Exsanguinate (26 page)

“
H
ey there
, sunshine. Welcome back.”Khaldon stroked my hair.

I’d been moved to my bedroom, and Beano was nested in behind me.

“How are you feeling?” Khaldon’s eyes looked deep into mine.

I wanted to sit there and gaze at him, but I had to pee something fierce. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and sat up. “Not bad, considering. I’ve got a killer headache. Maybe a shower will clear it up.” I had the mother of all hangovers. My mouth tasted like the bottom of my boot, and I needed a bathroom desperately.”

“Sounds like a good time.” A smile spread across Khaldon’s face. “You might want to get a move on. We’re supposed to meet Briggs at the Super Market in an hour.”

* * *

R
oxas
, Harris, and I walked out to the garage.

Harris gawked at my car. “What the hell, Chey! Is this the Limited Edition roadster you were hinting at? When did you get this?”

I pushed the keyfob, and the familiar alarm beeped when the doors unlocked.

“How do you have this car?” Harris kept on. “This vehicle hasn’t even been released. It’s still in the prototype stages, and YOU have one?” He looked at me out of the corner of his eye.

“It’s nice to have friends in the industry.” I nonchalantly shrugged. “Perks, my friend. Perks.” I shined my teeth at him.

“Well strike a light, m’lady, this is spiffing. I just might have to get me one of these babies. Can I drive?” Khaldon asked.

“Drive? Oh no! That is one of the items in the contingency, no other drivers. No can do, sorry!” Both of them looked like I had just stolen their lollipops. Harris was my best bud for years now and Khaldon, well, I wasn’t sure what he was to me, but Roxas … he was … is my everything.

“Let’s just pick up Briggs and talk about this later,” I murmured.

Fortunately I-4 wasn’t jammed-packed with traffic, just the normal bumper-to-bumper at 75 mph. It took only about twenty minutes to get out to near the airport where this Super Market was located.

We parked next to an old, abandoned building.

“Guys. What is this place? Are you sure we’re meeting Briggs here?”

Harris got out of the car and ran his fingers along the paint job. “You see Chey, humans hardly even recognize this place. Inside it’s really a massive structure. To them it just looks like an old warehouse building out in the middle of nowhere.” Harris explained. “Basically the witches have been able to manage several glamours around the property. They can keep the unwanted away and it keeps the area safe for supers.”

“Supers? Witches?”

“Right, as in supernatural creatures. Ya know, preternaturals, things that go BOO in the night. We need a place to go shopping, just like humans do.” Harris elbowed me in the rib cage.

“So that place you were telling me about in the teleconference meeting was real?”

Khaldon placed his arm around my shoulder and squeezed me into his side. “Come now, m’lady, let me show you the most amazing attraction you will ever see in Orlando.”

“So we’re meeting Briggs here? Do you guys know what he looks like?” I asked.

Harris jumped over a cart railing practicing his parkour. “Rox, you said you knew him, right?”

“Yeah, we met. Damn it’s probably been twenty-five years now or longer. Believe me – you can’t miss Briggs, and he’ll know who we are as soon as he sees us.”

“What’s that supposed to mean Rox?” Harris asked.

And about that time, one of the largest, darkest, and sexiest black men I had ever seen in my life, stepped into view from behind a Land Rover. We each stopped and just stared at the mountain walking towards us.

“Chey Chey!” The man roared.

A big stupid smile crossed my face. I stood shocked to see the man behind the silken, chocolatey voice who I’d only known as Briggs. This was really good – meeting everyone and getting together, despite the circumstances.

“Briggs - Oh my stars – is that you?”

“In the flesh, dahlin’ – in the flesh!” Briggs grabbed me up and spun me around. I thought for sure he would crack me in half. He was bigger than Khaldon, and I wasn’t sure how that was possible. I hugged him back, and felt an immediate sense of relief that I had these three very capable guys to help me find my family.

Briggs set me down, and Khaldon stuck out his hand. “Damn, Briggs, it’s been a long time.”

“Rox, my man! Wasn’t your hair red? And who is this?” Briggs turned to Harris. “Wait, let me guess. Well I know the girls don’t have a brother, so you must be Harris. Right? Damn you about as white as they come.”

