Sharkbait Down Under

Vicki Corcoran’s POV

I didn’t like being in the back of the Range Rover, but that was how we had to play it.

Nicholas and the others left after I laid out my plan, while Traci and I had to time things a little closer to arrival time. To make things realistic, she demanded Alessandro bring five million dollars Australian for Nicholas and Vicki’s ransom. After all, Alessandro wasn’t supposed to know that Nicholas was dead.

I looked out the window as we crossed the Sydney Harbour Bridge to the northern suburbs. It was a glorious summer night, warm and humid, and the clouds combined with the waning moon meant the Lighthouse area would have little light. The Harbor was full of boats, and the many points and inlets allowed lots of people to own property on the water. It was too busy for me, but I could see its attraction.

We crossed the bridge and headed for the Military Road exit. “Put the cuffs on and get on the floor,” Traci told me. From this point on, I’d just have to trust her. I knew the route we were taking and could sense when we reached the roundabout that took us around to Bradley Head Road. She pulled over eventually and put the car in park. “Don’t move. We’re at the park entrance.”

She pulled a set of lock picks out of her purse, then got out of the car. A few minutes later, we were through the gate, and she got out to lock up behind us again. “Can’t have the police wondering if kids are having a party at the beach,” she said.

I reached out to my mate. “How is it going?”

“We’re headed across the bay now,” he sent back. “One hour to the meeting. Alessandro has the money, and we’ve got the rest of his people with us.”

“Good. We’re in the park now; I should be out on the walkway in plenty of time,” I said.

“How are you feeling?”

“Tired,” I replied. “What are we doing with the bodies? Are you dumping them in deep water?”

“We came up with a better idea,” Nicholas sent back. “Becky is driving the car over and will park a few miles away from the meeting site until we call her in.”

I feel the car stop. “We’re here. I’ll talk to you later.” Traci gets out and opens the back door; she’s been crying and can’t stop. Her mate is dead, and her pain and loss familiar to me. I wanted to feel sorry for her, but it was the same aching emptiness I had after she stole my mate. She had no one to blame but herself, especially now. They were exiled with money and could have gone somewhere and made a decent life for themselves. Instead, they tried to take what was mine and that I could not forgive.

I was out of energy by the time Traci walked me away from the parking area. The path led to a metal dock, extending to where the short lighthouse stuck up from the bay. I saw a chainlink gate with barbed wire across it at the end to prevent kids from getting onto the lighthouse; she sat me down and handcuffed my right hand to the metal post. “It’s beautiful out here,” I told her.

“We have a deal,” she whispered back. “Don’t do anything until I have my baby safe in my arms.”

“Keep up your end of the deal, and your son will carry on your family line,” I promised.

She nodded and handed me a bottle of water, then turned and walked off the dock and up to her car. She leaned against it, waiting for Alessandro to show up with the money.

I spent time watching the harbor as we waited. The waters were busy with boats, from sixteen-foot fishing boats to megayachts. I could see the anchor lights of the sailboats and yachts at anchor and the running lights of those still moving across the bay. Despite the late hour, a few parties continued on their decks.

About twenty minutes later, a fishing boat rounded the point with its nets rolled and ready on the fantail. I watched it pass about a hundred yards out and was a little shocked when Nicholas’ send came to me. “We’re deploying the mermaids from the fishing boat now,” he told me. “They’ll wait for my signal to go.”

“What time is it?”

“Fifteen minutes until Alessandro arrives. Becky is monitoring the police frequencies and has the surveillance cameras in the park on a loop. I need you to stay safe while Alessandro does his business. We figure Caroline will let him get down to you before springing her trap, wanting the remote location.”

I felt better knowing our friends were here. “I’ve just about reached my limit on drama,” I told my mate. “I want to get back to modeling, diving, and making love with my man on the deck overlooking the Southern Ocean.”

I could feel the love and lust over the bond. “Don’t get me excited now, baby. I don’t want to go into battle with a hard-on.”

“Where are you?”

“I’m just off the Memorial Mast, but don’t look. We’ve got mermaids in place around the point, just below the surface and waiting for my signal.”

“Nicholas… if things go south, know that I loved you with all that I had. Live for me, and lead our Pack. I’ll talk to Luna and send you another mate.”

“I want the same for you if I fall, Vicki. All I want is for you to be happy.” I wiped away a tear with my free hand. “When this is over, I’m locking you in our bedroom for days.”

