Chapter 29

By the time we’d wrapped up and left the area I was almost due to go off-shift, so Gunnar dropped Fluffy, Shadow and me home. I felt like I’d spent most of my time chasing my tail. We still had very few leads and no hard evidence, but I wouldn’t be much help during the morning hours because the daylight exhaustion was unreal. I could battle through it as best I could, but I definitely wouldn’t be at my best.

Plus, there was a new mystery: Shadow. I looked at my feline, who was extending his leg into the air and cleaning his asshole with zero embarrassment. What freaky power did he have – and where the hell did it come from?

He put his leg down and curled up into a ball; the poor little thing was still exhausted. So was I.

I made some food and put a video of a roaring fire on the TV. The crackle of the flames relaxed me; fire had always soothed me, though it had taken a momentary hit after my home had burned down. There was something reassuring about it, even when it was only on a video. Like a caveman, part of my brain knew that flames would ward off the monsters and tonight that was exactly what I needed.

As I stared into the dancing flames, my thoughts inevitably turned to the fire within me. Despite snooping through Gunnar and Sigrid’s books, I knew very little about my fire magic. If Kostas had been less of a frosty asshole perhaps I would have spoken to him about it, but something about him had set my teeth on edge. I certainly didn’t trust him enough to share my secret.

Franklin had turned me – but into what? I wished I could remember what had happened that night but there were only flashes of memory. Was this how ordinary people remembered things, in little fragments? I didn’t know, but I knew that I didn’t like it.

It was frustrating not to be able to recall that night as perfectly as I could remember almost everything else, but I’d been drunk and then dead. Maybe that was why my memory wasn’t as sharp about my turning, or maybe someone had cast some kind of memory spell? Here in Portlock I was learning that anything was possible.

John had said that a witch had hired Franklin to turn me. Had the witch been there that night and spelled me? I’d never know – and I wasn’t going to call up Franklin and ask. He hadn’t made my Christmas card list.

But elemental fire magic? That was crazy. I took a moment to search within, and as I concentrated I felt a ball of energy at my centre. Anytime I felt angry, it instantly became more evident that I was a ticking bomb that could blow up at any second. I needed to learn how to control it or there was a real risk I’d raze Portlock to the ground. What I’d done to Virginia and Jim would seem like child’s play in comparison.

To distract myself from my dark thoughts, I did some cleaning and tidying. I stopped only when I was satisfied I was guest-ready – bar the red threat splashed across my wall by Nora. But that was a job for another day.

The sun was rising and daylight exhaustion was tugging at me. I pulled down the metal shutters, locked the windows and doors and dragged myself off to bed.

Pain flared in my shoulder. I was bleary and disorientated – and I was also on the floor. What the fuck?

I sat up, and that was when I registered that the whole house was shaking. I used the mattress to steady myself and stand up, then teetered around holding onto the furniture until I could open my bedroom door. The house continued to tremble. I heard the kitchen cabinet doors rattling, things falling and smashing. I braced myself in the doorway.

Fluffy’s tail was sticking out from under the bed. I had no idea where Shadow was but, knowing the cat, he was probably under there with Fluffy. At least they were safe.

The quake kept on going; this was way stronger than the last one. The glass of water on my bedside table was juddering around like a drunk on a stag-do.

I took a shuddering breath as it finally stopped. I had no idea how long it had lasted but it felt like at least thirty seconds, maybe more since I hadn’t woken up immediately. My vampire ass had been dead to the world.

I grabbed my phone and checked for messages. Nothing yet. It was close to the time for me to wake up, so I dialled Sidnee.

‘Bunny, that was a big one!’ she said before I could even greet her.

‘How big?’

‘Seven point two.’

‘Okay. I don’t want to be in another one,’ I said tiredly. ‘I’m done with earthquakes.’ I absently rubbed my shoulder but any bruise I’d got from tumbling out of bed had already vanished.

Sidnee laughed. ‘We’ll probably get some aftershocks, so be ready.’

I groaned. Just then, a siren started to wail. ‘What’s that?’ I asked anxiously.

‘Shit,’ Sidnee swore, fear lacing her tone. ‘It’s a tsunami warning.’ My blood ran cold. ‘Get to the high school as fast as you can. It’s on high ground.’

