School sucks, new job sucks, the shopping public sucks (no offense to the shopping public reading right now)…but, at least I have my fan fiction and reviewers to cheer me up.
Nikki: Aw shucks, thanks! I love it when people "LOVE" my story! I hope you read and review again!
Martha: All right, here's what I'm planning to do: not tell you. It totally ruins that whole ambiguity thing. Sorry, and Kyros does keep his promises!
Alocin: I know you couldn't wait to read what happened next, but I hope you aren't too disappointed. Mostly informational crap. Sorry! But, hey, read any way!
Amy: No, I just don't know how to handle compliments, but thanks any way. And I hope it stays original, but no guarantees. Thanks though, and I'll try to update more in the next few weeks.
Zabella: I can and I did leave it there, yup, because I'm a rebel. But here is more, so I guess I made up for it!
Leian: Totally understand the references, but although he's the only survivor, that may not make him a contender. And I know it was heartless, but necessary (I use that one a lot, don't I?). Any who, all will be revealed in due time…also cryptic.
Fin: I'm glad you liked it, despite the extreme shock value. I just hope I don't run out of ideas, but I'll just keep my fingers crossed. The whole marriage was, as implied, a sorta obligation thing. I know it took me forever to update, my bad, and even worse, it's a plot-mover-alonger chapter. Sorry, next one better!
Vague Verity
Chapter 12
"Sleep...
~*~*~*~
Thierry's accidental doze was interrupted when a sweet, young blonde called from just outside his door.
"You have no idea how long it took to convince mom to let me come here again." Gillian swept into the room, talking as if she and Thierry had been carrying on a conversation for some time. "I think she thinks I have a gambling problem."
Thierry looked up from his laptop, surprised. "What are you doing here? I thought you were coming for spring break."
Gillian giggled, and tossed a rolled up newspaper to him. "It is spring break! And where else would we go? There's no other place as big as this where we could stay for free, and the owner is ever so generous with his wallet." Her smile was hinting.
"What's this?" Thierry reached forward and unrolled the newspaper, which turned out to be a tabloid.
"Something I picked up at the airport. I thought you'd be interested." Gillian Lennox shrugged. "David and I are going shopping okay?"
But Thierry wasn't listening. The headlines were too alarming. "Mummified Demon in Tahiti," he read aloud. "'Devil's Spawn takes a Trip'?" Within seconds, he was storming out of his office, calling for Nilsson. He remembered the old days, when Night World assassins at least attempted to hide their work. For Goddess' s sake, were they trying to get themselves exposed?
He then regretted sending Quinn and Rashel to the mountains. Because the Draches were now matrimonially indisposed, the Boston natives had become his most efficient leaders. And a majority of the fledglings were off on extermination missions, and absolutely none had enough experience to carry out an investigation so far away. Kyros had ordered, not asked, to leave him "the hell alone" for a while.
It was Nilsson who came up with a solution. Thierry was amused to hear that Nilsson had a friend, who knew a man, who had some family connected with a business in Tahiti. That business owed a favor. Besides, his friend added, nobody believed in tabloids. Nilsson assured his boss that the corpse would be found and disposed of, and that the humans would never know better.
As an afterthought, Thierry requested, "And try to see who was killed this time." It was most likely a Night World council member, for Goddess knew how dangerous it was to take a position there.
~*~*~*~
Thierry and Hannah hadn't approved. Maria turned away from the window and the bleak clouds, and looked at her soul mate. He hadn't approved either. But, Lordy, she didn't want her babies born in Sin City.
Babies. It had become plural now. Hannah Snow and her stupid powers of persuasion. The ultra-sound, albeit a bit late, had been a must. Revealing four feet and four arms, at first making the irrational Maria dizzy with the thought of a mutant baby. Then, with a voice full of regret, Nilsson had said it. Twins.
One was smaller than the other. Nilsson hadn't known what it meant, and neither had the other Daybreakers. Valdis had always said an Eldson baby was strong. Maybe one was too strong for the other's well being.
So she wanted to go to New York. It felt like a second home, the birthplace of her mother. The divisive issue was what caused the fearsome frown on Valdis's face. He simply didn't want her to travel, and Maria refused to budge on the subject. She was going home.
Her victory was also frowned upon by all in the household. Stubborn Maria, and her foolish ideas. To travel in her condition, tsk, tsk, tsk. But she wouldn't regret it, even if Valdis hadn't spoken to her in thirty six hours. She wouldn't regret it. Even if Valdis preferred to sit as far away as possible. And he slept when he knew very well she wanted to talk to him.
