Jo's Journal

Backstory

Josephine "Jo" Masters

Uncle Joe Walt is was a career soldier, he joined the military in 1982 and retiring in 2000. He grew up on the same street as Daniel Masters, attended school together, were drafted together, but Daniel left the Marines as soon as he could, married his sweetheart Daphne Parks, and started a family. His first and only child, born in 1988 after a series of miscarriages, was not the son he had hoped for, but he named her Josephine, regardless, and always called her Jo.

Daniel Masters was a dedicated Firefighter, and lost his life in 2001, dying in a fire. Daphne taught 3rd grade, and always hoped her daughter would be a little more like her, and a little less like her father. She secretly fears her daughter is a lesbian, and what would she do, then?

Jo turned to Uncle Joe as a substitute father after her father died. Attending Wayne State University on a Track scholarship, Jo worked nights and weekends with Uncle Joe, helping him set up his shop and, later, shooting range. After graduation, she took a job full time in his shop. Since, she has begun buying her way into a partnership, with the intention that she take over when he retires.

She still runs regularly, rides a high performance motorcycle, and loves the smell of gun oil.

Chapter One: Vampires Stole My Sister

I’m so tired. When Danny and Jimmy told me about Karol, I was worried. When the cops blew us off, I was mad. But, when I saw that... that THING that took her, I was – I don’t know. I was afraid. I was amazed. I was curious.

I know that violence can have after effects. I think I would have said yes to any man that came my way last night. Now, I am just – I don’t know. Alert? Wary? I feel very alive and feel like the world just got bigger, and I got bigger and smaller at the same time.

No matter what – I ain’t ignoring this. I will be ready.

-

I woke up and read my own notes. They really don't make no kind of sense and since the world is crazy, I think my notes gotta make sense. So, I will start over. Vampires are real, and one took Karol. I don't know if I should tell Uncle Joe. I don't know if he would believe me. I don't know anything. I think I will just keep it quiet and see.

I didn't really believe it neither, at first. I mean, vampires? But, a sicko slipping a cute girl a rufie? Oh, that is believable. From there, you get two possibilities. Either he rapes her for a while and moves on in the sure knowledge that nothing will happen to him or he rapes her and kills her. Either way, I couldn't let that happen. The very thought makes so mad that I had to do something, no matter how crazy.

So, when they said vampires, I was willing to roll with it. Vampires or human monsters, we were going to do something. But, Lady D's man, Luther, he believed in Vampires, so we took his post-mortum advice and got ready to deal with the vampire. We went to the hardware store and I bought a machete for Danny. We also got some bug spray and lighters. I just hope they don't blow up in our hands. I also grabbed all my guns, then we hit the club.

I am still kinda surprised, but we found a trail. We were following along real well, too, until Danny decided to think with his dick instead of his head. The fucking show-off leaps the building to show that he could, and landed RIGHT ON THE TRACKS! Men can be so stupid! Fine. We lost the trail, but we had a kind of heading and there was really only one place he could have gone and it went right through one of those rare pockets of civilization in Detroit, so we started asking questions.

Lady D and Oz got distracted by nostalgic bling, but I found a kid who told me about Super Whitey. Since Jimmy and Danny (and the trailed we followed until SOMEONE ruined it) said he did parkour, it sounded like our perp. Perp. I am saying perp. This is crazy, but what else can I say? Bad Guy? A little over the top. Asshole? Too general. Target? A little too real.

We found his building and the entrance was a few stories up. Danny showed off and the rest of us climbed. Lady D stayed in the car, waiting to push SEND on a 911 call and Oz came along to keep us maniacs from killing a pathetic bum. Expect, he was a vampire. And he saw me coming. I need to work on that. But, he really was a vampire, not some extreme goth rapist. I mean, I shot him, and I might as well used BBs for all the good it did. The flaming bug spray? That worked. I am still not sure how it all went down - it was so fast. But, Danny got hit bad and I shot a can and it blew up and then he mummified or rotted or something. I mean, he went from fresh corpse to cold case just like that.

We grabbed Karol and there were two other girls and Oz fainted and we carried him out and put them in the car and the rest of us walked a bit and took a cab because we didn't want to be there when the cops that Lady D called arrived.

And, he was a real vampire. And I don't know what that means.

But, I am NOT a victim. Never again. And I sure as hell ain't food. So, this bloody juice box is gonna figure this out. I will find out what is out there and learn how to kill them. I can do this. I learned how to kill men, it should be easier to kill monsters. I won't have to worry if I am mistaken, cuz they're monsters. And I am not food.

Chapter II: From Victim to Vampire: Magdalena

We went down to Lady D's for dinner and a basement. Danny still looks like hell and me and Uncle Joe told him he has got to learn to shoot. He went on about how they would have to catch him and it was so stupid. You can't outrun a bullet. And, I don't think he could outrun a vampire, neither.

I give him a lift and I slip some money to Robert cuz Lady D won't take it and we have dinner. Lady D didn't want to talk about vamps and I don't blame her. I didn't either. Except I did. It's like something so gross you stare at it while wishing you had never seen it. But, we finally went downstairs and the door was a helluva door. I mean, it looks like wood but is metal and I think our range is less secure than those room.

Someone had been there. There was tools missing and books and a map and Robert knew something. He told Lady D he hadn't but he had and she believe him until he fessed up and then she was mad. I would be, that's sure. And I was. Oh, that room made me mad.

There's a picture that Lady D found on the desk. It had Luther and a college guy and a woman in it with this man-bear thing. And it had Jimmy's dad and mine.

Dad wasn't a hunter, he was a Hunter. And I just don't believe in that much coincidence.

Luther and Dad and Jimmy's dad died within 6 months of a each other. No way. And Robert knew. And his wife knew. And she died of it. Like 6 vampires killed her. And Lady D looked like she wanted to kill Robert.

Robert made weapons and he said he hadn't really known anything, just made them. And he didn't do the ammo. The weird ammo. Rock salt. Mistletoe. Mistletoe ammo. And Uncle Joe came home a year before Dad died. And them bullets look like our work. And I think Uncle Joe was in on it, so I grab one and Danny tags along with a cross-bow he wants to play with and we go and Uncle Joe says it's his work but he don't know nothing.

I think he is telling the truth. I know I want to believe him. But, Lady D believed Robert and he was lying to her. He told me he didn't want to know nothing, and I can't decide if he is covering his ass or he knows and doesn't want to admit it.

I left so mad and upset I didn't know what do to so I made Danny teach me a little parkour until I wasn't so mad. We worked a little on his cross-bow but that boy is just a natural. He starts by hitting the bulls-eye so I took my gun and shot a few places and he was able to match my hits with his shots.

I'd hate him if he wasn't so sweet. I worked my ass off to be a solid shot and he just picks up a cross-bow and goes all Olympian.

-

Oh, shit. I just got a text and I forgot. I forgot what Jimmy told us yesterday. Magdelena's body got snatched. And what if she is a vampire? We gotta check it out. Cuz she might be a vampire, and it might mean that Sadie and Karol are gonna turn and what would we do then?

-

So, I go over to Lady D's place and she acts like it is a social call and makes with the sandwiches. I guess that's how she copes. Maybe I should teach her to shoot, too. She asked me about Danny and went on about how good an athlete he is. I told her that he will be a good shot someday. I just didn't say that day was today. I know it's irrational, but pisses me off how easy he makes it look. But, since Magdelena's body is gone, I wish he had been there.

I called Clara and asked about her body, and she told me that it got swiped and the assistant is dead and it looks like his throat was cut or torn out. And it pisses me off. We saved her, but it was too late. And now we have to go hunt this sweet girl down and I just hope she is a monster now because if she is a confused baby monster I don't know how I will kill her.

I just couldn't sit there like Lady D and read some books so I go to the hospital and waste my time there. That place is stupid big. I got lost and walked around in circles for a while. Then, I finally got smart and found the morgue. There are almost no cameras in that hospital. None. But, I found the staff exit near the morgue and I figure she went that way, so I text Jimmy and he says that a witness saw her in the 'hood near by.

We meet up and start pounding the pavement and spreading some green. I found a homeless guy whose shoes got snatched and it might be Magdelena cause she was seen barefoot in scrubs. After that, I wasted my time and money learning jack. Shit, I really wanted to find her before dark, but it don't look good. Lady D and the rest come and she give us some more cash and we were doing okay until Oz tries to talk street and I have to convince the guy not to beat the crap out of him. I swear, how stupid can you be?

Meanwhile, Lady D is going on about Danny and what a sweet guy he is and how good an athlete. What set that off? I guess she just scared and tryin' to make it okay with chatter. She really is a sweet lady, even if she is real sad, too. But, she got a shitty deal with her man dyin' and then we find out about vampires and her Becca and I don't really blame her for getting crazy.

And Becca, that still hurts. We were tight, ya know? Me, and Becca, and Rebecca used to be better than sisters. Becca was so smart and driven but taking on vampires alone ain't smart. I guess she figured she had her man but I wish she came to me. But, I wasn't me yet, neither. I was still a mess after that night and she likely thought I couldn't handle it. But, she knew. She knew about Dad and didn't tell me. And, I am still mad. I had a right to know, and she goes off and dies and I am mad at her over it.

