Disclaimer: X-Files and its characters belong to C.C. and 1013 Productions. No copyright infringement intended, no money be made.

A/N1: Some dialogue taken directly from the show. Although I do a bit of research for my stories, I’ve never been a cop, doctor, herbalist, psychologist, or theologist.

A/N2: Special thanks to sinadino for the German translations, and to xhuggles and ivy_wang for the Chinese translations.

A/N3: All mistakes are my own. Special thanks to oxfordshoes2 for the beta. Feedback is welcome.

Dana’s Malakim

Part 29

Home of Margaret Scully

Baltimore, MD

Saturday, July 11^th, 1998

When Dana got up Saturday morning she found her mother already in the kitchen fixing some breakfast, even though it was still dark out. A small TV on the kitchen counter was turned on low, set to CNN.

“Would you like some bacon and eggs, Dana?”

“Just a couple of scrambled eggs, please.” Dana went to the refrigerator and poured herself some orange juice as her mother whipped up a couple of scrambled eggs. “You’re up awfully early this morning,” she observed.

“I woke up wide awake and decided there was no use staying in bed. Besides, this way I get to make you some breakfast. You know, I’ve enjoyed you staying here,” Maggie said as she set a plate of eggs in front of her daughter.

The redhead smiled up at her mother. “I’ve enjoyed it, too, Mom. Thank you.”

“So what do you have planned for today?”

Dana let out a soft sigh. “Hopefully finish up the case. Or at least identify a viable suspect so the locals can take over the case and run with it.”

“Nicole?”

Dana looked up from her meal at her mother’s soft remark. “What did you say, Mom?”

“That’s Nicole,” she said pointing at the small TV, then reached over and turned up the volume.

They listened as the anchor went on to narrate a video taken earlier.

“What we see here is the outside of a Washington, DC club simply called The Mission. It is said that The Mission caters to the alternate lifestyle of the domination and submission culture, complete with slaves, pets, leather, and collars.

“In the early hours of this morning, this club was the subject of a raid by local and federal authorities following a violent attack on some of its patrons. What was found, in a secret basement, was an unprecedented amount of high grade, pure cocaine – 3000 kilos. Authorities say that once the cocaine was cut and distributed on the street, it would be worth an estimated 150 million dollars. This is the largest single seizure ever by American authorities. We’ve also been told that there was a ‘significant’ amount of cash and weapons confiscated as well.

“We take you back to the scene live with Arliss Cole. Arliss?”

The scene changed to a live shot in front of the club.

“Yes, this is Arliss Cole, reporting from on the scene here in Washington, DC. As you can see across the street,” he stepped aside to allow the camera to focus on the background, “there are several local law enforcement vehicles and personnel still present. I’m told that this unprecedented seizure of drugs, money, and guns and the arrest of over two dozen people was the result of an undercover investigation by the FBI.”

“There!” Maggie’s hand shot out and she pointed to a white-blonde head in the background.

Dana looked closely. Sure enough, there was a woman in dressed all in black leather that had the same short, white-blonde hair as her partner. And she appeared to be speaking with Skinner – recognizable by his bald head. Dana had stopped listening to the reporter and continued to search the people in the background. Then she saw it – a shock of bright blue hair. Ian.

She sat back with an almost imperceptible smile on her lips. That explained it! It explained Nicole coming in late, her seeming to be tired and listless at work, the secret phone call, her distance during the last week, her sudden departure without an explanation. She remembered what Nicole had told her about being made for undercover work. With results like that, it was obviously true. She felt a little bit of pride on behalf of her partner. Well done, Nicole, well done.

“That was her, wasn’t it?”

