Tomorrow's Dead: The Julia Poe Vampire Chronicles (16 page)

“We can get you a room right now.”

“No.  I like it here.  If you’re busy you can go.”

“I’m staying with you, Julia Poe,” he said while combing her hair with his fingers. 
“Go to sleep.”

Sainvire stared at Poe’s face the entire six hours she slept on the chairs.  He caressed
her mouth and soft skin and sighed throughout the night.  The operation had been going
on for 12 hours.  The helicopters wouldn’t fly to San Diego until noon.  With disappointment
Sainvire shook Poe awake.

“Wake up, Julia.  It’s time to get ready.”  He smiled when Poe, her eyes puffy from
sleep, pivoted up quickly in a daze.  “You can use my office.”

“Any news?”

“Not yet.”

“Sorry I was such a bother,” she said in her husky voice.  “I didn’t want to be alone
last night.”

Sainvire reached for her right cheek and gently caressed it with his thumb.  “Don’t
mention it.  That’s what friends are for.”

***

An hour later Michelle outfitted Poe with incendiaries and extra gun clips.  The leadership
decided Poe was to be lowered to the roof of the Gas and Electric building to spot
snipers.  She was given a long-range rifle and a semi-automatic.  She wore her hooded
coat and waited for helicopters to land.

“You good, Poe?” asked Maple as they stood outside the hotel steps.

“Yeah.  What about you?  Aren’t you coming?”

“I’m in charge when Sainvire’s gone.  I’m the Guardian now.”

“Sounds pretty cool,” said Poe, grinning.  “You and Perla okay?”

“We understand each other now.  Perla was shaken by what you did that night.  She
realized that murder wasn’t in her sphere.  She asked to work with us.”

Michelle called her name, beckoning Poe inside the hotel.  “What’s up, Michelle? 
Decide to stick me on dish duty?”

Michelle looked odd and didn’t smile at her joke.  “Poe.  Sainvire wants you at the
waiting room.  Morales is there, too.”

Poe’s breakfast threatened to escape, so she took a deep breath.  She deliberately
walked slowly but promptly reached the sitting room anyway.  Morales looked fatigued
in his white coat.  He’d been in surgery for over 15 hours.  Sainvire stood next to
T-Doc with his hands behind his back.

“Poe,” began Morales.  “I need to—”

The girl interrupted.  “No.  No.  Don’t tell me anything.  Anything at all.  I’m gonna
do this thing in San Diego, and when I come back you can tell me, okay?”

Poe began backing away.  “Please, Poe.  I need to tell you this,” pleaded Morales.

“Don’t worry about it.  Take a nap.  I’ll be back tonight alright,” Poe said hastily. 
“I really appreciate you, Sam Morales, for being such a swell guy.  I’ll see you later.” 
With that, Poe ran outside where Maple stood with Rufus.  She really didn’t want to
know the prognosis.  The helicopters were parked in a row outside the hotel on 5
th
Street.  She shoved her shaking hands in the pockets of her coat.  As far as she
was concerned, Maclemar was in generous health.

A bad report could wait.  She didn’t need to hear terrible news before the mission. 
If it was good news then it would be three times the sweeter to hear when she returned. 
She climbed inside Rufus’ bird and prayed she wouldn’t vomit her food. 
James Maclemar, be alright please.  For me.  I don’t ever want to live alone again.

She stared at Sainvire’s dark head as he sat next to Rufus during the flight.  He
was staring out the window with a pensive look on his face.  His once broken nose
marred his profile.  Poe never minded such a bent for it made the vampire more human. 
More approachable.  Sainvire was reliable to the end, but never with their personal
relationship.  Whenever she was in a bind, though, Sainvire had always been around. 
She imagined him dropping everything for her if she lost Maclemar, but she knew his
obligations would always take precedence. 

Anticipating Maclemar’s death, she bit her lip, drawing blood.  She’d rather have
had one Maclemar than a hundred Sainvires.  She decided to stay in the city if Maclemar
came back in perfect shape.  His mischievous green eyes and crooked grin thawed her
heart every time.  The way he looked at her as if she was the only woman alive for
him made her feel special.  They shared scars on their bodies and souls that no one
else would understand.  “I worship everything about your body, beauty,” he’d say when
she tried to hide the lashing scars on her back.  “We came out scarred, but not cowed.”

