Hunter of Vengeance

With the phones back on, Mara and Lisa both were on their phones in an instant. Lisa checked on Tony’s status in the hospital and Mara called back to Thorne’s compound to see his reaction to the latest developments. I went into the back to have a little privacy for Holly and my ‘talk’. There were worse times to hash things out than during a running clock to solve everything but this was certainly up there. I sat down and waited. I trusted Holly with a lot these last weeks but there was no way I would make this easy on her.

“Okay… like you’ve probably figured out by now my association with ARC is a little more tenuous than I led you to believe.”

“How so?”

“It’s closer to nonexistent than actual. I don’t even freelance for them.”

“Alright, Holly…” I struggled to keep my voice calm. Could you tell me who in the hell you work for then, please?”

“I’m with the FAF…” her voice trailed off quietly.

“The Fae Acceptance Foundation? How the heck did you get a hold of an ARC earpiece?” I must have raised my voice because Mara poked her head around the corner, concern on her face. I waved her off pointing to my earpiece.

“Actually that’s one of ours. We snuck it into your apartment while you were in Paris. Nobody thought it would work to open a line of communication with you but circumstances fell into place and here we are.”

“Alright, so I suppose my next question is why does a terrorist organization want with me? Are you guys the reason why everyone thinks I’m a terrorist?”

“First off, we’re not terrorists. We simply think that alters and norms can be of mutual benefit to each other. Look how well we work together, for example. When people started causing damage and blaming it on us we withdrew to try another solution. One of which involved becoming a partner with a known alter-hater and proving our worth for a few months trying to become indispensable… then showing that they had been working with an alter all along. Just so you know I wasn’t one of them who voted for this plan, I never liked dishonesty.”

“It certainly would be a strange way to prove to people that you deserved trust, to just betray someone like that.” Though even feeling betrayed I rarely had worked with anyone of Holly’s caliber. “So why spill the beans so early? You think you’re so amazing that you are already irreplaceable to me?”

“First off, we both know very well I am that good and then some but no. You’re a good man, Hunter… the man I was presented in the dossier was a tightly wound ball of hate, a wrathful demon parents could use to scare children.” I couldn’t help but smile at the thought of being a boogeyman to alters around the world. “I couldn’t keep lying to someone whose only reason for hating was the fact he never got to know any alters. Plus, with how this situation is building steam, things are only going to get bloodier and you don’t need the added distraction of wondering whose side your allies are on.”

“And you’re on my side, right?” I was furious to the point that I was nearly shaking, but without knowing what else might be attached to that earpiece I couldn’t let her know. I could just imagine her in some underground lair, pressing a red button to explode my head as all the screens displayed EXPERIMENT FAILURE.

“Of course, Hunter, I have been since I got to know you.” She sounded so sincere, but I knew full well how easily some alters could change people’s perceptions. My imagination was getting the better of me.

“Okay, I need to think out what this means but for now let’s hear what you found out. We still have a lot of work ahead of us and only thirty-six hours to wrap this or it’s back on the evening news with me.” I stood up and headed back to the living room.

“Okay, first, they took a look at the bodies from the ARC attack last night and it seems the virus was introduced with water. No one has a guess but by looking at the victim’s office areas along with who shifted I believe it was somehow switched with a water cooler on the first floor near the elevator down to the higher security areas. The four people you saw finish off the bi-wulf arrived before the first person changed and sat outside watching until their appearance at the end. I have a guess that they are vamps, they were dressed in specially designed combat suits that only the long teeth tend to use.”

“And what about all the theatrics this morning?” In the living room, Mara and Lisa looked up waiting to get updated on Holly’s news. I held up a finger telling them to wait a minute. Sometimes I think it was easier when I was the only one who knew about her.

“Well, that was an amazing bit of code if I do say so myself. Hijacked every kind of digital transmission signal in the state and looped them all into a single broadcast center. I’ll bet there are some old folks deep in the country happy they never got a newer model phone. I did modify the code a bit and… oh wait! You’ll love this!” Moments ago Holly had told me everything I thought I had known about her was wrong and now here she was acting as if nothing at all had changed. I walked back to the girls to find out what they had learned.

“Unc is doing fine in recovery. He is going to pull through but they don’t know the extent of the reconstruction they will need to get him back up to full strength.” Lisa, now changed into a t-shirt and jeans dropped into her couch.

“Thorne’s news wasn’t anywhere near as positive.” Mara hung up her phone with a worried look on her face. “The barricade withdrew last night without any warning. This morning’s announcement triggered a backlash among norms, the attack on the bar down the street was just the beginning. They took in injured wolves till the crowds around the compound got too crazy and now they are just in complete lockdown trying to keep anyone from getting hurt. It’s a complete madhouse out there.”

“And taa-daa!” Holly’s voice came out of the speakers of the television. All three of us jumped thinking another ominous announcement was coming over the airwaves. After a moment of introduction and explanation, everyone relaxed and was able to compare notes.

“So da vampires caused dis virus thingie to go wild in ARC, right?” Lisa got some snacks and brought them out to us. “Why would dey send cleanup peeps too?”

