I had to think, but everything was happening so fast. I just prayed that Ann was okay. I kept picturing Seth charming her, grrr… the pig! Chasing Jared away and promising a night of mind-blowing sex. She would have jumped on that in half a heartbeat. I was so stressed. Please let her be okay!
Sitting there, with Lucian at my side, I was still all alone with my thoughts. I wanted to believe that Ann was completely safe, that I was overreacting. But somehow, I knew I was grasping at straws. If Lucian knew she was my best friend, Seth had to know too. Which brought me to another question; who else was giving these men information? I needed some answers. The second I got a chance, I was sitting Lucian down. He had some “splainin’ to do”.
After a few miles, my imagination started working overtime. I was picturing the worst and my stomach spun into knots. I wanted to zap myself to her front door, but if I were wrong? Well, that would be bad. How would someone explain such a crazy entrance? I had to calm down and think of other things.
Lucian turned to me, a frown marring his striking features, “You look green. Do you want me to pull over?”
“No, I’m just concerned is all. Don’t worry, I won’t ruin the upholstery.” I gave him a weak smile and turned to the window as the city slowly came into view.
“Where does she live?” he asked
I gave him her address and directions to her house in south Reno. The drive seemed to take forever.
ELEVEN
Ann’s English Tudor sat on half an acre of well-manicured lawn. I ran across it. Bypassing the concrete path, I reached her door and rang the bell. Lucian followed at a walk. No one answered. I rang it again without any luck.
“She’s not answering; I’m going around to the side door.” I jogged to the door on the outside of the garage and gave it a hard pull. Lucian soon appeared at my side.
“What now?” I asked, more to myself than to him. His face held a strange look. “The ring, Grace; you can use it to get us in.”
“Oh, right.” I felt instantly stupid. I grabbed the knob. Thinking that I wanted it open; I tried it again and it opened with ease. Lucian smiled at me, as if I were a dippy child who had finally gotten something right. I glared at him and entered.
The garage smelled awful. And worse, her white Lexus was parked inside. I ran to her car and opened the door. It was pristine. Obviously, the smell wasn’t coming from it.
“It smells like she’s got a dead cat in here,” Lucian’s face contorted.
Our eyes met over the top of her car as the same thought seemed to enter our minds. Slowly, we both turned to look at her trunk. My hands were shaking. Please, please, please, don’t be anything bad! I took a small step, afraid of what was waiting in there. I slowly reached the back of her car. The trunk popped open with a thought, and I let out the breath I’d been holding.
It was empty. “Nothing,” I said to him and looked up. He was still standing by the front of the car. I frowned at him.
Before I could speak my mind, he was moving toward the door. “Let’s go inside.” he said, reaching for the handle. It was unlocked and swung open with a push. Instantly, we were smacked in the face by a horrible stench; it was nauseating. Compared to this, the garage was a sweet smelling day at the rib cook-off! I pulled the bottom of my shirt up to cover my nose and ran quickly inside, Lucian hot on my heels.
The first thing I did was go for the front door; I opened it to let the smell out and ran outside for some fresh, clean air. Lucian ran up beside me panting like a collie.
“Are you going back in there?” he asked. He was leaning over, his hands on his knees, until his breathing slowly returned to normal.
I looked at him, “Of course I am! “ I snapped. “You can stay out here if you need to, I won’t judge.” He looked like I’d slapped him, and in a way I had.
“No, I’m coming.” he said with a little too much conviction. He grabbed me by the arm. “Let’s see what’s making that godawful stench.”
We entered together.
The living room was normal, not a dust bunny in sight. I went to the kitchen and discovered nothing out of place. I passed by the bathroom; the door was open and it didn’t have a tub, so I knew it was clean. I started down the hall, and then stopped in my tracks.
I had a horrifying feeling.
Her bedroom was on the main floor. The large double doors were closed. This was very wrong. Her room was a stunning showplace and she loved to display her great taste in decorating. The only reason the doors would be closed, was if she were on the other side. I hoped with all my heart she wasn’t.
“Her room, Lucian, I think it’s coming from her room.” I pointed down the hall as my heart rate sped up. He paused for a second, maybe he was reluctant to see what awaited us, or perhaps he wanted to stay near the only source of fresh air. I really didn’t care.
I continued on slowly, Lucian only a few steps behind. The hall seemed to grow longer. I knew it was my imagination. I was clenching my fists. I knew something bad was behind her door. The rotten smell was definitely getting stronger.
“Wait,” I said. The feeling was too strong to ignore. “What if someone or something we don’t want to meet is waiting for us? It’s possible, isn’t it?” If I sounded paranoid, he didn’t make me feel stupid about it.
“Shit,” he said, looking around. “What do you suggest?” he asked simply.
Following his lead, I looked around as well. The hall was empty. Nothing I could use as a weapon. I closed my eyes, thinking hard. Then, out of nowhere, a cool weight settled into my hand. With wide eyes, I looked down to see a large crucifix had just appeared. My eyes grew huge. It was surprisingly heavy. It looked like pure silver. The crucified Jesus was molded in great detail along the front. The bottom of the cross was lethal. It was thick like a stake with sides that came to a sharp edge. This was a very deadly crucifix. I held it like a dagger. It made me feel a little better.
