Inner Depths

Part One: Taint

fficer Reynolds opened the door of his brand new cruiser and stepped out onto the road with his traditional swagger... adding and exaggerated swing to his comically narrow hips as he approached the rig. His hand was not on his gun, but his fingers hung close enough to the butt to make the insinuation clear: "Don't start any trouble... or else."

Not that Reynolds was expecting trouble. Prepared for it... yes. But the law said he had to assume the driver of the truck was a law-abiding citizen... despite the unshaven, impatient scowl glaring at him from the side mirror. The 18-wheeler had an Alabama license plate, and the driver looked every bit of the inbred, beer-guzzling, bar-brawling redneck stereotype... right down to the unruly beard that probably reached halfway down the man's chest. Reynolds wondered how many teeth the man had left in his mouth... but the man wasn't smiling, so Reynolds couldn't tell.

He wasn't likely to START smiling any time soon, either.

"Step out of the cab, sir." Reynolds said as he stood beside the driver's door. "And bring your license and registration with you."

The driver grunted... or growled, Reynolds wasn't sure, then opened the driver's side door. Reynolds took a step back to give the man room...

...then took another step back.

The truck-driver was a huge, monster of a man... almost a foot taller than Reynolds himself, with a chest like two beer kegs stacked side by side. His flannel shirt bulged with muscle and coarse hair the looked like it had been shaved off of a buffalo and sewn onto the man's chest. With barbed-wire. If this man had ever lost one of those Alabama bar fights, Reynolds would hate to see the guy that beat him.

"Problem, officer?" the driver said. His voice was low and rumbling... exactly the way Reynolds thought it would sound. He held out his driver's license. Reynolds took it.

"Did you know you were speeding, sir?" Officer Reynolds looked down at the license and started copying pertinent information onto the form attached to his metal clipboard.

"Yeah," said the man.

Reynolds looked up at the man and raise his eyebrow. 'Yeah?' What kind of answer was 'yeah'? And the way he said it...

"...probably 'cause I'm in a hurry," the man finished.

"You're not in that big of a hurry," Reynolds said coolly. "Not on my highway, you're not. What are you hauling?"

"Medical supplies," said the driver. "Very important medical supplies."

"Oh really?" said Reynolds... intentionally showing the doubt into his voice.

"Yeah," said the driver. "I'm headed to Rock Springs. I'm already late... and if I don't get there by sundown, there's gonna be trouble."

"Oh, what KIND of trouble?"

The driver folded his tree-trunk arms across his beer-keg chest and looked down at the cop. His eyes narrowed. His nostrils flared.

"Keep your hands where I can see them, please."

The driver unfolded his arms.

"Could you hurry it up?" the man growled.

"Oh, no, I don't think so," said Reynolds. "You might as well get comfortable, son, I'm gonna take a good long look at these 'medical supplies' after I run your license. Stand right here where I can see you..."

Reynolds walked sloooowly back to his patrol car. He was just reaching through the open window for the radio when he heard the footsteps.

Instantly, the officer spun-

The truck driver was coming at him. Not running... but not on a leisurely stroll, either.

"I said stay right there!" Reynolds warned. The man kept coming. Reynolds reached for his gun... expecting the guy to stop once he saw-

-he didn't stop. The driver's huge hands... hands that looked like they could crush rock... curled into fists so tight that his forearms bulged.

"Stop Right There!" Reynolds drew the gun and aimed it at the man's chest. When the driver didn't stop, Reynolds fired a warning shot over the driver's head.

Whatever steroids this man was on, they obviously made him think he was bullet proof. The huge redneck didn't so much as blink when the weapon discharged.

-and he STILL wasn't smiling.

"Stop, or I WILL shoot!"

"...Sorry 'bout this..." said the driver. "...but I REALLY gotta get where I'm goin'..."

"STOP! I MEAN IT!"

Reynolds kept his gun aimed at the man's chest and reached for the radio again...

...the driver started running.

Straight toward him.

"STOP!-"

Abandoning the radio, Reynolds fired. His aim was academy-perfect... two shots in the exact center of the man's chest. The rampaging redneck jerked backward...

...then kept right on coming as if Reynolds had just thrown two red paintballs at him. Reynolds fired another two shots... and then ANOTHER two. The driver's shirt now had six bloody holes in the general area of his heart and lungs. Those holes got bigger and bigger as the man came at Reynolds like a charging bull. The cop was squeezing the trigger on his last two bullets when the truck driver reached out, grabbed the sizzling-hot barrel of the gun-

-and removed it from Reynolds's grasp like an angry parent taking away a child's favorite toy. Reynolds TRIED to hold on to the weapon, but one second he was holding it... and the next it was flying across the highway. The trucker had tossed it away, but there was enough force behind the toss to send the weapon across all four lanes and deep... DEEP... into the grassy field on the other side of the road.

By this time, Reynolds had snatched the can of mace from his belt. He sent a long stream of chemical agony into the stranger's face. Just the few droplets that splattered back in Reynolds's's direction set his mucous membranes on fire.

The trucker had gotten the full blast. He'd quickly be going down in a crying, coughing heap of...

...going down in a...

... coughing heap....heap of...

The trucker cleared his throat, licked his lips, and spat a wad of mace and saliva onto the asphalt.

"You got anything else on that belt you want to try?" the man said. "Huh...?"

"Uhhhh...." Reynolds swallowed the lump in his throat JUST before the trucker's fist closed around his neck. The man's thick fingers tightened around the tender flesh just below the cop's jaw, and then he LIFTED-

"...eeek!" Reynolds' boots kicked frantically back and forth as they left the ground. The trucker thrust Reynolds back against the patrol car, folding him backward over the top just behind the still-flashing lights. The man leaned in close... a drop of the mace rolled off of the trucker's nose fell onto Reynolds's's right cheek, making his skin burn.

"Now you look here, boy" said the man. "I said I was in a hurry, and I think I said it real nice and clear. You wanna play your little cop-games, you play 'em with somebody else, because I don't have the time OR the temperament for 'em, ya hear?"

Officer Reynolds nodded.

"Now I'm gonna get my driver's license, get back in my truck, and go on about my business. And I'm gonna drive as fast as I feel like it, I don't care WHO's highway it is. You understand me, boy?"

Reynolds nodded again.

"Now, before you jump on that radio and get all your cop-buddies chasin' me around the county like a goddamn spy movie, I'm gonna show you somethin' that just might change your mind...."

The trucker leaned in even closer. Reynolds closed his eyes.

"...open 'em up, boy," said the trucker. "Get a good look, 'cause I'm only gonna show you this once. If you make me show you a second time... well... you won't like it."

Reynolds's's eyes popped open. The evil trucker's face filled his entire field of vision.

"You ready?" said the trucker. "You lookin?"

"...y-y-yes.." Reynolds squeaked.

"Now think about THIS when you get ready to tell your friends about what happened-"

"NNNAAAAAAAAA!!!" Reynolds screamed as the trucker's face turned inside-out, revealing the fanged, hairy THING that lived inside. The thing with teeth like knives. The thing that looked like every monster that had ever hungered for human flesh... all rolled into one, tremendous beast. The long, sadistic snout opened wide and surrounded Reynolds face... drowning his vision in a sea of sharp fangs. The cop's screams turned to shrieks of pure terror "NOOOOOO!!! NO! NO! OH GOD NO!!! GOD, JESUS PLEASE NO!!!! JESUS, GOD HELP ME PLEASE OH GOD NOO JESUS PLEEEEEAAASE!!!!"

Reynolds didn't feel the wet warmth spreading across the front of his pants. He didn't feel the urgent release of his bowels... OR the unyielding hardness of the asphalt when he hit the ground. It took him a second to realize that the thing had let him go-

But it was still there. Standing over him. Looking down at him.

Reynolds curled into a tight, trembling ball.

"Now I want you to remember that," said the trucker. "But in case you don't... or if you just want to see it AGAIN... then all you have to do is get on that radio and call this little incident in. Get all your buddies after me. We'll have a nice little chase. Then we'll all stop for lunch... and AFTER that, I'll come lookin' for you.... to give you that second look I told you about. The one you won't like. Understand?"

Reynolds whimpered.

"I'll take that as a yes."

The trucker picked his driver's license up off the ground where Reynolds had dropped it... then calmly turned around and walked back to his truck.

The truck's engine roared to life, and Reynolds squirted another stream of urine into his pants. He lay motionless as the truck pulled onto the highway and drove off. A minute later, Reynolds unfolded himself, opened the door of his patrol car, and pulled himself in. The seat of his pants gave a disgustingly warm squish as he sat down, but he ignored it. Instead, he stared at the radio underneath the dashboard... the lights flickered... the speaker crackled as another officer called in to dispatch.

That's what HE was supposed to be doing.

He was assaulted. He was supposed to call dispatch for backup.

And he should be doing it right now.

Right... now...

Yes.

Right now.

Reynolds reached for the radio.... with both hands. He grabbed it, ripped it out of the dashboard, and threw it out the window. When it hit the asphalt, the rectangular box of wires and electronics came apart with a satisfying crunch.

He felt much better after that.

shley closed the window on the computer screen when she heard Jason's car skidding into a parking space outside. She looked at her watch... it as almost 9:00pm. Jason was early. He wasn't due back for another three hours. She thought about getting up and going back to her room, but it was too late. He would see her leaving and think she was up to something. Of course, she WAS up to something... but it was a personal something, not anything that concerned Jason. But then, her LAST 'personal something' had almost gotten them killed...

"Please, please, please don't be in a bad mood..." she whispered as Jason's footsteps approached the door.

A key rattled in the lock, and then Jason walked in, carrying a brand new garment-bag slung over his left shoulder.

He paused.

"Can I help you?" he said, sarcastically. But it wasn't the fun kind of sarcasm. It was the 'what the hell are you doing in my room, bitch' kind of sarcasm.

