At Dawn They Sleep

Stealing from the Dead (Part I)

Early October

Efraim followed Roland back upstairs to the kitchen. His eyes fell on Roland's vegan meal, a stark contrast to his own carnivorous habits. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "That's what you plan on feeding yourself?"

"I'm vegan. And not that I'm trying to sermonize here, but despite a grateful cow population, you ever think about your LDL?"

"I got statins to do all the thinking for me, smart ass." Efraim took out a pendant similar to the one his father had.

Roland looked at him, surprised. "Shit, what'd they hand those out instead of the Medal of Honor?"

"We found seven of these amulets in Sơn Đoòng, and each of us took one home as a souvenir."

"My dad said he spoke to a college professor who said only five existed."

"One known to myth. Five known to legend."

"He told my dad they date back to the Middle Ages."

"The Dark Ages, saeculum obscurum. The amulets were crafted between 867 and 1049 during the Rule of the Harlots— when vampires were really making a name for themselves.

"So, you're telling me my dad trapped a vampire in the basement like thirty-something years ago?"

"Not just any vampire, kiddo. One of the First. The Adam and Eve of their kind."

"Uh-huh. You really need to lay off the kif, my dude. Why'd he keep it locked up?"

"That is something only he and his CIA contact knew."

"Do you know why he decided to burn it?"

"That I can't tell you either, not because I don't want to, but your dad never told me much outside of how to use the dang things. I can tell you one thing, though. We all had weird fucking dreams when that thing in the basement was kickin' around, but soon as your dad torched her, no more bad mojo dreams."

"Her?"

"Cora."

Roland took a plate from the cabinet and spooned his dinner on it to reheat in the microwave. "Who are 'we'?"

"Gram. It was a thieves' guild created by a group of disgruntled and disillusioned knights sometime during the 4th Crusade. Gram was in the business of following beings like Cora and her brood to their kills, which typically led them to some pretty cool treasure."

"And what is it now?"

"Pretty much the same. The US version was an offshoot of the National Crime Syndicate. Now, like the Gram of yore, what we're really after is the vampire's lair."

"What's special about the lair?"

"That's where you can sometimes find the big loot, the items they choose to covet. They horde treasure just like dragons. You should try to go out with us sometime. It'd be an easy way to pay off that mounting student debt. You've been game hunting before, right?"

"You know I don't believe any of this, right?"

"I know. Give it time. And give me a ring when you're ready to peek behind the curtain. In the meantime, you may actually want to wear that thing—your dad always did." The microwave dinged. "I'll leave you to your— food."

*

While Roland finished his meal, he played the tape marked "mystery woman." He heard his dad's voice again:

"Cora? That's your name?"

"...."

"Why were you tracking me?"