[Author's note - Phewwwww - I was hoping to get this chapter posted today - in honour of Mr Ackles 42nd birthday. Happy Birthday Jensen.
I hope you enjoy the latest installment. I didn't get a lot of time this week so I'm just a chapter ahead, but hopefully I'll get something posted next Sunday. Sorry for the delay in updating the chapters, it's just there's not enough hours in the day at the moment. Anyways - enjoy and let me know your thoughts.
Chapter 50: Fox in the hen house
Viktor POV
The talks had not been going well and as discussions continued into early morning, Viktor was becoming more and more agitated. Frederick and his clan had been 'sticking to their guns' on every point, but that had been expected. Unfortunately, it wasn't the Fischers who were to blame for his demeanour. As Viktor scanned around the table for the umpteenth time, his eyes always seemed to settle on the source of his ongoing discomfort – Heinrich Richstein.
Over the course of the summit there had been several break-out sessions. Sadly they had been short-lived and filled with side discussions which resulted in Viktor never being too far away from the action. This had meant he had not seen his beloved Dean, for a number of hours. It was this separation, combined with the ongoing arguments over who owned Dean Winchester that were fuelling his growing anger.
The situation had not improved with the news from Valentin that Kate had broken into his personal quarters and had attempted to take what was his. Fortunately the young female vampire had been stopped, but the incident had compounded his growing emotions as discussions continued.
Firstly, Kate could not be located, but he sensed that she was still on the estate and most likely was hiding somewhere close by. Every time he thought about her, he imagined she was within inches of opening the door and getting to Dean. That thought alone left him scrapping the underside of the table throughout the discussions.
Secondly, the argument that had blown up between Bridget and himself had not been pretty. It was clear that his daughter had done everything in her power to stop her mate, but Viktor felt betrayed as Bridget had failed to 'neutralise the threat'. The last few hours had been painful for the entire Volkov delegation as Valentin attempted to act as go between, despite having to chair and host the summit.
The matter was made ten times worse every time he read the minds of those in the room. The Fischers were smug as if they knew something he didn't. He imagined their newfound sense of confidence was due to the possibility that Michael was getting physically closer. The thought of the archangel made him want to leap up from his seat and rush to his quarters. Thinking about rushing to his quarters brought his slave back to the forefront of his mind and that refuelled any anxiety he had been attempting to hide from others.
The Richstein delegation's behaviour had not helped. Ever since the first intermission, Heinrich had been behaving secretively, but Viktor couldn't get a clear read on Heinrich's mind. All he felt when he attempted to probe his adversary's head was a number of songs being repeated back. It was incredibly annoying on many levels.
Then something happened around 9am. As each delegate was beginning to feel the strain of continuous negotiations, Viktor decided to try his luck and began to probe the room mentally. It was during the mental sweep that the Volkov Grand Master picked up a fragmented thought – 'it won't be long now. Just a bit longer and the prize will be ours.' The fleeting thought left Viktor reeling as he quickly moved his head back and forth around the room in an attempt to locate the person who had thought it.
Unfortunately Viktor couldn't identify the conspirator, neither could he gleam further details. Filled with apprehension, the Grand Master nodded towards his second in command. Recognising the signal, Valentin engaged the summit. "My friends. It seems we have been debating, discussing, and at times arguing, about a number of issues for way too long. I feel that we need to take a longer break."
It was Frederick that responded. "As much as I would like to get out of this 'toxic' environment, I feel that we need to come to a decision on Winchester. I.."
Viktor couldn't stand to hear one more word. "Enough!... Valentin is correct. It's time to take a break. We've been at this all night and got nowhere. I suggest we take 8 hours and get some rest and refreshments and start again later today…. Say at 5pm."
As a number of the delegates went to argue Viktor decided to halt any further discussion as he barked, "It's NOT up for debate!"
With no further argument allowed, Viktor grabbed his papers and rushed out of the room with the aim of going directly to his quarters. Sadly, he wasn't going to be that lucky as the newest security expert, Kirch… no Ketch stopped him.
Bowing his head, the British man said, "excuse me Grand Master. I'm sorry to disturb you, but you wanted regular updates on the search for Mistress Kate."
At the very mention of Kate's name, Viktor's head shot up. "Well? Just don't stand there. Update! NOW!"
Whether Ketch was upset or insulted, Viktor couldn't tell as the former British Men of Letters member's face and his thoughts remained neutral. Neither did he care. "My apologies. I can confirm that your quarters are still secure. We've added more security to the floor and everyone's been ordered to capture and hold her on sight. Though, I've been informed that there's been movement to the east side of the estate. Nothing significant, but as orders are orders, I'm just reporting everything that has been happening."
