In a Different Light 4
Tal and Thorn
Instant Infamy
Daisuke watched as Claire�s silhouette disappeared up the stairs. Soon there was nothing there at all. He hadn�t time to beg Claire to come back or he would have. He needed to get himself together, get back around to the olds. Which no damn it Claire still had the keys. Fine, first things first, he�d go and clean himself up. Looking for a men�s room and grateful to see one just down another hall, he redressed himself as best he could and half walked half crawled to it.
Taking a look in the mirror he quickly washed away all evidence of his shame and need. �I don�t want him.� He told his reflection. �How could I? He�s like a blade made of ice. His words and actions leave your pride sliced apart and your heart cold.� Not always. He told himself. Only sometimes. Yeah like the minute he�s even slightly offended and with Claire who knows what will set him off. I�m not going to let it get to me. Really it�s a good thing. Taught me a lesson. Claire�s a dick. Now I know better. �I hope.�
A hand touched his shoulder. �What a surprise Goldie�you still untouchable?�
Claire stared at the cell phone looking absolutely offended. �I can�t believe you,� he muttered, stuffing the phone back on the belt clip. �I thought you were on my side, Giovanni.� He stared at the tall narrow passage that would lead him back to the underground. �Go back and get him?�
Claire ruffled his hair, looking around for someone who would tell him that Giovanni was obviously on something and he should just come home. He was alone, no one to help him argue with Giovanni�s soft �You started this game, Vampire. Best you finish it, don�t you think?�
Teach me to hire childhood playmates. Fine, I�ll play out my game to the end. Happy?
Claire squeezed back into the passage, and followed it to where it widened out into a winding staircase leading right back to the club. He felt his pockets for his painkillers and realized they were back in the car. Damn, and his shoulder was aching again. It was definitely going to ruin his mood. He emerged into the hallway where he�d left Daisuke. Not seeing him anywhere, Claire cursed.
�Okay, where the fuck are you, Aurora?� He headed back towards the dance floor, his mood starting to lift just a little. He always loved to play hide and seek.
�Sorry, you've mistaken me for someone else.� Dice said using the mirror to see who approached. He could almost imagine J appearing and telling the behemoth of a guy that �A man should not sneak up on another man in the men�s bathroom.� Ok that drink must have been strong to be thinking that at a moment like this.
�No, I�d recognize that tight little��
�Now you�re making me uncomfortable.� Dice said smartly just waiting for the right moment to draw his gun. And he�d really try to resist the urge to take off the man�s cock with one of his precious blue bullets. And now he just had to summon it through his teleportation ability from the fucking car. Ok time for plan B.
Claire pushed past three burly brutes and looked out over the entire club from the balcony. He couldn�t find Dice anywhere. Even Reese was gone. He shoved his way back down to the main floor, and headed back to the myriad of tunnels that lead away from the underground club. �This is the last time I listen to you, Giovanni.�
Plan B was pretty lame but simple to carry out. Still keeping his tough guy act up, Dice turned on the hot water and pretended to rinse his hands as if bored with the man. Counting to three he caught as much hot water in his hands as he could, ignoring how it burned. Being caught by this guy would be worse than a few burns. He threw it into the guy�s eyes.
Not surprisingly the guy screamed and Dice moved quick to slip past him. Blindly, the unhappy man grabbed at and caught Dice by the collar which resulted in a sharp kick to his side but he didn�t drop him.
Claire was getting frustrated, but when a commotion erupted in one of the side corridors, he decided that was the closest thing to a lead he had, so he made his way to the source of the noise as quickly as possible. Throwing open the door to a bathroom, he accessed the scene quickly. Some ugly bastard had a hold of his Daisuke, and seemed intent on doing some thing rather nasty to him. Claire produced a gun from god knows where and leveled it at the man�s head.
�Excuse me, but that�s mine. I suggest you let go before I get annoyed.�
But Dice was not exactly happy with Claire. �Oh, now I�m yours. I wasn�t ten minutes when�well, you know.�
�Says he�s not yours guess you didn�t feed the meter.� The getting uglier by the minute guy told Claire.
