Worst date ever (Mason)

[Caia]

An hour before closing, Caia would enter through the back door of Daffodils. It was typical for her to be dressed up, but for tonight she had taken time to make sure to look her best. Wearing the new shoes she had bought the day before. They paired well with the short black lace dress she wore. The only splash of color, being her shoes and the dainty red butterfly earrings that dangled from her ears. The kitchen was alive with activity, as the staff worked on end of the night side work, and prep for the following day. Caia would stop to make small talk with one of the chefs. He had prepared something special, for the guest Caia was meeting with this evening. A man she had met at the club she frequented in Gullsborough.

She had been hesitant, the first few times he had asked her out. Finally she had said yes, agreeing upon meeting up at one of the restaurants she owned. She felt safe, being in her own environment. Dating again still felt foreign and wrong. Before moving back to HR, she had been in a terrible relationship. Abusive, both physically and mentally. With the death of her grandmother, Caia had inherited the plant shop her family had owned for years in HR. Moving back, everything had changed. She most of all, as not long after her arrival she had been turned. Warren had been there to take care of her, just as he had watched over her grandmother for all those years Caia was away. He was a love in life she had needed, but now he was gone.

Caia knew she should move on, but the loss still pained her. How was she ever to find anyone again who would care for her in such a way. To be as her best friend was, knowing just what to do and say. Knowing exactly what she needed before even she herself knew. Alex, the man meeting her this evening, was kind but he would never replace Warren. None could replace him, but that did not mean she should stay forever alone. After speaking with the chef, and making small talk with a few others of the staff, Caia would make her way out front. The dining area was simple and elegant. Modern, with hints of yellow and orange, and simple white table cloths. The walls were decorated with beautiful works of art, featuring garden landscapes of daffodils in bloom.

She could see Alex seated already at a table. The moment his bright blue eyes spotted her, he would smile and stand to greet her as she walked near the table. "You look stunning, as always, Caia." His words sounded almost too sweet, he would lean in to kiss her cheek, before pulling out her chair for her. She noted the warmth of his lips, such a simple human quality the warmth of a beating heart. " Why thank you, Alex. You look very handsome tonight. I do hope you were not waiting too long for me to arrive." Shared, as she took her seat. Caia knew she had been early, but it would seem he had come much earlier. He came off as too eager for the date, but Caia thought nothing of this. It had been so long since anyone had shown her such interest, that it blinded her to any possible red flags.

Alex's smile was unfading, as he returned to his own seat across from Caia, his eyes never leaving her. " It was well worth the wait. You have a beautiful place here. I was truly pleased to have finally received your call, and that you had agreed to spend the evening with me." He seemed pleased with himself, as if he had already won some unknown prize. "Thank you. I'm glad you like the place, and hope you are hungry. I have had one of the chefs prepare something special for you." Caia was excited to treat him to such a specialty, but she found the look in the man's eyes troubling as he spoke then. "But I already have something very special, right before me." As he shared the words, he would reach across the table, taking hold of Caias arm.

"Alex? You're hurting me…" Her tone hinted with worry, his hold upon her did not loosen. "No need to play coy, Caia. There is something I have wanted from you for a long time, but I wanted to be sure." Her mind swirled with confusion, as he spoke. A small sting was felt upon her arm, as the woman caught sight of where he had cut her. The wound was small, but it was enough to have her bleed black. " A shadow, I knew you had to be one of them. I have waited so long to taste the blood of a shadow." Panic flooded through Caia then, as she pulled on her arm trying to free herself from his hold. The man she had thought to have honest intentions, was nothing more than a blood thief. He cared nothing for her, but only for the power he hoped to gain from drinking her blood. On the verge of tears, her words were stern, as she demanded him to let her go. He heeded nether words nor warning before sinking his sharpened teeth into her wrist. Caia would cry out, utterly shocked by what was happening.

