Shadows of the Night

alright. here we go. just a short thingie to let you know what i have going on here. this is something from my own imagination. it will probably run dark and not so very nice things will happen in it. there may or may not be smut. don\'t know yet. but i thought i would warn you, just the same.

and please, if you read this and find you like it, please let me know what you think. i am most anxious to know how you feel about this particular plot bunny gone mad.

Chapter Four: The Long Dark
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MacKenzie knocked on the door rather impatiently. He\'d already been to his small apartment, but Kat had been gone for some time. He didn\'t think she should be left alone for too long. Not with Niki avidly looking for her. He also didn\'t like the idea of hunting all over town for her, so he thought he would simply start at her apartment and go from there. He could try using his mind to contact her, but he disliked using that method unless there was no other choice. There were still places he could look before he had to resort to that. He would start with the most obvious place and work his way to the more obscure.

The door swung open and he found himself looking at a man who\'s face told of his unhappiness. He could feel the tension in the room. There was a woman sitting on a couch behind him. She was crying and seemed to be terribly lost. The man in the door waited for him to speak, so MacKenzie cleared his throat and offered a tenative smile. \"I\'m here to see Katya,\" he told them both. The girl on the couch sobbed softly and the man frowned at him.

\"She isn\'t here. Just who are you and why do you want her?\" the man asked in a tone that spoke of a feeling of deep protectiveness. MacKenzie stared at him a moment, studying him. He was tall, well over six feet, with dark hair cut short. His eyes were a deep brown, his skin slightly bronzed as if the man spent much of his time outside. He oozed concern and instant dislike. He had feelings for Katya. MacKenzie couldn\'t be sure what kind, but they were there.

\"My name is MacKenzie. I am an old acquaintance of hers. I wished to stop by and see how she was. Is she home?\" he said, managing to sound innocent. He knew full well that Katya wasn\'t there. He couldn\'t feel her presence at all.

\"She\'s not in. I\'ll let her know you stopped by to see her,\" the dark man replied with just enough anger in his tone to let MacKenzie know he wasn\'t welcome.

\"Wait, Terry. Let him in. If he knows Kat...\" the woman stopped and glanced pleadingly to MacKenzie. \"Please. We need to know what she\'s like.\"

There was an earnest tone in her voice. She was pleading to him to help her. He sensed her confusion about something and he guessed that it directly involved Katya. The man, Terry, stepped aside to allow him entrance. MacKenzie stepped in and moved to the woman\'s side silently. She was a tiny thing, petite and pale. Her hair was the color of spun gold and hung to brush her shoulders. She had eyes the color of purest jade. She was beautiful to look upon and it was plain to see that she was deeply troubled. MacKenzie offered her a smile and sat in a chair when she waved her hand at it wordlessly.

\"You wish to know something?\" he asked her, prodding her into speaking. He didn\'t want to be rude, but he had to find Katya. He knew how actively Niki hunted her and the female vampire would not have any problems with being cruel to Katya to get what she wanted. He needed to push this along as quickly as possible. He had to find her. Something inside of him demanded that she be kept safe. No matter what the cost.

\"I do. Lately, Kat has been so.... off. I fear she\'s losing her mind. You know she lost one of her best friends, don\'t you? He was murdered in a bizarre accident and since then, she\'s been so..... remote. I know that she cries at night and she doesn\'t eat and...\" the girl broke off and turned wide eyes to him. \"She was almost completely irrational today. She said some strange things and... Well, I was just wondering. Do you know if she\'s... Is she going insane?\"

He offered her a small smile and shook his head. He suspected that Kat had mentioned to them what troubled her and they took it as a sign of impending insanity. Not that they would understand what it was she spoke of unless they saw it first hand. But they had no knowledge of such supernatural creatures and it was highly likely that their minds couldn\'t comprehend what they couldn\'t see. Until it became real to them, they would believe that it was more an issue of the loss of clear and cognitive thought. Their world was so narrow from his own.

\"Katya is not suffering from any kind of mental break down,\" he assured her in a gentle tone.

