Chap 10
"Shit," was Drew's reaction to May's tale about the night prior.
Again they were sitting on their rooftop, the afternoon only now going through its middle. A sea breeze haunted them as it ruffled their clothing and hair, but neither one could feel the wavering inside. Things had happened too quickly without them, and now Norman knew everything, much less, at the same time they had figured it out.
"I don't know how he found out. I'm thinking he might have hired the Undercover Angels to spy on me," May told Drew regrettably, as if it were all her fault.
Drew looked up at her and shook his head. "That sounds about right. It doesn't matter how, though…what matters now is how we're going to get around it."
"We still don't have a plan; even without someone finding out!" May exclaimed, obviously upset.
Drew rushed a hand to her mouth, covering it tightly, and then looking around the forest of buildings, as if he'd spot those cunning Angels hidden in the brick.
"You have to keep your voice down now," Drew informed her. "You don't know where those bastards could be hiding."
May removed his hand, and held it in her hands without realizing it.
She whispered now, "The thing I'm most worried about is…how I'm supposed to kill you. I really don't want to do it."
"Yeah, I really don't want to die either," Drew said sarcastically with the most serious face. "However…"
Drew trailed in thought. The clans that resided inside him made him almost immortal, if not, all the way, so the killing would actually be the easiest part, that is, if May turned out to be a wonderful actress.
Drew turned his head either which way. Where their rooftop had always seemed safe to him, it now leaked with danger. The Undercover Angels would expect them to meet back at that building, and therefore, the place was probably crawling with eavesdroppers.
"Let's take a walk. There's actually a person we need to meet up with today," Drew said as he backed up from May.
He spread his wings and dove into the alleyway below with May following him, trusting his primitive instincts. Hidden behind a dumpster, they both hid their wings in their backs, making them appear to be regular mortals. However, Drew knew that any Undercover Angel watching would not be so easily fooled, and so they walked down the street in silence, and if not silence, then conversation that would not give those spies any information.
"Why don't they just swoop down and get me right now?" Drew asked, invigorated by the thought.
At least if they attacked first, no one could blame him for defending himself.
"It would cause a scene they don't want. My dad probably doesn't want chaos breaking out if he can help it," May answered. "Besides…he said I could repent for my sins if I killed you."
Drew nodded and then looked ahead of them. The city seemed so natural – no one would ever guess situations like his and May's happened everyday, whether it was a street fight between werewolves and vampires, or secret spies issued by holy deities.
The Demon did not know May's father very well, but already he felt averseness for the man – what father forced his daughter to redress on something only he thought was wrong? It was then Drew realized he probably didn't know any better – the only real father figure Drew had was a gay man who shared no relation with him whatsoever. The only thing Drew knew about his real father was that the man was the Demonic sperm donor to his vampiric mother, whom he could not remember either.
Arriving at their destination, somewhere deep within Darkie territory, the sign read "Jack Lantern's Bar". Drew opened the door and implored May to step inside, even if it was dark and completely against all she wanted to believe in. May reluctantly stepped inside, feeling the chill of displacement run its course through her veins. Feeling Drew's presence behind her made her feel a little more welcome, as he seemed to own the place with his heavy stride, his hands nestled in his coat pockets. Despite the fact that the place had the eerie, disgusting smell of old blood and other bodily fluids, May felt a little safer – the Undercover Angels could not tread inside and there were barely any windows.
Drew sat at the bar on one of the red-covered stools and May took her place next to him.
"Now that we're in here, we can talk freely – but keep your identity on the down-low, okay?" Drew warned and May nodded, understanding the situation. "To get you up-to-date, this is a bar I usually hang out at in the Darkie Territory. We're here to meet up with a guy named Jack Lantern, who is not a mortal, so let me do all the talking."
"Okay," May said, nodding. "But…while we're waiting for him, can you please tell me how in the world we're gonna go through with tricking the Undercover Angels into thinking I killed you?"
May was getting frustrated now, and Drew could understand.
He smirked and said, "Just rip me open. As long as you don't impale me through the heart, I'll be fine. I'm part Vampire, ya know."
"Are you sure? This is Sunilluma we're talking about – it is more than just a blade, it's the power of light and the sun too."
"And that's where the Demon half saves me. Like I said, don't worry about it."
May looked down at the polished wood of the bar uncertain, but if Drew said it was okay, she guessed he knew better than anyone. She sighed, feeling nervous about the whole ordeal.