Now that she dwelled upon it, it was better he slept, and not feel her worries. Maria glanced down, detesting and relishing her swollen belly. It meant she was never alone, even with her whole world mad at her. It also meant she would have to relinquish that same world some day. Maybe in another month or two.
She bit her lip hard enough to draw blood, and sharply turned back to the window. Death had been so far away before. After all, if you cheat death twice, the third should be easy. But the truth had always been her enemy, thus her penchant for denial. Reality was always mind numbingly harsh, and Maria preferred to evade it.
The baby could kill her. Which one, she didn't know. Even with the super healthy meals, with just the right amount of vitamins and minerals. Maria closed her eyes, and pretended she wasn't pregnant at all. This was just a pillow in her lap. She survived hell, high water, vampires, and the Final Battle. There was no way these damn things were going to kill her.
The phrase made her flinch. She had called them "damn things," and worse, she wasn't sorry for it. They were damned. Damn these unborn babies for possibly taking her away from her soul mate. It was unbelievably stupid. These half-formed, helpless little maggots killing her. And worse, Valdis wouldn't see it coming. His own god damned children ruining his world while he slept blindly.
Maria gasped audibly, and wondered who the hell would take care of her children even if she did survive. No good mother would have these thoughts.
Moisture slid from her eyes. She hadn't noticed it until Valdis wiped the tears from her eyes with his sleeve. He asked her, so unaware of what was happening, what was wrong. Silly, blind Valdis.
She said nothing, and pushed him away. Everybody she knew got their damn happy ending. Well… not that sixteen year old. But she had the rest of her life, and many more, to take care of that.
~*~*~*~
She couldn't tell the difference between sleep and awake. No windows, no lights. After a while, and she had no way of telling time, the color behind her eye lids and then the room blended into the same, lifeless black.
After the first few days, or hours she couldn't tell, Rita stopped yelling the questions. Why was she here? What did they want? Nobody answered, and she doubted if anybody heard.
Just dead silence.
She couldn't see how large the room was, nor what color the straw was on the floor. If she held her hand in front of her face, there was no indication of it. The only way she could tell she slept at all was the sudden appearance of sparse meals. And, try as she might, she couldn't stay awake long enough to witness the disappearance of the tray.
Solitary confinement. It drove some people mad, to not hear and see even though eyes and ears were in perfect condition.
No. She wouldn't give in that easily. There were a lot of things to do, and going insane wasn't one of them. Of course…what was there to do in an empty box? Talking to oneself was not an option. Symptom one of madness. It was one thing when she spoke quietly to let out unhealthy emotions. And it was quite another if she said something, and then answered herself. Definitely not healthy.
So, after an immeasurable amount of time, she gave up. She gave up looking for a way out, although her courageous search had found her a small cot and blanket in the corner. She gave up shouting. She gave up trying to amuse herself. Instead she simply slept. The horrible form of imprisonment had at least one benefit.
Verity dreamed. Not of gruesome murders, or faces long gone. But of outside. Of the sun. It was cold in here, despite the blanket. Funny how the sun never meant so much before. She missed it.
~*~*~*~
New York
For God's sake. They didn't even bother to hide the safety concerns. Thierry, rather frankly and intrusively, had sent so much medical equipment Ceberus could only move freely in the kitchen. Personally, Maria found the situation rather embarrassing, and futile. Like when the outfielders came in closer for a batter who couldn't hit a beach ball.
There was the irritating matter of this semester. It could not be made up nor finished, meaning two months of her study wasted. Valdis assured her that she could make it up when it was possible. If he only knew.
Too many times, she'd wake up because of the feeling of being watched. And find Valdis, or Sabrina by her bed. Scarily, her mother, too, but dismissed that as a dream. It was impossible to see dead people, unless one was some child actor prodigy.
April breezed by, and soon the first week of May had arrived. It was not fun, to say the least, to be cooped up with an overprotective vampire, a giggly witch, an immovable mid wife courtesy of Thierry, and a bored dog to boot. Maria could not find time to scheme for an escape plan between sleeping and arguing. She speculated her husband manipulated her time with just that intent.
It was three days past her due date when she found sleep eluded her, and Valdis was off buying food. Conveniently, three ground sleeping pills had found their way into Sabrina's pixie sticks. And, finally, that spindly little mid wife was given the day off—
"And just where do you think you're going?" Maria stilled, the front door just inches away from her hand. Javier Lorenzo. Quite possible the most irritating, opinionated, feminine warlock in the hemisphere. She pivoted slowly, and saw her midwife waiting impatiently for her answer, arms akimbo.
