Lilith/Cain

By some stroke of luck they managed to get seats next to each other on the nearly full plane. After they stowed their overhead bags and took their seats, Chris pulled out the papers Arthur had given him. “What’s that?” Angie asked. She was impatiently waiting for the plane to take off so she could connect her phone to the wifi.

“Arthur gave me some light reading for the flight.”

She peered at the papers in his hand. “This is light reading?”

“For me it is.”

She put a finger on the corner of the top page, bending it down so she could read it clearly. “When were they killed?”

“Sometime last year.”

“It wasn’t Gabriel.” Her voice was certain.

“I know; he was locked away. Someone’s running around with his identity, though.” He flipped through the other pages. “And for some time.”

“Could something like that be pulled off with influence, maybe?”

“I guess anything is possible when you possess vampire cheat codes...”

“Gabriel’s phone was in Anchorage yesterday. That’s in Alaska, where this couple was found.”

He put his finger under the town’s name. “I’ve never heard of Bettles. We have no idea if it’s anywhere near Anchorage. Alaska is a big state.” His eyes scanned the page. "There's a lot of wilderness, too..."

She turned away. “I don’t care how big it is.”

He finished the page and went to the next one. “What if Gabriel is the fake?” he asked suddenly.

Her shoulders tensed. “What do you mean?”

“Suppose you can change your appearance with influence, right down to copying someone’s fingerprints. How do we know Gabriel is really Gabriel?”

Her hand tightened around her phone in a death grip. “Either way, I’m still going to find him. It doesn’t matter in the end.”

He lowered the papers with a sigh. “I suppose you’re right.

xxxXXXxxx

It's getting colder now. If I stop moving, then we might freeze.

'It means we're getting closer.'

It reminds me.

'Of what?'

Of the last time.

The cold was harsh as knives, piercing the joints with heart-stopping accuracy. It had been the dead of winter back then, snow piled up to waist height. Or maybe it was because he'd been so much shorter at the time...

He'd tried running, but the snow had been too high and too frozen. Parts would crumble under him, dropping him down several feet into a drift.

Eventually the cutting wind was too much and his movements slowed. He remembered desperation sparking in his frozen brain, urging uncooperative limbs forward. Until he could not move any further.

This is where I was found. The first time.

The black shape standing over him had been so tall, with shoulders so wide they blocked the moonlight. The wind blew strongly, whipping his coat around his frame. He had spoken sternly, but what he'd said was a memory forever lost.

He remembered only when he'd been lifted up out of the snow. He was frozen solid, but he hadn't wanted to leave. Not without...

What?

What had been left behind?

'Never mind that now, there's still a long way to go.'

But... Wasn't it important? The most important thing?

'Yes, and that's why you shouldn't try to remember. Leave it alone, in peace.'

It's not here anymore. It's gone. There's nothing but wilderness.

'That is for the best.'

xxxXXXxxx

"He's moving north." Angie frowned at her laptop screen. She was balancing it on one hand while she stood, her fingers on the touchpad.

Chris studied the airport signs, looking for wheeled transportation. "From here there's still a lot of North." He had a carry-on strap over each shoulder and a bag under each arm. "What's our next stop?"

She leaned close to the screen, as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing. "This says he's out over the water. That can't be right. Gabriel hates the ocean."

"Maybe the GPS needs to update. Let's head up to Bettles. We can do a little investigating there and see if Gabriel was really the one that killed that old couple."

She gave him a baleful look. "Gabriel didn't kill them."

"Then maybe we'll find the vampire that did. Someone is running around with Gabriel's fingerprints and getting them all over crime scenes. No matter what, that's gonna catch up with him eventually."

She shut the laptop with a snap. "Fine, but I'm not wasting any time. Once the GPS updates and we have a location on land, then we move on." She headed toward the car rentals.

"Our investigation will be brief. Bettles has a population of twelve." Chris followed after her. "Though I guess it's ten now..."

xxxXXXxxx

Transportation surprisingly hadn't been a problem. They'd rented a jeep rather easily and Chris offered to drive. That left Angie in the passenger's seat as navigator.

The jeep was at least twenty years old, but it ran well enough. Angie found a pleasant surprise in the CD player. "Oh hey, an Aqua CD. Remember when we were little we used to listen to them constantly?"

He nodded. "Drove Mom insane. Put it on."

She laughed as she reinserted the CD and hit play. "Remember when you used to try to sing along but your voice wasn't deep enough?"

He scowled at the memory. He hadn't heard her laugh in a while, though, so he let it slide. "Why don't we try again?"

She let out a snicker. "Fine."

Soon she had her feet up on the dash, belting out lyrics off-key. Chris grimaced. "I think you've gotten worse."

"Watch your mouth, you're not doing any better." She paused and looked at the stereo. "Were these songs always this dirty?"

"Yes, that's what makes your singing funny."

'Calling You' came on next. Angie sang the first verse, then became quiet. She held her cellphone in her hand. She pulled it to her chest and bowed her head.

It took a moment for Chris to notice something was wrong. Hurriedly he changed the song, jabbing the buttons. 'My Oh My' came on and he brightened. "Oh hey, you used to play this on loop, remember?"

She lifted her head as the verses played. "Yeah, right after you enlisted. I didn't want you to leave."

"I bet it sounds weird to you now."

She shook her head. "Not really. I had a pretty big crush on you back then."

He laughed. "You're such an oddball."

"Yeah I suppose." She looked out the passenger window.

