Chapter 91

As Jamie moved to draw the vampire off of the top of his partner, he took in what appeared to be some form of a mutant creature. Either that or this monster was so old he had shriveled with time. He must’ve been only four and half or five feet tall in his present form, his skin a grayish pall in the little moonlight streaming down the stairwell. He had tufts of hair atop his misshapen, oblong head, and when he turned to snarl at Jamie, his teeth protruded from a dark hole of a mouth. His eyes were red and seemed to glow, and Jamie would’ve thought he was a demon if the familiar churn in his gut didn’t tell him this was, in fact, a vampire.
He noticed right away that Kit was injured. Blood poured down her forehead from where she’d collided with the shelf. Additionally, the long, razor sharp fingernails of the creature had torn the soft flesh of her underarm even beneath her dress and jacket. Nevertheless, Kit fought to free herself, pulling a knife from a sheath at her waist and stabbing at the monster.
The silver tip did more to injure the vampire than the cuts themselves, and each time Kit’s blade made contact with him, he screeched, but he did not let go. Jamie noticed his gray uniform seemed to be thin with age, and he wondered how many decades this beast had been wearing the same outfit. He didn’t pause to take in too much of the macabre sight in front of him as he did his best to grab the bloodsucker from beneath his armpits and lift him off of the woman on the floor.
The creature was stronger than Jamie had anticipated, and he bucked, arching his back and trying to break free as Jamie held on tightly and Kit used the shelf to pull herself up to standing. She stumbled once, almost landing on the ground again, and Jamie attempted to get his hands into position so that once she was fully recovered, perhaps they could tear the monster’s head off.
He wouldn’t get the chance, however. The beast stopped with his endeavors to throw Jamie off of his back and drove a sharp elbow into the Guardian’s ribcage instead. Stunned, Jamie lost his breath momentarily, giving the vampire the opportunity to free himself from captivity. With only a backward glance, he took off, headed to the stairwell and freedom.
“My gun!” Kit shouted, dropping back to her knees and feeling around on the ground for the only weapon they’d have available to them that could take out the creature at this distance. “I can’t find it!”
Jamie surveyed the area and quickly spotted the revolver in one of the many holes along the ground. He would only have a moment to grab the weapon and discharge it before the monster was gone. He’d never fired a gun at a vampire before, but he supposed it couldn’t be all that difficult. Scooping it up off of the ground, he took aim at the creature who had reached the top of the stairs and squeezed the trigger.
“Careful!” Kit shouted, but it was too late. Once the weapon discharged, Jamie went flying backward with such force, when he slammed into one of the timbers holding the floor above them in place, the entire house shook. Dust and debris rained down on them, and once again, he found himself breathless. For a moment, his head smarted and his back ached, but he was able to heal himself quickly enough.
Once he’d regained his composure, he took a moment to return his attention to the Vampire. “Did I get him?” he asked. He could no longer see the monster.
“You did,” Kit assured him. “That must’ve been the infamous Col. Gage. No need to sweep up any of his ash, though,” she noted, holding out her hand to catch some of the flakes still falling from above them.
Jamie hauled himself up off of the floor and dusted off his backside and then his shoulders. “Well, that was unexpected.”
Despite the blood trickling down her face, Kit laughed. “Which? The vampire or the revolver?”
“Both,” Jamie admitted. “Let me see your face.”
“Not just yet,” Kit replied, already heading toward the stairs. “There could be others more seriously injured who may need your assistance.”
Jamie couldn’t argue with her if he couldn’t catch her, so he headed up the steep steps behind her. Once they reached the top, they were both surprised to hear the music played on. “Perhaps they need our assistance,” Kit noted, and Jamie agreed, heading toward a door on the back porch. He assumed by now his teammates would’ve had a handle on the vampire revelries.
The door led to a small attached kitchen space where they saw no one. Kit had her gun back now, the weapon in her hand, pointed up but ready to fire. They made eye contact and headed forward.
Once Jamie stepped through the swinging doors that led to the parlor, everything around him changed. It was as if they’d stepped into a nightmare. Everywhere he looked, vampire couples danced, their pale skin glowing in the candlelight, their fangs protruding. Ball gowns dating back hundreds of years twisted and twirled alongside tails as macabre partners made their way across the black and white marble dance floor.
“Where the hell is everyone?” Jamie asked, stepping between ghastly couples. Kit did not answer, and he turned to see her more bewildered than he’d ever noticed before. He imagined this must be more than a bit terrifying. There had to be nearly fifty Vampires in the room, and from what he could see, she was the only Hunter, though none of them seemed to pay her any mind at all.
They should’ve had teammates already on this floor. Jamie thought perhaps there were other rooms, but the parlor led to a grand staircase, and it seemed as if all was quiet on the upper floors as well. Where were the rest of their allies?
“Maybe they retreated,” Kit said quietly in his ear. “I think we should go.”
Jamie realized there was no way to tell if the rest of the team had decided it was too dangerous to stay in the house and exited while he and Kit were in the cellar. “I think that is a fine idea,” he said, and Kit began to back up, heading back the way they’d come.
Just as she was about to step into the hallway that led back toward the kitchen, the quick paced waltz that had filled the room screeched to a stop. Violins shrieked and the piano reverberated in a missed chord. The room around them became eerily silent and fifty pairs of undead eyes fell upon them.
As if rehearsed, the vampires squared their shoulders and shifted so that they were side by side in a ring of pale death. In unison, they bared their teeth, fangs protruding, and their clawed hands shot up at the ready. Even the daintiest of debutants, dressed in a light pink damask dress, became a demon from hell.
Jamie felt Kit clutch his arm. “Jamie!” she said in a sharp whisper. “We can’t….”
“We don’t have to kill them all,” he reminded her in a steady voice, his arm up in a defensive stance. “We only have to get you out of this house alive.”
“Is that all?” he could feel her trembling against him and realized it would be easier said than done.
Jamie withdrew a long blade from his waistcoat. “Get back!” he shouted. The Vampires hissed and took a collective step forward. “How many bullets do you have?”
“Not enough.” Kit’s voice sounded meek, and he thought she might be crying. This was not the brave Hunter he had known for so long, but he couldn’t blame her. And while he knew the bloodsuckers could not kill him, they could inflict enough pain to make him wish he’d never made the costly mistake of interrupting their party.
“What do we do?” Kit asked, her body still shaking with fear.
Before Jamie could answer, the death marchers took another step closer. They seemed to be enjoying this new dance as much as they had the waltz that had just ended. While none of their ghoulish faces stretched into smiles, he could see a glint of amusement in the black eyes staring at him.
“We go out the back,” Jamie said. “When I count to three, turn so your back is to me, and head for the door. Take out as many as you can, and I’ll be just behind you.”
“All right then,” Kit quaked.
“One… two….” The monsters took another step forward so that Jamie could reach out and touch the putridly pale flesh of their faces. “Three!”
He lurched forward, swinging the knife around in an arch, making contact with a woman with raven hair, slicing into her arm and then catching her dance partner in the chest as well. Both of them shrieked as their flesh began to bubble up around the melted areas where he’d sliced them with the silver blade. Behind him, he heard three quick shots, followed by shrieks. Bo was right about one thing; Kit was a deadeye. The Vampires seemed caught off guard at first by the brazen actions of the Hunter and her Guardian, but as soon as the initial shock was over, the mass moved forward, and it was all Jamie could do to fend off the attackers as he attempted to help Kit clear a path to the door behind them.