Daysleeper Chap. 8

Jan 20, 2008 16:06

Author: Malicia Starling
Rating: PG-13 -ish
Bookverse or TVverse: TVverse
Spoiler: Story started after 'Norman'
Disclaimer: Vicki, Henry, Mike and Coreen are not my characters, they belong to the amazing Tanya Huff and various networks. No copyright infringement intended and definitely no money being made. Please don't sue me!
Summary: Vicki has fallen ill Henry takes the opportunity to get closer, realistic to the show. Intended to be novel length starts after the episode Norman. Please review thank you!

Word count: 2,470

Chapter 8


Chapter 8

Later that day she and Coreen were contemplating the rash of adultery that, to Vicki, seemed to sweep the city. She’d had over twenty cases of spouses coming in to have their loved ones spied on. In every single one it seemed the affected spouse was acting erratically so much so that there was reports of irregular behavior at work by friends, coworkers, everyone. Usually most cheaters tried to keep a normal routine. But not these people. Vicki was feeling much better and though her coughing fits were still long and painful, she was not going to go to bed again. Coreen was a loss for what to do, but she tried to keep pushing cups of tea on Vicki instead of coffee.

“What could make people act out of character at home on the job and hang out with new people? Probably not in that order. But look Coreen they all seem to be acting like drug addicts.” She’d made notes on a large piece of paper on her desk with quick descriptions for each subject of an “investigation”, I can’t believe I’m calling these cheaters the subjects of my “ investigations”, its nothing more than boredom. She tried not to think about it but it was too neat and similar, to believe it was really boredom.

“Why do you say drug addicts?” Queried Coreen. She was very much out of the loop when it came to drugs even if she did dress so differently. “Maybe they’re just odd, come on Vicki why don’t you go take a nap?” Vicki never wanted to be in bed that much again, she tried involving Coreen further.

“Help me here we’re going to go through as many of the recordings as we can. These are just the beginnings where they’re just talking, I want to see if I can find any sort of clues, also pull up all of the boyfriends and girlfriends names I want to see if they have anything in common.” Listening to hours and hours of audio might shut up Coreen for a while, thought Vicki triumphantly.

It took the rest of the day but she and Coreen had to stop periodically to attend to those who dropped in. Also she met with the last few clients who she’d had to cancel on because of her stay in the hospital. Together the drop-ins and the established clients kept them really busy, it drained Vicki but she wouldn’t admit to it. Especially since showing that she was tired would probably result in Coreen locking the door to anyone else. She resorted to taking caffeine pills just so she didn’t fall asleep and while they helped her breathe better, she ended up getting the shakes.

Finally as the sun was setting, she was laying down on the couch, listening to more audio taking quick notes about what they talked about. It wasn’t very hard because the conversations were short once they were in the parked cars or in a hotel room. But she was getting too tired to keep her eyes open long enough to take notes.

“Maybe it’s another incubus.” Offered Coreen, seeming a little too happy about that prospect in Vicki’s view. “Perhaps we should call Emmanuel-”

“No Emmanuel wasn’t in any of those pictures and not all the cheaters were women, it was almost evenly divided. It just seems like something is wrong.” She put a hand on her eyes, they were sore from all the reading. Then another coughing fit hit her. Coreen had come into Vicki’s side of the office and found her on the couch with a hand on her eyes. Coreen didn’t want to say anything that might make her mad. When she was done coughing, Coreen handed her a blanket and turned off half the lights.

“No Coreen I’m not going to sleep I’m just going to rest my eyes a bit. Do you have any other ideas any other connections you’ve come across?”

“Perhaps Emmanuel can shape-shift.” Coreen wasn’t really trying too hard, she was busy trying to find Dr. Woods’ number and keeping an eye on the little cup ‘o soup in the microwave. She’d actually burned them before so it was a risky move but she really didn’t want to leave Vicki long enough to get her something fresh.

“I don’t think that would explain their erratic behavior, the women in the ‘shouka’ class all had remarkably cohesive stories not to mention he’d have to be pretty adept and powerful to shape-shift so often. At least I think so, I’ll have to ask Henry when he gets here. Have you run any checks against their occupations? Any commonalities?” Coreen was more than a little stuck on Emmanuel as a suspect, probably because she wanted to do her own investigation. Thought Vicki, if it came down to it we could always use Coreen as bait and have her summon him so they could question him. Vicki started coughing again and this time she fell asleep. She woke up to Henry lifting her from the couch.

“No Henry seriously I’m awake, put me down I’ve got work to do.” More coughing, but he set her down on the couch anyways. He handed her a tissue.

“Vicki what are you doing?” He was distressed at finding her once again working so soon, when she obviously was still in pain. Every time he coughed he could hear her heart beating wildly, and with her regular clothes on she looked too skinny. If it was possible he thought she might have lost more weight.

“Working what’s it look like?” Henry clenched his jaw and tried not to say anything. Instead he went to go talk to Coreen. “What has she been doing all day?”

“Meeting with clients and going through the last twenty or so cheating spouses cases, she thinks they’re too many of them that there has to be some commonality. Also it looks like she just got another ten cases.” And it looks like I might get paid after all this week she thought privately.

“And you don’t?” He said it quietly letting Vicki’s coughing cover his voice. Coreen shrugged, not wanting to say anything detrimental. “One more thing Coreen, why are you letting her do all this? She clearly isn’t ready for it.” His irritation was evident in his voice and he seemed to become menacing. She was unfazed.

“No one lets me do anything, Henry. I do what I want and you’re not going to yell at her for something she couldn’t stop me from doing.” Vicki was standing, hands on her hips eyes blazing, though puffy, and her nose was red.

