Two Wrongs Make A Spite
By Autolycus, maynlinz@earthlink.net
A genetically altered female werewolf battles an aquatic demon.


A SPANISH WEREWOLF IN HOLLYWOOD VI:

TWO WRONGS MAKE A SPITE

(c) 2000 Autolycus

Her name is Lupe Bacalao and she is a werewolf...sort of. She is currently the
houseguest of Dr. Cassandra Trotter, an old friend and former teacher of
Jessica Chance who runs a consulting business and writes mystery novels. The
good doctor's daughter, LAPD Officer Saba Trotter, disapproves of her mother's
businesses--She runs a "fight club" in addition to the consulting firm--and of
Lupe, personally, but will nevertheless help them out. This is the story of
the time they encountered an aquatic demon called a Water Spite.

The Caribbean-2011

Life is good, thought Senalda Juarez as she lounged next to her lover/business
associate on their 90-foot yacht, La Cuerda Terciopelo, anchored off the coast
of Aruba. She was a Latina with long black hair, hazel eyes that tended more
to the green than the brown, full lips and rich bronze skin. Her figure was
both statuesque and voluptuous, with the large breasts and wide hips
associated with her people, but she was taller than the average Latina,
standing at nearly 6'. She was in decent enough shape from her numerous
massages and weekly workouts with a personal trainer, but it was clear that
she had largely led a life of leisure. Even so, she made a stunning figure in
her scarlet thong bikini. Definitely good, she thought with a smile as she
casually rubbed her lover's throbbing manhood through the fabric of his
bathing suit.

She looked around at her business associates and marveled, recalling how
everyone had told her that an alliance between Latinos and Asians was doomed
to failure. But the proof of the incorrectness of that statement was sitting
right here. Chyou Wai, a pretty Chinese woman who ran a string of high-class
brothels for LA's elite; Jin Sung, a squat Chinese man with bleached hair who
oversaw a vast gambling ring; and, last but not least, her lover, Alejandro
Domingas, with whom she controlled the bulk of LA's drug trade. It was through
hers and Alex's efforts that this alliance had been formed five years ago and
this trip was to celebrate that anniversary and to plan for future expansion
into the rest of Southern California now that they had enough money and
established the proper connections to do so.

She and the others aboard the vessel were currently gathered at the bow and
watching two bikini-clad women as they wrestled on some mats. One was a Latina
like herself, but much smaller and not nearly as striking. Her name was
Armanda Montoya, a second cousin of Sena's, and she was definitely having the
worst of it. The other woman was a big-busted blonde with a muscular physique
and a deep tan who was nearly as tall as Sena. Her name was Deirdre Banks and
she had pretty much womanhandled the little Latina from the outset of the
playful contest and now sat triumphantly on top of her chest.

"Do you give up, Manda?" she asked, gently slapping the face wedged between
her thighs.

"Si, Deedee, I give up. You win," the Latina sobbed.

"I didn't hear you?" the blonde said, scooting forward and sitting on the
beaten girl's face. "Did you say something, sweetie?"

"That's enough, Deirdre," Sena said, nudging the woman in the chest with the
toe of her shoe. "You've won. Let her up."

"I won before the match started," Deedee snorted, standing up and rubbing her
foot across Armanda's face and breasts, causing her to cry even harder.

"I said that was enough!" Sena snarled, kicking out with her foot and knocking
the blonde on her ass.

Armanda scrambled from the mats as Deirdre sprang angrily to her feet. "You
think you can do any better than your wetback friend, you're more than welcome
to try, bitch," she said, gesturing with her hands for Sena to attack her.

"You're on, Deirdre," she said. Sena hadn't been fond of the blonde ever since
she'd latched onto Jin in Jamaica and tagged along. She'd caught her making
clumsy and obvious advances to her lover several times and had nearly got into
it with her but the men had quickly broken them apart before they could
actually come to blows. This time no one will interfere, she thought happily
as she stood up and kicked off her heeled sandals. Besides, it's obvious that
Alejandro enjoys seeing women wrestle. Wait until he sees me take that
big-mouthed bleach-blonde bimbo apart. He'll cream himself.

"Now, ladies, let's keep this friendly," Alejandro cautioned. He was a
handsome Latino with short, curly hair and deep brown eyes. He was a bit
shorter than his lover, standing at 5'10", but in much better shape with a
powerful upper body and taut abdominals that rippled beneath his copper skin
like coiling snakes. "No punching, kicking, or scratching, just wrestling
holds and when one of you says that she gives that's it. Okay?"

"I'll play nice if she will," the blonde said, dropping to her knees.

"Senalda?" Alejandro asked in a song-song voice.

"Fine. I won't hit, kick or scratch her," she said sulkily, likewise lowering
herself to the mat.

As soon as her knees touched the padded surface the blonde lunged at her and
dove between her legs and then reared up, flipping the startled brunette over
onto her back. Deirdre then somersaulted backward and sat on her stomach.

"Get off me, ramera!" hissed Sena struggling to dislodge the heavier woman.

But Deirdre just grinned and reached back and grabbed Sena's left leg with one
hand and pulled, raising the furious Latina's generous ass off the mat. "Such
naughty language. Mama spank," she giggled, swatting the rounded butt with the
flat of her hand and bringing a yelp of pain from Sena.

Before she could give her another spanking, the brunette snaked her free leg
up and around her head, pulling her off and down to the mat. Sena quickly sat
up and positioned her leg around the blonde's neck, making sure her calf was
pressed tightly against the curve of her throat before yanking back on her
ankle, cinching the hold by looping her other leg over her foot and using it
to add even more leverage to the choke. "What's the matter, Dee? Nothing to
say now?" she asked the gagging woman. Sena then leaned back, using her hands
to support her weight as she lifted her rear off the mat, causing the blonde's
neck to bend painfully forward. "Do you give up, gringa?"

Deirdre slapped the mat and kicked her feet but stubbornly shook her head as
much as she was able. "Never, burrito-butt," she managed to gasp out.

"Have it your way, perra," Sena laughed and rolled over so that the blonde was
facing the mat and then proceeded to bash her head into the padding by rocking
her pelvis up and down. But after a few thumps Deirdre was able to pull her
head free and she quickly jumped on the brunette's back, grabbing handfuls of
her dark hair as she pressed her muscular thighs tightly into Sena's ribs.

"How do you like it, you taco-eating tramp?" she snarled, slamming her foe's
face into the mat over and over.

In desperation, Sena reached back and seized one of Deirdre's huge breasts and
pulled as hard as she could. Now it was the big blonde's turn to yelp with
pain as she released her hold on the raven locks and tried to free the
terrible grip on her poor tit. This allowed the brunette to twist her body
beneath Deirdre until she was on her back. Still maintaining the painful hold
on one boob, she reached up with her other hand and similarly gripped the
other one, bringing a shriek from the blonde.

"Okay, if you wanna fight dirty..." Deirdre said, half-sobbing, half-sneering.
She then ceased trying to remove Sena's hand from her chest and instead
reached down and latched onto both of the Latina's impressive mounds and not
only squeezed them painfully between her long fingers but also pulled and
twisted them with savage abandon.

Sena screamed and did the same to the blonde's fleshy orbs, but the pain she
was enduring was far more than the pain she was inflicting and she was forced
to release her grips and grab her tormenter's' wrists in an effort to
alleviate her suffering. But Deirdre had no intention of letting go and
relinquishing her superior position, so she dug her nails into the sensitive
flesh and continued to punish the quickly reddening boobs.

"No scratching!" screamed Sena, choking back her tears as her breasts now
began to sport ugly red marks from the mauling.

"My bad," grinned the blonde, releasing her hold on the Latina's tits. She
suddenly slammed her fist into Sena's jaw. "No punching either, right?" she
giggled, standing up and stomping down hard on the dazed brunette's belly. "Or
kicking?" She laughed and dropped her knee onto the squirming woman's crotch.
"Nothing about doing that, though."

"Almeja!" cried Sena, sitting up and throwing a wild punch at the blonde's
head that caught her flush in the mouth and sent her tumbling backward. She
jumped on top of her before she could get to her feet and grabbed both her
wrists and held them over her head and then proceeded to wrap her ankles
around the struggling woman's calves, completing the grapevine. Sena widened
her legs to the side as far as she could, bringing a cry of fresh pain from
her foe, and then raised herself up and looked down into the blue eyes,
smiling when she saw fear in them. "Good. You should be afraid, perra," she
smiled wolfishly. She abruptly dropped down on top of the blonde, banging her
groin against the painfully extended crotch of the woman beneath her and
Deirdre screamed as if she'd been shot. When Sena did it again, the blonde
sobbed out her submission.

"I give up, Sena. You win. Please, no more," she cried.

"I think maybe a little more," the Latina replied, releasing the painful hold
and pulling her knees up quickly, causing her butt to thud down onto the
beaten blonde's tummy. She moved the unresisting arms beneath her legs and
lightly slapped the tear-streaked face. "Do you remember this, perra?" she
asked.

Realizing what was coming, she renewed her pleading. "Please, Sena, I'm sorry.
I'm sorry, Manda. Please don't sit on my face."

"Shut up!" she cried, punching her in the jaw. "I'm sick of your whining." She
then scooted up so that the tiny patch of material that made up the bulk of
her thong bikini was pressed tightly against the blonde's luscious mouth.
"Ahhh, peace and quiet at last," she grinned, pulling aside the suit and
beginning to grind her pussy into Deirdre's face while holding the blonde's
hands up to her chest and using them to massage her aching breasts until the
nipples stood out hard and firm above the dark areolae. "Put that wagging
tongue of yours to good use down there, blondie, or I'll snap your fingers
like dry twigs," she said, bending back one of the blonde's digits painfully.
Deirdre's tongue immediately began licking her and she released the finger and
pressed the hands back to her chest and began moaning excitedly. A few minutes
later she cried out and her entire body shuddered with pleasure and she
practically drowned the blonde in her flood of juices. "I guess I win," she
sighed, leaning back and looking down at the barely conscious woman's drenched
face.

"No, nena, I'm afraid you lose," Alejandro said as he struck the back of her
head with an empty rum bottle.

Sena toppled forward and sprawled face-first on the mat, barely conscious.

"You were supposed to win, idiota," he snarled, helping the blonde to her
feet.

