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“Are you sure you don’t want me to come?” The look he gave her made it obvious that he did not like the idea of her going alone.

“Positive.” She replied brushing a quick yet reassuring kiss to his mouth. “Besides, you know what happens when you go to places like that. All hell breaks loose and we end up in the middle of a bar brawl. As much fun as that can be it won’t help what I need to do. I will be careful. I promise.”

“Fine. But you better call if **** goes south.” His expression was deadly serious and she knew better than to make a joke about it at the current time. His concern for her was endearing and that he worried so only made her love him that much more. “I know how these jobs go, Vel.”

“Babe, I will be fine and I promise you will be the first to know if anything goes wrong. The sooner I go, the sooner I can be back and maybe we will have the rest of the night to ourselves. Ok? Ok.”

She shrugged on her jacket and fished her hair from beneath her collar allowing it to spill freely over her shoulders. One more parting kiss was delivered to his brow before she grabbed her gun from the table and tucked in back as she made her way to the elevator, forming a mental list of the most likely places that would likely have what she needed. Abandoned buildings? The slums? Some dive bar perhaps? The city offered all of the above but she decided to try the bars first.

Her procurement business often had her doing some rather questionable things but it paid well and it catered to the darker parts of her that sought the adventure and the taboo. What this particular client was asking for, however, was something that once upon a time would have turned her stomach. In her previous employment there was whispers and suspicions of such goings on and some of the things she witnessed laid out on the steel table before accompanied with the whispering of the spirits confirmed it.

The hunting of humans for sport was kind of like the dog fighting rings. There was evidence of them happening. You knew they happened but they were kept very quiet. The ‘clubs’ were extremely exclusive and very rarely did the victims live to tell the tale.

This was what she was expected to deliver. A live target.

Of all the species the human race was the most disgusting. They were more depraved, sadistic and hateful than any other animal. They tortured and killed for fun. Taking lives for sport was the worst crime of all. Yet here she was on her way to find and deliver such a target to some bored, rich men’s club that decided murder would be fun. She argued that it was at least one effective way to clean up the streets. There were many out there who deserved to die for the atrocities that they, themselves had inflicted upon others. Too many that should have been behind bars were walking the streets free to do as they pleased. As much as the justice system worked, it also failed. This was how Velveteen made it right. She had the chance to make right what the law couldn’t. At least that is what she told herself.

Sometimes she felt like those characters in a cartoon who would argue with the little angel and devil that sat on their shoulders. Right and wrong creating a constant dilemma for the vampire who believed herself to be righteous and just yet could not deny that twisted part of her that had always existed in the darker recesses of her mind. More and more that part of her was coming out to play, unraveling the very fabric of her existence and whilst it excited her it also scared the **** out of her.

As soon as the door opened her senses were assaulted by the foul odours of sweat and stale beer. Smoke hung heavily just above her head and escaped through the open door after being trapped in the small , unventilated, dimly light room that served as a bar for the human refuse that frequented it, most likely because they had nowhere else to go. It was a dive. It was perfect.

Barely an eye lifted in her direction. Most intent on drowning their problems in the glass they were nursing or for those who got lucky, busy clumsily groping each other in one of the booths in the back corner. The seedy little dance floor was empty except for one dishevelled looking woman that swayed out of time in front of the jukebox that looked like it had also seen better days. She appeared to be about fifty at first glance; Velveteen guesstimated she was probably only about half that but had been aged horribly by her addiction if the roadmap of track marks up the inside of her arm was any indication. She would never understand why people did that to themselves.

“******* junkies.” She mumbled to herself as she made her way to the bar to better survey the area. The bartender came as she slid onto a stool and she waved him away without ordering mumbling something about waiting for someone. He shrugged his shoulders and moved back to his perch to continue polishing the one glass with the filthy towel that had been slung over his shoulder.

A pack of smokes and lighter appeared from her pocket and she placed them on the bar before freeing one of the small white cylinders and tapping it thoughtfully against the sticky bar before delivering it to her lips. Her hand came up to cup the flame more out of habit than necessity and that was where she was when he walked in.

The dark haired vampire did her best to blend though no one paid much attention to her and she casually set the Zippo down on the pack as a soft plume of white smoke was exhaled and floated upwards. A perfectly manicured brow hitched upwards slightly at the money tendered for the drink. The male didn’t look like he enough for many more of those. In fact he looked like he had spent the night in a dumpster though she had to be certain before she made any snap decisions. The man on the phone was very adamant that it was to be someone who would not be missed. She would have to know more before she made a choice.

“Sounds like someone is having a bad night.” She spoke, leaning forward on her elbows that were resting on the bar in the driest spot she could find. A crooked grin was plastered across her reddened lips as she studied the male through curious silver orbs.

