I had straight for HQ. It was odd. It may be the last day I was on earth, but it was a beautiful morning. Pinks, oranges and purples were smeared on the horizon like some child's first attempt at a painting. The sky was mostly clear of clouds as the sun peeked over the horizon. Wind was gentle and warm, the smells of spring coming with it. It was a day I would rather spend walking and enjoying the weather, rather than tracking down illegal experiments and vampires that I once hunted.
I wasn't sure what my plan was going to be, but I knew my judgement was clouded. All I could picture was Noah screaming as they jabbed huge needles directly into his heart while his hands were tied down. Or Fletcher being stabbed by multiple items to see how long it would take to reheal. I had no idea what kinds of experiments they had going on in their basement, but I was going to find out one way or another.
The lady answering phones at the front looked rather bored, but she gives me a kind smile anyway. My stomach twists, how much does she know?
"I'm looking for a guy named Dave." It was the first common name I could think of. If I could use that name to get by the front desk, I'll be good. Or, better, anyway.
For a moment she looks like Michelle, the way she leans back when she types, straightening her back. She had curls like Michelle, but her hair was a good bit darker. Not quite a brown, but almost.
She pauses, "Which one?"
I keep on my best poker face. Now is when things got difficult. If I say the wrong thing, she could see right through me. Although I look like a hunter and that I belong here, I would know nothing about the vampire experiments at all. It wasn't common knowledge. Knowing about the human experiments could get me killed. Or worse.
I put on a dumb face, "I believe it started with an M? Although it could have been an N."
She looks back at her computer. "Could it have been Noorsham?"
Panic slams through me, could she be testing me? Or should I go with it? Should I still act dumb? Like I'd forgotten? "That could have been it." I say, thinking.
"It's the only Dave N or M we have." She states.
I try to keep myself from looking too panicked. I felt like I was in the middle of a huge lake, with a thin layer of ice over it. At any moment the ice could break, and I would drown. Or, end up as some human experiment in this case.
"Must have been that then. Dave Noorsham." I say. Although I felt like I had jumped off a clift. But I was taking a chance. Anything to be let into the building without suspicion. Had I played the game good enough? Would they let me through? Is she calling down some supreme power to strike me down?
A small smile appears on her face, "Head down this way, take your first left. I'll tell him to meet you in the room at the end of that hall."
I try to keep myself from sighing too hard, "Oh, Thank you!" I head in the direction she had pointed, but pass the first left. I had to disappear in this place. I couldn't see any obvious security cameras but that didn't mean they weren't watching. The place reminded me of a hospital. White walls with grey everything else maybe some blue if they wanted something to pop. It was suffocating and made me want to run. After all, I hated hospitals.
They were used to people coming in armed, so I still had all my weapons. That scared me more than anything else could. It meant they didn't fear me. They knew they could beat me either way. With or without my sword.
I search the area, hiding whenever I heard someone coming. I pause when I find a stairwell. Opening the door I was glad to see it lead down as well as up. I look over the rails, seeing that it was empty, I jump over landing on the next platform below. It was as low as the stairs went. The door in front of me was locked, but by nothing fancy. I use my credit card to slide between the wall and door, unhitching the lock. I open the door slowly, peeking through the slit, looking for anyone that might catch me. My heart slamming in my chest. I kill monsters! I didn't infiltrate buildings that did human experimentation!
I wait for a guy in a white robe to pass before entering. I follow him a ways before I hear someone coming the other way and jump back into the nearest room, closing the door behind me until there was only a small crack to peek through. The room was empty and bottles, needles, flasks and all kinds of other things were lying around, with spinning machinery and microscopes. Although the thing that caught my attention were the bags of blood and leather things hanging from the ceiling. They reminded me of a muzzle, only it looked like it would fit a person. Or maybe a vampire.
A chill runs down my back. I had no problems killing vampires, but I tried to get it over with. I'd never really thought about it before, but I didn't want to see vampires suffering too much either. I hated fighting werewolves because it took so long to kill them. In the meantime, it was obvious that they were in pain. Monster or not, the sound of a creature crying out in pain always cuts through you. My father had once told me that they don't actually feel pain, but rather they did it to seem human. But, the older I got, the more I saw their pain in their eyes. But, it was me or them and I sure was not going to be the one to die. Despite what people say, I don't have a death wish.
Once the coast was clear, I head back out, looking for the elevator that Michelle had mentioned. First I would need a key card. It occured to me that I could jump one of them and steal it. But, chances are that most if not all of these people have some sort of training if they were working around vampires and humans alike. I still had a broken arm, I was at a disadvantage. I find another man, carrying a large bag of blood. Whether it was human or vampire, I had no idea. Either way, I didn't like it.
I follow behind as carefully as I could and as far away as I could manage without losing the guy. I manage to get lost in the wooden, tunnel-like place with doors and rooms around almost every corner. It looked chaotic. Probably so anyone who came down would get lost. Thus, getting captured. Although they probably wouldn't be expecting a hunter.
I go around the next corner and pause. I had lost the guy. I clench my teeth, angrily. I was running out of patience and I hadn't even seen an elevator. There were plenty of people roaming around, but I was mostly lost.
"And what exactly are you looking for?" A voice behind me asks. A chill runs down my back, like an ice cube sliding down my spine, I never even heard him.