Atlanta - Darkness Before Dawn

[Darian Raniari]

He had broken the rules.

Darian stood fuming, his eyes locked onto Sastre as he glared daggers at the hunter. The two of them had locked horns several times over the years, and throughout all of that a sort of game had emerged, one that Darian found himself looking forward to in a strange sort of way. And, as this "game" developed, so too did a stringent set of rules.

Number one: Sastre would come alone.

Number two: Sastre would fight his way past the underlings below, proving himself worthy of facing Darian.

Number three: When the two finally met in combat, it would be with nothing but their respective natural gifts and talents. That is, no weapons or other tools were "allowed."

It was always Sastre's going with that last rule that surprised and delighted Darian. The fool was so honor-bound it was disgusting, and when challenged to single combat, with no weapons, he couldn't seem to turn the challenge down, despite the odds against him. Perhaps in his youth, the hunter would have been able to take him out in a fair, one-on-one fight, but as the years went on, that became more and more unlikely. Sastre continued to get older, and more weighed down by his concerns; old injuries became harder and harder to deal with, and he simply didn't have the endurance or strength that he had as a hotshot young hunter... Darian, on the other hand, would remain the same, and the gap between them would only continue to widen until Sastre was finally dead...

Now, though, Quicksilver had broken that first rule. He'd apparently brought back-up, much to Darian's chagrin. In the long run, though, it didn't really matter. He was certain that his lackeys downstairs would be able to keep whatever hunters were down there busy, and he did have a bit of back-up of his won. Yes, he'd let Steven take care of the other two men who had shown up with Sastre, or die trying.

It didn't really matter to him, after all.

And besides, if things really did start to go poorly for him, Darian still had Lily, his insurance policy... His "Plan B."

Now, though, it was time to once again enact his revenge. As he'd done on many occasions over the years, it was time to make Sastre Quicksilver pay...

[Alexis Reese James]

Lexi lost track of how many vampires came at her and were summarily dispatched. All sense of anything but the fight left her as she pulled out the modified pistol from her waist band and fired time after time at the oncoming bodies. As blood exploded from heads and chests, she felt no sense of anything but satisfaction as the inanimate corpses hit the floor.

In fact, it brought a smile to her lips and the lyrics of one of her favorite songs rang through out her brain. It was so clear that her lips began to move along with the tune and her next opponent paused as if unsure of what the hell was going on.

His mistake.

"Push me again. This is the end.
One, nothing wrong with me.
Two, nothing wrong with me.
Three, nothing wrong with me.
Four, nothing wrong with me.
One, somethings got to give.
Two, somethings got to give.
Three somethings got to give.
LET THE BODIES HIT THE FLOOR!"

As the next meat sack dropped, Lexi took a moment to reload with the specialized bullets Curse had give her. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Ben having a hay day with his own little territory in their game of RISK and had to shake her head. Unfortunately, she was distracted enough that she missed the glimpse of movement in the dark until the son of a bitch was right on top of her. Whirling, she got an arm up in time to block fangs going straight for her jugular but felt them bit into her arm instead.

"SON OF A BITCH!" she hissed, trying to bring her own weapon up into play but finding herself thrown backwards into a pile of old crates instead. Vaguely, she heard them crack and crumble under the impact but it was the pain of her shoulder being impaled by a wooden splinter that had her hissing for real.

God damn it. Wasn't this just her luck of the draw.

However, before she could contemplate that much more, the vampire was on her again and she brought the pistol up to fire at point blank range. The look of surprise on the vampires face would have been satisfing if he hadn't sprayed blood everywhere and Lexi had to turn her face away and cover her own wound. After all, it wouldn't do to get any of that shit in her own injury.

When the thump of a falling body sounded, she finally looked up. Sounds of battle were fading and the warehouse had obviously been taken. Hopefully, Sastre was even now making his own victory.

[justin]

The truth of the matter was, Justin was completely out of his league. Sure he had been a cop for a long time. Sure he had dealt with scumbag criminals...and brothers in laws. Hell he'd even been imprisoned himself. Saying that he wasn't tough was like saying the sky wasn't blue.

