Jealousy can be your greatest enemy and at the same time your greatest friend
"What's happened?" Carthage's voice was tense as he spoke. His eyes flickered to Starkers and Wellie's silent forms leaning up against the wall. Neither moved nor spoke, there gazes fixed upon the silent floor. Eternity held back the rising bile in her throat.
"The bad news is that they've found Holly. She's dead." No sound was made nor movement; voice or action but in that instant the news filtered through the remote channels of the brain, the instant it was believed the room temperature dropped ten degrees. The hair on Eternity's arms stood upright, the breath in her throat caught.
"How?" Was the almost mouthed words from Starkers as he barely whispered the words. "I..." He stopped himself his eyes moving to the ground whereupon he coughed once and walked out the room into the garden. The door slammed sharply behind him making the rest of the occupants in the room jump. Wellies's upper lip was twitching and he constantly licked his lips.
Carthage's gaze was fixed firmly on Valerio. Valerio's gaze was fixed firmly on Carthage. And Eternity slipped out into the hallway. She heard the backdoor slam again as she reached the safety of the hallway. Was she to care that someone she had not liked died? She did not. Valerio was alive, the death of another was inconsequence.
Holly had been a slut of a vampire, almost despised by her own kind for her flamboyant ways and constant need for blood and sex. When blood is mentioned for Holly it's not of her prey but of her enemy. Blood of an enemy was what mattered- vampire or human. To drink their blood was to drink their power.
Soft whispers of a conference of leaders reached her and she hurriedly retreated from the sounds. The bedrooms each belonging to one of the (former) team at the time did not seem appealing. The outside only held endless freedom where she had ran before hers had returned to her. Again no reminders of the time without him were welcome.
She walked into the room where the argument had been held before. Closing the door so only a cat could slip through she collapsed upon one of the setaes settling to watch and wait.
-*-
Her body plunged into the ice water a sharp pain ripping through her body which was instantly numbed as the last of her body was submerged. A small wave of red water passed her eyes like smoke ascending to the heavens. Her body was frozen in the position she had met the water with.
It was a couple of seconds before she realised she couldn't move or breath. It was a couple more before she realised she didn't want to.
More red water passed her face before her eyes closed completely. She was numb and didn't feel when her body hit the pool floor. The face of her first love passed her mind and inwardly she smiled. She was at peace perhaps. Just for a little while.
-*-
"Eternity? Eternity??"
Mum?? Mum! Where... where?
"Eternity can you hear me?? Please, please, wake up. Please my child. Please." I'm here. Please. Don't leave. Mum, mum. "She's not dead. She can't be dead. Not my child." Mum! "No. I won't believe it. Not again. Eternity wake up this instant." Mum
mum
please
let me wake up. Just to see her again.
"I can't cope Richard. Not again. Not my girl." Mum don't. Please. Don't. "I'm sorry. Richard..." mum. Your so close. If I could touch you. If I could let you know. I'm fine. I'm not dead. "Please. Just leave me with my girl for a minute. A minute longer." Stop mum, you don't know what your doing. No. Listen to me!
"Now darling. We'll be together. All together. A family. All in heaven." I don't want to go to heaven yet. Don't leave me mother! "Your father. Always the hero. You never knew him, but you were so much like him. Your brother." Don't cry. Don't. Mum. No.
"We'll all be together. One big happy family." Don't do that mum. No. Stop. Please. No. You can't. No. I'm not dead. You're not dead. No. No. No. No. No.
"MUM!"
-*-
"MUM!" Eternity was breathing heavily as she stared dazed at the placid wall infront of her. She sniffed and wiped the tears from her eyes. She let in a sigh of breath. Nightmares. The door slyly opened, she heard the creak. She was shaking slightly as she looked up to see the trespasser. Valerio's chocolate eyes stared down at her.
Her eyes dropped to the ground as she wiped away the tears. "I'm-" She closed her eyes and stood shakily walking to him. "I'm sorry." He completed as she fell noiselessly into his arms. He stroked her hair gently. She caught his smile as she looked up to his eyes. She, through her tears, smiled back. Their smiles were not well suited to the situation. They best explanation for them Eternity could come up with was that they were just at the weirdness of returning to a situation they had repeated many times before.
