Magestorm: The Reckoning (9 page)

23

The vampire contingent of the search party had returned to the Grand Hotel just before dawn, except for Charles.  He was relentlessly searching for any signs of the mage.  That was just fine to Elisabeth, since she didn’t really care for him.

She barely got back to her room when a hurried knock sounded at her door.
 Wishing she could get a moment of peace, she tried to ignore it.  The knock was louder the second time.  No avoiding the visitor, she walked over and swung open the door.

“Yes?”

One of Sebastian’s werewolves stood on the other side of the door, clearly agitated about something.
 He looked around her, into the room, obviously hoping he’d found the head werewolf.

“Is Sebastian here?
 I have something important to speak with him about and I didn’t find him in his room.”

“He’s still out, I believe.
 What’s going on?”

“Well, there was a disturbance earlier today.
 Someone used a sleeping spell in a vampire’s room, causing a number of them to be knocked out.  I suspect it was the mage we’re searching for, although nobody was killed.”

“Who’s room?”

“Heather.”

Son of a bitch!

If that lunatic had let Dhane walk right into their home and get the best of her, she was dead.
 Of course Dhane didn’t kill her, he had a soft spot for the vampire, or at least his cock did.  Without another word, Elisabeth stormed past the werewolf, slamming the door shut behind her.

Down the stairs and straight to the vampire’s room, she could barely contain her rage.
 She beat on the door with her fist and waited for one of Heather’s flunkies to answer it.  When they did, she marched past and into the living room.  Heather sat on the couch as though nothing had happened all day.

“What happened in here?”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t fuck with me!”

Instead of waiting for an answer, the witch stormed her way around the living room area, the kitchen,
and then checked the bedroom.  Other than a nail hole on the headboard, there was nothing out of the ordinary.  An aroma caught her attention and she knew someone had recently had sex in the room.

“You had him here, didn’t you?
 I can smell the sex and I haven’t seen you engage anyone else remotely socially.”

Heather strolled over to the bedroom doorway and stepped just inside.
 Very casual, she wasn’t about to give in to the questioning.

“I still don’t know who you mean.
 I...”

Swiftly, Elisabeth grabbed her by the throat and slammed her against the wall.
 Her breath was hot on the vampire’s neck as she leaned in to get her point across.

“You’ve had sex in here recently.
 Don’t try to deny it, I can smell it.”

“I don’t deny it.
 What I do with my personal guards is my business.  That is, unless you’ve had your eyes on one.  Oh, that’s right, you prefer werewolves, don’t you?”

Her vision red, Elisabeth was at a loss for words in her anger and surprise.
 This vampire was a slick one, that was for sure.  

“Watch yourself.
 There’s not much use here for a vampire with no manners.”

The witch released her grip and stepped away.
 Strolling back into the living room, she glanced around for any evidence that Heather was lying.  Eventually she left, disappointed.

Heather walked back into the living room and flopped down on the couch.
 It was clear she had put herself into a precarious position.  Stuck between the weak witch who wanted to be in power and the strong mage who didn’t, she had to make a final push to get Dhane on her side.  A smile slowly crept across her face.

“I want one
of you to watch the house in Hallow Falls.  The others search all his previously known whereabouts.  I need to find Dhane, and it has to be quick.”

The guards obeyed her orders and departed.
 Leaning back on the couch, she was satisfied with her new decision.  If it didn’t work, at least he would be out of the way for a while adjusting.  But she was determined this would be the perfect way to change his mind.

I’ll change him.
 Then, when he’s a vampire as well as a mage, he will see the light.

2
4

Amber answered the door wearing a robe, and the shower was running in the bathroom.  With a smile, she stepped aside and invited the mage inside.

“I’m not interrupting anything, am I?”

“No, Dhane.
 Are you here to speak with me or Cassandra?”

“Both, really.”

With a nod, she walked to the bathroom and spoke quickly to her mate.
 The shower turned off and Amber returned and sat on the bed.  Cassandra followed suit, adjusting a towel she had wrapped around herself.  They waited for Dhane to speak, though Cassandra feared what this might be about.  Was he leaving again?  Giving up?  The thoughts weighed heavy on her.

