The team had been following Fred Bealer for a week, getting used to his patterns and trying to figure out when he was meeting with Cassius. Right now, Bealer was their best connection and the person most likely to lead them to their quarry.
Luke checked his phone again, looking at the time. Bealer had to be just about done with his work day. They knew his car and where, as a commissioner, he had his reserved parking. They’d see him pull out into traffic and be able to follow. Soon, he’d be heading out for his evening activities.
“Is it possible they meet during the day?” Delilah asked.
“It’s a possibility,” Luke replied. “Vampires, particularly old ones, can function in the day, just not the daylight. Although from what I’ve seen over the year, they don’t like it. They get cranky.”
Pablo turned around and looked into the backseat at Luke. “Is that a universal, do you think? Or are they less cranky about being woken and more cranky that you woke them so you could kill them?”
Luke chuckled. “You’re probably right, Pablo, but they generally don’t like the daytime. They’re not just orcs or Gollum who can be out in the daytime but dislike the sun. To vampires, it’s painful, and if they’re out in it for too long, they’ll burn to death.”
“Can old ones risk it?” Delilah asked.
“Not that I’ve seen. I don’t think there’s a SPF high enough to give them protection. Really old ones can be awake during the daytime, young ones can’t manage it, but it’s still uncomfortable.”
“If they drink powerful blood…like a werewolf’s or yours”—Delilah gestured toward Luke—“could they gain extra powers?”
“Not from my blood,” Luke replied.
“Why not?” Sam asked.
“My blood is toxic to vamps. It’ll make a younger vampire very sick. When I was captured last spring in Belgium, it caused a hundred-year-old vampire to puke his guts out. I’m not sure what happens with older vamps, though; they’re sometimes powerful enough not to display any outward effects. I hope it at least gives them indigestion. To my knowledge, vampires only drink blood for nourishment, and if it’s spiked with something…fun. Where are all these questions coming from, Delilah?”
Her head dipped down as she looked like she was warring with herself on whether to be embarrassed. “Reading. Books.”
Pablo, scenting blood, twisted around further and leaned over the front seat, a mischievous grin splitting his face. “What kind of books, Delilah?”
Delilah looked down, shaking her head. “Urban fantasy books.” She looked up at Luke. “It’s just you’ve said on a few occasions you suspect vampires are involved in using popular culture to make vampires seem cool and mysterious instead of evil bloodsuckers…”
“And you thought that if you consumed enough vampire pop culture, you’d maybe pick up some inside information since you hunt them?” Sam finished for Delilah.
Delilah nodded.
Luke chuckled. “I mean, it’s not the worst idea. But, there are so many different books with so many different types of vampires, it’s impossible to pick out what’s just a random plot point that happens to mirror real vampires or actual fanger facts slipped in intentionally. It’s a pretty big genre.”
Sam’s eyes narrowed as she slowly turned her head toward Luke. “You seem to be fairly aware of the genre.” A ridiculous grin spread across her face. “Luke Irontree, do you read vampire novels?”
“Maybe…”
Pablo slid down into his car seat, a loud cackle vibrating through the confined space of the pack sedan they’d borrowed. Sam tried to stifle her laughter, but snickers escaped her lips as her growing grin pushed her cheeks up. Pablo’s clownery and Sam’s failed attempts at not laughing lifted Delilah’s embarrassment as it moved from her and landed on Luke. Once Pablo managed to calm himself, he turned back around to face the humans in the back seat.
“Buddy, why do you read vampire novels? Can’t get enough of them?”
“Initially, I was following the same trail as Delilah. Vampire novels kind of exploded into popular culture. Then you got movies with Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt where the vampires are attractive and tragic. It seemed to shift vampires from monsters to sexy monsters. Of course, I was curious if vampires were intentionally inserting themselves into the dialog. And oddly enough, they worked on me in the same way they worked on regular audiences—escapism. The fangers in those books are rarely as sinister as the real thing, although I’m not fond of the books where the vampires are the protagonists or your neighborhood do-gooders. Just can’t suspend disbelief enough to read those.”
“How do you have time to read all those books?” Delilah asked.
“I don’t have a day job. I’m independently wealthy.” Luke shrugged. “I have time during the day to indulge my hobbies when I’m not training or prepping. I mean, until recently, my vampire hunting life has been pretty quiet. I’d see a flare up somewhere, fly there and take care of it, then return home to Portland and my quiet life. It allowed for a lot of spare time. When it’s nice, I garden or putter around in the back yard, but the rest of the time, I like to read.”
