Zane - Confessions of a lycan

Zane ” There has been another kidnapping.” I felt the burden of that statement like a heavy weight on my shoulders. Standing looking out the window of my upper east side apartment seeing people start their day and go about their lives as if there is nothing wrong in the world made me wonder how blind people could really be. I owned nightclubs and bars in every major city. I´d moved among humans for centuries, had clients that have been all sorts of different species, from vampires to werewolves and even an elf or two. Yet humans have not once realized who they have met for a moment in time. Hell, I have even taken a human woman, or a couple, to my bed in my early days. But that was before... before she happened… I felt the dark mood take over as it always did when I thought about the past, about my mistakes and who I used to be, when I felt a hand on my shoulder pulling me back to the present. “Where did you go, old friend? You were thinking about the past again, didn´t you?” Lucien, my closest friend, looked at me with his serious expression that never revealed a single thought. I could only nod, not wanting to speak about it. “Isn´t it time for you to forgive yourself?” I felt the flash of pain, regret and anger surface like an erupting volcano. “Don´t fu****g tell me what I should or should not do!” I shook his hand off my shoulder and walked over to the bar cabinet, pouring myself a whiskey, which I drank down in one go. When I turned around, I could swear Lucien was looking at me with something that resembled pity in his dark gaze, but the expression was gone faster than I managed to decipher it. Refusing to analyze it any further, I returned to the topic that should be the center of our attention. “Who has been kidnapped this time and what pack do they belong to?” I asked, swallowing all previous thoughts and feelings and focusing on the mission that brought us to New York. Lucien sure looked like the ruthless vampire he was when I changed the topic. “A low pack member of the bloodmoon pack. Her name is Lily. 18 years old.” I felt a searing pain in my chest at the sound of her name. I rubbed my hand over my torso, trying to reduce the burn. That was strange, maybe I was beginning to take this whole case too personal. “That was the 38th girl we know of that was kidnapped. Three of those girls have been found dead; it is time we got to the bottom of this. Let's go over everything we know so far and see how we can go from there" I said, now completely focused on the unsolved cases of mysteriously missing she-wolves, kidnapped from packs around the United States. ** Lucien I looked at Zane and saw him return to the present. Zane stood in the room wearing dark designer jeans and a black button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. If it was anyone else he could have been mistaken for an ordinary man. But with his black hair, a jaw that looked like it was carved out of stone and tattoos covering his entire arms and neck, it was hard to believe that Zane was anything but a tough guy. But as his closest friend, I knew that the tough exterior hid a man with a huge heart who longed for a soulmate to share his life with in peace and quiet without the hustle and bustle of the big city and politics that controlled the rhythm of a royal life. Even though he believed his past had robbed him of the chance to be happy. He didn't say it, but I could see the longing in his eyes as he looked at a happy mated couple and the sadness in his eyes that followed. However, my gut told me that the goddess Selene had something in store for him. He had forsaken women and the palace life that came with being a Lycan prince for over 80 years. That is how our joint business came to be. He needed out and I offered to take him in. As a vampire who is over 400 years old, I knew the lustful wild life of a youth, but I also knew the feeling that came when no woman could hold one’s interest anymore and no party held any excitement. When all you wanted was the feeling of something more, whatever more was.. I watched as Zane pulled out the folder with all the missing women and I proceeded to take the lead. “This is what we know so far; all of the missing women have been abducted during trips outside the pack borders. That fact tells us that either the kidnappings were random and pure luck or those behind this monitored the various packs to track, stalk and kidnap their victims.” I said with a calmness that I didn't really feel. If I was honest, the whole development felt extremely worrying. My gut told me that when everything comes to light, our world would change. I could only hope that it would be for the better. “But wolves have an extraordinary sense of smell, so how come there's never been any signs or evidence in the area? None of this makes sense.” Zane said as he ran his hands through his hair in obvious frustration. “ That´s the question, isn´t it? But the latest kidnapping may give us the first real clue in the case.” “How so?” Zane looked at me with an obvious desire to end this. “Well, the last girl, Lily, was taken in her room in the packhouse sometime between 8-12 p.m. which means these fu*kers have someone on the inside.” I said, as I gave him a wicked smirk. It was time we took these bastards down...