The Vampire's Prey

The door creaked open, and the few patrons in the nearly empty bar glanced at the dark figure standing in the doorway. Their interest quickly waned. The figure offered nothing noteworthy, for which she was grateful. Blending into the background was her life-unseen and unremembered.

Heavy rain pounded relentlessly, creating a silvery veil behind her. Brienna walked in, letting the heavy wooden door slam behind her. She looked tired, morose, and weak. Normally strong and independent, she was now a shadow of her former self. She had one goal, and with every passing moment, it slipped further from her grasp.

Hope seemed pointless. Days of searching had yielded nothing but dead ends. All she wanted was for life to return to normal, to end this nightmare. Her stomach churned with fear of what might be, and tears formed, quickly swept away before anyone saw.

Brienna walked to the bar, now holding the patrons' attention again, though none knew why. In the past, she would tense at the scrutiny. Now, she had bigger concerns. Accustomed to this new life after only a few days, she was unfazed.

Clearing her throat, she tried to dislodge the muck forming there. She rarely got sick, but nights spent in the cold had taken their toll. The rain was persistent but would soon leave, if the weather reports were accurate.

"Hey," Brienna called to the barman.

The robust figure turned from the fridge he was stacking, closed the door, and walked over. "Evening, ma'am. What can I get for you tonight?"

"Information, if you can." She pulled out a photo of a girl with long blond hair, a bright smile, and blue eyes. A happy young woman, as she used to be, as her mother wished she still was. Brienna knew things had changed, and it broke her heart, but she accepted it. All she could do was be patient and give her undying love.

"Haven't seen her."

"I should hope not. She's only sixteen. This is my daughter, and she's missing."

"If she's only sixteen, why are you looking for her here?"

"Because she walked this street to get to her father's house. She would have passed this place."

The barman leaned on the counter, barely restraining a sigh. "Lady, I get in here at lunchtime, through the back door. I unlock the front door, but I don't step out. You can ask the people here, but most don't come in until this hour. Usually, you don't let a sweet kid like her roam the streets after dark."

Brienna shook her head sadly. Walking the streets at night was dangerous, but life was always dangerous. The night just made it harder to see.

"They say this street has a reputation," Brienna murmured.

"Sadly, true. It's not called the vampire's walk to attract tourists. You're a devoted mother to be out at this time of night. That crucifix won't help you."

Instinctively, she clutched the pendant-a gift from her parents on her university graduation day, meant to offer God's protection. Lately, it felt like a meaningless trinket. Until she had her daughter back, it was worthless. She wore it because it was a gift from two people she loved and missed. Any additional benefit of deflecting vampire attention seemed lost.

"I've seen bastards wearing them. What time do you think your daughter came by?"

"About four o'clock."

The barman grumbled, pulling out a box from under the counter, stacked tight with business cards from people who had come in over the years. He knew one that might help, but it was a long shot. Still, she seemed desperate enough to try anything.

"Witching hour for the vampires. Not smart."

He opened the box and searched through the cards, finding the one he was after.

"I don't know if this is going to help you, but I've heard that if you want to find anyone, then this is your man. Being involved with a vampire is dangerous for a human."

"Involved?"

He stopped, the business card between his fingers as he looked at the worried mother. In his opinion, it was nice that the mother thought that her child was sweet and innocent, but life as a bar owner had shown him that most teenagers tried to push the boundaries on everything. Add vampires into the mix, and it was a disaster waiting to happen.

"The way that vampires work when it comes to humans is one of two ways. We're either dinner or a play toy. No body suggests one, but their habits suggest another." Brienna frowned.

"I don't understand."

"Well, they might be bastards and always stalking humans, but they have what I believe is a code of decency. They don't take minors as play toys and only ever take them for food if there is no other option. Without a body to confirm that she's been fed upon, it's likely that she's somewhere giving a vampire a good time, and yes, I heard you when you said she's sixteen. That means that you've either got a skeevie vampire on your hands or your little girl's doing a whole lot of lying to him."

The bartender flicked his fingers down, holding the card out to Brienna. She took it and offered her gratitude. Then he pulled a retro button phone up and put it onto the top counter.

