08-03-2015, 04:54 PM
Corliss was waiting in the car when Trent made his way down to the street. He opened the passenger door and sat down, immediately noticing the vampire's uncomfortable expression.
"I found your suit." She pointed into her backseat with her thumb.
Trent looked and it was hanging up, wrapped in plastic. "Did you get it dry cleaned?"
"Gibson did. But, he said he didn't find any keys. Said that he would look for them and give them to me tonight if he did."
Trent frowned, "How the…" He watched Isaac and the werewolves leaving his apartment complex, "I'll be right back."
Corliss observed Trent running over to his partner and holding out his hand. Isaac took a key off his key ring, and gave it to him. They said their goodbyes, and Trent reappeared in the seat beside her.
"Well, I can get into my apartment now. Can't drive my car though." He folded his arms after putting on his seat belt.
"I'm sorry, I'm sure they fell under the seat or something. Gibson will find them."
"After you finish making spares, right?"
Corliss snorted, "Yeah, because I so want to go for a joyride in that hunk of junk that you call a vehicle."
Trent grinned, "Where are we meeting this woman?"
"I told her that we would decide and that I would call her. Pick a place that you are sure no kine would go to."
"Coffee bar on Wilshire Boulevard? Don't recall ever seeing a vamp in there."
"I don't know, if she is seen then it will mean a lot of trouble for both me and her."
Trent rolled his eyes, "Just call her."
She pulled her cell phone from her purse and pushed several buttons, "Hey, let me talk to Ellice." She paused, "I don't care, do it, but make sure no one sees or hears you."
He watched her tap the steering wheel with her spare hand; she was obviously nervous.
"Ellice, meet us at the coffee bar on Wilshire Boulevard. Yes, right now." Corliss hung up the phone, "Alright, let's go."
The uneasiness between them fell into a deafening silence, as Corliss drove passed the werewolves and Isaac getting into the Toyota. Trent realized that she had some talk show on the radio, but it was barely audible to him anyway. Corliss could probably hear everything they were saying with her sharp ears.
"Think we should talk?" Trent finally asked.
"About what?" She didn't even look at him.
Scratching the side of his head, he was trying to decide if he wanted to make up something about their contact or tell the truth. "Listen, I was drunk. Don't take this the wrong way or anything, but you're a vamp. That's just not something that I want to get involved with. I have enough drama with human girlfriends, I have no interest…" He stopped when she cleared her throat.
"Yeah, I know. You don't need to explain anything to me. Let's forget it ever happened, and go back to our distaste for the other's presence, instead of this uncomfortable silence."
Trent nodded his head, "Alright, forgotten." He tried to grin playfully.
She didn't return the grin or even look at him.
"Can I ask you something?"
"What?"
"I know that we said we would forget, but you bit my tongue last night. I'm not going to be craving blood anytime soon. I know you said before that it takes saliva and blood, but…"
She chuckled, "I didn't bite you, you pressed it against my fang. And I doubt you got enough of the bacteria in my saliva to do anything to you."
"Yeah, but how long am I unsafe for? I mean if I accidentally ingested some vampire blood or something."
Her brows came together, "You planning on drinking any in the near future?"
"No, but I want to know my buffer."
She cracked a grin, "I would say to be safe stay away from the blood for a month, but like I said, you could probably drink a whole gallon of my blood and be fine. That's why we have to bite down hard. The bacteria has to be introduced in large quantities, but the virus in the blood only needs a couple drops."
"Have… have you ever thought if there was a cure for vampirism, would you take it?"
"What kind of question is that?"
He shrugged, "It's been scientifically proven that it's more of a disease then anything else. They are working on a cure for it. So, I am just curious. If you have a chance, would you?"
"I was born a kine, Trent. My mother and father were both born that way, as were my grandparents. I could never foresee myself as anything other then what I am. You and many others may hate me for being a kine, but I don't."
He nodded, "I couldn't imagine choosing to become the prey either."
"It's not that I think humans are prey, Trent. It's that I am part of a proud species. Humans may point and say that I have a disease; that it's just a sickness. But, whatever it is, I know that it's part of who I am. I would never give that up."
Trent bit his tongue, and turned his eyes out the window. How was it that humans could easily choose to become werewolves and vampires, but he had never met a dog or vamp that was willing to become a human. Not that there were any known cures, but it was as if they felt they would become a lesser being.
"Well, I hope they find a cure for it someday." He mumbled the words; not really meaning to speak them to her.
Corliss' sharp ears caught his whispered sentence, "I don't."
Turning his head, he rose an questioning eyebrow. "And why not?"
