The week hurtled along at a steady pace, everyday things filling up all available time. On Monday, they rented the new
Star Trek
movie since Gabe hadn’t seen it. Inspired, Harvey rush-ordered a couple of Trekkie uniforms from Amazon that very night. On Wednesday, they enacted several missing scenes from the film. Gabe played Kirk, Harvey stood in for young Spock—it was only logical.
Gabe had told Harvey about the murder in bold strokes but left his trip with Denton completely out. Stray fantasies about Denton had invaded his mind since their meeting, followed by a vague sense of guilt. The way he figured, he and Harvey were more than fuck buddies but less than a couple. Friends with benefits? They were definitely friends, right?
That night, Harvey was busy mixing up a batch of his tonic for Nightcrawler and then running around town, meeting people Gabe didn’t know. Harvey had a tendency to secretiveness when it came to his vampire friends and associates. Another sign of the shakiness of their connection. So far Stan and Ray had been the only two Gabe had met. And Gustav. On the other hand, Harvey didn’t know Gabe’s friends either, especially since Gabe didn’t have any. He debated doing something about that.
Unbidden, Gabe’s thoughts kept circling around the murder, and, as a result, the other Dead Man, Denton Mills. Finally, he gave into their pressure and called the guy to arrange a meeting.
Denton already waited for him in the diner when Gabe arrived. He sat in a booth by the window. The afternoon sun glinted off his piercings while he fidgeted with his coffee and sugar packets.
Gabe strolled up and took a seat across from him. “Thanks for meeting me.” With a swipe of his palm, he cleared the mess of sugar crystals off the Formica top.
Denton stopped fidgeting for a whole second, eyes trailing over Gabe. “Happily. So is this a social meeting?”
Gabe chose to be vague on the subject. “I’ve been out of town for a few years. I don’t know anybody.”
Their waitress plodded by. Gabe only asked for coffee, but Denton ordered a slice of apple pie, à la mode.
“Haven’t you looked up your old friends?”
“I didn’t have many, and none close. I wouldn’t know what to talk to them about.” Or what to tell them about how he’d spent the previous five years of his life and earned his living.
Denton bobbed his head. He understood. “And you can’t exactly chitchat about what you do now, right? Tell me, how did you end up working for the Prince of Darkness? You must have something he wants. By the way, don’t mention to him I called him that either.”
“It’s complicated.”
“Sure it is.” Denton stared at Gabe expectantly.
“All right, I’ll spill, if you tell me first how you got to know him.”
Denton shrugged. “There isn’t much to say. When I finally stopped fighting this thing I have, I tried to learn more about it, see if there were others like me.” He absently played with his fork while talking, flipping it over and over. Gabe forced himself to ignore the restless movements.
“Are there?”
“Not that I could find. It wasn’t an easy search either. There’s so much bullshit out there, you wouldn’t believe. Even on TV.
Ghost Hunters
, my ass.” Denton snorted. “I went down a lot of dead-end leads, but then I had a run-in with one of our
friends
.” He seemed reluctant to use the V-word at such a public place, probably wisely so.
“What happened?”
“Well, things got hairy at first, and I thought for sure I was a goner, but then this other one stepped in. The two of them had a big row in a language I didn’t understand, but they let me go. The next night, the second guy showed up at my door and hauled me off in a big black car. All the way to the big guy.”
Denton stretched one of his hands toward the ketchup bottle, but Gabe nudged it out of reach. The waitress returned and placed the coffee and slice of pie on the table with professional disinterest. She parted, leaving the check behind. They weren’t worth her time.
Scarfing down his food kept Denton focused, but once he’d finished, the restlessness returned. Gabe moved the dirty plate out of the way and picked the conversation back up. “So you met Augustine.”
“Yeah. I guess he wanted to see me for himself. He asked me questions—who I was, what I did, what I saw. I told him everything. I knew I’d better not lie.”
Gabe nodded.
“He’s one scary dude. Sharp as razor wire too. He told me what he and his people were, like he was discussing the weather. Then he made me an offer—I could play nice, keep my mouth shut and be at his beck and call, and he’d make sure nobody bothered me. Or I could be an idiot and have my head chewed off. So of course, I picked the option where I got to keep my head.”