Viktor weighed up the information. Kate would have to have been insane to try and grab Dean now. Then his thoughts turned to what was located on the east side of the estate. From memory of the various maps Viktor was sure the information made no sense. There was no strategic reason for Kate to go eastward. There was nothing really out there, except for miles and miles of trees. Everything useful, such as the main road to anywhere, was west of the compound. Unless she was out there trying to throw everyone off her scent, whilst she plotted her next move. Buying time, whilst making everyone think she had already fled off the estate and back towards the city with the aim of completely disappearing.
Whilst Viktor had been considering his options he failed to take in any further information that Ketch may or may not have been imparting. All his mind could comprehend was what was happening to the east of the estate? Had Kate left the building? If so, why? With so many unanswered questions, Viktor remained anxious and restless. In an attempt to keep his cool he nodded and dismissed the Englishman as quickly as he could.
Turning quickly to make his escape, he managed to make it another few feet when he felt his second in command's hand on his shoulder. "Grand Master. I think we need to speak?" Viktor stopped and turned with the aim of saying no, but when he saw the look on Valentin's face he realised his planned rendezvous with his beloved slave was going to have to wait a little longer. Sighing heavily, Viktor turned and replied. "Very well Valentin. If we must, we must! But can we at least speak somewhere that isn't within the earshot of the other Grand Masters."
Valentin didn't need any convincing as he signalled for Viktor to follow him down a corridor that would take him towards the back of the house. One house length and two floors up later, Viktor found himself standing in Valentin's private chambers.
"Forgive me father for bringing you here. It's just I feel we need to speak." Viktor could tell from Valentin's body language, that his son was deeply troubled. But the fact that he couldn't get a true read on his thoughts troubled the Grand Master even more. 'What is up with my powers? For weeks I've been able to read thoughts and sense feelings from all types of creature in this house, but for the last 12 hours, zip! Nothing! What's up with that?'
Refusing to dwell too much on what may or may not be happening with his powers, Viktor decided to give Valentin his undivided attention. "OK my child. What is troubling you?"
Moving closer to Viktor, Valentin reached out and grabbed Viktor and hugged him. The very action was almost alien to the elder vampire. For centuries Valentin had been close to him, but he had never acted like this. Something really must be wrong. "I'm scared Father. Really scared." Uncharacteristically, Valentin pulled back and cowered in front of his Grand Master.
Unsure of his next move, Viktor stepped a little closer and placed his left hand on Valentin's right shoulder. "It's OK my child. You can tell me what's got you afraid and what's really bothering you?"
With his head still bowed, Valentin replied, "Everything changing. I feel we're losing control and… now, Bridget's pissed and… well… with your bond with Winchester… I feel that something really bad is going to happen and it will happen to you, father!" As he continued to speak, Valentin voice began to increase in volume and by the time he was finished he was practically shouting.
On hearing Valentin's explanation, Viktor was torn between soothing his lover and screaming at him. Many thoughts flew across his mind as he considered his options. Before he could internally agree a course of action, Valentin pressed himself up against Viktor and began to attack his mouth in a frenzy of kisses.
At first, Viktor was shocked at the turn of events but soon his body began to reject the ongoing onslaught of lips against his mouth. Pushing back he retorted, "Enough! That's enough Valentin! You forget your place!" Instantly Viktor regretted his choice of words as he took in his second in command's facial expression, but before he could elaborate further, Valentin responded. "I'm sorry I'm not HIM! I know my blood does nothing for you, but your blood runs through my veins and I've had so many years of loyalty. Surely that's worth more than a tight warm ass? Or am I worth so little to you?... Maybe Bridget is right to be angry at you. We mean nothing to you now!"
Stuck between the proverbial 'rock and a hard place' Viktor was unsure as to what the best course of action was. Every part of him wanted to return to his soul bond, but he knew that if he walked away from Valentin it would be a huge mistake. A mistake that would be made ten times worse by his currently fragmented relationship with his other child, Bridget. Things were further compounded by the low morale amongst his clan members and the situation wasn't helped with a house full of enemies. He had no choice.
Decision made, Viktor knew he had to fix things. In a softer voice Viktor addressed his second in command. "Valentin? .tin… please look at me?..." Extending his hand and cupping the younger vampire by the chin, he raised Valentin's head so they were looking directly into one another's eyes. "That's better. Now I see you and more importantly, you see me."
