Vampire Mafia: Santa Cruz

VAMPIRE MAFIA:SANTA CRUZ

JACKSON STEIN

* * * * *

Vampire Mafia:Santa Cruz

www.jacksonstein.net

ebook Edition

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Books by Jackson Stein

VAMPIRE MAFIA: SANTA CRUZ

DRACULA RISING

DRACULA REIGNS

I, DRACULA

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER TWENTY

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

EXCERPT FROM DRACULA RISING

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dedication: For my three wise guys, Nicky the Enforcer, Fat Tommy and Zacky Two Cheeks. Love ya, you knuckleheads.

Acknowledgements: Thank you Gemma Halliday for your amazing collaboration in the process of writing this book.

Thank you Linda Style and Arran McNicol for your insightful contributions along the way.

CHAPTER ONE

It was just before midnight when Sarah Little decided to knock-off for the night. She strode through the tall glass doors of her law firm’s office building and plunged into a wall of hazy white mist rolling across the parking lot. The moon emerged from beneath the broiling clouds, its glowing top edge slicing through layers of rippling thunderheads like a shark’s fin patrolling the murky skies.

Sarah wrapped her long blond hair deep into her fluffy down jacket, zipped itall the way up and shivered back at the frosty evening.She hurriedacross the foggy lot,still lost in the details of the trial she was working on.

Sarah Little was a Santa Cruz local. She loved her small town by the sea but was alsoeagerto gether life started in a new city…anynew city. People always told her she was bright and quite mature for twenty…and it was true. She’d already decided she was going to be a successful trial lawyer.

But, while she dreamed of someday attendinga toplaw school, she knewher parents weren’t going to be able to pay for everything and was thrilled when Bremen & Stratford offered herapaidinternship position. The experience would look awesome on her law school application and it may even mean the difference between acceptance and denial.

Sarah’s mind was racing with excitement. She’d beenworking nightsin the downtownlaw officeduringone of the biggest cases of the decade. A pharmaceutical company, Oracle Pharmaceuticals andMedical Supplies,had been accused ofknowingly suppressing critical research data justbefore the global release and distribution of their new miracle drug calledViatoxil.

People were getting sick…verysick.Many were dying…andthe people whohad taken the drug and their familieswere mad as hell.

And if the firm won theViatoxilcase, in some small way, she would have her name attached to the victory forever.It just mightbe her ticket into Stanford. No,shewas sure ofit.

Everyone in the law officehad beenscrambling lately ontheViatoxil case andtonight was no exception.Another caffeine-saturatedmarathon evening at the office.But that’s what it would take to be good. What surprised her was how fast the nights flew by.The old adage,timeflies when you’re having fun, was all too true.She truly loved every minute of it.

Sarah ran through her plan again. She would graduate from community collegein thespring and work hard for the next several years to complete law schoolas early as possible. Her plan had become an obsessionwith all the other small but importantdetails of her exciting future. It consumed her thoughts on a day-to-day basis and shefound it hard to care aboutlittleelse. She did her best to assist the attorneys as they formulated new strategies and researched possible precedents of helpful past decisions, and she always left wishing shecould have donemore to help her colleagues prepare.

But she had school early in the morning and was already going to catch hell from her parents. Normally she wouldn’t have thought twiceabout walking towardthe back of the well-lit parking lot, but tonight something was different. Halfway across the lot, she paused…noticed the end row of usually bright halogen street lamps above where she’d parked had gone dark, transforming her destination into a sea of shadows that had swallowed up her car.

Just let your eyes adjust, Sarah…

Good logic, but even so, her heart began to pound as she searched for her keys, ransacking the oversized purse slung across her shoulder. Finally locating them, she stepped into the black abyss.

As she did, she turned with a quick jerk and saw a long shadow slide acrossthe lighted area of pavement. Prickly goose bumpsgripped her body as the darkness enveloped her and alarm bells started ringing in the back of hermind.

She shook it off. Don’t be silly.It’s just the clouds moving over the moon, she decided, thensquared her shoulders and drew in a deep breath. Holdinga singlecarkey out in front of herlike a tiny sword, she inched her wayforward.

Hearing faint footsteps running somewhere in the distance, she turned to look behind her…to the right…and the left. But it was too dark. Her heart hammered, each heavy beat expanding and contracting in her chest, thudding like a base drum. She heard footsteps again, only louder this time…and closer. About tomake a quickdash toward the safety of her car, shesmelled the sweet scent of cologne…felt a sudden, undeniable wave ofbody heat behind her.

And froze.

Just as she opened her mouth to scream, strong arms pulled her to the ground with a powerful jolt and covered her mouth and nose with a moist, acrid-smelling cloth. Struggling for each breath…she flailed her arms, fought to get away, only she was getting dizzy…suffocating.Another pair of hands…grabbing her arms, tying her arms behind her back…wrapping a thick silky blindfold over her eyes…

CHAPTER TWO

“Brilliant little bugger…”

Tommy Valentine spoke to himself as he admired the highly sophisticated piece of FBI surveillance equipment in the palm of his hand. He drew in a long breath and then exhaled slowly, trying his best to calm his ratchet-tight nerves. A drop of perspiration rolled off of the end of his nose and landed on the inside of his wrist, barely missing the high-tech gadget.