"What's the difference? She's still gonna die," Deirdre said, leveling a kick
into the brunette's side that lifted her off the mat and flipped her onto her
back. "Now I'm just gonna enjoy watching her deep six even more than I would
have is all."

"The fight...was a setup?" Sena managed to gasp out, looking at her cousin.
Armanda looked away and that was answer enough for the doomed Latina.

"This whole cruise was a setup, you stupid slag!" Deirdre sneered. "And you
fell for it, hook, line, and now you're gonna be the sinker." She stomped down
on Sena's moist pussy and ground her heel savagely into the quivering sex,
causing the brunette to scream and jerk upright, clawing at the blonde's leg
and leaving red scratches. "Bitch!" shouted Deirdre, jumping back. "Time to
say good night, Sena." She stepped forward and kicked her in the face, laying
her out cold.

* * * * *

"Wakey, wakey, bitch. Siesta time is over."

Sena groaned and jerked her head to the side as she felt someone lightly
slapping her face. She opened her eyes and saw not only Deirdre and Alejandro
but also Armanda and her other 'friends,' too. She tried to raise her hand to
rub her head, but discovered that they were bound behind her back with what
felt like a nylon rope. She looked down at her feet and saw with horror that a
heavy chain was wrapped around them. "What's going on, Alex?" she asked,
knowing the answer but trying to buy some time.

"Call it a hostile take-over, Sin," Alejandro chuckled. He was standing with
his arm around Deirdre's waist as if it had been there many times before.

"I thought you loved me?" she sobbed.

"Oh, nena, I did. And I still do, but I love money even more," he smiled.

"And cheap whores," she added, spitting at Deirdre.

"If you weren't about to die I'd give you more of what you got this afternoon,
you foul-smelling skank," she snarled, wiping the spittle from her face with
the back of her hand.

"You're the one who was crying when the true contest was all over. Untie my
hands and I'll be happy to make you eat me out again, puta. But this time I'll
give you some pointers on how to do it right," she sneered.

Deirdre slapped her hard across the mouth. "I don't need to know how to do it
right, you cunt-loving twat. I'm only interested in pleasing this," she said,
grabbing Alejandro's crotch and giving it a good squeeze.

"We're wasting time," Jin said, looking more bored than uncomfortable with the
impending murder. "Let's just do this and get back to enjoying our vacation."

"All in good time, Jin. I expected you to appreciate this little ritual,
knowing how fond your people are of traditions," Alejandro replied.

"All those ridiculous customs and ceremonies are why I left Hong Kong in the
first place," Jin grunted.

"Indulge me here, all right. It won't take long," Alejandro sighed.

"What ritual are you talking about, Alex?" Sena demanded while surreptitiously
working on loosening her hands.

"In a minute, Sin. First, I want to thank you for doing such a top-notch job
with your territory. Your associates and I will do our best to maintain the
high standards you've set when we get back to LA. Second, as you might have
guessed by now, meeting Deirdre in Jamaica was no accident. She and I have
secretly been lovers for almost six months now. But," he continued quickly,
"before you go thinking I convinced the others to dissolve our business deal
with you based only on that, let me assure you that dividing up your lucrative
share of the profits was the driving force behind today's actions. Deirdre is
a bonus, so to speak."

"So, you're all in on this, eh?" Sena asked, looking at the faces of the
people standing around her on the upper deck of her yacht. No one said a word
but their expressions were answer enough. "I will never forget either of these
wrongs. The one to my heart cuts deep, Alex, but the second betrayal of you
others is equally unforgivable."

"Now can we get on with it?" Deirdre asked with an exasperated sigh.

"Do it," he said, gesturing to the blonde.

She sneered and plowed her fist deep into Sena's belly, holding it there and
twisting savagely into her abdominals until all the air left her body with a
final gasping wheeze. Then, before she could catch her breath, Chyou stepped
up and kissed her on the mouth. Then Jin did the same. As did Armanda and then
Deirdre herself. Last but not least Alejandro kissed the luscious lips, yet
again depriving her of oxygen.

As his prolonged kiss took place, Deirdre and Jin pushed the block of cement
to which the chain wrapped around Sena's legs was attached over the side and
the brunette was ripped from her ex-lover's embrace and plunged into the blue
water before she had time to gulp in so much as a mouthful of air.

"So long, bitch," grinned Deirdre, wrapping her arms possessively around
Alejandro.

Despite the utter futility of doing it, given the hopelessness of her
situation, Sena clamped her mouth shut and held on grimly to what little
breath she had in her lungs as she sank quickly to the sandy ocean floor, near
the maw of a gaping chasm. Her mind raged at the betrayals and she silently
vowed to somehow avenge them even as her chest felt like it was gong to burst
open. Concentrating on her anger, and ignoring the white-hot pain, she feebly
continued to try to free her hands.

Just when she thought she couldn't last another second, however, the rope was
suddenly loose. But it did no good. For when she reached down to free herself
from the chain, she realized that it was padlocked and that there was no way
to escape this watery grave after all.

But still the fury in her did not relent and even as she drifted into the
yawning blackness before her something in the far reaches of the nearby abyss
stirred, awakened from a centuries long slumber by her seething hatred for
those responsible for her cruel death.

And swifter than thought itself, it came to her.

Los Angeles-2012

Lupe padded into the kitchen and mumbled a sleepy good morning to Cassandra,
who was pouring herself her second cup of coffee. She grabbed a mug from a peg
on the wall and poured one for the big Spaniard as Lupe dumped half a box of
Lucky Charms into a huge bowl and then drowned it with a full quart of milk.
"I swear, dear, it's beyond me how you keep that gorgeous figure with your
eating habits," she remarked, sitting down at the small table and handing the
steaming cup to her houseguest.

"Lupe has a very high metaphoric rate and she also spurns a lot of energy
whenever she changes," she replied, shoveling the sugary cereal into her
mouth. She was a gorgeous brunette, with sun-bleached blonde streaks and soft
brown eyes who stood close to 6' tall. Her physique was muscular, but with an
extremely large chest and exceptionally powerful thighs. Right now she was
wearing her usual sleeping attire: loose shorts and a T-shirt that was cut off
just below her firm breasts.

"Slow down, dear," Cassie chuckled. "You'll choke yourself if you don't chew
every once in a while." Cassandra Trotter was an attractive woman in her
mid-forties with deep chocolate skin and equally dark eyes. She was in
reasonable shape but the extra weight she'd put on lately was definitely
beginning to show.

"I can't. I'm in a hurry to get over to Senor Charlie's," she said, gulping
down the coffee. "He's promised to tell me about one of his most befalling
cases as I reorgasm his files."

Cassie sighed and wondered how her old friend could take advantage of Lupe's
enthusiasm and use her as his personal maid, but since the big Spaniard didn't
seem to mind-As was obvious from the way she had come home the last two
afternoons absolutely bubbling with excitement at getting to learn how to be a
'private dick'-she reluctantly concluded that no real harm was being done.
Still, she made a mental note to have a talk with Charles one day soon. "Will
you be here for dinner or are you going out with Simone tonight?" she asked,
changing the subject.

Lupe's eyes took on a pained expression and she shook her head sharply. "No,
Lupe will be here tonight. Simone is busy...preparing for auditions. Her new
agent seems to be working out quite well, despite Senorita Kahira's attempts
to blueball her acting career," she said, resuming her assault on the cereal.

Cassandra looked thoughtfully at her friend, trying to decide whether or not
to question her statement, and finally shrugged. "She'll make time for you
again as soon as she gets a gig, Lupe. Don't worry," she said, reaching over
and placing her hand on top of the one not scooping heaping spoonfuls of
'magically delicious' breakfast fare into her mouth.

Lupe pulled her hand away and grabbed the bowl and drained it of the leftover
milk and sugary sludge and then wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "I
know. I'm not worried," she lied, standing up and placing her dishes in the
sink. "See you tonight, Dr. Clutter." She pecked her on the cheek and ran
upstairs to get ready for work, leaving Cassandra shaking her head sadly as
she sipped at her coffee.

* * * * *

Chyou Wai lazily rolled over in her large bed and called out, "Jin? Is that
you?" She and the gambling lord had always been friends, but after the events
of last year, the experience brought them even closer and they had become
regular lovers. Receiving no answer she decided the noise that awoke her must
have been her imagination and shifted to get comfortable again. Overseeing an
extensive chain of high-class brothels naturally required her to work late a
lot and last night had been no exception. Fortunately, she had a comfortable
apartment above her primary establishment, 'Aladdin's House of Sin,' so she'd
only had to walk up a flight of stairs early that morning.

The Chinese woman always insisted on being present when her madams broke in
new girls, especially if they were white or Latina as she loved watching the
haughty girls of those two races brought to sobbing subservience. She grinned
at the pleasant memory of the dark-haired girl being forced to pleasure one of
the regular whores they often used to crush the spirits of new recruits last
night and casually ran her hand down her body and between her legs.

An odd squelching sound disturbed her reverie.

"Who's there?" she demanded, suddenly sitting up and grabbing the
semi-automatic from beneath her pillow. She looked around the luxurious
bedroom with anxious dark eyes but saw nothing unusual. She cautiously got up
and walked toward the door but stopped when she heard it again. This time she
identified that it was coming from the adjoining bathroom. "Jin? Is that you,
baby?" she asked, edging toward the room in question with the gun held out in
front of her, safety off. A foul stench caused her to wrinkle her nose in
disgust as she got closer and she covered her nose with one hand to diminish
her discomfort as best she could.

An impossibly familiar figure suddenly lurched from the bathroom and Chyou
screamed and emptied her clip into it to no avail. "Please! Oh, Goddess, no!
NOOOOOOO!!!!" she shrieked as the figure batted the gun away and grabbed her.
It pressed its horrible lips to hers and the Asian's eyes opened wide as she
struggled fruitlessly in the abomination's embrace.

* * * * *

Lilith Kahira walked into her outer office and stopped at her personal
assistant's desk to check her schedule for the day. "Morning, darling.
Anything important today?" she asked, adjusting her lipstick in a compact
mirror. Lilith was a beautiful woman with long black hair and eyes that were
practically as dark as her raven tresses. Her flesh and features were also
dark, thanks to her Egyptian ancestry, as was her soul, thanks to her
allegiance to the evil Goddess Sakhmet.