I don't have time for this shit.

And it's getting dark and we have a whole lot of nothing. Well, I finished my coffee and better get moving again. This vampire isn't going to come find me, after all, and I need to find her before she kills again.

Chapter II, Part Two: Vampire Triumvirate

Well, I guess I know why Lady D was goin’ on about Danny being sweet. See, when we tracked down Magdalena, we found her in a Catholic church and tried to talk to her. She was really confused, didn’t really know what she was doing and what it all meant.

That woulda been plenty bad, but three older vamps crashed the party. One looked like a kid, maybe 14 – Miles. Another was a chick called Shauna. I don’t remember the other’s name – he died fast.

They saw us, see, and knew we were hunting for M. So, we tracked her and they tracked us. When we talked to them, I thought they were offering to vamp us out and I said, ‘No.’ Looking back, though, they was gonna kill us all, just wanted to have some fun with us first.

So, the chick and the nameless guy come in and change and Oz dont’t pass out (good) and runs off (bad) with Lady D (no surprise). The third guy stays out and I am thinking that he cannot come in. So, one of them makes a grab for Danny but that boy can move when he wants to. So, Jimmy shoots him and it does no good. I shoot him some more and the silver smoked a little. I was hoping for combustion but I will settle for not healing over. Then, Danny pulls that cross-bow and wham! The vamp and the quarrel go up in smoke, though we get the head back later. Yuck.

So, Miles-the-Door-Vampire tells his girlfriend to get out there and they will torch the place. She jets and we all inside need a plan. I can’t see Lady D and Oz but I be lookin’ around for trouble and I find it in the second story window. I think the burning jibe was a threat to get us outside where Miles can get us, ‘cause it takes TIME to smoke a building like this one and I don’t think they come prepared.

So, I shoot at Peeping Shauna and she drops out of sight again. Theres a lot of noise outside and I find out later that Lady D, hearin’ about burnin’ buildings falls for that shit and ran outside. Miles goes meep and tries to kill her. I guess she can move, too, cause he don’t lay a tooth on her, but he slices Oz real good when he runs out to rescue her.

Then, that bitch Shauna runs in and – look, it is – I can’t explain. I knew it was bad news, but her touch; it was the best drug ever. It’s like an orgasm while going down on dark chocolate. I couldn’t think, didn’t wanna think. Even when she BIT the HELL out of my NECK it didn’t matter too much. But, it mattered enough and I come to and she is using me as a human shield while taking a snack! That is fucked up.

I try to get away but she be strong and I kinda lose it. ‘Cause that is fucked up, ya know, to take away my will and – I don’t wanna talk about that. She’s dead and I’m alive and fuck her and her kind.

Anyway, this is all about Danny, really. So, I am slow dancing with Sucky Shauna and he finally gets his crossbow reloaded and shouts, “Let go of my Jo!” And shoots her right over my shoulder in the face. I could smell and lemme tell you, burning vampire is nasty. But, see, I think Danny is sweet on me. And what am I gonna do about that? And why don't he say nothing to me?

Anyway, she don’t let go and Jimmy tries to do that same with my shotgun that I done dropped when – when I dropped it. Well, maybe true love or true crush or whatever got power ‘cause Jimmy shoots me instead. Asshole. I know he meant well but, really?! Still, I woulda told him to shoot anyway cuz we was dead if they don’t kill them and better I die than us all die. But I ain’t gonna tell him that!

So, Jimmy shoots me and then Oz comes back with that stupid sabre and cuts half her face off. Well, she finally lets go and I think I am in shock because all I can think is that I need to call 911 and can’t remember how to do it. Then, Lady D runs back in from wherever with a candle jar and dumps holy water on that bitch and, foom! She goes up in flames and Oz cuts off her head. Miles runs inside and now I know why he stayed out.

When I was a kid, I read these old Kool-Aid comics. There was the Kool-Aid Man, a buncha kids, and a brother named Scorch. When he walked, his footprints burned the ground. Miles went Scorch and runs in like a crazy super-villain. Jimmy takes a shot at him and we lucky he don’t kill us all. Man needs more practice and I am to tell him so! I get my head in gear and pull out my Glock. I hit (thank you very much, Jimmy) but it ain’t silver and don’t do jack. He streaks over to Oz and – I think Oz almost died. A little lower and it would have got his gut. A little higher and it woulda hit an artery.

Jimmy finally gets his ass in gear and shoots that fucker and he goes up like a roman candle. I grab Oz’s sabre and hack at him until his head falls off. It took a long time. When I look up, Lady D has the church’s First Aid Kit and is working on Oz while Jimmy tries to patch up Danny. Lady D come over and they get him stable and I call Uncle Joe and tell him we headed to the hospital. Lady D gets on the horn and starts wailing about gangs and violence and a buncha bullshit. When we arrive, the only thing missing is a red carpet.

Danny and Oz and me went in to surgery. I got a private room for a few days and Danny and Oz hung out in the ICU. We all got guards. Seriously, I had a uniform outside my door day and night while I was there and had to get permission to see Danny and Oz. I guess Uncle Joe told the cops that we was comin’ and set it up.

It is real helpful to have friends on the force and don’t let no one tell you different.

The cops wanted to know what happened and I talked vague. You can get away with that when you're on the good drugs. They sent me a sketch artist and I gave the best descriptions I could. It is real useful to know that the bodies take care of themselves. There is no better lie than the truth, after all. Mama come by and she upset. I couldn't tell her what happened, not really. I don't like keepin' it from her but she don't wanna know. If she knew about Daddy she woulda said somethin' when I got bit like that.

And I was mad at Becca cuz she didn't tell me but I can't tell no one. How do you explain that the boogie man is real?

I been spending my spare time over at St. Florian's. I need me all the help I can get. If holy water worked for Lady D then maybe a little rootwork be good for me.

I be practicing practical shooting. Screw competition style, I need to be ready. I been working on getting my gun out and ready quicker. I am real lucky to have Uncle Joe to teach me.

I been having some nightmares. And the worst don’t feel like nightmares till you wake up. I dream of that touch, the ecstasy of it. I ain’t never tried X but I bet it don’t compare. I hate those dreams. What kinda sick fuck dreams about being eaten by a vampire?

Chapter III: Black Betty

I couldn't take it no more, so I decided to talk to Lady D. I really should be talkin' to Mama, but I can't tell her about hunting, so I can't tell her about the rest. She was real good about visitin' me, and would bring me goodies what she snuck past the nurses.

I just wanted to talk to her about Danny but I couldn't make any sense without getting into that night. I asked her if she ever did drugs, and she told me in her way that, yes, she had, but it was the 70s and everyone did. I think she was worried about being a bad example for me, but I ain't never really been into drugs.

But, I told her about the vamp, and that night, and I about freaked talkin' 'bout it. But, she didn't look at me like that. Anyway, I told her I never thought about Danny like that, or anyone anymore, really, and I didn't want to be unfair to him. She thinks I should just tell Danny about that night and why I am scared. And, I think she be right. 'Cause I have to trust Danny. Danny, and Jimmy, and Oz, and Lady D have to be more than friends, more than family. We gotta be tight, and if I can't trust Danny, I might as well go dig a hole and pull it in after me, 'cuz I got no chance at life.

I want to talk to him, but it has to wait 'til Oz don't share a room with him.

So, I go back to work and I spend a lot of time practicing. I felt like a Wild West gunfighter, makin' with the quick draw. But, I think it's payin' off. I been gettin' better about making a quick and accurate aim down the range. Then, Jimmy comes in with a new cross-bow he built. It loads like now and is real accurate, too. I still prefer a gun, but it ain't too shabby!

That cross-bow made Uncle Joe suspicious and he starts givin' me the third degree and I tell him that he can't keep his head in the sand and have answers, so he's got to choose. We went back and forth and he finally asks for it strait, so I tell him that vamps are real. He starts to gimme shit but stops before I have to slap him. He asks me for proof and I tell him what I saw, what happened, and he says I sound like my dad. I'm like, duh, I got it from him, really.

He don't really believe me but he tells me I ain't going out with what I think will be helpful, so he is gonna make me some silver bullets for my Glock. Good thing, too, 'cuz the hospital bill wiped me out. If I didn't live with Mama, I would be worried about making it through the month.

Then, Jimmy got this text from Karol and she be freaked at somethin' in the yard. So, he drives me over and we look around, but all we find is a 'coon. We go inside to talk to her and she be scared. I make her some cocoa and try to calm her down. I don't want to tell her she seein' things, 'cuz maybe she ain't. I offer to let her sleep at my house, and she say no. And I offer to teach her to shoot, or hook her up with some self-defense classes, but she freaked at the very idea. We need to look at what happens to folk who brush the monsters. She don't really remember it as vamps, but it is still eating at her. I dunno if it is just a bad night or all the time. Jimmy be too dense to notice, so I gots to talk to her mama.

I go home after telling Karol that we gonna run next morning, but I get a message from Oz about ghosts in the hospital and so Jimmy takes me to Lady D's and we do some research. It was kinda boring and kinda awesome. Jimmy is crazy organized and we plowed them books deep.

