Chapter Seven: A Deal


    Vincent followed the onboard GPS in his sedan toward Bergstad, driving straight through the day and stopping only when the sun went down to let Gideon out of the trunk. The tall vampire unfolded himself from the cramped quarters he had been subjected to in order to get to the manor as quickly as possible. Gideon relieved Vincent of his duty behind the wheel, allowing the exhausted, worried, and wounded man to fade in and out of a restless sleep in the passenger seat until they finally reached Allender Manor an hour shy of midnight.


    The outside of the manor was lit with anticipation of Gideon's arrival. He had called earlier to ensure the others that he would be arriving soon, with a person who would was in  need of Gale's special gift. Gideon was helping Vincent get out of the car when the front door of the manor opened and Amanda rushed out to meet him.


    "Who is this?" Amanda inquired as she watched Gideon gently pull a moaning Vincent from the car.


    "Someone who needs our help," he answered, causing Amanda to cock a suspicious eyebrow at his limited response. 


    Amanda decided not to question Gideon further considering the urgency of the matter at hand. She turned back to the manor and left Gideon and Vincent with,"Come on then, everyone's gathered in the dining hall. We've got some troubling news about Corbin and Lydia."


    Gideon led Vincent into the manor, restraining his pace to match that of Vincent's hurting stride. Even in his wounded state Vincent had noticed the similarities between Gideon and Amanda, with their moonlight complexions and eerily captivating grey eyes being tell-tale signs of their vampiric nature to a suspecting mind. He waited for her head start into the manor to get her out of sight before he looked at Gideon and said,"She's like you, isn't she?"


    Gideon looked at Vincent with a bit of surprise at his keen perception. "Yes," he replied openly. "There will be much to be explained here Vincent, if we are to come to the aid of those who need us most right now," he implied, meaning that all secrets would have to come to light.


    Vincent nodded his understanding.


    When they finally made it to the dining hall, those assembled at the table with half-eaten snacks and constantly refilled coffee cups, which fueled their sleep deprived bodies and worried minds, rose to acknowledge Gideon; but their stares fell instantly upon the beaten stranger at his side who was cradling his injured arm. Gale was the first to approach Gideon, while Shade and Ethan observed curiously with Amanda.


    Tossing a fleeting glance at Vincent, who kept to himself in his quiet pain and agony, Gale ignored his presence to give Gideon the latest information on Corbin and Lydia. Fidgeting with worried hands, she revealed,"We've received a message from Lydia."


    "Oh?" Gideon responded with a tone of great interest.


    "It appears that she and Corbin have been taken to some unknown location where they're being held, by someone she believes is Jarell," she disclosed, bravely holding back a fearful expression.


    "Jarell...how can that be?" Gideon uttered under his astonished breath as he staggered off to himself in disbelief for a moment, needing a minute to compose himself under the light of such dreadful news.


    "And their's someone else with them, a person named Sara," she added.


    The mention of Sara's name animated Vincent, whose eyes widened expectantly as he stepped up to Gale. "Sara! Is she alright? Where are they?" he asked excitedly.


     Gale studied Vincent cautiously, then looked to Gideon. "Who is this person Gideon? Why have you brought him here?"


    Everyone in the room waited for the answer, and Gideon took the silent moment to gather his thoughts in order to take charge of the situation. He turned to Gale with a deep breath and took her caringly by her shoulders. He spoke directly to her, but intended his words for everyone gathered.


    "My dear, this is Dr. Vincent Walsh," he revealed.


    Gale's eyes searched her thoughts for a second before she answered,"Vincent Walsh? But I thought you said he was...dead."


    Gideon sighed regretfully. "I have much to explain, and perhaps answer for; but now is not the time. We must focus all our efforts on freeing our loved ones." Gideon's eyes shot to Vincent. "This man is an ally, and he is in need of our help, your help."


    Gale looked over at Vincent, then back at Gideon with an expression of uncertainty that slid into a gaze of life-long trust from her blue eyes to his. Gideon's arms fell back to his sides, and Gale turned to Vincent so she could motion him to a seat at the table. He took the seat under the  stare of everyone in the dining hall, then Gale stood beside him and carefully placed a hand over the nasty bump on his head, causing him to wince slightly.


    "You'll feel better in a moment," she assured softly.


    Gale's eyes closed as she began to hum the melody that soon escalated into a powerful, healing song that filled the vast dining hall with beautiful, ethereal notes. Vincent cut his eyes upward in an attempt to see exactly what was going on around him, but he was soon distracted by the soothing feeling in his injured arm as the wound mended itself under the power of Gale's gift. His bruises and cuts gradually disappeared, leaving behind no traces whatsoever, and the gash in his head closed up with only dried blood in his hair as proof that it once existed.


    Vincent wanted to jump up and rejoice aloud about the remarkable healing which was spreading throughout his entire body, but as Gale's song began to taper off, he became increasingly sleepy.  He struggled to fight the powerful fatigue that was overtaking him, but to no avail. When Gale finished her melody he slouched down in the chair, lost in a deep, healing sleep. She reclaimed her hand from his head as she turned to Gideon.


