26
Nick and I moved into the small phone store. The elderly orc behind the counter watched us carefully before his face disappeared into his newspaper. The TV in the corner was on and the reporter was talking about shooting.
"It's been confirmed that twenty-five people have been shot and killed by the unknown gunman. Law enforcement is encouraging everyone to stay indoors and have placed a strict curfew for 7 sharp. Anyone out past then will be detained. Most of the damage has come from Taniya Montreal, a siren whose daughter, Kana, was one of the victims killed in the shooting. The siren's high pitch screamed has damaged the roads and buildings in a fifty-mile radius. People within that radius have been evacuated. The streets are officially cracked and damaged along with cars completely destroyed. Mayor Weston has spoken with some of the elders of the nearby siren communities and has decided not to point blame on the sirens due to the fault being with the active shooter who is still at large. I'm Gloria Cage, Channel 4 News."
My face dropped as I placed the Iphone 6s Plus on the counter. Nick looked at me with soft eyes.
"Hey you okay?" he asked as I handed the orc my card. I shrugged.
"A little. Even though my people are not officially to blame, the home and business owners will not be about it." I said.
"Your father is tough and Marco is the head of his security team. Anyone who tries to seek revenge against you guys will regret it." he said. I nodded slowly and the elderly orc gave me my car and bagged my phone. As we left the store, we were both stunned at the large orc surrounding Nick's car. Nick raised his arm to place me behind him.
"What's a fucking round tooth doing in my hood?" a familiar voice asked aggressively. I popped my head out from around Nick.
"Dorghu!" I said happily and immediately the threatening glare on my large orc friend's face fell.
"O?" he said and Nick looked at me confused.
"You know him?" he asked surprised as I walked around him and up to Dorghu.
"He's my friend." I replied. Dorghu looked from the orc to me before leaning in to me.
"Look if you left your elf boyfriend that's good and all, but this kind of seems like a downgrade, don't you think?" he asked lowly. I held in my laugh and nodded.
"Kandomere put Nick in charge of me. How are you holding up?" I asked. Dorghu looked at Nick with distrusting eyes before looking down at me.
"We're holding up. A lot of humans think orcs were responsible since none of us were hurt." he said.
"Your girl mentioned before though that some orcs were dead." I said.
"From police and upset humans who are looking justice." he said and I winced in sadness taking his hand in mine.
"What can I do?" I asked and with his other hand he rested it over mine.
"Be safe. Stay with the elves until this is finished." he replied. Nick cleared his throat causing Dorghu to frown as Nick stepped closer to us.
"O, we need to go." he said lowly and I nodded at him and looked at Dorghu.
"We can talk later?" I asked, and he nodded and kissed the top of my hand.
"Be safe." he said.
"You too." I said and moved away from the car which made the other orcs move as well. We got in and drove away.
"So where'd you two meet?" Nick asked.
"One of his clubs. He's actually very friendly." I replied opening my phone bag and getting my phone out. I began programming it and sighing in to my iTunes and iCloud accounts. All my contacts and pictures were backed up. I sent Kandomere a message letting him know we were on our way back. Once we were back in the elf district, the vibe of everything changed as is expected. Nick remained parked outside the building and he looked at me. We took each other's hands and gave a look of care.
"Be careful." I said and he nodded.
"You too." he said. We leaned over to give each other a quick hug, before I got out and entered the building. I ignored the new elf faces who gasp at the sight of me entering.
"Is that a human?"
"What's she doing here?"
"Someone call the police or something." I ignored them all as I pressed the up button. The doors slid open and the elves inside jumped at the sight of me and hurried off the elevator moving around me to get out. I just got in and hit the up button. I observed my new phone taking interest in all the new features. It was sad I had to get it under these circumstances. Once I was back in Kandomere's room, I moved and sat on the bed sighing some. Now what? I couldn't go anywhere without being stared at a hundred percent of the time. Someone was bound to wonder what I was doing in their district. I didn't need that headache either. My stomach was grumbling now. Let's see what there was to eat. I looked for a menu and found one on the kitchen counter.