"I know our relationship has not been as close as it once was. And I know it is due to my ongoing attempts to finalise a bond with the hunter, but there is nothing on this earth that I would put in front of you my sweet and loyal Valentin. You ground me. You keep me honest and I thank you for calling me out on my behaviour. I'm just sorry that the human's blood drives me the way it does. Per…"
Before he could continue, Valentin seemed to understand where Viktor wished to take things. Edging closer, the younger vampire answered. "I know I can't compete with the taste of his blood, but I can compete with his body. Please let us lie down together, just for one more time. It's been such a long time and given what we've had to endure over the past 12 hours, I believe we both would gain something out of being closer to one another. I know I would feel more confident that everything was all OK with us."
Viktor could read between the lines. Valentin wanted to get as physically close to him as possible. It would not replace the bond with Dean, but it would go a long way to securing Valentin's commitment going forward. Viktor hated the position he was placed in, but as he weighed things up, he recalled how he had left things with Dean. The elder Winchester was currently either lying on a cot or still on the floor. He was probably in no shape for physical relations and with the way the Grand Master was feeling, he really needed to burn off some pent up anger. 'Perhaps a session of rough sex would be good for everyone concerned?'
With that thought, Viktor decided actions would be better than words and instantly closed the distance between himself and Valentin and smashed his lips against the younger vampire. Immediately things were dialled up to a solid '10'. In a space of seconds both vampires had ripped off their clothing and were fighting for dominance as they attempted to gain the upper position against whatever surface they could come into contact with.
Thankfully there were no guards posted outside Valentin's chambers so there was no one to hear the commotion or burst in through the doors to offer any assistance. Instead, both vampires continued to fuck one another, like wild animals, against every surface they could find. Over the next hour, the bed was totally destroyed, along with the office desk, two wardrobe doors and the wash hand basin, located within the bathroom.
It was fair to say that by 10.15am Viktor had managed to borrow some trousers and a shirt from Valentin and was currently attempting to fix his hair before he exited the office to make his way back towards his own quarters. As he approached his own quarters he was still too distracted by his recent activity, that he failed to notice the absence of two guards outside the entrance. It was only when he entered the room that he sensed that something was really wrong.
As he entered his private quarters he was not immediately alarmed by the empty room. After all, he had given strict instructions that Trevor fix up Dean and leave him locked in the smaller room. So he was not surprised by the lack of Dean's scent in the main living area of the suite. Neither was he worried about the lack of a physical presence as he knew Dean currently resided behind a locked and warded door.
It wasn't until he reached out through his bond and found silence that he began to panic. Initially, he put the lack of thoughts and feelings coming from Dean due to the warding, but after he dismissed the warding and the fact that Dean would most likely still be unconscious, he began to worry.
Crossing the room in less than a second, he had the door practically ripped off its hinges. Facing an empty room only confirmed what he had feared. Dean was gone. "It's not possible. The door was locked. There's no way he was in any fit shape to escape the room and take out the guards." Speaking of the guards, where on earth are they? Even if Dean had managed to get physically out of the room, he wasn't in any fit shape to take out one, never mind two, fully combat trained vampires.
Evidence and his instinct told him that Dean had been stolen from him. Immediately he called Valentin, shouting down the phone for him to lock down the house and lock down the estate. As he was about to go nuclear on every vampire, Valentin managed to talk him down. "Father please. Hold fire on this. I've given the order to lock everything down. But we need to be sure about who took Winchester before we start a potential civil war with one or more clans, let's try and find out what happened. Give me 10 mins to Investigate and I'll be up as soon as I can?"
The phone was replaced so quickly that Viktor hadn't any chance of responding. Instead, he began pacing the room in an attempt to piece together what had happened, but more importantly, who had taken Dean? He didn't have to give too much consideration to the why, but by undertaking this process, he was training his body not to annihilate every vampire and human within a 50 mile radius. At least that was something he had learned from his previous behaviour regarding the last time Dean escaped.
True to his word Valentin was entering Viktor's apartment at great speed. Viktor immediately sensed that things were not going to be made much clearer. "Well?"
Valentin had no sooner entered the room when he reported. "I've checked all the footage and it seems that someone has tampered with the surveillance. There's been no clear images since 10am this morning. The guards reported with an all clear also at 10am. The good news is that whoever took the hunter has had approximately 18 minutes head start. I assume that if Winchester was wounded, it will have slowed any escape down, so in theory, they should at best still be in the house and at worst, they'll be still in the compound. There's no way they've made it off the estate."
Despite the update from Valentin, Viktor fought down the rage that was coursing through his veins. "Get security out and searching the entire grounds. Start with the boundary and work your way inward. Whilst that's happening, I.. no we, need to work out who took him." Viktor took the opportunity to look into Valentin's mind and it was then that he realised that he couldn't hear his second in command's thoughts as clearly as he had heard them the previous day.