"Out," she said curtly. Her annoyance doubled when Javier's eyes swept up and down her form, clearly disapproving of her choices in fashion. Maria scowled, because it wasn't her fault; there wasn't a Gucci line for pregnant women. She did the same time, eyes narrowing at his top. She couldn't be sure, but wasn't that Sabrina's blouse?
"You know Mr. Eldson don't like you out during these days, Maria," he replied, with no other description than snottily, and purposely mispronounced her name. Maria clenched her fists, as both knew she clearly told him the correct pronunciation repeatedly.
"Just 'cause you got a crush on him, don't mean you gotta be a bitch to me, J. Ho." As expected, the man looked ready to slap her.
"I do not have a crush on him, and you know how much that name hurts me." He sounded so wounded Maria rued her harsh words, though Lord knew he had said worse. Awkwardly, she walked over and patted his shoulder. "Whore," he let out viciously before forcibly maneuvering her to her bed room.
"Javier!" Maria banged against the door. "Javier, I didn't mean it, I'm sorry!" she lied. The damn warlock was holding the door knob. "Javier, even though we don't get along, and you constantly attempt to follow my style, and your hair holds more gel than all boy bands put together, and your attitude makes you unfit to be around any infant of any species, and you've drank all the tequila in the apartment…"
The silence droned on. "Well?" Javier prompted.
Maria leaned against her door, stumped. "I was going somewhere with this…" Listing his faults, as endless as that was, was not the ticket out of the room. "Ouch! Javier, let me out!"
"Did you cut yourself with the letter opener?" her guard asked, little concern creeping into his voice.
"God, why does everyone think I'm self-hazardous?" she wondered aloud, and then focused. "No, Javier, my stomach hurts."
"Are you tellin' me the truth?"
"Would I lie about something important like this?" she shot back, no small amount of offense in her voice. Javier, severely miscalculating her conscience, opened the door.
Thirty minutes later, Valdis strode through an unlocked door, and discovered an unconscious baby sitter on the floor, and a hibernating witch on his bed. Ire immediately rushed at him, but it soon ebbed when he turned around. Maria looked up at him, hands clasped behind her back, one toe digging into the carpet. She smiled in a way she knew displayed her dimples to full innocence.
"Maria…"
She sighed, and gave a girlish shrug. "But, sweetie, it was so pretty outside, I couldn't help it. I went to Central Park, and fed the duckies." Maria thought it wise not to mention the lecherous fly fisher who harassed her, and then was pushed in the lake. More ammunition to his "stay inside" campaign. "Please don't be mad at me, Valdis." Her chin drooped ever so slightly, and she didn't dare look up for his reaction. He could always see the truth in her eyes.
Thankfully it worked. He smiled, kissed the top of her head, and led her to the kitchen. The damage done to his assistants did not bother him as much as she expected. Sabrina's chatter had begun to sound a bit shrilly, and Javier's leers were getting harder to ignore. Maria glowed like a devilish angel when both came to.
"Evil little whore—" Javier began to mutter as he approached the table.
"Hey, that's my wife you're talkin' about," Valdis warned as he prepared dinner. Maria beamed happily when Javier was forced to finish his opinions in Spanish, though she was a bit piqued that nobody immediately thought Sabrina was the subject of his sentence.
After dinner, they bullied her back into her room. Maria would have thrown a tantrum, but she wanted to go any way to watch the game. Periodically, one of the three popped in to check on her. But none wanted to stay and enjoy the Yankees with her, or endure the painfully loud obscenities to opposite team and umpires. During the two and a half hours, she remained ignorant of the conversation outside.
"She's not really that unhealthy is she?" Valdis asked Javier as he washed the dishes. Javier shrugged.
"I don't know what's normal or not. Witch and human baby, I've seen. Witch and werewolf, I've heard of. Werewolf and vampire…eh, I'm not so sure a good idea. But vampire and human I don't know. Jezebel Redfern's mother did not keep no journal about her condition."
"But I'm sure interbred babies will be appearing more and more," Sabrina chirped as she wiped the plates dry. "Grandmother said so."
"Grandmother said so," both men mocked silently when the witch turned away. The phrase was being more and more used these days, especially for Maria's condition.
The conversation was cut short when they heard, "Woo! Mangez suckas!" Then Maria skipped out of her bedroom, face radiating with boundless joy. "Yankees won, and we've never done good with ties!" The three did little but acknowledge her presence, and then resumed to their tasks. Javier dared to roll his eyes at the news of her beloved team.
None particularly cared as she stood tapping her toe, displeased. Until she added, "And, as a little side note, my water just broke."