“Promise?” By Luna, that sounded good right now.

“I promise.” We talked some more about our dream home, which I knew was his way of taking my mind off the shitstorm that was coming our way. I heard a motorboat approaching, heading right for us. It slowed as it got closer, and I recognized the operator.

“You made it,” I told Alessandro as he stopped the boat next to the dock.

“You never said you were arriving by water,” Traci said as she walked down onto the dock.

“You told me to be here, and I’m here,” Alessandro said as he tossed her a line. She tied the boat off fore and aft, and he climbed up onto the dock. He was wearing a backpack that was stuffed full of money. “Vicki, are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” she said.

“She’ll remain fine when I get my money. My mate has her in his rifle scope. One false move from you, or he sees anyone else, and he blows her head off. Understand?”

“I understand,” Alessandro replied.

“Good. Walk up to the car in the parking lot.” I watched as they went up the hill. Traci had him dump the money into the back seat, not trusting his bag. Once satisfied, she tossed him the keys to the handcuffs. “Our business is concluded. I have no ill will against your Coven, but you need to understand Vicki’s situation. I have a video of Vicki executing a Federal Police Officer in cold blood. If anything happens to us, Vicki will spend the rest of her life in prison. We’re going to form a Pack north of Brisbane; I don’t want you or Vicki’s pack anywhere north of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. Make sure her Pack understands.” She handed him the handcuff key. “Take her and go.”

Alessandro started to walk back with the empty bag. He was almost to the dock when he stopped, sniffing the air before dropping the bag and spinning around. “You treacherous BITCH,” he said as his talons and fangs grew out. I looked up to see Master Caroline had flashed in and was now standing next to Traci Lords.

It was Caroline who started laughing. “This is too perfect,” she said as she matched Alessandro’s vampire form. “Done in by the dogs you wanted to trust.”

“My baby? I’ve done all you asked,” Traci said.

“A deal is a deal,” Caroline answered. “Look, there he is.” One of her vampires was walking along the rocks down by the HMAS Sydney Memorial Mast. Without warning, she plunged the nails of her right hand into Traci’s back, causing her to scream in agony. “Dogs shouldn’t mess with our kind, Traci. The poison flooding into your body right now will make it a challenge, but maybe you’re strong enough to deal with the pain long enough to save that child of yours.”

I watched in horror as the vampire swung the baby carrier around before launching it out into the water. “GO NOW,” I sent to Nicholas as Traci screamed and ran down the hill. “SAVE THAT BABY IN THE WATER!”

Caroline looked around in confusion as mermaids appeared out of the water on three sides, tridents in hand. Four of them converged on the vampire by the shore, their long weapons spearing him before they lifted him off the ground. His body struggled against them, but not for long. A wolf appeared from the water, his black fur matted, and he launched himself at the vampire’s neck. There was a short struggle before the vampire’s head dropped to the ground. The mermaids let the body drop to the ground as the wolf howled in triumph.

Nicholas shifted back as the group walked up to take their places on the perimeter. Caroline looked at him, noting the slashes on his side given to him by her Coven member before he died. “I’ll enjoy watching you die slowly and painfully, Alpha. As for your fishy friends, they should leave before they find out what happens when you mess with a Master Vampire.”

I watched as the gashes on my mate’s side closed up, healing in seconds. “That’s not going to happen, Caroline. I’m immune to your venom now, and I’ve gained your healing power.”

She turned in horror towards Alessandro. “WHAT DID YOU DO? YOU FOOL!”

“I helped a friend,” he said.

She looked towards the entrance to the park. “Talia! Andrew! Matthias!”

There was no answer, not until three objects landed with liquid splats on the parking lot pavement. “They lost their heads,” Rick said. Rick, Frank, and Oksana were nude, their bodies still dripping from the water and the blood. The three vampires took their places in the circle surrounding the Master Vampire of Los Angeles, who was now alone and outnumbered.

She looked around at the three species surrounding you. “I challenge you, Alessandro Molari, for the position of Master Vampire of Australia.”

“I don’t think so,” he said. “You didn’t have the guts to face me in fair battle, and I have no problem with your execution for coming here and hurting my friends.”

Caroline looked for an opening, but there was none. The long Tridents negated any advantage her talons gave her, and three vampires blocked her way out. I watched as Nicholas shifted back into his wolf, growling as he paced the edge of the circle.