‘See you there.’ I hung up then threw on my clothes and yelled for Fluffy to grab Shadow. The high school was a brisk ten-minute walk, but I had no idea how much time we had. I wasn’t prepared for a fucking tsunami!

As instructed, Fluffy backed out from under the bed with Shadow in his mouth. My dog was smart: too smart. That was a worry for another day. I grabbed the kitten and shoved him in his carrier then picked up Fluffy’s lead.

We bolted out of the house and sprinted down the street. Some people were in their cars, others were on foot, but everyone looked anxious. They were more prepared than me – even the kids had their backpacks. Did they all have tsunami bug-out bags?

We were all moving in a sea of fear up the hill towards the school. Ahead of me, a little girl dropped her teddy. Her scared mum barked at her to leave it, grabbed her arm and tugged her up the hill. I picked up the teddy and ran to the school; I’d kept my eyes on the child so it was easy to find her to pass it back to her.

‘Squishy!’ she cried, cuddling it to her heart. ‘Thank you, Fanged Flopsy!’

My smile was a little strained; I’d really hoped that particular moniker wouldn’t stick. ‘You’re welcome.’

Her mother shot me a grateful smile. ‘Thank you, officer.’

The title was a reminder. I was an officer. It was time to start acting like one.

‘Everyone,’ I called. ‘Can we please move closer to the school to make room for new arrivals? I know we’re all scared but I’m sure it’ll be okay. Let’s stick together, Portlock.’

I spotted the toweringly tall Ezra standing nearby. He’d been one of the main voices at the protest, so I already knew he could work a crowd. ‘Ezra, can you help the people on foot? We need to make sure everyone stays close to the building. Has someone got keys to the school building so we can move inside if necessary?’ Hopefully Gunnar and Sigrid would join us soon and my boss could open the doors; if not, I needed a backup plan.

Ezra squared his broad shoulders. ‘Harold has the keys. He’s the caretaker,’ he said briskly.

‘Is he here?’

‘Just over there.’ He gestured to a guy with a trimmed beard and glasses.

‘Okay, speak to him and see if he has them with him or has access to a keybox.’

‘I’m on it.’ Ezra walked off purposefully, calling to people as he went, corralling them into helping with crowd management. The throng moved obligingly closer to the school, making more room for cars and newcomers.

I started to direct cars into the school car park, so at least we were panicking in an orderly fashion. It was the British way.

The sirens stopped abruptly and the silence was deafening. People turned to me for an explanation, their eyes hopeful, but I had nothing to tell them.

I pulled out my phone and called Sidnee again. Her ringtone blared close to me and I realised she was only a few people away. I ran over to her. ‘Any ideas why the siren stopped?’ I asked.

She looked towards the bay. ‘Tsunami warning must have ended.’ She hurriedly checked her phone. ‘Yup.’ She showed me her screen; the warning had been downgraded to a low threat level.

Thank goodness. ‘Does this happen a lot?’ I asked.

She shook her head. ‘No, it’s pretty unusual, hence the panic. We only get a tsunami warning once every few years if we get an earthquake that’s a seven or more.’

‘Has this town ever been hit with one?’

‘A tsunami? Yeah, in 1883, an earthquake caused a large landslide that set off a big tsunami. I heard it was pretty bad.’

‘Let’s get everyone home.’ I cleared my throat and raised my voice. ‘The tsunami warning has stopped and the threat has been downgraded. You may all return to your homes. Thank you for your co-operation and patience today.’

‘Yay for the Fanged Flopsy!’ the little girl whose teddy I’d rescued shouted.

Wonderful. The assembled horde burst into rapturous applause and I quickly grabbed Sidnee so she could stand next to me in the limelight. Thankfully the clapping stopped quite quickly; everyone was eager to get back to normal.

I found Ezra as he was leaving. ‘Thanks for your help.’ I held out my hand. After a beat, he took it and shook it firmly. ‘Can you make sure Harold locks up the school?’

‘Will do.’ He nodded and melted into the crowd. I knew very little about the man but he’d gone up in my estimation. He may not like the barrier but he cared for the people of Portlock and his heart was in the right place. These days, that was the best you could hope for.

I helped direct the cars back into town so that tempers didn’t flare if people didn’t take turns to drive out. If there’s one thing you can say about the Brits, it’s that we love a queue; being in a queue was second only to managing one.

I watched the last car go. My work here was done; now it was time for my real work to begin.