Disclaimer: The Night World is the property of L.J. Smith as are any of the characters you recognise like Thierry, Hannah, Keller, Lupe etc.
Spoilers: All of the Night World books especially Witchlight as this story occurs at the same time as Witchlight.
Part 4.
When they got outside the cafe Des remembered Gwern's little I am the leader speech and stopped so he could do his thing.
"What's your problem?" Gwern snapped at her.
"What's yours?"
"Let me see, you would be number one on that list. Why the hell did Thierry send you? You've no use, like you said yourself you're a hindrance. A stupid, weak, little girl."
"Is it just me or all women you hate?" Des asked, "maybe you'd prefer if I stayed back at the house and tidied up."
"You'd be more help, you're suited better for that work."
Des felt her blood begin to boil. "Fine," she snapped, "I'll just go do that so shall I." She stormed off on the direction of the house.
"That wasn't smart," Icarus told Gwern.
"I know, okay, I know she was just really pissing me off. She thinks she's so superior, you didn't hear what she was thinking, I did."
Icarus sighed wondering how a mindreader could get someone so wrong, Des was anything but superior if anything she had a total inferiority complex and Gwern was not helping with that.
Des was marching down the street trying to quantify exactly how much she hated Gwern at that moment, when she noticed a familiar looking girl walk past. She fished around in her pocket and pulled out a blurry picture. As unclear as the picture was she knew that the girl who had just passed her was indeed Winema Moon, no doubt about it.
^Shit, what am I going to do?^ she thought looking around her, there was no sign of the boys. ^I told the idiot we should have radios or something, idiot. Well I guess I'll have to follow her.^
Winema noticed the girl following her almost immediately, she seemed human but Winema wasn't sure. ^Better to be safe than sorry,^ she thought and tried to lose her. She sped up and took every curve she could find but the girl kept coming. ^She's like a limpet,^ Winema thought then decided on a different plan.
Des turned the last corner the girl had taken and didn't even have time to gasp as she found herself thrust against the wall with a strong hand wrapped around her throat.
"Who are you?" the girl hissed. "Why are you following me?"
Des couldn't even breathe properly never mind answer the question. Her mind was in panic mode, completely incoherent and jumbled, she kept wanting to go for her gun but she knew that was a bad idea, she was supposed to be protecting this girl not pulling a gun on her. Where were the boys? They were supposed to be a team, why weren't they here?
Gwern had seen Des following the blond girl and realised with a start what had been going on. Now he and Rus were chasing after the two girls. For some reason he felt afraid, afraid for Des, his heart was in his mouth when he turned the corner. Des looked at him, eyes wide and dilated with fear, her face was extremely pale with a bluish tinge and he realised with a wave of inexplicable terror that she couldn't breathe.
"Let her go," he ordered coolly. At that moment Icarus came around the corner and saw what was happening, he grabbed the girl's hand and began to try and pull her fingers away from Des's neck. "Please, let her go," he pleaded. "She's not going to hurt you, she's here to protect you."
Winema looked at the guy, "What?"
"She's here to protect you, we all are. Look," he said opening Des's jacket and revealing the gun, "she had that the whole time, did she even once try and even get it?"
Winema looked at the girl who was struggling to breath and the truth of the boy's statement hit her. She took her hand from the girl's throat and she slid to the ground, choking and spluttering. They stood for a few minutes as the girl fought to take a deep breath, and then colour finally began to return to her face. "Lets hope there's no brain damage," the girl said smiling softly at her, then her eyes went to the tall vampire, "God knows there's not much there to damage."
Gwern left out the breath he hadn't realised he was holding in and looked at Des, she seemed okay, she was cracking jokes. Fine he could forget about what had just happened, what he had just felt.
"Who are you guys?" Winema asked.
"We'll tell you but not here," Gwern replied.
"Where then?"
"We have a house," Gwern said taking the lead out of the alley they had been in.
It was Icarus who bent and helped Des up. "You alright?" he asked.
"I'm not about to dance the hula but I think I'll survive," Des replied with a smile. "Thanks for saving me."
"Please," Icarus replied blushing slightly, "anyone would have done the same."
"Gwern didn't," Des said bitterly.
