The Becoming by Jeanne C. Stein

Author:Jeanne C. Stein [Stein, Jeanne C.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Speculative Fiction
ISBN: 0975965387
Google: FBykVvLUT6gC
Amazon: 0441014569
Barnesnoble: 0441014569
Goodreads: 607559
Publisher: Ace
Published: 2004-01-01T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Two

Once past the rock, the tunnel entrance yawns open. There are lights here. Electric lamps hang on hooks that stretch past my line of sight like a string of oversized Christmas lights. There are no hiding places, though, so if I meet anyone I'll have two choices—talk my way in, or subdue them with the Taser.

I unclip the Taser from my belt and hold it at the ready.

I hug the wall, following it until it forks about a quarter of a mile in. The fork to the left is dark, the lights continue to the right. I do, too. It's damp inside, and smells of earth and the musk of compressed humanity, but so far, I've seen no one. Nor have I heard the hum of conversation, or picked up on a stray vampire communication. The place seems deserted.

Cautiously, I creep forward. I come upon compartments, hung with blankets that seem to be living quarters. There are piles of personal belongings in each—clothes, shoes, the occasional book, radios, even a television or two, though I can't imagine what the reception would be like in the bowels of a mine. Beds consist of piles of straw, hot plates and canned goods provide sustenance. Except for the vampire lairs, of course. There are no hot plates in those. I wonder if the vamps go outsideBeso de la Muerte to take their meals or if they've worked out some kind of deal to feed off their neighbors. For a price, I'm sure.

There's a makeshift medical ward, too, set up like a MASH unit with a couple of stainless steel gurneys and those racks that hold IV and blood lines. A cabinet along the back and a refrigerator are the only other things in the room. Not much in the way of medical technology—no monitors or computers. Of course, a criminal ending up here with a medical emergency couldn't expect much more.

I turn away and make another sweep, trying to determine which vamp bedroom is Donaldson's. I find it when I spy a picture of his wife and kiddies tucked atop a pile of magazines beside his bed. It seems very out of place, not only because it's in a cave, but also because I had the impression Donaldson had left that world behind. Why would he hold onto a picture that could only remind him of what he'd chosen to abandon?

I'll have to ask him when I get my hands on him.

I poke around, but there's nothing to indicate that David is here. I don't know what I expected to find, but something should point to his presence. Even if only food or water. The fact that there isn't anything at all brings back a familiar feeling of dread. Has Donaldson already killed him? Is David lying hurt somewhere in the desert outside the tunnel?

There's only one way to find out.

Now I have a decision to make. Should I wait for Donaldson to return from the saloon or should I go get him? I'm debating this as I work my way back to the tunnel entrance.

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