"You remember Josep, do you not?" Colette asked from her throne-like chair. Isaac nodded once. When he did little else, Colette motioned to the couch across from her. "Sit, boy, you and your plaything."

Isaac's jaw clenched, though I might have been the only one who noticed. He dragged me into the room and pulled me onto the couch beside him.

"Months ago I was sent word that my dearest Josep had left for Bavaria. He wished to live with Amhlaoibh."

I frowned a bit and glanced between them. Was that a name?

"I wasn't aware that Olaf fancied the boys." Isaac replied with a tiny smirk. His mistress only sighed, gesturing mildly.

"Amhlaoibh fancied everything recently. Perhaps it was his downfall."

Isaac suddenly lost his humor, posture going stiff and tense. "Olaf is dead? But, how? He was an Ancient."

"We do not know quite how it happened." Colette smiled in an almost sad way, "He had been so distant lately, hunting little, if ever. It is possible he did not fight because he simply didn't wish to. Common enough in those who have lived to see everything about the world they knew change." Then her gaze snapped up to us. "But this is not the point. What we do know is that Josep was responsible, and as is my right, I will claim his blood in retribution."

"And you wish for me to bring him to you." Isaac sighed "Very well. Where will I find him?"

Colette's smile was cold as she watched her childe closely, gauging his reaction to her next words.

"He has fled to the old world." She spoke slowly, "I am told he hides himself in Windsor forest."

Beside me, Isaac stiffened. I turned in time to watch his eyes widen, but the expression vanished quickly. Was he actually frightened? Was that possible? This was far from reassuring.

"And I am to what? Waltz in and out with him?" He spoke softly, not lifting his eyes to his mistress. "Have I displeased you?"

Colette laughed her soft tinkling laugh, and raised her head. "Never, my sweet. It is because I trust you that I ask you to do this. Who else would try for me?" When he only glanced blankly up at her, she sighed. "You will be rewarded for your trials, boy."

"If I still live." he snapped.

I looked between the two, gnawing my lip anxiously. This was starting to turn ugly. I could feel the air around me cooling as if the vampires were sucking the warmth right out of it. Colette's pretty blue eyes narrowed, the pupils swelling to consume them until they were completely black. Her fingers curled around the carved arms of her wooden throne like claws and she peeled her lips back against elongated fangs.

"You will bring me Josep alive." her voice was all power, a thousand voices in one. It seemed to fill the room and yet she spoke in a level tone. I pressed back into my seat as she gazed at Isaac. "He has brought Final Death on an Ancient and will be punished for his crimes."

"Yes, my lady. But-"

"You will bring me Josep, or you will take his place."

Isaac's jaw clenched, but he bowed his head in submission. "It will be done, my lady."

For an endless moment, I thought Colette would attack, but slowly the room grew warm again and she released the arms of her throne. (the wood now sported deep indentsions where her fingers had been)

"Do this quickly, Isaac. I am not the only one who waits for his blood."

The vampire nodded and stood. I noticed that his eyes were black, though his expression was otherwise empty. He gave a short bow, then stormed from the room. Usually, I was happy to see his go, but now that it meant I was alone in a room full of monsters...yeah, not so thrilled. Searching the small gathering, I noticed that Sanura had disappeared as well. Her whereabouts weren't hard to guess though.

"You look cornered." Ryan surprised me by stepping up to my side. his smile was dazzling, if a little forced.

"What does that mean?" I asked, sitting strait. The shadow sipped a glass of amber something from Isaac's small bar, and chuckled.

"You know that panicked expression people get when they're trapped or surrounded?"

I offered him a feint smile, "Yes, well. I'm still not used to this."

"It gets easier." he promised.

"You mean eventually I won't feel like they're all just waiting to kill me?"

Ryan's eyes snapped nervously around the study, and he frowned. "It would help if you wouldn't say things like that."

Ah, yes. Crazy good hearing with the vampires. I glanced around to find a few had turned our way, even stiffened when I noticed Colette's sideways glance.

"Well, I rarely censor myself, so would you like to talk somewhere else?"

His smile became a little wicked. "Lead the way, sweetheart."

Blushing a bit, I stood, taking the arm he offered me, and moved toward the door. This time, I could feel the eyes of the others as they murmured amongst themselves, but refused to look. It quickened my pace until Ryan pulled back on my arm, slowly me down.

"Stay calm," he murmured from behind a smile, "Running only interests them."

"Great." I grumbled and we finally slipped into the main hall, closing the door behind us.

"Still adjusting then? Ryan asked, all tension he'd had meted away and he was once again the cocky man from the bar. I'll admit, it was a bit of a relief to see him here, though I'd never planned to talk to him again after Candy. It still bothered me that he'd helped Isaac so readily in disposing of a body. However, at the moment, he was the only familiar human someone I could talk to.

Also he looked really good tonight, and it took my attraction off of Isaac and his damn leather pants of evil. (I say evil in the fact that they so thoroughly held my attention)

"So?" the shadow put his hands into his pockets and arched a brow. "What did you want to talk about?"

I ignored his playful flirtation and frowned. "This place, Windsor forest...Why did it make Isaac so upset?"

