[i:b2d5b1b5bc]She was a kid. She looked older, but you could tell just by the way she carried herself. All false confidence, and made up sensuality.

I’d guessed she couldn’t have been older than sixteen when she was Embraced. Obviously I couldn’t know what Clan she was or who her Sire was, just that she was Kindred. Well I couldn’t until she told me what she wanted.

Her name was Kayla Serrano. The surname didn’t mean anything to me. But as soon as she mentioned her sister was Adrianna, I knew exactly who she was looking for.

Adrianna had seemingly vanished from the face of the Earth. Kayla had hoped to visit, but as it turn out Adrianna was elsewhere. And noone had, in fact, seen her for months.

Typical. You go through a dry spell of work and suddenly your desk is swamped.

“And you want me to find her? You think something’s happened?”

“It’s not like her to just up and leave. Not without telling me. We’ve had our moments, but we’re still family.”

I nodded, though for all my optimistic posturing I didn’t have a clue where to start.

“Any leads? Friends? Enemies in the city?”

“Some I think. A Gabriel? A Kathy Belvadere? Can’t be sure.”

Great I thought. Two names that have been away from town for a few days.

“Hmmm that all? Ok, leave it with me. I’ll call you if I find anything.”

“Ok Mr. Sam.” She giggled. I’d had a lousy night so far, and her giggling didn’t help.

“It’s just Sam, Ms. Serrano. Only Sam.” I feigned a smile, but it was purely acting.

She nodded and left. The dress hugging her adolescent figure. I shook my head as the door closed, pouring a glass of scotch as I stabbed a notepad with my pen.

Things to do, things to do.

I spun my rolodeck, the pointer stopped at just the girl I was looking for.

“Erin.”[/i:b2d5b1b5bc]

woo hoo... it great... sits back and waits for more :D

((just for referance Gabe's in town. the Shal-Ka Mense thread takes place over this past summer, so he's long since returned to Cascadia

[i:d596404c8e]Turns out Gabriel [b:d596404c8e]was[/b:d596404c8e] in town.

I left Erin to it. She had a certain [b:d596404c8e]way[/b:d596404c8e] of getting her point across when she was looking for something or someone. I left her an envelope with roughly $400 inside. I figured that amount could get someone talking. I made an appointment, you had to with Ventrue, especially the Seneschal. And ordered a taxi to pick me up. I could afford a car, but in my line of work it paid to be extra cautious. After all, anyone can wire a car-bomb.

I thought I’d best make a good first impression. I’d heard of Gabriel, I’d even seen him once at a charity event. But it makes good business sense to shine when you’re meeting with nobility. The suit I decided to wear was deliberately stoic. A reserved, angular cut of charcoal silk. I didn’t take my coat, instead just lifting my hat as I pocketed my keys and my wallet. The night air was blissfully cool as I stepped into the waiting cab. I sat the Stetson on the seat next to me, straightening the crease as the car moved off.

I’d bought the hat from a Film convention. It had the classic look those 1930’s Detectives preferred. It had made Rosie laugh the first time I appeared in my full regalia, hat, suit and coat. She teased me for weeks, even hiring a Gun Moll’s dress one night we’d arranged to go for dinner. But I grew fond of the hat, and it suited me. If I’d had an Italian complexion, it’s suitability would have been absolute.

I gave the driver a warning glance as he smirked in his mirror.

“Just keep ‘em on the road.” I joked with a “Gangster dialect” as he drove on.


The drive out of the city was a refreshing change. These last two weeks, all I’d done was wander the streets. Moving from club to bar, to dancehall. It got tiresome. I’m surprised I didn’t have flat feet.

The scenery was incredible. Foliage in the closing throes of winter, trees stripped of their leaves or clinging onto them. A scattered web of gold and brown that stretched off into the hills.

Then the taxi pulled onto a private road, huge iron gates opening as the car inched forward.

“Whew!” I whistled. Even for a Ventrue, the manor looked awe inspiring standing tall and defiant behind the veil of trees.

The car rolled to a stop at the base of a curving series of stone steps. As I gathered up my things, a doorman opened the passenger doors.

“Good Evening Mr. True. Mr O’Brien is expecting you. If you’ll follow me please.”

I stepped out, pulling my suit back into position, resting my hat on my head as I followed the doorman upwards into O’Brien’s “parlour”.

“Step into my parlour, said the spider to the fly.” A chill made itself familiar with my spine as I remembered the rhyme.[/i:d596404c8e]

Erin leaned on the chair, her bootclad feet resting on the coffee table.

"so her names Adrianna and shes not been seen for awhile, she could be anywhere sam, its a big city and she is one of the shadow clan, sometimes they dont want to be found you know...but its your money so I'll see what I can do"

She reached for the envelope that sam held out for her and her eyes flicked over the amount.

"its for any expenses Erin and I dont mean drink money, understand?" he said cautiously as he watched her slip it into her rucksack.

"yeah...I know the deal...I can be trusted you know" she smirked as she got up and walked towards the door.