"Uhhh, remember you said I could use your computer-"

"Yeah," Jason kicked the door closed behind him. The door slammed so hard that the entire wall shook... but Jason didn't notice. "But I meant while I was HERE."

"I'm sorry...?" Ashley squeaked. "I didn't bother any of your stuff, I swear. Don't be mad-"

"Mad?" Jason smiled... but it wasn't Jason's regular warm grin. Ashley hadn't seen THAT in about a week. It had been replaced with what she was looking at now: a hungry, almost predatory sneer. "I come home and find a beautiful woman alone in my hotel room... I'm supposed to be mad about that?"

"Uhhh... heh... yeah, I guess not."

"Find what you're looking for?" He asked.

"No."

Jason looked at her. Ashley squirmed in the chair, wondering why she was suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. There was something odd in Jason's eyes... in the way he was staring at her. And not at her face, either. His eyes were aimed a little bit further...

...down?

"Maybe I can help you out?" he said, still smiling. And looking. He approached her, but she drew back. "What are you looking for?"

"Uhhh... p-personal stuff. Hey, aren't you supposed to be watching that alley for Sebastian?"

"I was," said Jason. He looked over her shoulder at the computer screen, but there was nothing to see. Ashley had already closed the search window. "Got bored. Had more important things to do." Jason held up his bag. Through the clear plastic, Ashley could see a brand new pair of slacks and a shirt. Both black. At the bottom of the bag was a pair of leather shoes.

"You went shopping? Without me!?!"

"It occurred to me that I haven't had a drink, or been to a club, or had any... ya know... since I stopped to help a certain old man on a street one night. That's changing. Tonight."

"Ummm... is that... smart? You being an evil-magnet and all-"

"Which means I don't have to sit around watching alleys to find demons. I can go around doing whatever the I want to, and they'll find ME. Tonight, they'll have to find me at Club 2-12."

"Oooo, I've always wanted to go there."

"What stopped you?"

"Nobody to go with."

"That's not stopping you now. Come with me."

"Really? I mean... this isn't like a DATE or anything..."

"You say 'date' like its a bad thing," Jason leaned down toward her ear and spoke in a soft, near-whisper. "Why is that?"

Ashley jerked away again.

"Why don't you ask Detective Dobbs if she wants to go?"

"Already did," Jason replied. "Turned me down."

"Oh, so I'm your second choice?"

"Not even that. With Dobbs it would have been dinner... late movie... drinks at a jazz club until 4:00am... and then back to her place for... breakfast. But you? We're just two friends going out to have a good time. You think you can forget Sebastian for a night and have some fun... just this once?"

"NOT a date," said Ashley. "Right?"

"Not unless you want it to be." Jason leaned in again. "I mean... the way you keep saying that, it's almost like you WANT-

The hotel room door flew open. Sebastian did not look happy.

Not that he ever looked happy.

"What happened?" he said.

"What happened what?" Jason replied. "We were just talking!"

"Why are you here? Why aren't you watching the alley?"

Jason stood up straight and tossed his new clothes onto the bed.

"What... I report to YOU now?"

"There's a portal; you're supposed to be watching it-"

"Why?" said Jason. "Whatever demon pops out of it is gonna come straight to ME anyway... so why bother?"

"That's not how we do things-"

"That's not how YOU do things," said Jason. "But, in case you haven't noticed, YOU aren't in charge. You don't give any orders around here. You TAKE 'em. From ME. Haven't we already had this conversation once before?"

"Guys, please don't do this again..." Ashley pleaded. "You've been at each other's throats for the past WEEK!"

"Only because your boyfriend here thinks he's running things. But I'll tell you what... the next time he fixes his mouth to even ACT like he's giving me an order... or comes up to me NAGGING and WHINING like some BITCH... or busts into my room unannounced like he just did, I'll show him just how much authority he DOESN'T have. Now if its so damned important for you to have somebody watching that alley, then I suggest you get in your car, drive your ass on over there, and WATCH IT YOUR DAMNED SELF!"

"I asked YOU do do it-"

"No, you TOLD me to do it! There's a big F&*king Difference! Now I'm telling YOU to get out of my room before embarrass you in front of your girlfriend!"

Sebastian fixed Jason with a long, cold stare...

...but it was like staring into a mirror.

Ashley squirmed in her seat, not sure what to say or do. It had been like this between them for days, and Ashley had no idea why. Something was bothering Sebastian. Something serious. But he wouldn't so much as talk to her, and she didn't want to violate his thoughts just to find out. If she did THAT, then she might find out that the thing that was bothering him was... her. He never liked her to begin with, but after the incident with the sniper he rarely even acknowledged her presence. It was like she didn't even exist to him any more.

And Jason...

Jason wasn't upset or bothered. He was just... different. Harder.

Scarier.

More like Sebastian.

"Please stop..." she said. "Okay? Please?"

"This isn't over," Sebastian said as he walked out. A second later, Ashley heard Sebastian's motorcycle pulling out of the parking lot.

"I don't see what you like about that guy," said Jason.

"Why were you so MEAN to him!?"

"What... you on my ass now, too?"

"No... he just wanted to make sure nothing happened in that alley without us knowing, that's all. He wasn't giving you orders or anything."

"No surprises are coming out of that alley," said Jason. "I left Donovan there to watch it."

"Well why didn't you tell Sebastian that!?"

"Because he didn't ask," said Jason. "He just ASSUMED I just walked off and left it... if he thinks I'm THAT irresponsible, then HE'S the one with the problem. Not me. How are we going to be partners if he doesn't trust my judgement, eh? Tell me that!"

"Oh, come on... that's just how he is! Sebastian doesn't trust anybody-!"

"-that's the problem. The only person he listens to is Donovan... and Donovan is DEAD, so his ideas obviously didn't do HIM a whole lot of good, did they?"

"No, I guess not-"

"And the OTHER problem is that I'm hungry. You eat dinner yet?"

"Well... kinda-"

"So did I, but I'm starving. You still comin' with me to the club?"

"Ummm... I don't have anything to wear!"

"Go naked. Or we could just stay HERE... naked."

"Heh, heh, funny."

"Club doesn't open until 11.... I wasn't planning on being there until 12. We can drop by the mall before it closes, then you can shop while I hit the food court. Then we can hit a restaurant or two on the way. How's that?"

"But, Umm... I don't have any money-"

"Who said you needed money?"

"Really? You'd pay-"

"You're going out with Jason Brooks... what the hell do you need MONEY for?"

"Wow, that's... sweet. I mean... thanks!"

"You can thank me later. Let's get on the road before my stomach implodes."

Jason walked over to the bed and began to unbutton his shirt.

"Uhhh... Jason?"

"What? Go ahead and use the computer..." Jason shrugged off his shirt.

"Riiiight. I'll... go... get my purse."

"You do that." Jason walked over to the mirror. By this time, the door was already closing behind Ashley as she left.

"Hmmm..." she heard Jason say before the door shut. "I could have sworn I shaved this morning..."

atching James Royce maneuver his fork into, around, and out of the massive pile of spaghetti on the plate before him was an exercise in patience and frustration. Dobbs thought being on crutches was bad enough, but at least her leg was still THERE.

"Do you need-"

"Offer to help me eat and I'll break your other leg," Royce said.

"Fine," Dobbs retracted her hand, which was already halfway to Royce's plate. "Might help if you cut it into smaller pieces, though."

"I'll take that into consideration," Royce said as he tried to dip up another fork-full of food... only to have it slide off onto the table cloth. The waitress was going to have quite a mess to clean up when they left.

"So how's the department?" Dobbs said, changing the subject.

"Ahhh, now you get to the real reason you asked me out, eh?"

"Well?" said Dobbs. "What... you thought I enjoyed your company? I wanna know what I'm walking back into next week. You've got this police-consultant scam going... and I'm a cop again, so spill it. What's going on?"

"Not a whole hell of a lot," said Royce. "The place is a ghost-town. And a new batch of transfer-requests pop up every day."

"Any new faces?"

"A few. Rookies."

"Rookies? I thought Holt wanted to bring in some experienced officers."

"Heh, right. Anybody that's been with the force longer than a day is avoiding this town like the plague. Rock Springs has started to get a reputation. People start asking why the department has so many vacancies, and the answers scare 'em away. Rabid dogs running loose in the headquarters? Mysterious Explosions? Hallucinogenic nerve gas? Yeah, that sounds like the kinda place I wanna work."

"I dunno," said Dobbs. "Sounds like a challenge to me."

"Right.... and you know what kind of cop that likes challenges? Kids who don't know any better and hard-asses that think they're tough enough to change the world all by themselves. We got enough of them... we don't need any more. But then, I don't consult on the hiring practices so..." Royce shrugged. It looked awkward and painful. "...when the perps figure out the town is protected by last year's academy graduates, you can expect a friggin' field day out there on the streets. As if we didn't have that already."

"You know, Royce, for a minute there it almost sounded like you cared."

Royce smiled. That looked painful, too.

"What about you?" he said. "How YOU doin, eh?"

"Better, now that you got my job back for me."

"Hey, I just happened to whisper in the right ear, that's all."

"Well, thanks. I think being reinstated is going to go a long way in getting Alexis back."

"Can't believe they gave custody to that bastard," Royce growled into his food. "You want me to take care of him for ya?"

"No, not yet."

"Just say the word..." Royce finally managed to get another fork full of spaghetti into his mouth. Dobbs watched him as he chewed.

"You know... sometimes its hard to tell when your serious and when you're joking," she said.

"Oh?"

"Like just now. For a second there, it almost sounded like..."

"Like what?"

"Nothing," said Dobbs. "Nothing. So... uhhh... how's the sniper investigation going?"

"Stalled. Stuck. Clogged. Going nowhere slowly."

"It's amazing the feds haven't gotten involved."

"Maybe the feds are scared of Rock Springs, too. That suits me just fine."