\"But this... thing she claims did it. How could that be? I mean...\" the girl was trying desperately not to believe. She didn\'t want to acknowledge that there were things out there that defied explanation. His smile widened a bit. \"Then she\'s not making it up to cope with Jeremy\'s loss?\"

\"No,\" he shook his head. \"She is not making it up. There are always things that exist in this world that one does not know about or cannot see. Because you do not see them does not mean they do not exist.\"

\"I just....\" the girl sighed and he watched as a tear slipped from her eye. \"I\'m so worried about her. I\'ve never seen her act like this. She hasn\'t been herself since this mess started.\"

\"I understand your concern. And I promise you that I will do all I can to help Katya make it through this. So that she will once more be the friend you know and love,\" MacKenzie assured her and was startled to find he meant it. The petite girl stared at him wordlessly for a moment or two, then offered him a blinding, brilliant smile. She hurled herself at him, throwing her arms around him to hug him tightly.

\"Thank you,\" she whispered in his ear. \"Thank you so much.\"

\"It is my honor,\" MacKenzie replied gently. He disentangled himself from her embrace and set her back on the couch. \"I will do my very best to ensure that Katya comes home to you. She needs the love and support of her friends now more than ever.\"

\"This thing... that killed Jeremy,\" she began. He shook his head and motioned her to silence.

\"There are some things you do not need to know. That is one of them. Be happy with the knowledge that Katya is not lost to insanity. Give me time and I will see to it that all is well with her. I promise you this,\" he told her softly. She looked up at him with such open trust that he knew he would keep his word to her. \"I must go. I have to find Katya. There are things that hunt her that she needs protection from.\"

Tami watched him stand and move for the door. The man was so earnestly serious, she had no reason to doubt what he\'d told her. He slipped out of the apartment without another word and she watched as Terry shut the door behind him. \"That one is a lunatic,\" Terry snapped.

\"No, I don\'t think so,\" Tami shook her head. She sighed, knowing he would think her nuts, as well. She just didn\'t know how to explain it. She stood from the couch, moving across the floor to stand at the window. It was full dark out and a shiver of fear skittered up and down Tami\'s spine. She was petrified for Kat. The knowledge that something out there was hunting her was too frightening to consider. What was hunting her and why?

Tami had only known her for a few years, but she felt as if Kat was more a sister than a room mate and friend. To know that she was in trouble made Tami sick to her stomach. She wished she could do something to help her friend. She just didn\'t know what. \"Don\'t tell me you believe what that idiot told you?\" Terry snapped

\"I do. I know I shouldn\'t. I know it sounds like utter rubbish, but I believe him. The story is too outrageous to be anything but the truth, Terry,\" Tami looked at him. He frowned at her, but she went on. \"Think about it. How long have you known Kat? I mean really known her. In that entire time, has she ever acted so strangely? I\'ve never seen her behave like this. And yet, the moment she starts talking crazy, we immediately doubt her. We\'re pretty sad friends if we do that.\"

\"Tami, that guy was pulling your leg,\" Terry shook his head. \"He\'s trying to....\"

\"Stop it, Terry! Just stop it. I know you\'re hurt. I know you blame yourself for what happened to Jeremy. Well, so does Kat. Only she was there and its ten times worse for her than it is for you. Maybe I\'m naïve, but I honestly think he\'s trying to help her. That he is telling us the truth,\" Tami snarled at him angrily. \"I don\'t think she\'d act this way if it were simply a matter of Jeremy\'s death. But something else happened. I know it. I can feel it. I look at Kat and I can see it. She needs our love and support right now.\"

\"Tami, you can\'t mean that you honestly believe that stupid story he told you? For Christ\'s sake, woman. Grow up! He\'s taking advantage of you as easily as he\'s taking advantage of Kat. That man doesn\'t know Kat any better than he knows you or I.\"

\"I believe him, Terry. Nothing you can say will make me think anything else,\" Tami shook her head. \"I only hope he finds Kat before whatever is hunting her does.\"

~*~*~*~*~

She was close. So close. She was crying. Sadness and fear radiated off her. She was ripe. Lust sang in his veins. He wanted her. She was the one. He could tell just by smelling her. The stones blocked him from her view, but he could see her. The wind blew across her, bringing with it her scent. It mingled with the rain, like the smell of lavender floating on the ocean breeze. She was soft and beautiful. She was his salvation.

He leaned into the tree, pressing his hard cock into the rough bark. He wanted to fuck her. He wanted to throw her to the ground and thrust inside of her. He wanted to fuck her senseless and give her his child. She was the savior of his kind. She could bring them life. She could bring them a voice. He knew she could hear him if he tried to talk to her. Not with his mouth, but with his mind. It was a curse of his kind. Most of them had brains, could use them. But for some reason, their mouths didn\'t work with their brains.

