Page 46 of Dead

Chapter Eleven

Noah stared at the white board again before turning to all the men assembled. “Ready for a run-down?”

He began reviewing the plan he and Eilam had checked and double checked. As he spoke, he stared at the men assembled, checking their expressions to ensure each one of them was ready for what came next. Along with Eilam and his team of five, he had the extra support of Theis, Colm, Solomon, Garret, and Cannon—as well as two dozen members of the Midnight Police’s elite SWAT team.

Each one of them looked back at him, their faces showing they were well aware of the threat and ready to stand up to it.

“Everyone make sure you grab one of the UV weapons Eilam has provided,” Noah said. “We haven’t had as much time to field test them—but in my limited experience with the gun on low—one shot will subdue, two can kill.”

All the men rose to their feet. As the other went to get their weapons, Eilam walked closer. “You ready?”

“As ready as I can be.” Noah gazed at his brother bear. Eilam still didn’t seem to be at full steam. There was something missing… and it worried Noah.

So much so, that they’d argued all night about who led which team. Finally, Noah had won. Noah was leading half the men, Garret was leading the other.

“Promise me you’ll remain in the van,” Noah said.

Eilam lifted his hands. “I promise. I’ll be fine… we have plenty of men, plus we have Solomon to offer air cover now.”

Noah spied the dragon shifter. “He’s an artist, not a cop.”

“An artist that took down about thirty vampires when Reese was kidnapped,” Eilam said. “Trust me, you want him there.”

Noah nodded before passing his brother bear and checking in with his team—who was starting to load into one of the three vans they’d gotten out of impound. One had been converted into a hub, while the other two would serve to move the teams into place.

Garret walked closer. He wasn’t in his usual armor—none of the guardsmen were. Seeing them in plain clothes made the men seem a little more down to earth, even if they did have some tactical gear on for protection. “We’re ready to go.”

Noah smiled. “Let’s get a move on.”

After a quick glance Eilam’s way, Noah climbed in just before the van pulled out.

Tension filled the vehicle as they crossed town. The sun was barely rising, the pale gray city still sleeping for the most part. There was no traffic, few people out on the streets.

That was a good thing.

It took no time to roll into vampire territory. All three vans had come in separate directions and been in constant communication… and they arrived before their destination within seconds. Once Noah was sure they were all ready, he made the call.

He switched his communication unit over and put his faith in Eilam to listen in on both teams. After they all had their weapons pulled, his team raced out of the van and surrounded the building where one of the portals was… and then made their move. A blast of magic at the door—provided by the king himself—and they were in.

They only got a few feet in before they were attacked. Noah trained his weapon on the first vamp, firing two shots. He amped the weapon up to eight and took down the next one with a single shot.

The vamps came out of the woodwork, nearly too many for them to handle. Shots rang out around him. Ash swirled in the air, so thick, it clogged his lungs. They fought their way forward, the smoke from the ash making it harder and harder to see.

Noah was grabbed from behind and slammed up against a door, his weapon slipping from his hand. Just as the vampire lunged to bite him, a pike appeared and slammed into the vampire’s chest. He dissolved into dust.

The hand connected to the pike belonged to Kane, who had abandoned his UV weapon and was spiking vampires left and right.

Noah grabbed his weapon and took out two more before he could climb from the floor. On they moved, killing vampire after vampire before they reached a locked double door. Chris shifted and yanked the doors open with his enviable strength. He flung the doors down the hall, knocking over several vamps running their way.

Inside, a bright light came out into the hall. They rushed in, just as several vamps attacked—and several others came through the portal.

Each member of the team charged in and fought off the vampires, killing them one by one. Noah paused, looking at the portal. It was nothing like the ones they’d seen before. This was a machine—a huge metal ring surrounded a swirling center—where more vampires poured through, adding to the fight.

He fought off two of the newcomers, shooting one and slashing the throat of another. Noah heard a crashing sound coming from the machine and saw Kane bashing the machine below that appeared to control the portal.

As two vamps were mid-move, the portal shut down. Two arms, a leg, and a head fell to the floor, cut off from the vampires who’d been trying to come through. Kane continued to bash at the metal, destroying the ring that had supported the opening, tearing it all apart.

When he was done, he let out a scream filled with rage and anger.

---