Bonedust

Gabriel. He swiped sweat off his brow with the back of his arm just as someone began to shout. On the back porch, two women were screaming bloody murder at each other. Their voices were loud, but too distant to pick out long sentences, though Gabriel heard various swear words. Then the dark-haired woman pulled out a pistol and aimed. The shot rang out and shattered a window and the dogs began to scream at the fence once again. Gabriel hurried past Urban, head ducked.
    Shadyside Apartments was a fitting name for this hellhole. Urban pushed a button on the intercom and it buzzed to let him in. The gate slowly slid open, catching on rocks as it drug past. Urban slipped through, pulling a set of keys out of his pocket and unlocked Apartment Twelve. He jerked his chin and Gabriel slunk after him, not liking the way the gate slammed shut with finality behind him. Still, daylight, he reminded himself.
    To give the place credit, it was nicer inside than out, with new carpet and nicely painted walls. Not that it was well furnished—there was a couch and an ancient TV in the main room, with a table with a single chair in the tiny kitchen area. Down the right, there was a narrow hall with two rooms. One of those had to be the bathroom. “So why here, of all places?”
    “About all I can afford, with child support being what it is. Kids are expensive. Take heed—don’t have any of your own.”
    “You’re getting twenty zaels on this job…”
    “Fifty, actually. You’re getting twenty.”
    “Fifty. That’s enough to buy three months of rent somewhere, well, where there aren’t trigger happy neighbors shooting out windows in your backyard.” Gabriel watched him. “If you picked up bounty hunting full time, you’d be fine.”
    Urban merely shrugged. “What’s the fun in that? I’d just get bored. I’ll get you some clean clothes. I’m gonna take a quick shower, then you can have one. Looks like you need it.” He flashed a grin and disappeared down the hall. “Make yourself at home,” he called after him and the sound of a door shutting cut off whatever else he was going to say.
    Gabriel eyed the TV, but couldn’t bring himself to sit down on the couch parked in front of it. Even if the couch looked older than he was, all scuffed and stained blue fabric with stuffing popping from holes. It just felt strange for him to be making himself at home in a stranger’s house…a sexy stranger at that. He shivered at the memory of Urban’s teeth scraping across his neck—too close for comfort, too close to Jeremie’s fangs. Hunching his shoulders, he walked around the couch to the shelf on the wall.
    Alongside a layer of dust and a couple of snake themed knickknacks were two pictures in black cheapo frames. The first picture was of a tall woman with long, white-blonde hair, tiny, intricate braids laced through with teal beads at the ends. She wore a dancer’s clothes—silks and gauzy materials, silver coins glinting at her waist. Her arm was wound around a bony little boy of about eight.
    The little boy was all knees and elbows, skinny limbs like pencils sticking out of his clothes. His hair was pale and shaded his eyes from the camera, but Gabriel knew those eyes would be identical to Urban’s. The boy was gazing off to the side, a forlorn look on his face, like the only thing anchoring him to the world was his mother.
    The picture sitting opposite the first was of a little girl sitting on a plush pillow. She was small with delicate features and big, blue eyes. Her blonde hair fell around her face in loose ringlet curls. She was grinning and it was a beautiful grin…a familiar grin.
    Gabriel found himself smiling as he picked up the picture and traced the girl’s face with a fingertip. Urban’s daughter? Had to be. He turned, picture in hand, to ask Urban if what he suspected was true, when he was stopped dead by a thundering growl. His mind jumped to Jeremie’s hellhounds, to their snarls and ebony coats.
    Heart racing, he slowly spun to face his tormentor when all he wanted to do was flee.
    The dog was large and lean, with long legs and small paws. Her coat was the color of cinnamon and marked with cream. Her tail was half as long as her body, but plush and curled up high on the beast’s hindquarters like a husky’s. Triangular ears pricked forwards, listening, and green eyes watched every move Gabriel didn’t make. Another low, rumbly growl echoed in the small apartment.
    As the dog stepped forwards,