Chapter Six: Catnip and Mousetrap
Gabriel had kneeled down on one knee for quite some time now. He hardly breathed, his eyes scrutinizing images beyond the shutter-paneled window. His back was slightly hunched; he rocked on the soles of his heels as if to pounce. The rhythmic ticking of the cuckoo clock did not water-down the tension very well. A frown furrowed his brow; he had called Adrian over an hour ago. Where was the damn man? His hand slipped into his pocket and came out empty. He reached in several times, frantic. Where was the picture? Gabriel cursed himself for his stupidity then and now. He sighed in resign and sat down with his back against the peeling wall.
He chuckled bitterly and quoted from Faiz Ahmed Faiz: "For a moment, I really believed/That you alone gave meaning/To my withered love". His voice softened to a low whisper at the last line. The poem was beautiful in Arabic.
His old hiding place. This was where he fist started in this run-down, miniature apartment. No one had bothered to clean the place up in a few decades. This was where he always hid during the World Wars. He crawled over to an old drawer desk and opened the bottom drawer. Inside was a gun loaded with silver nitrate bullets with a special kick to it. Thank you, Rowan, he smiled reluctantly. Poison made from vampires for vampires. He made sure it was fully loaded and pocketed some extra cartridges just in case. Now where was that vecrobelt?
"Could you kill the woman you love?" Gabriel asked the air.
She is not the woman you love anymore, the air answered. Just a shell without a soul.
"That would mean I do not have a soul either," he murmured.
Let me alter my last phrase. Then how do you live? You would be a mere killing machine with no restraints, emotions, personality, reason, and—
"And what?" the vampire demanded.
Your brain sends millions of electrical pulses every minute. So you and I, we are no better than well-developed computer programs.
"The Matrix?" he humored flatly. Gabriel frowned at the thought.
You cannot function if your brain is not alive. Your body needs fresh hemoglobin to—Indeed, you are 'undead', but—
But what? But what? Answer me? Gabriel cried out in his mind, trying to box that mind demon and strangle the answers out of it. The voice was gone. I take back that thank you, Ro. He looked up at the clock. Five o'clock pm. When night comes, there will no boundaries. He closed his troubled burgundy eyes and for the first time in awhile, slept.
Laughter. The smell of wildflowers. Her clear and bubble laughter rang beautifully in my ear. My hand enveloped hers and lips pressed against lips. Her cheeks blushed beautifully like natural rouge and only made me love her more. Her dark blonde hair tresses were caught by the wind and they flowed like a meringue cloud. Sailboats traveled past us and I learned against the metal railings and grinned crookedly.
"Be careful not to fall into the harbor," she mused.
"I'll take you down with me," I snorted. Her face was mortified.
"I'm wearing a white dress, Gabriel!" she pouted. "Do you know what happens to cold water and white clothing?"
"Then don't jinx it," I teased.
I kissed her pouty lips, taking in her delicious scent. She smelled even better than a field of lilies. Her face turned stark white.
"Gabriel!" she exclaimed. "You're fading!" I reassured her that I would not disappear.
"You better not", she growled.
My laughter joined hers and together they made a fairy's melody.
"Let's take a picture, she suggested.
"Lucia," I started to say.
"You won't show on camera," she whispered disappointed. My grin stretched from ear to ear. I ruffled her hair.
Lucia ran off to find a person to take a photo of us. I pocketed my hands and watched with amusement. I was already becoming translucent. Too many hours in the sun and I would cease to exist. I could have those anti-ultraviolet ray windows installed. I heard my name shouted from a distance. There was she, an innocent nymph tugging along a dazed middle-age man. I felt somewhat sorry for him. He never knew what had hit him. Lucia told the man what to do with rapid speech and a disarming smile. I shuddered at dazzlements. Smile, kiddies, the man said. Click.
"Sir, sir?" Adrian shook the slumbering vampire. Gabriel work to find emerald eyes peering sadly at him.
"What took you so long?" the brunette man muttered.
"I deeply apologize, sir. She recognized me! Now she's twice as determined now!" the butler whispered hoarsely.
Gabriel groaned and nodded gravely. This was worse than a college frat party. He looked between the shutter panels. It was evening.
"Damn! Damn! Damn" cursed Lucia as she glanced over her shoulder and saw the trio of police cars speeding after her. The speedometer rose to a dangerous 135 mph. His laughter rang loudly through the open sunroof and nearly matched the shrieking of the sirens. The vampiress bended down and tied the ribbons of her high hells to the gas pedal to keep it weight down. Lucia crouched on the leather seat and shimmered her upper body through the sunroof. The fierce, screeching wind whipped her hair at her face.
"See ya, suckers," her laughter turned into a triumphant howl. Lucia flew past her limo as a blonde and white streak. The bare feet and smoldering pavement were going to leave blisters. Ouch.
The police cars followed after the empty limo.
"Hey, Mike?" police officer number one asked.
"Yeah?" said policed officer number two.
"Who the hell is driving that thing?" police officer number one commented.
"Dunno," said policed officer number three over the radio.
"Hey, watch out—," the limo rammed into a brick wall of a warehouse. Fumes and flames went poof like a mushroom cloud after the nuclear bombs dropped. The first police car skidded to a stop several meters away. However, fate and momentum made police officer number two slam right into the rear bumper and policed officer number three to ram into the side with the gasoline tank. This in turn would cause police officer number one's car to rotate several circles and then flip into the blazing mound of a limo. Of course, that would send part of the engine through police officer number three's windshield and his skull and a fiery skull of a wheel at police officer number two. Police officer number two rolled out of his car, screaming to Mary for saving for his hellish torture. Any moment now, the fire extinguisher guy would come in and put out the blazing stuntman. Nah, we will just let him burn to death. The warehouse, too, leapt in flames. The spirits were going to have a feast tonight. Flesh, metal, glass, wood and cardboard boxes. The fire emitted a contrasting orange glow against the navy evening sky.
Smoke. Cries of pain. The image of skin and flesh peeling off the bone, hair dropping off the skulls in clumps and the blackened eyeballs popping made Gabriel's stomach churn. He squinted out the window and growled at the orange spot in the distance.
"She's getting closer," Adrian echoed his master's thoughts.
"Hmm, she's not a very good tracker. Too many mistakes and dramatics. Like a Mission Impossible movie," Gabriel murmured.
The vampire rose to his feet and headed for the door. Her butler started to follow but Gabriel raised his hand to signal stop.
"You will have to trust me on this," he said. "Do not follow me. Hide until all of this over."
Adrian opened his mouth to argue, but reconsidered. The vampire turned around and kissed his friend on the cheek and swiftly left with a whoosh.