Part 12
Pandora groaned. Something hurt. Then she realised what - everything. Her muscles were all sore. The last thing she remembered was a sudden rush of dark figures running into her room back at the safe house. She shook her head in confusion, still not understanding how that had happened.
She, of course, had tried to fight them, but there had been simply too many of them and they'd over powered her. She blinked, trying to focus on her surroundings. There was something cold and hard and heavy around her wrists and her ankles. Her fringe kept getting in her eyes and annoying her. She tried to reach out to push the damn thing back.
But she couldn't.
She tugged at her wrists, but couldn't move them. What the hell was going on here? She blinked several times, desperately trying to get to grips with her vision.
The room around her slowly started to come into focus. Dark. Dank. Somewhat smelly too. There were boxes all over the place, with labels of TNT written on them. Wasn't that an English TV channel that produced old movies? But, another part of her said, it's also a company that makes dynamite and explosives?
~Explosives?~ Pandora thought vaguely. ~Then why don't the boxes have an Acme logo?~
"Headache?" a cold voice asked with cheerful spite.
Pandora's head snapped up, and she found herself facing the smirking figure of Jewel Blackthorn. Jewel was standing in front of her, arms crossed, eyes glittering menacingly.
"Gee what a surprise," Pandora said dryly. "I should have known you had something to do with this."
"I wasn't originally contracted to kill you, that was Richard, yell at him," Jewel said.
Pandora didn't say anything. She knew Richard had been contracted to kill her. But she also knew they were soulmates. Did Jewel know that? She wasn't about to say anything. Now she could see more clearly, the room she was in looked like a basement of some sort. The only windows were tiny, and high up, and probably locked. And she was shackled to the wall. Jewel and chains. Great. What a day.
"But I think our yummy little Mr. Borcharde is going a little soft on you. He hasn't killed you yet. The guy's supposed to be good at killing." Jewel shook her head. "Should have known not to trust a human."
Pandora kept her mouth shut. Making smart remarks was probably only going to make Jewel hurt her, and she really wasn't in the mood for being tortured.
Jewel was frowning. "You don't exactly seem surprised."
Pandora shrugged, and then winced when the weight of the chains pulled on her wrists, sending a bolt of pain shooting up her arms. "I know. He came into my room to kill me while I was asleep, but then I woke up and he didn't."
Jewel raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
Pandora opened her mouth, then hesitated. Oh what the hell, she thought. "We're soulmates," she answered.
Jewel stared at her for several minutes without saying anything. Then she snorted in contempt. "Why didn't I figure that one out? Soulmates...it's like a disease, spreading through our best people."
Pandora's own eyebrow raised. Jewel was simply quoting Hunter Redfern there. How he felt about soulmates wasn't unclear. Shame Hunter had bought it.
"But this is all your own fault in the end," Jewel was going on.
Pandora turned to look at her, frowning. "How'd you figure that?"
"Or rather, it's Rose's fault, not yours," Jewel continued, ignoring her. "You were contracted to kill her, you fucked up."
Pandora glared. It *was* Rose's fault. Jewel was only playing with her brain, trying to get into her head. She didn't want Jewel running around in her mind. She might break something. "So kill Rose, not me."
Jewel smiled. "I do believe that was your job." The smile faded. "But it doesn't really matter now." She gestured around the room to the boxes. "When your little back-up team comes to rescue you, like the idiotic Daybreakers they are, they'll come and try and save you. And your - soulmate - " She said the word with a grimace - "will come too. And then I'm going to blow you all up. I have a few friends who have connections in explosives." And then she left, heading up the basement steps. Pandora heard a lock snapping on the door.
Shit. It looked rather hopeless.
* * *
Part 13
There was a hiatus. Despite the fact that they'd worked out Jewel was the culprit, and had decided they would try to get Pandora back, they didn't seem to know where to start. Richard sighed with impatience as they sat in the kitchen, not doing anything.
"Well what do you suggest we do?" Rose snapped at him.
He glared at her. "I don't know," he snapped back. "But there's got to be something - " His eyes fell on the kitchen phone.
"You think you can just call her and she'll tell you where to go?" Willow asked with contempt.
Richard turned his glare on her. "You got a better idea?" Willow didn't say anything, so he went to the phone and called Jewel's cell phone.
She answered with, "I knew you'd call sooner or later."
"Where's Pandora?" he demanded.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" she answered in a sing-songy voice.
"Can the sarcasm you bitch," he hissed at her. But probably to a vampire like Jewel a human hissing was about as scary as a new kitten hissing.
Jewel's ice-cold laughter sounded in his ear. "You've lost all your sense of humour."
He didn't say anything. Just waited. What if Jewel had killed Pandora already? She was just playing with his head. And doing a damn good job.
"All right, all right," Jewel said finally with a sigh. "You'll find her in the basement of house 13 on Saratoga Avenue." And she hung up.
Richard was confused. Huh? She had just *told* them all where to go? That wasn't like Jewel? His eyes narrowed. Now what was she up to?
Rose was frowning. "Well?"
"She just told us where to go," he answered. Why wasn't her happier?
Willow's head tilted. "And that's bad, why? Maybe Jewel's just realising she can't win this one, and has got some sense knocked into her."
Richard didn't say anything. Let the dumb idiot be as optimistic as she wanted to be. Jewel would never give in to anyone, especially not Daybreakers.
"Well the only thing we can do is go and see what's going on," Rose said.
Richard wasn't too happy about it, but there didn't seem to be anything else to do.