Valentine had a tight, edgy feeling in the pit of his stomach and a bothersome little voice in the back of his mind that whispered....

You’re missing something.

He reminded himself there were always doubts about the safety of a mission and nothing had gone terribly wrong so far. Still, both hands were damp with sweat and trembling as he inspected the recording device. It was a tiny spy camera that looked similar to, and replaced, one of the buttons of his pressed, white dress shirt. The data was then wirelessly recorded in a receiver located inside of his belt buckle.

Another deep breath.

“Looking smart there, Thomas,” he said, attempting to spike his courage as he checked his appearance in the reflection of a small, dimly lit bathroom mirror. Then he noticed the beads of sweat on his forehead and thought back to the fundamentals of his FBI training, refocusing on the mission with a series of mental exercises.

He drew in a large breath and centered his mind. Then he slowly exhaled and concentrated on the first hurdle to overcome. He drew another deep breath and crystallized the vision…one of flawless execution, then exhaled and repeated the exercises until he had run through each element of his plan.

No room for mistakes…

Valentine thought back to how this undercover mission had begun and how simple his assignment seemed then. And now how complicated everything had become. The Stelino family was a more formidable opponent than the Bureau had expected because no one would dare testify against them. The assignment had already gone on longer than originally planned, and every day seemed more dangerous than the last. It was only a matter of time before he’d get made…his cover would get blown…and he’d be a dead man.

And yet…they just keep sending me back in there…

But he was close, and if he was successful tonight, it would be the last time. Then he could get on with another job, preferably not so deep undercover. He just needed to gather a bit more solid evidence before they could charge and eventually convict the organized-crime boss Vincenzo Stelino of racketeering, extortion or at the very least, tax evasion.

The FBI would likely offer a promotion plus a huge pay raise. This was his career moment. He had to pull it off…

Still looking in the mirror, he adjusted his shirt, shrugging off the negative thoughts.

Piece of cake Thomas. Just get the evidence and get out.

He was still trying to stay calm as he drove his polished BMW Z4 roadster up to the security gate of the Stelino compound, located in an industrial neighborhood on the north end of Santa Cruz County. The compound was large enough to span an entire city block…a far cry from the tiny apartment the FBI had rented for him near the coastline, close to the city’s popular downtown area.

The little voice resurfaced…pulling at his thoughts. An uncomfortable shiver crawled across his skin as he thought about the evil men he knew were inside the compound’s high, fortress-like walls. It wasn’t the loan sharking, gambling or drug dealing that made him wary. There was something more about these eerie men, something unnatural.

Something unthinkable…

Vincenzo Stelino was the boss, number one in command, and his three sons, Constantino, Nicoli, and Dominic were made men. Vincenzo also had a beautiful daughter, Anna, but she was unlike the rest of the family and didn’t seem to play any role in the crime syndicate’s illegal activities. He’d made a connection with Anna, but…his gut twisted up at the thought…how she would hate him if she learned the truth. He sighed. He couldn’t think about that now. He had a job to do.

Get in and get out. Not a problem.

The guards knew him well by now and were relaxed and friendly as they closed the gates behind him. Valentine put on a casual air as he shook hands and made small talk. He passed through the first security post with an easy smile pasted on his face, attempting to read their expressions and body language for the “tells” that would expose any malicious intent. He scanned for any general uneasiness or tension in their eyes. The FBI had trained him well to spot anything out of the ordinary and abort if necessary. Any suspicion whatsoever and he would simply turn around and terminate tonight’s mission. If he noticed even the smallest hint of doubt, he would recite his well-rehearsed exit line:Well then, mates,I just remembered I forgot the one very important document Vincenzo requested…and it’s just back in my car. Vincenzo will be mad as hell if I don’t have what he wants, when he wants it. You know how he is… Be right back then.It sounded believable as he went over it again. It would be just enough of a distraction to buy him a few seconds.

But everything was fine. The men were calm and easy going and seemed to barely care or even notice as they nodded him through the compound’s military-like entry points.

Renzo, the head of security at the Stelino compound, stepped into Valentine’s path. He was a huge man with a broad chest and rounded stomach, but due to his youthful, boyish facial features he had acquired the nicknameBabyface. His expression usually remained a blank slate, and today was no different.

“Ciao Tommy, how ya doin, eh?” the hulking Italian asked as he searched Valentine with his eyes.

“Quite well, thank you Renzo, and you?” Valentine flashed the best smile he could muster.

“Not too bad. I’m gett’n by. Know what I mean, eh? You’re good, go on through.” Renzo nodded his admittance.

The tension eased from Valentine’s limbs, allowing him to relax a bit.

Don’t let the paranoia get to you, Thomas…

Valentine composed himself as he entered the military-like building inside the compound and then walked toward the long hallway that led to Vincenzo’s office. The architecture of the building’s interior was stunning, nothing like its lackluster dingy gray exterior. He marveled at the enormous pavilion-like chamber in the center of the building. Twenty-foot-high ceilings held up by six huge marble columns formed a circle around the majestic looking room.