Immortal Revenge (46 page)

Drops of rain hit her face and arms as they continued with their melee in the front yard. The moisture and cool breeze felt good to her heated flesh, but if a downpour occurred, it certainly would add to the challenge.

Katie’s arms grew weary as she blocked his powerful swings at her. She sliced him three times more than he nicked her. Blood dribbled down her arms and she ignored the pain, focusing on causing more injury to Mr. Vampire. When she bent to avoid one of his swings and dragged her dagger down the length of his thigh, his temper flared and he growled. As she straightened, he came at her in a Mike Myers move, aiming to stab her in the chest. She turned quickly and the knife sliced deep along the side of her arm from shoulder to elbow.

Sharp pain radiated in vibrant thumping waves while warm blood ran toward her hand. Gritting her teeth, she ignored the injury and swung back strongly using her good arm. His blade clashed with hers. He thrust his other knife at her and she leaped back, knowing her injured arm couldn’t protect her from his attack.

Mr. Vampire grinned. “Your blood smells delicious. I look forward to ripping your throat out with my teeth.”

Katie shook her hurt arm in an effort to keep the blood from slickening her grip on the dagger. “In your dreams, vampire. Only in your dreams.”

He flashed his long fangs and assaulted her with more slashes. Katie brought her blades up and stopped them, but her one arm was weak. She exerted more force with her good arm and used it to help defend, which meant both daggers were blocking at the same time on occasion. She had mere seconds to fight back, having to take a more defensive approach. The vampire sensed this and swung at her furiously. She managed to jab his gut a few times, but not enough. He pushed her further into yard, closer to the driveway. He swung fiercely and knocked the dagger from her injured hand. The blade clanked on the pavement as it scurried away.

Katie leaped back to avoid his oncoming blade. She blocked the next one with the one weapon she had left. He had her at a disadvantage, but she wasn’t out of the game yet. Using her flexibility, she avoided most of his strikes. She took a few slices across her chest and on her sides. Nothing that wouldn’t heal quickly from Kyle’s blood, but the pain still burned like hell.

Mr. Vampire made an upward swing with one of his knives. The tip of the blade sliced along one of her breasts and up her neck before she stepped back. Her foot caught the edge of the driveway and her ankle twisted. She cursed as she lost her balance and fell on her ass with a loud gasp.

“Katie!” Ben yelled.

The vampire twisted and she peered to his side. Ben stood on the steps of the front porch, arms stretched out and with a gun aimed at Mr. Vampire.

“Don’t look at his eyes!” She hollered.

He fired two shots in succession. The vampire flinched and snarled. He took a step toward Ben, but stopped as if frozen in time. His body stiffened and he released a loud roar. The loud scream forced Ben to cover his ears. Since normal bullets didn’t have much of an effect on vampires, Katie wondered if Andy had given Ben the ones tipped with acid.

Seconds were golden when fighting a vampire and Katie knew it first hand. She rose to her feet, gripping her dagger. “Run Ben!” She yelled right before she leaped on the vampire’s back.

The vampire growled and twisted, trying to force Katie off his back. His efforts did little to move her since she had a strong grip on his hair and had locked her legs around him. Using her good arm, she slid her blade across his throat. He jabbed at her with his knives. Her shoulders took the incoming slices, but didn’t stop her from slicing deeper into his throat. For a split second, her stomach churned with deep disgust while she carved into him. To avoid spewing, she thought of her deed like cutting ham with a bone.

Using all her strength she held on to him, ignored the stabs and dug her blade deeper into his neck. More blood spilled over her hand. Finally, he fell to his knees, then forward. With a few last swipes of her blade and a strong jerk on his hair, his head broke free from his body.

Rain began to fall in big drops and made a soft clatter when it hit the ground. Katie slowly rose to her feet, one leg on each side of the vampire. She held his head in one hand and gripped the dagger in the other. Closing her eyes, she tilted her face toward the dark sky and let heaven’s tears caress her skin. In the distance behind her, Katie heard an engine approaching, but she didn’t look. Her heart hammered at her chest and intense feeling of rage and justice washed through her. She’d won for Kyle, but the threat of vampires continued to exist. More lives would end if she didn’t do something to stop them.

“Katie,” Ben said.

She lowered her head and opened her eyes. Through the pouring rain, she found him running toward her.

“Katie. Oh my God.” He halted near her, glanced at her hands, then met her gaze with wide eyes. “Are you all right?”

“Peachy.” She swung her arm and tossed the head past Ben, in the direction of the other one.

A truck raced down the driveway, heading toward the house. Katie instantly recognized the blond behind the wheel. Why did the vampire always insist on driving?

She stepped away from the decapitated body and strode toward the truck approaching. She had a few words to say to Riker and the time had come to do it.

Riker brought the vehicle to a quick stop a few feet from her, then shoved open the door. She headed for the vampire, her eyes locked on him, heart racing and fueled with enough violence and vengeance to scare any human. The cocky vampire met her powerful gaze with his glowing eyes. She halted in front of him and pointed her dagger at his throat.

“You want a war. I’ll give you one.”

Rain fell in her eyes and distorted her vision slightly as she held the tip of the pointy blade not even an inch from him. She believed they could be friends, but needed him to clearly know she was a force to reckon with if he ever hurt someone dear to her. As long as he played nice, so would she.

His lips curled into an amusing grin. “Bravo, Ms. Dillinger. Kyle would be proud.”

