'Til Death Do Us Part

asked.

Eliza was about to answer when a woman clutching a bottle of amber liquid stumbled out of her house. “Are you that bitch?” Mary yelled.

“Well, well what do we have here?” Eliza said bemused as she strode over the lawn towards Mary.

Mary’s booze-induced bravado barely held up as Eliza stood face-to-face with the woman. But she stood defiant in the face of death. “You are…aren’t you? I can smell the stench of death all around you.”

“What do you know of me?” Eliza asked Mary out of curiosity.

“You’re not smo bad!” Mary slurred, trying to stand up taller, hoping her slight height advantage would somehow intimidate the smaller woman. But what Eliza lacked in size she more than made up for in intimidation.

“Oh, I can assure you that I am,” Eliza said.

“That Talbot fellow…he was all petrified of you. I don’t see why,” Mary said, taking a huge swig of the bourbon she was clutching.

“Where is he?” Tomas asked, suddenly interested in the conversation.

“He’s dead!” she shouted, swinging the bottle, some of the fire water sloshing out.

“And you know this for a fact?” Eliza asked, a smirk on her face.

“The big black man and his own brother said so. They’re all dead!” she shrieked.

“BT is dead?” Tomas asked saddened.

“I’d imagine,” Mary answered.

“You don’t know?”

“How the fruck would I know, do I look like a psychic?” she said, taking another swig. “I’m just glad they took the old bat with them.”

“Deneaux was with them?” Tomas asked.

“Fucking witch. Now she was scary,” Mary replied.

“How long have they been gone?” Tomas asked.

“Who the hell are you?” Mary asked, taking another swig.

“I am her brother.”

“Lucky you,” Mary said sardonically.

“Did they say where they were going?” Eliza asked.

“Why?” Mary asked suspiciously.

“Why did you not leave with them?” Tomas asked.

“It’s not safe out here, not safe at all for my Joshie.”

Eliza looked past Mary. “A child perhaps?” Eliza asked.

“He’s not in there!” Mary said loudly when she realized she may have said more than she intended.

“So you who thought the world was too dangerous for your spawn, sent him away? Then opened your door to challenge me? How has your kind survived for so long?”

“My kind? What are you? I didn’t believe any of that horseshit about you being a vampire.”

“Well that was your second mistake,” Eliza said, effortlessly pushing Mary aside so she could enter the house.

***

Mary began to scream as Josh’s body flew down the stairs, to slam against the far wall, then crumple in a heap at the bottom of the stairs.

“The whelp is dead!” Eliza said hotly as she came down the stairs.

Mary dropped her bottle and fell to the floor to wrap her arms around her son. “He was sleeping!” she screamed. “You’ll hurt him!”

Tomas stood in the doorway; he could smell the death on the child and madness upon the mother. Eliza had not done it, he was thankful for small favors.

Eliza stepped over the huddled family and walked past Tomas to get back outside.

Tomas thought there might yet be hope for his sister that she had not killed the mother then he realized quite the opposite was true, she had left the mother alive to mourn over the loss of her son. Her cruelty was not bound by any depths.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Maine

Tracy awoke in her bed. No that’s not quite right, she thought. It was her bed she was using now, then the pain of loss and despair settled upon her like a cloak when she realized the other half of the mattress was cold and empty. But that wasn’t quite true either; she could feel the weight of something that was making her gravitate towards the middle. She slowly turned, fearful of what she might find. Henry was sitting up on the bed staring off into space, seeing things only dogs could.

“You miss him, too?” Tracy asked as she stroked the dog’s massive face and barrel-shaped chest.

Henry kept looking off into the distance, not acknowledging her ministrations.

“Listen, I know you were always Mike’s dog, and I’m so sorry that I yelled at him when he saved you. He loved you, Henry. I love you, too. It’s just that I guess he always thought you were our fourth kid, and I didn’t see it until recently.”

Henry cocked his head to the side like he could hear something very far away. He barked once, which in itself was unusual. His mouth opened wide in what Tracy could only describe as a grin, his heavy tongue lolling about, he finally pulled his gaze back in to register Tracy’s existence. He then contentedly lay down and, before finally settling in, let a blast of essence de’ Henry waft throughout.

“That’s my cue,” Tracy said as she threw the covers off and headed for the exit.

Tony was sitting in the living room chair. Ronnie and Tracy had not told him about their suspicions regarding Mike. No matter what she had felt in her heart, she had no proof and did not want to burden the man with it.

“Feeling better, honey?” Tony asked her.

“Surprisingly, I am,” she told him, heading over to give him a kiss on the cheek. “What is that smell?” Tracy asked brushing her hand past her nose.

“That Mad Jack guy caught the kitchen on fire. No, no it wasn’t that bad,” Tony added when he saw alarm on Tracy’s face.

“Do you want some tea?” Nancy, Ronnie’s wife, asked Tracy as she came into the living room.

Tracy shook her head. “No thank you.”

“It’s very soothing. It will help to calm your nerves,” Nancy added.

“I’m fine, Nancy,” Tracy said almost through clenched teeth, apparently Ron had told Nancy and hadn’t thought to tell her not to say anything around Tony.

“I’m sure you really need it.” Nancy said soothingly.

Tony was closely watching the exchange.

“If I want some tea Nancy I’ll come and get some.”

“You poor thing,” Nancy said, tears welling up in her eyes.

“What’s the matter? I may be an old man, but I’m not daft. I’ve been watching everyone tippie-toe around for the last day. Something is going on and they think the patriarch can’t handle it,” Tony said angrily.

Tracy swallowed heavily. “Tony, I thought Mike might be dead yesterday, but now I’m not so sure.”

Tony paled rapidly, color slowly drained back into the void as he processed Tracy’s whole sentence. “What changed?” he asked slowly and cautiously.

“I know this sounds crazy…” She started as she quickly looked over to Nancy. “Henry. Henry changed. I know how strange that sounds, but Henry sensed something yesterday and now he seems to be back to the way he was