105: Into the Fray – Pt. 3

Victoria wasted no time jumping onto Pyrose’s back and following Fane into the sky. It was a dangerous gamble, but one she needed to make. She had to stop Fane before he bombarded the bodies below with the fearsome brute force of his monstrous companion. With no time to master the art of dragon flight, Victoria relied heavily on Pyrose’s abilities to navigate the open air. Meanwhile, she concentrated on firing accurate volleys of arcane to put an end to Fane’s tyranny.

Pyrose veered to the left as Fane aimed a fiery breath toward them. With a vicious swipe of her claws, Pyrose caught Ebonwrath in the eye, nearly blinding the large creature. He shrieked in pain, shaking his head and almost losing his cargo in the process. But Fane held on as the animal fiercely shuddered nearly crashing to the earth.

In response, Fane began his own onslaught against Victoria. His powerful magics exploded around her in a high-flying blitz that put her on the defensive. Pyrose skirted the horizon, dodging volatile projectiles as they erupted dangerously close by. The red dragon moved so nimbly, avoiding the mountains, the balls of death being thrown by Fane and the stray weaponry hurled from below. It was as if she had eyes along her scales and was completely attuned to Victoria’s needs and maintaining her well-being.

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104: Into the Fray – Pt. 2

Victoria stood back with the others as dozens of archmages, wizards, priests and occultists battled fiercely in the open field near the shattering ruins of the water plant. “We need to put an end to this. We cannot allow Fane to fully restore his powers,” Julian urged. “The result would be catastrophic!”

“I’ll say. The man snapped his fingers and evaporated Cassatt,” Marcel said, still reeling from having witnessed an elder vampire’s death with such ease. “I can’t even begin to imagine what could happen once he’s back to full capacity.”

“Well, I will have to get back inside to his holding room. There is a lot of stray chaotic energy to harness in there. And if what Fane said is right and we’re linked, and I truly believe it is, I’m going to need a leg up on him. I think I can use his own powers against him.”

“What do you need from us?” Derrick asked, stepping closer to where Victoria stood.

“It’s asking a lot, but I could use some distraction. Give Fane a target to focus on while I siphon off his magic.”

“We’ll provide as much cover as we can,” Rowan said, nodding toward Marcel. 

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98: Change in Command – Pt. 2

First thing in the morning, Victoria entered Rowan’s Tudor-style mansion. Upon entry, she was met with a group of large, muscular vampires congregating in the billiards room to the left. One of them caught her eye and stood as she waited in the foyer. From her peripheral, she saw him nudge another bloodsucker seated at the bar with his back to the door. He immediately turned at the gesture and noticed Victoria standing alone and followed the other toward the front room. “Hey there, Sweet thing,” the first man spoke, licking his lips as he circled around Victoria. “Are you lost?” he asked in a deep voice, smiling down at her from where he stood at least five or six inches taller.

“No. Are you?”

“You look lost,” the second man spoke, moving in behind Victoria. “But, mmm my, oh my, you smell delicious. I was just saying how I was feeling a bit famished. Who knew this place had a delivery service?” He moaned, reaching up to grab a strand of her hair and rubbing it between his fingers briefly.

“Yes, I could really go for a bite myself. It’s just like our host to cater to his guests, and you are just our type.” As Victoria prepared to defend herself, the man behind her threw her up against a wall, knocking the wind out of her, stunning her momentarily and the other moved in quickly. “What do you say we have a little taste?”

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84: The Cost of Doing Business – Pt. 3

“Why is it any time one of you goes missing the other one thinks I had something to do with it or even care to help?” Rowan asked, leaning back against his chair. “I have no idea where your witch has gone off to, Mate. Perhaps she’s found someone more interesting to take to her bed?” Derrick made a threatening step forward and Rowan was instantly on his feet. “Careful now. We wouldn’t want to muss that pretty face of yours before your witch comes home now, would we?”

“If you’ve done anything to her…”

“Save your threats, Derrick. I’ve no interest in harming Victoria. She’s too important. Besides, I thought you had some clever way of always keeping track of her.”

“I do,” Derrick replied sullenly. “But I can’t sense her. Which usually means something bad.”

“Well then. No sense in dawdling here. Go and find your witch. We wouldn’t want the Elders thinking you’re incapable of protecting the poor dear,” Rowan grinned.

Derrick turned and quickly retreated from his Sire’s office with one goal in mind: finding Victoria—and soon.

Continue Reading: "84: The Cost of Doing Business – Pt. 3"

82: The Cost of Doing Business – Pt. 1

“Marcel. Hello. Um…can you open the door?” Marcel grunted, but didn’t move. “Come on. Your master is waiting for me. Are you really going to do this now?” Marcel shrugged then stood more erect. “Wait, are you still mad about me shooting you?”   

“It took 8 hours to dig that bullet out of my shoulder! Every time I got it close to the surface, it burrowed back down again,” he growled before his face turned into a pout.

Victoria snickered and hid it behind a cough. “I’m sorry, Marcel.” He grunted again and repositioned in front of the door. “I am. Really, Marcel. I’m very sorry. I was angry seeing you hit Derrick like that and I…overreacted.”

“‘Overreacted?’ You could have killed me!”

“No, I wasn’t aiming to kill; only wound. But I really am sorry. I wasn’t thinking straight that day; surely you can remember why.” He looked away from her and sighed. “Please?” she gently rested her hand on his bicep and his eyes followed the motion. With a frustrated grumble, he stepped away from the door to allow her inside.