Maclemar wanted children.  This she knew even though he’d said nothing of his wish. 
The way he’d lay his ear on her stomach or kiss her belly made her sad.  She never
wanted children to be brought to this crazy infernal earth, but for Maclemar, Poe
believed she would consider the idea.  If only her body had been cooperative. 

Sainvire turned his head toward her and beamed.  Poe blinked as if surprised.  She’d
been burning a hole through his head, and the vampire had sensed it.  She smiled until
her dimples resurfaced.  Certainly it was possible to love two men at the same time. 
If up to her, she would’ve collected a small harem of her own.

Two minutes before noon, Rufus’ chopper landed on the roof.  Soon after, two helicopters
flanked the Gas and Electric Building.  A couple blocks away, the other three choppers
edged the second orphanage on Horton Plaza.  Poe alighted from the chopper along with
the flying Tunics blinking away wind and dust.  She didn’t follow them down to the
orphanage but stayed on the roof and propped up her Barrett M107 rifle.  The M107
fired the hugely powerful .50 caliber ammunition that would obliterate anything in
its way.

“Be safe, Poe,” was all Sainvire said before following the rest into the building.

The first bullet targeting the helicopter on the ground originated from one of the
ramshackle buildings next to the orphanage.  Poe closed one eye and focused on the
telescopic sight.  She fired once and heard a distant scream.  Movement from the curtains
a few feet from the first sniper caught Poe’s eye.  She pulled the trigger and the
movement ceased. 

“Here.  You might need this,” said Rufus.  He handed her a megaphone.  “Maybe you
can let them know that you and Sainvire are here.  Scare the living shit out of them.”

“Thanks, Rufus.”  Poe scanned the streets again for any sign of misdoings.  The Tunics
left the building carrying babies followed by an orderly line of kids, ages ranging
from six to thirteen, holding hands.  The vampire eradicator lifted up the bullhorn
and switched it on. 

“Hello.  Hello.  Is this thing working?”

Rufus yelled, “Yes!” and Poe continued.  “Er, this is Julia Poe, your Public Enemy
Number Two.  We’re here to rescue the kids and take home as many Custodians—”  Her
eye, still focused on the lens detected three men exiting one of the buildings and
waving a gun.  Poe pulled the trigger three times and downed the men before they could
injure anyone.

Poe lifted the megaphone to her lips once more but kept a vigilant watch for more
stragglers.  “Erm, this is Julia Poe again.  I shot those three guys by the way. 
If you interfere with our helicopters, I will shoot you dead.  That’s right, I’m a
sure shot, and I’ve killed hundreds.  Don’t fool with me.   I’m here with Kaleb Sainvire,
Public Enemy Number One.  He can walk in the sun, fly, mangle with his talons, and
strike with many other scary powers you don’t have.  Let us do our job and save these
kids.  You don’t really want to eat them anyway.”

She dropped the megaphone and paid attention to the people spilling out on the street. 
Most of them looked human, but Poe couldn’t tell if some were day vamps or leeches. 
The custodians were easy to spot because they were the non-white folks  waving flyers
around.

“Custodians, stay on the left hand side.  I mean your right hand side.  Leeches and
sun vamps, stay on the left,” Poe ordered.  She turned to Rufus and said, “You better
get your bird down there.  Pick up the custodians only.”  The halfdead nodded and
hopped inside his copter.

Poe’s eye, focusing on the scope, was getting disoriented.  She observed at least
a dozen of Sainvire’s people walking the perimeter of the orphanage.  The copters
that were filled to capacity took off and flew away, leaving Rufus to load up as many
custodians as he could pack and fly them to the boats manned by soldiers and Tunics. 

The vampire killer grunted when a group of liberated blood slaves obscured her view
of the surrounding buildings.  Two spare choppers carrying more custodians than Poe
had expected lifted from the street.  “There’s no room for us,” said Poe out loud. 
“We’re gonna be stuck here.”

Poe forced herself to concentrate on the scope.  People of San Diego could probably
have cared less that she was Julia Poe.  Once they saw her small size they’d laughed
their asses off.

The leeches and day vamps who filed into the street suddenly tangled with Sainvire’s
people.  Shots rang. 

Breathing deeply, Poe fired first at the day vamps who were out to break bones.  She
hit two dead and missed two more.  Before she could fire on the dead that wore a wifebeater,
Sainvire appeared in time for his nails to elongate and decapitate the predator. 
As fast as vampirely possible, Sainvire went through the line of sun vamps and sliced
them like deli meat with his talons. 