[Mason]

A new job, she had been hired as security. It seemed to be pretty good, pay, location, nothing particularly unpleasant about it. And it wasn't like she was averse to violence. Course her job was to specifically prevent violence, but sometimes that would require the will to commit to it rather than trying to talk someone out. Also, it was owned by another vampire. That meant she wouldn't have to worry about potential issues in regards to treatment from a superior. It was a good place to be while she still figured out just who she was left to be.

She sat at the moment checking the cameras. They gave a good enough view of the building, and let her sit alone and watch. After spending time in the shadow realm she had come to understand why her Wraith had such a habit of speaking strangely. Communication isn't exactly something that's as freely expressed in a place that is like...that. She tapped the weapon by her side, and the sword. She liked having both weapons on her. The gun was usually the more logical choice one would assume, but sometimes different situations called for different solutions.

Mason watched in particular as her employer met with a man outside, a date. Naturally she didn't lose track of what else was going on. Everything was going fine until she saw a grip, she looked closer at the image on the screen and Caia's concern. Already getting out of her seat, she cursed under her breath as she was able to size him up just before the bite, "Blood thief."

She'd seen a great many of them before. She really couldn't care back then, as a paladin or a human. But she was familiar enough with them as she raced out of the room the door slamming behind her as she shut it. Slipping through tables. She reached for the sword, then re-considered. Maybe lopping off heads wasn't the right course of action so soon into a job. Whether it was her employer attacked first or not. Instead she leapt over one of the tables tackling the man to the ground.

Unfortunately, that was not before he'd gotten enough to at least have some of the powers. "Consider your choice of actions carefully. I've probably fought worse." she whispered into his ear hoping to get him to give up then. However, she'd somewhat underestimated his dedication, and physical strength as he managed to jab his teeth into her arm scraping them along, the pain making her let go where he leapt to his feet. He hadn't fed on her, thank goodness. But he still had powers at his disposal, and had a second or two of freedom before Mason could be on her feet and at him again.

[Caia]

Everything was happening so fast. The evening went from excitement over a first date, to a living nightmare ; in what felt to be a blink of an eye. The bite sent a jolt of pain shooting up her arm. No matter how hard she pulled or twisted, Caia could not loosen the hold he had on her. "How can you do this to me? I TRUSTED YOU!" Caia yelled at the man, as she picked up a fork from the table setting. " I will not hurt you, if you just let go of me…" Attempting still to reason with him. She silently cursed herself for not bringing a weapon. But never would have thought of having to need one. He had been so different at the club. Was any of it real? Caia had no need for the fork, as Mason had shown up at just the right moment.

Then free, Caia was quick to be up on her feet. She watched her new head of security take down the blood thief. Mason looked to whisper something to the man. He must have found this amusing, for the smug look on his face was unfading. It seemed to happen in an instant, Alex would free himself. Shocked then, Caia watched as for a moment he went invisible. She could still sense him, still smell his cheap cologne; a smell that now made her feel sick to her stomach. Her hope was he would attempt an escape. Having gotten what he wanted, what need was there to stay. Caia found herself wrong in wishing for such things. Alex was quickly at her back, the barrel of a gun pointed to the side of her head.

Caia would press her eyes closed, as he spoke. " Easy there Highlander...You ruined our date. And seriously who uses a sword?" He spoke to Mason, hate laced within his words. Caias eyes would open, looking at Mason. An apology beyond words lingered within her gaze. What a first day. She was grateful the woman was so well prepared and armed. Never again will I go anywhere without a gun, Caia told herself. Feeling the press of metal against her skin. His other arm held around the front of her, holding her shoulders. Pulling her close against him, Caia was unmoving, she did not want to be shot. She wanted this horrible night to be over or better yet to go back in time and never had made the call. Why did I make that call?!

