Hunting My Vampire (Immortal Vampire #3)

Chapter 15

Kaya

When I arrived at the auto shop, I found Fuzz and Roberto in the workshop.

“What’s up, guys?” I asked, because something was clearly going on. They were both smirking like teenage boys and I wanted in on the joke.

Fuzz nodded in the direction of the street, where a young woman in a tiny skirt and ridiculously high heels was heading towards the auto shop.

“We were just watching her trying to park,” grinned Roberto. “It was hilarious!” He moved forward, “I take first dibs!”

“No,” I said sternly, “I’ll handle this.”

Miss Prom Queen came in, looking flustered and upset, complaining of her car making a “funny sound”. She tried to copy the whining sound, making all kinds of noises that did sound rather funny.

“I’ll bring it in, shall I?” Roberto offered, taking the keys and driving the car into the workshop.

While Fuzz took the young woman’s details, I established that it was part of the car’s exhaust that had come loose.

“I’ll fix it for you,” I said. “It should be done by the end of the day.”

“Thanks so much,” she gushed. “Madison said you were the best! I thought she was joking about there being a girl mechanic in town!”

“Nope, no joke,” I said.

We watched her sashaying out of the workshop, all smiles and giggles.

“Oh, you’re so pretty, are you really a mechanic?” teased Roberto, batting his eye lashes. I gave him a dirty look and Fuzz told him to get a move on with unloading some new car parts. He went to the front of the shop while I put Miss Prom Queen’s car on the lift and took a closer look at the exhaust system. I had barely started working, when I felt a shiver down my spine. I turned around, instinctively and noticed someone walking into the workshop.

I immediately realized that I was alone and that this was a bad thing. The man’s gait was slow and measured but there was something threatening about him. I felt it right away.

“Can I help you?” I asked, taking a rag to wipe my hands as I turned to meet him.

“I do believe you can,” he said, smiling at me. He was tall and thin, with icy blue eyes and an almost reptilian air about him. I had an urge to run as far as possible, as quickly as possible.

“I’ve heard so much about you and I’ve wanted to meet you for some time but my brother keeps hiding you away. I can see why, of course, you are absolutely gorgeous!” his smile widened and I couldn’t help but think of a snake, hissing at me, baring its fangs.

“You must be Simon, pleased to meet you,” I said, but I didn’t go any closer.

“The pleasure is all mine,” he said, his voice seductive. “Unfortunately, I have been called out of town on some business but when I get back we must do dinner or something. With Jack, of course,” he said after missing a beat.

I nodded, mumbling something about how that would be nice.

He nodded courteously at me, turned around and left.

I noticed that the sun was quite high and wondered how he was able to walk around without consequence. The malevolence that was coming off him was unmistakable. He meant me harm; I was convinced of it. Was this the reason why Jack always seemed to invite me over to the castle when his brother was out?

He had convinced me that his family was clean and the business was legal. I had no reason not to believe him. The family name was known in town and he was well-liked generally, but his brother was something else entirely.

My gut feeling was something I trusted instinctively and I knew I needed to watch my step. Simon’s dropping in was not a friendly visit, it had been a warning of sorts. I wanted to speak to Jack about it but I knew he was away on a business trip; it would have to wait.

In the meantime, I would get my weapons out of the bag in the back of the closet, where I had shoved it out of sight after quitting my job. I’d started this job, wanting a quiet life, trying to start over. I had a feeling that now that Simon knew where I worked, I would not be rid of him quickly. He did not look like the type who would let go easily. It was as if he had my scent in his nostrils now.

I finished up work as quickly as I could, knocking off early. I had been meaning to go to the supermarket to look for that woman who used to be in my mother’s tribe but I’d been too distracted with work and my new relationship with Jack. I was surprised by how well it was going; how easy it was to be together. I still didn’t know what to make of it but I was enjoying being with him. On nights when Princess was with me, he’d come over and help me tidy up the house, even helping her with homework. I watched them carefully but there was never anything to raise my suspicion. The girl appeared to be comfortable around him and he seemed to really like her. I felt more relaxed and couldn’t say if it was because of all the sex I was having or because of the experience in the desert but I was feeling less angry, that much was true.