Ghosts unlive a loop, haunt their death, or stuff, or important places and have unfinished business. Or just a nasty death. I bet there be a ton of ghosts in Detroit. I bet we out-numbered. And, that scary because they hard to hurt. Salt and iron help, but won't hurt them. You have to dig up their nasty ass and burn it. Or their thing that holds them... hook? Anchor? Exorcism don't really do anything - DEMONS?! - but you can kinda therapize them and get them to cross. And a whole buncha stuff, but it looks like you have to know the ghost to really do anything to it.

Lady D sent the boys a bag of cookies and a box of salt. I hate being here when they are there, but it sounds like I can't do nothing until we know more, and we have to hit the library or paper archives to get any dirt on Black Betty. So, we going to sleep and try again tomorrow. I hope they okay 'til morning.

Chapter III, Part Two: Salt and Fire

They were fine. Oz put his foot down and was out of there first thing. I went with Lady D and we went to get him. Lady D managed to sweet talk a doctor into playing nurse and I had a very awkward run in with Becca and Jessica. Wookie (for real? Wookie?) heard that Oz was getting out and told Becca to pick her up. Becca came but brung Jessie the Shrink. That woman is a crazy control freak. She wasn't there a minute before she was calling everyone irresponsible and telling them to move the the suburbs.

She makes some snarky comment about Oz needing a shrink and I blurt out that, even if he does, she can't be one to him. Everyone looked at me and I was sure it was gonna explode. Thank God, Lady D shows up right then and puts Jessica in her place. She grabs Oz and leaves; I stayed behind.

I wanted to have a chance to talk to Danny, but I couldn't. I just couldn't. So, after an hour of awkward boredom, I went to the Central Library and hit the books. Or, rather, the "Microfiche" room. Damn. If it had been modern technology, I would have felt old. Instead, I just felt stupid. I finally got a librarian to show me how the stupid things worked and made some progress.

Basically, that hospital been trouble since the mid-60s but the trouble stopped around Y2K. And, I found Black Betty. Dorris Carter was a nurse in the 50s, and she vanished one night. Other than her vanishing, nothing. But, the police were told, and so I called Clara. She got me access to Cold Cases for a dog biscuit and some time on the Range. Good people, Clara.

I thought the library was bad, but the cold case files were just that - files. Dusty, dirty, out of order, and not properly cataloged. I might have gone nuts, but Jimmy met me there. I think he must be descended from Mary Poppins, because he brought order to that chaos just be showing up!

We found out about Dorris, and it was fucked up. Hospital was being worked on and construction workers was buggin' the nurses. They told the cops but they didn't care. So, when Dorris disappears, they make up some piddly ass file and move on. But, Lady D calls her minions at the hospital and gets the history of construction and repairs on the hospital, with freakin' blue prints!

We figure she was killed and walled up in the basement. So, we grab the Ghost Gear - Salt, Iron, and Thermite - and head out. Danny and Oz stay behind, cuz they still injured, and Robert comes along. I never thought so well of him. He don't sneak for shit, but when he got caught, he gave the guy a line of bullshit and had HIM apologizing for bothering Robert!

We get down there, and it is a pit. No proper lights, dirty, musty, moldy, and would be the perfect haven for terrorists. Or, it turned out, Vampires. We found the lair of those three we capped. We also find some creepy books that I picked up.

And we found my Dorris woke up recently. There was some kind of binding done there, Dad and his gang, I bet, and it was messed up. They painted it in blood. I don't know if it was animal or human, but it was broke. So, we lookin' around for clues, and I don't know what I am looking for and I can't stop thinking about talkin' to Danny.

Then, Lady D gets out of her car and comes down here to look at the blood! Crazy woman knew she didn't belong - Dorris was killed by white folk and killed them right back. Half the reason we didn't bring Oz and Danny was that they White! Well, three guesses who shows up? Yeah, Dorris the Ghost tries to kill Lady D and we drive her off.

Over and Over. Yeah, salt works, but only for a second or two. She just keeps coming back, I'm standing in that salt hula hoop, and tryin' not to hit my crew. Robert starts poundin' on a wall and the opens it up and finds Dorris the Ghost and Dorris the Corpse. She screeches and she throws the wall at us. Lady D finished her salt circle but the bricks aint' impressed.

We torch the corpse and the ghost kinda catches fire and then she be gone!

It weren't right. Her death was wrong and she didn't get no justice. Course, neither did her victims, I guess, but it just don't feel right. Killing them vampires, that felt solid. Dorris? That was just sad.

We lit outta there and believe you me, Lady D is gonna hear about this one.

And, I still gotta talk to Danny. Shit.

Chapter IV: The Detroit Sewer Beast

I am such a fucking coward.

I have been hiding for two months. Am I hiding from monsters? No. I am hiding from someone who cares about me. And, I just can’t stand to think about it too much. Except I can’t stop, neither.

Okay, so a couple of months ago, Lady D tells me that Danny has a crush on me. Okay. So, I wanted to talk to him about it, but then the whole Black Betty thing happened and things were crazy. Danny and Oz still had tons of doctor visits, and Lady D goes on vacation before I can bitch her out, and the longer I waited the worse it got.

And, I really have been busy. I been spending time with Clara and Blackjack. I feel safe enough to go out at night with her around. I even gave her a cropped photo of Mr. Harvard and Ms. Flannel and she been running it through the system looking for matches. I been shooting and checking yearbooks and hiding.

I was invited to Danny’s birthday, and I just couldn’t blow that off. And, he has been looking for students and trying to get ahead. So, I go a little crazy and I buy him these stupid expensive shoes. Then, I buy him a trinket and give him that in front of everyone. I wanted to give him those shoes, but his ex was there, and his sisters, and I didn’t want to get into it.

So, I use my pre-fab excuse and leave early. But, I drop them shoes in his room where the will find them. But, the fool is afraid they left by fairies and won’t wear them. Meanwhile, he spends what little cash he got and buys me this little ship made of old casings. And, I ain’t even thanked him yet!

Well, I out of excuses now. And I think I need to pay more attention, cuz Uncle Joe is trying to hid shit from me. We was at the range and he tries to hide a news story. And I miss it. I know the man better than anyone, and I miss it. But, everyone else in the room notices.

Some poor lady got torn up. Marisa Dawson. In lots of pieces. It was sick, and not in a good way.

So, next day we hear Lady D is back and she is saved by the dismemberment. We meet up and I bring some food and, damn it, it’s Danny’s favorite: Strawberry Shortcake. What the hell is wrong with me? I am a strong and confident woman. Except I really chicken shit. Damn it.

We wanna check it out so I call Clara. She done had the worst day and really needs a drink. We go to the Blue Light and she is ready to unload. I don’t really need to ask much, just listen and respond like you do.

So, whoever done it done it quick. Like 30 seconds or some shit. No footprints, missing pieces, and a smell that Blackjack don’t like but can’t ID. Clara be spending time in the sewers. Nasty.

Next day her names in the papers, and we be wanting to coroner’s report. And my crew is all idiots. They say we gonna break in and steal the report. No, I am not breaking in to the forensic institute. So, then they want Jimmy to hack it. That is stupid. Jimmy knows cars and building shit, but he ain’t a computer specialist and the cops sure got one.

I hoping to get the goods off Clara, but I gotta be subtle. We ain’t technically broke no laws, but the law might not agree. So, I’m not sure what we gonna do, and maybe his ain’t our show, but we gotta check. Me and Danny go to the park with her. And I need to kill all my “friends.” They KNOW I don’t wanna be around him, but they go and make it impossible not to take him. So, I text them all and let them know what I am thinking: I hate you all. Fucking die. And Oz done changed Lady D’s settings to read her messages out loud as soon as she gets them. So, what does Danny hear? Yeah. Even Clara seems like she is in on it - I tell her I am bringing a friend, and she really wants to know: Boyfriend?

Oh, and we got Mr. Harvard. He is some professor dude named Mark Lindstrom, used to work at Wayne State, but left in 2001. He was arrest lots for trespass and once for carrying, but never got charged. He wrote a bunch of books, but none since 2007. I wish it was me what found him but it was actually the guest book from the funeral. I don’t know if he alive or dead. Whatever got Dad and the rest didn’t get him then, but who knows.

And, we have a name for Flannel, too. Gail.

Chapter IV, Part II: Tales from the Cryptid

Me and Danny met Clara at the park and Blackjack didn’t like him. Danny, the idiot, runs for it and Blackjack takes him down. Clara gets him off and Danny was off his head. I mean, he was fetal and yelling at me to run. He goes off a bit and and Clara asks me if he has drugs on him.

The idea is crazy. Danny? I mean, Danny?! Next thing I know, I am calling him Captain America and she is talking about his ass and - damn. He does have a mighty fine ass.

Focus, Jo. Okay, so Danny comes back and I am sweating - literally and figuratively - trying to think of a natural way to get her to talk. Well, things did get awkward after Danny so I made a show about asking about the murder. She don’t know much, and don’t want to. She called it Black Cat and that it is the kind of case you kinda get as a punishment. And that an officer Jacobson used to request them, back in the day. Stan Jacobson. Jimmy’s dad. Holy shit.

