The Assignment Ch. 01

This story is a sequel to Fighting the Inevitable. It is best read after reading FTI first, but could probably be read as a stand alone.

For fans of FTI, Demetri is a very bad boy in this tale but rest assured, he is going to learn his lesson. :-)

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Demetri's cool green eyes shone with excitement and he felt every muscle in his body tense with exhilaration. He was on the hunt and it was the most delicious feeling in the world. His prey had no idea the fate which awaited her and his feral nature thrilled at the thought.

It had been so long since he had hunted so aggressively. So long since he had thrown off the veneer of civility he so carefully wrapped around himself so he could walk in the human world undetected.

The call from the Council had come at an opportune moment. Caleb was royally pissed at him at the moment so he had jumped at the chance to disappear for a few days, maybe even weeks until his friend's temper cooled.

His friend's outrageous behaviour recently had been very trying to say the least. All because of a tiny little redheaded human girl he had 'fallen in love' with. Demetri really couldn't understand why his friend was making himself so vulnerable with regards to the girl. All she had to do was sigh and Caleb was at her side in an instant to cater to her every whim. It was quite frankly nauseating to watch and he was glad to be away from them.

He tensed suddenly, his wandering thoughts sharpening as he spotted his prey rounding the corner. He balanced precariously on the branch of the tree as his glacial eyes slowly took in the woman walking down the lit pavement, passed the little corner shop, as she made her way towards her apartment.

A small smile crossed his face as he regarded her intently. She was a pretty little thing, not beautiful in any kind of classical way but certainly attractive enough. Her photograph didn't do her justice. On first glance at her image he had thought her quite plain but in the flesh he could see he was wrong.

Maybe it was because her hair had been up in the photograph. It was loose now, long ribbons of shiny brown locks flowing down her back as she walked. It looked thick and glossy under the artificial streetlights and he felt a slight stirring in his jeans. This could definitely be a very interesting assignment.

His cool green eyes continued to assess her slowly. She was tall for a woman. He estimated she must be at least five foot eight inches in height. Her build was hard to see under the thick woolly button up sweater she had wrapped around her body. He snorted in annoyance. Why women favoured those chunky garments at the moment was a complete mystery to him.

Human women either dressed one of two ways. The more sexually liberated ones tried to wear as little as possible and the more reserved ones wore thick woolly garments. Reserved women amused Demetri. Did they seriously think covering up would make men less interested in them?

It only served to make him more curious to find out what delights they were hiding. Seducing a woman out of her protective clothing was an activity he thoroughly enjoyed. Probably because it made the hunt less boring.

Demetri sighed softly and dampened down his lustful thoughts. He was not here on that kind of hunt tonight. The Council had been firm in their instructions. Find out what she knew, who she had spoken to and, if necessary, contain the problem.

He knew exactly what they were sanctioning him to do, and if the threat posed was dangerous enough, he would contain the problem as instructed. He would take no pleasure from it, but he would do it as he had done so in the past when on assignment for the Council.

Exposure of his kind was not permissible. Some of his kind partnered up with humans and they eventually found out about them but that was sanctioned because the human involved would do nothing to harm their partner. His prey's actions were completely different though and therefore needed to be addressed.

She had reached her apartment and slipped inside to the safety of her home. Demetri perched in the tree top a while longer and watched the light come on in her sitting room. He had the perfect vantage point where he was so he maintained his position for now.

Glacial eyes watched the woman take off her woolly garment and he finally got a glimpse of her figure. Her body was almost sinful to look at. She was wearing a pale pink T-shirt and tight fitting hipster blue jeans underneath her outer garment. Her breasts were firm and nicely rounded and her hips were nicely curved. He caught a glimpse of bare flesh as her T-shirt rode up exposing a toned, flat stomach.

