Angel of Death (con't):

* * * * *
PART 13:

Ash and Quinn were on the Sony Playstation when Nick and Chris walked into the rec. room.

"No, there is NO way you won that!" Ash was shouting at a smug-looking Quinn.

"You just can’t accept that I’m better than you," Quinn replied calmly, 4 centuries of training in superiority backing up his confident tone.

"Hah!" Ash retorted. "You only wish!"

Quinn raised a dark brow. "Why wish when it’s reality?"

Ash was just in the middle of another biting remark when Nick cleared his throat, budding in on their ‘conversation’.

"Oh, hey Nick! Hi Chris," Ash called, getting up off the carpet. "How’s it goin’?"

Quinn’s welcome was less verbal. "Hey guys," he said, with a backward wave of his hand. He didn’t even turn around.

Chris flashed Ash a brilliant smile and nodded to her arm around Nick’s waist.

For a moment, the Lamia just stood there, confused. Then, the meaning became clear and he was even more bewildered.

Luckily, at that moment, LeAnne Wong peeked her head through the door, saying, "Hey, Ash, Quinn, can I talk to you guys for a sec?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," Ash replied, colour-changing eyes still fixed on Chris’ arm.

Quinn, rising from the couch, looped his arm through Ash’s, dragging him backward out of the room. "Let’s go, you bonehead!"

When the vampires had gone, Nick slumped into the couch vacated by Quinn. "So..." he began, clueless as to how to begin. He had managed to talk Chris out of going out, which had been a great feat in itself.

Chris leaned her head on Nick’s shoulder. "So, why didn’t you want to go out?" she asked, her British accent helping to help cover he vexation. "I mean, even a Denny’s would be more interesting than here."

Nick pasted on what he hoped was a patient smile. "I’m sorry, Chris. I’m just tired today. Gabriel and Selena really take it out of you."

Trying to look sympathetic, Chris realized she probably was not succeeding. Who cared if the twins were a pain? He didn’t HAVE to baby-sit them or anything! Really, she thought he should be paying more attention to her. After all, she wasn’t going to be waiting forever. Some men just did not know a good thing when it was staring them in the face! But Nick was lucky; she was willing to put up with his ignorance for a while, seeing as how he was so lovable. "I understand," she lied.

"Thanks," Nick mumbled, peering around the room, anywhere but at her.

"So, what kind of stuff are you into?"

"Huh?"

"You know, what interests you? After all, I did say I wanted to get to know you better."

"Um, well...the usual. Sports, video games, books--"

"You could look at me when you’re talking, you know," Chris pointed out, unable to hide her annoyance.

Nick started. He had hardly realized what he was doing. "Oh, sorry," he mumbled, turning towards her, but still not looking her in the eye. "So, what do you like?" he asked lamely.

Chris sighed and decided to try the direct and honest approach. "You."

"What?" He was sure he had heard wrong.

Rolling her eyes, Chris faced him squarely. "Look, Nick, we both know I’m not fooling anyone. It’s obvious I like you and if you got to know me, you’d like me too. But you just keep avoiding me or evading my questions. How are we supposed to get close?"

"Chris--" Nick started, thinking that despite Amaya’s plan, he might have to break it to her right then. He was loath to admit it, but the thought intimidated him. Sheesh, he could be such a coward.

Luckily, right then, Gabriel and Selena ran in, right on cue. "Uncle Nicky! Uncle Nicky!" they yelled, panicked.

"What is it?" Nick asked as if he did not already know.

"It’s Slappy Tobias Doris! He’s gone!!" Selena’s voice was shrill. "You have to help us look for him!"

Apologetically, Nick turned to Chris, "Look, Chris, I’m sorry, but I should help. I’ll see you around, okay?"

But she was not about to let him get away that easily. "I’ll help you search," she offered. "I like hamsters."

"I thought you were a tiger shifter."

"So? What does that have to do with a hamster?"

