Flowers and Fangs (Stake and Dust series, Book II) (2 page)

"Do you want to do the honors or shall I."
Axel leaned on his sword, waiting for his reply.

"I'm good. Go for it."

Axel strode forward and rolled the Nosferatu
over. The vamp snarled and snapped its jaws. He wished the stake
through the heart rendered the vamp's vocal chords, too.

"Don't think this is over hunters," the vamp
spat.

"Damn, it is an ugly bastard," Wade grimaced.
He placed his hat on his head.

"Where is Wilkins?" Not that Derek expected
the vamp to be forthcoming, but life sometimes was full of
surprises.

It snickered. "Double the trouble." It
chortled again. "His gal is a real pal, too."

Derek exchanged glances with his
brothers.

"Just
off
the wanker." Wade bored
easily, but it would be better to hear what the fiend had to say
first.

"So Wilkins has a girlfriend?" Derek
asked.

"Girl, yep. Friend, yep." Then he laughed
again and gurgled up blood when he chugged his spit wad. "Double
the trouble." He paused then and sniffed the air. He leveled his
gaze on Axel. "You smell different, hunter."

Derek frowned and stared at his brother. Axel
didn't answer, but lifted his sword and brought it down with one
swift move. The head rolled to the side, still grinning. It
cracked, shriveled, and then disintegrated into a pile of ash,
seconds before the body followed suit.

A screech from behind them, made them whirl
around to see a young male, early twenties and no doubt a vampire
with his fangs showing. He was perched on the roof of the patio
cover, glaring—his eyes glowed stoplight red.

"Mr. T. Wilkins," Derek murmured. Had to be.
What other vamp would be so put out that the Nosferatu met its
death? He hadn't expected the guy to be hanging out with his maker,
but perhaps the vamp was teaching his new recruit how to hunt for
prey.

"You're dead!" T. Wilkins screeched as he
leapt off the roof, sailing through the air like a bat taking
flight.

Wade did the honors and his dagger flew from
his fingertips, hitting Wilkins squarely in the chest, right where
his vampire heart lay beneath. The newly made vamp fell to the
ground mid-flight like a stone effigy.

They strode over to the last remaining
Wilkins. He looked momentarily stunned as if he couldn't wrap his
mind around why his brain worked and his limbs had taken a
snooze.

"So who's your girlfriend?" Wade asked. "Did
you turn her, vamp?"

Wilkins blinked then snarled. "Go to
hell."

"I'll consider the holiday if you cooperate."
Wade sat on his haunches next to Wilkins and rifled through the
vamp's pockets. He retrieved his wallet and stood.

"Give that back," Wilkins demanded.

"In a moment, vamp. We want to take a
looksie." Wade pulled out the driver's license. "We have a winner,
boys. This is Trent Wilkins." He leafed through the other
compartments of the wallet. "Twenty dollars." He pocketed the
money, which had Trent cursing and snarling all over again. "And…"
He held up a photo with a frown.

"What's wrong?" Axel asked and Wade handed
him the photo.

"Oh, hell." Axel then thrust the photo to
Derek.

Derek stared at the photo. Trent and… another
Trent? "He has a twin?"

Trent chortled. "My brother will wipe
your—"

Wade pressed his boot into Trent's windpipe.
"Shut the eff up. If anyone's doing anything, it's us. Got it?
Blink if you got it," he demanded.

Trent's eyelids closed and reopened.

"Good." Wade removed his boot and let the
vamp breathe again. "Now if you help us out, I just might see fit
to let you go."

Trent licked his lips. "You'll let me go?" he
asked.

"I said I might, didn't I?" Wade tipped his
hat back on his head.

Trent was silent for a moment, processing his
options and coming up with one. "Tim's my brother and his girl is
Sloane McBride."

Derek's gaze narrowed onto the vamp with
renewed interest. Sloane McBride? He'd known a Sloane McBride in
high school. Thick dark hair, light eyes, kissable lips… His breath
hitched at the thought of her, but really, what were the chances
that it was the same girl? Crap, he really hoped it wasn't. He
really liked her. He had kissed her… more than a few times. He
shifted his weight uncomfortably and focused his attention on
Trent's next words.

"Don't know if my brother has changed her or
not," Trent rambled on.