She concentrated on three leeches busy kicking a soldier down and popped their heads
off.  She fired until there was no .50 caliber ammunition left.  She’d no choice but
to join the action on the street.  Poe assumed that the children at the orphanage
had all been extracted safely.  Tossing the sniper rifle in the trees, Poe climbed
down a fire escape. 

By the time she reached the streets, the widespread fear of Kaleb Sainvire’s diamond-sharp
talons temporarily restored order.  Rufus and another helicopter pilot landed once
more to transport another two loads to the boats.  In the meantime Poe stood by Sainvire
and waited for Michelle and Joseph to join them.  The two were in charge of clearing
out the second orphanage.

“Faring okay, Poe?” asked Sainvire.  The intensity of his eyes showed more broadly
in the daylight where anything could go wrong.

“Fine.  You heard me on the megaphone?” she asked with a lift of the device.  “No
one paid attention to me.  Not scared of me at all.”

“Well I’m scared of you, if that counts.”

Poe grinned.  “Yeah.  That counts double trouble.  You mind if I leave you now?  I
got work to do.”  Before he could say anything, Julia Poe fled from his sight toward
the old courthouse.  Sainvire was shorthanded, so he couldn’t follow the girl.  Vamps
and halfdead with serious firepower had come out of the woodwork. 

“Julia!  Come back here!” he ordered to no avail.  It wasn’t until 10 minutes later
when Michelle, Joseph, and their team arrived that Sainvire was able to leave.  “If
we’re not back in 20 minutes, leave us.  We’ll find our way home.”

“What’s going on, Kaleb?” asked Joseph.

“Long story, but the little one wants to make an example of the House of Runer for
hurting her man.”

In his estimation about 30 leeches had been killed.  As for sun vamps, he counted
20.  The numbers weren’t as high as expected, and the undercount made him tense.  
In the back of his mind the bastards were looking down at them from innumerous angles. 
And there was Poe, full of vendetta in a city that wasn’t even her own.

***

The entrances to the courthouse were shut.  Poe had no choice but to unpin a grenade
and toss it at a doorway.  She ran a few feet and hid behind a tree until the explosion
destroyed the door
.  Let the air clear then go
, she told herself. 
Don’t get yourself killed over stupid little details
.

Two petrified Mexican American women in their forties stood inside.  “Ladies.  If
you want to go to Los Angeles, then hustle toward the Gas and Electric building right
now!”  To jar them out of their stupor Poe waved her gun like she was swatting a fly. 
The women nodded and bounded out the blasted door.

The redhead San Diegan had disclosed that Runer chose the courthouse for his home
because he was afraid of heights.  He also warned that no less than nine halfdead
protected him while he slept.  She could hear footsteps upstairs.  “Terrified bat
shit,” said Poe who wasn’t all wrong.  The halfdead were reluctant to come down after
such an explosion.  Since Poe couldn’t wait anymore, she walked up a staircase to
the biggest courtroom and found an Ethan Allen paradise instead of benches and gavels. 

In the center slept Runer on a twin bed with Star Wars sheets.  The vamp looked like
John Travolta in the ’70s.  Poe pulled the sleeping vampire who had tried to assassinate
Maclemar and her until he slid off his bed and banged his head on the cement floor. 
With the sheet she pulled him toward the front door, but she didn’t expect six out
of nine halfdeads to have the balls to face her.  All six carried handguns.

“Let’s end this production, shall we?” said Poe in exasperation.  “This loser tried
to get me killed, and you bloodfuckers are keeping me from frying him dead.”

The men looked at each other, stumped, so Poe shot four of them in succession.  “You
guys, too?” she asked.  Like frightened idiots they threw their guns on the floor
and raised their arms.  

Poe sighed.  Her back was aching from trying to drag the dolt out of the courthouse.

“You four, get this scum outside.  He needs to sunbathe,” she ordered the frightened
halfdeads.  They quickly obeyed. 

San Diego was a community of 700, but Poe never thought the people could be so senseless
and stupid.  The men yanked Runer through the charred door and to the courthouse steps. 
She could already hear him sizzling behind her.  She thanked the halfdead for their
help and dismissed them.  Tired and a little sweaty from the exercise, Poe sat down
on a stoop and watched the master vampire crackle.  Sainvire found her breathing hard
from her task.