"Don’t you well, um...don’t you eat smaller animals?" Nick felt extremely stupid saying it, but it was the best he could come up with.

Chris gave him a look that said she thought he was insane. "He’s a hamster, Nick."

"Uh, yeah, never mind," he mumbled. Looked like he would have to put up with Chris after all. Yeah, Amaya and her brilliant plan to kidnap the hamster!

"Now, do you know where you lost him?" Chris bent down to the twins’ eye level, getting straight to business.

Gabriel nodded. "Upstairs. In our room."

"Okay, let’s go then," Chris said, taking Gabriel’s hand while nick followed with Selena. He had to give her credit, she didn’t waste her time. She was efficient and that was a necessity these days.

After a long search through the nursery and the twins’ and Delano’s rooms (at Gabriel and Selena’s insistence), they got to Nick and Amaya’s bedroom. Here, Nick knew they would find that bloody hamster, and he practically flew in, desperate to get away from Chris. She was nice enough as a friend, but she kept trying to be more, even when they were looking for a hamster with the initials S.T.D.! If she would just accept him as a friend, life would be so much simpler.

"Hi Amaya!" he said loudly, bending down to give her a kiss as she sat on the bed with a novel in hand. "Did you happen to see Slappy Tobias Doris scamper in here?"

Amaya looked up at him, then her gaze shifted to Chris with the twins in the doorway. Obviously, the hamster-napping hadn’t worked too well. Not that she had thought it was that good of a plan to begin with, but she knew how Nick hated confrontation when it came to relationships. "No, but I just got here," she lied, still playing her part so Chris wouldn’t get suspicious or something. "I’ll help you look around."

In seconds, Amaya had ‘found’ the hamster; she had been keeping him in a little cage under the bed. Unfortunately, the little rodent leaped out of her hands and scampered out from her under the bed, heading straight for the door.

"There he is!" Gabriel squealed, running after it as fast as his little legs could carry him.

"Come on, Uncle Nicky!" Selena urged, grabbing Nick’s hand.

Despite their efforts, the hamster was half-way down the hall when they got to the door. Nick marveled at how fast the chubby little thing could scurry. How did it move at all with those tiny little legs?

Gabriel, Selena, Nick, Chris and Amaya all ran down the hall after Slappy Tobias Doris, nearly knocking Braeden over. "People these days," he muttered, then continued on his way.

"He’s over here!"

"Wait, no. He turned that way!"

"To the left, you idiot! To the left!!"

Everyone was hollering at the top of their lungs, hoping they would not step on the hamster. Finally, Nick’s hands cupped over the rodent and he called, "I’ve got him!" Then suddenly, he added, "Ow! The damn thing bit me!!" Instinctively, he lifted his hands, looking at the small, bleeding wound, letting the hamster out.

But this time, Chris was prepared. Slappy Tobias Doris ended up running right into her waiting hands.

"Here guys," she was just saying when Nilsson ran right into Amaya, out of breath.

"Lord Thierry needs you all down in the meeting room right now!" he gasped, leaning against the wall. "He says it’s urgent."

* * * * *
PART 14:

"Why isn’t Destiny here?" Nick whispered to Monaco Lopez, an Hispanic vampire, as they sat at the oval table in the meeting room.

Monaco shrugged. "I do not know," he replied in his soft Spanish accent. "Perhaps they have not been informed?"

"But why?"

Another shrug. "Like I said, I do not know."

Just then, someone came wheeling into the room and Nick tensed, thinking for a moment it was Hunter Redfern. But upon closer inspection, he saw Colin sitting there, being pushed in his wheelchair by Delano. They two Lamia situated themselves beside Nick and at his inquiring look, Colin offered Nick a smile.

"I was getting sick of lying in bed," he explained. Colin looked like a child on Christmas morning, his expression was so elated. "Look," he said, holding up his hand and wiggling his fingers. "No casts!"

