You Promised Forever XIV
Disclaimer: I do not own Moonlight. It is nice to see that it lives on in its fans.
Thanks for the support some of you have given me. I hit a rough patch in my life recently and it is difficult to lose myself in writing at the moment. I will continue to work on finishing this story.
Chapter 14
For a brief moment Mick was caught off guard by Beth's suggestion and then a bright smile broke over his face.
"You constantly amaze me," he said finally. He kissed her tenderly. "How do I deserve you?"
"You took on the role of my Guardian Angel when I was four. In my mind you deserve every bit of my trust and love to repay you for the safety you brought to my life. And ever since you became actively involved in my life once more I need to show you just how special our relationship has become. We deserve each other Mick, we are good people," Beth stated honestly. "And I will fight for you. Now go….go spy on those women, we need information."
Mick laughed, his spirits lifting. Beth was right, they both deserved to be happy. She was such an amazing woman.
"Okay, stay here, we're far enough away to be safe. Lock the doors," he instructed. "I do trust you Beth."
"Good….now go, you're wasting time," she urged with a smile. With a quick kiss, Mick left the car and ran towards the bar.
Beth settled back after locking the doors, willing to wait for Mick's return. She had no desire to face off against Coraline in a dark parking lot on this night. This evening would be successful if Mick could learn what the two women were up to and get the name of HEM's leader without letting Coraline or Cynthia know they were being watched.
Mick slowed his pace as he neared the bar, listening for sounds of Coraline and Cynthia luring their victims into their clutches. Silently he moved among the parked cars, staying in the shadows until he found the silver Mercedes. From there he could follow Coraline's scent to where they went to wait for their prey. Even though Mick hated what Tejada and his henchmen had done to terrorize Josh and Beth and how that ended, he did feel a bit sorry for the men now targeted by his ex-wife and her friend. The drug cartel members were dead men and they didn't know it. If pressed to be honest, Mick felt no urge to step in and save the men, Beth's life was more precious than the scum that belonged to HEM. This was one time he didn't care what Coraline did to a human.
Following his nose, he reached a spot near the entrance where he could tell that the women had met their targets. Familiar with the building and surrounding area from when he had killed Tejada, Mick figured the women would take the men to the rear of the building which was more private and had some seating. Hearing laughter coming from the back, Mick leapt to the roof and quietly moved to the rear. Crouching low and staying back from the edge, he was able to observe the activities going on below.
There were two large dumpsters roughly ten feet from the rear exit of the bar. Just to the right was a bench and a couple of folding chairs that formed a crude circle. Cynthia and a wiry, long haired man were sitting on the bench, sharing a bottle of scotch. A cloth bag and an empty bottle were on the ground at their feet. A larger, man with shorter dark hair and a thin mustache sat on a nearby chair with Coraline settled on his lap. His hands were roaming Coraline's body as she drank deeply from a bottle of champagne. A second bottle was lying a few feet away, empty.
"Chica….why are we out here? Inside is more comfortable," the man said roughly as he pulled her against his chest.
"I like the night air. Besides, the music is too loud in there," Coraline purred as she pulled away from him to stroke his cheek. "Aren't you enjoying our little party out here? This is wonderful champagne, don't you like it?" She brought the bottle to his lips and tilted it.
The man swallowed some of the bubbly liquid and then took hold of her wrist.
"You high class chicks are a kick. Of course I like the champagne. I am into expensive tastes," he said before kissing her roughly.
"Well there is more where that came from. There is another bottle and some more scotch in the bag," Coraline said as she drew away again. "There is no need to share with your friends inside. I like it out here, just the four of us. So tell me more about this important group you belong to. I am impressed."
Sitting back on his heels on the roof, Mick had to admire how Coraline manipulated the man. It reminded him of how she had teased him when they first met. She certainly knew how to make a man want her.
"We are members of HEM. Soon we will be running this city," the man below boasted.
"Do you hear that Cynthia..? We have hooked up with two very important men. I told you that we would find the right people to party with," Coraline said to Cynthia who was running her hand through her partner's hair. He was hungrily kissing her throat.
"So I understand," Cynthia replied, playing her part in this charade. "But how do we know these two are really as important as they claim? They could be just telling us what we want to hear." She took the man's face in her hands and kissed the tip of his nose. "Tell me Rico, do you even know your leader?"
"Of course I do. Carlos and me….we are Javier's right hand men," Rico bragged, the scotch loosening his tongue. "He brought us with him when he took over for Tejada. We have power pretty lady…believe me, we do."
"I like power," Cynthia said and Mick could see her eyes flash silver from where he was positioned. "Who is this Javier person?"
"Javier Santiago is now the man controlling HEM," Carlos told her. "He is smarter than Tejada, he keeps a lower profile. He sees us as his strong right hand. He is supposed to be inside tonight, would you like to meet him?"
