-Quan Leung-
I could believe that Candice would modify my office overnight and I was not at all pleased about it. I couldn't complain to her, as it was a logical and sensible change. Yet, I itched for the argument which would occur if I did bring it up.
I ignored Ruarc as much as I could, in fear that I would take my anger and frustration out on him, more than I already was. I probably should've, that would probably make him stop talking to me and bothering me.
I wasn't quite sure why I disliked him so much. It was probably due to the fact that I was forced to know him, I was forced to be around him. I dislike being told what to do and being unable to make my own decisions. But there must be something else, something I don't know about yet.
I had a pretty good sense of intuition. I wasn't sure if that had anything to do with magic, or if it was something natural. I shook my head, magic would be considered natural too, to most people anyway. I was one of the very few who saw magic as something unnatural. Even some humans had tried to practice magic, a different kind, but magick is still magic. You still had to pull on the laws of nature and intentions for both.
I wasn't doing any work; I didn't realise the fact until my computer's screen turned dark. I had to get on with answering some emails, which I don't tend to have the patience to do during the day. I wasn't a fan of everyone in the office being able to hear my emails.
It was nearing lunchtime when Jade burst through the door. The smell of her lavender body spray and the screech of her voice broke me out of the deep concentration I had directed towards the two letters. I had been trying to find any similarities. They had both been created by a typewriter, seemingly created by the same masculine shadow. Yet somehow they always seemed to conceal their identity.
"Quan, are you listening to me?" Jade's voice brought my attention back to her.
"Not in the slightest," I responded before shaking my head. "Sorry, I was concentrating there."
"An apology?" Ruarc said with sarcastic shock. "Why, Jade, you surely are an angel."
I sent him a glare, assuming that he was still in his desk. Whilst I was working, I was faintly aware of the clicking of his mouse.
"Yes, yes. I'm a wonderful influence, I even warmed Quan's ice-cold heart. Now, move it." She moved around my desk and started to pull on my arm, which was covered by a thick white button-up shirt.
I hurriedly grasped my gloves, only managing to keep one in my hand as I was forced to my feet and out of the door. "Why?" I demanded. She was fully aware that I did not like being touched.
"If you listened to me earlier, you'd know why," was her snarky response.
Ruarc snorted a laugh as he strolled behind us. I couldn't send him a glare, as I was trying to figure out where I was within the facility.
"Did you at least grab my cane?" I asked. She had basically just thrown someone who couldn't swim into the deep end of the pool.
"I did," Ruarc answered. "Thought you might need it. It might make my job a little easier."
I bit my tongue. He was the one who hinted at, and complained about, his job being too boring.
"Took you long enough," William grumbled.
"Is this even in your job description?" I snapped at him. It wasn't. He usually documented cases and collaborated with Jade. He didn't like to get his hands dirty.
"Who reads the job description anymore?" Jade asked, still with a hand on my arm. "Everything we do here isn't in the job description."
She wasn't wrong. Candice had done that on purpose. She always had a certain way of reading people, seeing what troubles they had, and where their talents lie. Most of our staff were people who couldn't afford to lose jobs or had some sort of ability which made them too valuable to pass up. The job descriptions were simple, and the application process was unremarkable. The interview is when the interesting matters occurred.
"That's a good point," Ruarc said as he sat beside me in the car, His leg was pressed against mine.
"You could've picked the van," I grumbled.
"The van's been taken," William said from the other side of me.
"Just be lucky that you're not sat on Ruarc's knee," Jade commented.
I tried to burn a hole in the back of her chair with a glare. I had plenty of time to sit and pout. One of my hands was cold, whilst the other was becoming toasty warm. I didn't mind that too much, but what I did mind was the possibility that someone could take my hand at any moment, causing me to see their thoughts and memories.
"I don't know why they keep going for public places," William said reluctantly. "You'd think that they would try to be at least a bit subtle."
"Unless they want to be caught," Kenji Ito, a detective in our unit, pointed out. "If they were threats, I'm pretty sure they'd want the threats to be found."
"But what's the point in threatening us?" Jade asked. "If all they're doing is killing people who get in the way of them threatening us, why are they doing it in the first place?"
"Maybe they're behind something else?" I suggested. "There are a few inconclusive cases still being worked on. We aren't exactly small." If this person was a suspect for any of those cases, then that could mean we potentially have a lead to who was causing these murders.
