This series picks up after the "A Wonderful Opportunity" Series.
Previously in my world (And you are welcome to it) Beth's health condition has required an internal cardiac defibrillator to be implanted; she lost the early pregnancy she had with Josh.
Josh was shot and he survived thanks to Mick and Beth's CPR efforts. While he was recuperating he was visited by the spirits of his child and Dad, he was tipped off he had a good number of years ahead of him.
Mick and Beth return to the loft to find a package (which Mick does not divulge to Beth) that is 'the cure'.
My previous posts had been lengthy, so I've cut these into chapters that you can enjoy as you have time. Thanks for reading!
The following chapter features lyrics of 'No One Else' by Natalie Walker
Walk, Run, Stumble…..#1 / No One Else
Remember, we all stumble, every one of us. That's why it's a comfort to go hand in hand. ~Emily Kimbrough
"What was it?" Beth's eyes followed the movements of his hands as Mick closed up the box exactly as he had received it. His eyebrows were knitted together as he frowned, thin lipped. He took off for the office and withdrew a roll of packing tape and wound is vigorously around the package.
Was he returning the package? Beth was confused, yet this was just another time when Mick the vampire didn't let her in. Could she take this when she didn't expect it? How well did she know the man in this relationship? She dared not follow him, not out of fear, yet out of respect.
Hadn't this man just saved her ex-boyfriend, had saved her life? She owed him privacy in his own home. She heard shuffling, metallic sounds of drawers opening, closing, and his arriving footsteps and then he was here…. With a transformed face, completely transfixed by her adoring eyes, he was her Mick again. How did he do that?
What was the way they got by each other's hidden selves? Space, they gave each other "Space" and by saying they trusted each other when they weren't together.
Tonight Mick thought about going for the full release, make it or break it. He'd have to see how far he could take it before he fought the raw sybaritic power of his inner vamp. He was hoping for the best, giving the two of them the most enduring and sensual experience a couple could have and he was prepared for the worse, he'd get that mahogany stake out of the closet and leave it by the bed table.
Then tomorrow, he'd talk with Beth about the cure. "Let's grab some sustenance before we head upstairs, OK?" Mick tried to pry her gaze from the office door. Was Beth expecting the box to walk out by itself?
"Sure," Beth circled around the bar and slid up behind Mick as he reached into the back panel fridge. She caught his eye in the reflection and demurely grinned as her hand blindly felt the drawer for the stack of take out menus. She rested her cheek on his shoulder and took in his cool calm. They knew it was a balm on their souls to be home.
Mick reached for the bag and a tumbler all while Beth stayed attached to his back.
"Are you OK?" He thought she was a bit clingy tonight.
"I just want to cuddle, feel you. . . . . . Hold you. You know, be naked together" She purred her desire and Mick downed the A+.
Between them it had been truly divine, they had stripped slowly and showered then they fell into the bed and melted between each other's vigorous limbs. While their bodies clung to each other, his furiously hard cock drilled slowly, deliberately. She held him tightfisted deep within her, her legs around his hips rising to his stroke, answering his deep rumble with sighs and cries begging for more. Their dance had been playfully attentive, a vertical waltz that ended with both of them covered with Beth's sweet sweat.
Mick was enveloped in the reality that she was alive and loving him. Beth was awash in the thrill of Mick accepting himself and loving her. The night birds had ceased their singing when Mick rose silently from their bed and climbed into his freezer. As his consciousness dimmed he finally welcomed the peace his vampire nature brought him and he wondered what Beth was dreaming.
Butterflies…..
Gravity pulls me into anticipate our first touch
Sweet and so new
Let's figure out how to make this forever, Oh this is making me crazy
"If there was a way, a way for me to be human, how would you feel?" Mick held Beth over his chest, her breasts were warm and she smelled of their sex. He was giddy with the smell of her juices drying on him and the fact that he had left her quivering and full of his cum.
"Like Morgan?" All Beth could recall was Morgan stalking them.
"She was on a cure" Mick's finger tips trailed lazy circles on her soft back.
"How long would you be human?" Beth was calm; they'd always had discussions of his angst and unhappiness at his nature. This was a breakthrough and she was curious.
"A dose masks the effects about 11, 12 months" Their eyes met and he saw her reticence, was she in love with the vampire or what she thought was the vampire?
"We'll have to make a spreadsheet, you know like Ann Landers would tell people the list the pros and cons" Beth seemed exceptionally level headed for a woman sleeping with a vampire.
"A list of pros and cons?" Mick thought about it, took a second look at her and gave her a wry smile.
"I guess no more cool vampire jumpy thing?" her smile came straight from her heart as she walked her fingers up the center of his chest, "No more drinking blood, biting, sleeping in a freezer" she pronounced each thing as she tapped at a curve of his pecs, "What about drug side effects?" Beth rose up on one elbow, her head on her chin, "You know, like the guy on TV and his mentioning the 4 hour erection?" She had tried to be serious, but that line gave her away and she collapsed on his chest with a giggle.
His nodding continued as he waited for her to list more sins of his undead flesh. That was it, that's all she saw. She hadn't been there for the hellish early years.
"I could be with you, in bed every night, we could grow older together for maybe as long as 3 years" His voice rumbled from his chest, while the unspoken reasons moored there deep. He could love her as a man with no fear; he would know a good meal together with her.
"Is that all the time you see for us, 3 years?" Beth grew serious, what happened to forever?
"No, Beth, that's not what I meant, I mean that out of our time together , we'd have 3 human years for me, for us" He seemed to smooth that over, not understanding exactly how he did it.
"What would you do for a living? I mean isn't a lot of your skill at being a PI being a vampire?" Beth was right back to the practical; Mick had a jar of spent bullets he had pulled out himself, could he be as successful being mortal? Was Mick due for a career makeover too?
"I have some money put away, I could try doing something else I guess, if you were worried" There was more to this than just eating, breathing and getting back his beating heart. In the end, if he survived 3 years he'd be back to pulling lead out of himself and sleeping alone in a freezer.
There was no way to convince Beth that being a vampire was just about his diet and sleeping habits, she didn't know what he had done between 1952 and 1985. In 33 years a vampire wreaks a lot of havoc and Mick remembered the lion's share of it.
Beth's attention span only lasted as long as that, she became fascinated with the trail of hair down the center of his chest, the flat of her hand skimmed it, giving him a quiver, and then she followed the line to his thatch of pubic hair to play with his reawakening cock. They had been bouncing it back and forth and he didn't have the overwhelming satisfaction at deciding to re-enter the human coil. Mick threw himself back into their physicality and pushed the discussion aside, sometimes it's better to be paralyzed with indecision than to be paralyzed by your decision.
Hey love I am at the point of no restraint…..
Let's just make a move and feel the earth quake
It's just you and me and no one else
It's just you and me, you and me
Friday, February 1, 2008
The day Josh got released from the hospital they were there….. Mick's Benz was outside the hospital, passenger door open while the orderly rolled Josh to the curb. Behind them, Beth pushed a cart of dish gardens that had nearly outgrown their ceramic bowls. His halting steps with the cane from the curb to the car seat brought them all a smile and then three very human riders sped off to get Josh settled in his beachfront studio apartment.