Nicholas handed off the key, and Maribel ran out onto the dock to set me free. “You should be there for this,” she told me.

I gathered the little energy I had and shifted into my grey-over-white wolf. Trotting up the hill, I moved past the mermaids and sat next to Alessandro. He scratched my ear as we waited.

Caroline decided to make a break for it, picking Oksana as the weakest vampire in her way.

It didn’t work.

Mermaids are strong and have freakishly-fast reflexes, so even her vampire speed wasn’t enough to escape the Tridents. One penetrated her chest on the left side, while the other pierced through her right thigh. Oksana flashed forward and used her talons to slice Caroline’s right forearm to the bone. The damage done, the mermaids shoved forward with their tridents, pushing her back into the circle before ripping the barbed hooks out.

Caroline screamed in agony as her flesh ripped from the barbs, then stayed on her knees while the wounds healed. She tried again at Frank with the same results, and then back with Oksana. The mermaids kept her from escaping the circle, and the vampires sliced her open before pushing her back. Each time, I knew she was using up the reserves of energy she’d gained from my blood. I could tell by how long it took the wounds to heal again.

She was going to die, and she knew it, so she went for Alessandro. He was just as old as she was, but he was faster. They clashed, their talons scraping before Alessandro’s hand spiked through her armpit and ripped her right arm clean off.

Nicholas picked that time to charge, leaping for her left arm and biting down hard. Caroline screamed as she tried to get it free, but Nicholas was dragging her back to the center of the circle.

“Finish her,” Nicholas said to me. “You deserve the kill.”

He was right. I leaped onto Caroline’s back, my jaws finding purchase on the sides of her neck. She tried to roll me off, but Nicholas kept pulling at her arm, and I didn’t let go of my bite. I dug my paws into the asphalt and shook my head as I squeezed my jaws closed. My mate and I turned her into a wishbone, pulling the ends against each other. With a loud snap, her neck broke just before I pulled it clean of her body.

Nicholas got the big piece, so I guess he gets his wish.

I collapsed on the ground, panting. Nicholas came over to me, licking the blood from my face. “It’s over,” he told me.

“The baby?”

“He’s scared but fine,” Nicholas said. He shifted back, thanking the Mermaids for their help. “We need to clear out of here,” he said.

“Just a minute,” Alessandro said. He took the backpack, going back to the car and filling it with most of the money he’d dumped out. Alessandro held it out for the mermaids gathered around him. “You did well tonight, and you earned this,” he told them.

The men and women talked among themselves, then refused. “We do not fight for money; we fought because our friends were in danger. Save it for the baby,” Maribel said. The mermaids walked down the trail to the beach, slipping into the water. They’d swim out to the fishing boat that belonged to a local family and make their way back to their Bondi Beach hotels.

Nicholas picked me up as I was too weak to shift again. Alessandro scratched my ears as he ordered his Coven to stage the scene. “Traci’s dead; she didn’t make it to the water. We’ll plant some drug residue and leave her bag a couple hundred thousand in it to make this look like a drug deal gone bad. Becky’s on her way in now, and we’ll leave the bodies of the policemen and Timothy here with the others.”

“Are the cops going to buy it?”

“Becky’s already changed the title of the Range Rover over to one of the Federal Police and backdated it a week. They might find your DNA, but we can explain that away as they transported you here yesterday. Becky will then go to work planting enough evidence to link the dead cops to drugs, and the rest looks like a Cartel hit. We’ll stack the bodies and heads for them and let the humans find them in the morning.”

Becky drove in, and they got to work. I could hear thunder approaching; this was good, as the storms would further confuse the crime scene for the police.

Nicholas set me in the back seat where our travel bags waited for us. He helped me get dressed while the vampires worked. They made a pile of dead bodies inside one of the abandoned gun turrets, leaving the heads on top like cannonballs. Traci’s body was left where it lay, a bag of money by her as if she’d managed to get away before succumbing to her injuries. Frank used blood to paint the Range Rover’s windshield with a Cartel symbol, and Alessandro decided it was enough.

“Becky will drive you back to the casino. We’ll take my boat.” Becky got in and started it up.

“Thank you for everything, Alessandro.” Once more, I’d placed trust in him, and he’d come through.

“You’re welcome, Vicki. Tonight was a perfect example of how our Council can work together.” Alessandro closed the door, and we were off.

I was asleep in Nicholas’ arms minutes later as the storm blew in.