Ryan's smile melted then, making me wish I hadn't spoken. "I don't know much," he began. "But what I've heard is that it's one of the few places left that humans should completely avoid. It's hidden by old magic, but every once and a while someone stumbles in."

"I take it they don't stumble out?" I muttered, already pissed that I would have to go to this place. Ryan nodded, laughing when I cursed.

"It's not a black hole, Mira. It's just...sacred. Audrie says it's the resting place of the oldest Seelie court."

"The what-now?"

He sighed, "The Fae."

"Oh!" I tried to not show my interest, "you mean like fairies and stuff?"

"And stuff." he replied, shaking his head. Ryan linked his arm in mine and began walking us toward the front door. "But it's in Europe, so that's cool. Bring me back one of those Big Ben statues or something."

"The 'old world', right." I took a deep breath of the outside air, leaning up against Ryan, then promptly froze. There were voices outside in the lawn, so we went silent.

From the sound of their voices, I knew it was Isaac and Sanura, and they were arguing in another language. Vehemently. I scowled, pressing back behind the concealing shrubs along the outside of the porch. This was one of those time that I wished I'd paid attention in French, rather than moon over the quarterback that sat next to me.

"That's french right?" I leaned back against Ryan to whipser. Isaac was cursing. I caught Mairde and something about dogs, far too long to be 'son of a bitch'.

Maybe he was talking about Colette, I mused happily.

"You don't speak it?" Ryan asked softly. I turned to him with a slight frown.

"Do you?" I was sort of impressed.

He laughed quietly and patted my back. "Don't get too excited. It's just enough to catch on."

"Well then..?" I nodded toward the argument, jumping when something crashed or was broken. Isaac was getting more aggitated by the second.

"Something about..the sun?" he murmured, frowning, "and...I think he said hunted. Maybe hunting, I'm not too clear on the tenses."

We went silent a moment, listening hard, and I strated when I caught my name, and looked at the shadow. He stared ahead toward the pair of vampires and listened moment longer.

"What did he say about me?" I asked.

He exhaled, "That was alot..whoo...alright, um he definately doesn't want you to go, and he said something about meat."

"Meat?" I asked, not liking the sound of it at all.

"Yeah, I caught meat."

"Yes," I cried out when I heard Isaac right beside us, pressing into Ryan as if he could protect me. "Meat, as in dead."

"We came ou here to get away from the crowd, man. dind't mean to snoop." Ryan gently removed me from his arm when Isaac's black eyes pased on my hands. The vampire looked up at me while Ryan continued to apologize.

"Stop talking." he said simply and the shadow feel silent. Then after starring at me a long moment, he nodded toward the door. "Go pack your things, we have a flight to catch in 3 hours."

"What things?" I scowled. I didn't want to go wherever we were headed. The vampire sighed heavily, touching his temple as if he had a headache, though I don't think vampires could actually get them.

"The clothes I bought you two nights ago, when you took until the bloody stores closed to settle on what you wanted. That will never happen again, by the way."

I smiled, thinking back to that night. Isaac had been forced to sit at the bench outside the dressing rooms as I tried on clothes. He'd argued that we could just take things back later in true guy fashion, but I'd wanted to try everything on just in case. And it was a bit funny to see him sulking when I finally came out.

So, giving Ryan a gentle squeeze on the arm, I hurried inside. There was a suitcase on the top shelf of my closet, big enough that I stuffed everything inside, including my new shoes. I'll admit that Isaac's being loaded was not a terrible thing to live with. Though he made it clear he wouldn't be lavishing me with expensive gifts, I could talk him into ordering food any time I was hungry.

I didn't return down stairs after that, deciding that it felt salfer to remain in my room. Though it might have been nice to chat with Ryan, I don't think he would have been very talkative now. By the time Isaac finally came to get me, I had passed out across my bed. He practically drug me down to the car, and we raced to whatever airport catered to vampires. It seemed an odd concept to me, but Isaac told me Colette had provided us with a private jet, modified for situations just like this.

The airport was small, with only a single airstrip and a couple small planes. Suited men carried our lugage to the hold. When I got out of the car, i was surprised to find Sanura waiting on the short stairs up to the cabin. She smiled at Isaac, big and beautiful, and he aknowledged it with a grunt as we boarded.

"Where exactly are we going?" I asked, yawning. Isaac sank down into one of the few stuffed seats in the front, and popped open a panel on the side of his seat. He took out a handful of tiny vodka bottles and tossed a couple to Sanura before grabbing more.

"Berkshire, England." he replied, downing a bottle and tossing it into the seat beside him.

"And Windsor forest is there?"

"It's close." Sanura replied for the grumpy vampire. She smiled, making me a bit uncomfortable with the sudden friendly act. I was still of the impression that Sanura was a bitch, and it was odd to see otherwise. It would have been easier to think of her like I did all the others, as an evil souless monster. "The flight is going to be long. You might as well go to sleep."

That really wasn't a bad idea, I thought and shuffled over to the chair against the far wall of the cabin and leaned it all the way back. After that I was alseep within mintues.

Sorry if the end seemed rushed...but it kinda was. I'm just trying to get to the next part of the story and didn't want to go into much detail about the flight over.

I happy though, to be getting closer to Him.

Anyway, hoping to post the next chapter soon, if everything works out.