Chapter 1
I sighed heavily, sitting down on the couch. My life was so complicated, and everything just kept twisting and turning in a never ending maze of confusion. How I was going to get out of it, I didn't know. A key turned in the door, and I watched as it opened. Beth stood there, her blond waves framing her face as she lit up with a smile. I smiled wryly back, crossing my legs. Her smile faded as she hung up her keys and laid her bag down.
"What's wrong?" she asked, and I shrugged. I knew, but I really didn't feel like talking. The whole situation had me feeling so many things, it made my head hurt.
"Come on. I know something's wrong," she said, sitting down next to me. Again, I shrugged. I figured she could tell there was something wrong, but I really didn't care at the moment. I sighed, wanting to throw something across the room. Josef's freshie, Simone, had been killed. I didn't know if he knew yet, though I did know the reason why the killer had done it.
"Simone's dead," I whispered, Beth's mouth slowly dropping open. She sat back, laying a hand over her gapping mouth.
"Oh my God," she murmured, shock plain on her pretty face. I cupped my chin in my hand and looked over at her, wondering what she was thinking. Of course, she was about to tell me.
"Does Josef know?" she asked.
"I have no idea," I replied, staring blankly at the wall. If he does, he's probably hulled himself up in his office, not willing to talk to anyone. If not, he's probably at Mick's.
"Well, we have to go find out," she responded, standing up and heading to the door.
"We?" I asked, and she turned around and nodded.
"Yes, you have to come with me. You know all the details, and we don't have time to waste in you telling them to me. If he doesn't know, you have to tell him," she stated, and I shook my head. Josef thought I was dead, and just him seeing me would be hard, let alone hearing from me that his freshie was dead. He had become attached to Simone, possibly even loved her.
"I can't, I won't. Just tell Mick and he'll take care of it," I whispered, and she scooped up her purse and keys. Her face was set, and I knew she wasn't going to back down from this one.
"You can and you will. Now, come on," she replied, opening the door. I nodded meekly, grabbing my purse and walking to the door. I threw it over my shoulder as I stepped out into the hallway, wondering if this was the best idea. She locked the door and pulled out her phone, dialing. We walked to the elevator in silence as she waited for someone to answer.
"Hey, where are you?" she asked as we stepped into the elevator, reaching down and pressing the lobby button. The doors shut after a moment, the room gliding down slowly.
"Is Josef there with you?" she questioned, glancing over at me. I studied her, but didn't make any expression. Her eyes were clouded with worry, over me, over Josef.
"Does he by chance know about Simone?" There was another silence as she listened to Mick for a moment. She nodded, though he couldn't see her.
"Okay. Simone's been murdered. I don't know all the details but I've got a friend with me that does. I'll be over there in a little while," she said, hanging up before he could respond. We stepped off the steel box and walked to the doors. Neither one of us said anything as we walked to the parking garage and got into Beth's car.
"How long has it been since you've seen each other?" she asked, pulling out onto the empty road. It was near midnight and everyone was at night clubs partying and such. I looked over at her, wondering if I should even answer the question. She stared right back, waiting for an answer.
"A little less than three hundred years," I murmured, and she nodded. I gazed out the window and tried to think of anything except what I was about to do. I felt like jumping out of the car, running away from everything, and possibly not coming back. But, could I really start over again?
"Abby," Beth said quietly, and I looked at her. "It'll be okay." I sighed, wishing with everything I had that I could believe her.
Josef hadn't spoken in a solid ten minutes, which Mick didn't hold against him. He had just told Josef of Simone's murder and at first he was in denial, making Mick double check with Terrance down at the morgue that it was her. After that, he had sat down and remained silent, and if Mick hadn't known better he might have thought he had died.
A light rap at the door made Mick tense, though he knew who it was. He stood and walked to the door, looking at the LED screen. It was black, he had forgotten to have it fixed. He turned to his instincts and breathed deep near the door, clearly catching Beth's airy scent. There was another there with her though, and not just anyone. A vampire, and an old one. Not quite as old as Josef, but older than Mick himself. He opened the door to Beth's blank face and another he did not recognize. The stranger was beautiful, her full lips turning up in a polite smile.
"Hi," Beth said, walking past him and into the apartment. The woman followed, and Mick closed the door behind them. "This is Abigail." Beth motioned to her, and she shook hands with Mick.