"Masseur, you have returned!" came a female voice from behind them.
May looked at the girl, and for an instant was flabbergasted at the girl's appearance. The cat-girl was odd-looking to May, with an hourglass body only partly covered by a thin layer of leather and a doll-painted face; May could only guess her occupation. The Angel heard Drew groan as Kitty nettled her way all over the Demon.
"I have missed you," Kitty stated.
"Well, I didn't miss you at all," Drew retorted coldly.
"Come now. Why else have you stopped here?"
"Usually I come here to drink, but today it's to see Jack – where is he?"
"Who cares? And who is this girl? Is she looking for a job?"
"Kitty, get off me. The answers are: I do, my girl, and hell no."
The cat-girl immediately released Drew in a fit of rage.
"Girlfriend? You unfaithful bastard!"
"I'm unfaithful? Look at you! Kelly's dead and all you can do is try to rape me."
Kitty put her hands to her perfectly round hips. "I've moved on."
"Just go tell Jack I'm here," Drew said, squeezing the bridge of his nose in utmost frustration.
Kitty didn't move though, like a spoiled child who was tit-for-tat. "Not until you engage."
"That's disgusting, even for me, and I don't have time for it anyway. Now go get Jack before I kill you."
Kitty huffed, but there was no other choice. When Drew's eyes began to glow, it was time to give in. The cat-girl hopped off her stool, her brow furrowed, disappointed once again.
May watched her walk to the wall ahead of them and open a hidden door beside the shelves of vodka and scotch.
When she disappeared, May leaned over to Drew, "I really don't like that girl."
Drew chuckled, "Me neither – though she's sometimes a good person. But that's rare."
"Jack will see you now," Kitty reappeared, folding her arms and leaning against the wall beside the door.
"Thanks, Kitty," Drew said sarcastically.
The cat-girl smirked, knowing that was the best grateful statement she'd ever get. She walked away as May made her way into the room followed by Drew. Inside that little room was also pretty dark, save for a green, desk lamp and a tall corner light that only really illuminated the corner it stood in. A file cabinet sat beside the door facing the large, wooden desk that split the room into halves. Two wooden seats – complete with arm rests - sat facing the desk as well. Last but not least, Jack Lantern himself sat in a big easy chair behind the overwhelming desk.
He was clearly a skeleton, reanimated by a very skilled necromancer, but the only thing different about this skeleton was that he wore a pumpkin, a "Jack-o-lantern", as a head or cover for his head. The rest of him was covered in a deep violet robe. May knew then that his full name was clearly a play-on-words. Drew looked at his buddy and shook his head. The skeleton had not always been like that. Every time the Demon saw him, he remembered the one drunk night Lantern had told the story of how he had extracted his own soul and placed it in one of the skeletons in his collection. The ex-necromancer claimed it was the best thing he had ever done – to give himself full immortality with his own power. Drew had agreed, though he had argued that immortality by birth was even better.
"Please, take a seat," Jack offered the two open seats with a bony hand.
Shaken a bit, May took that as an order, but did not let her fear show on her face. Drew took his seat a little more casually, as if the man behind the desk had flesh. Jack leaned back in his easy chair, as if business was nonexistent.
"You said you wanted to see me, Drew," Jack said. "Who is this? A girlfriend, perhaps?"
"You could say that, I guess," the Demon answered, showing a sharp canine from beneath his lips. "She's an aristocrat."
"Ah, a very high-ranking vampire. Good catch. And so pretty," Jack said as he looked at the girl.
May gulped and was bashful towards his statement. She did not speak as she had been told, and Jack took it as she was very shy, which was perfect for the situation.
"I told you last night, I need a favor from you. Have you looked up what I needed?" Drew changed the subject.
Jack nodded and got up from his chair, leaving it rocking as he made his way to the file cabinet. He opened one of its drawers and flipped through some of the papers and files on hand. The Demon had been through the cabinet before and it contained all of the papers that kept the bar running – like his license to distribute alcohol and the contracts Kitty and her team had signed – and also simple things Jack collected, like maps, which was why Drew had turned to him first for advice on where to run off to.
"I didn't have the correct information so I went to the library. I was in there all night – I swear no one works there," Jack said as he shuffled through his belongings.
"Sounds like you got it eventually."
"I did. I actually found something even better than you had asked for."
