The blood coursed through her. The night turned into day, but she no longer worried about her eyes as she’d grown accustomed to the blood. She stoppered the bottle and replaced it in the lining of her vest. With her eyes closed, she tried to find the memories that had been taken away from her over the years through countless Kindred counselings.
Lexi awoke to the smell of breakfast. She rolled the sleeping bag and pulled clean underwear from her bag. For a moment, she considered keeping up the pretense by climbing out of the window and walking into the bar through the front door. Instead, she headed up the stairs and entered through the cellar door.
The bar was still locked but Mike moved around the kitchen. “Good morning. Are bacon and eggs okay?”
“Bacon and eggs are always okay.”
He passed her a coffee and she sat at the bar. “What will you do about the girl?”
She drew her katana and began to sharpen it. “Heidi wants me to give her a chance and not kill her.”
“But you’re Kindred, so…” He made the finger across the throat gesture.
“I don’t do what they tell me to do anymore. I do things my way.” This new life had been a struggle for her since day one. She couldn’t deny the fact that she wanted to kill this girl, though. When the blade was sharp enough, she withdrew the oily pouch, gave it a sniff, and ran it along her blade. She looked up to see Mike staring at her. “Hope for the best, expect the worst.”
“What time do you want to leave?”
“Apparently, there’s a graveyard where she likes to do rituals. If I can catch her on her way home, she should be magically spent. Heidi says nightfall, so that’s good for me.”
“I’d like to drive you there.”
Lexi had expected this. “I’ve worked my route out. There’s a bus that gets me into Chicago for eight pm.”
“Won’t it be easier if I take you? And didn’t Louis say you’d need to go back there? His place isn’t on a bus route.”
It was obvious he wasn’t going to give up. “Okay, thank you.”
She slid her katana into the saya and put it into her British military kit bag. It had proven to be the best length for keeping her katana hidden.
With that out the way, she turned her thoughts to breakfast.
She worked the door for the day, even though it was usually peaceful at the bar in the daytime. At five pm, she told Mike she was going to prepare for the job, headed to the cellar, and gathered her belongings. She made sure she had everything because she’d already decided she wasn’t coming back. By 5:10 pm, she had pushed the kitbag out of the window and climbed out.
When she turned, she stood face to face with Mike. “Well, this is awkward.”
They walked to his car. She couldn’t see any way out of it. Resigned, she threw her bag on the backseat and climbed into the front. Her boss climbed in and attempted to start the engine, but its response wasn’t inspiring.
“Shit. I’ll borrow Chuck’s truck.” He ran inside.
Lexi turned to where Louis sat in an old-ass car at the side of the road and signaled to her. She scrambled out with her bag and dove into his vehicle, and he peeled away. When she looked back, Mike ran out and flapped his arms. She turned to Louis. “Thank you. I tried to ditch him.”
The old man kept his eyes on the road. “This isn’t his path.”
They reached the entrance to his property and Louis climbed out of his car, leaving the engine running. She walked around, climbed into the driver’s seat, and pulled away.
Next stop Chicago
Her senses alert, Lexi crept through the cemetery. It was easy enough to find the mausoleum she needed by the light and giggling from within.
A conversation between two girls struck up. “Take a bigger piece. Take a whole bone.”
“I don’t want to take more than we need.”
“If you take more, we won’t have to keep coming back to shave bits off.”
“And where will I keep it? What if my mom finds it? Can you imagine? What’s this bone from, Stacy? Oh, it’s only Grandma. She’d freak.”
Peals of laughter came from the girls.
“Besides, I like this part.”
“Can we do the ritual tomorrow night? I have to be home before Mom comes back from work.”
“That’s fine with me. I’m supposed to be with my study group. If I’m any later, Mom will start calling the other moms.”
“Jeez, we’re eighteen now. They need to cut us some slack.”
Lexi had been certain only the two girls were there, but a third spoke. “Has anyone heard how Heidi is doing?”
“No, Marci, because no one gives a shit how Heidi’s doing. She got what she deserved. Okay, that’s enough. Let’s shove her back in. I’ll have to go along the river to get home in time.”
She listened to the sound of the girls heaving something heavy as she crept away toward the river.
Stacy walked between the back of the factories and the river and didn’t see anything until it was too late. Lexi’s fist drove into the side of her head and she landed hard, unconscious. She took a binding ribbon from her pocket—one of the pieces of Kindred equipment she had taken with her—and wound it around the girl’s feet. Her captive didn’t stir as she dragged her away from the path, through a fence she’d already cut a hole into, and dropped her behind a factory wall. She sat on the ground cross-legged with her katana sheathed across her knees and waited for Stacy to wake up.
She began to
