Chapter 57

My head tilts sideways to look over Jerry's shoulder and I see her. It had been at least a year since we had met. It was Beck, Jerry's girlfriend. Looking back at Jerry I yell, 'You brought her?!'

'Hey it was both our idea!' Jerry says defensively as I throw my hands up in the air and turn away putting them on my hips and shaking my head.

That's when I hear a chuckle and look up. Ki had a wide smile on his face and Nick looked bored as Ki nudges him. He just gives the albino a cocked brow as the driver Kalvin asks, 'Should I do a recon of the area to insure privacy?'

Nick nods with a resigned sigh as Jerry calls out, 'So the Russian bear is back, who's the ghost?'

I facepalm at Ki's raised brows. Turning around, I see Jerry has his arm around the petite red head who looked exhausted. She was in pajamas and looked disheveled from sleep as I sigh resigned and say, 'Jerry that is not a ghost. His name is Ki and he is a...friend.'

Jerry gives an O face and says stepping forward for a handshake, towing Beck with him. Ki shakes his hand and says, 'Its a pleasure to meet a friend of Nina's.'

'Same, though I don't think she's ever mentioned you.'

'New edition.'

'Cool.'

'Same.'

It was like looking at two halves of a coin. They were harmonizing and I just stared in shocked disbelieve as Ki gave Beck a handshake as well with a warm smile on his face. Nick gives the poor girl a handshake as well and Jerry says over his shoulder, 'I like the ghost, he's my kind of guy.'

Ki blinks and says, 'I don't know if I should be offended or feel complimented.'

'Total compliment man.'

Ki chuckles as I raise my hands again in exasperation. Finally Nick takes the lead and asks, 'Nina did ask a viable question, why did you come here imp?'

Jerry frowns at him, but turns,holding Beck's hand as he says, 'Its like I said, I felt useless there and Beck agreed.'

Beck suddenly chimes in, her quiet voice carrying on the breeze, 'I might not look it but I'm good at solving puzzles. We have been here a day already and found some things you might be interested in.'

This perks me up, finally remembering why I liked her so much after meeting her that once. A voice of reason among the sarcasm that is Jerry. I'm about to ask her a question when she asks, 'Is it true though...that you're a... a... vampire?'

Blinking, my eyes fly to Jerry in anger and he raises his hand in surrender, saying, 'Sorry boss, she's my girl. Her puppy dog eyes are too powerful.'

Nick growls, 'Lovely, another human finds out.'

'So it's true,' she says, looking at me then at Nick with those pale green eyes of hers.

Ki takes over, all business, 'Yes it is true. there isn't any point in hiding it if we will be working together. I am what is called a Night Hunter, a vampire who is in all intensive purposes a police officer for our society. Nick here is a royal prince and heir to a powerful clan. Nina is...well she is a low ranked vampire that has been helping us in a very important investigation and it seems your boyfriend has been helping from a safe neutral zone.'

Beck took it all in with such grace it amazed me as I watched and gagged her reaction. She rubs her chin before finally saying, a little southern bell coming out from her Atlanta roots, 'I see, so y'all are all vampires and Jerry just happened to be working for one without realizing it.'

'Many humans work for vampires without knowing it,' I reply.

Suddenly she shivers, and I wonder if its from fear until she says, 'I hate to cut this off, but the weather here is a bit nippy at night. We are staying in a house over there and y'all are welcome to join. I would like to understand more about this.'

'Of course,' Ki and I say in unison, Nick just sighs in resignation.

--D--

Jerry and I sat at a small folding table looking over notes he and Beck had taken since arriving. The curtains were closed against the sun outside as Jerry says, 'Here is the notes I took from the McClennan County Sheriff's office. Yesterday I called and he said no such town as Mart existed.'

'How unusual,' Ki replies, sitting at the couch looking at boxes of files taken from the police station down the road on missing people's cases.

Jerry nods and continues, 'Disappearances started happening nearly seven years ago. It started slow, one or two teens. The local police thought it was just runaways until adults started going missing.'

