Blood & Magic Ch. 12

Kirstin walked into the department feeling on edge, her eyes scanning coworkers she passed by, looking for any smirks, raised eyebrows, quick avoiding glances, anything that might hint at Alan sharing the story of her humiliating experience at the warehouse. She almost bumped into people due to focusing her attention on listening rather than what was in front of her. Once she reached her desk she felt nauseous as she anticipated Alan's arrival.

She was about to begin working on her computer when she noticed a large, dark shadowy mass loom over her. Kirstin let out an exhale as she closed her eyes to mentally prep herself. She spun around in her chair and was greeted by four tall officers dressed in tactical gear.

On the far left and right were two men, the man on the left, a tall African American male who had a trimmed mustache and goatee. He was bald and had a smile on his face as he folded his arms, towering over Kirstin due to his six foot tall stature. He was Mark Williams. The other man was white, stockier in build. His black hair was buzzed on top, almost giving it a flattop appearance. He looked younger but Kirstin guessed it was due to his lack of facial hair. Kirstin recognized him as Christian Clark.

With the men were two women, the first, a woman with light brown skin, her black hair a mass of curls that were tied back in a ponytail. Her pouting lips were curved into a grin as well. Even under her thick uniform, the outline of her bust indicated any shirt she wore would be stretched. The belt around her waist cinched it tight before her hips rounded out again, this was officer Brianne Rogan.

Next to her was a woman Kirstin knew all too well, having made glances at her from the first time she saw her. She was of average height, in her early 30s, a slender build that looked as if it didn't fit in the SWAT gear she wore, but Kirstin had seen Officer Terrie Kreuger in the locker room. Under the gear was a strong, chiseled build, toned biceps and a six pack abs. Her blonde hair was shaved, neatly cut close to her scalp with the top grown just enough to resemble a faux hawk if she were to let it grow naturally. She was the only one who did not have a smile as the four members of Ann Arbor's SWAT team stared at her.

"Can I help you?" Kirstin asked, leaning back in her seat to keep her eyes on them.

"Yeah, we were wondering if you're doing okay, things good at home Delaney?" Christian asked in his dry tone, usually the sign that he was joking. "Boyfriend giving you enough attention?"

"You know she isn't into men." Mark chimed in, "This is Ann Arbor, she's trying to snatch herself one of them young college chicks looking to explore." He spoke in an exaggerated soft feminine tone.

"Is that what was going on in that warehouse Delaney?" Brianne asked, "Did you see some hot ladies in the room and thought you'd lure them over by showing off your ass?"

Kirstin tightened her lips, knowing she couldn't respond with the team in full force, the comments made her angry, but not as angry as she was at herself for feeling her face heat up from the blood rushing to her cheeks.

Krueger leaned in, her light blue eyes reflecting disgust at Kirstin, "It's bad enough the PC liberals want diversity in this department that the chief felt we needed a lesbian detective. Now I have to worry about whether or not I'll be walking into an ambush just because little miss lonely wants to get off."

Kirstin's feet planted into the ground as she shot up from her seat but it was Alan's voice that broke the silence. "Hey! Don't you four have a shooting range to be at all day? Fuck off."

Like a pack of meerkats, the four SWAT members all turned to look at Alan, their smug grins remaining fixated. "Hi Detective Howard." Mark said in an overly pleasant tone, "Heard you did a rescue the other day of our former psychiatrist, I heard you got nice and personal with her."

Krueger rolled her eyes, "This department is looking like a joke, bunch of horny cops acting like teenagers. Where is your sense of dignity?"

"From closing the Varnes case now fuck off." Kirstin spat, keeping her eyes on them until they disappeared through the doorway. Her eyes immediately zeroed in on Alan. "Please tell me you didn't share what happened with anyone."

"I didn't." he said, handing Kirstin a cup of coffee. "The two guys at the warehouse blabbed it in their cells, guy on duty shared it with others. I'm sorry."

Kirstin rolled her eyes. The brief moment of shame gone. "You can't help it. Besides, the case is closed and we can move on. All that matters is if the chief is happy."

Alan sat down and rested an elbow on the desk, "Well he's not happy right now. We just got reports of a missing persons case. Her name is Candace DeRand. A Ball State University student who attended a research conference at U of M. Hotel staff said she never checked out but her things were still in her room. Then, after we get that report, we get a few other reports of missing people."

