Page 19 (1/2)

20 Hunters

TOMMY AND ABBY

Somehow it had seemed to make sense that he follow Abby’s interpretation of Mada on the dock by the black ship, with the night alone, he wasn’t so sure

"You think she’s in there?"

"She could be I saw in the City Blog that this ship arrived-there was a picture, and it looked cool, and-oh, I don’t know, I’ood at everything Why don’t you go all misty and sneak aboard?"

They heard bare feet on teak and suddenly a gorgon of blond dreadlocks popped up over the top of the smooth black carbon fiber of the cockpit

"Irie bruddah Irie sistah Howzit?" A younginside his life aura

Abby elbowed Tommy and he nodded to show he’d seen it

"What did he say?" Tommy asked

"I don’t know," Abby said "It sounds Australian If he goes off about going down under to have a go on his dirigity-doo I’ to kick him in the kidneys with my forbidden love Chucks"

"Okey dokey," Toht-vision binoculars, looked quickly through theain "Shoots! You be deadies! Jah’s love to ya, e of the cockpit, landed on the deck eight feet below, then jumped over to the dock He was very fit, very muscular, and smelled of fish blood and weed

"Pelekekona called Cap’n Kona, pirate of the briny science, lion of Zion, and dreadie to deadies of the first order, don’t you know"

He extended his hand to Tommy, who shook it, tentatively "Tommy Flood," Tommy said, then, because he felt as if he should have a title, added, "writer"

Then the blond Rasta ed her, and kissed her on both cheeks, then let his hands linger on her back and slide down He let go when she bent one of his fingers back, driving hi heency backup mistress of the Greater Bay Area darkness"

"Countess?" Tommy said out of the corner of his mouth

"And a slim and delicious deadie biscuit, too, as fine as a snowflake, yeah," said Kona "No harrand Aloha for ya, but can’t bring ya on the ship That Raven ship will kill ya dead for good, don’t cha know But we can chant down Babylon right here, hter out of the pocket of his baggies Out of the other he pulled a sterile lancet, the kind diabetics use to poke their fingers for blood tests "If one of me new deadie dreadies would donate to a mon’s mystic Jus’ a drop two"

Abby looked at To her eyes

To about Renfield, the crazed blood slave of Dracula in the original Bra eater"

"Maybe we can help you with that," Tommy said

Abby said, "You’re not worthy of our aid, not worthy to be free, and ould surely both be tools, to help you, vampire fool" She curtsied "Baudelaire, Les Fleurs du Mal I’, of course"

"Nice," Tommy said She knew her romantic poetry, not very well, or accurately, but she knew it

"Ah,in Mexico one time The boat, she stop too quick and dis brutha drop out da sky like one rock No , you i"

"Oh Dat diffren"

"Ya think," said Abby

Toive you a drop of blood, but first, are you saying that this ship belongs to vampires?"

"Ya mon Me deadie masters, mon Powerful old"

"Are they on the ship now?"

"No, mon They here to fix up this calamity Vampire cats dat old one leave"

"Just the cats?"

"No mon, dey clean it all up All the peoples have seen the house, brah"

Abby shook her head like she had water in her ears Tommy kne she felt "So, these old vampires are here to take out witnesses and whatnot, and they left you in charge of this ship? Just you?"

"Oh yeah, sistah Kona ichiban top-rate pirate captain of briny science"

"Why would they do that? You’re not even trying to keep a secret"

Kona let his good-time bravado slip, his shoulders slumped, and when he answered, the breezy island bullshit accent was gone, "Why would anyone believe a word I say?"

"Good point," Tommy said

"And besides, you two already knew about vales"

"Also a good point," Toet Elijah?" Abby had told Tommy that the E with three va off the St Francis Yacht Club

"Ya, ht Dat buggah stone crazy, him"

Tommy expected a chill of sorts, but instead of alar down There was no flight response, only fight That was new

He said, "So Elijah, the hooker, and how many others?"

"Just the three, en vaood, she"

Abby stepped up and tried to grab Kona by the throat, but her hand was too s him over on the dock "What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck are you talking about, Medusa?"

"Oh, dey doan tink Kona know, but only de time How ’bout a drop of Zion, now, brah?" Kona held the lancet out to To Why would they bring the ship back here? They had to know that we blew up Elijah’s yacht"

"Ya mon, but the Raven, she ain’t like dat She protect herself" Kona held up his ar so’s shock collar on his wrist "If I doan have dis here on, da Raven kill Kona dead dead, too She knows She knows them three Anyone else, she send to Davy Jones"

Tommy took the lancet froer with it

"Not going to happen," Abby said, catching Toer out to Kona "You are not getting dirty hippie ht be dead but you can catch heinous hacky-sac rot from someone like his, too"

She reached into her er and came out with a retractable pen She unscrewed it, squeezed Tommy’s blood into the cap, then handed it to Kona "There"

The Rasta man sucked at the pen so hard he nearly aspirated it, then sat back on the dock and dazzled a wide, white grin "Ya mon, takin’ the ship home to Zion"

Abby’s cell trilled She checked the screen, said, "It’s Foo," then answered and turned away

To Abby to coht away He shifted his focus to Kona "Why?" he asked

"Shoots, brah, a a, so jun on the Raven ship she have a crew of twenny Dey say dem boys leave, but they ain’t jumpin’ ship e out to sea five days Dat Makeda deadie, full on African biscuit, too, she eatin’ me shipmats, Jah’s mercy Only Kona left now"

"You? You’re the only crew on a ship this size?"

"Ya mon That Raven, she sail herself"

Abby turned around "We have to go"

"What?" Tommy asked

"Foo said all the rats are dead All of them"

Tommy didn’t understand He looked at the sky, which was starting to lighten "We can’t get over there now"

Abby checked her watch "Fucksocks! Sunup in thirty"

RIVERA