Chase was staring at her. “I didn’t know vampires could float.”
“Some can fly, but I haven’t managed that yet. I’m actually young for a vampire. I was only turned twelve years ago,” she said, her expression unreadable.
When we first arrived, Camille had warned Chase to avoid asking anything about how Menolly had been turned. It was a rough story, and it brought back memories better left buried for now. Eventually, she’d have to face what happened and deal with it, but it would have to be on her own time and her own terms. We couldn’t force the matter.
Chase glanced at Camille, who gave him a slight shake of the head. “Ah…As I said, I haven’t had a chance to learn much about what vampires can do.” He cleared his throat. “Anyway, not that I didn’t enjoy dinner, but what did you want to talk to me about?”
“We have a new menace in town. At least, out here in the Belles-Faire district,” Camille said. “Have you heard of redcaps?”
Chase frowned, thinking, then shook his head. “No, actually. I don’t think so. What are they?”
“They’re like…think shorter than goblins and far more deadly. And they enjoy killing and torture,” I said. “I’ll start at the beginning.”
As I laid out what had happened since the night we found the charm, and what Lukia had told us, Chase’s expression shifted. He pulled out his notebook and began making notes as I listed off what we knew about the redcaps.
“Cripes. I don’t like the sound of that,” he said. “Could they be elsewhere in the city as well? Or do they congregate in one area?”
“I don’t know, but I wouldn’t put it past them to establish several strongholds. There must be something driving them here, but I don’t know what,” I said.
“I’ve noticed an increase in activity,” Chase said. “There have been more reports to the FH-CSI about incidents involving attacks by…well…the scuzzier side of Fae. It feels like it’s ramping up. Also, there have been more reports of supernatural incidents—well, supernatural for Earthside humans.”
“That’s puzzling,” Camille said. “I have to admit, I’ve been feeling something on the horizon—something big, but I don’t know what it means. Maybe I’m just unsettled by being in a new place, but ever since we came over here, I’ve felt a dark cloud looming…it’s not here yet, but it’s coming.”
Surprised, I looked over at her. “Really? I didn’t know that.”
Menolly nodded, her expression bleak. “I’ve felt something similar. I don’t know what it is, but I feel we’re waiting on the edge of the shore. There’s a storm coming, and for some reason, the news about the redcaps brings that to mind.”
I stared at the brownie on my plate. I’d had more nights than I could count where I lay awake, trying to escape a vague feeling of dread that seemed more likely to be my imagination than anything else. But now, hearing my sisters talk about the same sort of feeling, made me wonder what the hell was going on.
Chase looked around the room, at each of our faces. “I suppose we’ll know if it all means something…when whatever it is rolls into town. Thank you, though, for validating my feelings. Meanwhile, I’ll make up a report on the redcaps and warn my officers about them. Do we arrest them? Do they fall under the agreement about the Fae that we have with the OIA?”
There was a treaty in place about what and who Earthside authorities could arrest and punish. Most of the gutter Fae who crossed over from Otherworld were fair game, but there were supposedly restrictions on how much they could punish those of us who were considered respectable citizens of Otherworld.
“Redcaps are found in both Otherworld and Earthside, so I’d just count them as Earthside beings, because nobody back home would claim them,” Menolly said. “And as to what we do with them? We eradicate them. They’re a danger to every living creature around them.”
Chase paled. “You mean just kill them?”
Camille nodded. “That’s exactly what we mean. You can’t leave them alive, or they’ll attract more of their kind. Chase, I know it sounds harsh, but they’re vermin. And a relaxing evening for them includes torturing their newest victim before they bleed them dry.”
For a moment, I thought Chase was going to throw up, but he used his napkin to wipe his forehead. He was a detective, used to playing by the book and by the innocent-until-proven-guilty mindset. But that didn’t play out in Otherworld. We knew what to do with the sludge of society—those so violent that they’d forever revert to their twisted natures.
“Has any of you ever had to kill anyone?” he abruptly asked.
All three of us nodded. We’d had to face some brutes back in Otherworld, in the OIA, Menolly most of all. But she hadn’t been able to kill her monster. He’d gotten away, sentencing her to life as a vampire.
“Trust me,” Camille said, her voice soft. “There are greater monsters than you have ever imagined, and sometimes the only thing you can do is to destroy them. We know this from experience. There is no reasoning with someone who gets his rocks off on torture. Best to kill them and forever prevent them from having the chance to destroy someone’s life. There is no forgiveness for some sins,” she added.
Both Menolly and I knew she was talking about Menolly’s sire, but there were plenty of other creatures who fell under the same umbrella.
Chase swallowed. “I guess you’re right. If we’d executed Bundy before he escaped yet again, three young women would still be alive. You say the redcaps wash their caps in blood?”
“Yes, and they eat their victims. They have no remorse, and they’ll attack anyone and anything, be it animal or human, adult or child, man or woman. You can guarantee that if you have a group of them—or even just one—in the area, there will be murders.” Camille straightened her shoulders. “We do what we have to, Chase.”
“You remind me of a soldier,” he said.
“We are. We are the daughters of a soldier, and we were taught to follow through on our duties.” She stood, letting out a sigh. “I’m going to see if Iris needs help. Finish telling him everything we know about these creatures.”
And with that, she exited into the kitchen, leaving Menolly and me to finish up. By the time we finished, Chase had enough information to start an entry on them at the FH-CSI. I showed him a picture of the charm that we’d taken, and also the statue.
