"Here," Harry said, holding up a piece of old leather belt, slightly longer than his forearm. Runes were burned into the inner side, and a couple of stone reservoirs were fused into the buckle. The wizard tossed the belt to the vampire and ordered, "Put it on."

Kate stretched it between two fingers and skeptically remarked, "A bit short, don’t you think?"

"Put it on your neck."

The vampire narrowed her eyes and bared her fangs like a predatory cat but quickly regained her composure.

"What does it do?"

"It cuts and cauterizes."

"How lovely..." Kate drawled.

"It’s either that or you stay in the car."

"Oh, I can sit in the car, but I can’t promise to hold back… the cleansing of my system. And the smell… won’t be roses."

That’s all I need – vampire crap in my Cooper. I glanced uncertainly at Harry, but the wizard stubbornly frowned, clearly ready to dig in his heels and refuse any negotiation. She had to put it on.

"By your own words, you have nothing to fear since Lucas had nothing to do with it," I said.

"And who guarantees you’ll let me take it off after all this?"

"I give my word that we will if Lindemann’s not involved," I interjected before Harry could deliver another of his biting remarks. He hated vampires as much as I did but could afford to be more blunt about it. Still, my response didn’t convince Kate.

"Sir Harry?" she addressed him instead.

"I don’t need a war with vampires," the wizard replied. Kate raised the spot where her eyebrows used to be. "We’ll take it off, as promised!"

"One more thing, then. Give me my hair back!"

"We didn’t take it," I joked impatiently.

"Not funny. I can’t appear in public like this!" Kate gestured at her head, where a patch of scorched hair barely clung on. "I had a luxurious hairstyle, and I intend to get it back. Surely, you have some spell for accelerated growth."

Harry scratched the bald patch on his crown, clearly unconcerned with such trivialities.

"Well… I guess something could be arranged."

"Just make sure I don’t end up with a mustache – I’ve heard about some miracle potions."

"It’ll need precise calculations," Harry muttered, thinking. "Blood stones and fur…"

"You must have a stockpile. I’ll return double."

Harry tugged at his beard, enthusiasm suddenly lighting up his movements. I had to step in.

"Stop!" I reminded them. "Flower’s gone off the rails, and you’re talking about hair?"

"Shut up!" Kate snapped. "This is your fault. No gratitude at all! Fine, I’ll put it on – but you owe me my hair."

She only put on the collar after Harry gave her a nod.

"And now, get out of my car," I said.

"Where are you rushing off to?" Harry asked.

"I’m heading to Ellie’s so she can call Finella and figure out why her brother decided to send me to the afterlife. Add some fire protection to the car while I go change clothes?" I asked the wizard, pointing to the vehicle.

"In a rush like this, I can’t do anything better than what’s already there. Stop! Why the hell do you need to go anywhere now? Your people are arriving tomorrow."

"First of all, no one expects me to pull a stunt like this. Secondly, there’s no guarantee my people will bother to investigate thoroughly. Simon will be their priority. As for Flower, they might just take him out in passing."

"Take out Flower in passing?! Duncan, I don’t think you realize just how lucky you were to escape," Harry said.

"I couldn’t agree more," the vampire chimed in. "Lord Flower is one of the most powerful fire sorcerers out there. I still think you should call my father, but if you’re determined not to listen to me, at least listen to Sir Harry."

"I’ll be in and out!" I protested.

Harry puffed up his chest.

"I’m going to lock you in a cage," he declared.

"Great idea!" the vampire added eagerly. "Afterward, a bath, and then we’ll deal with my hair."

"Harry! You can’t be serious," I said indignantly. "Harry!"

"Quiet!" the wizard raised a finger, staring into the void. Something was happening on his land. "He’s here."

"Flower?" the vampire and I asked in unison.

Harry shook his hand in irritation and pulled a spellbook from his dementional pocket. The pages began flipping on their own, guided by his gestures. Harry plucked fully prepared spells from the book and cast them on himself, setting off a small illumination show in the stables. He didn’t stop talking throughout.