"Morning, boss. Nothing except your session with Master Po," Pam replied, not
needing to look at the calendar to know what was on it. Both she and Lilith
knew that she had numerous meetings and other tedious fare scheduled, but she
also knew that the only thing on her employer's mind at the moment was her
martial arts lessons. Pam Dunn was an attractive woman in her late 20's, with
strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes that twinkled with both intelligence and
mischief. Her body was clearly female, with high, prominent breasts and a
slim, inviting waist, but she had the air of masculinity about her, too, in
the way she carried herself and her brusque manner. "Oh, and you had a call
early this morning, but she wouldn't leave her name. Sounded Asian," she added
with a slight grin as she thought about her new lover.

"Are you feeling all right, darling?" Lilith asked, staring at her assistant
curiously. "You've had this flushed look for several days now. Maybe you ought
to see a doctor..."

"I'll do that," Pam replied, adopting her best poker face.

Lilith shrugged and entered her office, already counting down the hours before
her lesson would begin.

* * * * *

Jin Sung had just concluded a particularly difficult transaction and his round
face was covered with sweat and blood from the ordeal. Not that it had been
particularly difficult for him, seeing as all he did was oversee the beating
of a young man who had failed to pay his debts in time until he was a
bleeding, sobbing mess. Still, he didn't like the feeling of blood and sweat
on his flesh, even if it wasn't his, so, as his people dragged the would-be
welsher out to the street, he retired to the bathroom of the warehouse that
served as his base of operations and proceeded to wash his hands and face with
bracingly cold water.

However, as he was rinsing off his hands, he suddenly noticed that the water
had altered in temperature, growing noticeably warmer. He also thought it had
become...thicker. Curious, he looked down and saw a gelatinous motley liquid
that smelled ghastly oozing from the tap. Revolted, he stepped back and dried
his hands, covering his face with the towel when he'd finished and watching as
the sink filled with a gooey substance the color of the sludge on a
slaughterhouse floor.

Then, an arm rose out of the disgusting slop in the sink. And another. And an
impossible figure slowly pulled itself up and out of the basin, swinging its
long legs off the counter and onto the floor to stand before him.

He screamed. Not the cry of a man, but the full-blown shriek of terror of a
child and backed as far away as the small room would allow, shaking his head
and mumbling prayers in Chinese.

The dripping, hideous figure shambled over to him and embraced him, covering
his mouth with its foul lips. Jin struggled fiercely, desperately, but the
grip of the being was too powerful and in a moment his resistance ended. The
monstrosity released him and he dropped to the ground with water dripping from
his fat lips. It then climbed into the toilet until only an arm was protruding
above the open bowl and flushed itself.

* * * * *

"...And that's how I solved the 'Case of the Hillside Strangler' and brought
two vicious animals to justice," Charlie Wrangle concluded, leaning back in
his recliner and kicking off his shoes. He was an old man, well into his
seventies, possibly older, with thick white hair and a matching bushy
mustache. His eyes still sparkled with youthful intensity, however, despite
his sagging jowls. He was thin, with skin that hung on his frame like an
ill-fitting jacket made by an incompetent tailor, but somehow nevertheless
conveyed a sense of strength.

"Lupe is very impressed, Senor Mangle," said the big Spaniard as she worked on
his hopelessly cluttered files, trying to bring some semblance of order to
over forty years worth of cases.

"Well, it was my duty, Lupe, nothing to be proud of or admire a man for," he
said. Especially since it's all a lie, you big fraud, he scolded himself. He
hated to deceive the young woman who had come to him to learn his craft, but
the sad truth of the matter was that Charlie had had very few cases that one
would even charitably describe as exciting or the least bit interesting. Being
a 'private dick,' as Lupe called it, was a lot of hard, but mostly boring
work. He knew he should tell her that, make her understand what she was
getting into if she decided to pursue a career as an investigator, but he just
couldn't bring himself to crush her enthusiasm. It was so refreshing to meet
someone who shared his passion for justice after the death of his wife that
after he'd told the girl about his very few slightly intriguing cases, he
began to tell her of other famous investigations, inserting himself into
history, as it were. It was easy once he learned that she was from Europe and
had practically no knowledge of the events in America during the latter half
of the last century. But that still doesn't make it right, you old coot.

"Besides, most criminals aren't very smart, Lupe. The trick is to get them to
play by your rules and not allow them to call the shots. These two were
cleverer than most, but it was only a matter of time before they got careless.
I just beat the police to the punch is all," he said, pushing down his
conscience until it was barely a whisper. He'd gotten good at doing that over
the years.

"You are too modest, senor. The brilliant way you seduced that there were two
killers was a poke of genius," she insisted. "The police would never have
reserved the clues and come to the proper seclusion."

"Now, Lupe, how many times do I have to remind you that this supposed
animosity that exists between private detectives and the police is just
something that writers and Hollywood made up?" he rebuked. "Real detectives
work with the police, Lupe, not against them. Now, we may not always employ
methods they'd approve of, if they knew about them, but when the case is
solved it's the police who take the suspects into custody and see that justice
is served. We just sort of help that whole process along, understand?"

"Si, Senor Mangle, Lupe understands but she does not see how you can allow the
police to take the credit for your hard work."

"Well, like I said, it was my duty, and let's not forget the $100 a day plus
expenses," he added with a chuckle.

Lupe nodded. "The moneys, it is very important, no?"

"It is. Without it, a detective is nothing more than a vigilante. Money makes
what we do legitimate, Lupe. Oh, we still do it mostly because of a passion
for justice, but the money is a nice bonus you might say. Now, while you're
fixing me lunch, how would you like it if I told you about the time I
recovered the Oscar statuettes after they'd been stolen, and just in time for
the Academy Awards?"

"That would be fantastico!" Lupe grinned, heading for the kitchen.

"It was back in double aught, as I recall..."

* * * * *

Armanda Montoya was hot. She had been working a booth outside while her
coworkers enjoyed the pleasantly air-conditioned clothing store that was part
of a small strip mall. Business had been brisk, with many of the patrons
obviously buying something just so they could talk to the attractive Latina,
and Manda was more than ready to take her last break when Carmelita finally
came and relieved her late in the afternoon. She immediately went into the
employee's restroom and, after relieving her bursting bladder from all the
iced soda she'd been drinking to stave off the uncharacteristically warm
November heat, spent a few minutes splashing cool water on her face and
enjoying the feeling as it dribbled down her throat and onto her breasts. In
the year since the murder of her cousin she had tried to think about it as
little as possible and was grateful that everyone had accepted the story that
Senalda had drowned while scuba-diving off the coast of Aruba.

But when she suddenly smelled a repugnant odor and looked up and saw a
horrible, mottled form rising from the toilet in the mirror, she had no choice
but to remember. "Prima!" she cried, spinning around and facing this thing
that was and was not her dead cousin. "Please, forgive me, prima," she sobbed
as it extricated itself from the basin and slowly approached her. "I didn't
want to betray you! Alejandro made me do it! Please, for the love of the Holy
Mother-"

Her pleading was abruptly halted when the being grabbed her in what would
ordinarily have been a loving embrace and kissed her on the mouth. The little
Latina resisted, trying to pull away, but she couldn't escape the horror's
iron grip and soon all her efforts ceased and her body went limp. The
monstrosity dropped her to the floor as one might a doll and then climbed back
into the bowl and flushed itself away, leaving Armanda's lifeless body in a
puddle of foul-smelling water.

* * * * *

Lilith sat on the matted floor of her converted workout room and let out a
deep sigh of frustration. It was already her third lesson and Master Po had
yet to teach her how to throw a punch or kick. All she'd done was 'cleansing'
exercises that mostly involved a lot of breathing and concentrating on
something Po referred to as her ki. What exactly her ki was, however, was a
complete mystery to Lil since Po refused to enlighten her. "You will know it
when you connect with it, turtle," was all he would say. Turtle! Lilith
inwardly fumed whenever he called her by that ridiculous name. She was a
lioness, proud and deadly, like her patron Goddess, not a silly turtle. When
she demanded to know why she was a turtle, he'd said, "Because you are hard on
the outside but soft on the inside." She wasn't sure if that should be taken
as a compliment or not, but she took it as one, even though she would much
rather have been just about any other animal.

"Your mind is unfocused, turtle," Master Po said calmly as he floated a foot
off the mat. Master Po was a solidly built Asian man with a bald head and eyes
the color of ancient jade. He was tall, standing at close to 6', and while
muscular, he nevertheless presented a tender façade. "Push aside your cares
and doubts and concentrate on your ki."

"How can I concentrate on it if I don't know what the Hell it is, Master Po?"
she demanded, refusing to use his animal name in a sort of pointless protest
against her own.

"How does a baby know to suckle? How does a bird know to fly? How does CBS
manage to stay on the air with its horrible lineup?" he replied. "These are
the great mysteries of the universe, turtle, and among them is the discovery
of one's ki. All I can tell you is that if you empty your mind of all else,
the ki will remain."

Lilith sat very still for approximately four minutes, her personal best so
far, before snarling in exasperation, "I didn't hire you to float around and
watch me breathe! When are you going to show me how to fight?"

Master Po let the merest of frowns curl his lips as he slowly came to rest on
the mat. "You want to spar with me, turtle?" he asked, opening his jade eyes
and fixing them on hers with an intensity that startled the Egyptian. Still,
if Lilith Kahira was anything at all, she was proud, too proud to refuse a
challenge. So she nodded her head and he stood up and adjusted his white gi
and then gestured for her to attack him.

Lilith nervously charged him, swinging wildly, and he calmly reached out and
grabbed hold of her pinky and with the slightest of twists brought her to her
knees, fighting back a scream of pain. "What the Hell is this?" she hissed as
he forced her onto her stomach with just a tiny bit of pressure. "This isn't
fighting!"

"No? Did you not attack me and are you now not in considerable discomfort,
unable to continue your assault?" he asked calmly.

"Yes, but this is...dumb! I don't want to put someone in 'considerable
discomfort,' I want to kick her ass." She gasped as her arm was effortlessly
positioned behind her back so that her hand was between her shoulder blades.
"Ow! Damn it, Po! That hurts!"

