Part 2

Dawn was pacing back and forth in the waiting room, wringing the sheath of her sword in her hands while she mumbled under her breath. She stopped and stared at the closed door to Konrad's office.

"Goddamnit," she said. "I could have found her by now. On my own!"

"Hey," Philip interrupted from the sofa, he was keeping his voice low. After all, disturbing Melissa and Konrad right now was probably the best way to ensure he'd never see Alexandra again. "I'm worried too. She's my friend you know."

Dawn shot him an angry look before she frowned and started to pace again.

"And," Philip added. "You stomping back and forth over the floor, almost making the paintings go askew, aint gonna make them faster..."

"Shut it junior!"

"Yeah?" Philip smirked as he leaned back in the sofa. "And exactly how old are you? To me you don't look a day over..."

In a whirlwind of activity Dawn unsheathed her sword and lashed out with it toward Philip's neck. Philip yelped as he tried to push his back through the sofa backrest. The tip of the sword scratched the underside of his chin, forcing his head back until he was staring at Dawn along the back of his nose.

"I wasn't referring to age," Dawn said.

The only light in Dr. van Alten's office was a lonely candle standing on the table beside the desk. Melissa was sitting in one of the chairs by the table and Konrad in the other.

"Slow, deep, breaths," van Alten said with a monotonous voice. "Still looking into the flame. Relaxed. Slow. Deep. Breathe in. Out."

Melissa heard his voice through a soft, darkness that had her in a comfortable hold. She drew in a breath.

"You now feel calm, relaxed and safe. Calm. Relaxed. Safe. A sphere of light emerges from your body and encloses you. A sphere of warm, soft light. The light becomes stronger and stronger and it shields you from everything around you. Keeps you safe. Stronger, bright..."

Melissa sneezed.

"... er," Konrad said and sighed.

"Fuck!" Melissa moaned and opened her eyes. "It's not working. We're wasting time!"

"You need to stop concentrating on getting a vision and start working on your trance," Konrad said. "Now once more."

Melissa sunk down in her seat. "It's useless. It's better we get out and search for her."

"No, once more."

Melissa sighed and leaned on her head. "I give up," she mumbled. Then, just as she had given up all hope, just as if the hope alone was keeping it away from her, she felt the familiar tingle in her neck. She gasped and sat straight. The tingle disappeared. Relax, she told herself. It's useless, I... I can't control faith, I can only take what's given to me... The tingle came back, followed by the buzz in her head, and the light behind her eyelids transformed into images.

Alexandra was lying on her back, her body was twitching from side to side, shaking, convulsing. She was surrounded by a blue circle on the floor. Melissa moaned when she saw a shadow rising from Alexandra's chest, clawing at her tossing body, making her scream. Alexandra was dying.

Melissa opened her eyes and stared in panic at Konrad. "My God!" she whispered before the vision took hold of her again.

Melissa was lying on her back. Something wet and sticky was running from inside her, staining her thighs, gliding down between her buttocks and making her slippery and squishy. She noticed her hands were dug into the blanket she was lying on, and she was shaking. She was Alexandra, and Alexandra was fighting for her life. She saw Keshet leaning over her.

"Leave her," she said and pushed a window open. Keshet slid through the window and landed on the street outside in a graceful movement. She looked around. The sign with the street name burned into Melissa's eyes.

"I know where it is!" Melissa rasped and forced herself to stand. "They are going to kill Alexandra!"

Konrad jumped to his feet, just in time to catch Melissa as she fell over. "Take it easy," he said and helped her back into her chair. "It was a vision, it may have been several days from now. Take it easy."

"No, it's just gonna happen, any minute! We have to hurry!" The last words was sobbed. Melissa feared that they were already too late, that what she had seen was already happening.

"Did you see Alexandra?"

"She was in pain." Melissa managed to get on her feet again.

"We'd better go get her then."

"We're late. We need to go now. Alexandra is in darkness, she had darkness around her." Melissa turned to Konrad. "The darkness of the soul."

"We're getting her now," he said and pushed the door to the waiting room open.

