The wolf got back on its feet and locked his jaws onto the bear’s leg. Carter attacked with his knives. The man was quicker than she’d thought he would be.
They made short work of the animal, and it slumped to the ground, dead. Carter rushed to Tommy, still huddled and crying on the ground.
“You’re okay,” Carter said soothingly. “You’re safe. The beast didn’t know he was messing with the Bear Killer.”
He helped the child to his feet, and the other kids swarmed around him, offering their support. Carter smiled as he watched them, looking like a proud father. Then, he wiped the sweat from his forehead, smearing blood on his face in the process and making himself look like a complete idiot.
“So, you’re taking all the credit?” Ryder asked Carter, raising an eyebrow.
“Credit goes where it’s due,” Carter supplied smugly.
“It should go to the wolf, then.” Blood stained the wolf’s mouth as he stood next to Ryder.
“Is that your pet? That’s pretty badass.” Carter bent down and looked beneath the wolf at his junk. “What’s he called?”
“Called?”
“Yeah, your pet. Your name for your pet? If you haven’t named him, I will.” Carter thought for a moment. “Fluffy. He totally looks like a Fluffy.”
The wolf growled in response.
“See, he loves it! Fluffy it is.”
Chapter Eighteen
Massimo and Kelvin tried knocking on Andrew’s door, but there was no sign of him around his home. With no other choice, they decided to go back to town to look for him.
“I’ll check out the church,” Massimo said as they made it back to the town square. “Why don’t you see if anyone in the Old Dog has seen him?”
“Will do,” Kelvin replied and headed to the Old Dog.
Massimo stood in front of the little white church. He wasn’t an overly religious man, but he had strong morals that were in line with most religions. Even though all the wars around the world religion had stayed alive, and Massimo thought it was only right to have a church for people to gather in.
It was also nice when there were weddings in Pinewood. The whole town would come to the church to celebrate, then head to the Old Dog to dance the night away. Massimo was extremely proud of Pinewood, and rightfully so.
Massimo pushed open the doors to the church—which were never locked. In fact, there wasn’t even a lock on the door. It was always open to anyone who needed sanctuary.
A single candle flickered at the front of the church, casting a warm glow over the altar. A man sat in one of the pews, and Massimo tried not to disturb him as he entered. Sometimes, people came to the church to remember those who had passed away. There was a cemetery behind the church, past the solar panels.
The cemetery was small. Pinewood had been lucky not to have been hit by any diseases or disasters, but every now and then, something popped up, taking the town by surprise. Massimo and Leandro worked hard to keep Pinewood safe, and they would continue to do so until their dying days.
Great way to depress yourself, Massimo, thinking about death and disease.
He blocked all the dark stuff from his mind and replaced it with a Bee Gees classic, “Night Fever.” He liked to mix up the lyrics. It always lifted his spirits. Night people, night people… We know how to do it! Uh-huh!
Sometimes it was on purpose, but sometimes it was because he couldn’t remember the words. It didn’t matter much anyway. Most of the people who heard him singing, other than Leandro, had never heard the songs before, so they didn’t know the words were wrong. In fact, the people of Pinewood thought Massimo was quite the skilled songwriter.
He walked quietly toward the side room, pretending it was a normal day where he was fixing something in the church, but he really wanted to see if the man in the pews was Andrew.
It was. He wondered if Andrew was here repenting his sins. This was the place for it. Andrew was looking toward the altar at the head of the church, and he apparently hadn’t heard Massimo come in.
Massimo looked for Vicar Jason but didn’t see him. No big surprise there. He was a trainee vicar, and the job didn’t seem to suit him. He was always drunk at the Old Dog. Massimo thought that wasn’t how a vicar should act, but it didn’t have anything to do with him, so he continued to serve him.
Arms grabbed Massimo, but the vampire ripped himself away before he got bitten. It was Vicar Jason. At least, that was what Massimo thought. Jason’s eyes were glowing red and blood dripped from his open mouth. On the floor was a woman’s body in a nightgown. It was Annie. She had bite marks on her neck like Scott’s.
Vicar Jason was the killer.
“What are you doing?” Massimo asked, stepping away from him.
Jason didn’t respond. He just went for Massimo again.
Massimo’s fangs instantly protruded from his gums. He was ready for a fight. He shoved the oncoming vicar to the side, and he landed on the stone floor with a thud. Vicar Jason quickly got back to his feet, though, and came for Massimo again.
Massimo didn’t want to kill the vicar. He decided to knock him out instead, so he punched him in the jaw, right on the sweet spot, and dragged him into the side room. Jason stood no chance against a vampire’s swing, however old Massimo had started to feel.
Jason was unconscious, snoring blissfully on the floor. Massimo left him and went to Annie. He gasped when he saw her. Parts of her neck had been eaten away, and there were also bite marks on her arms. He’d feasted on her.
Why the fuck was he eating her? Had the vicar gone mad?
He went back to examine Jason. There was dried blood around his mouth. What
