Nightwalker (Iker the Cleaner Book 3), page 1
Nightwalker
An Iker the Cleaner Story
Orlando A. Sanchez
Contents
About the Story
Quotation
Dedication
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
THIRTEEN
FOURTEEN
Author Notes
Special Mentions
Patreon Supporters
About the Author
Bitten Peaches Publishing
ART SHREDDERS
Acknowledgements
Contact Me
Thank you
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination, or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
© 2023 Orlando A. Sanchez
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form.
Published by: Bitten Peaches Publishing
Cover Art: Deranged Doctor Design www.derangeddoctordesign.com
Website: www.orlandoasanchez.com
About the Story
Even the brightest day must surrender to the darkest night.
Solis has been eliminated, but the real threat, Roze the Daystrider, is still alive.
And she wants revenge.
In order for Iker to disappear into the shadows, he must first step into the light and face an enemy stronger than any in his past.
Now, together with Byako and her group of Nightwalkers, Iker must stop Roze before she destroys the Dark Council and plunges all of the vampires into a civil war.
If he succeeds, he can fade back into the shadows. Failure will mean the death and destruction of his world as he knows it.
Failure is not an option.
Far more violence has been done in obeying the law than in breaking the law.
-Robert Frost
“Everyone is a villain in someone’s story.”
Dedication
For those who uphold justice and the law, and know the difference between the two.
ONE
The South Street Seaport was a graveyard at night.
“This sounds like a bad idea,” Sabine said in my comms. “The Seaport is deserted at this hour.”
“Which means it’s perfect for those who serve the Daystrider,” I said, turning off the Wraith engine of the Scythe, my impressive—albeit suicidal—method of transport. As far as motorcycles went, Cecil had created the quintessential merging of art and death in the Scythe.
“It’s also perfect to meet an untimely demise,” she said. “Why not call the Director’s second to assist? At the very least, let me set up a firing solution to provide backup.”
“Byako would be a loud hindrance to what I am going to do tonight,” I said, scanning the streets around the Seaport. “She is adept at being the opposite of subtle, despite her apparent skill in subterfuge. You don’t need a firing solution; I don’t intend to be outside for this. You won’t have line of sight—which means a direct confrontation on your part. Before you ask, the answer is no.”
“Are you certain this is the best course of action?” she asked, her voice laced with concern. “Why not call in the detective agency? They, at least, possess an ample amount of firepower.”
“Because I’m not trying to obliterate the Seaport,” I said. “As for the best course of action, that would depend on the end goal. Can you be more specific?”
“Let’s start with the end goal of surviving the night,” Sabine said. “You’re going in blind, without any recon. That’s dangerous and foolish.”
“I realize the risks, but I can’t wait for Nakatomi to provide me with a location,” I said, crossing one of the wide streets and heading down to the buildings on Peck Slip, careful to remain in the shadows. “Besides, we both know her involvement in this phase will be through Byako. I doubt she will get personally involved, it presents too high a risk for her and her position with the Dark Council.”
“You mean she doesn’t want to be seen cleaning house as you eliminate the Daystrider,” Sabine said. “Having you do it gives her plausible deniability.”
“I think the Dark Council is aware she is—as you say—‘cleaning house’,” I said. “Several more clan heads have taken leaves of absence since our run-in with Solis.”
“Permanent leaves of absence,” Sabine answered. “According to my network, no one knows who’s behind the disappearances. All of the clan heads are opting to stay indoors, canceling all meetings and trips.”
“That will only provide them with a false sense of security,” I said. “We both know anyone can be reached, given enough time.”
“Or ability,” Sabine said. “The Director seems to be as resourceful as you when it comes to taking out targets.”
“She is the leader of the Dark Council,” I said. “More importantly, she trained and led the Nightwalkers—even vampires fear the Nightwalkers.”
“With good reason, they have people like you in the group.”
“No one is like me,” I answered. “That being said, I understand her position of refraining from directly taking down the Daystrider. If she gets involved directly, it would be the right move, but executed by the wrong method.”
“I’m not even going to pretend to understand what you mean,” Sabine answered. “What I do know is that she’s letting you face the Daystrider alone. Can you take her?”
“Take her where?” I said, being deliberately obtuse. “I have no intention of taking her anywhere.”
“Take her down,” Sabine said, adding a few curses in French for clarification. “You know what I mean. Can you kill the Daystrider?”
“I don’t see the choice here,” I said, peering across the street and making sure I didn’t alert sentries. “By now she knows of Solis’ death. She knows I’m involved, along with Nakatomi. She won’t move against the Director—at least not yet.”
