Vampire Babylon - Night Rising Part 31

Mind screwhim.Control him.

Her best weapons were her words right now.

"Why'd you stop loving your dad?" she asked, vying for the upper hand. "What happened, Robby?"

Behind him, one of the Bava workers opened the door. With a flick of his wrist, Robby shut it, never even glancing back.

"I told you," he said. "He left me."

"Why?"

"It was for the best, he said. He would send me away, and years later, I'd make a comeback. Then we would be together again."

Robby's lips attempted a smile, but his mouth lost the struggle. "My dad and I were close, a long time ago."

"I know." She wouldn't bring up the pimping, the abuse. It would probably agitate him, and she was doing so well without that kind of brain-dead strategy.

Nerve sawing against nerve, she snuck a glance at Kiko, who was still in a pile by the back wall. A hitch of overwhelming worry pulled at her, but she kept it at bay. She had to.

"Dad made me a man," Robby said, touching his head wound again. The slight bleeding fascinated him. "He taught me how to rule Hollywood one day."

"Is that what he was doing?"

Robby seemed taken aback by her venom. "He wanted me to be strong. He showed me how to dominate people by offering, then withholding, then giving them what they wanted at a bigger price than they could've ever imagined paying. Lots of money.

Lots of opportunity. I had half of Hollywood dying to be with me."

Even through the vampire bravado, she saw a flicker of human shame. Both of them knew he was lying to himself, failing to make Nathan's actions seem more acceptable.

At her steely silence, his expression fell, and he stared at the ground.

"I don't know how to function without him," he said softly. "Can you imagine that? Thirty-five years old and I still need him to tell me what to do. But it's not going to be that way for long. I kept telling him, even back when I was twelve, that I wanted to move on and stay out of the spotlight for a while until I could start getting adult roles, like Jodie Foster. Yeah," his voice lifted with rekindled dreams, "just like her. I did everything I could to show him I wasn't a little boy anymore-got piercings, turned down parts in family movies, all because I knew I could reinvent myself." "He didn't like that you weren't daddy's boy anymore." She could feel herself getting dizzy, but she sucked it up.

Again, Robby leaned closer, scenting her blood. She didn't dare make eye contact.

"Robby?" Dawn needed him to keep talking. She wished she could drop the napkins and grab her gun. It'd be awkward, and her left-hand aim wasn't as sharp as her right, but still...

The vampire reared back, tone sharp and self-mocking. "I'mthe one who didn't like that I wasn't daddy's boy anymore. I was afraid not to be, even if I couldn't help rebelling." He grinned. "I used to sneak out of the Underground, you know. Used to go to my old hangouts and workplaces, then slide right back into my room before anyone knew I was gone. That's how I stayed in touch with my sanity."

"Diaper Derbywas filmed on the same set as one of your movies?"

"Yes-Bug Hunt. When my caretakers saw that I'd been accidentally filmed, they punished me by keeping me locked up. That's when I escaped for good, before..." He looked afraid. "...the final phase of my release."

"And you couldn't help returning to all the old places again."

"Places my dad and I used to go. First I went home. Dad still wasn't there. Then I came to Bava, and it was the same deal. I kept visiting both places, but then the Guards followed me home, and Groupies were infiltrating Bava more than usual, looking for me. I could tell they were present before I even went in again-they have a different scent than the regular vampires and ghouls that hang out. But they're not here tonight. That's why I followed you in when I saw you."

She couldn't quiz him about what Groupies were before she detected the self-disgust creeping back into his gaze.

"After all these years of being away," he added, "there was comfort in these places, like returning would take me back to being the normal Robby Pennybaker."

This guy was confused, Dawn thought. He wanted to resume his little Robby life, and he didn't. He obviously loved his father, and he hated him.Hadvampirism affected his brain? Were all of these creatures a little tetched?

As he gauged her compa.s.sion, he came close enough for Dawn to see he wasn't showing any fang. Obviously, that happened only in his vamp state. In this form, he could pa.s.s for human-it was only the mind s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g that revealed him as a vampire.

"When my dad came back home," Robby said, "I realized how much I hated him. Seeing him in the flesh, strolling through the door like he'd never deserted me, made me want to hurt him."

Pulled to Daddy out of habit. Sounded familiar to Dawn. "So what're you going to do if you have no place to go?"

"I'll make a new life Above no matter what. I told you, I'm never going back."

"Even if your mom loves you?" Dawn thought he'd been talking about going back home. Or was he talking about that other place? The Underground.

Robby's mouth tightened, and Dawn s.h.i.+fted, upsetting her arm and shoulder. Who cared though? She just made sure her good arm was ready to grab her gun.

"I never thought..." Robby's lips broke into a tremble. "She didn't pay much attention to me when I was human."

"She regrets that."

"Really?" His voice was thick. "I didn't try to contact her because I thought she'd care as much as she used to-which is not at all." "That's not true. If you saw how upset she is..."

