Burke and the Vampire

Chapter 2-1

Chapter 2

“Find him,” Antoine snarled. “I don’t care what it takes; find the son of a b***h before he kills more of us.”

“Once again, exactly how do you plan on my doing that?” Reynaud replied.

It had been what seemed like a perpetual argument between them since ‘The Hunter’, as they’d tagged him, had begun taking out vampires in the city. Whoever he was, he seemed to know who was or wasn’t one. He had killed more than thirty of them in Antoine’s territory in the past three years—that they knew of—and injured three who had managed to escape before he got in another shot. That was how they knew he was using silver bullets, as they, or more precisely Doctor Bonnay, another vampire in Antoine’s inner circle, had extracted the bullets from the wounded victims of The Hunter’s attacks.

The problem was, none of the three victims had seen who had shot them, or even known he was there until it was too late.

“Spread your men out over my territory to look for him,” Antoine replied.

“Damn it, I have. He’s killed one of them and we’re still no closer to finding him than we were after he murdered the first of us.”

“We know he only strikes on the weekends. Set up a trap. Use one of your men as a decoy.”

“Been there, done that. I had them pretending to go after humans,” Reynaud replied sourly. “That’s how we lost Samil.”

Antoine pressed his fingers together, staring at his second-in-command. A slow smile turned his lips upward.

“Oh, no,” Reynaud said, sensing exactly what was going through Antoine’s mind.

“Why not? Are you afraid of a mere human? I’m quite certain you’ll do better at finding him than the men on your team. You’re older and more experienced.”

“To start with, we don’t know if he is human. Hell, when it comes down to it, we don’t know if he’s a he or a she. He could be another supernatural. He could be one of us, trying to weaken you by eliminating your followers.”

“I don’t believe that for an instant. If he was another vampire he would have come directly for me.”

Reynaud snorted softly. “No one would dare stand up to you, Antoine. You’re too old and too powerful.”

“If he was, also.”

“We would know if someone who’s your equal was in our territory. He would have made it clear by word and deed, because he wouldn’t fear you. He would have challenged you directly, not take such a round-about way and for so many years, to get to you.”

Antoine spread his hands. “All right, I’ll give you that. But a human, Reynaud? I can’t believe that for a second. They have no inkling we exist. We’re their fear and their fantasy. The creatures they read about and see in films. Fanciful dark myths, or so they think, who give them shivers up their spines until they close the book, walk out of the theater, or turn off their televisions.”

“A dhampir, perhaps?”

Antoine shook his head. “What dhampir would deign to use a gun to destroy us when he had the power to hide himself until he could strike up close and personally? It’s almost a code of honor among them, as intensely as they hate us.”

Reynaud barely cracked a grin when he replied, “One who’s a coward? No, Antoine, I think we’re dealing with something new. He, and despite what I said before, I firmly believe he is male, has somehow obtained a way to sense us.”

“Impossible!”

“Tell that to the ones he’s killed.”

“He was in the right place at the right time.”

“Come on, Antoine. Over thirty times, armed with a gun that shoots silver bullets? No, that was not some coincidence, as much as you want to think it is. We’re facing a human. One among the hundreds of thousands who live here. Finding him…” Reynaud shook his head.

“Do it, Reynaud. Our very existence may depend on it. We may be legion, but our ranks are far from infinite and with every kill he diminishes them.”

Reynaud bowed his head. “I’ll do my best.”

“I know you will.”