I opened it and was met with the elf language. I groaned in mild frustration before looking through the fridge and finding hardly anything there. Guess it was time to just wing it. I got on the phone and managed to order some grilled chicken and vegetables. Just as I was finishing it, the front doors slid open and I looked up to see Kandomere coming in. He looked relieved upon seeing me and he moved over towards me after placing some files on his bar.
"Hey. How are you?" he asked leaning down and kissing me. I shook my head.
"I'll survive. Are you back for good?" I asked. He nodded removing his coat.
"Yes. We caught a break through in this case, but I don't think you're going to like what we found." he said sitting down now beside me and uncuffing the buttons on his shirt's wrist. I shook my head.
"People are dead already. I can't imagine the news will ever be to my liking." I said. I sat my plate of food to the side and turned to him giving him my attention.
"We managed to raid a small building. Leilah and her coven were using it to lie low. We found pictures, tons of pictures… of you with your people and at your home you share with your roommate." he said. My eyes deepened on him as worry filled me.
"So they're after me? Why?" I asked and he just shook his head.
"It has something to do with the dark lord. We collected ancient texts on sirens and elves and wars they participated in." he said. I looked down at my lap some in deep thought.
"The dark lord?" I asked stunned. I had only heard stories and tails like most of us has. I felt his hand over mine and I looked up at him.
"I don't want you out of my sight until all of this is over." he said seriously. I winced at the thought.
"You can't do your job and watch me at the same time." I said.
"I can put a protection detail on you." he said and I shook my head.
"Most of the police force are humans. They can't handle this." I said. His jaw tense and I could see the frustration in his eyes. I moved closer to him and he glanced up at me. "If you say I am safe here then I am safe here." His eyes lightened and he raised his hand and gently placed it on the back of my head and pulled me in so our lips could meet. We deepened it immediately and I found myself moving to sit atop of his lap. His lips trailed down my jaw and I felt his teeth gently nip at my flesh. My eyes gently fluttered closed as my head fell back some.
"Tomorrow we meet my family. Are you ready?" I asked gently finally looking down at him. He leaned back and inhaled some.
"I think so. Anything I should expect?" he asked. I nodded.
"They will look at you as the enemy and they will hate you." I said. He nodded slowly taking in my words.
"I can handle that. So what all happens your cookouts?" he asked. I smiled.
"Well they aren't all like human get togethers. Our families will attend and there will be food and music and stories told about our past and history. There will be singing of course, we like to show off our singing abilities and dance. Some find their mates at our gatherings. Then some of the males and females will show off their fighting skills." I said. He looked mildly impressed.
"Well I cannot wait. Will you sing?" he asked. I tensed some and looked down showing my embarrassment.
"I've… never sang around my family before." I replied. He tilted his head at me.
"Why not?" he asked. I shrugged.
"I was a late bloomer. I've tried and failed and I just didn't want to embarrass my parents any more than I had. A siren who can't sing, is not a siren." I replied.
"But you can sing." he said. I nodded.
"Yes, but I don't want them to hear me and still think I am not good enough." I said softly leaning back some and feeling already embarrassed to talk about it. I feel his fingers curl under my chin and direct my face back to him.
"Will you sing then for me?" he asked. I thought about it for a moment before nodding.
"Yes." I replied and he smiled as we leaned in for our lips to meet once again. However, a quick knock was heard at the door and we immediately froze and looked at it.
"Kandomere! This is your mother, open this door immediately! I know you're home!" a firm female voice demanded. Kandomere's eyes widened as a light frown played on his lips.
"Your mother?" I asked moving to quickly get off him.
"Oh my God." he said.
"Open the door son." Another voice demanded, but it was a male's voice.
"You have got to be kidding me." Kandomere said with a frown as he stood up. Now I felt out of touch.
"Your parents are here? I thought you said they were back in Venezuela?" I whispered harshly. He heavily sighed and looked at me.
"I may not have been entirely truthful with you." he said. My mouth dropped in shock as I stood up too. He moved over to the door and shook his head before opening the door.