Then, I get real clever. I mean, damn, am I good. She was kinda talking about it and didn’t know much and then she says she figures it was an animal. I say I don’t believe it and bet her $20 she is wrong. She up and goes to her car, prints out the coroner’s report and tries to claim the prize.

She wrong, though. There is a tiny bite, maybe an animal, and a bunch of cuts more like from blades. But, she gives it to me to try and prove it and I read the whole thing. Then, I give it to Danny and ask him to arbitrate and he reads it over and agrees with me.

Then, we gonna leave and the bitch gives him her card and offers to fix tickets for him.

So, we leave and he mentions his friend Mike and a pair of shoes. I open my big mouth and tell him to wear the fucking shoes and he goes all moral on me and I tell him Mike didn’t give him those shoes. And he gives me a look and I say some stupid shit about elves and figures it out, turns bright pink, and thanks me. I can’t stand him looking at me, so I call him an idiot and walk off. And, the idiot agrees with me.

Well, we went back to Lady D's and she had been over at the university. She found an history professor who used to work with Mr. Harvard and got him to spill. His wife died, and he got really interested in hunting. And switched his focus from kings and warfare to folklore. Yeah. It is amazing how transparent it is to me, but he didn't see a thing.

Well, he lost a leg in an "accident" in 2001. I guess he is one of the lucky ones. I wonder if it was before or after dad died. Hell, it might be in the news - losing a leg is kinda a thing. Lady D got smart and ordered all of his book, but she did it like last century - she went to a bookstore. We won't see them for weeks. I love the woman, but seriously?

Danny and I told our story and I wish I could say I remembered the details from the coroner's report I got out of Clara, but I can't. See, Danny had just finished his OJ and was licking a drip off the side of his wine glass and, well, I got real distracted. I kinda wonder if I should just bang him. Maybe that would fix me. I mean, I either like it and keep him, or I don't like it and I am over him. Isn't that a win-win? I don't know, but this ain't gonna work, long term. I need a plan. I just wish I could ask someone who didn't desperately want me set up with him. I need a disinterested confidant.

So, we hashed it all out and sat down with the police scanner and a pile of books. Since there was a bite, we went looking for info on something called cryptids. That sounds like a bug in a tomb to me, but I guess they are weird animals. Like Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster. I am really smokin' hot at this research, too. I feel like I am miles ahead of everyone else. Whatever this fucker is, when I meet him, I will end him.

Chapter IV, Part III: Clara, Danny, and a Literal Cesspit

There. I done called Stefan. I gotta talk to someone about this shit. And how messed up is that, that I be more worried about Danny than the freakin' Sewer Beast. Seriously. Sure, SB is dead, but scary monster of myth and legend should really be more concerning than whether I go on a date or not.

Okay, so we after we hear the murder on the scanner, we head out. I am just sure Clara's gonna catch me and what will I tell her? I even suggest getting' some burgers nearby, just so I have an alibi. But, we don't. We find the spot, climb and building, and look down.

Danny swears it is a simple case of ganger-tug-of-war. I can't see shit. But, since we think it hit the sewer after the last hit, we find ourselves a nice storm drain that is not in the police perimeter and take a look. There some blood, and Oz takes a sample. Danny fumbles about and just about shouts something - I don't even know what. Heck, I started thanking him for it. I mean, if he stupid, maybe I get over him. I must have thanked him three times last night.

And, who is there and hears his noise? Clara and Blackjack. Of course. Any other officer wouldn't have been too bad, but its Clara. Danny makes terrified "nice doggie" noises and Clara tells BJ to be nice. She starts in on me and Oz starts in on BJ - even tries to give him some jerky. Clara and I both yell at him and I take the jerky. And Danny eats it. And Blackjack whines. And Clara ain't distracted.

So, she is puttin' it together. I got the report out of her and now I am here. She wants the truth and I just don't have it in me to BS Clara. I mean, not only does she got cop powers, but the woman is my friend. For now. So, I tell her I will tell her, but she ain't gonna believe me and I don't wanna do it here. She agrees and we tell her the cops need to be in this alley. She sees the blood and asks if we done touched anything. None of us are that stupid, so we skate and she brings over the cops.

I spend the night trying to think what I can tell her that be true but can't get me arrested. I decide that Black Betty is the best shot. No bodies, even creepy quick-desiccated bodies.

Next day, I get the call and come over. She asks me what is what and I tell her I think there be monsters in Detroit. Real ones. I show her our research and tell how, at the hospital, we saw a ghost. She is sure I crazy. I guess that is better than sure I am a homicidal criminal, but it hurts like fuck. I mean, my friend ain't gonna be my friend for long, I think. I didn't even realize it, but I really like her. And she be gone, or good as.

I babbled some shit about Dad and Jimmy's dad and she tells me to keep away from her crime scenes (duh) and that if I want to go into the sewers hunting animals, that is my business, but no vigilante work.

So, we decide to hit the sewer. What else can we do? We grab some fisherman gear, headlamps, and thank you Danny for the Vicks. Then, that asshole asks me to dinner. I am half-way down a storm drain on a monster hunt and he asks me to dinner! What is wrong with him?! Do I NEED this kind of distraction? Does he think this will help?!?

So, we head and I am chalkin' the walls as we go and we see claw marks and I think they were territory marks - like dogs and shit. She wander for a few hours and then we see this cesspit. And I could have lived a happy, fulfilling life without ever know that those are literal and smelling them for myself. And Danny points and there it is. Not scaly, but kinda hide-y. Crocodile face and nasty claws. And I shot it. That bugger is fast and I only graze it. I wanted to use fire - I was sure that fire would be best, but all I had was that canned flame. I clearly need to have a Molotov cocktail on hand when I am hunting.

We all shot it some, and then it mauls Jimmy real good, so we shoot it some more. And it heals. With fire. So much for vulnerable to fire. Then, it runs up, grabs Oz with his jaws (hey, that rhymes. maybe I should start doing some poetry slam to let off steam?) and pulls him into the cesspit. And they all trashing around and he is screamin' to shoot it. But, it was Danny that got the bastard. Oz gets free and Danny goes all Hunger Games on it and shoots it through the eye.

And it turns to stone and sinks. And we lit out of there and Danny patched everyone up and bathed them in antibiotics and downright ruined all his work on me unliking him. Badass.

We can't tell no one that the threat is over and can't prove nothin', either. All we got is a statue with a few bullets and an arrow in it. So, we get out and get hosed off and shower. And shower. And shower some more.

And, then I call Stefan, cuz I don't know what to do no more.

Chapter V: Possession is 9/10 of the Murder

Is is it better or worse be to dating a guy who doesn’t realize he is dating you than to not date him at all?

I talked to Stefan, and he say go for it. He asked if Danny would respect me and my boundaries and, well, duh. Danny is about the sweetest, most responsible guy ever. Frankly, that is probably why I never noticed him before. He don’t brag, and even when he is being awesome, he all matter-of-fact about it.

So, we start doing coffee. And, the man doesn’t say a thing. I figured if I started paying attention to him and spending time with him, he would realize I was interested in him. Without having to say it, you know. Well, that ain’t working. He is happily drinking lattes and never says or does nothing. I swear, if it weren’t for those two times and that gift, I would wonder. But, damn it, you can’t fake that shit.

I even made him pretend to be my boyfriend - and Lady D upgraded us to fiancees - when scoping out that house.

Oh, wait. Damn, how messed up is it that I am writing about my boy problems when we might have a murderous, possessing spirit floating around?

Okay, so Oz has a friend. And, man, she as much a freak as he is, but she thinks there’s a Something on her block that made her neighbor kill her man and baby. Damn. That’s bad shit. So, she calls him and he calls us and we get involved because she got a chill before it happened and got another chill at another house with a mom, dad, and kid.

So, we make up a plan and act like folks gonna buy a house. We nose around the neighborhood and use that to get into the house. And, the house was live. I mean, the EMF was crazy and while I don’t know shit beyond the packaging, it ain’t normal. But, the whole time, we are playing couple in love and it was so… real.

I am supposed to be looking for ghosts and shit, and I just want to kiss Danny and then it all goes to pot. Danny sees something - I don’t, of course - and Lady D has a fit, and we get very politely kicked out.

And, Lady D found Harvard Lindstrom through his publisher and that woman be scary. She twisted his arm like a pretzel and made him grateful for it. I have never heard the like. I guess that the real difference between her and me. Damn.

Well, we get an address and phone number and we drive over. And HL is paranoid like woah. He got salt, and weird occult shit and made us cut ourselves before he would stop pointing his shotgun at us. I guess "Cuckoos" - maybe changelings? - don’t bleed right. We get some advice and, damn it, Oz is right about staying in at night. At least according to Paranoid HL.

So, he tries to tell us to stop Hunting, that we gonna get killed. Maybe so, but how can we stop? Something has it coming for Rebecca and Dad. So, we say no and he gives us a Hunters FAQ. Then, Danny tells him he saw some shadow and he say shadow means spirit and they are hard. They can be about anything. Demons, they be simple. Throw a little Latin at them, maybe some holy water, and poof! He give us a book and Lady D about drools ‘cause her man wrote it.

