Part 6
"Did you hear about Xalaria?" Andromeda asked, leaning back in the seat. She smiled at a group of guys walking past their table.
Cadence sighed, the last thing she wanted to talk about was Xalaria Redfern. If something bad had happened to her, then all the better. She took a swig of her drink. The hotel was full of people, despite only being two in the afternoon. Andromeda had insisted they needed a break and a refresh. So far Cadence had seen no one appetising enough to catch her eye. Sometime, she thought the problem with Las Vegas, was there was too *many* people.
"No, but I suppose you're going to tell me."
"Amnesia, and 'rescued' by the Daybreakers," Andromeda snickered. She picked up a metal ashtray and began admiring her reflection, which was a perfectly normal thing for her to do. Oval shaped face with its' smooth creamy white skin, large soulful dark eyes outlined in black liner. Gentle back locks falling to her shoulders, full red lips curved in a mean smile. "Imagine how Unas is going to react."
"How did you hear about this, anyway?" Cadence asked. Andromeda often managed to get useless facts from various sources. This was probably the only remotely interesting news she had come up with in the eight months they were working together.
"Ricco. Unas doesn't know and they need the powers of yours truly to try and find her." Andromeda smiled proudly.
"Oh." Cadence's eyes looked around the crowd again. She couldn't even begin to imagine what that must be like, not having any memories and being stuck with a group of people who were really your enemies. "Well, she deserves it."
She'd worked since she was fifteen to get a reputation like the one Xalaria Redfern had. And she got it just because she happened to be pretty (like most vampires) and was screwing the new Council leader.
Cadence swigged the last of her drink. ~Night World politics suck~ she thought moodily. "What'd you think Unas would do if you found the bitch and she accidentally - fell on a stake." She snickered at the thought, smiling nastily.
Small and delicate with bouncy red curls, eager blue eyes and a bright friendly smile, nasty wasn't an expression you expected to see on her face.
Andromeda laughed. "Oh please, he'd kill you in less than ten seconds, not to mention what he'd do to you first."
Cadence nodded. "Just a thought." She stood up. "I think I see my lunch." She sauntered away from Andromeda into the crowd, looking for a quick exit. All it had to do was look like an accident. But how did you *accidentally* kill a vampire everyone knew you hated?
She found a small door, which lead her to an enclosed back alley way. Not for the first time she was immensely glad that she didn't have to suffer the heat of the Vegas sun.
"Please - I - I don't have hardly - "
"Give me the fucking wallet already."
Cadence paused recognised the mugger's voice instantly. ~So much for using Andromeda's so called powers~
Slipping closer, she watched the terrified tourists throw everything they had of value at the girl pinning him to the wall.
"Don't eat me, please, don't, no - *no*!" His voice rose in terror, but the scream was cut off. Cadence chuckled, watching the girl slit his throat with her sharp nails once she had done with feeding from him.
//Cadence Galena, get that girl. Do not let her get away from you// Cadence frowned at the unfamiliar mental voice in her mind. She got an uncomfortable feeling of immense power from it. //Bring her inside and I will instruct you what to do next.//
"Hey, bravo," she called.
Xalaria turned to look, annoyed that someone had seen her. "Who are you?" She had moved up to Cadence, trying to pin her as well. Cadence found herself filled with an unexplained rush of strength as she threw Xalaria off her, like tossing away a piece of trash.
Xalaria got up, looking at her curiously. "You're a Night People. So am I. Do you know me?"
Cadence could only guess she'd escaped Daybreak clutches to find out about herself. She smiled falsely, reminding herself that she hated this girl. That mental voice was *doing* something to her. She wondered if she really wanted to know who it belonged to. Someone old, probably. It certainly wasn't Unas. As far as she knew, there was no one older than him around, after Hunter Redfern's death. That was why he was the boss now.
"Cadence Galena, yeah, I do. Let's go inside." She grabbed Xalaria's arm and dragged her inside the casino, waiting to be told what to do next.
