Saving Dakota (Vampires of Blood and Bones #19)

CHAPTER FOUR

T errance was thrilled to have been able to move their connection forward. Dakota was a straightforward kind of guy and didn’t waste time. He had a few questions based on his feelings and he wasn’t shy about getting clarity. The relationship was out there now, and Terrance could begin building their bond but first they needed to find Eric Blackbird.

Terrance figured the Sheriff’s office was a good place to start in order to set hard feelings aside and get everyone on the same page and working toward the same goal. Dakota seemed a bit resistant at first but came around. His hostility toward Lawson was deep and set, considering they only had a handful of contacts. Lawson screwed this up spectacularly.

He guided Dakota out to his vehicle, and they were soon on their way. "Your Master is very old and very powerful. I felt that stare right to my bones." Dakota stated.

“Yes, he is." He answered with a subtle smile covering both points. "Master DuCane and his second, Ismael Patronne, came to this area when the French were immigrating many centuries ago."

“The DuCane Coven controls this area?”

“It controls most of Michigan and parts of Ohio.” Terrance clarified.

"The covens in the western U.P. are not as organized or civilized as those in the east or lower peninsula. They tend to be hostile and aloof, so I apologize for assumptions I have made about you and yours." The apology surprised Terrance, as did the description of the covens up north.

He planned to discuss the matter with Master DuCane at a later time. They had taken over most of the covens in Ohio because of behaviors that put them, the vampire community, in jeopardy. Perhaps the Western U.P. deserved the same scrutiny. They soon pulled up out front of the Sheriff's office and headed inside.

"I understand your feelings regarding Deputy Lawson, and I am sorry he was so bad at his job when dealing with you. But with that said, Sheriff Keller and the other officers are very good at their jobs, so please give them a chance." Terrance placed his hand on Dakota's back, enjoying the contact and lending some support before they entered the station. Dakota nodded with a tight look of concern but did not speak. He was clearly not ready to be friends with the local authorities as of yet.

To say that their arrival was not expected would be an understatement. Lawson was across the room speaking with one of the other deputies and Sheriff Kass Keller was in his office. The minute he and Dakota stepped inside Lawson moved towards them and his stance was still adversarial until Terrance took a sidestep moving to put himself between Lawson and Dakota. The man was being a complete jerk.

Lawson didn’t say anything, but his expression spoke loudly of his continued dislike and disdain. “I’d like you to meet Detective Lieutenant Dakota Winters from the Lac Vieux Desert Reservation in Watersmeet.”

Lawson should have checked him out and should have been aware that he was dealing with a fellow officer, but he'd chosen to be an asshole from the start instead. Now, he had the nerve to look surprised. Kass came out of his office at that moment, obviously having just finished a phone conversation with Master DuCane. He did not look happy.

Kass looked at Lawson who gave him his attention immediately. “Go to my office and stay there. I will be with you as soon as I’m finished here.” He said and his tone was short and clipped. Lawson did not argue and left the room disappearing into the back office.

Kass made his apologies to Dakota for himself and for Deputy Lawson. “Assumptions were made by us all and it would be best to put it behind us now and work together to find Eric Blackbird.” Dakota accepted the apology with no anger or sarcasm. He didn’t seem to have a problem with Kass. Terrance was impressed with Dakota’s rational attitude.

He truly was a man who saw the bigger picture and avoided petty pitfalls and obstacles. It became clear how he achieved his position at such a young age and also why he was given the task of finding Eric in a land laden with the unknown and the supernatural. His beloved was a thoroughly competent investigator and a very intriguing man.

They shared information with Kass, giving him a copy of the missing person's report and the progress of Traverse City detectives, which was mostly nothing. "I am sorry that we didn't take it seriously, especially when his sister and you contacted us for updates. With that said, we were sincerely under the impression that he had left voluntarily, just as the Traverse people had intimated."

“He was scheduled to start work as a dealer at the local casino, a job he trained for, and had waited a long time for an opening. He'd worked minimum wage until this position came his way, and he would not have just blown it off. He had plans that included college and working his way up in tribal politics he wouldn't have run away from something he saw as his future.” Dakota was adamant that Eric was a solid individual with clear goals and not someone searching for himself or needing to run away.

“What about this Ivy Lee?” Kass asked.

"No one has seen or heard from her, although the cashier at the café said that Eric referred to a friend who wasn't feeling well. I've found no one that has actually seen her in town.”

“Are they a couple?”

"No, just good friends, according to Eric. She isn't from the reservation, but they met working in town at the pizza shop last year." He paused for a moment and then added. "Eric is gay, and as far as I know, he hasn't had any serious relationships in that regard."