Beck came in with plates of scrambled eggs and bacon. Nick close behind with a pitcher of orange juice. He looked irritated as he had been recruited by Beck about thirty minutes ago to help with breakfast. She had pulled her curls back into a pony tail and asks suddenly with worry, 'Oh, do you guys even eat...human food?'

Ki takes a plate from her and says with a big smile, 'With much gusto!'

She smiles at him happily as she places a plate in front of Jerry saying, 'Don't forget to eat shug, you know how you get.'

She gives him a kiss on the head and hands me a plate. She was a bit intimidated by Nick at first but had gotten over it. Thankfully he hadn't reacted much, his power low. It was something she had asked me about in whispers. This was only the second time I had had to explain things to a human in deptu about vampire kind, but it was amazing to me how well she was taking it. Jerry had ben hesitant and nervous, but she took it as a matter of course. She gives me a plate and then sets down the other two saying, 'Anyone want coffee?'

Jerry yawns and says, 'Me.'

'I keep tellin' you not to burn the candle at both ends.'

Jerry nods, his little fiery girlfriend staring down at her with hands on hips as he says, 'Sorry honey, I wasn't thinking. Besides, these guys don't sleep.'

Beck frowns, her eyes flying to us as she murmurs, 'But... they went to their rooms last night.'

Ki, being the professional, says quickly before Nick says anything, 'We don't require sleep in the conventional way. But we understand the needs of humans and respect it as they... you are our food source.'

For the first time, I see Beck pale a bit as she asks softly, 'So you aren't like the vampires in Twilight that drink the blood of animals?'

Nick snort, saying as he bites off a piece of bacon with irritation, 'Of course not, that is fiction. Vampires can't drink the blood of animals, its vile.'

Beck looks at us all, seeming both surprised and now a little scared. I watch as she tries to compose herself once more and finally says, 'Ok. Well coffee.'

She walks back into the kitchen as I laser my eyes on Nick saying, 'You could say we can. Its not like we really can't.'

'How many times in your lifetime have you drank animal blood?'

I sobered, knowing very well I had only done so out of desperation during the civil war, so I don't say anything. Nick nods and murmurs, 'My point exactly.'

Looking at Jerry's exhausted face, I say as Beck comes in with coffee, 'Eat your breakfast and then go sleep.'

'Huh?'

'We can look over this paperwork while you rest. You know as well as I do we can't go out during the day.'

'You can't?' Beck asks.

'Unlike the romantic novels of today, we don't sparkle. We burn in the sun and it can be deadly. So we are truly the terrors of Stokes stories, night stalkers.'

She nods saying, 'Then I should probably try to sleep as well if we will be helping.'

'Beck,' Jerry says softly, a bit out of irritation.

Now Beck looked frustrated, saying with a quick bite to her words, 'Look here! I have followed you to Timbuktu and back. I thought you died after disappearing off the face of the earth for two months and now I find out your boss is a vampire. Unlike you, I don't feel like being in the movie interview with a vampire. So if you would just humor me! I will help if everything is true about missing people, but don't you dare go getting mad at me for helpin', you lyin' turd.'

Jerry looked like a beaten puppy and just nods. I almost wanted go laugh at how such a small fiery girl could tame my wild PA. He nods and says, 'Alright, alright, I'll let you help.'

'Thank you!' Beck says and flops down on the couch next to Ki, grabbing her plate and chowing down. Ki was looking at her with raised brows and an impressed nod as she looks up at him and asks, 'What?!'

'You are a bit of a spit fire aren't you?'

'Jesus! Are all y'all the same?!' She slams her plate down and walks out of the room.

Nick chuckles and says, 'That would be some rich blood there.'

Jerry jerks to a stand, coffee sloshing from his cup as he says, 'Stay out of it Russian bear!'

'Don't tempt fate Jerry,' Nick growls.

I clap and everyone turns to me as I say, 'Emotion is running high. Jerry, go to your girlfriend, we will deal with things here. Nick don't even think about touching Beck, Ki don't antagonize the girl, she is already having to take in more than most.'

The room was quiet for a moment and finally Jerry nods saying, 'Thanks boss. I'm going to go ahead and rest with Beck. See if I can mend things.'

'Good idea, we will continue the research.'