Dana was brought out of her thoughts by her mother’s inquiry. She nodded. “Yes, it was.”

~~~

The Mission

Washington, DC

The assistant director had received a call long before his alarm would have gone off. He answered it only to hear Logan tersely tell him to get down to The Mission club ASAP. For reasons he couldn’t completely fathom, he felt compelled to obey the summons by the woman who was nominally his subordinate. He dressed and was out his door within five minutes.

To say he was surprised to pull up and see a dozen cop cars with lights flashing was an understatement. He parked and got out of the car. Before he took more than a single step towards the crowd of cops and onlookers, a hand clamped on his arm and pulled him off to the side.

“What the–”

“We need to talk before you go any further,” Logan said, cutting him off.

“What the hell is going on?”

She ran a weary hand over her face as she sighed. “I was here with a friend on a private matter. I recognized someone, a major international criminal, from a previous case. I decided to stay and see what he might be up to since there’s no way his presence here could be a good thing.”

“What happened?”

She closed her eyes, seeing the violent confrontation in her mind’s eye, and let out another sigh. “He made me before I could get close enough to...” She stopped and shook her head. “A confrontation became violent and some people were hurt. He got away, but my friend and I found a secret basement.” She met his eyes and held them. “There’s got to be 3000 kilos of pure, uncut cocaine down there, and a bunch of cash and guns.”

Skinner’s eyes widened. Holy shit. “That’s worth 100-150 million dollars on the street.”

The blonde nodded. “I think we stumbled on a new primary distribution hub for one of the Columbian cartels. Probably one to replace the hub taken out in Newark several months ago. If the DEA had an investigation going...” She shrugged her shoulders.

“Then there’s going to be some hell to pay for stepping on their toes,” he said, completing her thought.

“It wasn’t intentional, believe me.” I was after a far greater evil.

“Alright. I’ll handle coordinating with the locals and any other agencies that may have a vested interest.” He looked her in the eyes. “Is there anything else I should know?”

“There’s a dead body, a woman... I did everything I could. The killer is the bastard that got away.”

“I see. Anything else?”

“No,” she replied, shaking her head. “But it’s probably best if ‘I wasn’t here.’”

He nodded in understanding. “Got it – this was the result of an undercover investigation by the FBI.”

“Yeah.” With that she turned and walked away.

~~~

En Route to Logan’s House

Ian inconspicuously fell in step with Nicole and walked with her to the car. Once they were in the car he looked over at her before starting it up and heading out. “I’m really sorry, Nicole.”

She sighed. “It wasn’t your fault. He hasn’t been around for 1200 years and not developed an acute sense of his surroundings.”

He knew she didn’t blame him, but he still felt bad about Fritz getting away. They had been so close. They did managed to dust four other vampires that had been with Fritz, but the bastard had slipped way as he and Nicole fought with the others – and he did it behind the shield of an innocent bystander, who he then killed.

And that was precisely what was bothering the blonde the most. She’d had to choose between trying to save the woman’s life or getting Fritz. One could argue that going after Fritz at that point would prevent the greater evil, but there was no way Nicole could turn away from the woman bleeding to death in her arms. Fritz wouldn’t be seen in DC again since he always had a preplanned exit strategy, but she would cross paths with him again, even if it meant she had to travel around the world to do so. She would kill Fritz.

Ian parked in front of his friend’s house. “Do you want me to stay?”

She took a slow breath. “No. I’ll be okay. Thanks for your help, Ian.”

“Anytime – you know that.” He watched with concern as she got out of the car, walked up to her front door, and went inside.

~~~

Logan’s House

Nicole was furious. Not only had Fritz slipped out of her grasp, but she’d also lost an innocent in the process. She wanted to hit something – someone. It was still a couple of hours until sunrise, but she wasn’t tired. She was too keyed up to even think about getting some sleep.

She went into her bedroom and changed into shorts and a t-shirt. Taking her leathers into the bathroom, she carefully and methodically washed off the blood that the dark color mostly concealed. She hung up the cleaned leathers to let them to dry. She then went down to the basement and into the workout room. She slipped on some gloves and started beating the bag hanging from the ceiling. With every punch that she threw she pictured beating Fritz’s smug face.

She’d had him! He’d been right there.

“AHHHHRGGGHHH!” she screamed as she pummeled the bag and then nailed it with a hard, sharp kick that split the canvas, spilling sand onto the floor.

She stood there staring at the sand spilling from the bag as she panted, sweat dripping off of her brow. Letting out a huff of irritation she turned and went back upstairs. She’d needed to go for a run.

~~~

That morning, at the hospital, Dana had been surprised when a janitor came forward and admitted to committing the killings. She and the local police had had no idea who their suspect was; they’d cleared everyone they thought had access to the patients. The police doubted the confession initially, but the man’s specific knowledge of the method used convinced Dana he was indeed the perpetrator. She turned the case over to the locals and headed for her mother’s where she picked up her things and said goodbye to her mother.

On the way back to DC the redhead had debated with herself about calling her partner. That debate didn’t end until she pulled up and parked in front of her partner’s house. She was feeling apprehensive and hesitant. Seeing Nicole on the news had thrown her a little bit, but as her mother had pointed out it did explain the blonde’s actions and lack of communication during the week. But was it the reason for Nicole’s distance?

