69. Zburatorii

Paul - The house in the suburbs
Inhaling a lungful of fresh air, I answer, “What do you want, Lexa?”
"Is this how you greet me these days, Paul?" Lexa chuckles, her voice light and playful. She'll try to toy with me again. "What did I do to deserve such a happy reaction?"
“Lexa, I’m busy. If you have something important to tell me, I’ll listen. Otherwise, I’ll call you later.”
She pauses. Only a sigh and her breathing come through.
"Do you require assistance with the strigois?" Lexa's question catches me off guard, so I let her continue. "I'm aware of the unfair settlement you signed. It doesn't sound like something you'd do if you didn't have a plan. Please let me know if I can help you."
“How do you know about my deal with them? It’s not public knowledge.”
“I still know a thing or two about your men, Paul. Do you really think I don’t know how to make Alin or Dan talk? But I won’t give names.”
Lexa likes to play games; she always has. She just gave me names, even if she says she won’t.
“I know what I’m doing, Lexa, so back off. I don’t need your help.”
“Roger that. By the way, have you got back together with Laura?”
"We agreed last time to only discuss pack matters. I'm going to hang up."
Without waiting for her reply, I end the call and take a few long breaths. With my eyes closed, I massage my temples. I want to forget about business affairs and supernatural matters for a few days at least. Being only with Laura and enjoying our time together sounds delightful.
As I step inside the bedroom, the bed is empty.
“Laura?”
I look around, but no sign of her. Her scent is still here but fades away. She’s not in the house anymore. Did she run away from me? Did she leave me again?
No, no, no. In no way would she have broken her word. Something unexpected happened, something more than meets the eye.
A faint stench wafts through the room, blending together with Laura’s lilac. I follow it to the front door, which is left wide open.
Eyes narrowed, I step outside in the middle of the night and look down the street.
I move cautiously toward the edge of the neighborhood, my gaze sweeping across the fields and forests for any sign of her.
There is nothing in sight, and the trail abruptly ends. My gut tells me that this is not good.
A need surges inside me to wrap my arms around Laura and hold on tight. I need to find her and tell her that everything will be fine. Can I keep that promise?
Fear trickles inside the deep corners of my being. I’m afraid of what could happen to Laura. And I’m afraid of myself. I won’t be able to handle this and keep my cool.
***
The rising sun signaled the start of a new day. A day so beautiful that yesterday's rain seems like a lie. A day so bright that the darkness within my heart appears unreal.
I called Dan, and now he’s here. I told him everything and asked him to look into some things for me.
"Can you be certain Laura was kidnapped? She has a history of abandoning you."
My growl points out my mood.
"Nothing is certain. What I do know is that Laura did not leave voluntarily. This is the reality. Everything has its own truth, and every truth has its own exception, and the world as a whole is as ambiguous as hell. I just want to make sense of everything." I sigh, attempting to push away the feeling of being powerless. It's too soon to concede defeat. "Did you come across anything about Zburatorii?"
“Zburatorii are good at avoiding detection, and they leave no trail in their wake, except for missing women. Do you think one of them took Laura?”
I nod. “They fit the bill. Their skills allow them to lure their victims outside, hypnotizing them only by saying their names. Then they take the women with them and fly away to their lairs to feed on their life force.”
"I'm still not convinced." Dan tosses the useless papers containing the information he gathered and folds his arms over his chest. "Zburatorii, like Laura, are dark beings. Their abilities do not affect other dark beings."
"Laura’s different. If her powers work on other dark beings, why would their powers not work on her?"
Dan gulps and doesn't reply. I guess my reasoning makes sense to him too.
After a few moments of silence, he gets the courage to utter, “Then she might be dead. Zburatorii kill their prey before sunrise.”
"No. This was not something that happened at random. I'm sure the strigois, specifically Ion Corvin, is behind the kidnapping."
"Let’s say you are right," Dan says, his eyebrows getting closer together. He’s starting to worry. “We can't force our way into the Council, nor can we call and ask, 'Hey, did you happen to kidnap Laura? I want her back.’"
I jump on my feet, clenching my fists. “Don’t treat me like a fool by stating the obvious.”
Dan takes a step back. It's not the first time he's seen me like this, though I'm not sure I've ever been so enraged. My wrath is out of control, and I can barely contain it.
“Do we know the whereabouts of the blood traders?” I ask with a snarl.
“Y-Yeah,” Dan stutters. “Why?”
“If the strigois dare to take something from me, I’ll take something from them. Gather the men.”
“Look, Paul. I can imagine what you’re going through, I really do, but we can’t afford to make mistakes here. We may breach the accord if we do not play our cards perfectly.”
I barely manage to stop myself from lashing out. “Gather the men and don’t make me repeat myself again.”
“Fine! What’s the plan?”
“We’re barging in tonight.”
Dan's mouth gapes at the shocking revelation.
“Tonight’s a full moon.”
I completely shun him by saying, "Don't forget. I need all the men to gather in the underground parking lot at the office building at 6 PM. We'll attack half an hour before the moon rises. Incur a delay, and I will kill you."