This shit though, vampires? Honestly he wondered how his sister had hooked up with a guy involved in all this. He'd been broken out of prison and the heartfelt reunion he planned on having with Madison was cut short when her agonizing scream came over the phone.

Justin saw red, just like he had before. The fact of the matter was there family had put a lot on her shoulders for things that weren't her fault and out of her control. Their sister didn't speak to her, their mother blamed her for a lot of things. Justin knew better, and he knew what him going to jail meant for her.

Madison was defenseless against Steven. At least until this guy, this Sastre had come along. Had he put her in more danger though? She'd been taken by vampires for christ sakes, things that Justin thought was out of fairy tails and horror movies. Apparently though he'd been wrong.

Sastre had given him the basics. The lore about stakes and holy water was nonsense when it came to the blood suckers. The only things that were effective were dead mans blood, cutting off their heads, and apparently some special gun that they didn't have a hold of.

Unsure of himself, but knowing that Madison was in danger, Justin stayed by Sastre's side, taking his cues from the older hunter. It was one hell of a crash course in hunting, but for his sister, well...it was worth it.

[madison]

Everything was spinning. Madison thoughts he might puke at any moment. Added with the throbbing migraine and pulsing sensation in her head she knew she had a concussion. A severe one at that. The pain in her leg hadn't eased any, and honestly she had no idea how to get out of the predicament she was in.

Steven was in the room. She hadn't remembered him being there before....or had she? Her head was foggy, making it hard to think. There was something she was supposed to be doing, but the sight of Steven pushed everything back from her mind.

He had a triumphant smirk on his face. As though he'd won something. Maybe he'd thought he'd won her. Madison's mind wasn't working how it should.

Lily...she was supposed to be finding out about Lily, not being scared of Steven.

Except she was. Dear God she was scared of him. Every time he'd laid a hand on her, every time he'd beat her with a belt, what he'd done to make Madison lose her daughter. How Madison could never have a child again, it was all because of him. Steven was obsessed with her, thought he owned her. That smile on his face said he knew he had her.

Madison pulled herself to the corner, soft whimpers escaping her from the pain. She tried pressing herself into the wall, becoming a chameleon and blending in with it so she wouldn't be visible to him, but as Steven advanced upon her, that familiar malicious glint in his eye, Madison knew it would do no good.

The fear gripped her heart, but then, past Steven, she thought she saw something. She thought she saw...but it couldn't be. How would they have found her and Lily?

Lily...

Her mind went back to the woman who was Sastre's daughter, who she only hoped and prayed she'd been able to save. Dizziness swept through her, but she was sure, for just a moment, that she had seen Sastre and Justin...

Or maybe she was only dreaming.

[Abigail Faraday-Brennan]

Brennan cried out in pain as a vampire slammed her backward, her head impacting hard against the floor.

There was a sharp crack as bone met concrete, and Brennan’s ears rang, her vision fading alarmingly around the edges. Her disorientation was short lived, however, and as the young vampire reared back to strike, Brennan loosed a ball of energy directly into his face, knocking him back in a coughing, spluttering heap. As the fledgling screamed and pawed at his ruined face, Brennan leapt to her feet, scooping up her machete as she passed. Three strides took her to the disabled vamp, and her pace never slowed as she swung, her momentum carrying her well past the vampire before his head finally hit the floor.

There was blood and gunfire and confusion everywhere as the battle raged on, but the vampires’ numbers were dwindling, and Brennan sensed that the fight had nearly reached its end. Sastre and his two companions had raced past several minutes ago, and the witch could only hope that they were having as much luck upstairs. Had she been in her right mind, Brennan might have been upset and a little angry at not having been chosen as one of the two hunters to accompany him in facing down Darian and rescuing Madison and Lily. Hadn’t she earned it, after all? Didn’t she deserve to be there at his side more than anyone, save maybe Justin?