Jack had found the file he was looking for. Closing the squeaky drawer back to place, he spun on his heel, now excited with his find, and plopped down in his chair. He opened the folder, different papers exposed themselves as its contents.
"You had said that you wanted to know if there was some place beyond Outskirt. And there is…in theory."
He took out a map that showed the mysterious land beyond Metropolis. Much of the map was blank, adding to the elusive terrain that was even beyond Outskirt, if it was possible.
"This artist believes the Demons still exist somewhere in Outskirt, preferably along the coast either North or South of Metropolis. However, there are known oases throughout the desert. This map depicts exactly where they are."
"It seems too uncertain – doesn't sit right with me."
"Agreed – and who knows how old this map is. Those oases could be dried up for all anyone knows. And then who knows how big Outskirt is? Some say it goes on forever."
"We're just trying to get away from our parents – they don't want us together. We don't want to die trying to get away – that's like shooting yourself in the foot. What was your other plan?"
"My other plan involved the ocean. She's an aristocrat and you're half an aristocrat? You can both turn into bats, right?"
"We don't turn into bats," Drew said with a roll of his eyes. "But we do have wings. Why? What's your plan?"
May's brow furrowed a bit – that didn't sound right, but Drew kept talking and Jack kept listening. Jack took out another map, this one also showed Metropolis planted at its shore with the wide ocean beyond it. On the other edge of the paper sat another, unknown slab of land that also showed civilization.
"I got this map from merfolk records. It's actually the map that shows the mer-people's travels. This coast is where they disappear to year-round. It's full of pirates and ancient temples that hoard ghosts and ninjas, but I think you might find it roomy. Since I haven't seen any records of vampires, all the blood there is yours for the taking."
"Okay, but how do we get there? How far is it?"
"Pretty far. Usually it's too far to fly in one trip and with no islands on the way, you'd crash into the ocean and drown of exhaustion."
Drew folded his arms and slumped back against the rest behind him.
"So what you're saying is, our plans of running away are hopeless…"
"Uh uh uh! I'm not finished. Every month they're a high and a low tide. At low tide, these sea mounts poke out from the surface and they can be used as resting spots."
"That's perfect – when does low tide start?" May exclaimed, excited and relieved at the same time.
There was a pause. Jack Lantern was as equally surprised with her outburst as Drew pretended to be.
"The sea mounts become good landing spots by tomorrow night. Hope that's not too late."
"It is, but we'll manage. It's the only choice we have," Drew said sternly, confident with this plan.
Not only would it be painless, but it would keep the Angels at bay. It would probably take the Angels years to figure out that he and May had traveled across the ocean instead of taking on Outskirt. Drew was banking on this plan.
"Thanks for your time, Jack, we really appreciate it," Drew said, shaking the skeleton's bony hand as he got up from his chair.
Jack nodded, "No problem. But I am gonna miss ya. Send me some maps when ya get there."
Drew chuckled, "Will do."
The Demon and Angel left the room as casually as they had entered. As soon as Drew closed the door, May turned to him.
She whispered, "Drew, I'm really glad we finally have somewhere to go but…true vampires like aristocrats don't have wings."
"I know…but do you think a skeleton that lives in a closet knows that?" Drew chuckled as he opened the front door to the bar.
The light of the setting afternoon sun confused May for a minute. Being in Jack Lantern's dark crevice of a room made her believe it was late at night. May looked at Drew with stern eyes and a slight frown. This would be her last night in Metropolis. Tomorrow they planned to fly away to that mysterious continent across the waves. Despite this dangerous arrangement, Drew seemed poised, standing there with a confident smirk, trying to reassure her everything would go according to plan.
As May spread her wings, her white plumage almost sparkling in the yellow beams of sunlight, she felt a tingling feeling in her chest. Was it really that easy escaping Metropolis? The road ahead of her seemed bright as she rose into the sky, but confidence was not behind that illusion. Somehow, in the pit of her stomach, the invisible bars of a bird cage showed themselves wrapped around the city.
At home May avoided her father, but she could not dodge his knowing glares. She nodded, knowing that he knew it meant she had given in and would go through with his orders soon. Despite his tough outer appearance, Norman could understand May's feelings, but with time he believed he could make her believe it was the right thing to do.
May didn't believe that, though. She felt herself hit the bars of her bird cage again and again. She fell, but those black-iron bars would not budge.