest. Swains jerked their weapons toward the ogre, while a low hiss escaped the throats of several crouched vampires. In response, the other ogres flexed their muscles and readied their own weapons.

  Holdfast seemed blind to the threats. He took a hulking step toward Lockhart. “My kin is dead. My blood. Give him to me. Now.”

  In response, Lockhart’s voice became lower, more precise. “I understand your grievance. But know that you are in our territory. You do not give orders here. You do not make threats.”

  “Oh, I haven’t started making threats yet, vampire.”

  I started to push through the group of vampires. Everything was spiraling out of control.

  Where the hell was Early? He was supposed to be here by now.

  As I reached the front line of vampires and swains, a hand reached out and dug claws into my arm. Before I could say anything, the vampire jerked me back into the crowd.

  “Stay where you are, human,” he hissed.

  I found myself staring into the face of Booker, the vampire who’d been arguing with Lockhart earlier. Rain beaded in his perfect stubble.

  “I need to talk to them,” I said. “Let go.”

  “This doesn’t concern you.”

  “Like hell it doesn’t. Do I look bulletproof to you?”

  Lockhart and Holdfast were squaring off. Alongside me, I saw the faces of vampires extending into pale snouts. Eyes flashed golden in the dark. The ogre with the crossbow was pointing it directly at Lockhart; the others looked ready to just start shooting and swinging at the line of vampires and swains. The ogres had gotten so close to us that even with the vampire’s superior speed, the ogres would be within our ranks in a moment if a fight broke out.

  I tried in vain to jerk my arm free of Booker’s grasp. “You’re going to get us all killed.”

  “We outnumber them.” He stared out at the ogres. There was a hunger in his voice, an eagerness. The idiot wanted a fight. “Stay quiet, like a good boy.”

  Holdfast stopped a few inches from Lockhart, his massive hands balled into fists at his side. “Take your slaves and leave. Unless you want to answer for the murder of my nephew here and now.”

  “Murder?” Lockhart said, her voice low and threatening. “We do not murder, Mr. Holdfast. We defend our people. Our territory. My kinswoman interrupted your nephew while he attempted to burgle one of our associates.”

  “Liar!” Holdfast roared, a cloud of steam spilling from his mouth.

  The other ogres snarled in support. Holdfast, I suddenly realized, had been slouching before. Now he drew himself to his full height, his chest expanding to ridiculous proportions. His eyes went wide with anticipation. As one, the ogres let loose a guttural growl that seemed to set the ground trembling.

  I shouted out, trying to get the attention of Lockhart and Holdfast. My words were swallowed by a peal of thunder that rolled across the sky.

  I tried once more to pull myself free of Booker’s grasp. He just tightened his fingers, digging claws into my flesh. He wasn’t looking at me. His eyes were fixed on Holdfast, his lips pulled back in a blood-hungry grin.

  “Fine,” I sighed. “When in Rome…”

  I slammed my truncheon into Booker’s face.

  The vampire screeched as the silver-plated head of the truncheon crashed against his cheek. There was a hiss, and smoke, and the smell of cooking flesh. His hand left my arm and clutched at the blackened skin of his cheek.

  A couple of nearby swains shouted in alarm, turning their weapons toward me. They hesitated when I strode away from the reeling Booker and shoved my way out of the crowd.

  Lockhart still stood straight-backed, but at her side her fingers were lengthening into vicious, tearing claws. Holdfast was pulling back a big meaty fist, ready to swing.

  “One-tusk is alive!” I shouted.

  Holdfast froze, his fist still raised. The other ogres all turned to me. Behind me, I could hear Booker cursing in another language, and I could feel the weapons of his swains trained on me. Lockhart turned her head slowly, golden eyes staring at me.

  “Yeah,” I said. “I thought that’d get your attention.”

  6

  Early arrived with a squeal of brakes and a skidding of tires. Almost before his pickup had come to a halt, he jumped out into the mud, his bag thrown over his shoulder. He wore a coat with a hood up to shield him from the rain, for all the good it did him. The dampness had turned his long wizardly beard into a frazzled mess.

