The fluorescent light in the hallway flickered, buzzing with a low, irritating hum. David leaned against the peeling wallpaper, his eyes locked on his phone.
The screen showed a static, night-vision feed of his living room. A heavy plastic drop cloth covered the rug. On the plastic lay a woman.
He had spotted her slumped in an alley on his walk home. A fading heartbeat. Perfect material.
Ten minutes ago, he had poured the modified crimson vial down her throat, stepped out, and locked the door.
On the small screen, the woman's body suddenly jerked.
Her spine bowed so hard it looked like it might snap. Her body convulsed, fingers clawing at the plastic. Dark fluid began to seep through the back of her shirt. Then, the fabric tore.
Two dark masses erupted from her shoulder blades. Heavy, wet membranes unfolded and wrapped around her body, sealing her inside.
A faint click of talons sounded against the banister.
Hugo hopped sideways along the wooden railing, peering down at the phone screen. "Why hide out here? She's not going to hurt you."
David didn't look up. "You didn't either. Doesn't mean I trust the pattern."
Before Hugo could answer, heavy footsteps shook the floorboards.
The smell of blood and rain drifted up the stairwell. David slipped the phone into his pocket and waited.
Kai stepped onto the landing. The giant's trench coat was shredded, glistening with water and fresh blood. He held a torn rubber rooster mask in one hand.
Behind him, Daniel hauled himself up the last few steps, leaning against the wall. Two neat bullet holes punched through the back of his jacket.
Kai stopped a few feet away. He dropped a heavy canvas duffel bag at David's feet. The zipper was busted. Stacks of cash—twenties and fifties—spilled out, the edges stained with dark blood.
"You said to bring something useful," Kai said.
David stared at the blood-soaked bills.
"Keep it," David said.
Kai blinked, his red eyes narrowing in slight confusion.
David didn't explain. He glanced at the cash, then turned his attention back to his apartment door.
His phone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out.
On the screen, the leathery shroud was moving. The membranes retracted, shrinking and folding flush against the woman's spine until they disappeared completely beneath her ruined clothes.
She pushed herself up from the plastic tarp.
David watched the screen. The woman stood up slowly. Through the rips in her ruined shirt, patches of smooth, pale skin showed. She raised a trembling hand to her cheek.
David locked the screen. He looked up at Kai and Daniel.
He was going to need them in that room.
"Follow me," David said. He slid his key into the deadbolt.
The deadbolt clicked. David pushed the door open.
He flipped on the overhead light. Kai followed, ducking through the frame. Daniel slipped in last, shutting the door. The small apartment instantly felt cramped.
The woman was kneeling on the plastic drop cloth.
She looked up. Her eyes darted from David to the two heavily built men behind him. Her chest heaved.
Her nostrils flared.
The scent of fresh copper filled the room. It radiated off Kai's shredded coat, the bullet holes in Daniel's back, and the canvas duffel bag.
David walked past her. He moved to the kitchen counter, picked up a pen and a notepad, and turned his back.
"Check her vitals," David said over his shoulder.
Her jaw unhinged with a sharp pop. She launched off the plastic, aiming straight for the back of David's neck.
Kai didn't blink. His left hand snapped up, fingers caging her face. Her full momentum crashed into him, but his arm locked. She stopped dead in the air.
Without pausing, he torqued his hip, whipping his right shoulder forward. His massive fist tore through the air with a rushing gust, driving straight into her stomach.
CRUNCH.
The sheer kinetic force caved her abdomen in. His knuckles obliterated her spine, bursting completely through the skin and muscle of her lower back.
A thick spray of dark blood slapped the drywall.
The woman gasped. Her jaw snapped shut against Kai's palm. Her bare feet dangled inches above the plastic as her hands weakly clawed at Kai's leather coat.
Kai held her suspended on his arm, motionless.
David turned around.
He stepped closer, leaning in to examine the wound around Kai's wrist. The torn edges of her pale skin weren't bleeding out. The muscle fibers were writhing, knitting themselves back together around the wet leather of Kai's sleeve.
David clicked his pen and wrote on the pad.
"Hunger overrides self-preservation," David noted quietly. "The smell of blood triggered a blind attack. No hesitation."
He looked up at Kai.
"Pull it out."
Kai jerked his arm back. The woman collapsed onto the plastic in a heap, coughing up dark fluid.
David crouched next to her, watching the gaping hole in her stomach start to seal.
"Now," David said. "Let's see how much you need to eat to fix that."
Wings beat heavily through the stillness. Hugo dropped from the kitchen cabinets, landing on the sofa back. He tilted his head, fixing one glossy black eye on David.
"You're a sick bastard, you know that?"
David kept his gaze locked on the woman's writhing torso.
By the door, Daniel remained rooted to the floor. He pressed his back flush against the wall, retreating to the absolute edge of the cramped room. His eyes stayed anchored to the thick spray of blood sliding down the drywall.
The kid drew quick, shallow breaths. His hands clamped against his sides. His thick fingers trembled, tapping rhythmically against his jeans. He had killed two men with his bare hands less than an hour ago, yet the cold, clinical butchery under these bright lights was stripping his nerves bare.
David stood. He slipped the notepad into his pocket and turned to face Daniel.
"What's your name?" David asked, his voice low.
The boy flinched. His shoulders hit the wall with a dull thud. "D-Daniel," he stammered.
"Daniel." David pointed toward the kitchen. "Grab the red plastic bucket under the sink. Bring it here. Then take two hundred dollars from Kai's bag, head to the butcher shop on 5th, and buy every ounce of pig blood sitting in their back cooler."
Daniel stared back, his jaw trembling.
"Breathe, Daniel," David said, his tone entirely flat. "And hurry. Get back here before she dies."