“I screwed up yesterday and got myself caught by Heather.”

“Jesus Christ, Dhane!
 When will you stop this ‘me against the world’ crap?  When you get yourself killed?”

“I know, I understand now.
 I’ve let myself go into these things alone, unprepared.  That’s why I need to borrow Amber now.”

“What do you require of me?”

A grin forced its way onto his face.
 Without even questioning what it was for, she was ready to help in any way possible.  That was his favorite quality of hers.  The fact that she made Cassandra happy was the icing on the cake.  Now they would hopefully make everyone happy by putting an end to the uprising of their enemies.

“I need you to take me to Xander.”

“I do not know where he is at this time.”

“Yeah, but you can find him, right?
 If anyone can, it has to be you.”

She nodded in agreement and immediately began thinking over where her former werewolf leader might be.
 The mage was right, there was nobody else that could find him, except maybe Amelia, wherever she might be.

“Dhane,” Cassandra asked softly.
 “Why are you going to see Xander?”

His grin grew bigger as a movie line popped into his head.

“We’re getting the band back together.”

Shaking her head, Cassandra got up and went back into the bathroom.
 Amber didn’t bother with things like modesty, and dropped her bathrobe to the floor as she dug through a suitcase of clothes.  Quickly she was dressed and ready to head out.

“Would you give me a moment alone with Cassandra?”
 Dhane asked.

“Of course.”

Amber exited the room and closed the door behind her.  The mage walked over to the bathroom where Cassandra was leaning against the sink staring at her feet.  She didn’t look up at him when he stood next to her.

“You’re thinking about what he said, aren’t you?”  Dhane prodded.

“Of course.  He was right, I failed to see everything happening right beneath my nose.  Do you really think he’ll come back and help, even if he can?”

“Yes, I do.  Xander is a warrior first and foremost, that much is easy to see.  Give him a chance to return to the battlefield, fighting against enemies that would see him dead?  He’ll jump at the chance, I believe.”

Cassandra pulled another towel off the rack and started drying her hair.  While she hoped Dhane was right, there was also fear of what might happen next, who she might help lead to their death. 

Dhane reached out and pulled her arms down to get her attention again.  There was a smile on his face and sincerity in his voice as he spoke from the heart, determined that his words would get through to her.

“What happened with Rachel and Elisabeth wasn’t your fault.  Nobody saw that coming, and nobody could’ve predicted the future.  Just because you were the council head doesn’t mean you had some special powers to see what was in their heads and hearts.  The only thing you can do is learn from it.  You can’t help anyone while you’re trapped inside your own misery.”

They stared into each other’s eyes for a moment and she knew he was right.  One way or another, she had to move on.  It would take time, but with his help, and Amber’s, maybe she could.  If only Xander would forgive her, maybe then she could forgive herself.

“Thank you Dhane.  After all this time, and all the lessons I’ve taught you, now you’re the one with all the answers.  How did I get this lucky, to have such a great friend?”

“I think it was more than luck.  We were meant to be there for each other in our darkest hours.  It was the only way we could survive this long.  Now we will do this one more time, fighting side by side, together.”

Suddenly, unexpectedly, he put his hand up around her neck and behind her head.  Pulling her towards him, he kissed her deeply, passionately.  Surprised, she was frozen, unsure what this was all about.  When he let go of her neck, her head stayed there, returning his kiss without thinking.

Their lips slowly parted and both them wondered how that hadn’t happened before.  Still, it wasn’t leading to anything.  They both knew that for sure.

“Sorry,” Dhane smiled, “I just had to know what that felt like just once.” 

Without another word, he left.  She stood silently in the bathroom, water beginning to drip on the floor from her still-wet hair, and wondered what exactly just happened.  It was a tender and passionate kiss, but also felt like a goodbye kiss.  It was like one you would give before going off to war, when you knew you probably weren’t coming back.

A chill went through her and she wondered if it was her thoughts or the fact she was wet and mostly naked causing it.  She put the thoughts out of her head.  They were not useful to anyone.  Besides, nothing was going to happen to Dhane; she would make damn sure of that.

             
25

Samantha jumped when the telephone rang in her motel room
.  Was it Dhane checking in after talking with Xander already?  That seemed unlikely, for so many reasons.  Carefully she picked up the receiver and put the phone to her ear.

