Luke sat at his table with a cup of coffee as he watched the birds flit about his backyard. He’d stayed at the pub with Pablo and Delilah later than he should have. It’d been a long time since he’d joined with others in convivial companionship. It felt good. He heard the cabinet open behind him and turned to see Delilah grabbing a coffee mug out of the cupboard. She was wearing an old T-shirt and a pair of Luke’s shorts that showed off her surprisingly muscular and toned arms and legs. She poured herself a cup of coffee from the carafe and sat down opposite of Luke.
“Thanks for letting me use your spare room last night. That Roman Imperial Stout really kicked my ass.” She blew on her steaming coffee to hasten its cooling so she could dive into the healing potion’s caffeinated goodness.
Luke got up and rummaged around. “Breakfast?”
“That sounds wonderful!”
Fifteen minutes later, Luke set two plates down on the table—each with two poached eggs perched on top of a stack of sliced avocado, tomato, and a toasted English muffin. He put a couple basil leaves on top of each stack and finished it with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and olive oil and a couple twists from the salt and pepper grinders.
“Damn, that’s some good-looking breakfast.”
“Top off your coffee?” Luke asked.
Delilah nodded. “Please.”
Luke refilled both cups before sitting and digging in.
As Luke cleared the dirty dishes, a knock came from the front door.
“Delilah, do you mind letting Pablo in while I throw these plates in the dishwasher?”
Delilah stood up and disappeared into the other room. A moment later, she reappeared with Pablo.
“Hey Luke! How you holding up?” He grinned at Luke mischievously.
“Pretty well, considering. That imperial stout had some kick. It was good, but one probably would have sufficed. I’m going to go put on some workout clothes.”
Luke disappeared into his room. When he emerged a few minutes later, Delilah had changed back into her clothes from the night before and was chatting with Pablo in the kitchen.
“Shall we adjourn to the Batcave?” Luke walked into the office with Alfred on his heels. He flipped the mechanism before either Pablo or Delilah got into the room, then headed downstairs. Luke sat in his desk chair while Pablo and Delilah took the easy chairs.
“I guess we should figure out what everyone knows and what kind of training we’ve had. I’ll start… I’ve studied most forms of western martial arts over the years, by default. I’ve studied several forms of eastern martial arts as well, mostly Japanese forms—katana, aikido, judo, etc. A little kung fu as well.”
“Why do you still fight like a Roman, then? If you know all these other martial arts?” Pablo asked.
“You use the forms that work with the equipment you have. My original gear was specially created to fight vampires. A katana will do just as much physical damage and a simple wooden stake will handle the fine print details, but in concert, my gladius, rudis, and lorica turn me into something more. I’m not just using weapons; I am a weapon. Delilah, what about you?”
“I guess the one I’ve been studying the longest is Wing Chun Kung Fu. My dad loved Bruce Lee movies. He always used to say, ‘That Chinese cat is the baddest little mofo.’” Her voice slipped into a deeper register with a hint of an African accent Luke couldn’t quite place. The corners of her lips turned up in a gentle smile that ran counter to the sad look of longing in her eyes. “We always watched the old kung fu movies on Saturdays and Sundays. ‘Enter the Dragon’ was his favorite. He was a big Jim Kelly fan, so having him and Bruce in one movie made him happy. After my mom passed away, he started taking me with him to his school. They thought Wing Chun would work well for me since I was small at the time, but quick. So that’s what I started with.”
“I’m sorry to hear about your mom. Do you mind if I ask how she passed?” Pablo asked.
“Breast cancer. By the time the doctors listened to her and diagnosed it, it was too late.” She paused for a second, taking a breath and letting it out slowly. “Anyway, going to my dad’s ‘school,’ as he called it, helped with my anger and brought us closer. I’ve kept up with my studies. I’m proficient in unarmed fighting but could use some more work with weapons. I’ve also studied some Krav Maga.” She looked back at Luke.
Luke turned to the werewolf. “Pablo?”
“Damn. Now I feel all inadequate. I’m pretty much a scrapper. I’m a werewolf, so I’m stronger than your average human, and I can take a lot of punishment. I usually just punch them hard until they stop fighting back. I haven’t had to do much fighting lately. Not much need when you have a good community around you, but when I needed to, I could handle my own. Being a gay Latino made me a target for meatheads looking to prove how tough they were. It never worked out well for them. I never looked for trouble, but I wasn’t going to take shit from anyone if they brought it to my doorstep.”
“OK. That gives us a starting point. You up for a little sparring?”
Pablo and Delilah looked wary but excited as they moved into Luke’s training cavern. Luke had them do some calisthenics before stretching. Once they were warmed up, Luke addressed their first lesson.
“Pablo, we should start with one of the most important lessons of martial arts. It’ll be a bit basic for Delilah, but it’s a good place to start, especially to keep everyone healthy. Lesson one—falling.”
Pablo snorted in response. “Dude, I know how to fall. Gravity pretty much does all the work.”
