Grace Faircloth had digital information on both of the passengers she found to be suspicious. She had sent it all over to her Uncle Sam earlier, but it wasn't until she was making her drive home to Arlington that she received a phone call from him confirming that he had received it. Due to the hectic Dallas-area traffic, she decided to play it safe and take the call over her wireless Bluetooth connection. "Hi, Uncle Sam! How are you?"
"Hey, darlin'" came the reply. "I'm a little concerned, sweetheart. I think you did the right thing in letting me know about these two shady characters. Unfortunately, I'm out of town. I've alerted one of my colleagues who’s closer, but I'm not sure if he'll be able to make it over there tonight. Just be careful, darlin'."
"Do you really think it's anything to worry about?" she asked, the alarm in her voice fairly obvious.
"Nah," Sam lied. "I'm sure it's nothin' but I reckon you oughtta keep the place locked up tight tonight, that sort of thing. Alex is in San Antonio now so he should be able to make it up there in a few hours, less if he drives like your uncle," he joked.
"All right," Grace sighed. "Well, at least if anything happens to us, you'll know who to blame," she said, managing to add a slight chuckle, though she was also quite serious.
"I'm sure it'll be just fine," Sam said before telling her goodbye and disconnecting the call.
Grace pulled into the driveway well after the sun had gone down, though it was only a little after 6:00 PM. She took a quick glance around before making her way to the front door. Her husband, Christopher, and her two teenage kids were already home, and glancing into the dining room, she could see that the table was set for dinner. She locked the door behind her, slipping the chain in place as well, and then made her way into the kitchen. "Hey, honey. How was your day?" Christopher asked, stirring what appeared to be a pot of spaghetti on the stove.
Before Grace could answer, the back door came bursting in, shards of glass flying across the room, peppering the couple with fragments. Grace threw her hands in front of her face to protect her eyes. When she pulled her arms down, she began to scream. Looking into the maniacal steel gray eyes, there was no doubt in her mind now that Jack Carol and his brother were Vampires.
* * *
Alex Sellers had been a Vampire Hunter for centuries. When he got the urgent message over the IAC from his friend Sam--known as Cowboy Sam by those who knew him best--he didn't hesitate to hurry toward Grace's house. While Sam told Alex he was cautious enough to be nonchalant with Grace, the second that Sam saw Giovani's picture, he knew exactly who he was. One could not be an active Vampire Hunter and not recognize this particularly dangerous offspring of the late Holland, ancient Vampire queen.
As soon as Alex pulled into the driveway, he knew something wasn't right. The lights in the house were on, but it seemed too still, too silent. Pulling his Glock from its holster, he crept his way to the nearest window, which looked into the living room. He couldn't see anyone from that vantage point. Rather than knocking on the door, he decided to go around to the back of the house.
The remnants of the back door were his first indicator that he was too late. He hadn't lived this long as an independent Vampire Hunter through acting recklessly, but he was fairly certain that Giovani and his friends had already left the scene. Most of the time, if a Vampire was nearby, his gut would let him know, and he was feeling no internal indicators that any of the bloodsuckers were still present. Keeping his gun drawn just in case, he made his way through the remains of the back door and gasped at the sight. There on the floor were the crumpled remains of Grace and her husband Christopher. While it was apparent there had been a bit of a struggle, neither of them had had a chance, and Christopher had died with his wife in his arms in what could only be described as a futile protective embrace.
Before making his way over the couple and into the next room, Alex stopped to turn off the over-boiling pot of pasta on the stove. There was very little blood on the floor, but the broken glass, scraps of wood, and looks of sheer terror frozen on the couple's face were just as disturbing as the bloodiest crime scenes Alex had ever seen.
Unfortunately, the revulsion Alex was feeling was about to grow. As he made his way down the hallway, he stepped into the room of the teenage daughter. He found her body huddled in the corner of the closet. Clearly, she had heard the commotion and had been trying to hide. In the adjoining bedroom, the son lay near the window, one hand still grasping the handle. He had been so close....
Alex hesitated to call this in. He knew that Sam and his great-great-great-grand-niece were very close. He was not going to take this well. Even before he called LIGHTS--something even independent Hunters were required to do--immediately, he let Sam know. "I'm so sorry, my friend," he said over the IAC. "I didn't make it in time."
There was a long pause before the reply came. "Giovani and his friend will pay for this."
* * *
Jack drove the getaway car as they made their way back toward the Fort Worth hotel room they had checked into earlier that afternoon. In the backseat, Giovani and Zabrina were clearly celebrating a bit too much for his liking. He tried to tune them out and stay focused on the highway in front of him.
"Did you see their faces?" Giovani asked, a shriek escaping his lips that sounded more like that of a resident of an insane asylum than anything else to Jack. "Bitch had no chance, no chance!" he exclaimed.
Zabrina chuckled along. "I love watching you in action," she said, patting his chest and leaning over to kiss him hungrily.
Jack said nothing, only shook his head in disbelief. Every time he took an innocent's life, it felt wrong to him. But on this particular occasion, it seemed even more so. Eventually, Giovani noticed his brother's solemn state and asked, "Brother, what's the matter?"
Sighing, Jack said, "Nothing. I just...I never took out a kid before."
Giovani scoffed. "Kid? That girl was, like, eighteen or something. Besides, they had it coming. Her mom was a bitch. She was probably a bitch, too.
Jack tried to believe his brother's words. Still, the more he thought about it, the more upset he became. He knew that if Cadence ever found out what he had done--what he had been doing--she would never forgive him. Though Giovani was back to making out with Zabrina, he still voiced his concern. "Just seems a little ridiculous to wipe out an entire family because I didn't like the way she handled my missing suitcase."
"It was more than the suitcase, brother. You can't treat people like that, you know? And even when you told her you lost Cadence's ring--a ring you fought hard to procure--she didn't give a rat's ass. No, she definitely deserved to die!"
Even as Giovani was speaking, Jack heard his cell phone going off. He was hopeful that it was Cadence, that she had finally gotten around to calling him, but when he glanced down, it was a local number. "Hello?" he asked, his superhuman reflexes easily allowing him to drive and answer the phone at the same time.
"Yes, may I speak to Mr. Jack Carol, please?" came the voice on the other side.
"This is he," he replied.
"Mr. Carol, this is Phil Reutlinger with the DFW Airport lost baggage department. I wanted to let you know that your suitcase has been recovered, and we are able to deliver it tomorrow morning. Can you let me know the address of the hotel or residence where you are staying?"
"Son of a bitch..." Jack muttered. They had wiped out an entire family for no reason whatsoever.