There were those of his kind who were lacking in brains. They slobbered and growled and drooled as any animal would. But, as a race, his people were getting smarter. They were evolving. And they knew that this woman, this human female, was the one who could bring them fully into the world. She could give them a place and a voice. She could give them children that didn\'t frighten and look so horrific. She could help them. He knew it.

Through out time, it had been predicted that there would be a female that could help them. A mortal woman would come who could give birth to thier children and lead them out of the darkness and into the light. She was the one.

He could smell her and his hips thrust harder against the tree, his cock driving through the bark and into the wood of the tree. He imagined it was her, that he was spearing his cock into her time and again. She would be soft and supple beneath him. She would be moaning for him. She would come for him. And she would give him a child.

The thought sent him over the edge and he came hard. He felt his seed pour out into the meat of the tree. His claws sank in, tearing through bark and wood as he came. He pulled back, the length of his cock still hard. He was going to take her. He had to have her now. She had him so horny, so in need. He stepped away from the tree to go to her, but stopped when he saw the men approach her.

His need died while his anger grew. Men were always coming between him and his goals. He stared at them, his fingers still clutching at the wood of the tree. He didn\'t notice the bark as it melted off the tree, didn\'t see the wood slowly turn to mush inside the thick trunk. He only had eyes for the two men approaching his woman.

~*~*~*~*~

\"Excuse me, miss. Are you alright?\" the voice startled Kat, bringing her head up out of her hands. It was nearly full dark, only a faint bit of light blue showing in an otherwise black sky. A very thin line of bloodied red hung on the edge of the world, as if it once been a living thing that had been dissected and left to bleed to death. The police officer stared down at her, concern obvious in his eyes. Kat blinked, surprised that she\'d been lost in her thought and memories for so long. The tears had stopped a long time ago, but her eyes still felt gritty and swollen. She could only imagine the picture she presented. \"Miss? Is there something wrong? Do we need to get you some help?\"

\"No,\" she shook her head. \"No, thank you. I\'m fine,\" she put a hand down into the soggy grass to help push her to her feet and found a hand in her face. She offered a smile to the officer and slipped her hand in his. He helped pull her up, studying her as he did so. \"Thank you,\" she smiled at him, reaching down to brush the dirt and mud from the front of her two day old skirt.

She frowned down at the garment. It was beyond soiled now and she didn\'t think it would ever come clean. She could try sending it to the dry cleaners, but she didn\'t think it would be of any use. Mud was caked thickly to the fine wool garment, as well as her hose clad calves. It was cold and heavy and rather uncomfortable. She swore at herself. She didn\'t have a change of clothes with her and she didn\'t want to track mud all over everything.

\"Its getting dark out, miss. You shouldn\'t be wandering around alone at night. There\'ve been some pretty strange attacks happening this last week or so. Why don\'t we escort you to your car?\" the second officer offered politely.

\"That would be nice,\" she replied, trying to gather her wits together. How had the day passed her by without her notice? \"But it really isn\'t necessary. I think I can manage the walk there on my own. I appreciate the concern, though.\"

\"Jim, take a look at her. Does she look familiar to you?\" the first policeman gestured to Kat with one hand. The second studied her closely for several long moments, then his face lit up with recognition.

\"This is the woman they\'re looking for in the Dalton murder, isn\'t it?\" Jim looked at his partner. The first officer nodded and both men gave her their full attention. \"Miss, we\'re going to have to ask that you come with us. If you didn\'t know, you\'re being sought in connection to a murder that happened last night.\"

\"Murder?\" Kat blinked. She hoped they didn\'t think she was the one responisble for it. She glanced between the two of them as they stared at her. She felt uneasy, as if someone was watching her. She glanced around, noting that there was no one there but her and the policemen. Still, she couldn\'t shake the feeling of being spied upon.

\"Yes,\" the first officer nodded, drawing her attention back to him and his partner. \"Would you mind coming down to the station and giving Detective Freeman your statement? I\'m sure its nothing more than a formality.\"

\"Oh, sure,\" she nodded, feeling slightly uncomfortable. Both men motioned toward the exit of the cemetary and Kat started out for it. She hoped they didn\'t see that she was shaking. She could hear them coming up behind her, their uniform shoes making sucking noises in the damp, mucky ground. \"My car is here and I...\"

\"Don\'t worry, miss. We\'ll make sure you get back to your car,\" Jim told her.