~*~*~*~
Verity Catalina Glisscielle.
Verity Catalina Glisscielle.
Truth. Purity. Slipped from the sky.
She could trace her families back six hundred years.
She had the highest GPA in her class.
She couldn't be forgotten. They couldn't have forgotten her. Here, in this black hole, she couldn't have been forgotten. Prestigious generations of the Glisscielle name couldn't end here. Not now, not like this.
Somebody had to wonder what happened to that bookish girl. Somebody had to wonder where the last Glisscielle went. Come graduation, one student would wonder what happened to that president who ran away. Then they'd look. Then, maybe Rik would start to search.
Somebody would find her before she died. This wouldn't become her coffin. Lightless, empty, silent. Built with minimum comfort. No, no, somebody would remember her, despite the slightest impressions she left on the world. It wasn't possible that everybody could forget.
Is that why she was put here? In France, they had seen the historical castles, even one with an oubliette. Was this a modern version? What a way to go. Locked up when she wasn't dangerous, shut away although she wasn't much to see. Everything contradicted each other, all aspects of her captivity.
No, she wouldn't be forgotten. No, she refused to let it end here.
~*~*~*~
New York
Maria knew nothing about labour. She had not one iota about what should be happening, and what should not be happening. Javier, naturally, knew what was what, but appeared too busy to tell her. Sabrina, her living chatterbox, was unusually preoccupied. And Valdis merely smiled whenever she asked a question.
Damn that Javier. Running up her phone bill just to call some chit in Las Vegas. If two brats weren't forcing there way out of her womb, she would have gotten up and knocked him unconscious with the telephone. At least she thought they were forcing their way out. Stubborn little things. Nothing had happened save she wet her pants. And they called this the miracle of life. What a load of crap.
Later, Maria was thoroughly ashamed of herself. It was supposed to be a monumental experience in every girl's life…and she went and fell asleep. She didn't know how, nor when. One minute she blinked her eyes shut, and she blinked them open to her lamp lit bed room. They hooked her up to some sort of machine, with more beeps than comfort.
She frowned, and tried to remove the needle from her arm without become squeamish.
"Ah, ah, ah," Javier scolded as he walked in the room. "You leave that alone. As a matter of fact, do not touch anything."
His imperious manner irked Maria. Bossing her around in her own home, for crying out loud. "How 'bout I just step outside and leave you guys to do this all by yourselves?"
"Ha. Ha," he answered dryly, and checked her monitors.
"Javier?"
"Hmm?"
"What's going on?" Maria looked down at her stomach. "You guys didn't yank them out while I was sleeping?"
Instead of answering, Javier continued his business, only muttering under his breath, "God, I hope these babies don't end up as stupid as you…"
"I heard that."
He faced her squarely, hands on hips again. "Yes. I open my mouth, sounds come out. Somebody's likely to hear them."
"Your attitude ain't so pleasing. You're fired."
"And rehired," Valdis added smoothly, walking into the room. Maria frowned when her husband merely smiled at her, and then told Javier something out of earshot. All she could hear was the rain and traffic outside. This was boring.
"Valdis?" He looked towards her, waiting. "Is there a game on tonight?"
"No, honey, there isn't." And that was it. He didn't come to fluff up her pillows, or ask her how she was.
"Valdis?"
"What is it?"
"Have you seen my game schedule any where?"
"No, honey, I haven't."
It was so nonsensical. For a little more than nine months, he treated her like a helpless baby. Than, in the eleventh hour, and he treats her like a grown up. Maria frowned at herself. Wasn't that what she wanted?
Why did those women in the movies scream all the time? Maria felt nothing, except a little cramp in her back. Maybe they were being dramatic. She smiled arrogantly. True, she fainted more than any silver screen heroine, but when it came to babies, she was a pro.
The two left the room some time after. She glanced at the clock, and wondered just how long she slept. Outside, it was dark. Nothing to do, nothing to do at all. With a little stretching, she grabbed her laptop. When all else failed, even her sacred sarcasm, writing seemed to help.
She stared at the blank screen. There wasn't much going on right now. Happy husband, happy life. About to end, but still happy life. Writing had always been for unhappy moments. All right then, time to read.
Maria didn't know of many mothers who surfed the net during labour. There was a certain amount of guilt with that thought, but she pushed the thought away. Javier was the best midwife in Circle Daybreak, Thierry had said so. Her babies would live.
There was a strange little poem, she thought. It reminded her of former assistant. Or the former life of the former assistant. For amusement's sake, Kyros had told her about Verity's life, and lives. He was funny with his accent, telling such a poignant tale. She read aloud, because poetry was best read aloud. That and dirty jokes.