"That’s great," Nick said with a smile as Thierry called the meeting to order.

One look at Mr. Lordy and you knew the information was not good. The room quieted immediately in anticipation.

"Well," Thierry began, then stopped, contemplating how best to put it. "Well," he repeated, "I think it would be best to just get to the point. I don’t want to waste you time any more than I have to.

"It has been brought to my attention, that Kavan Harman, is indeed a spy for the Night World." With that one statement, the room roared with outraged voices. But everyone quickly quieted down when Thierry raised his hand for silence.

"I am not done yet," he said sternly. "I have also found out, via Dion Vitani, that Kavan has already passed the prophecy regarding the location of the Wild Powers at the millennium to Hunter Redfern."

This time, there was a kind of confused silence. "But who told Kavan?" LeAnne finally asked. "We made sure never to say anything about it to him, just in case."

"WE did," Thierry pointed out quietly. "But someone else might not have." His implication was clear as he glanced at an empty chair usually occupied by Destiny.

That’s why she’s not here, Nick realized, darting a glance towards Delano. He had grown pale, but from anger or astonishment, Nick couldn’t tell.

"We’ll have to do something about him, of course," Thierry was saying. "There’s no point in pretending we don’t know about him. He’s not stupid, I’ll give him that. He was smart enough to know that the rest of us could hate him, as long as he had one Daybreaker on his side, he could discover everything he wanted to know. But we can’t treat him roughly either. Keep in mind that this boy is the Wild Power and we need him in the end. We can’t afford to lose him, but we also can’t let him keep hanging around Destiny. The only plus is that we only need to hold him for a few weeks. The Millennium is fast approaching. After all, it’s already December 2nd. Anyone have any suggestions?"

Braeden Soterios, LeAnne’s soulmate and a 600 year old made vampire, called out, "We could just lock him up or something." Obviously, he had never been known for his compassion.

LeAnne, sitting beside him, punched his arm. "Are you stupid? Wait, don’t answer that. The point is, Braeden honey, that this is a Wild Power we’re talking about. We NEED him and we have to stay in his good books. Or at least, keep him from wanting to kill us. Locking him up is not going to help."

"It was just a suggestion," Braeden pointed out with a nonchalant shrug.

"Okay," Thierry said, "any others?"

Colin put up his hand. "Why don’t we just treat him like the other Wild Powers? Put him in a safe house, or keep him right here. Either way, he’s not allowed to go out without a heavy guard. Only if you keep him here, Hunter’s going to know where to look and we’d have to prepare for an attack. A safe house would probably be best."

"But remember, the others are on our side; he’s not," Chris argued. "He’ll have no qualms about killing us to get away. What’s to keep him from blasting the guards to smitherines and running away?"

Colin was silent for a moment, thinking. "You," he replied softly, not meeting her gaze.

"Me?"

"Yeah. You’re his Dark Angel," Colin reasoned, his heart tightening with each word. He wanted to protect her, not send her off to battle. But there was no other alternative. "You’ve been getting trained, right? So you know how to handle him and you’re the only person who can keep him from hurting anyone else."

Chris looked at him strangely. "You do realize what you’re asking is a big job, don’t you? What makes you think I can do it?"

"I just do."

He said it with no emotion at all and Chris suddenly wanted to cry. Why? This was coming from the guy she had avoided for over 2 weeks now. Why did she suddenly care what he had to say? Why did it matter to her if he cared about her safety? That he was saying she should go and maybe get herself killed for the good of the world with cold reserve? She should have been delighted that he was saying he didn’t care about her; that Circle Daybreak came before her. That was what she had wanted, wasn’t it?

"Well, Chris, what do you think?" Thierry prodded gently.

Taking a deep breath, Chris blinked, then nodded. "I’ll do it."

