Hellboy returned to his quarters and expected to find Liz there, but once he'd stepped inside, he had to stop and wonder at why their room was then so dimly lit. He made out her hunched shape on their bed, and went straight to sit beside her.
"Babe?" he ventured gently. He put his arm around her, concerned that her face was hidden in her hands. "Hey, are you all right?"
"No, Red," she murmured. "I'm not."
"What is it?"
"Emerald." Her voice choked with anguish. "How could we let something like that happen to her? How could we stand there, and see her getting hurt?"
"We had no choice."
Liz turned her red-rimmed eyes to him, and he felt her body heating with suppressed rage, to a crimson glow.
"Babe," he cautioned, as the sheets beneath her began to smoke.
She jumped up and hurried off the bed. As her foot stepped down on one of many cat toys littered about the floor, the emitted squeak was nothing to laugh at. She took a deep breath. "I've made a decision. I'm going to go away for a while."
"What are you talking about?"
"I need to think, Red, and I can't do that here. I have to rethink my choices."
An icy pain gripped his heart. "What is there to think about? And why do you have to go away to do that?"
Liz gritted her teeth. She didn't want to tell him she was unsure that she would make a good mother; whether they were both cut out to be parents, at all. Her baby bump was growing, and it would soon be difficult to hide her pregnancy. Feeling that the BPRD would no longer be a safe place for her twins, she had to look for such a place before she could tell everything to Hellboy.
"I'll do the dishes, clean up around here," Hellboy appealed with panic rising. "You don't have to leave. I'll get rid of the cats. Please, Liz, I want you to stay!"
"I want us to be a family, Red, and I'm not sure if that would be possible here at the Bureau. They don't see us right; you, me, and Abe. Look how they treated Em, even though Abe told Manning that he couldn't sense her lying. They still used Nuala to invade her mind. All of it was against her will. Do you have any idea how much you hurt her today?"
Hellboy bristled at the accusation. He hadn't taken any joy in holding Em down like a prisoner, but it had to be done. "She didn't give us a choice."
"But she did! We, her family, had a choice whether to believe her or not. We chose not to. Look where that got her. She's been hurt mentally and bodily. Did she deserve that, when she had actually told us the truth?"
"Not all of it," he scoffed, remembering Nuala's triumphant expression as she declared that sonuvabitch Nuada, loved Emerald.
"It doesn't matter, Red. We should have done something to protect her. I just feel..." she sighed. "I just feel that we aren't ready to start a family."
Just as he was about to ask her to explain why not, an alarm began to blare..
"What now?" he gruffly cursed.
They dropped the discussion, strapped on their belts and headed outside of their home area to see what was going on.
Loudspeakers dispatched the repeated direction, "All emergency personnel to hall Q! Hall Q!"
"That's where Em's staying," Hellboy remarked to Liz, as they ran for it.
They arrived at the site together with more other agents, and all stopped short beside the bodies of two men sprawled right by a wide open door. Hellboy bolted inside first to search the room where Emerald had been held. There was no one there now. He emerged to read in the grim faces of his fellow agents, the fate of the fallen men.
"What is happening zere?" enquired Krauss's mechanical voice from behind him.
"Two of ours, dead," Hellboy answered.
"Dr. Bruttenholm must have done this to effect her escape," Krauss immediately deduced. "Where is she?" Left with no satisfactory answer, he barked into his transmitter, "Alert to all personnel. Dr. Emerald Bruttenholm has escaped custody. Seal off all exits."
"How could she have taken them both down?" Liz hastened to ask. "These men have been darted." She pointed his attention to the slim missile stuck in one dead agent's shoulder. "Where would she have gotten darts?"
"Unknown. I want medics to take these unfortunate men to the pathology lab," he ordered. "We must find her!"
Abe, come late to the scene, quickly assessed the tragedy. "Brother Red, how may I help?"
"Agent Sapien, please attend the examination of these deceased," Krauss requested, "and report your findings."
"Of course, Dr. Krauss."
"Everyone, remain on alert," he further directed, "while I coordinate the search." Krauss stomped off to see to his duties.
"Who could've taken her?" Liz wondered out loud.
"Taken her?" Abe questioned. "Is that what you believe?"
"Have you lost your mind over that elven bimbo, Blue?" Liz abruptly turned furious. "Em told us that assassins were after her. None of you believed her, and now look what's happened! She didn't simply stab darts into our men!"
"Liz, please calm down," Abraham urged. "You know it's not good for you and your -"
"Abe!" she shouted.