"We'll need an address," Wade said.

Tim didn't have the street number, but he had
the street name, the color of the house and the name of the dog.
Good enough to roll.

Wade turned toward Axel who stood leaning on
the hilt of his broadsword. It was an ancient weapon belonging to a
highlander back in the sixteenth century. Axel kept it in good
shape and extra sharp. "He's all yours." Wade stepped aside and
Axel took his place.

"Hey, you said you'd let me go." Trent's
voice held a note of panic.

"I said I might consider letting you go,"
Wade said with a grin. "I considered… Ain't goin' to happen."

Trent's fangs lengthened as Axel brought down
the sword. Trent's mouth opened in a silent scream before crumbling
into dust like his fallen master. Axel wiped the sword off on the
grass.

Derek eyed his older brother, Axel. He'd
become distant in the last few months. Granted he wasn't much of a
talker in the first place, but now more often than not, he kept his
time with them at a minimum. "So what do you think the vamp meant
by you smelled different?" Derek smirked.

Axel's gaze riveted to his in alarm before he
concealed it with a smart mouth response. "How in the hell am I
supposed to know how the vamp thinks? Maybe he didn't like my
cologne."

"Yeah, Ode to Motor Oil ain't a big seller,"
Wade teased.

Axel turned on Wade. "Well, Waddel," he drew
out Wade's full Christian name. No one called him by that name
unless they expected a punch in the nose. "Perhaps the vamp—"

He didn't have a chance to finish his
intended insult, which was probably as juvenile as Wade's comment.
Wade shoved Axel, making him stumble back, but Axel managed to stay
on his feet. He went after Wade, tackling him to the ground.

Derek frowned. He expected Wade to be a
hothead, but usually Axel kept his temper in check. Something was
going on with him, but unfortunately the bro wasn't into sharing.
"I really hate to break up playtime, but we still have a vamp on
the loose and possibly a second."

Both brothers stopped their grappling and
glared at him.

"You're right." Axel shrugged off his anger
and rose to his feet. Wade grumbled, but he reached for his hat and
weapons and also stood.

"We need to check out the girlfriend's
house," Axel said. "See what we find."

"I'll go," Wade volunteered.

"Good." Axel nodded. "Take Derek with you.
You don't know what will be waiting there. I'll stay here. Tim's
still out on the loose and if he's not at his girlfriend's place,
he might come back here to find out what happened to his brother
and his maker."

Chapter Two

Derek pulled up to the curb behind Wade's
truck. His brother stepped out of his vehicle at the same time he
did. All his siblings held a strong resemblance to the Hayes side
of the family with light green eyes and dark mahogany hair. Only
Wade wore his hair long and unruly, not unlike his personality. The
girls went crazy over him and Wade took full advantage. His
brother's slow lazy grin was another surefire way to win a girl's
affection. Personally, he didn't see it. He rather thought the grin
arrogant, but then he was only the brother not a female looking for
a good time.

The McBrides' two-story house was draped in
darkness, no lights to welcome someone home. "Well, don't the place
look all nice and cozy," Wade said as he checked his gun. The
special weapon was modified to hold iron-filled bullets. Iron could
prove lethal to a vampire no matter the sept they belonged to. He'd
documented the differences between the vampire septs, including the
vamps choice of weapons if any, their preferences to feeding, and
if their bite were lethal to a human's existence.

His father told him not to waste his time.
'
Son, all vamps are blood drinkers,'
his father told him
more times than he could count.
'There's not much more you need
to know. Stake and dust. End of subject.'

"Are you ready?" Wade threw him the infamous
half-tilted grin that said:
Let's kick some preternatural
arse.

"Yeah." He lifted his crossbow for show.
"I'll take the back of the house."

Wade nodded and hurried toward the front to
make his assessment. Derek headed toward the gate, stopping to take
a peek in the garage window. Two vehicles sat there side by side
like his and hers four-door sedans. Sloane McBride didn't live
alone. "Great. It just keeps escalating to another level of
hell."

He hated to think it, but if Tim paid a visit
to the McBrides, he hoped the vamp ended it here, drained them and
moved on because if one of the McBrides survived, the nightmare
continued at another poor schmuck's home.