She had spent so much time over the last few days asking herself over and over if sleeping with her partner had been mistake. Had she messed up the best partnership, the best friendship, she’d ever had or could hope for? By Friday night, she had almost convinced herself that if she needed to she could go back to just being friends and partners with the blonde. She’d rather have Nicole as her partner and friend than lose her completely because they’d crossed a line they shouldn’t have. Not for the first time she rehearsed her ‘partners and professionalism, friends instead of lovers’ speech.

And then she saw her partner come running around the corner. Dana watched as the blonde paced back and forth in front of her house, breathing deeply as she tried to cool down. Her face, arms, and legs glistened from a sheen of perspiration. When Nicole bent over, touching nose to knees, stretching out, Dana’s mouth watered at the sight of the blonde’s lean muscles flexing beneath smooth skin. And when the blonde moved onto the porch where she placed a foot up on the railing and again stretched, Dana felt a familiar tightness in her belly.

Oh yeah, it would be so easy to go back to just being friends, she taunted herself. The redhead closed her eyes. She was already in too deep; if things didn’t work out with Nicole Dana’s heart was going to be left in a thousand pieces. Her heart ached with her fears. When she opened her eyes again there was no sign of her partner. The blonde must have gone inside.

~~~

Nicole stripped off her sweaty clothes and stepped into the scalding shower. In an effort to tire herself out so she could try to sleep she had gone on a long run; she had run until her lungs burned and her legs were rubbery, but her mind had never settled. Failure never sat well with her. She could live with losing Fritz – she knew there would be an opportunity to go after him again, and even if there wasn’t, she certainly wasn’t the only Malakim that wanted him dead. Someone, someday, would eventually take him out. What was eating her up inside was the unnecessary loss of an innocent’s life.

She dissected the night’s events over and over and over again, looking for the one thing she could have done differently that would have saved that woman’s life. She questioned every action she’d taken, every thought she’d had, every decision she’d made. She questioned her ability to do what she’d been bred to do. She questioned her worthiness of all the gifts she’d been given.

Nicole opened her eyes and turned off the shower. She stepped out, dried off, and slipped on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Towel drying her hair, she went into the kitchen where she poured herself a glass of juice. She heard a knock on her front door as she put the dirty glass in the sink.

The blonde felt something indescribable grab her heart when she looked out the peephole and saw Dana. She opened the door.

“Dana.”

The redhead was taken aback by the depth of the emotion in that simple, one-word greeting. She saw something she couldn’t name pass behind those dark green eyes. It compelled her to move forward and wrap her arms around her partner. “I’m here,” she said softly.

Nicole felt something inside give way. Her whole body began to tremble as she clung to the woman that held her heart. Before she realized it, the front door had been closed and they had moved to the couch.

Dana held Nicole, trying to provide the comfort her partner was apparently so in need of. She didn’t know what was bothering Nicole, but Dana knew she’d do whatever she could to help the blonde. She dropped a kiss on the top of Nicole’s head, then rested her cheek against it. “Whatever it is, I’m here, Nicole. I love you.”

After a couple of long minutes, the blonde finally seemed to calm down. She took a deep breath as she eased her tight grip on the redhead. She hadn’t actually been crying, but her eyes were red and swollen as if she had been. “Sorry,” she whispered softly.

“There’s nothing to apologize for.” Dana kissed the blonde’s forehead. “What to talk about it?”

Nicole took another deep breath as she sat upright. “I’ve been... working on something this week...”

“I know.” She saw the surprise in the blonde’s eyes. “I saw you on the TV this morning – outside The Mission. The news said there had been in undercover investigation by the FBI. That was you, wasn’t it?”

She hesitated in answering. She didn’t want to lie to Dana. Yes, she had been investigating, but not for the FBI. What she and Ian had been doing there was personal... sort of. She hadn’t officially been assigned to go after Fritz Klingemann; however, as a Malakim it was completely within her purview to go after the likes of him. Any Malakim would gladly take out a master vampire.

Dana misinterpreted her partner’s hesitation. “I understand if you can’t discuss the investigation, Nicole.” She reached out and took the blonde’s hand in her own, giving it a squeeze. “But something has clearly upset you. What is it?”

Nicole closed her eyes and took a slow breath. “An in–” Tears welled in her eyes and a painful stricture closed her throat. “The person we were after, our main target got away... and an innocent woman was killed.” The tears spilled and ran down her cheeks.

“Oh, Nicole, I’m so sorry.” She pulled the blonde into her arms again.

Emotional turmoil, exhaustion, and the comfort of Dana’s embrace combined to overpower the blonde and pull her down into Morpheus’ realm. The redhead didn’t want to disturb the woman in her arms, so she managed to shift a bit and lean back into the corner of the couch, allowing Nicole to sleep, the blonde’s head pillowed on her chest. Dana closed her eyes, a lack of adequate sleep the past few nights catching up with her, and also dozed off.

