Night's Master

I finished reading my mail, then moved through the stacks, straightening a book here, turning a couple of the newer ones face out. With nothing else to do, I swept the floor, dusted the shelves, watered the plants.



I was thinking about going out for a late lunch, or maybe just closing up for the day, when Jackson showed up again.



“I figured since you wouldn't go out for coffee with me, I'd bring it to you.”



I didn't want to take anything from the man, but it smelled divine. “Thank you.”



He handed me one of the cups. “Careful, it's hot.” He rested an elbow on the counter. “So, how do you like Oak Hollow, now that you're settled in?”



I shrugged. “It's a nice place.”



He grunted softly, then sipped his coffee.



Removing the lid from my cup, I took a drink and then frowned. “What kind of coffee is this? It tastes kind of…of…” I blinked, then rubbed a hand over my eyes as everything seemed to go kind of gray and hazy.



Travis smiled an odd little smile as he took the cup from my hand, and then everything went black.



Cold, so cold.



Hard floor beneath me.



Bad taste in my mouth.



I opened one eye, closed it, and opened both eyes. The scene didn't change. Bare walls, a naked bulb overhead. I was dreaming, I thought, having a nightmare. I closed my eyes, waiting for it to end.



I got colder, the floor beneath me seemed to get harder, and I had to go to the bathroom.



I wasn't dreaming.



I opened my eyes again and sat up. What the hell? In the faint light cast by the low-watt bulb dangling by a cord, I could see that I was in a room of some kind, but a very strange room. The walls were silver, the floor was silver, the ceiling was silver. I ran my fingers over the floor, thinking it was just paint, but when I tapped my fingernails on it, it sounded like metal, not concrete.



I tried standing, but my legs refused to support me, so I crawled toward the door, which was also coated with silver.



I frowned, trying to think why silver was important, but my mind was fuzzy, and I couldn't concentrate. Reaching up, I tried to open the door. It was locked, of course.



I wrapped my arms around my waist and closed my eyes. This had to be a nightmare. It just had to be, but when I pinched myself, it hurt. It wasn't supposed to hurt in a dream, so where was I and how had I gotten here?



The last thing I remembered was talking to Travis Jackson. He had brought me a cup of coffee. It hit me, then. Travis had drugged me, but why?



Rising to my knees, I pounded my fist on the door. “Travis? Travis, are you out there?” I pounded on the door until my fist ached. “Travis! Dammit, let me out of here!”



Sinking down on the floor, I blinked back the tears that stung my eyes. Crying wouldn't help me now.



Closing my eyes again, I tried to focus. Travis had drugged me and brought me here, but why, and where was here?



I guess I dozed off, because the sound of the door opening woke me. Blinking, I stared at the figure hovering over me.



Now I knew I was dreaming.



“Hello, dear,” Pearl said. “We thought you might like something to eat.” She placed a tray on the floor in front of me. “I hope you like chicken salad sandwiches.”



“What are you doing here?” I asked. “What am I doing here?”



Pearl make a little tsking sound. “I'm afraid you're the bait, dear.”



“The bait?”



She nodded.



“What are you hoping to catch?”



“Why, a Vampire, of course,” Edna said from the doorway. “We're sorry it had to be you, but…” She blew out a sigh of regret. “Rafe chose you.”



“You want to catch Rafe?” I shook my head, hoping to clear it. “But why? And why do you need me? You know where he lives….”



“It's not wise to go to a Vampire's lair,” Pearl said. “We told you that, but you didn't listen.”



“Why do you want Rafe?”



“We need another Vampire guinea pig, one with power. Now that all the other Vamps have left town, he'll have to do.” Edna glanced at Pearl. “We'd hoped to get Rafe's grandfather, or maybe Mara herself, although I'm not sure we could have held her.”



“We'll get her, dear,” Pearl said reassuringly. “Sooner or later, we'll get them all.”



I glanced from Edna to Pearl. “You're hunters?” I looked at their colorful skirts, their outrageous hats and comfortable shoes, and found it inconceivable that these two women, both grandmothers well into their seventies, went around staking Vampires and lopping the heads off Werewolves.



“Of course, dear.”



“We used to run a school down in Texas,” Edna said wistfully. “Those were the days!”



Texas, I thought. Travis Jackson was from Texas.



Pearl smiled. “We were important then! People looked up to us, respected us.” She sighed wistfully. “Now, when the new hunters look at us, all they see are a couple of has-beens, but we'll show them!”