    "Thank you my dear," he offered sincerely, receiving a dutiful nod in return.


    Ethan went to Gale and escorted her to a nearby chair with a caring arm around her so that she could sit during the brief recovery of her strength. Shade and Amanda approached Gideon like two soldiers eager for their orders. He narrowed his eyes and tightened his jaw in a display of ruthless determination. "Now, where is the shapeshifter?" he asked with a non-trifling tone.


    Down in the basement of the manor, in the small room which had become her cell, Talon squirmed at the foreboding sound of heavy footsteps that approached her with a sense of urgency. She was beaten and bloodied, without any physical strength left to fight against the ropes around her hands and feet, but she prepared her ironclad resolve for whatever torment that was about to come through the door.


    She squinted up through swollen eyes at Gideon when he entered the room alone, closing the door behind him. She didn't bother to watch him as he slowly circled her, rubbing his chin in thought as he examined the abuse doled out by Amanda in her attempts to learn the whereabouts of Corbin and Lydia. The young girl at Gideon's feet was beaten, but not broken. One look at the defiance lingering in her blackened eyes told him that much. He knelt down in front of her, looking at her with a scrutinizing stare.


    "Shapeshifters are common among those of the Vandarmensen bloodline," he commented.


    Talon frowned in disgust, then said resentfully,"I am not a Vandarmensen."


    Gideon's brow rose at her claim, showing his surprise. "Not a Vandarmensen you say? Interesting."


    He stood up, crossing his arms and furrowing his brow in thought as he peered down at her. "Has Jarell discovered another...unique race to torment and bend to his will?"


    Talon looked wearily up at Gideon. "What do you know of Jarell?"


    "What do you know of Vandarmensens?" Gideon countered.


    Talon thought for a moment, considering how much to tell someone whom she assumed was going to kill her eventually anyway. She curled her cracked lips scornfully until the pain made her grimace. "Only that they are the reason I am made to suffer," she hinted.


    "So, you do not serve your master out of loyalty then?" he prodded.


    "I have no master," she quickly asserted with a hard glare at Gideon.


    "Then why?" he questioned as he knelt down again to search her eyes more closely for a reason. 


    Talon kept her hard glare fixed on his wondering expression for a few seconds before turning her head away to hide from him; but just before she did so, Gideon caught something, a subtle but telling change in her eyes.


    "Ah, he has someone you love, doesn't he?" he deduced. "Why else would you resist so fiercely, if you were not protecting someone dear to you?"


    Talon rolled her head back toward Gideon with a scrambled expression on her battered face that proved he had hit the mark. Gideon smiled almost warmly as he stood back up. "To suffer and die for loved ones if you must, that is something I can certainly appreciate," he said admiringly.


    He took a step away from her, then turned around with his hands behind his back as he pondered an offer for her. She watched his backside curiously, wondering what would come next. Finally, Gideon turned around with a solemn look at her.


    "What if I vowed to help you free whoever it is Jarell is keeping from you, if you agree to lead me to those he has taken from me of course," he propositioned. 


    Talon sized him up with a sweeping glance, then frowned discouragingly at his offer. "You and what army?" 


    Gideon smirked knowingly. "My dear child, when one has the allies and resources such as I, one does not need an army," he stated convincingly.


    Talon considered the offer more hopefully after hearing the confidence in Gideon's voice. She wanted badly to believe it could be possible to free her brother, as well as herself, from Jarell's sadistic hand. Inwardly, she wanted to jump at the offer, never having such an opportunity presented before; but there was the issue of trusting a group of strangers she had been sent to capture. An issue that grew more time-sensitive by the minute. Soon Jarell would realize that she had failed, then her brother's life would be as worthless to him as hers. 


    Talon and Gideon stared at each other for a long moment, neither one wavering as they both waited to know the next move that hung on Talon's decision. Finally Talon breathed a reluctant sigh and said,"Alright, it's a deal."


    Gideon nodded his acceptance as he stooped down with a hand that changed into a bony claw and cut Talon free from the ropes that held her. She carefully assembled her wounded body into a protective sitting position on the floor as she watched Gideon withdraw his claw which morphed smoothly back into a normal hand. 


    "Tell  me child," Gideon said with a voice as sympathetic as the soft expression he now wore,"who is that twisted fiend Jarell keeping from you?"


    Talon's toughness wasn't prepared for Gideon's sincere interest in her plight. She stared up at him as he waited for an answer, struggling within herself to yield to his seemingly genuine concern which her inner doubts and fears screamed was just a trick to gain her cooperation. Realizing she had nothing more to lose, and everything to gain if Gideon's offer was honest, she uttered timidly,"My brother."


    Gideon nodded solemnly to acknowledge her grievous situation, then turned and opened the door. As he stepped out through the doorway he paused and turned his head back toward Talon. "We do not have time to spare, come upstairs with me. There is someone here who can tend to your wounds," he said, then walked out of the room, leaving the door open.

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