"I'm sorry." Abe's gaffe was made more apparent when his webbed fingers involuntarily flew up to cover his mouth.
"What's goin' on here?" Hellboy cut in, suspicious that Abraham knew the true reason behind Liz's emotional upset.
"That's not the point," she deflected. "Don't you guys remember the dart that was shot to put down Prince Nuada? I'm going to the lab, too," Liz informed, then smartly headed off to her destination.
"You and I need to talk," Hellboy intoned, closing in on Abraham.
"Not now, Red. I must go and check on Princess Nuala."
Abraham found Nuala pacing in front of the fireplace in her quarters. Her gown swished hypnotically as she moved, drawing Abraham's eyes to admire her hips.
"What was the reason for the recent alarm, Abraham?" she questioned.
"What? Oh, the alarm?" he faltered, afraid that he'd been caught in the act. "The alarm was activated in Miss Emerald's room. Two agents were found dead at the scene, and she is missing. Dr. Krauss has ordered all exits to be closed and guarded, so we'll soon have her captured. Nothing for you to worry over, Princess!"
Nuala's pale golden eyes widened at him. "Did she kill them?"
"I don't know for sure, but it's a possibility."
She held his gaze before making her reply. "Someone is trying to kill her, Abraham. I caught glimpses of times when she was in danger. I have been thinking of the man who lured her away from here on the pretext of kidnapping her half-fae friend. I have guessed who it is and if I am correct, Emerald is indeed, in terrible danger."
"You know who it is? But why would he be after her?"
"I am only guessing, Abraham. I need to speak to my brother. He must be awake by now."
"Now, Princess?"
"Yes. There were things that I missed while inside Emerald's mind. I had to use my full strength to penetrate the memories that she was most afraid to disclose, but I could not hold on for very long, or I could have harmed myself in the process. She has an Elven mind which differs from the Bethmooran, and I have never been in touch with her kind before now. My brother must have more answers."
"I must first talk to Director Manning and Johann Krauss."
"Do so immediately, Abraham. I feel such cold dread in my heart."
"Please do not worry, Princess," Abe sincerely comforted. "I am here for you."
Prince Nuada had awoken from his slumber quite sore, to find himself imprisoned in a strange cell. A platter laden with bread and fruit had been placed inside the barred gate. He slowly got up from the thin cot to inspect his surroundings. Every movement shot spikes of pain through his head. Peering past the steel bars, he saw two men in Bureau blazers guarding a door at the end of the long hall.
The throbbing in his head grew worse, and he had to sit down to avoid being sick. He closed his eyes and felt a sliver of relief. He knew where he was. The sight of the red demon and his human agents was enough to infer that he was in the custody of the BPRD, but he had no idea how he had come to be there. The last thing that he remembered was kissing Emerald, and the rush of warmth shooting through him. Beyond that, memory failed him until he had felt himself being carted away by a half dozen of those humans. He had caught a view of Emerald before she was shoved behind the great red oaf. And then, everything had turned black. As far as he knew, Emerald trusted these people. He was sceptical of them, but hoped that she was safe.
While he was absorbed in his thoughts, the far gates were opened. Nuada saw his sister walking up to him accompanied by the fish man, the tin man and a middle-aged human. She looked very surprised to see him, and her gaze remained oddly intent.
"Sister, why do you stare at me so?"
"Brother, you...you look different," she managed to answer. "Your eyes..you...have transformed. Oh!"
Nuada's fingers ghosted over his face and eyes. He felt no changes.
"He looks much like you now, Princess," commented Abraham.
Coming forward, she extended her hands through the bars to touch Nuada's face.
"Sister."
"Ahem." Manning cleared his throat.
"We have some questions for you," Krauss stated.
"Why would I want to answer you, Tin Man?"
"Brother, please." Nuala reached out with her mind to telepathically communicate with him, but failed. It felt suddenly as though she had lost a limb, when she could not get through her twin brother by means of their former intimate bond. After eons of waiting, she had achieved what she had longed for, but now she did not feel so sure of herself. "I can't feel you anymore," she sobbed.
"Are you not shielded against me?" asked Nuada.
She shook her head as she looked into his eyes remorsefully. "It gladdens me and yet hurts me too, Brother."
"Princess, please, are you sure you wish to speak to him now? You seem very upset," broached Abraham, touching her arm.
A contemptuous scowl from Nuada had him take a step back, however. Nuala wiped her tears with the end of her sleeve.
"I am quite fine, Abraham. I just need to get used to this...feeling of separation," she explained.