Slowly now, we shouldn't let this go too fast
Bring me out of this shell, take off my mask
This is us intertwined and on fire
I cannot stop, I'm consumed with desire
Monday, February 10th, 2010
Mick's "human" body was adjusting; he was eating the food of the 21st century with a 20 century body. Beth had filled the kitchen counter with a large Kitchenaide stand mixer, cranking out home cooked meals, home baked cookies and anything that looked good on the cover of Bon Appétit.
Along with the kitchen gadgets another delivery was made….a Pilates Reformer (exercise machine) that slid under the stair because Mick's predilection for food ran more toward the Prime Rib at Musso's than a vegetable stir fry. Beth slid the contraption where Mick would see it from the kitchen, so the constant thought was "a minute on the lips, years of the hips" after all the metabolism slows down after 85!
This evening, Mick stood at the island, knife in hand making julienne strips of chicken while Beth opened a bottle of Malbec. Their kitchen partnership had become seamless, he was prep and she was assembly. Together they did cleanup. It gave them more time to bump hips and clown around.
"Mick, I go back to work on the 18th" She almost whined at the thought of leaving her comfortable schedule of getting up, walking on the beach, writing her journal and best of all spending nights with Mick at the loft. He'd boot her out, dropping her home as he left for work at Kostan Industries.
"Then I guess we really have to celebrate on the 14th, besides it's our first Valentine's Day" Mick leaned over and kissed the back of her neck, eliciting a shiver of delight from Beth.
"Yes, it is, and I have so much to do before Monday….. A haircut, a manicure, pick up some dry cleaning, get an oil change, pick up groceries. I'm going to be so busy between now and then…." She was ticking off things from her to do list, when a stray hair fell into her face, she stopped speaking to blow the hair off her face. Mick had been watching her, it was a perfect moment for him to brush the hair back behind her ear and tenderly kiss the ear that caught the stray hair.
"Don't be too busy for a kiss, OK?" He had softened so much in these past 2 weeks; his voice was rarely on edge. His eyes were calm blue green pools of relaxation. Whenever Beth needed a hug his arms were gentle and warm, yes, he was inordinately warm from the man she had first known. His beard grew faster, he fussed and fretted over keeping his nails clipped and clean. Beth joked about the primping in the bathroom; his hair had already grown almost a half inch.
"You remind me of a teenager" She grinned, head turned to return the kiss.
"What?" he feigned hurt feelings.
"You've awoken and all the things we find tedious you are reveling in them, like a teenage boy just getting to shave…" Beth was right; he was enjoying all his body's responses to appearing "alive". The things that took months to change, his beard, hair and nails were regenerating and earning his rapt attention.
"I just like to look my best for you, babe" he approached from the back, wrapping his arms around her waist and nuzzling her neck. He no longer saw the active roadmaps of veins; all he saw was creamy skin lightly dotted with pale freckles. He wanted to kiss each freckle only now time was finite and he found himself "scheduling" time to be together, between work and the sleep he seemed to need, how did couples with small children do this? Mick thought about that a lot.. …. …..
"You'll always have that perpetual cool to me" Beth shifted deeper into his caress and returned gentle sighs.
Hey love I am at the point of no restraint…..
Let's just make a move and feel the earth quake
it's just you and me and no one else
it's just you and me, you and me
Tuesday, February 11, 2008
Josh took plenty of time weighing his options. He had his small home packed up as it had been holding far too many "Beth" memories after all. He'd be happier in the studio with the beach view, it would give him time to take his physical therapy and reevaluate what he'd be doing with his 40 hours each week.
Tejada and the HEM were going to be someone else's problem, not his; he had given pints of blood on the ground in Griffith Park. Some guy by the name of Ben Talbot could fight the good fight now, Josh thought as he took measured steps to the studio. Carl had given him a dapper looking walking stick, carved briar wood with a tipped scale of justice, "you always knew justice wasn't balanced" Carl said when Josh remarked the uneven level of the two sides, Josh knew justice wasn't the only uneven thing in life.
He didn't sleep, at least not more than 2 or 3 hours. His gait had been maligned by a misshapen piece of bullet that ricocheted off his spine. He walked, he had feeling in his legs, he just was going to take a few months of dogged determination to see it came all the way back. The guy who had played pickup basketball games now huffed and puffed with trips to the car, his one lung still healing from the thru and thru gun shot.
He settled in the apartment and began a new life alone just when he had been planning to be a married man. His dreams of Chris and his Dad would come and go, he still hadn't figured out if Chris was a girl or a boy, he just knew it was their child because Chris was just too much like Beth – always curious.
Once he deposited the checks from the sale of his home and his settlement he set up his computer to begin to crawl out of the grip of the grey, grey gloves that had held him for weeks. He'd begin writing, first because he had the time and secondly because he couldn't NOT write about the experience of being held and shot and coming back into life. Writing led to research, which led to snooping and uncovering things he never thought to believe.
Beth's parents had never really divorced. Bob Turner wined and dined Josie Barker then when Josie decided she'd go back to work Bob decided to let her see what it was to work and he left. Beth was 3 years old when he sent the $500 check with a chicken shit good-bye note. It had taken Beth a long time to admit to Josh anything about her parents' lack of commitment. It had been in the back of his mind that he wanted to find Bob Turner and tell him what kind of resilient daughter he had, he had never had the time to find the bastard, now he did. Josh was going to do some digging in Bob Turner's dirty past.
Mick looked into the mirror. Was it his imagination? Was he fixated on his appearance? All of his life, all eighty some years he'd get to a stage, perhaps at decades when he'd look at himself and gauge….where had he been? Where was he going? What had he accomplished or what had he botched? He was trying to remember his 20th birthday, when he was "high and tight", ready to ship out to Europe. He was JEEP, "just enough education to pass" on a boat, clutching his medic pack as some 90 day wonder pontificated on the strength of the platoon and how they would singlehandedly whoop Hitler, or Mussolini. Hoooah. By the time he had done his time as a ground pounder he returned to the States a different Mick St John.
30, by the time he had arrived there….. Mick had already cuckolded his best friend and wandered Los Angeles night spots, guitar in one hand and a libertine woman in the other. Then there was Coraline, the woman who pulled him thru the frayed curtain of life. In those mentally dark hours he figured she had taken his life in retribution for the waste he had laid between 20 and 30.
Then Chronos, the God of Time, pressed his finger on the FF button of Mick's life and he was 40….what had he done by 40? It was more a case of who he hadn't done… every one of the red headed Freshies, a few of the brunettes. They were grudge fucks and forceful feedings, there were sexual gymnastics with a covey of Freshies that left the bed linens awash in blood and spent fluids.
Before he could remember how much of his wife's income was wasted on his splitting the wishbone of each of his freshies he was looking at 1982, he was 50. An age when most men buy a Corvette and date 19 year old girls, he was still driving his 62 vintage Benz and suckling his meals at their throats….. Yet these vain and empty interactions were coming around the bend.
1985, the woman called him, distraught did not begin to describe her mood. She made short time to get to his office and under cover of the night he followed her to her small home. Josie Turner didn't have to lead him to Beth's tiny bedroom; on entering the ranch home he scented the dragon, Coraline. Beth's picture in hand, he went about the task of reeling in his wayward wife and took on vanquishing the dragon woman with a stake and fire. Mick carried the towheaded pixie to his car, his heart heavy at the need to break an age old taboo and kill his sire.