"It was never your fault." Eternity said swallowing as the ever present ugly head of the past resurfacing in the form of her mother. "It was no one's. You saved my life. And the cost was her life." He did not return the answer just laid her head against his chest staring ahead of him with a vacant expression.
"I hate to break up this touching reunion but there's something you might want to know." Carthage's sneer bought the couple sharply apart. However Valerio's smile returned as his hand snaked back around Eternity's waist and he bought them back to a tight physical contact. He smiled at Carthage who rolled his eyes irritably.
Eternity's eyes fixed upon the ground. Valerio and Carthage always brought out the worst in each other. Valerio was goading Carthage and Carthage had returned to his immature rebellious self. "What would that be, Prinze?" Valerio asked referring to the junior by his surname which he never used with good reason.
Carthage flashed his fangs in a threatening way before glancing down to Eternity then back up at Valerio face emotionless. Valerio's arm held Eternity tighter as the conversation changed into Valerio hurling with his thoughts at the only telepathic in the room. Eternity's eyes closed against the two squabbling boys. She felt her heart jolt and she heard Carthage snarl.
"The-" Carthage's controlled (just) voice croaked. Eternity looked at him directly in the eyes, he looked back with control steadily. "There was another phone call. Hayley's not at the human hospitals or the daybreak. She may be with Ollie. Neither of them have been heard of since." A silence followed, Carthage and Eternity's gazes remained locked. "And Wellies and Starkers have taken the jeep."
"Pardon?" Valerio asked politely obviously not quite wanting to hear what Carthage had said. Carthage's eyes flicked up from Eternity as Valerio's grip loosened.
"That I don't know. I suggest you check the scene of Holly's death. It's the normal spot where savagely grieving lovers go when their lover dies." Carthage regaining his suave commented lazily.
The death glare that Valerio was to give was never seen by Eternity as she closed her eyes to the scene in front of her. "Goddess..." She whispered to herself as she pulled her hand to her head, supporting it. Valerio's grip left her and she was suddenly alone standing in the harsh room.
"I'll find out where they've gone." Valerio's voice sharp told Carthage. Carthage raised and eyebrow in return. "This requires a slight grace you lack." Valerio softly commented as lightly as possible. Carthage snorted in return evidently not worried by Valerio's sensitivity to this subject.
"What? Because she died? Or because she was raped?" Carthage sneered. His eyes were dead as he spoke. Nothing changed.
"Both." Valerio was quiet but firm in his voice. It made not difference to Carthage who just ignored him. Eternity was stunned. That must have been the worse news.
"But you know they think it was one of those Midday Sun lot. 'Cos she was a vampire and Hellfire's lot wouldn't have bothered with one of their own to rape and murder. And fuck they didn't need to rape her she gave it up easily enough." Eternity flinched. Carthage paused then continued softer and more deadly. "So if it came to a case of which one of us is more suited to deal with this it might be one of her own."
"I though Daybreak were suppose to be rid of these prejudices." Valerio said finishing the discussion with a flick of his hand. Carthage naturally ignored the gestured as Eternity collapsed back onto the setae. What an awful death she had had. Even a whorre didn't deserve that kind of death. Not that Holly was a whorre...
"And what do you expect me to do? Sit here and baby-sit?" Carthage asked gesturing violently to Eternity. Valerio hesitated with a mixed decision on his face. He then nodded winking to Carthage before exiting the building at top speed.
Carthage turned back to Eternity his face smirking with disgust. Eternity looked up at him mimicking his dead eyes. Oh the fun they would have......
-*-
If you love me you'll review! Redaura if you love me you'll review twice cos you didn't once last time and you're suppose to be my best friend.
Bex Drake: Well apparently the stab wound didn't kill the fat pasty so Valerio is back. Unfortunate that isn't it?
Practikal Magik: That was a cool rebiew. Long and funny! Starkers is not gay and you'll see in the next chapter he not gay. Don't be so dirty and Carthage would appeciate that but he's not interested. *ebil laugh*
Thade182: Updated and really shhh you don't need to scream. He's staying back now. Well maybe...... I could..... but you'd hate that..... but I could..... review and I'll see.......