Harris laughed and stuck out his hand. “The one and only!”

“Hey, let’s go grab something to eat and catch Briggs up on everything. I want to go over what we’ve uncovered in the past few hours and just kinda start from the beginning.” They all nodded at me.

I stood in awe of the programming magnitude in front of me. These guys were on my team.

“But wait? Is this the right place for Briggs? Will he be safe in here?” I turned to Roxas.

“Uh … I wouldn’t worry about that, Chey,” Harris answered the questions instead.

“Wait? What? Are you trying to tell me that Briggs is a werewolf too?”

“What? Oh
hellll
no – I ain’t no daawg.” Briggs puffed up his chest in a mock sign of aggression. “No offense, Harris, my man.”

“None taken,” he responded. “Cheyenne, take a deep breath and tell me what you smell and feel.”

“I feel power, and a lot of it – and I smell smoke, sulphur, the ocean, some other things I can’t tell yet.”

Briggs picked me up by my armpits and brought me up to his eye level. He clicked his eyes vertically instead of the normal horizontal up and down. It sent extraterrestrial shivers through my chakras to think he was some kind of alien from the black lagoon.

“Baby doll, what you see here is one fine, black ass dragon. I am a Gargouille – a water dragon.”

“No shite! A dragon! Why is it that everyone on this team is a supernatural being, and none of us girls knew it?”

He put me down and laughed. “Most likely because we all work so remotely. Hell, Rox and I go way back to Compuserve days, and we just got to know one another over the years. I didn’t know about Harris until we met tonight. You can’t ever shake that smell from a werewolf.”

“Hey – I resemble that remark.” Harris laughed. “I need a good scrubbing and dip, but I don’t smell that bad, do I?”

We all just looked at him.

“C’mon – let’s eat – I’m starving.” Briggs slapped Harris on the back as we walked towards the old door that looked as if it would fall off its hinges if we touched it.

As Briggs and Harris took the lead, I assessed what definitely had Dakota’s interest. He was one fine, man.

Khaldon cleared his throat and wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me in tight. His bright eyes met mine. They dug daggers into me. “See something you like, m’Lady?”

I kissed him on the tip of his nose. “As a matter of fact, I do.”

H
ow does
one describe The Super Market? It was unlike anything I’d ever seen or heard of in my entire life. The place was architecturally magnificent. I felt as if I were walking into the Taj Mahal, it was so grand. The floors were marble and walls must’ve been lined in granite. I could hear running water in the far-off distance, like a waterfall of sorts. The energy of the place was that of a spa. The Super Market was divided into huge sections which catered to every need of the entire Supernatural community. We walked up to the reception desk where an alluring green woman greeted us with a cyan smile. I couldn’t help but look at her mouth when she talked. I had never seen blue teeth before.

A melodious voice sang out, “Welcome to the Super Market. My name is Z’anima.” She looked right at me but didn’t bother to address the guys. “You haven’t been here before, have you?”

I looked around at each of them. “What? Is it that obvious I’m a noob?”

“No, not at all, my dear.” Z’anima’s smile sent waves of ease crashing through me. I immediately felt better. She continued, “Would you like me to explain the services we have to offer?”

Not sure what this amazing creature was or how to respond, I simply nodded my head.

People walked in and passed us through the massive foyer as she slithered out from the counter to the marquee. That’s when the oddity of the situation began to make sense. Behind the counter displayed the most massive salt water aquarium I had ever seen in my life. It was as if whales could have fit inside it – the tank was so large. The tank teemed with every imaginable sea creature and a few I didn’t know existed.

Z’anima glided her way over to the marquee. She didn’t have any feet. A wet tentacle extended to the map. I swallowed hard, trying to keep myself composed, unable to figure out this Supernatural being.

She suctioned a cup to the map at where we were standing. “Here at The Super Market we offer all types of amenities and services which are specifically tailored to the unique needs of each and every one of us. Inside you will find our specialty grocery and clothing stores, but we also offer a fine selection of restaurants, blood bars, live feeding arenas, and human sustenance volunteers.”

