True Believer (Dark Reflections) Read online

  True Believer

  by Dean Murray

  Copyright 2011 by Dean Murray

  "What's got you so jittery? It isn't like you haven't killed people before."

  Adam resisted the urge to pull a knife and cut James up. There were actually a number of different reasons not to mix things up with James. Firstly he was Alec's right hand man, and Adam was sworn to Alec's service. Also, because the shape shifter was nearly strong enough to bench press the small car they were sitting in.

  "Pulling the trigger to end some terrorist from half a mile away is different than walking into a club and blowing away some civilian."

  "You're right. All that crap in the sandbox was just a bunch of humans working themselves into killing frenzies. Mostly so some tycoons could add some zero's to the end of their portfolio. This actually matters."

  Despite his relative youth, Adam had spent more time in war zones than he sometimes liked to think about. He was used to being around high-testosterone alpha types; he wasn't used to being the runt of the litter. When it came to the supernatural beings he was currently running with, he was definitely outclassed.

  "So you say. What proof do I have that this woman is really a threat? For all I know it's just one more move in the long process of adding zeros to Alec's net worth."

  "You're not very trusting are you? Listen, there are good reasons for Alec to be amassing a net worth that ultimately will compete with the Rothschilds'. You're not ready to know the full details, but he's not one to amass wealth just for the purpose of amassing wealth."

  James pulled out a .45 and racked the slide. "Doesn't really matter though does it? You're sworn to obey Alec, so you'll do whatever he wants you to do."

  Adam shook his head at the proffered pistol. "I'll use my own weapon. With regards to the rest, I'll go in, but my oath doesn't extend to murder. If I find things other than you explained, I'll hunt you down."

  A lazy shrug was James' only response, so Adam nudged his door open and pulled himself out of the car. Just before he swung the door closed, James leaned over.

  "Don't forget she's going to be hard to kill. Unless you can see daylight through her chest, or you've decapitated her, there's no guarantee a vampire is really dead."

  The Kahr nine millimeter hanging inside of Adam's belt, just in front of his hip, was scant comfort as he handed the bouncer a twenty and walked into what seemed to be one of the inner circles of hell. Everywhere he turned hot, sweaty humanity pressed up against him, and the throbbing bass could have easily been mistaken for some kind of torture device.

  The general atmosphere of the club would have been plenty disturbing, but the way every third person or so had fake blood smeared over their clothing and skin took things to a whole new level.

  A slim, barely dressed, twenty-year old blond draped herself across him just before he passed the bar.

  "I'm not looking to make any friends, sweetie."

  "Neither am I, at least not with you, but you smell like money, so you're my best chance of making it into the VIP lounge."

  Adam nearly stumbled. The over-caffeinated redhead that Alec had sent to take him shopping up and down Fifth Avenue apparently knew her stuff. Ditching the blond briefly crossed his mind and then was rejected. He was less threatening with a companion and he could always lose her before carrying out the actual hit.

  "Alright, I'll play along. Why the VIP lounge, and what makes you think I can even get us in?"

  "What, are you stupid? I want in the VIP lounge because that's where all of the money is. People who know people, important people. I just need one movie producer or music executive to notice me and I'm in, I'll have it made. As for you getting us in, this club is all but run by Victoria Altershaw. She's always on the lookout for a tasty dish, so the bouncers tend to let blond guys like you in easier than girls. If it were any other club I wouldn't need you."

  "Then why come here?"

  "Word on the street is that this is the place to be. Victoria's got the most buzz right now, which means anyone who's anyone is trying to get in."

  Adam shrugged, "Ok, let's see if we can get past the gatemen."

  The velvet ropes at the other end of the floor were manned by two men nearly as big as Alec, and Adam felt his internal alarms go off as they looked him over. It wasn't that they suspected him of anything, or even that they were anything more than human. He'd been around Alec and James long enough now to have picked out the tingling hum in the back of his head that identified them as shape shifters. These guys were plain old fashion Homo sapiens, but they were still dangerous in the way that few people ever actually achieved. It stretched the definition of coincidence to believe that this Victoria employed two psychopaths without realizing what they were, but it was still too early to make any decisions on the truth of James' information.

  The bruiser on the right waved them past and Adam walked through hoping that the sudden tenseness to his movements could be mistaken for simple nervousness, much like the blond had mistaken their lingering gazes for the kind of simple appreciation most men felt when looking at such a taut body.

  The sight woke the protective instinct Adam usually kept deeply buried, and he had to suppress an urge to hold onto the blond as she skipped away into the near darkness. The hall between the bouncers and the VIP room served as a kind of demilitarized zone between the warring DJ's at the same time that it concealed the VIP room from the prying eyes of those not judged worthy.

  After doubling back a couple of times, Adam finally arrived. The blond was already at the bar, talking to a dark-haired guy who wore shades despite the dimness of the lighting. Adam had only taken a single step into the VIP area before another girl attached herself to him. This was a pale brunette who looked anorexic as compared to the healthy thin build of 'his' blond.

  "First time here."

  "Yes, I've heard good things though, so it seemed like time to come check it out."