So, now we have to figure out what this thing it and what to do about it.

And, I gotta figure out Danny. I think I being stupid, again. I want him to be the vulnerable one. If he asks, I be safe, ‘cause he said he was interested first. But, that man - I would say he a coward, except he crazy brave in a fight. But, he don’t do relationships, or something. So, I guess I have to be the brave one. And, to be fair, he did ask me out. He just did it at the worst time ever.

Okay, so, next time I have a chance, I will ask him out. And make sure he knows it is a date. Yeah. Right. How am I going to do that? Hey, Danny, how would you like to go out to dinner with me so we can find out it we want to be a couple? Do I have to be that obvious?

Chapter V, Part II: Demons and Saints and Latin, Oh My!

I think I am starting to see what Harvard meant when he said that we should give up Hunting now. (And when did it become capital-H Hunting?) I ain’t prepared for this. I am feeling increasingly jumpy, the more we do this.

As a child, I was afraid of the dark. I think most of us are, really. It is a place of infinite possibilities. But, I got older, and logic took hold. No, there was no such thing as monsters. There was nothing under the bed, the shadows were just that. The world was orderly and made sense. And, if it didn’t, it just meant I didn’t know something, but it STILL made sense.

After that night, I had trouble with the dark again. I knew that there were human monsters, and I began to avoid the darkness. And, I learned how to kill a human monster. I still didn’t like being out at night, but with a .45 caliber woobie, I could handle it.

Then, the vampires. I knew it was real, but there is a sense of unreality to it. When you kill one and it shrivels up, it clashes with logic and there is still a sense of unreality. Black Betty? Well, I have no issue with ghosts. It ain’t logical, but you always hear the stories, and I would be pissed if I was her, too. And, there was nothing left in the end. The Sewer Beast? It nasty, sure. But, when it died, it turned to stone. And, with all of them, after the initial victims, we were the ones in danger, and we made it out okay.

But, this demon… demons ain’t just folklore. They evil. Demons, and Angels, and Saints - oh my. And God. I be Catholic. I been Baptized, Confirmed, and Eucharized. I even Confessed a time or two. But, it was kinda distant. Mostly for when I die.

But, I just exorcized a real demon. Me, Lady D, the Holy Water, and St. Florian drove it away. But, it weren’t enough. Like usual, the monster was gone and we okay, but the woman - she ain’t okay. Her husband, her baby, they ain’t okay. It don’t feel like a victory.

And the dark is a scary, scary place again. I told Jimmy I ain't afraid of nothing I can shoot, but you can't shoot demons, and you can't shoot the dark.

I rode over to St. Florians. I owe him, and I know it. So, I drop some money in the box, and light the candles, and it don’t feel like enough. I don’t really make stuff, and while I am willing to talk him up, this ain’t something I can spread around. I waited around, feeling safe. Holy Ground. There ain’t no demons in that church.

I wanted to go to confession, but I don’t know what to say. I have so much to talk about - Hunting, my father, Rebecca, Danny - but it is all tangled up. I know I gotta go soon, though. I can’t carry this alone and I think I will break if I try.

I think I will be spending a lot of time at the Church, both for the safety it offers and to try to get to know the priests. Maybe that will help me talk about it. And maybe it won’t. I don’t know.

Clara ripped me a new one. I want to tell her I ain’t a vigilante. I ain’t interested in mortal crime - she can have it. But, she don’t believe me and she gonna lock me away if I try to convince her. It hurts. I value her more and more and I can feel myself losing her.

I am considering going for a PI License. I might provide some insulation and would sure add some more skills. I never thought I would, but times change, and so do I. I don’t know, but maybe.

And Danny. Oh, I fucked up bad. I wanted him to notice me, ask me out again, but he mad at me now and that hurts. Why should he think I would be so cruel? Hurt breeds anger and I probably made it worse on the way to the house, but I just couldn’t stand it anymore.

I talked to Jimmy, trying to understand him, so now Jimmy knows I am crushing on Danny. He said he could talk to him, try to get him to see that I like him, but I think I might just need to take the dive. I had considered just cornering him and kissing him, but now, I am afraid it will just piss him off. That I might have lost him before I ever really had him.

You know, I can talk to Mama about this. This is simple boy-trouble and what Mama don’t have nothing to say about that? Maybe she can help me figure a way out of my mess.

Maybe.

Such An Idiot: Downtime

I been waiting weeks to make this entry. I had it all planned out.

Dear Diary,

Danny kissed me.

Jo

That should be all, but, of course, nothing in my life is that simple, so here it goes.

After we killed the demon, I got to thinking about the exorcism and my St. Florian medal. And I wondered what would have happened to us if we hadn't had it. I mean, can you even do an exorcism without a holy symbol? I am sure as sure that I was Helped. But, would I have gotten that help without my St. Florian medal? Maybe. And, maybe not.

So, I went online and placed an order. I took regular medals and had them add The Spirit of Detroit to the top, then gave them all one. St. George for Lady D, St. Michael for Jimmy, St. Isidore for Oz, and St. Sebastian for Danny. And, it felt right. They even seemed interested, and I don't blame them. If demons real, what does that say about Angels and Saints and God?

Lady D went on the warpath and ambushed Robbie, 'cuz he knew about Harvard Lindstrom and didn't tell us. We was all there, 'cept Jimmy, and he tried to say we had to stop, but he don't understand. And we was hard on him, but he got this look on his face and it made me sick. Oz said he was whammied. Vampires got in his head and they still got him all twisted up. Then, a few days later, he starts giving us gifts. Danny got some sweet silvered throwing knives and Oz got a silvered cane sword. But, I am pretty sure they ain't his treasured possessions so it ain't a sign of suicide. Kinda hard to be mad at him, now. It's just sad. I just wish Rebecca had told me. We could have done this together. Maybe she would still be alive.

Harvard say we been lucky, and he be right. We been reacting and doing that on the fly. No plan, no nothing. So, he teaches us how to retreat and survive to fight another day, and to prepare for nasty fights. He also say that maybe he can teach us how to help Robbie. Then, we go practice our shit on some baby vamps. Not the mind crap, the retreat. Weird thing to practice, by the way. I bet the vamp thought it was gonna like to bite another day. No so much.

Then, Danny. I had all sorts of plans, everything from seduction via Dragon Age (Hi, I'm Aveline! Wanna make out?) to a coffee shop plot, but in the end, I hit it head on. I just asked him why he hadn't asked me out again. The idiot thought I wasn't interested. Sure, I told him to fuck off, but that was timing! But, while we talking, he starts acting weird, like he does when he trying to lie and failing in his usual manner. And, I can't let it go, 'cuz it is about me and my issues with dating.

So, my weird roofie night ain't a mystery any more. I knew I weren't raped normal, but wondered what really happened. Danny happened. He saw them and pulled them off me. And they beat the shit out of him. So, it's my fault he didn't make the Olympics. If I had been smarter, he would have been a gold medalist by now!

I don't think he sees it that way, though. After all, he still wanted me. For years. How did I miss that? Whatevs. So, I kiss him and am settling in for a nice snog when he asks me if this means I will go to dinner with him.

Such a sweet little idiot.

Oh, I need to tell Stefan I kinda outed him to Danny. I don't think he will mind, but I shouldn't have done it. Especially with Danny. The man ain't exactly subtle. Except when hiding that he likes me? Whatever.

And, I have decided to get the PI license. Another set of tools, another set of insulation. And, maybe I can do some pro bono work with the parish. I been spending a lot of time at St. Florians and I feel safe there. Homey. I am starting to know folks and I think I might do some volunteer work. Maybe a self-defense class? I need to, too! Running away ain't always enough. Maybe Danny can teach me? Or, maybe he should just teach it! Cut out the middle man. So, what would I do? I can't quite see the church sponsoring a shooting class!

We'll see.

In the meantime, diary, I am seeing Danny and it feels… nice.

Chapter VI: Bedeviled by Vampires

Devil's Night.

Who comes up with this crap?

Devil's Night.

Ain't there enough misery in the world without adding more? Ain't there enough unnatural evil without adding in the natural? I never had a thing for horror movies, but now I can't stand the sight of them. I'm not scared - I am past that. But, it reminds me of all the real evil out there, and why would I watch that for entertainment? I demand happy endings, especially since I wonder if we gonna get one.

Am I gonna get married, have kids and grandkids? Or even be that Auntie? Or am I going to burn out, become a paranoid recluse like Harvard? I would rather be like Gail. That woman is fierce. Practical, capable, and unimpressed by Devil's Night.

And why, Harvard, didn't you warn us that, if we gonna be targeted it, Devil's Night was the night? To stay the hell away from our homes and families? We have a price on our heads, Oz's house is a smoldering ruin, and Wookie is shot. And he knew to expect this kind of response tonight.

Fucking Devil's Night.

I don't know if Danny and I would have died in that alley without Gail. I just know that we were in deep shit. Getting ambushed is different. I knew that, but now I know it. The mental preparation of knowing a fight is coming changes things. I thought I was being cautious asking for ID, but I climbed right in the "ambulance" without a second thought. If Danny hadn't been sharper than me, and carried me out on his shoulder, that would be that. Dad wouldn't be lonesome any more.