"Im going to see if I can track Mr.O'Brien down, that shouldnt be so hard, so if you can ask around see what you can find out and let me know as soon as you have anything"

"uhuh will do I know just the place to start"


.............................................................

The elysium was deathly silent and ever so often she looked up from the pile of papers, her eyes roaming around the large room.
Erin had decided to look through the records here, trying to find anything to do with Adrianna, it was boring work and her nails tapped impatiently on the heavy oak desk.

"she must have had a haven...or somewhere to stay" she muttered to herself as she scanned the next piece of paper.

"got ya"
She picked up her pen and scribbled an address down and a couple of names.

1254 seberton avenue
Calvin....human?
Reannag lasombra primogen

((NICE!

((Gabe?

Erin shifted her weight from one foot to the other as she leaned against the wall in the alley across from the house.
she had been watching it for an hour now and was satisfied that if anyone was living there, they were out for the night.

Pulling the hood of her sweatshirt over her head she walked across the road and headed towards the side of the house.

"couldnt be easier" she said as she leapt up and grabbed the top of the wall pulling herself onto the top of it.
Her eyes watched the security camera, seeing if the red light would blink in and out, telling her that it was activated.

"this is too sweet"

She jumped down and walked around the house. It seemed to be on two levels , both having access doors.

Her hands grasped the handle of the door that led from the garden and felt resistance. Not letting it stop her she felt into her pocket and pulled out a skeleton key. There was no point breaking the door down, just in case someone was inside.

There wasn't much downstairs, what looked like a bedroom of sorts, a large leather chair behind a desk, now covered in dust.

Sitting down she went to open the drawer to the desk and smiled as it slid open.

A thick vellum envelope lay inside, the italic writing now faded, but still legible.

Adrianna

Erin opened it and quickly scanned the contents.

Erin text sam to let him know what she had found and continued looking around the house. It was obvious noone had lived here for a while. The cupboards where bare, literally, all but a few tins of dog food stood alone on the kitchen worktop.

She walked around, opening cupboards, her fingers running over the dusty surfaces.

"zilch....absolutely nothing"



..................................................................

Erin had searched four bars before she found what she was looking for.

" hows it hanging tris" she slipped into the booth next to him, making sure she wasnt too close to him. He didnt smell too good these days, but come to think of it had he ever?
" Im good, is this a social visit? or you after something or is that a stupid question" he grinned at her his toothless gums swollen and disease ridden.

" ahh tris, you know I love you from a distant"

"come on erin , what you after...spill now before I lose my patience"

"well actually, Im looking for someone, one of us if you get my drift. One of the shadow clan by the name of adrianna, she was primogen, I think and there was another of her clan in the city, going by the name of Reannag"

"ah that one, in fact both of them were trouble, but Reannag, now that was something else to watch, it was quite sweet, really wetted my appetite, if you get my drift"
he ran his tongue over his lips and Erin shuddered.

"yeah yeah you perv, but have you heard of them recently? and what did you watch?"

"adrianna...nope I think she was in new orleans, im not sure though, Reannag, well shes back in town, different name though, different altogether I think.....and when you find her...you ask her .....ask her if you can look at her back" he laughed harshly.

"name tris...what name?"

he held his hand out and erin gave him $50 dollars.

"Estrella....and dont you forget to ask her now"


.....................................................................

Erin sprawled out on the sofa at sams, wondering when he'd be back....if at all that night.

((woah geeze! i've totally neglected to reply...oops! no worries, my reply is forthcoming!

:::This is great, I like it bunches :D ::: wonders if she should add something from Kayla :P

[i:616c0a34ed]I’d left the Seneschal’s manor none the wiser.

It was true that he knew Adrianna quite well, but he was as lost as to her current location as I was.

Feeling somewhat depressed I stepped into the waiting cab, thanking the doorman for his courtesy. The cab driver merely grunted as we drove off. The gravel crunching under the old tires.

I checked my cell-phone, nodding to myself as I read the message Erin had sent. Quickly replying, I arranged to meet her in Gastown.

The club had only been open a few weeks, but it already drew the crowds. I must admit, it had Rosie worried.

The cab pulled, at last, into the heart of the city. I handed the driver a tenspot and replaced my hat on my head. The night had grown colder, and the steam rose from the industrial style vents outside Gastown’s entrance.

Erin was waiting for me by the “Fifth Column”, a pillar styled bar, an in-joke among the Nazi supporters that secretly ran the place.

“What did you find Erin?”

“Well. Turns out Adrianna was in trouble. The Prince was trying to wipe out the shadow clan in the city. He had used their previous Proctor, Reannag as an example.”

“And?”

“And Reannag’s back, hiding somewhere in the city. But she’s calling herself Estrella.”

“Star huh? Okay. I’ll meet you back at my place. I’ve got something to do.”

I watched Erin leave. She’d been waiting a while, she’d been downing Absinthe too. I dreaded to imagine what dreams she’d have later.

