Faline

When I get to the door, he leads me through while the girl and wolf stay. Turning my head, I mouth to both of them to be careful. The Werewolf dips his head, moving the smaller girl off to the side and in a different direction than the one we came from.

The car parked outside and waiting is a little jarring. The only reason I know the name of it is because my sister had wanted one. A 1986 Camaro. Black with red accents. I'm sensing a theme here.

He opens the passenger side door and pulls the seat forward. This is why Kie didn't get one; barely any space for anything else other than the driver. When I hesitate, the human smirks at me.

Glaring at him, I step on his foot while getting in. He chuckles while I situate myself in the seat. Lady on the other side is flipping through some papers in her lap, not paying attention. Works for me.

The door is shut and it becomes dark really quick. It's night, obviously, but the car's windows are all tinted as well. I have a sudden urge to jump right back out, totally not feeling safe or comfortable. At all.

Turning my body just enough to keep the woman next to me in my sights, I start fidgeting.

"Can ease yourself Pet, no one is watching you now."

She didn't even look up at me, writing something down and moving to another page. Her words aren't comforting in the least. It's not being watched that I'm worried about; it's the Vampire I'm closed in with.

"Could you have picked a smaller car?"

Apex is getting in the front seat as I ask, him folding his tall bulky frame inside almost laughable. Think he catches my look out the corner of his eye, for when he looks at me, I'm smirking at him.

"Have something against my baby? She's one of a kind."

I grunt at him. Boys and their toys. Should have guessed it was his. Lady in a car period is weird enough but I'd figure she'd use something bigger.

When you hear someone being a driver, you automatically think limo. That or something else with more room.

"Why a Camaro? Wouldn't something bigger be more appropriate?"

He shrugs as he starts it up and peels out. The 'purring' of the engine has him smiling.

"Might be, but that wouldn't blend very well."

"And this does?"

Apex shrugs again and smiles. Think he just wants to drive this specifically. Thinking about it, I'd picture her in a more expensive vehicle. Something real old...older than this, or super modern and top of the line.

Settling back in the seat, I lean into the frame while looking out the window. With Lady being busy with whatever it is she's doing, I try to melt into the car. With her threat from earlier coursing through my head once more, any softness I may have had has been obliterated. If it weren't for the others, I'd be running home right now.

Not sure where we're going, but it seems to me that we're going the opposite way I came in with Orion. I would ask, but that would draw attention, and I want to prevent that for as long as possible.

Body tense, metallic eyes reflect back at me while looking out. Desolate swampland goes by soon followed by lonely plains. A single road leading off into nowhere. Even though it's night, the sky seems almost bright compared to inside the car. Not from lights; there aren't many of those to cause it, but from the thick cloud cover heralding snow. Not sure why it's like that, but it's always the giveaway. Snow is bright clouds, while storm rain is dark and angry-like.

Losing myself in the scenery, I totally miss the fact we just went through a small town. Well, more skirted it than through it, but either way. Itty bitty. Rockford itself has a population of over half a million last I knew. Not a clue about these outer towns. Think the one we passed could be more qualified as a village. Hm.

The land is dark, shadows thick from the brightness of the sky, but I see it all perfectly. Even with tinted windows.

I yelp when something touches my arm, whole-body jumping in alarm. Since I had tucked myself so close to the inner edge, I bash my head on the hard frame. Turning while rubbing the soft spot on my skull, Lady is pulling her hand away.

Scowling, a leg gets folded under me. Never really thought about it before, but with your leg under you and positioned just right while sitting on it, it can provide a springboard like action if needed. Not a good idea if you're in the front seat though, as it makes it harder to brace yourself for any sort of braking or impact.

"What?"

Shadowed dual-colored eyes look at me, almost wary. My harsh question rings kind of loud in the car. Can hear the engine, but other than that it's pretty silent. Think I startled Apex with my yelp, as he's side glancing at me now. Pulling my arm in closer to me, glares get shot at the woman next to me.

"Why are you so tense?"