"About time," Dawn said as she saw Melissa walking through the door. "Me and junior here..." She saw the expression on Melissa's face. "What's happened?"

"Alexandra is in danger!" Melissa replied and grabbed her coat.

"If you two are done quarreling," Konrad added, "maybe you'd grace us with your assistance?"

"I'm ready," Dawn said and begun strapping her sword to her side.

"Uh," Philip said and stood. "I'm ready too, but I don't have much more than my fists to fight with."

Konrad glanced at him before he went into his office again. A few moments later he came back with a handgun. "I trust you won't shoot me or any other innocent person with this, if possible use it only to threat and let Dawn take care of the killing."

Philip looked down at the gun he'd been handled. "I thought guns wouldn't harm them."

"They don't kill them," Dawn said. "You hurt them, I decapitate them, we'll be a team junior."

"Don't call me junior."

Dawn grinned at him.

"We don't have time!" Melissa said from the door.

"Dawn," Konrad said. "Can you drive?" He reached his car keys over to her.

"Sure," she said and took the keys.

Konrad placed his hand on Melissa's shoulder. "You remember where Alexandra was?"

"Yes! Hanover Road."

"You know where on Hanover Road?"

Melissa shook her head. "Somewhere on Hanover Road."

"Then let's go there."

Dawn pursed her lips and gazed at Melissa. "If she's really there..."

"She's there!" Melissa said and left the waiting room.

Marius' fingers were digging into Alexandra's arms as he held them down, pressing them into the mattress. He was balancing on the verge of orgasm. Alexandra could hear it in his breathing. She could feel it inside. He was moving cautiously back and forth with short, jerky moves. Now and then the pleasure took him over and a prolonged groan left him. He held Alexandra's arms in an iron grip. He was holding her too hard, she wanted to protest, but she was scared.

"Are you ready, pigeon," he gasped into her ear. "Are you fucking ready?"

She was afraid to look up at him but she tried to answer anyway. First she just croaked, then she cleared her throat, "Yes," her voice shivered. If he came he would be satisfied and maybe leave her alone before he moved his hands. Closed them around her neck. Squeezed harder and harder. Lost in his pleasure. Unable to hear or see anything else. "Please come," she breathed and something broke inside of her.

The last bit of self-control left him as he pumped into her again and with a throaty gasp he pulled back, pushed in, threw his head back and cried out his pleasure. Alexandra clenched her teeth and fought back a cry of her own.

The impossible happened. As she felt the first spurts of his semen shooting into her a gigantic wave of pleasure washed over her. It was almost like pain, but it made her body hum, and it scared her. She tried to channel the strong emotion by screaming. She tried to get away from it. Squirmed and trashed on the bed, but the sensation held her and shook her as if she'd been a kite in a hurricane. Through the twirl of emotions she heard a weak voice in her head asking how it was possible that such a beast could make her feel like this.

He shoved into her again and every atom in her body felt the penetration. Blood red filled her vision as pain and pleasure washed through her in an insane mix. Her world grew dark when the sensation became too strong and the last thing she remembered was a shrill, piercing sound she had to assume was her own scream.

Alexandra was gone for little over a minute during which Keshet and Gail looked at each other in astonishment. "I'll be damned," Keshet said. "He may be an asshole but apparently he can fuck."

Phoenix rolled his eyes and sighed. "Moron," he said and got on his feet. When he got into the bedroom Alexandra was just regaining her consciousness while Marius was still lying limp on top of her. Phoenix knelt on the bed, gently pushing Marius off of her and placing him by her side.

"How are you?" he asked.

"God that was good," Alexandra replied. "I'm not sure what's up and what's down."

Phoenix chuckled. "It'll settle in a couple of minutes."

He got up and peered into the living room since he thought he had heard one of the women curse. The room was empty. He shrugged and turned back to Alexandra. With a sigh he started to unbuckle his belt.

"I hate sloppy seconds."

Alexandra started giggling. "Are you gonna do me too?" she asked. "Will the two witches do me then?"

"Only me," Phoenix said as he got up on the bed and squatted between Alexandra's spread legs. "Raise your butt. That's better."