Mick passed the wide eyed child to Josie and began to turn away; she had already passed the three fifty dollar bills to him before he left to find Beth. She owed him nothing more. A gentle hand grabbed at him, "Mr. St John, please, come in for a moment".
Mick followed Josie while Beth's cornflower blue eyes stayed locked on his face. The house still reeked of vampire to Mick, he cringed slightly as he sat on the sofa she gestured to. "Will you hold Beth for a moment? I'll be right back" Beth fell back into his arms, melted into his lap. Her slight pale body was weightless as she clung to him. Her tiny finger went to his lips as she traced where a fang could descend, "where did it go?" Beth's head tilted to see him from another angle.
"What go?" Mick asked innocently, giving her a perfectly normal smile. Josie returned from her bedroom, clenching something in her fist.
"Mr. St John, I never expected to get Beth back alive. You brought me my baby, I can't pay you enough, I want you to have this…..It was my Grandfather's it came from France" Josie sat beside Mick and dropped the necklace in her lap as she disconnected the clasp, she held out the fleury cross and the glint of the white gold caught the light.
"It's too much" Mick declined, waving her off with a polite gesture, all the while holding Beth with his other arm, she was warm and smelled like bubblegum shampoo.
"Please, wear it for us. It's been in the family for generations, my Dad is dead, Beth's Dad well, you know he's gone….." Josie nodded, holding the necklace out further, Mick reached for it cautiously – was it silver or white gold? How would he explain that phenomena? His finger touched it, no burning, he leaned into the open necklace and Josie connected it around his neck. The cross fell down his shirt, into the hollow of his chest where it warmed him.
He looked at his very human reflection, the single grey hair that has arrived this morning, at every good place in his life Beth had been there…..for him, there is simply no one else.
The next chapter features lyrics of The Police, 'King of Pain'
Walk, Run, Stumble #2 King of Pain
There's a little black spot on the sun today it's the same old thing as yesterday
There's a black hat caught in a high tree top, there's a flag-pole rag and the wind won't stop
I have stood here before inside the pouring rain
With the world turning circles running 'round my brain
I guess I'm always hoping that you'll end this reign, but it's my destiny to be the king of pain
Thursday, February 14, 2008
These days of adjustment were full of discoveries, most of the time Mick was at peace, no longer constantly filtering the cacophony of the world through vampire senses. He was able to look at Beth and see the beautiful woman he was in love with; he no longer saw the Rand McNally map of veins and the throb of her pulse. Out in the world he enjoyed holding an offered handshake, no longer concerned of the chilly impression he gave.
On the flip side he was confounded by the time it took to be human these days. He had to sleep no less than 8 hours a night and when Beth wasn't beside him, Mick churned up the sheets like sea foam on a tormented shoreline. Then there was getting back and forth to work, grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning and doing laundry… And there was the grooming, the products Beth suggested "anti-aging" eye balms, anti-fatigue gel, pre-shave oil, after shave balm and the time to use them in the right order. Was it serum then balm or balm then serum?
By the time they turned in at night he was weary, Beth frequently nudged him awake to come upstairs to bed and he snored her to her sleep. Beth didn't complain at his hoarse vibrations, he was in bed with her and there when she woke in the morning. They danced in their sleep; spooned together his hands would wander around her waist and hold her close now and again venturing down to comb his fingers between her legs. His cock would tremble and throb at her cheeks and if they weren't too weary they'd make love half asleep.
"I'll be damned" he thought, well actually for a long time he thought he really was. Mick swung his legs over the side of the bed and rested his palms on the side of the bed. 6am was way too early to be up. Beth was moving in that somnambulant dance she did each morning, the view was exceptional, her lithe body twisted in the sheets, a bared breast, a flash of her bush. He could have died right here and now and been a happy man for these days he'd been human.
After decades of using barely any hot water he'd become a slave to the hot streams of water that would pommel him awake, he even bought a loofa to polish his skin pink with life. Human's feelings were so wickedly different from what he was used to, now he could let his skin drink in the sunlight. In many ways he felt it took effort to "feel", devoid of vampire senses he had to work to listen, to sense things. He had dropped the body covering long duster in favor of a dress shirt and vest; at least he could roll up his sleeves when he needed to feel the air, the sun, or Beth's touch. By the time he had nearly run thru the hot water he felt a soft hand on his back, "I hope you didn't wake my girlfriend up, if she finds us I a dead man" his whispered without turning around.
"Vampire humor doesn't work anymore, Mick, you have to buy a new joke book" Beth shook her head and stepped around him to get under the water, then yelped "Are you poaching seafood in here? Jeez, Mick", she jumped back around out of the scorching spray, lathering and waiting for him to make a temperature adjustment.
Their usual dance under the shower's spray commenced, their reciprocal cleansing followed by drawn out kisses and slippery embraces. He'd smile at her with those knowing eyes of his and she'd return a "come hither" grin, then her grasp would tighten around his morning-hard cock and they'd lean into each other until they had quenched their appetites. Mornings, he was like bull, hungry and anxious and Beth was keen for their water dance. This was the morning of Valentine's Day and he wanted to take special care to make her entire day extraordinary.
There's a little black spot on the sun today (That`s my soul up there)
It's the same old thing as yesterday (That`s my soul up there)
There's a black hat caught in a high tree top (That`s my soul up there)
There's a flag-pole rag and the wind won't stop (That`s my soul up there)
Josh's body betrayed him every morning, stiff, he rise from the therapeutic mattress and creak toward the automatic coffee pot for a cup of fresh coffee. In the mirror he'd catch the sight of his posture and his slow steps and he say a prayer of thanks that he was alive. His beard was coming in, he was done shaving every day, it was OK to be scruffy when your job was, well, he really didn't have a job. In a past life Josh had staff that did legwork in investigation; he accepted the proceeds of their labor and made it stick. Case won most of the time. Now he saw why Beth had the tenacity of a bull dog, the hunt was the thrill.
Josh knew when Bob Turner had made it legal with Josie Barker; their public records left a trail of their relationship. Their marriage, Josie giving birth to Beth 7 months later and finally Josie's attempts to obtain a divorce or some support when Bob left her high and dry with a toddler. Josh thought about the face of "shotgun" weddings, the coursing crush of marrying because of a pregnancy and living a lifetime of duty. He had dodged that bullet, and half of him felt grateful, he and Beth weren't ready for the weighty responsibility of parenthood.
Josh delved deeper into Robert Allen Turner, he scrolled back into the 70's and there was more. There was an entire life before Josie Barker. Bob Turner had married Diane Jackson on December 31, 1978 and they had a son June 21st 1979, he was a regular pollinator, a serial procreator. So, now where was Bob Turner? Had he continued the same pattern, how many more families had he "hit and run"? Mildly drained he rose and made a cup of Silver Needle tea, from the housewarming basket Mick and Beth had sitting in the kitchen when he came home. He sat and enjoyed the steam from the cup nestled on his chest. Where did he go from here?
I have stood here before inside the pouring rain
With the world turning circles running 'round my brain
I guess I'm always hoping that you'll end this reign
But it's my destiny to be the king of pain
The tea went cool while Josh chased his tail in his head back to the first time Beth trembled in bed, she woke with a furious fear and ran from the bed wrapping tightly in the bed quilt she grabbed off him. He watched in the darkness while she huddled in the corner rocking while she repeated an undecipherable mantra. It was the first month they slept together and he wondered if having a man in her bed caused the reaction.