That name always stirred something in Josef, even now after so many centuries. Every time he heard it, he would turn his head in hopes of seeing her, his Abigail. Though it never was, it would be a young girl or woman, and he would be again disappointed. He knew she was gone, never to be held, never to be touched by him again. He had looked everywhere in search of what he would know to be her grave, a place to mourn her soul that was lost. He stood up and straightened his jacket, ready to meet another Abigail that did no justice to the name.
Mick led them down into the sunken living room, and Beth smiled when she saw Josef. Josef put on a small smile, if only for her benefit.
"Beth," Josef said, nodding to her.
"I'd like you to meet someone," she requested, and the woman stepped down the small set of stairs into the living room. "This is Abigail." It must have been Abigail's distant relative, though she was his Abigail's spitting image. That's when he caught her scent as it wafted towards him. It was her's, he knew it by heart even now. It was slightly different, that small twinge of vampire entwined within. She smiled, the one she used when she was meeting someone for the first time, the one she used when she was uncomfortable and felt like shying away. How could she be here? He held out his hand, and as they shook in greeting a shiver went down his spine. It was her, he knew it now for sure.
"It's nice to meet you," she said calmly, sitting down next to Beth. How did she find him? How did she know who to contact? He sat as well, mostly so he wouldn't fall over in shock.
"Likewise," he replied, laying a hand on the arm of the chair. A silence fell over them, no one willing to break it.
"She knows what happened to Simone," Beth finally stated, glancing over at Mick. Abigail nodded, turning to look at Josef.
"She was found in an alley only a few blocks from your home. She had been dead a few hours before someone found her. They don't know the cause of death yet, but they will soon," Abigail said, looking between the three of them. Mick nodded, leaning forward and laying his forearms on his knees.
"Who found her?" Mick asked, making eye connect with Josef.
"A vampire. He had smelled her blood, though it was old. He came to see what had been left behind and he found her," she replied, crossing her legs. He nodded, sitting back. Did she even remember him? She didn't seem to, but how couldn't she, after every thing that had happened? Obviously, Josef wasn't thinking about how rudely he was staring. He was intent on understanding why she was here, how she much she knew about Simone, how she even knew about her to begin with. He stood up and walked out of the living room to the door, his mind still clouded.
I glanced over at Beth, almost as if to say I told you so. She sighed and walked to the door, Mick close on her heels.
"That's not very polite, even for a guest," Mick said to Josef, and Josef chuckled softly. I could hear them easily, and I didn't feel a need to move.
"We're past formalities," Josef responded, and I heard the door shut quietly behind him. I sighed, knowing exactly what he meant. He hadn't known I was alive until know, his freshie, whom I was positive he loved now, was dead, and the murder was done by a vampire with no known probable cause. It was turning out to be a pretty bad evening for everyone, especially him. My phone buzzed in my pocket and reached in and pulled it out.
"Hello?"
"It's Terrance. We have a problem," he said quickly, and I stood up.
"What kind of problem?" I asked, heading to the door.
"Do you remember that list of those three hundred vampires that Emma Monaghan threatened us with?" he asked, and I nodded as I brushed in between Mick and Beth.
"Yeah." I opened the door and stopped, waiting to hear more.
"Well, it seems someone has leaked that very list to the Assisant DA. Some guy named Talbot. I'm sure that he doesn't know what he's looking at yet, but the man that gave him the list keeps dropping hints about what it contains," he answered, and I stopped.
"Oh." I said, suddenly in panic mode.
"Oh? This is more than oh. Everyone's on that list. Me, you, Mick, Josef, even Beth. What are we going to do?" he questioned, more rushed than before.
"Beth? How did she get on there?" I asked, turning and looking at her. I was in the middle of the doorway now, both of them watching me intently.
"Simone was on there, too. Maybe this guy thinks that she's Mick's freshie or something and means to take her out just like he did with Simone. Heck, I don't know!" Terrance replied. Great. My night had just gotten a lot worse.
"Mick, get Josef," I stated, getting out of the doorway.
"What? He's probably on his way back to his apartment. How am I supposed to stop him?" he retorted, and I frowned.
"Well, calling him might help. But, you are a vampire so I'm sure that you can figure it out," I snapped, wondering if Josef was this guy's next target.
"You had better tell me what's going on when I get back," he stated, grabbing his coat and throwing it on. I nodded, standing next to Beth. He took one last look at her, then headed down the hall to the elevator.