The Boogeyman, goblins, vampires, werewolves, the shadow on the wall, the monster under the bed, and all the things that go bump in the night; most people learned that these are just scary stories and myths to be told to children and for entertainment. What they don't know, and refuse to believe, is that these things are very real. They have been for ages; recorded in history time and time again twisted into the horrors people know of today. But these "horrors" walk around us every day.
They hide in plain sight; working, eating, they are children playing in the park because they have adapted to the world around them to where no one notices the slight differences or abnormalities. Much like humans, they are restricted by a set of rules and laws set by their own kind. But when they choose to break those laws or ignore them, a special group of people are contracted to uphold the laws, demon hunters. They possess a very fine skill set that is either inherited or taught when deemed worthy and capable. They cover all the different species but humans are most feared among them. They are free to move about the world around them with little restrictions and lack the weaknesses of the others. One such hunter has set himself apart.
Plano, TX;
There have been recent reports of men being found stripped naked and found dead in remote areas of the city. They have been found in alleys, parking garages, dumpsters, and sewers. They were all unharmed physically with no signs of scrapes, cuts, or wounds that would be considered out of the ordinary but appear to have died of a heart attack. Four days with 12 attacks prompted a city-wide hunt looking for the person or persons responsible for the incidents. After another two days and another nine bodies and the city had no idea what to do. There was no pattern to the attacks.
In the underground, a contract was issued.
The contract was up for two hours before being claimed. Five hours later a private plane landed at the airport in Plano at about 3 am. Police were informed that they were going to be calling in a specialist to assist. The man that stepped off the plane was a middle-aged gentleman standing at 6' 3" wearing a very fine black suit with a fitting white collar shirt with a bowtie carrying a business briefcase handled with white gloves. He was approached by one of the higher officers, "We're glad you made it! There have been two more found downtown and believe there may be others. If we hurry, we should…"
He was cut off by another voice, "You really should be directing that to me." Another person stepped off the plane behind the other gentleman. "Instead of Hanson here." The second person did not look to be close to 20 years old. He had his hair short wearing a black graphic t-shirt with white jagged letters reading "I Bite" with ratty jeans tearing at the heels of his boots. He introduced himself to the officer, "Ivan. I'll be taking over from this point but your assistance will be greatly appreciated."
"Now wait a minute!"
"According to you, we don't have a minute. Isn't that right Sergeant? You will ride with me to the hotel."
With no other words, the two that stepped off the plane got into the back of the unmarked black limousine that was waiting for them. The Sergeant reluctantly followed. When the wheels were off the tarmac Ivan started talking;
"I want to make sure that I have this right before we get started. The first recorded incident was six, now seven days ago, and has a recorded 23 people found dead, stripped of their clothes, and dumped in a remote or hard-to-locate area within city limits. There is no pattern, no common link between each individual other than that they are all male. Ages range from 19 to 56, Caucasian, Black, Hispanic, Asian, short, tall, blonde, brunette, and black hair; there is no pattern. Am I correct so far?"
"Well, yes, but…"
Ivan interrupted, "Just a second. What I need is the autopsy reports for each person plus the ones tonight which you will find more, sadly. I need to look over those. After that, I'll need the hotel bar set up to my design that you will receive after I get to look at it. I want a few officers in the bar at all times but in street clothes. By tomorrow at midnight, I should have this wrapped up for you."
"Can't we stop this now?"
"No."
"Tonight?"
"Still no. Tomorrow night. The city will need to fend for itself for another 48 hours."
"No! We need this solved ASAP!"
"And that is as soon as possible. It's too late for tonight. They've finished. I will spend today researching looking for my own pattern then we set the bait this evening for tomorrow's catch. Questions?"
"We need to stop these murders!"
"It's not murder."
"Excuse me?!"
"It's not murder to them. It's mere survival. You see it as murder because a human is involved. But look at it this way; you go out early in the morning to the woods with a rifle in your hand, sit in a bush, and shoot a deer. That's hunting to you, not murder. That's how they see it. They're hunting to survive."
