27. Can and Do

Guns raised, Harlow kicked in the door to the fourth floor. It swung open, knocking over the person behind it. Lunging at the guy still standing there, just as he raised his gun towards him, Harlow dropped one of his pistols in favor of grabbing the man's wrist. Twisting it, the man dropped his own weapon as they tumbled to the ground.

Landing hard, the vampire yelped in pain when Harlow broke his wrist. But then the bastard rolled them, and Harlow was the one yelling as his body twisted awkwardly and a sharp pain shot through his back.

On his back now, teeth clenched in pain, he shoved his gun under the man's chin and pulled the trigger just as the vampire was about to try to tear into him with his free hand. Blood speckling over Harlow's hands and face, the vampire let out a gargled sound before collapsing on top of him.

Foxx jumping over head, removed any worries he'd had of others attacking from his mind, he shoved the man off of him.

Wincing as he sat up, Harlow growled, "Fucking hell," when the pain remained. It felt like something in his back was pulling tight each time he moved.

Shaking his head, he ignored both the maniacal laughter and the screams he heard coming from further in the hall as he pushed up. Another slice of sharp pain laced through his back as he stumbled to his feet. He hissed, but forced himself to ignore it and fully straighten up. Harlow snorted in disgust on finding the vampire he hit with the door out cold nearby. How the fuck did these bastards kill Hanes?! It was just a bunch of dumbasses running around in cheap suits playing fucking mafia.

Glaring, he aimed and fired, putting a bullet between the man's eyes.

Holstering his gun, he snagged the pistol he'd dropped off the floor, cursing as his back seemed to tighten further with that simple action.

"You okay?" Foxx asked, eyeing him with a raised brow. The man now stood only a few feet away from him, guns holstered, arms behind his back. There was a fresh coat of blood on the vampire, which just added to his already gory appearance. Foxx's sunsuit, once a vibrant green, was now just varying shades of blood.

Harlow's gaze briefly glanced down the hall, and he found four headless bodies lying in quickly forming blood puddles, arterial spray on the walls, with their heads lying nearby. It appeared as if Foxx had ripped their heads off—nice.

Turning to Foxx, he stretched his arms up, grunting as his joints popped. "I'm fine. Just fucking moved wrong."

Pulling his short sword out, he quickly brought it down on the first man's neck, and then the other, before returning it to its sheath. He was so going to have to clean everything later, or get a new sheath… With how much time had passed and the amount of blood, the leather would most likely be warped beyond repair… Harlow probably needed a new one.

His back had been tight as he'd bent each time…but the stretching seemed to have taken care of the pain.

Grimacing, he said, "Let's find this hunter."

"Right!" Foxx nodded. "No one else is on this floor. It seems they ran upwards while we were fighting."

"Fucking cowards."

"Okay, but…" Foxx giggled. "Look what I found."

Harlow's brow rose in mild shock when, from behind his back, Foxx brought out an old Tommy Gun, just like the ones old gangsters had used many decades ago.

"What is this, the 1920s? And why the hell didn't they use it on us?"

"Who knows? But it's loaded!" Foxx giggled evilly.

"I may…" He frowned and reached into his jacket. Harlow started feeling around his various pockets until he got to one on the lower right that he never opened. "Ha! I do!" He unzipped the pocket and pulled out a box of ammo. "Filled with Holy water."

Foxx stared blankly for a moment before blurting out loudly. "How the hell do you fit so much in your leather jacket?! Is it bespelled?! Also, why do you even have that?!"

"Nope, just altered." He tossed the box at Foxx, and the vampire caught it with ease, still staring at him with disbelief. "And I had an old Tommy Gun…just for the hell of it, but it blew up along with my house. Never actually got to use it in a hunt, which is slightly disappointing."

"When?! When did you have it altered?! I watched you buy it—that exact jacket. And you are lying, aren't you?! I bet Tony said no."

