"Got it. Get back to work," I said, tapping my chin thoughtfully.
Sheriff Williams's maneuver came as no surprise. I'd anticipated this ever since they'd cut off my access to information in the Willow Street incident.
The old sheriff's tactics were indeed cunning, befitting a man of his experience. If I shrank from the vamp threats, I'd become a laughingstock, forced to accept his terms. But if I dared to battle the monstrosity... and got myself killed for what?
After all, who would willingly wage war against vamps without a substantial reward? It's the classic case of being the first bird shot down, risking your life for nothing.
The only factor Sheriff Williams hadn't accounted for was...
I thrived on slaying monsters. And the reward wasn't just money or power; it was the invaluable currency of time.
So, instead of anger or frustration, a flicker of amusement danced in my eyes.
"Are you even listening..." Wade's voice trailed off, frustration evident in his tone. He often felt like I wasn't truly listening to him, but this time, the stakes were too high to ignore. This wasn't just a game; it was a matter of life and death!
He reluctantly lowered his hand from his scabbard, a sense of disbelief washing over him. Just days ago, he'd been berating me for colluding with vamps, and now he found himself pleading to avoid conflict. The image of Sergeant Kane standing defiantly against the horde in Tukwila flashed through his mind. This wasn't just empty bravado; something had fundamentally changed.
Wade chuckled grimly, tightening his grip on his knife. "Guess I'll need to be even more frugal," he muttered, the weight of his sister's dowry pressing on his mind.
A sudden, unexpected question tumbled out, "How much dowry would you ask for?"
"What?" I turned, bewildered.
"Nothing, just curious," he quickly backpedaled, shaking off the inexplicable thought. A capable sergeant didn't equate to a good husband, especially considering my notorious reputation. His sister deserved better.
He exhaled, relieved that I hadn't heard his earlier musing.
But then he heard my smirk, "Actually, I prefer someone more bubbly... and more experienced."
The image of Priya Patel's welcoming curves briefly flashed through my mind.
Before Wade could respond, I turned and sauntered out of the squad room, leaving him to grapple with the perplexing shift in conversation.
"So that's it?" Babar's voice rose in agitation. "Cat got your tongues or what? Say something!" He glared at the Wright brothers, who remained stubbornly silent at their desks.
The brothers had always held a grudge against me, but now they were acting like mute statues.
"My wife wouldn't even let me in the house last night," David Wright mumbled, scratching his head sheepishly. News of his transfer to my team had reached his wife, and she'd reacted as if he'd brought home a mistress.
"This morning, while I was still asleep, she suddenly...hehe...hehe..." David's voice trailed off, a goofy grin spreading across his face as he rubbed his crotch suggestively.
"..." Babar stared at him, speechless.
"..." Wade's face remained impassive.
Fortunately, I returned to the squad room, breaking the awkward silence. "Let's go, they even give us a new room."
The new room, located on the first floor facing the parking lot, was now marked "Supernatural Affairs" on the door and window. They had even relocated the Hazardous Anomaly Response Hotline inside.
Since the Apocalypse, mobile communication infrastructure had crumbled, but local landlines remained functional, bolstered by satellite connections for intercity and interregional calls.
Every county was mandated to maintain a hazardous anomaly response hotline, though calls were rare.
I wasn't concerned about the lack of activity. The desperation in the eyes of the family at Velvet Pleasure was a stark reminder that people would grasp at any straw in times of crisis.
I efficiently organized the four officers into two teams, alternating every four hours on hotline duty. Meanwhile, the officers off-shift were dispatched to gather intelligence within the community.
Closing my eyes, I sought a brief respite to replenish my depleted essence.
To my surprise, a call came through in just half a day.
David Wright, who had been sharing crude jokes, answered nervously. Killing vamps was easy to say, but the reality was that in all his years in Pinewood County, he had never actually faced one in combat.
"I have information about a demon," a gruff male voice crackled through the speaker.
"What kind of vamp?" David responded, his voice tight with apprehension.
"Not a vampire" the caller corrected. "A demon."
Intrigued, I approached the desk. This was the first time I'd received a report about a demon.
"This is Sergeant Kane," I said, my voice calm and reassuring. "Take your time and tell us what happened."
The middle-aged man on the other end seemed to relax slightly at the sound of my voice.
"I haven't seen the demon myself," he began hesitantly. "It's my wife."
He paused, gathering his thoughts. "For about a month now, every night after dark, my wife starts combing her hair in front of the mirror."
"She smiles while she does it. It's like she's possessed."
"But that's not all," the man's voice grew more urgent. "One night, I woke up needing to use the bathroom. I reached for her, but she wasn't there. I went looking for her and found her standing by the front door, wearing a fancy dress, her hair wet, and her neck covered in sweat. I touched her shoulder, and she screamed like I was a ghost."
"She said she didn't know how she got there, that she had no memory of it at all."
"And ever since that day, I haven't felt right. No matter how early I go to bed, I sleep until dawn. I'm convinced a demon is possessing her and draining my life force, Sergeant Kane! My wife made me some herbal remedies, but they only made me sleepier."
As the man's increasingly bizarre account unfolded, a peculiar expression crept onto my face.
"And she refuses to sleep with me anymore," he continued, his voice laced with desperation. "She just smiles that foolish smile all day. The more I look at her, the more terrifying she becomes."
"The worst part is, yesterday, business was slow, so I closed up early and went home. I heard her inside, making these intense noises, words of surrender,... It sounded like... like a pig being slaughtered..."
I cut him off, unable to stomach any more of his rambling. I glanced at the Wright brothers and sighed. "You two, go handle this 'demon' for him."
This was clearly not a vampire encounter, but more likely an affair disguised with a fabricated paranormal explanation.
I leaned back in my chair, massaging my temples. It seemed real vamps are hard to find in the city. No easy pickings for me.
The vamps were undoubtedly aware of the recent massacre of the jackal clan. My reputation as a formidable hunter had spread, and they would be far more cautious now. Luring them out wouldn't be as simple as before.
As the Wright brothers obtained the address and prepared to depart, the door suddenly flew open, and Wade stumbled in, gasping for breath. His face was etched with a grim expression, his voice hushed but filled with urgency.
"Sergeant Kane," he gasped, "Kevin Stone is dead."
I looked up sharply.
If I remembered correctly, Wade mentioned this name once. He was the security specialist from Seattle hired by the Hightower family, the very same family Rose hailed from.