Directly after the case with the Professor Vampire wannabe the nightmares left her shuddering, yet backing into his spooned form, he'd hold her in a tight cocoon whispering gentle words of affection, anything to dispel her anxiety. She'd cling to him, and some nights she turn into his embrace and beg him to love her, then she'd settle back to sleep for a few hours. The alarm would ring and they'd robotically move thru their morning rituals until they'd part at her front door for their respective days alone.
They never spoke about it yet he should have pressed Beth after the bouts. When Morgan Vincent began working at BuzzWire the nightmares suddenly became about Morgan and Mick. Morgan was the lady in white, Mick was her avenging angel. What was that about? Josh didn't have a clue. He spun his college ring on his finger as he reflected on Mick, the thorn in his side until Mick saved his life. The guy was a few years older than he, seemed to be set in that top floor loft on Drexel, how does one do that on a P.I's income?
Michael Andrew St John, born November 12, 1922 to one Ella Russell St John and Andrew Michael St John. US Census records reflected their home in West Adams, and between the 1950 and 1960 census Michael disappeared. How does a human disappear? The mob? Josh went back to simple statistics… licensing, phone records, property titles
Josh was thinking Mick was a ghost and then there was another birth, Michael Russell St John born March 17, 1957 to one Michael Andrew and Coraline DuVall St John. Shit, Josh ran a nervous hand thru his lengthening hair, then over the scruff of his beard. 50 years old….. How in hell does a 50 year old man look 30, 32 years old? Even Dick Clark couldn't pull that off. Josh took a deep breath and closed his eyes….it had to be a different St John. Sure, he had to have traced the wrong St John.
There's a fossil that's trapped in a high cliff wall (That`s my soul up there)
There's a dead salmon frozen in a waterfall (That`s my soul up there)
There's a blue whale beached by a spring tide's ebb (That`s my soul up there)
There's a butterfly trapped in a spider's web (That`s my soul up there)
Mick didn't have mad vamp skills to get breakfast cooked, he did have a truly dependable delivery service, so Mick left Beth upstairs for her morning primp to "get the coffee ready" Beth always enjoyed a fresh mug of coffee, two Equals and a splash of Nonfat milk.
The roses were outside the front door, the package was in his office, if he could negotiate all the steps in the short amount of time he could look almost as cool as he was as a vampire. Mick grabbed the vase of 3 dozen red roses, slid the package out of the bag and poured the coffee. By the time Beth was stepping on to the first floor Mick was standing with a package in his hand, grinning like the happy man he was… Their "water sports" in the shower, his gift and card along with the roses, he hoped it would get the day off on the right foot…
I have stood here before inside the pouring rain
With the world turning circles running 'round my brain
I guess I'm always hoping that you'll end this reign
But it's my destiny to be the king of pain
Uncontrolled jealousy, angst it all cooked up until Josh just wanted to box the demon inside of him. Was he really that jealous of Mick? Even thanking him for his life, Josh had to wonder how Mick swept Beth off her feet…
"Isn't it wonderful to celebrate a holiday without either of us hurt or ill?" Beth asked as she leaned back into the sofa, fanning herself with Mick's Valentine card. Beth was overcome by the breakfast celebration, the toasted waffles along with her coffee.
"Yeah, Christmas was a bit of a bust" Mick said, sliding alongside Beth as she peeled back the tape on the gift. He watched her take in the modest box with amorous eyes.
"Oh, Mick, I thought we were celebrating tonight, your gift is at my place" Beth interrupted opening his gift to her, feeling a bit guilty for being unprepared.
"My gift is anywhere you are, Beth, go ahead." Mick nodded then drew a long sip of coffee and set back to watch her reaction to the gift. Mick counted his blessings while she opened the long blue box to reveal a graceful bracelet holding a series of charms; it included a tiny Fleury cross near the clasp.
"O, Mick, it's beautiful, help me put it on" She turned to seek his help and steal a kiss, "you always know exactly what to give me" she moved right into his arms to embrace him for his present, "I'll treasure this, each one of the charms is about us". Beth fingered the small charms, eyeing each one with sweet memories of their short time together. Their love was an open road, with solid feelings behind them and the miles to travel ahead of them
"Well, I guess I need to get dressed and get to work, as much as I'd like to stay and entertain you…duty and Josef call" Mick reluctantly stood from their embrace and walking slowly to the staircase, "I'll drop you off on my way in to work, OK?"
It would be the way most of their mornings had been, or so Mick thought.
Beth settled back to wait for Mick, she held up her arm to watch the sun glint off the charms. She wanted to be grounded with gratitude, she had so much to be grateful for, and yet wheedling in the back of her brain was a gnawing feeling that she was being coddled.
In her dreams she'd replay their first time in bed, the vampire as he took her and thrilled every fiber of her body….my God she thought…..she had been thru so much, they had been thru so much. She found herself stroking the incision on her left shoulder, struck by the numb feeling knowing all the while it was her backup plan.
At Dr. Andrew's approval they had "resumed normal activities" and with Mick being human, well it was different. His brand of love was tender, generous in his attentions to her needs, patient with the time it took for her to rise and crash in his arms. Mick wanted to be human more than anything, his love embodied the very essence of his ardor. Mick deserved her devotion, her support…yet she was counting the months until she'd feel the raw power and thrill of his absolute steel strength, that stretch past reality into the other worldly realm of vampire/human connections.
Beth was bewitched by the memory of his last bite and the entrancing pull of it when her phone warbled Mo's ringtone, "Helter Skelter", Beth answered quite unprepared to speak with Mo before next Monday.
"Girl, I know you're not due back till Monday, talk to that dreamboat surgeon of yours to get released today…. I have a gift for you. This story is going to put you on the map!" Maureen, the steamroller effused, believing her own sales pitch.
Beth was overcome, "I thought you said my dying put me on the map" yet Beth knew the drill, you were only as good as your last big story and it had to be within the past 24 hours…..last December didn't count in February.
"Beth, you've been gone for weeks, sure we still get hits off the story, but you have to get back in the saddle, can you get here this morning?" Maureen pushed.
Beth closed the call, biting her lip she had to be smooth, stay calm, get home and then drive to Buzzwire, Mick didn't need to worry.
Beth's eyes brightened as Mick steered the car out of the garage. "Who was that on the phone?" Mick's curiosity got the best of him, no vamp hearing he did know the ringtone. With Maureen's call Mick knew something was up.
"She wants my advice on a story" Beth confessed, her exhilaration drained by his questioning.
"Just advice, or is it more, Beth?" Mick knew it would be a day spent chasing leads, he knew Maureen's motus operendi.
"She said this story would put me on the map, come on, Mick, this is my career!" She was aggravated by his needling, his stickling for her being out of work until Monday. Mick didn't need vamp sense to know Beth was going to go off on her own, he turned the car left instead of right.
"Where are you going?" she demanded, pushing her palm on the dashboard and turning to face him.
"We are going to BuzzWire together to find out what she wants, you aren't going alone." His eyes stayed on the road as his face turned serious and he bit at his bottom lip, Mick was resolute, determined.
