Summary: Yu-Gi-Oh! meets Moonlight in a thrilling drama where Mick St. John needs to help find Atem's daughter, Taylor when she goes missing. Will they find her in time? Or will Mick find himself over his head yet again?
Chapter One
Shadows retreated from inside a little girl's room as the full moon rose in the sky. The child was asleep, her light red hair spilling onto the pillow.
A face appeared in the window, feminine with a mocha complexion, dark hair framing her face. Lifting the window with ease, she eased her slim black clothed body through the opening and into the room. Her eyes flashed white as they landed upon the sleeping child. Her lips drew back, showing her eye teeth, which was sharp and pointy. "Hello, little child," she cooed gathering the girl in her arms.
The girl woke up at one with a shriek and immediately, the woman shushed her. "There's no reason to be scared, child. I won't hurt you."
And with that statement, she leapt out of the window and disappeared into the night, the child crying in her arms.
"I don't understand how this could have happened." Atem exclaimed, standing in his daughter's bedroom the next morning. The window was wide open and the heat of the day was already creeping in.
Seth stood next to him, an identical look of shock plastered upon his thin, unusually pale face. He said nothing, just stared at the spot where he had last seen his goddaughter, Taylor, the previous day.
Hali returned to the bedroom, looking just as pale as Seth. "The police are putting out all the information. That's the best they can do for now."
"Maybe we can hire a private investigator." Atem suggested.
A look of hope surged into Seth's features at Atem's words. "Seto has talked about one PI in the states that he heard of. He's from Los Angeles and is rumored to be the best.
"Get him then!" Hali snapped, "I'll do anything to get my little girl back!"
"We all want her back, honey." Atem murmured, pulling his wife into a hug.
In Los Angeles, the phone rang in a stylish loft. The apartment appeared to be empty, but as the phone continued to ring, a man's in his early thirties stumbled in, half-awake from a back area. "Who's calling at this time of day?" he grumbled, brushing a lock of dark hair from his forehead. He had stunning blue eyes and strong features.
The phone stopped ringing and just when he was heading back to his bedroom the phone began to ring again.
"What?!" he snapped, answering the phone.
"Is this Mick St. John?" a smooth male voice asked.
"Yes it is. What do you want?" Mick asked, rubbing his forehead, where a headache was forming.
"My name's Seto Kaiba. I have a job for you. Are you interested?"
"What is it?" Mick asked, going to his glass cabinet. Inside, he pulled out a glass canter of blood and poured himself a glass.
"A friend of mine's daughter has gone missing. Five-year-old Taylor Mutou went missing sometime between eight last night and eight this morning. The window was open." Seto answered.
"Hm. You're from Japan? I don't know how I can help. I don't travel by plane easy."
"I could get a private jet. Anything we can do to make it easier?"
"No, I'll be okay. I can handle my needs." Mick shrugged, downing the glass. "Give me the detals.
Seto was silent for several minutes in which all that could be heard was the tapping of keys. Finally he gave him the information.
Mick arrived at the sunlit Domino Airport, searching the waiting crowd. He wore a pair of dark shades that covered his eyes. Beside him was a blond woman who had the air of someone snooping for scoop about her. "Beth, I told you to stay home. It's too dangerous."
"You always say that, Mick." Beth groaned, adjusting the bag strap on her shoulder. "Besides, my editor wants me to cover the story and why spend the money when I know someone with a free ride." She stretched. "Ugh, I hate jet lag."
"That's the good thing about being immortal." Mick muttered under his bteath. He looked over by the corner and found a tall man in a tuxedo holding a sigh that proclaimed, "Mick St. John."
Mick pulled his black sunglasses down the bridge of his long nose and surveyed their chaperone.
"Mr. St. John." The chaperone greeted, his voice laced with a heavy Japanese accent. "Welcome to Japan."
"Thank you." Mick answered. "Where is Mr. Kaiba?" he asked, his gaze wandered to Beth, who was looking anxious now.
