The vampire had no coffin. Neither did he he rigidwith his hands neatly folded atop his chest. He slept sprawled on the floor,arms and legs bent at unnatural angles. The beautiful features that had smiledin the lamplight the previous night were contorted in what looked like fear.For an instant, the Shark hesitated. She'd never seen a blooder sleepin that position. Could she possibly have been wrong?
No, she decided in the next heartbeat. She had neverbeen wrong where blooders were concerned. Quietly she climbed the rest of theway up and walked carefully over to Jander. No chest movement. He was certainlydead-but why that position? Then it came to her. Blooders slept as they haddied, and most had been laid out and buried in coffins. Jander Sunstar hadobviously met his vampiric fate in a less tranquil fashion and had never seen aproper ritual burial.
She leaned forward for a better look, and the hooddropped into her eyes. Annoyed, she slipped the hood to her shoulders,instantly becoming visible. It didn't matter. Jander, like every blooder she'dever slain, was vulnerable, unable to move, let alone fight, during daylighthours. He would die, too. The only question in her mind was how she would killhim. Her strong hands fell to her wide belt, which hosted her tools. Jander'scontorted position did not give her a clear shot with her favorite weapon, asmall, specially crafted crossbow she could wield with one hand. She had to gowith the traditional implements-the stake and hammer.
Straddling the undead body, she placed the tip of thesharpened stake to his breast.
She raised the hammer and said the words that shealways uttered before a kilclass="underline" "The Shark sends you to the NineHells." Then, in a disgusted tone, she added, "You were tooeasy."
A gold-skinned hand seized her left wrist. Silver eyesgazed up at her.
"Not that easy," replied the vampire.
The Shark recovered almost at once from her shock. Aquick flick of her wrist liberated a small glass ball from up her sleeve.Liquid-holy water-sloshed within the delicately blown sphere. She shoved itdown toward the vampire's face, but he was unbelievably fast. He loosed hisgrip on her arm, his hand flying up in a blur to protect his face. The glassball broke, but instead of searing his eyes, the holy water ignited hisfingers.
Before the monster could take mist form and flee, theShark leaped clear, pulled her crossbow from its harness behind her back,aimed, and fired. The slim wooden bolt sank deep into the vampire's chest.Immediately his body began to desiccate; the flesh shriveled and turned fromgolden to dull tan. Gasping, he dropped to his knees on the wooden floor. TheShark watched eagerly, hungry for the creature's pain. She hadn't expected thevampire to retain so much of his former race that he could move during the day.But she had gotten him, in spite of-
Flailing golden hands closed on the shaft, and theShark realized that, though the wooden arrow had hit Jander's chest, perhapseven grazed the heart, it had not pierced that most vital of the vampire'sorgans. With a mighty tug, Jander pulled the shaft free. His golden colorationreturned in a rush, and his features took on their normal shape-save that thegentleness was gone from his face.
The Shark scrambled for the ladder, Jander in furiouspursuit. She could not defeat him there, not then, and was intent on leavingwith her skin intact. Behind her, she heard a savage growl and knew he hadtaken wolf form. She let go of the rungs and dropped the rest of the way downto the first floor, but not before sharp teeth clicked shut mere inches fromher fingers.
She hit the ground running. Shoving her left hand intoone of the pouches on her belt, she felt the gooey combination of bat guanoand sulfur.
"Twelve feet ahead, three feet high!" shecommanded, then pointed her right index finger at the far wall of the cottage.
A small ball of fire appeared at her fingertip,growing in size as it hurtled toward the wall. It exploded on contact,igniting many of Jander's beautiful carvings. Sunlight streamed into thecottage, and the Shark dived headfirst through the opening.
Despite the cushion of snow, she landed hard, and thewind was knocked out of her. For a wild instant, she wondered if the vampire,in addition to being active during the day, was also immune to sunlight. ButJander did not follow her.
The Shark rolled over, gasping for breath. At last shestumbled to her feet and peered in through the hole in the wall. He was nowhereto be seen, of course; he was hiding from the burning light. She was glad thatshe had taken the time to plan for just such trouble.
"Vampire,'' she called. Silence. "Vampire! Iknow you can hear me."
"I hear you." The same voice as the previousnight, melodious, but laced with pain and anger. The sound gave her pleasure.He had surprised her up in the loft. But she had a surprise for him.
"I have Maia," she said.
Silence. Then, "You lie."
"I followed you both from the inn last night,then I went back and got her."
A low groan was her reward, and her pleasure grew.
"Don't hurt her…. Please. She's innocent. Shedoesn't know anything about me. I'm the one you want!" The sounds ofmovement came from within. "I'll … I'll come out."
Alarms sounded in her head.
"No!" she cried with more emotion than shehad intended.
She'd fallen for that trick before, let a vampirevolunteer to die in the sunlight, only to discover that the blooder was also amage who could cast a sphere of darkness around them both. Unconsciously, herhand went to her throat, touched the healed scar there. She'd been bitten, butshe'd won-and had learned a lesson about the treacherous nature of vampires.
But if this blooder was acting, he was quite the thespian.The Shark heard real pain in his voice.
"Why would you want to do that?" she asked."What is Maia that you would surrender yourself?"
She wanted to hear his answer, but she kept alert forany attack.
From inside, Jander said softly, "She's lovely,and I appreciate beauty."
The Shark snorted. "So you were simply admiringher beauty last night in her room."
A pause, then, "She is untouched. I visit hereach night. I'm teaching her how to read."
"Untouched is hardly the term I'd use to describea two-copper whore. And as for reading …"
"What she did to survive does not concernme." Anger thrummed in the rich voice. "What she is now, and what shemight be, is what I care about. She is eager to learn. I want to help."
"You want to help, not kill, is that right?"
"Someone once gave me a chance to atone for mypast. How can I not do the same for Maia?"
The Shark couldn't help it. Her amusement grew untilshe actually laughed aloud. He couldn't possibly expect her to believe such awildly preposterous story.
"You are most entertaining, Master Elf. But Iremain unconvinced. If you truly wish to ensure Maia a pleasant future, you'llfollow through on your offer. My terms are simple: your unlife for her truelife. Meet me tonight, at the monument in the City of the Dead. If you don'tshow up-well, the slut means nothing to me."
Another pause.
"Most who hunt the nosferatu are holypeople," the vampire said at last. "You are not, Shakira Khazaar. Hadyou been, I would have rejoiced that you had found me, and I would have knownwhy I was hunted. You have asked questions of me, now I ask you: Why would youuse an innocent like Maia so? Why do you wish to kill me when I have done noone in this city harm?"
The Shark was taken aback by the unexpected query. Noone had ever asked her that before. She killed because that was what she did.She'd done it all her life-first in self-defense, then for coin as a hiredassassin. When the pleasure of taking human life paled, she'd turned tostalking the undead. Blooders were a challenge, and everyone wanted themdestroyed. She was no longer the thief Shakira, afraid and alone. Neither wasshe a nameless assassin, who hunted and hid in shadows. She had transformedherself into the Shark, who always caught her prey, whose prowess in the fineart of killing was sought after and widelypraised. But those reasons did not cometo her lips then.