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Chapter 23
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Meryl sipped the last of her tea, her eyes skimming the paper before her.
176 Blueberry Lane, Mrs Dougherty's dresses shop…interesting
Making sure Milly, who sat silently across from her, did not see the page she had been reading, Meryl folded the paper and laid it on the table before her. Her tea was gone, she had read what she had wanted to read and she had the serum for Vash. As far as she was concerned, her job here was done.
"Well, Milly…thank you very much for the tea, but as I said before…"
"You don't want to attract trouble, sempai," the taller woman finished her sentence. "I know, so I suppose you should get going, right?"
The petite woman smiled at her friend. "I wish I could have stayed a bit longer to visit, I really do…" she said truthfully. Now that she was here, she found she really didn't want to leave so soon.
Standing up, Milly gathered the two empty teacups and took them to the kitchen sink. "You have the serum in a safe place?" she questioned her friend.
Nodding, Meryl pushed back her chair and stood. Tapping her belt, she smiled. "Right here, Milly, don't worry about it."
Her partner nodded, her eyes somewhat distant as if she was searching for something to say. Finally, she cocked her head at Meryl. "You don't need any groceries do you, sempai. It just occurred to me that you haven't been shopping for at least a week, but then again you haven't been very hungry, have you?"
Something in Meryl's mind was pulling at her to leave, while another, just as strong was forcing her to give in and say yes. But that would most likely end in Milly following her until they reached the bakery and such, and then she couldn't very well head off to Blueberry Lane and collect the money for the vampire's fangs, now could she? Hesitating, Meryl finally shook her head.
"No, you're right Milly. I haven't been very hungry. I'll stop in at the new coffee shop on my way back. Just a quick visit, and if you want to, you can pick up a few things for me and come over tomorrow for a visit," she offered, and smiled brightly up at her friend as a cover.
She must not know…she'd never let me out of her house if she knew…but I need the money… Meryl's mind was racing. She needed the money, that was for sure. Her earnings was running low since she had encountered Vash, and nothing good would come from it. But she also wanted answers, and who better to answer them than a bunch of vampires. Except for Vash, of course. She would leave him until later.
And she desperately needed to vent some of her pent up anger before she ended exploding in some innocent pedestrian's face, or worse…
"You know, sempai, I think I like that idea. You wouldn't mind if brought Mr Priest along, too, would you? He needs to get out of his house more, I say." Milly accepted her partner's offer with a smile, glad for the sudden change of disposition in her friend. She had always liked it when Meryl acted happy instead of spending her time moping around in distress. "He's been researching on Knives non-stop since we decided on…well since we decided on the plan…I know it doesn't look like its going anywhere fast, sempai, but—"
Meryl interrupted her partner. "Milly, I understand. I'll even ask Vash about everything when I get back. And feel free to bring Nick, I feel he's been excluding himself for a while now…"
Clasping her hands together with joy, the taller woman nodded and beamed. "Good, sempai. We'll all come over tomorrow and talk things through again, alright? And then everything will be okay again!"
Those last words echoed in Meryl's head as she closed Milly's front door and stepped out onto the street, and she couldn't see the truth behind them. And she knew that it would never be the same again.
It will never be okay.
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Stomping his cigarette out on the cobblestone street, Wolfwood listened as Vash knocked upon Milly's door. The sound echoed hollowly in the tight street.
"You think she's home?" the blonde asked after a moment of no reply.
A moment later, the sound of a door being unlocked reached the blonde's ears, answering his question. The priest raised an eyebrow at him, and a moment later Milly poked her head out of the door, looking confused.
"Mr Vash…Mr. Priest…" her eyes lingered on Wolfwood's large cross a moment. "What are you two doing out here?"
Wolfwood frowned, immediately knowing something wasn't quite right about it all. "Just takin a walk, honey."
Vash cut in before he could say anymore. "And we were also wondering if we could speak to Meryl, if she wants to talk that is," he spoke up, a hopeful look on his face.
Milly regarded the two for a moment, an odd look in her eyes. They flickered from the half-blood to the priest, and then back to the half-blood again. A muscle in her cheek twitched slightly, and a moment later, she slammed the door in the two men's faces. The very frame of the house seemed to shake, and the loud noise fell hollowly on the surrounding buildings.
Vash blinked, surprised. "Wow…you think Meryl doesn't want to talk to anyone?" he asked no one in particular.
Wolfwood didn't speak; just cast a glance at the confused half-blood. He had known something was wrong. The look in Milly's eyes for a moment there, the general, true confusion on her face when she had opened her door to see the two of them together, standing on her doorstep. And his suspicions were confirmed a moment later when the door swung back open and a fully armed Milly, complete with overcoat and stun gun, stepped out onto her doorstep.
Meryl wasn't there, he had known all along.
Milly regarded the two men with a solemn look. "You're quite sure you didn't see her on your way here?"
Vash still seemed confused. "Why would see Meryl on her way here…unless…" he trailed off as the priest shook his head.
"Have any idea where she's run off to?"
Milly shook her head sullenly, leaning her stun gun on the ground for a moment. "She said she was going to stop in at the coffee shop before heading home, just for a small bite to eat, but she didn't mention anything else."
Vash watched the two, a slight tugging at him mind alerting him to something he hadn't wanted to feel for a long while yet. Slowly, as Milly and Nick continued to converse, he turned around, his ears closed off to their words. He was hearing something else now, a whispering in his head, nagging at him, taunting him.
