My new
apartment actually turned out to be a condo. The living room, kitchen, and
small dining room were downstairs. There were two nice sized bedrooms and a
large bathroom upstairs. All of the floors were of some light-colored wood,
except for the kitchen and bathroom, which were done in a sandstone-colored
type of tile. The walls were that typical off white and there were ceiling to
floor blinds in a sage green. The bathroom had one of those sunken tubs with a
jacuzzi built in that I couldn't wait to try.
I was standing in the bathroom doorway daydreaming about sitting
there in the tub with the jets on and drinking a tall glass of...
“So what do you think?” I jumped at Mitch’s voice. He just
snickered. “Sorry.”
“No you're not.”
He nodded. “You're right.”
“I like it. It's almost too big.”
He grinned. “You needed the space for all the new furniture.”
I raised an eyebrow at that. “Yeah, funny how that happened. Who
knew that furniture could breed?”
“You have to have a place for people to sit.”
“Yeah. If I planned on having guests, which I don't.”
He shrugged. “So you have a few extra pieces of furniture.”
“And how much did all this cost me?”
“You can afford it. The
lease is for a year.” I stared at him so he added, “Just in case.”
“Just shoot me and get it over with.”
I walked into my new bedroom. There was a large walk-in closet and
my bed had grown. It was now a queen-sized four-poster, of polished pine.
I stared at him and tried to give me a disarming smile. “Come on.
You needed a new bed.”
“In case I have guests. Right?”
He shrugged. “There's one just like it in the other room and
everything matches.”
I shook my head. “Somebody has way too much time on their hands.”
In the living room, my television now had a new stereo and video
system. My recliner had a new matching sofa to talk to. The dining room
actually had a nice table and chairs. The kitchen was state of the art too. So
I had all this new and pricey stuff to enjoy. Maybe if I was some suit, I would
have been more excited. I just didn't need all the comforts. What I'd had in my
old place was enough. After Mitch went
back to the station, I sat wondering just who had picked all this stuff
out. Maybe I didn't want to know. The best thing about the whole place was the
garage that was attached. It opened into a little foyer off the kitchen,
perfect for the sun challenged. I was easy to please.
It was mid-June before I knew it. I was getting use to my
apartment. But the more time that passed, the more I realized that I wasn't
going home anytime soon. I was beginning to wonder what New Orleans was like in
this dimension.
I had almost forgotten about the District until Myra stayed after
her shift one night. We were just talking about general stuff. I had the
speakers on to catch the news so I didn't run over. A bulletin caught our
attention. We stood there staring at the speakers like they had just told a bad
joke. Two men had been found outside one of the strip clubs, dead. Both had
fang marks and were completely drained of blood. Myra and I glanced at one
another. Police were with holding their names until a further investigation had
been finished.
“One of the local vamps?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No. Jean Claude has control over his people.”
“None of them ever go rogue?”
“Not in years. It could be some from the Church.”
“The church?” I was confused at that.
“The Church of Eternal Life. Caters to vamps. It's pastor is a
vamp.”
Okay. Now I had heard everything.
Myra looked at me. “What about some of your people? Those Daimons
you were talking about.”
That sent a chill up my spine. “Someone has to send them here.
They can't time jump.”
“Humans First will love this. It will give them all kinds of ammo
to get the laws struck down.”
I nodded. “Probably somebody that has it in for the mayor… Um
Master.”
“Like you?” I stared at her. “I didn't mean that.”
I sighed. “One, I'm here every night except Sunday night. Two,
when I'm not here, I'm sleeping. Three, I swore an oath to protect the mortals.
Besides, I hate the taste of blood.”
We both realized that the news had been off for sometime. I pulled
my headphones on and announced the next block of songs. I turned around to find
Myra gone. That girl had a penchant for disappearing. I took some requests and
then ordered dinner.
I was half way through a meatball marinara sandwich when Asher
called. “I need to see you.”
“Asher...”
He interrupted me. “Anita and Jean think you have something to do
with the murders.”
“What!”
“They think you are trying to make Jean Claude a scapegoat.”
I took a deep breath to calm myself before explaining. “I don't like
Jean Claude to be sure but I wouldn't do something like this to get back at
him.”
“I believe you.”
“I am so screwed.” He chuckled at my comment and that sent shivers
all over me. “Asher I can't come back to the District. You heard what Jean
Claude said and I'm rather fond of my heart.”
“I will come to you.”
“To the station?” I asked.
“Oui. I will have Nathaniel drive me. I really want to talk to
you.”
“I'll let security know you're coming.”
He hung up. I called downstairs to let Ralph know that I was going
to have guests. Then I got back to more music and the rest of my dinner. It was
after eleven when Ralph escorted Asher and Nathaniel upstairs. He gave me the
weirdest look before he left.
Nathaniel sat in one of the studio chairs and stared at me
quietly. I think he was miffed about the whole moving without telling him
thing.
“How are the fish?” I asked him.
“Fine.”
When he didn’t say anything else, I turned to Asher. “What did you
need to see me about?”
“I just needed to see you.” He ran a finger down my cheek. “I have
missed you.”
