This chapter and the next one will be from Grace's POV, because I really want to ithoroughly introduce her character.
But chapter 6 will be Godric's POV :)
Grace was standing in the elevator, dreading the confrontation with her hierarchy that was bound to come. Given the circumstances, she may even be heard by the commander of the division himself, Deputy Chief Morris.
Some officers happened to be quite narrow-minded about vampires, and she knew they would refuse point blank to see that keeping the prisoner wasn't a viable option. Some might go as far as dramatically calling her action "fraternizing with the enemy". Which would be quite ironic, really, since her general feelings towards vampires were, in fact, less than brotherly. But she would never allow her personal feelings about them to cloud her judgment.
Of course, she could tell the events so as to make it sound like the sheriff had threatened her into giving up the prisoner. But not only would that would be untrue, it would also back up the prejudice and reinforce the hatred against his kind, when what the city needed was for each species to take a step towards the other. And in any case, given the presence of security cameras in the basement cells room, it was probable that the whole event had been filmed, and even without sound it would be perfectly clear that she had taken the initiative to call him back.
The elevator reached her floor level with a ding. She squared her shoulder and raised her chin ever so slightly, taking a deep breath as she stepped out of it. As she had expected, the room was buzzing with what seemed to be hot news. And since her small desk was located at the back left corner of the open space, she'd have to cross the room in front of everyone.
But as she passed by desk after desk, no one looked up at her. She got the same greetings, some dismissive, some polite, some cheerful, as she usually did. As she reached her place, she spotted Hemming, who occupied the desk in front of her, standing near the coffee machine. She hastily threw her jacket over the back of her chair before walking up to him.
- "So what's the big news?" she asked casually, inserting a coin into the coffee machine.
- "Late as usual, eh?" he mocked.
- "Bah. Everyone knows that I'm not much of an early riser" she answered with a wink as the machine biped to indicate that her cappuccino was ready. "And that I compensate by staying later." she added, taking a sip from the beverage, and immediately remembering why she usually brought her own thermos.
- "I know, just messing with you", the blond cop said with a smile. "Anyways, something went wrong with the security system yesterday evening. Everything that was filmed until 1:15 AM was lost, and the cameras stopped working after that until the 7:00 AM shift."
1:15AM. Right about the time the sheriff came in, Grace thought, tapping her index against the plastic cup.
- "Electric failure?" she inquired, anticipating the answer.
- "Nope", Hemmming said, shaking his head. "Wouldn't have caused the loss of what had already been recorded. No, the only possibility is that somebody messed up with the system, but it couldn't have been done from the outside. Only, Gunder and Stevens were standing watch, and they swear no one entered the station."
Grace frowned, absent-mindedly stirring her coffee. Those two had actually not only seen her bring the vampire in, they had also helped her carry him to the basement. A detail they weren't likely to ever forget. So if they didn't remember that, it probably meant that their memories of the night had been altered. And she knew exactly who happened to have the ability to do just that.
With no cam footage and no witness, it was as if no vampire had ever set foot there.
Smooth, she privately congratulated the sheriff, and she started heading back to her desk.
- "But there's something else, too" Hemming said, raising a finger in front of him as he seemed to remember something, and Grace froze. "A man came in this morning, one I've never seen here before. Didn't care to introduce himself to us, but he's been with Morris for a good 45 minutes now. And Davis's in there too" he added with a nod towards the deputy chief's office.
Ah. She thought she might have an idea what this was about, but needed to confirm it. So she waited until she could speak with the older detective.
An hour later, Morris was stepping out of his office, and she watched as he held the door for a man dressed in a black suit, who briefly shook hands with him before walking towards the elevator. Finally, she thought, believing that Davis would leave too and that she'd be able to ask him what it was all about. But Morris stepped back in, closing the door on him and the detective.
Needless to say, not much work was accomplished this morning. Grace kept glancing towards the office and when finally – finally – they came out, her heart clenched. She couldn't see the commander's face, he had his back to her. But Davis looked dead serious, with a hint of concern, an expression he didn't wear very often. He walked away, and her eyes followed him as he went back to his office. He seemed completely absorbed in his thoughts, mechanically rubbing his chin with one hand. Obviously, right now would be a very bad timing to go talk to him. With a sigh, Grace resigned herself to waiting until the afternoon.
At 4:00 PM, she gathered a couple of random files to look like she had an excuse to go and talk to Davis. The door to his office was closed – something he only ever did when he needed to keep a conversation private. And yet, through the glass door she could see that he was neither in a meeting nor on the phone. His eyes were on his computer, but she could tell he wasn't really focusing on whatever he was doing.
She raised her hand to the door and knocked. He looked up from his screen, and with a tiny nod gestured her in.
- "I'm sorry Park, but now is not a good time" he said, once she had moved closer to his desk.
- "Sir, it's about the case you're investigating, the one about the assaults…"
- "We're not exactly investigating it anymore" he interrupted her, his jaw clenching. "But I'm afraid I can't share any more information with you about it" he added, looking apologetic.
