Eternal Rest

Matt tossed a book down in front of Adele and Laila an hour after his parents left Zacks and they had moved the party to his place. They looked at it and raised their eyebrows at the same time. It was a huge book. And it looked old. Johnny recognized it and grimaced. Matt had let him read that instead of explaining shit to him. Apparently he wasn’t about to explain to the girls either.

“You want us to read this?”

“Yeah why not Zack and Johnny had too.” Matt said and then looked at the twins. “Did any of what my parents say confuse you because if so you need to join them and read that as well.” Matt walked out of the room and up to the first floor of his house. He glanced around and saw way too many of his mom’s ‘homey’ touches that she insisted on years and years ago, since there wasn’t a woman to add those touches she had. He walked to the staircase and headed up them, going directly to his room. He shut and locked the door and stripped out of his clothes and walked to the bathroom and started the shower. There was just so much going on that he needed to wash it off.

Zack hadn’t gone with the group and was at his house with Fang wondering what in the hell he was going to do. Melody had talked her husband out of doing something to hurt him, but Dillon for one reason or another wanted Nia. And at the moment that concerned him. So Zack found himself sitting in his office staring at the screen filled with images from the night that Lana and her husband had died. Well apparently so far only one that ‘died’ that night was Richard Matthews. The scene was horrible, blood was everywhere and there were pictures of Nia covered in her mothers blood or whatever blood had been all over her mother. After studying the pictures he finally found the connection between then and now. There was one person in every picture in the shadows. If he could just enlarge the photograph that had the clearest shot of the person, he could probably figure out who it was. But he wasn’t as good with the computer as Johnny was and he didn’t want the others to know what he was doing so he messed around with it for half an hour and finally managed to figure it out. The person in the picture was another hunter that Zack and the guys had worked with before but at that moment Zack couldn’t remember his name. But he knew a quick way to find out.

An hour later Zack found himself standing outside of an apartment building not all that far away from where Nia and Alyx had lived. He slipped into the building unnoticed and found the apartment number that he was looking for. He sat down the hall and waited for someone to come or go from the apartment. When someone exited an elevator down the hall he slipped carefully further back in the shadows. As soon as the door was unlocked and the man was opening his door Zack slipped into his mind and planted the though that the guy had left something downstairs in his car and he needed to run back down and get it, before someone found it. As the man turned and went back the way he came Zack grinned the door was wide open. He slipped in and locked it behind him. He looked around the apartment and easily found the computer in the bedroom. He found a drawer with files in it and flipped through them he grinned when he found a few of interest to why he was there. He didn’t have time to mess with the computer though. Shit he was gonna have to drag Johnny out here. Which was better than the call Jimmy option. He shuddered at that thought. He heard the key in the lock and cussed. He saw the window was going to be his only exit and moaned. He unlocked the window and opened it, well he tried to open it but it wouldn’t budge. So he was going to have to crash through it instead of easily jumping from fire escape to fire escape. If he was lucky when he landed he wouldn’t break anything on his landing. That however he discovered was a mistake to think a head of time as he landed and broke his arm. Dammit. He would heal but he was loosing way too much blood at the moment. He had lost way too much blood in the past month for this to heal right and fast. There was only one way to heal quick. He needed a doctor and he knew just where to get one. He got to his car and driving one handed with his shoulder holding his cell phone in place he told Jimmy to get Laila and meet him at his house.

Jimmy was sitting in a chair in Zacks room shaking his head as Laila wrapped Zacks arm so that after he consumed the blood he needed to, his arm would heal properly. She muttered something under her breath about him being careless and it was a good thing that she was a doctor. When she was done and had sat down on the end of his bed she waited along with Jimmy to find out just what the hell had happened this time. When he finished the blood she trashed the bags and crossed her arms over her chest waiting.

“Going to tell me why I had to lie to Matt and bring the good doctor over?”

“Uhm I crashed through another window?”

“What the hell did you do go over to Brian’s and get in a fight with him?”

“Do I look that stupid Jimmy?”

“At the moment you’re the one that is sitting here in front of us with a broken arm. So get to talking or we’re walking and you can deal with Matt or his dad.” Laila said. Zacks jaw dropped.

“Nice, I agree, don’t make me call Matt.” Jimmy suddenly liked the woman. She had enough attitude to set the reckless Zachary Baker straight.

“Alright dammit look I got to thinking that maybe after what Matt’s dad said there was a reason Nia was being targeted. Come on follow me.” Zack said and he got up and picked up the files that he had dropped on the table in the hall next to the large tapestry that hid the stairway to his private office. The other two followed him and he waved Jimmy into his desk chair and told him to pull up the only open file at on the task bar. He did so and his eyes hardened.

“Where the hell did you get access to this?”

“Uhm I came across the photo’s online. They were in the newspaper.”

“Who enlarged this one?” Jimmy asked clicking the photograph that Zack himself had zoomed in on.

“Me, that guys is in every picture. I mean look at this and with his good hand he leaned over Jimmy’s shoulder and double clicked on the photograph and brought up the program that would allow them to view all the photos. Laila leaned over Jimmy’s other shoulder and looked at the photographs.

“He’s right, look right there…” and she pointed him out in each picture. Jimmy placed a his head in his hands because he knew they were going to tell him not to call Matt.