She knew why, she missed the idea of being with someone else. To have them care about you, and you them. But just because one was alone, was never an excuse enough to settle for just anyone. It was something she told herself she would never do again. Alex spoke on then to Mason. " What you don't know is that she wanted this. If you had seen the way she has been dancing with me at the club, you would know. It's not like there was never going to be something in it for her too. But YOU MESSED EVERYTHING UP! She is going with me now, and you can't stop us. You will not stop us." He sounded so sure with his tone. The gun unmoving, as if he had everything under control. His control.

"I never wanted any of this…." Caia wanted to be sure he knew this, for a fact. The unflattering words hit a nerve with Alex, for he would strike the side of her head with the barrel of the gun. "You got what you wanted… Why can't you just leave? " Her voice was softer then, as she pleaded with him. "I have not gotten everything I wanted…" His words sent a chill down her spine. She could feel his warm lips near her ear, as he whispered to her. He even pressed a kiss to the side of her neck. She could feel the soft brush of his sharpened teeth; as if he were about to bite her again. Caia took this moment to drive the heel of her shoe into the top of his foot. He would cry out in pain, momentarily distracted. The gun would go off, but Caia would go unharmed. She struggled to free herself from his hold.

[Mason]

Mason was back on her feet, but hesitated as he vanished, she didn't draw either weapon. She was liable to attack with a power at the moment. But then he had Caia in his grip. She narrowed her eyes at him, her head tilted slightly in thought. A moment of instinct told her to just stab through to get to him, but that was just instinct, she didn't make the move to do it. Those paladin instincts occasionally woke up to say hello as a reminder to a more brutal methodology.

She responded to him quietly as he mentioned the sword, "You'd be surprised how useful they are." she said as she tried to think of a way around this. Sifting through her memories of what powers she had at her disposal. Paladin abilities were always so much more straightforward. But that wasn't her anymore. There were some that she knew she could use on him, but they also risked him further harming Caia. Potentially killing her. A non-deadly wound Mason could probably heal, if it was needed, but there was too much risk that he could kill her. She'd recently experienced the Shadow realm, she wasn't keen on someone else going through it because this man was thirsty for blood. 

She was on her feet, at any point ready to take advantage of a mis-step or mis-movement. If that gun would only move for a moment. Mason narrowed her eyes as she heard him speak, he wasn't just a blood thief. He had lost his living privileges in her eyes by his words and actions. But she didn't have an easy way to grant that penalty. Not without sentencing a different one to Caia.

A threat was considered, but Caia spoke first. Asking him to give this up. Again he confirmed to Mason that he no longer deserved the gift of life. Her knuckles cracked, and then Caia made the move herself. Just two or three motions that happened quick. Some of it was chance, but it could be karma. He was injured, and Caia was struggling to get out. Mason had to move fast and now. But a physical motion could be too risky. Instead, she aimed for his mind. The telepath abilities had become rather enjoyable once she'd gained access to them. She attempted to overwhelm his minds with thoughts and feelings, confuse him, make it easier for a real opening to be made by either her or Caia to do something more aggressive.

If it worked, she might just have her chance, she'd again jump forwards attempting to separate the two of them. This time with a little more aggressiveness, trying to grab his gun hand and just keep going with it behind him trying to either break it or yank it from its socket. Best scenario is a serious arm injury, he drops the weapon, and lets go of Caia. She wasn't sure what the worst scenario was.

[Caia]

The shot had been loud, fired so close and it just missed her. She knew instantly Alex had been hit, from the cry of profanity aimed at her. "You ******* *****! You are not getting…." The arm that held her was injured. She watched as the red flow spread across the sleeve of his sweater, hinting to the damage done. Not only that but his words would cut short, as he cried out in a whole new type of pain. Reaching up for his head, as if he had a massive headache. Caia knew Mason must be doing something. It was exactly what was needed, she could feel his hold losen even more. Caia could feel herself shaking, the whole situation had her in a wreck.

