CHAPTER FOUR

"This is like looking for a needle in a hay stack, Julian." The afore mentioned was about ready to deck the police detective walking beside him. Since the two of them had begun searching for the missing Gangrel premagin, Frank had done little more than walk and complain.

"You know," the human continued. "Maybe he burned and there's nothing left TO find."

"He wasn't dead when they left him," Julian hissed through clenched teeth. The farther they went the slower the Kindred prince was forced to walk as what little strength he had ebbed.

"That's kind of an odd thing to say about a vampire. After all, Cash is dead. He needs blood to make his heart beat." Frank stated.

Choosing not to be baited into arguing with the man, Julian held his tongue and ignored him. Not being Cash's sire, he didn't have the same telepathic connection that he would have. Being the prince, however, connected him to all Kindred, to a much lesser extent. The Kindred he was closest with, Lily, Degolas, Argon, Cash among others, were more open to him. The one pitfall was that he had to make the connection at a conscious level it didn't just come to him like a daydream. Hence the reason he hadn't been aware of Cash's peril. But could now feel the pain, a ghost of what the young man was feeling himself, and, therefore, knew him to still be within this world.

That pain was guiding him now, but it was a tenuous link and had to be nurtured and concentrated on. Arguing with Frank, while in other circumstances he might have invited the chance to not think directly about their reason for being out in the woods at high noon, was not currently helpful.

"Are you sure you need me here? You look like you're in your own little world. One I can't get into," Frank said.

Just as Frank finished the sentence, he had to scramble to catch the larger man as he stumbled. For the first time, the San Francisco police detective became aware of the exhaustion etched into every line of his face.

Carefully, Frank set Julian on the ground, his back resting against a tree trunk. "Are you all right? Maybe we should rest awhile."

As much as Julian hated to admit it, he had to agree with the human. He couldn't help Cash if he was too tired to track him. Giving in, he leaned his head back until it rested on the rough bark of the tree and then he closed his eyes.

"Good idea." Julian heard Frank settle down on the dry leaves beside him. Julian Luna was asleep before Frank could make himself comfortable.

Several thoughts and emotions washed over the young human. Here, as vulnerable as he's likely to ever see him was the person responsible for his girl friend's death. While Julian wasn't the one to slice her throat and throw her out into the sunlight so she could turn into a fireball, he hadn't stopped it either. Against the prince's protests, Frank had brought the phosphorous rifle that had been given to him in an effort to keep him safe. Now the urge to use the weapon on the vampire asleep beside him threatened to overwhelm Frank. Almost unconsciously, Frank brought he muzzle of the rifle around until it was pointed into Julian's side. Just as his finger tightened on the trigger, he came back to himself and pulled the muzzle up so it was targeted at the sky.

A branch snapped behind Frank. Startled, he jumped into a crouch and faced the noise. What stood before him was something out of a horror movie. Dressed completely in black, a favourite color among Kindred, with a bald head, elongated earlobes and fiery blue eyes stood a man with at least ten inches on Frank. So, he thought, curious despite himself, this must be a Nosferatu clam member.

Ignoring the human, now that he posed no threat to the prince, he knelt down on the other side of tree trunk to gently shake Julian's shoulder.

"Degolas?" Julian's eyes fluttered open to look at the man towering over him. He was still so very tired. It was all he could do to keep his eyes open, much less keep his brain functioning.

"We've found where they dumped Cash. He's since moved further into the hills," the Nosferatu premagin reported, pointedly ignoring the human.

"Show me where." Julian made an abortive attempt to reach his feet. Degolas laid his large hand on the prince's shoulder to steady him.

"Later. We need to rest. There is a cabin on the way that we can stay in." Carefully, Julian was helped to his feet. Degolas drew his arm across his shoulder and nearly carried his prince and friend. Frank trailed behind, feeling a little like an unwanted cousin, as they headed deeper into the trees.

OOOOO

Four hours after they began their journey, Chris and Cash stumbled through the door to Chris's apartment and sprawled across the floor. Rolling onto her back, Chris lay for several minutes, catching her breath and giving her back and hello legs a chance to recover.

"Are you all right?" Cash asked in a quiet voice from his position at her side. He'd been drifting in and out of consciousness during the entire trip.

"I'm fine," Chris gasped. "I just need a couple of moments. How are you?" She rolled onto her side so she could see his pale face better.

"Never felt better," Cash replied, a lop sided grin appearing briefly on his lips. Before the smile disappeared completely, he grimaced as his injuries reasserted themselves. His blue eyes closed. Chris waited impatiently for them to open again. They didin't.

"Damn it," Chris thought about checking Cash's pulse, an instinctive reaction, but she caught her hand. It was a waste of time. The best she could do was make him comfortable and wait to see if he came to again. How long she was going to wait was beyond her.

For the last time, at least she hoped, Chris bent down, picked the lifeless boy up and carried him into her bedroom. The chill coming off of him was enough to give her the willies. There was definitely something very odd about the boy. No heart beat, cold to the touch and the only time he breathed was when he spoke or moaned.

Once she laid Cash out on the bed, Chris untied the shirt pieces, threw them into the waste paper basket and turned her attention to his shirt and pants. The shirt came off with little trouble. While he was muscular, Cash had a slight build which made him easier to manipulate.

The pants proved to be another matter. The biggest problem was that Chris had no desire to see the young man naked and so was taking extra care to not pull down his blue boxer shorts with the jeans. She could feel the heat coming off her cheeks as she blushed deeply. After what seemed like an eternity, Chris got the jeans off, slipped his legs under the blankets and brought the material up under his chin. It wasn't likely to help but she thought it might keep him a little warmer.

Seated on the bed beside Cash, Chris paused to take a closer look at him. He was very handsome, although he also looked very young. She didn't much like his light brown goatee. It somehow made him appear younger still. He had spiky light brown hair that was clean cut down the sides and back. And then, of course, there were those bright blue eyes. If she was a few years younger she might have considered the possibilities. At thirty, she wasn't over the hill, she just felt that way most days. Absently, she touched the side of Cash's face.

Unknown to her, Chris had cut her finger, middle one of the right hand. It was bleeding freely. As she brought her hand across Cash's face, a drop fell and landed on his slightly parted lips. It took a moment to realize what the dark liquid had been. Just as she did, Cash took a deep breath. Chris waited for him to take another. He didn't.

At a particular corner of her unconscious mind, a connection was made. Fear gnawing at her, Chris placed the cut finger against the boy's lips so the blood would run into his mouth.

At first, Chris thought she was just being foolish and after a few minutes she was considering removing it. Cash took another deep breath and another. He reached up, caught hold of Chris's hand to bring her finger between his lips and began to suck on it.

Revulsion swept through her. If Chris believed in story books, she would have said that Cash was a vampire. It would explain so many things if only she'd open her mind. As it was, she sat with her finger in the boy's mouth and tried to not think about what was going on.