"Because the kine monitor carefully who becomes part of our people, we don't need a cure. I also think that if there was a cure, many humans would be willing to just try it out. After all, they can just be turned back, and then becoming part of the kine could just be a phase." She began to parallel park.
"I doubt anyone would just want to try it out."
She laughed, as she put her car into park, "Do you know how many times that I have been approached by humans looking to be turned? The process of being a pet is a way for us to find out who is serious and who is just playing games. Some humans just don't understand that it's a permanent change. Nothing is ever the same after you are turned."
"How would you know the difference? You have always been a vamp and always will be. You have no idea how we view the world."
"And you have no idea how the kine do. So, stop judging me for wanting to be what I was born as, just like you do." With that she opened her door, and stepped out.
Trent followed her lead into the coffee shop. Stopping behind her, he watched Corliss examine the filled store. When she didn't recognize their contact, she walked over to a booth and sat down. Trent took a seat across from her and folded his hands on the table.
"She'll be here soon." Corliss said tapping her fingers against the table nervously.
"It's was just a hypothetical question, Corliss." Trent cleared his throat, "I don't understand why you became so defensive."
Her frown remained, "Here's a hypothetic question for you. What if I turned you?"
"What?" The question nearly made him jump out of his skin.
"Right here, right now." She grabbed his wrist and yanked it towards her with a strength that surprised him.
He tried to pull his arm away, but her vampire strength overpowered his own.
"Well, answer me. I turn you without permission from the elders. Now, you are part of the kine and an outlaw turn. Human laws can no longer protect you." She bared her fangs to him, and ran her thumb nail over the flesh of his wrist.
"This isn't funny." He tried to ensure that his voice didn't sound strained.
She threw his arm back at him, and crossed her own as she leaned back in her seat. "Hypothetical questions can be a bit scary sometimes, can't they?"
He answered with a deep scowl, "I would probably end up being killed, wouldn't I? There would be little I could do about it."
She grinned, leaning forward, she rested her elbows on the table, "You could beg Adriel to make you a toy. I would even get you an audience."
"Wouldn't you be killed for turning me?"
There was a chuckle before she answered, "Not many kine are put to death for illegal turns, only their ill gotten children."
He swallowed hard, "I would never be a toy. Not for Adriel, and certainly not by your help after you forced me to become one."
Her grin faded, "I see, so death would be preferred over an existence of a kine. I did not know your hate ran so deep, Trent. Especially, not after how hungry you were for my own flesh last night."
"I was drunk, and you said that it was forgotten."
Her grin returned, "You're blushing, Trent." Her eyes turned to the double glass entrance of the coffee shop. "Over here!" Her hand shot up.
Trent's back was to the doors, and he didn't see their contact until the dark haired woman sat down. "Eleanor?" The name caught in his throat.
Ellice stared across the table at him; a look of fright in her eyes.
Trent's surprise turned to anger, he turned his heated glare towards Corliss, "You did this on purpose."
Corliss looked between the two at their expressions, "What have I done on purpose?"
"Why?" Ellice asked her, "Why did you let him see me this way?"
"What?" Corliss sat dumbfounded.
"I told you that my sister was at Macrea Corp and then you bring her to see me? I don't want to see her, not like this." Trent tried to keep his voice calm.
"I didn't know that Ellice was your sister. You never told me her name, and I haven't spoken to Kaleb about it. Stop being so self centered, both of you."
Trent looked across the table at his pale sister. She should have been a woman at least thirty by now, but she looked twenty. Eleanor could have been a wife and mother at this point in her life, had their own mother not forced her into the life she had now.
Ellice wasn't certain what she should say to him. They hadn't seen each other in over many years, but she recognized him almost immediately. He still looked like the young boy she had pictured in her mind. "It's good to see you again." Were the words she was finally able to come up with.
"No, it's not." Trent responded. "When did this happen?"
Ellice looked at Corliss, as if asking her if it was alright to speak. The red head gave an encouraging nod, before Ellice turned her attention back to her brother. "When I was eighteen." She watched him sigh, before rubbing his face. "It was my decision, Trent. My master offered this to me, and I accepted with gratitude."
"Give me a break, you know that you were brain washed to believe it was what you wanted. Mother forced you to…"
"Mother asked me if I wanted to come, and I said I did. She was in love with Kaleb Macrea. Father hardly spoke to her, always busy with his job. He didn't care anything for either of us until we left. Then he was too proud to give us up to the kine, because he hated them."
Trent shook his head, "You have been told lies for your entire life, haven't you?"
"No, Trent, you have!" She snapped.
"Enough!" Corliss interrupted, "This is not about that. Not now. You two can discuss this another time. Ellice, you said you had information for us about Rylan."