\"I wouldn\'t worry too much about this, miss. Its only a formality. Detective Freeman is trying to piece together what happened last night and I\'m sure he only wants to ask you some questions. In fact, from what I\'ve heard, you probably aren\'t even a suspect at all. The man was eviscerated and ripped apart. It almost looks like an animal did it. I think they just want to clear up a few things.\"

Kat nodded mutely. She was still certain that someone watched her from somewhere in the shadows of the cemetary. She recalled MacKenzie\'s warning about Niki and shuddered. She didn\'t want to meet up with that psycho bitch again. As they neared the exit, she glanced back into the darkening burial ground and shuddered.

She was sure she saw a pair of eyes in the shadows, glowing a cruel crimson at her.

~*~

The coffee was cold. And stale. And thick. Kat pushed the paper cup away, rethinking her acceptance of the beverage. She was afraid that she\'d wake with hair on her chest if she drank any more of the potent brew. She stared at the older man with a frown on her face. So far, he hadn\'t asked her any questions. He\'d simply spoken to the officers who had brought her in with them. She was starting to feel slimy in her coating of mud, though she\'d done her best to scrape as much of it off as possible. She needed a shower desperately. Finally, with the sound of shuffling papers, she gave her full attention to the man across the desk from her.

Detective Bill Freeman was at least in his early fifties. He was tall, with a slight belly that hung over his belt. His hair was iron gray and combed back from his face in a severe style that reminded her of her Gram and how the woman used to wear her own hair. He set the papers down, giving her his attention. He looked rumpled and tired, but his face looked open and sincere. \"Miss Fitzsimmons, is it?\"

\"Yes, but please. Call me Kat,\" she gave him a nervous smile.

\"Very well,\" he nodded and gave her his own smile. It was warm and genuine and went a long way toward calming her. He pulled a manilla file off the top of a pile of them and opened it up. She watched as he thumbed through it, pulling out a glossy sheet of what she guessed was photo paper. \"I want to show you something. Its not going to be pretty. But I need for you to look at this. Can you do that?\"

\"If it\'ll help your investigation, I\'ll do whatever you need,\" Kat assured him. He sighed, eyeing her speculatively. Then he turned the photo around and set it before her. Kat stared at it, horror creeping over her. For long moments, she couldn\'t make sense of what she was looking at. Slowly, oh so slowly, the image began to come into focus. It was no longer a large mass of bright red paint poured over everything in the background. Soon there was shape to it.

She was looking at a man. Specifically, the man she\'d met at the bar last night. It was a shot taken of his entire body, but close enough to show the details. His face was white as hospital sheets, except where blood had been splashed across his flesh. And there was so much of the bright red fluid staining his body. She could see that his throat had been torn to shreds, the muscles and sinew gaping out at her in lurid and vibrant color. His stomach was a gaping hole and she could see that it didn\'t appear to be terribly crowded. There were organs missing.

\"Oh my god,\" Kat moaned, swallowing hard against the bile rising in her throat. It was sick and brutal and she knew who had done it. Tearing her gaze away, she lowered her head, allowing her hair to fall forward and hide her face from him. She knew she was pale and she was glad she hadn\'t eaten all day long. If she had, it would be spilling out on the desk and floor even now. When she finally regained some of her senses, she lifted her head.

\"I\'m sorry. I had to know,\" the detective said softly. Kat groaned, searching blindly for the photo to hand back to him. \"I didn\'t think you\'d done something like that, but I had to make sure. Anyone who could have done something like that wouldn\'t have batted an eyelash when looking at that photo. And I assure you, that one is the least disgusting of the bunch.\"

\"How could anyone do that?\" she gasped, still fighting the urge to vomit. Detective Freeman took the photograph and tucked it back into the file folder. He stood, moving to the other side of his desk. He watched the young woman before him try to come to terms with what she\'d seen. The moment the beat officers had brought her in, he\'d known she hadn\'t had anything to do with Dalton\'s death. Hell, the woman had looked barely able to stand on her own.