Between giggles, Alexandra noticed that he was penetrating her. The sensation form her first orgasm was still making her body tingle. Actually, the sensation made her laugh. Soon she noticed that he was making her feel good, and her giggles turned into moans. She started pushing back up at him.

"That's my girl," Phoenix said between breaths. "Show me what you got!"

Keshet stormed into the room. "They're here, we need to get going right away."

"They?" Phoenix asked and stared up at her.

"Aure and the other's."

"Fuck! This really can't wait."

"I can give them candles and flowers," Alexandra said. "They'll..."

Phoenix started pounding away into her with fast, hard shoves. "Oh! Cowboy!" Alexandra said and laughed.

"What the fuck!" Keshet said. "They'll hear her!"

"Cum! Cum! Cum!" Phoenix chanted into Alexandra's ear as he kept up his speed.

"I said," Keshet frowned as she placed her hands on her hips and stared down at the scene in front of her. "They're coming. What are you? Deficient?"

"I need," Phoenix panted.

"Yeah, your needs are gonna get you killed."

Gail entered the room. Gave Phoenix and Alexandra a single glance before she turned to the only window in the room.

"We're leaving through this window." She nodded at Marius. "Get him with you. If Phoenix wanna stay and play, that's his problem."

Phoenix moaned and grabbed Alexandra's hair. "When I tell you to come," he hissed into her ear, "you comply."

Alexandra's hands grabbed in the air. She buried her face in the mattress and stared pushing back up at him. Phoenix increased the speed even more. Alexandra's buttocks were hurting but the pain drowned in the sensations between her legs. She screamed into the mattress as she came again.

"Stop!" Melissa said. "It's here!"

The car was traveling down Hanover Road towards an alley ending in the railing between the houses and the railroad.

"Left?" Dawn asked as she stepped on the brakes.

"Yes!"

"How close?" Konrad asked.

"Just here! That window!"

"Pull over there," Konrad said.

They hid behind a hedge just outside the house Melissa had indicated.

"Okay," Dawn whispered. "Here's the plan. You three are on lookout in case someone is trying to sneak out, sneak in or if something else happens. I'm going in and trying to get her out."

"I'm going too," Philip replied with an intense whisper.

Dawn ignored him.

"How are you going to find them?" Konrad asked.

"I'm kicking in every door."

"I'm sure Melissa could show you the exact door."

They all looked at Melissa. "Maybe," she hesitated. "I've had some... residue images before..."

"Before?" Konrad said but shook his head. "Later. We're going too."

"And who's going to be on lookout?" Philip asked.

"I can help Melissa if we need more visions from her," Konrad said.

There was a silent moment before Philip sighed. "I'll be lookout, and I swear to god, if you don't bring Alex back..."

Dawn gave him a stern gaze before she shook her head and turned to Konrad. "You're following me to the door, and no further. The rest is up to me!"

Konrad nodded. Melissa frowned.

Dawn unsheathed her sword. As they advanced towards the door it was obvious this was a common thing for Dawn but not so for Konrad and Melissa. They were tripping, sliding and making all sorts of noise. Dawn glared back at them more than once, but finally they reached the darkness in the porch.

"What floor?" whispered Dawn.

Konrad took Melissa by the shoulders but she shrugged him off, opened the door and stepped into the porch. Dawn frowned, unsure she wanted the other woman so close to possible danger but as far as she could tell there was no other way.

Melissa placed her hands on the first door, then leaned her head against it, almost as if she was listening. After a while she shook her head and stepped over to the other door. They waited a little longer before she stepped away from that door as well.

"Second floor?" Konrad said.

Melissa nodded and climbed the staircase. Dawn stole past her and gave the second floor a suspicious inspection before Melissa was allowed up.

This time Melissa hesitated longer before she dismissed the first door. At the second door she gasped and stepped back. Finally, at the third door, she hissed and jolted back. Her hands shook and balled into fists.

"She's there... she burns, she cries in darkness." Melissa sunk back, too tired to even breathe. Konrad pulled her away from the door.