"He'll meet us at the victim's house. I take it you'll want to go there first." The chaperone asked.
"Of course. I always start at the scene of the crime." Mick said, bestowing the man a small smile.
The limo arrived in front of a large, two-story white house. As Mick stepped out, shielding his face, he slipped the sunglasses on again. The door burst open and a young brunette woman ran out to greet him. "Oh thank goodness! Please, you've got to find my daughter!" she wailed, clinging to him.
"I'll find her. I've done a lot of cases like this." Mick said confidently. "I'll need a recent picture of her.
"Of course." Hali said, heading back to the house. "You want to see her room."
"Yes." Mick said, rolling his eyes inwardly. He followed her into the room where two men sat side by side on the couch looking stressed. "You must be the father." He said, reaching out to shake the man on the left said.
The one on the right scowled. "I'm Atem, the girl's father. That's her godfather, Seth."
Seth shook Mick's hand and then Atem did. "So you think you can help us?" Atem asked.
"Like I told your wife-" Mick started, but someone interrupted him.
"Daddy, where's Taylor?" a small boy asked, appearing in the doorway. He had dark brown hair that spiked up in the front. His facial features were identical with Atem's.
Startled, Atem turned to face his son. "Hey, don't worry, little buddy." He said soothingly, picking the boy up. When he turned to him, Mick saw the pain and sadness in the man's eyes. "I'll leave you to your business, Mick. Come on, Ryan, let's go play something."
"Okay." Ryan replied, as he allowed Atem to carry him upstairs.
"Where is the picture?" Mick asked, regaining control of the situation.
"Oh right." Hali said, following Atem with her eyes. She took a photo from the top of the cabinet and handed it to him. "She is so sweet. I'm so worried about her."
Mick studied it. She's an adorable little girl. He thought. He glanced at Beth as she leaned in to look at it. Much like Beth was at this age.
"Who is this?" Hali asked, finally noticing Beth.
"Beth. I'm hoping to cover this story, if you don't mind."
"I don't. I hope it'll keep this from happening to other kids."
"Lead me to the bedroom. I might get a sense of who the kidnapper is." Mick said.
As Hali led him into the bedroom, he gave a sniff. Vampire. He muttered to himself. I know exactly who it is too.
"Well?" Hali asked, impatiently.
"I have an idea who it is. But I don't know what she's doing here in Japan." Mick told her with grim satisfaction.
Taylor huddled in the corner of a dark room, keeping her eyes on the slender figure of her kidnapper. "You want something to eat?" the woman asked.
Taylor stayed silent and the woman knelt in front of her. "Hey, we're friends, right? Don't you want to know my name?"
Taylor locked eyes with her. "Daddy told me not to talk to strangers." She said finally.
The woman smiled. "I can fix that. The name's Coraline. And you?"
Taylor glared at Coraline, but didn't answer. "Didn't your daddy teach you manners?" Coraline asked, jerking her to her feet by the hand, making her cry out.
"That hurts, let go!" Taylor wailed.
"Your daddy will never find you. You should eat or you'll starve."
Taylor gave her a scathing look, and she was dropped to the floor. She accepted the food reluctantly. Daddy, please come. She said to herself.
"I need to make a phone call, grabbing his cell phone.
Atem muttered something in Egyptian. Seth grinned rather reluctantly, though it looked forced. "Seto said he was good. You're right, 'Tem."
Mick folded his arms. "Do you want me to find your daughter? This contact can find her kidnapper. I'm familiar with her."
The two were silenced at this as Mick dialed the number. "Hey, could you look up someone for me? Coraline. Or she might be going by Morgan again."
"Who's she?" Atem asked as Mick hung up.
"Coraline? My ex wife and a known child kidnapper." Mick answered, a muscle twitching in his jaw.
"Do you think she'd hurt Taylor?" Atem asked, paling at the thought.
"Hard to say. But Beth actually was a victim of a similar case." Mick supplied, altering the events a little.
