Children of Van Helsing

Chapter Three - Blood in China Town

Regina

Looking back, I think we could have known something was wrong. And that a whole lot of crap was about to happen. I mean, footsteps in the snow? A stranger watching us? And then, of course, a few days after, the vampire attacks in China Town.

Yeah. That sucked (no pun intended).

Susanna was working a case. Suspicious as hell, of course – three bodies had been found in China Town, in a small, almost hidden alley, completely drained of blood and their throats ripped open. Now, that’s what vampire attacks usually look like, and Susanna quickly solves them, but this one was extra weird. Even by our standards. And that’s saying something.

It was like this – the attackers had written something on the stone wall in blood. Nobody knew what it was supposed to mean.

The Chosen One will be given what is hers

A curse and a blessing

The dead will rise with her

The darkness will take her

She will be gruesome

Her time has come

The hunter will become the hunted

 

Now, to me, it sounded like somebody had been watching Harry Potter a few times too many, but Susanna was sure the vampires were planning something. They probably were. Step one was finding them, step two was questioning them, step three was most likely killing them.

Lovely.

Anyway, Susanna was completely stressed because she couldn’t find out what the prophecy (it was almost 100% sure a prophecy) meant. It sounded quite serious, though it didn’t even rime. But she did figure out where the attackers, thanks to a blood trail leading to some kind of secret passage way behind an old litter bin. They hadn’t even tried covering up their tracks in the snow.

Still, she was so stressed me, Jessica and Lily had agreed not to tell her about the footprints outside.

It was almost midnight and I quietly watched while Susanna was preparing for her hunt. She wore a sturdy, thick, black leather jacket – those things were tough and could save your life from claws and teeth trying to rip your skin apart – in which she had hidden wooden stakes and a few small bottles of holy water. Covered by her dark jeans she carried a few knifes and two guns loaded with silver bullets, in case she had to slow a few attackers to kill another. She wore high, black leather boots without any high heels, because even though it looked more fashionable, it wasn’t very efficient. There were knifes hidden in the thick, tough soles, which would come out if you pushed them to a stable object (like the floor) in a certain way. They were great for kicking attackers away.

It was a typical hunter’s outfit. Colours may vary, and everybody had different weapons of choice, but every hunter preferred leather over cotton or silk. Me and Jessica had roughly the same outfit. My jacket was wine red, though, and I preferred carrying an axe instead of a gun. I did have a gun, but I hardly used it.

Susanna surprised me when she asked: “Do you want to come with me? I don’t know how many vampires there are exactly and I would like some backup.”

“Yeah, sure.”

She smiled at me. Not a happy smile, but a grateful one. She looked so tired. Much older than she actually was.

“Normally I would ask Jess, but I thought I would give her and Lily some alone-time, since Lily will be leaving for Edinburgh soon to visit her family.”