He grew contemplative, giving Dawn too much of a chance to think about Kiko. She had to get to him. Had to find out more about this Underground, too.

"Please," she said, taking advantage of this peaceful lull. "My friend."

Seeming to come to a decision, Robby stood, moved to the door before she could ask more questions. Then, as if he hadn't wrecked havoc in the supply room, he zipped out, leaving the door open.

She didn't have the opportunity to wonder what the h.e.l.l had just happened, how she'd made him leave.

Instead, Dawn groped in her jeans for her phone, calling 911 for an ambulance. At the same time, she gimped over to Kiko.

Hearing her, his eyes fluttered open, and she laughed in pure relief, reaching out to touch his cheek.

But when he spoke, it wasn't with the lighthearted humor she'd come to expect.

"My back," he murmured. "Help me."

TWENTY-FOUR.

THEVISIT.

THEambulance got to Bava in good time. From there, Kiko was whisked to Lady of Mercy Hospital, and despite the overflowing ER, the staff saw to him as quickly as possible.

Though she'd refused to leave Kiko's side, keeping a hold of his fingers while he bravely smiled then alternately winced, Breisi, who Dawn had called from Bava, had pretty much manhandled Dawn into being taken care of, too. So after Breisi had quietly offered the staff a hefty donation to see Dawn quickly-and to ask no probing questions about Kiko's injuries-Dawn had caught Breisi up on current events while a doctor st.i.tched up the gape in her cheek. He p.r.o.nounced that her arm and shoulder were severely bruised-nothing broken, due to her stunt-experienced maneuvering. Then the medical staff handed her some painkillers, but when they weren't looking, Dawn pocketed the pills. Nothing was going to put her out for the rest of the night; d.a.m.n the pain.

When further news of Kiko came, it was a mixed blessing.

Dawn and Breisi were in the bustling reception area, where people cried out for attention. Down the row of seats, a drugged-out woman had vomited on the floor, and an orderly was rapidly-and not so happily-mopping it up. Across from them, a little African-American girl was stretched out over a few seats, her head in her mom's lap. The older woman, who was hooked into an iPod, probably to block out the cacophony, stroked her child's hair, singing "Hush little baby, don't say a word..."

The song made Dawn turn away.

"A broken back," she said for what had to be the hundredth time. She'd removed her shoulder holster due to her new fas.h.i.+on accessory: a sling with ice packs attached to her injuries. She barely felt their wet chill over the throbbing. "It's my fault. I should've made sure Robby went after me before Kiko. I could've taken it. I've crashed into a lot of walls, and I know how to do it without getting hurt. Once, during some harness work for a flying stunt, I flipped wrong. I almost broke my back, so I know how to handle this kind of-"

"Don't." Breisi had her legs crossed, her ankle bobbing at top speed. "Pain comes with this job."

Dawn didn't doubt it, but...G.o.d. Limpet was having Kiko transferred to the Cedars-Sinai Inst.i.tute for Spinal Disorders, where he'd be diagnosed in more detail. Now, as they prepped him for departure, Dawn felt useless. She fought to stay cool and distant, but exhaustion and then the tremors of Robby's violation started to creep back into her.

No problem, she told herself. She could deal with the trauma. Right?

But when she realized that someone had to cancel Kiko's big audition Monday, it was all over. She coughed, but she and Breisi both knew it was actually a tight sob.

She felt her a.s.sociate's hand on her good shoulder-way above the vampire-spit burns. Strange. She was getting too used to being touched like this-caringly. But, somehow, it wasn't as terrible as she'd imagined. Especially right now.

"We need to get back to work," Breisi said gently.

For a second, Dawn thought she was joking. But then she remembered that Breisi wasn't much for humor.

"Believe me," the other woman added when she saw the look on Dawn's face, "Kiko would kill us if we hung around fawning over him. He's got an ego, to be sure, but he's also dedicated to this job and would want us out there taking care of it. The boss is sending over a Friend to look after him while we-"

"What?" Dawn said it with such rancor that the girl across from them grabbed her mother's hand and held it to her ear.

Even over the hubbub of the waiting room, Dawn had been too shrill. She lowered her tone. "Are we going to run around town chasing Robby? Why? We know from Jonah's buddies that they haven't seen vampires around the Pennybakers' tonight, so Robby probably cut his losses and went into hiding. Maybe that's why he left me intact-he doesn't want more trouble."

"Klara Monaghan gave us a list that we still need to cover. This isn't over yet."

Wasn't it? With resurrected agony, Dawn remembered what Kiko had looked like at Bava: a pile of flesh and clothing; a bad imitation of the vital guy she'd come to know.

Breisi decided to get even more maternal, resting a cupped hand on the back of Dawn's head. "We've made headway. Think of what the coroner's office told me."