“I’m still surprised,” Sam said. “I figured you’d want to get as far away from vampires as possible in your off time.”
“Me too honestly. When I started reading them, it was purely research. Then I started enjoying them. I don’t know. I’ve lived a solitary, isolated life for a long time. A magical being in a thoroughly unmagical world. It was a place I could escape to where there were characters like me.”
“I can see that.” Sam nodded, a thoughtful expression on her face. “Werewolves almost always have the pack. We’re separate from non-wolf society, but still part of it with our own society hidden within. We’re not alone. I can’t imagine the loneliness of having no one like you who can understand your troubles, your life experiences. You’re an immortal monster slayer walking among children.”
Sam’s assessment of Luke’s life, as per usual, was dead on. As Luke frowned, he turned inward, thinking about his isolation and abject loneliness over the last several centuries. Whether they’d intended it or now, the conversation took a turn to the maudlin, sucking the air from the car.
“So…” Delilah said, breaking the silence. “I’ve been meaning to ask this for a while, and since the subject has been broached, well, it feels like a silly question.”
“Who is the question directed to?” Sam asked.
“I guess you and Pablo. It’s a werewolf question.”
“Why are you so nervous about it?” Pablo asked. “And to answer your question, yes, I do have trouble deciding in which form I’m the most handsome. Thank you for noticing.”
Luke snorted. Pablo could always lighten his mood. He suspected, based on the snippets Pablo had shared, a lot of Pablo’s life had been devoid of the necessary bonds of pack, giving him a direct insight into Luke’s isolation.
Sam smacked his shoulder. “Well, there’s no question as to which form you’re the most delusional in…”
“All of them,” Delilah said confidently.
Luke reached up from the back seat of the pack sedan to pat his friend’s shoulder. “She’s got you there.”
Pablo shook his head. “It’s OK. I’m used to jealousy. I know the truth.”
“Well, now that we’ve answered the question nobody asked, what can I answer for you, Delilah?” Sam replied.
“Like I said, it’s silly…” She took a deep breath and plunged onward. “Is the North Portland Pack unusual in its pack politics?”
“Well, to my knowledge, we’re the oldest and biggest LGBTQ+ werewolf pack in North America.” Sam’s eyes narrowed, looking a bit perplexed.
“That’s not quite what I mean.”
Luke wondered what his young friend was angling toward. It was unlike her to be this circumspect and shy.
She opened her mouth to start, but closed it, exhaling from her nose.
“Delilah, you’re my dear friend,” Sam said. “Just ask your question. I promise it’s not going to bother me.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Luke caught Pablo straining to keep his instincts under control and not unleash a torrent of jokes and teasing. Luke gave Pablo’s shoulder a squeeze to fortify his friend’s resolve.
“Why aren’t you all power and status obsessed?” Delilah asked.
Sam’s brow furrowed as she squinted at Delilah. “What do you mean?”
Delilah shook her head. “So, as we’ve established earlier, I’ve been reading a lot of paranormal books, and it always seems like their wolf packs all have an aggressive alpha who controls the pack and everyone has a strict ranking based on their power…”
“And we don’t?”
Delilah shook her head. “No.”
“Well, in some part, the folks in this pack were escaping that attitude. Frankly, those packs are operating on a false idea of wolf pack dynamics. The scientist who came up with the theory of the brutal alpha and how it dictated pack relationships based his ideas on a wolf pack assembled in captivity. They were wolves from different packs forced into a confined space. That study has since been debunked.” Sam smiled warmly at her friend. “Real wolf packs are nothing like that. The wolves who lead a pack nurture the pack like a family. Also, we’re humans and not driven by the wolf side of our nature, at least not entirely.”
“Then what’s the whole deal with the ‘alpha’ thing?” Delilah asked.
“Some people are just assholes. I just think people who seek power tend to be bigger assholes, especially when they get it. The whole debunked pack dynamic research just validates their very human need to dominate those under them. They just like to have the thin veneer of bad science to justify their abusive behavior.”
“Huh. I guess that makes sense.” Delilah nodded.
“What other werewolf questions do you have?” Sam looked at Luke as well. “Might as well get them all out in the open.”
