"Thanks for your help."
"Remember, don't aim for the head," he said matter-of-factly. "It's a small target. Aim for the biggest part of whatever you're after. You've got a better chance of hitting something. And don't try any of that shoot-to-wound crap, either. If you need a gun to defend yourself, then whoever's after you is probably out for blood."
One of the boys left the others and swaggered toward her. He had shaggy blond hair and brown eyes. A scar zigzagged down his left cheek to the edge of his jaw.
"You going to war, lady?" he asked.
Vicki started to say, no, of course not, but then she nodded. "Yes," she said. "I am."
"All by yourself?"
Vicki nodded.
He jerked a thumb over his shoulder, indicating his friends. "You need some backup?"
She stared at him. "Are you kidding? I could use an army."
He sauntered toward her. "So, what happened?" He waved his friends over. "You catch your boyfriend in the sack with another broad?"
"I wish it were that easy. Listen, thanks for your offer, but I can't accept it. I can't be responsible for— "
He laughed. "Lady, no one's been responsible for me since I was fourteen."
"I believe you." She watched the other three boys saunter toward her. "But what about your friends?"
"No sweat. We can all take care of ourselves."
He introduced his companions as the Torch, Link, and the Hammer. "And I'm Twist."
Interesting names, she mused. "Pleased to meet you… gentlemen."
The Torch was tall and slender, with dark red hair and blue eyes. She wondered if he'd gotten his nickname from the color of his hair, but somehow, she doubted it. Link could only be described as average—average height, average weight, light brown hair and eyes. The Hammer was short and a little overweight. He had black hair and dark brown eyes and looked like he could take on the world all by himself.
Vicki had thought they were kids in their early teens; now she could see that they were all around eighteen or nineteen years old. Seeing them up close, she didn't doubt for a minute that they could take care of themselves, or that they knew the score. They were the kind of guys mothers warned their daughters about.
"So, when's the rumble?" the Hammer asked.
Vicki glanced at her watch. "Right now."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Link asked. "Let's go!"
Her gang scrambled into a late-model Ford pickup, two in the front, two in the back, and then waited for Vicki to lead the way.
Her father was right, she thought as she pulled onto the road. The Lord did provide.
She felt a surge of gratitude for her escort when she pulled up in front of the ramshackle shed in the woods. Even in broad daylight, it was dark in this part of the forest. The shed itself seemed ominous somehow. There were no windows, only a narrow door. No sound came from within.
Was it possible that Falco's goons weren't there? Could she be that lucky?
Pulling her crucifix out from under her sweater, she held it in her hand and murmured a hurried prayer and then got out of the car.
Clutching the pistol in one hand and the bottle of holy water in the other, she walked toward the shed. A glance over her shoulder showed her that Twist and his gang were right behind her. She wasn't surprised to see that all four of them carried guns. The Hammer carried a knife in his free hand that looked to be a good twelve inches long.
Link had a thick chain coiled around one fist.
If things hadn't been so serious, she would have laughed at the picture the five of them must have made marching across the clearing toward the lambing shed.
When they reached the door, the boys spread out around her, two on each side.
"I'll go in first," Twist said.
Vicki nodded.
Twist looked at his gang. Each of them nodded at him in turn.
"Let's do it," he said, and kicked in the door.
The other three boys swarmed in after him. Vicki brought up the rear.
Twist stood unmoving a few feet inside the door. Shifting to one side, Vicki stared at the scene in front of her. Antonio was spread-eagled on the warped wooden floor, held in place by thick silver chains. Someone had removed his shirt, his shoes and socks, and rolled up the cuffs on his trousers. Silver manacles that must have been at least two inches wide circled his wrists, ankles, and neck. Even in the dim light, she could see the ugly red streaks and blisters that rose on his skin wherever the silver touched him. His eyes were closed. As near as she could tell, he wasn't breathing, but maybe that was natural when he was… resting.
He looked… dead.
Six zombies surrounded him. They looked up, their expressions blank. All six looked like they had been kidnapped from a pro football team.
"What the hell?" Link muttered.
Twist looked at Vicki. "You weren't kidding about needing an army. What's our next move?"
"I want the man chained to the floor. To get him, we have to go through the others."
The Hammer swore a crude oath. "I was afraid you'd say that."
"Shouldn't be too hard," Link said. "They look like they're glued to the floor." He took a step forward. As soon as he was within a foot of the nearest zombie, the creature began to move toward him, its arms extended.
Link fired two shots in quick succession and the zombie sank to the floor without a sound.
Vicki stared in horror as the other five surged to their feet and lumbered toward them.
"This one's mine!" Torch hollered. He fired twice and the second zombie hit the floor with a thud. "Like shooting fish in a barrel!" he crowed.
Vicki turned away, her hands pressed over her ears as Twist and his gang took out the other zombies. Her gaze settled on Antonio. Was he still alive? A distant part of her mind chuckled at her choice of words. Vampires weren't alive. They were Undead. She wondered if Falco had destroyed him, if he was now truly dead.
The vampire twitched as the coppery scent of blood filled the air.
She hurried to his side when all the zombies had been taken care of. "Antonio? Antonio, can you hear me?"
He didn't move, didn't speak.
"We have to get him out of here," she said. "Hurry!"
"Who is this guy?" Twist asked.
"There's no time for that now." Bile rose in her throat when she saw the burns on Antonio's body. She frowned as she realized the chains were bolted to the floor.
Twist jerked his head toward the door and Link ran outside.
"I think we're too late," the Hammer remarked. "He looks dead."