  She shook her head, "It wasn't meant as a question. If you'd walked through the door before now I'd remember. Look, there are a few house rules you need to keep in mind. The covered alcoves are off limits unless you're accompanied by one of the staff."

  She gestured to a small crescent earing hanging from one ear. "Anyone wearing a crescent moon is to be obeyed instantly, and if you ever come into the club wearing a moon anywhere about your person, you'll find things will be very unpleasant. Victoria doesn't like people pretending to be part of the house."

  Adam shrugged, "I'm the last person you'll need to worry about causing trouble. How do I go about getting an introduction to Victoria?"

  "That will come when and if Victoria decides it's appropriate. For now just enjoy the club."

  Adam nodded, watched the brunette walk away, and then moved over to the bar. The music precluded anything resembling a conversation, so he just gestured to the tap and passed over a wad of bills. Getting stuck in with any kind of craziness was a bad idea while impaired, so Adam nursed his one drink as he watched the flow of people back and forth across the floor.

  The brunette was a key piece. She wasn't the very top of the food chain, but she gave plenty of orders and nearly every person she talked to jumped right to it.

  It wasn't until the shaded guy waved her over that Adam realized 'his' blond's companion was one of the real movers and shakers. Once he had that bit of information, it was only a matter of time.

  At some point one of the peons that Shades or Skeleton girl had been ordering around, would arrive with an order for them. Another hour passed. Adam had to politely fend off three more inquiries from interested women, and then it happened. Shades abandoned the blond to walk over to one of the three curtained alcoves.

 
A few minutes later, Shades reappeared, gave orders to a few of the staff, and then returned to the blond.

  Fairly sure he knew either the location of Victoria, or her most trusted Lieutenant, Adam was considering his next step when the skeletal brunette walked over.

  "Well played. Not many men resist the charms of Amy when she sets her mind to capturing their attention. You've caught Victoria's notice. Come with me."

  There was another big bruiser outside the alcove. Adam hadn't been sure he was like the two out front until he got closer. Things weren't looking good for this Victoria.

  The curtain turned out to be a series of curtains which concealed a room that was larger than Adam had expected. A sound from behind him brought him around; it was Shades and the blond, who was giggling at something.

  Skeleton Girl waved them all forward, Adam and the blond followed the other two to the far end of the room. A redhead, presumably Victoria, was waiting for them. She was sprawled out on a gigantic bed, watching a host of closed circuit video feeds. She looked up at Shades, who was suddenly behind the blond, restraining her.

  "This is the one you want, Tanner? Really?"

  "Yes mistress. She'll provide a nice diversion from the boredom."

  "Very well, you want her back here presumably?"

  At Shades-Tanner's nod, Victoria pulled herself up and leaned forward, Tanner forced the blond down so that her face rested in Victoria's hands. Victoria was nearly as skeletal as the brunette, but somehow once her hands clamped down on either side of the blond's face, the blond became completely motionless.

  "Ah yes, you won't fight Tanner or I, and you won't talk about what happens here, but you'll be compelled to come back frequently."

  It was no less incredible than people shedding their forms to become monsters, but somehow mind control was a whole new level of alarming. Adam considered turning and running, but the brunette somehow had her arms around him. He should have been able to break free easily, nobody with such little body mass could possibly have stopped him, but her arms were like steel cables.

  "There, there. No reason to be alarmed, Victoria just wants to talk to you."

  Adam slammed his heel down on the brunette's instep at the same time that he threw his head back. Either blow should have been sufficient to break her hold, but neither landed. The brunette clucked in disapproval and then Tanner hit him in the stomach. The blow looked casual, but his hands moved faster than Adam could follow and hit harder than Adam had ever been hit before.

  Tanner took ahold of the blond's arm and then called back as he led her out of the alcove. "You're fast, but humans don't hit vampires, the blows only go one way."

  Adam managed to pull himself back upright despite the pain, just in time to see Victoria slide over to his side of the bed. Moving just as fast as Tanner, her hands flashed out and grabbed the sides of his head.

  Adam tried to struggle again, but she was just too strong, and then there was something inside of his mind.

  He'd never experienced anything like it, but he had absolutely no doubt that Victoria was swimming around in his thoughts, brushing up against the bits and pieces of what made Adam who he was.

  The pressure built as Victoria forced her will upon him. Adam could vaguely hear her muttering, but he didn't need words to understand what she was doing to him. Each imperative was both more and less than simple words.

  Obey, forget, serve.

  For the briefest moment the mental orders were a vice around his thoughts, and then as Victoria slipped out of his mind, he felt something rise to the surface of his thoughts, and the vice shattered into insignificant pieces.

  Sheer shock stopped Adam from moving until after the skeletal brunette had left. Victoria watched him for several seconds before cocking her head to the side.

  "Most don't interpret the compulsion so strictly. You are going to be able to talk aren't you?"

  Adam wondered for a moment why he hadn't screamed earlier when she was inside his mind before remembering that despite the damping effects of the curtains, out on the floor the music was turned up loud enough to drown out gunshots. His voice felt rusty when he went to use it.

