Chapter 11

Goodbyes

Author's note: The Marble Cemetery in NYC is a real place and the discussion about it is taken from articles and historical records. People can no longer be buried there unless they have the connections described in our story. And there are times when it is opened to the public for picnicking. I found it very interesting & it fit well in the story - I could see that history appealing to vampires. I don't know about you but that image was a very comforting one to me (& therefore to our characters…)

Intro Song: If I Die Young, The Band Perry

Gabrielle Sinclair contemplated her handsome companion as the taxi fought through the late afternoon traffic from Brooklyn to the upper East Side. Mick St. John was proving to be very much an enigma to her. Self–assured, confident, obviously a skilled investigator, undeniably sexy – yet, she also sensed a deep well of insecurity and self–doubt. He had been extremely guarded in their conversations so she had very little idea of his history – unusual after spending a day with him. The circumstances of one's 'turning' were generally a prime topic of discussion among newly–introduced vampires, akin to talking about one's major when meeting fellow college students for the first time. She reminded herself to talk to Victoria about him after he and Kostan left. She felt sure there was a good story there...

For his part, Mick was deep in thought, trying to piece together the parts of the puzzle he and Gabby had been assembling for the past two days. He didn't believe that either the owner of the medical supply company or the director for the home health care agency were involved, but his gut told him that the nurse who switched shifts with Paula Bridges bore closer scrutiny. Right now, it was their only lead. He could only wait – and hope – for Logan Griffen to come up with something concrete on her, some piece of information they could follow up on.

The taxi finally pulled up in front of 39 East 79th. Paying their fare, Mick followed Gabrielle into the building, checking his watch as they went. They would have to leave for the cemetery within the hour if they were to make their flight back to L.A. – and Beth. He felt guilty and uneasy over not having been able to reach her in person since the flight out, especially since the last person to actually talk to her had been…God help me…Victoria. I'm surprised Beth didn't call me after her little chat with Victoria. That was not a good sign…

Still trailing Gabby, he entered the condo and made his way to the music room to join the rest. Victoria rose to greet him and offered both he and Gabrielle fresh glasses of blood. "Here's your favorite vintage, I believe, Mick. I think you've earned it." She handing him another glass of AO negative, her hand lingering on his as she passed it over. Mick accepted the glass – and the caress – without comment, looking toward Josef, who met his glance with an almost imperceptible shrug.

Mick sank down on the couch and sipped the offered drink. If he were being honest with himself, he had to admit it was good. Not nearly as good as Beth's blood, though... He caught himself and did his best to stop that line of thinking. It felt…disloyal…to Beth to compare her in that way. She wasn't a beverage decanter, for god's sake.

Gabrielle noted the interplay between the vampires with interest as she sipped her own drink, but said nothing. Instead she added yet another question to her mental list to review with Victoria after St. John and Kostan left town. As she finished her drink, she had to admit that she was a fan of Mick's favorite vintage, even though that had seemed like a loaded comment from Victoria.

The vampires drank their elixirs quietly for a few minutes, each occupied with his or her own thoughts, until Gabby broke the silence. Sitting down the now–empty glass, she announced, "Well! I'm off!" She walked over to shake Josef's hand. "Mr. Kostan, I'm very sorry for your loss. I will be following up on some of the leads Mick and I have, and I'll be in touch."

Gabby turned from Josef to embrace St. John. "Mick, I've enjoyed it. I'll follow up on everything here." Stepping back away from him slightly, she whispered, "We'll talk." Then, nodding to Victoria, she made her way out.

St. John watched her leave, then turned back to see Josef's amused gaze over the edge of the glass he held up to his lips. He braced himself to endure whatever humiliation Kostan intended to throw his way, but his friend surprised him by saying nothing. He just raised his glass in toast to Mick and turned away to take it back to the bar for a refill.