"Louis MacNeice, what do you have for us today?" Her eyes scanned the window. "Which one… 'Christina.'" Maria looked up to find Ceberus carefully stepping into the room. She smiled for the audience and beckoned him closer.
"All right, Ceberus, listen carefully:
It all began so easy
With bricks upon the floor
Building motley houses
And knocking down your houses
And always building more."
She stopped and tilted her head at Ceberus. The dog did the same. "I see you don't quite get it either," she smiled and patted his head. Continuing:
"The doll was called Christina,
Her under-wear was lace,
She smiled while you dressed her
And when you then undressed her
She kept a smiling face.
All right," Maria nodded firmly, and encouraged the dog to do the same. "Kinky lace under wear. Why did this remind me of Verity?" The dog made a vaguely confused noise.
"Until the day she tumbled
And broke herself in two
And her legs and arms were hollow
And her yellow head was hollow
Behind her eyes of blue.
Wait, wait, wait, Ceberus. You're very stupid for picking this poem, Ceberus. Verity's eyes are green!" The dog frowned at her. "All right, if you insist."
"He went to bed with a lady
Somewhere seen before,
He heard the name Christina
And suddenly saw Christina
Dead on the nursery floor.
Oh, I see. Duh, Ceberus, I told you this related."
Before he could reply, her mid wife walked in and shooed him away. "Maria, I think you are going insane."
"And I think you could be straight. Look, two lies in two seconds. Go us! Seriously, go away, we're finding symbolism here." Javier scowled, and prepared a syringe.
Maria watched his methods with some alarm. "Listen, I know he's a clumsy dog but there's no reason to tranquilize him—"
Javier clucked his tongue, and with one look silenced her. Since when were witches so intimidating? Maria rolled her eyes, and then snuggled deeper under her blankets when he left. Her laptop proclaimed it was a few minutes until midnight. She wondered why she was so tired just moments after her nap. Her mind could not produce an answer, for she was already drifting off to sleep.
~*~*~*~
Adrian faced the fence before him, and then turned to those who had been stalking him for over an hour. He was sure there wasn't a fence here last year. Wonderful. The dragon species would become even more endangered just because some stupid human wanted to fence off an alley way.
They said some words tauntingly. Amaro couldn't find his own witty reply; he didn't even know Chinese. Four of them, very business like except the leader. Well disciplined, for each stood deathly still, a wound spring waiting for attack. There was always the option of changing, one of the key benefits of being a dragon. But it was one thing to change for the sake of saving face in front of one's soul mate. Quite another to do so for the pitiful excuse of running away.
Besides, they weren't so tough. Or at least he told himself as he squared his shoulders and swaggered closer. He smelled wolf on one of them, and vampire on the rest. He could handle a fair fight, and remain in human form. If they wanted a fair fight.
All four pounced. Adrian successfully blocked the punch of one man, and then landed one of his own. Somebody grabbed his arm as he drew it back, cruelly squeezing a pressure point. Adrian pulled his arm forward, dragging the vampire over his head and into the assassin facing him. Another kicked, with, Adrian believed, no sense of sportsmanship, as the dragon did so, making him land painfully on his back.
Faking disorientation, he waited until he smelled all four looking down on him. He steeled his forearms on the pavement, for leverage, and swiftly drew both legs up. Success rang with the cracks of two noses. Unfortunately, the other two were not too busy to fall to the ground, holding his arms down. Before he could morph, he paused, surprised to hear the leader speaking. What the hell? If he wanted to chat, all he had to do was ask and bring a translator.
Then Adrian listened closely. The bastard wasn't speaking. He was chanting. Adrian struggled, more desperately than before. Amaro knew that spell. He knew those evil, condemning words. They were putting him to sleep. God damn fools were trying to make him dormant again.
And they anticipated his unwillingness. Even as his arms grew thinner in the blink of an eye, their grip became adequately tighter. Adrian then tried to shift to a bear, their hands simply remained, breaking his bones as they grew larger. Oh god, he didn't want to go to sleep. Not again, not after the hell of waking up. He could not change gears to the think of the next form. The vampire, who Adrian believed to more than simply a vampire, looked down expectantly. If he had more awareness, Amaro would have spit on him. But, already too late.
He closed his eyes, reluctantly, mildly wondering where and when he would awaken.
~*~*~*~
Those slices of death.... How I loathe them."
Edgar Allen Poe
Yes I am aware this is a crap chapter. I'm sorry, but I'd still like to know what you think.