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He sat there on the tailgate of the Blazer and watched the he saw

But he did not speak

He hated the job, of course, and he hated the place and he hated the Plan and he hated the sight of his pair of Brownings lying there beside hi to be strapped on and he hated the earnestness hich the rest of the Teaht of Jack Crow stalking about giving orders and inspiration and knowing this guy in charge was clogged tight with that suicidal half-wit philosophy about about what? "Everybody’s-got-to-go-soht-now?" or some such obscenity

But he did not speak

He just hated and sry at Crow to realize that, too furious and disgusted with that crap Crow had spouted at hi to do this shit and probably die doing it, but to have the godda this juvenile Code of Half-Ass Karma at him

As far as Felix could tell, Crow’s philosophical foundations consisted of: "Oh, well, what the Hell!"

But still, the gunman did not speak

What was the point The job was on The as ht in it, hi to stop it or save a fucking soul

And then he heard it: "Rock and roll!"

And they were going inside

Past the great glass double doors taped black against the sunlight with even that tiny notch they’d cut for the cable covered with black cardboard flaps and the rest of the inside also dark and cool and dry fro - he hadn’t realized how hot it had been outside - but in here it was like a soft, dark tomb with everytaped up to be sure they came out of the elevator and Felix understood why Jack had decided to forget those dah to see in here even with the spotlights set up at every angle they could think of and all of them, Jack and Cat and Father Adaathered in front of the surveillance monitors Carl had set up at a little coffee table in the lobby so that Jack could see theot very quiet and still with the in that air-conditioned air and watching those dark hts," said Jack calhts downstairs in the cells came on - Felix had no idea who flipped the switch, had no idea of the source of any otherdead inside of that tiny tunnel which had become his vision - and the ca the rows of bunked cells

And no one was in them They were empty

For just an instant, Felix felt an exquisite thrill of relief until Carl Joplin lifted a chubby finger to one of the screens and pointed to an unmade bunk in the corner

"There, I think," he whispered He er to another bed beside it, also un, and then back at the others’ faces, glowing in the lights from the screens, and then be looked back at the screens themselves, back at the two unmade bunks, and then he saw those outlines in the mattresses and knew the beds were unodda in them

And his fear rose and swirled up his spine

"I don’t get it," whispered Kirk "I mean, I understand it’s vampires and all that Can’t see ’ehta be able to see their clothes! I mean, it’s a scientific fact that

"Deputy," said Father Adaht shoulder, and Kirk turned around and looked at the priest

"Deputy," Adaestured to the screens "And we use it all that we can But," he whispered fir into the other man’s face, "this isn’t really about ’science’"

And the deputy eyed hi back to the screens and Felix felt another chill rise and tithin his guts because he hated, absolutely goddamn hated when the priest sounded so sure because he was always, always, right and about then Jack leaned over and around the screens for one last look, at the aquariu blood-filled and ready inside the elevator

Then he flipped a switch and the elevator doors closed and they all heard the groaning clunking as the elevator started down It seeh to wake the -

"There!" cried Carl Joplin, and his stubby finger thuain and moved away and Felix saw Streaks, outlines, ephe but with a purpose, with a pattern and direction and Felix could see them sometimes, really see them when they would move and then pause and for just a brief half second he could see them, see their outlines, see their expressions!

And they were suess," offered Cat with a very dry throat, "they smell the blood"

And just then all turned to the last e, eht-red aquarium and just then the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened and the streaks - there were three of them, clearly three, one man and tomen - moved down the row of bunks toward the elevator and

There! In the elevator screen they saw one of them appear and they could all tell, somehow - out of the corners of their eyes, sort of - that it was one of the woet ready"

"Right," Carl whispered hard in return and he was gone

Jack looked at the others

"Get in position"

And they all moved back from the screens to somewhere - Felix was too numb to really tell or reht of the elevator door somewhere and he and Jack were supposed to stay here on the left

He thought He wasn’t sure He couldn’t remember He couldn’t

"How many do you want, bwana?" Cat asked

Crow looked up at him and his face was hard "Get to your spot, Cherry"

Cat hesitated, looked at the screens, looked back at Crow "It’s just that you think we can handle more than one?"

Jack eyed hi"

Cat hesitated again, then nodded and left, the glare of the spotlights glinting brightly off the polished shaft of his pike

And then, fro counter, just visible through the huge black grille that rose fro

At first they just jumped Then they turned and looked at it Then they realized just which phone it was and then

One of the downstairs screens, the one showing the guard’s station just beyond the wide-open barred gate leading to the elevator, showed a wall phone The receiver was off the hook and banging in the air and sometimes Felix could see the outlines and sometimes he could not but he kneho it was, kneas thethem

"Suspicious sonuvabitch," muttered Crow but Felix didn’t really hear hi the open elevator and the aquariu

"God!" he whispered almost silently

But Crow heard it and looked and the two of thee of her came and went, came and went, as she threw her open lass, and even as a ghost they could see her frenzy, her hunger, her thirst

Twice, Felix felt sure he could see the fangs

Jack Crow leaned forward abruptly and closed the elevator door and started it up and growled, "Here we go, troops! Rock and roll"

But everyone knew, everyone heard the elevator Everyone kneas co and the screens showed empty quiet cells and within seconds the shrieks of pain and anger began to echo froetting to her