* * * * *
PART 15:

It was three days after the meeting that everything was ready. Kavan was being sent to Reno, close enough to Las Vegas that emergency reinforcements could be sent quickly, but far enough that Hunter would be troubled for a while yet. The secret had been well kept, kind of. Kavan himself did not noticed anything amiss, but Destiny had been living with these people for years; she knew when someone was keeping a secret from her.

First, she approached Delano about it, hoping to get a direct answer. Maybe she would get a real answer, though that was doubtful, seeing as how she had hurt him quite badly.

"Hi," she murmured, knocking on the door frame of their old bedroom.

His dark head jerked up, startled. "Uh, hi," he mumbled, looking away, but not before Destiny saw the hope and pain in his eyes. Something wrenched at her heart, but she repressed it. She and Delano were over and it was her choice. "Mind if I come in?" She asked, deciding to ease into the question.

Delano looked like he wanted to refuse, but that would have been rude. "Yeah, sure."

When her leg brushed his as she sat down beside him on the bed, Delano flinched and moved away. But he stayed silent, waiting patiently for her to begin.

Suddenly, Destiny was tongue-tied. What could she say? Everything she came up with sounded hypocritical. Finally, she settled on, "So, what are you reading?"

Delano shrugged, holding up the magazine. "Vibe."

"Anything interesting?"

"Look, Destiny, just cut the small talk. Why are you here? What do you want to know?"

She looked into his eyes at last, startled, hurt and disappointed. She should have known Delano would see through her. If anyone could, it was he.

The problem was, it was obvious he thought she was coming back to beg for forgiveness. Destiny knew him as well as he knew her and the hopeful flicker in his eyes said it all. She knew he wasn’t being over-confident; the flicker could hardly be called that, an ember would be a better description. But the fact that he thought she would come crawling back to him at all enraged her. Fat chance of that ever happening in his lifetime!

"I came to ask what you guys are keeping from me," Destiny said, loosing her tact in her anger. "And don’t say nothing. I know it’s something; I’ve known half of the people in this mansion since I was a child and I know when they’re keeping something from me. And I want to know what it is!"

The hope died from his eyes and they became dark with emotion. His face hardened and his voice was like stone as he said, "Destiny, I’m going to have to ask you to leave. I don’t know what you’re talking about and I do not appreciate you bursting in here and shouting false accusations at me." He led her to the door, careful not to touch her.

She couldn’t resist a cold glare in his direction as she marched out. Of course, what else had she expected? That he would melt like silly putty in her hands and tell her everything? Actually, yes, even if she was embarrassed to admit it. Realistically, there was no way that could happen, but she had always thought of Delano as hers. Maybe that was a misconception. He was his own person and would never be owned by someone else.

Funny how that realization put tears in here eyes.

@~~>~~>~~~

Destiny waited impatiently by the door of her children’s room. From there, she had a good view of the hall if Delano went to Thierry’s office and if she strained her ear, could hear Delano’s words from his room. Either way, she was going to find out what her ‘friends’ were up to. She was sure Delano would let Thierry know she was suspicious.

About ten minutes after she had left, Delano slipped out of his bedroom, proving her theory. He cast a nonchalant glance into the twins’s room and Destiny pretended to adjust the blanket on top of a sleeping Gabriel.

After a moment, he went on his way again and Destiny peeked out in time to see him turn down the hall towards Thierry’s office. Quietly, she followed and placed her ear on the door as it shut behind Delano.

Inside, someone turned the radio up and Destiny cursed. Delano must have suspected she would follow. Still, she was able to pick out a few words.

"...Destiny said...Kavan...spy...send him to Reno..."

Shocked, Destiny jerked her head away from the door. They couldn’t think that Kavan was a spy! That was ridiculous!

*But what do you really know about him?* a voice in her head asked. What did she know of him? Not enough to prove his guilt or innocence, but he just couldn’t be a spy! Thierry and Delano didn’t know what they was talking about!