But her cold, logical mind knew that he had chosen well. She was of more use to Sastre here, doing what she was doing right now. Justin and Bastian were the better fighters when it came to hand-to-hand combat, and with her magic, the large numbers wouldn’t faze her in the slightest. She could easily ensure that the hordes of fledglings rushing them from all sides would never reach the stairs.

Speaking of which…

Brennan scowled and sent a blast of fire winging toward the back of the building as a knot of vampires tried to escape in the direction in which the three hunters had disappeared. The magic raced through her, burning as it went, and Brennan swore in pain and frustration as the energy opened old wounds and started to twist out of her grasp. Yanking it back under control with a desperate tug that left her mind stinging and raw, the witch managed to drop the cluster of enemies without burning the building down around them. Making a mental note to limit her use of fire, Brennan scowled and looked about, taking stock of what threats remained.

Lexi and Ben were gleefully finishing off the remaining combatants, and Brennan scowled at their obvious enjoyment of the situation. Watching them laughing and making jokes as they fought, all she wanted to do was scream at them. Couldn’t they see how important this was? Didn’t they realize that her closest friends’, her family’s lives were at stake? How could they laugh at a time like this? But Brennan knew that it took a certain breed to survive as a hunter, and a certain sense of humor to stay sane in the process. If you didn’t develop some way to cope early on, you would end up dead, insane, or broken beyond repair. So Brennan merely fought on in silence as her comrades finished off the last of their enemies, taking one last look around to be sure there was no threat left.

Finally satisfied that everything on the lower level was either dead or about to be, Brennan turned and wordlessly headed for the stairs.

[Florian Raniari]

Without a word, the battle was suddenly on.

At some unspoken signal from Darian, Steven rushed forward to meet Bastian and Justin in combat, using his unnatural strength and speed to good advantage. And, though Sastre was worried about his friends, he knew he had to keep his full attention on Darian, who had seemingly vanished into the shadows of the night-dark room. That had always been part of Darian's game: to block out as much light as possible and force the hunter to rely on his other senses, though the vampire himself could see as well in the pitch darkness as he could in the full light of day.

Not this time...

With a slight shake, a flare slid down from Sastre's sleeve into his waiting hand, and he dropped into a crouch before calling out the agreed upon signal to his two allies. Shutting his eyes tightly, and praying that Justin and Bastian did the same, Sastre struck the flare against the floor and tossed it into the center of the room as it roared to life. A pair of strangled cries came from the vampires as the sudden illumination caught them off guard, momentarily blinding and stunning them, and giving the hunters the opening that they needed.

Opening his eyes, Sastre took in the sight of the room bathed in flickering red light, his lips twitching into a cruel smile as he found Darian, standing only yards away and swiping at his eyes futilely. Slipping his hand into the sling that held his not-so-broken arm, Sastre dashed toward his brother, his fingers wrapping around the handle of the specially-loaded sawed-off shotgun he had concealed there.

The shells in the sawed-off were of a unique make that, so far as Sastre knew, he alone created and used on a regular basis. They were his special vampire-stopping rounds, and though they took a long time to make, they were more than worth it. The shells were emptied out, then reloaded with a double load of powder, which was necessary to propel the much heavier shot that Sastre packed them with: BBs, filed down to be flat and rough so they caught easily in flesh, surrounded and held together by thickly congealed dead man's blood. You had to be close for the shells to be effective, but once fired, they could tear a hole in a body the size of a dinner plate, and the jagged BBs--covered all the while in dead man's blood--stuck and caught deeply in the wound, holding the poison blood there until it could work its way into the vampire's circulatory system.

Before he could draw the weapon and fire, though, Darian recovered and leapt at him, fingers curled into claws and eyes afire with mad hatred. Sastre blinked, caught momentarily off guard, for he'd expected the vampire to be stunned longer than that. He had to remind himself that Darian's madness often worked to give him unnatural bursts of freakish strength and resilience, even for a vampire. When Darian struck him, Sastre found himself lifted off the ground and slammed back against the wall beside the stairs, some ten feet or more away from where he'd been standing. A low groan of pain escaped him, only to be repeated, louder this time, as Darian seemingly materialized before him, grabbing the hunter around the neck and lifting him off of his feet, slamming him against the wall again.