"Let's just see what kind of scene we have here. I've been told it's not for the squeamish." I could imagine Jade glancing to the side, giving William a knowing look.
"That was one time," William said with a groan. "I wasn't prepared for it, and I had an iffy ready meal for lunch."
"You fainted on top of the victim," Kenji pointed out. "You ruined half of the evidence and the crime scene."
"That wasn't exactly my fault though," William said.
"Why did you get a job at the police force?" Ruarc spoke up for the first time in a while. "I'm just curious."
"I took Psychology at university," William responded. "I think my lecturer was far too keen on me getting this job. You know, the successful student number, that does absolutely nothing for the university?"
"I wouldn't say it did nothing," Jade commented. "I looked to see the student success rate."
"You went to a university exclusive to angels," I said with a sigh. "You had a very limited choice of one."
The car came to a stop, and I reached across Ruarc to open the car door. I expected him to want to leave the car as fast as possible, the close proximity and tense air would be too suffocating, Instead, he sat there doing nothing.
I bit my lip and followed Kenji out of the car. My annoyance grew as Ruarc shut the car door and moved behind me.
We didn't enter a building, a fact which surprised and confused me. Instead, the squeaking of a gate indicated that we were entering a park or field of some sort.
"This isn't Alchgrove park, is it?" I asked. All the confirmation I needed came in the form of silence. Alchgrove park was the biggest park in the city. Every child had been to Alchgrove park at least once. Even I had been here a few times throughout my childhood, or teenhood, and I didn't have the happiest childhood. I would always get to come here once a year, on my birthday. My father would order at least three people to accompany me each year. It was practically the only time I was able to leave the house.
"Out in the open? For everyone to see?" Ruarc mumbled behind me.
I shrugged in response. The sounds of chatter and a radio met my ears as soon as we entered another gate. There must be a witch here, someone who could put a silencing spell on the park.
"Sergeant Knox," Jade greeted.
I resisted the urge to let out an annoyed sigh, I could've done without sarcasm and coldness today. I provided enough of that on my own.
"Lucas, Roberts, Leung, Ito, Babysitter," Sergeant Knox greeted. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.
"I have a name," Ruarc snapped. The noise made me jump in surprise. Some looks must have been shared between the two of them, or something must've happened that I wasn't aware of.
"What happened?" Kenji asked, interrupting the tension which was growing.
Knox cleared his throat, his feet ripped grass from the ground as he walked closer to us. Something cold hit my hand, causing me to tense.
"Not funny, Knox," I said and handed the clipboard to William. The clipboard had been from the pound shop after he snapped the one which was given to him.
"Two victims this time," William informed. "They had gone on a second date, but apparently neither of them returned home last night. The female's roommate called the police, and her phone was tracked here."
I nodded as the words spewed from his mouth.
"What about the male's roommate or friends? Anyone report him missing?" Kenji asked.
I led myself over to one of the park benches and sat down. Resting my hand on the wooden arm which was full of spelks. The two came here rather late last night. They were laughing, holding hands, and sitting on this bench. Then the woman heard a noise. She turned around to see if there was anything behind her, but there wasn't.
"Quan, found anything?" Jade's voice broke me out of my concentration.
I grumbled and removed my hand from the arm. "I did have, until you started talking to me," I responded. "Just give me some more minutes."
I didn't know if she left, but I rested my hand on the seat of the chair. There hadn't been anything behind her. When she turned back around to her date, he was already slumped in his seat. Then something caught her from behind. That must have been the killer.
The people were nothing but shadows, this bench must have been pretty old. The figure which walked away from the bench had a similar build to the one I had seen in the library.
This time, the figure dragged the two bodies off the bench, throwing the female over their shoulder and dragging the male behind him. They couldn't have been human. It would've been very difficult to drag them away, but this figure seemed to have no issues.
"Do you want the note?" William asked, interrupting my thoughts again.
I sighed, feeling warmth trickling from my nose. "Sure," I answered and held out my hand.
"Oh no you don't," Ruarc said and snatched the paper from me. "You're already bleeding. Candice gave me more than enough reasons to stop you from overexerting yourself."
That woman... I balled my hands into fists and leant back into the chair. She had chosen a vampire on purpose; it wasn't only because they were strong and able to protect me. She wanted me to stop becoming exhausted.