Kirstin's grip around her mug tightened, the heat from the coffee easing the tension. "All women?"

Alan shook his head, "It's a mix. Men, women of various ages. We have a total of five reports within the past few days. The only discernible pattern is that they all happen at night and there are no signs of struggles."

"Any video surveillance or eye witness accounts?" Kirstin asked.

"We're working on the others, with Candace there is video of her leaving in the evening with some man, white, around his mid 30s? She looked happy to be with him, she's running her hand up his arm and kissing him."

"Do we know how she met him?"

"Nope. We're trying to get a name on him now. What do you make of this? Think it's a trend or just a weird coincidence?"

Kirstin knew better than to endorse that word, especially with what she knew now. Her job was harder as she'd have to always view cases on two different levels, the mundane and the supernatural, always hoping for the former. "Let's hope so. Otherwise we have a lot of work ahead of us."

"You think it might be related to the two satanists we recruited?"

"Let's hope not. Can you ask them? I'll speak with the hotel and the people who were at the conference." She got up from her desk, knowing she'd have to consult with Melissa later. She almost envied Alan as he got up and headed downstairs to interview people who she knew would tell him nothing.

****

A quick text to Sakeena set up a night meeting at her office. Kirstin spent the day reaching out to the conference coordinator to get a list of all names registered. What followed was a long search of all 200 registered attendees, none of them with a face that matched the man that swept Candace off her feet.

What perplexed Kirstin was that Candace registered alone, her hotel room alone, didn't have a gentleman with her and the video showed Candace practically dry humping the man she followed. There was one movement where she slid her leg against his, showing off her thigh as her long coat parted. She was registered for one day of the conference and yet, staff reported both sets of clothes she packed were in the hotel room.

Kirstin ran through the details again and again as she walked up the steps to Sakeena's office. The door opened and Sakeena was there, wearing a brown business dress under a black jacket. She gave Kirstin a long kiss and welcomed her in. "It's good to see you again. Want to come to my place later?" her nails dragged across Kirstin's wrist.

"Sure." she said with a smile. and then turned when she heard Melissa clear her throat.

Melissa sat at Sakeena's desk, dressed in her normal formal business wear, black slacks, tanned shirt and matching jacket. She gestured for them both to come in, speaking once it was closed. "Well the good news is we aren't hearing anything more about Varnes in the news. Unfortunately, it would seem our Hellish problem is still up to no good. What do the police know?"

"Five missing people over the span of a few days. All of them gone at night, no sign of physical struggles. We have one video of a college student leaving with some handsome man, practically ready to jump his bones." Kirstin explained as she sat next to Sakeena, holding her hand.

"Dominic is still interrogating the two vampires we caught. To his surprise they are a bit more resilient to his 'charms' than others." Melissa said with a roll of her eyes. "This could still be related to their work.

"Why would they focus all of this attention on Matthew and Jacob Varnes only to just kidnap people later? Are they going to kill again?"

"Are we sure it's even the same cult?" Sakeena asked Melissa.

"It's hard to pinpoint motives." Melissa said, her body stiff like the corpse it was. "Some want to invoke chaos for the city, others have rituals that they try to conduct. Although this might be premature to pinpoint these disappearances on them. We still don't know if the disappearances are all connected, but I'm glad you have the video. This tells me at least one vampire might be in the city feeding, without permission."

"Permission?' Kirstin almost laughed, as if vampires were children with overbearing parents. "You need permission to eat?"

"Eat, make a home, exist." Melissa's head leaned forward, "There isn't much you can do without asking for permission. Otherwise, well, Amos, the large man you met the other night, pays them a visit. For the time being Kirstin I want you to focus on the man in the video, updating us on whatever you find on him."

"Well I can tell you already he wasn't registered for the conference." Kirstin said with a heavy sigh, "So we don't have a name to go off of. He didn't have a hotel room either. he just waltzed in, picked up a random student and walked out with her humping his leg."

Sakeena looked at Kirstin, "What do you know about the student?"

"Um, Candace DeRand. Ball State, that's Indiana, student. Did a poster presentation that was on abortion, seemed to be pro-life. Weird part was I think she left wearing just her coat, nothing underneath because two sets of clothes were found in her hotel room, along with her purse."