“Yes, indeed,” Edna said, a hint of madness shining in her eyes. “We'll destroy more Vampires and Were-creatures with our formula than all those hunters with their stakes and silver bullets combined.”



Hunters. A school in Texas. I frowned. “You said you'd always lived in Oak Hollow.”



“We've always maintained a residence here, dear, even when we lived in Texas. My grandson took over the family business when Edna and I retired.”



“Retiring,” Edna said. “It was a big mistake.”



Pearl nodded. “Yes, indeed, but they'll remember us now.”



I shook my head again. It didn't make sense. Edna and Pearl had told me about Travis, told me where the Werewolves met…warned me not to be alone with Rafe. Why?



“Travis,” I said with sudden clarity. “He's your grandson, isn't he?”



Pearl beamed at me. “Yes, indeed. Such a good boy.”



“And the best hunter to come along in years, except for my Jeffrey,” Edna added with a grin.



“Let's not have this argument again,” Pearl said with some asperity. “Travis is the best, and he has the kills to prove it.”



I stared at the two of them, unable to believe they were standing there arguing about who was the best hunter while I sat on the floor suffering the aftereffects of being drugged and kidnapped.



“Eat your lunch, dear,” Pearl said, moving toward the door. “It'll be dark in an hour or so, and we have a lot of work to do before the sun goes down.”



Sundown, I thought, and Rafe would be looking for me. He was the only hope I had, but I didn't want him to find me, didn't want his life to be in danger because of me. Closing my eyes, I tried to send him a mental warning to stay away, but I couldn't focus, couldn't think past the growing fear in my heart and the nagging pain in my head.



I stared at the food on the tray. How did they expect me to eat when my life, and Rafe's, were in danger? Still, I forced myself to pick up the sandwich, to take one bite and then another. Even though I wasn't hungry, I had to eat, had to regain my strength for whatever the night might hold.



When I was finished, I pushed the tray away, then curled up on the floor and closed my eyes. All I could do now was rest, wait, and pray.



I lost track of time as I lay there. I dozed and woke and dozed again, and then, as clearly as if I could see him, I knew Rafe was nearby.



Scrambling to my feet, I pressed my ear to the door, hoping to hear what was going on in the next room, but to no avail.



Though my legs still felt like rubber, I paced the floor, all the time wondering what was going on in the other room. Where was Rafe? Were Edna and Pearl still in the building somewhere? What about Travis? And Susie? Was she still with Cagin?



The ache in my head grew worse. Pressing my hands against my temples, I leaned against the wall, quietly cursing Travis Jackson and his crazy grandmother.



I jerked upright when the door opened and Travis sauntered inside, looking smug. Before I could ask what was going on, he cuffed my hands behind my back, grabbed me by the arm, and hustled me outside and into the back of a large, nondescript gray van.



“Where are we going?” I had to ask, even though I knew he wouldn't answer.



My heart skipped a beat when he dropped a black hood over my head. Visions of being shoved against a wall and executed crowded my mind, making it hard to breathe.



I heard the door slam, and then the van lurched forward. I sat on the floor a moment, then lowered my head and shook off the hood. It didn't help much. The inside of the van was dark, the windows painted over so that I couldn't see outside. A sliver of light penetrated the crack in the double doors.



With a sigh, I stretched my legs out in front of me, gasped when my foot hit something. Peering into the darkness, I saw a large cage pushed up against one wall of the van. Looking closer, I realized there was a man locked inside, his hands bound behind his back. His feet were also bound. A thick black hood similar to the one I had shaken off covered his head, and even though I couldn't see his face, I knew it was Rafe.



I took a closer look at the shackles around his ankles. I couldn't be sure, but I thought the restraints were silver. A sense of hopelessness fell over me like a shroud as I recalled Rafe telling me that silver burned a Vampire's flesh and rendered them powerless.



It was creepy, riding in the back of the van, unable to see where I was going. I kept hoping I was having another nightmare, but the ache in my head and the growing ache in my shoulders was all too real. I wondered what time it was.



It seemed we had been driving for hours before Rafe stirred. He lifted his head, as though sniffing the air. “Kathy?”



My spirits rose a little at the sound of his voice. “I'm here.”



“Are you all right?”



“I guess so. For now, at least.”



“Where are we going?”



“I don't know. What happened? How did they get you?”



“Half a dozen hunters, including our old friend, Jackson, were waiting for me at your place. They're good,” he said with grudging admiration. “They blinded me with holy water and had me trussed up in less than a minute. I should have sensed them,” he muttered, “but…”