Kierra

The front wall is all glass, as is the door. No bell though, which is good. Ms. Granite looks up and is about to send an automatic greeting when she sees it's me. I hold a finger to my lips, she gives me a conspirator's smile.

Stepping lightly up to her desk, I lean over the counter, she leans forward.

"Is Benji below?"

I whisper and she nods, stifling a giggle. Not the giggle again, it's too much.

"Gary in his office?"

Another nod, but this time she whispers back that his door is closed. Good. Even better is I don't have to walk past it to get to the stairs leading down. Giving her a wink, I head around and almost collide with a tall, hard body.

Why am I always around tall ass people? Seriously. Luckily, it's the tall one I'm looking for. Guess he heard my whispering. Vamps are supposed to have good ears, right? Should probably ask more about them while I'm here, might need the knowledge later.

He steadies me by grabbing my arms, not hard, just enough to make sure I don't topple. I scowl and take a step back, making a shooing motion forward. His face breaks into a wide smile, eyes wide as he looks at me, he's aware of my issue with giants.

Following after him, we go downstairs very quietly. Once over in his little cubby made of paper, talking at a normal pitch should be fine. I snitch his desk since it's up a couple inches, doing my usual of clearing a space to sit cross-legged atop it. It's big enough.

I'd knocked papers off of it before, but at the time he'd just thanked me, tired of looking at them. Apparently being an editor isn't all that glamorous. Better an editor than a basement troll, as I've told him many a time, but now I guess he really was the troll, in a way.

He takes his chair, facing me. From my angle I can see the stairs and be able to hear if Gary starts glomping down here. He didn't too often before, but when you start depending on something, that's when it tends to change.

Like my life for example.

With over six feet sitting in his chair, I'm a little over a head taller. Think he lowers his seat though. Meh. My body faces him, but I'm snooping at some papers around me when he speaks up.

"Didn't have to come, I would have called. Don't get me wrong, I love your visits, you always know how to stir a pot, just didn't think you'd be back."

His goatee is always interesting to watch when he talks. It dances. He doesn't have it braided today, but I do spot a few small beads. He's the first male I've met who adorns his facial hair.

Only one I know, actually.

"I was wondering if I could request a couple other things from you, since you know how to work this thing better than I do."

I flick the side of his computer monitor, they get thinner each year. Have to tear my eyes from his goat to the screen. I'm not able to see what's on it from this angle, but that's not a problem, really don't want to catch his porn collection that he keeps saying he has on it.

"What do you need?"

I look at him now, his long face still topped with short hair. Teal eyes watch me closely.

"I got some information that the one who has my sister has been sending people to kill me. His flunky had met with someone Downtown for another hit, but said hitman has come over to the dark side and is providing me with some help."

The skin around his eyes pinches down when I mention someone trying to kill me, but he listens, giving a small nod. Large hands fold in his lap as one long leg is brought up and set cross the other. I continue.

"Also, the area I live in seems to be a deadzone. Just found out that the older couple that had been my neighbors for at least a couple years had been cutting people up in their basement."

I stop again to let that soak in, but he looks a little confused, so I motion him to ask.

"What has that to do with being in a deadzone?"

"I hadn't gotten that far yet, just wanted to make sure you were following along."

A grin passes his lips as he motions for me to carry on.

"They've been gone for a time, I'm not sure how long. The basement is a torture chamber that was sealed. Can imagine my reaction when I opened it. Anyway, the house has been abandoned, no one has come out to do anything with it. No city workers, Realtors, nothing. No eviction notice on the window or a condemned letter had been posted up."

I pause, trying to find the right words. You'd think a writer would have all the words on hand. Don't know about others, but I don't. I've always been able to write better than I talk.

"Even with being as busy as I've been, my sister or I would have noticed something. I went to talk to them a few days ago and they were just gone, like they'd never been there. They had a horse that's...gone, and a cat that's dead."