She nodded and took a moment to compose herself. Her eyes never drifted over to Trent, she stayed focused on Corliss. "Rylan and I were together for a few years. I knew that he wasn't faithful to me, and I even spoke to several of his other women. Including human females that he would take to motels, and wine and dine. One evening, Rylan wanted to take me out, because of Farquay, we just couldn't risk being seen in public together." She heard Trent moan, and stopped speaking.
"Go on, tell us." Corliss encouraged.
"He convinced me one evening, and we went to a rather questionable restaurant. When he went to pay the bill, a blonde woman approached me. She was a pup, of that I am certain. She didn't tell me her name. When I asked her what she wanted, she told me that Rylan belonged to her, and that if I ever got in the way again, she would rip us both apart." Her eyes fell to the plastic booth seat beneath her, "I told Rylan when he returned, and he was furious. He told me that he would never let anything happen to me, dropped me off at home, and then drove off to find her. No one saw Rylan again until he was found in the alleyway a couple weeks later."
"You mean this happened the night he disappeared?" Corliss asked.
Ellice nodded her head, "Please, don't tell Farquay. If he finds out…"
"I told you that I wouldn't." She patted her hands, "Is there anything else?"
She nodded, and pulled a piece of paper from her purse, "This is a list of humans and kine that I know Rylan was seeing. I… I don't know any pup names. I didn't know that he was interested in that until that night." She began to cry after throwing the piece of paper on the table, "Had I known it would have gotten him kill, I would have never told him about it, Corliss. You have to believe me."
She rubbed Ellice's upper arm, "I know. You should get home, Ellice. Farquay will become suspicious if you are gone for too long."
Ellice nodded, and stood from the booth. Before leaving, she reached into her purse and pulled out a card. Gently she laid it in front of Trent, "If… if you ever want to talk things over with me. I'll be happy to tell you my side of the story, even if you think that it's all a kine trick."
Trent nodded his head, and pulled the card towards him.
"You look nice, Trent. I'm glad to see that you followed in our father's footsteps." With that she walked out of his sight for what Trent hoped would be forever.
"Had I known that she was your sister, I would have never…"
He held up his hand to her, "I know. The dog that Isaac and the others are after is blonde, maybe it was Amelia."
Corliss agreed as his cell phone began to ring.
He answered it and said yes several times, "Ok, we will be right there." He hung up the phone, "Looks like they need you."
"Me?" She pointed to herself.
"Yeah, I'll let them explain."
"Guess what this is?" Samara grinned at Corliss; who had put on her sunglasses.
"Your home?" She responded, which caused Samara's grin to fade.
"No." She answered as she was unable to think of a retort. "On the outside, it looks like an old, abandon warehouse, but downstairs is a whole other story. The warehouse stretches out underneath this parking lot. They have made small bedroom areas for anyone who applies, and host parties for those that are thinking of joining."
"Who are they?" Trent asked.
"They are PAKA. Pack and Kine Amore. A group for helping leech and pack couples stay safe from those who would persecute them. They only accept couples that are in the process of becoming…" She grinned at Corliss, "newlyweds."
"I see." Corliss folded her arms and looked towards the warehouse.
"That means that Amelia and Rylan were either getting married or were married." Samara told her; hoping it would cause an up-rise.
Corliss looked back to her, "Rylan was always promising to marry women. The kine we met with today thought she and he would eventually wed, once their masters set them free."
"Would that ever happen?" Trent asked, realizing he sounded a little too hopeful for some reason.
Corliss nodded, "All toys have the opportunity to gain their freedom. It rarely happens, but it's something to dangle over their heads."
"Rare is better then never." Isaac chirped in, he had been leaning up against the Toyota, hidden away by Coyle's large form.
"So, what was so important that you had to drag us away from our investigation?" Corliss answered, ignoring Isaac.
Samara's grin widened, "They only let leech and pack couples in, they let Coyle in there to look around because he said he was thinking of joining, but they weren't interested in answering his questions. We need to talk to some people in there, they might know what happened between Amelia and Rylan."
Corliss was already shaking her head.
Isaac came to stand between the two werewolves, "Come on, Corliss. This could be the lead we have been waiting for."
"I am not going to display myself as a lover to any pup." She reached into her purse and pulled out her cell phone, walking towards her car, she began to make a call.
"Who the hell is she calling?" Samara asked.
Trent shrugged as he watched as Corliss tapped her foot on the ground. She was out of hearing range.
