Gypsey Blood (10 page)

A small square stopped the crystal cold. Matt checked the address. “Y’all know where this is?”

Rita nodded.
“Carnegie Hill.
A few run-down mansions are up there.
Used to belong to the bigwigs when the steel mills were in full swing.
County plans on demolishing them.”

The button slid off the chain and clattered onto the desk. Matt re-clasped the crystal around her neck. She tucked the amulet under the neckline of her sweatshirt.

Matt looked out the window, then at his watch. “Enough daylight left. How do I get there?”

Rita shot Matt a brazen glare. “I’ll take you. You lost a partner, and Lucien almost killed you the last time you caught up with him. Meet your new backup.”

“No!”

“Don’t tell me no. He can’t take my blood, remember?”

“Maybe not your blood, but he can use his strength to kill. It’s too dangerous.”

“But not for you?
Tough shit.
I know the area and I’m going, so get over it.”

Dragus grabbed his gray flannel jacket from the closet. “We have same blood. You will have familia help.”

“This is my job.” Rita placed her hand on Uncle’s shoulder. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“We all go.” Anna raised her voice, “Don’t you see? We are his grandchildren. This must be finished today. You know he will kill again tonight if he isn’t stopped.”

“Be sensible, Ma. How do you expect to help?”

“With my gifts.”
Anna lowered her head. “I know the legends best, the ways of the undead.” She peered up at Dragus. “I’ve made my decision now, my brother.”

“No, Anna,” Dragus shouted. “Please, I beg. I go take your place.”

Anna shook her head. “I am the only one who can use the spells.”

“Damn it.” Matt glared at Rita. “I don’t like this.” He looked at Dragus and Anna, his eyes shadowed with worry. “If y’all are determined, I can’t stop you, but here’s the plan. I have the weapons to face him. Let me try to do my job first. Wait some place near and safe. Call for backup if things go south. Let’s hope no one has to find out what we’re dealing with.”

“We only ones will know,” said Dragus.

Anna rummaged through the office closet and retrieved a large cloth tote, set it on the desk next to the orb, then wrapped a heavy wool shawl about her shoulders.

The set expression on Anna’s face chilled Rita. Uncle Dragus looked about to cry. They were determined. Both knew how to find the old house and were stubborn enough to follow on their own.

Outside, Matt opened the back of his SUV, hoisted his black duffle bag over his shoulder, and they all crowded into the wheelchair-accessible van. Uncle Dragus drove.

Rita worried for her family. She felt the icy-cold shooting straight into her bones from the amulet. Other than danger ahead, what more was the crystal trying to tell her?

Chapter Twelve

Dragus steered the van to the narrow road that wound up the hillside to the derelict mansions. A weathered gate lay on the ground, the no trespassing signs nailed to the wood barely legible. Dark clouds swept the sky, blocking the sunlight and coloring the distant hills a murky gray. The van rolled onto the cracked pavement. Weeds sprouted high between the fissures, rustling as they swept the undercarriage.

The van crawled upward, swaying from side to side. Dragus hugged the wheels to the wild brush side of the road. The down lane offered broken cables that once protected drivers from riding too close to the drop-off. Rita crowded next to Matt on the rear bench and clutched his arm. Between the tips of scrub trees, she caught occasional glimpses of the railroad tracks and river far below. She tightened her grip and wriggled nervously on the seat.

The mansions sat back from the road. Broken windows gaped at Rita, reminding her of Lucien’s stony, gray eyes. Porches sagged and shingles lay scattered over long, neglected yards.
           

Anna reached across the back of the driver’s seat and tapped Dragus on the shoulder while cradling the tote on her lap. “Faster. The clouds are not a good sign. The sun will soon slide behind
Cranston
’s Peak to our west. It will grow dark earlier here.”

“You want end up down in river? No. Better I go
slow
.”

Matt sat hunched over, his fists clenching and unclenching.

“Ma, are you sensing anything?” Rita asked.

Anna pushed the button to slide the window open a few inches until her face caught the air. “There’s wind today, and I do smell rot.”

Rita slid her hand down Matt’s arm and held onto his hand tight. His palm felt damp, or was it hers that was sweating? She wished it were the night before when she lay curled next to Matt.

A jolt of their connection buzzed through her again. Rita turned and kissed him, his lips softening slightly under hers. She sensed his reined-in fear, his desperate need to finish this monster.

They crested the hill and spotted a rusted, black van across the lot, near the edge of the slope, and under a giant maple tree. It sat partially hidden behind a thick, broken branch. Dragus rolled the transit van over the rough ground to wedge it in front of the other’s bumper to prevent Lucien from fleeing. The sun began to sink over the high, western peak, and dark clouds muted the rays of sunlight.

Rita studied the crumbling monstrosity before them. The porch roof bowed. Two round holes in the wood siding on the upper level seemed to stare at her, sending shivers down her spine. The double front door hung askew, the veranda style porch warped and buckled.

Anna clutched her bag and pushed the lift controls. The mechanism whooshed, opening the door, and then lowered the chair to the ground. Rita stepped out next, followed by Matt. He dropped his duffle on the dead grass and unzipped it.

A train whistle echoed in the distance. Leaves spun and blew over the spongy earth.

Anna tilted her head as if listening, sensing something. She looked to Matt. “Have trust in me. It is important that we all face Lucien together.”

Tears shone in Dragus’ eyes. “Anna, please. Stay in van.”

Anna reached for his hand. “You know destiny always wins, my brother, and we must do this together as a family.”

