Post by Rosabeth on Mar 1, 2013 13:25:27 GMT -8
{name:Dom#|#picture:54}
Over the course of the next week Dom spoke to Olivia only twice, her frustration with his inaction growing with each call. But Dom wasn't trying to be difficult - there was really nothing to be done. They had no further leads, and going around trying to find vampires and attempt to pick up the killer's scent was a lot like playing the lottery. If you won it was only by miracle. There were far too many vampires in London to make any progress, and they were running on hope that they'd find a vampire who'd been in physical contact with the murderer recently. Needless to say, it was a bad system. Olivia seemed to be convinced that Dom was merely being lazy and uncaring, and Gary seemed to have the impression that Dom was hiding some sort of hidden power that would solve the whole case. In reality, they were hopelessly unprepared and were projecting their problems onto Dom.
Dom took a quick glance at his phone, seeing that he still had twenty minutes to spare. It was the middle of the night and Dom was one of the few Londoners travelling on the tube, much less one of the very few who were not so wasted they could barely stand. Coven meetings were the bane of Dom's existence, but they were also inescapable. No matter how much distance Dom attempted to put between him and the Sabia they always seemed to find him, and they always had ways of making him cooperate. Coven meetings were less "meetings" than they were intimidation sessions, controlled environments for the covens to threaten one another, often times turning into full out fights. That was why Dom was to be present. The dhampirs were trained bodyguards from birth, capable of putting up an impressive and often deadly fight with the right training. It didn't matter if Dom had no interest in fighting on behalf of the people who ruled his life with an iron fist. His options were simple - fight or be killed. The choice was obvious.
Dom got off the tube near the outskirts of the East End, an area outside of any coven's territory. The location of the meeting was well known among covens, used communally for years. As Dom walked through the dark streets, ever vigilant for an unfriendly Erete, he caught sight of the abandoned factory, looming above the other buildings. It looked like a building straight out of a horror movie, so stereotypical of a place you might find a vampire it was almost laughable. The building was a decrepit eyesore, a thorn in the city's side for years. The only reason it was still standing was because of the deep pockets of the covens, it's preservation bought off by bribes throughout the years. Dom would have just assumed they take their meetings to another neutral territory, or perhaps even onto the streets, but he wasn't about to start an argument he didn't really care about in the first place.
The moment Dom reached the back entrance of the factory the door was thrown open, Margaux waiting for him on the other side. Dom halted, feeling a jolt go down his spine, but he forced himself to continue walking. He didn't even cast her a sidelong glance as he passed beside her through the door, but Margaux refused to ignore him as he ignored her. Her hand slid down his arm as she followed close behind down the hall, and Dom slapped it away the moment it touched his skin.
"Oh, come on," she sighed, forcing Dom to turn to face her. "Are you still upset about the other night?"
"Oh, you think?" Dom hissed. "You only tried to feed off me. So sorry if I think you're a bitch."
Before Margaux could say another word or attack him again Dom turned on his heels, heading as fast as he could into the company of the others. The rest of the dhampirs all stood in a small grouping before Caroline, Daniel's second in command. Caroline was dark skinned and tall, sporting short cropped hair in tight curls. She gave Dom a tight-lipped smile as he approached, but Dom didn't believe it. If there was anything Dom had learned with his years with the Sabia it was that the only difference between Daniel and Caroline was a Y-chromosome. They were the same breed of evil, just with different packaging.
"Glad you decided to show up, Foster," said Caroline, reaching into her deep canvas bag and pulling something out, pressing it into Dom's outstretched palm.
"Yeah, I'm so excited I can barely contain myself," Dom muttered. He looked down into his palm, studying the metal stake. The myth of the stake was all wrong, at least by human standards. Wood wasn't a necessity, and to be honest neither was the stake. A knife would theoretically work, but a stake made for a cleaner kill. It's large surface area destroyed the heart in one blow, keeping you from having to dig a knife around in a vampire's chest. It wasn't likely that Dom would actually use the stake, seeing as these meetings usually resulted in few deaths if any, but occasionally the fights turned into fights to the death, and when that happened it was every man for himself. Dom sighed, slipping the stake into his belt and going to stand by William and Isabelle.
Caroline gave them the usual spiel, reminding them of their duties and the expectations of the coven, but Dom wasn't listening. He'd heard the speech enough to commit it to memory. When the clock read 2 am on the dot Caroline ushered them all forward into the meeting room, and Dom prepared himself for hell.
The room was bare, no furniture in sight except for a small table in the center used to hold information passed between parties. The Erete were already there, their dhampirs lined up behind them on the far wall. Dom and his fellow dhampirs mirrored their set up, going to stand behind the Sabia who stood near the opposite wall. Dom caught sight of Daniel briefly, standing near the center table with Victor, the Erete's leader, but looked away before Daniel could recognize his presence. He didn't want to see the asshole's smug look.