"Yes, Daddy" She pushed off the dashboard to fly back into the seat and crossed her arms over her chest. She rode with her eyes closed the rest of the way. She repeated the mantra in her head, "he's doing this for me, for us".
They walked to the doors of BuzzWire; it was bizarrely quiet for the day and hour. Mick pulled the door open and listened to the silence. Beth and Mick took guarded steps thru the lobby, where was the guard? The monitors played the current feed to an empty office. Mick led them past Beth's desk, stacks of mail and post it notes stuck on the blank monitor then they rounded the corner to Mo's office. Mick braced the doorway when he saw Maureen's body, played out on the floor behind her desk.
"Stay back, Beth" he barked over his shoulder as she bumped into him. His command made her strain to see over his shoulder, jumping to catch what Mick was viewing.
"Mick, move, let me see, NOOOOOO" she cried as she saw Maureen's body. She spun into Mick as they clasped at each other – her panic set in immediately, the post traumatic stress from witnessing Josh's attack, it was all too much.
There's a king on a throne with his eyes torn out
There's a blind man looking for a shadow of doubt
There's a rich man sleeping on a golden bed
There's a skeleton choking on a crust of bread
King of pain….
"Ms Turner, I'm Ben Talbot, from the District Attorney's office" Mick watched the guy, clean white shirt, dark suit, slender, young, and confident. Mick stayed close to Beth.
Beth shook his hand mutely then she melted back into Mick's arm. Mick waited for Talbot's handshake, it never came.
"Maureen was your editor?" He stood making mental note, surveying Beth's proximity to Mick.
"Yes, I got a call about a special story, I'm not due back until Monday, she wanted to give me the opportunity for my comeback" Beth was rambling; her eyes were filling with unshed tears.
"Did she say what type of story?" Ben nodded, taking all the police activity in as he stood with Mick and Beth.
"She'd never do that, not on the phone. Have you found her computer?" Beth's eyes roamed the office for the laptop.
"No, no laptop, we'll take that into consideration, and you are?" Ben still stood hands in his pants pockets as his gaze turned to Mick.
"Mick St John" Mick kept his arm around Beth and the other in his jean's pocket.
Ben's eyes narrowed and his head tilted, "St John, you work at BuzzWire?" Was he staring at Mick's hold on Beth?
"No, I'm a PI, a friend of Beth's" Mick stood a little taller waiting for his reply.
"PI? Mick St John?" Ben's eyes opened wider to watch Mick watch the officers, "Did you touch anything before we got here, St John?" Ben's voice full of suspicion.
"Of course not, I know better, we know better" Mick's dour expression crested and froze on his face. Ben's all business appearance met Mick's aversion to the new DA.
"Have we met before, St John?" Ben's shoulders pushed back a bit more, arms now crossed, chin up.
"Can't say that we have, Mr. Talbot" Mick now mimicked Ben's posture, stepped closer, spoke softer as he drew his business card from a leather sleeve he had pulled out of his breast pocket.
"I have heard of you, yes" Ben nodded while he pocketed the card; a sour expression fell over him, his head still turning to watch the LAPD scouring the scene.
"So, Ms Turner, the computer, the story….. You think a drunken Lindsey Lohan is worth a life?" Ben's aversion to tabloid journalism was leaking thru his professionalism.
"This wasn't about a drunken star; this was serious enough for someone to stop her. You find the computer, you'll find the killer" Beth taunted him, stepping ahead of Mick, her chin up, fists at her side. Ben nodded at them, stepping back before thanking them and leaving them. Mick held Beth, whispering into his ear she plotted, "we need to get to Mo's, I know she has a hard drive stashed somewhere…."
So it was with very human reflexes they slid out and drove like madmen to Mo's apartment. The garden rock held her key, a holdover from when Beth house sat last year. They walked around, crippled with their humanity, trying to scope the rooms for a flash drive. Mick paused at several apparent clues, then out of habit he'd tilt his head and inhale – nothing, there'd be nothing there…..damned human senses. He frowned at his reflection in the multiple mirrors decorating the home and anticipation for success gave way to disappointment. An excited Beth whirled around the corner, flash drive in hand, "Found it!"
Miles driven, clues hunted, their Valentine's Day was spent their hearts embroiled in solving Mo's murder. Once their final laundry list of clues were before them, the stared at it, lost in the reality of Mo's death. By Midnight the clues distilled, it all came down to a model's search for perfection, a trip to a plastic surgeon, a heart attack and a vampire being present at Maureen's murder. How did all this fit together? They had a date tomorrow, Friday morning to meet Talbot at Dr Ander's office.
"It could have been you" Mick proffered quietly that the model on the slab could have been Beth, he thought of her rare blood type.
"It would never be me" Beth retorted, her confidence up to the brim, no plastic surgery for her….even in LA.
"Beth, it's just a matter of time before the DuValls get a wild hair for your blood type" Mick's lost the battle to stay off the vampire subject.
"Well, that thought hadn't crossed my mind, I was thinking about being never being Dr. Ander's patient, after this" Beth tapped at her shoulder, "I am staying away from needles and surgeons" Beth sat back, ginger ale in hand her eyes went across the ceiling as she digested his fear. Since Mick's first meal as a human Beth hadn't given the DuValls a second thought. The realization changed the shape of her world, Vampires were still real.
There's a red fox torn by a huntsman's pack,
there's a black-winged gull with a broken back
there's a little black spot on the sun today, it's the same old thing as yesterday
Bob Turner, late fifties sat back in the recliner chair, he had screwed his way thru life, got caught a couple of times, never got strangled with child support. The first wife remarried and the new guy honored up and adopted the boy. The second time it bothered him a bit, not enough to pay the support, just enough to get a vasectomy and quit playing for keeps. The smoke from the counterfeit Cuban cigar curled around his head as he watched the evening news, his phone rang a local number he didn't know.
"Yello?" his voice was lyrical, pleasant, still a charmer.
"Mr. Turner, Bob Turner?" Josh's voice official voice softened to take the tone of an interviewer, not an interrogator.
"Yeah, please tell me you're from Publisher's Clearing House" Bob drew on the cigar, hoping it wasn't a collection agency.
"Well, not really, I'm writing a book, the name's Josh Lindsey. Would you have a minute to talk about your daughter's kidnapping?"
"Now that's some ancient history, who's interested in a book about that?" almost a verbal sneer came back in Bob's voice.
"It's reality, Bob, people love a good true story, and so did you have a minute?" Josh nailed the guy with the mention of true stories; evidently Bob figured he'd end up with a percentage of a sale.
"Sure, what did you want to know?" Bob would be an open book for a fist full of green.
Josh's voice was dry, his words measured, "The night Beth was taken, did you take her?"
I have stood here before inside the pouring rain
With the world turning circles running 'round my brain
I guess I'm always hoping that you'll end this reign
But it's my destiny to be the king of pain
King of pain, I'll always be king of pain, I'll always be king of pain.
The next chapter features lyrics from Annie Lennox's 'Dark Road'
Walk, Run, Stumble #3 Dark Road
Thursday, February 14, 2008 Late Afternoon
"No, it wasn't me, Josie didn't even call me that night, she'd already washed her hands of me" Bob mused, drawing on the stogie. He hadn't had a conversation of any real sort in decades; it was usually bar talk this time of night.