"She was anti-abortion." Melissa mused as she folded her hands together, "You think she was religious?"

Kirstin shrugged. "It's a possibility. Indiana is a conservative state. I'd have to check with friends and family, but I'd have to wait, last time I checked they were coming up from Indiana."

Melissa shook her head, "I'd rather not waste time on a detail that can easily be found out from some other detective."

'What can we do to help then?" Sakeena asked.

Melissa turned her chair around to face the window, rising from it to stare outside. "Nobody just leaves with a stranger, especially someone visiting from a different state, and as random as this might seem, it can't be that random if he wasted the time to go in there and pick her up. We need to see if it's just him acting or if it's others."

"Is he just feeding, or do you suppose there's another motive?" Sakeena asked, "Maybe he's developing a cult for him to feed regularly on."

"Do they-Do you guys do that?" Kirstin asked, feeling more comfortable with Sakeena airing their laundry out.

Melissa eyed Sakeena first, causing her to look down at her feet. Melissa continued, "Sometimes. Which is why I want you to focus your resources on him first. This could cause a lot of security issues if he should continue and I want to nip this in the bud before it gets out of hand."

"Is there anyway you can help?" Kirstin asked, "Like with that evidence you touched?"

"Perhaps." Melissa said, tapping her finger. "I haven't because I didn't want to risk being seen, I can usually conceal myself from sight but I don't have a way to get into the room without clearance.

"I can do that for you." Kirstin said, "I'll have access to the room, I'll just need you both to dress more like detectives to come with me."

"No, Sakeena you stay here." Melissa said, "Too many people makes it suspicious."

Sakeena and Kirstin held hands, gripping tight at the knowledge that they wouldn't be spending the evening together. "What can I do to help?" Sakeena asked, "I can't just go home and twiddle my thumbs."

"Consult with Ashley, maybe she can dig some dirt up on these missing people and find a trend. Let's go Kirstin." she walked past both women.

Kirstin waited for Melissa to be out of site before whispering, "Who's Ashley?"

Sakeena rolled her eyes, "Another vampire. Melissa's partner."

"Like business partner?"

Sakeena shook her head. "Nope, her paaartneer, you know what I mean?" she smiled as she leaned in close to give Kirstin a kiss while also sliding her hand up her thigh.

"Oh I see." Kirstin said, feeling the shock up her leg, "Wait. Vampires date?"

"These two do." Sakeena said as she kissed Kirstin again, "And so do we. Come back to my place after tonight okay?"

****

The car ride to the hotel of the conference was awkward due to the silence. Melissa sat in the back, telling Kirsten not to talk to her or look back at her as it would disrupt her ability to hide.

Kirstin showed her badge to the front desk and asked to see the room. "No one touched the room just like you asked." The desk manager said.

"Thanks, it shouldn't take too long." Kirstin said, waiting for the manager to lead her to the room. The entire walk up there she wondered what, if anything they might find, if it would be a dud that led to some random one night encounter or if it was part of this large supernatural conspiracy.

"The door automatically locks behind you so no need to check with us when you're done." the manager said before letting Kirstin in. She thanked him as she held the door. giving Melissa a chance to slip in first before stepping in herself.

Night lights from outside gave Kirstin a dim view of the layout. With the exception of Candace's things that had been removed, nothing had been changed. The bed remained un-finished and the wastebasket filled with some Kleenex.

"I was thinking, you said in the video it looked like the woman was undressed underneath?" Melissa said, appearing right in front of Kirstin with a blink. It was so abrupt she almost let out a yelp in surprise but held her hand over her collarbone to calm herself down.

"I did but it was only speculation." Kirstin said as she knelt down to examine the floor. "She had the room for one night we found two sets of clothes, I just guessed. Why?"

"I"m just wondering if we can find any signs of sexual behavior in the clothes or sheets."

Kirstin approached the bed and closely examined the sheets, cream colored fabric making waves with its folds. "Um...if they did, you said it might be a vampire. Can they" she trailed off, "Make leavings?"

"Can they cum?" Melissa asked with a raised eyebrow. "Yes, with the use of blood to imitate life."

Kirstin couldn't associate the image of ejaculation without death and she almost gagged. "I'm sorry I asked. Isn't that a waste of blood?"