As he turned back to restocking the fridge, Brienna picked up the handset and began pressing the buttons. A hand reached forward and pressed the button down, disconnecting the call.

"I can get you someone better than a washed-up old hack of a private detective." the soft, husky voice offered.

Warily Brienna turned, looking at the man that was far too close to her. The three-day growth shadowed most of his jaw, giving him a dishevelled look. It didn't help that the mousy brown hair looked unbrushed.

"How do you know what he's like?"

"Word of mouth, dissatisfied customers. Want to find the kid or not?"

Putting the phone down, Brienna turned with a frown.

"Of course I do. What kind of stupid question is that?" "The kind that comes from a man that's looking at a woman who is wasting time with utter nonsense. If your daughter has walked the vampire mile, then there's a really good chance that she's alive. The problem is, she's probably found herself one of those skeevies that pretends that the fake id she's offering is valid. You don't know what you're going up against."

Brienna didn't know if it was worth debating with a total stranger. She also didn't know what credentials this new person had. At least the private detective was in the business of finding people.

"Tick tock. Time waits for no one."

"Fine, but I'm keeping this in case your choice is not as great as you think."

He huffed with amusement and then flicked his head, gesturing for Brienna to follow.

The line of the bar ended at the wall, but beyond the arch was another area. It was made for larger groups of people rather than the tables and chairs in the central area. It was darker in this new area, something Brienna was not entirely thrilled about.

Trepidation hit Brienna as she watched the man sit down in a corner booth.

He didn't ask if she was okay with this. He didn't even look back at her. The lean figure looked like he was dressed for a funeral. Chiding thoughts filled Brienna's mind, scolding herself for thinking that this man would attend a funeral in such an outfit.

She thought a rock concert was probably more appropriate. Black jeans with a worn black leather jacket. Even the band shirt underneath matched the theme. Mindlessly Brienna looked down at the boots, already guessing that they were in keeping with the style.

Brienna, however, was something out of tired mother's monthly magazine.

She'd picked jeans because it was a cold night, but they were baggy and blue. The shirt that was underneath the heavy coat had a few stains on it. Listless hair that hadn't been washed in several days, not that it mattered with the torrential rain outside.

She hoped that, if anything, she could be forgiven for looking a little out of sorts considering that Eloise had been missing for far too long. Eloise was a bright girl, but Brienna knew that she was impressionable and at that age where the opposite sex was high on her radar. For an older guy that just happened to be a vampire, it was like hitting the jackpot for a teen girl, and Brienna feared the worst. She hoped that this guy in front of her could help.

The man smiled at Brienna as she sat down at the booth. Mindlessly she thought that he had highly desirable attributes, but they were deflected quickly. For the first time since he spoke, Brienna got a really good look at him. It was at that moment that she saw one little feature that she hadn't noticed earlier.

He had fangs.

She could barely see them, but they were there like little white neon lights. Tiny tips that looked sharp, ready to pierce through her skin and drain her blood away. Would he do that? Would this vampire stoop so low as to pretend to care enough to help her find a missing teenager, just to get an easy feed? Brienna didn't know what a vampire would do. She didn't know what this vampire would do.

Brienna's heart began to race as she looked at the archway. Could she make it through the gap in time, or would he take her down? She knew they were everywhere, but until now, Brienna had never actually managed to pick one out in the crowd. This guy looked human, aside from the deadly teeth.

"The photo?"

Brienna stared blankly at him. All she could see were those horrid things in his mouth.

The vampire frowned, wondering what was wrong with the woman in front of him. She seemed to be switched on at the bar, now he was faced with someone that looked like her brain had checked out a week ago.

Lifting his arm, the vampire snapped his finger in front of the human's face.

"Hey, you in there? I need a picture of your kid. While we wait for my associate to arrive, I can send her picture out and see if we get any hits."

Brienna focused and gulped hard, her hand shaking as she reached to the pocket where she'd stowed Eloise's photo.

"You're a vampire." she murmured.

"Notice, did you? It's not really cramping your style, is it?" Brienna frowned at the vampire.

"You want to know how you will find your daughter? It's by doing it within the vampire world. Your pathetic human detective won't get squat out of any vampire, regardless of what he offers to tempt them. He might be good at finding humans in your world, but that is only because he's fishing for information in his own circles."