"Exactly. The object of combat is to win, turtle, and to do so as quickly as
possible so as to avoid making a mistake that might cost you the contest."

"But this isn't fighting!" Lili whined, beginning to slap at the mat in
frustration as the pain in her finger increased with every second. "Ouch!
Goddess damn you, Po, let me go!"

"Make me," he challenged, giving the pinky a quick wrench that sent a spasm of
agony rippling through the prone woman's body.

"Yeowch!" She screamed and then tried to bring her other arm around to hit him
only to have him calmly step beyond her reach and maintain his controlling
hold. "How the Hell can I reach you if you're over there?"

"You can't. And that's the point. Your opponent can't win if she can't fight
back."

"Ugh! Lay off a little, Po, will you?" she growled. "She might not be able to
win but she won't surrender either. You don't know this bitch. Holding her
finger--Hell, breaking all ten of her fingers wouldn't stop her. I need to
learn to kick her ass and make her bleed, not fix it so she can't play the
damn piano for a couple of months."

"Thus far I have been content to control you with this hold, but if I chose I
could use my free hand and my feet to, if you'll pardon my language, beat the
shit out of you. Thusly," he said, landing a flurry of blows that barely
touched her to her head, neck, and ribs. Even so, Lilith grunted as each
struck.

"Okay, okay! I get your point already! Now see if you can get mine: I want to
beat this bitch the way she beat me, standing up and trading blows. I want to
punish her and feel my fist plow into her gut so hard she pukes. I want to
cover her face with bruises and blacken her eyes. I want her pussy to-"

"Yes, I think I get the picture," Po said quickly.

"And that's why I hired you. Not to learn the discipline, but to learn the
techniques that will give me the victory I want," she said, turning her face
to look up at him.

"I see..." he said thoughtfully.

"Will you do that, or should I look for someone else?" she asked.

"It goes against everything I was taught, everything I've practiced for over
thirty years, everything my master stood for," he said slowly.

"I'll triple your fee," Lilith said.

"Deal," said Po.

"Good. Now there's just one more thing..."

"What's that?"

"Let go of my fucking finger!!!" she yelled. He released it and she gratefully
sat up and rubbed the feeling back into it.

* * * * *

Deirdre Banks and Alejandro Domingas sat comfortably next to their luxurious
swimming pool, enjoying cool drinks in the afternoon sun. She was in a tiny
thong bottomed bikini of bright blue with white trim and he was in a pair of
tight trunks that barely contained his bulging manhood. The year since his
ex's murder had been very good to them and their profits were even higher than
they'd predicted. The alliance with the Asians was working out better than
ever and their expansion was proceeding right on schedule. The police that
weren't in their pocket were either too incompetent or too afraid to pose any
threat and those that were on the take kept them abreast of any local or
federal activity that might threaten their growing empire. Plus, the blonde
had proved to be an extremely worthy successor to his late partner in more
ways than one. Not only was she better in bed, but she was smarter when it
came to running their drug business and far more ruthless with any would-be
encroachers than Sena ever was.

"I feel like a swim, darling. Care to join me?" Deirdre asked, standing up and
stretching her muscular and curvaceous body.

"Not just now, querida," he replied, sipping at his margarita. "I just want to
soak up some rays."

She leaned over, letting her breasts rub enticingly against his chest, and
kissed him deeply and then turned and ran towards the pool, jumping over the
attached hot tub and diving into the warm water. Her blonde hair was pressed
tightly to her face when she surfaced and she threw her head back and pulled
it behind her ears and then swam the length of the pool several times while
Alejandro watched from his lounge chair. When she made her way over to the hot
tub and slowly rose from the water and then slid into it with a mischievous
grin, he laughed and shook his head.

"All right, nena, here I come," he smiled, standing up and setting his drink
down on a small table. When he turned to join her, however, he saw that the
water in the spa had become fouled and a disgusting aroma now permeated the
area. He was about to tell her to get out so he could add some chlorine, when
a horrible, impossible shape loomed up out of the water behind her. "Deirdre!"
he screamed, grabbing a pistol from a holster hanging from his chair.

The blonde turned and saw the hideous corpse of her onetime rival and screamed
and scrambled from the hot tub as it reached out to grab her with arms that
had been partially devoured from the looks of the them. But even though her
flesh was now a sickly greenish color and had several prominent bite marks on
it, there was no mistaking Sena's features. The abomination lurched out of the
spa and shambled towards her, arms outstretched, puffy blue lips puckered as
if to kiss her and she screamed again and ran for Alejandro.

"How the fuck is that possible?" she demanded, cowering behind him.

He shook his head and crossed himself with one hand while he fired off his
entire clip into the thing that used to be his lover. Every single bullet hit
its mark, leaving gaping holes in her head, chest, and throat, but apart from
a momentary pause in its advance, they had no effect. As he had shot it, he
and the blonde had slowly retreated until her back was against the wall of the
house. Trapped, the pair stood frozen with fear as the monstrosity came ever
closer.

When it reached them, however, it surprised the Latino by simply pushing him
out of the way and grabbing Deirdre. But before it could close with her, the
blonde reared back and punched it square in the face, gagging when her fist
sunk into the squishy, rubbery tissue up to the wrist. She pulled her hand
free and then frantically brought her arms up inside the thing's reach and
knocked its arms aside and then scuttled around it and towards the pool,
giving her some room to maneuver. The thing that was once Sena turned and
followed her, ignoring Alejandro as he climbed to his feet, its face slowly
resuming its previous shape, like a piece of rubber that's been stretched
does. The Latino jumped on its back and wrapped his arms around the green neck
as tightly as he could and Deirdre followed his cue and stepped up and
delivered a powerful kick between its legs.

Unfortunately, her foot got stuck as it sunk in past its ankle and she
screamed as she fell to her back. Without hesitating, the horror reached down
and picked her up, clamping its surprisingly strong hands on her shoulders and
bringing the terrified face of the blonde close to its own until their lips
touched. Deirdre kicked her foot free and rammed her knee into the thing's
gut, but all that did was force even more salty water into her mouth. Finally,
her body went limp and it dropped her to the pavement, her head bouncing off
it with an empty thud as water trickled from her scum-smeared lips.

Alejandro cried out in fury and released his hold on the inhuman creature and
cradled his dead lover in shaking arms, softly weeping.

"One wrong avenged," the thing behind him croaked in a vague shadow of Sena's
voice.

He jerked his head around with dawning comprehension and barely managed to
avoid the horror's hands as they reached down for him. Knowing now that he
couldn't fight it, he ran into the house and grabbed the keys to his Corvette
and bolted out the front door as the thing shambled in the back one. He jumped
in, gunned the engine and floored it as he slammed into gear and the car tore
out of his driveway, leaving the monstrosity in a thick cloud of dust.

* * * * *

Lilith rode her private elevator down to the garage and exited to see her tall
blonde chauffeur Zaynah standing at attention, waiting to open the car's door,
just as she was every evening. A wicked little smile playing about her full
lips, the Egyptian walked over but stopped about six feet from her and placed
her briefcase on the ground at her feet. "Attack me," she instructed,
gesturing for the other woman to assault her.

"Ma'am?" the statuesque Arab questioned.

"You heard me, Zaynah. Attack me," Lil ordered, eager to try out the painful
pinky hold Master Po had earlier used on her. "And don't hold back."

Zaynah shrugged. She knew better than to question her mistress. "As you wish,
Ma'am," she replied, lowering her head and rushing at her employer.

Lilith tensed and then grabbed hold of her finger as she got in range and
tried to wrench it as Po had done to her. Unfortunately, all she succeeded in
doing was losing her grip on the digit and being bodily picked up by the
blonde and slammed into one of the stone pillars that supported the upper
levels. "Ungh!" she gasped as her back struck the unyielding surface and her
head was thrown backward into it as well.

When she felt her boss go limp in her grasp, Zaynah stepped back and saw with
horror that she was unconscious. She gently carried her to the limousine and
placed her on the spacious back seat and impatiently waited for her to come
around.

Several minutes later Lilith groaned and then very slowly sat up and rubbed
the back of her head. Seeing the blonde standing attentively just outside the
car, she motioned for her to lean in. "Give me your hand, Zaynah," she said
calmly. The chauffeur immediately held out her hand and Lili practically
pounced on her pinky, grabbing it firmly and twisting it in what she was
positive was exactly the same way Po had twisted hers. Except that Zaynah's
finger didn't budge. Grunting with effort, she brought her other hand into
play and tried with both hands to wrench the pinky but to no avail. Zaynah's
little finger obstinately refused to be turned. Finally, out of sheer
frustration, Lilith let go of her hand and punched Zaynah in the jaw, which
only ended up hurting her hand and causing her to yelp in pain.

"Will there be anything else, Ma'am?" the blonde asked as her boss plunged her
stinging hand in the bucket of ice from the bar.

"Just drive me home and never ever attack me again, no matter how much I beg,"
she snapped.

"Yes, Ma'am," said Zaynah, standing upright and shutting the door.

* * * * *

Lupe and Cassandra sat in the living room enjoying a cold glass of iced tea
and talking about the big Spaniard's day with Charlie. Dr. Trotter, of course,
knew that he was lying about most of his supposed cases, but like the old
detective, she didn't have the heart to tell the young woman the truth either.
"It all sounds terribly exciting, Lupe, but is he teaching you about the
business of being a private dick, or just telling you stories?" she asked as
gently as she could.

"Oh, but, Dr. Plotter, the stories are lessons! I have already learned a great
deal from Senor Mangle that I never knew before," she said excitedly.

Cassandra smiled. She was glad to know that her name wasn't the only one the
big Spaniard got wrong. Although, in the case of the old detective's name, she
simply seemed unable to tell the difference between 'Wrangle' and 'Mangle,'
unlike her own last name, which was subjected to a wide variety of near
homonyms. "I'm glad to hear that, dear. Maybe you could tell me-" A knock on
the door suddenly interrupted her and she got up to answer it, gasping when
she saw who it was.

"Hello, medica, long time no see," said Alejandro, gesturing her back into the
living room with a pistol as he closed and locked the front door. He had
slipped into a loose shirt, which he left unbuttoned, and a pair of equally
baggy slacks he'd gotten from the suitcase in the trunk that he kept in case
he had to leave the country quickly.

