SWNOVELS Chapter CHAPTER FORTY
Organised Chaos
“Thank-you vampire, that was very satisfying.” Stanley smirked.
Suitably hostile about this creep raping her, Taylee snarled, “Your balls are really saggy!”
“Hmmm, I wonder if that’s because they’re now empty.” he grinned.
Iveta cruised a hand up Taylee’s thigh, and she said mockingly, “Vampire, I should feel threatened that my husband has engaged with you, and quite obviously, he enjoyed it, but …” she smiled as she skimmed her fingers over the hand-cuffs, then she concluded, “But no, I don’t feel threatened.”
“Listen Fuckhead,” Taylee began, “You can keep him, because you seem like a perfect match.”
Iveta gazed at Stanley and said with deliberate timidity, “I don’t think she likes me.”
“I’m sure she does Darling,” Stanley replied, “It’s just that she’s in a bad place at the moment.”
“Maybe I should deal with her, Clinton.”
“What do you have in mind?”
Iveta stared into her eyes, then said brightly, “If she’s in a bad place, I won’t hurt her, but I would like to agitate her.”
“If I was to offer a comment Darling, she already seems agitated.”
“Yes, I believe that you are right, but I was just wondering, what do I do to her to make her understand that I don’t like her?” Iveta moved to the top of the table, and she ran her right hand over the mulit-coloured mohawk, then she wondered, “What could I take from her that she wouldn’t want me to take?” She skimmed her fingers through the hair, bunching then releasing it. “What makes her different, what makes her stand out in a crowd?”
“Darling …”
“Yes Clinton.”
“I have a suggestion for you.”
“Please tell me.”
“I would suggest that the vampire invests many hours in her grooming, so should we take from her the object of her grooming?”
Iveta bunched and released the hair, and said drolly, “What are you referring to?”
Taylee assumed that a haircut may be in her immediate future, yet she snorted and said, “I don’t give a fuck what you ass-holes do.”
“Hmmm, I believe she is saying that we can do whatever we want Darling.”
“Yes, I believe you are right Clinton, so here.” Iveta said as she handed him a pair of clippers.
“Thank-you darling, now pull it tight, and we’ll try and get the vampire looking her best for her eventual death.”
Iveta bunched Taylee’s hair and gripped it with both hands. “Whenever you’re ready Clinton.”
Stanley smiled at Taylee as he said, “When I mount your jawbone on my trophy wall, I’m going to paste your extravagant hair above it, and it will become the centrepiece of my whole display.”
Taylee’s instinct was to thrash around, although she glanced at the needle which was now back in her arm, and then closed her eyes as she thought wryly, Death by a thousand drops.
The clippers buzzed, and she could feel it all coming off. She tried to remain calm, because the thought whistled around in her mind that this indignity was going to be nothing compared to the abuses that her future held.
“Iveta, get the syringe.” Stanley said calmly.
Iveta handed him a syringe full of a clear liquid, the point of the needle dripping. Stanley inserted the needle into a prominent vein in Taylee’s right forearm, and then his thumb began pushing until the syringe was empty. Wanting to keep the vampire up to speed, he said casually, “Just a little something to help you get to sleep.”
Taylee closed her eyes and bit her bottom lip. Knocking her out meant that they might be moving her. If this creep was a vampire hunter, he would know that it was too risky to take the handcuffs off if she was awake and aware, because she would over-power them. Taylee tried to regulate her breathing, tried to stay calm, although it was quite apparent that in the not-too-distant future, she would be stepping into the next phase of her own personal nightmare.
*
All Pistols and Hammers gathered outside the clubhouse, and Livinia gave Elizabeth and Giddy a bullet-proof vest. Elizabeth put hers on, although Giddy tarried. “Cusee up Missus, I understand that yo the Big Boss, but me, nit-nit, I don’t wear no armour.”
“Giddy, I strongly suspect that many of the people in the building will have guns, so we all need a vest.”
“I’m respecting yo Big Boss, but yo, no can do.”
Livinia knew that they didn’t have time for discussions or debates, so she looked at Giddy and said, “Well just be careful,” then she faced the group and said, “And team, we don’t know if any of the men we’re interested in are even in the place at the moment, but take up your positions and study everybody who goes in or comes out.”