Katya Fitzsimmons had been pale before the moment she\'d entered the squad room. He hadn\'t thought she could get any paler. But a single look at the photo had proven him wrong. She\'d gone whiter than death when she\'d seen that picture. He moved to the water cooler and poured her a glass of water. He thought she needed it. That, and a good meal. The girl looked as if she hadn\'t eaten in a week or more. He came back to her side and handed her the glass. \"Perhaps you\'d like to tell me what happened last night, Miss Fitzsimmons?\" he suggested.

She nodded, taking the glass from him without looking up at him. He watched as she drank from the cup slowly, her hands trembling slightly. If she had killed that man last night, she was one hell of an actress. But then she spoke and her voice held a dull, droning quality to it that he knew came from deep shock. \"I was drunk...\" she began.

~*~*~*~*~

The mournful cry that filled MacKenzie\'s head startled him. He looked up from the grave and glanced around, as if he expected to find Katya standing next to him. All of his searching had brought him here, to the freshly covered grave where her friend had been laid to rest. The bright beam from the flash light in his hand revealed the deep depressions where she had knelt in the grass. He scanned the area, his nose detecting a scent that did not bode well. A shapeling had been here, near her when she was unable to defend herself.

He moved across the grass quickly, his nose leading him unerringly to what had once been a healthy tree. He studied it, noting that there was a large hole gouged into it. A hole that had been filled with a fluid that had killed the tree. Studying the tree, he knew without a doubt what had killed it. Fear and panic clamored for a place in his heart. Without thought, he opened his mind. \'Katya? Where are you?\'

There was silence a moment, as if she hadn\'t heard him, then the sounds of sobbing came to him. \'MacKenzie? Is that you?\' He felt a deep sense of relief. She didn\'t sound as if she were in pain. She simply sounded frightened. He was moving already, heading for the exit and the small parking lot provided for visitors. Kat\'s car was parked there. And so was his. He climbed in, the key already in the ignition as he buckled the seat belt.

\'Its me, Katya. I am coming for you. Where are you?\' he asked her.

\'The police station. I think I\'m going to be sick,\' she told him. He said nothing in reply, simply threw the car into gear and pulled out of the parking lot. His mind raced. A shapeling had been close to Katya this evening. She\'d been in danger and he hadn\'t been there to protect her. He didn\'t like the feeling that thought evoked in him. Fear was twisted in his gut with the idea that she could have been in trouble and there\'d been no one to help her. He pushed the accelerator down. The car leapt forward, the high performance engine growling happily to be put to work.

He didn\'t like that she was at the police station and he didn\'t like that she felt ill. He couldn\'t imagine what was going on, but he intended to find out. Images and brief flashes of things she\'d seen were fed to him, as if the two of them were connected somehow. She was in turmoil. He could feel that much. She needed him. He could feel that, too. Their connection helped him, made it easier for him to find her.

What felt like ages had passed when he finally pulled into a parking place in front of the police department. In reality, he was sure it had only been about fifteen minutes. Gathering his preternatural powers around him like a cloak, he made his way into the building before him with an air of deep confidence. The desk clerk was most happy to escort him up to the office where Detective Freeman was questioning Katya.

He entered to find Katya sitting in a chair, her hands clasped so tightly together that they were white all the way up to her wrists. Her head was tipped forward, her hair falling forward like a river of blood to hide her face. He suspected that it was paler than her hands were. He could feel the tension eminating from her. The desk clerk told the older man with her that MacKenzie was her fiancé and had come to make sure she got home alright. MacKenzie had made sure that his story was planted in the cop\'s head so that there would be fewer questions.

\"Mr. MacKenzie, I\'m Detective Bill Freeman. I\'m glad to see you here. I understand that Miss Fitzsimmons is your fiancée and you\'ve come to take her home,\" Detective Freeman held his hand out to MacKenzie. The two men shook hands, MacKenzie being careful with his strength.

\"I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Detective Freeman. I hope that Katya was able to help you,\" he told the officer. He noticed that she had yet to look up at them. He could sense that she was shaking and that she was struggling with the need to vomit. Something had shaken her up badly.

\"She was most informative,\" the man replied. \"I\'m afraid she\'s a little on the sickened side at the moment. I showed her a crime scene photo that was pretty brutal.\"

\"I will be kind enough to take her home,\" MacKenzie moved to where Kat sat and offered her a hand. She looked up at him, then slipped her hand in his. When he brought her to her feet, she immediately moved into him, hugging him against her tightly. He slipped his arms around her and held her close. Fine tremors ran up and down her spine. He pulled back to look down at her and frowned. She was worse off than she had been last night when she\'d woken after her encounter with Niki. \"Thank you again, Detective,\" MacKenzie said, then lead Katya from the room.

