Page 70 of Waifs And Strays
I crouched next to Nick’s body and tied a tourniquet around his upper arm to stop the blood flow. When I was certain it was secure, I gathered him into my arms. He felt like skin and bones; he’d definitely lost weight and I still wasn’t convinced that he’d pull through.
‘Hang on in there, Nick. Don’t lose that stubbornness of yours. Don’t let go. I’ve got you now.’
If he heard me, he didn’t react. I braced myself, told my hip sternly that it’d had its fun and now was not the time to falter, then staggered out of the basement room and down the carpeted hallway. I still had to get Nick’s limp body up the ladder and that would be far easier said than done.
I knew that the only way to get Nick up to the ground level was to place him in a fireman’s lift. In theory that was fine, but his arm would be dangling downwards when I needed to keep it raised to minimise any more blood loss.
I decided that fumbling around to find away to hoist up his arm wasn’t worth the time I’d lose, so I tensed my muscles, got Nick into position and powered up the ladder. Thankfully my leg and my hip, although brutally painful, didn’t give way. I heaved both of us clear of the ladder and adjusted Nick’s position, then I half-ran, half-staggered for the front door.
I emerged blinking in sunshine that felt incongruous after the basement. A ripple of shock and horror ran through the werewolves who had remained in position on the other side of the street.
A baker’s dozen of Wicker Witches were attending to the wolfsbane; clearly Alexander MacTire was prepared to spend whatever it took to get into the building. I knew from experience that these particular witches were far too concerned about their own safety to enter of their own accord; they didn’t go anywhere unless they knew exactly what to expect, which was one of the reasons that they were the most successful coven in Coldstream.
All thirteen of them stopped what they were doing to stare at me, tensing in case I presented a threat, but as soon as they realised they weren’t in danger they continued their work. Alexander MacTire was a different prospect. He ran as close to the wolfsbane as he could with Samantha at his heels. There was no sign of Thane.
‘Nick needs immediate medical attention,’ I shouted, stumbling past the magicked barrier. ‘But he’s still breathing.’
MacTire halted in front of me and held out his arms. I passed over Nick and he cradled his nephew in his arms as he hollered for help. Samantha gazed at me, bristling with tension. ‘What about the abductors?’ she asked, unable or unwilling to keep the snarl from her voice.
I was already turning away. ‘Most have been taken care of. They’re inside and incapacitated. There’s still one left.’
‘McCafferty! Wait!’
I didn’t have time to hang around and answer more of her questions. I darted back to the house; I was going to catch up to that damned vampire even if it killed me.
I pelted back down the hallway with as much speed as my throbbing hip allowed; the adrenaline released by my success in getting Nick into the arms of his family was over-riding my pain. I raced down the ladder and through the underground corridor to the basement prison.
The ogre was trying to sit up but as soon as I went into the room she sagged. ‘Make any move to escape,’ I told her calmly, ‘and I’ll make sure you live to regret it.’ Manoeuvring around her, I marched into the dark tunnel through which the vampire had made his escape. His head start was lengthy but it wasn’t insurmountable.
I was only a few steps down the tunnel when it became clear that it was nothing like the basement; this was the dank, smelly, rough-hewn hole that I’d expected earlier. After I’d run about fifty metres, however, I emerged into a larger tunnel and realised I was wrong. There was more to this place than met the eye.
There had been whispers among EEL employees for years that the city’s small population of vampires had their own way of getting around that avoided the nastiness of daylight. Some of my old colleagues had even made it a personal mission to find the hidden entrances to this supposed network of vamp tunnels. If any of them had found a way in, they hadn’t advertised it – even within the organisation, being secretive came with the job.
I’d never cared enough to search because I didn’t need to scuttle around underground to fulfil my contracts. I was a cat, not a mole.
As I looked around, I knew that I was in those vampire tunnels. The question was, which way to go next. I didn’t knowwhere the vampire had gone and there was no trail. I had a fifty-fifty chance of getting it right, so I chose to go left.
Mindful that I was still injured, I jogged rather than risking a sprint. For a while I knew roughly where I was, but soon the tunnel slanted to the right and forced me into a series of rapid twists and turns. Within fifteen minutes, I could have been anywhere underneath the city.
The darkness was disorientating. The ball of frustration grew in the pit of my stomach, especially as I had no idea whether the fucking vampire who’d orchestrated Nick’s abduction had already managed to escape. I was beginning to suspect that was the case – until I heard a faint whoosh.
I picked up speed and moved towards the source of the noise. I’m going to get you, I vowed. I’m going to make you pay for what you’ve done to Nick.
The tunnel curved around yet again and I saw an orange glow ahead. I gulped in air – and that was when a hand appeared out of the darkness and grabbed hold of me. I swung hard towards my assailant, prepared to fight for my life with every iota of strength I possessed, but then a familiar face swam into the gloom together with the heady scent of vetiver.
‘Friend,’ Thane hissed at me. ‘Not foe. Now keep quiet and stay here.’ He wrapped his arms around me and drew me into the darkness next to him.
A moment later the source of the light appeared and it took me everything I had to suppress my gasp. Even after all the years I’d been in Coldstream, I could still be surprised.
It was a worm, but not an earthworm or a bristle worm or a roundworm. It was at least as long as Thane was tall, and its girth matched that of a shire horse. Some sort of contraption was attached to its head with a single glowing lantern dangling behind it, though the light wasn’t for the worm’s sake since it was clearly blind. It appeared to be for its passenger because,perched side-saddle on top of its back and casually reading a book, was a female vampire dressed in a long cloak and flowing dress.
Neither of them glanced at us as they passed by. Soon the whooshing sound faded and the tunnel was dark again. I shook my head, amazed; it wasn’t so much the worm’s existence that surprised me but that it existed beneath my feet and I’d never known about it until now.
Thane’s voice was soft in my ear. ‘It’s how the vampires get around during the day if they need to. It’s not so much of a problem at this time of year when the sun sets early, but in the summer months they’d be trapped in their homes for most hours of the day without these tunnels and those creatures. Anyone who’s not a vampire isn’t supposed to be down here without an engraved invitation.’
I shook off my amazement and Thane dropped his arms so I could turn and face him. ‘What are you doing here?’ I asked, though it wasn’t an accusation. Actually, I was delighted that I was no longer alone.
‘I got to thinking about that house. Whoever was in there and took Nick had another way out, and it made sense that the escape route would be through these tunnels. Besides, who else would have the money, time and inclination to do all this other than a vampire?’
