Date:         Fri, 26 Nov 1993 16:02:51 CDT
 
 
 
 
Team Work
 
 
by Dionne E. Nelson
 
 
 
 
 
(Oh, fair warning, my editor, "Sandy" hasn't e-mailed me back in a while, so
this is only version 2, not 3 - the one I normally send out {you should see
the spelling in a version 1!} )
 
     Alma walked down the rundown street looking for a familiar
head of spiky green hair.  "he didn't know why he had asked her to
meet him so early in the evening, before either of them would have
a chance to get dinner, but she was determined to find out.  There
he was, just up the block, talking to some old bum; things were
looking a little more promising now.
 
     Suddenly a mugger grabbed her shoulder and spun her around
violently.  "he saw the knife just before she bit him in rage, and
sucked his life into herself.  He tasted like a bad mixture of
drugs and old dreams; not a pleasant meal.  "he released him
quickly, and heard someone just behind her.
 
     She grabbed his elbow and thrust the knife into his throat,
right between her fang marks.  People were everywhere, pouring out
of alleys and doors.  Everyone was asking if she was alright, and
a police car was headed right towards her.  She didn't get a
chance to look at the muggers neck again before being sweaped away
by the crowd.
 
     ***
 
     "Ok miss, here is the report.  Is everything correct?"  the
officer asked with genuine concern.
 
     Alma read it slowly, by her standards, and nodded her head.
She was trying hard to look as tearful and innocent as she could;
it made dealing with the police simpler.
 
     "This is one of the witnesses, he says he can give you a
lift home."  the other officer looked dubiously at his charge, he
didn't trust people with unnatural hair and really bad breath.
"What did you say your name was again?"
 
     "It's alright, we're old friends" he said to the officer
before turning to Alma.  "Are you ready?  I seem to have missed
dinner."  His disappointment was obvious as he watched the people
milling about.
 
     "Almost, I need to talk to Nick if he's here."  "he didn't
really want to deal with Nicholas, but he probably needed to know
what happened.
 
     They checked at the desk, but he was on patrol for the
evening.  The receptionist offered to radio a message to him, but
they left a note on his desk instead.
 
     ***
 
     "I'll send this to the lab right aw..." Grace trailed off as
a woman in black appeared at the door.  "How did you get in here?"
"he asked as Natalie turned away from her computer.
 
     "I came to see Natalie."  The woman coldly stated with just a
hint of a French accent.
 
     "Janette.  How did you find me?"  Natalie asked as her brain
started working very quickly.  Janette had always been very polite
to her, but she was still a vampire.
 
     "I asked at the front desk."  She turned to Grace and looking
her straight in the eyes said "I would like to speak to Natalie
alone for a few minutes."
 
     Grace looked confused for a second, and said "alone".  She
shook her head.  "I'll go start these tests." she muttered as she
walked away.
 
     "So, can I help you with anything?"  Natalie asked looking at
the dead body on the slab, and wondering what was going on in
Janette's mind.  Was she looking for a new 'restaurant', or had
she gotten annoyed at Nat's attempts to help Nick and was trying
to end the problem?
 
     "Yes, I hope so.  It seems there was an accident."  Janette
said hesitantly.  She didn't really want to deal with Natalie,
but the inside information would make things go much quicker, and
she want to know what Nick saw in her.
 
     "And you need me to do the autopsy and sign the paperwork so
it looks like there really is a body."  She could get in a great
deal of trouble if anyone ever found out all the missing bodies,
but at least it would prevent the mass panic of a vampire scare.
 
     "Actually no.  There should definitely be a body."  She
paused.  "It really was self-defense, Alma has witnesses.  But she
acted on instinct, and isn't sure if he could have been brought
across or not."  She paused again, she hated asking for help.  "We
decided it would be quicker if you were involved."
 
     "Oh," Nat was surprised.  Janette didn't seem the type to ask
for help.  "Ok, but what do you need for me to do?"  And what was
she getting her self in for?
 
     "I'll need to break his neck, but I don't know what he looks
like, only that he was stabbed in the throat."  This was going
better than she had expected.  Natalie seemed very professional,
and at least Nicholas wasn't trusting some quack.
 
     "Hum," Nat paused to think about all this.  "And what happens
if we can't find this guy?"  She wanted to know the stakes, pun
intended.
 
     "He might really be dead, in which case nothing.  If he was
brought across he could awaken in the traditional three days, but
Alma said he was heavily drugged and nearly dead, in which case he
could rise as soon as he's healed.  Either way, he would be very
dangerous.  Those brought across against their will do not adjust
well."  Janette let that hang in the air between them, hoping that
Natalie understood the potential danger to both morals and
vampires if this happened.  Natalie didn't mention Richard.
 