"But they want me to pretend that I am dating a werewolf, Adriel." Corliss looked over her shoulder briefly to make sure no one had gotten closer. "If I am a recognized then… yes, I understand that, but, Adriel, please…" She tried not to cry, "This is ridiculous, why don't you send another kine to do this." Bunching up her fist, she listened to his response, "I know I am the investigator, but this has nothing to do with Trent. They want me to portray myself in front of an… yes, it's the organization that we've been looking for. Werewolves and kine only."
Trent rose an eyebrow, he was curious as to what Corliss was up to. He had thought they were gaining trust with each other, but now it seemed that she was still hiding something from him.
"Well, we shouldn't make a move until after Rylan's murder is solved. I'll hand over the address when I return home. But, Adriel, listen to me. I can't do this, I am a prominent… hello? Adriel? Hello?" She threw her cell phone onto the ground and began to stomp on it.
Everyone standing behind her was surprised to see this type of behavior from a kine. They normally kept calm in all situations, though stories of their shown rage was legendary. Corliss turned around to look upon the shocked faces of the group, she crossed her arms and tried to hide her embarrassment from her temper tantrum.
Samara was about to make a comment about her daddy forcing her to play nice, but thought better of it.
"Fine, let's go." Corliss frowned.
Coyle offered out his arm to her as she approached.
"With you?" She nearly squeaked.
Samara chuckled, "Would you rather be a lesbian cross breed couple?" She didn't want to go in there, and figured this would be a good opportunity to get some time with Trent.
Corliss' frown deepened.
"Go on, Corliss, I'll make it up to you." Trent said, shocking the dogs and his partner.
She gave a deep, angry sigh and began to walk ahead of Coyle to the warehouse. The werewolf had to catch up with her, unable to give his normal last words of carefulness and running if there is any trouble to his sister. When Coyle caught up to her, he took her hand, and looked into her displeased face.
"You need to smile, and look like you have finally found a place to accept your love." He told her.
She said nothing, just glared up at him.
"Look, I don't like this anymore then you do, trust me. Of all the kine in this city, you would be the last I would choose to date."
Again there was no response, only an angry glare.
"They aren't going to believe that face." He tapped on the door, afraid of what was to come.
A small male kine opened the door, and looked between them. "Mistress Elysia said that you would be returning." His high pitched voice said, stepping aside he let them into the darkness, then slammed the door behind them.
"I think this was a bad idea." Trent mumbled, but clearly enough for the others to hear him.
Samara rose an eyebrow, "Why? Coyle has done under cover work before, and well those leeches are great liars. Hell, she could probably convince us that she and Coyle are lovers. Why are you babying her all of a sudden?"
"I'm not babying her." Trent argued.
"Yeah, and what was that thing about making it up to her?" Isaac questioned as he leaned against his car beside Samara and folded his arms. His blonde hair had come undone from the hairspray and had fallen into his eyes.
"She's trying to be honest and share information with me, and I saw this as a reason for her to stop sharing with us." Trent responded defensively.
Isaac pressed his lips together, "I don't like this one bit, Trent. First the date, and now you are acting funny."
"Shut up, Isaac. You know that it's nothing like that. Just shut up." Trent snapped, and leaned against the car. He sighed after a moment, "We should have bugged them. That way if they got into trouble we could help."
"Yeah, because I know when I am fighting an army of werewolves and leeches; I want two humans at my side." Samara said sarcastically.
He glared at her out of the corner of his eye, "You can shut up too, dog."
Samara chuckled, not taking him seriously. She turned her attention to Isaac, who was staring at the warehouse. Taking notice of his stray hairs, she brushed them back into place. Trent noticed this, but said nothing. Isaac acted as if it was a common occurrence for her to groom him.
"I hope they will be alright. This wait is going to be unbearable." Isaac spoke while staring at the warehouse.
"Coyle knows what he is doing, as long as Corliss plays along then there is nothing to worry about." Samara told him, and Isaac looked over at her, she smiled.
Looking around, Trent saw a donut shop across the street from them. "Anyone want coffee and donuts, my treat."
Samara and Isaac nodded.
"I'll be right back, then." Trent said turning towards the shop and walking away from them. He didn't want to stand around waiting for their answers. That wasn't the type of investigator that he had programmed himself to be.
"What do you think?" Samara asked, watching Trent walk away.
"About?" Isaac followed her line of sight.
"Trent and Corliss."
Isaac shrugged, "I don't know. He hates vamps. I don't see him ever involving himself romantically with one. I've never seen him flirt with any woman no matter what the species, so I can't really judge."
She nodded, remembering Trent telling her about the kiss between him and the leech. Folding her arms, she turned her eyes back to the warehouse, hoping that this would bring the answers that they seek.
"I found your suit." She pointed into her backseat with her thumb.
Trent looked and it was hanging up, wrapped in plastic. "Did you get it dry cleaned?"