Another pause as a thought crosses my mind that that is one body I can bury.

"Anyway, this has happened before. A murder in another house in my area had taken place. Between Vamps and a Werewolf couple. One of them survived and tried to seek justice or even some kind of acknowledgment, but everything was buried. I was told that many of the higher-ups in city official seats are supernaturals, that since her body had been taken and the house burned down, there was no risk of exposure, therefore not important."

The familiar feeling of anger rolling in my belly has my eyes flashing yellow. I catch a tick in Benjamin's face and look away, not wanting to see the look of disgust an undead has when facing one revealing a wolf trait.

"Kie, you misread me. I may not be able to read or share thoughts as the animals can, but I can read your face. My reaction was not at your eyes changing, but at the knowledge that one of my hunches is correct."

Confused, I look back. Directing yellow eyes to his darkening turquoise ones.

"Hunches?"

He nods, his leg having gone down at some point, both planted on the floor as he leans forward.

"Sadly, I can't discuss too much of it since it deals in with a lot of Vampire business, but I've been finding evidence of things getting covered up and shouldn't have been. I'm also getting the feeling that this man who's after your boy is part of a much larger problem."

My head cocks as I look at him, a very canine gesture I'd had even when wholly human. He sighs deeply and closes his eyes. He does that when he's about to say something he knows I won't like. Wonderful.

He opens them, a flicker of rage in their depths. His hand comes out, his fingertips touching on my knee.

"That house you burned down had belonged to a bigger organization. Fred and James were bottom feeders within it, but nonetheless still brought in... 'goods'."

Wincing at the term, my stomach starts to plummet as I think I know what he's talking about. With those men, the only 'goods' he could be referring to would be children. They were part of child trafficking.

I feel sick, holding a hand to my middle. It's a wonder I have a stomach left with all the vomiting I've been doing lately. My eyes fill with hot tears as I think of Bastion in that situation, knowing from things I've learned over the years, that he would not have survived much longer.

People never want to think of those faces you see on papers hung up in many of the high traffic buildings like stores and bus stations. I was one once, not looking. Not looking made it not real.

Those smiling faces in pictures taken by loved ones, are either no longer alive or have been sold into the flesh trade. Today's society is so rotten within, so corrupt, that it's considered another high money producer just like drugs or guns. Especially in cities that are overpopulated and have a high crime rate.

Filth attracts filth.

Cool fingers touch my cheek, and I jerk back, startled. My eyes are wide as I breathe heavily, throat constricting. Jumping back off the desk to fall against a wall of paper, old memories crowd too close.

I have to control myself, this is not a place to break down and go all fuzzy. Upper arms are gripped as I'm pulled against a hard body. My head snaps up, a growl passing my lips and elongating teeth.

Blue-green eyes capture my own and I fall deep. His face so close to mine that our noses are touching. I don't like being this close to anyone, let alone a male, but I can't break away from his gaze.

My breathing picks up for only a moment before it steadily slows. Elevated temperature lowering, heartbeat slowing. Feels like my body is being coaxed to slow down, a cool touch on fiery blood.

Benjamin's eyes hold me within them as my fear settles and brain starts to function without turmoil. My vocal cords are frozen as his eyes soften, pupils shrinking down to small pinpoints. The effect is interesting, if a bit creepy.

I take a deep breath, pulling his scent deep into my nose. Big cat. Don't know what kind, but it has a weight in my head. My hand sneaks up into his shirt, touching on firm bare skin above his waistband.

Images shoot into my head. Oh hell, not again. My head falls back, eyes glazing as they're directed inward to the sights flying through my mind. A very large white cat is hidden amongst multiple greens of the forest around it, black stripes marking down its body. White Bengal tiger. Holy shit.

I pull back, gasping. Eyes blinking fast at what my brain seems to have issues comprehending. A very, very large cat is laying at my feet, shredded clothes around him.

Uh oh.

Crap.