She didn\'t let go of him until he opened the passenger door of his car. Katya allowed MacKenzie to help her into the seat, settling back against the soft leather as he shut the door and moved around to the other side. When he got in, he slid the key into the ignition and turned the engine over. Kat sat in the seat, shivering and pale. He turned to look at her, propping one arm over the top of the steering wheel. \"You look in need of food. I will take you to a diner where you can eat and tell me all that has happened.\"

She said nothing for a long time, then slowly nodded her head. He turned back to face the front of the vehicle, then put it into gear and slid smoothly from the parking place. They drove in silence for several long minutes until Kat couldn\'t stand the silence any longer and spoke. \"I didn\'t know vampires knew how to drive a car,\" she remarked softly.

He grinned into the darkness and passing blurs of their surroundings. \"I have been alive for a very long time and I found long ago that if I did not adapt to the era, I would go mad. When the automobile was first invented, I was one of the first people to buy one and learn to drive. I have been driving for a century.\"

\"A hundred years?\" her voice was filled with awe. \"I can\'t imagine what its like to have lived through all the changes in time. The different styles of clothing and hair, the political climates, the wars, the... I don\'t know how you managed it anyway.\"

\"It was either that or go mad and kill so indiscriminately that I would have been hunted down and shown my last sunrise.\"

Kat heard the sorrow in his voice and she wondered if he missed things like that. She wasn\'t sure how old he was, but what must he have given up to become what he was. She turned to look at him and noticed that his normally placid face was wreathed in a deep sadness that made her heart ache for him. She reached out a hand and lightly touched his shoulder. \"You\'ve wished for that more than once, haven\'t you?\" she asked him gently.

\"I have wished for death a time or two. But not so intensely that I gave up what there is of my sanity. It is a painful death when one choses the sun to end their life. I have been the one to carry out that sentence once or twice. The screams will live within my memories forever,\" he admitted softly.

\"I\'m sorry,\" she said. It was all she could say. Kat was under no illusion that she could ever know the true depths of his pain and she didn\'t intend to offer him words of sympathy that were blatantly false. She knew he deserved better than that. He nodded, but said nothing more. A comfortable silence fell over the two of them as the sleek car traveled to its destination.

When the auto stopped and MacKenzie killed the engine, they were parked in front of a twenty-four hour diner that had a few tables filled with patrons. Kat looked at it apprehensively. She was certain she wouldn\'t be able to eat anything. Not after what she\'d seen. But MacKenzie was helping her from the car and she really didn\'t have much of a choice. He lead her into the building and over to an empty table away from the noise and other people. A woman with brassy blonde hair stopped at their table and handed them both menus. \"What can I get you to drink?\" she asked.

\"Um... A glass of water would be fine,\" Kat told the waitress. MacKenzie declined anything and the waitress stepped away. He glared pointedly at the menu. She frowned at him and opened it, glancing at the glossy photos and the sharply printed words. Her stomach flipped at the sight of food and she hastily closed the menu. \"I can\'t. I still feel sick to my stomach.\"

\"You have to eat, little one. You are near dead on your feet,\" he said gently. He opened the menu laying before him and looked it over. When the waitress returned with Kat\'s water, she whipped out her pad and pencil, waiting anxiously for the order. \"Bring a number three breakfast. Eggs over easy, hashbrowns, white toast and make the meat sausage.\"

\"And what else?\" the waitress looked to Kat.

\"That will be all,\" MacKenzie told her in a firm voice. The woman nodded and hurried off to put the order in.

It wasn\'t until Kat took her first bite of eggs that she realized just how hungry she was. Then it was all she could do not to simply shovel it all into her mouth. She had to force herself to take small bites and chew slowly. All the while, MacKenzie watched her with a soft smile on his face. By the time she had finished, she was a little sturdier. The shakes had almost completely disappeared and she had gained some color back in her face.