"Gibson did. But, he said he didn't find any keys. Said that he would look for them and give them to me tonight if he did."
Trent frowned, "How the…" He watched Isaac and the werewolves leaving his apartment complex, "I'll be right back."
Corliss observed Trent running over to his partner and holding out his hand. Isaac took a key off his key ring, and gave it to him. They said their goodbyes, and Trent reappeared in the seat beside her.
"Well, I can get into my apartment now. Can't drive my car though." He folded his arms after putting on his seat belt.
"I'm sorry, I'm sure they fell under the seat or something. Gibson will find them."
"After you finish making spares, right?"
Corliss snorted, "Yeah, because I so want to go for a joyride in that hunk of junk that you call a vehicle."
Trent grinned, "Where are we meeting this woman?"
"I told her that we would decide and that I would call her. Pick a place that you are sure no kine would go to."
"Coffee bar on Wilshire Boulevard? Don't recall ever seeing a vamp in there."
"I don't know, if she is seen then it will mean a lot of trouble for both me and her."
Trent rolled his eyes, "Just call her."
She pulled her cell phone from her purse and pushed several buttons, "Hey, let me talk to Ellice." She paused, "I don't care, do it, but make sure no one sees or hears you."
He watched her tap the steering wheel with her spare hand; she was obviously nervous.
"Ellice, meet us at the coffee bar on Wilshire Boulevard. Yes, right now." Corliss hung up the phone, "Alright, let's go."
The uneasiness between them fell into a deafening silence, as Corliss drove passed the werewolves and Isaac getting into the Toyota. Trent realized that she had some talk show on the radio, but it was barely audible to him anyway. Corliss could probably hear everything they were saying with her sharp ears.
"Think we should talk?" Trent finally asked.
"About what?" She didn't even look at him.
Scratching the side of his head, he was trying to decide if he wanted to make up something about their contact or tell the truth. "Listen, I was drunk. Don't take this the wrong way or anything, but you're a vamp. That's just not something that I want to get involved with. I have enough drama with human girlfriends, I have no interest…" He stopped when she cleared her throat.
"Yeah, I know. You don't need to explain anything to me. Let's forget it ever happened, and go back to our distaste for the other's presence, instead of this uncomfortable silence."
Trent nodded his head, "Alright, forgotten." He tried to grin playfully.
She didn't return the grin or even look at him.
"Can I ask you something?"
"What?"
"I know that we said we would forget, but you bit my tongue last night. I'm not going to be craving blood anytime soon. I know you said before that it takes saliva and blood, but…"
She chuckled, "I didn't bite you, you pressed it against my fang. And I doubt you got enough of the bacteria in my saliva to do anything to you."
"Yeah, but how long am I unsafe for? I mean if I accidentally ingested some vampire blood or something."
Her brows came together, "You planning on drinking any in the near future?"
"No, but I want to know my buffer."
She cracked a grin, "I would say to be safe stay away from the blood for a month, but like I said, you could probably drink a whole gallon of my blood and be fine. That's why we have to bite down hard. The bacteria has to be introduced in large quantities, but the virus in the blood only needs a couple drops."
"Have… have you ever thought if there was a cure for vampirism, would you take it?"
"What kind of question is that?"
He shrugged, "It's been scientifically proven that it's more of a disease then anything else. They are working on a cure for it. So, I am just curious. If you have a chance, would you?"
"I was born a kine, Trent. My mother and father were both born that way, as were my grandparents. I could never foresee myself as anything other then what I am. You and many others may hate me for being a kine, but I don't."
He nodded, "I couldn't imagine choosing to become the prey either."
"It's not that I think humans are prey, Trent. It's that I am part of a proud species. Humans may point and say that I have a disease; that it's just a sickness. But, whatever it is, I know that it's part of who I am. I would never give that up."
Trent bit his tongue, and turned his eyes out the window. How was it that humans could easily choose to become werewolves and vampires, but he had never met a dog or vamp that was willing to become a human. Not that there were any known cures, but it was as if they felt they would become a lesser being.
"Well, I hope they find a cure for it someday." He mumbled the words; not really meaning to speak them to her.
Corliss' sharp ears caught his whispered sentence, "I don't."
Turning his head, he rose an questioning eyebrow. "And why not?"
"Because the kine monitor carefully who becomes part of our people, we don't need a cure. I also think that if there was a cure, many humans would be willing to just try it out. After all, they can just be turned back, and then becoming part of the kine could just be a phase." She began to parallel park.
"I doubt anyone would just want to try it out."