"Right." Beth said, catching on. "Statistics say, women are more likely to mother rather than harm."
"Forget statistics!" Seth snapped. "We want to know what she'll do to our baby girl!"
"I believe that she won't. She was my ex wife." Mick said.
The phone rang again and Mick answered it. "Yes? Okay, thanks. Yes, you'll get paid as usual."
"Well?" Atem asked, as Mick took a drink from a bottle filled with blood.
Mick wiped his mouth. "He found out where she's hiding. I'll call when I find Taylor."
Mick made it only a few steps toward the door when Atem and Seth grabbed his arms. "You are nuts to think you're going alone." Atem snapped.
"I know her, I know what she's capable. Stay here." Mick said, snatching his arm away.
"She's our little girl, we're going." Seth said firmly.
Mick looked from one stern face to the other and then at Hali. She shook her head as if to say, "You can't win this argument." "Fine. But don't get in the way."
"We'll take the limo." Seth offered. But Mick shook his head.
"She's not that far from here. A couple blocks over from what my contact said."
"What are we waiting for? She could be torturing my little girl!"
"Fine, let's go." Mick said, and led them out.
Taylor curled into a ball, trying to sleep. She kept Coraline in her sights as the woman prowled around the house, gathering clothes.
There was a knock on the door and Taylor sat up as Coraline went to answer the door. Before she made it, the door was forced open. There stood Atem, Seth, and a tall, dark-haired man Taylor did not know. "Daddy!" she cried, getting up.
"Taylor, stay right there." Mick said sharply, blocking Atem's way to her.
"Ah, Mick. How nice to see you again." Coraline smiled, a cat-eating the canary curl of the mouth. "Come in. And who are the friends? They're cute."
"Shut up, Coraline." Mick snapped, entering the house.
"We're married. And you're holding my daughter hostage." Atem snarled, glaring at her.
"Ooh, feisty." Coraline breathed, eyes flashing white for just a moment. "Is that why you paid me this visit?"
Mick lunged at her and grabbed her collar. "This isn't a joke, Coraline. A little girl. Just like Beth." He hissed, eyes white, pointed eye teeth bared.
"Let go of me!" Coraline snapped, pulling away. "You think you and a couple of mortals will be able to beat me!" Ha!"
Mick snarled and dove for her. Coraline jumped in the air and sent him tumbling into a corner not far from Taylor. Taylor screamed. Mick didn't move.
"Uh oh." Seth said, seeing that Coraline's eyes were white now, eye teeth bared.
"Uh oh's right, boys." Coraline cackled. "Without your protector, you're easy pickings."
Coraline moved toward them and they backed up until their backs hit the walls. "Mick, wake up!" Atem called over in his direction. "Taylor, try and wake him up."
Taylor hurried over and tried shaking the unmoving form. Coraline turned long enough that Seth could get the jump on her and grabbed her from behind. Coraline struggled against his grip and threw him off. There was a resounding snap from his wrist at this and he cried out. He cursed in Egyptian. Coraline backed away from them.
"Come on, Mick!" Atem said, edging along the wall.
Seth cursed again, clutching his broken wrist. "She's strong!"
"He's waking!" Taylor called from the corner.
Mick slowly came to with a groan. "Oh no you don't!" Coraline cried, grabbing a wooden stake.
Taylor's eyes grew wide. "No, don't hurt him!"
Atem dove for Coraline but grabbed her too late. She jammed the stake into Mick's heart, causing his eyes to go wide in surprise and then his eyes closed and he was still.
Coraline tried to struggle in Atem's grip but couldn't get free. "What are you?" he snarled in her ear.
"Vampire." She snarled. "Same as Mick."
"So you killed him?" Atem asked, eyes widening.
"No, we don't die that way." Coraline said, relishing in it.
"Daddy!" Taylor said, trying to pull the stake out. She finally managed to with a grunt. It was half the length of her body. "Try this!"
