She walked out into the main sitting area. She didn’t see anyone at first. She walked around the kitchen island and looked into the sitting room area proper. There, almost exactly where she had left him, Alexander was asleep on the sofa. Ansuya smiled to herself. She reinforced the scents that now surrounded her sleeping prisoner. She then kicked off her shoes and slipped back into Alexander’s study. There she turned on the computer and pulled up a familiar search engine.
She typed in a search for recent warehouse fires in the Harbor District. She glanced through the top few headlines till she found the most recent event, yesterday. She clicked on the story.
Law enforcement officials had apparently found an empty storage warehouse, where a fire had began earlier that day. There was no suspicion of arson or foul play. The warehouse was empty with very little inside, save a locked office which housed some office supplies and equipment. The Fire department had been called in to protect the surrounding warehouses and contain the blaze. Unfortunately, the warehouse was beyond saving by the time fire fighters arrived on scene. An investigation as to the cause of the blaze is still ongoing.
Ansuya looked up the address for the burned down warehouse. It was inside House Himura territory. This gave her pause. Why would someone attack a vampire warehouse? The idea that some kids pulling a prank that had gone out of control had crossed her mind. But that would have been just coincidence, and she had learned long ago to never trust blindly in coincidence. The Gods did not play at dice and this was too convenient for her to believe the blind hand of fate had directed this event. She picked up the nearby phone and dialed a number.
She casually turned her chair to face the entry way as she heard the phone ring on the other end.
A muffled and somewhat distorted, “Hello” came from the other end.
She knitted her eyebrows in irritation, “Jason? What have I told you about answering the phone with food in your mouth? It’s very rude and makes you seem like a simpleton.”
There was a pause and she heard a scuffling sound from the phone, “I’m sorry Miss Das, I wasn’t expecting a phone call from you, I... please accept my apologies.”
She smiled at the stammering voice, as she pictured the older man scrambling to find a seat and swallow his food, maybe even wiping his face with his hand as he did so. “It’s alright Jason. I don’t have time for that now. Are you the investigating officer for the warehouse fire yesterday down in the Harbor District?”
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There was a short pause, “Yes, I am. How did you know about that? And why would this particular fire have attracted your attention? As far as we can tell the warehouse was empty except for the admin office upstairs but even that was pretty barren as well.”
“That fire wasn’t just some prank set up by some kids for laughs, Jason,” Ansuya said quietly. “I know that it was caused by someone and the reason for it is very important. I need for you to do your job with due diligence and find out why someone would want to burn down that warehouse. Call some of your federal friends and investigators to help. I need for you to find out the history of that warehouse and what has been stored there in the past.”
“Yes, Miss Das anything for you.” There was a hesitation in his voice, “Care to tell me why this particular warehouse is so important to you? What am I supposed to be looking for?”
“House Himura,” was her reply.
“Oh…I understand Miss Das. Don’t worry, we will find out all we can. I didn’t recognize this number. Can I call you here with what I find out?”
“No!” she hissed sharply. “No, Jason, go through the usual channels. I’ve been out of touch for a while and will be for some time. Our friends can take any details you send them. You can tell them why you are contacting them as well.”
“I understand Miss Das. I’ll get to work on this right away,” there was a brief pause, “and Miss? It’s good to hear from you.” The phone clicked and silence met her ears. She put the receiver back in its cradle.
She carefully wiped the search engine history and keystrokes from the hard drive and turned off the computer. She then dialed a few random numbers, waited for the phone to start ringing, then hung up. It wasn’t perfect, all Alexander had to do was look at his phone bill to see who she had called, but she was betting on him not being that interested, or motivated for something as banal as checking his phone bill to keep tabs on what she might be doing in his house.
She walked back out to the sitting room. She looked at the dead form of Alexander. He wasn’t breathing and he was as still as the grave. It was disconcerting to look at. She moved behind the sofa where he had sat down and whispered into his ears. Her words painted pictures in his mind of ecstasy and fulfilled lust that would make any pornographic movie director proud.
She stood back up and, picking up her shoes that she had discarded, walked back to the bedroom where she had tried on her clothes. She locked the door behind her. She slipped out of her skirt, jacket, and blouse. She grabbed a skimpy top and skirt that she wouldn’t wear outside and pulled them on. She unfolded the covers of the bed and laid down in the deep softness of the sheets, comforter, and well-made mattress. She let the soft pillow cradle her head. It had been so long since she had been able to lie down properly. This was as close to heaven as she could wish for. She had never fully appreciated being able to stretch out completely on a soft mattress like this. She let the comfort and relaxation envelope her as pure joy. A tear ran down her cheek as she smiled. A few moments later she was deep in a relaxed and comfortable sleep.