She laughed, as she put her car into park, "Do you know how many times that I have been approached by humans looking to be turned? The process of being a pet is a way for us to find out who is serious and who is just playing games. Some humans just don't understand that it's a permanent change. Nothing is ever the same after you are turned."
"How would you know the difference? You have always been a vamp and always will be. You have no idea how we view the world."
"And you have no idea how the kine do. So, stop judging me for wanting to be what I was born as, just like you do." With that she opened her door, and stepped out.
Trent followed her lead into the coffee shop. Stopping behind her, he watched Corliss examine the filled store. When she didn't recognize their contact, she walked over to a booth and sat down. Trent took a seat across from her and folded his hands on the table.
"She'll be here soon." Corliss said tapping her fingers against the table nervously.
"It's was just a hypothetical question, Corliss." Trent cleared his throat, "I don't understand why you became so defensive."
Her frown remained, "Here's a hypothetic question for you. What if I turned you?"
"What?" The question nearly made him jump out of his skin.
"Right here, right now." She grabbed his wrist and yanked it towards her with a strength that surprised him.
He tried to pull his arm away, but her vampire strength overpowered his own.
"Well, answer me. I turn you without permission from the elders. Now, you are part of the kine and an outlaw turn. Human laws can no longer protect you." She bared her fangs to him, and ran her thumb nail over the flesh of his wrist.
"This isn't funny." He tried to ensure that his voice didn't sound strained.
She threw his arm back at him, and crossed her own as she leaned back in her seat. "Hypothetical questions can be a bit scary sometimes, can't they?"
He answered with a deep scowl, "I would probably end up being killed, wouldn't I? There would be little I could do about it."
She grinned, leaning forward, she rested her elbows on the table, "You could beg Adriel to make you a toy. I would even get you an audience."
"Wouldn't you be killed for turning me?"
There was a chuckle before she answered, "Not many kine are put to death for illegal turns, only their ill gotten children."
He swallowed hard, "I would never be a toy. Not for Adriel, and certainly not by your help after you forced me to become one."
Her grin faded, "I see, so death would be preferred over an existence of a kine. I did not know your hate ran so deep, Trent. Especially, not after how hungry you were for my own flesh last night."
"I was drunk, and you said that it was forgotten."
Her grin returned, "You're blushing, Trent." Her eyes turned to the double glass entrance of the coffee shop. "Over here!" Her hand shot up.
Trent's back was to the doors, and he didn't see their contact until the dark haired woman sat down. "Eleanor?" The name caught in his throat.
Ellice stared across the table at him; a look of fright in her eyes.
Trent's surprise turned to anger, he turned his heated glare towards Corliss, "You did this on purpose."
Corliss looked between the two at their expressions, "What have I done on purpose?"
"Why?" Ellice asked her, "Why did you let him see me this way?"
"What?" Corliss sat dumbfounded.
"I told you that my sister was at Macrea Corp and then you bring her to see me? I don't want to see her, not like this." Trent tried to keep his voice calm.
"I didn't know that Ellice was your sister. You never told me her name, and I haven't spoken to Kaleb about it. Stop being so self centered, both of you."
Trent looked across the table at his pale sister. She should have been a woman at least thirty by now, but she looked twenty. Eleanor could have been a wife and mother at this point in her life, had their own mother not forced her into the life she had now.
Ellice wasn't certain what she should say to him. They hadn't seen each other in over many years, but she recognized him almost immediately. He still looked like the young boy she had pictured in her mind. "It's good to see you again." Were the words she was finally able to come up with.
"No, it's not." Trent responded. "When did this happen?"
Ellice looked at Corliss, as if asking her if it was alright to speak. The red head gave an encouraging nod, before Ellice turned her attention back to her brother. "When I was eighteen." She watched him sigh, before rubbing his face. "It was my decision, Trent. My master offered this to me, and I accepted with gratitude."
"Give me a break, you know that you were brain washed to believe it was what you wanted. Mother forced you to…"
"Mother asked me if I wanted to come, and I said I did. She was in love with Kaleb Macrea. Father hardly spoke to her, always busy with his job. He didn't care anything for either of us until we left. Then he was too proud to give us up to the kine, because he hated them."
Trent shook his head, "You have been told lies for your entire life, haven't you?"
"No, Trent, you have!" She snapped.
"Enough!" Corliss interrupted, "This is not about that. Not now. You two can discuss this another time. Ellice, you said you had information for us about Rylan."
She nodded and took a moment to compose herself. Her eyes never drifted over to Trent, she stayed focused on Corliss. "Rylan and I were together for a few years. I knew that he wasn't faithful to me, and I even spoke to several of his other women. Including human females that he would take to motels, and wine and dine. One evening, Rylan wanted to take me out, because of Farquay, we just couldn't risk being seen in public together." She heard Trent moan, and stopped speaking.
