The Cactus Killer (The Inglewood Chronicles) (27 page)

I looked down at my watch,
it was eleven forty-five. We were making the final approach on foot
into Devil’s Hollow. It is an awful place; spires of rock jutting
out of the ground like teeth, sand for as far as the eye can see,
and no life to be found. Running around the border was a canyon
wall that essentially trapped you in. During the summer,
temperatures can reach the one twenty’s with ease. When you think
about it, it actually was the perfect place for this all to go
down.

We had come in on the west
side, and knowing where Tucker’s compound was, I was expecting him
to come from the north. High in the sky, a full moon was shining
light down upon us. A cool easterly breeze also was whipping
through the pass, adding to the feeling. It was almost as if the
elements knew something big was going down.

We didn’t have to wait
long. I caught a whiff of that musky scent of Holy Water well off
in the distance. “Alright everyone, they will be here shortly. I
got a beat on their location.”

Behind me, the sounds of
werewolves shifting took over. Snarling and howling soon replaced
with anxious whispers that had been prevalent before. I looked back
and all five vampires had also embraced their inner strength. Red
eyes, elongated fangs, and waves of power came off of them. I hoped
I was never on the wrong side of these guys.

The scent kept getting
stronger, as did the footsteps, until finally I put eyes on the
group. Tucker was at the front, his eyes still mad with his insane
zealotry. He did his best Doc Holliday impression, with a long
duster jacket, cowboy boots, and the hat. Fortuna was right behind
him, as impressive as ever. The moon reflected off the mask he
wore, making him seem illuminated.

Behind the two of them were
Tucker’s creations. Three men of various sizes were followed by
five of his big green monsters. All of them had bloodlust in their
eyes, probably brought on by whatever sick promises their general
made.

Tucker brought his group to
a stop, a little more than ten yards from where we were waiting.
“So Victor, this is how it is going to end? Quite a setting you
picked out for your funerals I’d say.”

“
Tucker, this is your last
chance. Come peacefully and no one needs to get hurt
tonight.”

Everyone is his group
laughed at my comment. “We have no reason to surrender. You may
have us outnumbered, but I think it is fair to say you brought
knives to a gun fight.”

“
Maybe so, but at least I
am not the hypocrite here.”

His eyes narrowed at me.
“What did you say?”

“
You heard me, Tucker. You
are the one who needs the help of an elder vampire. Go on Fortuna;
tell him what you really are.”

Confusion broke across
Tucker’s face. “What are you talking about? How dare you insinuate
one of God’s chosen is a vampire! Enough of this, it is time for
action!”

Tucker was so blind to the
truth it could have spit on him. “If this is the way it must be, so
be it.”

Everyone tensed, not sure
who was going to make the first move. Tucker’s breathing was
getting hard and ragged, but finally, “Attack! Slay them in the
name of the Lord!”

Just like that, the battle
started and it didn’t take long for it to escalate. Following the
plan precisely, everyone was able to get their groups into the
right positions. Liz, dad, Bernard and I were able to corner one of
his special agents and soon we found out he was a lot tougher than
Austin was.

Attacking him was about as
useless as attacking a piece of steel. I fired off two bullets, but
they didn’t even penetrate the skin. The guy was built like a
linebacker and charged me. His speed wasn’t great and I was able to
get out of the way. As he went by, Bernard and dad pounced. Digging
their claws into his back worked for a moment or two, but once he
got a hand on them, they were tossed aside like puppies.

Liz came running up to me,
“We have to coordinate as a team, not freelance!”

“
I know, but try telling
him that!” I pointed at the linebacker as he turned to charge us
again. We both jumped out of the way. “I’m all ears Liz, so if you
got a plan, let the rest of us know!”

I’m not sure what she said
as our new friend grabbed one of the rock spires and tore it from
the ground. He started to swing it around wildly, adding to the
pandemonium already happening. We were close enough to where Reno
and the Silvers were engaged, that our guy took out two Silvers
with one swing.

“
You’re not helping my
cause over here!” Reno was shouting as he was doing his best to
dodge the punches of the tall, thin man he was engaged with. He had
his black steel baton out and got in a nice shot before I had to
turn my attention back to our own problem.

“
Reno is right, we need to
get this guy away from everyone else!” And with that, a plan formed
in my head. “Dad, follow me!”

I started running towards
the big guy and let my speed take over. Dad was right at my heels
and when I got close, I jumped up and gave him a kick as hard as I
could to the face. It didn’t do a whole lot other than get his
attention. I landed in a prone spot, but dad grabbed my shirt that
was in his mouth and pulled me away so I didn’t get
crushed.

I had his attention now,
with Liz and Bernard joining the group. “What’s the problem, we
aren’t as easy to kill as Tucker promised?”

“
Do not speak to me
monster! Your existence is coming to an end one way or another!” He
threw the rock spire at us and we all had to scramble. I didn’t
know how much longer we could all keep dodging attacks before one
finally connected.

I looked over at Liz and it
seemed the two of us were finally tapped out of ideas. Maybe after
all this time Tucker was right and we were out gunned. The four of
us prepared ourselves again for his attack and he did not
disappoint. Unlike the past times though, this time he feinted to
the left and caught us off guard. I made the rookie mistake and got
my feet tangled trying to get out of the way. I did not and was
sent flying into rock.

As I was sprawled out,
trying my best to catch my breath, a giant shadow blocked out the
light from the moon. “Rev. Tucker will reward me greatly for
killing you.” He grabbed one of the rocks I hit and brought it high
over his head.

