“I know how to use the bloodstone, Amber.” Jessica looked away from Amber’s bright teal eyes because she knew that their magical glow would reduce her will to nothing. “Try as you might, you are not her…” Jessica sniffled. “You cannot always rely on your brute and inherent abilities…” Jessica closed her eyes and kissed Amber’s fingers lightly. “...you need me.”

  “I know, Jessica.” Amber felt a hole in her chest that was filled with guilt and regret, yet squeezed her heart out of the need for pity. Images of the wards trapped in the cars with the cartel leaders raced through her mind. Possession, torture, and fear all radiated in Amber’s mind before she turned Jessica’s soft face back to her. “Jessica, please. If you want to do something, find us a source of blood. Help us that way, just don’t go to that hill, please.”

  “You aren’t going to order me?” Jessica asked meekly. It was an odd sensation that pulsed through Jessica’s body. So many days and nights she had served herself to the vast number of vampires in Phantasmagoria without any real endangerment and only a driven need to feed her masters existed back then. Simple. Vampires opened her, she got a very healthy rush of contentment that nearly matched that of an orgasm. Within that sensation was a pang of anger that wanted to nourish all three of the vampires instead of allowing someone else to do her duty. She was a ward now, she belonged to Amber and with that came responsibility only to her mistress and girlfriend. “Okay, I’ll do what I can. Without a car I am stuck with my own abilities.” She pointed towards the huge city of Richmond. “It’s going to take me a bit to get up there and back, Amber.”

  “Your discretion on where and how you get the blood.” Amber ughed, “Just keep in mind it’s Halloween, my love.”

  “How can I forget?” Jessica mirrored Amber’s light giggle. “It used to be our one surefire day off every year.” With a sigh, Jessica recalled some of the deep and drunken Halloween parties that ran as close to twenty-four hours as possible. “I miss having chocote licked off my …” She stopped when Daniel and Jester looked at her amused. “Maybe ter.”

  “That is probably for the best.” Daniel ughed and jumped out of Jason’s arms. “Alright, are we just going to run up there?” She looked at her boyfriend, “We saw you flip into your cute little raccoon form, babe.”

  “It is not cute. I am handsome, nice looking. Raccoons are polite and…” Jester saw the humorous look on all of the women’s faces. “Hey, I liked raccoons as a kid.” Jason quickly changed the subject. “Yeah there are little critter paths that will lead right up to the portal through the tall grass.” He sighed and began pacing. “Our issue isn’t getting there, it’s Enas. She’s up there with Miss Bckwell’s power added to her own. I am not sure that even ‘The Raven’ could handle that much.”

  Amber and Jessica snickered and collectively shook their heads. “Don’t fool yourself, Jester.” Amber offered first. “None of this might have happened if Vivienne were here.” Amber tapped her lips for a moment, “Then again, she might not have cared since Enas is killing all of us in the area.” Amber looked at her girlfriend, “Jessica?”

  “Faye.” Jessica kissed Amber on her cheek. “Faye would have gotten her involved, just like I can influence you at times.” She purred and then looked over at Jason, “Whatever the case, you all need a pn for dealing with Miss Bckwell at the very least.” With a reluctant pull away from her girlfriend, Jessica blew Amber a kiss and offered a little whine. “Let me get a headstart and you three have fun with your adventure!”

  “Now who’s the jester?” Jason moaned and switched his pacing into circling the table. “Guys…um…Ladies…” He corrected with a smile, “I don’t know if our animal forms can pull out all twenty-five of these tuning things.” He looked down at his phone and saw that it was still with an open line to Kody. “Sorry Kody, hopefully we will see you in a few hours.” Leaning over, Jason hit the red button to end the call.

  With a kiss and a hug, Amber ran her hands through Jessica’s brown hair for what she thought might be her st time. “Please be safe, Jessica. I don’t know what I will do if anything happens to you. St-” Her voice stammered, “Stay out of sight, run as far and as long as you can.”

  “Amber, there is only us. I love you.” She winked one of her swirling chocote eyes, “I’ll be back, with enough blood for you three to almost bathe in.” Jessica kissed Amber one st time and darted out of the Mill and deep into the dark.

  A little anxious to see her lover leave, Amber managed to speak in the most loving tone she could. “Love doesn’t say it all, Jess. I love you too.” Without much more to say, Amber simply stared out of the open door and wondered if she’d ever see Jessica again. “What do you think the chances are that she gets the blood?” Amber leaned against the door frame.

  Nudging her new friend, Daniel and her short form garnered Amber’s attention. “Let’s not think about that, dearheart.” She took Amber’s hand and led her back to the table. “We have to remove twenty-five tuning things. Are we sure it will stop the song, Jason?”

  Partly shaking and looking a little unhinged, Jason turned to his girlfriend and shrugged. He’d seen too much with the loss of his own wards and progeny that told him that nothing he’d thought really mattered. “Sweetheart.” Jason took a deep breath and tried to think beyond his panicked run through the sewers of Williamsburg, with a single shadewraith on his heels. “I honestly don’t know. I do know that it will change the way the song sounds, and that might be enough to stop the others from being driven into the pool.”

  Concerned and hopeful, Amber turned back to the open door in the hope of seeing Jessica standing there. “Why can’t we just remove one?” Amber asked and sighed when the doorframe remained empty. “If all we need to do is change the song, then removing one of the tuning things will alter the sound, right? Why all twenty-five?”

  Without skipping a beat, Daniel snapped her fingers and understood why. “It could be a case where not all of them are active at one point and since they use the power, they switch on and off to maintain the output…” Daniel then tugged on Jason’s arm and leaned into his hand when his long fingers slid through her colored curls.”...or they are for redundancy.”

  “So they all go.” Amber confirmed and closed her teal eyes. “I’ll go for Enas and hold her occupied while you both yank those things as fast as you can.”

  “This pn sucks.” Jason offered and looked at Amber, “It is sadly the only one we have.” Jason lifted Daniel onto his shoulder and held her easily by her waist. “I can help her, babe. Maybe two of us can take out Enas before Sylvie gets back.”