Army of Wolves (Dark Season III) Page 6

  Anyone except one person.

  I look at the large window closest to the baby. In the darkness outside, there's a shape. The humans can't see it, because it's so dark and they're focused on the baby. But I can see it. I smile and give a little wave.

  The figure at the window looks at me briefly, but his focus is on the baby. Good old Patrick. I knew he'd be here.

  I turn and walk away. I've got the scent now. I won't have to return for many years, at least seventeen or eighteen, maybe more. I can't come back to Dedston too soon, or the girl won't be able to help me; but if I come back too late, I might be beyond salvation.

  For now, though, I need to go where no-one can find me. Where no-one would even think of looking. I walk out of the hospital and head towards the bus station, where there's a bus waiting to take me to Vegas. That should be a good place to get lost for a decade or two. I mean, come on - I'm gonna fit right in. And if I get hungry, no-one's gonna miss a few whores, right?

  Fifteen

  Hamish takes me home. It's getting late as we walk into the city. People are starting to leave work and go to bars. The ordinary everyday activity of respectable people is giving way to nervousness of night owls.

  "It's okay," I say as we reach the park outside the library. "I can get home from here. Actually, I was thinking of going to see Patrick first. You want to come?"

  Hamish shakes his head. "Tell him I'll catch up with him some other time". He seems nervous, almost awkward. "I'm sorry I dragged you into all of this," he says. "I was just scared. I was going to ask Patrick to help me, but when I met you I realised I'd be better off with you".

  I nod. "It's fine," I say.

  "It was a good plan, wasn't it?" he asks.

  "Yeah," I say. "So what are you going to do now? Where are you going to go?"

  He shrugs. "Me and Garvey are free now. We're a pack of two. I'm gonna try to persuade him to head over to Miami for a while, but he's a bit of a sulker so I dunno. Do me a favour, though. Say bye to Patrick for me, yeah? And tell him I'll see him again some day. Tell him I'll pop by some time and say hello, maybe take him for a beer. I doubt he'll take me up on that, but I'll try. That's what friends are for".

  "Sure," I say.

  He turns to leave, then stops and looks back. "You can come with us, if you want".

  "Me?"

  "Aye. You can even wear clothes. I can't promise where we'll go, or what we'll do, but I can promise we'll have a damn good time. Miami first, for a while, I need to help a friend of mine with some dodgy business. After that, who knows? We can travel the world. We can see everything. And you can always come back here when we're done".

  "Thanks," I say. "But I'm going to stay here for now".

  "You sure? It's dangerous, what you do. Running around with vampires".

  "I'm sure".

  "Fine. I figured you'd say that. I guess there's no way to tear you away from old Mr. Silent. See you around, then".

  "Will you ever come back this way?" I ask.

  He nods. "Aye. Only once, though".

  "Well I guess I'll see you then," I say.

  He looks at me and for a moment the saddest look passes over his face. "Maybe," he says. Then he smiles. "Goodbye".

  I run almost all the way to the woods and, as usual, I stumble around for ages trying to find the entrance to Patrick's home. This is what happens every time. But things are different today. For the first time, though... and I mean, the first time ever, I do eventually find the tunnel entrance all by myself. I run down and eventually I find the cave. I expected to find Patrick where I left him, still guarding the cave in preparation for the arrival of an army of wolves. But he's not there, and I have to go over to the house in the middle of the chamber to find Vincent, who is in his study working on whatever it is that occupies his time. He seems totally oblivious to what has been happening.

  "I was expecting you," he says, looking up from his work.

  "Where's Patrick?" I ask.

  Vincent smiles, but sadly. "He's gone to catch up with an old friend".

  I stare at him for a moment. "Hamish?"

  Vincent nods, and there seems to be some sadness in his expression.

  "Does he know where he is?"

  "He'll find him".

  "Does he know what happened?" I ask. "We made the wolves go away. Does Patrick know that?"

  "I'm afraid so".

  "Afraid so?" I walk over to Vincent's desk. "We stopped the wolves. We persuaded them to leave Hamish alone. No, I persuaded them". No reply from Vincent. "That's a good thing, right? I helped save Hamish?"

  "Yes, it's a good thing," says Vincent, but he seems tired. "Nevertheless, Patrick has to make sure it never happens again".