With their enhanced vision working over-time, the clan members studied everybody who left.
“Northern flank, I think we have one exiting.” Scarlett stated. Alan looked at the photos, looked at the man, then said, “He looks like one of them.”
“Okay, follow him, and keep us updated.” Livinia replied.
“Southern flank, and I think we got a fucker here!” Piper stated.
“Yes, for sure,” Vicky agreed, “And he’s even wearing the same baseball cap.”
“Follow him, and keep us updated.”
Twenty minutes later, Aleisha rang Livinia. “We have one, and we’re on his trail.”
“Excellent, keep us updated.”
“Will do.”
Thirty minutes later, Ruby spotted the final man, and she said, “He’s our guy.”
“Okay, lets move.” Livinia replied, then she sent a message to the others.
Aleisha followed a gray Ford heading east, and after twenty minutes, he pulled into the driveway of a modest looking house in a quiet street. Aleisha called it in. “Livinia, this guy is walking into his house, so we’re just about to pounce.”
“Be careful and let me know what happens.”
“Will do.” Aleisha replied, then she faced Elizabeth and Giddy and said determinedly, “Okay Sister’s, let’s move.”
The man opened his front door, and before he even had time to set foot inside, Giddy raced up to him and tackled him to the ground. Aleisha and Elizabeth slunk into the house, while Giddy dragged the man in to the kitchen. Aleisha shoved him into a chair, and Elizabeth raced over and tied his ankles while Giddy snapped his hands behind his back and then tied the hands securely.
Seeing the look of disbelief on his face, Aleisha said quietly, “If you scream, I’ll rip your head off.”
“What, what the fuck is this about?”
“We’ll show you what this is about,” Aleisha said bluntly as she moved behind him and knelt by the chair, then she gazed at her clan members and said, “Sisters, fangs out.”
Giddy and Elizabeth concentrated, and very quickly, they were standing in front of him with their fangs bared, and Aleisha leant over his shoulder and looked into his eyes as she asked, “Does that make things a little clearer?”
The man trembled, and Elizabeth said, “We’re looking for someone, and we believe that you might be able to help us.” She strode forward and pointed at the photo, then said, “This looks like you, so tell us.”
Trembling, frantic, the man asked, “T-tell you what?”
“Where is she?”
“Who?”
Elizabeth hunched her shoulders and said threateningly, “We know that you were involved in the kidnapping, so just tell us where she is, or else!”
The man froze, then he mumbled, “I don’t know what ya talking about.”
Elizabeth huffed, then she said, “Giddy, come forward.” Giddy pulled her machete out, then stood next to Elizabeth. Pointing at Giddy, Elizabeth said, “I’m in no mood to be stuffed around, so just tell me where she is, or else my friend is going to start slicing you up.”
“Nahhh, come on, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” he blubbered.
Elizabeth frowned, then stepped back as she said, “Okay Giddy, he’s all yours, but don’t kill him … yet.”
“Wait, I don’t know what this is about!” he cried out.
Giddy sat on his lap, and gently but deliberately, she placed the machete on his throat as she asked, “Yo done kidnap any vampires recently?”
With his eyes wide open, the man rocked back, although he shook his head furiously. “No, no, I’m scared of vampires!”
“Hmmm, good answer, but it ain’t the answer me’s looking for,” Giddy snorted, then she said, “I like to play games and choppa-chop assholes real slow like, but we ain’t got time see, so youse tell us where she is, or else both yo fucking ears are coming off.”
The man tensed as she pulled his right ear sideways and placed the sharp blade at the top of the ear. With three vampires around him, the man understood that he either co-operated, or else. “Ummm, I was with them, but I didn’t do nothing, I mean I’m the driver.”
“In the photos, yo was going into the building ass-fucker!”
Aleisha knew that the man was ready to crumble, so she said through clenched teeth, “I don’t care what you did or didn’t do, just tell us where she is.”
“We, we dropped her somewhere.”
“Address, what’s the address?”
“Ummm, I can’t remember, south-west somewhere, in the industrial area.”
Aleisha thought about his last few statements, then she asked sneeringly, “You’re supposed to be the driver and you can’t remember where you took her?”
“Ummm, ummm, okay, I wasn’t the driver.”
Anticipating that the asshole was ready to spill the beans, Aleisha asked snappily, “Who did you drop her off to?”
