Today I give you...The first page of Dracula Unleashed.
June 30th
“Lucifer’s
left testicle!”
A delicate snifter of the finest Juarez brandy shattered against the brand-new flat-screen
television. Radu Tepes, brother of Dracula, Master of Istanbul, raged out of
his green leather wing-backed chair to confront the news.
Umar Mernissi, were-hawk and now director of
the Consortium for Concerned Citizens, the civil rights organization Radu had
founded, looked directly into the camera, seemingly making eye contact with
Radu. “In addition, Mr. Tepes, my former boss, conspired to commit murder. In
his personal effects, I found an order to kill Lance Soliel, the still-missing
director of the Tualatin Mountain Homeless Shelter.”
“Lies. Those are all lies.” The angry vampire
gripped the edges of the TV and yelled to the man who would not stop trashing
his reputation. Shards of the ruined glass and alcohol broke the bluish light
into rainbows over their nattering faces.
“Fuck you, you tweeting birdie.” Radu flipped
both his middle fingers at the were-hawk’s talking head. “You damn well did not
find any written orders for a hit.” He jabbed his index finger at Umar’s face,
dimpling the soft LCD surface. “That command was entirely verbal. I never leave
a paper trail.”
Suck on that,
feather-brain.
