Okay, that was a long chapter. Much longer than I thought it would be. :)
But it was an important chapter, it pretty much got everything rolling.
So, enjoy chapter 9 and r&r... hmm, what else?
Stay in School! Eat your veggies! Listen to your parents! (haha im a total hypocrite on the last two :D :p)
"AHHH!" Dex screams, the cross branding into his skin again. This time the pain's enough to knock him out. After all, I've been going at torturing him for several hours now.
"Take him away. But don't kill him! He has another use!" I instruct some of the servants as they drag him up the stair case.
"Are you sure?" I ask, poking at the dying flames, prodding them to finish the job. "Remember last time? Turned out he was up in Alaska with a vampire from the French Empire."
"I'm sure. He would have atleast called in by now. Remember how bad you punished him last time? He told me in private he was never going that long without checking in again."
"Well, crosses and wooden stakes do that to a guy." I stated, poking at the charred clothes.
"That was pretty cruel though."
"Think of it like the wooden paddle at school, or getting spanked by your dad with a belt. Besides," I said, looking up and shrugging, "It's what my master did to me when I'd get to out of hand."
"Yeah but that was during your insane bloodlust days as a new vampire." Alicia countered.
"It worked didn't it?" that shut her up. She stared at the floor.
"When did you realize he was missing?" I ask, trying to change the subject.
"Oh so you believe me now?" she shot angrily.
"Alicia." I sighed.
"Fine." Alicia sat up straighter, "Chad was on his patrol when he heard screaming on Walters street. but when he got there all he saw was a cleaners truck driving away at full speed. He lost the truck when he caught a couple rouge vampires out of their territory and had to chase them back."
"Okay, so it might have been a kidnapping of someone. Not necassarily Dex. Did he say if he was heading out anywhere?" I ask, getting up and sitting in the other chair across from her.
"As far as I knew he was planning to stay for awhile." Alicia deadpanned. I raised my eyebrow but something told me to let it go and move on.
"Allright then, you, Chad, and I will go poke around Walters street and then follow the same path Chad did before he lost the truck. After that will put out a missing vampires alert for Dex and go from there." I said, making a quick, slapshot plan. I wasn't totally convinced Dex was missing. I was sure he was probably off somewhere being his idiot self.
Dex was like a cat I guess. He did what he wanted and only thought of listening to you if he liked you. After I got ahold of him after the Alaska incedint he refused to listen to most of what I said, instead directing most of his respect to Alicia. They'd grown really close after that. I didn't mind though, Dex got on my nerves really easy unless Alicia ws there to guilt him into behaving.
But he'd still follow most Guard procedures, like checking in now and again so we knew where to reach him if we needed him. That was the thing that kept nagging at me that Alicia might be right.
The alleyway on Walters street that Chad had heard the screaming from was surprisingly pretty litter free, only a giant green dumpster on one end and a few loose adds scurrying across the ground in the slight wind. It was also pretty narrow, the giant two-story brick buildings on either side only maybe seven feet apart from eachother.
Alicia walked up and down the alleyway, her brown hair flying around in the breeze. She made sure it flew into Chads face as she passed by, walking around him in circles for a few seconds before he swatted her away playfully. Chad was busy scanning the walls for anything. But they were pretty clear of much. there were no windows on this alley and there wasn't much graphity covering the red bricks.
I jumped down from the roof, after looking around on both rooftops. the lip of the one I'd just been on was tall enough for someone to crouch down and hide if you happened to look up, but that was only if you were looking up. the walls were tall enough that you could stand there and watch someone walk by below unnoticed.
"So, say it was Dex screaming that night." I start, earning an annoyed glare from Alicia as she and Chad walked over to join me, "He would have to have been walking down the alleyway with the attacker above him. That seems the best way to surprise someone here. there's no where to hide, besides that dumpster, and someone would have seen something if this started out on the street."
"What about the dumpster though?" Chad asked, pointing a black gloved hand to the giant green dumpster, "couldn't he have been hiding in there? I did see the van pull out on that side."
"It's a possibility but wouldn't there be more garbage on the alleyway if he'd jumped out?" I reason.
"And Dex wouldn't be able to smell anyone from up there." Alicia adds, glancing at the rooftops.
"Wouldn't he have sensed someone though?" Chad asks.
"Not if he was down here to feed. He'd have been totally focussed on his prey then." it was just part of being a predator, total focus on the prey.
I opened my mouth to offer our next plan of action when my phone- my regular, silver one- rang in my jeans pocket.
I held up a finger to the other two to keep silent while i flipped the phone open and hit the green "talk" button.
"Hey Pretty Boy," Morgan called through the phone, "Prentiss missed you and wondered why you weren't in today."
I laughed as i heard an audible slap over the phone an Prentiss telling Morgan not to project on to her.
"Im taking a personal day Morgan." I said simply, i wanted to keep this short.
"Well stop it and come back, Prentiss is worried sick Ouch!" I heard Prentiss hit him again.
"Well Ill be back tommorow bright and early so you dont have to feel lonely anymore Morgan." I laugh.
"Hey Emily," I hear Morgan call, "Reid says he misses you too!"
"Goodbye Morgan." I smile as I hear Prentiss hitting him again accompanied by threats and curses.
I snap it shut and the humor melts off my face.
"Alicia," I turn to her, taking charge again, "grab everyone and meet here tonight."
That night all thirteen of us crowded into the alleyway, wrapped up in coats and armed to the teeth with our various weapons. We were going on a searching party.
"Kelly and Chad will take Mina and Mike and cover the trail Chad traveled when pursuing the van." I began once everyone was here, "Roger and Jake will head up to Dex's usual hideouts closer to town and Jessica and Eliot will take all the ones out of town. Then Jasper, Kim and Bobby will go out to the neighboring clans to see if they've heard anything. Me and Alicia will cover the Council and then let you know where we'll go from there." Everyone nodded at their assignments and I dismissed them.
Once everyone besides Alicia had left I sighed and turned around, starting to walk in the direction of my car.
"We're seriously going in that thing?" Alicia asked, running to catch up with me.
"Your such a girl sometimes Alicia." I groaned.
"No just, itll be faster if we take my motorcycle. We can weave through the traffic." I knew this was just the "responsible" reason. Alicia had just gotten the bike and I was pretty sure she was just dying to ride it some more.
"Fine." I smiled, "We'll take the bike." She squealed and scurried over to the black motorcycle with the blood red helmet resting on the handel bars.
"You mind if you drive without a helmet?" she asked, half smiling.
I rolled my eyes and shrugged as we climbed on.