I thought that she had forgotten about my tendencies to neglect my health when stuck on a mission. But it seemed that she hadn't. I've had many lectures about it before, she had even threatened to put me on parking ticket duty until I learned my lesson.
But a vampire would arguably be extremely dangerous if I were to start spurting out blood.
I ran a hand through my hair and retrieved a tissue from my pocket, dabbing under my nose. I suppose Ruarc really was a babysitter.
"What did you find?" Knox asked, disgust filling his voice.
"They were killed on this bench," I told them. "Then they were dragged to wherever they were found. I don't know if the people saw who it was. I'm pretty sure the female didn't though."
There was a moment of silence.
"Lucas, take Leung to investigate the scene," Knox commanded.
"Okay, you are not my boss," Jade replied. "And second, I agree with Ruarc, Quan shouldn't be using any more of his powers."
I gave off what could be described as a mix of a growl and a grunt. "This is my Job, Lucas." I tried to face her direction; the darkness gave nothing away. Usually, there were some sort of blurs or colours before my eyes, but I had been using my powers a lot today. "I get paid to do it."
"And I get paid to make sure you take care of yourself," Ruarc's annoying voice retaliated. "You're going back and doing paperwork, even if I need to read and write for you."
I clenched my jaw, that was the only thing stopping my jaw from dropping due to the absurd suggestion.
"Leung doing paperwork? Miracles must truly exist," William commented. "I think we'll be able to get the evidence from the scene."
"Meaning, he thinks that I and Jade will get evidence from the scene," Kenji corrected. "William will take up Quan's spot on the bench to bring some colour to his cheeks."
"I'm not that pale," William started to argue.
"There's more blood on the floor then there is in your face," Ruarc pointed out.
I would've usually sniggered at a comment like that, but I was in no mood today.
"We're going back to the station," Ruarc announced. "Send me the details as soon as you come up with them, okay?"
There must have been some sort of silent agreement between those around us, as Ruarc's hand grasped the top of my arm and started to pull me away.
I wanted to argue, but I also wanted to give him the silent treatment. I was a big child when it came to being angry at people, despite logic telling me not to be. I couldn't help the fact that whenever I was upset, my instinct was to be quiet and withdrawn. Usually, people didn't see any difference.
We rode back to the station in silence. We walked to my office in silence. I sat, with my arms crossed and a scowl on my face, in silence. There was the occasional noise, our footsteps, Ruarc's pen, Ruarc's typing, Ruarc's sighs, and the clicking of Ruarc's tongue when the silence got too silent.
"Okay, what's wrong?" Ruarc asked after about an hour. "I'm used to your silence, after a day, but you're not doing anything."
I didn't respond.
"Why are you angry at me? I'm just doing my job."
Doing your job means I can't do mine.
"Seriously, don't make me make you talk."
My heart skipped a beat and my hands created fists once again. He wouldn't dare do that. Vampires were good at controlling people, mainly humans. Yet, it was taboo for them to compel or persuade other supernatural creatures. Even threatening to do so was crossing a line.
He rose from his seat and moved to my desk, his strides were long and purposeful. His breath ticked the back of my neck, making my skin crawl.
"Why are you angry?" he whispered in my ear, causing a shiver to go down my spine. Nobody had been this close to me in some time, other than Cappi and Fewesi, who often did it to annoy me. The sensation made me want to throw a tantrum, but I was frozen in my seat.
"Come on, Quan. Tell me why you're angry." His voice was soft and gentle. He wasn't compelling me, I don't think he was able to use his vampiric powers on someone who couldn't see, but I didn't know enough about vampires to say for certain.
"Stop," I said sternly and spun around.
I stood up, he was much taller than me, but I didn't care whether or not my height made me look intimidating. I tried to give the fiercest glare that I had ever given. I couldn't tell fi I was making any difference to the room, which I had been known to do when I was upset, but it would only add to the dramatic effect.
"Stop prying into my business. Stop talking to me. Stop trying to get to know me. Do your damn job and let me do mine." I stepped towards him with every second, feeling satisfaction when he stepped backwards. "This job is all I know, it's all that I am good at. You don't get to ruin the only bit of satisfaction that I feel, just because you feel as though guarding me is giving you good karma, or credit in the vampire community." I grabbed my cane and went to the staffroom.