"Yes, but for some, it's worth it." Melissa knelt down on the floor, eyes held wide open as she refrained from blinking. "Vampires have their own past vices. For some it's eating food although we can't digest it, others it's money, and for others it's feeling the touch of another. We do have eternal life to avoid boredom after all."

"Does it feel the same?"

Melissa stopped from looking down and closed her eyes and Kirstin thought for a moment she might have offended the vampire. Instead, Kirstin could see the crease of what looked like a smile forming on her lips as she said, "Sometimes it can." she shook her head and the indication of a glow from the undead psychologist faded. "But my point was, if they did have sex, maybe there could be traces of semen."

"I wish you would've told me I would've brought a black light." Kirstin said. "How are we going to find that if that's the case?

"Well as long as the room wasn't cleaned before, I can perhaps spot it."

"It hasn't, we had the room locked off once the hotel told us." Kirstin approached the standing luggage case that was half zipped open. Inside was a folded pair of jeans, a Ball State University hooded sweatshirt, socks, a T-shirt that read, "The Faith Journey Summer 15" and then a pair of white cotton underwear.

Next to the bed on the floor was the unfolded business clothes that had been tossed to the side. Sitting on top of them was a C cup brassier and a white thong crumbled up next to it. Kirstin reached into her pocket and pulled out some rubber gloves. "Well if we're going to have any luck it's going to be here."

Melissa went to the lamp next to the bed and turned it on. "Hold it up to the light." She watched as Kirsten stretched out the thong and held it up so the front was aimed under the light. The faded outline of a large asymmetrical oval could be scene.

"Well unless she has bladder problems, this could be promising but more than likely it's hers and not his. we'd be better off if he left his shorts.

"Wait a second." Melissa said as she stared at the pile of clothes. She knelt down and kept her gaze frozen on the business attire before pointing to the right sleeve of the arm and the brassier. "There are several stains on these two articles." she held her hands out for Kirstin to give her gloves and slipped them on. "Look. '

Kirstin leaned close and examined the sleeve Melissa pointed to, noticing a faded gray stain that streaked across it. Also on the brassier was what looked to be a wet stain that never dried. "That is promising as well." her nose scrunched up, "Looks like our friend wanted to mess up this pure Christian womans' face."

"Why Christian?"

"She has a t-shirt that seems to indicate strong faith." she noticed Melissa's eyes examining the shirt, curling her lips as she looked away. "What is it?" Kirstin asked.

"This isn't good. If the student was Christian, that means the chances of our satanist cult is involved. They like to corrupt those who value purity."

Kirstin closed her eyes and tightened her lips. "Fucking pig."

"Stall your emotions for now Kirstin, we need to act fast. Let's take these clothes and get them examined. With any luck this vampire will be relatively young which means he'll be in a database."

'But that would involve more cops. do you really want that?"

"Cops won't be the worst of your problems when I'm done with both of you." the low soft voice of another woman pierced the silence, forcing Melissa and Kirstin to step back.

From out of the bedroom emerged a woman with long fiery red hair tied up in a ponytail. A hand rested on her curvaceous hip, revealing a plump backside as she tilted her pelvis to show her profile. She wore a skintight leather one piece suit that hugged her frame.

The zipper went all the way up to her neckline but seemed to remain undone just below her collarbone, showing off the peak to her massive cleavage that came from what Kirstin estimated to be 36D sized breasts. She appeared to be in her mid 20s and she wore red lipstick that sparkled under the light from outside, making her lips look pouty. Around her neck was a black choker holding an amber jewel in the center. She stared at both Kirstin and Melissa with a smile.

"This is a closed investigation." Kirstin said holding up her badge, "You shouldn't be here."

The woman tilted her chin as she stepped out of the darkness. The light squeal of her leather suit moving with each lift of her leg almost made it seem like she was about to burst out of her outfit. "And you shouldn't be here with that abomination."

She pointed to Melissa who mouthed the word abomination and then looked back up at her, "She's a hunter! Get out of here!"

Kirstin didn't know what hunter meant but didn't have time to think as she felt something plow into her gut like a piston, knocking the wind out of her and sending her to the floor. She looked up just in time to see the Hunter take a defensive stance, holding her fist up in guard as she circled around Melissa. "I don't know how you corrupted a cop but your reign of terror is about to end Beast." From Kirstin's vantage point, the hunter looked to be an inch or two shorter than Melissa.