And, what was with Danny not putting me down? Did he really think that he could carry me away from all those vamps? Did he think it was better to die together than risk taking a stand? And, does he think I am that weak? Funny, I was kinda pissed at his friend with the roll for acting like I was a conquest, but does Danny think that way, too? Maybe that sweet side is a little patriarchal?

We need to get through this night, cut of the head of this snake, and then Danny and me - we gonna have a chat.

I just hope I don't fall too hard from all that air I been walking on.

Chapter VI, Pt. 2: Divine Intervention

We are all alive, thank the Blessed Virgin. How else did we survive this trap, if not with divine intervention? How else did my dying friends stabilize on the ride back to Lady D’s house? How else do I explain that surge of strength I felt just before I took my last shot?

When I awoke in the van, I didn’t know what was happening. I was in pain, confused, and knew only that there was trouble. But, my hand made my way to my St. Florian medal and my heart reached out to St. Mary and St. Florian. I don’t know why we have been so blessed, but I am grateful.

I am grateful that Danny is alive.

I am grateful that Jimmy is still breathing.

I am grateful that Lady D was clear-headed and brave when retrieving us, even after being shot.

I am grateful that Oz was able to carry Danny from the warehouse floor.

I am grateful that Clara was unhurt and able to rescue me.

I am grateful that Blackjack will be fine.

I grieve that Gail was lost, but I am grateful that she found us and that she was there to make the difference in our survival. I hope that I will be much like her as I move forward as a Hunter.

So many things look different on this side of that conflict. I understand better why Harvard is so disturbed and tried so hard to dissuade us. I am less concerned about Danny’s motives in carrying me after the first ambush. I still don’t know if we are meant for each other, but how can I condemn him after all of this?

Clara - I am so sorry to bring you into this, but you needed to know and I believe you where there to make a difference for us that day and all days going forward as we fight for the people of Detroit. And, I am so grateful to have our friendship restored. Whatever happens, you know I am not crazy and now you can use that knowledge to defend yourself and this city.

I don’t think of myself as a holy warrior. I haven’t seen any prophets or had my head anointed with oil, but my father always said that ordinary people are capable of extraordinary things and that, if we live by that, we are each fulfilling God’s purpose. Love God, Love your Neighbor. For me, with my gifts and knowledge, that means Hunting.

I don’t know if I will say any of this to the others. I don’t know if I could explain it well, and they will have their own realizations and experiences. But, I can hold it in my heart and be grateful.

And, I am grateful.

I will write it all up later, but I needed to record this now, before it fades, as so many things do.

Chapter VII: At the Crossroads

What I am waiting for? Sleeping next to Danny is … nice. Very nice. I like his touch and I think he will be a good kisser soon. A little more practice? Oh, noes! But, what am I waiting for? I ain't exactly saving myself for marriage, after all. I considered taking the next step - and I love that he is leaving it up to me - and I still feel like waiting. But, for what?

We ain't getting a break from Hunting, if that's it. Someone been making deals with demons and getting torn up by literal Hellhounds (and I so get the angst of the grammar nazis who freak out when literally literally isn't literal). Last time, Danny nearly died. Is that what is bothering me? The idea of opening up, physically and emotionally, and having him die on me?

Really, Jo? You gonna feel better if he die and you didn't?

I almost wish he would push a little bit. How can I be glad AND pissed he don't?

Would it be easier if we weren't living together? Or, if it was just us and not everyone else? Without freaking ROBERT next door? Maybe I should get us a hotel room - but how skeevy is that? How can I get a little safety, a little romance, and a lot of privacy?

Maybe not a hotel… what about a B&B? The Inn at 97 Winder or The Inn on Ferry Street are classy. But, that feels super declarative. Like, time for SEX, follow me to the LOVE NEST! I would love to do this when we an established couple, but now?

Hell, I don't know.

Maybe camping? But it be winter, girl. I am starting to see why folks wait for marriage. You tie the knot, go on your honeymoon, and get it on. Romance and explicit expectations combined. Nothing off in a honeymoon.

Maybe when he sees me in that dress he will… what? Tell me he wants me? DOES he want me? What? Not obvious enough, Jo? Maybe I should book a room in that hotel? If it is all romantic and shit, I can just take him upstairs and off we go. And, if not, I pay for the room and move on.

Maybe that's it. I want some spontaneity, some romance, some privacy, and some class.

Where do I get all this? And soon, I hope, cause my dreams are great right now, expect they ain't going no where. I wonder how Danny is sleeping?

(later entry)

Well hell, that ain't happening. That hotel is expensive. I would rather have more money for fun and life than blow all my spending money.

(later still)

Free rooms with the gala! Packing for an interesting night.

(later and later)

My room adjoins Danny's. Interesting...

Ch VII, Pt. 2: The Long Night

Frustration. Pure, crazy frustration.

It isn't that a well-meaning, maybe even good, man died. It isn't that we couldn't really do anything about the demon in question. It isn't even that Lady D fell for that vampire's BS hook, line, and sinker. It is that I had to spend the night in a hotel room with Danny after a dangerous excitement, and couldn't seduce him the way I had planned to.

One door over was my suitcase, with some really cute underthings. I am wearing a dress that made his eyes pop. We are in a classy hotel with all the toys, but we have to be on baby-sitting duty with a well-meaning idiot all night.

When Lady D told us to stay, it made sense, but after 30 minutes, I wanted to kill her. Oh, yes, I was awake all night, and very aware. Too aware. Of me, of Danny, and how I felt and how he would feel and… enough said. It was a hard night.

Then, we follow around Mr. Well-Meaning, sitting in the lobby while he plays with the Men in Black. Still me and Danny. Only, by them, I am freakishly tired and really just want to go to sleep. And maybe wake up next to Danny…

Then, he dies anyway. And, I really cannot think less of him. He was willing to give up his soul to save others. That should be a contradiction, under the No Greater Love clause. But, I guess it doesn't matter. So, he is in hell and he made a major endowment to The Phoenix Foundation.

We didn't really win this one, though we didn't really lose. I have a feeling these partial victories - like when Gail died or with Mr. Well-Meaning - will eventually give way to real losses. Not looking forward to that.

And how am I going to convince Lady D that Vamp is taking her for a ride? She don't usually fall for much, but maybe it's because he was all dressed up and looked like a proper person. Maybe she wants to believe it. I don't know. I think I will call Harvard. He was working on a deprogramming ritual for Robert, maybe I can use it on her, too.

Chapter VIII: Just My Luck

I hope writing this don’t give me a fatal paper cut, but I am going nuts, here, so I gotta do something, even if it is just journaling.

Me and Danny are cursed. There was this series of deaths at Greektown Casino, real crazy like. Think Final Destination. And, Oz notices and we wonder if it is our kind of problem. I wonder if something is eating the luck of folks, and we think about witches, and cursed items, and tricksters, and - for some reason - kitsune. I guess it ain’t just for anime.

So, Danny come by and we gonna drive over while the others do the research. Uncle Joe takes the opportunity to give Masculine Parental-Figure Threat #2 - if you hurt her, I will kill you. I heard the tail end and shooed Danny off to start the car. I give Joe the Eyeball and ask him what makes him think that he gets first dibs on my heartbreaker? He goes from defensive to proud faster than a televangelist cashing a check. Danny seemed to know what we were talking about, but took it well.

I have been thinking about his birthday. He was really sweet and gave me this great old firearm, and we did a nice, in-house dinner. His birthday is soon, and I have plans. Ice skating, fireside picnic, and maybe some lingerie. I even found a place on AirBnB in Midtown near the rink that looks great.

Well, we go over and decide to be blatant about our investigations. I read The Man Who was Thursday in college and I liked the idea of hiding in plain sight. So, we declared ourselves Ghost Hunters (like Ghost Facers! *gush, gush, gush!*) investigating a haunting report. We used the public printer to print of a real list of haunted Detroit locations, then a page for the hotel, and just stuck it at the end. The concierge decided we were harmless nuts and could look around.

We were getting nothing on the EMF, and Danny thought we should find out what game the vic had been playing. The cashier was cautious, but also decided we were harmless nuts. She offered us chips, and we took the opportunity to decided that chips (and maybe fish!) on the buffet was in order.

I don’t think it had started yet, because the buffet was decidedly average and at least one dish I was interested in was cold.

So, we hit the Roulett area and decided to be a little more circumspect. I figure if you are at this table, you have money and security will be more protective. So, we watch a while, then break out the EMF. One customer gets a little huffy and tells us to beat it. Security thinks we are doing some kind of raid and we eagerly tell him we are ghost hunting. Then, another player gets all excited and asks us if we are like Ghost Facers.

At the time, I felt like his attention and enthusiasm was helpful, as the security guy let us be. But, now - not so much.

We haven’t found shit, so we head out and check the ice where the guy slipped and we get a spike. So, we check the others sites, and they also spike. And we test a control or two, and get nothing. So, figuring we have something to work with, we are about to leave, with Mr. Enthusiasm shows up and asks how things are doing. We geek a little and move on.