“Which moves you up to target number one. Congratulations. Now you have to kill her, or be eliminated.”
“Any attempt at removing the Daystrider would have to be attempted during the day,” I said, realizing the irony. “She is stronger than me in the daylight, but she would be unstoppable at night. It would be certain death to attempt to dispatch her during the night.”
“You can’t attack her during the day,” she said. “There’s that small matter about the sun being lethal to you.”
“And yet, I must—if Roze is to be stopped from plunging the Dark Council Vampires into a civil war.”
“It will kill you, or she will kill you,” Sabine said, her voice low. “This is suicide. The Director is trying to eliminate both you and the Daystrider with one blow.”
“The thought has crossed my mind. Again, a smart play. Nakatomi and I aren’t exactly on friendly terms; we’re barely allies. I would eliminate me if I were her. As for my imminent death, I’m already dead.”
“You know what I mean. We need help,” she said, “help that isn’t tied to the Director. I don’t trust her.”
“A wise policy,” I said. “She didn’t become and remain Director of the Dark Council out of the goodness of her heart. As for the help, I doubt we’ll find any readily available. My reputation precedes me, and as you said, this is a suicide mission. Few would volunteer for something like this alongside a known assassin, knowing the odds of survival are slim to none.”
“Turn me fully,” she said, taking me off guard. “I can help if I’m stronger.”
“We haven’t come to that point, not yet, Sabine,” I said, keeping all emotion from my voice. “Let’s exhaust the resources we have before crossing that threshold.”
“I’ll make some calls,” she said. I heard the tapping of keys, and I knew she was triangulating on my position. “Are you going into that building?”
I had walked down Peck Slip and turned at the corner of Front Street. I currently stood in front of a historic doorway at 225 Front Street. A stone plaque above a doorway advised me to circumambulate the city.
The doorway led to an interior garden. According to my source in the Nightwalkers, the dwellers of this building served the Daystrider.
“Yes,” I said. “I may lose you inside. These older buildings are more steel than concrete, and it will interfere with our comms. Can you switch to a satellite feed?”
“One second,” she said, and I heard more tapping. “There are a few birds in geosynchronous orbit. I can piggyback off one of those and get a fairly decent feed going.”
“Without being noticed?” I asked. “The last thing I need is a group of rankled three letter agencies arriving here, upset that someone has hijacked their spy gear.”
“I’m not an amateur,” Sabine answered. “I’m one of the best, if not the best.”
“Byako would disagree,” I said. “But that’s just her opinion.”
A louder string of curses filled my ears, followed by some deep breathing.
“I surpass her ability and you know it.”
“I do,” I said, even though I knew Byako had some impressive skills. However, Byako was not my second, and it was
unwise to upset the person tasked with watching your back in life-or-death moments. “I expect you to demonstrate that superior skill tonight. I’m going in.”
“Switching to radar imaging,” she said. “I’ve got you.”
“Can you see how many inside?”
“One moment. I have it slaved to your location,” she said. “Let me see if I can enlarge the image. I’ll have you for about three more minutes before I lose this bird. I’ll see if I can grab another.”
“How many inside?”
“I count five,” she said. “But there could be more. This image isn’t precise—I’m getting plenty of interference.”
“You have provided exceptional intelligence,” I said, moving forward into the doorway. “Stay with me as long as possible and monitor the NYTF frequencies. They would be the first responders.”
“What if Roze is in there?” she asked, concerned. “You can’t face her at night.”
“You just told me I couldn’t face her during the day,” I said, leaning on my cane which held my blade, Slake. My leg ached, but I drew a small comfort in the Daystrider armor I wore. “If she’s there, I’ll make sure to have an exit strategy in place.”
“If she’s there, do not engage her,” Sabine warned. “Get out and notify me.”
“Will do,” I said, glancing upward for a second. “Stay as close as you can.”
“I have my eye on you. Do not get dead.”
I tipped my hat at her and went inside.
TWO
I crossed the threshold and stepped onto a stone pathway.
I followed the pathway, which in turn led deeper into the building complex. What looked like one building from the outside was actually a series of three buildings connected by walkways and small bridges.
The central courtyard was triangular shaped, with each of the buildings making up one of the sides. The interior garden which formed the center of the courtyard, held several benches and a small fountain.
It was an ingenious design.
I noticed several covered walkways and overhangs which were designed to prevent sunlight from illuminating the inner courtyard of the complex. Even in the middle of the day, the courtyard space would be in complete shadow.
I stopped at the edge of the courtyard and scanned the buildings.
“You seem lost,” a female voice said from behind me. “Who are you looking for?”