"Get in the car and start the engine. If it comes to a fight – drive. I recommend heading straight to Avoc without stopping."

"Smart decision," the vampire agreed and locked herself in the front passenger seat.

"Out!" Harry barked at her. "You’re coming with me."

"Looking like this?" she objected.

"He’s blind anyway. No passengers, Duncan."

The vampire reluctantly climbed out of the car.

"Maybe you could throw some fire protection on me too?" she asked.

Harry thought for a moment, then flipped through the book and flung something red from the open page at Kate.

"Thanks," she said.

"It won’t save you from the collar," Harry warned her. "Let’s go."

I got into the Cooper and started the engine. Those were probably the longest ten minutes of my life. With nothing else to do, I applied the ointment to my third eye and reloaded the magazine with armor-piercing rounds only. I nearly floored the pedal when the door opened, revealing a figure shrouded in darkness streaked with green blood veins. The greatest concentration of darkness was around the elemental source, but even the green of the spiritual heart was tainted.

"Duncan, it’s fine," Kate said. "We’ve reached an agreement."

Kate entered first, followed by Harry, and then James. The two men looked pale compared to the vampire. Even Spark’s source burned brighter. I’d bet anything these two were hiding their true strength.

The earlier fight hadn’t left much of a mark on Flower’s appearance, save for a small hole in his trouser leg and a slight limp.

"Duncan, go home," Harry said, "and don’t be scared."

"Scared of what?"

"We’re going to stage a little fight."

Harry pulled out his book again and began scattering seals, schematics, and rune chains across the ground, attaching them to beams and the ceiling.

"Move, boy," Flower commanded, "or I’ll have to go back to my original plan. The one where I kill you."

"I have no idea what’s going on," I admitted, but I climbed out of the car.

"I’ll explain," the vampire said, grabbing my hand and pulling me out of the building. Harry saw but didn’t object, so this time I decided to trust her, even though I yanked my hand free. Her touch was too cold and unpleasant.

The moment we left the old building, fire beams punched through the stable roof. A flash of lightning, a crack of thunder, and then an explosion so loud it left my ears ringing. The shockwave slammed into my back, knocking me to the ground, and then the rain of splinters and debris began. I scrambled to my feet and turned toward the stables.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

The building's roof was gone, and inside, fire and lightning raged. I drew my pistol and activated the shield from my ring.

"Where are you going?!" Kate grabbed my collar and pulled me toward the house. "It’s all part of the plan!" she shouted into my ear.

"This?!"

Kate dragged me toward the house, but I couldn’t take my eyes off the spectacle. Another explosion deafened me, and a fiery figure rose above the blaze, as if a giant had thrown a flaming log into the air. Lightning flashed and vanished into the fiery vortex that formed around James.

The sorcerer directed streams of dragon flame downward, hovering on them like a rocket on jet propulsion. The fire struck a massive blue barrier, spreading across it and creating the illusion that the sky itself was burning. At the same time, the fire inside the remains of the stables extinguished, and the smoke coiled into a tight sphere under the shield.

In an instant, the shield vanished, the fire began to fall, and the air core, white as smoke, shot forward, piercing the fiery veil and slamming into Flower. My ringing ears whined louder, and a metallic taste filled my mouth. A blinding flash lit up the sky as Flower’s fiery figure, like a defective firework, arced over the fence.

Kate finally dragged me through the side door of the house, which led into the kitchen.

"This is the plan?" I asked, suddenly realizing two things. First, I had no concept of the immense power being used here. Second, I couldn’t hear my own voice. Quickly rubbing my ears, I poured a drop of "blood" from my cufflinks into them.

"... I’m shocked myself," Kate said. "Sir Smith went all out."

"One more time – what’s going on?!"

"Someone kidnapped Finella, pretended to be Lucas Lindemann, and ordered James to kill you."

Footsteps pounded, and then Knuckles burst into the kitchen with an submachine gun in hands.

"What’s going on?!" he asked.

"Someone kidnapped Finella," I replied automatically.

"What was she doing here?"

