The first room of the farmhouse was a well-ventilated waiting room with a designated offshoot for smokers. A ramp led to a downstairs bar with a fighting pit buried in the center. Some creatures idled around the edge of the fence bordering the fit, while others were by TVs that had an overhead view of the fights. There were also several double doors that led to hallways that a waiter would occasionally go through.

Duke decided to go the traditional route and start his quest at the bar. He sat at the far end and gestured to the bartender with a set of fingers. “This may be an odd request, but do you perchance have any videheart elixir?”

The bartender gave him a nod. She was a small woman with thick lashes reminiscent of centipede legs. They twitched this way and that whenever she looked someplace new. “I have all shorts of thingsh that’ll fill up your odd requestsh, but it’ll cosht you a hefty dollar, love.” Her black scaled tongue gave her a slight lisp when she spoke.

“I am not without funds. After all, this is a gambling establishment, and I plan on investing wisely in order to make it big.” Duke fiddled through Adi’s wallet and pulled out a five which he then slid across the bar.

"Not enough there for a drop, dear. You're going to have to try harder than that." Duke dug a little deeper and pulled out three one dollar bills, holding them up in the air towards her like a precious treasure.

A laugh escaped the pointy eared man who was sitting a few stools down. “Indulge my curiosity, and I’ll buy you a drink,” he announced in a faintly Eastern European accent.

Duke immediately perked up at the idea. He faintly smiled at the gentleman. The elf-like man had pale hair that was tied back in a single complex braid. His purple suit was elegant in quality, and it paired well with his sharp looking blue eyes. Even his skin had a faint lilac highlight to it. On the other side of him was a beautiful woman dressed in scarlet, and yet she was easily overshadowed by the gentleman who sat next to her.

“Any donation towards my cause would be much appreciated,” said Duke as he glanced between the man and his companion, who was tenderly stroking the back of his hand like a needy kitten. “I will warn you that I am not the wisest choice for a sexual partner. It would be rather unhygienic, and it is quite likely that something will break off of me in the process.”

“I have a different sort of job in mind.” The man gestured towards the pit. “The fights have been slow as of late, and I am aching for some violence in my life.” He nearly purred as his companion began to massage his shoulders. “You’ve seen the minotaur that guards the door? I am willing to pay you a thousand dollars for every minute you can survive in the ring with him.”

Duke smirked at the thought. “There was an unfortunate incident where I may have left the poor man completely incapacitated. We could drag him into the ring now, but I would simply sit on his back until I’ve made enough for a few bottles.”

The man burst out laughing, and his skin shimmered in the dim light. He then gestured with a set of fingers to the bartender. “Kenelm,” he said as an introduction. “Jones has been turning away my guests as of late, and I’m more than happy to buy a drink for the stranger who put him in his place.”

“Duke. Jiangshi. It was hardly a bother to help,” he muttered as a reply. Duke tried to remain composed as the shot glass was put in front of him. He gave a gracious nod before downing it quickly. His eyes closed and he relished in the pulse of energy that briefly rippled through his body. Then he frowned. The elixir was poor quality, and he found himself aching for some of Mauvori’s brew.

“Then you have no interest in being a contender. Shame. I’ve always had an interest in your kind, but I understand that you have your limitations.” Kenelm held up his own glass as a toast before taking a sip from it.

“Simply here to appreciate the atmosphere. Night and day have a tendency to melt into each other once one loses the ability to sleep.” Duke gave a brief nod to the woman with Kenelm, but she ignored him completely.

“Are you a native to this area? I would assume your kind is, but mages with their elixirs and experiments make it so much easier for you mithryn to get around,” said Kenelm with a grin.

“I was born and raised in this area for a time, yes.” Duke turned around, leaning his back against the bar as he did so. “Was there something you need from me?”

Kenelm stepped closer, lowering his voice as he did so. “I will be in the area for a while, and have hired myself a guide already.” He gestured to his female companion as he said this. “But one with your set of skills would be most welcome. I will provide lodgings for you here, a bottle of videheart a week.” Reaching into the inner pocket of his coat, he pulled out a stack of cash and flaunted it about the air. “Along with whatever falls out of my pockets.”

This was awfully convenient. Duke debated his options. It was completely possible that this Kenelm fellow knew he was a DH spy and was seeking to keep closer tabs on him, but Duke was awfully fond of videheart elixir. Even a low-quality bottle would do wonders to tide him over between feedings.

“Agreed.” He held out his hand, and Kenelm shook it eagerly.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

***

Today was not a good day for Adi. Duke had notified him that it would be a few days before he would be returning, thus Adi’s car had been effectively stolen. Due to him not being able to find his wallet, it had taken some time before he had gotten a rental. Ghost dog hadn’t helped either. It hadn’t shown a reaction to the construction site and was simply content to follow him about while being utterly useless.

Adi spent the rest of the day being a pet sitter. They had withdrawn funds from the bank using a spare id and had gotten some food while they were at it. Now ghost dog and he were splitting a large order of fries. Not knowing the specifics on how a barghest works, Adi had bothered to buy some dog food and toys while they were out. Maybe it would be less attentive if it had some distractions.