"Something's wrong!"
Valentin wasn't sure what he meant. "What!?"
Viktor immediately searched through the memories of the last 12 or so hours. "I had such powers to read minds but these last few hours there's been silence. I've looked inside many of our colleagues minds and found nothing. It's like looking at empty rooms. I know they were full but, I found nothing. It's like my powers have been weakened. Which is impossible, considering I've dined well on Dean's blood recently. No!... Something else is happening. It is most likely linked to whoever took Dean from me."
"Emmm… any ideas who? I mean father, let's face it, you have a list to choose from. We've Kate at the top of the list, followed quickly by the Fischers or the Richsteins. Then… th."
"Then what? Spit it out Valentin. Time is of the essence." Viktor couldn't help but snap. His anger was building.
"I mean, … emmmm.. we can't rule out that there may be traitors within our very own clan." Valentin's voice managed to tail off to it was no more than a faint whisper. Irrespective of the volume and emphasis, the point was well made. Viktor was surrounded by potential enemies. He could barely trust his two deputies. At least Valentin was with him, but the 'jury was still out' on whether Bridget was involved. After all, there was plenty of time for Bridget to make a move after the summit broke off just after 9 this morning.
Shaking his head at such thoughts, Viktor chose to focus on locating Dean, rather than the traitor. In fact, by finding Dean, he was most likely going to identify the traitor in the process. Then the bigger issue hit him. He couldn't sense or locate Dean. Try as he did, he knew Dean was alive, but he couldn't pinpoint exactly where he was, never mind, what he was thinking. Whatever was dulling his powers was also interfering with his bond with the elder Winchester and that simply would not do.
"Find him Valentin. Find Dean quickly. I don't care what you have to do, just do it quickly." The last words were laced with venom as he pushed the word out past gritted teeth. As he spoke, Valentin nodded in response and turned and left the room. Faced with an empty living quarters just made Viktor feel even worse. The absence of his favour human heartbeat only reminded him of what he had lost. And the absence of the once strong connection was beginning to have a more powerful negative effect.
Ignoring the build-up within himself, he looked around the room, and decided to consider other options. If his newfound powers were not working as well as he would have liked and if his bond to Dean seemed to be damaged, then he would have to turn to more tried and tested methods. Without blinking he moved towards a tall set of drawers and bent over to open the bottom one. Pushing back some garments Viktor managed to locate what he was looking for.
Lifting a golden box, no bigger than the size of a shoe box out of the drawer, the ancient vampire moved across the room and set down on the bed. Whispering a password, the box magically unlocked itself and the top slowly opened to reveal its secrets. Dipping his hand into the box, Viktor retrieved a smaller box, which he spent no time opening and taking out the platinum engraved ring.
It had been years since Viktor had resorted to using such old magic, but desperate times called for desperate measures and he knew that the ring would even up the odds he was currently facing. Without putting too much thought into the possible consequences, he slipped the ring onto the fourth finger of his left hand and clenched his fist. His action was followed swiftly by a quiet incantation, which he proceeded to repeat two more times.
On the third attempt, the ring activated and immediately he felt the pull on his soul as such powerful black magic required a significant sacrifice. Viktor was not surprised as he had previously used the ring and knew what the consequences entailed. The ring was a rare artefact that could be used to harness soul power directly and in the absence of having a clear link to his own personal soul power battery, in the shape of one Dean Winchester, Viktor was going to have to improvise.
As he drew on the power the effect was instant, but the main question was what was the best action he should take? Should he focus on using the ring to locate Dean which he knew was possible or should he use the ring to work out who the traitor was? So many questions, but only one real opportunity. Weighing up the best course he settled on focusing on Dean, but instead of simply using the power to extend out and find his other half, Viktor decided to use the ring to show him the past. In particular, to flash back and identify who took his precious slave. Maybe then he would find out exactly how deep the betrayal may have went as he refused to believe that Kate could pull this type of escape off all by herself. No. Whoever was behind this, was certainty not working alone.
Decision taken he made the wish and instantly the room greyed and changed in front of him. It was then that he saw Trevor enter and help Dean up and out of the room. "No, that cannot be. The young slave neither has the expertise or the guts to betray me. I know he is jealous of Dean, but why would he disobey the one he worships and wants to be with it?"
None of what he was seeing was making sense. At second glance he re-read the situation and was convinced that Dean was complicit in the escape as he watched the elder Winchester converse with Trevor before drinking something and then left the quarters without a fight. The fact that he could see but not hear what was going on was driving Viktor insane. Everything he was observing was open to interpretation.