Lupe sprang to her feet but he pointed the gun at Cassie's temple and shook
his head. "Sit, senorita, or something unpleasant might happen to this good
lady," he said. The big Spaniard slowly sat back down and he forced Cassie
into a chair and sat down on the arm, moving the pistol so that the muzzle was
pressed tightly against her ribs at heart level. "And, believe it or not, I
have no more desire to see that happen than you do."

"I thought we agreed not to see each other anymore?" Cassie said, glancing
fearfully up at the Latino.

Seeing Lupe's shocked expression, he laughed and said, "No, senorita, it's not
what you are thinking. I helped the medica get into the mind of a real live
malvado for her novels. Consider me a sort of muso."

"Stop looking at me like that, Lupe. Alejandro was very useful. But, as I
said, I thought we agreed not to see each other again?"

"Si, medica, we did. Unfortunately, a situation has arisen and I need to stay
some place safe where I can think without being disturbed and figure a way out
of it," he said. "And yours was the only place that came to mind. I really am
sorry to intrude upon your past friendship like this, medica."

"We were business associates, Alejandro, nothing more. And certainly never
friends," she said with quiet determination.

The Latino laughed and slapped his thigh. "Now you see why I came here," he
grinned, looking over at Lupe, who looked as if she was ready to fly across
the room and tear out his throat with her teeth the way she was glaring at
him. "I don't like the looks of your amiga, medica. Tell her to relax or I'll
make her take a permanent siesta." He jabbed the gun into her ribs to
emphasize his point.

"It's all right, Lupe. He won't hurt me, but he wouldn't hesitate to kill you
if you give him any reason to," she cautioned, more worried that her anger
might trigger her transformation than anything else at the moment. "Please,
sit back and let's at least listen to what he has to say."

"Ah, hermosa and inteligente. If only I had met you when you were younger,
medica," he smiled, stroking her hair with his free hand, causing Lupe's hair
to stand on end, but she somehow managed to maintain an outwardly calm
appearance. "Anyway, as for my apuro, well, mi amiga, you wouldn't believe me
if I told you."

"Oh, you'd be surprised at how open-minded I've become since our association
ended," she replied, winking discreetly at Lupe in an effort to keep her from
doing anything rash. "Try me."

"Very well, what do you make of this..." He told her of last year's events and
then of what had happened this evening. "I called Chyou, Jin, and Armanda and
learned that all of them were dead, too. And that all had apparently died from
drowning," he concluded.

"A demon," grunted Lupe. "But a type that I've never encountered before."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean, perra?" the Latino demanded, aiming
the gun at her.

"Lupe gets around, Alejandro. She's seen things that you and I would have
difficulty believing, or at least would have a short time ago," Cassie
amended.

"I suppose you expect me to believe that your amiga is some sort of monster
slayer?" he asked with a gruff laugh.

"You might say that," the doctor nodded.

"All right, if that's true, then how do we kill this thing?" he mocked.

"I've no idea," said Lupe. "And, since it's only interested in killing you, I
really couldn't care less."

Alejandro snarled and forced the pistol's muzzle into Cassandra's mouth,
grabbing her hair and yanking her head back at the same time. "You listen to
me, puta, if you know how to kill this demonio, then you'd better do it or you
and the medica will be dead long before I am," he promised, releasing the
safety and tightening his grip on the weapon. "Comprende?"

"Si, I understand. But know this, pendejo: If anything happens to the doctor
you won't have to worry about the demon killing you," she said evenly. "Now
get that maldito gun out of her mouth before I make you eat it, gilipollas."

"I like this chica, medica," Alejandro laughed, removing the pistol and
placing it back against Cassie's ribs. "She has cojones. Where did you find
her?"

"Lupe found me," Cassandra replied tersely, spitting at the foul taste of cold
steel. "And I'm very glad she did. But getting back to your problem..." She
looked over at Lupe, pleading with her to be reasonable.

"Si, mi problema," Alejandro chuckled mirthlessly. "What a pintoresco way to
phrase it, medica. How do you kill that which is already dead?"

"There are many ways, senor, but not all of them will work on every undead.
Besides, ethnically speaking, demons aren't dead," Lupe added.

"I don't need a fucking lecture on demons and the undead, chica, I just need
to know how to kill the thing that's after me."

"It helps Lupe to think out loud, senor, but if you would rather handle this
on your own... Enjoy your aguacero in the morning and be careful when you use
the retrete."

"I'm getting tired of reminding you who has the pistola, chica. Now stop
fooling around and help me."

"Please, Lupe, do as he says. His kind never escape justice anyway," Cassie
added with a frown.

"Oh? You think not, medica? Well, you might be right, but it's been a pretty
nice ride for me so far," he grinned, grabbing Cassandra by the face with his
free hand and forcing her to look up at him.

"The trick when dealing with demons (And criminals, Lupe added silently) is to
get them to play by your rules and not allow them to call the shots," the big
Spaniard said quietly, drawing the Latino's attention back to her.

"What the fuck does that mean?" Alejandro demanded, releasing the black
woman's face.

"It means that we have to lure the demon to a place of our choosing to
confront it and not let it catch us unawares," she replied.

"Lure it? How the..." His voice trailed off as he saw the way she was looking
at him and a cold sweat broke out on his brow. "No! I refuse to be the cebo
for some esquema loco that will get me killed!"

"You're already bait, Alejandro," Cassie reminded him. "This way we at least
get the locale for the fight in our favor. You asked for Lupe's help," she
said quickly when he opened his mouth to protest. "Well, here it is, take it
or leave it."

"And what if I just kill you both and keep running?" he asked, but the fear in
his eyes betrayed the bravado in his voice.

"How long can you keep away from water, pendejo?" Lupe asked bluntly. "This
thing that is after you will never give up, not until one of you is dead. And,
senor, you will die long, long before it does. This is your only chance, and
even I admit that it's not a very good one."

"What do you mean? I thought you had dealt with demons before?" he questioned.

"I have, senor, but not this particular kind of demon. Each species has its
own peculiar weaknesses and I don't know what this one's are," she confessed.
"But I do have some ideas. We'll need a large area with a stone floor, like a
deposito, for the confrontation."

"No problema there, chica," he replied.

"And it has to be some place the person the demon has possessed would know
about and expect to find you, otherwise we could be waiting for weeks for it
to show up," she added.

"I have just the place," he nodded, standing up and gesturing for the two
women to do the same. "We'll take your car, medica, since mine only seats two.
You'll drive, chica." He pointed the gun at Lupe. "The medica and I will ride
in the back, like the old amigos we are."

"Lupe doesn't drive," Cassie said.

"Well, then, the pretty chica and I will sit in the back and get better
acquainted while you drive, medica," he grinned, slapping Lupe's ass as she
walked by and out to the doctor's Chevy Nova behind Dr. Trotter.

* * * * *

Simone Stallion was in a good mood for the first time in two days. She had
just concluded a business dinner with a well-known producer who was looking to
cast a new blockbuster that had gone splendidly as far as she was concerned.
In the first place, he was a fan of her 'Vanity Flair' films, and in the
second, he wasn't intimidated by Lilith Kahira or her money. He might not have
been as wealthy as she was but he was an established player, although one not
unacquainted with being an outsider himself, since it had taken years for
Hollywood to recognize him for the visionary he was. Another bonus as far as
Simone was concerned was that he had been happily married for years and
therefore wouldn't be pawing her if she did get the part.

As Simone straightened her hair in the bathroom mirror, she thought to
herself, But, really, who could blame him if he did. She had short, dark hair,
piercing blue eyes, and a body that was the envy of every woman and the
fantasy of every man, and more than a few women. She smiled and blew herself a
kiss and then rejoined her dinner companion for a final drink.

During dinner she had excused herself and called Dr. Trotter's several times
to share the good news with Lupe but got nothing but Cassandra's voice-mail.
So on her way home she decided to swing by the doctor's club, Mortal Fembat,
to see if they were there. Even though Cassie's unmistakable car wasn't parked
in its usual spot she went in and asked if she or the big Spaniard had been in
that night and was told they hadn't heard from the doctor all evening, despite
leaving a message on her voice-mail earlier with a question about something
that wasn't terribly important but was still a matter that they expected her
to respond to as soon as she got the message.

Both curious and a little worried, Simone drove to Cassandra's house and saw
Saba getting out of her Honda as her Porsche pulled into the driveway and
parked next to a shiny Corvette. There was no sign of the doctor's Chevy.

"I thought this was one of yours," Saba remarked, indicating the sleek black
ride. Saba Trotter was an exotic beauty with lighter skin than her mother and
faintly Asian features; most noticeably her large almond shaped green eyes.
She was in excellent shape and her 5' 8" frame was well muscled, while losing
none of its feminine charms. Her ample breasts strained in their bra against a
light colored blouse while the corded muscles of her thighs and calves rippled
beneath dark nylons that protruded from a short denim skirt.

"I only drive domestic cars in my films," Simone replied disdainfully. "Rough
night at the office?" she asked, noting the bruises and scratches on the
officer's face.

"I don't want to talk about it," Saba said as she went for the police radio in
her purse. Her green eyes creased with worry when the owner's name was
reported back to her and the actress asked, "Do you know this Domingas guy?"

"He's scum. Every cop in the city knows he deals drugs and has his finger in
just about every other criminal enterprise, but no one will touch him," she
said angrily. "He's scum but he's golden."

"I've worked with producers like that," Simone nodded in understanding. "So
what's his interest in your mother?"

"Back when mom was writing the 'Nick Spanner' series, she had a sort of
business arrangement with him," she replied slowly. "He would tell her about
the life of a real criminal and she would include his exploits in her novels,
providing him with a sort of legacy. But as far as I know she hasn't had any
contact with him in years. Remember, Simone, this was before I even thought
about becoming a cop, back when mom and I were barely on speaking terms."

"No judgments here, Saba. So how do we track this creep down and rescue your
mom and Lupe?" Simone asked, secretly wondering if they wouldn't end up
rescuing Domingas from Lupe.

"Let me do some checking and get a list of his holdings," the officer replied,
flipping open the laptop computer in her car. "Then I guess we'll just have to
check each one out and hope we get lucky."

"What do you suppose he wants with them?" Simone asked, leaning over the car
door and watching Saba connect with the LAPD central database.