"What about the burned-out car they found on the highway?"

"Found a body... unidentifiable. Found some weapons... nothing that could shoot through a wall, though. Detonator and traces of explosives. Yeah, somebody did him, but there's nothing to connect him to the shootings."

"Brooks says the guy in the car was our sniper."

"Brooks? Jason Brooks? You still talking to that guy?"

"Not like I have a choice in the matter. He thinks I'm his friend now."

"Are you?"

"...well..."

"You sleepin' with him?"

"WHAT!? Royce-"

"None of my business, right."

"And no, I'm not sleeping with him."

"Want to?"

"No."

"You sure?"

"What is this... you jealous or something?"

"Well, not that I would turn it down if it was offered... but you're not my type."

"Are YOU sure?" said Dobbs.

"...about?"

"You went out of your way to help me. Did me a big favor... whatever it was, I'm sure it cost you one way or another. But what I can't figure out is... why?"

"'Cause I like you. And THAT'S why I don't like the idea of you and Brooks hangin' out together-"

"We don't hang out."

"The man is trouble. I know you got your doubts, but I swear he'd mixed up in something. Maybe something bigger and badder than even HE knows."

"Trust me; you don't have to lecture me about Brooks. He's trouble... I don't have any doubts about that."

"But what DO you have doubts about?" said Royce. "'cause I know you got 'em. I can see it."

Dobbs thought for a moment, trying to come up with the best way to explain... but there wasn't one.

"Well?" said Royce.

"It's like..." Dobbs started, unsure of how to make her point without sounding insane. "...since I met him, I've been... exposed to things that I can't really explain. I've seen things... I've seen Brooks DO things..."

"Hallucinogenic gas?"

"You and I both know that's a load of BS, Royce. There is no gas. Never was. The things I've seen are real. Either they're real, or I'm crazy. And I don't feel crazy."

"Crazy people never FEEL crazy, Dobbs. That's what makes 'em crazy."

"True. But this is different. There's just so much that I can't explain..."

"Don't try. Some questions ain't meant to be answered-"

"But Brooks DOES have answers. I mean, he's got this entire... I don't know... mythology built up around him. It's like he lives in a separate world where all the stuff I can't make sense of is just an ordinary day for him."

"We got words for people like that," said Royce. "Psychotic. Schizophrenic. You know those words, don't you Dobbs?"

"I don't necessarily BELIEVE what he says," said Dobbs. "But I think... I think sometimes I want to. I'm a detective, Royce... I need answers. I NEED answers like people need air and water. Jason Brooks' answers don't make a lot of sense to me, but their better than anything I can come up with. They're the only ones I've got."

"Some people say that insanity is contagious."

"You really think he's INSANE, Royce?"

"Yeah. I do."

"Based on what? You haven't even MET him. Not really."

"His record speaks for itself. Him and that phoney psychic he's hanging around with... they're not the kind of people you take home to mom and dad."

"How do you know she's fake?"

"-because none of that stuff is real. You said so yourself not too long ago. Before you met Brooks."

"But now I'm not so sure."

"Exactly my point. I think you'd be better off if you severed all ties with this guy. Don't let him drag you down whatever hole he's slippin' into. You've got enough problems as it is without seeing witches and demons around every corner."

"You wanna know something?" Dobbs leaned forward and lowered her voice. "He called me today. Asked me out."

"A date?"

"Yeah. Don't know where he got the balls to ask,... after the last time."

"He's crazy; that's where he got the balls. You turned him down, right?"

"Of course. Every time I so much as walk the same sidewalk as Jason Brooks I end up shot, or on crutches, or in a hospital somewhere."

"So you gonna keep clear of him?"

"For now. I'm going to get my answers, though... and if I have to go through him to get them, then I'm not afraid to do it."

"He might not be around long enough for that," said Royce.

"You know something I don't?"

"I know lots of things you don't... but we BOTH know that Brooks is the kind of guy that attracts trouble. Disaster seems to follow this guy around like a second shadow. Eventually it's gonna catch up with him... and that's gonna be a bad night for him and everybody around him. Trust me, Dobbs. That night is coming. Soon."

"hhh, this is so great!" said Ashley as she grabbed Jason's hand. His fingers closed gently around hers and he helped her out of the Corvette. Her short black skirt fell into place almost perfectly at mid-thigh. There was a strip of bare skin between the top of the skirt and the bottom of the white halter-top she wore. Jason's eyes lingered on that strip of skin as she straightened her clothes. "We get to live like ordinary people for once."

"We ARE ordinary people," said Jason. He was dressed in all black from head to toe, and Ashley was glad to see he'd left the brown trenchcoat at home. "We just have an unusual line of work."

"Riiiight."

"But not tonight," said Jason. "We're on vacation tonight."

"What did Sebastian say when you told him we were going out?"

"I didn't."

"He doesn't know where we are!?"

"Donovan can find me if there's trouble. And if there isn't, then where we are is none of their damned business."

Ashley could hear... and feel... the rhythmic bass of the music as they made their way toward the door. It was ten minutes until midnight, and there was a line of cars pulling into the parking lot. The line at the door was short, but within an hour it would stretch across the lot and around the far side of the building.

"Perfect timing," said Jason as they reached the security guard just outside the door. The guard proceeded to wave a hand-held metal detector up and down their bodies, searching for weapons. He found a belt-buckle and a key ring.

"How'd you get your... equipment... past that guy?" Ashley asked as they joined the short line at the door.

"Didn't bring any," said Jason. "I'm on vacation, remember?"

"So what happens if..."

"A demon kicks down the door?" Jason said in a loud, even tone... despite the fact that they were surrounded by people. "You can distract him with that outfit while I run for the car."

"You don't like my outfit?"

"I love that outfit. You got no complaints here."

"I didn't think so. I saw you checking me out back at the car."

"If you didn't want to be looked at then you shouldn't have worn it."

"-Who said I didn't want to be looked at?"

"Ten Dollars" said the man at the door. Jason peeled a single twenty dollar bill off of the roll he had in his pocket and handed it to the man. He snatched his change away the second it was offered, then proceeded to join the party inside.

Club 2-12 was essentially a circular dance floor surrounded by tables... with a fully stocked bar at one end and a VIP balcony at the other, overhanging the dance floor. There was an elevated stage opposite the main entrance, but instead of a live band, the stage was occupied by a DJ, his equipment, and various members of his entourage. The DJ was shaking the walls with a bass-heavy dance cut that had Ashley nodding her head the second she crossed the threshold. The dance floor was packed, but most of the tables were empty. Ashley headed for one of the table, but Jason yanked her toward the bar. They found two empty stools. The bartender... one of three extremely busy men... appeared almost instantly.

"Whatcha need!" the bartender had to shout over the music. There was huge speaker directly over his head... which was probably the reason those two seats were empty.

"Two Long Island Teas!" Jason shouted back.

"No, nothing for me-" Ashley began.

"Both of those were for me," Jason informed her.

"Oh. Uhh... Just a Coke, please!" Ashley said as she sat down.

"Don't you want a REAL drink?"

"No, its..." Ashley started, then stopped. It was impossible to have a conversation with the music so loud. Too bad Jason wasn't telepathic. Instead of speaking she just shook her head an pointed to the speaker over their heads.

"Oh." Jason leaned over the bar, reached up, and yanked the wires out of the back of the speaker. There was a 'pop'... a 'buzzzzz'.... and then the rhythmic thumping of the music softened just enough to be tolerable.

"Jason! That was-"

The bartender returned with their drinks. He took Jason's money, then glanced up at the mysteriously silent speaker.

"What?" Jason growled when the bartender looked at him again. "Looks like you got some kind of electrical problem. Too bad I ain't an electrician."

The bartender shook his head and walked away.

"You're going to have to pay for that," said Ashley.

"You see what they charge for drinks in here? I'm ALREADY paying for that. Here... you want this?"

Jason offered her one of his drinks.

"No, thanks."

"Your mouth says no," Jason leaned in close to her. "But it lies."

"I don't drink when I'm out," said Ashley. "Makes it hard to control the..." Ashley tapped her forehead with her index finger. "...you know."

"Suit yourself." Jason's Long-Island Iced Teas came in two massive glasses. He emptied one of them in about four seconds with a series of quick, noisy gulps. He put the empty glass on the bar and took the remaining drink... which he began to sip slowly.

"Thirsty?" said Ashley.

"Not any more," Jason replied. He took a deep sip of his drink and studied the crowd. His eyes narrowed as he surveyed the dance floor in a cold, almost predatory stare. Ashley tried to see who he was looking at... but he was looking at everyone.

"Do you notice something strange about these people?" he said as he took another long sip.

Ashley looked.

"Besides the fact that all the women are wearing less clothes than me?"

"Yeah, besides that."

"No, its just a club-"

"Check out the auras."

Confused and slightly curious, Ashley looked out at the crowd and allowed her eyes to loose focus. Unlike Jason, she actually had to concentrate and put forth effort to see auras, but when she did...

"I don't see anything," she said.

"That guy right there-" Jason pointed to a man sitting by himself at the far end of the bar. "And those guys at the table by the door. That girl on the dance floor. Those other girls over there. That dude right there..."

Ashley took a moment to study each person Jason pointed out. Then she shook her head.

"Jason, you haven't been to a lot of public places since you... you know..."

"Tried to help a certain old man on the street? No. Why?"

"What you're seeing in those auras? It's natural."

"No, can't be. They way they're all shriveled and faded like that?"

"It's drugs," said Ashley.

"What drug?"

"All of 'em. Addiction does that... drains your will. Fades the aura. That's what it looks like when it gets bad. Those people are all addicted to something."

"Damn, that's... sick!"

"If you think that's bad, you should try reading minds. Hearing every private thought that goes through somebody's head is no picnic. You have NO idea what some of the people in this room are thinking..."

"Yeah, but you can just turn that off."

"I can," said Ashley.