"It's murder no matter how you look at it! A person killing another person is murder by law."
"Person killing a person, right? What if it's not a person but a deer with a human face, is that still murder?"
"What are you talking about? You know what?! We don't need your help! Get back on your plane and leave!"
"Stop right there. You do need my help. That mentality right there is why I am here. I think differently than you do because I have a different method and a unique set of skills that no one else in this city has. I know because I checked. So, do you still want us to leave? Can you handle this thing that's been going on for a week now?"
"….what do you need us to do?"
"Well, you plan the trip before you go hunting right?"
Ivan checked into this hotel room shortly after 4 am getting a quick nap before the autopsy reports were delivered to his door. He spent the day going over each one with a fine tooth comb looking for everything. He mapped the dump sites on a map and noted similarities between each person with Hanson assisting. 6 pm came around and six officers were dispatched to the hotel to work the bar scene in rotation to not raise suspicion. Ivan set up a black curtain in the corner of the bar around a large table cutting himself off from the rest of the room with Hanson standing out front. Ivan ordered a bottle of fine wine and the night began.
The six officers did their rotation through the evening while Ivan stayed in his spot. At 11:32 a young woman showed interest in the back corner and approached. Hanson stood guard as she did, "I apologize milady but the young master is very selective about the company he keeps." He pulled back part of the curtain to let Ivan see. She tried to get a peek in but couldn't see his face, just his hand near his glass and wine. The hand motioned for her to spin once. The lady obliged, showing herself off to the stranger in the dark. The hand that she could see waved away. "I apologize, milady. As I said, he is very selective."
"I think I may know someone who may pass his test."
She left walking towards the exit when one of the undercover officers stopped her, "Hey, can I talk with you for a second?" Hanson heard Ivan, "Stop that moron, the lady must leave." Hanson approached the two, "Sir, the lady was clearly on her way out. Do let her be." The officer took the hint, apologizing to her. She smiled back at him, "Don't worry honey. I may be back so let me know if you're still interested then."
It was another 20 minutes before Ivan called Henson. They were done for the evening. As they left Ivan stopped the officer from before, "You married?"
"Uh, no?"
"Got kids? Close family?"
"No kids but I have two brothers."
"If you would like to spend another holiday with them then listen to me now. Do not speak to that woman if she returns. That's not a threat, just a very vivid warning."
Ivan left the officer in the bar heading back to his room with Hanson at his side. 3 am came and the Sergeant from the airport knocked on Ivan's door. The two sat down and the officer began explaining the evening, "We've found seven more people. Two from last night and five from two or more days ago."
"So they are getting more aggressive, there's more than first thought, or it's turning into sport. Either way, there will be more from tonight that we will be unable to help."
"One of my men is following a lead from tonight. He met with the woman who approached you this evening to see if she would give him any details."
There was a silence before Ivan snapped, "Excuse me, he what?"
"He's following the lead."
"Did he mention what I told him?"
"No, but I told him to follow it as you have provided nothing so far."
Hanson sighed, "Oh dear."
Ivan continued, "Sergeant, you just sent that poor boy to his death. His blood is on your hands and there's no use in looking for him tonight. He's gone. He'll be added to the list of victims by morning because you think I'm here to play games. Get out of my room, withdraw your men for the night, and stop moving without my direction. I will have this wrapped up by midnight tonight."
The Sergeant gave Ivan the stink eye as he walked out of the room calling on the radio to tell his men to go home for the evening and to keep an eye out for the doomed officer. Ivan leaned back in his chair going over his work so far, "Hanson."
"Yes, sir."
"I want to run everything by you really quick and tell me what you think, honestly."
"You believe you know who is behind this?"
"Not who, just what. Think about this, attacks only males, no constant trait with race, religion, height, age, or weight… except body type."
Hanson looked puzzled yet inquisitive, "Do go on."