  "I can talk; I'm just not sure what to say right now."

  "Ah, good. That's actually much preferable. That means you're likely to start in on the questions before long, but I actually prefer the questions to the endless whining you get with the ones that open their mouth as soon as the compulsion is set."

  Adam took a deep breath, almost surprised that his lungs were working properly. "Why me?"

  "That's an easy one, you're attractive and self-possessed. I get plenty of the former down here, but relatively few of the latter. Despite an obvious inclination that direction, you didn't fall for the many charms of the other women in the club, which means you're more disciplined than expected, almost too disciplined to be spending your time in a club. In short, you're a puzzle, and I love puzzles."

  Another look around the room revealed that the closest closed circuit televisions provided a feed of the other two alcoves, and Tanner and the blond had just entered one of them.

  "What will Tanner do to her?"

  "Interesting, do you have some kind of attachment to her? Was that why you resisted Amy, you had your heart set on that one?"

  "No, I'd never met her before tonight. I'm just curious."

  Victoria slid back up into a sitting position, engaged once again.

  "I think you might be lying. No matter though, you'll still serve your intended purpose. To answer your question, he's going to feed on her. It's really quite exciting. Tanner is old enough that he can sometimes forgo the kill, but young enough he sometimes can't help himself. He wants to keep this one around for now though, so it will be interesting to see if he's able to exercise the self-restraint required to do so."

  "You talk as though her life is less important than the information you'll gain if Tanner kills her."

  "In the grand scheme of things, that's correct. I am surrounded by enemies. Even my erstwhile allies would turn on me if given the chance. I must constantly test their strength if I'm to maintain the security of my position."

  "Surely there's another way. You could leave all this and not be forced to continually guard your position."

  Victoria shook her head, expression one of an adult trying to explain the obvious to a child.

  "Don't mistake me, plaything. I don't necessarily revel in killing humans, any more than the rancher enjoys killing coyotes, but I do enjoy the game. If the price of growing my power base is killing a few humans, then I'll gladly pay it."

  Adam felt a cold rage flickering down somewhere around his stomach. He looked back up in time to see Victoria turn her gaze toward the monitors again.

  "Early days still, but the way Tanner is getting started doesn't particularly bode well for your little blond."

  Everything Adam had seen yelled that resistance would be suicide. Victoria was both stronger and faster than he was, and from what James had said earlier, harder to kill as well. The smart thing would be to play along, wait until Victoria was vulnerable and then shoot her from behind.

  Adam knew all of that, and yet his left hand swept his shirt out of the way at the same time that his right pulled the 9mm out of its holster.

  Either Victoria had been more distracted than he'd given her credit for, or she'd been incredibly complacent in her knowledge that Adam was entirely her creature. The weapon was three-quarters of the way up before she sprang off of the bed.

  Adam was a long-distance expert, not a close quarters combatant, but even he could tell there was no way he was going to beat that blurring form to the kill. The pistol went off and Victoria staggered. Somehow Adam had anticipated where she was going to be and got the shot off.

  Crimson blossomed on Victoria's chest, but she continued forward, human slow now. The pistol roared again, and she dropped to the ground, eyes wide in disbelief.

  "Don't bother asking me how; I don't know why your compuls
ion didn't work."

  "Then why?"

  The question came out as little more than a whisper, barely audible over the muffled beat of the music.

  "Because people deserve better than to serve as pawns in some larger game that serves only to profit a few despots."

  The light in Victoria's eyes went out, but Adam hadn't forgotten James' warning. It was gruesome work, but he'd served enough tours to know how to finish a job, even one that was distasteful.

  When he ejected his magazine and put a fresh one back in his weapon, there was a hole large enough to put his hand through her chest.

  The smart thing would have been to walk out of the club and never look back. Adam was long past the illusion of being a hero, but a quick glance at the monitor showed Tanner on top of the blond feeding on the side of her neck.

  Unsure why he was being so stupid, Adam hid the pistol behind his leg and nodded to the bruiser just outside the alcove.

  "Tanner, she wants me to carry a message to Tanner!"

  Adam wasn't sure how the other man heard him over the music, but he pointed to one of the other two alcoves before turning back to face the dance floor.

  A similar series of heavy curtains slid past, and then Adam was able to see the alcove in all of its dark glory. Tanner hadn't moved and the blond still wasn't struggling. But for the rise and fall of her chest Adam wouldn't have known she was still alive.

  Adam didn't want to take the shot with the blond in the line of fire, he opened his mouth to say something, and Tanner whirled around. Whatever had slowed Victoria down wasn't in effect this time, and Adam's first shot went wide as he failed to adjust for his opponent's sheer speed.

  The second shot caught Tanner in the shoulder, and then Adam was out of room. Tanner had produced a long knife from somewhere, almost a short sword. Still moving almost faster than Adam could follow, the vampire stepped out of the line of fire and stabbed him in the chest.

  The pain was as bad as anything Adam had ever experienced. It should have been debilitating, the shock alone should have made Adam drop his weapon. Instead he felt his arm swing around and the pistol bucked three more times.