Disclaimer in chapter one
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Horatio enter the medical examiner's office after receiving a call from Alexx. She informed him that she had made a strange discovery that he needed to see. Needless to say, his curiosity was piqued.
"What have we got Alexx?"
Alexx beckoned him closer to the body she was currently examining. "At first glance the victims show no signs of outside trauma. So what would we look for?"
"Poison. Did the blood work show any?"
"See, this is where it gets weird. No blood."
Horatio arched an eyebrow. "No blood?"
"None. And let me show you this." Alexx turned the victim's head and exposed twin puncture wounds. "This is the fifth body I've examined and they've all shown the same signs – all the blood drained from the body and dual puncture wounds on the neck."
"That would take our killer a long time to drain his vics. Unless we're looking at more than one."
Horatio briefed Eric, Tim and Calleigh on Alexx's findings. At hearing the news their minds began processing the possibilities. Suddenly Eric chuckled.
"Care to share?" Speed asked. "What's so funny?"
"Think about it. Twin puncture wounds – on the neck – and the blood's been drained."
Tim smirked. "Someone's been watching too many horror movies."
"Are you suggesting vampires?" Calleigh laughed. "That's crazy."
Horatio shook his head. "Maybe someone wanted to enact their own horror movie."
"Or several someones," Tim added. "It would take one person too long to drain all those bodies."
"And I think it would arouse suspicions. Someone would notice people showing up drained," Eric said. "But if there were accomplices. . ."
"But," Calleigh interrupted, "they still would have had to figure a way to subdue the rest of the crew. To drain *that* many people."
"This case just gets more and more twisted," Tim said.
The next day Willow and Xander stepped off the private charter plane Giles had arranged to transport them to Florida. The pilot landed on a small airfield just outside Miami.
"Now we need wheels," Xander said, glancing around the airfield.
Willow began lugging her bags out of the plane. "Giles said he'd arrange a rental car to meet us."
"Is it too much to hope he rented us a nice, new, shiny convertible?" He looked at his friend hopefully.
She smiled. "Probably."
"Figures."
Xander reached for his bags so they could go find what transportation Giles had arranged for them. They each had three bags. Willow had on small suitcase with wheels and two gym bags – one containing any weapons or supplies for spells she might need. Xander had a backpack, a small duffel bag and a gym bag filled with his weapons.
As they approached the field's office they saw a small SUV parked there and a man about Giles's age was leaning against the vehicle waiting. When he spotted the pair he pushed away from it and smiled. "Mr. Harris? Miss Rosenberg?" he asked with a hint of a French accent.
Xander offered the man his hand. "Call me Xander."
"I'm Jean-Marc," he introduced himself, shaking Xander's hand.
Willow held out her hand in return. "I'm Willow." He took her hand and touched it to his lips. "Hello." Then he gently took Willow's bags and turned to load them into the back of the SUV. "Rupert arraigned for me to meet you with your rental."
Xander followed him with his bags. "You known Giles long?"
"Quite some time. I used to be a member of the coven in England he works with. I believe you know them Willow." She was blushing lightly when Jean-Marc and Xander turned to her. "Yeah."
Xander squeezed her hand gently as they turned to get into the car.
"You don't mind stopping at my apartment when we get to town? Then you two can go do your investigation."
"Sure," Xander shrugged.
When they got to Jean-Marc's building he decided to invite them up. "Are you hungry?" he asked ushering them inside his apartment. Xander chuckled. "Always."
They sat at the kitchen counter while Jean-Marc made sandwiches. Willow then noticed the newspaper sitting in front of her. It was dated for the day before. "Have you read yesterday's paper, Jean-Marc?"
"No, why?"
She held up the newspaper with the front page headline about a mass murder aboard a freighter carrying priceless artifacts.
"Great," Xander sighed unhappily. "Our job just got harder."
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TBC …
