Chapter 45: A vampire lord
Gwen was waiting at their usual meeting spot—a 24-hour diner on the edge of downtown that served coffee strong enough to wake the dead. Literally, in Kaine’s case. She looked up from her phone as he slid into the booth across from her, Marcus taking his customary position by the window.
"You look like shit," she said by way of greeting.
"Thanks. Always a pleasure." Kaine signaled the waitress for coffee. "We need to talk."
"About your mysterious supernatural problem? I’m all ears."
Kaine took a deep breath and began explaining. The resurrection in the cemetery. Chad’s transformation into something far beyond a normal wight. The chase through the industrial district and the blood magic that should have been impossible.
Gwen’s expression grew darker with each detail.
"Let me get this straight," she said when he finished. "You created a wight. Not just any wight—a former Shadow Guard operative who now has vampire-level blood magic and is running around the city with a grudge."
"That about covers it."
"Are you out of your goddamn mind?" Her voice rose enough to draw looks from the workers. She lowered it to a harsh whisper. "We already have a murderous psycho carving X’s and O’s into couples. We don’t need another fucking maniac on the loose."
"I know. It’s not ideal."
"Not ideal?" She stared at him in disbelief. "Kaine, the organization is going to notice when one of their dead agents starts showing up on security cameras. They’re going to come looking."
That was a complication he hadn’t fully considered. Chad had been a Shadow Guard operative, same as both of them. His file would be marked as KIA, but if he started leaving bodies around the city, someone would eventually connect the dots.