Since the others have been doing research, we offer to get coffee and then shit gets real. Danny sees a clean $20 on the ground. We freeze and we just know that we got whammied. So, we call Lady D and tell her they need to come and get us, ‘cause we ain’t driving for sure. She and Robert come and Danny and me ride with her. And we hit every green. Robert don’t, but we do.

We been checking out pockets for objects, but don’t find nothing. Lady D gives us a pat down outside and still nothing. (Though Danny calling her Lady DHS was a hoot!)

We go in and I decide to shower. Lady D sets me up in one and is my watcher, Danny and Robert take the other. And, she went all out. Bathtub stool, bar, non-slips on the floor. But, I still manage to slip and fall. I grab the curtain, and it falls, too. Danny hears me and runs in and gets full frontal nudity. Lucky him.

I decide to just go to sleep. We can’t help - we don’t dare use up any of our luck. Maybe in the morning, we will have an answer. I am gonna sleep on the sofa - I don’t dare be alone, or alone with Danny. For all I know, he would get lucky and then die.

Lucky… is any of the luck on me? He saw the bill, not me. He got the view, not me. We both did the car and we both did EMF. What if only he got hit?

And, I think Mr. Enthusiasm is our villain. He showed up twice and was very interested. Could be wrong, of course, but we didn’t really have any luck until after we talked to him. Our convincing the concierge to help us might be luck, but I think that buffet is an effective counterargument. It was after the Roulette, and therefore after Mr. Enthusiasm. Or, it might be Grumpy Patron for all I know.

Anyway, bed.

And, I still need to talk to Harvard about Lady D. Did he find anything? If he did, what then? Or, if he didn't, do I trust that he knows? I almost wish I had not noticed anything - this is confusing.

Not-So-Sweet Dreams

Dreams can be so frustrating. They wobble, morph about, and when you try to pin them down, they just slip away. But, I had a dream about Danny and me, and I did not like it. I think it was something about… being too slow with him, maybe. Like another woman came along and she was gonna take him, 'cause I hadn't. And, so I decide to move up the timeline, but it was too late. The dream didn't really resolve, and it was kinda on repeat. So, I kept almost about to be losing Danny, over and over.

Stupid dream.

Ch IIX, Pt. 2: Getting Lucky

I just finished tucking Danny into bed. It has been a hell of a day. We were right about that trickster, but we had no idea how weird it all was. Seems that Hermes (really? Hermes?) took a liking to Danny and decided to help him get lucky. Literally. I mean, yes, but also figuratively. Fuck. He wanted to help him out, but he also wanted to get him laid. I guess he decided I am taking things too slow.

Excuse me, Chuckles, but only I get to decide who and when I will fuck. My choice. Mine.

I mean, really, luring us to a room, closing us in, manifesting rose petals, music, and lighting? With Lady D et al right out side? That ain’t romantic, dude, that’s just wrong. And, worst of all? It could still kill Danny. I guess side effects are just too dull for Chuckles to worry about, and we are just mortals, anyway. Seems like Danny would be safer being less awesome.

Years ago, when I was dating Logan, I watched an episode of the original Star Trek. There was this guy who thought humans were cool and wanted to play with them. But, he wanted to play on his terms and didn’t care what they thought. Then, it turns out he is some kind of god-baby and his parents took his toys away. I felt like that, except there was no one to spank this divine infant.

And, it was confusing, too. I think I hurt Lady D’s feelings, and I think I see why. And why I was confused. She got all indignant when we pointed out her bargain with the vamps. Except she doesn’t have one. Except she is such a good liar that I sometimes have a hard time keeping what is real and what isn’t strait. And since I was so sure he had gotten in her head that she might have. Except I don’t think she did, or he did, now. Wow, that made about no sense, but fuck it. I know what I mean.

Well, we was gonna let Chuckles walk, because how we gonna kill him? He got all of Oz’s stakes, and he was ready. And, I kept saying, who says that is really him? Or he keeps his heart where we think? I mean, he ain’t human! I didn’t think we could take him, except maybe in ambush, and so he walks, after lifting Danny’s curse. And Harvard stakes him and he lights up like The Doctor on Regeneration Day, and that is that.

Turns out, we forgot the blood for the stakes, away, so we couldn’t do anything to him, anyway.

Danny went downstairs and got drunk. He didn’t gamble, which made the casino unhappy, but he tipped really well. And, I stayed by him because he would be vulnerable, and I didn’t want anyone taking advantage of him.

After a while, he wanted to leave and I was so glad. He looked so tired, and I think he was really hurting. So, I got us a taxi and Danny gave his complimentary room key to a bum! Oh, that casino will never want to see him again! That’s okay, cause I never want to go back.

But, now we can move forward. I can move forward. I talked with Danny about it all - sex, protection, disease (which he thinks is spread only through drug use! really?!), and all that. I think it surprised him, but I don’t want anything unsaid what needs said. So, I asked, even about the stuff I was sure I knew the answer.

And, I just confirmed our reservation at the house. I hope this Valentine’s Day turns out as well as I am hoping. I have never gone all out like this before. And I will show that dead deity how you romance Danny!

Chapter IX: High Stakes

That was surreal. And worrisome. Clara had Jimmy and me come look at a crime scene. It was fairly typical, at first - blood in an alley, and a pair of bodies. But, these bodies were vampires, crucified and staked. And Clara thought it was me killing them. Say what?

First, I am not so stupid as to rub the presence of the supernatural into the noses of Detroiters. They don’t wanna know, and so they would decide that any deaths were murders, not Hunting, and get us in trouble. And, it would be wrong to throw that on Clara.

Second, it was sick. I mean, who crucifies anyone, even vamps? That says more about the killer (Hunter?) than it does their victim/target.

Finally, it was impossible. The evidence said they were nailed, and then staked. It is hard enough to kill a vamp without theatrics, too.

But, someone been killing vamps in Detroit, and it ain’t us. The more I think about it, the less I like it. At best, an angry Hunter is in the area and doesn’t know how the vamps will react or doesn’t know that permanent Hunters live here.

At worst – we been set up to take a fall. Maybe the vamps are looking for an excuse to turn on us, maybe another faction is trying to use us or the vamps to take out or weaken the other. But, Hunting is supposed to be shadowy, and there is a big neon WEIRD flashing in Detroit.

On the other hand, Danny and I ordered in, ate popcorn, and watched Star Wars. I almost want winter to last forever, cuz it is so wonderful to cuddle up with my man and see what happens. And, he had never seen Star Wars, none of it, so I got to enjoy him learning the story. But how has he never seen it before?

Still, sometimes I wonder... I really like Danny. Maybe more than like him. But, what do we have in common? We from the same neighborhood, we both athletic, we both Hunt. But, so often, we seem to be worlds apart. Maybe cause my parents so much older that I am, like, bi-generational or some shit. Or, maybe we just different.

Still, we doing fine, and we gonna keep doing fine until we it ain't fine, or we be more than fine.

Chapter IX, Part 2: Riding out the Gail

That is some weird shit. I be listening to some crazy ass conspiracy theory BS and wondering if he right. I talk to my survivalist boys and ask if they have a line on the SCU. I get hooked up with "Pete," and I don't know where the crazy ends and the truth begins. Before I started hunting vampires, I would have said it was all BS, but now… vampires killing JFK might make sense. And the government having a unit that deals with monsters? Sensible, too. Do they? I have no clue. Government ain't always sensible.

To make it all worse, Precious Pete was at least somewhat right about the SCU. VSCU - SCU + Vanguard - does exist. I don't know if it is what he says it is, but they had some magic or psychic suit check us for monsterhood, and they all about vamps. We agreed to share info, and Lady D sold it. That woman could sell Shakespeare to kindergarteners. In return, we are sending them a mostly complete dossier on Gail. Gail, who got away. Gail, who is a Renfield. Gail, who is undoubtedly pissed at us, knows where we live and our basic tactics.

If the murders were't already giving me nightmares, I think that would.

I am moving forward on becoming a PI. It would be good for the group, useful for the Hunt, and a good use of my natural skills. But, that crime scene… Sometimes, their eyes are watching me. It doesn't sound terrible when I try to put it into words, but the feeling… the wrongness, the malice, the horror... Sometimes, I am killing them and sometimes, they get up and Hunt me. But, I can get through this. I am strong. Ain't no one, dead or undead, gonna keep me down. So, fuck that shit sideways with a cheese grater. I will get past this, and I will be fine.

I just can't decide if I want to sleep over with Danny more now, or less. I don't want him to see me weak. I don't want him doin' stupid shit to protect me again. I protect me just fine.

Just. Fine.

Chapter X: History Repeating

Jimmy got this call from VSCU, and we are on the job. Taking the Hunt outside of Detroit sucks. It should have been a short hop, but the traffic seems to last forever. Gives me too much time to think. Or, maybe, enough.

This job is odd. It isn't just that it is outside the home field, or even that we got it from VSCU. It's what they said. Psychic Suit said we needed to do the job. Us, especially. I knew he had a Gift, but I figured he was a detector. Now, he's - what? Precog? A prophet? What does it mean? What does this job have to do with us? Does it have something to do with the big bad that Chuckles warned us about? And, if so, that is bigger than just Detroit, 'cause this is far. Makes it regional, at least, and that… I don't know what that means. Maybe Chuckles was full of even more shit than I thought and it don't mean nothin'.