He groaned as he felt his cock really spring to life this time. He didn't have time for his lust. Bedding her was not part of the assignment no matter how temptingly lush her body was. He had considered it briefly when first reading the dossier. Sometimes a judicious amount of pleasure was good for loosening a stubborn tongue, but he had decided against it in this instance. He gave himself a mental shake and dropped his gaze downwards to make sure no one was around before he lightly slipped down the branches until he was standing at the base of the tree.

He briefly considered giving her one more night to live her life before he acted and then decided against it. One more night could make the difference between being exposed or being safe. His assignment was to keep his kind safe and that was what he would do.

Demetri slipped around the back of the apartment block. He had checked out the area earlier while he had waited for her to come home so he knew the layout well. He had also forced her bathroom window while he was at it and then slid it closed again so it would appear it was securely locked if she glanced at it.

A quick sweep of the area told him he was unobserved, and he leapt nimble upwards until he was grasping the ledge of her bathroom window. He had the window open and was inside in under a second. He paused in the darkened room allowing his enhanced hearing to fan out into the apartment.

His prey was still in her living area. He could hear the muted tones of the television set and the sound of her moving around her kitchen. Probably making herself something to eat. He frowned slightly as he considered his next move. Should he let her eat first? Kind of like a last supper?

There was always the chance she would come into the bathroom and find him there if he waited before acting. Fuck it, there was no point putting it off. He silently entered more fully into her home. He had had a good look around earlier so he knew where every piece of furniture was and skilfully circumvented her sofa and coffee table as he continued on towards the kitchen.

He paused in the doorway. His prey had her back to him and appeared completely unaware of his presence. He could hear the tinny sounds of music and realised she was listening to some kind of mp3 player as she made herself a sandwich. Classic rock. He was partial to a bit of classic rock himself when the mood took him.

He leaned against the doorframe and folded his arms as his eyes travelled down her slender back and nice firm ass which was currently wiggling to the music she was listening to and making his cock twitch in his pants. She had one sexy wiggle on her and her legs seemed to go on forever. It would be a pity if he had to kill her. Under other circumstances she looked like she could have been fun to play with for a little while.

He smiled slightly as he saw her tense almost imperceptibly as his presence finally registered with her. Her head turned slowly and he found himself looking into pair of chocolate brown eyes which were widening in shock, as her mouth dropped open and her hand flew to her throat in fear, knocking her earphones from her ears. He could see a scream starting to build up inside her and he held up a finger to halt her.

"Be a good girl and stay nice a quiet," he said sternly. "If you scream and someone comes I will have to kill them and it will be on your head if I do." He found it sometimes worked to make his prey responsible for the safety of others. He could see her considering his words quickly and the building scream quickly died away. Good. She was going to be cooperative.

"What do you want?" she asked hoarsely her voice full of fear as she turned the mp3 device off. She did so unconsciously, as if it was an automatic habit rather than a deliberate action on her part.

He didn't answer her straight away, merely stood examining her face. Her pretty features were quite enticing. Her eyes were particularly nice, the rich brown colour flecked with little hints of gold. Her nose was straight and had a light dusting of freckles on it and her lips were wide and generous. She had the kind of face that the longer you looked at it the more you came to like it.

Demetri decided he liked it a lot, especially when it was framed by her thick, brown hair. He, again, felt a little pang of regret he wouldn't be able to play with her. He was sure they would be good together in the bedroom department. Still it wasn't to be. Unless he changed his mind again and decided to indulge himself. His indecisiveness surprised him and irritated him too.

"What do you want?" the girl asked again, her tone slightly bolder because he hadn't done anything to hurt her. Yet. He felt his lips tug in another slight smile. She had guts, he'd give her that.

"That all depends on you, Mara Fitzgerald," he answered slowly.

She started when he said her name, thrown off balance which was exactly what he wanted to achieve. His smile broadened. "Yes, I know who you are," he answered her unspoken question. "The question is, do you know who I am?"

Mara licked her lips nervously as she stared at the man in her kitchen doorway. Her heart was hammering loudly in her chest and she was fighting hard to control the fear which was rocking her to the very core.