He did have it altered, that was not a lie… And…Tony had said no, but what Tony doesn't know… Well, the man couldn't really stop him from using any weapon, besides maybe explosives. It was just that the fucking bullets hadn't arrived until after his house blew up.

But instead of saying all that…Harlow shrugged, and instantly regretted it. Wincing, he rubbed at his back. "Fuck."

"I don't think you're fine…"

"I'm fine."

"Maybe you should sit the rest out, old man?"

"Fuck off, I'm fine. I just pulled something."

"The last time you told me you were fine, you passed out due to a hole in your back."

Harlow rolled his eyes. "Let's go." He stomped forward before stopping and waving Foxx on, since the vampire was the one who knew where Kinley was. "Move it, shorty."

Foxx tsked, dropped the box of bullets in his belly pocket, rested the gun on his shoulder and walked past him down the hall. Passing a few closed doors, the man stopped by the only one that was slightly ajar.

Following Foxx inside, at the first sight of the man he assumed they were looking for…Harlow could tell they'd have two bodies to haul back.

Hunter Kinley Clines was passed out, his limbs bound, lying in a puddle of his own blood on top of a large, but rather low desk. His black hair looking as if it had been attacked by a pair of scissors, the man's feet and hands were covered in burn marks, his eyes swollen, and it appeared that every major artery had been severed on top of the various stab wounds all over his body. The worst and largest injury looked to be the one on his chest, which was a bloody mess of torn flesh and bone. The vampire was breathing…but barely.

"He's…dying. What… How… How the fuck was he ever approved for work?!" Foxx snarled.

At the accusing tone of the vampire's voice, Harlow glanced at the man in question, brow raising on finding Foxx glaring at the dying vampire. There was this odd shiny look to his eyes, the same one he'd seen back when the vampire was confronting the newly transformed werewolf. Harlow's best guess was that this was a sign of Foxx using his bloodline powers.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"He's not even fifty yet!"

Brow pinched, he pointed out, "I mean…neither am I?"

"You don't understand! He's younger than you! Even if he was the same age, he shouldn't be here! The council forbid it!" Foxx cried. "They approved this escapade, but forbid anyone under a hundred from joining!"

"Is there a reason?"

"Because vampires under that age haven't had a chance to develop their abilities yet. He is too young to deal with what we have to deal with. He should have been rejected on age alone."

"Even if the Guild has set an age requirement based on your council's recommendation…you know as well as I do that you all can, and do, lie."

Foxx cursed.

Kinley's eyes suddenly snapped open, and he let out a terrified scream. Foxx moved swiftly. One second he was by him, and the next, he was by Kinley"s side. Setting down the Tommy Gun on the floor, Foxx grasped hold of one of the man's still bound hands.

"It's okay, Kinley, we are hunters. They are gone. They can't hurt you anymore."

"D-dying," the vampire rasped, before starting to cough, blood spraying from his mouth.

Harlow slowly approached as Foxx brushed the man's sweat-soaked bangs from his eyes. "It's going to be okay, I promise," Foxx lied.

Staring down at the two, Harlow…felt nothing. That he felt nothing made him glad that Foxx was here to deal with…this.

"M-my f-fault," the young vampire spluttered.

"What is?" Foxx asked softly.

"Hanes…" The vampire sobbed. "R-ran a-way."

Harlow's jaw clenched. "Hanes would never run," he ground out. Even if he hadn't been friends with Hanes, he wouldn't let the man's name be slandered—even if just for Tony's sake.

Foxx held his hand up and sent him a look telling him to shut up.

"Hanes ran?" Foxx pressed.

"N-no! I-I—" More blood burst from Kinley's mouth, the man having a violent coughing fit before finally admitting, "I-I left… My fault…myyy…" The vampire's words slurred before they cut off completely, Kinley's eyes fluttering closed again.

Fucking hell… Killed because some kid was in over his head. If Hanes did have one flaw…it was trusting too easily.