Victoria looked at her diamond-studded Rolex and announced, "It's time to go, gentlemen, if we want to be at Marble Cemetery by sunset." Escorting them out to the waiting limousine, she continued, "Josef, Gene will meet us there with Sara's remains. I have a vault there, if that is alright."

"A vault? They don't do in–ground burials there?" Mick knew almost nothing about Marble Cemetery.

"No," Victoria glanced toward Josef as they settled into the limo and started on their way. "This cemetery is quite old – one of the oldest in New York, as a matter of fact. Most of the interments took place during the mid–1800s. It's safe to say that both Josef and I have a number of old friends buried there. All the burials are in below–ground vaults. There are no gravestones, but the names of the original owners are on plagues on the walls. As you might guess, I'm one of them, so those I designate as my descendants can be buried there as well. Other than that, no burials have been allowed there since the 1930s."

After a pause, Victoria continued, speaking directly to Kostan. "It's a really lovely area, Josef. You remember it, don't you? The cemetery is closed most of the time now, but on the rare days when it is open, people bring lawn chairs and sit out on the grounds, reading, picnicking...it is a place of life and celebration, not sorrow. It's perfect for Sara." She gently placed her hand on his arm, squeezing slightly.

"Thank you, Victoria." Josef gazed down at her, grateful for her thoughtfulness. "I won't forget this."

"I expect I will be calling in the favor soon enough," Victoria replied cryptically.

The limousine pulled smoothly to the curb in front of the ancient wrought–iron gates, the arch emblazoned with the heading 'New York Marble Cemetery. Incorporated 1831'. A large iron plaque next to the entrance cited some of the information Victoria had shared during the drive, and also listed the site as part of the National Registry of Historical Places. It was on a very busy commercial street, so the panorama in front of them as they passed through the archway was particularly dramatic. It was as if they had walked through a portal to another world, the large, green lawn spread out in front of them bordered by tall walls of marble and stone.

Josef looked around, taking in the beauty and peace of the spot. Victoria is right – it's the perfect place for Sara. "It's beautiful, Victoria."

Materializing to their right from a small alcove, Gene Divan carried a small, onyx urn over to them, the vase beautifully carved and inset with accents of opal and gold. The opals caught the light from the setting sun, flashing multi–colored fire. The effect was breathtaking. The small man, his normally jovial face serious, nodded to Mick and Victoria, then walked over to Josef. "Mr. Kostan, I am so sorry for your loss. I hope this will give you some comfort." Gazing up into the stricken vampire's face, he handed the beautiful container to Josef, then, with a final nod of recognition to Mick, he turned and left them.

Josef was clearly moved as he looked down at the gorgeous urn, his eyes masked by the sunglasses they were all forced to don when they exited the limousine with its heavily–tinted windows. The sun was setting, but the light still lingered across the manicured lawn.

Victoria led them across the lawn to a section of the wall where there was an inset for the container Josef now carried. Candles burned on either side of the entrance in the twilight and emitted a slight scent of lilacs. As they walked up to it, Josef inhaled and smiled slightly. "Her favorite flower." He glanced toward Victoria, who nodded but said nothing.

Suggested Song: Didn't Want To Say Goodbye, Ari Hest

Kostan placed the urn into the niche and stepped back, silent as he stared at the container as if trying to process that it contained all that remained of his love. Mick's hand rested comfortingly on his shoulder as he choked out, "Sara's only sin was falling in love with a vampire. She should have had a long, happy life with children and family, but instead, she chose me. The happiest time in my 400 years was the year I spent with her. Never before – or since – have I felt loved like that. I will treasure that if I live to be a thousand years old and I will never forget her. I still think of her every day. She will always live in my heart." He looked around and fell silent, tears coursing down his cheeks from under his sunglasses.