*I have to tell Kavan,* Destiny thought and tried to brainstorm where he might be. The garden, probably. He liked to spend his time outside and since December was warm in Nevada, that was easily achieved.

Bursting out of the back door, she spotted him kneeling by some bushes, seemingly talking to himself. Destiny didn’t register the strangeness of it all, pre-occupied as she was about letting Kavan know of Thierry’s suspicions.

Destiny ran towards him, and was almost there when he suddenly turned, face paling when he saw her. "Destiny!" he exclaimed, standing. "What are you doing here? Is something wrong?"

"Thierry thinks you’re a spy for the Night World," Destiny burst out. She didn’t worry about how best to word it, it just had to be said.

The expression on Kavan’s face was one of panic, which soon turned to a fake calm that barely masked his underlying fear. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that I heard Thierry and Delano talking and that they’re going to send you to Reno!"

"Who would have told them that I’m a Night World spy?" Kavan asked, realizing that there must be some inside source. How else could Circle Daybreak have known? He had not slipped, he knew that for sure. He was careful to phrase the question just right, so that it was not an admission of his guilt, simply an inquiry of interest.

Still, Destiny frowned and was deterred for a moment. "ARE you a Night World spy?"

Kavan smiled. "What? No! Of course not! I just want to know who would have made up such a lie."

She took his reply for the truth. "Well, I imagine that it would be Dion Vitani. He’s our Night World contact and he could have heard wrong and reported to Thierry that you’re a spy," Destiny explained. "But that’s not the point. You have to go to Thierry and prove your innocence! I know he’s wrong. He has to be!"

Hearing the name, Dion Vitani, Kavan turned his head making eye contact with Conri, who was crouching behind the bushes. The werewolf nodded, indicating he had heard. Conri’s head was reeling. Dion Vitani, an undercover Daybreaker. How could he have slipped past Hunter’s guard? Goddess, Conri had been sitting beside him at the last Night World meeting! How could he not have realized what Dion was?

"No, Destiny," Kavan was saying. "If Thierry thinks I’m a spy, I don’t know how to prove otherwise. Maybe I should just go. I’ll only get you into more trouble here. After all, if I go to Thierry, it would be obvious that someone had told me his plans. They would know it was you."

"Kavan, you can’t go!" Destiny replied. "We need you at the Millennium! And running away is only going to make Thierry more suspicious! Besides," she added quietly, "what about me?"

Kavan hesitated. He had truly taken to Destiny the past week. She could be a little clingy at times, but she was a nice enough person. Besides, she was plainly infatuated with him; it felt nice. Still, he was more concerned with himself right then. If Thierry caught him, he would be in big trouble Who knew what the Daybreakers wanted to do to him in Reno? "I’m sorry, Destiny," he apologized, swiveling on his heel to go.

Just then, Nick walked out of the house and saw Kavan turning to leave. Delano had told him Destiny had probably heard their plans and Nick was here to get Kavan and go. "Hey!" Nick shouted, breaking into a run.

Kavan turned, eyes as wide as those of a deer caught in headlights. One look at Nick and Kavan was sprinting down the driveway, Nick not far behind.

As they passed the front door on their way to the sidewalk, the werewolves who were with Conri joined the chase, tailing Nick the same way he trailed Kavan.

"Nilsson!" Nick yelled to the vampire who had just peeked his head outside to see what all the commotion was about. "Call for reinforcements!!"

"Yes, sir!" Nilsson called, scrambling back into the mansion. A moment later, Delano, Amaya, Monaco and Braeden were spilling out the door, joining Destiny in her place in the procession, behind the werewolves.

Kavan might have been fast for a witch, but he was no match for a shifter, even if Nick was a bird. Soon, Nick had caught up to him, pinning him to the ground with his cheek on the sidewalk and arms behind his back.

One of the wolves, seeing this, jumped onto Nick’s back, jaws clacking just above Nick’s neck.