"Wait, no! Don’t confuse me," I said, already starting to get confused myself. "She was kidnapped earlier, and James was ordered to kill me."

"What’s that?" Knuckles pointed out the window.

"It’s staged," Kate said.

"The stable was blown up on purpose?" Knuckles asked, incredulous.

"Sir Smith and Lord Flower staged a little performance," the vampire explained. "To make the kidnappers think the lord tried to kill Duncan but failed. And also to remind the city of the true level of their power. Many had started to forget – otherwise, no one would have dared touch the sister of Blind Fire, let alone threaten her life."

"Well," I said, "there is one insane family around here."

"You mean the Fairburns?" Kate asked. "Doubtful."

"Why? If the fight had taken place in the house… who knows? It might have disrupted Harry’s ritual."

"The first attack wasn’t here," Kate countered. "James was waiting for us in the alley. He got the call less than an hour before that and barely made it in time."

"I see where you’re going with this," I said. "That devious and cunning Valentine set everything up. But your family also knew where we were heading. Besides, you hesitated. And I can’t shake the fact that the kidnapper called himself Lindemann. Why would he even bother naming himself? He could’ve remained anonymous. It’s like he was deliberately deflecting suspicion."

Knuckles casually, or perhaps not so casually, aimed his gun at the vampire.

"So it’s so absurd, it’s actually clever?" she asked.

"Exactly."

"The alley, Duncan! Flower wasn’t waiting for us near the house – he was in the alley. The exact same alley where the Valentines had brought us. There are no oracles in my nest."

"But Valentine isn’t stupid enough to expose himself like that."

"Noah is the strongest vampire in the city."

"A grandmaster?"

"Have you ever heard of a grandmaster that isn’t a prince? No. A master with magical abilities. And I’m not talking about ritual magic or the powers awakened by blood – no! Before his turning, Noah was a powerful warlock. He’s probably the only vampire in the city who wouldn’t fear direct confrontation with Flower. Now that’s so absurd it’s clever."

Kate’s swollen belly shifted as though snakes were writhing inside it. A loud gurgle followed, and she grimaced in pain.

"Bathroom, quickly!"

"Take her," I said to Knuckles.

Kate had almost convinced me of her version of events, but there were still too many gaps. Somehow, Harry had convinced James to back off from killing me. And speaking of the wizard...

Harry strolled into the kitchen, grinning like a freshly minted coin.

"It’s been a while since I cut loose," he said.

"Not sorry about the stables?"

"I’ll build a proper garage and buy a new car."

"I’d be sorry about the Cooper," I said.

"Your Cooper’s fine. I shielded it."

"Great news!" I said with relief. "But I’d like to know – what’s next?"

"We wait. Your vampire convinced James that Lucas has nothing to do with Finella’s kidnapping."

"And she convinced me that Valentine is behind it. Why did James believe it was Lucas? I still can’t get over the fact that the kidnapper just introduced himself."

"It struck me as stupid too, and James didn’t believe it. What he said in the alley was for the vampire to relay to her father. James has heightened hearing and an excellent memory. When he got the call, he recognized Lindemann’s voice – adjusted for the connection, of course. Plus, the person on the phone promised that 'his daughters' would lead you out of the building and create the illusion of protection. Someone went to great lengths and did a thorough job. James feared that if he completed the task too quickly, he’d be caught by the cops, the kidnappers would clean up loose ends, and they’d kill Finella too. So, he decided not to kill you immediately and let you escape."

"What a farce. I still managed to injure him. What if I’d shot him in the head?"

"You’d have killed him," Harry said. "You two seriously underestimated each other."

"So, he was stalling for time until reinforcements arrived?"

"Not just that. The vampire convinced him to call Lucas."

"The vampire will insist he had nothing to do with it."

"He’ll have to prove it; otherwise, the Lindemann nest might burn. He doesn’t have many good fighters, and he’s nowhere near as strong as Valentine."

"Then we wait... I’ll go wash up and change."

It took me half an hour. After that, I went down to the kitchen to drink tea, and to pass the time, I worked on modifying some bullets from the submachine’s drum magazine. Harry sponsored the effort with pyrite shavings, crushed garnet, and even let me draw a containment pentagram right on the kitchen table.