"I looked at the locations and yes there are hubs where the dump sites seem to be fairly predictable and we're in one like we guessed before but what do you get from that?"
"There are more than one and they have their own territory."
"Yes! That or they are assigned there. I firmly believe they are working together from what the lady in the bar told me. But back to the victims. You wouldn't notice it by the general description but look at the autopsy photos and what do they all have in common that you see?"
"Hmm… they are either a slim or physical build."
"Right! They are targeting a certain demographic, healthy and energetic. What can you think of that would hunt males with a lot of energy where killing them does not involve leaving wounds?"
"I cannot recall at this moment, sir."
"I'm thinking Succubus. Not just one, but a brothel. If I'm correct, the lady tonight was one of them and she went and told the best of them since I was able to refuse her, the maiden."
"Solid deduction, sir."
"Yea, but here's the hard part where I'll be trusting you with my life, Hanson. I'm going to be the bait to bring her out and I need you to catch her. I know she's killed but there's more that needs to be found so we need her alive. I'm trusting you, Hanson."
"I will not let you down, sir."
Their plan was set. None of the other officers were informed about the plan other than to stay in the bar and not talk to anyone after Ivan leaves. At 6 pm Ivan got set up in his corner again, ordered another bottle of fine wine, and got ready to put his life on the line to end this. 9 pm, on the dot a woman with short brownish-red hair wearing a thin black dress designed for her body walked in with a strut of confidence that no one had seen before. Every head turned as she walked by to the back.
Hanson stepped in front of her keeping his composure unlike everyone else with their tongue on the floor, "I apologize, but the young master is very selective about his company." With a smirk, she disabled everyone else, "So I heard." Her voice made everyone melt. But Hanson and Ivan stood strong working their job. "A friend of mine told me about you. She told me that you were a different kind of man." Hanson looked back before moving off to the side holding the curtain aside. Like before the only thing she could see was the hand and the wine. He motioned for her to turn around but she had other plans, "Sorry honey, I'd rather show you up close."
Ivan tapped his middle and index finger on the table thinking before he waved his hand. Hanson stepped in front of her shutting the curtain, "As I said, he is rather selective." She pouted for a second, "Ok. You're making it difficult to play hard to get but I'll play along." Hanson moved the curtain as she turned around. She rolled her hips as she did looking over her shoulder. Any man would have fallen to one knee before her beauty. Ivan tapped his fingers again before beaconing her in. Hanson moved aside letting her pass.
She smiled as she passed him, touching the underside of his chin as she passed. The curtain fell again surrounding them in a darker atmosphere. She seemed to enjoy the change, "Oh, you sure are secretive."
"I like my privacy."
"So much as to have a guard?"
"Yes. Would you like a glass?"
Ivan moved the bottle closer so she could read it. "Oh my, this would have cost you about $12,000. I don't dare."
His words cut through her like butter, "I insist. Money is only useful if you use it."
"Such a gentleman and I don't even know your name."
"Maxwell."
"Sherries, pleasure meeting you Maxwell."
"No, the pleasure's all mine."
The battle began. The Succubus had laid eyes on her next victim while Ivan had his eyes set on his target. Now it was to see who could outlast the other. The two of them finished the bottle after two hours of talking about anything she could come up with. With the bottle empty they were left with two options. "Would you like another bottle?"
"You know, Maxwell, I think I'd rather have something else. I have a room reserved here but yours might be better don't you think?"
"I think that is a grandiose suggestion."
Ivan, rather Maxwell, took her hand as they stood from the table. Hanson opened the curtain keeping an eye on Ivan's free hand. He flashed three fingers giving him his follow time. The two left the bar with every eye on them. The plan was set and this woman's fate was sealed.
The two entered the elevator together still hand in hand. Ivan hit the top floor and stepped back while the door closed. Sherries leaned in closer and closer to him as they went higher and higher. Eventually, she puckered her lips but Ivan put his fingers on her lips, "Shh, waiting is half the fun." This woman did not like waiting but she seemed to be playing along rather well. She opened her mouth instead lightly sucking on his fingers before taking a step back.