“Whose idea was the trip to Traverse City?” Terrance asked thinking that perhaps Ivy wasn’t the person they were assuming.

"His sister Paula said they announced it together, and Eric made it sound like something they decided on as a nice getaway before he started his new job." Dakota glanced at Terrance, reading his meaning and giving him a slight nod. "Ivy, although friends with Eric, never got close with his family or spent time on the reservation."

"Ethan completed a background check on Ivy Lee," Terrance announced as he got the notice and skimmed through it quickly. "She's still in Traverse City staying with a cousin. She said that Eric continued on to Mt. Pleasant to do some fishing, but according to her, he wasn't planning on staying long." As he finished the report, Sheriff Keller got an alert.

"They found his vehicle." He announced the location and gave it to Terrance. "Deputy Walsh will go with you." Terrance patted Dakota on the arm, and he followed him out the door. Terrance noticed Kass heading into his office and considered the fact that he would not want to be Lawson right now. Kass was a stickler for professionalism and treating everyone with respect two things that were sorely lacking in Lawson’s treatment of Detective Lieutenant Winters.

He could feel Dakota’s excitement about the lead and hoped it rendered further information as to Eric’s whereabouts. “It was spotted by a DNR officer by the river south of town. It’s a popular spot for fishing so he might have gone there with that goal in mind.” Terrance offered.

"That doesn't explain why he hasn't answered his phone or why he has not contacted his sister in over a week," Dakota stated.

“True.” Terrance added and he started to wonder as to whether or not Eric would be found alive. The possibility of a tragedy having taken place was high and he was sure that Dakota was thinking the same thing.

“He may have suffered an accident.” Dakota put it out there. “I honestly don’t feel the heaviness of death I feel that Eric is here somewhere, and my intuition is usually correct.” Terrance reached over placing his hand over Dakota’s. To his delight Dakota took his hand and held it in a grip that was firm and purposeful. Terrance enjoyed the aura of his beloved and the enveloping scent of his presence.

Silence took them after getting into the SUV and heading out, both caught up in their own thoughts. After about twenty miles, Terrance ultimately pulled off the road and onto the state park land leading to the river. He hoped so hard that Eric was not dead he didn’t want to present his beloved with something so disheartening and sad. He wanted to find this young man well and in one piece for the sake of Dakota.

“This boy is important to you.” Terrance sensed that there was more to the assignment than just a law officer searching for a missing person.

"Eric's parents died when he was twelve, and his sister Paula, who had a life elsewhere and was building a career, dropped everything to come home and raise him. She gave up a lot and put her life on hold in order to provide for him." Dakota was on the edge of becoming emotional, but after a few deep breaths, he continued. "For everything she sacrificed, it cannot end like this. It can't all be for nothing." Terrance felt his distress and, in that moment, would have done anything to make it go away. He squeezed his hand.

"We'll find him, Dakota." He said it, and it was a pledge.

Terrance pulled up to the turn out by the river and they got out walking a short path to the riverside and saw the small blue Ford. “This is his vehicle.” Dakota announced and began looking it over without touching it. Soon Deputy Walsh arrived, and they did a thorough check of the vehicle. It was perfectly clean no sign of either Eric or Ivy.

"It cleaned out," Dakota stated. "Eric kept his car clean, but not this clean and definitely not while on a fishing trip." Terrance and Deputy Walsh, who was also a vampire, exchanged glances. Both had picked up on the scent of a vampire clinging to the vehicle. It wasn't a DuCane member, and this scent was acrid with tones of decay. It was the smell of rogue, and it sent a chill through them both. It did not bode well for young Eric to be in the company of such a creature, but there was no smell of death not in the vehicle or in the immediate area.

It appeared as though the car was cleaned out and dumped at the river’s edge. There was no evidence of a human being in it there was only the putrid smell of rogue. Whoever the vampire was they had been touched by some sort of black magic.

It could perhaps be the young vampire that Caleb had warned them about. He relayed all of this to Walsh when Dakota wandered to the water's edge and crouched down, staring into the water.

Walsh called it in requesting additional officers to search the area. Terrance walked over to Dakota and stood next to him and waited. “Eric was never here. I don’t feel his presence. Someone other than him brought that car here and parked it for us to find.”

“I agree with you and so does Walsh. They’re canvassing the city to hopefully find out where he was staying before he disappeared. It will give a starting point in our search. Sheriff Keller will keep us informed.” Terrance tried to give him some hope.

"I checked all the cheaper motels and flop joints, and he hadn't stayed at any of them. I think whatever happened took place shortly after he arrived in town. He is a very capable outdoorsman and would have no problem camping almost anywhere. It leaves the possibilities wide open." Dakota continued to stare at the water as he spoke with Terrance.