He quickly melted the lead to absorb the mineral fragments, then placed the bullets in two uneven piles in front of me. There were more pyrite-enhanced rounds. I placed them in the pentagram, inscribed spells for hardness and sharpness, and then fed drops of energy from a large smoky quartz crystal.

I did a terrible job, frankly, wasting the crystal’s magic horribly, but the bullets would retain their armor-piercing properties for a day or two. Knuckles, meanwhile, watched the process with keen interest.

Half an hour later, Knuckles returned with the cleaned-up vampire. Kate was now wearing a fresh shirt of Harry’s and his trousers, the cuffs rolled up so they wouldn’t drag on the floor. The scabs had completely fallen off her neck, revealing young pink skin, and her stomach had flattened. But the smell of cheap soap couldn’t quite mask the stench of rotting meat. Harry had to cleanse the air with a spell.

I moved on to the garnet bullets, enchanting them with fire arrow spells, while Harry began working on Kate’s hair. For that, he used a blood stone and an old beaver fur hat.

By the time I had only two bullets left, Kate’s head was unevenly covered in short black-and-red stubble. Harry turned to Knuckles.

"Nathan, bring the guest. Just one."

"Who is it?" I asked.

"Lucas," the wizard replied. "And that’s it for the hair. It’ll grow at an accelerated pace for a few hours, then normalize. Here." Harry handed Kate the spell-ravaged hat.

"I feel hungry," the vampire said.

"The process uses not just the beaver’s fur but also the body’s resources."

"Then I need blood. Real blood! You can’t always trick the body with magic."

"We’ll listen to your father first, then decide," Harry said.

Cap brought Lucas straight to the kitchen. As always, the vampire was dressed in light colors – this time, a beige suit.

"Gentlemen," he greeted, removing his hat. "Daughter, well done."

Kate’s eyes lit up like those of a dog being scratched behind the ear.

"Let’s skip the sweet talk," Harry said. "What’s going on, Lucas?"

"I don’t have the full picture, but Flower’s sister was kidnapped by Valentine’s people."

"Wow, what a classic villain move," I said. "Just as devious and just as dumb."

"You can call Noah many things, but not dumb," Lucas replied, suddenly breaking into a smug grin. With his emerging fangs, it was unsettling.

"What’s got you so pleased?" Harry asked.

"Valentine is smart, but he underestimated me. Sure, my girls aren’t the strongest, but in one thing, they have no equal."

The vampire fell silent, his entire demeanor practically shouting, “Well, ask me what I mean!”

"No theatrics!" Harry grumbled.

Lucas sighed dramatically.

"My girls are excellent spies!" he declared proudly.

"They got caught today," I reminded him.

"The youngest ones got caught," Lucas replied without a hint of shame. "The more experienced ones had another mission – they were tracking Billy Valentine."

"You’d probably be surprised to hear that this is the first time I’m hearing that name," I said.

"Billy is Noah’s right-hand man."

"And he’s usually hovering around Father," Kate added. "But I didn’t see him today."

Lucas deigned to explain.

"That’s because Billy, along with other masters and the guy you’re looking for, holed up in a gambling den in Pubset. Even those two you met – they headed there after their meeting with you."

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Of course, I’m sure!"

"What are they doing there?"

"It looks like they’re keeping the guy locked up. Definitely strange, but that’s not our concern right now. A couple of hours before your encounter, Sally saw a truck pull up with a couple of goons delivering cargo – several crates, a few bags… and one of them definitely contained a body. She assumed the men were just hungry. But just a few minutes later, vampires disguised as workers carried two bags, also with bodies, back out and loaded them into the truck before driving off to an unknown destination."

"I don’t follow," I admitted.

"The operatives were eliminated."

"And the first bag contained Finella," I guessed.

"Exactly."

"Do you have any proof that it was her?"

"Not exactly," Lucas admitted.

"So, no facts – just a bunch of assumptions you’re stretching to fit?"