My words had been harsh, they were harsh because they were full of truth and directly targeted his insecurity. Just like he had seemed to unknowingly target my own.
I sat in the staff room with a cup of tea until I decided that I was going to finally take one of my sick days. It was only half a day, and I had banked quite a few of them. I didn't like to take sick days or holiday leave, sometimes I was forced to take them. I was sure I would've given Candice a heart attack when I asked for the afternoon off, if she could have a heart attack that is.
Clover met me at the door of my house. She rubbed herself against my leg and meowed. She could tell that there was something wrong, just like she had always been able to.
I picked her up and moved to my settee. I lay down and put her on my stomach. She purred as I stroked her, the noise and vibrations made me smile. She was always able to comfort me, or at least be there for me when nothing else worked out.
Then my front door opened.
I was ready to explode with anger, expecting Ruarc to stroll into my living room and scold me for leaving work without him. Instead, I was greeted with a childish voice.
"You're home early," Cappi pointed out. "Why?" they exaggerated the word to a frustrating extent.
"Mind your own business," I told them sternly. "You entered my house without knocking, why?" I retaliated with a raised eyebrow.
"Because you know it's me." I could imagine them shrugging. "Fewesi wanted to know if you'd join her at work, and I'm bored."
Clover jumped off my chest, her tail flicking my nose as she moved to Cappi's knee. That was where she usually found herself whenever they visited. Sometimes I wondered if she was their familiar instead of mine, but that thought quickly vanished, as Clover screeched at me whenever it entered my mind.
"She wanted to know if I'd join her, but sent you?" I asked and raised an eyebrow at them. "I somehow doubt that."
They were silent for a moment. "Okay, I offered to come and ask. She really does want you to go with her, though." They rested their feet on the settee, just beside my head. "I got suspicious when I saw you come home."
I sat up, contemplating my words. Cappi was a tricky person, and I didn't want to prove that they should be suspicious about anything. "I'll go." I rose to my feet and then headed to my room. "Make sure the door's closed."
"Of course, it's..." they trailed off.
I chuckled as the clicking of the door met my ears. I could usually trust Cappi with not breaking anything, I didn't really have a lot to break. I didn't know how old Cappi is, all of my guesses were brushed off.
I moved to my wardrobe and grabbed the items at the far back. I didn't have that many clothes, as I really didn't need them. I had my work clothes, some comfortable clothes, pyjamas, and the items which are on my bed. The torn black jeans and long-sleeved maroon top had been gifted by Fewesi the day after she barged into my wardrobe and declared that 'it just wouldn't do'.
"Cappi!" I called. I may as well humour them.
They ran up my stairs two at a time, the only way I knew they were walking at all, was the fact I was listening for them. They kicked the door open, causing it to slam against the wall.
"Yes? What can I help with?" They bounced towards me. "Don't you have anything else?"
I scowled and rolled my eyes. "You sound just like Fewesi," I told them. "And that's not a compliment."
"I'm sure that I should take it as one then." They skipped around me. "I assume you want to know which coat to wear?"
I nodded and crossed my arms. "I know I really shouldn't take advice from you on what's appropriate to wear, but I guess I'll just take the opposite to what you suggest."
"Hurtful," they whined. "I think you should wear the trench coat; it makes you look dark and mysterious."
I nodded my head. "Leather jacket it is." I moved my trench coat onto the hook I kept on the back of my bedroom door. "Thank you, that was a large help."
They huffed. "The leather jacket gives you the same feel, by the way." They paused again. "Or maybe it's just you."
I hummed in false contemplation. "Dark, mysterious, and handsome?" I wanted to be sick due to those words even lingering in my mouth. I didn't care much for looks. Or at least, I didn't think I did.
I almost felt like I couldn't say that after this morning, when I saw Ruarc Brennan's face for the first time. I had been quite surprised, but I didn't know why. I didn't know if it was the strong facial features, enhanced by the neat facial hair, if it was the deep blue eyes which stared at me with confusion, or if it was the long and deep scars which littered across his face. Either way, I found it difficult to tear my eyes away from him.
"Earth to Quan," Cappi whined again. Their hand was waving in front of my face, causing a draft. "Do you want me to say it again?"
I shook my head. "No, I already knew the answer." I grabbed my leather jacket and exited my room, letting them follow me.
"But you didn't answer my question!"