I took out my cell-phone, and searched for an address...[/i:616c0a34ed]

She pulled the rough coarse woollen blanket up over her head, trying to shut out the drunken noise from down below. Her room was in the eaves of the house and the harsh bitter wind blew through the loose tiles, making her small body shiver.

The stench of cheap ale that had been spilt on the floor downstairs drifted up to her and she pleaded for sleep, anything would be better than this she thought as she wiped a tear away from her dirty face.

"mama" she whispered, she missed her mother so, but she had died when erin was ten years old , cholera had taken her and her baby brother away from her.
Her father had once been a god fearing man but once her mother had died he had turned to the drink and Erin had suffered greatly for it. She had been 11 when she had first felt him crawl into her bed, and at first she had been pleased with the warmth but it had turned into much more than that.

Her eyes opened wide as she ehard her father shouting.
"erin get urself down here now!"
then the gambling had started and he was never good at cards and always ended up owing money, until he decided to use her to pay his debts off.

"papa no please...not again"

"erin!!!" he roared and she walked down the steps to the room.
His friends eyed her greedily.

She looked at her drunken father, her eyes appealing to him.
"papa...please...."

"do as your told girl....I feed and clothes you at least you can do is help me out..I owe connor, take her round the back connor and keep her quiet"

erin stared in horror, she hated connor, he liked it rough and she bled for days after.

............................................................

Erin tossed and turned in her sleep, her mind in turmoil as she relived the moment, the roughness of his hands as he clamped them over her mouth and bent her forward, the hardness of him as he impaled her from behind.

"NOOOO papa, stop him"

((Ok that was by far the most harrowing post I've read :cry: Fantastic though baby, just very nasty :?

[i:be8b4daea6]I’d decided to walk to her place.

Cinder lived in the husk of an old theatre on 27th. She had been left to die by her husband when a domestic became a blaze. Her broken, charred frame was found first by a Nosferatu, drawn by the smells and sounds of violence. He could have left her to die, well she was pretty much dead by then, but he didn’t.

That was ten years ago, so she says. She took the name as a personal joke I guess. Not that you’d know by looking at her. Well you would if you didn’t look too closely.

I stepped over the broken threshold, carefully stepping through the collapsed timber into the heart.

“Hello Sam, not a social call I suppose?” She moved like silk, the only trace of her true form were the little stepfuls of ash she left behind.

“Not this time Cinders, I need you to look someone up for me. Lasombra, likes to name herself after the stars.”

“Ahh, you mean Mistress Reannag? Not in trouble again I hope? Such a shame what happened to her...”

“I’d love to stay and chat Cindy, but I’ve got a long walk ahead of me. You think you can help?”

“Of course I can Sam, you still at the apartment? Of course you are.” She smiled, well I think she did. The cowl hid most of her features and I didn’t want to look too closely.

“Thanks Cindy, I owe you one.” I smiled, blowing her a kiss.

“You owe me several Sam, but then who’s counting.”

I nodded briskly then left, looking at my watch as I stepped back onto the street.

I ran most of the way home. Sunrise wasn’t far off. I just hoped Erin had closed the drapes.

I felt it before I’d even reached for the door handle.

Pain. Like I’d never known.

It felt old, like a fractured bone aching in winters to come. I pushed the door open, almost gagging as the wave of emotion hit me. Owain suppressed most of it, and I headed for the source.

I opened the bedroom door.

Erin shook in her sleep, rolling and flailing as though under attack from all sides.

“Erin!?...” I ran to her. My mind racing.

“Erin!? Erin! Wake up!”

She screamed, it didn’t sound like her though. It sounded like a girl’s screaming.

“No Papa! No! Not again!”

I had to wake her, the feelings of nausea were becoming unbearable.

Grabbing her I started to shake her awake.

Her eyes opened, glazed over as she looked right at me and shrieked. Her hand scraping at my face.

“Erin! It’s me! It’s Sam!”

She suddenly went rigid, her eyes focusing.

“Sam?” Her bottom lip trembled, blood pooling in her eyes. Before it rolled down her face.

“Oh god Sam. Oh god!”

I held her then. Sobbing, trembling. Her tears soaking my suit as her heart poured out onto her sleeve.

She mumbled, a few details escaping her as she wept.

Something her father had done. The men, so many men. And the horror of their leering, pawing hands. The drunken glee in their eyes as they used her tiny body.

Finally exhausted she crumpled in a heap. I asked Owain to put something in her mind.

[color=white:be8b4daea6]“Like what?”[/color:be8b4daea6]

“Oh I don’t know. Something nice. Use [b:be8b4daea6]your[/b:be8b4daea6] head for once.”

I felt him sneer.

[color=white:be8b4daea6]“Very well.”[/color:be8b4daea6]

I watched as she rolled over, wiping dried blood from her face with a cloth I kissed her forehead.

“It’s over Erin. It’s all over. Rest honey.”

She murmured as I stood up.

“? ? ? Sam.”

“What?” I leaned closer but it was gone.

A smile crept onto her face, peeking out from behind her dark hair.

“Rest easy butterfly.”

I looked at the shutters, sunlight trying to creep through.[/i:be8b4daea6]