Stomachs rumbled all around, including my own.

Z’anima continued, “We also have an award-winning Wiccan apothecary, a well-stocked lending library – membership, of course, is always complimentary – a bookstore, and several multi-national and species specific spas.”

My eyes lit up. “Spas?”

“I highly recommend the spas. They have every health and beauty amenity available including sunscreen treatments, teeth whitening, debarnacalizers, scale shed and shines, breath freshening, tongue scrapings, wing massages – with or without the happy ending.”

I looked over at Briggs. He seemed very interested in the offerings.

Z’anima continued to list the myriad services I never knew could possibly exist. “Teeth and claw sharpening, horn scraping, soot flush, and we even have a wide assortment of deodorizing insecticide dips.”

Z’anima stared pointedly at Harris who was beginning to look a little self-conscious as he scratched behind his ear. She wiped a tentacled arm below her nose, but her smile erased all insinuations. “We also have professional services in the forms of walk-in health clinics, dentists, beauty parlors, custom tailors, insurance and travel agencies, along with tax accountants, and munitions specialists. It is easy to get lost in here and enjoy a mini-vacation from the confines of humanity. What are you interested in tonight?”

Brigg’s nodded. “We’re interested in finding a quiet place to grab a bite to eat, pick up some supplies, and then find a place to freshen up.”

Z’anima pulled out an electronic tablet. “Would you like for me to make a reservation at your spa for after you eat?”

Both Briggs and Harris nodded enthusiastically and booked their appointments.

Khaldon removed his arm from my shoulder and reached down to hold my hand. “Great – Cheyenne, that’ll give me time to show you where to get the best bloodwines and get a case for you to have at home. We can pick you up a full copy of
The Vampyric Canons.
”

“It’s not often we get such an eclectic mix of patrons in one group. Did you want to dine together, or find your food and then meet up a little later?” Z’anima asked.

We looked at one another, and for the first time I stopped to consider our troop. Here I stood with a werewolf, vampire, and dragon in front of a green octopus lady.

Khaldon stepped forward. “I think we’d like to dine together. Can you recommend a restaurant to suit multi-naturals, or are they all segregated?”

“Absolutely,” Z’anima said as she laid a slimy suction cup on Khaldon’s arm. This informal gesture triggered an insane sensation of wanting to cut off her arm and make sushi out of her.

Z’anima smiled at me. It qould awhile to get used to looking at blue teeth. “We have many fine restaurants to accommodate all of you – let me suggest The Rusty Anchor. It serves up a mean rack of ribs and some the best bloodwines available from The Broken Fang. How does that sound?”

I couldn’t tell whose stomach growled louder, Harris’ or Briggs’.

“Sounds damn good to me – let’s eat,” Harris said.

“Might I suggest a wonderful dessert for the lady after your dinner and spa treatment?” Her farthest outreached suction cup landed next to a place called The Tasty Pastry. The sight of the name made my mouth water. I could smell the cinnamony, buttery, glazed sugar from here. All thoughts of serving her up Kobe style instantly disappeared from my thoughts.

A loud whoosh of air and sea spray cascaded over the entrance way. I watched as dolphins and seahorses raced along the tank’s edge.

The green lady laughed. “Silly boys – don’t mind them, they’re itching to get into the open sea tonight for the Atlantis Race trials.”

“I love those games.” Briggs nodded and smiled at me. “Hopefully this mess will be cleared soon. Maybe we can take everyone to the Olympic Games.”

“My favorite event is the long dive,” Harris chimed in.

Our hostess smiled. “Again my name is Z’anima, and if you need anything, please find a server walking through the departments, and they will help you find whatever it is you are seeking.”

We all thanked her for her attentive assessments and walked into the bustling hall. Never in my life had I dreamed of humanoids, kelpies, ghosts, banshees, tigers, and a variety of creatures I couldn’t begin to identify sitting and talking to one another in a cafe’ espresso shop.

We followed the signs to The Rusty Anchor. I turned to Khaldon. “So … Rox, err, Khaldon … what was that all about?”

“She’s a kraken.” Khaldon gestured as we walked farther into the Super Market past the oceanic tank. “Normally, you don’t see them out of the water much. Usually there is a merman at the information center, several times however, I have seen a mermaid there as well.”