“What? Nothing for me?” Lucian looked impressed.
I figured we had the vamps covered with this little devise, not that I thought they could stand being out during the day. However, I’d already proven my ignorance too many times to take chances. Maybe, I thought, we could use some fire power too. I took his hand and in it, I placed a matte-black, scary looking gun. My powers had a mind of their own, because I had no idea what kind of gun it was.
“Perfect,” he said as he inhaled, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
We were ready.
The door was jammed, like something heavy was wedged against the other side. Lucian heaved it open and we both recoiled. The walls were painted with blood.
Her bed was shredded. The once pristine floral coverlet was now a wash in blood and shiny, thicker things. I stepped deeper into the room, shoving at a heavy chair that had been placed close to the door, blocking it.
I let my eyes take in the scene. They paused on the bed. It didn’t look like there was anyone in it. The picture I was seeing didn’t make any sense, like my mind was trying to dull the horror. Her bed had been shredded, and tossed among the crimson fluff was what appeared to be chunks of meat. It was a gruesome sight and I dropped the dagger. I threw my hand up over my mouth and started to gag. I turned and ran at breakneck speed to the front yard, leaving Lucian in my dust.
I landed on the lawn on all fours; my delicious breakfast quickly reappearing in Ann’s front yard. I heaved and heaved even after my stomach was empty. I was crying and trying to catch my breath, when I noticed a warm hand on my back. Lucian was there. He was holding my ponytail back so it wouldn’t fall into the pool of puke.
I sat back and ran my sleeve over my mouth. “We need to call the police,” I managed to say between sobs. “Ann… where is Ann? That wasn’t her… right? That wasn’t a person, right? ” I wanted him to lie to me. I couldn’t handle this.
“I don’t know, Gracie, honestly, I really don’t think so,” he soothed, “Grace, I think whoever did this must have taken her.” He turned me so that I was fully
facing him. “But, there is something you need to know, before you call the cops.” He looked grim. “There is a message on the inside of her door. It’s meant for you.”
I sniffed and looked at him. “What do you mean?” I stood up, my legs shaking.
“I need you to go back in the room Gracie, can you do that?” His voice was gentle, even sympathetic.
My spine stiffened. “Ann had to go through it; the least I can do is face the aftermath.” I squared my shoulders and stomped back inside the house. My throat was burning and the smell made me cough. I entered the room again, turning quickly to look at the door. Lucian was beside me, a look of sadness on his handsome face.
He grabbed the door, pushing it shut to reveal a strange group of odd symbols. They were painted with blood. It had dried to a brownish color and was starting to flake off. I was shocked. I recognized them as the same type of symbols carved into the ring.
“Can you read this?” I asked, disgusted.
“Yes. It’s a door.”
I shot him a wondering look. “I think it’s a door too. In fact, isn’t that what we’ve been calling them for a while, now?”
“Not that kind of door. The message is, it’s a door. I think you were meant to use it to get Ann back. Whoever took her must think you’ll come running.”
“Well, they were right! Now how does it work?” I held my hand up, comparing the symbols on the ring to the ones on the door.
Lucian quickly snatched my hand away. “Don’t do that!” he yelled. “If you touch the symbols, you’ll be sucked into the door.”
“For real? Then what the hell are we waiting for?” I screamed into his face. “Let’s go get her! She could be terribly hurt or dying!” I raised my hand again.
Lucian yelled and snatched my wrist in a death grip. “You have no idea what you’d be walking into!” he growled between clenched teeth, “This is a trap Grace. What if they knocked you out just as you stepped through? You’d be helpless if they take the ring! How would you save her then? You are the only one who can control it. If they possess it, they can manipulate you into using it for them. This is just what Seth and his people have planned all along. You’d be playing right into their hands!”
I hadn’t considered that. I was sufficiently cowed. “Then what do you propose we do?” I asked feeling defeated.
“We call the cops, just like you said, and then come back later, after we’ve had time to prepare. We need to consider every possible eventuality.”
I knew he was right. It sucked, but he was right. I couldn’t go charging in blind. I had no idea what was waiting for me. I had to think and plan. I never did very well in the preparation area. I was glad I had his help.
TWELVE
The wail of sirens sounded ominous in the distance. We were sitting on the curb in front of Ann’s house waiting for the cavalry to arrive. I hated this feeling! Here I was, the reincarnation of a mystical species, capable of infinite powers, rendered helpless. I didn’t know enough about my abilities to use them in any major way. Lucian made me realize that I could cause more harm than good. I still hadn’t acquired the necessary control, so here we sat, letting things happen naturally.
I was seething.
The flashing lights sped closer. We stood. I held my hand up to shield my eyes from the sun. It was a cop car. It screeched wildly to a halt in front of us, followed closely by several more police cars, a firetruck and an ambulance.
The person in the screeching car was Jared Monroe.
Shit.
“Oh, God Jared.” Seeing him started a fresh flow of tears running down my face. I ran, throwing my arms around him in a sobbing hug, as he stumbled back a step.