Sure, okay. They'd already known that Klara had bled out from her injuries, but now they'd also been informed that the damage to her throat had been caused by human teeth-not fangs. They'd also discovered that there hadn't been a case similar to this in L.A. County for the last fifty years.

So was Klara's death the work of a weirdo, not a vamp? Did that mean Robby wasn't even a suspect?

Come to think of it, Dawn hadn't even questioned him about it. h.e.l.l, she'd been busy with a few other things at the time.

And there was more than that to worry about. Was it possible that the people at the coroner's office were lying when they said that the culprit had been human? Were they trying to cover up a case that would cause the public to get hysterical about monsters in their midst?

Dawn had asked Breisi this earlier, after the initial urgency for Kiko had abated, but the older woman thought the coroner's office was on the up-and-up. After all, she'd seen the autopsy reports and had gotten a peek at Klara's body, herself. There was nothing obvious indicating subterfuge.

So the killer was human, Breisi insisted. And she was betting the DNA results would confirm that.

A nurse, dressed in scrubs and with her dark hair slung back in a high ponytail, bustled over to inform them that Kiko would be transferred within the next half hour. They thanked the woman as she took off toward the administration desk.

"There shouldn't be any more for us to handle. The boss has taken care of all the paperwork that will keep anyone from investigating Kiko's injuries." Dawn got up. "When's Jonah coming to see Kik?"

"He's not. He's a shut-in."

"He can't come out," Dawn asked, "even for Kiko?"

"As I said, Kik will have no problem with that. The boss has always told us that he'll go outside when it's absolutely necessary; not before. That's why he employs us-we do what he can't beyond the walls of his home right now."

The term echoed in Dawn's head. A shut-in. It almost gave some humanity to the voice Dawn had gotten to know on such a superficial level.

Superficial versus...intimate.

Out of nowhere, Matt Lonigan's kiss-the warm, sentimental simplicity of it-came back to her, and she touched her lips. She'd left a message for him earlier, as well as one for Jacqueline Ashley, who'd also called. In her return messages, she'd told them both where she was at, what her new phone number was, and that she would to get back to them later.

And, ironically, there'd also been a summons from a female stunt coordinator who was wondering what Dawn was up to. But she hadn't had time to return that one yet.

Shouldn't she be dancing around like a fool at the contact? Dawn sighed. The career that had seemed so all-important this afternoon was nothing compared to what was going on now. All the same, no matter what time it was, she should leave a message with the coordinator out of professional courtesy. Who knew when she'd have another chance.

"I've got to make a quick call outside," Dawn said. "Too noisy in here."

"I'm running to the girls' room." Breisi got out of her chair. "Keep your gun handy and stay by the doors, around people. I'll be out soon."

With her good hand, Dawn patted her jacket pocket, where she'd transferred her piece, then headed toward the doors, dodging and not even glancing up at a man who was on his way in. He said something, but she kept right on moving.

Then, finding a spot at the side of the building, near a couple of paramedics who were taking a cigarette break, Dawn awkwardly got the gun out. When she realized she had no other choice but to hold it with the same hand as the phone, she crouched, setting the weapon near her shoe, hidden from the workers. Then she extracted the encrypted phone from her jeans pocket, tried to dial it. But her left fingers weren't as dexterous as her right, and she couldn't manage the easy task.

Frustrated, she made another attempt at dialing, failed. She ground her teeth together as her right side blazed with growing awareness of its injuries.

"G.o.d-d.a.m.nit."

"Need help?"

She glanced up to find Lonigan leaning against the wall, dressed in a long leather jacket. His gaze was bright, his body alert, as if he was the one who was caffeinated. And maybe he was. It seemed to come with the territory-along with the pain.

"I was just going in as you were coming out," he said. A shadow covered half of his pugilistic features. "Been standing here waiting for you to recognize me."

"I wasn't looking. You know, Matt, you're going to scare the life out of me with all your sneaking around."

She stowed her phone but kept the gun out, nestling it under the right side of her jacket as she stood, then turned to him. To his eyes, she probably seemed to be warding off the cold, one hand hugging the other side of her waist.

"An a.s.sociate was monitoring the scanner," he said, his tone making it clear he wasn't giving a lot of credence to whatever he was about to say. "She heard a strange story: that a midget had been messing around at Bava-practicing stunts with his friend in a supply room?-and had fallen from a table. Funny how Bava just happens to be a rumored location for vampires. I remembered your partner, tried to get a hold of you to make sure, but then started worrying that you'd gotten hurt, too."

Brus.h.i.+ng a gaze over her cheek, her arm and shoulder, he took a step away from the wall. Dawn's flesh came alive, but she quelled her excitement, thinking that this couldn't be filed under her "save the world" reason for running out on Kiko.

With an unreadable look, Matt redirected his footsteps away from her, so that he turned a corner, darkness closing over him as he disappeared around the other side of the building.

What was up with him? Dawn gripped her revolver, glancing at the hospital's exit. She'd keep her eye out for Breisi.

Then she followed.