How had things escalated so badly, in such a short amount of time? This pressed upon Caia, as she knew the situation was far from over. Mason had been quick to action. Jumping in, the head of security helped to free her from Alex. As Mason disarmed the man, Caia scrambled to retrieve his gun. Alex was screaming about his injured arms. Caia watched in horror, for it looked as if he were going to try and summon the shadows; to attack for him. She could not let anything happen to Mason. Caia knew this to be all her fault. Had she only been a better judge of character; she would have seen Alex for what he truly was. A creep. A user.

So when the opportunity presented itself, Caia had a clear shot; she took it. She made sure Mason was not in the line of fire, but it was likely some of the after effect hit her. The head wound had exploded with red, Alex's body slumping as life left him. The whole surrounding area shown with the splatter of his blood; standing out against all the white. Caia would drop the gun, her legs slumping, as she kneeled on the ground. " I killed him…" Her words trembled, as she spoke just above a whisper. Taking in the sight of what she had done, as the man continued to bleed out. In the background soft piano music played, Night Bird Song. The peaceful sound of music and silence only made her inner thoughts feel louder.

I killed a living human being?! What am I going to do?! She could feel herself shaking a little, her eyes unable to move away from the sight of him ; as she spoke to Mason. "Should…. Should we call the cops?" Though she asked the question, she immediately knew the answer. Of course they shouldn't call the cops. This would not go well for Caia, even if Alex had been the aggressor. "People will come looking for him." As she spoke then, her gaze would shift towards Mason. Caias eyes held heavy with grief and humiliation. How could this have happened? she asked herself, over and over.

Finally pulling herself to her feet, she felt the unsteadiness of her shoes. Finding the heel of one was now broken. It hardly registered concern, as her eyes lingered back to Alex. Did he truly deserve this? In the back of her mind, she knew this to be a definite yes ; even if she would not admit it aloud. He would have killed them given the chance,Caia could not have let that happen. She did what she had to. Looking at Mason, Caia tried to smile. " Thank you. I don't even want to think about what could have happened, had you not been here." Her eyes asked questions without words. What should they do with the body? Caia felt she should have known someone, should a situation like this come up.

[Mason]

The power worked, and so did the disarmament. She was able to release his arm as the gun clattered to the floor. Instead drawing the sword from her back, fully intent on beheading the man. Though such intent was not necessarily immediately visible. Nor would it come to fruition. Instead, another bullet sped through the air followed by the sound of the gunshot. There was some blood splatter that hit her, but she was unharmed. Though the clothes would most certainly need to be cleaned. Her eyes shot momentarily towards Caia and back to the man.

Alex had a hole in his head. There was a flicker of a smile on her face, but it faded soon after it showed up. She hoped it had gone unnoticed. She re-sheathed her sword watching the body collapse. Mason saw Caia slump as well and nearly panicked thinking she'd been injured until she heard her words. She frowned.

Right. She had killed a human. Mason had become desensitized from when she was a paladin, killing undead regularly had made her a lot more resistant to the feeling. Zombies to vampires, until gangsters also brought no guilt to kill. To her, this was much more normal. But she understood the issue. "Someone had to." she said quietly in response. She wanted to remind her that the man would doubtless have gone on whether it was her or someone else to end him. "Or he would have continued."

Mason heard her question calling the cops, Mason didn't yet respond. But she also knew the answer was, reasonably speaking, definitely no. There was no best case scenario for that. She said people would come looking for him, "Eventually someone may. But this is Harper Rock. Anything can happen. Most people who are left aren't normal anymore."

Already Mason was starting to think of ways to fix this. She called her wraith, telepathically. Just in case, I want you to find somewhere to dump a body. Check the forest, and the river, maybe check the gangland slums as well. Somewhere it won't be easily noticed. Then come to me at Daffodils. he couldn't respond. But he could find her afterwords.