* * *
Pandora groaned. Something hurt. Then she realised what - everything. Her muscles were all sore. The last thing she remembered was a sudden rush of dark figures running into her room back at the safe house. She shook her head in confusion, still not understanding how that had happened.
She, of course, had tried to fight them, but there had been simply too many of them and they'd over powered her. She blinked, trying to focus on her surroundings. There was something cold and hard and heavy around her wrists and her ankles. Her fringe kept getting in her eyes and annoying her. She tried to reach out to push the damn thing back.
But she couldn't.
She tugged at her wrists, but couldn't move them. What the hell was going on here? She blinked several times, desperately trying to get to grips with her vision.
The room around her slowly started to come into focus. Dark. Dank. Somewhat smelly too. There were boxes all over the place, with labels of TNT written on them. Wasn't that an English TV channel that produced old movies? But, another part of her said, it's also a company that makes dynamite and explosives?
~Explosives?~ Pandora thought vaguely. ~Then why don't the boxes have an Acme logo?~
"Headache?" a cold voice asked with cheerful spite.
Pandora's head snapped up, and she found herself facing the smirking figure of Jewel Blackthorn. Jewel was standing in front of her, arms crossed, eyes glittering menacingly.
"Gee what a surprise," Pandora said dryly. "I should have known you had something to do with this."
"I wasn't originally contracted to kill you, that was Richard, yell at him," Jewel said.
Pandora didn't say anything. She knew Richard had been contracted to kill her. But she also knew they were soulmates. Did Jewel know that? She wasn't about to say anything. Now she could see more clearly, the room she was in looked like a basement of some sort. The only windows were tiny, and high up, and probably locked. And she was shackled to the wall. Jewel and chains. Great. What a day.
"But I think our yummy little Mr. Borcharde is going a little soft on you. He hasn't killed you yet. The guy's supposed to be good at killing." Jewel shook her head. "Should have known not to trust a human."
Pandora kept her mouth shut. Making smart remarks was probably only going to make Jewel hurt her, and she really wasn't in the mood for being tortured.
Jewel was frowning. "You don't exactly seem surprised."
Pandora shrugged, and then winced when the weight of the chains pulled on her wrists, sending a bolt of pain shooting up her arms. "I know. He came into my room to kill me while I was asleep, but then I woke up and he didn't."
Jewel raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
Pandora opened her mouth, then hesitated. Oh what the hell, she thought. "We're soulmates," she answered.
Jewel stared at her for several minutes without saying anything. Then she snorted in contempt. "Why didn't I figure that one out? Soulmates...it's like a disease, spreading through our best people."
Pandora's own eyebrow raised. Jewel was simply quoting Hunter Redfern there. How he felt about soulmates wasn't unclear. Shame Hunter had bought it.
"But this is all your own fault in the end," Jewel was going on.
Pandora turned to look at her, frowning. "How'd you figure that?"
"Or rather, it's Rose's fault, not yours," Jewel continued, ignoring her. "You were contracted to kill her, you fucked up."
Pandora glared. It *was* Rose's fault. Jewel was only playing with her brain, trying to get into her head. She didn't want Jewel running around in her mind. She might break something. "So kill Rose, not me."
Jewel smiled. "I do believe that was your job." The smile faded. "But it doesn't really matter now." She gestured around the room to the boxes. "When your little back-up team comes to rescue you, like the idiotic Daybreakers they are, they'll come and try and save you. And your - soulmate - " She said the word with a grimace - "will come too. And then I'm going to blow you all up. I have a few friends who have connections in explosives." And then she left, heading up the basement steps. Pandora heard a lock snapping on the door.
Shit. It looked rather hopeless.
* * *
Part 13
There was a hiatus. Despite the fact that they'd worked out Jewel was the culprit, and had decided they would try to get Pandora back, they didn't seem to know where to start. Richard sighed with impatience as they sat in the kitchen, not doing anything.
"Well what do you suggest we do?" Rose snapped at him.
He glared at her. "I don't know," he snapped back. "But there's got to be something - " His eyes fell on the kitchen phone.
"You think you can just call her and she'll tell you where to go?" Willow asked with contempt.
Richard turned his glare on her. "You got a better idea?" Willow didn't say anything, so he went to the phone and called Jewel's cell phone.
She answered with, "I knew you'd call sooner or later."
"Where's Pandora?" he demanded.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" she answered in a sing-songy voice.
"Can the sarcasm you bitch," he hissed at her. But probably to a vampire like Jewel a human hissing was about as scary as a new kitten hissing.
Jewel's ice-cold laughter sounded in his ear. "You've lost all your sense of humour."
He didn't say anything. Just waited. What if Jewel had killed Pandora already? She was just playing with his head. And doing a damn good job.
"All right, all right," Jewel said finally with a sigh. "You'll find her in the basement of house 13 on Saratoga Avenue." And she hung up.
Richard was confused. Huh? She had just *told* them all where to go? That wasn't like Jewel? His eyes narrowed. Now what was she up to?
Rose was frowning. "Well?"
"She just told us where to go," he answered. Why wasn't her happier?
Willow's head tilted. "And that's bad, why? Maybe Jewel's just realising she can't win this one, and has got some sense knocked into her."
Richard didn't say anything. Let the dumb idiot be as optimistic as she wanted to be. Jewel would never give in to anyone, especially not Daybreakers.
"Well the only thing we can do is go and see what's going on," Rose said.
Richard wasn't too happy about it, but there didn't seem to be anything else to do.
* * *