Over Darian's shoulder, Sastre could just make out the fight between Bastian and Steven, and he silently prayed that Justin had gotten Madison out of here...

"Poor little Florian," Darian hissed, his fingers tightening around his brother's throat. "You should never have come looking for me, all those years ago. I was happy with them, they treated me like family! Do you know how badly I wanted that, a family?" He clenched his teeth, lifting Sastre higher still and slowly choking the life out of him. "You may have enjoyed the life of a little soldier, idolizing that pathetic old fool and worshiping the very ground he walked upon, but I didn't want that! They found me, they took me in, made me one of them... Made me a part of their family! And you... you slaughtered them for it! You slaughtered my Abrielle, my mate!"

This was new... Never before had Darian even attempted to make any sort of justification for his actions, and Sastre had never thought to ask, having assumed he'd just been driven mad by the vampires who'd taken him so long ago. Now, though, the hunter couldn't help but wonder if there was something more to it, something deeper... Darian's words about losing his mate struck a cord with Sastre, and against his better judgment, his heart went out to his brother. Struggling for breath, and fighting against the darkness that seemed to be encroaching at the edges of his vision, Sastre managed to croak out a few words.

"You... killed Julien," he gasped, his face starting to turn a deep shade of scarlet. "You tried... to kill me, and the Old Man. I thought they'd killed you... Darian. I only went back to... avenge you..."

"I didn't need to be avenged! I didn't want to be avenged!" Darian roared, clenching his fingers tighter around Sastre's throat before savagely tossing him aside, where he struck the unyielding floor bone-jarringly hard. "I was happy with them, I was in love! Then you showed up, proclaiming yourself to be 'Sastre Quicksilver' and you murdered them without cause! They were peaceful, Florian! They never once fed on humans, reducing themselves to feed off of cattle like animals!" Darian was shaking with fury as he stalked toward Sastre, his fists clenched and his eyes seeming to bulge from their sockets. "But to you, they were just vampires. Monsters. The enemy. And you murdered them!"

Sastre lay there in a daze, numb to the injuries he'd sustained as he slowly felt himself losing his resolve. It was his fault. All of it. Everything. Every person that Darian had killed? That was all on Sastre now. It had been his "kill all vampires without exception" policy that had turned his brother in this raging, violent, murderous creature that had haunted him all these years, torturing and killing anyone and everyone that he'd ever loved. His fault... All of it...

Madison... Lily!

Whatever guilt that he'd been feeling was instantly pushed aside when he remembered the woman he loved and his daughter, both of whom would be killed if Darian was allowed to win this day. Whether or not Sastre was responsible for what his brother had become was irrelevant at the moment: what mattered was saving the two most important people in his life, and putting Darian down once and for all. After that, when everyone was safe, then he'd mourn the loss of his brother, and deal with the fact that he himself was responsible for all of this...

So, as Darian approached, moving at a threatening, slow pace, Sastre reached into his sling, withdrew the shotgun, and leveled a blast at the vampire that was loud enough and powerful enough to shake the entire room.

[Darian Raniari]

The roar of the shotgun stunned Darian before he even realized he'd been shot.

Shot. By Sastre. The hunter had broken yet another of their sacred rules, not that Darian should have been surprised. After all, he'd already brought back up, and used a flare to neutralize the vampires' advantage in the dark... Still, the simply fact that Sastre had used a weapon--had shot him--enraged Darian in a way that he couldn't rightly understand.

Then, the pain tore through him as surely as the filed-down BBs, leaving a gaping, ragged hole through his abdomen that he could do little but stare at in disbelief. He lowered shaking hands to probe at the edge of the yawning wound, only to find even the lightest touch sending agony coursing throughout his entire body. It wasn't just the powerful force of the blast that had caused him such pain, though... And he cursed under his breath and choked on his own blood as he felt the effects of the poison that had come along with it.