“There’s falling, and then there’s FALLING, or perhaps I should say landing. Learning how to take a fall and land safely will hold you in good stead in all forms of fighting. Delilah and I will do some demonstrations.” Luke led them to the large, padded mat in the back corner.
“Delilah, I’m going to start with some basic hip throws. Pablo, don’t watch me for now; watch what Delilah does as she falls.” Luke looked at Delilah and asked, “Ready?”
Delilah nodded as she and Luke locked into a grappling position that would set her up to be thrown. Luke stepped in, put his hip against Delilah’s and brought her around with a textbook throw to the ground. Delilah popped up, and they ran through it a couple more times.
“OK, that was slower than it would be in a real situation, but what did you see?” Luke asked.
“Well, she tucked her head and loose arm.”
“Exactly. You want to protect your wrists and head. If you try to break your fall with your wrist, you can sprain or break a wrist. And you definitely want to keep your brain from getting rattled in a fight. I’m going to come at Delilah, and she’ll take her pick on how she wants to throw me. Again, don’t worry about what the thrower is doing; watch how I’m landing. Delilah, I’ll try to present some different approaches so you can throw me in different ways. That should give Pablo a good idea of what we’re trying to do.”
Luke repeatedly presented different attacks to Delilah, which she used to throw Luke all over the mat. They ran through several variations for a few minutes until Luke and Delilah were breathing heavily with sheens of sweat glistening on their foreheads.
“That’s probably enough for me for today,” said Luke, letting Delilah work with Pablo while he watched.
They’d all worked up a good sweat throwing and falling and getting to know each other a bit more. Luke poured everyone glasses of cold water from the sink near the training room door. Relaxing into the chairs in Luke’s studio, they drank their water and cooled down.
“That was a good start,” Luke said as he polished off the last of his water. “I have a project for us this afternoon if you guys want to meet me back here at four?”
“I’m off today, so that works,” Pablo replied.
“I’m unemployed and living on a friend’s couch; I’m available,” answered Delilah.
Luke nodded and smiled. “Good. Go home and shower. Be back at four. Oh! You might also want to bring back a stash of workout clothes to leave here. It’ll be more convenient for our ongoing training.”
Luke escorted them out of his home, then took his own advice and showered before heading out to run some errands. He hoped the training would be enough. He didn’t have any non-feline friends, and now that he was making two new friends, he had to do whatever he could to keep them alive.
Pablo and Delilah arrived promptly at four. Instead of inviting them in, Luke grabbed a big Rubbermaid tub next to the door and moved it outside, closing and locking the door behind him.
“What’s in the tub, dude?” Pablo asked.
“That’s my gear.”
Pablo’s eyes shot open wide. “What?! You keep your magical swords and armor in a plastic tub? Aren’t you worried someone will smash your window and jack it?”
Luke slid the tub into the back of his Volvo which was already filled with cardboard boxes and a hand truck.
“I’m usually wearing it or driving around. It’s always been fine.”
Delilah massaged her temples as she shook her head; Pablo looked shocked at Luke’s seeming naïveté.
“What?”
“Dude. I’m taking you to see my nephew tomorrow,” Pablo replied.
“What is your nephew going to do? Install a car alarm?”
Pablo folded his arms across his chest and shook his head. “Nah, well, I mean, he can if you want him to, but he does custom work on cars. We sent the little squirt to college for an engineering degree, but he loves cars, so that’s what he uses it for. You ever see those custom car shows where they soup up the cars into works of art?”
“I’m familiar with the concept,” Luke replied.
Pablo nodded. “That’s my nephew, except he’s better at it and doesn’t have a TV show.”
“I’m not sure ‘hotrod Volvo’ was what I was going for when I bought this beast.”
“What were you going for? Aging hippie soccer mom?” Delilah interjected.
“Laugh all you want, but watch the sides of the streets as we drive through town. I wanted a car that was reliable and nondescript. Old Volvo fits the bill.” Luke closed the hatch and got into the driver’s seat. “Let’s go.”
Luke backed out of the driveway and wound his way through north Portland until they got to the bottom of the hill on Mississippi Avenue. He took a right toward North Interstate, then left onto Greeley to head back north, but before he drove too far, he pulled off on to the shoulder, parking just off the shoulder in the dirt next to the road.
“Man, you weren’t kidding. Old Volvos everywhere. I never noticed until I was looking for them.” Pablo chuckled.
“And that, Pablo, is why I have one. They’re practically invisible. I guess I could upgrade to a Subaru Outback or a Prius and get the same effect, but I like the Volvo.” Luke walked around to the back of the car.
Luke stacked the boxes on the hand truck and walked up the bike path that ran parallel to the road. The path led up the hill below Overlook Park. Piles of garbage in bags were stacked along a fence not far from a few scattered tents. Further along the path, the tents turned into more robust structures, including several mini-houses.
“What is this place?” Delilah asked.