If only they had more people they could rely on, this would be much easier to clean up. For killing vampires, the bodies often disposed of themselves. For killing zombies, you really only had to clean yourself up. For gangsters, the crime scene was just one of many. There were so many people with guns that were bought and sold you'd never know who owned what.

When Caia tried to smile, Mason nodded her head and smiled back, somewhat sympathetically.
"I'm sorry I couldn't come out sooner. I didn't want to kill him because all I knew was that he was a blood thief. I didn't realize how far he was going to go." she admitted before looking back at the body and thinking, "My wraith is searching for somewhere I can send him. Normally the fact that you used his gun would be a good thing. Except he's got both your blood and mine on him now."

She tapped the arm that was cut and nodded to her wrist. "So we're going to need to make sure he goes somewhere they won't find him." she realized just how bad this might sound, given how much calmer and more experienced she was acting about it, she hesitated before speaking. The truth was the best way to do it. "I...uh. I was a paladin...for awhile. I usually tried to hunt down the vampires doing the most killings. At some point that ended up diverting to a few gangsters. Usually I wasn't the one hiding the bodies. But I figured out how they should have done it."

Mason took in an unnecessary breath, they needed to start moving. She checked for his phone, wallet, and anything electronic that could signal his location when people realized he was missing. They'd need to destroy them. Then when they found somewhere to bury, or sink him maybe, they'd put those somewhere completely different. The forests here were somewhat big, and as long as she didn't stay in them long it shouldn't be too hard.

"We could potentially just throw him in the slums. There's so much that happens there, another death may really not be noticed. And someone other than cops are likely to get to the body first. Or, we get a thick sack, put him in it tie it to something heavy, and sink him. Bury him underwater. Only other option I can think of is to put him somewhere in the forest, but go too long and the fae might be a bit unhappy. Whatever we do, we should decide now."

[Caia]

Someone had to. Mason's words lingered with her. "Who knows the amount of deviation he had already caused during his life." She recalled how easily he turned violent. This surly was not the first time he had turned to such measures; to get what he wanted. His actions felt like second nature, he had no hesitation. Looking at him now, Caia would remember the first time they had met. He had approached her, flirtatious from the start. Of course Caia had found him attractive, but it had been his persistence that had won her over. A tactic looking back on, she could see as a little suspicious. Likely this would have her second guessing any human who ever showed her such interest now.

As Mason spoke on, Caia could feel herself calming a little. Like she said, anything could happen in a city like this. One thing Caia could not understand was why he went through all the trouble to get her blood. Why not just take it from her the first night they met? She had been at the club alone that evening. Though she never walked home, rather always used her tome. Caia had a feeling it had all been part of his game, but then he could have likely thought she would have been ok with it. Perhaps if he had asked, before taking, things would have played out differently. She recalled Alex's words to Mason, of how she had asked for this. Looking down at the bite on her arm, she could not help but wonder. Had he truly thought I wanted this? Likely a justification for his actions. He wanted something, and was willing to do whatever he had to to get it. Just like Caia had to do whatever she could to keep her and Mason safe. Even if that included his death.

As Mason would apologize for not coming out sooner, Caia would give a wave of her hand. No way anyone could have known such a thing was going to happen. With mention of her wraith searching for a place, Caia could not help but thank her. "I truly appreciate that, and all you have done already." It was likely her work was not over. Caia was so grateful to have her working here, and not have to be dealing with all of this on her own. Likely her last head of security would not have responded so fast. Mason went on to explain about having once been a paladin, and Caia would hold no judgment towards her. " Someone has to take out the monsters sometimes. Not all vampires are bad though, just as not all humans are." She shared the last part mostly for herself. Not every blood thief she met would be like Alex.

Caia found herself curious of how Mason was turned, but would not ask this. It was just hard to believe a paladin would willingly become a vampire. Caia herself had not chosen to be a vampire, but the one who turned her had saved her life. The car wreck she had been in was terrible,and Caia was grateful she still had the chance to go on with her life. All thanks to Mora. She had gone on to turn Warren, thinking they could have gone on together. Enjoying the bliss of immortality. Things didn't always work out the way they were planned. Caia for one should have known this by now.