Atem snatched it and before Coraline could react, he jammed it into her chest. Her body went rigid against his at once and slumped against him. He let her drop. "Are they dead?" Seth asked, pain evident in his voice.
"I think so." Atem said, standing up.
"Daddy!" Taylor called again, looking in horror at Mick's body. It was moving in fits of coughs.
Atem hurried over and knelt next to Mick. "Mick? He's alive."
Seth went over. "What? How can that be? I thought it killed his kind."
Mick sat up, eyes open, coughing a little still. "I take it my secret's out…" He gave another cough.
"How did it happen?" Atem asked.
"Like I said, Coraline was my ex. We met in a nightclub in the 50's. We got married and she turned me on the wedding night." Mick said, rubbing his chest.
"You should see a doctor." Atem suggested, as Mick struggled to his feet a little weak still.
"And they'd do what?" Mick snapped. "When you're like me, no hospital can help. I'll be fine for a while." He glanced over at Coraline's still body. "Who thought of pulling it out and using it on her?"
"Taylor did." Atem said, managing a grin.
"Thanks kiddo." Mick said, smiling down at her.
"You're welcome." Taylor said shyly.
"Can we get out of here?" Seth's pained voice came from the doorway.
"Good idea. She might have someone else with her who was out of the house." Mick said.
Before they could move, the lock turned. "Hide Taylor." Mick mouthed as Seth moved away from the door.
"I'll take her." Seth whispered. "I'm no use."
Taylor followed Seth into another room, disappearing just as the door opened. "Coraline, hope you and the brat are hung-" the man at the door stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of Mick and Atem. "Mick, how'd you get in here?"
"Coraline let me in." Mick said, gesturing to her.
The man hurried over. "Cora!" he pulled the stake out. "You're going to pay St. John."
Mick stood his ground. As the man dove for him, he dived away, but Atem wasn't so lucky. The stake stabbed his abdomen and he slid to the floor, it sticking out of his abdomen. Mick looked around and ran to the knife board as the man charged after him. Grabbing one, he spun around, jamming it in the man's chest. The man collapsed at once, dead. Spent, Mick dropped to his knees and crawled over to Atem who wasn't moving and white as a sheet. "Come on, wake up…" he muttered.
"Is it over?" Seth asked, poking his head out. His face paled as he saw his cousin lying on the floor. "Oh God, what happened?" he asked, hurrying over.
"Our visitor stabbed him with the stake." Mick said, pulling out his cell phone.
"Can he get turned that way?" Seth asked, looking worried.
"No, it has to be a bite from the vampire. We had a case where someone made a drug from vampire blood. No one was turned by it." Mick said, dialing 911. "Is he still alive?"
Seth checked with his good hand. "Yes, but I can barely find a pulse."
Mick gave the address to the operator and hung up.
Mick was sitting in the waiting room with Seth, whose wrist had been repaired and now had a bright blue cast on it when Hali finally arrived. "I got your message, did you find her?" she looked pale and anxious.
"Yes, they're checking her out in the ER to make sure she's all right." Mick said. "Scarred emotionally maybe but I didn't see any physical injuries."
"What about my husband?" Hali asked. "I heard something happened to him."
"Mommy!" Taylor exclaimed running out of the ER area.
"Hey, baby. Glad to see you again." Hali's face brightened at the sight of her daughter. She picked her up. "You all right?" she asked, checking for injuries.
"Yeah, Mommy. I got a sticker, see?" Taylor asked, holding up a big round one with butterflies on it.
"I heard she liked them." The nurse smiled sheepishly. "She's a little shaken but nothing's wrong, thankfully."
As the nurse went in, Hali turned back to Seth and said in Egyptian. "What happened?"
"Come with us. It's a complicated story." Seth said. He stood up, and headed for the elevator with Seth and Hali following. They filled him in on the details, Seth supplying the information that Mick didn't know.
"Oh God, will he make it?" Hali asked, paling even more.