Whoever it was had skill.
They had managed to approach me without alerting me to their presence. Very few people possessed the ability to venture into my personal space without my noticing.
This person stood several feet behind me—within killing distance, if they chose to attack. I turned slowly, leaning more than necessary on my cane to look at her.
“May I inquire as to who is asking?”
The woman was nearly my height and dressed in the traditional combat gear of the Nightwalkers. She held a long blade in one hand, and a dagger in the other. Both blades pulsed with deep red runes.
Soulsplitters.
She narrowed her eyes and slowly lifted her long blade, pointing it at me.
“Where is Marquez?”
Regis Marquez had been a Dark Council Lead Enforcer who worked for Clan Head Garcia, a member of the Triumvirate—three powerful clan heads who wanted control of the Dark Council. There were, however, some obstacles in their way before they took over the Council.
First, I had reduced their number from three to two by removing Clan Head Renault, which meant I posed an existential threat, and second, in order to succeed in their planned takeover, they had to remove Director Nakatomi from existence…permanently.
A task far easier said than done, as I was certain they were presently discovering.
The remaining Clan Heads, Garcia and Petrov, wanted me dead, but it was merely a result of my eliminating Renault. I doubt I figured in their long term plans of usurping power from Nakatomi, other than being an annoyance that needed removal.
“Who sent you?” I asked, careful to keep my blade sheathed. Outwardly she appeared calm, but I sensed she was ready to strike with lethal intent. “Why are you looking for Marquez?”
“Did you kill him?” she asked, her voice filled with a barely controlled rage. “Did you kill my brother?”
For all intents and purposes I had.
“Your brother knew the risks when he became an Enforcer,” I said. “How did you find me?”
She cocked her head to one side.
“Iker the Unseen,” she said. “You have a particular energy signature, or rather your blade does.” She pointed at my cane. “Clever, hiding it in the cane. Doesn’t hide the fact that it’s more than a Soulsplitter. Took some work, but it’s not too hard—if you know how to look.”
I re-examined her blades. What I first thought were Soulsplitters turned out to be a variation on the theme. Her blades were similar to Soulsplitters, but they possessed subtle variations.
“Those aren’t Soulsplitters,” I said, looking at the runework on her blades. “Where did you get them?”
“I made them,” she said with a hint of pride. “Similar principle, but different function.”
“You’re a Nightblade,” I said, realizing what I was facing. “I didn’t know Garcia had any in his employ.”
“That’s the way it’s supposed to be,” she said. “Garcia wants your head delivered to him personally.”
Nightblades were the assassin’s assassins. When a Nightwalker needed to be retired, Nightblades were tasked with the mission. According to the Dark Council, they didn’t exist.
Except that they did.
The few I had encountered in the past were fearsome fighters and masters of subterfuge. Unlike the Nightwalkers, they always operated alone, they had no family, and no affiliations—except for the Clan Head they had sworn allegiance to. If a Nightblade was ever captured, they never divulged information, choosing death every single time.
“Please express my sincere honor to Clan Head Garcia, that he would think me worthy of dispatching a Nightblade, but I’m rather attached to my head and prefer it remain where it is.”
“Not for much longer, if I have anything to say about it.”
“You work for Garcia?”
“For this job, I do,” she said. “I left the Dark Council long ago, and told Regis not to work for a Clan Head, that it would get him killed.”
“Seems you were right.”
“I’m only here to return the favor,” she said. “I don’t work for Garcia or the Dark Council, but tonight, the enemy of my enemy is my friend, and our goal aligns.”
“That goal being my death?”
“Got it in one,” she said. “You could surrender and make it easy on yourself. Or you could put up a fight and delay the inevitable.”
“I’ve never heard of a rogue Nightblade,” I said. “I didn’t think it was possible.”
“You can learn something new every day if you try,” she said. “Tonight you’re going to learn how quickly you can die.”
At least she was confident in her abilities.
If I told her Regis was alive, he would be hunted and killed. His continued existence depended on the world, especially Clan Head Garcia, believing he was dead.
“Who is that?” Sabine asked in my ear. “There is no information on Regis having any siblings, much less siblings that work for Garcia.”
“Rogue Nightblade,” I said. “Claims to be Regis’ sister.”
“Nightblade? I thought they were a myth to keep Nightwalkers in line.”
“She seems particularly real.”
“Can you handle her?” Sabine asked. “Your window on the targets is closing. Does she present a credible threat?”
“I don’t know yet,” I said. “She does, however, appear to wield blades similar to my Soulsplitter. Which leads me to believe she was a Nightwalker at some point.”