"Ahh!" Nick cried out more in surprise than pain or fear. Seconds later, the wolf had been pulled off his back by Amaya, along with a piece of his shirt that the wolf had been clinging to.

Braeden, Monaco and Destiny, all at the back of the line, suddenly found themselves attacked by the werewolves as well. Delano was up near Nick and Amaya, helping Amaya keep the wolves from Nick and Kavan. There must have been at least 15 Night World werewolves.

"Damn," Monaco muttered as the wolves advanced on him, Braeden and Destiny. One had already lunged at Destiny, biting into her leg before she could bat him off with her witch fire. "Stupid gun gets stuck in the holster right when you need it," he remarked just as he pulled the mini-Uzi out of its holster in his belt. He had just enough time to turn and shoot at a wolf flying through the air at him.

"Ooo, I’d give that a 9.5," Braeden commented, flashing Monaco a smile before throwing another werewolf over his shoulder.

One werewolf was stumbling around, her fur ignited by Destiny’s witch fire. She bumped into Braeden from behind, sending both of them tumbling to the ground. Braeden screamed, pinned to the ground as his shirt caught fire.

Destiny delivered a powerful kick to a nearby werewolf, who fell in a way that he ended up knocking the flaming and newly dead werewolf off of Braeden. "Are you okay?" she asked anxiously, rolling Braeden over to put out the flames.

Braeden nodded, less hurt than he appeared. "Just watch where you throw those fireballs next time, okay Destiny?"

Nodding, she turned in Kavan’s direction. She had no idea what was going on and only he could give her the answers, so he better stay alive long enough for her to question him.

Nick was still holding Kavan down and both seemed to be unhurt. Well, Nick’s shirt was ripped, but that was it. Amaya and Delano, on the other hand, looked like they could use some help.

One werewolf in particular, Destiny was sure she had seen him before, was desperately trying to get to Kavan. The Wild Power was yelling something like, "Conri, come on! Help me!" to him.

That particular wolf swatted Delano out of the way like he was a fly. The Lamia went flying and fell against a nearby sapling. Destiny heard a crack, but whether it was bone breaking or the sapling snapping, she could not tell. The bottom line was, Delano was out of the fight.

Seeing what Conri, Destiny assumed that was the wolf’s name, had done to Delano, the other werewolves closed in on Amaya, Nick and Kavan. In a sudden flurry of movement, the Daybreakers were blocked out by wolf fur. When the commotion died down, Amaya was lying face-down on the pavement with blood pooling around her and Kavan had just escaped Nick’s grasp.

"Guy, come on!" Destiny cried, signaling Monaco and Braeden towards Kavan. "After him!"

The vampires got to the Night Worlders before her, but Destiny shouted to them, "Kavan’s mine!"

Doubt passed between Monaco and Braeden, but one look at the determination in Destiny’s eyes changed their minds.

"Just catch him alive, Destiny," Monaco advised. He and Braeden held the wolves at bay while she raced after Nick and Kavan.

Both of the guys were hurt and that reduced their speed. Destiny thanked her lucky stars; she never would have caught up with them otherwise. When she was less than 10 meters away from Kavan, she threw a fireball his way, aiming it for the garbage can beside him. The can burst into flames and rolled into Kavan’s path, forcing him to stop or burn. Destiny didn’t think he wanted the latter fate.

"Okay, what’s going on, Harman?" Destiny demanded, roughly turning him towards her. "And don’t lie to me."

Kavan’s aqua eyes were wild with fear. He shook his head in a confused way, and foolishly, tried to get out of her grasp. His fist shot at her, a bad-calculated jab that she intercepted easily.

In retaliation, Destiny punched him square in the jaw, then again on the temple. Knocked out cold, he slumped to the ground.

Catching up, Nick peered at the unconscious Wild Power, then cast a sideways glance at Destiny. "Impressive," he commented. "But you’re going to have to do better than that for Thierry."

* * * * *

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