Josh's mind reeled that a couple could, would make a child and disconnect. Hadn't that been cruel to Beth?
"So Beth was kidnapped and returned within hours and you're saying the subject never came up with your ex?" Josh was incredulous.
"Can't say that we did, I stopped in a few days later, dropped off a Christmas gift and she was rantin' that she needed a safer place to live, when I pressed her for why she belched the whole story out" Bob stopped to take a swig of a drink, Josh hung on for more, "What's your name again?" Bob asked, as if lost in thought.
"Lindsey" Josh quietly repeated.
"Mr. Lindsey, ever had a kid with a woman you didn't want to be with? Sorry to pry, it's just you can't understand what it's like to be stuck making payments on something you have no desire to have. Kind of like…"
Josh cut him off before he compared Beth to a car or a house or a boat…."So when did the subject come up?"
"That day, she mentioned she paid some PI $150.00 to find Beth. He found Beth in 5 or 6 hours, cops couldn't have done it….I asked her how she paid him, she said it was from her cookie jar. Hell, that guy found Beth in such a short time I bet Josie he was in on it, you know, in cahoots for the cash. $150.00 was a lot of money in 1985."
"Did Mrs. Turner say how she found the PI?" Josh was writing furiously as he sat back, Bluetooth in his ear.
It's a dark road and a dark way that leads to my house
And the word says you're never gonna find me there, oh no
I've got an open door, It didn't get there by itself, It didn't get there by itself
Thursday, February 14, 2008 late evening
"I love you, Beth" Mick spoke reverently, he had enough of the day and he wanted the warmth of her fully against him he wanted to thrill her…. He saw a flicker in the light of her eyes, "It's been a rough day we can celebrate another day". He was leaving this night in Beth's hands.
"Mick, let's get back to my place, I do want to give you your gift….OK?" human legs travelled rapidly over the ground, tires rolled and they were riding in the dark in their own world. The sound of the pounding surf after a day of rain was soothing, Mick stood as the French doors remembering his nights leaping up to her while he repulsed the feelings to ravish a woman who wasn't his. What a release to be here, knowing she was at least for now safe with his nature.
"Now you get to open your gift" Beth stood at her bedroom's French doors, hands on the sides of the doorframes as she held the doors partially closed. Her hair was tied up in black satin ribbons, delicate curls falling around her ears. Mick caught the twinkle of his charm bracelet on her wrist. Black charmeuse hung from her shoulders, in a 40's glamour girl gown she was everything he lusted for… the glow of the room behind her elicited an inviting silhouette.
"You don't have to ask twice, Beth" Mick moved toward her dashing off his clothing as he approached her, pressed against her his chest felt the slippery satin as if moved between their flesh. As his lips seared to hers his tongue sought the seam of her lips he felt her hands work at his belt buckle, he couldn't protest, he twitched at the prospect of being out of his clothes and within her.
The only music was the cadence of their breathing, in sync they rolled on the fresh finely woven sheets. Yes, it was erasing the stain of the day, yes it was soothing their broken hearts yes they were igniting each other's curiosity…
Poised over his goddess Mick held her hand in his, delicately kissing each fingertip, then taking that fingertip between his lips he gave each one a gentle suckle. Beth pressed a finger upward, turned her finger to run it along the ridge of his teeth, she pressed where his fang would have descended and sighed more deeply than their emotions warranted.
"What?" Mick froze and his hand held fast around her wrist as he drew his mouth off of her finger. A piece of his humanity died as he realized she missed the animal he was.
"So, no role-play? Won't you play my vampire?" even Beth's gentle plea and teasing stung him.
Mick knew about role-play he felt it filled in when a couple lacked something in their relationship…. ….. He saw the games Josef played; being with Beth didn't want to play games. Yet wanting Beth, he'd do anything; he'd give her whatever she needed to want him.
Mick dipped his head, and closed his eyes, he dragged her finger over the edge of his canine and exerted gentle pressure, even the dull tooth brought a weak smile to her face, and she clutched her own nipple as she arched her back to press toward him. He snarled as she moaned his name and she clutched his hips with her knees.
"It's time, you know, let me kiss you," her eyes glanced down between them, at his heavy cock resting on her belly.
"Time? Are we on a clock? I thought we had all night….." or so he had hoped, this was more than a fixation on his nature, this seemed to have been the fog she had moved thru since coming home from the hospital. This was depression and medical side effects and he hurt for Beth although he felt she hurt enough for both of them.
Beth's efforts to be drawn in, to be fully physically invested seemed to be strained; he had noticed so many changes since the implant. Between his not being the animal he once was and Beth being affected by the medication and the surgery he felt this becoming a grind, and not in a good way.
Mick rolled over on his back and she mechanically swung herself over him, this time looking like a sad maiden, not the sultry glamour girl who invited him into her boudoir. She hand grasped him gently; the other combed his chest, her lips travelled down his chest as he watched her eyes blinking back tears…..
Would he be crueler to let her continue than to stop her? Where was this going? How long were they going to spend their nights in this exasperating haze? Their passion had been bridled by pharmacology and unrealistic expectations.
"Beth, babe, come here" He held his arms out and she fell into them, her tears running onto his chest. He'd call Dr. Andrews tomorrow, right after they left the meeting with Talbot at Dr. Ander's.
There's a feeling, But you're not feeling' it at all
There's a meaning but you're not listening any more
I look at that open road I'm gonna walk there by myself
Friday, February 15th, 2008 Dawn
Rise and shine, he shook his head at the dawn and scratched in all the usual places. Nothing like complications at work, he thought as he rose, picked out the conservative dress shirt and traditional tie and paired it with the dark grey suit. Shaving, he spent a long time staring into his reflection, his parents were celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary and he had to remember to pick up the flowers tomorrow for their Saturday evening dinner party.
This job kept him so busy…he missed spending time with his Mom. Dad was still caught up in his medical practice and it fell into his lap to visit with his Mom, she had broken her leg in a skiing accident at Christmas and was aggravated by the inconvenience of the cast and the directions to "Sit, Stay". Tonight he'd have some quality time with Mom while Rodger pressed the flesh at the party. Hell; he didn't have a girl friend since he moved back west. His new girlfriend was his job….and she was getting to be a btich.
Friday, February 15th, 2008 11:00am
"The Dr. will see you", the super fantastic plastic receptionist stood, Vanna like, gesturing toward Dr Ander's office door. Ben automatically led Mick and Beth into the tragically fashionable office. Sculptures of impossible bodies posed armless and legless in the corners, glass cubed walls veiled the complete view of next room, was it an exam area Mick thought? The three of the sat before the officious looking surgeon, his hands formed into tented fingers, as if he wanted them to adore his gifted digits.
Their conversation skated over why the model visited, Dr. Anders sounded off about his ease in removing the 500cc of fat and then when Ben wasn't getting the cooperation he expected as an officer of the court, he stood to leave. Mick and Beth stepped back toward the door, certainly Logan could hack into Dr Ander's systems, and it didn't have to be a verbal shove-fest.
