11. The Third Rail

Complete story — includes the ending

The group plans to infiltrate the Master's underground lair that Setrakian believes is near the 9/11 attack sites. Eph wants Nora to stay behind with Zach and her mother, who suffers from dementia. Nora refuses, and Eph instead tells Zach to look after Mrs. Martinez, leaving him the keys. Eph, Nora, Fet and Setrakian enter a deserted railway tunnel to search for the Master. Meanwhile, Zach, yielding to Mrs. Martinez's incessant demands for cigarettes, leaves the pawnshop to get her some. He finds a deserted grocery store, but when looters arrive, he hides in a back room and encounters a strigoi. Zach narrowly escapes as Gus enters, armed with an ax. After escaping the police, Gus had returned home and discovered his infected family. He killed his brother and also the turned landlord, but left his mother alive, unable to harm her. Gus sends Zach safely on his way, then destroys the strigoi and its victims. Meanwhile, Eph and the others locate the Master's lair only to find it littered with resting strigoi. Eph hears Kelly's voice crying out for help, but Setrakian knows it is a trap leading them to the Master. Eph nevertheless follows the voice into a large chamber containing the Master's coffin, only to be surrounded by strigoi. After arriving and finally meeting Eph face-to-face, the Master attempts to kill him, but Fet, Setrakian and Nora arrive and set off a home-made UV light bomb, killing some strigoi and repelling the Master. Setrakian wants to pursue his old nemesis, but is forced to retreat when the group come upon hundreds of newly turned strigoi inside a cavern.