Love Keeps you Busy

Perplexed, Bothered, Bewildered, Vicki's new agency got off to a slow start, but she was picking up business and the cases were varied and for the most part interesting. She spent hours looking into the occult, consulting with Henry and Dr. Sagara. She also contacted Coreen, who was more than willing to give her a list of books she would need to read if she was going to be considered well versed in the subject. Coreen took the time to fill in Vicki on the changes happening in her life but declined the offer to come and work for her again, implying she had had enough of the weird to last a life time. Vicki decided not to tell her Henry was back or that she herself was becoming vampire. Some things were better left unsaid and in Vicki's opinion the sharing of that information was one of them.

The other big change in the agency was that she didn't have an office, but rather worked from a small diner two blocks over from the apartment she shared with Henry. It was cheaper and safer to meet potential clients in a public place. With internet access, phone and fax capabilities she didn't need an office or the extra expenses. Henry had offered to pay for everything, but Vicki wanted to keep as much of her independence as possible and made it known when it came to her agency, she was footing the bills. Rent, utilities, and household expenses were left up to Henry. Their mutual food choices kept the grocery bills minimal.

Vicki was meeting a new client at the diner and watched the older woman approach as she took out one of Vicki's new business cards and lay it on the table saying, "I'm bothered, perplexed and bewildered by my daughter's behavior." Then she took out a tissue to dry her eyes as she sat on the seat Vicki pointed to.

Vicki had sat across from emotional wrecks many times in the past as a police officer and she had learned to sit and wait patiently until the person calmed down enough to talk. This woman fell into the be patient and wait category. In a series of stops and starts, Vicki got the picture of a single mother with an only daughter that didn't listen or talk to her mother. Inwardly, Vicki could relate to both, since she had been the daughter in a similar situation. Apparently this woman's daughter had turned to a cult.

Lelia Anders dried her eyes a final time and asked, "Will you help me get my daughter back?"

Vicki answered, "I can try. There're no guarantees. Your daughter's almost eighteen and soon will be considered an adult. I can look into the alleged group she's with, try to let her know you care, but I can't force her to come home. Before I accept the case I'll need partial payment as a retainer then we'll work out a fee schedule according to the amount of time needed to complete the assignment. You'll have the right to stop the investigation at any point and you'll be entitled to all the information obtained after I've received payment in full."

"This isn't cheap."

"No, it's not. But I'll give one hundred percent of my energy to your case and if I need an assistant, I'll pay for it, not you."

Lelia got out a check book and asked, "What's three days going to cost."

Vicki named a dollar amount. Lelia flinched, wrote the check and handed it over saying, "She's my only child, but I'm not rich. Please try to get to her before it costs too much for me to continue paying."

Vicki took the check and looked down at the amount and noted the address where Lelia Anders lived and said, "I'll be able to work on this 24/7 for the next few days. From what you've told me and my past experience, I should be able to give you a chance to talk with your daughter within a day or two."

"How can you do that?"

"I can't share my sources, but they're solid and reliable. If I were you, I'd make sure I worked on what I want to say to my daughter when I saw her. This, more than likely, could be your only chance to reach her."

Vicki and Lelia got up from the diner's booth at the same time. Vicki paid for both beverages and told Lelia she'd call her with an update within twenty four hours.

Vicki walked back to the apartment as the sun set and inwardly smiled knowing Henry would be there to greet her. Having him in her life proved to be her greatest pleasure and her greatest challenge.

She knocked on the door before unlocking it, after learning the hard way it wasn't smart to try and sneak up on a vampire.

Henry was in the process of hanging up the phone as she knocked and unlocked the door. He moved forward to greet her with a kiss and a question, "So you're still able to be out in the daylight, are you?"

Vicki took her time returning his kiss, allowing the half formed vampire in her to rise and let its hunger be felt by his. "I can't go out between eleven and four and that hasn't changed for weeks. If I take a nap during that time, I'm able to stay awake with you all night. So, in other words, I'm adapting."

Henry listened to her words as the inner beast demanded he feed from its favorite 'food' and said out loud, "Maybe we should accept things the way they are and quit looking for an answer." His eyes became dark and he didn't stop himself from picking up her wrist. He raised an eyebrow in question and Vicki nodded yes. His bite was quick and sharp. She sighed and leaned against him as he fed. The sharing of passion between them was so far beyond the act of intercourse it defied description. All their nerve endings tingled as they became one and time stood still. When the wound closed, he offered his wrist in turn, she looked into his eyes and smiled. He saw that her fangs were more noticeable than previously and smiled back. She bit down on the offered wrist and was able to break his skin with her fangs for the first time. A drop of Henry's blood welled up and she delicately lapped at it. It kept bleeding longer than usual so that they were able to enjoy a second feeding within moments of the first.

By the clock, only five minutes had passed, but emotionally it was hours. Vicki spoke first, "I'd like to know the why, but after that, if this is the way it will always be between us, it will be just fine with me."

"We'll find out the why of it. I was on the phone with Augustus as you knocked. He has a lead on Xenethia. I'm almost positive she'll be able to give us some answers. How did your day go?"

Vicki told him about Lelia Anders and her daughter Lisa. "From the little bit Lelia told me about her daughter's last few weeks at home, I have an idea."

"What's that?"

"Would you like to visit Sinead?"

"Not really and why do you want me to visit her?"

Vicki realized they were still leaning against the wall and went over to the living room to sit on the couch. Henry followed and sat on the coffee table across from her waiting for her to continue, "Sinead doesn't like me. For that matter, almost every woman that knows you, doesn't like me."

"It's jealously. You've accomplished something that none of the others have ever managed to do."

"What's that?"

"You've captured me."

Vicki laughed, "I'm not so sure of that. Maybe you captured me."

The winning smile Henry was so proud of danced around his lips as he laughed, "We've captured each other. No way around it. We're caught good and proper. There's no escaping what we have together."

"I'm not going to try to escape and I strongly suggest you don't either."

Henry held out his hand for her to shake. Together they said, "Agreed."

"Back to the case, Lelia's daughter is involved with a group that pulled her away from home. I'm thinking it's some kind of cult or witch's coven. Sinead is the only witch I know and she talks to you."

Henry confirmed, "She's a witch that dabbles in the occult. Quite successfully, I might add. If I approach it the right way, I might learn of a new movement. She's tried her spells on me once too often so I'm not going to her shop and I'm not going to meet her in any isolated places."

"That's up to you. I'll contact some friends on the force who follow gang activity while you try getting something from your witch."

Henry sighed thinking about Sinead, "Not my witch, but together we had our moments."

Vicki put her hand on Henry's knee and asked, "Regrets?"

"None. Just thinking about the good times. Every relationship leaves its mark. It's the remembering the good parts without letting the bad parts get you down that's the key to a long, happy life. A vampire's sanity hinges on the ability to live in the now and let the past go."

"Speaking of the past, tell me more about Xenethia."

"She's older than dirt, and some even say that she placed the hanging stones at Stonehenge. I've seen her once. All the vampires living today are descended from her one way or another. She's elusive and a vampire may hear about her once every other century or so. The Augustus family are the only ones that have any idea how to get in touch with her. I've put out the word I need her, and only she knows if and when she'll get back to me."