Misery County

Chapter 21 - Part 3

"A valiant marine to the very end." She laughed. "But what hope do you think you have against me?"

"Oh, I have a feeling I'll do just fine."

"Is that what that thing under your arm is?"

"You can see that? How the hell can you see that? It's completely dark in here."

"Eric, I live in eternal night. How do you think I get by?"

"The fuck should I know?"

"Forgive me. I forget how slow you are."

There was a pause while Eric adjusted his shoulder strap.

"Echolocation," Nevena said.

"What?"

"I can 'see' you using echolocation."

"That's terrific. I don't care."

"You were the one that asked, you –" Nevena paused to take what must have been a purely cosmetic breath. "I'd make another comment about your limited intellect, but I fear there's no point at this stage, not with you this close to your tragic demise."

"You're finally planning to kill me? I'm almost relieved, but now I have to ask – why didn't you take me out when you had the chance?"

"What makes you think I didn't try?"

"How many times have I been in this very house with you? You could have just killed me in my sleep."

"I found you amusing. Besides, in the beginning, you were mostly just chasing your own tail. I wanted to keep an eye on you, to be sure, but with your presence known to the Sheriff's Department, I thought your untimely death would be... a challenge. More fool me, it seems."

"What's the matter? Scared?"

She scoffed. "Hardly. Annoyed, yes, but there's nothing you could do that could scare me."

Eric adjusted the little somethin' somethin' under his shoulder again. "Are you so sure about that?"

"Eric, look, this conversation is boring me now. You should have been dead hours ago. I'm going to kill you now, but before I do, I want you to know that in spite of it all, you were a good lay."

"Before you do anything, I have just one last question."

A straining, crunching sound was coming from where Nevena was standing. If vampires transform in any way, Eric assumed that was what was happening, but it didn't matter.

"Shoot, stud."

"Are you in charge of all of this? Are you leading the monsters?"

"None other."

"Good. That's all I wanted to know," he said with a smile.

"What are you hoping to do with –" Nevena's question was interrupted by a radiation that Eric couldn't see, but it did bring about a display that he could see – she was suddenly enveloped in fire, the flames licking her skin, a caress from the death she no doubt thought she'd never meet.