- "I was just wondering," she started, not knowing quite how to formulate her interrogations, "this meeting you had with the Deputy Chief this morning… Did it have anything to do with, er, the sheriff?" she asked. The question didn't make much sense, but she figured that if it was about that, Davis would understand where she was getting at. And if it wasn't, he'd think she was talking about a random human sheriff and would ask her to elaborate.
Option 1, she thought to herself as his eyes narrowed, the muscles in his shoulder tensing. She was still standing in front of his desk.
- "Close the door," he instructed quietly, "and take a sit." She did as she was told and for a moment he only surveyed her with an unreadable expression. Then he started talking again. "The man who was here this morning works for the vampire sheriff. He came here to tell us that the perpetrator of the recent attacks had been arrested, and was being kept into custody on the sheriff's premises." He laid back in his armchair, and started rubbing his chin again. "Apparently, since the victims were human, the sheriff feels that we should be granted access to the prisoner should we wish to interrogate him. And that, in any case, he ought to keep us informed us about the different stages of the procedure." Davis paused, and his eyes wandered away from Grace. When he spoke again, he seemed to be talking to himself rather than her. "This doesn't make any sense. I've never heard vampires share information about how they deal with their criminals." He frowned. "I didn't even know that they so much as dealt with their criminals. That blonde woman on TV's been talking about how vampire laws ban any acts of violence against humans, but to think that they actually have a law enforcement system…" His voice trailed away as his eyes met hers again, and he seemed to remember her presence. "Anyways", he said after clearing his throat, and his voice had lost its dreamy edge "what do you know about all that?"
Grace took a moment to ponder her words. And then she told him everything about the previous night's events, starting from when she had recognized the vampire at the bar.
Davis grabbed a pen and started tapping it onto his desk in a slow rhythm. Once she was finished talking, the only sound she could hear in the room for a whole minute was that of plastic against wood.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
And then he carefully rested the pen onto his desk, before asking:
- "Park, are you completely out of your mind?" He sounded almost casual, his expression blank. Uh oh. She knew Davis. The calmer he appeared, the more angry he was.
She didn't know what to think of it. She had expected heated reactions from other officers, but Davis was reasonable and she had thought he'd side with her. But when she tried justifying herself, he interrupted her flatly.
- "I'm not talking about what happened in the station. I'm talking about you thinking you could take down a vampire on your own, without bothering to follow protocol." His voice was losing its cool edge.
- "Sir", she answered, "There was no time to follow protocol. I'm perfectly qualified to apprehend a suspect without -"
- "A human suspect, yes!" he interrupted, jumping to his feet, his palms pressed against his desk as he hunched over it. "But a vampire? A vampire, Park? Alone? With no weapon? And no back up? And absolutely no one knowing what you were up to?" He took a deep breath before he went on. When he did, his voice was once more under control. "I know you're quick to act. Daring, even. But you're not a hothead, Park. You're not reckless. You think before you act, you don't get carried away, and that's why things work out so well. So tell me, what were you thinking?" He sat back and crossed his arms over his chest as his eyes locked with hers.
Grace swallowed. She clenched her fingers around the arms of her chair. She wanted to explain, to say that that she hadn't allowed self-confidence to get the best of her, that she hadn't just gotten away with it out of sheer luck. But for that she'd need to spill secrets that she didn't want to let out. Although she had always gotten top marks at every physical test, she had always been very careful not let her actual strength show. Nor could she tell him that she had undergone years of hellish training with no less than a vampire, making her perfectly able to defend herself against them. OK, maybe not perfectly, but really not too bad for a human.
- "He would have attacked someone else, Sir. I had to do something." She answered through gritted teeth. That was all she could find.
- "Oh, that you did" he replied, and Grace's eyes widened slightly at that reaction. "You had to find a way to contact me so that we could determine a plan of action."
- "But there was no time!" she protested again.
- "No time? No time?" He hissed "How long did you stay at the bar before leaving with him?"
- "A couple of hours" she answered reluctantly, seeing where that was going.
- "Exactly. Enough for me to come with back-up." His tone was final.
Grace dropped her eyes, and remained silent. She couldn't argue with that, leaving her with nothing else to say.
Damn. This was so not what she had expected.
She had known Davis for a long time. He had worked under her father's orders, and had looked out for her ever since she had entered the police. When she had been promoted to detective, he had told her that her father would be proud of her. Other people had, too, but their words didn't mean as much as his did, since he'd been so close to her dad. She had actually thought he'd say it again when she managed to catch a wanted murderer, once so powerful at that. But instead there was this cold disappointment, which felt like the worst thing she had ever experienced.
- "Are there going to be sanctions?" She asked from the tip of her lips, feeling that she might be sick. Breaking the protocol for apprehending a suspect wasn't enough to suspend her, especially since it hadn't resulted in any harm, but any disciplinary sanctions would look bad on her file.
He took a moment to answer.
- "No. This remains between us. But if I ever were thinking to associate you with this…" he seemed to be searching for words "collaboration thing with vampires, you can forget about that now."
She nodded, feeling just a bit lighter. If Davis believed that she'd have liked to be part of this unprecedented procedure, and that keeping her away from it made for a suitable punishment, then let him think so. Truth was, now that the threat had been dealt with, she was quite content to stay away from any more vampires. But she certainly wasn't going to tell him that.