They stood in silence until the sun dropped below the horizon. Josef reached out his hand to caress the smooth surface of the urn, then turned to leave. The trio made their way to the exit across the peaceful green space, Victoria leading the way. As they approached the iron gates, Josef paused. Turning back to gaze across the meadow now shadowed with the approach of dark, he removed his sunglasses and fixed his gaze on the niche containing Sara's urn, candles still burning on either side of the opening. He felt as if his heart was being torn from his chest at that wrenching moment. Good–bye, Sara. I'm so sorry for what I did to you. I will always love you...

The three walked slowly out of the cemetery and back into the hubbub that was New York City at rush hour, the sidewalks and streets packed with waves of humans pushing toward their destinations. The effect was jarring. Josef glanced around, then headed for the limo, muttering, "I need to make some calls," as he pulled his phone from his pocket, clearly needing to put distance between himself and what he had left behind.

Mick and Victoria exchanged glances, reaching an unspoken agreement to give him a few moments of privacy. Standing on the sidewalk with the cacophony of cars, trucks and pedestrians swirling around them, the two vampires somberly faced each other to discuss the investigation.

Mick filled Victoria in. "I think the medical supply company and home health agency are probably dead ends. But, we're trying to track down the woman who traded shifts with Paula Bridges – Gabby and I both think she may be a key to what happened."

"Gabby, hmm?" Victoria teased. "Why, Mick, I thought I was much more your type!"

"Victoria..." I'm going to stop this right now.

Without warning, the sea of people parted, and a man appeared on either side of Victoria. Before either vampire could react, one of the men pulled a large metal syringe filled with a silvery fluid out from under his suit coat and jabbed it into Victoria's neck. She screamed and went limp as he depressed the plunger.

It took Mick a split-second for his brain to process what his eyes were seeing – then he went into action. Snarling, eyes immediately icy–blue, fangs showing, he leapt at the men, heedless of who might see him. The man holding the syringe looked up, startled. His companion shouted, "Jon, get out of there!" as he took off down the street, throwing pedestrians out of his way as he ran. Mick grabbed the remaining assailant and picked him up off the ground by the back of his coat, preventing him from completely discharging the contents of the syringe into the female vampire. Before he could do more, a weak voice at his feet feebly called out, "Mick! Help me!"

Mick looked down to see Victoria lying on the ground, her face a sickly grey. Her eyes were not the vampire's ice–blue, but were instead almost completely silver. "No! Victoria, no!"

Her assailant took advantage of his momentary distraction to wriggle out of his coat and sprint down the street in the opposite direction of his partner. Mick was torn – pursue the attackers or help the stricken woman? He hesitated only a moment, a tick of time in which Victoria lost consciousness. Deciding on his course of action, he scooped her up and, yanking open the limo door, threw her and the attacker's coat into the interior, jumping in after them.

"Get us back to Victoria's as fast as you can!" he shouted at the driver. As the limo sped away, he turned back, meeting the startled eyes of Josef Kostan, who was cradling the unconscious Victoria's head in his lap. Lost in his own grief inside the heavily reinforced vehicle, he had seen none of what had transpired.

"What the hell happened, Mick?!" Josef shouted.

"I don't know! One minute we were standing on the sidewalk, talking, and the next, two men attacked her! They injected her with something!" Mick saw that the needle was no longer in Victoria's neck. He frantically searched the floor of the spacious limo, looking for the syringe. We're going to need that syringe to figure out what they injected her with. He finally spied the half–empty glass tube underneath the seat that Josef was occupying. Grabbing it, he held it up to the light, as a sinking feeling started in the pit of his stomach. "I think they injected her with some sort of silver solution – her eyes were turning silver before she lost consciousness. I'm calling Gabby!"

Quickly he jerked out his phone and was just beginning to punch in Gabrielle Sinclair's number when an incoming call froze the screen. Groaning, he saw that it was Beth. Perfect! Quickly, he picked up the call, frantically shouting, "Beth! There's an emergency here – I need to make a call!" Without waiting for a response, he broke the connection and called Gabby.