“A merman? A kraken? You mean as in big, angry, octopus-like, sea monster who bites ships in half and drags them to their watery graves kinda kraken? And merfolk who save the lives of sailors from those doomed ships?”

“The distinctive invertebrate herself. Kraken possess an innate sense of personality and oftentimes pick up on sonar-like waves from your mind and are able to ascertain your name, needs, and your most primal desires. They work alongside the Sirens quite often.” He mussed up my hair and closed my open mouth. “It’s not polite to gawk and stare, Cheyenne. Try not to look so shocked. Did you think vampires, werewolves, and dragons were the only kinds of supers on the planet?”

“No, but I … I don’t know. I had no clue. Honestly hadn’t thought about it. There’s just so much going on here. I really don’t know what to think. I’m still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that mermaids are real.” I stammered back at him.

Briggs snorted at me.

Just then a voice rang out across the vestibule. “Hey, Rox – wait up.”

“Hey, Torchy, you silly bloke – where’ve you been? Shagging the ladies I presume?” Khaldon introduced a strawberry blond man who was heavy on the Scottish.

“Aye! How ye dae’in? Ah’ve no seen ya for yonks. Wher’ve ye been?” Torchy inquired.

I wasn’t quite sure what he said, but by Khaldon’s reply, I guessed it to be ‘a haven’t seen you in a while’ kind of thing.

“You can call me Khaldon, they all know who I am now. Torch, I’d like you to meet my Lady Cazenove – Cheyenne O’Cuinn. Cheyenne, this here is my best bloke, Torchy. He’s the one who has been taking care of Beano and Stormaggedon while you were in the hospital and such.”

Instantly I liked this man. He had taken very good care of our dogs.

“An O’Cuinn you say? Can ye tell me, from where on the Emerald ye are from?” Torchy looked at me as if I was supposed to know how to answer him.

“He wants to know where in Ireland are you from.” Khaldon explained, quickly saving me from utter embarrassment.

“Oh yes, of course.” I blushed at not being able to understand his thick accent. “My sisters and I left Ireland when we were very young. I believe we’re from Kerry. My parents never spoke too much about Ireland. I’m not sure why, truthfully.”

“Torch here is a Celtic dragon, technically Welsh, but he is from Scotland so he is twice as confusing. He and I have been hanging for well, let’s just say a very long time.”

Briggs shot a look at Torchy and then back at Khaldon. His eyes squinted closed just a bit and then he stretched out his arm for a welcome fist bump. “Nice Bro – always great to meet another dragon.”

Torchy smiled and gave Briggs a dragonly fist tap of acceptance. “Ye looking for some grub? Ah could eat a scabby horse a’tween two pishy mattresses.”

I looked at Khaldon for a translation. “Yes, all right. Let’s move along – I could really go for some chips myself – I’m famished.” He slapped Torchy across the back. “Hey, Torch, you might want to go easy on the Scottish, or no one here is going to understand a bloody word you say.”

“Aye, you’ve got a point, mate. Fair enough. I’m starved – let’s eat.” Torchy noogied me on top of my head as if he’d known me for years.

“C’mon, Chey, you’ll feel better after we get some clean blood in you. We have a lot to catch Briggs up on and Torchy needs to come in on this party as well. Once we get everyone settled, and up to speed we’ll get you home.” Khaldon put his hand in the small of my back to guide me down the torch-lit hallway.

Home. I thought of what home used to be and how much my life had changed in such a short period of time. Just a couple weeks ago, home meant, my office, my computers, Dakota swinging in borrowing some money, going to the bars, and me playing inside my virtual game with this man standing next to me. Everything had changed.

The loss of my sisters gnawed at the fringes of my thoughts and deep into the pit of my stomach. How were we going to save them? Did we still have time? Any minute Ludovic could renege and do something horrific to them. Was that really Dakota’s toe? Had other women been kidnapped as well?

We only had until morning and then Ludovic was poised to contact me again. Maybe now I had a fighting chance with Puff, Shaft, Scrappy Doo, and Dracula on my side.