I ain't exactly looking forward to this trip. In Detroit, I am the majority. I know my streets, I know the pulse of my city, and I am at home. I got friends on the force, and backup if I need it. Now, we headed to Whiteville, USA. Course, it ain't so creamy now, but that be pretty new. New enough to smart. I think Danny gonna have to do the talking, because having Oz act as the voice is a good way to get shot. Does he TRY to piss people off?

Like now. I used to think maybe a brother would have been nice, but this is about a step shy of 'I'm not touching you!' He is narcoleptic, why won't he just fall asleep and stay that way? Maybe next time, if there IS a next time, I grind up a few doses of dramamine and slip it in his drink. I hear it works on kids, why not Oz?

Cross That One Off the List

I wonder when we will head over to St. Louis. We were told that there is a Hunter Roadhouse nearby and I think we need to go there. I am. It entirely sure why I feel this way. Maybe it is a need for legitimacy, or just to meet the veterans and maybe learn from them. Maybe I want to warn them about Gail, or the Big Bad headed for Detroit, but I feel like going.

Watching Rose cross over was lovely. She found her peace and let go. And, Eric got the kind of closure few ever experience. Though, I don't blame him for choosing whiskey over pie. Really experiencing the Supernatural is freaky enough, but this was his high school sweethearts ghost. I am glad he came, and I am glad he is alright, too. And, he deserves more credit than we do. He choose to humor a bunch of strangers and he took all the risks. I have never really had a Christmas list, but if I do, I will put him on it.

But, what was that symbol, or sigil, or whatever it was? How did it rev up her ghost? What is he (it?) up to? And what (or who?) did he kill to empower that ritual? And, what does it have to do with us? Does it relate to Daddy's death? The vampire was freaked and said it wasn't his peeps that did it. If that's true, and that's an epic "If," how do we prepare for it? Chuckles was powerful, and it freaked him out. It got aware and experienced Hunters, and off we go, rushing in like fools.

Usually, I live a day at a time. When we are on the Hunt, I am careful and connect everything moment to mound day to day. But, what if we have been on the Hunt since we took up the mantle and don't really know it? How to we Hunt something so elusive?

And, what will the cost be? Gail is sorta human, and she has left me with nightmares. She told herself she was doing the right thing and look at what she did. What will this Thing do to the city, to our psyches?

Maybe that is why I wanna hit The Roadhouse - if this is so big, other Hunters need to know. We need to look for big breaks in the pattern and start connecting them. I wonder if there is some kind of Hunter Net, or if we can make one. A place to record the big stuff. It would have to be secure as hell, though. Maybe it's a bad idea,but we need to start bringing this together.

Something is coming, and I don't need any more nightmares.

Chapter XI: Nature Adores a (Power) Vacuum

I am at a loss. So much has happened, and it happened so fast… Okay. Danny was out of town, being an awesome Parkourer and getting notoriety. And, well… people started dying. The PI … no. Back up. Lady D hired a bailbondsman to hire a PI to investigate the vamps who killed Becky. The PI was slaughtered in his office. Clara came and found me while I was having lunch with Stefan. She said I needed to come along NOW and then told me to stay off the radar, off the phones, and go home, ‘cause a storm was coming.

There was a cover up of sorts. The fact that a safe had been torn out of the wall was covered – we found out they were putting in a new safe, just so they could crack it! – and so we began to look around. The BBM said that the PI had some success tracking our vamps and was to have a report to file, but it never arrived. We tracked down his assistant – wisely having taken herself off to the East Coast – and were told he had a very concealed safe in the office.

So, we broke in. Jimmy and I went around back and snuck in. We found the safe and we should have been fine, but I slipped in the half-congealed blood, fell, and cut my own hand. So, I left forensic evidence at a sealed crime scene. Great. And, I didn’t have time to torch it, because something had alerted the cop outside and he was coming. So, we lit out, files in had.

Lady D started throwing money at people and begging them to get out of town. The BBM was convinced to take a summer vacation in Florida on her dime, but he delayed leaving and he and another client of his were also killed. This must have been what the vamps needed, because we got a phone call – they were coming for our families.

Knowing the horror coming for them and not being able to tell them was the worst thing that ever happened to me. Stefan told me he wants to leave Detroit. I was resistant to it until now. I love him and will miss him, but I am giving that man a loan and sending him to New York. I know there are vamps everywhere, but Detroit is the worst – a special kind of nasty, so the Hunters say. Now, I might even be able to get Mamma to move.

Because they torched her house.

God, that hurts. She was born there, I lived there all my life. I watched my neighborhood decay and still stand strong against the darkness, but a few fucking Renfields burned it down just to gain the chance to drive anyone inside out. Didn’t work, ‘cause we vandalized our own transformer and then got the families into a hotel.

But, it is gone. My room, great-grandma’s Tiffany lamp, the old family photos, Daddy’s bible… it is just gone. Why didn’t I think to grab some of it? I understand thresholds, and I knew they torched Oz’s place, so why didn’t I THINK?

But, Mamma is fine, and that is more important. Maybe I should torch Kiaras house, too, and see if I can get the whole family to relocate. Damn, I can’t believe I even thought that, let alone wrote it!

Well, we found out where they was – an old factory in an abandoned area of Detroit. Lots of that around. I picked up Danny – it was so good to see him! I really, really needed a hug, but I had to be strong for Mamma and I was so very tired. I went to Confession, then, we went Hunting.

I have a new respect for Oz. Yes, he is crazy, but I think crazy like a fox applies. The man thinks ahead and his stupid ideas have worked really well. I am rather jealous of his football gear, and pairing his sword with a shield, even a Captain America shield, turned out to be brilliant. But, without him, we never would have found the sewer entrance to the vampire’s lair, never would have had the fucking battering ram to open it, or had the flare camera to look for infrared traps. We would have had Doberfields and a barred steel door between us and the vamps.

Instead, Baron Tyler was bleary eyed and confused when I shot him in the head. The noise woke up Sarah, and she engaged Oz, but between his shield and skill, and Lady D’s Holy Water, Sarah didn’t fare well. Tyler bugged out into mist (really, mist?!) and the other one… whoever, shot me from behind the door. Honestly, it is all blurry. I am not sure who all did what or when because I went unconscious. The Kevlar stopped most of it, but the bruises are terrible!

And, when I woke up… all I knew was that there was no fighting, that I was alone and in pain and still in the lair. I could smell the blood and I was sure the others were dead and I was dinner. Stupid. They had made sure I was stable and gone looking for papers, clues, and anything else they could find. But, for a moment, I think I understood Gail.

And, they found that symbol. There was some weird altar – I saw the pictures and it just doesn’t seem quite right – and it had the symbol of that thing that supercharged the ghost. And, one of the vamps said that killing them wasn’t revenge anymore than destroying a gun would be. So, they were tools, and maybe that thing was the boss.

Maybe. I know Detroit gonna get weird for a while. There is a power vacuum – in the mortal world and in the weird – and things are gonna have to stabilize again. And, with his vamp masters (maybe?) gone, what will that policeman do? What about that crime scene? All I know is – it is still worth it. But, it hurts so bad, sometimes.

Chapter X: On the Lam and Chased by Sheepdogs

I need to hide this diary. I feel so stupid to have kept it so casually in my room. Looking back, anyone who read it would assume I was a delusional vigilante and I would get into so much trouble. If Lady D hadn’t had the wit to the direct the police to my other room… well, it would be really messy.

Then again, it already is really messy, and it is only getting worse.

In theory, I am not on the lam anymore. In theory, Claremountebank and his "Shepherds" have called off his sheepdogs. But, whether he can do so or not, I don’t trust him. He will use us as long as he can - he sees us as tools - but tools can cut the hand that wields them, and he isn’t as in control as he wants us to think he is.

Plus, I am just pissed. It is naive, I am sure, but I still saw our “relationship” with him as an exchange of favors. A certain amount of tit for tat, with a sudden but inevitable betrayal in the end. He says he isn’t betraying us, but he still sicced his dogs on me and tried to grab Karol as a hostage. The fact that Gail “rescued” her and wants to work together just makes it worse.

In my reckoning, he is in OUR debt - what with his being forwarded about Gail last time, and the unrest he created before we threw her under the bus. (And, we did. I know it. And, I think it was the right thing, even though it both grated and didn’t work.) So, how does he react? He tries coercion.

I think I somehow got the idea he was a businessman instead of a predator. Well, moving on.

Assuming the cops back off and stay off, we still have to figure out exactly what to do. I don’t trust Gail. In fact, I trust her less than Claremountebank. He is what he should be - a vampire, a predator, and he doesn’t lie to himself about it. She is nuts, and if she isn’t in denial, she is an epic liar.

I honestly thought she was going to infect Karol as vengeance. And, hell, maybe she did. Does it show right away? But, she says we need to kill Claremountebank tonight as the vampire power structure is unstable and we can shake down the whole place.

Claremountebank says we need to kill Madeleina tonight, because the vampire power structure is unstable and he and his faction will lose power, and she is under the influence of the Shadow, and the police will remain after me.

This is a clusterfuck of the first order.