"I wish I knew..." the young officer replied.

* * * * *

Lupe walked around the inside of the large warehouse and nodded approvingly
while Alejandro kept Cassandra close, never lowering the gun from her side. It
was mostly empty, a few cardboard boxes and some packing materials were lying
in one corner but that was about it. She went over to a light switch on the
wall and flicked it and then smiled when the fluorescent bulbs flickered and
came to life. Her footsteps echoed throughout the building as she walked
across the cement floor back to the doctor and the drug lord. "This is
perfect, senor," she said. "I will arrange a suitable welcome for your friend
while you and the doctor get some rest."

"You must think I'm either muy estupido or loco if you think I'm going to let
you out of my sight," Alejandro laughed, shaking his head. "The medica can
sleep if she wants. Me, I will watch you, chica, to make sure you don't try
anything raro."

"Suit yourself, senor," Lupe shrugged. "I need to get some herramientas from
the doctor's car. Would you like to come with me?"

"We'll both come with you," he said, jamming the gun in Cassandra's side.

The big Spaniard growled deep in her throat but Cassie grabbed her hand and
squeezed it tightly. "It's all right, Lupe," she said as they made their way
out to her Nova. "Just stay calm and focused on the task at hand. Please?"

Lupe nodded, fighting down the anger and somehow once again halting her
transformation. But she knew that nothing could prevent it from happening when
the sun set tomorrow evening and hoped that this business would be long over
with by the time that happened so that she could be safely locked in the
doctor's bathroom, her hands secured with the silver cuffs, just to be safe.

She retrieved the battered toolbox from the trunk and the three of them headed
back inside. While Alejandro and Cassandra made themselves as comfortable as
possible the big Spaniard set to work on the metal conduits which protected
the thick electrical wires.

* * * * *

After reluctantly leaving her Porsche at Cassie's, Simone and Saba arrived at
Alejandro Domingas' private residence and were immediately suspicious when
they discovered that the front door was wide open. The pair cautiously headed
into the house, Saba in the lead with her revolver drawn, the actress right
behind her. The young officer paused in the living room and pointed silently
to the carpet, which had wet footprints leading outside on it, and then
proceeded to the sliding glass doors that led to the patio and swimming pool,
noting that they, too, were wide open.

Reaching poolside they found Deirdre's body and Saba immediately checked to
see if the blonde was alive. "Is she...?" Simone asked, kneeling beside her.
The young officer nodded. "Any idea how it happened? Was she killed?"

"It looks like she drowned," Saba said, pointing to the scummy water that had
pooled around her gaping mouth. "Only..." she cautiously stuck a finger in the
greenish liquid and then held it to her nose, "...this is salt water."

Simone stood up. "Salt water? How is that possible?" she asked. Then she
noticed that the water in the hot tub had the same sort of greenish haze. She
walked over to it and Saba followed, nodding as the unmistakable stench of
fetid ocean water hit them full force.

"The question is why would anyone fill a spa with that crap?" the officer
asked.

"I don't think they did," Simone said, kneeling next to the tub and looking
down into its swirling depths as the sullied water churned and foamed. She was
getting a very bad feeling about all of this.

Saba sighed and radioed headquarters about the body and then said, "Unless you
want to spend the next few hours answering questions and filling out
paperwork, I suggest we leave before my fellow officers arrive."

Simone nodded and eagerly left the grisly site to the police.

* * * * *

As Lupe continued to work on the electrical wiring, Cassandra, unable to
sleep, and unwilling to risk not being awake in case Alejandro should do
something to anger the Spaniard to the point that she risked changing into her
werewolf form, looked around the empty building and asked, "Why keep a bare
warehouse?"

"Call me sensiblero, medica, but this is where it all began," he replied,
gazing around as if he could see it as it once was. "This is where Sena and I
had our first taste of success when we outfoxed a rival and wiped out he and
his compañeros and took over his territory. These humilde surroundings gave
birth to an imperio, medica. And now I am truly an emperador."

"Sitting on a throne of blood," Cassie said contemptuously.

Alejandro laughed and nodded his head. "Si, medica, but isn't every empire,
every country, founded on the blood of those who both fought to create it and
those who tried to prevent its formation? Including this importante nation
itself?"

"Don't you dare compare America to your sordid little drug territory. At least
the founding fathers were working to create something precious and lasting
with the blood they spilt. You just wanted to get rich by poisoning people
with that filth you peddle," she half-snarled.

"You have lumbre, medica," he said, his dark eyes narrowing menacingly. "Be
careful you do not get burned." He stroked a finger under her defiant chin and
then sat back and grinned and nodded his head. "But you are right, medica, I
did what I did to get rich. But what's wrong with that? I grew up poor, with
next to nothing in the way of posesións and fought hard for every peso I made.
No one gave me anything, medica, not when I was a muchacho and not when I was
an hombre. I refuse to apologize for subsiguiente, medica, for achieving the
ilusión Americano when that is what everyone is striving for. Why should I?"

"Because your dream cost the lives, the dreams, of so many others," Cassie
said simply.

Alejandro snorted but his dark eyes grew thoughtful and the pair sat in
silence as Lupe continued to work.

* * * * *

Saba's Honda pulled into the parking lot of a massage parlor that was well
known as a front for one of Domingas' partner's prostitution ring and Simone
said, "No sign of your mom's car. What's the plan?"

"Go in and find out if anyone knows what Domingas is up to," Saba replied,
opening her glove box and pulling out a handgun. "Here, you might need this."

"Not much for the subtle approach, are you?" Simone asked, warily accepting
the offered gun.

"Not when my mom is in trouble," she replied, the look of grim determination
belying the concern in her jade eyes.

The two women entered the building and found themselves in a room with a
decidedly Arabian Nights motif going for it, which wasn't surprising given the
name of the establishment. A young white woman wearing a skimpy harem girl
outfit and way too much eye makeup looked up from the magazine she was reading
when they walked up and smiled a bored, plastic smile. "A twosome, huh? That's
extra," she said, indicating the large board behind her that outlined the
services offered-All legitimate enough sounding massages unless you knew the
code-and how much they cost.

"We aren't here for pleasure, sweetheart, this is strictly a business call,"
Saba said, pulling her gun and putting it under the woman's nose. "You know a
man named Alejandro Domingas." It wasn't a question. "Have you heard from him
today?" The receptionist nodded. "What did he want?"

"He just called to check on Madam Chyou," she squeaked.

"Why would he do that?" Saba demanded, nudging her nose with the gun.

Before the woman could answer, Simone inhaled deeply and tapped the officer on
the shoulder. "You smell that?" she asked.

Saba nodded. "Your boss is dead, isn't she?" The woman jerked her head
fearfully. "Take us to her body."

The frightened receptionist led the pair upstairs to the late Ms. Wai's
private quarters and the closer they got to the closed door, the worse the
smell got. When they opened the door all three women began choking from the
stench. There on the floor, lying where the horror had dropped her lifeless
body, were the remains of the madam. The smell and the puddle of foul water
confirmed that she had died the same way as the blonde. "Did you talk to
Domingas when he called?" Saba asked, backing out of the room and closing the
door, even though it didn't really do much to alleviate the awful aroma.

The young woman shook her head. "Phatyma did."

"Take us to her," Saba commanded.

The receptionist nodded and led them downstairs to a hallway lined with doors.
She walked up to one and was about to knock when Saba pushed her aside and
kicked it open. A fat black man and an attractive black woman looked up in
surprise and then scrambled for anything to cover themselves with when they
saw the gun in the Saba's hand. "You," she snarled at the man, "get lost." He
gladly grabbed his clothes and ran from the room. "You tell me what Domingas
said to you earlier today. And I mean word for fucking word, honey."

Phatyma gulped and stammered, "H-he asked to speak with...No, wait, he asked
if Madam Chyou was all right. I told him she was dead and he asked how she'd
died. I said I didn't know and he asked if maybe she drowned. I said she might
have, that there was some water that smelled like raw sewage dripping out of
her mouth and he asked if anyone had heard from Jin."

"Jin Sung?" Saba asked. Phatyma nodded. "And had you?" The prostitute shook
her head. "Did Domingas say anything else?"

"I asked him what we should do with Madam Chyou's body and he just said he
needed time to think and hung up," she replied.

"And you're sure that's all he said?" Saba pressed, not even bothering to
point her gun at the obviously terrified woman. She nodded. "Okay, you and the
other girls better clear out of here, but don't think I'm letting you go. When
the police go through the records I'm sure they'll be in touch with all of
you. In the meantime, do yourselves a favor and find a different line of work.
And I'm talking about something legitimate. Understand?" Both Phatyma and the
receptionist nodded. "Okay, now get going before I change my mind."

Both women immediately rushed down the hall, banging on doors and telling
their co-workers to clear out as they went, while Saba pulled out her radio
and called in the death. After taking some heat for finding another dead body,
she switched the radio off and Simone asked, "Jin's place?" The officer nodded
and the actress let out a long sigh. "You think he's dead, too?"

"That's what the smart money says," she replied as they made their way out to
her car through the scrambling crowd of hookers and johns.

* * * * *

Lupe stretched and put away the tools and then walked across the warehouse,
pausing to look down at the large drain in the slightly bowed floor before
reaching the corner where Alejandro and Dr. Trotter had settled in. The doctor
was asleep, curled on some packing material and snoring lightly, despite her
best efforts to stay awake. The drug lord was awake, but just barely so, his
eyelids were drooping and he constantly jerked upright as he nearly dozed off.
The big Spaniard sat down on the ground next to the doctor and Alejandro
asked, "What now, chica?"

"Now we wait," Lupe replied, laying back and placing her hands under her head
and closing her eyes. "Wake me up when your friend arrives."

"You're going to sleep?!" he snarled, waving the gun at her.

"I am very sleepy, senor," she replied, nodding her head.

"All of us can't sleep at the same time!" he growled.

"That is why I suggested you and the doctor get some rest while I repaired to
greet your friend," Lupe sighed without opening her eyes.

"Well, I didn't, chica, so now you will have to stay awake while I get some
sleep," he told her.

"Whatever you say, senor," Lupe said, sitting up and favoring him with a look
that was too innocent to be real.

"No, on second thought, that is just what you want me to do so you can escape
and get the police. I will stay awake while you sleep."

