The Book of Death (Bourbon Kid 4)

out.
    ‘Hey Gaius, according to this
bitch’s phone, the Bourbon Kid is on his way here.’

 

 
    Fifty-Five

 
    Sanchez opened the front door of
the Casa de Ville and peered out into the courtyard. Just as he feared, there
were still vampires, zombies and werewolves tearing each other apart and
spraying blood and guts all over the snow on the ground. Worryingly, there were
also quite a few of them scrapping in the space between him and the police
squad car Flake had parked near the bottom of the concrete steps below him.
Getting to the car was going to be difficult and dangerous.
    He turned back to see where the
others were. At the back of the reception area Flake was holding open a door so
that the Bourbon Kid could carry Beth through it. He had her in his arms,
resting her head against his left bicep to stop it from drooping back and
causing her any discomfort. The woman’s time on earth was limited, that much
was evident to Sanchez. She was barely conscious and seemed oblivious to all
that was going on. Lucky bitch.
    Flake let go of the door and
rushed past them towards him. ‘What’s it like out there?’ she asked.
    ‘Not too bad,’ he replied.
‘Here, why I don’t hold this door open for the others while you go start the
car.’
    ‘Okay,’ said Flake. ‘Good
thinking.’
    Sanchez held the door open for
her and ushered her out into the courtyard. She had The Book With No Name
tucked under one arm, so he figured she was probably pretty safe. As she
charged down the steps to the car, she held it up in front of her in case
anything lunged at her.
    Sanchez turned back to see the
Bourbon Kid approaching with Beth. ‘Flake’s just starting the car,’ he said.
‘It’s right out front. You head on through. I’ll cover your back.’
    The Kid peered around the door
at the carnage outside. Then he looked back at Sanchez. ‘You sure you don’t
want me to carry you out too?’ he asked.
    It was a tempting offer, but
Sanchez sensed he was just being sarcastic. ‘I’ll be okay. Come on, let’s go.’
    The Kid stepped through the
door, taking great care not to bang Beth’s head against the door’s frame.
Sanchez drew his nightstick from his belt and followed him out.
    Flake had already started the
engine on the car and was reversing it back up against the steps to ensure
their journey from the front door to the car was as short as possible. She
flicked on the headlight too which drew the attention of a few of the nearby
undead creatures. Sanchez shoved the Bourbon Kid in the back to hurry him along
in case any of the vampires or werewolves decided to lunge at him. The Kid
strode quickly down the steps towards the car. Most of the undead knew full
well who he was and steered clear of him. Sanchez took advantage of the
situation and was able to follow along behind in the Kid’s slipstream, pausing
only to thump a legless zombie over the head with his nightstick.
    They made it to the car
untouched. Sanchez rushed around the Kid to open the back door, hoping to dive
in before any vampires swooped. As he pulled the door open, he lost his footing
on the icy driveway and fell back on to his ass. The Kid sidled up and
carefully placed Beth onto the back seat of the car. He climbed in after her
and pulled the door shut behind him.
    Sanchez staggered to his feet
and saw a huge werewolf bounding across the driveway toward him. It was a big
hairy beast that had taken on the shape of a giant wolfhound. It was probably a
pure breed, born a werewolf under a full moon. The worst kind. It had great big
fangs and bloodthirsty eyes that were focussed on him. There was no sense in
hanging around waiting for the bastard to get any closer. But as Sanchez
lumbered forward to the car the beast leapt up in the air, swooping towards
him, fangs wide open, ready to take a bite out of his face.
    Luckily, Flake had seen the
werewolf approach. She reached over from the driver’s seat and flung the
passenger side door open. It hit the wolf in the face, making a sickening
crunching sound. It knocked the beast back down the driveway, eliciting an
agonised yelp.
    Sanchez needed no second
invitation and dived into the front passenger seat, slamming the door shut
behind him. He looked over at Flake. ‘Get us the fuck out of here!’ he
screamed.
    Flake didn’t really need to be
told. She pressed her foot down hard on the accelerator and the car zipped off
down the driveway. Vampires, zombies and werewolves bounced up onto the