29

“Are you sure you don’t want me to go in with you?” Jules cut the engine, then twisted to face Katie.

“I can handle this. He knows vampires exist now. I just need to fill him in on some of the other details.” She reached for the handle. “But if I’m not out in an hour, be prepared to bail me out.”

“That’s not even funny. I think we’ve both spent enough time in that station.”

Katie grinned and nodded in agreement. She would’ve preferred to meet Ben somewhere else, but since Charles was in the hospital, Ben had stepped in as ranking officer to take over. He wanted answers to his questions and she had promised to deliver them, hence the reason for her return to the police station.

She tugged on the handle and pushed the door open. “If you’re running to the store, can you pick me up extra strength aspirin?”

A few withdraw symptoms had showed early in the afternoon. The battle with the vampire along with the many wounds he’d inflicted, had forced her body to consume Kyle’s blood quickly. All the cuts had healed, but light pink lines remained on the side of her one arm and on the inside of one of her breasts where the vamp had made a deep slice. She suspected they were scars since they’d yet to disappear. Time would tell. As for her headache and the tenderness in her bones, she’d taken everything she had. She felt fine for the moment, except for a touch of nausea. By midnight or sunrise, she estimated the symptoms would confine her to the bed, or the bathroom. Any kind of pharmaceutical help would ease the agony soon to come.

“Got it. Cleaning supplies and aspirin.”

Katie stepped out of her Camaro. “See you in a bit.” She shut the door, then headed toward the entrance of the police station.

The sun shined bright with a few clouds spotting the sky. Fresh air filled her lungs and a sense of peace calmed her soul. She’d won the battle, but the war had yet to come and she had much to do in preparation for it. The first step involved convincing others of the threat and gaining their trust. Andy was her boss and ally. Jules supported her too. Now, she needed to win over Ben.

She tugged on the handle and opened the glass door. Following the same routine as all her other visits, she stopped at the check in window.

“Hi, Ben Hildebrand is expecting me. I’m Katie Dillinger.”

The officer on the other side with sandy blond hair tied behind her head gave her a frown. “One moment please.” She picked up the phone and hit a button.

Katie stepped away from the counter and meandered into the waiting area. After spending all morning and early afternoon resting, she’d called Ben a few hours ago and arranged to meet him. He’d informed her of his evening shift, but eagerly agreed to meet sooner. It was the first time she’d spoken to him since he left the farmhouse before midnight. His tone had been surprisingly calm. She’d expected him to ask questions, but he didn’t. Maybe he’d accepted the truth. Maybe her visit was to confirm what had happened at the Jennings orchard and she could walk out in ten minutes. A chuckle bubbled inside her at the thought. Yeah, and she was the Virgin Mary. She highly doubted she was walking out in ten minutes.

The click of the door seized her attention. Ben stepped out. Upon meeting her gaze, he angled his head toward the hall. “Come on back.”

She walked past the doorway, then paused for him to lead the way to his office.

“Been busy?” she asked as he escorted her down the hall.

“Outside the thousand questions about Charles, not really.”

“That’s good. Right?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Reaching his office, he stopped and held his arm out. “Can I get you anything to drink?”

She stepped past him and into his office. The neat and orderly set up hadn’t changed since the last time she came for a visit. Stopping in front of one of the chairs, she turned to face him. “No, I’m fine.”

She took a seat as he shut the door.

“Thanks for coming to see me.” He walked around the desk and rolled out the chair.

“I did promise to provide an explanation.”

He sat and then scooted closer to the desk. His serious eyes stared at her and she suspected her visit might pass more than an hour.

“How is Charles?”

“I stopped by the hospital before I came in. He said he feels better, but he’s confused. He remembers a man demanding an exchange, you and Julie for the Jennings’s lives and that’s why he took Julie to the orchard. The description of the individual is lost to him. Aside from that, he recalled leaving Julie in the car while he searched the property. He found Mr. and Mrs. Jennings in the freezer, but that’s where his recollection ends.”

Katie pressed her lips together and nodded. Riker had told her he stopped by the hospital to manipulate Charles’s mind. Since it would’ve taken too much time to undo the mess Brandon and his partner had created, Riker simply implanted memories. Someone had demanded an exchange as Ben stated, but Riker purposely left out the details of the stranger requesting the trade. Then he implanted a memory of Charles releasing Julie and leaving her to wait in the car. Charles explored the house and surrounding building where he found the older couple in the freezer. Jules had brought Charles to the hospital and stated she’d found him unconscious. As long as she and Ben held their tongues, no one would know the real story.

“I’m glad to hear he feels better,” Katie said.

Ben sighed heavily. “He’s starting to question his capabilities. He can’t figure out why he would’ve agreed to exchange you two without back up.”

“Is that a problem?”

He scratched his arm. “He seems to think so and wants to see a therapist. He thinks a mental examination should be done to determine if he’s fit to return.”

“Oh, my.”

“I don’t think he would be disappointed if he couldn’t. He’s eligible to retire at any time, but he likes staying active. That’s why he hasn’t yet, but now…” He shrugged.

“Where does that leave you?”

“I’m the next highest ranking officer. Two others are close. If Charles appoints me to fill in temporarily, I can. The Sheriff in South Bend gets to decide who can have the job permanently.”

“Sounds like you could be moving up in the world.” She gave him a grin.

Palms on the handles of his chair, he leaned back and it squeaked. “After what I saw last night, I hope to move up in the world, not out of it.”

“I think you’re safe now. No more worries.”