"...but... you don't."

"Sure I-"

"You don't. You're listening to them right now. You can't STOP listening. Why?... does it turn you on-"

"Now YOU'RE being sick, Jason. Of course it doesn't."

"Then why do it?"

"First of all, I'm extremely sensitive-"

"Mmmm, I'll bet-"

"PSYCHICALLY, sensitive."

"Oh. Right."

"For me, it takes effort NOT to listen. Other telepaths have to clear their minds and concentrate to hear another person's thoughts. Me, I have to do that to NOT hear them. And sometimes, I just... I just get tired."

"But you're not tired now, are you? So... why?"

"Because..." Ashley looked down at her untouched drink.

"Well?"

"Because it's hard and... and its... it's scary. I've been gifted since I was born. For me, turning it off would be like a normal person walking around with their eyes closed. I don't think I'd even know how to... how to DEAL with people if I couldn't peek inside their heads when I needed to."

"But you don't need to. Normal people don't need to-"

"Normal people haven't heard the crap that stirring around inside other people's heads. If they did... if they could hear what I hear for one DAY... and then, the next day they couldn't hear it any more, then they'd be scared to death every time they stepped outside. Is he a serial killer? A stalker? Is he gonna slice open your dog when you don't call him back... or just pull out a gun and shoot you right there on the spot? Or is he just a nice guy? How do you know?"

"Sounds to me like you're the one that's addicted. People take those risks all the time, but you need a crutch that almost nobody else has."

"Yeah, but they don't KNOW they're taking them. I DO know... It's like a person that's blind since birth can live a normal life, but somebody who just lost their sight yesterday can't. Only with me, the whole WORLD is blind since birth, and I'm the only one who can see. So when I close my eyes to be like them... it's scary. I don't know how to... function. I can't-"

"You can," said Jason. "And you will. Tonight."

"What's that mean?"

"Turn it off," said Jason. "For tonight. Be a normal person... just like all the other normal people in here."

"But-"

"But what? But you can't do it? But its too hard? Stop being such a woman and just do it."

"Why? For your amusement? You want to see me walking around all awkward and-"

"Once this crowd gets going, I'm not even gonna be LOOKING at you. You do this for YOUR benefit... to show you that it isn't as hard as you think."

"I've done it before, Jason. I KNOW how hard it is-"

"Sounds like you just need practice then. So for the rest of the night, pretend you are a normal girl just like everyone else. What's the worse that could happen?"

"Famous last words."

"You scared? With me here?"

"You... with no guns. What are you gonna do, THROW bullets at people?"

"Can't even do that. Didn't bring any. And you're changing the subject."

"Okay, FINE," Ashley said in exasperation. "I'll do it. Just to show you."

Ashley closed her eyes and sat still for a moment.

"-there," she said, opening her eyes. She looked cautiously at the crowd... which was a lot quieter than it had been a moment ago. The music and shouted conversations were just as loud... but the constant background noise of their thoughts was gone. Ashley had pushed them out of her mind and closed the door behind them, locking them away for as she felt like keeping up the effort. "-Happy?"

"Not yet," said Jason. "But we just got here." He was eyeing a group of women that had just walked in. Almost everyone in the club was in their early twenties, but this group was a few years older... closer to Jason's age. But they were all dressed like teenagers... tight clothes, no bras, and lots of skin. And they had Jason's full attention. When they looked over at the bar, Jason smiled and nodded at them. Ashley watched his eyes dart quickly from one woman to the other... like a predator picking out the weakest member of a heard. The women found an empty table and sat down. One of them looked back at Jason. He smiled at her, and she quickly looked away. She was smiling too.

"I like her aura," said Jason. "Nice... with just a touch of naughty."

"Why don't you go over there and talk to her?"

"Because there are seven women at that table," said Jason. "I go over there now, all I'll get is a lot of giggling and stupid questions. I might walk away with a phone number and that's it. Maybe not even that. But if I wait till they spread out..."

"You've got this down to a science, don't you."

"I am a master," said Jason. He looked away from the table and surveyed the other newcomers. "...meanwhile, there's lots more to see."

"So are you going to actually DANCE, or are you going to sit here and stare at women all night."

"I'll get to that later," said Jason. "Right now, I'm in the mood for sitting and staring." Jason finished off his second drink and order another pair... this time, margaritas.

"Are you trying to get drunk?"

"You know...," said Jason. "I'm two drinks in and I don't feel a thing. Strange."

"Maybe that means you're an alcoholic."

"Maybe that means whatever Donovan did to me screwed up my tolerance. Maybe Knights can't get drunk."

"Kinda makes you wonder what ELSE Knights can't do."

"Well, the fact that Sebastian was born means that all the IMPORTANT stuff still works. I hope. Speaking of which... how's that going?"

"How's what going?"

"You and Sebastian."

"What about me and Sebastian?"

"Oh, don't start denying it now. You want a piece of that. I can smell it on you ever time he walks into the room."

"Okay, that's just gross."

"Well?"

"Well... I mean... I think he hates me."

"So what are you gonna do?"

"What do you mean 'do'? I can't MAKE him like me... well, I CAN, but that would be wrong."

"More wrong than reading people's minds without their permission?"

"Yeah. Lots more wrong."

"So are you just going to give up?"

Ashley shrugged.

"That means no," said Jason. "So let me give you some advice."

"Oh, boy... tips from the master."

"Yeah, so listen close. What you need to do is pull back a bit. Stop being so obvious."

"I'm not being OBVIOUS!"

Jason looked at her with a sarcastic, one-eyebrow-raised glance.

"I'm being obvious?"

"Very. So act like you're not interested in him any more, and he'll start wondering what's wrong with him."

"Yeah, that works on REGULAR guys, but Sebastian is-"

"-Still a man. A man with a lot of sharp knives.. but still a man. Trust me. You act like you're suddenly not interested... or better yet: interested in somebody ELSE... like me, for instance-"

"Uhh, no thanks."

"Fine. Your way is obviously working pretty good for you, so you keep right on doing it. He'll come around eventually. Maybe."

"Hey, your girl is on the move..." Ashley nodded at the group of women that Jason had been watching before. Two of them got up from the table and started toward the dance floor.

"Now watch the master at work-" Jason downed his first margaritas eased off of the barstool... then paused. The women veered around the dance floor and headed toward the rear of the club. Ashley saw them whispering to the large... HUGE, ... bouncer at the bottom of the stairs, and then they both started up into the elevated VIP lounge. They vanished into one of the darkened rooms.

"Ooo, too bad," Ashley taunted him. "Should have made your move earlier."

"They'll be back," Jason sat back down and grabbed his second margaritas. "...you know, if these things don't start kicking in, I'm gonna stop buying 'em."

"Might be a good idea. So... you wanna dance?"

"With you!?"

"YEAH with me."

"CAN you dance?"

"Can YOU?"

"You don't know who you're talking to, do you? Come on out here and let me show-" Jason paused. "...hold that thought." Ashley followed Jason's glance and saw that the two women from before were coming back down the stairs. Jason had been staring at them before... but NOW he seemed fixated on them.

"Jason?"

"Hey... that aura thing you were telling me about earlier... the drug thing..."

"Yeah?"

"How long does that take to happen? Weeks? Months?"

"Before it gets reflected in someone's aura? Years, usually."

"But not minutes?"

"No, don't be silly..."

"Stay right here."

Jason got up, set his drink down, and started walking.

"Hey!" Ashley called. "Hey where are you going?"

"I'm making my move..." said Jason. "Be right back..."

ason cut a long diagonal across the dance floor and headed for the VIP area... oblivious to the people he shoved out of the way as he walked. A few of the bouncers watched him, but nobody moved to stop him, and, eventually, the people on the dance floor cleared out of his way. When he reached the bottom the stairs, the bouncer... a large black man who was at least 300 pounds of hard muscle... stepped into his path.

"You got business upstairs?" he asked.

"Yeah," Jason replied, looking up into the man's face. The bouncer was wearing sunglasses. Inside. At midnight.

Jason was not impressed.

He felt an odd tightness across his chest... almost like a muscle cramp, except it wasn't painful. It actually felt good.

Maybe those drinks were finally kicking in.

The bouncer was staring at him. Jason stared back.

"Be quick," said the bouncer. He stepped aside, clearing the way to the metal stairs.

"I will," said Jason as he started up.

The club's VIP area consisted of a row of tinted glass that looked out onto the dance floor. Soundproof walls separated the area behind the glass into three large rooms. The lights in the club made it impossible to see into the rooms from the outside... but Jason doubted that the occupants had any problem seeing out. He walked to the first room... the room that the women had gone into earlier... and knocked on the door.

"Yo!" said a voice from inside.

Jason pushed the latch, and it turned freely. He walked a dark room with a long, leather couch and two matching chairs arranged around a rectangular table. The two chairs were empty, but two well-dressed black men sat on opposite ends of the leather couch. One was leaning back and paying Jason no attention whatsoever. The other was looking at him with bored impatience. Both had auras the color of coal... deep swirls of midnight black spun out from their bodies and into the room, mingling with the fragrant marijuana smoke that hung thick in the air.

But despite the color, the auras were still human.... unlike those of the women who had just left. Those women barely had auras at all... just a few faint sparkles of color amid a rapidly fading gray haze. Anything that could turn a normal human aura into THAT in just a few seconds couldn't have been natural.

So much for a night off.

But then, he hadn't expected to find actual PEOPLE behind the VIP room's tinted glass. Real human beings. This changed things. Slightly.

"Yeah, man, what you need," said the man on Jason's right.

"What you got?" said Jason.

The man on the other end of the couch spoke without taking his eyes off of the dance floor outside.

"Well what we DON'T got is time for niggas comin' in here to window-shop. You want somethin,' you ask. You don't, you get the f%^k out."

"I want what you sold those girls that just walked out of here."

