Page 6 of Dark Stars
"Which warehouse?" Jones asked as theyreached the derelict, rundown end of town that had once been apretty busy blue-collar area but now was sort of languishing.Warehouses, workshops, other signs of the hard labor that was theunappreciated backbone of so much of society. Everything had movedto a different location, supposedly because of contamination in thesoil, but really because there was a nesting dragon in the groundthat would make radiation look like a picnic.
Thankfully, the eggs would hatch in six moremonths, and they'd get her and the children moved far, far away,and this part of town could come back to life.
Jones killed the engine. "So how do you wantto do this? Go in together, or do your skulking thing?"
Chapter Three
"Together, I don't think I need to do anysneaking. This poor hunter isn't all that."
Jones chuckled. "Yeah, I reckon not." Heclimbed out and settled his hat on his head, reaching up absentlyto touch the pendant tucked into his shirt, the bulge of itslightly visible. Green-ish stone, cut into a diamond shape, thetips and edges razor fine. When Bobby had decided to play human,his mother had gifted him three of the talismans. At the time, hehadn't understood why, but not long after meeting Harold and Jones,he'd gotten it: they were for his friends, so they could really andtruly be around him and not suffer harm from others simply becausethey were close to him.
He had one left to give, and felt therecipient would be appearing soon, though that could be wishfulthinking.
Though it was always a good time to slipthrough shadows to come up behind people and scare the life out ofthem—figuratively, though he'd done it literally too once—Bobbyopted for the more boring human method of using the door.
Jones followed behind him, which washilarious because with anyone else, Jones would insist on goingfirst. Even Harold, which would have pissed Harold off because hedidn't need protecting, least of all from Jones. They were sosilly.
"I know you're in here, hunter," Jones said."Ain't interested in trouble. I assume it's me you're looking for,as there ain't much else in town worth hunting."
Bobby snickered softly, the sound echoingthrough the empty warehouse.
Jones shot him a warning look.
A moment later, the scuff of shoes on thedirty concrete floor, and a man stepped into the splashes ofmoonlight coming through the skylights. "You're the vampire that'sa cop." The hunter's voice was warm, pleasant, deep but not overlyso, and he spoke in a loose, easy west coast accent. Californian,if Bobby had to guess.
"Sheriff, please and thanks," Jones drawled."Off duty right now. What are you doing creeping about an oldwarehouse if you already know so much about me?"
The man wrinkled his nose. "Was passingthrough and smelled dragon. Something weird about it though."
"Eggs," Bobby said. "Super rare for humansto come across, since they usually nest in more remote places."
"We got it handled," Jones added. "Ain't noneed for a trouble-causing hunter to come crashing throughhere."
"I told you I was just passing through," thehunter replied, irritation slipping into his voice. "I've got nointerest in you, vampire. I just wanted to investigate the dragon.I've never known a dragon to nest right in the middle of atown."
"These parts are peculiar," Jones replied."We got the dragon mess sorted, though, so it don't need murderingeither."
That made the hunter bristle even more, andhe strode across the warehouse to them, stopping half a dozen pacesshy or so. Too close, if they were a threat. The hunter lookedyoung, though, even younger now that he was closer.
He had light brown skin and russet microcurls trying to escape the knot he'd drawn them into. Like any goodhunter, he had an assortment of weapons on him, from a gun at hisleft hip to all manner of arcana-laden jewelry. His eyes wereamber, sparkling with banked arcana, so he must be more than alittle proficient with it despite the fact they'd initially thoughthe wasn't much of anything. He was pretty, someone the girls wouldsigh over and the boys wouldn't know what to do with. His jeans fithim well, and he wore the heavy boots that seemed to be part of aninformal hunter's uniform, along with the fitted t-shirt andleather jacket.
Not more than twenty-five though, from hisflavor. Broadly an adult by human measure, but so very young inBobby's eyes.
"I'm not a fucking mercenary, asshole," thehunter replied. "I deal with problems, not people trying to exist.Why are you so—" He stopped, eyes landing on Bobby, narrowing."What in the hell are you wearing?"
Bobby laughed. "A collar, and it's none ofyour business." He pushed the words, voice thrumming with thebarest shred of power, just a small taste that encouraged thehunter to shrug and lose interest.
Human minds were easy to manipulate. Easy tobreak. Easy to put back together in all the wrong ways. It wasn't,however, his favorite thing to do. Well, it was if they deservedit, but humans that atrocious were actually pretty rare.
Also, going around freely manipulating mindsmade it hard for anyone to trust him, and he valued the trust ofhis little humans deeply.
"Sorry we all came out here for nothing,"Jones replied. "Where you staying the night, hunter?"
"That B&B with the, uh, interestingpaint job."
Bobby snickered, and Jones sighed. "Come on,then, glad this amounted to a whole lot of nothing."
Knowing Jones, he wouldn't rest easy untilthe hunter was well out of town.
