Where Secrets Lie

Two days passed and Kara had not heard a word from Michael. He hadn't called on any of the girls, and they were all becoming worried. Kara feared that if it was due to him looking for the person who put the hit on her family. He would starve before he found the responsible party. She'd searched and searched and came up empty-handed every time, and she couldn't believe Michael would have better luck than her.

However, she hoped she was wrong, and when Henry came to her, telling her Michael wanted to see her, she felt both nervous and excited to hear what he had to say.

"Henry said you called for me?" she said as she entered his room. Michael sat at his desk with his back to her. He looked out the balcony doors at the garden below his bedroom. "It was Carl Luciano that ordered the hit on your adoptive parents," said Michael with a calm demeanor. The breeze gushed in through the door and rippled through his hair.

"What about the vampire? Did he hire a vampire?" she asked.

"No. It was one of his men." Michael circled around his desk and leaned against it. "I think your parents were already dead when that vampire showed up. What you said about him makes me believe he was a gorger."

Kara stared at him. She had gotten pretty used to vampires over the past few months, but she had no idea what a gorger was or why it would show up at her parent's house. She allowed Michael to continue.

"A gorger is archaic in a way. There aren't many of them alive today. They are vampires who have lost all their humanity. They have a one-track mind...human blood. Even if someone else kills their prey for them they show up to eat as long as it's still fresh. All the blood splattered everywhere was from the gorger. They're messy eaters."

Kara still didn't know what to say. When her cover was blown with the Lucianos, the case fell apart, and the police department put it on the back burner. Once her parents were killed, Kara forgot all about them, obsessed with finding the vampire. To know that the real murderer behind her parent's death was still walking around, hurting others devastated her and whipped her into a fury.

Without a word to Michael, she spun on her heels and, with a determined walk, started to leave.

"Where you going?" he asked, catching up to her.

"Where do you think?"

"You can't go confront the Lucianos. They'll retaliate even harder this time," he said, holding Kara's arm in a painful grip. She cringed as his fingernails dug into her.

She hung her head in disappointment "You're right. They're a huge organization. They're basically celebrities. He's going to get away with it."

Michael released his hold on her and gently cupped her cheek. He smiled. "No they won't, but let me come up with a plan to fix this. I'm not saying you can't because we both know how tough you are, but I'm better suited for fighting this organization."

"Okay," she said.

Michael bent down and put his soft lips to her warm hand, but before she could protest the action, he was gone.

With a sigh, she hurried out of his room and headed toward the garage. She wanted Carl to pay, but she wasn't sure what Michael was going to want in return for helping her. It was best to handle it on her own. Just as she entered the garage, Alyssa hopped out of her car, back from school.

"Where you going?" she asked with a pleasant smile.

"Downtown," Kara said, jumping into a black SUV.

Alyssa opened her mouth to question her further, but Kara didn't feel like waiting or answering questions. She slammed the door shut, cranked the car and sped out of the garage, leaving Alyssa in her dust, bewildered.

Alyssa headed inside to grab something to eat. Just as she sat down to devour her toasted chicken wrap, Michael entered.

"Have you seen your sister?" he asked.

"Yeah," Alyssa said, taking a bite of her wrap, "she said she was going downtown. She was in a hurry."

He ran out of the kitchen. "Shit! She doesn't listen!"

Alyssa dropped her wrap, frightened by Michael's words and attitude. "What's going on? Michael! Michael!" she shouted after him as he disappeared down the hallway.

*****************************

Downtown, Kara pulled up to one of the many sky rises in the area. She double-checked the paper in her jacket pocket to ensure she had the right address. She took a deep breath and climbed out of the car and headed inside the building.

Inside, a frail, old, balding man sat behind the security desk. His eyes were partially shut, and Kara wasn't sure if he was sleeping or awake. "Excuse me. I'm here to see Mr. Luciano." When she got no response, she cleared her throat and tried again, more loudly. "Um-hmm! Excuse me! I'm here to see Mr. Luciano."

The security guard woke with a scare and looked around, jumbled. As Kara tried once again to explain who she was there to see, two other guards approached. "Who are you?" a burly guard with bushy black facial hair asked her.

"I'm here to see Mr. Luciano," she explained.

The two guards exchanged looks and then began laughing at her. A hoard of insults to throw their way crossed her mind, but she decided to flash her police badge instead.

"Please sit," he said and gestured for her to sit with his sausage fingers. "For what do I owe the pleasure of a visit from one of the city's finest officers of the law?" Luciano asked with a smug smile.