Delilah and Luke looked at each other. Luke knew more about werewolves than Delilah, having interacted with them a few times over his nearly two thousand years. Luke also knew a bit of their ancient history thanks to Mithras and Selene, and the information he provided when he invested his power in Luke and gave him his mission to hunt the undead. The origins of the werewolf were linked with the origins of the vampires. He hadn’t read all the same books as Delilah, although there was probably a lot of overlap, so he had no idea what she was referring to, beyond what appearances werewolves made in the popular entertainment Luke had consumed over the years.
Delilah, ready to ask her questions, narrowed her eyes. “OK. What about werewolf metabolisms? I’ve seen discussions online where people have done calculations on the amount of calories a person would need to consume to be able to make the transformation, healing injuries, etc.”
“OK.” Sam nodded her head. “I guess, think of us more like fictional shifters. We’re not cursed monsters whose bodies break and reform on the full moon. You’ve seen the change plenty of times. Is it anything like that?”
“No…” Delilah replied.
“It’s more of a magical transformation. We don’t really conform to science in our biology. I mean, look at me? I’m not a super skinny bones and muscle werewolf. Pablo’s strong and muscular, but he’s not a body building Adonis. It’s more a function of him lifting grain bags all day.”
“Hey, I’m a total Adonis!” Pablo protested.
Delilah and Luke snickered, trying to keep from breaking out in laughter.
“Not sure Adonis wore button up tracksuits, big guy.” Luke reached over the seat and patted Pablo’s shoulder.
“He would have if he’d known about them.” Pablo affected an airy “above it” expression. “Like me, he probably had impeccable fashion sense.”
Luke held up his hand to silence everyone, then pointed toward the parking lot. “Well, fashionable Adonis, I think it’s time you turned the engine on. It’s time to move on to our next spot.”
Everyone strapped back into their seat belts as Pablo fired up the engine and put the car in drive. Once the brake lights beamed on in Bealer’s car, Pablo pulled onto the street and paused at the stop sign as Bealer turned left from the parking lot. Using the same break in traffic as their target, Pablo turned right and kept a safe distance from him. Pablo let the occasional car get in between them as they followed every turn Bealer made, hoping he didn’t get too curious about the Subaru behind him. Fortunately, like Luke's Volvo, they were practically visual white noise in Portland.
After a while and a lot of convoluted turns and choices, they still hadn’t lost Bealer.
“Why is he all over the place?” Pablo complained.
Luke leaned forward between the front seats. “Probably paranoid? Under orders to not let anyone follow him? He’s making a lot of random turns, but he’s not doing anything else to throw any potential pursuer off. I just think this is another thing he’s not terribly competent about.”
Sam snorted. “He’s got to be qualified to do something correctly, right?”
“As long as he’s on our enemy list, I hope we never find out what he’s good at. I prefer my enemies to be stupid or incompetent—both, if I can swing it.” Something from the commissioner’s car caught his eye. “Pablo, if you can, drop back a bit more. He’s looking around a lot. Probably checking for anything suspicious.”
“Like four vampire hunters trailing him?” Sam said sarcastically. “Good thing his windows aren’t tinted.”
“Well, we know who we are and that we’re following him. So far, he doesn’t seem to know either.” Luke sat back in his seat.
“Do you really think it’ll be this easy to find Cassius?” Delilah asked. “Just follow his patsy?”
Luke shrugged. “Something has to go our way for a change.”
“I don’t know if that’s the winning strategy we’ve been looking for.” Delilah shook her head.
“It’s not really our strategy. It’s just hope our luck will improve.”
“Hey, Luke. He’s pulling off ahead into that neighborhood. Should I keep following him, or take the block after and circle back around?” Pablo asked from the front seat.
“Follow him, but pass him if he parks and pull around on the next street.”
“Gotcha.” Pablo put his turn signal on and smoothly made the turn after Bealer.
After a couple more blocks and a couple more turns, he parked in front of a house and headed up the walkway to a well-kept two-story house. Luke, trying to keep from being obvious, memorized the house number before typing it into his phone. The pull coming from the house indicated their hunch might be right—there were definitely vampires near where Bealer had parked. Pablo made the circuit around the block, then stopped.
“Any vampy senses going off?” Pablo asked.
“I’m getting a strong pull that says there are some.”
“Some?” Pablo asked.
“Well, more than can fit in a bread box, but less than a shipping container. Sam, what do you have for me?” Luke asked.
“OK, we should be seeing a couple watchers arriving shortly. I’ve been relaying them directions since we tucked in behind Bealer,” Sam replied.