~~~

Hearing Dana’s heart beneath her ear when she woke up, Nicole’s lips curled into a small smile. She loved the way the redhead’s body felt against her own. Everything about Dana felt good – her body, her heart, her soul. The blonde took a slow breath. She couldn’t help the reaction her body had to Dana’s scent – not just the subtle vanilla perfume she wore, but her own natural scent.

Nicole had a number of good friends, but she’d never missed anyone as much as she’d missed Dana the past few days. Yes, it was her own doing – she’d had to protect Dana – but when she saw the redhead standing at her door she realized just how much of her own wellbeing was dependant on the presence of Dana in her life. Her heart felt like it was on verge of bursting, overflowing with love and need and belonging.

Dana woke up to soft, warm lips pressing lingering kisses to the column of her throat. She let out a contented sigh and wrapped her arms around the body pressing her down into the couch cushions. Her breath quickened as deft fingers slowly unbuttoned her blouse; warm breath and soft kisses caressed the tops of her breasts. She sank her fingers into corn silk hair as the front hook of her bra was undone, sucking in a hiss and arching her back when the moist warmth of Nicole’s mouth enclosed around her hardening nipple and suckled.

The blonde thrilled at the way her lover’s body responded to her touch, arching up into her own, the way fingers tightened in her hair, the way her name sounded when uttered as a low moan. She continued to suckle as her right hand reached down and slipped under the hem of Dana’s skirt, sliding her hand along a firm thigh, feeling the muscles twitch and flex beneath silky skin.

The warmth of Nicole’s soft hand sent chills along Dana’s spine, filling her with molten heat and making her glad the sticky humidity of mid-July heat made her forego hose. She was already wet and getting wetter. She felt bereft when Nicole pulled away, but then the blonde lowered her body onto hers and claimed her lips in a deep kiss. She slid her tongue along the one exploring her mouth and moaned at the thought of its slippery velvet on other parts of her body. And then the blonde was once again gone, leaving Dana to draw ragged breaths into her oxygen-starved lungs.

Nicole shifted to kneel on the floor, gently holding Dana’s ankle with one hand and removing her shoe with the other, then repeating with the other foot. She slid her hands up sculpted calves, under the redhead’s business suit skirt to caress the tops of shapely thighs. Her hands moved to the outside of Dana’s hips, caught the waistband of silky panties, and tugged as the redhead lifted her hips. Her mouth watered as the sight of auburn curls and glistening flesh. Dropping her lover’s panties aside she pushed Dana’s skirt up as she trailed her lips and tongue along the inside of a thigh.

Dana’s thighs spread further apart and trembled at the sensation of her lover’s mouth slowly working up her sensitive inner thigh. She let out an erotic moan and her hips jerked when the blonde ran the flat of her tongue along the length of her center. Nicole’s tongue dipped into her entrance and then slid up to circle her clit, lightly teasing, hinting at more. She felt more than heard the blonde’s hum as lips closed around her clit and softly sucked. She was writhing on the couch, pressing herself into her lover’s mouth, loudly moaning. Her back bowed and she fisted both of her hands in corn silk, pulling Nicole tighter to her just before her orgasm hit, her thighs clamping around the head between her legs and crying out her lover’s name.

Once released from Dana’s thighs, Nicole couldn’t keep from smiling at the sight and state of her lover. Dana’s business suit was rumpled and in disarray, her jacket open, her shirt un-tucked and open, her bra unhooked and pushed out of the way, her skirt bunched and pushed up over her hips. So much for the professional federal agent. She moved up and nuzzled below the redhead’s ear.

“Let’s continue this in the bedroom,” she murmured before kissing her lover.

The redhead tasted herself on Nicole’s lips and tongue and smiled into their kiss. The blonde stood and held out a hand to Dana, pulling her up from the couch. In the bedroom, Dana shed her clothes, uncharacteristically letting them lay where they dropped onto the floor, and crawled onto the bed.

“Sorry about your suit,” Nicole said as she removed her shorts and t-shirt.

