I rolled into the house and Mikki closed the door behind us, then she pushed the latch back in and it stayed closed. I pointed to the right door for the basement and she pushed me over to it. It wasn't locked, to both of our surprise, and Mikki opened it and went down on all fours. It was both odd and a little stimulating to see her crawl like a cat down the stairs and disappear into the darkness.

“It's clear except for two coffins.” Mikki said in a normal voice and walked back up the stairs. She must have seen something on my face, because she smiled when she reached the top of the stairs. “You're disappointed that I didn't crawl back up.”

“I... yeah.” I said and smiled at her. “That was kinda sexy.”

“I'll remember that.” Mikki said and picked me up and slung me over her shoulder in a fireman's carry, then she carried the wheelchair down into the basement. She set me down in it again and neither of us said anything about how easily she had handled me.

“He's in the first one.” I said and pointed where I had felt Apollo. The coffin was chained up for some reason, which in my opinion was completely stupid. It was a wooden coffin and they were vampires. Nothing could hold them inside, because all they would have to do was stretch their arms or kick their legs, and bam! Free as a bird.

Mikki didn't bother looking around for a key for the lock and just yanked on it. The mechanism snapped right off and she pulled the chains out of the way. In the next moment, she lifted the front of the coffin up to reveal the inside.

Apollo was dressed in his typical style, with a tailor-made black suit and a red tie that matched the handkerchief in the pocket. He even had on gold cuff links to match the small gold chain around his neck that had a locket with Hephastus' picture in it. I knew what was in it, because I had bought it for him and a matching one for Hephastus with Apollo's picture in it. They were gifts for taking care of Jeanette for me while I was out of town.

Apollo also had a large blessed cross laying on his chest and the inside of the coffin had markings and etchings all over with some kind of symbols and things. I didn't know much about spells; but, I was pretty sure this must have been some kind of containment spell.

“Give me the cross.” I said and Mikki lifted it off of the apparently 'dead' vampire and handed it to me. I thought about tucking it away, then thought better of it.

If Apollo has been missing for a few days, he might be really hungry right now and as the only human in the room, I might be a desirable snack.

“Can you tear off the top of the casket, so I can keep the markings intact?” I asked and Mikki didn't hesitate as she easily pulled it off the hinges. “Great, now run your claws through the etched marks.” I said and pointed to the parts that I thought looked important on the sides of the casket. Mikki did so with the sound of claws on wood, then I felt Apollo return to himself and his connection to Jeanette snapped back into place. He woke up from whatever it was had happened to him, a spell, an enchantment, or a curse.

“Hi, Apollo.” I said, my voice sad.

Apollo sat up and his face was a bit thin, chalk white, and the look in his eyes was that of a man who had lost the only thing that had mattered the most to him. He glanced at Mikki and then down at me in the wheelchair.

“Hi, David. What are you doing here?” Apollo asked, as if this was any other day.

“I heard about Hephastus. I'm so sorry.”

“Really? I didn't think you liked him.”

“Of course I do. He's your partner and he makes you happy. Why wouldn't I like him?” I asked.

“No reason, I guess.”

“Do you know what happened to him?” I asked to try to pry some answers from him, since he seemed kind of reluctant to volunteer anything.

“No. I woke up last night and he wasn't there next to me.” Apollo said, which meant he didn't remember anything about the last two days, because Hephastus disappeared three nights ago and Apollo had disappeared two nights ago.

“Would you mind if we took a look around?” I asked, even though I suspected that I wouldn't find anything.

“No, not at all. Help yourself.” Apollo said and climbed out of the coffin, then the three of us went back up the stairs. Apollo took the wheelchair for me and Mikki carried me over her shoulder again. He stepped aside for us when we reached the top of the stairs and put the chair down, then Mikki gently sat me down in it.

The basement door led into the hallway and when we entered the living room it felt like a physical blow. There was only one word that could describe the room. Majestic. I don't know a lot about interior design, but this was mind-blowing. I didn't think Apollo had this kind of money to throw around, not while only being bodyguards.

There was a pair of roman columns on the far wall on either side of the huge fireplace. The furniture looked like it was all eighteenth century, with a sofa, love seat, footstool, and coffee tables that had so much intricate wood carving that you couldn't see all the detail even close up. I pretty much said so to Apollo, and he said that it was on loan from Jeanette's private collection.

I couldn't believe it.

Jeanette said that she would loan me some pieces to spruce up my house, but... this was unbelievable. There was literally a fortune sitting in Apollo's living room and it was Hephastus they took. They just walked by all this other stuff. That is definitely a big clue to add to this case, that the criminals weren't interested in certain material possessions. I was going to have to ask Jeanette if she loaned furniture to the other missing vampire.