“I dunno, some vampire.”
“Vampire? What’s the vampires name?”
“I don’t know, honest!”
“Really? You’ve already been exposed as being a liar, and with each lie, you’re coming so much closer to a grisly death!” Elizabeth warned.
“No, no, I never saw the vampire, I don’t know who it is!”
“Who’s in charge, who dealt with the vampire?” Aleisha asked testily.
“Nahh, nahh, I don’t know, I mean I’m just a little shit-kicker in the organization!”
Giddy rested the machete on his ear, and then with a controlled movement, she cut his ear off, and Aleisha clasped her hand firmly over his mouth to muffle the tortured scream. As the trembling man was still dealing with the pain, and quite obviously, coming to grips with the fact that he could no longer wear sunglasses; Aleisha pulled his other ear sideways, then said, “The boss, who was in charge of the operation?”
Minus an ear, feeling the blood dribbling down past his jaw, the man was terrified, although with the other ear in serious danger, the man knew that resistance was futile, so he mumbled. “Mi-Michael Kerry.”
“Address, where does he live?”
“On, on Carlington Avenue. I don’t know the number, but his place is near the end of the street, big joint, double storey.”
“Gag him Aleisha, we’ll take him with us.” Elizabeth stated, then she pulled out her cell phone.
“Livinia, we’re at McKenzie Road, and this one said that the man in charge of the kidnap was Michael Kerry and he lives on Carlington Avenue.”
“Carlington Avenue?” Livinia repeated, then she said urgently, “Ruby, tap in and get a map of Carlington Avenue and the surrounding area, and Elizabeth just wait a minute while I get everybody on conference.”
As Giddy and Aleisha were carrying the man out to the car, Elizabeth heard Livinia say, “Okay, everybody call in and give me your location.”
“Elizabeth here, we’re on McKenzie Road and we have one kidnapper.”
Ruby tapped in, did a quick scroll, then shook her head as she said, “They’re miles away from Carlington Avenue.”
“Piper here, our asshole has just pulled up outside a place in Longley Grove.”
Ruby scrolled and then shook her head. “No, they’re miles away as well.”
“Get your team to move in and disable Piper, and keep us updated.” Livinia stated.
“Will do.”
“Scarlett here, and it looks like our target is turning off Newbury Street, and he might be heading west down Madison Avenue.”
“Ohhh, ohhh,” Ruby spluttered, “That’s only a couple of blocks away from Carlington!”
“Scarlett, you may be following the lead kidnapper, so let us know when you’re at destination.”
“Will do, ohhh, wait …”
Silence, everybody listening intently, until Scarlett came in quietly. “He pulled into a gas station, so when he goes in to pay, I might slip into his vehicle.”
“Just be careful, and keep us updated.”
“Will do.”
“Elizabeth, get your team and head for Carlington.”
“We’re on our way Livinia.”
The man walked into the gas station and Scarlett slipped into his car and curled herself into the floorspace on the rear passenger side.
Three minutes later, the man got into the car and started it up. The car pulled on to the main road, and Scarlett waited until she heard the indicator ticking, then stealthily, she glided up behind the driver’s seat, then her left arm gripped him in a headlock as her right hand guided a knife under his jaw. He jerked and gargled, and Scarlett said bluntly, “Pull over.”
“What, what the-”
To silence him, Scarlett squeezed her arm tighter around his throat and said quietly yet menacingly, “Pull over, or else I’ll slice your throat open.”
The car ground to a halt, and Alan pulled in behind them, and leaving his car running, he raced to the driver’s door, yanked it open, then pulled the man out. While Alan held the man’s arms behind his back, Scarlett wrapped a tight gag around his mouth, then patted him down. Feeling something in the right pocket of his jacket, she pulled it out, a wallet; and she rifled through the contents until she saw the driver’s license. “Michael Thomas Kerry.” she spat out.
Alan shoved the frightened man into the car, and Scarlett rang in. “We have Michael Kerry in our possession.”
“Excellent!” Livinia stated. “See if you can find somewhere quiet to squeeze the information out of him.”
“We saw a park a couple of miles back, so we’ll head there.”
“Do you need back-up?”
Scarlett glared at the trembling body slouched over the back seat, then she muttered darkly, “No, we don’t, although Michael Kerry does.”