"Why has this happened to us, Sister? Who is responsible? How did they bring me here?"
"You did this, Nuada. You gave your heart to Miss Emerald, whether you intended or not. The darkness has lifted from your heart. I can feel it," she declared as she pressed her palm to his chest. "Father would have been so happy this day. The curse is finally lifted."
"I don't understand, Nuala. I care for Emerald very much, but I do not know if I love her. I...I feel protective of her as strongly as I feel for you. Perhaps more, if I am to be honest. But love...I do not know..." Nuada sank heavily on the cot.
"Brother, there is something else. Miss Emerald is nowhere to be found in this facility. Earlier today, her guards were killed. They have searched everywhere but she is not on these grounds anymore. "
"What?!" Nuada leapt up. "How could she disappear?"
Nuala shook her head. "We did not believe her claim that you were protecting her from assassins under the command of Bres. I looked into her mind and caught a glimpse of the man who had first attacked her. You must tell me; confirm my guess, Brother. Is he a faoladh?"
"The half-green girl told me so. A faoladh in the service of Bres. Do you know who it is?"
From Nuala's horror struck expression, he knew her answer.
"He is called Sreng, Brother. He is a master assassin, controlled by Uncle Alpheus. Not many know of him. Two centuries ago, when I travelled to Albaland, I met a family of dwarves who were fleeing away from Glasgow. They said that their tribe had been murdered on the order of Bres, by a Fomorian faoladh named Sreng, and his small group of mercenaries. They said that it was the way the new fae king had chosen to rule his kingdom."
"What did Father do?"
"Nothing, Brother," said Nuala, her head hung in shame. "He did nothing."
"Do you know why this guy wants her?" a gruff voice intruded. Hellboy and Liz had just arrived.
"No, demon, I do not," fumed Nuada, "but I will find him and tear out his guts for hurting her."
"Get in line," replied Hellboy.
"Agent Sherman, has Pathology revealed anything useful?" Krauss raised. "Agent Sapien has been too distracted to follow my orders."
While Abraham looked away guiltily, Liz gave her report. "The darts removed from our agents were identical to the ones used to tranquilize Nuada, except for their poison loads. And your Agent Gonzales hasn't been in touch or able to be reached since his radio and locator were found discarded in Emerald's room. He's not anywhere on Bureau grounds, or at his home address."
"I don't believe this of Agent Gonzales!" Krauss exclaimed.
"Yeah, well what'd you expect from an ass kisser like him?"
"He must have been manipulated, or something," added Manning.
"Nuada's spear is also missing," Liz continued. "Cummons saw him take it out of the vaults."
"This is outrageous!" shouted Nuada. "I demand to know how I got here, and what happened to Emerald!"
"Shut it, Prince Butt-hurt," growled Hellboy.
Nuada shot back a dangerous glare.
"How do you stand to be among these blathering idiots, Nuala? I must find Mr. Wink and Kalidren, whose opinions I value above all others."
"Mage Kalidren?" Nuala pressed. "You know where he is?"
"He is here, Sister, in the Troll Market."
Before the astonished eyes of the BPRD team, Nuada vanished on the spot, only to reappear outside the bars beside Nuala. Before anyone could react, he had taken her by the hand and spirited her away.
"What the hell just happened?!" Hellboy irately swung his stone fist across the space the elves had just vacated.
"We need to go after them, Agent Hellboy," Krauss ruled. "They have gone to the Troll Market."
"Let's hurry!" moaned Abraham.
Author's note: The story has just moved on to its last stage. There's of course, a lot more chapters to write but it has come to the ending phase. I feel very excited and happy because I never thought it would be possible to get this story out at all. I didn't start as a writer but rather a fan of Nuada who just wanted a different story for my prince. It is all thanks to my wonderful readers, reviewers and my lovely beta-reader who kept me going for a year. Your support gave me the confidence to keep writing and I am grateful to everyone who follow/fave this fanfiction.
As I told you before, I am working on an original series. The first book is out on Amazon as a Kindle ebook and is on sale for $0.99. The paperbacks would soon be available too. The book is titled "Graveyard Rose" and is a Gothic themed paranormal romance. I am sure you guys will love it! I write under the name Ginny Clyde. As a way of saying 'thank you', I am giving out some free copies to gain some reviews. If you are interested in a free copy, PM me or get in touch with me through facebook or subscribe to my email list on my website. (Check out my author's page for links).
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review! Thanks!
Beta-reader: Flint and Feather