19

Ari entered the city staying close to the building. The wolves' prints were hard to find in the grass and vines but she was confident they went this way. It was almost like Mika was pulling her to him. It was really hard to explain and everytime she thought about it it just made her head hurt. Half of her thought she was going crazy, the other half felt almost on edge like ahe was close to.something but what? She followed the feeling to a massive building where various small piles and one very large pile of ash sat. It was cold now but the rank smell of burnt hair lingered as the ash was stirred. Something told her he was not an ash pile to keep moving.
Eventually she made it to what looked like once the center of the city. A wide court yard sat center of four large crumbling buildings. Boulders, grass and vines littered the yard. Slumped over almost dead center was a body of a man..He was still fully clothed so she breathed knowing it wasn't one of **her** wolves. *Her wolves.* the thought feeling utterly natural in her mind. They were though, each one belong to her, but only Mika called to her. She examined the poor soul and soon found his head almost in perfect alinement to his feet. His eyes still open, never realizing his death. The flesh had begun to rot but from the look of his teeth, that was not a good sign how old the body was. The cleaness of the cut on his neck also told her this was not done by a wolf. A new predator was in play now. She gripped her long blade closer to her, ready to pull if threatened. She knew while the sun was up no vampire would attack but she must be getting closer to a nest if one is leaving bodies around.The building around her began to mock her, threatening her. She could feel eyes on her. She saw ever so slightly moment in one of the towers. It could've been a bird yes, but she damn sure hadn't seen one in atleast a day's walk. She would take the gamble. She made her way ever so carefully through the building..Clearing each floor till she reached the one she saw movement on. No signs of life on any of the previous floors. She cautiously entered the fith floor, blade at the ready. She stepped around a large piece of metal. Before her stood a tanned skinned man, tall and broad. He was standing not facing her but out into the courtyard. She could see scars on his skin and a tatoo of a Cressey moon on his shoulder.
"You aren't suppose to be here." he growled.
"Put some fucking pants on Niko." she sighed. She could hear the chuckled in his voice as he bent down to put his pants on. "Just don't ram that thing in me 'aight?" She rolled her eyes not eanting him to show his tight ass and balls hanging so freely. "Only if you don't tell me where the others are." Niko turned around his face stern as his button his pants. "You shouldn't have come." he repeated. Exasperated from all the male macho these guys stayed on she marched up to Niko and postured her hip out to the right, her arms crossed, "I'll tell you like I told Mika, I ain't changing for anyone." she hissed. Venom thick in her voice.
"Oh I know what you told him alright." Niko's eyes widened. "He ran the dog shit out of us because of your stunt. He is focused right now. Don't fuck up his game plan because you gotta prove you some high bitch." he said the word quicker than he realized, back tracked and put his hands up defensively. " No offense, meant it as female." She eyed him, but didn't tear him a new one. "We need his head in on this and not chasing you. He'll have time for that after. Don't get him killed Ari."
"I'll ask again where is Mika?! I can't fucking get away from him. I keep ending up in this direction so put on your big boy panties I'm staying." she blinked openly sacrastic.
Niko huffed but resigned himself to tell her. "He and the others left 2 days ago. Mika and Devion where staking out the the nest. Bradley and I where to maintain the backend so we didn't get jumped."
"No word from Mika? or the others?" Niko shook his head. "But I am not worried, stake outs could take a week or more depending on what's being seen. Besides we are all close enough if one sent out an alarm all of us could hear it."
"As could the vampires and dealers Niko. I don't like it." she argued.
"Well put your big girl panties on because if one of us get caught they'll all know of us are here regardless so howl it will.be."
Accepting he wasn't going to budge on the plan, she continued in her information retrieval. "Any action?"
"Yes the one who lost his head was done on the first night we took the yard. It was a vampire. Called it self Drax. Excuse me, *Master* Drax" he spat the last two words before continuing. " Had his minions scared shitless."
"Did you find out anything useful?" she urged on, but kept a calm voice. "Yes Drax is looking for a girl. Apparently they aren't a 100 percent who **she** is and neither is Drax. But when she's found somehow he'll know." he shrugged his shoulders.
"That's very unspecified. So they are just nabbing females?" she crinkled her face."Is he making a Harlem?"
"Bradley and I....questioned the three remaining guys. After their meeting." Niko grinned wickedly.
"Well?!" she said almost exasperated with his stalling.
"Two didn't really say much. They cried alot and begged for their miserable lives." he spat on the floor,"If you could've called it that. Rely we did a favor to them. Mika and Devion were getting a headache from their sniveling. " he grinned.
She motioned her hand for him to hurry up. She didnt care to hear the ay by play of them.mauling the poor idiots.
"We went ahead and killed those two to make an example to the leader we weren't playing around." he sniffed."He didn't give us anything. Mika wanted to starve him out till he got back see if he'd change his mind."
She looked Niko dead in the eyes."Where?"
Niko took her to a underground section of building that had held up pretty remarkably. Solid concrete walls and the metals looked as if moisture had never been down here. A large metal door with a extravagant wheel was on the front. Ari could tell if she turned the wheel gears would move and latches would release. "A vault?" she breathed so pleased at the find. "Yeah like the ones in bigger settlements, only way bigger!" his hazel eyes twinkling mischievously. He turned the metal. Even after all these years barely any noises as the gears and latches moved. A small click and the door swung open on massive hinges. Ari and Niko smiled wickedly.
The large room was bare except for a single chair being occupied by a sweating, smelly man restrained by wires and ropes. A shirt had been shoved in his mouth to keep him from calling out. But Ari wasn't sure if anyone could've heard him once the door sealed anyway. His head bobbed low not even bothering to look at his visitors.