"That's not what I want to hear, Brian. I have given you things that other vampires in this House would literally kill for, and in return you haven't given me anything. What have you been doing with your gifts? Roughing up some street thugs? Seducing women at bars?"

Kenneth was standing behind his desk. He was leaning forward on his right hand, and his index finger was softly tapping the stainless-steel top of the desk as he stared at his lieutenant.

Brian knew that those questions may have been rhetorical but his Head of House wanted an answer. "Kenneth, we have been scouring the city for vagrants, recently rented apartments, recently rented cars, abnormal flight plans for small planes and helicopters. We are still looking even now for the guy who attacked you and escaped. We haven't found anything more about where the surviving werewolves are or went since the day we burned their city. We haven't found even a shred of evidence that the guy who attacked you even exists, outside of all of us seeing him. I just don't know what else we can do."

Kenneth heaved a deep sigh, "So, what you're telling me, is that the werewolves disappeared and the guy who attacked me in my own office doesn't exist?"

Brain saw the trap, but didn't have an answer, "Kenneth, you and I both know that they had to go somewhere, it's just not anywhere near where we are, they are not in this city."

Kenneth nodded, looking suddenly tired as he walked around the corner of his desk towards his lieutenant. He reached up with his right hand to softly massage the bridge of his nose as he stepped closer to Brian.

His left arm shot out and gripped Brian by the back of his neck and slammed his face down hard on the corner of the desk. Kenneth, swept Brian's legs out from under him as he ground the man's face hard into the corner of his desk.

Brian was stunned and bleeding and could barely resist the sudden attack from his Head of House. Dark spots floated in his vision as he staggered, trying to at least get his feet back underneath him to push off of the sharp corner of the desk he now found himself painfully pegged to.

Kenneth lowered his face close to the sputtering lips of Brian as his lieutenant tried fruitlessly to stand back up. "I don't recall ever telling you that if those people ever left the city, or even California then it was ok if you stopped really looking."

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Kenneth swept Brian off the desk and stood over him, licking the blood he had wiped off the desk from his fingers, "I want them found Brian. I want to know who that guy who was in my office was, and I want them dead. I want the werewolves found and killed. I don't care if you have to search on the other side of the world, or on top of the Himalayas. Do I make myself clear?"

Brian wiped the blood from his mouth and cheek and licked it off his fingers as he nodded, "Yeah, yeah I hear you."

"Good," Kenneth took out a handkerchief and wiped the rest of the blood from his fingers. He turned around and walked back around his metal desk as he tossed his handkerchief down to Brian, "clean yourself up then, and get back to work. Find them, Brian. I don't have to remind you how I deal with failure, do I?"

Brian shook his head as he wiped at his mouth and face with the mostly clean piece of white fabric that quickly soaked up whatever blook remained on his face, his wounds having already mostly healed as he tucked the handkerchief into his back pocket. He turned and walked out to the elevator and stepped in, letting the doors close without another word as Kenneth once again sat in his empty office.

Kenneth stared out into the quiet night over Los Angeles. The city lights dwarfed the light of the stars above and the river of lights that was the I-5 freeway cut through the city like the Milky Way through a clear night sky away from the city.

He tried to make himself understand why he knew this singular man to be a threat, this man who had attacked him in his own office, and for what? To defend the already dead corpse of his old Master and Head of House, Alessandro? There had to be another reason, no man was that loyal. Then again, this man had no idea who he was, but he refused to offer fealty to him as the Head of House Dukart. He must have had some loyalty to Alessandro, but what could that be? Alessandro had told him everything, at least he was certain that the old man didn't have any secrets left to hide from him. So, what had his old Master kept hidden from him?

"Beloved? You look troubled."

Kenneth started in his chair as the soft, low tones of his mate's rich voice brought him out of his deep contemplation. He looked over and stood up from his chair as he hadn't even been aware the elevator had returned. He walked over to Nova and embraced her, kissing her lips, as he felt her cool skin against his.

Nova broke the kiss and gazed deeply into her mate's eyes, "tell me what vexes you, my Lord. Let me ease your troubles."

Kenneth smiled and shook his head. Since her turning, Nova had taken on a very Victorian era way of speaking when she greeted him. It was pleasant, and it was her way of showing affection. Another cleaver way that Nova had captured, and held what remained of his human heart and soul. "It's nothing, my mate. Just loose ends that we have yet to tie up. But Brian assures me that he is close to correcting those small issues."

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