I sighed. “I'm sorry that I can't come back. I owe you a lot.”
The vampire shook his head. “Non. Your friendship is all I need.
Nathaniel and I consider that a gift.”
I suddenly felt like a heel for breaking off contact. I tried to
explain. “I never said I wanted to stop being friends. As long as it doesn't
cause you trouble. Hold on.” I pulled
the headphones up and set up some more music. “This is 93X KNSX and this is
Seether, Driven Under.”
I cued up Theory of a Dead Man and Crossfade to be followed by POD
and Powerman 5000 then turned back to my guests.
Nathaniel still hadn't budged so I asked, “You still pissed at
me?” He didn't answer. “Don't you realize that hanging out with me could cause
you a lot of grief?”
The shifter’s lashed back at me. “And don't you realize that I
don't care? I like having you to talk to, someone that isn't part of the pard
or the District. I just want to be friends.”
The look on his face was enough to make me try and crawl under the
floor. Was he really that short on friends? I could see where Asher would have
trouble making friends. I mean he was dead but Nathaniel was young and full of
energy. If he kept his were status under cover he should be able to make lots
of friends.
I sighed running both hands through my hair. It was well past my
shoulders. I needed to get it cut but there weren't a lot of barbershops open
on Sunday. “All right. You can hang out
with me, both of you. Truth is, I like to hang out with you guys too.”
Nathaniel's face lit up. Asher smiled. Now we’d have to see if I
could just keep Acheron and the other side happy. Nathaniel ordered pizza and I
let him play on air for a while. Asher was content just watching. Every once in
awhile he would chime in on our choice of music.
I didn't tell them where my new place was. I didn't need that
trouble but I told them that anytime they needed to get away to come down to
the station. That seemed to placate them. They left around three. I left at six
am.
When I walked into the apartment, Acheron was waiting. I was sure
I wasn't going to like the reason for his visit. He had a black duffel bag
sitting by the sofa.
Sitting in my chair was a man dressed in black jeans and a white
tank top. He had shoulder length brown hair and brown eyes. I knew that
standing up he was at least an inch taller than me at six four. He was tanned
and muscled. My first thought was why was a Katagari male sitting in my living
room. My second thought was the shit was about to hit the fan. Roan Jacobs was
a lone wolf even though Vane and Fury had welcomed him. Still, he did aid them
if needed. I would give him that.
Acheron motioned for me to take a seat, which I did on the
opposite end of the couch. Roan and I got along fine. It was Acheron and the
rest of the Pantheon I had a problem with.
But I was curious so I broke the silence. “Okay. I'll bite. What's
up?”
“Aren't you even going to say hello?” Roan asked. He had that
Highlands accent. “Haven't you even missed me?”
“Like a migraine.” I told him. He grinned. “What's going on
Acheron?”
The big guy looked from the Katagari to me. “Roan is going to help you patrol. I'll
probably send another Hunter as well.”
Surprised, I asked, “Patrol what? To borrow a quote from Mitch,
'Not a whole lot of Daimons around here'.”
Roan chimed in. “Vacation's over dude.”
I looked from him to the Atlantean, who explained. “Someone has
bridged the two dimensions. There have been several time jumps.”
“Oh that's just fuckin' great! These people won't know what hit
them. Jesus! Vampires have rights here. This is gonna get good people killed.”
Acheron interrupted me. “It already has. Right now the focus is
here. That doesn't mean they won't spread out. If we can find and solve the
problem on our end...”
I looked at my leader in disbelief. “You don't know who it is?”
He shook his head. “We're working on it. Meanwhile I want you and
Roan on the streets.”
“What about the station?” I asked him.
“You're going on vacation. Mitch will have someone fill in.” The
big guy told me.
I didn't know what to say. I had wanted to be back home
patrolling, but not here. I was halfheartedly listening to the boss and
thinking about all the people who were probably going to die because of a
self-centered, temperamental, spoiled bitch that loved to play with people’s
lives.
Acheron continued, “Roan will stay here in the spare room. I
brought more gear for you to use.” When I didn't say anything, he walked over
and snapped his fingers near my ear. “Are you with us?”
I looked up at him. “You know we're gonna have to let the vamp
community in on this.”
“Why? I doubt they'll get in the way.” Roan asked.
I sighed. “They will if we accidentally start killing their
people. I'll try to keep them out of the loop as long as I can.”
The boss stood there a minute, apparently thinking before he
spoke. “You know the Master's second. He could be useful in this.”
I nodded. “They already think I had something to do with the two
guys that got wasted the other night.”
“I'll protect you yank.” I rolled my eyes at the Katagari’s reply.
“Hey how come your eyes aren't dark?”
I shrugged. “They change when I fight or get hurt.”
“Cool.” Roan exclaimed.
The big guy told us. “Get some sleep. I want you on the street
tonight.”
“What about the police?” I asked.
“Don't get arrested.” Acheron told us then disappeared.
Roan sighed. “I hate when he does that.”
I agreed. After a brief conversation, Roan and I went to our
separate rooms to sleep. As I was drifting off I thought, ‘wait until the wolf
king gets a load of Roan. Big bad wolf indeed.’