"Go on, tell us." Corliss encouraged.
"He convinced me one evening, and we went to a rather questionable restaurant. When he went to pay the bill, a blonde woman approached me. She was a pup, of that I am certain. She didn't tell me her name. When I asked her what she wanted, she told me that Rylan belonged to her, and that if I ever got in the way again, she would rip us both apart." Her eyes fell to the plastic booth seat beneath her, "I told Rylan when he returned, and he was furious. He told me that he would never let anything happen to me, dropped me off at home, and then drove off to find her. No one saw Rylan again until he was found in the alleyway a couple weeks later."
"You mean this happened the night he disappeared?" Corliss asked.
Ellice nodded her head, "Please, don't tell Farquay. If he finds out…"
"I told you that I wouldn't." She patted her hands, "Is there anything else?"
She nodded, and pulled a piece of paper from her purse, "This is a list of humans and kine that I know Rylan was seeing. I… I don't know any pup names. I didn't know that he was interested in that until that night." She began to cry after throwing the piece of paper on the table, "Had I known it would have gotten him kill, I would have never told him about it, Corliss. You have to believe me."
She rubbed Ellice's upper arm, "I know. You should get home, Ellice. Farquay will become suspicious if you are gone for too long."
Ellice nodded, and stood from the booth. Before leaving, she reached into her purse and pulled out a card. Gently she laid it in front of Trent, "If… if you ever want to talk things over with me. I'll be happy to tell you my side of the story, even if you think that it's all a kine trick."
Trent nodded his head, and pulled the card towards him.
"You look nice, Trent. I'm glad to see that you followed in our father's footsteps." With that she walked out of his sight for what Trent hoped would be forever.
"Had I known that she was your sister, I would have never…"
He held up his hand to her, "I know. The dog that Isaac and the others are after is blonde, maybe it was Amelia."
Corliss agreed as his cell phone began to ring.
He answered it and said yes several times, "Ok, we will be right there." He hung up the phone, "Looks like they need you."
"Me?" She pointed to herself.
"Yeah, I'll let them explain."
---***---
Pulling into the large vacant lot, Coyle waved them over towards Isaac's car. Neither Isaac nor Samara could be seen, but they reappeared as Trent stepped out of the car. Corliss didn't like the smug look on Samara's face as she came to stand beside the Toyota. She looked towards the abandoned warehouse. Most of the windows were broken, but the front double doors looked as sturdy as ever."Guess what this is?" Samara grinned at Corliss; who had put on her sunglasses.
"Your home?" She responded, which caused Samara's grin to fade.
"No." She answered as she was unable to think of a retort. "On the outside, it looks like an old, abandon warehouse, but downstairs is a whole other story. The warehouse stretches out underneath this parking lot. They have made small bedroom areas for anyone who applies, and host parties for those that are thinking of joining."
"Who are they?" Trent asked.
"They are PAKA. Pack and Kine Amore. A group for helping leech and pack couples stay safe from those who would persecute them. They only accept couples that are in the process of becoming…" She grinned at Corliss, "newlyweds."
"I see." Corliss folded her arms and looked towards the warehouse.
"That means that Amelia and Rylan were either getting married or were married." Samara told her; hoping it would cause an up-rise.
Corliss looked back to her, "Rylan was always promising to marry women. The kine we met with today thought she and he would eventually wed, once their masters set them free."
"Would that ever happen?" Trent asked, realizing he sounded a little too hopeful for some reason.
Corliss nodded, "All toys have the opportunity to gain their freedom. It rarely happens, but it's something to dangle over their heads."
"Rare is better then never." Isaac chirped in, he had been leaning up against the Toyota, hidden away by Coyle's large form.
"So, what was so important that you had to drag us away from our investigation?" Corliss answered, ignoring Isaac.
Samara's grin widened, "They only let leech and pack couples in, they let Coyle in there to look around because he said he was thinking of joining, but they weren't interested in answering his questions. We need to talk to some people in there, they might know what happened between Amelia and Rylan."
Corliss was already shaking her head.
Isaac came to stand between the two werewolves, "Come on, Corliss. This could be the lead we have been waiting for."
"I am not going to display myself as a lover to any pup." She reached into her purse and pulled out her cell phone, walking towards her car, she began to make a call.
"Who the hell is she calling?" Samara asked.
Trent shrugged as he watched as Corliss tapped her foot on the ground. She was out of hearing range.