  "What do you mean?"

  Vincent sighs. "Do you realise how close you came to dying out there?"

  "But I didn't. I stopped it all from happening".

  "This time, yes," says Vincent. "But next time?"

  "What next time?"

  "Hamish is many things. But he doesn't learn from mistakes. He knows now that he can use you to ward off the Alpha Wolf. Or at least, he thinks he can. And when he needs you again, he will come back for you. Patrick cannot allow you to be exposed to that constant threat".

  "There's no threat," I say.

  "You don't know Hamish," Vincent says firmly. "You don't know his past. You don't know what he has done to people. Good people. Loyal people. He's a dangerous creature. He puts people in danger and he uses them to save himself. I know you saved him this time, but in a year or two he'll be in another mess and he'll need saving again. And Patrick knows that when that happens, he'll be back here to get you to help him. That can't be allowed to happen".

  I think about this for a moment. "What's he going to do to him?"

  Vincent opens his mouth to speak, but says nothing. It seems he doesn't want to answer.

  "He can't kill him," I say. "They're friends".

  "I honestly don't know," says Vincent. "Killing a wolf is not easy. I suspect Patrick will merely arrange things so that Hamish cannot ever trouble us again. How he will do that, I have no idea. But I do not imagine he will fail. Hamish won't be back around this way again".

  I don't know what to say. Just when I thought everything was going to be okay, Patrick has to go and do things his own way. "Does it always have to end so violently?" I ask. "Whatever happens, does Patrick always have to use violence to solve everything? Why can't he just let Hamish go?"

  "Because Hamish would be back. Again and again. And eventually you would die".

  This is crazy. I can't talk to Vincent about this, but the one person I need to talk to is the one person who can't possible talk to me. "When will he be back?" I ask quietly.

  "A few days, I imagine".

  I nod. "Tell him... Tell him he's wrong. I know he won't listen, but tell him anyway. And tell him that if he's killed Hamish, then I never want to see him again. Tell him that".

  I turn and walk away. I don't wait to hear what Vincent has to say, because there's nothing he can say. Patrick can only speak through violence, but sometimes violence isn't what's needed. I know he's saved my life twice now, but I'm also pretty sure that I won't need my life saving again unless Patrick is around. As I walk up the tunnel towards the exit, I realise the irony: I've finally found how to get down here without help, and now I don't know if I'll ever want to come down again.

  Outside, it's almost morning, but there's another surprise: Patrick is waiting for me. I stop as soon as I see him. He looks tired, and his eyes are loaded with sadness.

  "Did you do it?" I ask. No answer. "Did you kill him?"

  He stares at me for a moment, and then - finally - he slowly shakes his head.

  "But he won't come back, will he?" I ask.

  He shakes his head again.

  I feel I should say something else, but I don't know what. As usual, I'm left standing here with so much to say, I can't say anything at all. It's hard to talk to someone who never replies.<
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  I step towards Patrick. Without really thinking, I move closer to him and plant a kiss on his cheek. He doesn't respond, but he doesn't move away either. He just stands there and takes it. I keep my face close to his for a moment, and I breathe deep to try to catch his scent. That's all Hamish talks about: scents. So I should be able to pick up Patrick's scent, right? But there's nothing. I'm just human, I guess, and there's some things we humans just can't do.

  Then again, there are some things vampires can't do either.

  I reach and take his hand in mine. I don't know why, it just feels like the thing to do. But as I turn his hand over, I see blood wiped on the skin. I take his other hand: it's the same.

  "This isn't your blood, is it?" I ask.

  He shakes his head.

  I step back, and then without saying anything I walk away. I don't look back, not once, and I keep walking through the woods until I get to the edge of the city, to where the leaves of the forest floor give way to the concrete of the outer suburbs. Finally, I stop and look back.

  Ever since I first met Patrick, I've felt his presence around me all the time. His eyes watching me, almost like he's reading my mind. But now, for the first time in months, there's nothing. For the first time since I met Patrick, I feel like he's not following me, not watching over me at all.

  Sixteen

  Dedston - 2011.