“
I will not die that
easily!” I lifted my hand and caught the rock with it. Power
started filling me and I pushed back and sent the rock flying out
of his hand. Surprise registered on his face, but that didn’t last
too long as dad and Liz landed on his back. The sheer weight of dad
brought him crashing down and soon Bernard was joining the fray.
Finally, we were able to get the upper hand and the werewolf claws
and vampire fangs were taking its toll. His screams and pleas for
help filled the desert, but were left unanswered. I tossed Liz my
tanto and after looking so bleak for so long, was able to finish
the job.

Dad and Bernard shifted
back, “Son, how in the world did you stop that boulder?”

“
I guess it is the side
effect from Liz’s blood in me.”

She gave me a hug, “I am
glad it is still protecting you. I thought we were going to lose
you.”

When we released, I turned
to see how the rest of us were doing. Reno and the Silvers had
killed their target and were currently assisting Gregory with the
green monsters. There were only two of them left. Phil and his
group were still engaged with his mark. But the battle of most
concern was the one between Fortuna and Cristof. I saw a large
Silver wolf lying on the ground.

“
Dad, go check on Argent, I
think he is injured. Bernard, can you help Phil out?” Both gave me
nods and shifted back into wolf form. They were quickly on their
way to their destinations. “Liz, I think Cristof needs our
help.”

Cristof and the Red wolf
were in trouble. Fortuna had both of his swords out and was easily
keeping them at bay. We tried our best to get there in time, but
Fortuna was able to twirl his sword and cut down Maska. His cry in
the night was cut off by a final sword blow.

“
Noooooo!” I continued
running at him, letting my anger build in me and within reach I
jumped and tackled him. On top, I gave him a few solid punches, the
last one breaking away his mask. I stopped for a minute as his face
confused me. I saw an older man, one whose face and neck were
stitched up in multiple places. Taking advantage of my momentary
lapse in judgment, he pushed me to the ground and got back to his
feet. Cristof and Liz came up to me.

“
Vic, are you
okay?”

“
Yeah Liz, I’m
fine.”

Cristof, however was
staring down the old man. “You’re are still alive after all these
years.”

Liz stopped fawning over me
and looked at the old man too. Her gasp was sudden. “It cannot be.
How is it possible?”

His voice was barely above
a whisper and harsh. “Elizabeth, Cristof, the reports of my demise
were greatly exaggerated.”

I had no idea who we were
dealing with and let it be known. “So just who the hell are you and
why should I care?”

His laugh was the same as
it was the other night, a low grumble that sounded almost like
someone choking. “After all this time, I actually have come to
enjoy the quick wit you possess. It is a shame the late Warren
Tucker did not.”

“
What do you mean the late
Warren Tucker?” I turned to Liz, “Would someone tell me who this
is!”

“
Vic, allow me to introduce
the elder vampire, Baron Forte.”

I looked at him once again,
with a whole new level of respect. “It looks like someone tried to
cut your head off.”

“
That is a story for
another time. Now to answer your first question, Tucker’s
usefulness came to an end when he led me to you two, Elizabeth and
Cristof. Imagine my surprise to see Gregory as well, an added bonus
to this whole charade.”

“
So it was you pulling the
strings? You’re the Hammer of Jehovah?”

“
I am afraid to disappoint
you Victor, but that is not me. My job was to draw out and
eliminate the two elder vampires.” He pointed one of his swords
over to a body lying on the desert sand. “Now, as for Warren, I
despised him from day one and it was with great pleasure shortly
after the fighting commenced that I was able to end his
life.”

Sure enough, once I focused
and followed his scent, I saw Rev. Warren Tucker lying face up with
a knife protruding his chest. I didn’t even know what to
say.

“
Not enjoying this moment
of irony, Victor? I thought this would be a great parting gift to
give to you. I know how much you hated him as well.”

I composed myself, “Tucker
was a pathetic and desperate you were able to use. Killing him for
me brings no pleasure, only more disgust. Forte, I think it is time
for you to join him.”

Liz and Cristof shifted
their weights to get into fighting stances. Each of us with weapon
in hand prepared ourselves.

Forte did the same,
bringing his two swords into a ready position. “How fitting, the
three of you against me. En garde!”

Forte came at us hard and
fast. He easily had years of experience on all of us combined, and
his sword techniques were hard to match. I got the feeling the
night at the compound, he had been playing us. No matter that it
was three against one, he was able to block every strike and
counter with precision and speed. After parrying one of Liz’s
attacks, he gave her a swift kick to the midsection and she
collapsed.

“
Pathetic! Your father
would be so disappointed in how soft you have become.” Even in the
midst of berating her, he still was able to defend and attack. “And
you two are even worse. How the mighty have fallen
Cristof!”

His barbs at Cristof seemed
to have the desired effect. With his huge broadsword in hand, the
vampire leader started to attack with even more rage. With a moment
to breathe, I went over and helped Liz up.

“
He’s too good. Nothing I
do seems to even bother him.”

“
Considering he is well
over two thousand years old, the fact you are not dead yet is cause
for celebration. But we need to get back into the fight and keep
Cristof from going berserk.”

Without another word, Liz
drew the tanto and went back into the fray. I joined her as fast as
I could and did what I could. I also took the liberty of looking at
Cristof; I could see the rage building under his eyes, it was
starting to get a little scary.

“
Come great and mighty son
of Beowulf, show me what you can do!”

I don’t know if it was the
final taunt or just the fact he was tired of getting beat on, but
that was the straw that broke Cristof’s back. No longer were his
eye’s vampire red, but they were now black. He took a final huge
swipe at Forte and it knocked him back and down. The old man was
actually smiling.

“
Good, good! Fight me using
all your strength! Today shall be my greatest victory!”

Liz and I stood there like
dummies. Cristof ripped his shirt off and let loose a primal roar.
No more was he just a vampire, combined with his ancestral rage, he
became the destroyer.