Everything had fallen ominously silent after the shotgun blast, the only sounds to be heard the panting breaths of the combatants, and the soft, nearly imperceptible gurgling coming from Darian. The flare still burned brightly in the center of the room, and in its light Sastre could see the shocked expressions on everyone's faces, even Steven's. Turning his attention back to Darian, Sastre slowly stood up, ignoring the jolt of pain that shot through his bad leg. Limping over to Darian, he dropped down to lean over the vampire and, pulling his fist back, began to beat his brother's face over and over again as the dead man's blood rendered him paralyzed.

Every blow that Sastre struck was for a person that Darian had stolen from him, and though his knuckles were broken by the time he'd finished, the hunter was oblivious to the pain. Gasping for breath and ignoring the hot tears that ran freely down his face, Sastre once again reached into his sling and withdrew a knife, easily long enough to behead the unmoving vampire. Raising the weapon above his head, Sastre was about to decapitate Darian when the vampire managed to choke out a single word, just barely.

"Li...ly..."

Sastre hesitated, his brow furrowing, listening closely as Darian spoke again, his voice getting slowly stronger as the dead man's blood began to run its course, though he was still far from being strong enough to escape the hunter's wrath.

"Lily..." he gasped, coughing out a copious amount of blood. "Kill me... and she dies..."

"What?" Sastre asked, narrowing his eyes and grabbing the front of Darian's shirt, pulling him up closer to hear him better. "Where is she? Tell me!"

Darian shook his head, a choked laugh escaping his blood-soaked lips. "Let me... go. I'll tell you... everything you need to know... But if you kill me... she dies as well. And that... dear brother, is a promise..."

Every fiber of Sastre's being was screaming for him to finish this, to finally end the decades-long war between the two of them once and for all. Letting go of Darian's shirt so he fell back to the floor, Sastre raised the blade again, growling as he swung down quickly, only to bury the weapon in the floor next to the vampire's head. He couldn't risk it. He couldn't risk the chance that Darian was telling the truth... He hated the vampire more than anything, but he loved Lily too much to put her life at risk.

Clenching his fists so hard that his nails dug into his palm deep enough to draw blood, Sastre staggered to his feet and backed away from Darian slowly. The vampire, still suffering the effects of the dead man's blood, had to drag himself several feet to the nearest wall--leaving a trail of blood as he went--so that he could use it to stand up, leaning heavily upon it as his legs threatened to give out from underneath him.

"Wise... choice, little brother," Darian said with a sneer. "Because in this case... I can promise you that I am... a man of my word. Had you killed me, your... precious daughter would have been the next to die."

"Where is she?" Sastre asked through clenched teeth, vaguely aware of the continuing struggle between Justin, Bastian, and Steven that was occurring on the other side of the large, red-lit chamber.

Darian shook his head slightly. "It's not that... easy. Since you've gone and... ruined this, my favorite game, I've... decided to play a different one." Smiling cruelly, Darian backed further away, still using the wall for support as he crept closer and closer to one of the boarded up windows. "I've left Lily in the care of... some associates of mine. I've instructed them to kill her... if they didn't receive a phone call from me telling them otherwise. They have also sworn, though, not to kill her until I tell them to." Narrowing his eyes, Darian finally reached the window, gasping for breath and clutching at the gruesome hole where most of his stomach had been. "You have two months to find her, on your own and unassisted, before I give them the word. If anyone helps you, or you bring anyone along, I will have them kill her. Do you understand?"

Sastre shook his head in disbelief, all of the strength seeming to flow out of him as the gravity of the situation struck him. Two months to find Lily, and she could be anywhere in the world... Two months... He knew it was useless to try and talk Darian out of this, but the hopelessness he felt overwhelmed him, and he dropped to his knees from exhaustion as much as in supplication.

