Wow, quite the reaction, so much hate, so many people leaping to judge before a story's finished. Especially all this anon's who happily post their hate from behind the cloak of anonymity.
I have a little more respect for those people who tell me they don't like something and put their name, or at least their user name, to their comments.
I also find it interesting that because as a part of this story, amongst the seven that I have posted, I am writing a coupling people don't agree with, that makes me a liar, a bad writer, a pervert, an asshole or whatever other insult happens to come to mind. I doubt they would be brave enough to say that to my face, hiding in anonymity really does make cowards brave.
I wonder if they would dare post the same to other authors here who post stories dealing with difficult issues such as domestic abuse and pedophilia. I'd like to hope not but somehow I think that even as respected and talented an R&I author as Colormetheworld, who handles those subjects exceptionally well, probably has to deal with this too.
Perhaps the most interesting thing though is that amongst all the hate email I also have people favouriting and following this story, including several who did so after the last chapter. To those people, thank you and welcome, I hope you enjoy this and the other stories I post.
To the bitter critics, if you don't like what I write, no one's forcing you to read this, with thousands of other R&I stories out there, go find something more to your taste.
Even better, get off your butt and write something better of your own.
Yes, I'm talking to you RagingFalcon, Palestra, RedGrasshopper and RavenSkyAngel. Don't like it, don't read it; or write something better rather than criticizing those who do write.
I note that between the four of you combined, you have published precisely ZERO stories on this site.
Not. A. Single One.
Walk a mile in an author's shoes before you presume to criticize one.
I guess the old statement is true, those who can, do; those who can't, criticize.
. . .
Running in the Night Part 25
The first thing that came to Jane's mind as she struggled to pull herself out of the depths of the dark that surrounded her was the noise, surrounding her, pressing in on her, the eternal sounds of the city loud around her. Cars and low rumbles, distant sirens and the creaks of elevators, the sound of a male's voice from somewhere distant competing with the low whine of a vacuum cleaner from the floor below.
The whole combined into a constant background cacophony, even as her nose twitched. The strong scent of recent perfume, three different kinds her mind told her, two less strong, one more so, together with a wild array of more subtle scents, her nose unconsciously twitched as she catalogued them, washing powder and fabric softener, soap and deodorant, air freshener and the faint smell of grilled meat, so slight she almost missed it.
For a moment the sensory bombardment threatened to overwhelm her, as she desperately sought to control the stimulus through force of will. Eventually both sound and smell were forced into the background as Jane struggled to recall what had happened, her mind running through the last things she remembered.
Maura rescued, the confessions of how they had felt, the sick knowledge that Vanchev would come back for them, the arguments and final agreement, being held in Maura's arms, then a sharp pain to the neck and…nothing. Jane's eyes flew open as she suddenly realised what had happened. 'Maura bit me! I'm a vampire'.
The room seemed bright, despite the closed blinds and door and the lights being off, out of the corner of her eye she could see the individual brushstrokes of the painting on the wall, as clearly as if she was standing with her nose to it. Closing her eyes she took a deeper breath. 'Do I even need to?'
Jane wasn't conscious of even not needing to, or of not breathing at all, her body was doing it so she mentally shrugged and ignored the ingrained habit of a lifetime, apparently now having accompanied her into…death?
'Fuck I'm dead? I'm a vampire!' The thought propelled her into a sitting position as the reality of what had happened hit, hand rising automatically to her neck and feeling nothing there, before her head swung from side to side, taking in Olivia lying on the other side of the bed. Frowning Jane leant in a little, taking in the sent of perfume, subtle but there, together with the smell of deodorant. 'That explains the perfume'.
As Jane sat back up she saw the slight twitches of Liv's nose and the slightest movement behind her eyelids. 'She's probably coming out of it too'.
Sitting up Jane, threw back the covers, noting she was still in her slacks and button down, before she swung her legs out from the bed and stood, making her way to the bedroom door and walking into the hall, her eyes automatically adjusting to the brighter light outside the darkened bedroom without losing any of their acuity.
"Maura, are you there?" Silence greeted her as she entered the living area, no one to be found. "Alex?" Again no response. A quick search found clothes scattered across the floor of the main bedroom, the covers thrown back and the bed rumpled. Scowling darkly at the implications, not to mention the heady aroma of sex and perfume, Jane made her way back out to check the rest of the apartment, the bathroom, toilet and laundry were all equally empty.
Worried, Jane picked up her cell from the table, seeing several missed calls and texts from her mother, Frost and Korsak but nothing from Maura. She was about to turn round when she heard the creak of the mattress and the soft pad of footsteps on the polished floorboards, seconds later Olivia walked into the room, rubbing her face.
"Hey Jane, where's Alex…" She dropped her hands as she looked around, frowning. "and Maura?"
"Damned if I know. I just got up and they're not here, no note, no call, no nothing" Liv frowned darkly.
"Damn" She searched for a moment, locating her cell and checking it. "Nothing from either of them" Jane scowled.
"What the hell's happened" Liv looked up at her.
"Maybe Vanchev got them?" Jane shook her head.
"Strange that he'd break in, take them but leave us alone. Nah, I don't buy it" With nothing better to do they both looked around, noting the darkness outside, it was night, reminding Jane to check her phone for the time and date. "We've been out for 24 hours, near enough"
"Figures" Liv suddenly made her way to the coffee table, looking round, obviously searching for something.
"What are you looking for?" Liv glanced back over her shoulder at her.
"Alex's phone's gone, so is her bag" Jane nodded, noting Maura's was gone as well.
"Maybe they've just gone out for something?" Liv looked over at her, hearing the doubt in Jane's voice.
"You don't believe that any more than I do"
Jane shook her head sadly, before pulling her phone out and dialling Maura's cell. It rang half a dozen times before going to voicemail. Ending the call, Jane looked up.
