It was too early for Slade and Eran to report to the squad room, but not enough time to return home. They decided to watch the news and relax after eating the meal Eran prepared. They sat at opposite ends of the giant leather couch placed in front of the very large screen TV. Slade looked over at Eran who watched the news intently. He thought, She is quite the detective. Her instincts are well honed and she has the head t...

The fire suppression system kicked on quickly and the fire died in a matter of a few minutes. Rather than evacuate with Leona, Slade stood and watched as the flames licked the room and then they were gone. Of course, the furnishings in the room sustained damage and replacement was necessary. Leona's coffin fell apart from the flames that swallowed it, but she had a spare in the back of the warehouse. While Leona got her c...

 Holly was enjoying her time in the territorial capital. She spend a lot of time shopping, not an easy task since most of the stores had closed by the time she was up and active. She solved the problem by leaving an envelope for the morning concierge with her orders and instructions on where the packages should be shipped, either back home or delivered to her hotel room. She was renowned for her generous tips so never had...

Slade and Leona walked into Gustaf's office and found Gustaf and Andrei still embroiled in conflict. It was as if they never changed places from the night before. The storm of words raged on in Romani and Slade felt so out of place. Leona entered and slammed the office door hard creating an interruption that stopped the men. They turned to look at her and glared at her strong enough to freeze her movement. "Will you two s...

Leona and Slade left the Main Artery and drove to Cafe Rendezvous. Leona sat next to Slade, but touched him less and never looked directly at him. She tried to hide that she cried, about the night's earlier events with Connie. The argument between Gustaf and Andrei at the club was about what happened earlier. Something went radically wrong with the healing process and the least desirable side effect happened. The three va...

Holly departed the following night leaving Carpenter to sit and ponder his next course of action. He had dealt with the hunters many times over the years and he had no qualms about killing if it meant survival, but this was the first really intelligent one he had ever encountered. Keeping a federal marshal as a partner was a brilliant move on his part so there could be no crude attack on him and everything had to be caref...

Doctor Vincent headed his buggy back to town. As he rode he though about the conversation he had with this man called Carpenter. He was sure that he was one of those that he had sought and destroyed all across the Western states. Be they called Nosferatu, vampire or the undead they must be eliminated.But this time he could not be sure this time as there were questions that he had to find answers to. How could he not be re...

There was a thin layer of frost covering the city as the bright red sun rose slowly. Slade woke early, looked outside and put the coffee on before showering. While he was in the shower, Eran called and left a message about the estate in the suburbs. The owner of the transport company indeed owned the estate and had for over 150 years. She also had more photos of the estate from various angles showing guards patrolling and...

Holly waited until the hotel grew quiet and all those that responded to the yelling and gunfire had departed. She concentrated and expanded her hearing. She soon heard the piano player start up again and the drone of voices as the card games and general conversation resumed. It was about 3:00 AM when she judged that it was safe to leave. As the desk clerk was asleep in the little room behind the front desk and she didn't...

As Holly sat and sipped on her champagne she was amazed at how her hearing and vision had expanded. She could see the cards of the poker player that sat with his back to her and he was better than half way across the room. She heard the scurrying of a mouse that had exited his hole to grab a dropped piece of food and his hasty retreat back home. She could hear the moaning of one of the saloon girls upstairs entertaining a...

The ranch hands took on their new duties without complaint; spurred on by the extra pay they would receive and being allowed to sleep in the next day when they drew the overnight watch. Although many times Carpenter met them while they were making their rounds and told them to go to bed as he would be in all night and that they could start again at Sunrise. For the next few nights he labored at cleaning all the blood off...

Night had fallen and Carpenter exited his resting place deep within the cave on the Indian burial grounds. The Lakota's penchant for violence when dealing with trespassers kept the townsfolk away and their reverence for the ancient dead kept them away, so it was a good choice. He entered the ranch house and found Holly laying in a pool of her own blood. A deafening scream of rage and anger issued from his throat as he ran...

The sun disappeared below the western horizon and another beautiful day ended in the city. Late October in the city was a beautiful time. The oak and maple trees dropped their red, yellow, orange and brown leaves. They swirled around when cars passed, creating small funnel clouds of crushed leaves and debris. When it rained or frosted, the streets became slick almost like ice. It was so warm during the day that people wal...

The Step Van with the sleeping vampires cruised through the city to another area away from the warehouse district. It left the city behind and entered the suburbs, where very large estates dotted the landscape. The truck entered an estate surrounded by a high wall made of stone along the front and natural barriers around the rest. Built into the natural barriers was a very high chain link steel fence. Cameras scanned the...

Eran awoke sandwiched between two male vampires in the front seat of the red pickup truck. They left the club parking lot in a slow deliberate manner, so as not to attract undue attention. The mist, which blanketed the city, turned to a soft gentle rain coating everything it touched and soaking into everything. She sat up straight, looked at her captors and watched the surroundings as they passed through the city. They le...