The picture was pushed across the table, Brienna quickly slipped her hand back to her lap. She had nothing to protect herself, and the barman was correct. The crucifix did nothing because she was sitting in front of a vampire, and he didn't care.

It made her wonder if her parents had paid extra to do something like having it blessed. There were enough charlatans in this world, ready to take advantage of the vulnerable that made Brienna think that anything was possible. All they needed to do was buy the pendants and claim it had been blessed by a priest, soaked in holy water, whatever it took to fool the naïve.

He snapped a picture with his phone and then pushed it back over the table.

"Cato." he murmured, his gaze down at the phone.

The screen lit up his face. Brienna was still staring, still trying to assess how far she'd get if she ran to the door. Would the other patrons in this place help her or run to save their own life? Did the barman know that there was a vampire in his bar?

"Pardon?"

The vampire looked up; he offered a plain faced stare with his mouth slightly open. Brienna's stomach curled as she stared at the exposed fang.

"It's my name."

"Oh, okay."

His gaze lowered again, watching as the replies started to come in. So far, there was nothing.

"This would be where you'd say, it's lovely to meet you, Cato, my name is,"

"Brienna and forgive me if I don't think that meeting a vampire is lovely." "We are the only ones that can find your daughter Brienna, so it is lovely." She huffed, folding her arms. The emotions were mounting because, to Brienna, it felt that she was about to hit another wall. No matter how many people she asked, they had nothing to give her. No sightings, not even a whisper.

"Where's daddy dearest in all of this?"

Brienna wiped the tear that had crept out. The strength that she had was slipping away.

"I found out that he's been away for business for the past month. He's in China at the moment."

Cato smacked his hand on the table, frightening the life out of Brienna.

"I knew she was lying to you." he said eagerly. "No human walks down the vampire mile at witching hour unless they want to be found."

"You're wrong. Eloise wouldn't,"

Cato rolled his eyes.

"What?" she spat out.

"You're so blind that it's not surprising that you haven't found her."

Picking up the photo of her daughter, Brienna stood from the table. She wasn't prepared to stay here any longer, not with this fool.

"You're an idiot, and you're wasting my time."

Cato looked up, smiling with a nod. His gaze was not to Brienna but to the shadowy figure that towered over her. Brienna turned and titled her head back. Her eyes widened as the man stepped closer.

"I know you're rather inept in introducing yourself, so I'll help out. Brienna, this is Dori. Adds man, this is the lovely Brienna."

Dori stepped closer. Brienna inhaled sharply, falling back to the seat. She scrabbled backwards and watched in horror as the bulking creature sat down. Brienna was trapped between the vampire, and the man she knew was not a vampire and definitely not human. There was something vastly different about him, more than Cato.

"What are you?" she whispered.

Dori said nothing, taking the photo out of her shaking hand. The image of the girl was committed to his incredible memory. It would stay there until he decided that it was no longer needed. The picture was put on the table in front of Brienna. Dori turned his attention to the vampire that was grinning like a fool.

"Go on, man, tell her. She's like the rest of them, completely oblivious."

Dori grunted at the freak and then stood. He believed that staying in this squalid bar was not beneficial for his life in general and definitely not helpful for finding the kid. He couldn't figure out why the human was here, but then again, he couldn't figure out humans at all.

"Looks like we're on the move," Cato said eagerly.

Brienna frowned, watching the two men moving towards the arch. She quickly scrabbled over the seat and rushed to them.

"Where are you going? Are you going to help me?"

The two of them stopped, turning to look at her.

"I think that's already been established." Cato offered with a look of concern. "Jeez, you need to wake up or something. What is it that you humans drink? Coffee, that's right. Go and drink a couple of gallons." Dori huffed with amusement and then walked to the door.

"Yep, I agree with you, Adds. She'd be wired for a week."

Brienna sneered as she walked to the door.

"What have I signed up for?" she muttered.

The rain hadn't settled. Brienna looked out the door and pulled her jacket tighter. It did nothing to stop the rain. She shied to the wall, trying to use the eave as cover. Cato frowned at her.

