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Mick looked down the street at Aces Pawn shop, finding a building that was high enough and downwind had been challenging. Word had it that a vampire owned the place but infrared vision had only shown humans leaving or entering the place. Lots of long narrow packages, the kind that Lee Harvey Oswald would have said contained "curtain rods."

It was easy to separate the Legion customers from the man or woman on the street who were in the market for an unlicensed handgun. Tonight he was able to set up the directional microphone, the Santa Anna winds had quieted. Focusing the mic on the customer, this was unusual the driver was waiting in the car; usually the Legion thugs went inside in pairs. Either they didn't trust each other, or they were like girls and had to do everything together. Mick listened.

"Johnny, you look like shit."

"It's Gianni, I don't care what you think I look like… I'm trying to watch the Lakers. In fact I'm closed. I'm going home."

"GE-anni, Johnny whatever, you sleep in the back… Ok, it's a commercial already, we need more ammunition."

"You can get that at Wal-Mart."

"You know what I mean…"

"I tell you what I tell everyone, silver melts at three times the temperature of lead. I make bullets like fine jewelry… come back next week. It's not even werewolf season yet."

"Always a joker, we have enough ammo for werewolf season and even we can load shotgun shells."

"You still have some, or I would have heard about you using it.

"We need more; three rounds aren't enough for Kostan and his security."

"I'm out of the compound, but maybe if the price is right I can get more."

Mick grinds his teeth at the memory of being darted with the "cure," the event that let him love Beth and took her away from him. He could close the distance between the motel roof and pawn shop in seconds… predatory rage and narrow vision… Mick lost track of the conversation.

Mick can hear Gianni's sickly laugh, "My supplier says make an offer and if you're going after Kostan… price it accordingly."

Mick thinks, it's going to take more than just him to unravel this; to find Gianni's supplier and track the Legion… Will Josef see things my way? Mick makes a note of the plate and hopes that it's not a dead end. That tonight he will be able to tail these guys somewhere other than an airport rental car drop in the middle of the night.

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"I don't get it…" Logan was shaking his head sitting at Mick's desk. "It should work."

"Did you change the battery?" Mick offered from the couch. Logan shot him a look of disgust and Mick just shrugged his shoulders.

"It has power." Logan rolled his eyes. "Without tearing the thing apart, I can't make it work!"

Mick released a frustrated sigh, "Do we know what kind of frequency it works on?"

"Again… Not without tearing it open… and I mean I would have to tear it open." Logan sits back in the chair and folds his hands.

Mick rubs his forehead. He had placed a lot of hope in this thing. His phone began to ring in his pocket. Talbot was calling and Mick could hear the agitation in his voice.

"I need to talk to you… now."

"Meet me at my place downtown." Mick ended the call. "Ben's coming over."

Logan nodded, still poking around the device, "This piece goes over the ear, but IT doesn't transmit sound? And this part… you said you pulled out of the guys shirt?" Mick nodded. "…it sticks to the skin, but I can't tell if it has a purpose other then to hold the dang thing in place, and the brain of this gadget… I don't know… you won't let me look inside it." He gave Mick a hopeful look…

"No."

"Who's Ben?" His mind seemed to do a rewind to a conversation Logan had ignored.

"Ah… Beth's boss."

"Oh… Ben Talbot."

"You know him?" Mick raised his eyebrows.

"I get around, I know things, I'm a social creature too, just 'cause you don't see me leave my basement… often, doesn't mean…"

Mick rolled his eyes.

Logan continued, "I do have friends too, living ones, that I see in real life…"

Mick cut him off, "So you heard Josef talking about him?"

Logan clamped his jaw shut, looked around the floor and slowly nodded.

Ben was about to knock on the loft door when the door to the office swung open. Beyond Mick some techno geek with curly hair was fidgeting with something electronic. Did that guy just flash me the Vulcan, live long and prosper sign... or is it V for vampire... shit, I'm losing it.
"That's Logan, he's ok." Mick looked over a tense Talbot, and noted his elevated heart rate.

"The Legion wants me to have another face to face meeting with them. I can't tell them where Beth is... they want to know about you. They've seen us meet."

"Heh," Mick smiles a grim and satisfied smile.

Talbot thinks, If anyone saw that look, they'd believe in vampires.

"Tell them the truth; you're covering up the relationship of vamps to the runaways and prostitutes who've been killed. Ask them if they want that exposed or are the just interested in killing vamps."

"I don't think if I could pull off your dead-man-walking attitude, Mick." Talbot says straightening up a bit. "I can be outraged," Talbot corrects himself, "I am outraged over the killings." He nods over to Logan, "is that what you were talking about? What you found in Alaska?"

"What!" Logan looks alarmed and moves out from behind the desk, leaving the device. "Who's being killed by vamps? Do I know them?"

Talbot looks at Logan like a suspect, "Hey, I've had to scrounge like any other vampire, but no one should die. I don't drink fresh anymore."

"You're the second vampire to say that to me." Talbot turns his attention to the device on the table and casually picks it up.

"Don't do that, dude!"

"What did I just mess with your Tri-corder, Wesley Crusher?"

"Whoa! What did you do?" Logan approached Ben like he was a time bomb.