"Please... Please, I am begging you, don't do this," Sastre pleaded, meeting Darian's eyes. "For God's sake, if there's any part of you that's still my brother, Darian, don't do this. I'm so sorry for what I did, and if I could go back and change things I would, but killing Lily won't bring any of them back..." He hung his head and heaved a long sigh of surrender. "Please don't do this... Haven't enough people been forced to pay for our mistakes with their lives?"

For a moment, Darian seemed to falter. The sincerity behind Sastre's pleas, and the simple fact that the hunter had apologized, had been entirely unexpected. Something inside of Darian stirred at Sastre's words, and for the briefest of instants, he considered doing as the hunter asked. Then, all of the old pain of loss, all of the old hatred and anger came welling back up, and his heart was hardened once again.

"You have two months," he said coldly, using as much of his remaining strength as he could muster to break through the boarded up window, letting warm, clear sunlight stream into the room. "Two months. Don't let your daughter become your next casualty, Quicksilver." Shielding his eyes from the bright, hated sun, Darian leaped out the window without another word.

And Sastre wondered if he'd ever see his daughter alive again.

[justin]

Bastian had gone after Steven. The hunter was skilled and he was holding his own with the vampire. In the meantime Justin’s eyes were roaming through the room, looking for Madison. He spotted his sister crumpled against the wall. She seemed dazed, out of it, but semi conscious. Her bruised, swollen face was full of fear. Her leg was at an odd angle. It had been broken badly.

Justin looked back to Steven and clutched the machete tighter in his hand. The man, now vampire had caused so much turmoil. He thought his money and his status made him untouchable. Justin had changed that when he’d beaten the man into a coma. If the doctors and staff hadn’t dragged Justin off of Steven he would have gladly killed him.

The ex cop may have been blind until it was too late for Madison’s little girl, but his sister was still here. There was no way in heaven, hell, or earth that Justin was going to let Steven hurt her again. From the malicious, wild gleam in his eye as he fought with Bastian, it was obvious that’s exactly what the vampire planned.

Justin was torn between going to his sister and helping Bastian kill Steven. Every fiber in his being wanted to lop that bastards head off. First he wanted to torture him slowly and painfully. Justin had been given the list of things that would harm a vampire. He had to admit it was a very short list. If he had the time, Justin would make Steven feel pain unlike any he’d felt before.

A whimper of pain tore from Madison’s mouth. Justin’s turned towards his baby sister. She was so fragile. She always had been in Justin’s eyes. That strangled sound was enough to have Justin walk towards her. Unfortunately Bastian went flying through the air suddenly. Justin felt the air move from the force it.

Granted he probably should have turned to check on Bastian, but his instincts told him there wasn’t time. His grip tightened on the machete once more. With a scream of rage he swung his arm back. Steven had a malicious grin on his lips. He had been confident that he was going to win this battle. That being a vampire made him immortal. It didn’t matter to Justin.

The machete sliced through his neck. The blade grinded against bone. Justin felt the warm spray of blood on his face, arms and chest. Then, just that fast, it was over. Steven’s head rolled on the ground that damn smile still on his lips. The ex cop stood there, gasping for breath. He dropped the machete to the ground. It clattered as he moved over to Madison.

Justin was no doctor, but it was easy to tell that his sister was bad off. He needed to get her out of here. Wasting no time he scooped the light weight woman into his arms. She gave a cry of pain. Justin whispered his apology, but Madison was out of it. She didn’t seem to know who he was, or where she was. She needed a hospital.

Looking over at Sastre, Justin clenched his teeth a bit. “I’m taking her out of here. Now.” With that, he left the building, not bothering to see if anyone would follow him. His first priority was Madison.

[madison]

When Madison woke she was surprised to find herself in a warm bed. There were beeping sounds that bounced off her brain. Luckily her head was fuzzy so it didn’t hurt as much as it should have. Her eyes were blurry and Madison had to blink it away. Someone was holding her hand. Madison’s heart started to pound. Was she still a prisoner? Had Sastre come? She could have sworn she remembered him. The machines beeped wildly as her heart sped up.