"We don't have all night, you know."

"It's raining." Cato stopped and looked at his upturned hand.

"Goodness, is that what this is?"

He rolled his eyes and turned back to catch up to Dori. The lumbering oaf hadn't stopped, and water didn't bother him, so walking in the rain was nothing. Brienna huffed and chased after them.

"Where are we going?"

"Your place."

"What for? Eloise is not at home."

Cato pointed to Dori with a beaming smile.

"Got a great sniffer on him. Just need something that your daughter wears, and he's good to go."

"In this rain?"

"That's why he needs something that she wears. Trust me, we're good on this." Brienna wasn't so sure. She wondered if she was about to be robbed by a pair of conmen. Still, she showed them the way to her home, hoping that there was a little luck on her side. Maybe Eloise had returned, and she could send these two oddballs on their way again.

When she pushed through the gate and walked up the two steps to the door, she noted that the little piece of paper she'd pushed between the door and the jamb was still there. Eloise was not home. Pulling the note out, Brienna put it on the hallstand and turned on the lights.

"Her room is the first door on the right at the top of the stairs. Don't touch anything."

As she closed the door, Brienna leaned on it and watched as Dori lumbered his bulky body up the stairs.

"What is he?" she whispered.

Her gaze turned to the smiling vampire. His amusement was infuriating to Brienna.

"Werewolf."

Brienna was on the phone with the police to see if they'd received any updates. Any hope of having the case upgraded was now fading. At the moment, Brienna would have been happy to have a detective show a small amount of interest. That was a far-fetched wish, all she had was patrol cops and Eloise being put onto a long list of missing people.

As expected, the police had nothing. Brienna could barely hear anything the woman was saying. Even in the kitchen, the noise was so loud.

Hanging up the phone, Brienna stormed through to the lounge room. Cato was sitting on the carpet in front of the stereo system. He was playing music loudly, a heavy thumping song that he was singing to as well. Stalking over, Brienna flicked the power button and glowered at the vampire.

"My daughter is missing." she hissed. "You're just wasting my time."

"Am not. I'm waiting for Dori."

Above them, something thumped, then it sounded like something broke. Brienna huffed and walked to the staircase. More thumping sounds, more things falling and breaking.

When she reached the doorway to Eloise's bedroom, Brienna stopped and stared. The wardrobe was empty. Every single item of her clothes was sprawled out over the floor, as well as the bed linen.

Dori was on his hands and knees, sniffing the material, banging into things as he moved.

"What the hell is he doing?" Cato shrugged.

"You want him to find her on a scent alone. He has to make sure he gets the right one. The problem with most things is that there will be a lot of smells on them. How many times has she hugged you in each of those clothes? What about her friends? Maybe even the guy that she's with. A dog in the park, drinks spilled, stepped in bird poop, laundry detergent, perfumes. You know what's the worst for a werewolf? Cleanliness. Sweating it up a little is totally cool for them, but all those soaps with perfumes, deodorant, hairspray. Even makeup has a scent that can throw a werewolf off. Fresh, clean clothes, smelling like they've just taken a dip in some fruity concoction, totally bad. No, you know what's the worst? Nail polish remover. That stink hangs around for like, ever. Have you ever walked past one of those shops where they do the false nails? Pew-eww."

"Okay," she groaned. "I get it."

Brienna believed that Cato lacked the ability to shut up. It was all that she wanted right now. She thought that even if she got a needle and thread and sewed his mouth shut, he'd still talk. What did her dear mother use to say? He could talk underwater with a mouth full of marbles.

Dori got up and walked to the door, feeling rather eager for the night ahead. He found a common scent in everything that he searched. He'd found the kid's marker.

Brienna gestured to the mess with annoyance on her face.

"How about you clean that up?" Dori scoffed and walked down the stairs.

"Yeah, buddy, I'm hearing you," Cato muttered.

He turned to Brienna with the kind of face that made Brienna realise that she wasn't going to get them to pick up the mess.

"We're not a cleaning service. Besides, after everything that the brat has put you through, she should be made to do it as punishment. Let's go." "She's not a brat!" Brienna protested.

"Pretty sure she is. Dori said there are condoms in her top drawer."