“Victoria-”

“Vicki!” She shouted. His eyes flashed at her but he closed them and sat down, trying to get his head around how the past few nights had been so perfectly peaceful. Oh right the massive amounts of drugs in her system might have changed things. He clenched his jaw, glaring at her.

“Look Henry you can help me or not but leave her alone.” She returned to her desk, it was as small of an apology as she would make. She tried to keep steady on her feet and willed herself to have some strength. Henry wasn’t infuriated as much as he was concerned and confused about her sudden snappish behavior, not so usual for Vicki, but… he thought things had changed a bit. The rest of the night passed with the three pored over the scraps of a pattern only Vicki could see. She tried explaining to them that if all of the new adultery cases, there was seven of them, turned out to be real and not just suspicions then she was right. They listened to her and even agreed, but Henry refused to take her out tonight.

"No Vicki, I'll do them myself tonight, but you aren't in any shape to be outside in a cold car." Vicki couldn't help but be relieved she already felt exhausted. But she refused to tell him that. She told him not to bother doing them tonight, giving him some vague reason having to do with needing some help to do research. She just didn't want him to leave, but she couldn't say it and the realization just made her crankier.

Everything pissed her off, one minute Henry wasn’t paying enough attention and the next he was too close “crowding her space”. Coreen was trying to look up several things on the net while Henry was set to reading through every reference to love, adultery or addictive behaviors in the various tomes Coreen had dug up. That included quite a few medical books that Vicki had for symptoms of drug addictions.

Everything about Henry was grating on Vicki’s nerves. The way she would catch him watching her over whatever he was supposed to be reading, the way he liked to hold her gaze when she did catch him, she was even annoyed at his cologne. She could swear he was wearing too much; the reality was that she probably couldn’t concentrate with him in the room. Even the way he readily understood everything in the medical books. She usual appreciated competence but she couldn’t right now, and she was so hyper-aware of their recent closeness… scared how much she’d come to rely on Henry. She caught herself wanting to fall asleep, her head nodding over a file and thinking, I hope Henry didn’t see that. Even in her weariness she managed to yell at the two of them and finally tried to kick them both out around midnight. Coreen was very tired, her eyes bloodshot and wanted to leave quickly. Henry gave her a ride home. In the car he apologized for being snappy.

“I’m sorry that I may have seemed so demanding but the truth is you can’t let her do what she wants. She’s not strong enough to be doing this all day Coreen.”

“I know you think it’s easy to get Vicki to cooperate but it’s not Henry. I’m tired of being yelled at you know. I know the last couple of nights you were able to take care of her but I’m here during the day you know. Point is I know she doesn’t mean it but with you it’s like you don’t know I’m a person too.” The little goth was tearing. Henry offered her a handkerchief.

“I’m really sorry Coreen, I mean it.” Henry looked at her and vamped her, his voice changing eyes going black and said, “You will remember to keep Vicki from hurting herself anymore? Which is what she’s going to do if you don’t take better care of her. Don’t let her work so much. And you’re going have to forgive my rudeness. Go be calm.” He released her and she stopped her crying perking up into her usual self.

He felt a slight tinge of regret but that fled when he was surprised by a kiss on the cheek by Coreen. “Thanks so much Henry.” She was out of the car before he could vamp her again. Giving her a ride home was a bad idea.

He went back to Vicki’s office angry that she was still working. He contemplated sitting outside her window so he could keep an eye on her and not fight with her. Deciding against it he went back up to her door and going into it he noticed something was wrong with the light in her office, and the faint smell of blood. He found Vicki had fainted and knocked over a lamp on her way down. His heart raced as he checked her for injuries; while he did he noticed she was much too hot. Her fever was back, he found a cut on her lip, and she didn’t wake up during his checking her. He lifted her ever so carefully and took her to the couch turning off all the lamps then proceeding to find her a set of sweats and stood over her about to change her. He couldn’t do it though because he was afraid of her reaction, and was willing to wait the rest of the night just watching her kneeling next to her on the couch. The blood called to him, gently.

Slowly he bent to her gently kissing her on the lips, sucking softly on the blood. He felt the heat literally radiating from her in her fever, so hot on his lips it felt like he was being burnt, every nerve his body seemed to be on alert from her heat and his rising need for her, she smelled so Vicki and not at all sick. He savored the little bit of blood, and would have stayed kissing her but there was the smallest of moans within her that he could hear. With his tongue he dipped into her mouth slightly to close the wound. She tasted slightly spicy, and what was that extra taste overly sweet and with a slight burn? Was it cough syrup? And suddenly she was kissing him back, her mouth opening to his, responding to him. It startled him but enflamed him. The moment stretched forever and Henry lost track of time until he remembered… The cough syrup the fever, she’s sick, I shouldn’t be taking advantage of her. Reluctantly he stopped kissing her. She moaned when he withdrew and his heart thundered in his ears, terrified that she’d waken to his moment of weakness.

He watched her face willing his heart to beat quieter. And then he saw her lips move imperceptibly, and she said ever so softly, “Mmm… Henry”. He was very, very tense (because he couldn’t admit to being scared and aroused), and decided that the time had come for him to leave. But he couldn’t make himself leave. He glanced at the clock... still two more hours 'til dawn. So he forced himself to sit and draw, though he ended up pacing a lot more. She started mumbling, it looked like it was a bad dream and he tried to wake her gently but she kept thrashing. She finally woke up after a bad dream.

Henry made sure to give her fluids as she was dozing off again he held her and said in her ear. “Vicki you need to stop this you know you can’t keep pushing yourself, please for me.” He wasn’t going to yell at her but he had to get her to understand. He stayed as usual until the last possible moment when he only had a matter of minutes to get back to his place. He tried to feel bad about kissing her when she was asleep but somehow it only succeeded in turning him on, peaking his need. He’d try harder tomorrow to feel bad about it.

daysleeper, bt, stories

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