Mason went on to share many great ideas, on how to dispose of Alex's body. With mention of how they should decide now, the doors from the kitchen would open. The head chef, Albert, would pull out a cart. It was the special meal she had him make for her date. He would not make it all the way out, catching sight of the bloodied scene in the dining area. Yelling to someone back in the kitchen, he would have the cart taken away. Telling someone to bag up the food and just take it home. That everyone was to just head home for the night, and he would finish everything up. Once the doors were closed, Albert would look to Caia and Mason, as he spoke then. "I will get some of the large black trash bags, and help bag him up. Don't worry about cleaning all that up, I will take care of it all, while you two get rid of him. You are welcome to use my truck to move him. I hope you are both alright." He spoke the words, before heading back into the kitchen. He would not be gone long, before returning with a roll of large black trash bags.

[Mason]

Mason nodded as Caia seemed to agree with her. To Mason, it was cut and dry. To her he'd forfeited his right to life. But she'd long been that way. It was strange, how much she'd really changed from when she was just another human, interested in art. How much even her personality had shifted, from fear, to anger, and then here. An almost complete neutrality over her own actions and those of Caia. Except that it essentially just felt like duty.

In truth, she didn't blame his desire for the blood of vampires. As a paladin she definitely understood the use of such an ability. But his methods were much stranger than hers. But now, after accepting herself as vampire and that it was not the fault of each vampire what they were, her viewpoint was shifted. And his actions were no longer acceptable.

Mason smiled at Caia as she thanked her, "You're welcome. It is sort of my job. Sort of anyway, coverups aren't usually...eh...covered." she furrowed her brow. Regardless, it was time to get moving. She started checking the mans personal items. Have to get rid of all of it. She didn't plan on being found with his stolen possessions. Whether or not he obtained them legally or not wasn't the problem, vampires were checked regularly and it wouldn't surprise her if they found a missing persons items in the search.

She heard Caia's comment on taking out monsters. It was pretty accurate to Mason's thoughts really. At least, it was accurate now. "Yeah. And the soldiers have been...less than helpful." she commented. Even if she was on their side, their actions were just about useless. A hassle to the good vampires, and an irritation to the rest. The only bright light was that if there was anyone with notoriety roaming around, there was a good chance they were getting shot.

And then someone else came in, at first she started running over the story before she realized Albert was in fact going to help. He'd get black strash bags and clean up while they got rid of the body. Mason nodded her head to him, he also offered his truck to move him. That could help, keep everything in multiple situations. Though, she might be able to just teleport him to the location. "I'll be fine. Thank you. Wounds heal quick. Ma'am?" she looked at Caia, realizing she hadn't really asked if she was alright until Albert had brought it up.

[Caia]

Caia was sure to thank Albert, and asure both him and Mason that she was fine. She was alive, that was something to be thankful for. Ofcours she was shaken up. Her wound would take a little longer to heal, when compared to any other type of vampire. She would heal though, unlike Alex. The savage looking bite on her arm, was bound to be a reminder for a day or two. Her nerves would take time to settle down, and she would be a little jumpy for the next few days; maybe longer. This had to do with Alex, but also had to do with her past. The situation brought on many memories from a time when she was often an anxious mess. Caia just kept telling herself, everything was going to be ok. That she was fine and that Mason was ok. She really wanted to call Mora in the moment, tell her everything and ask for guidance. She did not want to trouble her though. Caia knew this was her mess, it was already bad enough she had gotten Mason involved, and now Albert. She didn't know what she would do without Mason, the woman seemed so collected and under control.