Continue Reading: "82: The Cost of Doing Business – Pt. 1"

76: To the Victor Goes the Spoils – Pt. 1

“UGH!” Victoria growled, frantically tearing through her closet for a dress to wear to tonight’s gala, a date auction to help raise money for the Injured Officers’ Fund for the Avondale police department. It was one of many ideas Mike had to give back to those the city ignored and treated as less than for injuries sustained while on the job. He’d witnessed it firsthand with his own line-of-duty shooting and wanted to do something to help. Mike landed on a bachelor auction thanks to Aria’s helpful suggestions and he’d reeled in Victoria for help. With any luck, they were hoping to make it a success. Maybe the red one, Derrick loves red. No wait, maybe that’s bad, he said it makes him hungry. Or was that a joke? “What the hell is wrong with me? I’ve never had a problem picking an outfit before! It’s just Derrick!”

The doorbell rang as she tried on the third dress of the evening. “Come in,” she shouted. Derrick strolled in looking like sex on legs and she immediately locked herself inside her room. “Shit! He looks really good.” She growled in frustration looking down at her dress before rushing again to the closet.

“Victoria?”

“I’m upstairs. I’ll be down in a minute. I just have to find…something,” she quickly shimmied out of the gown and tossed it to the floor with the others that came before. “Red it is,” she sighed and hurriedly pulled on a long, sleeveless, red silk gown with jeweled embellishing.

Continue Reading: "76: To the Victor Goes the Spoils – Pt. 1"

65: Trial and Error – Pt. 3

As Victoria stepped into the door, she felt the overwhelming fount of energy. Something truly evil resided in this place and she sensed the intense force as it quickened to life. Losing all sense of self, she felt weightless and floated forward as if her feet did not touch the ground.

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64: Trial and Error – Pt. 2

Victoria awoke to the sound of voices. Rolling to her side, she caught herself before she tumbled all the way to the floor. Sitting up with a start, she took a look around the room. Calling it Turkish prison chic would have been a compliment. What used to be light blue paint had peeled away from the walls leaving splotchy brown plaster and scuff marks in its place. The floors were stained in thick, gritty rust and grime and the odor that lingered from what she could only assume to be week’s old egg salad was starting to give her a headache.

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63: Trial and Error – Pt. 1

It had been a day since her confrontation with Rowan and Victoria was doing her best to get passed the night in the park. Her grief borne of loss held a palpable weight. The weight of her mistake settled in slow and deep, pushing everything else from view. And that heaviness was making it hard to breathe. Diving into her work helped her find a way to forget, at least for a moment. She and Mike spent the night going over everything they had on the serial killer stalking the streets of Avondale. On top of everything else, having the man’s threat looming over her was beginning to get the better of her.

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62: At the Center of it All – Pt. 3

“I have to say, I was surprised when you called. The last time we actually got together was just before Mike and I moved in together,” Aria said, leaning forward in her seat. She and Victoria had met up at the small café on Brunswick for lunch.  

“I know and I’m sorry. Work is one blurred night into an unconscious morning. I barely have time for a moment to myself.”

“You’re not the only one. This job keeps me away for long periods of time now. I’m surprised Mike is so ok with it. Although when I get back, he shows me just how much I was missed,” she added with a smile before taking another sip of her mimosa.

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55: A Stroke of Luck – Pt. 3

“Where is he?” Victoria growled as she stormed through the doors of Rowan’s home. Ignoring the handful of vampires standing in the foyer hissing at her she continued forward, she stopped just in the middle of the room. “Derrick, get your ass out here now!”

“That’s as far as you go,” Marcel snapped, pushing the detective away from the French doors leading to his master’s private chambers.

Victoria looked down at his hands still grasping her arms and slowly made eye contact with the muscular demon. “Get your fucking hands off of me,” she rumbled, pushing against him.

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52: Strange Bedfellows – Pt. 4

“Victoria?” Derrick shouted as he rushed through the house in search of her. “Victoria!” The sounds of her yelling in distress over the phone frightened him beyond belief and he just knew she was in the fight of her life. Heavy footsteps pounded up the stairs as he ran to check the bedroom and back down again. The scent of blood moved him towards the kitchen and he took in the scene, stepping over shards of broken glass and blood. 

Kneeling down, Derrick got a better smell of the crimson liquid and bellowed in anger; it wasn’t Victoria’s but it meant someone was out to do her harm at the cost of their own safety. Dark scorch marks smudged the walls and floors, places where she’d apparently set off energy balls and were very telling of a struggle that took place in the kitchen. “She fought back,” he sighed with small relief at the fact that she didn’t go down easily. 

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51: Strange Bedfellows – Pt. 3

“His ability to coordinate complex investigations and work in the many public outreach programs speaks volumes for his capabilities as both an investigator and a civil servant. He is a 12-year law enforcement veteran who has distinguished himself throughout his career and a commendable leader in the Avondale community. And so, in recognition for his outstanding police service and going above and beyond his call of duty, we award Detective First Class Michael Rizzitello the Medal of Valor for his display of extraordinary bravery.”

The entire room exploded into applause as many of the men and women got to their feet in celebration. Mike wheeled himself up to the stage followed closely by his partner, Victoria. Taking a look at the plaque, he handed it to her and she pushed him closer towards the podium. The event had been long coming. Several police officers and volunteers alike had been waiting for the next awards ceremony to honor the men and women of law enforcement.

Continue Reading: "51: Strange Bedfellows – Pt. 3"