* * *
"Did you hear about Xalaria?" Andromeda asked, leaning back in the seat. She smiled at a group of guys walking past their table.
Cadence sighed, the last thing she wanted to talk about was Xalaria Redfern. If something bad had happened to her, then all the better. She took a swig of her drink. The hotel was full of people, despite only being two in the afternoon. Andromeda had insisted they needed a break and a refresh. So far Cadence had seen no one appetising enough to catch her eye. Sometime, she thought the problem with Las Vegas, was there was too *many* people.
"No, but I suppose you're going to tell me."
"Amnesia, and 'rescued' by the Daybreakers," Andromeda snickered. She picked up a metal ashtray and began admiring her reflection, which was a perfectly normal thing for her to do. Oval shaped face with its' smooth creamy white skin, large soulful dark eyes outlined in black liner. Gentle back locks falling to her shoulders, full red lips curved in a mean smile. "Imagine how Unas is going to react."
"How did you hear about this, anyway?" Cadence asked. Andromeda often managed to get useless facts from various sources. This was probably the only remotely interesting news she had come up with in the eight months they were working together.
"Ricco. Unas doesn't know and they need the powers of yours truly to try and find her." Andromeda smiled proudly.
"Oh." Cadence's eyes looked around the crowd again. She couldn't even begin to imagine what that must be like, not having any memories and being stuck with a group of people who were really your enemies. "Well, she deserves it."
She'd worked since she was fifteen to get a reputation like the one Xalaria Redfern had. And she got it just because she happened to be pretty (like most vampires) and was screwing the new Council leader.
Cadence swigged the last of her drink. ~Night World politics suck~ she thought moodily. "What'd you think Unas would do if you found the bitch and she accidentally - fell on a stake." She snickered at the thought, smiling nastily.
Small and delicate with bouncy red curls, eager blue eyes and a bright friendly smile, nasty wasn't an expression you expected to see on her face.
Andromeda laughed. "Oh please, he'd kill you in less than ten seconds, not to mention what he'd do to you first."
Cadence nodded. "Just a thought." She stood up. "I think I see my lunch." She sauntered away from Andromeda into the crowd, looking for a quick exit. All it had to do was look like an accident. But how did you *accidentally* kill a vampire everyone knew you hated?
She found a small door, which lead her to an enclosed back alley way. Not for the first time she was immensely glad that she didn't have to suffer the heat of the Vegas sun.
"Please - I - I don't have hardly - "
"Give me the fucking wallet already."
Cadence paused recognised the mugger's voice instantly. ~So much for using Andromeda's so called powers~
Slipping closer, she watched the terrified tourists throw everything they had of value at the girl pinning him to the wall.
"Don't eat me, please, don't, no - *no*!" His voice rose in terror, but the scream was cut off. Cadence chuckled, watching the girl slit his throat with her sharp nails once she had done with feeding from him.
//Cadence Galena, get that girl. Do not let her get away from you// Cadence frowned at the unfamiliar mental voice in her mind. She got an uncomfortable feeling of immense power from it. //Bring her inside and I will instruct you what to do next.//
"Hey, bravo," she called.
Xalaria turned to look, annoyed that someone had seen her. "Who are you?" She had moved up to Cadence, trying to pin her as well. Cadence found herself filled with an unexplained rush of strength as she threw Xalaria off her, like tossing away a piece of trash.
Xalaria got up, looking at her curiously. "You're a Night People. So am I. Do you know me?"
Cadence could only guess she'd escaped Daybreak clutches to find out about herself. She smiled falsely, reminding herself that she hated this girl. That mental voice was *doing* something to her. She wondered if she really wanted to know who it belonged to. Someone old, probably. It certainly wasn't Unas. As far as she knew, there was no one older than him around, after Hunter Redfern's death. That was why he was the boss now.
"Cadence Galena, yeah, I do. Let's go inside." She grabbed Xalaria's arm and dragged her inside the casino, waiting to be told what to do next.
* * *