“Good. For now, let’s do quick walks around the block. Pablo, you go first.” Luke patted Pablo on the shoulder.
Pablo pouted. “Ugh. It’s to starting rain. And the wind’s picking up.”
“Well, it’ll give you an excuse to pull a hood up and look down.” Luke chuckled.
“You’re a hard man, Luke. I’m gravely disappointed in your lack of concern for my dryness.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll get an air freshener so we don’t have to worry about that wet werewolf smell,” Luke teased.
Delilah snickered into her hand. Pablo, sighing heartily, stepped out of the car and shut the door behind him. Walking around to the passenger side and stepping onto the sidewalk, he knocked on Delilah’s window, so she rolled the window down. All they could see was Pablo’s midsection, his hands in his pockets.
Bending over, he poked his face into the window. “Ma’am, I have something for you in my pocket.” He pulled out one hand with the middle finger up, holding it up to Delilah’s face. “And, sir, as the instigator of this calamity, I have a couple somethings for you.” He pulled out the other hand and flashed Luke double birds.
Delilah’s snicker turned into full on laughter, Sam joining her from the front seat.
“Enjoy your walk, Pablo,” Luke called across the car.
“Today is not Pablo’s day,” Sam said.
Luke chuckled. “Yeah. I don’t often get the jump on him, but it’s always fun to deflate him when I can. He’s usually the one making fun of me.”
They sat, waiting for Pablo to make his circuit. After ten minutes, Luke popped out and peered around the corner and down the block, making sure Bealer’s car was still parked out front. On his way back to the car, he saw Pablo rounding the other corner. Luke raised his hand in greeting.
“What’s the matter, lonesome for me?” Pablo asked.
“You know it. Spot anything useful?”
“I mean, he’s still there, which I’m assuming you just saw.”
Luke nodded as they climbed back into the car.
Sam turned to look at Luke. “Both spotters are in place. They’re pretty far back but have a clear view of Bealer’s car. I’ve also put a backup team on notice in case we decide to go in. I’ve also got another spotter car coming in to park on the block behind that house in case anyone goes over the fence and through the neighbor’s yard.” Turning back to Pablo, she added, “The backup team is coming in your pickup with the rest of our gear.”
“Good. Alright. Let’s go grab a quick bite. No sense sitting here with four people in a car looking suspicious until sunset. This would have been quicker if wasn’t daylight savings.” Luke pulled his seatbelt into place.
“Yeah, but I like the extra sun in the afternoon,” replied Delilah. “Seems a waste since we always have to sleep in, now we at least get some rays.”
Back on one of the main streets through the neighborhood, they found plenty of food options, settling on one that would have a quick turnaround in case they needed to move. Luke felt reasonably confident they’d be fine for the duration of a meal. Having the spotters on hand added an air of confidence.
Checking the light level outside the window in case they’d lost track of time, Luke set his card down for the server. “Sam, start the backup team moving. I want to be ready to go on a moment’s notice.”
Sam nodded and picked up her phone. After she sent the message, they filed back to the car. Figuring it’d been a while since anyone had seen their vehicle in the area and it was a common car, they did another drive-by. Sure enough, Bealer’s car was still there.
“Are we sure this isn’t Bealer’s house?” Delilah asked.
“No, he lives in one of those rich guy condos downtown. Here…” Sam pulled her phone out, searching for something. “One of the local lifestyle magazines did a story on his condo after he announced his mayoral run, one of those ‘get to know the person’ type of things. Ah. Here it is.” She handed the phone to Delilah.
Delilah scrolled through the article’s pictures. “Blech. This place looks like it cost a lot of money, but it’s so bland and sterile and unimaginative.”
Sam laughed. “You just described Bealer to a T.”
Delilah handed the phone to Luke. As he flipped through the images, he came to the same conclusion as Delilah and Sam. The phone vibrated in his hand, startling him, a message dropping down from the top. Not looking at it, he handed it back to Sam.
“Message came in,” Luke said.
Sam pulled it up. “Looks like the backup team is parked a few blocks away. The watchers are reporting nothing new.”
Looking at her own phone, Delilah poked her head up. “It’s officially after sunset.”
Luke nodded, his breath shallowing. All afternoon, he’d worked to keep his anxiety at bay as they sat and waited. Now, as they prepared to go into action, the nerves shifted to anticipation and hope that maybe they’d get a good crack at Cassius. Maybe this would be their break.