While she\'d eaten, he\'d taken the opportunity to search through the images of what she\'d seen at the police station. He could understand why she had been so sickened by them. He knew without a doubt that Niki had done those things in her rage. For Kat to have looked at them and not lost control was impressive. He was sure there were veteran officers who had not survived the crime scene without vomiting at least once. Now, she was done and he could tell by the look on her face that something was puzzling her.

\"You have questions for me?\" he looked at her. She nodded, biting her lip as if unsure as to whether she should ask them or not. He gave her an encouraging smile and watched as chewed her lip. Finally, she drew a breath and spoke.

\"I\'ve been thinking about the attack from that... shapeling thing. That night, I was too confused to think clearly. But now... I think it knew what I was,\" she told him. The look in her eyes said she was uncertain of this. He nodded, encouraging her to go on. \"It looked right at me and it... it knew what it should do. I think this wasn\'t just some random attack. I think it had a purpose on its mind,\" she finally got out.

He nodded at this, saying nothing for a very long time. He hadn\'t thought that she would figure something like that out on her own. She knew almost nothing about the shapelings. And yet, she sounded fairly sure of what she was proposing. \"Go on. I can see there is more to this.\"

\"I can look back on that night now with a clear mind. I can see everything that happened. It looked up from Jer\'s throat and stared at me. There was something like hunger and calculation in it\'s eyes. Then it... he lifted his nose and scented the air. He was after me in a heartbeat. Even before he started forward, he was getting an erection. I think he had something planned. I mean, I think he didn\'t just attack me because I was female. It was like he knew something I didn\'t.\"

\"What do you think that is?\" MacKenzie asked softly.

\"I think it wanted to get me pregnant,\" Kat whispered. She paused and took a breath to steady herself. He could hear that her heart was pounding in her chest. She was afraid of what she was telling him. She was afraid she was right. \"Tami said that when I was admitted to the hospital, I was bleeding heavily. That I was hemorrhaging really bad. As if I were losing a child.\"

He nodded but remained silent. Kat pressed on. \"What if I was losing a child? I don\'t know how long that thing was on top of me. What if he\'d managed to... to get off and get me pregnant?\"

\"But your body was not compatible with the shapeling\'s seed and expelled it,\" MacKenzie nodded. She had a sound idea there. Kat looked at him anxiously. \"It would explain why you did not die from his coupling with you. Perhaps there is more to you than meets the eye. And, if what you say is true, I wish to assign a bodyguard to you. Someone to watch over you during the light hours to ensure your safety when I cannot.\"

\"What can possibly protect me from those things?\" she asked. It was obvious she didn\'t think there was anything that could keep her safe from a shapeling other than him.

\"I have someone in mind. Come now. Since you have eaten, let us go somewhere and spend the night together. We can talk or look at the stars or simply rest, if that is what you wish.\"

\"Talking would be very nice,\" she smiled at him. MacKenzie nodded and pulled out a wallet. He laid cash on the table then stood and escorted her from the diner. He knew of just the place to talk and watch the stars. It would be a nice evening. For both of them.

end chapter four.
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as usual, i wish to thank my personal group of positive thinkers. they keep me going when no one else does. they know who they are and that i love them all bunches. big squishies to them all.

and, i am my own beta. so please don\'t hurt me if things are misspelled or anything. you can blame that all on my fat fingers. so, if you like this, please feel free to let me know. but lets be nice about it. thanks so much.

finally, my thanks.

to Karma: thank you so much for all of your kind words. they mean alot to me. i try very hard to write real characters and i guess my work is paying off.

to DarkMystic: a repeat reader. bless you, my dear. your words mean so much to me. and i really hope i can keep the story and the characters as real as the theme of the story allow. i hope you like this one as well.

to Morrigan: at first, i thought... what\'s she talking about? then i went back and read the chapter and thought.... gods, did i really type that mess? blame it all on fast fingers and a tendency to not reread as much as i should. be assured that i will go back and fix the spelling errors. as for grammar, i tend to write the way i think.. so that explains that. but i\'m glad you find the story intriguing. all hail the triple goddess of war!

to Anon: thank you for the vote of confidence. believe it or not... i really have no confidence in my own abilities. i try very hard to get my fics updated in a timely manner, but i\'m writing on five at the present moment and i do one for each in order. so it might take me a while, but i will post. not only that, but my brain hasn\'t been very cooperative lately. so rest assured that i will attempt to update monthly. but i can\'t make any guarantees. i hope you like this chapter as well as the others.