There was a black car parked in front of the house by the time they got back. A man in a suit got out as Adi pulled into the driveway. As Adi opened the door to greet him, the barghest pushed their way past him and began barking at the man. Whatever he had done, it seemed quite angry at him.

“Hey, dog! Err, Sable, let’s go with Sable. Down boy, uh, wait, girl..? Ah shit, I’ll check your gender later! Just stop that!” He scratched behind the dog’s ears as she let out a whine. “Sorry about that.”

The man had had his hand on a gun that was hidden inside his jacket. Now that Adi was getting a better look at him, he noticed that there was a badge hanging around his neck. “Detective Coyle. Are you Atticus Wulfurt?” Adi nodded. “I have a few questions about an associate of yours. May I come inside?”

“Of course. As long as I’m not the one in trouble, eh?” He let out a fake laugh, but Coyle wasn’t amused. “Okay then… Yeah… Would you want anything to drink?” He shoved Sable aside with his leg and unlocked the door to the house.

Coyle took a moment to absorb the details of the home. “Not at the moment.” He whipped out a pad of paper and a pencil. “How familiar were you with the employees at your stepfather’s office?”

Adi looked between the couch and the detective. Was this a sit-down conversation, or should he stay standing? Either way, he couldn’t get a read on the man. “I interned there while I was working on my bachelors. Did something happen to him?” He glanced down at Sable, who was still positioning itself between him and the detective. Weird dog. With a shake of his head, he went to the kitchen to grab himself a soda.

Detective Coyle began to flip through his notes. His skin was pale, and it sagged around the corners of his mouth and eyes. Something about it reminded Adi of Duke. “I am here to inquire about Desmond White and his girlfriend, Janice Perlin.” Adi let out an audible groan as he returned with his drink. “So you are familiar with them?”

Adi could already feel a headache coming. He flopped down on a chair. “Yes, I am familiar them.”

“What was the nature of your relationship?” He pulled out a small tape recorder and pressed a button. Sable began to circle about the room, not removing their eyes from the detective. It was almost as though they were looking for the best angle to pounce.

Adi leaned forward in his chair and popped open his soda. “I haven’t seen Desmond in a year, maybe at the last office Christmas party? I used to date Janice, but she told me that she had been seeing Desmond on the side and broke up with me over a week ago.” He stared down at the drink while regretting that he hadn’t picked up any beer while he was out.

“Do you know if Miss Perlin has any connections in the area? Close friends or family? Anyone she could stay with if she were in trouble?” Detective Coyle flipped through his notes again.

“No. She had always told me that I was the only one she knew in the area, and she had trouble making friends. Janice was always a bit of a bitch.”

“Her phone records showed that she had contacted you a few days ago. Did her behavior at the time seem unusual to you?” He continued to flip through his notes, not paying much mind to the barghest.

“What happened to Janice?” Adi dug out his phone and looked through it. She had called him when they were out looking for that wendigo. Duke had answered at the time, but the conversation hadn’t lasted more than a few seconds.

“I’m going to be clear with you, Mister Wulfert. Both of them have been missing for some time.” Sable crouched low and let out a loud growl, making the detective look over out of the corner of his eye. “Janice Perlin is a falsified identity. We suspect that she is a con artist and possibly a murderer. We are currently looking into her past contacts in hopes of finding out more information to her whereabouts.”

Adi looked up from his phone. “Whoa, what?! The only time we talked was when I told her to leave me alone for good, and I haven’t seen her since then! Desmond was, uh, he is a great guy. Janice is a little crazy, but they wouldn’t hurt each other.” Adi stood and held up his hands defensively. “Honestly, I know nothing about this. I wouldn’t hurt them either, you know? Janice was clingy, and I even moved out of Seattle in order to get away from her! I’m glad Desmond took her off my hands!”

The detective clicked a button on his tape recorder before putting it back into his pocket. “Thank you for your time, Mister Wulfert. There isn’t a need for you to believe you are a suspect, we merely wished to ensure that the two of you were no longer in contact. After all, witness cleanup is the worst part about this business. I do hope you understand.”

“Witness whatup?” Detective Coyle had already pulled out his gun. “Whoa! No!”

He fired twice into Adi’s chest, and the force of the blow flung Adi back into the chair. Sable pounced on the detective and clamped down on his neck. Coyle let out a gagged choke as Sable began to furiously shake her head back and forth in an effort to rip out his throat.

Adi pressed his hands against his chest. The warmth was oozing out of him. He slumped out of the chair and onto his knees, and he heard Coyle fire his gun into Sable, but the barghest continued to bite at him. “G-good dog…” He pawed at the ground in an effort to find something to help Sable fight off the intruder.

He felt so tired. It felt awfully similar to when Duke had drained him of his energy. Maybe… Maybe lying down was for the best. Adi’s hands slipped in his blood, and he fell on his side. The blood left a wet and sticky sensation on cheek face that made him uncomfortable. His vision was fuzzy, but it didn’t seem all that painful.

It was warm. Like a welcoming bath. He felt like he wanted to be swallowed up by it. As his eyes closed, he felt the strange urge to experience Janice’s scent one last time. The way she smelled of sweat and cherry blossoms after they had made love had always had a calming effect on him. It overtook his thoughts completely as the rest of the world went black.