Velveteen was able to get a pretty good look at the photo while the man eyed the female at the end of the bar, which disappeared quickly when he realised he wasn't alone. There was something about the woman in the picture that was oddly familiar though Velveteen couldn't place why. The chances that she would know the woman in the picture were close to none. Perhaps it was the setting itself, or just one of those pictures that looked familiar to everyone. It didn't really matter much but she would have to find out if there was anyone somewhere waiting for this guy's *** to return home.

When he spoke, that southern drawl caught her off guard and the smile that followed it could have knocked her over. It took her moment to recoup as she shook it off. This place, must have been getting to her a little, overwhelming her senses. She was beginning to imagine things, like the fact that she felt that she somehow knew this guy though she was certain she had never laid eyes on him in her life. Like the fact that for the briefest of moments he reminded her of her husband, something that made her scoff inwardly. As ludicrous as it was she was still experiencing the strangest sensation of deja vu and was finding it rather unsettling. Again she shook it off as she dug in her pocket and pulled out a couple of bills. The cash was waved at the bartender, attracting his attention before she placed them by the southern gentleman's glass.

"Just a little." She paused and offered the man a smile of her own. "This is going to sound really cheesy but...Have we met before?"

Velveteen was certain that that wasn't possible but the conversation had to start somewhere and try as she might she could not shake the strong sense of familiarity. She reached for another cigarette and lit it, hoping the flavour and scent of the tobacco would subtly cloak the funky aromas that were assaulting her senses. Her elbows found the bar once more and her head tilted to the side a little as she waited for a response.

Ever restless orbs watched with disinterest as the bartender finally had seen fit to once again fill the empty glass after the folded bills beside it had mysteriously disappeared beneath his grabby palm. A grateful nod was offered for his service and he made his way back to the blonde who was likely getting her drinks for free while he peered down her aging cleavage.

An amused grin tugged at the corners of her ruby coloured lips as she watched the display quietly. There was something about him that intrigued her, which in and of itself was a puzzle. The guy was a bum. A drug-fucked junkie who lived for his next fix, dulling the moments between with booze and desperate women. Yet, deep beneath the surface of his ratty appearance and lack of personal hygiene there was a kind of quiet confidence that seemed to exude from the male. Or maybe it was just the southern accent that was throwing her off. Either way, Velveteen couldn’t help but wonder what demons this man was running from or had given into.

A gloved hand reached out and gripped his briefly as she chuckled. “Oh I doubt that. It seems you can barely see what is right in front of you.” The drink she had ordered was gently pushed toward him with her other hand. “But it is a….pleasure to meet you, Levi. My name is Velveteen.” The Necromancer was more than thankful for the overwhelming stench of cheap perfume and stale beer that masked the various odours being emitted from her...companion that wafted her way when he moved.

“You aren’t a local are you? What brings you to Harper Rock?” She was hardly one to talk, her own Australian accent quite obvious no matter how hard she tried to disguise it at times.

She reached for another cigarette and then offered the packet to Levi who could help himself if he chose to. Small talk was not one of Velveteen’s strengths but she had the added the benefit of being female and she suspected that while she was paying for the drinks she could have been singing ditties whilst standing on her head and he would have hung around.

Once smoke was billowing softly from the glowing, cherry tip of her smoke she leaned forward and set both elbows on the bar once more giving Levi her undivided attention and most alluring smile as she waited to hear his story.

Velveteen listened with interest, his southern drawl thick despite the obvious effects of the alcohol on his speech. It was pretty obvious her companion considered himself very much a ladies man despite his current inebriation and less than pleasant odour. Levi was also a gambler. A man who took risks and by the looks of it, often against the odds.

The dark haired vampire paused and allowed the hokey music to fill the silence as she took a long , lazy draw from her cigarette. From where she was she had already scanned every inch of the dingy bar and took in every detail. So the more obvious look around was merely for her company's benefit than anything else. His compliment brought a sheepish smile to her reddened lips.

"Well....I was supposed to meeting someone here but it appears as though I have been stood up. Rude." She stated before returning one elbow to the bar. The woman eyed him curiously. She figured it wouldn't take too much to get him out of here, the offer of free alcohol should do it, though she hoped he passed out long before anything weird could happen. Her husband would be furious if he knew she was being half pie chatted up by some stranger right now. Levi wouldn't have lived past his first openly admiring glance.

A wad of bills was flashed towards the bartender though he was paying no attention to anything until an unfamiliar voice touched upon his thoughts. "Get us a bottle to go will ya." The man looked around and blinked as velveteen waved her hand in his direction. He looked slightly confused at what had just happened but had shrugged it off and shuffled along the bar wearily with the requested bottle in hand. The money was dropped onto the sticky bar as she took the bottle. "Keep the change." Her most generous offer was met with a rather unappreciative as he stuffed the cash into his pocket. Velveteen committed his rather average features to memory and smirked. She would get it back.

"So what do you say, Cowboy? Wanna take this party somewhere more ...comfortable?" She waved the procured bottle at him teasingly. "And where the drinks are free?"