"Mick! I didn't expect to hear from you so soon..." Before Gabby could get further, Mick hurriedly filled her in on what had just happened. "We're on our way back to Victoria's, Gabby. Meet us there!"

"I'll get our doctor and be right there!" Gabby disconnected the call and quickly made the arrangements for Victoria's key contact in the medical community to meet them at Victoria's luxury condo, then jumped in a taxi for East 79th.

Mick sat back next to Josef, looking down at the unconscious Victoria Silver as the limo swayed with the driver's frantic efforts to maneuver through traffic more quickly. "Is she still alive?" he asked Josef anxiously.

"How do I even answer that, Mick – are any of us? I can't get her to respond. What the hell just happened here?! And who were those guys?"

"I wish I knew." Mick shook his head in frustration. "I wish I knew."

"Oh damn! My phone!"

Talbot had been keeping Beth running most of the day, and, as was so often the case with her, she became completely distracted by her work. She had forgotten about her errant cell phone, until a polite young man dropped it off at her desk. Introducing himself as Phil McDonald, he shook her hand and apologized for not bringing it to her sooner. "I was on a long conference call and I just couldn't get away."

"No, no! I didn't expect you to have to chase me down anyway. Jamie showed me your charger and said you don't mind if people use it. It was such an imposition but I was really stuck! I just...I just got busy and forgot about it." Beth was ashamed of her carelessness and imposition on a relative stranger.

He had responded gallantly. "No, I'm actually glad you did – I've wanted to meet you. I work as a liaison between the D.A.s and the police detective units, so I'm sure we'll cross paths again. It was nice to meet you – and please, feel free to use my charger any time!" With a flourish, he handed her the phone and left, making his way back through the maze of cubicles toward his next destination.

Beth's features were awash in relief as the phone powered up perfectly. Call Mick before anything else happens, she commanded herself as she saw the list of missed calls from him on the phone's screen. It isn't his fault that you've been an idiot!

Glancing at the clock, she was shocked to see the lateness of the hour – it would be almost eight at night in New York by now! Maybe he's already on his way home...With that hopeful thought, she dialed his cell phone, smiling in anticipation of hearing his much–loved voice. Before she even had a chance to say 'hello', however, Mick shouted at her – "Beth! There's an emergency here – I need to make a call!" He hung up without saying more, leaving her staring at the now-silent phone, bewildered and frightened.

The short ride seemed endless, but they pulled up in front of Victoria's condo within 10 minutes of the attack. "Deal with the doorman!" Mick instructed the driver as he cradled Victoria in his arms, and rushed through the doors. Making their way into Victoria's living room, Mick laid her gently on the couch. "We need to get some fresh blood into her right away!" he barked to Josef. "Go find whatever she has in her bar."

Josef rushed to the refrigerator under the bar and pulled out two large carafes of dark red blood. Filling a glass, he flung open the drawers behind the bar, searching until he located a straw. Grabbing both glass and straw, he rushed over to Mick, who had propped Victoria up on pillows, as he attempted, without success, to revive her. "Here, Mick!" Josef cried, thrusting the glass into the vampire's hands.

St. John tried to force the straw between Victoria's lips, but she was completely unresponsive, unable to exert any suction on it. "Damn it!" Mick frantically searched through his mental inventory of medical lore, acquired during his time as a medic during World War II. Suddenly, he focused on the plastic straw. "Josef! Go find more straws! Quick!"

Kostan rushed back to the bar, jerking the drawer completely out of the cabinet in his haste to get to the supply of straws. Cursing, he gathered up a handful and ran back to Mick, who grabbed them out of his hand. Frantically, the former medic jammed one straw end into the next, making sure they were solidly wedged. After he had strung four of them together, he opened Victoria's mouth, tilting her head back to clear her esophagus. "Hold her head just like that!" he snapped at Josef, who moved into position to comply with his order.

Carefully, he threaded the makeshift tube between Victoria's teeth and down her throat. It was a delicate operation – too much force and the straws would collapse, too little and he couldn't move them down her esophagus to her stomach. Dammit, I really need a rubber tube. Finally, he had it positioned to his satisfaction.

