Lost in the Shadows

Chapter 7

                   

David had been waiting. He couldn't do anything else, as it seemed unlikely that the Italian would extend him an invitation to enter. The building was old and the walls were thick so the cry that came would have been unheard to any human who happened to be passing by. But David was not human. For a moment he thought that perhaps his time had been wasted, not that he particularly wanted to join the rest of the gang and the pair of simpering, desperate girls they would 'party' with on the beach. That side of his half-life had all but lost its sparkle for him long ago.

Then he heard a softer, muffled cry that came from higher up in the building. He sat a little straighter on his silent motorcycle, both feet planted on the worn wooden pier as he leant forwards over the shiny chrome handlebars to listen again. Another scream made his nostrils flare, the little smile on his lips widened slightly as he closed his eyes and drank in the sound. He was a hunter and that sound was delicious. But that wasn't why he was here, not tonight.

David shook his head, trying to clear it as he scanned the floor for something to use. His boots clattered as he stooped to grab a fist-sized rock that lay beside a plastic bucket full to the brim of various shells and beach pebbles some poor kid had put down and forgotten. Weighing the rock in his gloved hand, David took aim at the wide store-front and launched it. The glass, a thin single pane, shattered instantly with a satisfying smash that made him grin.

He heard Niko running down the hall and into the main room before he saw him, ducking out of sight behind a shuttered cotton-candy stall that had been fashioned into a hand cart. Angry curses, most of which were in Italian, were caught by him, but the lighter footsteps of the girl were indistinguishable. David frowned, peering around the frame of the cart. What had he done with her?

Treading as lightly as possible, David leant across to grab a handful of the smaller pebbles and crept towards Zingaro. The stones didn't have the weight behind them that the rock had, so he threw a handful as hard as he could, peppering them into the top part of the glass door. It splintered like a spider's web for a second, before imploding with a tinkle. He could see Niko raging inside, inspecting the damage as he tore at his hair and glared through the black gaping hole where the glass used to be.

Ignoring the wash of the ocean, David picked up the patter of bare, frantic feet heading along the back corridor. Within seconds he was around the rear of the restaurant, dodging the aluminium trashcans that spilled their innards into the narrow alleyway. He could hear desperate sobs as the door banged against its frame and the handle twitched and for a moment the temptation of stepping back, if only to hear that tortured scream again, was too great. Don't you remember what it was like to have family?

David pulled the door open and the terrified, weeping girl tumbled out at his feet. Blood mingled with tears on her face, dripping onto her white dress and her haunted eyes were wide and unseeing in her fear and confusion. He knelt down and gripped her cheeks with both hands, feeling the warmth of her flesh beneath his leather gloves and her pulse pounding millimetres from his fingertips. Making her look up at him, unsure if she even really saw him David levelled his icy-blue gaze at Star.

'Run,' he rasped. Star could hear him at least and she scrambled to her feet, heading down towards the steps that led to the beach.

David made his way back around the store front, a little more leisurely this time, to find Niko and the man still dressed in chef whites who was broader and rounder than his companion, trying to sweep up the broken glass. Niko roared as David sauntered over to his bike, smirking the whole time.

'You'll regret this, figlio di puttana!' shouted Niko venomously, edging towards the open front of the window, but not daring to cross out into the open.