"And I know a judge with a bad breast job, trust me Dr Anders, this information needs to be forthcoming" Ben stood, hands on hips, nodding as if to reinforce his authority. Before Mick could process the movement, Anders was around the desk, it was inhuman….. …. It was vamp like….. None of them heard the sound Anders made as he rounded the glass desk and held Ben up by the shirt, it was effortless… it was inhuman…..and by the time Mick processed what was happening Ben was airborne until he hit the wall across the next room. "BETH, get out of here" Mick bellowed, leaping to throw himself at Anders, a very human effort in vain.
Anders was out of Mick's way with Beth in his arms, he saw Anders lips move – didn't hear a word….. This was worse than he expected, then Anders' eyes flashed ice blue, chapped grey lips revealed fully realized fangs, Mick's worse fears confirmed, what a hell of a time to be human.
Mick's body separated from his "visions" he saw it all in slow motion, flung into the air he fell backwards on the glass desk, landing flat out among the shattered glass on the ground. Mick was stunned, he lay there – could he move? He thought he heard Anders speak, "AO-, tasty," with that Mick poured all his strength into rolling over and crouching to spring after Anders. Mick's head spun as he crawled toward the blurry sight of Anders carrying Beth over to Ben's unresponsive body.
Crap, Mick thought, was Talbot dead? Anders threw Beth toward Ben then he yanked Ben to sit up, he forced an unresponsive Ben to sit back to back with Beth. Mick covered ground inch by inch, thru the haze he watched Anders tie their hands together and then Anders trussed them together from the waist to their shoulders. Mick felt the glass shard in his thigh; he regarded the trail of blood on the formerly pristine marble floor as he dragged himself progressively slower toward Ben and Beth. Anders's hands travelled in a blur as he wrapped yards of gauze around Ben's head, plunging him into darkness.
Beth was totally aware of her fate, her busted lip was bleeding and she was in the hands of a violent vampire. Of all times, Mick was desperately human and critically wounded from the sight of his weak crawl across the floor. When Anders drew close to her, she felt the icy draft of his forced breath, she saw him inhale her scent and frozen in his clutches her spirit wilted, she fainted away. God help us, were her last thoughts.
And if you catch me I might try to run away
You know I can't be here too long and if you let me
I might try to make you stay
Seems you never realize a good thing till it's gone..
Defeated, broken, Mick woke folded into a protective crouch; he woke to silence, amid the carnage of Anders' office. He surveyed the tangle of broken glass, scattered books and tossed artwork, where did Anders take Ben and Beth? Did he feel a broken rib? Mick saw the shard of glass still embedded in his thigh, he knew better than to pull it out. The dull tympani in his head echoed his heartbeat as he drew himself to his feet and drove to the morgue, if he didn't occupy a slab himself, perhaps G could stitch him up.
"Hey, Mick, the object of becoming human wasn't to die immediately, was it?" G assembled the surgical instruments and cut Mick's jeans away from the 3" wound, "This is going to hurt like hell, but man, I don't have anesthetics"
Mick grit his teeth, looking away with a humiliated grunt as G began the task of sewing closed the gash. Minutes stretched as the needle entered and exited his flesh, he inhaled and exhaled trying to pass the rolling sensations of pain. Then he felt G's hand on his shoulder, "Hey, man, you're creeping me out, I've never seen you in pain"
"Pain isn't the beginning of it, that butcher has Beth tied to Ben. What am I going to do, G?" Mick's loss was written over his face, it hung like a heavy cloak on his shoulders, "I've got to get home, get my gear, get back and get her out of there" G heard the regret in Mick's voice.
Guillermo shrugged, it wasn't his fight and Mick wasn't up to the task….. G only had one option.
Maybe I'm still searching but I don't know what it means
All the fires of destruction are still burning' in my dreams
There's no water that can wash away this longing' to come clean hey yea. . . . . . yea...
Mick's mind whirled at the prospects he faced…. He had to find Beth and Ben then he had to beat Anders at his game. Mick had to go "Van Helsing" on Anders and god knows how many other vamps. Poised at the bookcase he withdrew the case of weapons, the revolver with the silver bullets was cleaned and loaded. The machete he had used to disconnect Shepherd's head from his shoulders had been put away wiped and sharpened. Silver tipped stakes, check, mini cross bow with silver tipped arrows, check. Then the cool flash of vampire breath washed over Mick's shoulder…..
"Well, what are you planning, my silly little human?" Josef taunted, arms crossed over his chest, one hand up, finger poised as his temple. He shook his head, tutting his tongue against his teeth.
"Anders has Beth, has Ben….I …. need …. to ….. get ….. her ….. back" Mick's voice was anxious, edgy; he wanted to veil his intentions from Josef. Mick's eyes closed to shove his guest away, it didn't work, he felt himself pummeled against the kitchen island – how rapid had Josef thrown him? He was swept back to the melee at the doctor's office. What the hell was he going to do?
Bent back over the island, Josef's face glared, fully vamped inches from his, Mick begged, "Help me get her back"
Josef stepped back, wiping his hands as if to discharge Mick as he asked "What about Talbot?"
Josef's sneer answered Mick's query, "He's collateral, Beth's as good as dead too, you just don't get it, Mick" Mick shoved his anger into Josef's chest; he hit a monolith, unmovable. Josef grabbed Mick's forearms, "YOU are an idiot" Josef barked, his icy breath frosting Mick's face. Mick's eyes went wet; tears held back in optimism were ready to be shed in hope lost. Then Josef grabbed his shirt with both hands, holding him up off his toes.
"If I went in there fangs blazing I'd be fighting alone, you'd be about as useful as a bag of squirrels, we'd both be terminated with extreme prejudice and there'd be no one left to call The Cleaners" Mick had never elicited this much emotion from Josef. Mick's head hung to his chest…..Josef put him back to the floor, stepped back again to view this victim of his desires.
"Brother, I know I stepped into all this" Mick held out his hands at his mortal body, "without your counsel, and I never anticipated this….."Josef watched the dawning realization wash over Mick. Words couldn't carry Josef's message, his right hand went out and Mick clasped it with both hands, praying…."I need to not be human, I need to get my Beth back"
"What exactly are you asking for, Mick? Do you think you can walk back and forth between the realms?" Josef pulled his hand back toward him, drawing Mick within inches of his face. Nose to nose they stared for an indeterminable time. Josef made him beg. Josef had to hear Mick's realization fully verbalized
"I need you to turn me back" There, Mick said it… Josef shook his head, sure he expected it, he knew what ever Beth needed Mick would brook hell to gain it.
"Are you sure this IS what you want?" Josef's voice lowered to a whisper as he ran a nervous hand to his own throat, and ran a finger inside his dress shirt collar. The twitch of Josef's nose, his nervous tongue dashed the seam of his lips as he waited for Mick's answer.
"Brother, do it", Mick yanked at the neck of his Henley, turning his head he exposed himself, stood ready, legs spread at shoulder's width waiting for Josef's lethal strike. Mick's throat caught Josef's sharp impact; his body resonated with Josef's low rumble. Mick felt the ebb of his body's warmth as his sex hardened within his jeans and swelled against Josef's suited thigh….the overall loss of his blood sent him to float in an unfamiliar atmosphere….this wasn't like Coraline's honeymoon bite. Mick tasted four centuries of élan, intensity and domination distilled into Josef's kiss of death and resurrection. Mick immediately recognized what Beth had missed in their coupling…..
