Here Comes Trouble

[Jackson Taylor Kincaid]

Jack was bored as hell.
He’d been in front of his lap top IMing with hunters all over the world via his website; an informative and social networking site dedicated to those whose profession was tracking down and eradicating all the not-so-wonderful things that went bump in the night. When the hours became ‘wee’, however, the inquisitive IM’s had gotten less and less frequent, and he’d updated all the information that he’d needed to, and so he was left sitting there staring at a blinking dot on the screen.

It was time to give it a rest and have a little fun. He was done helping other folks…so now here he was...helping himself to that big shiny amethyst colored gem that had been profusely publicized about in all the papers since its arrival to the New Orleans museum.

The gem had once belonged to a Mediterranean queen; one whom was overly superstitious and spent more of the people’s money on various supernatural artifacts than her husband did to better the people. This particular gem was rumored to have a unique ability to cure fatal ailments, but that really didn’t matter to Jack. All he cared about was it was worth a hell of a lot of money; something which he knew the dilapidated little church around the corner could use right about now.

Yeah, okay, you can stop laughing now and please don’t call him Robin Hood.

The night was moonless thanks to the thick cloud covering overhead, so the rear of the museum was cast in darkness. It was just the camouflage Jackson needed in order to climb the small staircase leading up to the fire escape on the roof of the building. Moving quickly and deftly through the shadows, it was easy enough to disengage the alarm above the door and slip inside, making his way towards one of half a dozen security offices located in the building.

Holding his breath, Jack peeked into the closet sized room where a night guard stared uninterestedly at six or so television screens which displayed various sections in the museum. The cat burglar silently reached into the worn messenger bag which was slung across his shoulders, pulling out a small brown burlap purse tied with a lock of dark hair. Thank you Mom, for never asking why he needed her to make a few dozen hexes for him.
As soon as he placed the hex bag inside the room it did its job, and the guard fell into a deep slumber. Jack hastily pulled out a sketch of the museums layout from his pack and scanned it; needing to move quick, as the sleeping spell would only last an hour or so at the most.

Once he’d reminded himself the whereabouts of the gemstone, Jackson ghosted silently through the museum; cutting through a room that held an array of stuffed beasts, another that held an assortment of dinosaur bones, until he finally reached a space that was used to display treasures like precious stones and the like.

Out of the darkness a sudden noise echoed through the once quiet museum, and he cursed under his breath at the sounds of foot steps approaching. Ducking behind a tall display, he watched a shadowy form moving towards his mark, and clenched his hands into fists. If they were planning on taking that gem he had his eye on they had another thing coming…

[rina]

“I swear to all that’s holy, Rafe, if you leave me in an empty room to be found by a bunch of guards as bait again, I’m gonna rip your tonsils out.” The seething whisper cut through the still atmosphere of the museum, seeming to fall on deaf ears on the other side. Like a ghost, her partner padded silently around various displays and glass cases, his face darkened by shadow.

Yeah, really mysterious and dark noir, but she was damn serious this time! Her partner might be from the Age of the Gentleman, but heck if he hadn’t tried to crucify her butt every chance he got. What, was it her status as a woman? A thief? Really, the only reason that she was in this museum was because the Vatican had had her by the metaphorical balls for almost a century. The thievery thing was just on their behalf, because she needed information from them. Did she give a hoot that the New Orleans Museum was holding a priceless supernatural artifact that could cure sickness? Sure, it would be worth a pretty penny on the black market, but money like that was so easily traced by the cops nowadays…

Nah, it was none of that, she thought with a sigh, following her ‘partner’ into a narrow hallway. Rafe could give a fart about her being good at nicking and not having a penis.
It was the vampire thing…dammit, it always came back to the vampire thing.

With a grumble, Rina resisted the urge to chuck something hard at the back of her fellow vampire’s head. Even though they were both afflicted with the same life choice, he tended to look down on her, finding her very existence a stain on God’s flawless plan. Yeah, God could just freaking help her steel herself against the self righteous bull crap that came spewing out of that mouth…when he chanced to speak.

Ugh, out of all of the vampires in the universe, she had to get stuck with the self-hating emo dude. She REALLY hadn’t deserved this, after what she’d been through in her life. If anything, she should have warranted a nice, polite, fun loving vampire to work with—

A soft yelp escaped her as Rafe stopped abruptly in the doorway in front of her, causing her to smack her nose into his back. Wow, she had to give him that; he definitely had some muscle on him, for a whiner-baby.

“There is someone ahead,” He said, so softly that she had to thank God for her sensitive ears. “I hear a heart beat.”

Rolling her eyes, she scoffed. “Oh, don’t even start that with me, Rafe. I checked the guard logs, and they’re all sitting pretty in the break room. You’re hearing things.”

A heartbeat…seriously. If the guy did anything but mourn his ‘lost humanity’ and suck on rats- definite ew factor there- he could actually get going on the fact that he was slowly starving to death and fix himself! Heartbeats…yeah, he was probably hearing the guards in the break room, because he was freaking hungry.

With a shake of her head, Rina walked around him, her voice an annoyed whisper. “Just stay there and look pretty. You can be the darn bait this time.” Quietly, she padded into the display room and eyed the various cases, until she came upon her mark. Ah, there you are, you beautiful little gemstone. Come to Mama, so she could leave this God forsaken place and go back home to her hotel…

Leather creaked softly as she slowly took the protective covering off of the display. Rafe had worked his magic on the alarm system, so unless the guards strayed away from their basketball game, they should be set.
“That’s right, come to Mama. It's time to make 'ol Priest happy, so I can go home...”

