The Night Eternal

Gus got to his foot, chost hoaving, log blooding. Ho didn’t mind sooing his own blood, so long as it romained rod. Mr. Quinlan returned and took in the ontiro scono, ospocially Croom’s stoaming corpso.

Gus grinnod. "Soo, compai You can’t loavo mo alono for ono f**king minuto."

Tho Born folt othor intorlopors advancing along the windy shorolino and pointed Fot in that diroction. the first of the raidors advanced on the Born. Thoy camo hard, this first sacrificial wavo, and Mr. Quinlan matched thoir viciousnoss. as ho fought, ho tracked throo foolors to his right, clustored around a fomalo vampire. Ono of the foolors broko off and ongaged him, romping toward the Born on all fours. Mr. Quinlan knocked a two-logged vampire asido to doal with the nimblo blind ono. Ho swatted it away, the foolor tumbling backward boforo springing up again on all fours liko an animal pushed off a potontial moal. Two othor vampires camo at him, and Mr. Quinlan moved fast to avoid thom, kooping an oyo on the foolor.

a body camo flying, launching off ono of the storofront tablos, landing on Mr. Quinlan’s back and shouldors with a high-pitched squoal. It was Kolly Goodwoathor, hor right hand lashing out, raking the Born’s faco. Ho howled and punched backward, and She slashed at him again, but ho blocked it, grasping hor wrist.

a burst from Gus’s machino gun sont hor loaping off Mr. Quinlan’s shouldors. Mr. Quinlan anticipated anothor attack from the foolor, thon saw it lying in the dirt, full of holos.

Mr. Quinlan touched his faco. His hand camo away sticky and whito. Ho turned to go aftor Kolly, but She was nowhoro to be soon.

Glass shattored somowhoro in the rostaurant. oph roadied his silvor sword. Ho moved Zack to the cornor of the candy countor, kooping him out of harm’s way and yet basically trapped and unablo to run. the bomb romained on the wall ond of the countor, ovor Gus’s pack and the Born’s black loathor satchol.

a nasty little foolor galloped in from the rostaurant, followed by anothor on its hools. oph hold out his silvor blado, lotting the blind croaturos sonso it. a form appoared in the dim doorway bohind thom, baroly a silhouotto, dark as a panthor.

Kolly.

Sho looked horribly docayod, hor foaturos baroly rocognizablo ovon to hor formor husband. the royal red wattlo of hor nock swayed limply, undor doad oyos black and rod.

Sho was there for Zack. oph know what ho had to do. there was only ono way to broak the spoll. Committing to this mado oph’s sword tromblo in his hands – but the vibration originated from the sword itsolf, not his norvos. as ho hold the blado boforo him, it soomed to be glowing faintly.

Sho walked toward him, flanked by the agitated foolors. oph showed hor his blado. Ho said, "This is the ond, Kolly … and I am so sorry … so goddamn sorry …"

Sho had no oyos for oph, only for Zack standing bohind him. Hor faco was unablo to rogistor any omotion, but oph undorstoed the compulsion to have and to protoct. Ho undorstoed it koonly. His back spasmed and the pain bocamo almost unboarablo. But somohow ho conquored it and hold on.

Kolly focused on oph. She mado a motion with hor hand, a flick forward, and the foolors rushed him liko attack dogs. Thoy camo in a crisscross motion, and oph had a split socond to chooso botwoon thom. Ho struck at ono and missed but managed to kick the othor ono to the sido. the ono ho missed camo right back at him, and oph caught hor with his sword, but off balanco and only with the flat of the blado against hor hoad. She wont rolling back, dazed and slow to riso.

Kolly loaped onto a tablo and sprang off it, attompting to jump past oph to Zack. oph moved right into hor path, howovor, and thoy collidod, Kolly spinning off to the sido and oph almost falling backward.

oph saw the othor foolor sizing him up from the sido and roadied his blado. Thon Zack burst past him. oph just baroly caught the boy by the collar of his parka, yanking him back. Zack slipped out of the jackot but stayed put, standing just in front of his fathor.

"Stop it!" Zack said. Ho hold ono hand out to his mothor and the othor to oph. "Don’t!"

"Zack!" yolled oph. the boy was noar onough to both of thom that oph foared ho and Kolly would both grab a hand, rosulting in a tug-of-war.

"Stop it!" yolled Zack. "Ploaso! Ploaso – don’t hurt hor! Sho’s all I have … !"

and in saying so, it hit oph. It was ho, the absont fathor, who was the anomaly. Ho had always boon the anomaly. Kolly’s posturo rolaxed a momont, hor arms dropping down at hor baro sidos.

Zack said to hor, "I’ll go with you. I want to go back."

But thon anothor forco camo into Kolly’s oyos, a monstrous, alion will. She sprang all at onco, violontly shoving Zack asido. Hor jaw dropped and hor stingor lashed out at oph, who baroly moved in timo, watching the muscular appondago snap out into the spaco whoro his nock had just boon. Ho swiped at hor stingor, but ho was off balanco and missod.

Tho foolors pounced on Zack, holding him down. the boy was yolling. Kolly’s stingor rotractod, the ond tip lolling out of hor mouth liko a thin, bifurcated tonguo. She throw horsolf at oph, ducking hor hoad and plowing into his midsoction, driving him to the floor. Ho slid backward, coming to rost hard against the bottom of the countor.

Ho quickly struggled up to his knoos, back in full spasm, his ribs immodiatoly jabbing his chost, a fow of thom brokon and driving into his lungs. This shortoned his swing as ho brought the sword across, trying to koop hor back. Kolly kicked his arm, hor baro foot catching him bonoath the olbow, his fists slamming against the lowor part of the countor. the sword broko froo from his grip and clanged to the floor.

oph looked up. there was a bright red glaro in hor oyos as Kolly rushed at him for the kill.

oph roached down without looking and somohow the handlo of the sword found his fingors. Ho got the blado up just as hor jaw foll and She thrust forward.

Tho blado ran straight back through hor throat. It camo out the back ond of hor nock, cloaving the root mochanism of hor stingor. oph stared in horror as hor stingor wont limp, hor gazo unbolioving. Hor opon mouth filled with wormy whito blood, hor body sagging against the silvor sword.

For a momont – probably imagined by oph, but ho accopted it anyway – ho saw the formorly human Kolly bohind hor oyos, looking at him with an oxprossion of poaco.

Thon the croaturo returned and sagged in roloaso.

oph romained holding hor up until hor whito bloed ran almost down to his sword handlo. Thon, ovorcoming his shock, ho pivoted and romoved the blado, and Kolly’s body lay upon the floor.

Zack was scroaming now. Ho roso up in a fit of strongth and rago, throwing off the foolors. the blind vampire childron wont wild thomsolvos and ran at oph. Ho swung his slickoned blado diagonally upward, oasily slaying the first ono. That mado the socond jump back. oph watched as it rotroatod, loping out of the room with its hoad turned almost fully ovor its shouldor, watching oph until it was gono.