"Nothing… I just picked it up."

Logan turned to Mick, "…he must have pressed a button… to turn it on."

"There's no button… here," Talbot puts the device back on the desk and it goes dead.

"Shit!" Logan picks up the now dead device and looks back at Ben with a scowl, then begins to smile at him.

"What?" Ben and Mick ask in unison.

"Bioelectromagnetism!" Logan proclaimed. Mick and Ben looked at each other.

"What are you talking about Logan, Bio-what?

"You know, biorhythms, electrophysiology," Logan looked at the two blank faces. "It runs on your body's energy, man! Your human energy!"

Ben looked at Mick and raised his eyebrows. Mick shook his head, and mouthed "clever".

"Man I need to borrow you," Logan began directing Ben towards the computer. Ben shot a pleading look towards Mick, "He's harmless…. Really."

Mick's phone began to ring again, this time with an unknown caller.

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One Republic – Apologize

Beth's hand trembled as she waited for Mick to answer his phone. She was overwhelmed by her guilt. Oscar had told her over and over it was the allure. But to Beth it felt the same as cheating. Her heart stopped the moment Mick answered.

"St. John…" She closed her eyes tight the tears falling as she tried to swallow a sob.

"Mick…" She covered her eyes and pulled her legs to her chest wanting to crawl inside herself. How could this have happened?

"Beth?" Every alarm inside Mick's head went off. Her voice sounded small, something was terribly wrong. "Beth, are you okay?" Mick turned away from Logan and Ben, walking to the main part of his loft out of hearing range. Mick's breathing increased involuntarily as he sensed Beth was in danger.

"You know I love you, right?" She choked the words out, her fear and need to tell him was overwhelming her.

"Of course I do… Beth, what's wrong? What happened?" He could feel his anger building. Why is she crying? He started to pace back and forth in front of his couch, he looked around waiting for her to answer.

"I… A vampire fed from me… I don't know what happened. I… I was standing there, and talking and then... and… I… Oscar said it was… allure... Mick, I'm sorry, please, forgive me, please… I didn't want to, everything in my head was telling him to stop, nothing came out, I thought of you and then Oscar came in and then… I… I'm sorry." She started to sob harder and Mick's eyes iced over and his fangs elongated. It took all he had not to demand to know where she was. He closed his eyes and focused his thoughts.

"Oscar… Oscar's right… Allure, it's… It's like mind control. You, you don't have a say in what's going on. Beth, there's nothing to forgive… You didn't know. I love you, Beth." Beth hiccupped through her sobs as she listened to Mick's voice.

"You… you're not angry?" She said quietly, her voice still shaking.

"Of course not, baby, not at you… You're… You're safe now though, right?" His voice was as gentle as he could make it as Mick felt the sting of tears and a lump in his throat. He placed his hand against the wall and leaned forward. His heart was aching for Beth again. When would this all be over?

Beth nodded yes before she spoke. "Yes… I'm okay, it's just…" Her voice drifted off. Mick could feel his heart break for her, her pain was making her lose focus. He turned to look at Talbot and Logan again and he realized, normal, she needed normal.

"I ah… Would you believe Talbot and I have been going for drinks?" He forced a smile and a chuckle as he heard her giggle a little in return.

"Mick, I... I look like a kid in an Emo band." She looked at her clothes and her wrist, her stomach lurched. Mick's gentle laugh made her snap back to his voice.

"I bet you look beautiful even as an Emo wannabe." Beth smiled and even blushed a little as she listened to Mick's rich voice."I'm still at Josef's, Dad won't let me move out." Beth's laugh brightened a little through the sting of her tears.

"I love you, I love you… so much. And I miss you." Beth tears started again as she leaned her head into her hand.

"I love you too. And I miss you, God, I miss you…" Mick's voice broke as tears started down his face.

Oscar looked at Beth and then took the phone from her to speak to Mick.

"She's fine, just shook up. I reassured her she had done nothing wrong." Mick fought back a growl and then straightened completely.

"Did you...?" He pinched the bridge of his nose, his anger and need for blood almost too much.

"Of course, I took care of it." Oscar said through his usual cold and reassuring voice.

"Good. Keep her safe, Oscar. I need her back." Mick hung up his phone, wiping his nose with his thumb. He swallowed and then went back over to Logan, his mind desperately needed to focus on the job of fighting the Legion…

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I stand looking over a city that is quietly raging a war. Sides are being drawn and I worry that the casualties we suffer will ultimately be too great.

I've spent the past twenty three years shielding Beth from my world, protecting her from the darkness and evil that lays within. And I found out today not only has she seen it, she's suffered at the hands of it. And worse, I wasn't there to protect her from it. I've been pulled from a role that I felt was only mine, and now I'm forced to depend on another.

I worry, worry to how she'll see me from now on, and how much more will it cost us, how much of her innocence and humanity will be taken away.

I see Talbot, once just a hard edged lawyer, now as someone who witnessed a murder as a child who now knows that the term "MONSTERS" doesn't only apply to drug lords and rapists. He's been exposed to our world in more ways than one and now is dealing with its addictive side.

I long to have Beth back, to be able to go back to where things used to be. But I also fear what is to come when this is finally over.

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