Two unlucky Vampires leaped at the three of them, targeting the one who seemed the most ruthless.
A desperate Vampire was blasted out of the air with a single shot. The other had barely leaped through the window when Frank's high kick caught him on the chin. The Vampire screamed, spitting out dozens of grams' worth of teeth. His head snapped back, and Frank grabbed him by the hair, turning him face-down and slamming him hard onto the floor.
With a savage grin, Frank drew a foot-long Harpoon from the sheath on his chest and viciously hacked off half the Vampire's shoulder. The tenacious Monster kept struggling, so Frank plunged the blade through his back, pinning him to the floor.
The fight ended quickly. When Frank stood up, he saw Alvin and JJ staring at him strangely.
JJ whispered to Alvin, "How does a guy that old manage to kick his leg up that high?" He gestured to the height of his own chin. Alvin nodded in agreement. "Maybe he likes Yoga!"
Frank glowered and flipped JJ off. Then he said to Alvin, "JJ and I will split up and check for any stragglers."
Alvin nodded. "Hurry it up. I'll call the Police right away. I didn't expect there to be so many Illegal Immigrants here. We'll have to leave that to the cops."
Frank nodded and motioned for JJ to check the rooms on the second floor. They found nothing. It seemed the Vampires had been throwing a PARTY, with only a Punk singer left on guard, before Alvin had taken them all out.
It was just as well. If the Vampires had grabbed their guns, people would have gotten hurt.
Ignoring the poor women, Alvin waved them downstairs. From here on out, they were the New York Police's problem.
After tidying up the room a little, Alvin realized that fighting Vampires was pretty eco-friendly—there weren't even any Corpses left behind. They'd more than completed the mission, since they'd managed to keep three alive.
He stomped the blind Vampire's screams back down his throat, then called Chief George.
"George, buddy, I think you'd better send someone down to the docks in Hell's Kitchen."
"No, it's fine. I caught the thing. But there are dozens of Illegal Immigrants here, and I can't deal with them."
"Yeah, I'll bring the thing back with me. You handle things here, and come by tomorrow if you have time."
"All right, I can wait for you at home and question it with you, but make it quick. I don't want to stay up all night."
Frank and JJ finished checking for any escaped Vampires, then returned to meet up with Alvin.
JJ had also gotten lucky and found three of the Chinese laborers' woven travel bags that Alvin knew all too well. Their red-and-white stripes made him feel right at home.
Alvin rudely shoved a Vampire headfirst into one of the bags, but found it was a little too long.
He had JJ hold the Vampire's feet, then punched it viciously in the spine, making it go completely limp. That made it easier for Alvin to fold it up and stuff it into the bag.
They did the same with the Vampire Frank had pinned to the floor.
The one that had been slammed against the wall by the Iron gate didn't need a bag. There wasn't a single bone left intact in its body.
One of the Vampires had even begged for mercy, but Alvin ignored him. Give me a break. You treat us like food, then beg your food for mercy when you're losing? Don't you have any Vampire dignity?
Outside the warehouse, Alvin, Frank, and JJ carried their bags like bank robbers returning from a successful heist. They reached the Pickup Truck and tossed the bags into the bed. JJ got behind the wheel, and the three of them headed home.
On the way, they passed a whole convoy of Police cars, sirens blaring as they raced toward the Dock District. It felt familiar. Hell's Kitchen was always so lively at night.
The next morning, in the Restaurant, Nick had gone to school. Little Ginny was hunched over a table, struggling anxiously with a bowl of noodles and a pair of Bamboo Chopsticks.
Alvin, JJ, and Frank sat at the Bar Counter, drinking Coffee. Chief George came in through the door, looking less than pleased.
He walked up to the counter and said wearily to Jessica, "Honey, get me a Coffee, no sugar."
JJ glanced at Jessica's pale face. She'd thrown up five times since last night. He shook his head, stood up, and poured Chief George a cup of Coffee himself.
Chief George looked at Jessica in surprise, then asked JJ, "What's wrong with her today?"
JJ shrugged. "Jess took a peek at our catch last night. It was a bit bloody, so..."
Chief George grew anxious. "You killed it?"
JJ pressed his lips together and tilted his head, probably remembering something funny. "No. They're still alive, and that's why our Jess is in this state!"
Jessica angrily picked up a condiment bottle and hurled it at JJ. "You're all disgusting! Why would you bring something that disgusting home? And then you let its guts spill all over the floor!" She clapped a hand over her mouth and rushed into the bathroom again.
Chief George asked in confusion, "What thing? Spilling all over the floor?"
JJ laughed. "When we got back last night, one of those things had its intestines hanging out by the door to Frank's Basement. Our Jess stepped right on them. Hahaha!"
Chief George's face turned grave. "You said that thing was still alive?"
Seeing the Chief's troubled expression, JJ answered seriously, "It was definitely alive. It was jumping around. You can go see for yourself in a bit."
Chief George breathed a sigh of relief, then looked at Alvin. "Buddy, things aren't looking good! The FBI forcibly took over the Dock District case yesterday. Just now, two Congressmen called me and told me to drop the investigation into the Vampires and hand the case over to S.H.I.E.L.D. Buddy, we could be in trouble!"
Alvin smiled and refilled Chief George's Coffee. "You're the one in trouble. Remember what I told you? They're a Race that's been reproducing on Earth for thousands of years. They see humans as food. So why don't Ordinary People know they exist?"
As he spoke, Alvin stared into George's eyes. "Because they've infiltrated our society!"
Chief George angrily pounded the Bar Counter. "Those bastards! I'll drag every last one of them out!"
Then Chief George rubbed his face in frustration. "But I'm leaving for DC the day after tomorrow. There's a very important meeting there! Damn it!" The enraged Chief slammed his fist onto the counter.
Alvin looked at Chief George's helpless expression and thought for a moment. "The best thing you can do is let the public know about this. They need to know that something terrifying is lurking in the dark."
Chief George asked in confusion, "What should I do?"
Alvin smiled confidently. "Easy. Get someone really influential to come take a look. I think someone with the titles of Billionaire and Genius Inventor would be perfect!"
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