Chapter 5
A week later
Nicholas was totally involved in the music he was playing on the piano. It was the only time lately that he could completely escape from his memories. The music soothed and carried him along to a calm place without worry or fear. Closing his eyes, he leaned into the keys, letting the music flow out of him into the fire lit room. He didn't notice when LaCroix stopped in the doorway to listen. A few minutes later, Janette joined him there.
"It's beautiful," she whispered to LaCroix. "I'm glad he has started playing again."
"Yes, it is beautiful. He has always had a way with the piano." LaCroix softly replied. He could feel the calm in his son when he played. He only wished that calm would last beyond the music.
As LaCroix moved on to prepare for his trip later, Janette stood and watched Nicholas play. <He doesn't even notice anyone is nearby> she thought.
Between the feedings from LaCroix and the bottled blood they had been pushing on him, Nicholas had complained about 'too much of a good thing' but, "At least he's finally gaining some of the weight back." Janette sighed, murmuring, "even if it isn't helping with the other problems," as she moved on to the study to talk with LaCroix.
As she came into the study she saw LaCroix grabbing up his coat and preparing to leave. "Where are you off to, LaCroix?"
"That woman, Karen, contacted me earlier this evening saying it was important I come into Oxford tonight. They don't bother to keep us informed at all and then it's 'come now' like a leashed dog at a command. If it wasn't for the information she has, I would teach her who she is dealing with, Enforcer or not," LaCroix snapped. Janette knew he had been in a foul mood ever since that message had arrived. She smiled slightly at the thought of the Enforcers' meeting with LaCroix tonight.
LaCroix turned to Janette saying, "Keep an eye on things while I'm gone. I've got a feeling something is going to happen soon. I'll be back as quickly as I can." With that, he was gone.
Janette's calm feelings evaporated at LaCroix's words. He could sometimes sense trouble coming, particularly when it involved Nicholas. She would have to stay alert and hope nothing happened before he returned. She moved slowly back to the music room and Nicholas, a frown appearing on the calm beauty of her face.
LaCroix arrived at the address with a quick rush of wind and a snarl in his throat. He could sense vampires nearby. <No sense rushing into trouble,> he thought smiling smugly. <It is better when the other party is on the defensive. Maybe a lesson is in order here.> With that in mind, he moved to make his entrance, all the while keeping an eye on the feelings coming through the link from Nicholas. He didn't know why but he was sure something was going to happen soon.
Slipping into the building through a skylight, LaCroix could see two figures moving around down in the warehouse. One he recognized as Karen, the other, he had never seen before. Making sure there were no others around, he moved silently down until he was standing near the two vampires. Karen whipped around in surprise as LaCroix appeared, while the male vampire expressed his surprise by hissing and showing his fangs.
"You wanted to see me?" LaCroix asked, amused that he had provoked a reaction.
"Damn it, how did you sneak in here?" the male Enforcer demanded. Karen, recovering faster than her partner, held up her hand to quiet him. "LaCroix, I'm glad you could make it so quickly. There is news, and none of it is good!" she urgently said. "We have just returned from France, where we traced down one of the humans involved in your son's situation!. According to the information taken from him before he was eliminated, there is an attempt underway to recapture your son here in England."
"What do you mean 'recapture'?!" LaCroix growled.
"Somehow, they've traced him to Oxford. We need to capture the officer in charge of this attempt, then maybe we'll learn how they were able to trace Nicholas's movement. I want to lay a trap for these humans and finish this business once and for all. If the Germans were able to trace one of us, then we need to find out how and eliminate the threat immediately." Karen stated decisively.
"Can you trust this person's information?" LaCroix demanded as he straightened his tall frame to tower over both of the Enforcers. His voice deepened with menace at the thought of his son back in the Nazis hands. He quickly checked the link, but felt only what had been the norm for the last few weeks from Nicholas.
"The information came from the colonel that was in charge of the initial capture. Evidently, when Nicholas escaped from the holding cell, he displayed a few abilities that were unusual to them. Hitler is very interested in supernatural occurrences, so the colonel thought he would try and get the upper ranks' notice by handing over 'something' that they couldn't explain; Nicholas. There is a squad here in England which will try and kidnap him and take him back to Germany."
"What kind of trap did you have in mind?"
"David and I have a plan, and with your help, we should be able to catch all those involved and eliminate the danger to us all." Karen knew if she didn't have LaCroix's support, it would be harder to catch all of these humans, but with the danger to his son following them from across the channel, she figured LaCroix would see reason.
LaCroix listened to Karen's plan. He didn't like it, particularly putting Nicholas in danger, but she was right. They needed to be stopped, so he agreed to help.
They were discussing the details of the plan, when LaCroix felt a surge of fear and anger from Janette and Nicholas, followed by a stab of pain from Janette. Jerking upright, he threw himself into the air, leaving the two Enforcers demanding answers behind him. While en route to the house, he felt another surge of anger from Nick, then blackness. Even with maximum speed, it took nearly ten minutes to reach the house.
Upon landing in the yard, the first thing he noticed was the front door had been smashed in, and several windows were shattered. Moving into the house, LaCroix found Janette laying on the floor in the foyer, unconscious, with several bullet holes in her chest and a little trickle of blood slowly running off her forehead. In a corner of the foyer, he saw one body, unmoving. Another body was lying in the doorway to the library. Both of them had their throats ripped out. A third body was lying face down draped through one of the broken windows where it looked like someone had thrown him. There was blood leading into the music room which led to yet another mangled body.
As he was picking Janette up off the floor, the two Enforcers landed in the doorway. Moving into the house, they followed LaCroix as he carried his daughter upstairs to her room. Sending David off to retrieve a couple of bottles of blood from the kitchen, LaCroix laid Janette on the bed. Wiping her forehead clean, LaCroix growled at Karen, "You couldn't have warned me any sooner?"
"We just arrived back in Oxford when....," Just then Janette took a ragged breath and opened her eyes. The gold shining in her eyes displayed her need. David hurried into the room and handed Janette a bottle, placing the other one on the table by the bed. After drinking half the bottle, she lowered it from her mouth and looked at LaCroix. "I sensed them too late. They came in shooting their guns. Nicolah killed one of them almost immediately, but several more came pouring into the house from all directions. I saw Nicolah throw one man at the window when I felt something slam against my head. I don't remember anything else after that."
"Rest, my dear. I will deal with this now." LaCroix spoke softly to Janette, but she knew the fire of his anger was almost consuming him. Closing her eyes, she rested upon the bed.
Pushing the two Enforcers out of Janette's room, he rounded on them in a rage. "What do you know that you're not telling me!" he demanded. He could barely feel Nicholas. He had to be very far away or unconscious! They shouldn't be too far away. If he could get a direction he would be able to rescue Nicholas and deal with these..... humans!!
Karen and David looked at each other, then looked at LaCroix. Karen had been warned about LaCroix's tendencies and she knew he would be going after his son. Deciding to salvage something from this assignment, she quickly told LaCroix as they hurried down the stairs what they knew about the Germans' plan to spirit Nicholas out of the country. After telling him everything she knew, LaCroix was gone. Looking at David, she said, "Stay here with Janette and take care of this mess. I'll go after them," then leaped into the air as well.
LaCroix followed the road heading east through the countryside of England. The Germans had about a half an hour head start. He didn't know what kind of vehicle to look for, only that they would be ultimately heading for the coast. He could feel Karen a few minutes behind him. <Damn that woman!. If she had only told me as soon as they found out about this abduction idea, I could have been ready.> He spotted a vehicle up ahead and pushed faster.
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