Bathe In Fire - Shadows of the Night 2

Chapter 6

Hi,

Time for another update and a new chapter. Alexander's back ... for good. ;) Thanks to Broukee Taylor we have new beautiful book covers for Shadows of the Night! I will post one with each new chapter. Please have a look at them and let me know if you like them, or want one of them as new cover! Thanks again to Broukee Taylor, this is awesome!! Thank you all for reading!

Lara

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Chapter 6

I was greeted by a humming, bustling undertone of noise. People were chatting informally. Everybody else had already taken a seat around a monumental, rectangular-shaped table. I couldn't shake the feeling that people were eyeing me from the side, awkwardly and not with as much subtlety as propriety would have dictated.

Even though my bandaged wounds were hidden from sight, the bite wound on my neck covered by a black scarf, I felt exposed and naked. The real question, however, was whether they knew that Brown had pulled strings to lift the temporary suspension, or whether they were just disapproving of the fact that I was the last one to arrive.

I did a mental shrug and scanned the room methodically. Coach Erica had been very big on analyzing dangerous situations and the best strategy of coming out of them. Since the head vampire of New York was supposed to show up this night, I figured caution was justified.

While the rest of the room was kept in white tones, the table and chairs were of a light gray, very modernistic and probably awfully expensive. Deep, high, and booming, a train of voices penetrated the clinically sharp air.

There were at least two dozen people of the three races. My future co-workers, members of the newly founded Task Force 3. Witches and shape shifters, humans, and vamps – all in one room together. For a wonder none of the attendees had drawn a knife yet. Then again, this was the second meeting of the future TF3.

Finally my eyes made it to the head of the table and found... I did a double take. Yes, that really was Frank Currol, the mayor of New York. By rights my eyes should have fastened themselves onto Currol. However, the awareness of something, some kind of force, reared its head and stirred something in my blood. Somehow my eyes were drawn to him: Alexander.

Second hand recognition and trance-like, sick fascination shifted and yielded, as sense and mind commandeered the wheel. I remembered just who he was and what that master vampire had done to me. A scowl adorned my face as my eyes relocated to my boss' stern face.

Gustav Brown, who was sitting to the mayor's right, looked extremely tense. When he spotted me he gave a nod in recognition. I returned the gesture, letting my eyes rest on him an instant longer. Having only ever met him in his day-to-day, down-to-earth suits, the expensive-looking, probably tailored, light gray suit and the red tie he was wearing for the occasion struck me as opulent.

Finally I made my way to the last vacant seat at the far end of the table to claim it as mine. A glance to the left and right revealed that I was flanked by what I judged to be a male human police officer or agent of some sort, and a female vampire. I turned to my right first, facing the middle-aged human with dark brown hair.

"Hi, my name's Anna. Pleased to meet you," I said.

Introducing myself and extending my hand was all I had planned on since taking a seat. Mission accomplished. The man stared at me for a moment, as if not sure how to deal with me, but finally shook my hand, giving me a warm smile that reached his dark brown eyes. The small, perfectly-shaped nose drew they eye to the center of his face, distracting from the wrinkles on his forehead.