The man before her was stunningly beautiful with piercing green eyes and shoulder length black hair. He was absolutely huge, well over six feet tall, and so powerfully built she knew he could snap her in two very easily. His full lips kept curving into a smile but the smile never reached his eyes. Those piercing eyes were cold and very deadly looking and she knew she was in deep trouble.

She opened her mouth to speak but found she couldn't make her voice work. Her mouth was too dry with fear. She mutely shook her head at him. She had no idea who he was. She was sure she would have remembered seeing him before, he was too gorgeous to ever forget meeting.

Demetri sighed softly as he looked at her. He could smell her fear. It was acrid and almost overpowering and distinctly unpleasant. This wasn't going to go as quickly and easily as he had hoped. She was too terrified to speak and she had a very strong natural shield so he couldn't get into her mind to discover her secrets. He was going to have to do this the hard way.

"I suggest you take time to eat your sandwich and then perform whatever bodily functions you need to," he told her quietly. "We'll be leaving in fifteen minutes. If you attempt to call anyone or alert anyone to my presence I will hurt you. If anyone comes here to your rescue I will kill them and then I will hurt you. Your fifteen minutes starts now, Mara. I suggest you use them wisely."

She blinked at him slowly taking in the cold, hardness of his expression, hearing the finality of his words and she knew he meant what he said. He was going to kidnap her and do God knows what to her and if she tried to get help he would kill anyone who came to her aid.

Her fear escalated as she screamed silently inside her head. She had no idea who this man was but she was certain he was going to kill her. If she didn't try to escape she would be complicit in her own murder and if she did try to escape she would be consigning other people to their murders. She was between a rock and hard place. There was nothing she could do but agree to the rules he had set out before her.

She knew she would never be able to eat the sandwich she had made. It would stick in her throat. She needed the bathroom though so she slowly walked towards the man. He stepped back from the doorway and followed her as she walked down the hallway towards the bathroom.

"Leave the door open," he said firmly and she shuddered as his voice whispered closely behind her ear and she felt his body heat at her back. "I promise I won't peek," he tacked on with a hint of amusement in his tone.

True to his word, he hovered close to the doorway but gave her sufficient privacy to do her business and wash her hands.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked quietly when he followed her back into the sitting room and watched as she gathered a black leather jacket from the chair and her keys.

He ignored her question and headed for the door not even checking to see if she was following behind him. He knew she would. The simple fact she wasn't attempting to escape showed she would never willingly let another person be harmed on her account. A rather brave, if slightly foolish act on her part. Demetri couldn't think of any situation in which he would meekly walk to his own demise. Okay, if it were to save Caleb from harm then possibly he would be stupid enough to do so, but to save a stranger? Never.

He waited as she locked her apartment door and then motioned her to walk down the steps in front of him. "Remember what I said, Mara. You hold the life of each and every person out there in your hands when we walk out this complex," he said quietly and saw the shiver which ran down her spine at his words. He smiled again and shook his head.

So brave and yet so incredibly stupid. If she really stopped to think about it she would realise he would be endangering himself if he started taking out humans where everyone could see him doing it. Her fear really must be clouding her thought processes because from the dossier he had read about her, he knew she wasn't stupid. She was, in fact, highly intelligent, with an honours degree in archaeology and one in business studies which she had studied concurrently. No, it was her human emotions which were making her appear stupid.

They stepped out onto the street and Demetri took her arm lightly and pulled her towards his waiting car. He was thankful he had had the presence of mind to secure a location to take her to in case she proved difficult. It was a rundown old house he had found secluded on the very edge of the woods just outside the city. No one had been there for years and there were no obvious trails nearby. The perfect setting to discover her secrets and then make the decision of what to do with her.

He had spent three days equipping the place with everything he needed to interrogate her. He had even bought human food for her because he wasn't sure how long it would take to get the answers he needed. They may be there a few days.