  Fucking hell, nightclubs aren't what they used to be. The 19th century was the best time - Paris, Berlin, Prague, Vienna... the list is endless. Great artists and writers smoking opiates and gently going mad in one another's company. Absinthe was the big drink back then. God, I remember when I first drank absinthe - or, rather, I don't remember when I first drank absinthe. In fact, I don't remember anything from 1880 to 1885. That's five fucking years of my life when I haven't a clue what I was doing, where I was, who I was with, or anything. Given that I was being chased by a pack of hungry werewolves at the time, it's some achievement that I'm still here at all.

  But this place? This is a nightclub in name only. I don't mind the music, and I don't mind the people, all of whom look pleasant enough. It's more the culture of the place. People in the bogs are injecting fuck knows what into their veins in a desperate attempt to feel something. By the bar, kids are passed out, others are kissing, others are arguing. All human life is here, but I can't say I'm very impressed. But that's okay. I'm not here looking for just anyone. I'm here looking for the one person who can save my fucking life right now.

  I wait out on the fire escape 'cause I know that she'll end up out here at some point. I've already spotted her in the crowd, and she looks like she doesn't quite fit in here. She looks awkward, as if she'd rather be somewhere else, anywhere else. And that's perfect. I could see immediately why Patrick is so focused on her. It's going to be a sad story when it all plays out, but I can totally see Patrick's point of view. I just need to borrow her for a couple of days. That's all.

  After about half an hour, she appears. She ignores me and goes to the other side of the fire escape. I wait for a moment, watching her. It's dark, but that gives me a certain advantage. I can see her perfectly and although she's obviously aware that I'm here, she's very carefully not looking at me. And she’s not bad looking, either. Not what you’d call a knockout superstar, not even particularly noticeable in a crowd. Plain, but not bad. Totally not my type, of course.

  "I knew you'd come out here eventually," I say to introduce myself, but she doesn't really respond. That's okay. I've already got the measure of her. I've seen her eyes. They're intelligent, brave eyes, and they're exactly what I need. I thought I was here for Patrick, but I'm not. I'm here for her. She's perfect for what I need. And as a bonus, it'll be good to see old Patrick again after all these years. I can always rely on Patrick. But enough talk. It's time to get this show on the road.

  "Terribly rude of me," I say, stepping towards her. "Do you mind if I introduce myself?"

  NEXT - DARK SEASON IV: THE CIVIL DEAD

  A personal tragedy leads to a terrifying discovery for Sophie and her friend Shelley. Something is stirring in the local churchyard: something long dead but very, very hungry; something ancient and evil that has been here since the dawn of time.

  When she realises her friends are being targeted by this evil, Sophie decides it might be time to let them in on the secret she's been hiding for so long. But it has been a year since Sophie last saw or heard from Patrick, and when she goes to ask for his help, she discovers something shocking.

  ALSO AVAILABLE BY AMY CROSS

  Dark Season: The Last Vampire

  In the first volume of the Dark Season series, Sophie meets silent vampire Patrick for the first time. But as she struggles to understand how Patrick became the last vampire, Sophie discovers that an ancient prophecy says she will die at his hands.

  Dark Season II: Sentinel

  Sophie wants to get closer to Patrick, but first she wants to know what happened fifty years ago when two young girls were apparently killed by a vampire. As she investigates further, Sophie uncovers a horrific secret hidden in the body of an old woman.

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  A collection of ten sexually explicit, erotic short stories for women. Includes 'Last Impressions', about a woman getting revenge on her ex, and 'Unfaithful', in which a couple of friends spend the night together in a hotel room with one simple rule: no touching. Warning: contains sexually explicit material, suitable only for adults!

  At War With the Hamptons

  What do you do when your mother dies? If you're Michael, David and Laney Hampton, you pretty much go off the rails. Laney descends into a world of madness, David grabs the nearest girl and then disappears in the middle of the night, and Michael can't stop cheating on his wife. Over the course of half a century, they gradually learn that there are no limits to how grief can f*** you up.

  The Dead and the Dying (a John Mason thriller)

  Detective John Mason has always been unconventional. But when he's diagnosed with terminal cancer and given just a few years to live, things get really strange. Mason is now on a mission to find a good way to die. Meanwhile, someone is killing teenagers and dumping their bodies in the harbour. Can Mason find and stop him before more kids die?