Then Davis told her to be on her way, and she hurried back to her desk. The first thing she did was grab her phone, and text Hye Na.
Hey coz', she typed. You free tonight? I may use a friend. And a drink.
Rather more than one, she thought as she pressed send.
It only took a few minutes until she felt her phone buzz on the table, and she smiled upon seeing her cousin's answer. At least she had something to look forward to.
At 6:00 PM, she gathered her things, jumped into her car and drove home. After a long, warm bath her cousin showed up and they ordered delivery food, which they ate in front of a cheesy movie Hye Na had picked up. She had brought a delicious wine that complemented the food perfectly.
- "So tell me girly. What's bothering you?" Hye Na asked, turning the TV off as the movie came to an end. "Boys problem? I never thought I'd see the day when I'd be discussing boys problems with you. Is it about the guy from yesterday?" She inquired compassionately.
- "Well, I guess you could say it is about the guy from yesterday…" Grace started, and then, for the second time that day she went over the details of the the previous night's events. Only, her cousin couldn't have reacted more differently than Davis.
- "No fucking way!" she exclaimed. "I can't believe you beat that vampire's bloody ass – pardon the pun. That is. SO. Cool." She picked up the wine bottle from where it was sitting on the table, refilled their glasses and handed Grace hers. She raised her hand in a mock toast. "To my cousin, the Vampire Slayer!" She said dramatically. Grace rolled her eyes, but still took a sip. "No, I'm serious" Hye Na went on, looking everything but that "I may just start calling you Buffy. Oh and if you ever meet Angel, you have to introduce me!" she added with a devilish wink.
Grace stuck out her tongue to her, before filling her in with Davis' reaction. Her cousin shook her head.
- "Ok, maybe that wasn't the smartest thing to do" she agreed. "But you know what would have happened if you hadn't gone to him? I would have. And he would have said yes, because no one says no to that" she said, bringing her hands to her face and then running them down her perfect figure "and who knows if I'd still be there?"
Grace pressed her lips together, resting her head on her cousin's shoulder.
- "Yeah. I guess so. But the look on his face…"
- "I know sweetheart. I know that you see him as a substitute father, and trust me, I know all about fatherly disapproval." Hye Na said, placing an arm around her shoulder.
She herself was a journalist, something her very rich business man of a father didn't quite approve of. Had the choice been up to him, his daughter would have been a doctor. Or a lawyer. Hell, even a proper journalist would have been acceptable, one who wrote about the financial crisis or the war in the Middle-East. But Hye Na didn't really write about what he considered to be "serious news". She rather preferred investigating "hot stuff", like scandals concerning politicians and other celebrities really.
- "But I'm sure he really was just very worried about what could have happened to you." She added, grooming Grace's head. "He cares about you, and some people tend to get jumpy when their loved ones are in danger. Sounds like anyone you may know?" she asked innocently. Grace smiled. She knew her cousin referred to how over-protective she tended to be towards her two younger siblings. Their parents had died when those two were just babies, and their grand-parents had taken the three of them in, but for all their amazing job with the kids ,it was Grace who had practically raised them herself.
- "Hey, I've gotten better at giving them their private space!" She countered feebly.
- "Of course you have, honey! Since you've moved in on your own and started working over hours, you've only been calling them every single day! I mean, what kind of older sister doesn't do that?" her cousin agreed mockingly.
Grace grabbed a pillow from the couch and punched her lightly with it.
- "Anyways" she said, figuring it was time to change the subject, "what's up with your job?"
- "Ah now, I'm glad you're asking about it!" Suddenly, the journalist was looking very mysterious. "I've been given free rein from the redaction to – wait for it – infiltrate the Fellowship of the Sun and write an article about them!" She beamed.
- "The Fellowship of the Sun?" Grace inquired skeptically. "Those lunatics who claim we ought to stake every vampire on earth? Well, I wonder who's Buffy now!" she concluded sarcastically.
- "Oh you may laugh, my dear" her cousin said in a dignified tone, throwing back her sheet of long black hair in an elegant gesture "but it's very serious matter. Steve Newlin's words carry throughout the country, he's been gathering more and more fanatics, and word is spreading that they're preparing for spectacular action. And you should see the registration fees he asks for - real business man, that one. My father could take a leaf out of his book." She said, looking disgusted.
Grace rubbed her hand against her cousin's arm sympathetically.
- "Ok, to be honest with you, I'd rather have written about vampires. But my redaction won't let me infiltrate their networks. Apparently, my contract expressly forbids me from covering dangerous events such as wars and anything that may potentially put my physical or moral integrity at risk. And my boss interprets this clause as not allowing me anywhere near vampires. I mean, tell me about prejudices, right!" she exclaimed, scandalized.
- "Totally. Absolutely unjustified" Grace said, vigorously nodding her head in agreement while privately thanking Hye Na's boss. This girl had a natural talent for attracting trouble, so best not push her luck. "But really, the Fellowship of the Sun sounds quite exciting," she added.
After all, what trouble could arise from researching material to write about a church?