"Maura's not picking up, it's going to voicemail. We know what happened the last time this happened" Liv's lips thinned, obviously both angry and worried, before her expression transformed.
"We may have something; I helped Alex fit one of those phone GPS systems to her phone. If she's got it with her this time we'd know where she is" Jane was next to her in an instant.
"And where Alex is Maura's probably there too" She fidgeted as Liv fiddled with her phone for a moment, before a smile broke out.
"Got her" She looked up. "An address on the upper west side" Jane had her phone out and was calling up Street View. Punching in the address Liv gave her they bent their heads together, peering at the screen. Finally Jane spoke.
"Looks like an old garage, been closed for a while by the look of it" Liv nodded.
"Yeah, I know the area, been through it a few times" Jane stepped back and scowled.
"How the hell did they get there, and why?" The other woman looked up and shook her head.
"Maybe Vanchev can control them; they're his thralls after all, maybe he made them come to him" They shared a confused look, before Jane shrugged.
"Not important I suppose, so what now?" Liv nodded slowly.
"We go down there and get them" Jane nodded in reply.
"Agreed, is it just us?"
"Looks like, the SWAT teams out of action, Carmilla's people won't be here for a while yet, so it looks like it's up to us" Jane looked up, their eyes meeting.
"Whatever it takes" Olivia held the other woman's gaze as she replied.
"Whatever it takes" They stood there for a moment, their eyes locked, searching for something, weakness perhaps, resolve definitely. After a few seconds both women broke the contact; they'd seen what they were looking for.
Jane walked back into the bedroom and retrieved her belt with the badge and pistol, fastening it around her as she returned to the lounge room, before drawing the pistol, popping the mag out and examining it, then slamming it back into the butt. She looked around at Liv to see the other woman watching her.
"I don't think standard 9 mill rounds are going to do shit against him" She glanced down at the Glock again. "Got something with a little more kick?" Liv slowly nodded.
"I know a guy"
An hour later they were standing outside the garage, the GPS signal from Alex's phone having not moved. Looking round Liv fished out two pump action shotguns from a sports bag, handing one to Jane. The other woman nodded as she automatically checked the safety and then turned her attention back to Liv, keeping her voice low, though the other woman heard it as easily as if she'd shouted.
"Good thing your guy came through" Liv shrugged.
"He said he owed me, tonight cleared that debt" Jane looked at the other woman thoughtfully. The gun shop owner hadn't turned a hair when Benson had walked in and asked for his help. In less than 10 minutes they had two pump action shotguns loaded with solid shot rounds, plus two mags each of hollow points for their Glock's.
"What'd you do?" Liv grimaced as she examined the contents of the bag.
"Shot and killed the man who'd abducted, raped, murdered and partly eaten his seven year old autistic daughter" She shrugged, not looking at Jane. "It went down as a righteous shoot, even IA signed off on it, but he didn't deserve to live" Jane's jaw tightened at Liv's words then she nodded once, no way was she going to judge Liv, hell she'd probably do the same thing.
"Sounds good to me, we're going to need all the help we can get" Both women exchanged a look. A phone call had confirmed that Carmilla's team was still 8 hours away; they really were on her own. Finally Jane looked round, then up at the building, a darkened mass in a row of dark buildings. "How you wanna do this?"
"Let's see what we can find, Alex and Maura must have got inside somehow" Checking the front door they found it securely locked, the locks obviously old and untouched. Turning they made way around to the building's rear, silent in the darkness, the distant streetlight providing them with more than enough light to see, to their enhanced sight the night was bright as day.
Rounding the building Liv came to an abrupt halt, there in the rear lane was Alex's Audi, they'd already confirmed that it'd gone missing from the underground car park. At Jane's raised eyebrow she nodded, seeing a look of determination settle over the other woman, this was the right place.
At the garage's roller door they paused, taking in the well maintained lock, the greased roller tracks and the tire marks in the dirt. Bending down they could see several sets of footprints in the dirt, including two sets of women's high heel prints. They exchanged a confirming look before making their way to the door next to the roller door; the padlock there was obviously new, out of place with the rest of the building.
They shared another glance before Jane nodded, while Olivia withdrew a pair of bolt cutters from the bag. Before she could cut it Jane held up her hand, stripping her jacket off then wrapping it around the jaws of the bolt cutter and the lock, muffling any sounds that may have been made. Nodding, Liv applied pressure, not feeling any resistance as her strength drove the cutters through the lock's shackle as if it were cardboard, Jane catching the two pieces as they fell away.
Hefting their shotguns, Liv pushed the door back gently, praying the hinges didn't squeak, giving a relieved sigh as it swung back quietly. Glancing to the left, she took in the well equipped garage, plus a partially disassembled late model Mustang in the garage, looking over at Jane and keeping her voice to a low whisper.
"Probably a chop shop" Jane went to reply when she suddenly stopped, pointing at a body in the corner, an early 20's Latino male with his throat torn open. She pointed out the body to Liv who grimaced.
"Must have been here when Vanchev moved in" Jane nodded but before she could say anything they heard the sound of voices coming from upstairs. Indistinct but they could make out different voices, both male and female.
Moving down the hall forward, they saw light streaming from a doorway down the corridor that led to a set of steps leading up. Carefully stepping forward and pleading to god that none of the steps creaked, Jane took the steps slowly, one by one, the voices ahead becoming clearer, Jane could definitely recognise both Maura and Alex's voices raised in anger, plus a deeper male voice, Vanchev.
Exchanging a glance, they hefted their shotguns, before quietly making their way to the door, Jane nodding once and getting an answering nod before they stepped through the doorway and into the room.
"Police!"
"NYPD!"