     "I see.  Would there be any signs during an autopsy if he was
a vampire?"  She might as well learn as much as she could while
Janette was in a talkative mood.
 
     Janette cocked her head to the side.  "I don't know, we've
never been autopsied before.  I suppose the healing process would
be noticed."  What an odd question, and potentially an important
one in the age of technology.  Perhaps Natalie could be useful in
the long run too.
 
     "Ok, I guess I'll start by looking at our new clients."  With
that Nat started searching the database for a male with stab
wounds to the neck.
 
     ***
 
     "Knock, knock. Hi Jeff."  Nat said as she walked in the door
to autopsy room 2.
 
     "Nat, what are you doing here?  Going on tour?"  He was
surprized to see her out of her office.
 
     "My cousin Janette wanted to see where I worked, but my case
is a little gory for the uninitiated."  Uninitiated?  Where did
that come from?  "So I thought I'd see if you have something
tamer."
 
     "Sure, this guy tried to knife some girl, but got it in the
jugular instead.  I love poetic justice.  The actual cause of
death seems to be acute blood lose, since he doesn't have much
left.  They found some at the scene, but I can't tell if there was
enough or not."  Jeff started lecturing as the ladies walked over
to the table.
 
     "May I touch him?"  Janette asked, trying to sound like she'd
never seen a dead body before.  People had become so spoiled since
the last great epidemic.
 
     "Sure," Jeff said enthusiastically, "but you'll need gloves.
We don't know where he's been."  Janette had the smoothest voice
he had heard in a long time.
 
     Janette put the gloves on awkwardly.  "So, what is all this
stuff used for?"  "he asked, hoping to distract him long enough to
finish Alma's mess.
 
     "Oh, all sorts of things.  This is your average microscope.
I was just about to take a look when you came in.  Let me get this
in focus and you can...  Nat, what do you make of this?"
 
     CRRaCK!
 
     Nat jumped, and Jeff swirled around on his stool at the
sound.
 
     "What a loud noise for such a little purse"  Janette said,
looking Jeff straight in the eye.  She bent down to pick up the
imaginary purse as a good measure.  As she stood she felt her eyes
tingle and her teeth itch, she could smell the blood of the now
dead almost-vampire.  She turned away quickly.  "I don't feel so
well.  I think I'll do for a walk."  And left.
 
     "I guess it takes getting used to.  Nat, look at this."  Jeff
said, unconcerned.
 
     Nat peered at the slid and readjusted the focus.  Some of the
red blood cells looked shriveled, but some seemed to be in the
process of turning inside out, only it shouldn't be possible.
"Wow"  So that was the blood of a vampire in transition, she was
going to have to let Nick give her another sample to work with.
She pulled back from the eyepiece before she started talking to
herself.  "I think he was on some interesting stuff.  Maybe you
should try another sample."
 
     "Can't hurt,"  Jeff slipped the sample off the microscope
platform and started preparing a new slide.
 
     "I should go see if Janette is out of the bathroom yet.  See
you later, and be sure to tell me what you find."  She palmed the
first slide as Jeff turn to the corpse.
 
     "Uh-huh" Jeff muttered to himself as he returned to work.
 
     ***
 
     "It's about time, it's almost sunrise."  Janette complained
as Nick walked into his apartment.
 
     "And what are the two of you doing here?"  Nick asked,
looking at Natalie and Janette.
 
     "Haven't you checked your desk yet?" Nat asked.
 
     "No, it was too close to sunrise, and Schanke was in a
talkative mood."
 
     "Alma was attacked this evening.  She's alright of course,
but she wasn't sure if she had," Janette paused to look at
Natalie, "finished the job properly or not.  You weren't available
so I went to see Natalie."
 
     "And?"  Nick realized how dangerous this could be if things
weren't finished quickly.
 
     "I broke his neck, there won't be any trouble.  Now I'm going
to go home before I get burned."  She got up to leave and kissed
Nick passionately as she passed.  Nick's eyes followed her to the
door where she whispered in 13th century French, so only Nikki
could hear and understand, "She has spunk, she would make a good
vampire," before leaving.
 
     "You missed all the fun."  Nat said as he settled on the
couch.  Nick had responded to Janette's kiss and Nat felt like she
shouldn't be there, but she didn't want Janette there either.
 
     "I guess."  He looked her in the eye, but she turned away to
avoid most of the force of whatever he was about to say.  He
reached out to guide her face back in his direction, but let his
hand drop.  "So how did you get along with her?"
 
     "A lot better than I expected."  Nat answered easily,
relieved that he wasn't going to try to hypnotis her.
 
     "I'm glad."  He was surprized by how relieved he felt.
 
 
 
The end :)=