The Trouble With Slaying

The Trouble With Spying

The trouble with spying is that one mistake can cost you your life. Especially when you're spying on monsters of myth and legend that feel particular about who knows what they are and where they live. And if you happen to be friends with a band of slayers, well, that just signs your death warrant right there.

So, I was expecting a rather abrupt end when I and the other Vampire slayers I worked with got partially through a quickly developing routine mission and then found the tables turned. I had thought myself fortunate when I had been handed into the family of Vampires care, thinking this would turn out well. The old family I had been apart of had already been sold out after all, and I needed a new family to gather information on so we could destroy them too. I always went in first, getting a feel for numbers of Vampires and hostage humans before the rest of the slayers would come in and we would slaughter them all.

This family had been no exception. I had gathered information and done my best to make sure there would be a minimum of collateral damage to the humans. I had purposely antagonized the human, Max, to the point that I had thought I had driven him away. The young ward usually spent most of his time out of the Mistress Vampires home anyways, and with a normal family, so I figured he would be fine. The other four humans weren't likely to make an appearance with the Vampires they were living with so they should all be fine.

The first sign that this was all going to go down in flames was when Max came back. He hadn't liked me from the start, but he was an oddball character that seemed to take care of everyone he came into contact with, no matter if he liked them or not.

The second sign was a little after we had begun our attack. The leader of our band of slayers started talking, which typically irritated me, but this time made me nervous. Mainly because the Mistress Vampire, Katty, was letting him. And she was entirely too relaxed about all this when I knew she was also the protective type.

The last was less a sign and more a blatant error on my part that cost us everything. I hadn't known that Katty's ward was a Werewolf. So when he shifted and attacked, it distracted everyone. And then everyone was dead. Max had me in a headlock and all monstrous gazes were turning on me as the last survivor. I had expected to be dead soon.

Instead, Max proved he had the Mistress Vampire wrapped around his little finger by making her spare me. To the protest of her soldier. But she hadn't wanted me around anymore and Max didn't contest her on that one. The distant hope that I would simply be turned loose was quickly crushed too.

Katty led the way and her Vampire lover and soldier followed as my guards. I could feel them daring me to try something, just so they could kill me and be done. I kind of wanted to live so I quickly and quietly did everything I was ordered.

It wasn't a long ride, though terribly tense. I knew my fear wasn't helping the situation any. But what else could I do as I watched Katty take roads and turns that led us into a run-down little part of town and pull in at an apartment building that looked like it should have been abandoned and leveled a long time ago.

I slid out of the car when Katty put it in park and shifted nervously on my feet as the two males got out and resumed flanking me. Katty tilted her head back, looking up at the four story building and eyeing doors, like she was trying to remember which one was the right one. There were only four with lights on inside.

I glanced up when one of the doors on the second floor opened and a man wandered out, back lit by the light inside. He was greying, and looked old enough to be someone's grandfather. Eerie shadows flickered across his weathered face as he lit a cigarette, and I noticed he was staring at us intently. Katty grinned and the man's head jerked up in apparent recognition. Katty started moving for the rickety looking stairs as he leaned his forearms on the railing, making the metal squeal worryingly.