“Easy, Mads.” Justin’s voice cut through the fog. “It’s okay, you’re safe.” She felt his lips kiss her hand.

Justin? Madison had to have been dreaming. He was in jail. No. That wasn’t right. Sastre had called just before everything had happened. Her brother had been free’d from prison. The world thought him to be dead. Except…well what if the police caught him here? He was still technically a man on the run.

The blurriness of her eyes began to disappear. There was Justin, sitting next to the bed, holding her hand. A bed. Madison was in a hospital. Sastre had come. Where was he now though? Oh God where was Lily?! Had they all made it out or had there been casualties.

“Sastre, Lily, Brennan,” Each name was a question with uncertain answers. She looked to Justin hopefully, but then realized he probably didn’t know who Lily was. Madison was worried about them all and at the same time so happy to see her brother again. There were too many emotions running rampant. The tears began to fall.

Justin moved to the edge of the bed, wrapping his arms around his little sister. He was careful as her leg was in a thick cast and elevated on the pillows at the end of the bed. He held her and he rocked her. Justin kissed the top of her head just like their father had done when they were little. If he could help it, after this nightmare, Madison wouldn’t have anymore.

Madison didn’t know where anyone, other than Justin was and that had her frightened. She was thankful for the warm embrace of her brothers arms, but they weren’t the arms she truly wanted. They weren’t the arms she needed and not for the first time she wondered where her love and her friends were.

“I..I have to find them,” She sobbed. With what little strength she had, Madison began pulling away from Justin. “I just need some crutches.”

“Madison, no,” Justin said gently but firmly. “The last I saw of Sastre he was fine.” He knew that’s who his sister was most worried about. “They were taking care of some things, but he was fine.” He gently pulled Madison to him again and she wasted no time in letting the tears fall once more.

“M’so sorry, Justin. For everything.” With everything that had happened, with Steven having been a vampire, Madison couldn’t help but think that at least part of this was her fault.

[Florian Raniari]

Sastre sat on a bench outside the hospital, elbows resting on his knees, face buried in his hands.

He'd already bid farewell to Lexi, Ben, and Bastian, thanking them for their help and politely refusing their offer of further assistance. As he'd told them, Lily's life was at risk if anyone tried to help him find her. He could tell that his friends had been loath to leave him alone on this, but he hadn't given them any choice. Sastre would find Lily, on his own, per Darian's "rules." Where Brennan was and how she was taking this unexpected turn of events he didn't know, but he prayed that she wouldn't do anything rash that might be seen by Darian as a violation of the terms of his game.

Standing up and ignoring the pain in his leg, Sastre limped into the hospital, nodding politely at the receptionist before making his way to the elevators and heading up to Madison's floor. Absently trying to flex the broken, swollen fingers of his right hand, Sastre finally reached Madison's room and stepped in, relief washing over him when he noticed that the young woman was awake for the first time since having been brought here two days ago.

Turning his gaze to Justin, Sastre gave the man a slight nod in greeting, still unsure what Madison's brother thought of him. That Sastre was responsible for all of this had never been more certain to him, particularly after Darian's confession of days ago. It was because of him that Darian had become this monster, and the blood of everyone that the vampire had ever killed or hurt was now on Sastre's hands, the burden of responsibility weighing heavily on his shoulders.

Try as he might to keep the shadow of this new-found sorry from his eyes, Sastre sat on the other side of Madison's bed, taking her hand gently in his left, unbroken hand and forcing a smile. As happy as he was to see Madison awake and safe, Sastre knew that he'd have to tell her that he'd be leaving again, and soon. The clock was already running, so to speak, and he now had less than two months to find Lily and save her before it was too late.

"How are you feeling?" he asked lamely, his voice rough and raw from the strangulation he'd suffered. Finding it difficult to broach the subject that he knew needed to be discussed, he swallowed hard and lowered his eyes, unwilling to meet Madison's own.