“Anyway, do you remember that guy? We’ve worked with him before.”

“Greg, Craig something like that why?”

“He had these at his apartment…” Zack tossed the files in front of Jimmy. On the labels were three names. Elainia Matthews, Lana Matthews, and Adele Guerra.

“Fuck”

“Wait so this guy wants Adele too?” Laila asked.

“Apparently, but how the hell would he know about Alyx?” Jimmy asked.

“That’s just it, I think that Greg or Craig hired Marius to get Nia alone out there at that apartment, and stab her with the blade so that it would make it easier for them to turn her. Think about it. When that didn’t happen and you showed up at Nia’s apartment what was he holding.”

“Alyx’s picture, he hadn’t known that Alyx was her room mate. That had been his lucky day.”

“Who’s Alyx?”

“Brian’s baby sister, Nia’s room mate. She’s gone now but it’s a long story.” Jimmy said. He was staring at the files and at the bottom of the last page in each one was something he didn’t expect. Lana’s file said marked for death as did Adele’s but Nia’s said marked for turn. And they were signed by Dillon Miles.

At Brian’s Nia shot up from where she was sitting on the floor going through books on one his numerous bookshelves in the library and spun around in a circle panic on her face. Brian who was sitting at the desk in the room looked up and went to her immediately.

“Nia honey, what’s wrong?”

“Adele, she’s in trouble.”

“What, wait how do you know this?”

“No, you’ll think I’m crazy and you won’t love me anymore…” She moved away from him.

“Nia your pregnant with my best friends kids and I still love you. Nothing is going to change that.”

“Just…no, where’s the phone?” He handed it to her after dialing Zacks number. He didn’t know that they had moved to Matt’s. Zack answered the phone.

“Hey Brian what’s up?”

“It’s Nia, let me talk to Adele please.” There was a desperate tone in her voice.

“She’s not here…”

“Where is she?” Nia was more panicked than ever.

“At Matt’s with the others, Nia what’s wrong?” She hung up the phone and told Brian to dial Matt’s. He did without question. She took the phone and as soon as Matt answered she demanded to speak to Adele. She wasn’t messing around anymore. She relaxed a little when she heard Adele’s voice on the other end.

“Adele, oh thank fucking god.”

“Nia what’s wrong?”

“Tell me what your surroundings look like.”

“What why?”

“Adele”

“Okay, house, pretty much same set up as Zacks, uhm…”

“Outside, what’s outside? Is there a giant Weeping Willow in the front yard?”

“Yes…Nia tell me you didn’t.”

“I wish I could. Stay inside please oh god just stay inside, send Jimmy out to see if there’s anyone out there.”

“He’s not here.”

“No he has to be, wait that’s why he’s not in the…Oh god, none of you go outside. Just, shit.”

“Nia, we’ll go out together…”

“NO Stay where you are me and Brian are coming over. JUST DON’T FUCKING GO OUTSIDE!” Nia yelled and hit the end button on the phone and headed to the door. She turned to Brian. “Are you coming?”

“Yeah, what was that about?”

“Move now, talk later, otherwise we’re both about to loose a few people really close to us.” They got to Matt’s at the same time as Jimmy, Laila, and Zack. Zack looked at her and Brian just shrugged. Zack began to speak when something shot through his head.

‘…mommy had a vision…’

“Okay…” Zack said shaking his head Brian looked at him funny. Zack just kinda stopped dead. Nia had made Brian park at the end of the drive and Zack and them had stop behind them. Nia was leading the way through the trees that lined the long drive. The gate was further up than most would think. Brian and Zack at least had enough sense to grab the remote sensors for the gate. And Brian had pocketed the others as well. So apparently had Zack seeing as they had five in each of their cars. Nia stopped when she saw a light go on, in the front of the house.

“Dammit I fucking told her not to go outside. Why doesn’t she ever listen to me.” and the five of them took off at a dead run for the gate and Brian hit the button for the gate to open. Thankfully it did and just as they got halfway to the house from the gate a silver stake went flying past Jimmy’s head Laila turned and picked it up off the ground. Thank god Zack and Jimmy had made her wear leather gloves so she could grip whatever weapon she needed. Nia stopped dead. People were converging on the house and this was going to get ugly fast. Everyone was making their way toward the middle of the lawn and Adele hadn’t stayed inside. Well one thing her vision hadn’t shown was her and the others there. So they had the advantage at least for the moment. A silver knife flew passed Nia’s head from behind her and hit it’s target in the back of a greasy looking Vamp. Nia dodged through people and got to Adele.

“Bitch I fucking told your ass to stay inside. MOVE!” and Nia shoved her to the door. Nevaeh and Chrys covering them. Laila was right behind her arm bleeding as she took out rogues. She had been cut but it wasn’t that bad if she was still moving fast. The women fought the vamps headed toward the front door and when the ash settled Andrew and Melody Sanders as well as several other’s that they didn’t recognize were standing in a circle with their backs to one another sweeping their gazes over the area. They all made their way inside and what Nia took as part of the council nodded in Matt’s direction and left. Andrew and Melody went with them. Matt pulled the silver knife that had flown past Nia’s head out of the ground and slid it into the back of his pants making sure his shirt covered his skin. Once they were all inside Brian turned to Nia.

“Okay, what the hell?”