"And spoil our party handsome?" Coraline asked in fake surprise. She had no intention of meeting Santiago face to face unless necessary. "No….tonight is about us. You don't want others joining our party, do you?" She shifted on his lap, producing a groan from the big man. "I can promise you a much better time than those inside," she said coyly.
"I'm willing to play," Carlos growled before he roughly kissed her.
Cynthia's human followed his friend's lead and suddenly became more aggressive with Cynthia. The petite blond vamped out and twisted away from Rico's demanding lips. One glance at Coraline showed her that the brunette had also transformed.
"Oh yes, we can play," Coraline cooed.
Mick steeled himself for what he knew would come next. Knowing these were drug dealers with no respect for human life made it easier to not mourn their deaths. He turned away and rose to a crouch, moving away from the rear of the building. He had heard enough and now wanted to get away before either woman noticed him. He knew that their feeding until the men were dead would give him enough time to escape without being seen. It was important to get back to Beth and go bring Josef and Kira up to speed.
Leaping down from the roof, he sprinted back to the car. He hoped that Beth had kept her word and remained in the vehicle, not letting her curiosity get the better of her. Now was not the time to have to hunt for her while Coraline and Cynthia hurried to dispose of two bodies. Nearing the car he could see Beth bent over the glow of her cellphone. He smiled as he saw the frown lines between her eyes as she studied the small object in her hands. He tapped lightly on the hood to alert her and she looked up quickly, the frown lines easing when she saw it was him and leaned over to unlock the door.
"What has you so serious?" he enquired as he slid in behind the wheel.
"I decided to text Kira and let her know what we were up to. She wanted to know where we were and that she wanted to join us. I declined to share that information and her reply was not polite," Beth sighed. "I didn't call because I find it difficult to lie to her. I should go by the club and explain things."
"I got the name we're looking for, so let her know we are heading to Dusk to Dawn and she should have Josef meet us there," Mick told her as he started the Benz.
"Okay," Beth agreed and sent the message to Kira. She felt a bit foolish not calling Kira but she didn't want to face her friend's disapproval just yet.
Mick headed for Dusk to Dawn, taking the shortest route he knew.
"So Coraline got the name of HEM's leader?" Beth asked, eager to know all that Mick had overheard.
"She did."
"So…spill, who is it? We could find a way to leak this information to Ben. The DA's office and the police could begin building a case against him," Beth suggested.
"And how would you explain to Ben how you came by this information?" Mick asked. "Just admit we know he knows about vampires and that Coraline drained the name out of one of his lackeys? I would rather keep Talbot and the Sentinels as far away from this mess as possible."
"I didn't mean I would come right out and tell him myself. But this group has hurt and will hurt many more humans. Chopping off the leader's head doesn't stop them as Tejada's death proved. They are still operating in Los Angeles and there is a way to let Carl and the police know who is running HEM now. This isn't about my safety alone, it is about many others," Beth said calmly, not ruffled by Mick's harsh response. "There is a chance to get more justice for Josh, to finish his work."
Mick was left speechless for a moment, letting her words sink in as he drove on. She was right, this cartel was a cancer in Los Angeles and it would continue to spread its poison among the city's humans. Josef would be among the first to agree that the drugs would ruin the vampire's food source and it was better to eliminate HEM. Beth's request for justice for Josh was also very valid.
"Okay…..okay, once we've dealt with Coraline and Cynthia, we'll handle this problem. I don't want the police and Talbot poking around until Coraline is out of our lives. This is one mess I don't want the Sentinels focusing on," he gave in.
"Okay, I see your point," Beth agreed. "So do you have any idea how we use what we've learned to make Coraline give up and go home?"
Mick shook his head, unable to look her in the eye. He wished he could promise Beth that everything would be okay but deep in his gut he harbored doubts. He had hoped that when Lance took Coraline away that it would be the last he would see of her. He should have known better. It was frustrating how she refused to let him go, how she continued to return and insert herself into his life. Mick was beginning to doubt he'd ever be able to find the right words to convince her that he was through with her.
One look at Mick's profile and Beth knew he didn't have an answer for her. She felt sorry for him, knowing that he really had little control over Coraline's obsession. She also knew Mick didn't want to be forced to kill his ex to find freedom. Thinking he had done that once before had cost his soul dearly. Watching Kira and Josef together showed how a healthy relationship between a sire and his creation could grow and change but Coraline was too selfish to understand that Mick had moved beyond her. If he truly loved Coraline he would have followed her to France to rescue her, he was that type of man. Instead he had given up his precious experiment with humanity to save Beth from a murderous vampire plastic surgeon. That was an act of true love. She rubbed the back of his neck gently.
"Well find a way to convince her it's over," she promised. "Together we will find a way."
End chapter.
Thank you for reading. I hope I hear from some of you. Reviews are always welcome.