[Jackson Taylor Kincaid]

Jackson couldn’t stand there and watch the sneaky shadow move in on his target anymore. He could just imagine the shiny purple gems shiny little voice saying ‘Help me Jackson…Don’t let the strange cat burglar snatch me Jackson…’ even though anyone in their right mind would know that a.) Gemstones had no vocal cords with which to speak and b.) He was just as sneaky and most definitely as catty a cat burglar as one that was honing in on his mark.
With an anxious growl he moved forward, green-blue eyes narrowing as it took in the slight, petite frame that was currently lifting the cover off the display.

What the hell? It was a woman?!

The man had to steel himself to his purpose. So what if it was a woman? This woman was going to get away with his prize if he didn’t start thinking like a cold-hearted thief. He had to remind himself of all those needy parishioners and the church’s crumbling façade. This wasn’t about -him- at all, it was about them. It wasn’t like he needed the money anyway…but they sure as hell did.

“I don’t think so Mama.” Jackson remarked as he came up behind her, having heard what she had just whispered into the darkness. He reached over and plucked the gem out of her tiny hand, a smirk stretching across his visage as he rubbed it against his black jacket like it needed a good spit shine. “Papa has custody this weekend and he doesn’t give a rat’s ass about the priest.”

Pleased with himself, Jack dropped the large amethyst into his pocket and crossed his arms over his chest. His heart was thundering so loud he was sure it was going to echo down the hall and alert the guards to their activity…but damn, if this wasn’t just the kind of rush that he loved. Jackson Kincaid, you are one fucked up devil.

“Who the hell are you and what the hell you think you’re doin’ tryin’ to thieve this gem?” The dark male demanded in a tone as serious as he could muster. It was all he could do not to give himself away by patting her on the back for a job (almost) well done.
Hopefully, with his all black attire, she would take him for a security guard with a heart instead of a fellow thief. That would certainly make things much easier on him.

“Don’t you know how disappointed our museum guests would be to discover that the pride of the exhibit was gone? Can’t you just picture the sad, sad faces and the sniffling of the old woman that bought her tickets a week ago?”
Yeah, that’s it Jack…lay it on thick. Make her feel like hell.

[rina]

((I'M SO SORRY IT TOOK ME SO LONG TO GET BACK TO YOU! -leaps on- School is evil. Kill itttt...XD ))


Oh, thank all that was holy, Rina thought with a sigh of relief. Her fingers closed around the stone and a grin slid onto her lips. Hot damn; if the Vatican didn’t want this puppy so badly, she’d keep it for herself. Just look at that sparkle! For a second, she felt herself going all squishy in her tummy as she gave the gem a loving little smile.

Ah, to pretend for just a minute that she’d just received a gift from a suitor. Sure, none of the ones she’d ever met in her very long life liked to hand out sparklies the size of her fist, but hell…a girl could dream. For a second, she’d allow herself to ignore the fact that Rafe was probably standing off in a shadow somewhere, thinking up ways to kick her ass down to Hell, and that the Vatican practically owned her soul until she fulfilled her ‘duties’ to them. She would forget that she was over a hundred years old, practically a hermit, and could only exist by drinking blood like a Dracula wanna-be…and she would imagine that she were back in her time period, receiving the mother load of all gifts from a handsome beau. He would be tall, muscular, with a roguish grin that would make her tummy flop—

…Basically anything but sneaky, like the guy who came up behind her and snatched her prize away. So basically, everything in the movies about vampires having sonar-hearing was bullcrap. Oh, she loved proving the local myths wrong…

Whirling, a mixture of surprise and irritation marched over the vampire’s face as she squinted into the darkness. While he made a show of crossing his arms over his chest, Rina was doing her best not to give into the urge to throttle him. She’d definitely spotted a candle stick somewhere to her right when she’d come in; that’d be perfect to whack the little upstart upside his head.

“I could ask the same of you! I had that gem first, so give it back before I go and kick your sc…hmm, okay…your very nice ass across this damn floor.” She paused for a moment, eye twitching as she took in what he said next. Oh crap…from the way that he talked, he could be a guard, couldn’t he? Another bout of squinting had her trying to eye his attire.

Yeah, like museum security guards actually tried to chastise thieves who snuck into their houses. She’d burgled enough buildings to know that the cop-wanna-be’s went for their mace and nightsticks before trying to guilt a thief into repentance. So, the question was…who the hell was this guy?

And how the hell could she get her diamond back without making too much noise? Darnnit, she could just use that super-speed, but it always made her dizzy, no matter how much practice she got…

“Believe me, Mr. Man of Mystery, that woman will be happy that she didn’t get to see the gem. Actually…you might also be happier if you’d give it to me. Say…’ten more years of life’ happy?”

Eyeing the bulge in his pocket- nope, she really wasn’t going to dwell on THAT thought- Rina took a step toward him and turned on the charm. If he wanted to play security guard, let him play security guard. She could definitely be the naughty girl caught red handed. Letting a finger tap against his chest, she did her best to look sultry while in the shadows. “Tell you what; you let me have that gem, and I’ll make it worth your while. I bet there’s other pieces in here that’s worth even more; I’ll show you where they’re hidden. And maybe we can find a secluded little spot somewhere…?”

’So I can knock you the hell out, get the gem and go home before I have to stay in this Podunk state longer than I have to,’ she mentally added. Behind the stranger, Rafe ghosted out of the shadows; a large, oppressing presence.

“I told you I heard a heartbeat,” He informed her. Damn, there went sultry. “Just kill him and take the stone. The guards will be moving soon.”

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