"As you wish, senor," Lupe grinned, laying back down and closing her eyes.
"Just be sure to carouse Lupe if your friend arrives before she wakes up."

Alejandro frowned but, having no choice, propped himself up and did his best
to keep from falling asleep. Which was easier than he thought it would be
since every time he closed his eyes all he could see was the horrible figure
of his ex, reaching out of his subconscious to smother him in her deadly
embrace.

* * * * *

The frightened Chinese maid who answered the door to Jin's private residence
could tell Saba and Simone nothing besides the fact that she hadn't heard from
her master all day. After a bit of coaxing/threatening, they got the address
to the warehouse he used to conduct the majority of his business. They arrived
to find it eerily empty. But when they entered the building and got a strong
whiff of the by-now-familiar smell of rotted seawater, they figured that Saba
had been right about Jin being dead. When they found his bloated corpse in the
bathroom, it merely confirmed what they already knew.

When Saba called this death in she learned that another person had died in
exactly the same way earlier that day, a young Latina named Armanda Montoya
who was Domingas' ex-partner's cousin.

"That's four deaths in one day," Simone remarked as they headed back to Saba's
car. "Someone is cleaning house."

"Barbecued hookers and drowned criminals...What's this city coming to,
Simone?" Saba asked, shaking her head as they drove off.

The actress shrugged, absently wondering which series of murders would be the
first to garner a film and which network would be the first to make a TV movie
of the case. She thought that if the Baker Man case had a satisfying enough
ending, it might even be picked up by one of the major studios. "So, what's
our next move?" she asked, pushing aside such thoughts.

"I guess we've no choice but to run down each of the properties known to be
owned by Domingas," Saba replied. "Seeing as how he thinks he's invincible,
he's just dumb enough to be at one of them."

"What do you think the connection is between him and his drowned associates?"
the actress asked, stifling a yawn. It had already been a long night and it
didn't look to be over any time soon.

"I doubt he's responsible, if that's what you're thinking. He'd just shoot
them if he wanted to get rid of them," the officer replied.

"Would he? Maybe the drownings are an elaborate ruse to cover up a good old
fashioned power play?" Simone suggested.

"Could be...But it doesn't make sense. Why drown them? And what's the
significance of the salt water?" Saba returned.

"I didn't say I had all the answers," Simone shrugged.

Saba smiled and tried not to imagine her mother in the clutches of a madman
who might or might not be responsible for the gruesome deaths of at least four
people in less than twenty-four hours.

* * * * *

She hadn't actually meant to go to sleep, but once she lay down and closed her
eyes she soon drifted into a troubled sleep. It was always this way; the
nearer the full moon, the more dreadful her dreams were. Last night's had been
no exception as she'd gleefully torn out Dr. Trotter's throat and then
devoured Simone's heart in two quick bites-Always two quick bites, even though
her dream self could easily have done it in one. She awoke with a start and
saw Alejandro grinning at her.

"You must have had some muy malo dreams, chica, the way you were thrashing
about and growling," he remarked, scratching his stubble with the muzzle of
the gun. He looked terrible. His eyes had dark circles under them and his face
was drawn and pale. If he had slept, he hadn't done so for very long and from
the looks of it his nightmares were every bit as bad as the Spaniard's. "Or
maybe you were perhaps having the ilusión erotica? You look to me like you
would be a real animal in bed."

"You have no idea," Cassie said softly. She looked the best of the three of
them, thanks to the fact that she was the only one who had been able to get a
few hours of decent sleep.

"What time is it?" Lupe asked, alarmed at how dark it was in the warehouse.

"Not late, dear," Cassandra said quickly. "Barely past sunrise."

The big Spaniard let out a deep sigh of relief. "Are you sure this thing
chasing you knows about this place, senor?" she asked, suddenly concerned that
the demon hadn't already shown up.

"She knows. This is one of those places that's hard to forget," he replied.

"But this is far from the first place she'd look for you, isn't it?" Lupe
pressed.

"You wanted a deposito, chica. This is a deposito. You didn't expect me to
interrupt my operations and bring you to one that's in use, did you?" he
asked.

Lupe rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Of course not, senor. What was Lupe
thinking?" She stood up and Alejandro aimed the gun at her and demanded to
know what she was doing. "I'm going to the bathroom, senor. Would you care to
come with me?"

He shook his head, knowing there were no windows and no way out unless one
ripped right through the wall.

"Does that offer go for me, too?" Cassie asked, getting to her feet. She
looked at Alejandro and he waved them off with his gun hand.

"I will be right here, senoritas, so don't get any ideas," he called after
them.

"He's going to kill us, no matter what the outcome," Cassandra said as soon as
the door was closed.

"Si, that is his plan. Lupe, however, has another plan," the big Spaniard
replied.

"Are you going to overpower him and take his gun?" the doctor asked, wondering
why she hadn't done so long before this.

She nodded. "But not just yet. We need him for bait to draw the demon out. If
we turn him in and it kills him while he's in jail, it might very well go on a
killing tree once its thirst for revenge has been slated. No, we have to make
sure both the demon and our friend out there never kill anyone again."

Dr. Trotter frowned but reluctantly agreed that it would be for the best to
remain the drug lord's prisoners for the time being. "But what about the full
moon, Lupe? Do you have any idea what will happen when the sun sets tonight?"
she asked.

"None whatsoever, Dr. Spotter. But I have a slinking feeling that it won't be
pleasant," Lupe replied, absently wrapping her hand around the golden wolf's
head suspended around her throat with a thick chain.

"You about done in there?" Alejandro demanded, banging on the door and
startling the two women.

"Just about, senor," replied Lupe, struggling to calm herself.

"Will you be all right, dear?" Cassandra asked.

"Si, for the moment. I just hope this demon shows up schooner than later," she
said, opening the door and walking past the drug lord without so much as a
glance in his direction.

* * * * *

Saba sleepily opened her eyes and squinted in the morning sun as she fumbled
in the glove box for her sunglasses. Simone grunted and likewise opened her
eyes, blinding herself as well. "Couldn't you have parked facing away from the
sunrise?" she grumbled, digging in her purse for her shades.

"I wasn't thinking about morning when I pulled over, Sim," the officer
replied, placing the dark glasses on and leaning back contentedly. "Believe
me, it was the farthest thing from my mind."

"Yeah, I'll bet. How about some breakfast, or at least an espresso?" she
asked, readjusting herself so she was sitting upright.

"Your treat?" inquired Saba, looking over the top of her glasses and grinning.

"Sure, why not," laughed Simone.

"You're on," the officer said, starting the engine and pulling out of the
parking lot of the last place they'd checked before the demand for sleep
overwhelmed the concern they had for Lupe and Dr. Trotter.

"So why did you become a cop anyway?" the actress asked.

"There's an old saying that people become police officers for one of three
reasons: The hurt, the skirt, or the dirt. Meaning that they either get off on
the pain, just plain get off, or get in on the corruption. Of course, once
women started becoming cops, the skirt part took on an entirely different
meaning," she explained as they pulled into a drive-thru espresso stand. She
gave the woman her order and then looked at the actress expectantly.

Simone told her what she wanted and then said, "Yeah, I get that, but I don't
buy that you joined up for any of those things," handing Saba some bills to
pay for their food.

"You want me to tell you that I did it to fight for truth, justice, and the
American way?" she asked with a sly grin.

"Something like that," the actress smiled.

"Not quite, but you're right that none of the others are the reason either,"
she said, pulling over and parking so they could enjoy their drinks and
pastries. "I did it to be more like Jessica."

"Jessica Chance?" Simone asked, raising one eyebrow questioningly. Saba
nodded. "What's she got to do with it?"

"Nothing, really, I see that now. But when I was little mom spent so much time
with her and that damn Angel Team I figured that if I was more like Jessica
she'd spend more time with me. Silly, huh?" Saba asked, gazing shyly over at
the actress as she sipped at her mocha.

"Not at all. Remind me to tell you about my own childhood one of these days
and we'll see who wins the most screwed up child award," Simone replied.

The officer nodded. "Anyway, even though I knew I didn't have to be more like
Jessica for mom to love me, I'd been planning to be in law enforcement for so
long I went ahead with it when I got old enough. And you know something, Sim?
I like it. I really do. I know I'm not making much of a difference, not on the
grand scale that Jessica is, but the people I help are real enough, you know?
Their lives matter just as much as kings' and presidents' and everyone else's.
At least they do to me," she added, taking a big bite from her danish.

"Now I know," Simone said, nodding her head. Saba looked at her curiously.
"Why you've always been one of my heroes."

The officer gasped and a tear ran down her cheeks. She looked at her full
hands helplessly and smiled at the actress.

"Hey, don't go ruining all those years of healthy dislike with a hug now,
Saba," she laughed. "So, what do we say we go find this Domingas creep and
make him sorry he ever messed with the people we love?"

"Sounds like a plan," Saba nodded, gunning her engine and tearing out of the
lot with as much gusto as her Honda could manage.

* * * * *

After an uneasy day spent waiting for the demon to show up everyone was on
edge as the sun sank lower into the Hollywood Hills. Alejandro was walking
over to the corner he'd been using to relive himself so he could keep an eye
on the pair of women the whole time, despite Lupe's and Cassandra's promises
that they wouldn't try to escape, when Lupe suddenly stood up. "At least use
the drain in the floor, senor, so we will be spared the smell..." She stopped.
"The smell...Do you smell that, Dr. Clotter?"

"I don't smell anything, except Alejandro's previous discharges," Cassie said,
wrinkling her nose.

"I smell it, chica," Alejandro nodded, zipping up his pants. "It's the smell
of the thing that killed my Deirdre. I would know it anywhere. What should I
do?"

"Make sure neither of you is standing in water, just to be safe," Lupe
replied, sprinting to the wall switch. Bare wires torn from the wall ran from
it to the grating in the center of the floor and all she had to do was flip
the switch to send a powerful electric charge into the metal. Of course, since
her entire plan hinged on the demon emerging from the grating, it naturally
arrived via the toilet.

Alejandro and Cassie screamed as it shambled out of the bathroom, arms
reaching for the drug lord, grotesque lips puckered for a final kiss.

"Run towards me!" Lupe shouted. "Across the grating!"