Uhh, seriously? I blink at her. No matter how old Vamps are, they seem to be clueless about some things. Nicolaus was to. He was seemingly unable to understand why I was so upset at him for trying to kill my sister.

"Really?"

I give her a droll look as I try to bite back my instinctual need to be sarcastic. It's that that seems to get me into the most trouble. What's really sad is she does honestly look confused.

"If I have to explain it to you, then there's no overall point in doing so since it will change nothing. Why are you bringing me on this trip anyway?"

She's staring at me. Not sure where all those papers went but they're gone now. The ride is smooth enough to write, so whatever she'd been doing seems to be finished.

"To show you what most of my slaves have come from."

Frowning at her, I cross my arms.

"I already know you get them from the streets."

Hair falls over her face as she tilts her head, the red and black strands blending with shadows.

"Yes, but you haven't seen it. To see what they come from then go to with what I provide. You think me cruel to them yet you have not seen what cruel is to those who have no one."

Scowling, I look away. Don't need to see 'their cruel'... I see enough on my own, had enough of my own. My learning what and where the submissives come from will help nothing.

"Speaking of someone coming from somewhere - where did you get Maii? Do you know anything about where he came from?"

Lady shakes her head, brows drawing together.

"He was given to me a couple of weeks before you came. I had him stick with you to get him to speak."

Lot of good that did. I return the head shake.

"Even if he'd stayed with me for months I don't think he would have. From what my sister has said, he doesn't even think in words like you or I. He might do that eventually, but as of right now, he thinks in pictures, colors, and feelings."

She only knows that from peeking into his head. He understands words, he just doesn't use them at all.

"You said she was adopting and putting him in a school?"

I nod. Really hope she doesn't ask how Kierra knows how he thinks, not sure it would be a good thing to go around. My slipping up and admitting it outloud is bad enough...

'Oh yeah, by the way, my sister can read everyone's mind and feel what they feel'.

Yeah... Can see how people could take that as a big reason to kill her.

Well, almost everyone. Just as I get nothing from a Vamps head when drinking from them, she has something similar. Kie can speak with them and feel what they do, but she doesn't think she can get into their heads like she can with the others.

The undead seem to have natural mind blocks when it comes to reading or seeing thoughts. Aside from the bond she and I share that allows us to slip into each other’s heads. Both of us have developed walls to keep that from happening...too much. Even then, those walls have to be maintained even in sleep or we mesh; like the images I was getting from her earlier when she was dreaming.

"If he does not work with words, why bother with sending him there?"

Sometimes, I really want to smack this woman.

More often than sometimes.

Most times.

All the time.

"Because he wanted to go. Just because he doesn't communicate like everyone else doesn't mean he's dumb. Is she supposed to keep him from going just because he's different?"

I get blinked at. Oookay then. My eyes narrow at her and she shrugs.

"It happens all the time. People do not like having things different than them right in front of their faces."

My turn to blink at her.

"How can you say that when you have the art you do? That's all it is; expression. Much of it isn’t 'ordinary', making it unique. Maii is unique; not an embarrassment to be hidden away."

Her age is really showing with that remark. Granted there's still much of that going on today but nowhere near as bad as it was even thirty years ago. She'd mentioned once that she's over two hundred years old, so I can just imagine the things that had to be hidden back then.

"Art is different, it isn't a human being interacting with you or yours. As for it being hidden away, why do you think nothing is in the main halls?"

My lips quirk as I begin to catch on to an idea.

"You don't get out much, do you? Avina mentioned you went to art auctions, so is it just those and pimp houses you go to?"

Lady looks affronted for a moment before her face goes blank. She needs to work on that. Either that or she only slips around me. My expression softens a little.

"Things are a bit different these days. Art is everywhere - all kinds. People’s differences are celebrated. There are some groups that are still like what you describe, but not too many are around here that I know of. Rockford I mean, don't know about out here. Where are we going anyway?"

Think my bouncing to different subjects is annoying her. She can thank my sister for that one. One of her many bad habits transferring over.