…going to come to me…Vash…come…
He turned again, eyes holding a distant look. His two companions were now a mere murmur, for in his head there were a hundred voices beckoning to him, calling his name in a windy flurry of blurred words.
Vash…will you come now…come find me…Where was it coming from? He didn't understand. He couldn't pinpoint the location, it was too blurry. The voice, though, the voice was very recognizable. He was laughing at him, Vash knew. His brother loved to taunt him while he was weak like this, just to show him how much power still remained in his body while Vash nearly had none and was on the verge of collapse.
…come and get her…Vash? Aren't you going to find her?
He wasn't aware that Wolfwood and Milly had stopped speaking and were now watching him curiously as he whirled around, turning his head this way and that as if he was trying to here something.
…aren't a very good friend, Vash…why don't you come see…
And then, all at once, everything stopped, and the distinct presence of one of his own, many of his own, drowned out Knives's voice in his head. Vash knew wherever the vampires were gathering, that was where Meryl would be.
Ignoring Milly and Wolfwood, he stumbled over his own feet in a hurry to find them. If he let his senses guide them, they would find her…
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"Thank you for the information, Mrs Dougherty!" Meryl told the elderly woman as she stepped out of the store, a genuine smile on her face.
The old woman planted her hand on her hips. "Right, right. I just don't want you hounding any customers that come by, you hear me?? Business is bad enough around this time of year without you hunter types running around shooting and staking everyone you see!" and with that, the front door was slammed on Meryl's nose, and the short woman had to stumble back to avoid being hit.
Shaking herself off and gathering her bearings, Meryl frowned at the door. To her right, in the shop window, the curtain was drawn. Meryl just barely caught a glimpse of the elderly grouch of a woman scowling at her before she disappeared behind the shades.
"Is it just me, or a people more…violent around this time of year?" the petite woman muttered to herself, straightening up and turning around.
Only to walk smack dab into somebody.
"I assure you it isn't yourself, human," said a distinctly familiar masculine voice as Meryl stumbled back. "It's a natural human instinct you spiders have, actually, supposedly meant to protect you from harm…I completely disagree, though."
Frowning, the petite woman stared up at the man before her. The face that stared back was not a welcome on at all, and her hands immediately strayed under her cloak to the derringers hidden beneath.
"Legato," she hissed vehemently. "That is you're name, is it not?"
The daywalker gave her a cold, ruthless hint of a smile. "Have you come back for more, little human? Shall I finish you off now, I wonder, or should I take my time and kill you slowly?" he pondered, golden eyes fixed on the woman.
Meryl's hand closed around the cold metal of a gun, and she slowly slipped it from its hold. "To the point, aren't you?" she managed to smirk at him. "But I know you wouldn't…I have a feeling Knives wants me alive, for whatever purpose that is."
Legato's eyes shadowed over, and he glared at Meryl. "You shall address him as master, human."
Her other hand wrapped around another derringer, and the petite woman suddenly felt a lot more sure of herself. "And you shall address me as Miss Stryfe, bloodsucker," she stated just as evenly, her stormy grey eyes locking with his golden, dead ones.
Quite possibly, all her strength and effort went into her next move. Every ounce of knowledge she had ever learned, everything her father had ever taught her and everything she had picked up on the way, anything she had heard, read or seen. It all came out in her next movements, and she was proud of herself.
With a speed possessed only by people such as herself, Meryl whipped out the two derringers and without hesitation fires two shots—one from each gun. Much to her dismay, but not very surprising, the golden eyed vampire evaded both bullets. He had not survived so long without learning a thing or two, this she knew.
But that didn't stop her, and as he moved, so did she. And she fired off her last two shots, dropped the guns not a half a second after and pulled another two from under her cloak.
She was lucky this time, three bullets exploded through the other side of his cloak, and she fired off another two shots as the vampire took the time to examine his clothing. His kind were so vain.
Abandoning the useless weapons, Meryl ripped out a finely pointed stake from her belt and with her free hand, her left hand, drew anther silver loaded gun.
"You're days are numbered, bloodsucker!!" she shouted, and shot at him twice more before readying her stake and charging at him.
The two bullets whizzed ineffectively by Legato's cheek as he turned, golden eyes wide, to face the incoming vampire hunter. Meryl was upon him before he could blink, her stake burying itself deep into his dead flesh. Her jaw clenched tightly, she ground the wooden spear deeper into him, letting all her anger and resentment flow in with it.
But she heard a deep rumble inside Legato's throat, and her eyes strayed up to his face.
Her heart nearly froze over when she noticed he was smiling, and moments later the vampire was laughing. A deep, throaty laugh echoed off the walls of the street, bouncing back a million times over, and Meryl felt repulsed by it all. He was disgusting, completely repulsive.
The reason for his apparent mirth was revealed to her a moment later, and she watched with something akin to horror as he took hold of the stake, straightening up to his full height, and ripped the piece of wood from himself. It was coated with blood, but none of it dripped.
Legato tossed the stake aside. "You missed my heart by about an inch, human…I could feel it," he smirked at her as if he was pleased at the very thought of it.
And then, as if Meryl thought it couldn't possibly get any worse, it began to rain. Bad things always happened when it rained, they always had. The downpour was almost immediate. A few flecks of water dropped the small portions of her exposed skin before a thunderclap echoed loudly overhead and the heavens broke in two, releasing a torrent of water onto the world below.
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--Cayenne Pepper Powder