“No you’re not,” Dana said with a smile, “and neither am I.” She wrapped her arms around Nicole as her lover joined her, kissing her deeply as she rolled the blonde onto her back. “I missed you this week.”

“I missed you, too,” Nicole replied, swallowing around the lump that suddenly formed in her throat. Her eyes closed and her back arched as her lover trailed steamy kisses down her throat.

“Does your chest hurt?” Dana asked her kisses neared the bandage above the blonde’s right breast.

“No-o.” Her voice hitched as the redhead began to lick and suck on her achingly hard nipple.

The redhead was torn. The thought of going down on the blonde was mouthwatering, but Dana wanted to watch her lover’s face as she came. She moved back up and claimed Nicole’s lips in a deep kiss, thoroughly exploring her mouth. She trailed the fingers of her left hand through downy curls and moaned as they slid over swollen and slick flesh. She pulled back and gazed down her lover.

“Look at me,” she quietly urged. She stilled her fingers when the blonde didn’t comply. “Open your eyes and look at me, Nicole.” She smiled when dark green opened and gazed up at her. “I love you,” she said as she pushed her fingers inside her lover.

Nicole tried to keep her eyes open but what the redhead was doing to her made it impossible. She felt Dana’s thumb rub her clit in time with the thrusting of her fingers. “Ahhh... Dana...”

She sucked the blonde’s earlobe into her mouth and gently nipped it. “Come for me,” she breathed.

A few more strokes and she felt Nicole’s muscles clamp down hard on her fingers and the blonde’s entire body shuddered. Once she was able to remove her fingers, Dana moved to lie more directly on top of Nicole, straddling a firm thigh and pressing her own against the blonde’s center. After a couple of minutes of kissing, they began to gently rock against each other. Before long their gentle rocking turned to purposeful thrusting until they both climaxed again.

Rolling onto their sides, Dana and Nicole held each other as they drifted to sleep.

~~~

Both women were awakened by the ringing of the house phone. Dana started to move, but Nicole held onto her, keeping her in place.

“The answering machine will get it,” the blonde murmured. The ringing stopped... only to be replaced by the sound of her cell phone ringing. “Voice mail,” she said.

“What if it’s work?” Dana asked without trying to move.

“If it is they’ll try your cell.”

They both smiled when the redhead’s phone remained silent. However, Nicole’s stomach started to gripe. She hadn’t eaten anything all day.

“I’m starved. I know it’s early, but do you want to go out for dinner?”

Dana snuggled into the blonde. “No. I want to stay here.”

Nicole smiled. “I don’t feel like cooking, so what would you like to have? Chinese? Pizza? Italian?”

“Italian?”

“Yeah. There’s a small Italian restaurant not far from here. It’s 4:30 so they’re open. I can call in an order and quickly go pick it up.”

“Mm, that sounds good.”

Nicole kissed the redhead’s forehead and then rolled towards the side of the bed, grabbing her cell phone from the nightstand. She called Frederico’s and placed an early dinner order.

~~~

Part 30

Logan’s House

Washington, DC

Saturday, July 11^th, 1998

When Nicole got back to the house after picking up their dinner, she found the redhead in her kitchen. She set the bag containing their meal on the table and then walked up behind Dana where she stood at the sink. She slipped an arm around her lover’s waist from behind and nuzzled the redhead’s neck after brushing aside wet hair.

“Mmmm... you smell good.”

“I took a shower. I hope you don’t mind me borrowing some clothes.”

“You know I don’t. And that shirt looks better on you than it ever did on me.” She was wearing an oversized, cotton, button-down, men’s shirt.

Dana was smiling when she turned around in the blonde’s embrace to face her. “You’re biased.”

Nicole gazed into sapphire blue eyes. “Perhaps. But it doesn’t change the fact that you’re beautiful.” She looked down to see the shirt was only half buttoned, revealing lots of smooth skin. “And right now I don’t know what I want more – dinner or... dessert.” She pulled the redhead’s body against her own and kissed her.

Dana slipped her arms around the blonde’s neck and deepened their kiss. She felt her heart rate and temperature both shoot up. Then Nicole’s hands slipped under the shirt tail and cupped her bare ass. She broke the kiss and rested her forehead on the blonde’s shoulder, panting. “Dinner’s going to get cold.”