“Hazelnut Grove. It’s a sheltered community for houseless people. They’ve built this themselves.”
Delilah frowned. “That’s impressive but sad that there isn’t a better solution.”
“People make do and survive. What other choice do they have? This country’s systems aren’t exactly robust when it concerns helping the poor or disadvantaged.” Luke shrugged and stopped walking. “OK, we’re meeting with my contact. He leads the council here.”
“There’s a council?” asked Pablo.
“Yeah. They have their own government and by-laws set up to protect and guide the community,” said Luke.
Pablo replied with an impressed expression and a nod.
“Max is a good guy. He does his best to look after the community here. Stick close to me. There’s nothing to worry about, but strangers make people here nervous. You don’t look like cops, but people are still wary. They’re getting used to me and know Max trusts me a bit. Ah, here he is.” Luke nodded at Max as he approached.
“Hey, Luke. How you doing?” Max was tall and thin with shaggy, brown hair. He wore a heavy jacket and slightly baggy jeans.
“Hey, Max. Pretty good. How about you?”
“Oh, got a bit of a cold, but can’t complain.” He eyed Delilah and Pablo.
Luke gestured toward his two friends. “These are my friends, Pablo and Delilah. Pablo, Delilah, this is Max. I’ve got some of the stuff you asked for.”
Max smiled. “Thanks! This is much appreciated. Next time you come out, we could use some more feminine hygiene products, if it’s not too much to ask.”
“Sure thing. I’ll add it to the list.
Max smiled and nodded his thanks before directing them to a nearby picnic table.
“How have things been here lately?” Luke asked.
“The usual. We try to keep things quiet,” Max replied and looked around the table at Luke, Delilah, and Pablo.
“Any unaccounted-for disappearances? Strangers lurking about at night?”
“I don’t know. It’s hard to tell. We have a fairly stable population here. A few of the people on the outskirts come and go,” Max replied.
“Any abandoned stuff? Tents, good clothes, sleeping bags?” Luke asked.
“Yeah, we have been getting a bit more of that lately. Normally, we chalk it up to people getting picked up by the cops, so we set it aside until it’s reclaimed. They usually show back up in a few days. Lately, we’ve had a few lots of gear that still haven’t been claimed.” Max shrugged. “In those cases, we assume they moved on or are residents of the county, so we sort out their stuff and move on.”
“What about the lurking strangers?”
“Look, Luke, I’m not sure what you’re looking for. I appreciate what you do for us. The council appreciates it, too. The stuff you bring us helps out immensely, but we also have to protect the people who live here and rely on us.”
“I can understand that. Believe me, I know what it means to protect a community from outside threats, especially threats they don’t know about and are ill-equipped to handle. That’s why I’m here. The first people those sort target are the most vulnerable, the most likely to not report or not have their stories believed. It’s generally—and it’s shitty to say this but unfortunately true—those who won’t be missed.”
Max grimaced but nodded. “Yeah. Unfortunately, that is too true.” He sighed and shook his head sadly.
“I know we’ve only known each other for a little while, but…” Luke sighed and made direct eye contact with Max. “I have the same goal you do. I’m not here to mess with your community. I’m not here to police it. It’s probably too much to ask for, but trust that I’m not here to hurt those you’re looking after. We’re doing the same thing, ultimately—keeping predators away from vulnerable communities.”
Luke let the silence hang in the air until Max nodded and replied, “I can go with that, for now.”
Luke smiled at Max.
“Just keep an eye on the edges of your community. Try to bring them in closer, not so isolated.” Luke looked around at the tree-covered hill. “This is a great community, but it’s too easy to creep up on the outskirts at night.”
“The isolation has its advantages, but it also has its issues. I’ll take your advice and alert the council. Ultimately, it’s a group decision, but we’d be foolish to disregard any information that could prevent harm to our people.” He stood up, effectively ending the conversation.
“Thanks for your time, Max. I appreciate it. I’ll see you next time.” Luke indicated that Delilah and Pablo should follow him.
They walked back down the bike path that led out of the camp, the only sound the wheels of the hand truck on the path. The silence lasted until they were all buckled into Luke’s car. Luke was waiting for a spot to pull into traffic when Delilah finally spoke.
“How often do you bring supplies to Max?”
“About once a week, but it’s only been a couple months or so. I screwed up, got lazy.” Luke pursed his lips.
“Lazy? What do you mean?” asked Pablo.
“I should have been building these relationships years ago. Vampires always seek the most vulnerable as their prey. I know that, but I got complacent. A few vampires would pop up here or there, and I’d easily dispatch them and return to life as usual. Now the city is neck deep in fucking vampires, and I’m scrambling to lay the groundwork to fight them. I should have been building my network regardless of the threat level.” He sighed and shook his head before pulling out into traffic. “Now, I’ve killed a few dozen vampires recently, and they’re coordinating on a very high level. I found that out the hard way the other night. It’s probably only the tip of the iceberg.”