“I think I've got a couple of leads to follow up on.” I said and motioned to Mikki. She ran down into the basement and came back with the coffin top in her hands. “Thanks Apollo, and don't worry. I'm sure Hephastus is fine.”

“Bring him back to me, please David! He's all I have to live for!” Apollo exclaimed, a bit dramatically.

I did not comment about how he wasn't really alive anymore. “I'll do my best. Take care, Apollo.”

Mikki went out the front door, put the coffin top in the back seat of the jeep, then came back for me. She pushed me out the front door.

“Oh, sorry about the door.” I said. “I'll...”

“Don't worry about it.” Apollo cut me off before I could offer to have it fixed. “We break the doors around here all the time.” He smiled for a moment, then he frowned and closed it. We heard the latch click to hold it in place and Mikki pushed me over to the jeep and helped me climb inside.

Mikki voiced her opinion after we pulled out of the parking lot. “Can you tell me why we didn't have to look around at where they had abducted Hephastus?”

“Because it doesn't matter.” I said. “Whoever took him left no physical clues, except for the fact that they had left the fortune in furniture.”

Mikki gave me a disbelieving look and I chuckled.

“There's also no point in going to where Kratoa lived, because he stayed there alone and there was no way to find out where or when he was taken.”

We went back to my house and restarted our planned night of a bath and snuggles. I didn't enjoy it as much as I should have with this mystery hanging over my head, though. At least the call to Jeanette went better than I thought it would, especially since she had one of her guards back.

Who would want the missing vamps, and why? I asked myself as I laid in bed with Mikki's face buried against the side of my neck and she was deep asleep. I could understand killing vamps to get closer to Jeanette, or to make a path to Jeanette, or to make a statement... but, there was no word from the kidnappers or even any proof that the vamps were still alive, except for finding Apollo.

I pushed those thoughts out of my head when Natalie came into the bedroom and she looked exhausted.

“Hey, beautiful.” I whispered and she purred at me. I laid there and watched her undress, right down to her panties and she turned slightly to give me a side view of her modest chest. Her tiny nipples were poking out for me and a little growl escaped from my throat.

Natalie shivered at the sound and she came over to the bed. “Can I try again?” She whispered as she laid down beside me.

“Good luck.” I said with a sad smile and she gave me a kiss, then she moved down and did her best while I did my best to try and reproduce the effect Mikki and I had accomplished once before. Neither of us were discouraged when both attempts didn't work. We hoped that it would work one of these times and we went to sleep as we cuddled together all night.

The next day I decided to give my old job another try, now that it had been a little while since the last time I had been there for a visit. Natalie accompanied me again to the office where Mary greeted us with a genuine smile this time, almost as if she was relieved to see us. I guess not seeing me for a while made them appreciate me more. I hoped, anyway. Maybe I could convince the boss to let me back into the company.

Yeah, and I've got some swampland in Florida that's a real steal. I thought and kept the amusement off of my face as we approached the receptionist at the desk. I noticed something odd as well. There was police tape over one of the office doors and figures were moving around inside.

“Mary, why is there police tape...” I started to ask for an explanation and the words were barely out of my mouth when she rushed me, fell to the floor on her knees and hugged me, then she cried.

Mary spoke between sobs. “Oh, David! It's terrible. Hal was found...” She sobbed and hiccuped. “...dead in his apartment this morning!”

Hal was dead? I asked myself and didn't voice my disbelief out loud.

Mary was in a terrible state as it was, so I just held her and let her cry. Natalie lifted her from the floor and sat down on the couch, then she cradled Mary like a child. She seemed to quiet down while Natalie stroked her hair and told her sweet lies, like it was going to be alright and that everything was fine now.

_______________

You have the option to stay and comfort the secretary or go and investigate on your own. What will you choose?

A) Keep your nose out of it and lay low. B) Stick your nose in where it doesn't belong.

Let's go with B and see what kind of a mess I can stir up.

_______________

While Natalie kept Mary occupied, I rolled over to Hal's office to see if I could hear who was inside. I could only hear mumbling and feet shuffling. I assumed that I would have to try the direct approach and knocked on the door. The mumbling inside the office stopped and the door opened. I saw Hank's pale and startled face. Beyond that was Sanchez's cop face.

Why was his squad called in? I asked myself, then sighed. Oh, crap.

“David.” Hank said.

“Hank.” I responded.

“Now isn't a good time.” Hank said and tried to dismiss me.

“Really, Hank? Mary fainted out here and I'd like to know what you want to do about her.” I said.

“What? Oh...” Hank looked over at Mary, practically collapsed in natalie's arms, then he turned away to look at Sanchez.

