Disclaimers: I don't own the Nightworld or any of the concepts or recognisable characters, that copyright remains with L. J. Smith so please don't sue me... I can't afford it ::lol::. Any unrecognisable characters are my own though, so please don't use them with out my permission. Oh and I'd love it if you'd R&R.
Part 1: Valerine
The sound of the phone ringing woke Valerine from the dreamless slumber she'd sunk, exhausted into. I should just ignore it, she thought annoyed. It's half past eleven in the freaking night, and anyway I'm *supposed* to be resting... The phone shrilled on persistently slicing through her thoughts. Sighing she ditched the idea of letting the answer phone deal with the problem – whoever it was who was calling her was, if nothing else persistent and she had a feeling that he or she would not just go away. Anyway it was half eleven at night and no one *ever* tried to get hold of her after nine unless it was urgent.
"Bell here," she said into the receiver, stifling a yawn. "What's the problem?"
"Val, it's me Theo." Her cousin sounded stressed and tired. "How soon can you get to a place called Amherst?"
"Amherst's in Massachusetts right?"
"Yeah it is. Val, I need you to get your butt up here as fast as you can!" Theo's voice sounded grim even to Valerine's sleep-fogged mind.
"Alright cousin, what's going on? And don't say nothing, you sound like the shit's hitting the fan around you."
Theo gave a tired laugh, "I never could get much past you Val, not even when we were kids." Her voice sobered "I'm part off a team assigned to protect Mary-Lynette Carter, but we've been having problems."
"What kind of problems?"
"One of the assassins turned up and tried to go for her. He took us by surprise and managed to take out the other witch before Rashel got him."
"Is she…"
"Dead? No he'll survive, but he'll be out of action for a while. Unfortunately I can't keep the wards up on my own…My witch powers aren't *that* strong!"
A male witch! Valerine felt her face flushing at the mistake she'd made. Why is it that when I assume the witch is female, he always turns out to be male? She remembered that being on the other end of the phone line Theo wouldn't be able to see her embarrassment and heaved a sigh of relief.
"Val? Val are you still there? Val! Answer me dammit! "
"Don't' worry cousin, I'm not going anywhere. Why do you need me? "
"Didn't you *listen* to a word I just said?" Theo snapped. "I'm *not* strong enough to keep the wards up on my own!"
You never were cousin, I was always the stronger witch of the two of us in that respect, still…there *are* other witches.
"I know that Val, but I *need* someone I can trust." Valerine realised that she'd spoken her thoughts aloud. Theo continued, sounding at the end of her tether "I need someone whose integrity I can vouch for without thinking about it and you're the only one I can think off…Everyone *else* is on assignment!"
Valerine sighed, "I may not much good to you cousin, I'm still healing up from the last assignment I was on." From where I tangled with the wrong end of a werewolf. She left the thought unsaid, knowing from long experience that if Theo found out she'd only try to mother her. "But if you *really* need me…" Theo knew her well enough to know that was a 'yes'.
"How long will it take you to get up here?"
"From where I am in the city? I'll be on the train tomorrow afternoon" After I've picked up some supplies and raided Lethna's store of weapons. There's *no* way I'm turning up in Amherst unarmed if there are Daybreaker-hating assassins running around. "Do you have any idea who the assassins may be?"
"There's at least one lamia involved also two shifters. There may be more though." Theo sounded cagey.
"I'll come prepared. Take care of yourself cousin."
"Thanks for doing this for me Val…I'll see you when? Tomorrow evening?"
"Yeah, I'll bring my portable with me and give you a call when I'm coming in."
"Okay, see you tomorrow."
Valerine hung up the phone, all traces of sleepiness gone. She had a hunch that there was a lot more going on in Amherst than Theo was letting on. And I bet it's something to do with who the assassins are. I think she knows *exactly* who they are, and is afraid I won't come or something…Theo doesn't usually clam up when I ask her about something - especially if, like now it's important! Grimly she unlocked the small cupboard where Lethna kept her weapons. Her friend and flatmate was a witch and ex Vampire-hunter. Lethna used to be part of Circle Daybreak, but had only stayed long enough to get some control over her odd witch powers. After that though she'd left as she found it hard to be around vampires even though she no longer hunted them. Probably because when she was nine, she came back from school to see them slaughtering her family! I know she still has nightmares about it, even though she doesn't talk about them much even to me. She sighed and focused back on the task at hand, Lethna wouldn't mind if she borrowed her weapons, in fact she's more likely to be annoyed that I've gone off to Amherst when I'm supposed to be healing up… Not that I have much choice though, I owe Theo too much to deny her what aid I can give. She sighed again, if she was to get off tomorrow on time she'd need to get what she needed from Lethna now, and on that thought she looked to see what her flatmate had in the way of dealing with vampires and shifters.