The proceedings started as usual, the groups presenting issues of conflict between the groups, followed quickly by the expected threats. Dom didn't listen to their arguments, knowing his only real purpose was man power. For a long time the arguments continued, Dom nearly lulled into sleep by the sheer boredom of it all, but after about an hour the sound of a fist making contact with skin jerked Dom out of his trance.
Blood trickled down Daniel's face from his nose, dripping onto his crisp white shirt. He sighed, slowly wiping away at the blood. When he opened his mouth into a wide grin Dom saw his fangs there, glinting in the low light. "Kill them," were his next words.
The following moments were utter chaos. There was a flash of moment and suddenly William and another dhampir were at Daniel's side, escorting him quickly from the room as the fighting broke out. Stakes were drawn, as were fists, and the two groups descended on each other like packs of wild wolves. Most dhampirs paired up with a vampire, acting as extra force for the vampire's chosen target. Dom, however, worked alone. In an instant a vampire was on him, sending a swift kick into his side. Dom was thrown back, hitting the ground with a thud as the pain spread through his body. He staggered up, grabbing at his stake and readying himself for the next blow. The vampire was fast, appearing behind him almost instantly, but Dom was smarter. He turned quickly, striking the vampire in the face with the tip of his stake, creating a long gash in his cheek. The vampire cried out, trying to throw another punch at Dom, but Dom grabbed his hand and quickly twisted the vampire's arm back, throwing him to the ground. Before he could straddle the man he was up again, this time hitting Dom squarely in the jaw. Dom bit down on his tongue, drawing blood, but forced himself to ignore the pain.
He watched the vampire's movements carefully, dodging he next few hits expertly as he continued to study the man. After a few more attempts Dom began to guess his opponents movements before they were made. Prepared, Dom dodged a lazy hit, pushing the vampire back and hurriedly shoving the stake into his chest. For a moment the vampire cried out and fought back, pushing against Dom with strength and sending him flying into the wall, but the damage was already done. Dom hit the wall with a thud, his head rattling and his body sore, but he quickly climbed back to his feet. By the time he went to retrieve his stake the vampire was dead, sprawled out on the ground with empty eyes staring up at Dom. Dom yanked the stake from the vampire's chest, wiping the blood off on the man's shirt before putting it back in his belt.
All the other vampires were already embroiled in a fight, and Dom used this brief window of personal peace to make his escape. As long as Dom was there when the fight began no one paid much attention to when he left, and Dom certainly felt that he'd made himself useful. Dom sprinted from the room, speeding down dark, winding hallways with little direction. The entrance he'd gone through would be covered, and Dom quickly tried to recall where the rest of the exits in the building were. The longer he ran the more lost he became, and as he passed a familiar door he came to a half, realizing he'd somehow gone in a circle.
"Fuck," he hissed, leaning against a wall. How had he allowed himself to get lost, and more importantly how had he gotten lost in a building he'd been in numerous times? Dom looked about himself trying to sort out his location when the sound of low voices caught him off-guard. He crept towards the voice, hyperaware of how loud his footsteps were. He came to the intersection of two hallways, hearing the voices from around the corner.
"I don't want any part of this," said the first voice. It was low, undoubtedly male, but it was not familiar to Dom.
"I don't really care," replied the second voice. "I'm already in dangerous territory thanks to Connor's incompetence. I need you to assure that you won't make the same mistake."
Dom took a sharp intake of breath, immediately berating himself. The voice was so familiar, so sauve and unmistakable - it was Daniel. Dom inched closer along the wall, wishing he could see who the other speaker was but knowing that looking around the corner would only put him in danger.
"The Consilium is already onto you, you know that?" said the first man.
"I'm not an idiot, of course I know. But let's just say that that's not my top concern. I have ... security in place," said Daniel. Dom could almost hear the smile in his words.
There was a sudden pause, and Dom instantly jumped away from the wall. It was good timing too, for only a second later Daniel rounded the corner, nearly running into Dom.
"What are you doing here?" Daniel hissed, his usual swagger gone, replaced with open hostility.
"I thought I saw one of the Erete go this way," Dom lied quickly. It was clear Daniel was not convinced by the lie, but he did not seem to argue it, most likely too flustered for having been caught in a strange situation.
"Well, get on with it, then," he ordered. He approached Dom, but instead of hitting him, as Dom half expected, Daniel only brushed up against him. And that was when he felt it.
Dom nearly died on the spot.
It was there. The sense. The scent was right there on Daniel, but it was not a mere faint sense indicating that Daniel had merely been involved with the murderer. Daniel was the killer.