Rita wanted to shove her mother and uncle back into the van and force them to go home, even if she had to carry them. But, her gut told her Anna spoke the truth. They had to face their monster from the past, and Matt would need them. Her throat clogged with fear. “I feel it too, Matt. We all have to go.”

“Damn it to hell.” His expression grim, Matt dug into the duffle bag. He handed Dragus a HID Litebox. “I have two of these. You ladies will have to use the Maglites.”

Examining the rectangle casing, Dragus studied the light.
“This nice.”

“Yeah,” Matt said. “It’s charged. Throws light as bright as a car headlight.
Should last well over an hour.
And here’s a couple of oak stakes, Dragus. Shove this spray-can in your pocket, too. It’s an industrial strength drain cleaner we’ve made into an aerosol. If you get close, go for his eyes.”

Anna took the bottle of holy water Matt offered. “Contrary to belief, the water will only slow him.” She patted her bag. “But, I have some weapons with me.”

Matt shed his leather jacket, the gold cross lay midway down his sweater.

Rita checked her Glock.

“You know that won’t work, try this baby instead.” Matt handed her a weapon that resembled a wide-barreled revolver. “Handles like a pistol, but it shoots one electrode attached to a lead. Works like a Taser. Once you hit him with the dart, he should lose control of his muscles. It takes a second to recharge, so keep the juice flowing to keep him incapacitated. You only get five pulls on the trigger before it’s out of power.”

“Very nice.
But what happened the first time you and your partner caught up with Lucien. Didn’t you use this?”

“Yeah, my partner did. He missed.” Matt shot her a sharp look. “Make sure you don’t.”

“I don’t know, Matt. Maybe you should keep it.”

“No. Dragus and I will distract him. You’ll have the better opportunity.” Next, Matt handed her a sheathed dagger. She pulled it from the casing and found the weapon made of hard wood. Rita re-sheathed the dagger and strapped the scabbard onto her belt next to her cell phone. She jammed the gun into her waistband at her back. Then she pulled the amulet out in plain sight. It lay like a heavy chunk of ice on top of her sweatshirt.

Matt chose a weapon that looked like a mini-crossbow, along with a bundle of bolts. He pulled out a machete and tucked the grip under his arm.

A tugging on Rita’s sweatshirt pulled her close to Anna’s lips, her breath warm on Rita’s ear. “Never forget my deep love for you, Daughter.”

The wrinkled brow, the tight lines around Anna’s mouth worried Rita. Her mother must feel guilty for dismissing the earlier claims about the crystal’s impotence. “I know, Ma.” Rita pressed a kiss to the back of Anna’s fingers.” It’s okay. Everything will work out. And I love you, too.”

“It’s getting darker. I think we best hurry,” Anna said.

Dragus and Matt half carried and helped Anna maneuver her chair across the lumpy earth the long distance to the porch. They lifted the wheelchair up the single step. The men heaved one of the broken double doors to the side. The heavy door screeched over the wood, tilted sideways, then crashed to the porch. A cloud of gritty dirt rose and filled Rita’s nostrils.

Rita froze at the noise. Then, she unglued her boots from the porch, and flicked on the Maglite. She aimed the beam into the stygian hole before them. The light revealed a foyer as large as her living room. On the left were shelves, some broken, some whole. She moved her beam further down the wall. Two arched doorways swept by in the fringes of her light that led into the darkened side rooms. At the last arch, the back wall held exposed studs, the inner sheeting missing. Another arch appeared on the right and a grand staircase. Dust-webs stretched from corner to corner and hung from the banisters like black moss. On her immediate right, the solid wall held water-stained, curled wallpaper with a faded cabbage rose print. Metal spider arms dangled overhead, proof of a once huge chandelier lighting the grand entrance. Slivers of glass from its shattered cones lay strewn over the floor.

A bright light joined hers. Matt had crouched, set down his Litebox and blade on the floor to the right of the threshold, and readied his crossbow. Rita stepped in next to Matt.

Anna guided her chair inside, her flashlight wedged on top of her tote, the glaring beam facing the blackened studs. Dragus set his Litebox on a shelf to the left to help encompass the foyer with the artificial brightness.

“Grandfather Lucien, we know you are here. Come. Meet your family.”

Rita started at the unexpected sound of Anna’s voice, her mother’s daring words. “Damn it!
First the door, now you yelling.”
Her glance took in all three of them. “I thought we were going to sneak up on him, take our shots.”

“Ach.
He knows we are here. Dusk is early, he can smell us.”

Matt gave Anna a slight nod. Dragus’s eyes darted around the room while he tucked the stakes in his sash behind his back.

A gust of wind blew through the foyer, raising goose bumps on Rita’s arms. She stiffened her knees to stop her legs from trembling and made an honest effort at keeping her light beam steady.

A dark form separated from the shadowy side archway near the back wall and stepped into the light.

“Welcome to my home, my Tzigan familia.”

Chapter Thirteen

Rita stepped back when Lucien appeared at the far end of the foyer. Her flashlight wavered. The lights Uncle and Matt had set on the floor and shelf threw a steady stream of white light into the room.
  

Anna guided her chair forward. “Grandfather, your kind has no place among the living. Like our ancestors, we will not allow more killing to feed your hunger.”

Lucien lifted his chin and laughed. He crossed his arms and leaned against a wood stud, his blazer rumpled and smudged with grime.
“Such brave words for a cripple.
And you think the four of you can stop me?” He shrugged,
then
sighed. “Oh, but I like this
America
.
So many women selling their souls.”
He glanced at Rita. A sardonic smirk twisted his bloodless lips. “And you, Pretty One, it is so nice of you to visit me again.”