The door opened to the top floor. Ivan led the way down the hall to one of the largest suites in the hotel. The doors opened to the wireless key card opening to the foyer of the penthouse suit. The view over the city took her breath away but Ivan walked in like it was nothing. She walked around looking at the layout of the rooms while Ivan hid behind the bar for a short while.
He walked out with a glass in each hand, one of a brown liquor for him and something mixed for her. She took the drink, immediately taking a sip, "So, be honest, with all the fine liquor at your disposal, are you using it to get to me?"
Ivan chuckled, "I would never."
"Well, it's still working."
She put her drink down on a nearby counter slowly walking towards him swaying her hips side to side. Ivan began feeling strange. His eyes were following her hips but his vision was starting to blur the closer she got. He tried as hard as he could to keep himself together but this woman... He downed his drink to make himself look at the ceiling and bring himself back. When he looked back she was right in his face. "I like how you play though, Maxwell."
"I'm glad, I think it's just too boring to just give it all away."
"I do like hard to get but I think I got you now."
She began rubbing the palms of her hands over his chest down to his stomach. Ivan leaned in, "So I think…" His hands went to her neck to the back of her head lifting her hair up, "That maybe we should…" With a light grip, he tilted her head back exposing her bare neck to him, "That we begin now."
There was a light clicking noise before Sherries felt something clutch her throat. An instant shock of electricity surged through her body dropping her to the floor. Ivan stepped back looking over to Hanson with a sigh of relief. He followed his orders and was able to sneak up behind Sherries without her noticing.
Her hands were locked as tight as she could, trying to get the collar off but the more she struggled the worse it got. It continued to hurt and sap her energy. Ivan leaned over trying to get to her, "The more you fight the worse it gets!" She continued trying to pull and he repeated himself until she finally started to give up.
She was on the floor gasping for air still in pain as she tried for what little bit of fight she had left. Ivan sat on the floor next to her, "You done yet?"
"What did you do to me?"
"That is a restriction collar. I compare it to the shock collar of the demon world. If you try to take it off, it will bite. If you try to use your abilities and powers it will suck your energy, and if you try to escape me, it will disable you."
"How? What are you?!"
"A contractor."
The look on her face changed drastically before she lay flat on the floor giving up, "You're one of them, aren't you?
"I guess you could say that."
"No… How was I caught?"
"You got greedy. The contract calls for your execution but I think we can work out a deal. What do you say?"
She hesitated, "What do you want?"
"Well, I spare you which will mean that you will be bound to me until that debt is repaid. In exchange, you tell your brothel that they will need to disperse to other states and abide by the safe feeding practices that were set up for your species."
"You're not going after my girls?"
"If I can solve the problem to where they will not be a threat to people then why go after them? Since you were the goal of this contract that's where my focus stays."
She pondered, "Well, you know if you remove the collar…"
Her body went back into a thriving pain causing her to roll over and curl up. "Remember, use your powers and it will sap your energy until you can't. So you can't try that with Hanson or me. With permission, you can use it on others but not us. That's just not going to be allowed but if you really want to fight it I can fulfill the contract now. That means you die which leaves me with a lot of cleanup and more work that I rather not do. But that's on you at this point."
"You're a sick bastard!"
"I can be but I think that may be perspective talking."
"Let me go!"
"No, no, that's not one of the options you have right now. You either get to be a figurative ghost with me or you become a literal ghost as you are wiped from the face of this Earth. I'm trying not to be mean here but that's all you have."
"Fuck you!"
"And now you're just being mean. Hanson, help me get her to the couch."
"Don't you touch me!"
Hanson and Ivan lifted her up, Hanson taking her arms and Ivan taking her ankles. They dropped her on the couch where Ivan then sat down to be at eye level with her, "Listen very carefully, I don't want to kill you as the contract ordered. That means the order given wants you to die for what you've done. When that happens they will come in and do clean up on your girls. However! If you work with me, you get to warn your girls and give them the chance to run and escape the cleanup plus you get out of this alive as well. You'll be bound to me for saving your life though."