"But they want me to pretend that I am dating a werewolf, Adriel." Corliss looked over her shoulder briefly to make sure no one had gotten closer. "If I am a recognized then… yes, I understand that, but, Adriel, please…" She tried not to cry, "This is ridiculous, why don't you send another kine to do this." Bunching up her fist, she listened to his response, "I know I am the investigator, but this has nothing to do with Trent. They want me to portray myself in front of an… yes, it's the organization that we've been looking for. Werewolves and kine only."
Trent rose an eyebrow, he was curious as to what Corliss was up to. He had thought they were gaining trust with each other, but now it seemed that she was still hiding something from him.
"Well, we shouldn't make a move until after Rylan's murder is solved. I'll hand over the address when I return home. But, Adriel, listen to me. I can't do this, I am a prominent… hello? Adriel? Hello?" She threw her cell phone onto the ground and began to stomp on it.
Everyone standing behind her was surprised to see this type of behavior from a kine. They normally kept calm in all situations, though stories of their shown rage was legendary. Corliss turned around to look upon the shocked faces of the group, she crossed her arms and tried to hide her embarrassment from her temper tantrum.
Samara was about to make a comment about her daddy forcing her to play nice, but thought better of it.
"Fine, let's go." Corliss frowned.
Coyle offered out his arm to her as she approached.
"With you?" She nearly squeaked.
Samara chuckled, "Would you rather be a lesbian cross breed couple?" She didn't want to go in there, and figured this would be a good opportunity to get some time with Trent.
Corliss' frown deepened.
"Go on, Corliss, I'll make it up to you." Trent said, shocking the dogs and his partner.
She gave a deep, angry sigh and began to walk ahead of Coyle to the warehouse. The werewolf had to catch up with her, unable to give his normal last words of carefulness and running if there is any trouble to his sister. When Coyle caught up to her, he took her hand, and looked into her displeased face.
"You need to smile, and look like you have finally found a place to accept your love." He told her.
She said nothing, just glared up at him.
"Look, I don't like this anymore then you do, trust me. Of all the kine in this city, you would be the last I would choose to date."
Again there was no response, only an angry glare.
"They aren't going to believe that face." He tapped on the door, afraid of what was to come.
A small male kine opened the door, and looked between them. "Mistress Elysia said that you would be returning." His high pitched voice said, stepping aside he let them into the darkness, then slammed the door behind them.
---***---
"Well, they are in." Isaac announced, turning to his partner. Samara was sitting on the hood of his car, between them."I think this was a bad idea." Trent mumbled, but clearly enough for the others to hear him.
Samara rose an eyebrow, "Why? Coyle has done under cover work before, and well those leeches are great liars. Hell, she could probably convince us that she and Coyle are lovers. Why are you babying her all of a sudden?"
"I'm not babying her." Trent argued.
"Yeah, and what was that thing about making it up to her?" Isaac questioned as he leaned against his car beside Samara and folded his arms. His blonde hair had come undone from the hairspray and had fallen into his eyes.
"She's trying to be honest and share information with me, and I saw this as a reason for her to stop sharing with us." Trent responded defensively.
Isaac pressed his lips together, "I don't like this one bit, Trent. First the date, and now you are acting funny."
"Shut up, Isaac. You know that it's nothing like that. Just shut up." Trent snapped, and leaned against the car. He sighed after a moment, "We should have bugged them. That way if they got into trouble we could help."
"Yeah, because I know when I am fighting an army of werewolves and leeches; I want two humans at my side." Samara said sarcastically.
He glared at her out of the corner of his eye, "You can shut up too, dog."
Samara chuckled, not taking him seriously. She turned her attention to Isaac, who was staring at the warehouse. Taking notice of his stray hairs, she brushed them back into place. Trent noticed this, but said nothing. Isaac acted as if it was a common occurrence for her to groom him.
"I hope they will be alright. This wait is going to be unbearable." Isaac spoke while staring at the warehouse.
"Coyle knows what he is doing, as long as Corliss plays along then there is nothing to worry about." Samara told him, and Isaac looked over at her, she smiled.
Looking around, Trent saw a donut shop across the street from them. "Anyone want coffee and donuts, my treat."
Samara and Isaac nodded.
"I'll be right back, then." Trent said turning towards the shop and walking away from them. He didn't want to stand around waiting for their answers. That wasn't the type of investigator that he had programmed himself to be.
"What do you think?" Samara asked, watching Trent walk away.
"About?" Isaac followed her line of sight.
"Trent and Corliss."
Isaac shrugged, "I don't know. He hates vamps. I don't see him ever involving himself romantically with one. I've never seen him flirt with any woman no matter what the species, so I can't really judge."
She nodded, remembering Trent telling her about the kiss between him and the leech. Folding her arms, she turned her eyes back to the warehouse, hoping that this would bring the answers that they seek.