�Shut the fuck up, or I swear to god I will shoot you too,� Claire warned Dice, letting a shot go, his bad arm affecting his aim, and missing the man�s head, though not by much. �And you, get your nasty hands off him.�
Dice was dropped but the big guy went after Claire. �You look pretty too. Maybe I should take you and Goldie home with me tonight.� His hulking hand closed around Claire�s shaky wrist fearlessly.
Claire began pulling the trigger, emptying the gun. He didn�t seem to notice if he was shooting the man or the bathroom tiles. His eyes just got really wide and turned a lighter shade of lavender.
�We�ll have lots of fun.� He pulled Claire forward on his bad arm.
Dice was trying to wretch the paper towel holder off the wall to use as a weapon. �Great first date.� He muttered as it almost tore completely off.
Claire swung his good arm, using the gun to try to bludgeon the man. His wide eyes were tearing up with the pain from having his shoulder jarred repeatedly by the man�s rough handling.
Laughing the man leaned over and licked the side of Claire�s face.
Claire cringed in disgust and the gun clattered to the floor. He batted at the man with his free hand, pushing him away as best he could. �NO no no. I don�t want to! Don�t make me!� His eyes were glazing over, tears falling unchecked. �Please papa no!� He tried to pull away, not seeming to notice that his wounds had reopened and blood was staining his white shirt. His free hand scrambled for something behind his back, and he produced a grenade.
Dice was in the act of leaping from the sink with the towel holder in hand in hopes of landing one solid hit to the guy�s head. �Leave him the fuck alone.�
�Stop it, papa! I won�t!� Claire cried out, bringing the grenade up to his mouth, trying to get a grip on the pin with his teeth.
Dice came down hard either that was the guy�s head or his shoulder but he saw what Claire was about to do and tried to reach for the grenade. �Don�t do that you crazy fuck!�
Claire�s teeth got a grip on the pin, and he jerked his head to the side, pulling it out. His eyes narrowed suddenly. �I�m not going to let you anymore!� He swung his fist, pummeling the side of the guy�s face. Moving quickly, he jammed the grenade into the hood on the guy�s sweatshirt and laughing manically, kicked him in the groin. Wresting his arm free, Claire walked backwards out of the restroom, laughing every step of the way. �See, papa? Little Claire is all grown up!�
�Little Claire is about to be blown to bits.� Dice really didn�t have time to check on the guy prone on the floor. He�d expected to hit the guy�s temple anyway. He�d been aiming to kill him. He grabbed Claire�s good arm and ran up the corridor with him hoping to clear the stairs before the grenade went off.
�Did you see?� Claire asked, eyes wide again as he ran beside Dice. �I made papa stop, Giovanni. Just like you wanted me to.�
�Claire, let�s just get you back somewhere safe, ok.� Dice kept running, seeing the casino in the distance and not willing to put them in jeopardy by going back for the gun just yet. He waited. �Hey, where are your fireworks? Your grenade on a timer or something?� We should probably try to keep running because if that grenades a dud�
Claire frowned. �It must be broken. I should go fix it,� He turned to head back.
Try to forgive me for this. Dice grabbed Claire�s bad shoulder. �The hell you are.�
Claire screamed as pain lanced through his body. His eyes watered, and the world started swimming in front of his eyes. He fell against the side of a building, gasping. �What the hell happened?� he asked weakly as the pain started to abate a little
�You were tripping down memory lane, I think. Talking to Papa. Calling me Giovanni. And if you don�t want the big ugly guy to make you his newest plaything I suggest you come with me.�
�Where to?� Claire asked, wondering how much he had said. He hadn�t had an episode in several months. Not since his father�s funeral. He wasn�t sure he wanted Daisuke to know about the shadows that haunted him.
�Look, you are supposed to have gone into hiding so let�s go the one place you wouldn�t be. The casino.� Dice said pointing towards the lights.
His blood chilled as he heard a car engine and a distinct. �Hey, Goldie where you hiding?�
�Duck over here.� Dice pulled Claire behind a dumpster.
Claire half-fell against Dice, his head lolling to the side, resting against his shoulder. �OK,� He muttered, good hand clutching Dice�s shirt to help support him. �Fuck that hurts.�
�Where�s your pills?� Dice said noting how much blood Claire was losing.