“They didn’t claim any part in the attack or the clean-up.” Mara opened a drink and took a sip. “Just put the blame clearly on all the shifters in the world and declare open season.”

“We interrupted their plan, we weren’t supposed to be there to help people. They wanted to take credit as saviors but the news was already painting ARC personnel being responsible.

“That would make sense, Hunter. When I contacted you about the attack there was no news over the emergency lines about it. I only became curious when an alarm went off and then abruptly went silent. Now that the networks are back up and running I can look deeper into the security footage and find out if the vampires cut the alarms as well.” Holly went quiet turning attention to her work.

“Is that what it’s like all the time, she’s there one minute then gone the second?” Mara leaned forward in her seat, putting her drink down. “No wonder you’re a little crazy.”

“Little crazy? E’s totally nutters. Its scary to think that a random sip of water could change you into a rampaging monster.” Lisa looked sheepishly over at Mara. “No offence… I mean you don’t rampage or destroy.. and I don’t think you’re a mon…”

“I get it!” Mara almost laughed.

“Okay, I checked the footage and they definitely cut the alarms, I think they had wanted to before things ever got bad but they were too late. I even backed it up further and found they arrived in a truck with markings declaring… get this, ‘Animal Control.’ Who says the dead don’t have a grave sense of humor?” I spit out the drink at Holly’s joke. “Also, your suspicion about the wolf differences was on the money, the formulation of the serum in Nathan’s blood is different from the ones on Broadway and with preliminary findings from last night. Your friend had been treated with a much more stable version of the virus than we have seen since.”

“Can you find out who owns the truck? I could sneak in my old precinct and run the plates if you have a good shot of them.”

“No need, I’ve already got a search running but it’s led me to a rental company that has a computer that might as well print things out on stone tablets for how tech-savvy it is. Okay, I think it’s coming through now, that truck was rented by a corporate account… looks like a fake. Could take some time to trace it back to who is really paying the bills.”

“Okay, Holly…” I rubbed my forehead; they make this part look so much easier on TV. Some music and a couple shots of guys doing sciency stuff and the answers appear. “Skip who’s footing the bill for now, anything else rented at the same time?”

“I’ll check…hmmm… yes, it was rented at the same time as eight 9000-gallon tanker trucks, they could transport a lot of their concoction with a fleet that size. With some luck, I can catch them on a traffic cam somewhere before they get too far.”

“Okay, so we know the who and the what…” Mara studied her drink. “Anyone have an idea as to the why?”

“Does it really matter?”

“Honestly no. It does help peace of mind sometimes, though.”

“Well, Tousard said something about being more open… maybe they want to make their presence known more publicly?” The weres had tried coming out more than once since the millennial announcement. At first, they were frightening monsters such as depicted in horror movies. The openness was quickly rethought and covered up almost as quickly as it started. Then along came people like Mara, weres that used their enhanced status to save people. John Barracourt personally saved and dragged back his entire platoon while injured overseas, those who acknowledged the alters knew it was because of him being a were. They cultivated a public image of protection so that people wouldn’t be afraid, even if logically they should be.

“That’s it! The vamps can’t wait for a John Barracourt to fall into their laps and give them the press they want so they are manufacturing a situation for themselves to solve. They become the heroes of the city and maybe people will be less afraid of them being around.” Who cared if a few hundred people got killed for people to see that side of them…

“And at the same time, they make us the enemy, taking away the were’s public image and replacing it with their own.” Mara looked pale as a sheet. “They are killing people… just to get some positive press?”

“People blame politicians for worse.”

“But ‘ow they gonna make a big enough deal to make themselves heroes? They’ve built up a good story so far, but nothing big enough to influence peeps.”

“I found the trucks, they’re in the Bronx already on the road. They’re just getting onto 87 heading north.”

“What’s in that direction? The racetrack maybe, another attack like ARC, but they wouldn’t need nearly that much supply for everyone in the entire stadium.”

The reservoir.” Holly came back over the television speakers. “The trucks are heading north towards Hillview reservoir as we speak. ARC last night was a test run of how the virus’ potency would keep when diluted with water.”

“And we should be on the lookout for a man wearing a purple suit, green hair, and clown makeup? Their big plan is to poison the city’s water system.”

“Yes, Hunter, unfortunately, Adam West isn’t answering his phone so it looks like it’s up to you three.”

Lisa stood up from the couch, a now familiar grin spreading across her face. “Righto ladies, time to hit da road and save da world! First, a trip to the candy store!” She bounded over to the vault door on the other side of the room with a gait that indicated some sort of music playing in her head. She punched a few numbers in a couple of different keypads, twisted knobs and turned dials and at last the huge door swag open.

Now I admit to having my own personal armory at home, almost every self-respecting hunter I’ve met during my time on the job does but this was beyond anything I could have prepared for. Lisa’s vault was filled to bursting with every kind of ordinance I could bring to mind, grenade launchers, chain guns, sniper rifles, you name it were lined up on racks that stretched out to the remainder of the building’s floor. Two metal staircases, one at the front and one at the back, led to a second floor where more classical-type weapons were held. I could see katanas, pole-arms, glaives, and a good number of things I didn’t even know the name of. Mara and I shared a grin before we went and got stocked up.