Taking a large mouthful of blood, he sealed his lips around the tip of straw protruding from Victoria's mouth and forced the thick fluid into it. As it trickled slowly down the series of straws, he took another mouthful and pushed it into the straw, creating pressure to force the liquid to move with his breath. Setting up a steady rhythm, he continued for what seemed like hours until the physician rushed into the condo, accompanied by Gabrielle Sinclair.

Pausing in his efforts, the P.I. looked up into Gabrielle's anguished eyes. "We aren't going to let her die, Gabby!"

The doctor quickly scrutinized what Mick was doing. "Keep it up while I get an IV started!" he cried as he drew out an IV needle and attached it to tubing.

"How can you keep the injection site open with that?" Mick paused to ask the question. He was not aware of any cases where vampires could successfully be given an I.V. to receive blood because of the issue of spontaneous healing - it happened almost instantly with such a small puncture wound.

"It's specially treated with purified, diluted silver on its tip to keep the injection site from closing off." The physician explained the process as he inserted the needle into a vein at the crook of Victoria's arm. He carefully attached the tubing to transport the life–giving blood from the IV bag he hung from the floor lamp next to the couch. Opening the toggle wide open, he began the infusion of fresh blood into the unconscious vampire. He placed his hand kindly on Mick's shoulder. "You can stop now. That was really an inventive solution, young man. I'm sure that saved her life."

Breathing heavily, Mick nodded, acknowledging the compliment, then stood and watched as the physician slowly pulled the straw tubing out of Victoria's throat, throwing it on the floor. Stricken, he lingered next to the couch, wiping at his mouth where the blood had smeared during his efforts. Hearing Josef call his name, he roused, grabbing the assailant's coat from the floor where it had been discarded in the rush to save Victoria, and moving across the room to where Kostan stood with Gabrielle.

"This was obviously a planned attack," St. John's face was grim. "Who wanted Victoria dead? And, how did they know where we'd be?!" He shook the coat angrily in Josef's face. "I want answers!" Frustrated, he searched through the coat pockets; finding nothing, he flung it on the ground. "Dammit!"

Gabrielle started to respond, but was stopped by Josef, who held up his hand. "Mick, I'm sure this is Crucis – and I know I owe you some answers – but right now, we need to concentrate on Victoria." Both vampires nodded their agreement as Kostan briskly took charge. "Gabrielle, I want a security contingent here pronto. And no," he continued as he saw the young woman open her mouth to protest, "I know what you are going to say – and just having you here is not enough. Not anymore."

Gabrielle nodded and, without further discussion, left to make the arrangements, glancing briefly at the couch where Victoria still lay, unresponsive, as she departed. Mick grabbed the unknown assailant's discarded coat from the floor

"Doctor!" Josef summoned the physician from his post at Victoria's side. The doctor reluctantly joined them and introduced himself. "I'm Adam Spector, gentlemen. And you are...?" Mick realized that the physician had no idea who they were – or why they were with Victoria.

Before he could respond, Josef took over, identifying both of them. "I understand that you don't know us, but I'm a very old friend of Victoria's. We were here on a personal matter and Victoria was helping us out. We were with her when she was attacked – Mick here witnessed it first–hand."

The balding physician turned to St. John and quizzed him about the attack. "Gabby told me you thought she had been injected with silver. What can you tell me?"

Mick pulled the syringe he had rescued from the car floor out of his pocket and offered it to the physician. "The guy jammed it into her neck before either of us had a chance to react," he said, bitterly. His face was set, hands clenched in fists of rage. "I jumped him, but by then, more than half of the contents had already been injected."

"Thank you," Dr. Spector accepted the offered equipment and held the syringe up to the light. "This helps me. And, don't beat yourself up about it – I know that Victoria is extremely cautious, so, if they got the drop on her as well as you, they were very skilled. Your stopping her assailant from injecting all the contents probably saved her life."