"How can I trust you?"
"Heh, what other option do you have?"
He was right. At this point, she had been backed into a corner with only the option to walk away. "I, Hisari, lineage of a Succubus, do pledge my life to you, Maxwell."
"Yea, Maxwell isn't my name. People have been calling me Ivan."
"I pledge myself to you, Ivan."
"Yea, Ivan's not my real name either."
"Ok, then I don't know how to do this."
"Don't worry about it, I think the point is across. You need to get in contact with your girls and tell them to get out of the state. Hanson, report that the contract has been completed and that the cleanup crew should show up tomorrow night to keep things quiet."
"But my girls!"
"That's why it's tomorrow night. They can go a day without sleep to put enough distance between them and here. Once you've finished telling them we need to leave ourselves. Hanson, could you start getting our things together?"
Hanson bowed, "Yes, sir." And left the room.
The door shut leaving Hisari and Ivan alone. She sat up on the couch looking at her feet defeated. Ivan sat down next to her leaning back very comfortably with his arm over his eyes. "Don't look so downtrodden. You were really hard to find. I'm amazed I was able to do it in two days. The reason I wanted to restrict you was so I can use that kind of thinking in the future. Just don't tell Hanson. He still operates on the old code." She looked up and over at him peeking at him from under his arm. "Are you sure it's not my devilish good looks?"
"Was… was that a pun?"
Hanson got their bags packed and ready by 2 am. Ivan got Hisari set up and her girls notified. They were on their own at this point but Ivan's focus was now on getting out of Texas. They called their limo to take them to the airport where their plane was waiting. They arrived and were ready to go but someone had caught wind of them leaving. Two dozen squad cars swarmed the hangar blocking the plane from leaving. A familiar face emerged from one of them approaching the group. "Ivan!"
Ivan stopped turning around to face the Sergeant, "Hello, what can I do for you?"
"Don't give me that! You know why I'm here!"
"We caught the person responsible, what more do you want?"
"I want her taken into custody."
"As you can see she clearly is." He motioned to the woman standing behind him who waved back.
"I need her in my custody."
She became a bit nervous but Hanson tapped her on the shoulder, "Don't worry young lady, he will handle this." Ivan stepped forward into the officer's personal space, "She is in custody. She will be coming with me."
"She killed one of my men! We found him dead this morning stripped of everything and left for dead in a dirty parking garage."
"We talked about this. You let him go and sent him to his death. I warned you that this would happen. Now, if you excuse me, our plane is going to be leaving soon. I advise that you have your men move their vehicles."
He went to turn away but the Sergeant grabbed his shoulder, "She will be leaving with me and you will be going with her." Ivan turned around reaching into his pocket. Every officer quickly drew their weapon waiting for him to draw on them. Instead of a weapon, he pulled a piece of paper from his pocket. It was folded into a square but neatly handed to the officer. "Your men drew their weapons. What do you have to be scared of me for? But you should read that and then tell me what you think."
He snatched the paper looking at him the entire time he opened it. Once open he quickly looked it over. His eyes darted over the words skimming through pieces until something caught his attention. "You don't expect me to really believe this do you?" Ivan got as close to him as he could almost whispering to him, "Every story you were told as a child about the things that go bump in the night are true. Everything you've heard about is very true and it all walks among you. Even your own men who are out here tonight." Ivan's eyes quickly scanned the other officers. Through the flashing lights, he caught eyes with a few who he knew could hear him.
The Sergeant looked around as well but he couldn't tell what he was looking for. "No, there's no way."
"I can see you still don't believe me." Ivan turned to the girl he had in custody waving her over, "Come here."
She walked over with her head down trying not to be the center of attention. Ivan had other plans though, "Dear, do you remember our full agreement."
"Yes, I do."
"Show the man what you are."
She stopped, "Really?"