“Hello?”

“Samantha, this is
Jackson,” the gruff voice spouted loudly.  “I think I have a lead on Veronica.  I’m keeping my distance, so I can’t be sure, but you should check out the old post office down on 5
th
Street.  Three stories tall, windows all blacked out, and I’m sure the place is crawling with vampires.”

“Can you sense her inside?”

“I sense… something.  It’s been so long, I’m not sure if it’s really her or not.  You have some muscle to help you, I’m assuming…”

“Yes, of course.  Thank you
Jackson.”

With a sudden ‘click’ and he was gone, leaving a dial tone in his wake.  She would’ve commented on how rude he was, but there were more important things to worry about right now.  A rescue party had to be pulled together quickly.  Amber and Dhane were gone, so that left her and Cassandra.

Out the door and to Cassandra’s room, she knocked furiously and hoped the head witch was home.  In less than a minute Cassandra answered the door
looking terrified as she wondered if something had happened to Amber and Dhane.

“Samantha, what is it?”

“We have a lead on Veronica, but we need help if we’re going to rescue her.”

“Where is she?”

“The old
post office.  There are vampires there.”

Cassandra walked over to the phone and started dialing numbers.  A moment later she hung up and dialed a different set of numbers.  This continued for several minutes, and Samantha was thoroughly confused.  A final set of numbers was dialed and, after a few moments, Cassandra spoke in a southern accent.

“Hey sugar, this is Candy Alexandra,
I brought my car to the Goodwin Auto Club a month ago and you said Tommy and Tony could fix it up right away.  Give me a call as soon as you can and we’ll make the arrangements.  Bye now!”

After she hung up the phone, she realized Samantha was staring at her with a vacant look.  A small grin appeared on her face and she figured she should explain.

“There’s an emergency way we set up to contact one another in case of an emergency, such as this one.  Terrance will check the message in the next two hours and we can see if he can help us.  Maybe Tyler can too.”

“Oh good.  For a moment I thought you might be having a stroke… or I was.”

Samantha sat on the corner of the bed and the two women waited anxiously for the phone to ring again, or better yet, for Dhane and Amber to return.  Fifteen minutes went by, the women had sprawled out on the bed, and both were ready to scream when the phone mercifully rang.

“Hello?  Thank God you remember to check the numbers.  We have a lead on Veronica and we need help. 
The place is likely crawling with vampires, and Amber and Dhane left to see Xander.  Can you get ahold of them there?”

“No, they actually don’t have a phone where they’re at.  I can go by, but it’ll take a couple hours.
  It’ll be dark by then and easier for the vampires to call for reinforcements.  I’ll see if Tyler is around, otherwise it’s just us.”

“Damn.”

She looked at Samantha and worried about putting
more lives in danger.  With everything that happened to the council, she was at a loss for what to do. 

“Listen, this is highly risky, so maybe you guys should hang back.  I don’t wa
nt to lead you into the unknown and put your lives in danger, so maybe I should go…”

“You
are not responsible for what happened with the council.  Treachery cannot be avoided regardless of how well you or anyone tries to lead.  Besides, you already told me where to go, and I’m going with or without anyone else.  I’ll be there in an hour, if you care to join me.”

A quick goodbye and Cassandra realized how lucky she was to have such loyal friends.  They may be few, but at least they could count on each other, unlike Elisabeth’s hired guns.

“Samantha…”

“Don’t even try it.  I’m going.”

“Then change into something low key; we need to get over there without being spotted by any werewolf patrols.”

The two women changed into business attire.  Most of the offices in that part of town were still being used, so they should fit in with any other people walking down the streets.  They tossed a change of clothes in a duffle bag and headed out the door.

When they got to the
post office they were surprised to find Terrance already there, scouting from a rooftop.  The women slipped into a café across the street and changed out of their business clothes and into their fighting clothes.  That was basically loose fitting jeans, t-shirts, and tennis shoes.

Terrance came down from the roof and was waiting when they exited the
building.  The three of them gathered their wits before moving towards their destination.

“Tyler wasn’t home, but I left him a message.  You ladies ready for this?”