“I have an oven.” Nicole took half a step back, breaking their embrace. She then grabbed Dana’s hand and led her back to the bedroom.

~~~

Dana was once again wearing the oversized men’s shirt, but she was also wearing a pair of shorts as she followed Nicole back into the kitchen. The blonde was wearing a pair of shorts as well, and a tank top that made it difficult for Dana to take her eyes off of the blonde as she moved around the kitchen reheating their dinner.

Nicole trotted down to the basement and quickly returned with a bottle of wine to go with their meal. While the blonde got their food from the oven, Dana uncorked and poured the wine. They sat down and looked at each other.

“Have I told you how beautiful you are?” Nicole asked softly.

Dana felt herself blush as she automatically dropped her gaze, but the blonde made her feel beautiful. She felt Nicole take her hand and bring it to her lips, lightly kissing it.

“Or how much I love you?”

She couldn’t stop the smile that graced her lips. “I think you just spent the last couple of hours telling me.”

Nicole leaned over and lightly kissed the redhead on the lips. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

~~~

Nicole was washing the dishes after dinner when the house phone rang for the what had to be the fifth time since they’d started dinner.

“Do you want me to get that?” the redhead asked. “Whoever it is seems to be quite intent on getting hold of you.”

“Nope. I’m with you and on my own time.” The blonde quickly dried her hands, walked into the living room and unplugged the phone, silencing it. She turned and found herself wrapped in her lover’s arms. She took in the redhead’s smile. “What?” she asked as she slid her arms around Dana.

She blushed, but answered the blonde anyway. “That’s one of the nicest things anyone’s ever done for me.”

“What?” Nicole asked, confused.

“Turned off the phone to be alone with me.”

She gazed into crystal blue eyes as she reached up and tenderly caressed her lover’s cheek. “Then you haven’t been spending time with the right people.”

“No, I haven’t,” she breathed before their lips met in a tender but emotion-filled kiss. To Dana it felt like coming home.

They rested their foreheads together afterwards as they just stood in a loose embrace for a several moments. When they parted they decided to relax for a little while before going to bed by watching some television. In less than an hour they were both falling asleep on the couch, so they retired to the bedroom and were both asleep by 9:00.

~~~

Nicole growled as she sleepily reached out to silence her cell phone, not half an hour after falling to sleep. She found it, but then realized it wasn’t making the noise.

“Sorry... it’s my phone,” her bedmate said as the redhead snatched her phone from the nightstand. “Scully... What?... Just a minute.” She rolled over and looked at her lover. “It’s Ian – he sounds upset.”

The blonde took the phone and brought it to her ear with a sigh. “What’s going on, Ian?”

“Where the bloody hell have you been? I’ve been trying to get a hold of you. I finally had to track down Thea to get Red’s cell phone number.”

“I’ve been busy,” she replied with a smile as the redhead laid her head on her shoulder.

“Well, stop whatever you’re doing and get the hell out of there.”

“Why?” Suddenly, every sense in Nicole went on high alert.

Dana couldn’t hear what Ian was saying on the phone, but she felt the blonde’s entire body suddenly stiffen. She frowned as she sat up and looked at Nicole.

“Lance called me; he said Fritz is still in DC, and apparently he’s not going anywhere until he settles the score with you.” He paused for half a beat. “Nicole, Lance says Fritz knows where you live. So take Red and get the hell out of there.”

The blonde abruptly sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. She stood and walked over to a window. She peeked out the window through a crack in the curtains. She spotted something and clenched her jaw. “I think it’s too late for that.”

“I’m on my way. I should be there in half an hour.”

“Right.” She hung up, silently cursing herself for ignoring her phone earlier. If she’d answered her phone, or just checked her messages even, she’d have known and could have gotten Dana to safety. But now it was too late – there was someone already watching the house. As a master vampire, a lack of invitation was not going to prevent Fritz, or any humans helping him, from coming inside. And once a master vampire entered, so could a few of his vampire followers.

“Nicole, what’s wrong?” Dana asked with concern.

“Get dressed.” The blonde suddenly turned and grabbed a pair of jeans which she quickly slipped into before putting on some tennis shoes.

“What’s going on?” Dana asked as she pulled on her shorts and shirt.

Nicole snatched her tank top off of the floor and pulled it on, then grabbed the redhead’s hand. “Come with me,” she said, pulling Dana along behind her.

“Nicole! What’s going on?” She tried to get the blonde to stop, but Nicole was too strong as she pulled Dana through the kitchen and opened the door to the basement.

“I’ll explain, but right now I don’t have time. We’re about to have some unwanted guests,” she said on the way down the steps and through the wine cellar to the workout room behind it.

Dana’s eyes widened when the blonde pulled one of the padded mats off a wall and revealed what looked to be a door to a safe. Nicole punched in a code into the cipher lock and pulled the door open. She slapped her hand against a control and turned on the light. Only after the blonde pulled her inside the vault did she let go of Dana’s hand. The redhead could only look around the room in stunned silence.

There were weapons of all sorts hanging on the walls – guns, knives, bows, swords, and a few things she didn’t recognize. The blonde took down a crossbow small enough to be used one-handed and slipped several bolts into the back pocket of her jeans. She then slipped a couple of knives in her waistband and took down a long, sharp sword.

“Stay here until I come and get you,” Nicole said as she stepped out of the vault and started to shut the door.

“Nicole!”

The door closed without another word from the blonde.