“Sergeant, I'll be right back.”

Okay, Mary didn't actually faint; but, I needed to distract Hank long enough to ask Sanchez some questions. I rolled back out of the way to let Hank walk by me without tripping over me or the wheels. I am definitely getting better at this whole wheelchair thing. As soon as Hank was near Mary and Natalie, I passed under the police tape and into Hal's office. With a little more wheel manipulation, I closed the door with barely a sound.

“Hey, Sergeant.”

“Hi, Mr. Drake.” Sanchez said with a half-smile.

I chuckled at his use of my last name in response to me calling him sarge. “Any clues in Hal's files?”

“And how exactly would you know there are any clues to find in his files?” Sanchez asked, pointedly.

“Because I'm not stupid. If anything led to his death, there might be some kind of record in here. He was pretty anal about his files.”

“Huh. He sure was. He kept detailed notes on the color of the salad he ate for lunch yesterday.”

I couldn't help it and laughed. “Well, I knew he was anal, but damn. Even an anal retentive would think that was too anal.”

Sanchez couldn't fight off his smile and laughed too.

My ploy to break the tension worked like a charm. “Is there any chance you can tell me what happened to him?”

“No. Is there any chance you could take this case off my hands?”

“No. I'd be arrested for interfering with an official investigation.” I countered.

Sanchez nodded. “Hey, it was worth a shot.” He said and walked over to me. “I've gotten everything I needed from here anyway.” He pat my shoulder as he passed by. “I'll see you around, David.”

I waved to him as he ducked under the police tape and left. I nosed around the office a bit and I didn't see anything significant either, so I left. Hank and Natalie finally got Mary to come around enough that she apologized for causing a scene.

I told her she needed a break and she said she had some vacation time coming up and might just take it. I took another run at Hank to try and get my job back. He said that the other workers had voted me out, and unless I was miraculously cured, which was highly unlikely, I was out permanently and wouldn't be allowed back.

Natalie and I headed home after a quick stop at a drive-thru to grab a bite to eat. I have to eat all the time to keep my strength up and I can't move around to burn the calories off, so I felt like I was gaining weight, even though I had only been immobile in the chair for a short while. Even while I ate a salad I imagined the pounds of fat as they slid slowly down my body to rest in my gut. I thought that was an odd thought and looked at Natalie. She blushed and avoided my gaze.

Now I needed info about Hal and what he had been into lately. I thought about how I was going to get it, and figured I'd go to the most likely source. I wasn't going to his apartment since that was way too obvious. I did not want to tip the police off that I was looking into Hal's death this early, either. I called my source at the newspaper, Luke. He was good reporter and had done several stories on me. As a reporter, he had access to some information that I just couldn't get, especially now.

“Luke.” Luke said with a deadpan voice, as if his response was automatic from picking up the phone.

“Hi, Luke.” I said in a poor imitation of that voice, just to show him how awful it sounded.

Luke was quiet for several moments. “David? Is that really you?” He asked, not too sure. “I haven't heard from you since I did that story on your house.”

“Yeah, it's been a busy few weeks. Listen, I need a favor.”

“Figures. That's about the only time you do call is when you need something from me.”

“Hey, that's not the only time I call.” I said. “Mostly.”

Luke laughed. “Okay, you made me laugh. What kind of favor do you need?”

“I was wondering if you could get some information for me.”

“What kind of information?” Luke asked. He sounded a bit apprehensive, which was strange for a reporter.

“I need everything you can get on my co-worker's murder.”

“Don't you mean your ex-co-worker?” Luke asked. “He was only killed last night.”

“It sounds like you've already got something.”

“Like what?” Luke evaded my statement.

“Well, you already know his time of death. The police didn't release that yet.”

Luke sighed into the phone. “Okay, you got me Drake. But I want something in return.”

“There's not a lot I can give, Luke. You know my current situation has put a stopper on my old lifestyle.”

“Well, how about we trade info then?”

I wasn't sure I liked where this was headed. “What do you mean?”

“Now who's being evasive?”

“Alright. I'll share any info I have for any info you have.” I said.

“About any murders you have access to?”

I slapped my hand on my forehead. Of course! He wants to know about Spelmann. I had to think about it for a minute. “It goes against my better judgment, but all right.”

“Great. I'll meet you anywhere you want.”

“You can't tell me over the phone?” I asked. I knew what his answer was going to be before he said it.

“And what's to stop you from hanging up before you tell me anything?” Luke responded.

“Come over to my place and I'll make sure we're alone. At least enough to protect your tender sensibilities.” I said and I could almost see his smile over the phone.

“Done. I'll be there in a little while. I've got some things I have to gather up for you.”

“I'll see you then.” I said and hung up.