Reaching down, Caia would undo her shoes and slip them off. Walking around on a broken shoe would hardly be practical. Albert was quick to return, as promised, with large black garbage bags. He also pulled along a long silver cart, to move the body. Setting the broken shoes aside, she would jump in to help get Alex into the bags. Albert had even brought some ducktape, to secure everything. It would seem the man had done this a time or two. He had lived in the city all his life, so it was likely he had seen many crazy things durring his lifetime. After getting the body on the cart, Albert would set the keys to his truck on the table. " It's there if you want to use it. I have it parked out back. You two be safe, and let me know if there is anything else I can do. You have my number Caia. Alright, I'm going to finish up in the back, then will clean all this up here. Don't you worry." With that, he would head back into the kitchen.

Looking to Mason then, Caia had so much she wanted to say, but was unsure where to start first. "If you wanted to go, I would completely understand." She went first with the offer of an easy out. Mason had already done so much to help her. She knew this was certainly above and beyond her job requirement. Caia was not sure she could manage dumping the body on her own. One thing she was sure of, was creating enough coverage of darkness, that she would likely go unnoticed. Mason had already provided a multitude of ideas on possible places. A change of clothes was definitely in order for her though. Caia found herself wishing she had worn something more suitable. Thinking of it, she was reminded of some of the extra things she kept in her office. It was not likely she would ever want to wear the black dress she had on ever again. It was splattered with Alex's blood, but also she had bought it in hopes he would have liked it. Such a revealing outfit likely was one of the things that got her into this trouble in the first place.

[Mason]

Caia was fine. That was good. Though, from what Mason had heard, when being involved in a murder, even a justified one, sometimes it was best to seek psychological help. She had no idea if that applied to vampires. Or if there was anyone that she could trust to see. Besides there was the issue that they were covering this up. This was all besides the point, they had an issue right now, and it wasn't whether or not anyone here was mentally healthy.

Caia's bite wound looked bad, but for a vampire, it should be fine. Mason's own injury would be on it's way to recovery quite fast. She doubted it'd last any more than a day. Probably be gone by next sundown. She smiled slightly as she saw Caia take off her shoes. Yeah, she was never the type for wearing higher heels herself, at least not for a long time. Then again it was for a special occasion. So she also didn't blame her.

They worked on bagging up the body. Naturally Mason's current clothes were likely screwed now. The sleeve was at least. She'd probably find a way to burn it maybe. Or clean it out of blood and then just trash it. Just needed to insure there was no evidence to trace back to her at any point. She nodded her head to Albert as he again repeated they could use his truck. She wasn't certain yet if that was necessary or not. But made sense to use someone else's vehicle. She'd have to make sure there was no video recording of this event.

As she was thinking about that she heard Caia speak, she was willing to let her leave this. At least, she'd understand if she chose to. Mason stood up straight and shook her head, "I appreciate it, but no. When I said anything can happen in Harper Rock, that wasn't an exaggeration. I knew that when taking a security job. It may not be in the job description, but something was bound to happen." she shrugged, crossing her arms, "Besides, having a job...helps keep me attentive. I've been kind of...lost, since I came back from the Shadow Realm. Still am somewhat."

She slapped her hands against her sides, taking in a breath and looking at the back door, "I'm going to go quickly make some changes to the security footage ok. Make it look like there was just a recording error. Shouldn't take too long. Keep...it out of site for now. We can use the truck but there may be other options and-

"Holes and hovels, empty, alone, quiet." The voice came from her wraith who, as most, wasn't exactly visible. She could see Mason make a face at his sudden entrance but otherwise smile as he continued. "Guidance of word and sound. Of water, of filth, of trees."

"He means he's found places to hide the body. Apparently any of the places. But...have you been to the forest yet? I'm most inclined to drive deeper in, head to the river, tie him to some stones or bricks and then put him in. I may have to go for a swim and try and cover him in dirt at the bottom or something. To me it feels the safest option. But, we could just bury him in the forest as well. I think putting him anywhere risks someone finding him sooner, which may mean more evidence to find on him." She said.