"It's not looking good. He lost a lot of blood. He should be out of surgery." Mick said
Hali put a hand to her chest. "Oh Ra…" she murmured. "Can I see him?"
"Of course, come on." Seth said and led them upstairs. A doctor exited a room as they approached. "Doctor? This is Atem's wife."
The doctor gave a brief nod. "I suppose you want to see him?"
Hali nodded and he led her in. "We got the bleeding under control and he'll be okay."
Hali went over to the bed where Atem was lying still, pale, tube strung across his upper lip. "Oh Atem…"
Mick stood at the doorway, watching. "Mick!" a voice called and he turned, only to have a blond woman throw herself at him.
"Beth, what are you doing here?" Mick asked, holding her at arms length.
"Seth called and told me that Atem was hurt. Is he going to be all right?" Beth asked, looking in.
"He should be." Mick followed her gaze.
"Are you all right, Mick?" Beth asked, concerned. "Were you hurt?"
"A little, but I'm fine now." Mick said, rubbing his ribs again. Damn, I need some blood.
"You sure? I could get you something to drink." Beth said.
"We'll be right back, I need to show her what I want." Mick said and headed off.
Seth shook his head and went in. Hali had set Taylor on the bed next to Atem. Taylor was staring at her father with horrified fascination. "Is he gonna be okay?" she asked.
"He'll be up and playing with you before you know it." Seth assured her.
Atem groaned and started to stir. "Honey?" Hali asked, hurrying to his side. "Honey, come on, open your eyes."
Atem slowly opened his eyes. "Ugh…" he groaned, turning his head to the side.
"Daddy!" Taylor exclaimed, flopping herself on Atem's chest, making him give a weak "oof" noise.
"Be careful, honey." Hali warned sharply.
"It's okay…" Atem said. He gave her a small smile. "Glad to…see her again…"
"You have to thank Mick for that. I broke my wrist so I wasn't much use."
"What happened…?" Atem asked, trying to sit up.
Hali helped him up as Seth regaled him with the story. "Mick went off to get some blood, I think."
"He got hurt?" Hali asked, surprised. "But he looked fine just a bit ago."
"No, Mommy, he's a vampie!" Taylor blurted out. She pretended to bite something to explain.
"He's a vampire?" Hali asked in Egyptian, turning to Seth. "You let my daughter be saved by a vampire?!"
"I didn't know at the time! But isn't it the point that he found Taylor enough?" Seth asked, affronted.
"Yes, but he could have bitten her! You didn't know what he'd do after you found out. You put her in danger."
"He didn't though." Seth said.
"Small comfort!" Hali snapped, as Mick came back in with Beth. She turned on him. "You took this job under false pretenses, you faker!"
"What?" Mick asked, taken aback.
"You didn't tell us you were a vampire when you took this job. That's withholding information." Hali snapped, pointing a finger at him.
"Ma'am, I was a private investigator before I got turned. I'm better now that I can work at night. Your daughter wasn't in any danger with me. I would not bite her if she was my only chance at surviving. I would rather die than hurt a child." Mick explained, trying to get her to understand.
Hali was losing steam now. "Well…I guess I got a little much there. Sorry…"
"I understand. You were worried about your daughter." Mick said, nodding. He went over to Atem. "You doing all right now? You gave us a scare."
"Yeah, tired though." Atem said yawning.
"Stay away from my husband." Hali snapped, grabbing his shoulder. "You wouldn't hurt a child but I don't know if you wouldn't hurt my husband."
Mick turned to her. "I wouldn't hurt him either. I have my ways of getting blood without taking it from humans."
Hali looked embarrassed. "Sorry, Mick."
"Well, I better go. I've got to get back to Los Angeles." Mick said and left.
Atem healed after a long recovery period and Seth's wrist healed quickly. Taylor went back to being a happy healthy five-year-old with the occasional nightmare about her kidnapping. Mick and Beth got together after the case.