"This nigga sounds like a cop," said the dealer on the right. He looked at his parter, then back at Jason. "You a cop?"

"Do I look like one?"

"Yeah, kinda," said the other man.

"Well I'm not," said Jason. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a thick roll of 20-dollar bills. "You want money? I've got money. Just show me what you gave those women."

"Why you so interested?" said the man on Jason's left, who was finally giving Jason his full attention. "Huh?"

"They said it was a good high," Jason lied.

"Good high," said the dealer on the left. "Right. You ain't ready for nuthin' we got, nigga... get on outta here. Now."

"And if I don't?" said Jason. He folded his arms across his chest. He was bigger than both of the men in the small room... but not by much.

The two men looked at each other.

There was a small hand held phone on the table. The man on Jason's right picked it up, pushed a button, and spoke.

"Hey, Roland... come get this fool."

"Right," the bouncer's voice rumbled out of the tiny phone's speaker.

"Now if you a cop, then you'd better pull out a badge before my man Roland gets up here," said one of the men. "...which should be in about three... two... one..."

The door opened behind Jason. The bouncer didn't bother to come in, he just reached for Jason's shoulder-

Jason grabbed the huge man's meaty wrist with one hand. With a sudden surge of strength, he yanked Roland into the room, kicked the door closed behind him, and twisted the muscular man's arm as if he were trying to unscrew it from its socket. The bouncer screamed as his wrist-

-SNAP-

...Elbow...

-CRUNCH-

...and shoulder-

-CRACK-

all splintered in Jason's iron grasp. Jason then spun the howling bouncer around and drove the back of his fist into the side of the man's head. There was a crunch as the earpiece lodged in Roland's ear shattered, driving sharp bits of plastic into his ear canal. Fortunately, Roland was already unconscious. With a gentle shove, Jason sent the bouncer's limp body spilling across the table... which collapsed instantly, dropping the unconscious guard onto the floor at the drug dealers' feet...

Jason had no idea that any of the above was going to happen.

It just did.

He looked down at the man bleeding on the floor, then at his own hand... which had knocked him out with one punch. And it wasn't even a HARD punch. If anything, it had been a mere slap...

Jason smiled.

The pleasant tightness had returned to his chest, but now it was spreading down his arms. It felt good. It felt... strong. He felt his heart pounding like a piston beneath his rib cage. He wondered of the two drug dealers could hear it-

-because he could certainly hear THEIRS. It was a sound like two frightened birds flapping their wings against the bars of a muffled cage. The men were afraid. He could hear it in the subsonic quivering of their breaths. He could smell it, too. It smelled like...

Why was he so hungry all of a sudden?

The drug dealer on Jason's right reached between the cushions and pulled out Ruger .45 calibre semiautomatic-

He'd barely gotten the weapon out into the open before Jason reached out and calmly removed the weapon out of his grasp. Jason hardly felt the Affinity take over as the gun touched his hand. He made a series of motions that the two dealers couldn't have seen as anything but a blur-

-then tossed the weapon back at them.

In pieces.

The completely disassembled gun scattered across the leather couch. Pieces of it slid between the cushions, and one of the drug dealers actually started to reach for them... as if he could re-assemble them in anywhere NEAR enough time to do him any good.

The other man sprang off of the couch, launching himself toward his attacker in a rushing display of either bravery or stupidity. Jason wasn't sure which... nor did he care.

Jason drove the palm of his hand into the drug dealer's chest, intending to shove him back onto the couch.

-CRACK-

The man jerked and spat a mouth full of blood halfway across the room as four ribs shattered like glass. He fell-

-back onto the couch. Exactly where Jason wanted him. The fact that his chest looked like he'd been kicked in by a mule didn't bother Jason one bit. Surprisingly, the man tried to get up again, but jagged fragments of bone grinding in his chest pushed him over into blissful unconsciousness... or shock. Again, Jason didn't care which. The man went limp... head resting on his chest, and blood drooling out of his open mouth.

The other man... now holding a few random pieces of his gun... got up and threw them at Jason before springing for the door.

Jason caught the man by the shoulder, spun him around, and deposited him back onto the couch. He kept his hand on the man's shoulder, allowing his fingers to dig into the man's flesh like blunt talons.

"AAAAGH!!" the dealer screamed. "HELP!"

"Soundproof walls," Jason reminded him. "Now let's have a look at your inventory, shall we?"

Jason rummaged through the dealer's pockets.

In the first was a roll of money... twenties, fifties, and hundreds... which Jason tucked away in his own pocket without a second thought. In another was a cheap plastic bag filled with small glass vials... the kind that perfume and cologne samples came in.

But the murky reddish-brown liquid in these vials was not cologne. Jason didn't even have to smell it to know that. The way it sloshed around inside the vials even though Jason was holding his hand completely still was one sign. The other was even more obvious.

This stuff had an aura. Dark... darker than black, with swirls of something even DARKER swirling around within it. Some of the swirls looked like tentacles. Others looked like long, curled teeth.

"So much for a night off," said Jason. He held the bag up in front of the drug dealer's face. "Where'd this come from?"

"I'm not tellin you."

"Who do you work for? Where did you get it?"

"Man, I'm not tellin-"

"Fine," said Jason. He tightened his grip on the man's shoulder. "Don't tell."

Jason was already standing well inside the frightened man's aura. Tendrils of darkness pooled around his hands, drawn toward his skin by some supernatural attraction. Flashes of other places and times clawed at the edges of Jason's consciousness. They would not go away... the best he could do was ignore them. But if he did the opposite... if he focused on one...

"....better than crack. This is Taint! This is the NEW crack!"

Jason had no idea who was speaking. It wasn't the person who's shoulder he was slowly crushing... he was the person being spoken TOO, along with a small group of others. The person pacing back and forth in front of them was holding up a small vial of the reddish-brown goo. He was a young black man... smaller and younger, but much better dressed than anyone else in the small, dusty room.

"A longer, stronger high. None of that shakin' and stumblin' and shit... you know where you are and what you're doin the whole time. You just don't give a damn that your life is f@$ked up any more. You could drive a school bus on this stuff and nobody would even know. And you wanna know about repeat customers? People get hooked on this stuff just LOOKIN at it. They get a taste of this and you'll have people chasin' you down in the street for another hit."

"So what do you do?" someone in the crowd asked. "Smoke it? Shoot it? What?"

"Just a drop on the skin. It soaks in... no tracks, no scars, no nuthin. Takes 'em straight to heaven. Gives 'em a glimpse... just quick peak... and then drops 'em on a long, easy slide back to the real world. Smiling all the to the bottom. And get this... people on the slide will do anything you ask 'em to do, no matter what."

"How do we know its as good as you say?" asked someone else. "Maybe we should try it-"

"No," said the man with the vial. "Nobody uses. That's been my rule from day one... nobody uses. That ain't about to change now. ESPECIALLY not the Taint. Anybody uses this stuff, I'm gonna know... and they ain't gonna be around for a second hit."

"So how do we know-"

"What? You think I'm lyin to you? You niggas think I'm lyin?"

Nobody answered.

"Money, come up here, dog."

Jason's view shifted as the person who's aura he was reading stepped forward and turned to face the others.

"K-Money been pushin this stuff at 2-12 for a week. Tell 'em 'bout business at 2-12, Money."

"Man, forget all that other stuff. After three days, I'm sellin straight Taint! No crack, no blow... hell, not even weed! I don't even carry that stuff WITH me no more! I unloaded all my other inventory CHEAP and now I sell nuthin but Taint... that's it... nuthin else. I got dudes on the street mad at ME 'cause their customers are chasin me down in the club! I got folks bringin their friends... cousins... brothers... sisters... people they work with... the VIP at 2-12 is like a damn pharmacy! You fools don't want in on this? That's just more money for ME! Pretty soon, all the folks you sellin' to are gonna be lined up like a damn free concert outside MY door-"

"That's enough, dog," said the man with the vial. "If they ain't smart enough to get the point by now, then they too stupid to work for me."

"How much does it cost?" Someone asked.

"-and where do you get it from?"

"It costs YOU five dollars for one vial. You can sell it for whatever the hell you want."

"Sell it to the rich white folks for fifty," said K-Money. "Or seventy five. Sell it to the school kids for ten... seven if they bring a friend."

"Hell, I don't CARE! Just SELL it! And as for the supplier? That's me. You get it from ME... don't worry about who my supplier is. So who wants in? ...or are you gonna let K-Money have all your customers?"

The vision faded, and Jason found himself looking down at 'K-Money'... who was trying his best not to look frightened.

"Taint," said Jason. He frowned... and felt K-Money's shoulder creak under his fingers.

"AAAGH-"

"This stuff poisons people souls," said Jason. "And you sell it to school kids for ten? Seven if they bring a friend?"

"How...how..."

"How did I know?" said Jason. His frown was so deep that it had almost become something else. "Maybe God sent me. Or maybe the devil sent me. Or maybe I'm just here trying to get a piece of ass... and I don't like what your drugs are doing to my prospects. Pick whichever suits you. Now... who's the guy that sold you this stuff? Or am I gonna have to go fishing for that, too?"

"Man, just lemme GO!"

"Let you go? Now why would I do that?"

"PLEASE!"

"What's your real name?"

"K-k-Kevin!"

"Kevin what?"

"B-Brown!"

"Tell me about Taint, Kevin. Who sells it?" Jason squeezed... and something in K-Money's shoulder cracked.

"C-Cole!"

"Cole who?"

"Cole! Cole! Everybody knows Cole!"

"I don't know Cole. Who is Cole? And, more importantly.... Where is Cole?"

"I ain't... I ain't... I ain't tellin!"

"Yes you are, Kevin."

Jason moved his fingers back and forth... slowly grinding the pieces of K-Money shoulder together.

"AAA, I Don't KNOW! People don't find Cole! Cole finds YOU! NOBODY knows how to find Cole except his boys!"

"And you aren't one of his boys, are you?"

