Sinful Pleasure

22

T W E N T Y - T W O

A L E C

Normally I can contain my composure and remain calm when placed in situations such as this very own... but I have to admit that I'm slowly losing my patience with this one. I'm not sure if it was from the excessive pushing my father has down as he urged us to find the girls, or the impending guilt spiraling through me for being so cold and nonchalant towards Ellanore with no reason. But after nearly four days with no luck and no lead of any sort I couldn't help but start to feel a little hopeless.

"Where's Darius? We all agreed to be here at dawn." My fathers voice was laced with impatience. His eyes briefly turning to the watch that rest on his wrist every five minutes or so.

"I'm not sure." I mumbled, my eyes scanning over the trees that stood out before us. "Do you want me to try calling him again?" I offered. Though I'd doubt it would do us any good.

Shaking his head my father turned his back to me as he faced Vlad and Vail. Both had offered to help us search for the girls. Both their intentions were highly questionable, or more so Vail. Vlad had volunteered his time solely with the idea of helping my father, his friend for over hundreds of years now, to retrieve one of his maidens as I recall him saying. Vail, well I couldn't quite pinpoint why he wanted to be involved with helping us out. Especially with the memory of him voicing how much he loathed "simple humans" playing back through my mind. Surely he wasn't doing this in the right mind.

"I'm sure he'll show up Raphael." It didn't help in the slightest, nor did it ease my fathers mind, but Vlad still reckoned that we not give up on Darius just yet.

"That boy knows how valuable our time is right now. It is not to be wasted waiting around for-..."

"You could have always ventured ahead father." Breaking through the coverage of the trees was Darius, and to all of our surprise Talon. Her hand was loosely held in his own, though at the sight of her father I happened to notice her slyly slip it from the grasp of Darius to limply hang at her side.

Agitated by the slight interruption and partially by the sight of Darius, our father pinched the bridge of his nose. Something he often did to let us know that he was barely holding onto the thought of being calm. "Where have you been boy? And why have you brung Talon with you? The women were to remain behind the walls of our home."

We've been lucky enough not to run into any trouble these past few days during our search, but my father was always on to be cautious and smart rather then dumb and impulsive. He put the safety of his wife, who seemed to be highly set on finding Alice and Ellanore just as we have, before his very own. By having her stay home, where she was secure and safe with the company of Kristine; Vlad's lovely wife and their daughter... Talon. Or so we had thought.

"She volunteered to come on her own." Holding his hands up in surrender, Darius shrugged his shoulders. As if he had no parts in influencing her to come, and it was all in her own good will.

"Talon." Vlad, her fathers voice was stern with warning. There's eyes exchanging some sort of message I couldn't unravel.

"I'll behave father. I just want to help." Talon didn't sound nearly as convincing, but her father said no more.

"Seeing that half of our time has been wasted just waiting around..." Looking to his watch and exchanging a brief glance at Darius, our father shook his head. "We have no choice but to split up in groups. It's risky I understand, but we'll have the advantage of covering more ground that way."

"Alec won't mind pairing up with Talon. Will you boy?" Vlad wasted no time in asking me to step in place of Darius. For everyone knew how much he simply loathed the idea of my brother being with his daughter. Though that thought didn't stop the two from sneaking around.