  The ogres and the vampires stood apart from each other, each casting suspicious glares in the other’s direction. With the news that the ogre in the truck was still alive, Holdfast and his buddies had cooled off a couple of degrees. After that, Lockhart had managed to rein in the vampires—and herself. She hadn’t been as eager for bloodshed as Booker, but it had still been an effort for her to quell her hunger for battle. Luckily, she’d managed to redirect her bloodlust into keeping Booker from tearing my throat out.

  Booker was no longer nursing his cheek, but the blackened flesh remained like a brand. As a vampire, he was too tough to suffer any broken bones from the blow I’d given him, but his pride was more easily wounded. He wasn’t looking at me, but I could feel his mind, feel it plotting his revenge against me.

  Early took in the scene at a glance, then his gaze settled on me. I answered the question in his eyes with a small shrug and a shake of my head.

  A couple of swains began to move to intercept Early, but Lockhart called them off. She made her own approach, reaching his side as he trudged through the mud. I was only a few steps behind.

  “A pleasure to see you again, Early,” she said. “I’m sorry it’s not under better circumstances.”

  “Sorry you couldn’t keep this quiet a little longer, you mean. Where is he?”

  “First, we should discuss—”

  “He’s still in the truck,” I said to Early, cutting Lockhart off. I pointed through the rain. “He’s breathing, but only barely. I stabilized him as best I could. He’s a tough son of a bitch, that’s for sure.”

  Before Early could respond, Lockhart cut in again. Her voice took on a harder tone. “Early, I appreciate your position in our community, but this is not your place to intervene.”

  “I’m not going to leave the ogre to die, Sonja,” he said.

  “The ogre is a murderer. He killed one of my people.”

  I shook my head. “We don’t know that for sure.”

  Lockhart ignored me. “I can see I’m not making myself clear,” she said slowly, lowering her voice so only the three of us could hear. “Let me simplify things. Say the ogre dies of his injuries. Say he’s already dead. A painful loss for his people, to be sure. Just as Selene’s death is painful for us. Harsh words will be exchanged between my people and the ogres. Investigations will be conducted. Perhaps they will uncover the truth of what happened here, perhaps not. Either way, reparations can be made. I will meet with the matriarch of the ogres, and we will both express our regret at the loss that has occurred here. Tensions will remain high for a time. But the peace will be maintained. It can end here, Early.”

  He lowered his bushy eyebrows at her
. “And if I save the ogre?”

  “Look around you, Early. We’re one spark away from a war. If the ogre lives, he’s going to say whatever he has to say to make himself sound innocent. Holdfast and the rest of his kin will rally around him. My people will seek his blood in revenge for Selene’s death. Some of my more ambitious kin will try to escalate things in order to upset the status quo.”

  “Vampire politics are not my concern,” Early said.

  “This goes beyond politics. You know that.”

  Early glared at her for a moment, then cast his gaze toward Holdfast and the other ogres. They stood motionless, like mountains withstanding the storm. “And how do you think they’ll react if I do nothing and let One-tusk die?”

  “I’m not asking you to do nothing. I’m asking you to…allow the ogre’s suffering to end.”

  “That sounds an awful lot like ‘Do nothing’ to me,” I said.

  Early remained silent for several seconds. As absurd as Lockhart’s demands were, you couldn’t just tell the queen of vampires to go fuck herself. Well, I might, but Early was better behaved.

  “Your concerns are valid,” Early said finally. “A conflict between you and the ogres would be disastrous for everyone.”

  The hardness in Lockhart’s eyes melted away, and she inclined her head with a smile. “I can always count on you to see reason, Early.”

  “So leave,” the old man said.

  Lockhart froze, then lifted her head to face Early once again. “I’m sorry?”

  “Take your people, take Selene, and leave. I will remain and do what I can for One-tusk.”

  Lockhart remained composed, but I could see the fury burning behind her eyes once more. “But…the other ogres… Doyle’s Reach falls under my protection. I can’t allow the ogres to remain here unescorted.”

  “I’ll be here too. I’ll make sure they stay on their best behavior. We’ll be gone as soon as it is possible to move One-tusk.”

  I chipped in. “Early can be an independent observer,” I said to Lockhart. “You’re fond of those, right?”