~~~

Nicole hadn’t even reached the top of the basement stairs when she heard glass breaking. No more time for second guessing. Showtime, she thought grimly to herself. She would certainly have preferred to be more prepared for a showdown with Fritz, a time and place of her choosing, but things didn’t always go the way you wanted them to.

She crouched on her way through the kitchen. Peeking around a corner, she saw someone coming through a broken window in the living room. That would be one of Fritz’s humans. She took out one of the knives, stepped around the corner, and threw it. The knife pierced the back of his hand and embedded in the window frame, pinning him in place.

“Looking for me?” she asked just before coldcocking him, causing his upper body to hang from his impaled hand. She pulled out the knife and, wiping the blood off on her jeans, slipped it back into her waistband. The next sound came from the kitchen – the back door.

Nicole held off the intruders for several minutes. But then they smartened up and came at her from more than one direction. She was fighting with three men when the front door was kicked in. They all stopped fighting and looked as Fritz walked into her house as if he owned it. The three men backed away as Master and Malakim faced each other in heavy silence.

Fritz was the one to break the hushed stillness. “You have been a royal pain the ass, Virtue.”

“Glad to hear it,” she replied with a disdainful smirk.

“You made me give up my nest here in Washington.”

“Good.”

“You tried to kill me–”

“I’m only sorry I failed.”

“–and killed an innocent instead.”

“You killed her!”

He moved forward, forcing her to look up to maintain eye contact, and glared down into her eyes. “She would be alive if not for your actions, and we both know it.”

The blonde clenched her jaw in an effort to keep from falling into his trap. Too late. He smiled, coldly and knowingly.

“Some Virtue you are. What makes you think you can touch me? You can’t even protect one poor, helpless, innocent woman. You failed. You’re a failure as a Virtue, a failure as a warrior... a pathetic failure.”

He turned his back and walked away. “Finish her.”

Four vampires that had followed Fritz into her house attacked. Nicole fought fiercely, managing to kill two of them. But in the end, she was bested.

~~~

Dana tried to push the door open, but it was locked. She searched for some kind of control that would release the heavy door, but to no avail. She took a couple of deep breaths and then took a closer look at her surroundings.

Besides the weapons hanging on the walls, there were boxes stacked against two of the walls. She opened one and discovered some ammunition in a variety of calibers – bullets that were apparently made out of silver. Opening other boxes she found dried and canned food, full water jugs, some religious texts, more weapons, and expensive electronic equipment. What the hell is going on? And what is Nicole doing with all of this stuff?

She moved something aside on a shelf and saw a control panel and monitor screen like the ones upstairs that were tied into Nicole’s alarm system. Dana had never seen the blonde use the panels to do anything other than to turn the alarm system on or off when they left or arrived at the house, and she’d never seen the monitor screens turned on. She began to push different buttons in an effort to either get the alarm to go off or to turn on the monitor – preferably both. It didn’t take long for her to let out a frustrated yell and to slam the side of her fist against the controls.

Something beeped... and then the monitor came on.

Dana stared in horror at the image on the security monitor. Two men were holding Nicole in a kneeling position by pressing down on her shoulders and pulling up and back on her wrists, straining the muscles of her shoulders, arms, and back. A third man, older, stood over her lover, hatred clearly evident in his expression.

When the man grabbed a handful of the blonde’s hair and pulled her head up, Dana saw her lover’s battered face – bloody nose, black eye, split lip, cut and bleeding eyebrow and cheek. She saw the man’s lips move, but there was no sound. Then she saw Nicole defiantly spit blood onto the man’s suit.

~~~

Fritz looked down at the red stain on the front of his expensive, silk suit. With lightning speed he struck, punching her in the side of her face.

She let out a chuff of derisive laughter. “You’re a big man, Fritz, letting others do your dirty work for you. Sure, you can hit me – but only after siccing your goons on me and while two of them hold me down. Fucking coward.”