Once her head was turned, his smile dropped. He glanced at her briefly, then focused back on the road. There was a long drive ahead of them.

xxxXXXxxx

Bettles was indeed tiny. There was one shop, small, but selling a little bit of everything. They headed there first for food and information.

The woman behind the counter spoke little English so Angie kept her interrogation brief. She held up her phone to the woman. "Have you ever seen this man?"

The picture was one of Gabriel that Callie had sent her what felt like ages ago. Gabriel was scowling at the camera from the white couch that had been in the old house. She probably could have picked a more photogenic picture to show around, but a scowl was the closest thing to his default expression of faint disapproval.

The woman's face instantly brightened with recognition. She nodded enthusiastically and started speaking rapidly, which only made her harder to understand. Chris listened intently while she spoke and gestured with both hands. Finally she pointed behind her, out of town and to the north.

Angie gave her a stunned look. She hadn't expected this reaction. There must be some mistake...
Chris spoke to the woman briefly, then bought enough snack cakes to feed a gorilla. He turned to go and Angie followed him silently, pocketing her phone.

"What's our next stop?" she asked.

"Up the road a bit. There's a farmhouse up the hill."

"Is there any language you don't understand?"

He thought for a moment while he unwrapped a chocolate eclair. "My Turkish is terrible."

"You're terrible."

"Hey now, that is no way to speak to the driver of this fine vessel." He patted the top of the car before opening the door.

"I could always drive..." she offered as she opened the passenger's door.

"No way I'm letting you behind the wheel. You have a lead foot now."

She narrowed her eyes. "Did you just-?"

"Come on, let's roll before it gets dark. It's supposed to go down to ten tonight."

She shivered in her winter coat, her breath starting to fog in front of her. New York was enjoying a balmy Indian Summer, but this far north the cold was becoming dangerous.

When she got into the passenger's seat, Chris was looking at her coat. "That's new, right?"
She put her hands to her collar. "Gabriel bought it for me right after we first met." Her voice was stiff as she remembered the ordeal.

"I thought everything was destroyed when the house burned down."

She shook her head. "This was at Mom's. Don't you remember? I was wearing it that day Arthur shot me." Another memory that left a bad taste in her mouth. "After that we were looking for Gabriel and it got too warm to wear. I left it at her place."

He frowned. "It looks a little light for Alaska..."

She bristled. "I'm wearing a sweater underneath. I dressed in layers."

"I guess it's okay then..." He started the car.

xxxXXXxxx

The drive was short compared to the one from Anchorage. They went up the main road for a bit, then turned off it onto a narrower one. The asphalt was heavily worn and the old car bounced along it.

The continued on in silence till the wheel jerked suddenly in Chris' hands. He struggled with it as the car careened wildly. Luckily they were the only ones on the road, though they narrowly missed a tree.

He slammed on the brakes and the car jolted to a halt. He swore under his breath as he opened the Driver's door. "Are you all right?" he asked her.

She nodded as she opened her own door. "Did we hit something?"

"In a matter of speaking." He gestured to the flat tire on his side. "I'll get the spare..."

"Do we have two?" She indicated the flat tire on her side.

He groaned loudly. "We'll have to call someone." He reached into his pocket for his phone.

She held up a hand, stopping him. "Wait, I see a house up there between the trees." She squinted through the foliage. "Do you think that's it?"

"It's supposed to be the only house around here."

"Good." She opened the door to the back seat and zipped open her carry-on. She pulled out the silver gun she had bought from Thorn and checked the clip. She pocketed it and her silver knife. She tossed Chris' holster to him over the top of the car.

"You're expecting a fight?" he asked as he removed his own pistol from the holster. It was made of steel, but the clip contained silver bullets. He strapped the holster on and checked the gun's clip. He made sure the safety was off, then re-holstered it.

"I don't know what to expect," she answered grimly.

As he walked past, Chris studied the long gash in his front tire. His expression became calculating.
They continued along the road till it split off, an even narrower dirt path leading up to an ancient farmhouse. The house had probably originally been red, but the paint had faded to rust and was peeling in places.

The door opened as they approached and a man stepped out onto the shaded porch. He was without a jacket, so they could see his features clearly.

He had brown hair that was so dark it was nearly black, and combed neatly. He wore a pair of faded jeans and a red sweater, but it was obvious that he was skinny. The skin visible on his hands and face was almost unnaturally pale. His fingers were long and thin. His nose was straight and his eyes were a dark brown that matched his hair.

Angie narrowed her eyes at him.

"How can I help you?" His voice was soft, and not too deep. It raised the hairs on the back of her neck.

She reached for her gun.

Chris spotted his step-sister's movements and put a hand on her arm. "We're with Game and Wildlife. We were passing by when we had a blowout. Nearly killed us, we're still a little shaken." He gave Angie a glance and she dropped her hand to her side.

Both of the man's eyebrows rose, his expression worried. "Oh dear, and you won't be getting a cellphone signal this far out." He gestured to his open door. "Please come in and warm up. You can use my phone."

They both shivered in the waning sunlight. The man on the other hand, was unbothered by the cold. The stepped up onto the porch. He peered into the distance. "It's nearly sunset, so please do stay until help arrives. It's not wise to wait by your car at night." He smiled faintly. "There are predators about, especially after dark."

Chris held his hand out to the man as he approached. "That's greatly appreciated," he said in relief. "My name's Chris."

The man shook his hand briefly. Chris noted that it was cold as ice. "You can call me Azri." His dark eyes flashed red briefly as the sun slipped down behind the trees.