Reaching the gate, his hand gripped the
padlock. It wouldn't stop him. He pulled out his tools from his
jeans' pocket to pick the lock. He could easily jump the fence, but
it was better to take the time now and have an easy escape route,
if there proved a need. It took less than a minute. This was kids
play.

He opened the gate and slid in, only to halt
his movements when he noticed the black lab sitting on his
haunches, staring at him with a curious tilt of its head. He was
glad he had the heads up on the pet. "Good…boy." He slowly fished
into his jacket with multiple pockets containing all sorts or
weapons. This pocket just happened to be filled with dog biscuits.
He kept a box in his truck. Made it easier to deal with the
four-legged animals when he invaded their territory. The lab knew
its treats and came bounding toward him with its tongue hanging
out. He relinquished the gift from his hand and he patted the dog's
head. "Good boy." The dog crunched the treat with enthusiasm then
trotted behind him as he peeked inside the back windows of the
house. He didn't detect any movement within the bedroom.

The creaking of hinges had him swinging
around with the crossbow aimed at the back door. When he caught
sight of his brother's cowboy hat, he lowered the weapon with a
curse.

His brother spotted him and his face split
into a grin. "Well, are you going to lurk around all night like a
peeping Tom or are you coming inside?"

He shook his head and strode toward him with
long strides. "I could have shot you, dim wad."

"Yeah, well you didn't, did you?" He gestured
toward the door. "The house appears neat and in order. So either we
have a clean-freak for a vamp or the blood sucker hasn't had time
to snack on his girlfriend."

"And the girl's family?" He glanced over his
shoulder at his brother, who frowned. He gestured toward the
refrigerator covered with photos. "There's a good chance the
girlfriend still lives with her family." The photo he pointed to
showed an older man and woman standing with a boy about fourteen,
and Sloane McBride stood next to her sibling. Dark hair and a
beautiful smile—just his luck, it was the gal he knew from school.
He pursed his lips, silencing the stream of curses begging to be
voiced. He removed the magnet and grabbed the photo, flipping it
over. His mother always wrote on the back of their photos and he
was pleased to see the McBrides did as well.

The McBrides, mom, dad, Seth and Sloane
(me)
, were scrawled on the back. "Too bad we didn't ask Trent
if the rest of the family was infected before we
relieved him of
his head
." He glanced at Wade. "Since we're in the house. Let's
take a look and see if there's any evidence the family was here
when Sloane's boyfriend came calling."

He handed his brother the photo. Just in case
they needed to identify the bodies, it was good to know what the
victims looked like. He headed toward the stairs.

Wade's low hummed whistle said it all.
"Sloane's sure a looker," he said. "I dig those cutoff shorts she's
wearing."

Derek refrained from commenting. If she'd
been turned, it wouldn't matter how shapely her legs were. They'd
have to dust her like any of the other vamps.

The fifth step creaked and he halted and
listened. When no other sounds other than their breathing reached
his ears, he glanced at his brother, who stood a few steps below
him. He pointed to the step he should avoid. His brother
acknowledged him with a nod.

No one charged at them so they continued
forth. If there were any vamps lurking in the house, they already
knew he and Wade were here.

The top floor had three bedrooms and one
bathroom. Throwing open the doors of the bathroom, bedrooms and
closets—proved no one was home that was human, vamp or otherwise.
Both brothers stood in the hallway and stared at each other.

"Maybe they went on a holiday," Wade
suggested.

"Let's hope not. If the blood drinker told us
the truth and Tim bit Sloane, she could infect everyone she comes
in contact with."

Wade rubbed a hand over his face. "Maybe he
didn't change her. There's the possibility he only drank from her
and she managed to ward off the poison."

"You do like your fairytales," he grumbled.
The newly made had no self-control. Blood was all that mattered.
"How'd Trent seem to you? In control? Doubt his twin would be in
any better shape."

Wade cursed, giving Derek his answer.

"This has to be Sloane's room." He gestured
toward the room to the right of him. "I'd loathe to think it was
her brother's. Let's see if she left any clues to where she's
gone." He strode in and flipped on the light switch. The room
illuminated in a warm glow, revealing the girly decorated bedroom
with a flowered blanket draped over a rocking chair and lace
curtains on the windows. Her desk had a laptop and he strode over
to it, while Wade busied himself looking through the drawers.