'Dammit!' Cursing the fact that his own soul was not powerful enough to obtain the full picture only reminded Viktor of how weak he really was without having access to the power that surged within Dean's blood. Refusing to focus too much on that thought, he chose to try and work out what actually was being said.
Viktor watched as the vision changed and he saw how both his slaves had moved down the corridor. At first he was angered by the continuous touching as Trevor and practically hugged Dean, but on closer observation, it became clear that Dean was being guided and controlled. 'Just like a puppet!'. As he looked closer he could almost identify some of Trevor's words as he spoke to Dean. Viktor felt sure he recognised the words 'fresh air' and 'not wake them up'.
The vision continued and Viktor realised that it would be extremely helpful if he began to take the same journey or path through the corridors that the vision had shown. With any luck he would located Dean quicker. Besides, the ancient vampire could tell by how clear the past echoes where that Dean had passed that way recently. Spared on by that thought, Viktor moved faster, whilst he took in the visual history as it happened.
It was now apparent that Trevor had planned to make their escape via the back stairwells as it was highly unlikely that any of the vampires would travel using the slave and servant passages. But what unnerved Viktor was how easy it had all been. Nowhere in the illusion were there any guards. So engrossed with this new thought Viktor almost missed seeing Dean halt and turn towards Trevor. The new development was made more intense by the look the elder hunter was giving the young treacherous slave. Dean looked as if he realised something or recognised someone and then the unexpected happened.
Viktor watched in shock as the spell revealed how Trevor pushed Dean against the nearest wall. For a few seconds the younger slave seemed to be trying to get Dean to look directly at him. Whatever the elder Winchester saw in the other's eyes was enough to start a dazed and drugged Dean to panic.
Then the realisation hit Viktor when he saw the bright blue eyes of the archangel. "Michael? But it can't be! The warding was impregnable. There's no way you could have got through!" The Grand Master watched in anger as the archangel attempted to kiss Dean. 'How dare he touch what is MINE!' But the anger was soon replaced with fear as he witnessed Michael's attempt to re-take possession of Dean as a vessel. Thankfully he sighed in relief when it became clear that the singular connexion had stopped the transference.
"So there's still hope!"
Viktor watched how Michael neutralised the hunter with a simple touch just as the British staffer – Ketch – came into view. Then it made complete sense to him. Trevor, or rather, Michael had planned the entire thing and had used an 'inside man' to weaken the warding. How had he been so stupid? Then it hit him. What if there were more conspirators? After all, he had not liked the idea of hiring the former British Men of Letters assassin. That idea had come via Valentin.
Then he made a painful connection. "Valentin? Could you have betrayed me?" He recalled how he had been on his way back to Dean when Valentin had distracted him. In fact, if he had not have been distracted, he would have been there when the escape would have went down. Despite his distrusting nature, Viktor fought hard to quell his thoughts that his second in command could be a traitor. Surely it had to be a huge coincidence? But what if it was true?
It wasn't too much of a leap, given that Valentin had expressed on a number of occasions his thoughts on Viktor's closeness and connection with Winchester. Could this all be attributed to simple jealousy? Then there was Bridget. Was she involved? After all, it was her mate, Kate, who had attempted to get close to Dean just a few hours ago. What if Bridget had conspired with Valentin to get rid of the hunter? Could he really trust anyone in the household?
Then he tortured himself by going further. He had not factored in the Richsteins. Heinrich had been hiding something for most of the last half of the summit. It was clear that they had been pissed by how Viktor had nearly killed the other Grand Master. It was clear that both Heinrich and Frederick wanted Dean Winchester, albeit for different reasons. Given that Michael was now in the building and currently trying to take Dean away from him, he needed to do something, but who could he trust?
As his emotions spiralled out of control, the spell ended and he no longer could see Dean and as such, he had no excuse to hold back. He knew Michael had taken an unconscious Dean and was currently about 10 minutes ahead of him. He needed to make a choice and make it fast. He didn't know who to trust, should he place his trust in any of his own clan? Should he place his trust in vampire kind? Were the Fischer's involved?
With so many questions it was becoming very clear to Viktor that he was on his own. He could trust no one. Well, no one, but himself. He knew that Dean was close to breaking and would put up little to no challenge. If he could just get to Dean and drink his fill of that delicious blood, then he could take on the archangel without relying on the help from anyone. That was his only option. Any other approach had too many risks.
Decision made, Viktor began to make his own plans, after all, the fox was in the hen house!'