"She's going to live then?" Josef's face was hopeful, eager for good news.

"It's too early to be sure, but I think so. Getting that blood into her quickly was critical. It prevented the silver from causing irreversible damage. That's why an injection into a neck vein is so dangerous – it takes hold in the brain and destroys brain cells first. They don't rejuvenate as quickly as other cells in the body – too complex, I think. Haven't you ever noticed that it seems to take longer to recover from a head injury?"

Mick thought back to multiple occasions when a blow to the head had left him reeling for some time. Oh yeah - I've noticed... No one had ever explained this to him before. He looked at the doctor with new respect.

Spector continued, "The poison then continues to spreads throughout the body. It's really the silver in the brain that does it, though. And, because it knocks one out so quickly, it makes it really difficult to get blood into a vamp in time to prevent permanent damage and counteract the silver poison. The only way is with an IV set–up – and who has one of those with them at all times? Your solution really was ingenious, Mr. St. John."

"It's Mick, thank you Doctor. So, what happens now?"

"We just keep pumping blood into her, flushing out her system. It will take a lot of blood, but she should recover. Unfortunately, we've had more experience with this kind of thing recently, so my understanding of the process is a lot better than it was a year ago."

"What do you mean, 'more experience'?!" Mick almost snarled, fangs beginning to descend as his eyes quickly turned the vampire's ice–blue.

Spector backed away slightly. He didn't really know this vampire - and with a hair trigger like that… I'm not so sure I want to… Raising his hands defensively, he stammered, "T–take it easy. Surely, you know that there have been several similar attacks on vampires in this city in the past few weeks! They were all prominent vampires – and, unfortunately, they were either alone or with companions who weren't as...resourceful...as you. They all died. Quickly. I did autopsies on them before we disposed of their bodies so that I could have a better understanding of what was going on. Tha–that's how I found out what I've just shared with you."

Spector continued, "And I do know that Victoria actually thinks there have been more attacks, because there are several prominent vampires that have just disappeared – but we can't be sure of that."

St. John growled, his pulse pounding in his temples as his anger grew. Why the hell wasn't I told about all this?!

"Mick!" Josef commanded, grabbing the taller vampire's arm. "Get hold of yourself. Going off won't help Victoria – or the rest of us."

Mick sighed, recognizing the wisdom of Josef's words, struggling to get himself back under control as the physician excused himself to hurry back to Victoria's side. Dr. Spector deftly replaced the nearly empty bag of blood with a fresh one, giving it a squeeze to force the thick fluid in more quickly. He sat down next to the unconscious vampire and pried up her eyelids, one after the other, to check her progress.

"Good, good," he murmured, then turned to the waiting men. "The silver is receding from her eyes – I've learned that's a fairly accurate gauge of the degree of saturation of the poison. They were almost completely silver when I first examined her and now there is a significant halo of blue around the edges of her pupils. That's a very good sign. Very good."

"How long before she might regain consciousness?" Josef was anxious to talk with Victoria. Clearly her fears were coming to pass – New York was no longer a safe place for vampires.

"Oh, I think it will be quite a while. At least one day, and perhaps as long as three days, in all likelihood."

"Three days?!" Josef exclaimed disbelievingly.

Spector crossed his arms. "Well, yes. At least that's my guess – but remember, no one I have treated has survived an attack like this before, so it is all conjecture at this point. Her body temporarily shuts down while she disposes of the poison – just like any of you have a brief period before you recover from an injury. With silver, as you know if you've ever been exposed to it, the effects are much greater and take longer to dissipate."