He lashed out and struck her again, before signaling the two vampires holding her down to let go of her. “Fine. It’ll be my pleasure to beat you to a bloody pulp... and then I’ll drain you dry.” He took off his suit jacket and handed it to one of the others as he waited for the blonde to regain her feet.

~~~

Dana never felt so helpless as she did watching her lover getting beaten on the screen of the monitor. After Nicole was allowed to stand up, the man hit her again, sending the blonde flying across the room. She landed on and broke the coffee table. It didn’t appear like Nicole was even trying to fight back as the man continued to land punch after punch.

When Nicole was knocked down for the fourth or fifth time, and didn’t get back up, the man signaled for his two ‘helpers’ to pick the blonde up. They marched across the room and one of the men grabbed her left arm.

~~~

Finally, one of his punches sent her flying so that she landed within easy reach of the couch. She slipped her right hand and arm under the couch and felt for her sword which had slid there earlier. She felt a hand clamp around her left arm and the presence of the second vampire to her right. When the one the vampire yanked on her arm, jerking her up off the floor, she brought the sword up and neatly separated his head from his shoulders. Before his body turned to dust, she continued the arc and beheaded the second vampire as well.

She squared her shoulders as she faced Fritz. “Now that we’re alone, let’s try this again.” She spat some blood onto the floor and held her sword at the ready.

~~~

She couldn’t believe her eyes. The two men Nicole had just beheaded had turned to dust! It had to be a trick or... something. People just didn’t turn to dust. Feeling like she was watching some kind of horror show,  Dana couldn’t tear her eyes from the screen as the man suddenly transformed into some kind of monster. His pale complexion and mostly white hair morphing to a grayish, almost reptilian appearance; no hair; eyes sunken; nose, mouth, and ears all misshapen.

“Nicole!” She hit the monitor again in frustration, inadvertently turning on the sound.

He pulled the body and the ornamental handle of his cane apart, revealing a hidden sword. “You do know the origin of my family name, don’t you? Klingemann means weapons smith. I have over 1200 years of practice wielding a sword. You’re no match for me, Virtue,” he declared in a condescending tone.

“And I have the Creator’s mandate to destroy you, Vampire,” she snarled in return. “You will die here tonight.”

He let out a yell as he attacked. Dana watched as the two combatants went at each other, both drawing blood with glancing cuts to arms and legs. He shoved the blonde into a wall, momentarily stunning her. That was when his sword struck home, entering her abdomen near her side and exiting through her back and into the wall. He grinned in triumph as she cried out in pain.

Suddenly Nicole’s entire body seem to have a silvery-white aura, and she appeared to have sprouted large, snow white wings!

~~~

Fully shifting into Malakim form, Nicole grabbed the wrist of the hand wielding the sword and squeezed as hard she could. She felt more than heard the bones in his wrist break. He pulled out of her grasp, taking the sword with him. He quickly shifted the weapon to his other hand as the blonde pushed off the wall with her wings and advanced on him.

Fritz was having trouble defending against the blonde’s attack. She kept advancing and advancing. He ducked a swing of her blade that would have decapitated him, only to be thwacked so hard by a wing that his teeth rattled. He lost his sword, batted away by an expertly timed parry. The next thing he knew, he was on his knees, the Malakim holding him from behind with an arm around his neck. He felt an impossibly painful sensation. Looking down, he saw the wooden stake, a piece of the broken coffee table, protruding from his chest.

“Welcome to hell, Fritz,” she hissed in his ear, just before a balletic swing of her blade that removed his head.

His body fell to the floor with a thud, and then began to slowly turn to ash.

Unable to remain standing, Nicole crumpled to her knees. Her sword dropped to the floor with a clang as her vision dimmed and she wavered. Her eyes closed and she collapsed.

~~~

“NOOO!”

Tears blurred the image on the screen. Dana’s heart clenched painfully in her chest. Her mind unable to grasp the reality of what she’d witnessed – Nicole in a bloody sword fight, the decapitation of two men who then turned to dust, the transformation of a man into a monster, Nicole sprouting wings and looking every bit the image of an angel, Nicole killing the monster and then collapsing from the obvious blood loss – focused only on the fact that she could very well be watching her lover die while she was locked in a hidden room in the basement.

She’d never felt so helpless. She tried hitting button after button on the control panel in an effort to be heard, only to turn it off completely. “No!” She couldn’t get it to come back on.