A Ripple In Time | Captain James Nicholls

Chapter Twenty-Nine

"Then I heard your heart beating, you were in the darkness too so I stayed in the darkness with you."

The Brighton Estate, London; November 15, 2011

"Is everything packed, James?" Izabella skimmed over their packed clothing, finding that they each had a week's worth of clothing. Into her bag she tossed a well-worn copy of 1984 and a book that had been more recently added to her collection, Dune. Checking for anything else that needed to be placed within the bag she zipped it up and moved to James's bag, looking to see if he had added anything for the flight.

"Can we carry on blood?" He chimed in standing in the door way of their bedroom, two steel flasks in hand. She tilted her head, smiling at the gleam in his eyes before stepping forward and taking one of the flasks in hand, her fingers tracing over the engravings on the leather cover

"I'm inclined to say no," he frowned and tossed the other flask to her as well before grabbing one of the books from his nightstand and the iPod that held a century's worth of music. Pleased with his selection of in-flight entertainment, the Captain closed up his bag and sat on the edge of the bed, looking up at Belle as she scurried about making sure everything was, indeed, packed.

"Shouldn't we call first? You know, make sure he's still there?" James asked, one of his hands catching her wrists as she walked by giving her no option but to turn and look at him.

"Showing up uninvited was one of Adam's favorite things to do, I doubt he'll mind and it's not likely he's moved since I received his last letter." Izabella reached for her bag but James quickly reached out and held onto the handles for each, the vampiress rolled her eyes and flicked off the lights in the room, grabbing the two tickets that were on the dresser.

They had boarded with ease, the London rain beat on the windows but it was no more than twenty minutes before the clouds were lifting and the sun shone down on the English country side and then the Atlantic Ocean. The Captain looked at Belle, who within the first two hours had fell asleep, an open book in her hands and her head on his shoulder. Despite everything she had told him about vampires, that they rarely every felt cold, he draped his coat over her, smiling to himself when she curled into it and him.

James woke her only a few minutes before they landed, maneuvering through the capricious travelers after unloading was by far the most painful experience Izabella had within the last century. When she and the Captain slid into the back seat of a cab there was a degree of peacefulness that they were both thankful for. It took a little over an hour to reach the address she had given to the driver and when they pulled up he couldn't help but look in the rear-view mirror suspiciously as barely anyone lived in that part of town anymore.

She paid the driver and James grabbed their two bags from the trunk, as if the surroundings were poisonous the cab's tires squealed as the car drove away at an alarming speed. Izabella could feel his presence in the old house, but like every house on the street it was dilapidated. An old decaying Victorian manor in Detroit. The outside was being taken over by weeds and overgrown shrubbery that crept up the side of the house and though it looked abandoned on the second floor there was a light coming through thick curtains. She looked to James and shrugged, it wasn't exactly what she expected.

Stepping on to the porch, Izabella singled out a buzzer and pressed it firmly, however what she did not expect was his voice to come over a small speaker hidden somewhere, undoubtedly one of his beloved inventions. "Fuck off." She frowned and looked back at James, the hurt in her eyes evident, but she pressed the button again and stepped off the porch, looking up at the curtains as they moved about.

After skimming the porch she found the small speaker and hoping it was a two way she spoke his name. "Adam." Her voice was strained and out of annoyance she flicked the covering until static broke the silence.