�Car,� Claire managed. Weak from the wounds to start with, Claire was fighting just to stay conscious after the fight, and the running not to mention the blood loss.
�Claire, we need to stop the bleeding.� Dice took off his shirt and set it down, he quickly pulled off the leather straps and tore away the reddening fabric. �This is no good.� He tore his own pink shirt in haphazard strips and bound the wound as good as he could, then he used the flimsy gray fabric to bind a pulse point on the other arm, it might slow the circulation a bit. �I need to get help. Stay here. Don�t move.�
Claire fumbled for his cell phone. �Seven.� He gasped out. �Seven for help.�
�Ok. Seven.� Dice hit the number and waited for a response.
�Giovanni.�
�Giovanni. This Daisuke Aurora. Claire got in a scuffle and reopened his wounds. We need to get him out of here and to safety fast. We�re behind the dumpster behind Great Wok of Fire. And you need to hurry,� he added as he heard a car brake to a stop in front of the dumpster.
�We�ll be there in just a minute. Hold tight,� Giovanni said, hanging up.
�Claire they�re coming. Listen. I need you to be quiet. I�m going to distract these guys and I stand a much better chance than you. Just stay here and be quiet. OK?�
�Ok, papa,� Claire muttered, eyes fluttering closed.
Please be quick, Giovanni. For both our sakes. Dice stepped out to face whatever had come with big ugly guy in the car before they searched behind the dumpster and found Claire.
�Alright, you know how this goes.� He tried not to think about how he must look in nothing but the leather pants and jewelry. �I have to see some cash first.�
�Little punk wants you to pay him?� An even bigger guy came out of the car.
�Don�t you have any little friends?�
The big ugly guy laughed and Dice heard about four guns click, all trained on him.
�I meant of the human variety. Oh wait,� He braced himself as the big guy grabbed his hair hard. �You would have to be human first.�
�I got a much better way to use that smart mouth.�
�Then you�d better have a hundred bucks.� Dice growled trying not to feel thirteen and helpless as the guy brought him to his knees.
�Wish we could have found your friend too.�
�The kid said a hundred bucks,� A familiar voice called out just before a short burst of automatic gunfire dispatched the guy holding onto Daisuke. �Sorry, no personal checks or IOUs.� Claire�s retinue of lackeys appeared, looking ready to commit murder and worse.
�He�s back there,� Dice pointed to the dumpster not quite ready to get up himself. The car was long gone as soon as the first shot hit the big ugly guy, and he was grateful but he sort of was feeling a bit like he�d hit rock-bottom and he needed to breath and return to reality.
Two of the men hurried to gather up Claire. The third, who looked to be even younger than Claire, approached Daisuke. �You�d better come with us. You look like you need to be patched up a bit too.�
�Nah, I�m just fine.� Dice said though he shivered from the cold night air and he did let Ian give him a hand to stand.
�Here,� Ian handed Dice his jacket. �It isn�t much but it�s better than being mostly naked.�
Too worn out, fed up, and tired to argue he graciously accepted it. �Yeah, thanks. Just show me to the car so I can sit down and know he�s alright.�
�Right over here,� Ian led him back down the alley to where a shiny red car waited. �Master Claire is in the back, if you want to sit back there.� Ian gave Dice a knowing smile as he climbed into the front seat, forcing Mitchell to slide over practically in Giovanni�s lap, who was driving (probably because he was the only one old enough to have a license.)
Claire was laying out on the back seat with a long coat thrown over him and another coat bunched up under his head.
�Is there room back here for me?� Dice said getting in and trying not to upset Claire too much.
�I�m sure you can make room,� Mitchell said, turning and winking at Dice. Giovanni glared at him, and slammed his foot down on the gas.
Why is everyone from my brother to his cronies acting like we�ve just been to pick out china patterns? Dice could only make room by sitting with Claire�s head lying in his lap. He looked so uncomfortable, almost frightened. Dice found himself petting Claire�s head and moving his hair away from his face and whispering; �It�s alright, you�re safe now.�
Part Five |
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