“Sounds familiar.”
“What do you have that he wants?”
“Beats me.” Gabe hesitated for a moment, then came out with it. “I used to kill them. That was my
thing
.” He kept his voice down.
Denton leaned back in his seat and stared at Gabe with something akin to awe. “And he let you live?”
“It didn’t happen here but on the other side of the ocean.”
“Still.” Denton slowly shook his head. “He must want you bad. What do you do for him?”
“Not much so far. Deliveries anyone could do, catching creeps. But he pays a retainer, and I even have health insurance, so I can’t complain.”
“Fuckin-A! I only get the ‘consultation’ fees,” Denton said, curling his fingers to make air quotes. “Although they’re generous.”
“Do you think many people know about Augustine and his…
friends
?”
“No, I doubt it. They have ways of making you forget stuff. Or disappear if you’re not the forgetful kind. You know, the funny thing is, I’d known they were around, I saw them, but I hadn’t known what they were. I’d thought it was simply another peculiarity of my condition.”
“What do you mean
saw
them? They’re not invisible.”
“Yeah, but for me, looking at one of them is like having double vision. I had a concussion once—it’s like that, except the two images are not quite the same. It gives me a headache if I look at them too long. I didn’t think much of it originally. There’s plenty of strange shit I see I can’t explain.”
“Did you ever find out more about your talent?”
“Not a thing. I finally gave up and accepted that I’m a freak of nature. I’ve been much happier since.” Denton gave a broad grin. His teeth and facial ornaments gleamed brightly at Gabe.
Gabe suspected that it was more of an embrace than mere acceptance but didn’t voice his point. “Would you do something for me?” he asked.
“Sure.” The gleam became outright suggestive.
“Come with me to this spot by the freeway. It’s not far. I’ll pay you whatever Augustine does.”
Denton looked disappointed. “Yeah, okay.”
They had to climb over a fence and down on a grassy downslope to get to the edge of the freeway. Gabe led them to the place. “Here.” They were on the side where the accident had happened, and, short of walking out into the traffic, they couldn’t get any closer. Gabe took a hold of Denton’s arm while Denton closed his eyes and stood still as cars zoomed past them a few feet away, belching exhaust fumes. They were rocked by the air turbulence of every passing truck. For a long while, nothing happened, and Gabe was about to call the whole thing off when Denton gasped loudly and staggered backward. He would’ve fallen over if Gabe hadn’t held him.
“Oh shit, that was sudden,” he gasped.
“What did you see?”
“Not fucking much. Something exploded through the windshield, and it was over.” His eyes were wide with shock as he turned to Gabe. Then they narrowed. “This is something personal for you, isn’t it?”
“My parents died here.”
“That probably explains the shadow following you.”
“What shadow? What does it look like?”
“Just a vague shape hanging about you. It got darker, and started sort of fluttering, like it was excited or something,” Denton said, staring slightly to the left of Gabe.
This information shook Gabe. The last thing he needed was some otherworldly shadow following him. He squinted at the empty space beside him but couldn’t see a damn thing. No—he decided—there was nothing there. Denton imagined it. The guy was a bit odd.
“How did it happen?” Denton asked.
“The accident? Someone dropped a cinder block from the overpass, right on top of their car,” Gabe said, pointing up at the slim bridge above.
His breath caught at the sight of a figure standing up there. They were too far to see much, but the man—Gabe was certain it was a man—looked straight at them. They all stood frozen for a moment; then the figure turned and walked swiftly away. Forgetting about everything else, Gabe scrambled up the embankment and over the fence. He sprinted to the overpass as fast as he could, but the bridge stood empty by the time he reached it. He looked down at the traffic below through the tall railing that hadn’t been there five years before. His whole body tensed with the old anger and frustration.
Hearing the thumping of running feet and Denton’s huffing and puffing, Gabe made himself unclench. Denton stopped next to him, breathing hard.
“And here I was thinking we were on a date,” Denton said once he got his breathing under control.
Oh
. Gabe was aware of Denton’s interest and was tempted to return it, but he said, “No. Sorry, not a date.”
“If you tell me you don’t swing that way, I’ll laugh my ass off.”
“It’s not that. I don’t think my…roommate would appreciate any swinging.” Immediately, he felt like a heel for using that term, but what else was he supposed to say?
