Update
I finished up the scene with Morgana and her friends at the grill today. The short's coming along nicely, I think, and I might even be able to NaNoWriMo with only 4 stories.
Current Word Count: 43,813
Scene of the Day
“Ya’ wouldn’ happen ta’ have anythin’ on the vamps,
while yer ahead, would ya’?” I sighed.
“Nothing. I did a quick trip into the usual databases.
No known Mistress named Janet, or anything even close.”
That wasn’t good.
The APD, who were the
‘usual databases’ Jess checked using a program I’d built, kept meticulous
records.
When it came to the supernatural criminals in the city,
especially when they were part of the various gangs, the APD were usually the
first to know about them.
The Camarilla was the only vampire crime family in Arkham, which was a testament to just
how bad their leader was.
Under him, the vamps and ghouls took great joy in using the city as their
fiefdom, and any vampires who weren’t with them were fending for themselves.
Regardless of how dangerous the man running the show
was, in any context, the APD had a flow chart mapping out most of the family.
It was only due to horrible understaffing and
overabundance of said supernaturals that kept Irene’s crew as ineffectual as
they were.
If there wasn’t a reference to any person named Janet in
the gang, it was a bad sign.
Because it meant that one of the 10 vampires capable of
making other vampires, the Masters and Mistresses directly beneath the leader,
had been killed and replaced.
And that meant the family’s organization and power could
be in for a drastic change.
The knot in my stomach ratcheted just that tiny bit
more.
“Okay, so there’s fresh blood an’ a dead hunter. The
question now’s how did the two get involved at all? An’ assumin’ the worst,
here, tha’ this Janet’s a black widow, we need ta’ get ahead a’ this if it’s
gonna’ turn inta’ a streak,” I groaned.
A flash of Coldwell’s death rose to my mind, making my
fist clench at the edge of the table.
“An’ we have the mystery of why he was at the Zodiac ta’
begin with. He really didn’ wanna’ be
there,” I added.
“This one’s going to suck especially hard,” Jess
guessed.
“What else is new?”
“Well,” Collin began with a wave at a waitress, “we
can’t be thinkin’ too hard on empty stomachs.”
After the energetic young woman left with our various
toxic orders, Jessica relaxed back into her seat.
Clearly, she wanted to get her mind off what was likely
coming, and I eagerly agreed.
“So how’s Alexis been?” I began conversationally.
“Good,” she responded quickly.
Her pale skin quickly gained a light pink cast, then,
and she seemed to be trying very hard to keep a goofy grin off her face.
She wasn’t succeeding.
“She’s… good.”
Alexis Manson was Jessica’s girlfriend, going on over a
year.
She was totally and completely human, though I couldn’t
really hold it against her.
Our first introduction had been impressive enough to
make sure I didn’t underestimate her just because she couldn’t throw magic
around with the rest of us.
“That’s a look says a bit more than good,” Collin mused with a grin.
“Oh, definitely.”
I’ll admit, being able to embarrass my calm and
collected friend occasionally was a nice change of pace.
“So good, huh?
Have a nice weeken’, then?”
She turned even brighter, though it did nothing to
remove the glassy look to her eyes.
“Ya’ seemed pretty excited Friday. Glad it worked out,”
I offered.
“We saw each other five minutes on Friday,” she
complained back.
“An’ it took one ta’ pick up on ya’ practically bouncin’
where ya’ stood. Ya’ might wanna’ exhale, Jess,” I added with a laugh.
Sighing, she brought her hand up to her cheek.
In the span of a second, a thin coating of blue light
traveled up her neck and disappeared.
The blush disappeared with it.
“Don’t do that,” she grumbled.
“Hey, ya’ were pickin’ on me when we got ‘ere. Payback’s
fair.”
Smiling, I pressed into Collin’s side and enjoyed the
look that still hadn’t disappeared.
“But seriously. It’s all good with you two?”
“Phenomenal.”
She was grinning, and I honestly don’t know that I’d
heard that tone in her voice since we’d been kids.
It was nice to see.
Our food arrived, then, the mouth-watering aromas making
my stomach sound like an angry animal.
Without further adieu, we dug in, both Collin and I
wolfing things down at a rate that would kill lesser people.
“Wow. You guys must’ve spent a ton of energy this
morning,” Jessica said, observing the display with more than just a slight hint
of amusement.
She didn’t know the half of it.
Her own ice magic was literally part of her, an extension
of her own body, and didn’t have a tendency to knock her flat on her ass.
I, on the other hand, burned carbs almost faster than I
could wolf them down with my magic acts.
Because of how long I’d been using the stuff, I had a lot to burn, but jumping into another
person’s psyche and pulling out before I died had done a number on me.
Even sleep and Collin’s potion hadn’t brought back
everything I’d thrown into Coldwell.
“No kidding,” the Irishman mused with a nod at me. “She got
a taste of the ghoul’s kill.”
Her eyes widened at that, scanning over me for a second
before she eased back.
“No blood. She’ll be fine.”
“She’s sittin’ right here,” I cut in with a frown.
“Going to my point. You’re alright, right?”
“Fine. Be better if Marshall learns from tit an’ doesn’t
pull this shite again. Is there anythin’ else on the schedule fer today?”
“Nope. You’ve got all day to play with the fangs.”
“Great. Collin, you gonna’ back me, or do ya’ wanna’ go
an’ hang with Mick?”
“You know me. I’m always up for a party,” he retorted.
“I’d have thought you have enough partying for a life
time,” Jess mused.
“Parish the thought,” he said with a fake shudder.
“He’d be in the wron’ business,” I conceded.
“So where do we go from here?”
Sighing, I finished off my meal and leaned back.
“Well, I know what the ghoul looks like, an’ I have ‘er
name. We’re goin’ vamp trackin’ when we’re done here, so let’s take our time.”
Jessica paused before taking her next bite, worry
suddenly appearing.
“Are you sure? If they’re Camarilla, they’re protected.
If he finds out you got them arrested, Morg, it could get really ugly.”
“He won’ do anythin’ stupid,” I scoffed. “Havin’ them
runnin’ free an’ killin’ in a neutral zone with ‘is tag’s bad fer business all ‘round.
He’ll throw ‘em under a bus.”
“Shouldn’t you wait a while on this? Do some checking,
but leave it for a little bit, I mean. If they’re in the wind, giving them some
time could make them feel safe. They’ll probably get sloppy.”
“Normally, that’d be the plan. But the idiots killed in
the Zodiac,” I returned with a gesture at Collin. “We need ta’ get on this
afore any number a’ people lookin’ fer neutrality find out about it. Especially the humans ‘ere.”
“And I’ll be with her, so no need to worry,” Collin
added with a grin.
His arm tightened around me, loosening the tension in my
stomach just a bit.
“Are you two going to need supervision?” Jessica
laughed.
“You offerin’? Alex’d prob’ly kill me, an’ you, if ya’
tried,” I scoffed.
“No thanks. Someone needs to keep the office running if
you’re in the hospital. Won’t do us much good if I’m with you.”
Collin finished his food with a heavy sigh, then.
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