He had fed the night before so his needs were taken care of for now. He wouldn't need to feed again for weeks but he would still miss his nightly little snacks. Living so civilly for so long had made him accustomed to sampling the women he was with and he now found he preferred a little taste nightly rather than having to feed deeply because he had gone without too long. Naturally those samplings were always done is such a way the woman involved did not realise he was doing so.

He released the girl's arm as he opened the car door and then sighed deeply when she took off. He tracked her as she ran through the parked cars trying to find somewhere to hide from him. She had no idea how much noise she was making or how the acrid scent of her fear was like a big arrow pointing straight towards her.

He looked around quickly and then moved so fast she wouldn't have been able to see him even if she was looking straight at him. She was just hunkering down behind a large people carrier when he glided up behind her and bent down.

"He's behind you," he whispered cruelly in her ear and wrapped a large hand around her mouth to muffle her startled scream. He pulled her up and turned her around, keeping a firm grip on her upper arms. "Now do you know who I am, Mara?" he asked softly and saw the dawning realisation in her wide eyes as they filled with tears.

"You really should have kept that pretty little nose of yours out of our business," he said almost regretfully. "Did you really think we wouldn't act to protect ourselves?"

Mara stared in horror at the stunningly beautiful man and tried not to pass out cold. She was so terrified she couldn't control the shaking of her body or the little whimpers which were coming out her mouth. She had dug too deep in her quest for the truth and now it was coming back to haunt her in the guise of a beautiful avenging angel with cold, green eyes and hair as black as sin. The vampires had come for her and she knew she was going to die.

Demetri ignored her trembling and silent tears and pulled her over to his car. He had her inside the Jeep and was pulling away from her apartment block before she probably even realised what was happening. She seemed to be in deep shock.

He glanced at her quickly and wondered why she was so surprised he had come for her. She had been digging for months into their lives, searching online for each and every little snippet she could find about vampires. Unlike other humans, her searches had been deeper and more refined as she strove to locate them. It was those very searches which highlighted she was not just another human with a gothic vampire obsession but was instead a highly trained individual who was close to breaking their secret to the human population. Hence the reason for his current assignment.

She remained silent the entire journey to the rundown old house, curled up within herself. Demetri tried once more to pierce her mental shielding but couldn't do so. He sighed as he pulled up outside the ramshackle building and saw her sit straighter as she peered out into the dark.

"It's not exactly the Ritz but it was the best I could do at short notice," he said with a hint of humour in his voice. "Come on, the sooner we get this started, the sooner it will be over for both of us." He got out the Jeep and walked around the vehicle to pull her reluctantly from it.

"Why don't you just kill me and get it over and done with," she suddenly spat angrily at him and he turned to look down at her a smile tugging at his lips.

"And spoil all the fun?" he asked with a laugh as she shot him a disbelieving look. "Are you not having fun, Mara?" he whispered softly, "because I sure am."

Mara whimpered and pulled her arm out of his grip. Fun? He was bloody playing with her like she was some kind of toy. Maybe that was what she was to a vampire like him. A toy to tease cruelly before he destroyed it.

"Fuck you, vampire!" she hissed, her voice breaking on the last word. He was going to hurt her, she knew he was. She could see it in his cruel eyes and the set of his jaw. He was here for one reason and one reason only, to silence her before she could tell anyone that his kind existed.

Demetri had to admire her spunk. She knew what the most likely outcome of this little meeting was going to be but she still had the balls to talk back to him. She reminded him a little of Rhianna and the way the feisty little redhead had taken him to task in his own nightclub a few weeks ago. He found himself smiling quite fondly as he thought of her and quickly wiped the smile off his face. Christ, he wasn't going down the same route as Caleb.

"Get inside," he barked irritably at the girl at his side, and she gave a muffled shriek at his harshness and ran into the house quickly. He sighed and shook his head. He really hoped this would be over quickly and he could go home and get back to his nice, quiet existence.