“Your
roommate
?”
“Yes,” he said, even as the tip of his ears began to burn.
“He doesn’t have to know.”
“I think he would—he’s a vampire.” The vampire part wasn’t quite the real reason Gabe said no, but he suspected it was the simplest way to settle the matter. He was right.
“Now you tell me!” Denton said, taking a step back from Gabe. “I guess I was wrong thinking the old bat sent you to me as a present. Oh yeah, don’t tell him I called him that.”
“I won’t. C’mon, I’ll drive you home.”
“Oh, hell no. I’ll take the El. Smell you later.” Denton made an about-face and took off.
Gabe yelled after him. “Hey, wait, I haven’t paid you.”
Denton turned on his heels. Gabe was relieved to see his grin was back. “It’s on the house, but you owe me one.” Denton waved and walked away.
Chapter Four
Friday was Boy’s Night Out; at least that’s what Harvey and Dill called it. It had long been their custom to go clubbing, leaving Ray and Stan behind, as the older vampires had no interest in such activities. Gabe guessed they welcomed the occasional quiet night alone. Dill was a likable kid, but a tad high energy. No wonder he needed two “daddies”—as Dill called them—to keep up with him.
This time Dill directed them to Club 9, a trendy new nightclub in River North. It was one of those places where you had to be beautiful to be granted entrance. Gabe didn’t think he qualified, even in the snazzy new clothes Harvey had insisted buying for him, but the other two “boys” certainly did. In a deep red silk shirt contrasting against his pale skin, and with his polished features, Harvey exuded an exotic allure. Dill, with his unruly mop of blond hair and cornflower eyes, was a picture of youthful exuberance. The doorman looked them over and waved them in.
A cursory glance around informed Gabe the crowd was about evenly hetero and gay, with a few shades in between. He detected the presence of vamps too. He figured a place like Club 9 had to be an ideal feeding ground.
Gabe wanted to get a feel for the place first, so they found a table farther away from the dance floor and ordered their drinks. Harvey sipped his for appearance’s sake, Dill put his away with enthusiasm, but Gabe only held his as a prop. He had appointed himself the designated driver for the night, over Harvey’s protestations.
As Harvey and Dill chatted away, Gabe focused his attention on the crowd. Pinpointing vampires required him to tune out the distractions, the noise, flashing lights and the mass of people constantly in motion. It was a very different experience than finding his target in those deathly quiet Old World catacombs. If he was going to do more jobs like the one the other day for Augustine, honing his skill couldn’t hurt.
He zeroed in on an attractive woman: curvy, high cheekbones and caramel skin. She was also remarkably tall. Far too tall for a woman.
Harvey’s voice and a jab in the ribs roused Gabe from his observations. “Put your eyes back into their sockets. She’s not your type.”
“I wasn’t—”
“Jade is an eyeful, isn’t she?” Dill cut in.
“You know her?”
“Not well, but I’ve seen her around. Hard to miss.”
“Is she…?” Gabe didn’t want to say the V-word where they could be easily overheard.
“What, in drag?” Harvey asked, his face schooled into fake innocence.
“She bites,” Dill said helpfully, ruining the effect, and earning himself a look of reprimand from Harvey.
A vampire drag queen. That was…different.
“Hey, is that what I think it is?” Harvey pulled back Dill’s shirt collar.
His dismayed expression was at odds with Dill’s elated one. Gabe looked, but all he could see was a hickey.
“Oh, stop being such a sourpuss,” Dill sad, tugging his shirt out of Harvey’s grasp.
Gabe looked from one to another. “I don’t get it. What’s the big deal?”
“Stan and Ray fed on Dill,” Harvey replied. Gabe must’ve looked confused, because he added, “That’s what it looks like afterwards. No little puncture wounds like in the movies. The saliva heals the wound; only a bruise remains.”
“A love bite,” said Dill in a cheerful tone.
“I didn’t know that,” Gabe admitted. Something stirred in the back of his head, but he couldn’t capture it.
“Of course you don’t. I bet Harvey never bites. He really takes this vegetarianism too far, you know.”
In light of recent events, Gabe would’ve agreed, but not so much on this specific point, so he kept his mouth shut.