Josef's lips seared his throat, he felt his blood boil under Josef's embrace…Josef's body insinuated to Mick's, a virile grip bolstered Mick's crumbling human shell. The sharp bite brought Mick to tremble and surrender to Josef's dominance. Within Josef's clutches Mick's soul released any fear of his undead nature….
Josef tasted the pain of Mick's human defeat, the desolation Mick felt while he planned his revenge. Josef consumed Mick's past lamentations of being a vampire and tasted Mick's desire to vanquish Anders and bring Beth home alive.
Jose imbued into Mick his pride of his nature, a new self…..Mick left his humanity in a roaring orgasm and when the glimmer of Mick's heart flickered Josef lay him back over the dinner table then ripped open his sleeve, "Ok, boyo, here's where you have to want this….."
Josef viciously bit his wrist, frustrated by having to take his friend's mortality, wondering if they'd be able to see eye to eye ever again. He held his wrist over Mick as his ancient blood flowed, dark and rich it dripped onto Mick's gaping lips. The memories of Sarah's turning flashed thru Josef's mind, his undead heart sank with Mick's stillness. One, one hundred, two, one hundred, three, one hundred….
I can't find the joy within my soul, It's just sadness taking hold
I wanna come in from the cold and make myself renewed again
It takes strength to live this way, the same old madness every day
I wanna kick these blues away…..I wanna learn to live again...
As Josef kept his blood flowing, it did seem to sluice down between Mick's parted lips, bending close to his unresponsive fledgling, Josef whispered, "Rise and shine, brother, your destiny awaits". Mick's lids flickered and then fluttered open. His spent human tears crept down the sides of his face as Mick felt his skin chill and scars from his earlier battle healed. All his systems slowed to near stillness; his heart shuddered as he rose slowly, tucked his chin and willed his nature to change. Mick St John, PI and Vampire was back.
It's a dark road and a dark way that leads to my house
and the word says you're never gonna find me there oh no
I've got an open door, it didn't get there by itself, it didn't get there by itself
"Where are we?" Ben's voice rasped as he came back to reality, wherever that was.
"We're in Ander's back office" Beth was terse, agitated by being awake all this time. She knew their dire situation, Ben had no clue, he had drifted in and out of lucidity as he slumped against her. Beth felt moisture on their hands, was it blood, was it hers or was Ben hurt?
"Where's Mick?" Ben questioned, flailing his foot to reach for Mick
"He'll come back for us…..seriously" Beth assured Ben, "We need to be very quiet, don't talk, keep breathing steady, Ben, and stay calm"
Ben's legs kept moving, reaching for Mick, was he tied alone? "Beth, he could be dead, I don't hear him"
"No, he can't be, he isn't dead", She admonished Ben as she tilted her head to scanned the empty room from under the blindfold. Then she heard the footfalls, several of them, "Quiet" she whispered.
The two prisoners heard the doors fly open; three sets of men's shoes walked the perimeter. The visitors moved glass objects and laughed at secrets spoken subtonally, Beth knew vamps could speak under the range of human hearing…. That added to her agitation. It was as if foreigners were speaking about them in another language….
Poised outside Ander's office Josef took a short sniff of the vicinity, "It is amazing how much you can accomplish when it doesn't matter who gets hurt." Josef chided as he threw open the door, allowing Mick to enter first. They scented the interior and drew down on their prey, moving catlike down a hall and thru a door they spied Beth and Ben blindfolded and tied together.
The posturing began between Mick and Josef and Ander's two acolytes. Riding the adrenaline high, Josef pronounced in human tones, "Oh, this is so on". Then shrouded by sub tones they began their assault….. Freakishly animalistic shrieks rang back and forth….taunting and threatening.
Josef's age ruled as he moved with the grace of a dancer and the speed of a ninja. 400 years of classical fight training came back to him as he engaged this brash neophyte. He watched as Ben and Beth shuddered at the sound of breaking furniture as they tried to anticipate flying debris.
Mick's re-fledgling senses caused him to pace around his target, sensing the fairly new vampire's high from drinking several tubes of rare blood. Mick charged the boy, perhaps in his 20's and a fledgling to boot…. They wrestled; tossing each other in a test of Mick's regaining his vampire instincts. All of Mick's fury for rescuing Beth destroyed the young vamp. When the sub tone shrieks and growls had tuned down, Pierce Anders, MD made his entrance. He stood, his baby ice blues measuring out a scowl, displaying his curiosity about Mick, wasn't he human just hours ago? Pierce anticipated a fledgling's lack of control, an easy victory.
Mick stood before him, rolled his shoulders and nodded, sub toned he offered, "You know, Anders? Most fights are lost, not won….and I'm here to tell you….this is the last one you are going to lose"
Mick's jaw was resolute, his head high. It wasn't bravado, or bluster….it was Mick's confidence, fully returned to him along with his vampire nature. He stood, flexing all his fingers, feeling his joints crack as he prepared for their fray. Anders stepped through the broken furniture and shattered ampoules of blood. Anders regarded his destroyed office and displayed a confident façade and then he bolted for Mick letting Mick use the momentum to his advantage.
The upper hand changed back and forth as Anders executed a few more Asian style assaults, then with gathered focus Mick got behind Anders and twisted his neck, dropped him to the floor and plunged the silver tipped stake into Anders' black heart. The sense of stillness was unsettling. No sub toned shrieks, no grunts of physical force.
Mick and Josef untied Ben and Beth, at Mick's sub toned direction Josef kept Ben blindfolded as he drew him up to his feet. Ben staggered, fearing retribution or torture after the hellish fight he imagined from the sounds.
Talbot barked at the hands on him, "Who are… … you,"
"Hold it Talbot, we just saved your life, take it easy and hold on, we're getting you out" Josef shook his head at the insistent human, what a fool Josef mouthed sub toned to Mick as they evacuated the building….. and a crew of Cleaners nodded for approval for entry. Ben felt the rush of several bodies move past him, heard the creak of leather, the click of heeled boots and once he sat in the sedan he went catatonic….
"Beth" Mick slid the gauze off Beth, her bright blue eyes sparkled at seeing Mick, her answer was, "Mick"
"You're safe, now, Babe…" Mick's lips crested her forehead as he held her close. She squinted in the light and stared at his face.
"Mick, what happened to your face?" Beth sought his calm hazel eyes and found his ice blue eyes morphing back, "Oh, baby, you…you did this for me?" Beth understood the currency for her rescue was his humanity.
"I did this for us, Beth, I did it for us" and he effortlessly whisked her up in his arms to carry her out of the building.
It takes strength to live this way
The same old madness every day
I wanna kick these blues away
I wanna learn to live again...
Friday, February 15th, 2008 late afternoon
"Hello, Mr. Lindsey, this is Pam", Josh shook himself fully awake and he grabbed a pen and pad, hopeful she had the name he was seeking.
"Yes, Pam, how did we do?" Josh held his breath, hoping this would be local info.
"I think we did pretty well, he is local, here's what I got…..ready, Josh?"
"AS I'LL EVER BE" Josh was anxious to jot it all down.
"He went to law school at Florida International University, graduated in May of 2001, second in his class. He's single, his Mom and step Dad live in LA, Step Dad is a Psychiatrist, and his full name is Benjamin Garland Talbot"
To Be Continued