But both were too frightened to follow her instructions and they instead ran
close to the wall to get around the horrible thing.

Lupe ground her teeth in frustration and felt the change she'd denied for too
long beginning. "Get him out of here!!!" she ordered Cassandra, her voice low
and raspy.

Cassandra immediately understood what was happening and tried to get Alejandro
to go outside, but he'd seen the transformation beginning and stood transfixed
as a bushy tail sprang from beneath Lupe's skirt. "Madre Dios! What is she,
medica?" he mumbled, crossing himself repeatedly.

"She's going to save your miserable life, Alejandro. Don't forget that,"
Cassie said, resigning herself to the fact that it was too late to keep him
from learning the truth.

He nodded without a word as he watched the wolf-woman tear into the demon that
looked like his ex-partner.

Lupe charged the hideous form, her sharp claws raking into the gushy flesh and
tearing out great chunks, leaving horrible gashes that oozed pink pus in their
place. But the demon seemed unaffected by the awful wounds. Indeed, it seemed
to ignore Lupe completely as it continued to move toward the drug lord,
leaving large pieces of itself in its wake. Seeing that Alejandro was still in
the warehouse and that it was too late to keep her secret from him, Lupe
called out, "Move over near the grate, senor! Now!!!"

Alejandro jerked his head as if he'd been slapped as he was brought back to
the horrifying reality that this monstrous thing was trying to kill him even
as an equally monstrous thing was trying to help him, and rushed fearfully
over to the grate, careful not to step directly on it. Without a word from
Lupe, Cassie made her way over to the wall switch and waited for the
Spaniard's signal.

Lupe allowed the thing to push her aside and it advanced on limbs missing more
flesh than they contained towards Alejandro.

"Back up a bit, senor, but keep the grate between you and it," Lupe said
softly.

The drug lord did as he was instructed this time, despite the fear eating away
at his guts like a rat trapped in a cage made of cheese. The second the
thing's foot touched the grating Lupe shouted, "Now, doctor!" Cassie threw the
switch and blue tendrils of electricity snaked around the horrible figure,
causing the fetid flesh to bubble and smoke as it shook uncontrollably. Then,
before their eyes it began to melt away, the flesh running like ice cream on a
summer day, leaving nothing in its place. They all realized with a sick
feeling that it had no skeleton as the last of it dripped down the drain.

"Nice work, chica," grinned Alejandro, pulling his gun and aiming it at her.
"Too bad I have to kill you both now."

"Unless you have silver bullets in that gun, senor, I suggest you drop it
before I rip your arm off and shove it up your ass," Lupe snarled, her face a
mixture of woman and wolf that was both terrifying and beautiful.

"I'd listen to her if I were you, Alejandro, this is a very bad time of the
month for her," Cassie said with a surprisingly straight face.

Before he could reply, however, the grating next to them exploded upwards and
struck the ceiling, tearing right through it, and an enormous greenish-blue
shape emerged from the sewer entrance and glared at all three of them with
dead white eyes. "First, I take care of you," it said, flattening Alejandro
with a massive fist, leaving nothing but a disgusting stain on the cement
floor when it raised its hand, "then, I deal with you two." Both fists slammed
down but Lupe had scooped Cassie up and rushed to the wall long before they
struck the floor.

"Stay here, doctor, or better still get out of the building while Lupe
distracts our large friend," she said, glancing back at the demon with eyes
that burned with a hatred so intense it frightened the doctor.

Lupe bounded across the warehouse without giving Cassie a chance to reply and
clawed at the enormous creature.

"That pathetic tactic didn't work on my lesser form, what makes you think it
will do any good against my true shape?" the monstrous thing asked
disdainfully, casually swiping at the furry figure slashing at its middle.

"Even you must have a limit to the amount of matter you can lose before it
affects you, or maybe a weakness?" she suggested. "If I attack you long
enough, I will either reach it or find it."

"Only if you live long enough, shape-shifter," the monster replied with a
booming laugh as it swatted her away, sending her tumbling across the hard
floor. "Do you know what I am, changeling? Do you know how long I've lived? Do
you really think a lowly half-life like you can end it?"

"I think that you have lived too long, whatever you are, and that your evil
existence will end tonight," she replied, getting to her feet and leaping away
as the thing surged towards her like a living wave of corruption.

"With what? More silly electricity? All that did was allow me to shed the
borrowed form before my vow to its owner had been completed. And that was more
a favor than a hindrance, as you might have guessed," it informed her,
rebounding off the wall and rushing after her. "I am a water spite,
shape-shifter, and it was hatred that woke me and it is hatred, your own
hatred now, that sustains me. You cannot defeat that which your very emotions
nourish."

As the spite pursued Lupe, Cassandra took the opportunity to make her way to
the exit. But when she opened the door she saw with alarm that the final
sliver of the sun was disappearing behind the horizon and turned to see what
effect it would have on Lupe.

The big Spaniard suddenly stopped short and roared out in pain and confusion
as her body became even more bestial, but stopping just short of the wolf form
that Cassie had locked in her bathroom in the past. Gone were the traces of
humanity from her face, and especially her eyes, and gone were her furry
breasts and feminine curves. In their place was a hulking beast that, though
she stood upright on two legs, leaned over so far that her knuckles touched
the floor. As the horrible transformation occurred, Lupe continued to howl in
torment as her body bulged with muscle and her clothing was literally ripped
to shreds.

She turned to look at Cassie with wild eyes and a slavering jaw full of sharp,
yellow teeth and might have leaped across the building and torn out her throat
for real had it not been for the spite. The demon crashed over the beast,
engulfing her and pounding on her with half-formed fists, giving Cassandra a
chance to make her escape.

=*=

The beast that was neither wolf nor woman snarled in fury as the stench of the
Cursed One filled her nostrils, overpowering all other scents and sending her
into a frenzy of rage as she tore at the monster with teeth and claws. But the
Cursed One not only shook off her attack but actually seemed to revel in it
and somehow feed off it as she learned when the punches grew even more
powerful.

It spoke to her in its foul tongue and though she did not understand the
words, the meaning was clear enough as it batted her across the room like a
cringing whelp: It was going to kill her slowly.

But something deep in her brain cried out and reminded her of the weakness
shared by every Cursed One and she rolled away as it surged after her,
avoiding the moist hands and their crushing embrace, and circled, waiting for
her opening. The Cursed One must have recognized the danger this posed and it
was careful to keep its back to her as it swiped at her with its enormous
hands.

She was ready for that attack now, however, and easily danced out of their
reach, slashing and snapping at them as they passed for good measure. Then the
Cursed One grew angry, and in its anger it grew careless.

It lunged at her, thinking it had her trapped in a corner and intending to
pound her flat with a double-fisted assault, but the beast was no longer
there. She had used her powerfully muscled thighs to leap up and over the
incoming arms, up and over the head of the Cursed One itself, in fact, and
landed on its broad, undulating back.

The doomed monster shrieked and tried to dislodge her by rolling over onto its
back, hoping to crush her, but by then it was already too late. The beast had
thrown herself at the small knot at the base of its neck and fastened her
teeth on it before the Cursed One had finished screaming. She bit down hard
and pulled at the squishy protuberance until it broke open with a sickening
pop.

She then leapt free as the Cursed One cried out one last time before exploding
in a burst of bitter water, leaving nothing but a sickly smelling puddle where
it had been.

The beast raised her head and howled in triumph.

=*=

Cassandra slammed the door and leaned against it for support, her face resting
against the cool metal as her breathing came in ragged gasps.

"Mom!"

She wearily turned and saw Saba racing towards her. She swept her daughter
into her arms-Or was it Saba who swept her mother into her arms?-and all the
fear and terror and anguish of the past day poured out of her in a flood of
tears and thunderous sobs. "Are you all right, mom?" Saba asked, trying to
tell if she had any injuries beyond the obvious emotional ones.

Cassie managed to nod and opened her eyes and tried to smile, but then she saw
Simone approaching and her weeping renewed more furiously than before.

"Lupe?" asked the actress, fear clouding her brilliant blue eyes.

As if in response a mournful howl suddenly echoed from the building behind
them and all three women backed away as the sounds of a terrible battle shook
the warehouse to its foundations. Then a different kind of sound was heard,
high-pitched and forlorn, and then another howl, but this time clearly of
victory. A moment later the door was literally ripped from its hinges and a
slavering thing with green ooze dripping from its dark coat stood in the
doorway, glaring at them with baleful dark eyes.

Saba whipped out her gun, but Simone shook her head and walked calmly towards
the creature. "Are you crazy, Sim?!" the officer yelped as her mother tried to
restrain her from going after the actress.

=*=

The beast paused, looking at this human female and trying to recall where she
knew her from as it spoke softly and gently to her in words that she could no
more understand than the chirping of birds or the squeaking of mice. With a
savage grin she knew that whatever else this female might be she was also prey
and the beast was hungry after her ordeal with the Cursed One.

She lunged at the foolish human, claws poised to rip out her heart, but was
suddenly hurled to her back when something small and hot struck her in the
chest. She looked over and saw one of the other two females holding a small
smoking object and she whimpered when something hit her again with a loud
crack, this time in the neck.

The female she had intended to devour rushed to her side and placed herself
protectively in front of her, shielding her from the other human and her
strange weapon. The two females exchanged angry words, like the buzzing of
bees to her ears, and then the other female added her voice to the mix.

This was too much for the beast.

She stood up and grabbed the foolish female by the throat and hurled her into
the face of the one with the small but loud and painful weapon and then raced
off into the gathering darkness before either could gain their feet.

=*=

"Are you insane?!" Saba shouted, pushing Simone off her and scrambling to her
feet, hoping to get at least one more shot off, but the thing, whatever it
was, was already out of range and in a moment had disappeared down an alley.
"Well, it got away. I hope you're happy, Simone." Then she noticed that the
actress wasn't moving. "Simone?"

Cassie was beside Simone in an instant, checking her pulse and feeling for
broken bones. She looked up at her daughter with concern etched in high relief
in her dark eyes. "It's her neck, dear. I think it's broken," she said
quietly.

Saba dropped to her knees and yanked the radio from her purse and called for
an ambulance before collapsing across Simone's body in a fit of sobs as her
mother patted her back and whispered meaningless reassurances.

Case Closed

(Until next time)

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