“Let me know as soon as you get something. Our target has just pulled into a driveway, so we’re just about to disable.” Livinia sent a text to the others, then watched as Ruby crept up on the man getting out of his car.
Alan drove into the park and followed the driveway all the way down until it stopped five hundred yards away from the road.
Scarlett dragged him out and knelt over him, her knees pressing hard against his ribs, then she said quietly, “I’m in a really bad mood, so just tell me what I want to know, and you may live to see another day.” She ripped the gag off, then asked abruptly, “Where is she?”
“Who, what?”
“Did you kidnap a female vampire recently?” Scarlett asked, then she saw his frightened expression turn to one of surprise.
“Me, no.” he mumbled.
Alan squatted beside him as he mocked, “Your chances of living to see another day are diminishing by the second asshole.”
“Just tell us where she is, or else you’re going to die right now.” Scarlett threatened.
Kerry shuddered. He wasn’t going to give Vernon O’Brien up, and it wasn’t because he was faithful to the gangster’s creed of, Honour among thieves; it was because he was worried about the implications of getting a vampire off-side. He stared at the woman as he mumbled shakily, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Scarlett and Alan closed their eyes and concentrated, and Kerry was confused as he felt the woman’s buttocks clenching over his groin. They opened their eyes at the same time, and then their lips peeled open.
Kerry stared at the woman, then the man, then he trembled as he blubbered, “Hey, wait, what’s this?”
With her fangs bared, Scarlett hissed, then said, “Last chance, tell us where she is.”
Kerry was shaking all over, and the thought flashed across his mind that two vampires hovering over him presented more danger than one vampire who wasn’t. “Vernon O’Brien.” he mumbled.
“Who?”
“Vernon O’Brien,” he repeated, then he added hesitantly, “He, he’s like you.”
“A vampire?”
“Yes.”
Scarlett looked at Alan and said, “Vernon O’Brien?”
“No, doesn’t mean anything to me.” Alan replied, then he looked at the man and asked, “Where is he from?”
Kerry understood that his future wasn’t bright, although staying alive right now was his main concern. Meekly, he said, “If I tell you where he’s from, will you let me go?”
“Yes, I will.” Alan nodded.
Kerry blew out a frustrated sigh, then said quietly, “He’s from the Mammon Clan.”
Scarlett flipped him over and began tying his hands together, although the man cried out, “Hey, wait, you said that you’d let me go!”
“No I didn’t, my friend said that he would let you go.” Scarlett replied. “Now direct us to his place.”
“No, I don’t know where he lives!”
“You delivered the vampire to Vernon O’Brien?”
“Yeah, well, yes.”
“Whereabouts?”
“In the industrial area out south.”
“Take us there.”
Back in the car, Scarlett rang. “We have Kerry, and he said that he delivered her to a vampire, Vernon O’Brien.”
“Vernon O’Brien, I don’t recognise the name.” Livinia replied.
“Kerry handed her over in the industrial area, so we’ll have a quick look around there, but Livinia …”
“What?”
“Kerry said that this Vernon O’Brien character is with the Mammon Clan.”
“No, it couldn’t be; they are lawless and ruthless, but they wouldn’t purposely kidnap one of ours.”
“Liv, we’re going to have to check it out, so we’ll scout around the drop-off point first, and then head back to the Academy.”
“Certainly, call if you need back up.”
“Will do.”
*
Two hours later, four bodies hung in the Academy’s basement, and the clan met in the dining room.
Looking frustrated, Livinia said, “Dawn is less than an hour away, so unfortunately we can’t move until tonight.”
“Okay, so what; tonight we’re going out there, out to the Mammon estate?” Thelma asked.
“Nobody seems to know anything about this Vernon O’Brien, so we haven’t really got a choice.”
“I know the Mammon Clan are a bunch of pirates and assholes, but they wouldn’t kidnap one of ours, no way!” Richard stated.
“Yeah, they know that we’d be coming straight at them!” Thelma added.
“I agree with you,” Livinia replied, “They do kill vampires who wander into their territory, but of course Taylee was kidnapped from her apartment.”
“So what,” Piper began, “Tonight do we go there prepared for battle?”
Livinia frowned, then said, “We certainly don’t want another war, so I’ll sleep on it.”