"Just a light taste so he understands. No need to go overboard."
She nodded with understanding. She approached the officer. She was hesitant to remember the pain but as she began her "dance" the collar did not bite at her. The Sergeant began to notice that he felt funny but quickly was lost to her. She moved in and with a light kiss knocked him to his knees panting out of breath. Ivan met him on the ground, "Now you know how those men were caught. I'm sure you'll come up with something on your own though because, like many others, they won't understand what you now know. If you still want to fight me on this, you can go to those who ordered that writ."
"No! No, Ivan, please. Just take her."
"Glad we understand one another." Ivan took two steps before stopping, "Oh yes, you should know this as well. My name's not Ivan."
Hanson leaned into Ivan with a whisper, "Textbook sir." Ivan smirked looking back, "Someone who taught me well."
The three boarded the plane while the Sergeant ordered his men to move out of the way. The plane rolled past the runway where they stayed waiting for final clearance. The Hunter looked out the window onto the tarmac where something caught his eye. "Hisari, come here." She stood up and walked over to him, "Look outside." She leaned over him to look out the window. In the dark, hidden by the shadows of the buildings she saw seven shadows standing, watching the plane. With a tear in her eye, Hisari waved to them not sure if she would ever see her girls again. They each looked distraught watching her leave. She had to sit down and shortly after they were blurs as the plane tore through the air taking off.
Once in the air for an hour, Hisari stood up to talk to the hunter. "So, a couple of questions." He looked up from his papers giving her his attention. "I still have no idea how to address you. This whole 'being my master' thing is new."
"Oh, well I guess Hanson addresses me as 'sir' or 'young master' which I guess will work as well."
"That's another thing, what is Hanson?"
"Human if that's what you mean. He's my information broker, contract negotiator, handler, and assistant. We've been working together for I think six or seven years. Hanson, how long have we worked together?"
Hanson replied, "Going on seven years in two months, sir."
"I was close. Thank you, Hanson."
"Anytime, sir."
Back to Hisari, "He's just like me really."
"I have so many more questions."
"We have time, ask away."
"Well, where are we going?"
"Right now we are on our way back to our office in Montana."
"I don't like the cold."
"That's ok, we don't really spend a lot of time there. It's mostly tax reasons and a place to call home. Which, before I forget. I'd like to formally welcome you to our group."
"Excuse me?"
"You're going to be working with us until your debt to me is paid in full. Until that time, you will be working contracts with us, earning a paycheck, and living out of the office like the rest of us."
"Rest of us?"
"It's just Hanson and myself, now you, so there's really nobody there. However, if you are going to be living with us you're going to need to be more professional."
"What do you mean?"
"Succubus can change their body to allure different prey. You need to stop what you're doing now."
"Well you know, if you remove the collar…"
Before she could even finish her sentence she was on the ground in pain. She quickly stopped before it drained her. "Why?! It wasn't even that much!"
"Like I said, not to me, not to Hanson, otherwise it will constrict you. I recommend that you reduce yourself to a B-cup with an average waist."
"A B-cup! Are you kidding?"
"You can be a borderline C but no, I'm very serious. And while I know your real name I'm going to refer to you as Juliet."
"Juliet? Why?"
"The same reason why I never gave you my real name. There are demons that once they know your true name can inch their way in and take over. So with interest in your safety, Juliet will be your public name."
"What's Hanson's real name?"
"I don't know."
"How do you not know?!"
"Same reason. Actually, he taught me that and I followed up on it. It's good practice."
"But… you know my real name."
"Yes, and because I do I have a certain amount of control over you along with the collar."
"That seems unfair."
"I wasn't the one feeding on virile men to excess."
She was defeated. The Hunter grabbed his papers again, "It'll be a long flight. I recommend getting some sleep."
"You're welcome to join me if…"
She hit the floor instantly grabbing her neck. He looked over his chair pointing at her, "That thing that you keep doing, the one right there, stop that."
"It's a habit!"