"NO! I just sell!"

"To kids," Jason's thumb sank INTO K'Money's shoulder like a knife.

"AAAA-PLEASE!"

"...for ten. Seven if they bring a friend..."

"STOP! STOP! STOP! PLEASE!"

Jason stopped.

"Did that hurt?"

"YES!"

"Want me to make it stop hurting?"

"YES! PLEASE!"

"Okay..."

Still holding onto K-Money's shoulder, Jason tore open the plastic bag of drugs with his teeth and dug out one of the vials. He pulled out the plastic stopper and held the vial over K-Money's upturned face.

"What... what... what are you doing?"

"An experiment..." Jason tilted the vial, and the reddish-brown liquid oozed toward the mouth of the vial.

"No! No, don't do that!"

"But don't you want to know what heaven is like?"

"NO!"

"This might be the only way you'll find out? You sure you want to turn it down?"

"YES! YES!"

"But this is what you're selling to people... rich white folks for 75 dollars. Don't you want to know if they're getting their money's worth?"

Jason tilted the vial a little more.

"NOO!"

"Oh, okay," said Jason. He held the vial upright, and the thick droplet rolled back down to the bottom. "If you feel that strongly about it."

"Yeah..." Kevin 'K-Money' Brown exhaled a foul sigh of relief. "...yeah man... just be cool..."

"Right," said Jason. "...'cause if there's one thing I am. It's cool."

Jason turned the vial upside down over Kevin's face. Kevin's eyes slammed shut as the Taint struck his right cheek...

-and splattered over the entire right side of his face, forming a brief spider-web of brown liquid that gripped his skin like a solid thing... and then sank into the flesh, leaving nothing behind. K-Money's body went rigid...

"Seven if they bring a friend," Jason said with cold venom in his voice.

"NNNNNN!!!"

Jason stepped back quickly, snatching his hand away from the drug dealer's bleeding shoulder. He gasped as the drug dealer's dark aura underwent a single, powerful convulsion. Black tendrils wove their way through the dealers life-force, eating away at it like acid. And then the entire mass shrank in on itself as if someone were trying to suck it through a straw. For a moment, there was no aura at all... no darkness... no tendrils...nothing.

K-Money was dead.

-A glimpse of heaven-

And then a faint haze rose around him as what remained of Kevin Brown's soul seeped back from whatever hole had nearly swallowed it. And what remained... wasn't much. Not much at all. As far as Jason could tell, the Taint worked as advertised. It killed people... showed them heaven (or a reasonable imitation)... and then brought them back. But the price was a hell of a lot higher than seventy five dollars.

K-Money's body relaxed. He slumped across the arm of the sofa, then propped himself up on one elbow. He looked at Jason, and then at his partner who was trembling in shock beside him on the couch.

"Have a nice trip?" said Jason.

"Cole's gonna be pissed," he said. "Oh man... he's gonna kill... everybody..." Kevin didn't seem all that CONCERNED with what he was saying... or that Jason had taken all of his money.... or that he'd just broken the mysterious Cole's rules about using Taint. He didn't seem to care much about anything. After seeing heaven... the real world just didn't seem that vital any more.

Well.... there was SOMETHING that was still important...

"You... you gonna take that?" Kevin pointed to the bag of drugs that Jason was still holding.

"You want it?"

"Yeah."

"What do you suppose happens when somebody overdoses on this stuff?" said Jason.

"I.... dunno."

"Maybe you should find out."

"Yeah... yeah, maybe I should. C-can I have it back?"

"Sure. Here you go." Jason tossed the bag to Kevin, who caught it and quickly dug out another vial.

Jason turned to leave, then stopped. He turned back...

"Share a little with your friend over there. He looks like he could use a hit."

"Do... do I have to?" said Kevin.

"Yeah. I think you should."

"Oh. Oh, okay... if you say so." Kevin reached out and poured the contents of the open vial out onto his unconscious partner's face. The man jerked and coughed up more blood. His eyes opened-

"No, Wha-"

The black life-draining lines began weaving their way through his aura as K-Money popped open another vial for himself.

Jason Brooks left the dealers to their business.

"ou don't have to stay here if you don't want to," said Sebastian. He leaned forward and looked down, scowling into the darkness below. They alley was empty... with no sign of the scavenger demon he'd chased here earlier, or of the portal that had allowed it to escape.

That had been weeks ago, but Sebastian watched the alley as intensely now as he had on the very first night.

The demon had gotten away because Sebastian was too slow. He would not fail again.

"I know," said Donovan. Sebastian's father stood behind him. The spirit's unearthly glow did nothing to illuminate the surroundings, so Sebastian put the night-vision goggles to his eyes and examined the alley via infra-red light.... as had done five minutes ago, and would continue to do in five-minute intervals for the rest of the night. Like clockwork.

Sebastian caught a motion in his peripheral vision, but it was only Donovan moving beside him.

"I wanted to..." Donovan began. He paused. Sebastian tilted his head slightly... just enough to remove the ghostly distraction from his vision.

"I don't think its coming back," said Donovan. "The demon."

"They won't use the portal if they know its being watched," Sebastian said, frowning "I should have thought of that."

"I'm sure you would have-"

"But how do they know we're watching? Are they watching US?" Sebastian pulled his eyes away from the alley and examined the surrounding buildings. Apartments. Condos. Offices. "Too many windows. They could be anywhere. ...but we can't be seen from that angle. Or this one. So they must be in one of those buildings to the east. If you search-"

"Just hold on a minute," said Donovan.

"I'll search, then-" Sebastian turned toward the stairs. Donovan hovered in front of him.

"No, wait."

"What?" said Sebastian. "What am I missing? Tell me."

"You're not missing anything... s-" Donovan had been on the verge of adding something onto the end of his sentence... something that was difficult to say. "Sebastian, just wait a moment."

"What?"

"I wanted to... talk. To you."

"About what?"

"About... well... anything."

Sebastian looked at him with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion.

"...God, this is awkward," said Donovan. "I can't even talk to my own... flesh and blood."

Sebastian turned stared into the alley again. There was still nothing there.

He kept watching.

"What do you think of Ms. Ricks?" said Donovan after a long pause. The pause had been uncomfortable for only one of the two men on the rooftop. Sebastian hadn't even noticed it.

"What about her?"

"She could be Soloman Reyes' daughter. Did you know that?"

"You told me you suspected."

"I suspect more now. In fact, I'm almost sure of it. Do you know what that means?"

"Power," Sebastian replied.

"More than she knows. More than she could even conceive of."

"Should we kill her?"

"What?!" Donovan sounded surprised... and that surprised Sebastian. He turned to look at his father.

"Should we kill her?" he repeated.

"No, of course not!"

Sebastian thought for a moment, trying to see the wisdom in his father's decision. Then he returned his attention to the alley. He lifted the night-vision scope to his eyes once again... exactly five minutes from the last time he had done so.

"But what do YOU think of her?" Donovan asked.

Sebastian frowned into the night-scope.

"She's dangerous."

"No, no, no, not her power... HER. What do you think of HER?"

Sebastian didn't answer. He could almost grasp what Donovan was asking, but he had no idea WHY he would be asking it.

Unless...

"She likes you, you know."

"She does," Sebastian said... neither confirming nor questioning what Donovan had just said.

"Does that... bother you?"

"No."

There was another awkward pause. This one was broken by Sebastian. He turned to his father and said:

"Don't worry. I won't make your mistake."

"What mistake?"

"This is a test. I know. But don't worry. Even if I could... I won't make the make the mistake you did."

"And what mistake is that?" Donovan looked honestly confused.

"My mother," said Sebastian. "And me."

He returned his attention to the alley, but Donovan kept talking.

"Wait, wait just a moment, son..."

Sebastian felt Donovan beside him, and watched as his father's hand descend to... and through... his shoulder.

"What?" said Sebastian. He never took his eyes off of the alley.

"I... who..."

Donovan moved again... and now Sebastian was looking right through him. His father was hovering in the air just past the edge of the roof.

"Who... who TOLD you that you were a mistake!?" said Donovan. "Did Brooks-"

"You did."

"No I-...." Donovan's faintly glowing eyes left Sebastian's. "...my God... Sebastian, that's not what I meant-"

"My mother tried to sacrifice me to a demon. When you killed her; she came back AS a demon and tried to kill us both. You were a Knight. You loved a woman. Those were the consequences. How is that not a mistake?"

"You are NOT a mistake, son. Never... never in the WORST of days did I ever think that you were a- "

"Then why did you say so?"

"I-I-I... I don't know. I was... I was stupid. It was stupid thing to say to a child and I'm sorry. Please forgive me if you thought... I... I'm horrified that I even... how could I..."

"Because it's true."

"No, son. No, it isn't. Please stop saying that. Please stop THINKING-"

"But you said it."

"Son, I- I realize I wasn't the best father. I'd like to say I did the best I could, but sometimes... sometimes I didn't even try at all. And now that it's too late, I realize that there are so many things that I... I shouldn't have..."

"Why did you save me?" said Sebastian. "That night, in the ceremony. It was already too late. You should have killed me... but you didn't. Why?"

"Because you're my son."

"But you didn't want me. You didn't know I existed. I was a mistake that you didn't even know about until then. Why risk-"

"Because you were my son! I wasn't going to... to let those bastards offer you up to that THING! Not while I still has breath in my lungs!"

"But you could have ended it. Why-"

"Because you were my SON!! I couldn't! I couldn't! Even with Luther there SCREAMING at me, I... I just COULDN'T! Not again! My GOD, not my SON!"

"But you knew what I was. You knew I would never be... like you."

"Sebastian, is that... is that what this is about? Are you still upset about the Gifts?"

"No."

"You realize that I had no idea-"

"I know."

"But you're still angry-"

"Anger should be harnessed to serve a purpose. There is no purpose now, so I feel nothing."