Mick thought back to his experience with silver. The silver he was exposed to from special buckshot in Lee Jay Spalding's shotgun had been scattered all over his body. Despite the ministrations of both Josef Kostan and Guillermo Gasol to remove the silver, it had taken him a long time – and a lot of blood – to recover. In fact, it was that exposure, and the condition he was in afterward, that had led to Beth's discovery of his vampire identity. He had been in such bad shape, even with the silver buckshot removed, that he had staggered into his penthouse apartment after Josef dropped him off, and started gulping down blood without closing the door.

Concerned about his welfare, Beth had followed him there and walked in to find him – on his knees, fangs out, desperately pouring blood down his throat. If he lived to be...well, if he lived to be a thousand...he would never forget her terrified face or the question she had blurted out.

"Oh my god! What are you?" Not who...but what...

Shaking his head, he brought himself back to the present and the conversation between Josef Kostan and Adam Spector. This was no time for his personal demons. Besides, they were always with him, ready to appear…

Spector was concluding, "We will continue to give her blood until she wakes up – however long that may take. Victoria was injected with a reduced amount of silver compared to the other vamps that were attacked, where they were able to empty the syringes into them. Couple that with Mr. St. John's quick actions to get blood into her, and I actually think she will awaken sooner rather than later. But, there is no way for me to be certain so I would not want you to expect that."

At that moment, Gabrielle Sinclair came back into the room, flanked by three vampires. From their scent, Mick concluded they were probably older than Gabby, closer to the two hundred year mark, making them very powerful. Good! Gabby didn't mess around.

Introducing them quickly, Gabby stated flatly, "We are all here for the duration." Josef nodded, his dark eyes uncharacteristically compassionate as he looked at Gabby.

Mick noticed this change in his best friend. I think all this has changed Josef. Then, a moment later, he re–evaluated that assessment as Kostan said, briskly, "Well! There's nothing more we can do here. I think Mick and I will make our way back to L.A. Gabby, it's been a pleasure!"

Gabrielle, bewildered at this sudden change, took Kostan's outstretched hand and shook it. "S–sure, Josef. Yes, it's been a pleasure. You too, Mick," she added, glancing at him with a puzzled look on her youthful face.

This was more the Josef Kostan Mick was used to, but he felt badly for Gabrielle, none the less. She was suddenly thrust into a position of responsibility that she had not had to assume before, despite her competence and past experience. "Gabby, we'll be in touch, OK?" St. John reached out his hand to draw the small woman into his embrace.

"Thanks, Mick," she whispered, hugging him back. "OK, then. Let's get you to the airport!" she announced to the room at–large, regrouping. "The limo is still outside; it will take you anywhere you want to go." With that, she joined her vampire colleagues who were huddled on the far side of the room, conferring about security arrangements. She turned her back on the two L.A. vampires, clearly dismissing them.

Josef refused to meet Mick's gaze, instead striding from the room with a shrug, waving good–bye to Dr. Spector as he went. Mick had no choice but to follow, after stopping for a moment to thank Spector again, and squeeze the unresponsive Victoria's hand.

He ran for the limousine, jumping in as Kostan gave the order for the driver to get them to LaGuardia. He ignored Mick, instead pulling out his phone to contact Ryder England as the limo pulled away from the curb. "Ryder! Josef! Yeah, we are on our way to the airport now. I want that jet ready for take–off an hour from now. One hour, Ryder!" He listened for a moment, then said icily into the phone, "I don't care what it takes. I want that jet ready to go." Ending the call, he sat back with a sigh.

Glancing over at Mick, he noted the vampire's angry glare. "What?!" Kostan snapped at his friend.

"Was that really necessary?" St. John fired back, angry and perhaps a little frightened by Josef's actions. What is going on?! "I thought those people were your friends, Josef! Our friends! I feel like we just deserted them when they needed us most! Everything's coming apart here – we still can't be sure that Victoria will recover, Gabby is trying to organize everyone – and you just took off as if the whole city were going to explode!"

Kostan held his friend's stare, his dark brown eyes bleak. "It is, Mick. It is."

The limousine sped on into the gathering darkness.

End Song: Run Away From Trouble by Frankmusik