“You’ve got blood on your face.”
John breathed a huff of laughter through his nose and wiped his face with one of the towels. The blood bags, as Sabine called them, had run off for home or wherever they’d come from.
“This is something I could do every day,” he said, folding up the towel and putting it in his pack. “I mean, is this something you do every day, really?”
“Really.” Sabine lit a cigarette. “Glad the fire didn’t get out of control this time.”
“Nah, we did pretty good.” John reached out to Sabine. “Got one to spare? I think my last one got crushed when the Conductor hit me.”
Sabine laughed. “Sure.” She handed him a cigarette. “That wasn’t the Conductor, though. That was just one of the First Chairs. The Conductor runs this city, underground. She’s on my list.”
“Yeah? You want help with that?” John winced at the eagerness in his voice. “Sorry, didn’t mean to go all hyper dog on you.”
“I didn’t say no, did I?” She lit his cigarette, then put the gold lighter back in her jacket. “This job feels like I’ve been doing it for ages. I could use a companion. You know how to fight, you’re kinda rash, but that works sometimes.”
“I need a place to stay.” John rubbed the back of his neck. “That Hostel looks okay.”
Sabine shook her head. “No. That place is a Rhapsody.”
“Well, fuck. It’s all I can afford.”
“Shut up, John. You gonna be my companion or not?”
“If you’ll have me.”
“Good. Then you’ll stay at the warehouse with me. Got a big bed we can share and a little loft love nest.”
John shook his head. “I can just sleep on the floor.”
“Don’t give me that shit. We’re adults. Nothing’s gonna happen if we don’t want it to happen.” Sabine smirked. “You can control yourself, even if I can’t, Mister Sleep-on-the-Floor.”
“Thanks, Sarge.”
They turned the corner, walking away from the Hostel onto Beanton Street. John paused and grabbed Sabine’s arm.
“You hear that? It’s like a chewing sound.”
Sabine nodded. “Yeah. You’ve been called to the Hunt. You’re gonna hear things like chewing, sucking, whispers, static on a radio, and glass breaking for a few full moon cycles. Don’t worry, you’re not losing your shit. It fades away, and you’ll only hear it when there’s a monster nearby after that.”
She reached out and patted the hand encircling her arm. “John, that’s a tight grip. Come on, Soldier. Pull yourself together and we’ll head home.”
He loosened his grip after a moment. “Sorry. It’s just that I could see everything that happened. You lying there, waiting for that vampire. The stakes through hearts, the ax through that one’s head.”
“The sexy one that tried to entrance you.” Sabine smirked. “You were resistant.”
“Yeah. I’m not impressed by it. I just … saw what she was.”
“Good. That’ll keep you alive.”
to be continued…
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