"What?"

"He also did a little research. Apparently, her diary is rather gory with the details. You might want to steer clear of it if you think she's an angel."

Cato stopped at the front door; his eyes narrowed at the rain. It was a long way to the club, and he didn't want to turn up a soggy mess. Well, not any more than he was. At least being in the house for an hour or so meant that they'd dried off reasonably well.

"You found condoms? Are you sure?"

Dori looked at the weird human and then at the vampire. Cato shrugged at him, offering no help at all. With a grunt, he turned out of the house and walked into the rainy night.

"Yeah, okay," Cato called out.

He turned to the woman who was frowning with confusion.

"We're going to wait here for a while."

"Why?"

Cato shrugged.

"I have no idea, but while we're waiting, you should probably find something better than this nonsense."

Brienna looked down at her clothes. They were comfortable, and she didn't have to think about anything in this outfit. All that mattered was that she could cope with whatever the world threw at her.

"This is fine for searching in cold weather."

"Yeah, but we're going into vampire territory, and if you don't look the part, they'll shut the door on you, and there are no second chances. So, on that note, let's get you naked."

Before she could protest, Cato turned to the stairs in search of her bedroom. Brienna flicked the door shut and chased after him. Cato was already at the top of the stairs, searching for her bedroom.

"Please don't put my clothes on the floor."

"Why would I do that? I'm not searching for you, am I?"

Cato flicked through the clothes, scraping the hangers over the metal pole in a desperate attempt to find something that would suit the world that he inhabited. Brienna had no idea what she was about to face, and going into it dressed like she'd lost the will to live was not going to help her.

He found a long black skirt, knee high boots and tossed them onto the bed. Then he started rummaging through her drawers, ignoring the protests. As much as Cato thought that it would be fun to pull out all her frilly panties and tease her, he decided against it. He didn't really know her or how she'd react, even if it was done in fun.

So, he selected more appropriate drawers. One purple skivvy and black opaque tights added, and she was good to go.

"I'm going to freeze my ass off."

"You won't be out in the cold for long."

Cato stood at the end of the bed with his hands in his pockets and a grin on his face. Brienna was curved to perfection. He salivated at the thought of the next few minutes.

"Get out."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"But we've got a lot of time to kill. Dori will be ages."

"What's he really doing?"

With a shrug, Cato took hold of the door handle and began to close the door.

"Probably finding a car. Are you sure you want me to go?"

"Absolutely."

"Because I could really go for a quick,"

Brienna pushed the vampire out the door, slamming it shut in his face.

"You didn't let me finish," he called out. "I'm not averse to screwing humans."

"My daughter is missing. How could you even suggest that?"

Brienna ignored his reasons that it would help her mentally or that she needed to relax a little. The only thing that Brienna wanted was Eloise back in this house, alive and safe.

When she was dressed, Brienna ran the brush through her hair and tied it back into a bun. Even though Cato hadn't selected a jacket, Brienna still pulled one out. When she grabbed her bag, Brienna stopped. A slight frown filled her face as she heard Cato talking. Dori had returned.

A thought entered her mind as she walked to the door. Cato said that Dori was going to get a car, not his car. With a lot of fear, she opened the door and went in search of the two creatures. They were the bottom of the stairs.

One was all smiles and jokes. The other was his usual gruff self. When

Brienna looked at Dori, she wondered how no one had figured out he was not human or a vampire. How had she not seen other werewolves? Were they all built like Dori, or was he just unusually tall?

"When you said that Dori was going to get a car, what did you mean?" Cato gestured to the car that was haphazardly parked. He'd mounted the sidewalk and almost hit the light pole. The door was still open, and the lights were on. Brienna wondered why the windscreen wipers were halfway across the glass.

When she looked at the car, Brienna assumed the worst. She knew the truth.

It was not his car. Brienna would happily bet all the money in her wallet that it wasn't even Cato's car. She firmly believed that it was stolen.

"He got us a car to go to the club in."

"You mean he stole a car."

"To-mae-to, to-mah-to."

"I am not getting into a stolen vehicle."

"Then you, my dear, have a very long walk ahead of you. We will meet you there. Come on, Dori, ignore the unappreciative one."