"That's nonsense-"

"You taught me that. Unless you were lying about that, too."

"Sebastian, listen to me-"

"I have listened to you for 13 years. You trained me. You taught me. You said you were preparing me for something that you now say can never happen. What else is there to listen to?"

"Son, I-"

Sebastian put the night-vision goggles to his eyes again... right on time... and squinted into the alley.

"Sebastian?"

"You're obstructing my view of the alley," said Sebastian. "Father."

hings were different when Jason stepped out of the VIP area. He couldn't put his finger on exactly WHAT had changed in the club, but as he descended the stairs, he knew that something was definitely different.

The crowd was about the same. There were a few more people dancing now, but that couldn't explain the odd tension he felt in the air. The tightness in his chest had subsided.... not disappeared, but subsided... and now a warm fullness spreading throughout his muscles. It almost felt like he'd just finished lifting weights at a gym... except
that he wasn't tired. Quite the contrary, since his incident with K-Money and whoever the hell that other guy was, Jason had more energy that he'd had in...

...forever.

But what was it about the crowd? There was some kind of energy there. Something he could... smell? Jason still couldn't figure it out, even as he stepped out on the dance floor. His intention was to work his way back toward Ashley, but when the crowd of writhing bodies pushed against him, he found himself moving another direction. His eyes caught a woman dancing near the center of the crowd. She wasn't alone, but she was looking at him. Jason headed that way.

"Looking for me?" he said as he slipped between the woman and the man she was dancing with.

"Hey, I-" the man began.

"Dance somewhere else." Jason shoved the man, and he went stumbling through the crowd as if he'd just been shot in the chest. It occurred to Jason that if club security saw what he'd just done then he'd have to kill and eat them, but fortunately he was near the heart of the crowd, shielded from interfering eyes.

"Don't you think that was rude?" said the woman.

"Yes," said Jason. He moved in close to the woman. She was moving her hips from side to side in time to the music. The sight pulled Jason in. He picked up the rhythm and moved along with her... about an inch away from her body. "The REAL question is, do YOU think it was rude?"

"Maybe." The woman didn't pull away. She liked him. Jason could smell it. He could see it in the response of her eyes... the way her body tensed when he moved in. But then, at this point, it really didn't matter if she liked him or not.

"Maybe means yes," said Jason. "So now the question is... do you LIKE rude?"

"Maybe."

"That's what I thought."

"Oh, really."

"Really." Jason leaned in to kiss her. She jerked her head away... but her body and her smile stayed exactly where they were.

"Hold on... I don't know you like that."

Not letting the motion go to waste, Jason continued his forward motion and brought his lips to her ear instead.

"My name is Jason," he whispered. "I'm a millionaire. I drive a Corvette. And you wouldn't believe what I do for a living."

"I bet you're a cop," she said.

"That's the second time tonight I've been asked that."

"-but that's a good thing," said the woman.

"Why? You like cops?" Jason already knew the answer was-

"Yeah."

"Well then, you're in luck." Jason deposited a kiss on her neck before withdrawing his lips. Just then, the song ended and the DJ replaced with a slower number. Much slower.

The inch of space between Jason and his partner shrank. His arm crept around behind her; his hand nestled into the space at the small of her back. He pulled her against him, and she came willingly.

"And here I was thinking there were no interesting women here tonight," said Jason. He'd been bathing in the woman's aura since they'd started talking, but now he took the opportunity to see what some of those alluring dark spots were. There was nothing demonic... but the woman wasn't exactly an angel, either.

Good. He hadn't come here tonight looking for angels.

"Oh?" she said. "What about the white girl you was talkin to? You seemed pretty interested in her..."

"Purely a professional interest," said Jason. "We work together. But we're each here to do our own thing... just like you."

"I see."

"Hopefully you will."

"Actually, I do..." The woman nodded to one side. Jason turned and looked. The slow song had thinned the crowd a little, and now Jason could see past the bodies. A younger man had taken Jason's spot next to Ashley by the bar. They were talking. The guy seemed interested. The body language was right. Too bad he had an aura like a mile and a half of dirty river water.

A tiny portion of Jason wanted to wander over to them and whisper a discreet warning in Ashley's ear. But a larger portion... much larger and more prominent at the moment... was enjoying where he was too much, and decided against leaving right now. Besides, Ashley was a psychic. She'd see through him soon enough...

"o, seriously, what do you do?"

"I can't really say," said Ashley. "It's like... you wouldn't get it. Trust me."

"Porn star?"

"You wish,"

"You've got the body for it."

"Yeah. Right. I don't have to be psychic to know that's a lie."

"Psychic?"

Ashley bit her lip. She squirmed on her seat and wondered if the guy talking to her... his name was Paul... even noticed how uncomfortable she was. She thought she was covering it up pretty well, but she couldn't be sure.

This was hard.

Talking to people... actually carrying on a CONVERSATION with a stranger...

Well, at least she wasn't sweating. Yet.

"Yeah," said Ashley. "Family joke."

"So... tell me about it."

"No time."

"SURE there's time," said Paul. "Hey, you want a drink?"

"That's the second time you've asked-"

"And I don't like repeating myself, so how about this... Bartender!" Paul signaled to the bartender, who turned away from other customers to see what he wanted. "She'll have another of whatever she had before. I want my usual."

"But-" Ashley began.

"No, I insist."

"Okay. But I'm drinking coke."

"Good for you. I'm not."

The bartender deposited two drinks... Ashley's coke and Paul's Sex-On-The-Beach... on the counter. Paul grabbed both drinks.

"Let's find a table."

Ashley glanced at the dance floor, looking for Jason. She found him grinding himself against some woman, who seemed to be enjoying it.

"Yeah..." Ashley said slowly. Obviously Jason wouldn't be back any time soon. "...sure. But I'll carry my own drink, thanks."

Paul handed her her coke and they departed for a recently-vacated table nearby.

"Do you dance?" Ashley said as Paul sat down.

"Not... really..." said Paul. He looked embarrassed.

"So who comes to clubs and doesn't dance?" said Ashley. She sat down across from him and sipped her soda. "...but comes often enough to have a 'usual' drink?"

Paul raised his hand.

"Guilty as charged. Actually I don't come here all that much... I just know the bartender. We go to school together."

"Spring Tech?" Ashley named the local community college, hoping she didn't insult her new friend.

"No. University."

Damn! This was so much EASIER when she could read minds!

"Sorry," said Ashley. Someone smart enough to get into the university was usually TOO smart for Spring State Technical College... and they didn't like implications to the contrary.

"No, no problem. I actually went to tech for a year before I transferred. Engineering. What about you?"

"No, I didn't... go... anywhere...." Now she felt embarrassed. Paul was an engineering student... a CUTE engineering student... and she spent the past few years living in a single-wide trailer telling rich wives whether their husbands were cheating on them or not. And she hadn't even told him THAT... he probably thought she was a prostitute or something. Ashley decided to take a peak into his mind to see what he thought of her-

-but that wouldn't be fair. Sure, she did it all the TIME, but Jason was right. It was a crutch. And worse still, it was a crutch that Paul didn't have, so why should SHE take advantage of it?

"...I... didn't go to college. Sorry."

"No, that's cool," said Paul. "No need to get all embarrassed about."

Embarrassed? Did it SHOW!?! Oh, God-

"I think you're blushing."

"No, it's... I guess its just hot in here..."

Actually it WAS rather warm. The DJ had increased the tempo a bit with a faster song, and now the dance floor was packed again. All those writhing bodies were pushing the temperature up a bit.

Jason was still out there. He and his 'date' were still plastered all over one another. Jason was now either whispering in her ear or trying to chew it off. It was hard to tell from this angle. Ashley reached out to the woman's mind-

-then stopped herself. What was she about to do? She had no idea... It was just habit. When she saw someone new, she automatically read their surface thoughts, but she'd been trying NOT to do that all night. So far, she'd successfully resisted the urge to read Paul.

"So what DO you do for a living?" said Paul.

"You asked me already-"

"Please? Is it a secret or something?"

"Well... kinda..." Ashley took another sip of her drink.

"Now you've GOT to tell me!"

"I'm like a consultant. People come to me with problems, and I help them."

"What kind of problems?"

"Mostly its relationship kind of stuff. But sometimes its... well, just about anything."

"So you're like a counselor."

"Yeah. Exactly."

"You can do that without a degree?"

"Oh, sure," Ashley said... not sure if she was actually lying or not. Paul's questions were starting to make her nervous... but Paul HIMSELF was very comfortable to be around. He seemed... different than most of the other people she'd met in social settings. But then, she could tell what most of those people were really thinking, so that tended to make them all a lot less desirable. She wondered what she'd find in Paul's mind if she took a peak.

Maybe she should...

...but she promised Jason that she wouldn't.

"You look nervous," said Paul. "What's up... hiding from an angry client?"

"Me? Oh, no... I, uhh.... is it hot in here to you?"

"Yup," said Paul. "It always gets like this when its crowded. You'll get used to it."

"No, I don't think so." Ashley took a healthy gulp of her coke, almost finishing it.

"Wanna head out?"

"With you!?"

"To another club, I mean. My buddy gives me free drinks, that's why I come here. But he gets off in an hour, then we usually-"

"Your... buddy?"

"Yeah. Roommate, actually."

The encroaching waves of suspicion and unease must have shown on Ashley's face.

"What's wrong?" said Paul.

Ashley picked up her glass and looked at the remains of her drink. There was only a sip of coke left at the bottom, and she tilted the glass, the liquid ran down the side-

-exposing the small clumps of wet powder that hadn't quite dissolved all the way when the bartender had mixed it.

Instantly, Ashley was inside Paul's mind. He stiffened, unsure of what was happening-

-then he relaxed as Ashley's mental probe went limp. Her concentration scattered, and she swooned in her seat. She'd only managed to get one thought before the drug had kicked in:

"You..." she said as she tried to stand. She couldn't. It was like her legs had turned to iron. "...you're going to... rape... me..."