When I reached the supermarket, I asked for Tamara and was told it was her day off. “She lives over there,” the girl behind the cash register offered, pointing across the road to an apartment above a clothing store.

I walked over, found the stairs and walked up to a door, knocking on it.

A heavyset woman in her fifties opened the door.

“Yes?”

“Are you Tamara?”

“Who wants to know?”

“I’m Kaya Lee, my mother was…” before I could continue, the woman opened the door wide and threw her arms around me.

“Monica!” she finished my sentence. “Your mother was Monica and your father was Tommy Lee! My God, you look just like her, come in! Come in!” The earlier hostility was gone and now she was falling over her feet to find me a place to sit. Her apartment was awry and could’ve used a good cleaning.

“I’m sorry about the mess,” she said with a shrug. “It’s my day off…” I saw the half-full bottle of whiskey and I could guess what she did all day. “How did you find me?”

I explained to her that I was trying to find out more about my family; that Tina had told me about her.

Tamara looked at me shrewdly. “I’m guessing there would be a reason for that. Tina is usually tight-lipped.”

I nodded and told her a brief overview of my history and the time I’d spent in the desert. How I was beginning to remember things and wished I knew more about my family.

“It is a sad story,” Tamara said, offering me whiskey and fetching me a glass.

“Monica was my friend,” she finally said. “I knew the day she met Tommy at that horse fair that I’d lost her. They’d fallen instantly in love. Nothing would keep them apart but the tribe didn’t want her to go.”

“Why?” Tamara shook her head but didn’t answer.

“Is it because she was sho’qa’i?”

“She was supposed to protect the tribe,” Tamara said, her voice urgent. “She knew that, but Tommy wanted her to leave, so she left.”

“Why did she have to protect the tribe?”

Tamara sighed and shook her head. “The Wak’aha’a kept horses and goats but our main work was mining the occillite.”

I had heard of occillite. It was a kind of mineral found in a specific mountainous area. When forged and mixed with steel, weapons of great strength and power could be crafted. I had learned about it during training. It killed the most savage beast, including the uber vampires; the oldest and most powerful creatures known to exist. The occillite rapier was one of the most expensive and rare weapons on earth and I had only seen one once.

“It was secret work, understand? We didn’t talk about it,” said Tamara. “We made blades, knives, that sort of thing and once every couple of months, someone would come to the city to sell them.”

“Who bought them?”

“There were special traders, weapons people, I don’t know who. We had to keep the work secret from the vampires who were always looking to destroy the mines.”

Tamara said, “After your mother left, we kept going for a while. There was a woman who was said to have some gifts. She was supposed to cast a spell of protection on us but it didn’t work.”

Tamara told me that some years after my mother left, she had accompanied the man taking a load of the occillite to town. When they returned some days later, the entire tribe was gone. Where their community had been, there was a huge mound of earth, like a rockslide. They had searched the ground, digging in the soil, but it was like the Wak’aha’a had disappeared without a trace. Their huts, their paddocks, even their animals, had all gone without a trace.

“We left as soon as we could. I came here because I had some friends here. They helped find a job for me.”

“And the man?”

“He’s gone, I don’t know where.” I had a feeling she was lying.

“What was his name?”

She looked at me. “Why do you want to know?”

I told her how my family was attacked, and my mother was killed. She had tears in her eyes when I told her how I had survived for days surrounded by dead family members. Then, later, how I almost died again and how I feared I was in danger again.

She nodded slowly. “You have the mark on you.”

She got up, signaling that our visit was at an end. “I will ask around, and I will let you know but you must be careful.”

“But things are quiet now?” I meant after the Wars, there was no more conflict; no bloody battles between vampires and humans.

Tamara shook her head. “Evil is everywhere,” her voice was barely louder than a whisper. “It hides in the dark and moves when no one sees. Don’t draw attention or make a noise. If they see you, they will pounce.”

I didn’t know what she was talking about.

Even though she sounded irrational and was probably drunk, I had a feeling she was not delusional.

She knew something and she was afraid.