“Grace, are you alright? Jesus, what the hell happened?” He looked sick. I was sure when the address came over the radio; he was the first to respond. He sure was driving like a bat out of hell when he pulled up. I hadn’t thought about Ann’s new boyfriend when I called the cops. Not that I could have done anything about it. At least I didn’t think I could have.
“I don’t know,” I sobbed. “It’s a mess and I don’t think you should go in there.” I sniffed and wiped my nose on the only surface available, which just happened to be my sleeve. He let me go, then glancing over my shoulder, he pushed me behind him.
Glaring at Lucian, he asked in his cop voice, “And who are you?” sounding like a protective big brother.
“I’m here with Grace,” Lucian said, unmoved, “We came here to visit her friend.”
They eyed each other. Lucian was about five inches taller than Jared. They were both powerfully handsome. Jared’s red hair was cut military short. He had a slim, runner’s build and looked commanding in his uniform. Lucian was unfazed. He regarded Jared with nothing more than aloof indifference. Before I could mediate between the two of them, the yard around us erupted into chaos. Lights continued to flash and people seemed to be everywhere.
I was pulled aside by an officer who was young and pretty. Her voice was deep; I guess you would describe it as husky. She began shooting questions at me. I answered them as best I could. It was tricky though, to keep the real story from slipping out. Somehow, I knew the authorities wouldn’t fully appreciate it.
With endless questions being fired at me, I finally realized we could be held up for quite some time. Being tied to a potential homicide scene did not bode well for our rescue attempts.
I signaled Lucian, who was still speaking to Jared. He nodded. Hopefully, he understood my intent, or he was about to get the surprise of his life.
I closed my eyes and began sorting it out. I tried to catch every detail. I could hear the female cop repeating, “Miss Allen, Miss Allen…Please answer the question.” She was miles away. I was concentrating hard. Holding my breath I crossed my fingers for luck. I opened my eyes and suddenly Lucian and I were back in his car, parked and at a nice, safe distance from the madness.
“Holy shit!” He jerked his head back and forth, staring wide-eyed at me. “What did you do? he asked, frantically. “Won’t they wonder where we went?” His voice shook as he tried to get it together.
“Not if I got it right,” I replied, trying to sound confident. “What they’ll think is that an anonymous person placed that call. We were never there. I think I got every detail covered. I made sure our prints were gone. I left the room exactly how we found it, everything. Kind of like editing a tape. I pushed ‘rewind,’ cleaned it all up, then pushed ‘play,’ only this time, we aren’t there.” I shifted in the seat to face the yard better. “Now all we do is watch them for a few minutes to see if they look freaked out or confused about our little disappearing act. If they all act pretty normal, then we know it worked.” Despite my convincing argument, behind my back, my fingers were still crossed; a little extra luck couldn’t hurt.
We watched everyone on the lawn, as well as people coming in and out of her house. No one looked frantic or disoriented. They were milling around in groups. More cars were arriving and the crime scene tape was being wrapped around anything standing still.
Lucian looked satisfied, although somewhat startled. He started the engine and we drove away. We were diverted to a side road, as Ann’s street was being quickly blocked off.
“Where to?” he asked, “Your place?”
I quirked an eyebrow at him. “Yeah, I think that would be best. Your place is too far away and we need to get back to Ann’s before dark.”
He drove to my house without a word. The fact that he drove straight to it, without a single direction was a little unnerving. “I see you’ve been here before,” I murmured accusingly.
He ignored my tone. “A few times, but only in a protective capacity, I assure you.”
I wasn’t too sure about that. I wondered if it was time to take a stroll in Lucian’s mind, “only in a protective capacity.”
He pulled into my drive and parked in my spot. My poor Nova was probably in an impound lot by now. Old Norris hates that car. I’m sure he didn’t waste any time having
it towed.
I jumped out and walked to my door. The curtain covering the back window hung at an odd angle and I was instantly on guard. Lucian came up next to me. Noticing the same thing, he tried to push me behind him. The look on his face was frightening. It almost made me question which was scarier, the daunting man beside me or the horror that loomed inside.
“Stay here, I’ll go in first.” He didn’t wait for my reply. He took the steps in a blur, and in moments, he was in my house. I followed instantly, noticing the door hadn’t given him any trouble, so the lock must have been busted.
When I entered, the first thing I noticed was my furniture. It was in shreds. The cushions were gutted, their fluffy down and feathers, strewn everywhere, along with the contents of every drawer in my house. My walls were dotted with large holes. It looked like someone had taken a sledgehammer to them. My TV was unrecognizable; I only knew that it was my television by its location. My movie collection was nothing more than silver confetti.
I felt the tears burning.
Lucian came out of my bedroom, shaking his head. “It looks like a tornado ripped through here.”
I was struck dumb. My mouth hung open as I gazed around the room. Then my eyes met with the empty fish bowl on the counter. “Nooo!” I screamed and ran to the bowl, looking around the floor to see if my poor fish was poured out onto the linoleum.
He was nowhere. I walked around the counter to the sink, shaking and holding my breath. The small pink gravel that decorated the bowl, now decorated the white basin. It was scattered around the opening to the garbage disposal. I quickly pulled the plastic drain shield.
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