Paul smiled and stood up.

Ashley's head hit the table, but Paul managed to catch her just before she slid out of her chair.

"o is that a gun in your pocket?" Stephanie whispered as she pressed herself against Jason.

"No," Jason whispered. "Good guess, though. So, are we going to hang out here on this dance floor all night, or are you thinking the same thing I'm thinking?"

"And what would that be?"

"That we would be more comfortable somewhere else. Somewhere a bit more private?"

"Hmmmm, you must be psychic."

"One of my many, many talents."

"And what other talents do you have?"

"Remember that gun you thought you felt?"

"You know... I normally don't..."

"No one ever does," said Jason. "But I'm not a normal man. So let's forget about all the hoops you normally make a man jump through..."

"...and?"

"Your place," said Jason. "Parking lot. Whatever turns you on most."

"What about your friend?"

"What friend?" said Jason.

"The skinny white girl."

"Who? Oh..."

Jason looked around for Ashley, but it was hard to see through the crowd. He couldn't find her.

"...she'll be all right," said Jason. He grabbed Stephanie's hand... one of the few parts of her body that he hadn't ALREADY grabbed while they were dancing... and pulled her toward the door. They'd only gone a few steps when Jason stopped.

"What?" said Stephanie.

Jason sniffed the air. Then sniffed again.

Ashley was gone.

Jason wasn't sure how he knew that...

...but he knew it.

She wasn't in the building.

"Look," he said, turning to Stephanie. "My friend is hiding somewhere. I'm gonna find her and let her know I'm leaving. Then we're gone."

Stephanie looked disappointed, but Jason knew she would wait. She wanted him. She would do whatever he said... within reason... so taking ten minutes to hunt for Ashley wasn't going to ruin his night.

"I'll be right back," said Jason. He headed for the bar, which was the last place he'd seen Ashley.

"I'll wait over-"

"I'll find you," Jason shouted back at her. When he reached the bar, there was another couple sitting on the stools that he and Ashley had occupied. They gave him a pair of strange, wary looks when he walked up to them... sniffed them... and then walked away.

Ashley and the guy with the bad aura had moved. He didn't know where, but he knew what direction...

...if only he knew HOW he knew it.

A few seconds later, he was standing next to a table full of drunk college students who'd just stumbled in from outside. Jason didn't like they way they looked, but before any trouble could erupt, he was heading for the club's side entrance.

Ashley had gone that direction. But something had been wrong with her. Something... Jason couldn't figure it out. Something SMELLED wrong.

Club 2-12's side entrance came in off of a narrow street beside the club. There was an auxiliary parking lot on the other side of the street, but the security in that lot wasn't as... attentive... as it was in the main lot where Jason had parked. Lots of things tended to get stolen from that side lot... and sometimes people hung out there who couldn't get into the club if they tried.

Tonight was no exception.

As soon as he stepped outside, Jason felt eyes on him. From the parking lot. From the alley a block down. From a couple of other places, too.

Well... everyone he met tonight seemed to think he was a cop, so if that pattern held then whoever was out here wouldn't bother him. And if they did, he'd make them wish they hadn't.

"heh," Jason chuckled. He paused outside the door and sniffed.

Ashley had gone... or been taken... into the parking lot. Not long ago.

He walked confidently across the narrow street... paused and sniffed again... and then headed for corner of the parking lot nearest the club. If someone was wanting to drag somebody out of a public place, then THIS is where they would park.

But the 'trail' he'd been following ended at an empty parking space.

He stopped and scratched his nose. He sniffed again.

Exhaust fumes. He didn't THINK he could smell any... but then...

"Hey," someone said.

Jason knew they were there. He'd heard two pairs of footsteps approaching him from behind as examined the empty space. He also heard three more pairs of footsteps approaching from further away. They would be there in a few seconds.

Jason turned around. Slowly.

"What?" he growled. The tightness in his chest returned... harder this time. He felt his throat constrict, and suddenly he was hearing heartbeats that weren't his own.

He was looking at a well-dressed young black man. Very young... perhaps twenty. He looked like he belonged in the club, but one whiff told Jason that the man hadn't been inside. Beside him was a slightly older black man that Jason recognized instantly.

"K-Money," Jason said. The predatory smile had returned to Jason's lips. Kevin 'K-Money' Brown leaned heavily on the car beside him. He didn't look tired... just weak. As if he didn't have the will power to stand up on his own for more than a few seconds at a time. His aura was just a glimmer of black around the outline of his body...

"This that nigga?" said the well-dressed youth. Jason had never seen him before in person... but he still recognized Cole from Kevin's aura.

"Yeah," Jason said. "I'm THAT nigga."

The three other people... bodyguards or 'muscle' from the looks of them... had separated and were now approaching from three directions. They had Jason surrounded.

"Then I believe you have something that belongs to me," said Cole.

"What... you mean this?" Jason pulled a roll of money from his pocket. He held it up... then put it back in his pocket. "Sorry, that's mine now. Unless you think you can get it back."

"Nigga, you DO realize that we 'bout to kill you... right?"

"Before you try," said Jason. He couldn't help but smile. Literally. Jason had lost control of his face, and now his sinister grin was becoming a wide, malicious sneer. He couldn't have stopped it if he tried. "Maybe you should tell me about the Taint. Because AFTER you try, you won't be in much condition to talk."

"He said he wasn't a cop," said K-Money. The drug dealer sounded like he wasn't entirely there... like half of his mind was stuck somewhere else. Perhaps in the memories of a place he'd visited recently.

"So?" said Cole. "At this point, it don't even matter. Get this fool. Get my money and start breaking bones until he passes out... or runs out of bones."

"Sure, Cole..."

The three bodyguards... or whatever they were... stepped forward, as if they expected Jason to calmly stand there and let them grab him.

He did.

Jason intercepted the first man's wrist and crushed it. He didn't TWIST it... he didn't HIT it... he just squeezed it with his bare hand until he felt the joint crumble apart like an eggshell. Still holding the ruined arm, he pulled the man toward him and struck him across the face with the back of his hand. The unconscious man went spinning away... slammed into a car... and collapsed.

A pair of huge arms appeared around Jason's torso, pinning his arms to his side in a tight bear-hug. The third man in drove his fist into Jason's gut once... twice...

Jason's burst free of the bear hug... much to the surprise of the man holding him. As the third man's fist came for another gut-punch, Jason lunged... grabbing the man by the throat and lifting him up off of the ground.

"GET THAT FOOL!" Cole shouted.

Before he could crush the third man's throat, the second man ran behind him again-

Jason felt a cold, sharp pain in his side. Again. Again. And again.

He dropped the man he was holding and turned.

"Did you just stab me?" said Jason. He looked down. His shirt was red. Blood was pouring from his right kidney.

Jason slooooowly looked up from the wound.

"THAT WAS A BRAND NEW SHIRT, MOTHERFU-"

The bodyguard stabbed for Jason's abdomen. Jason caught the man by the forearm. He snatched the blade away and threw it.

Cole and K-Money both ducked.

KSHHH!

The knife shattered the driver's side window of the car K-Money had been leaning on. It also shattered the passenger's window... and then both windows of the car parked BESIDE it...

...AND the car parked beside THAT one. The knife vanished into the dashboard of the fourth car, leaving a large hole in its wake.

Four car alarms were now filling the parking lot with warbling beeps and sirens.

By the time Cole got up, Jason had the second bodyguard raised up over his head. Cole sprinted away as Jason threw the three-hundred-fifty pound man like a basketball. The man slammed into the car so hard that the vehicle actually slid out of its space and slammed into the adjacent car. The car door crumpled and folded around the bodyguard... who made no attempt to get up afterward.

Jason turned to the third man-

POP!

Jason wasn't quite sure what that noise was until he heard it a second time-

POP!
POP!

"-ungh!" Jason staggered back, clutching his bleeding chest. Half-hidden by another car, Cole leveled the .38 revolver at Jason and pulled the trigger again.

POP!

The speeding metal slug fragmented in Jason's torso, sending bits of hot metal tunneling through his flesh.

POP!
POP!

Jason's eyes widened.

"Wh.. What...?" He stuttered. Then he fell.

He felt his head strike the hard pavement, and then he was looking up at the sky. The full moon seemed to get larger and larger in the sky...

...filling his field of vision until the entire world was a wide expanse of eerie white brilliance.

"-ot my fault if he didn't show up! What... you think I'm gonna sit around the club with this zombie just because YOU have to work late? I had to get outta there before somebody got suspicious!"

Paul's car screeched to a halt in front of the four-story apartment building. The sudden stop jostled Ashley in the passenger's seat, but the seat belt kept her limp body from hitting the dashboard. She moaned... but she didn't wake up.

"Dude," Paul said into the mouthpiece of his cell phone. "This bitch is HOT... and I am not waiting for your ass. I just got to the apartment and-"

Paul paused. As he listened to the voice in the earpiece, he reached out and stroked the skin of Ashley's leg. Her short skirt had ridden up, exposing her upper thighs.

"Mmmhmmm," Paul said, agreeing to something he wasn't even listening to any more. "Right..." He ran his hand up Ashley's thigh, pushing the skirt a little further up....

"Look, dude... I'm gonna hit this. Right now. You come by when your shift is over. I'll try not to make too big of a mess."

The voice on the phone said something. Paul laughed out loud, then hung up.

"Okay, babe," he said as he got out. "Lets get you upstairs. You may not know it, but you've got a looooong night ahead of you. Too bad you won't remember it..."

He dragged the night's catch out of the passenger seat and hauled her up to the front door. A second later, he was inside.

The door slowly swung closed behind him.

Outside, the parking lot continued to shimmer in the eerie green light of Sebastian's night-vision scope.

Next Issue: Sebastian Gets Mad!

copyright 2005 by Dark Icon Entertainment