Terrance was getting a strange vibe from the river, and he was pretty sure Dakota was feeling it, too. He placed his hand on Dakota's shoulder and squeezed, and Dakota leaned into it. "What do you feel?" Dakota asked. "Every nightwalker I've known has had the ability to scent out people, beings, and even highly charged situations." He turned and looked up at Terrance.

"He wasn't in the car when it was dumped here. The scent inside the car is sharp and acrid, indicating something otherworldly is involved, just as you thought." Terrance was careful with what he said, not wanting to give too much supernatural information until he was sure of Dakota's understanding.

“Otherworldly?” He asked with a slight squint.

“Not human.” Terrance clarified.

“I’d like to walk the river for a ways.” Dakota requested without further comment on the word, otherworldly, and Terrance nodded and fell into step beside him. “I’m getting something from these waters.” He announced after a few minutes of silence. “It’s not powerful but still hanging in the air. Probably not from Eric or whoever it was that stole his car.” Dakota was speaking his thoughts as he ruminated over the information he knew and what he was feeling.

"Not long ago, a water mage used this river to escape detention. His beloved, a powerful vampire mystic, followed him, and he used the river to follow him. It could be their essence that you are feeling." Terrance offered an explanation.

"It all worked out for the best, I hope." Dakota flashed a smile that set everything in Terrance's heart and mind on fire. The wash of pleasure that came over him at that slight expression was stunning.

“It turned out nice for both of them and the DuCane coven gained a very powerful alliance.” Dakota stopped and looked around then looked up at Terrance.

“It’s a feeling that’s vibrating in the air.” He held his hand out as if touching something. “Do you feel it, Terrance?"

“No.” Terrance shook his head. “But I believe you’re more intuitive than I regarding subtle differences in aura and atmosphere.”

“Thank you for not writing off my impressions.”

“I never will.” Terrance stated casually but it was a vow. “You’ve shown yourself to be capable and correct. You knew that Lawson was a wolf, that I was a vampire and that DuCane was the Master so why would I not trust your opinion now.” Terrance glanced down when he felt Dakota touch his hand.

"I find your touch comforting and stabilizing." Dakota suddenly changed the subject as if needing to understand. "Every time you touch me, my spirit calms and my mind clears." He continued, and Terrance stayed silent but took Dakota's hand in his and brought it to his lips for a kiss that lingered for a few seconds. He then continued to hold it as they resumed their walk along the edge of the river.

"I chose you because I was drawn to you. You entered my room effortlessly when others could not, and I know that it was not the first time you were there. I recognized your presence when I returned to my room." He glanced up at Terrance, and they stopped and turned to face one another.

“I understand why the Master moved about with ease he’s at a level that far exceeds my abilities to stand strong as a vessel of my shaman’s power. But you should have been thwarted just as the others were.” Dakota searched his face over and over he was looking for something that would answer his questions.

"I sense no heightened powers within you, and yet my protections and the medicine that my shaman put forth are ineffectual. Able is a powerful medicine man and thoroughly prepared me for the experiences and confrontations I would have in this land. Yet you walk effortlessly through every barrier and limitation. I look at you, and I see the thunderbird, the protector." Terrance was freshly astounded by the sensitivity and insight of his beloved and grappled with what to say to him.

“You are my beloved as I said earlier, and I am your protector. Everything you’re feeling is correct and I’m here for you Dakota.” Terrance concurred and was about to explain further when his phone went off and he quickly answered. “Hello.” He said but never took his eyes off Dakota.

“We’ve found Eric Blackbird.” It was Kass calling. “Lawson and Sergeant McShane were combing some of the more obscure local areas and found him behind the Pettiford mausoleum in the Maple Ridge Cemetery. He’s in bad shape and has been taken to the Palace for treatment.”

“Was he dumped there?”

“I believe so or perhaps he escaped either way, it’s not good.”

“Thanks, we’re on our way.” Terrance closed the call and before he could say anything Dakota spoke.

“They found him.”

“Yes.”

“Is he alive?”

“Yes, but he’s not in good shape.”

“Is he being taken to the hospital?” Dakota turned and started back to where they’d parked the car.

“They’re taking him to Coven DuCane.” That statement had Dakota stopping in his tracks and turning to Terrance with a dark and stormy expression.

“Why in the hell would they take him to a coven for treatment?” He said through a clenched jaw.

“His issues are not something a human doctor would understand. Remember the acrid scent from his car?” Dakota nodded. “We believe he was in the company of something dangerous.” Dakota just stared at him for several seconds processing what Terrance wasn’t saying and then nodded his head.

"Let's go then. I need to see him." They jogged quickly back to their vehicle and took off for the Palace.