Chapter Seven

Back at my house I unlocked my door… and Pollux dropped from the door frame on to my head. “Damn it Pollux! I said I’d be back in a few hours!” I yelled at him as I struggled to get up off the floor.

“Rae I told you to get a lock for his cage…” Rocko said laughing, until Pollux turned his gaze on him.

“And I’ve told you not to call his environment a cage, he doesn’t like it. Thanks Greg.” I said as he helped lift Pollux off of me, and helped me stand. “Come on Pollux, mommy’s gotta go to her work room and analyze some pictures. Please don’t terrorize the neighbours while I’m downstairs, mommy doesn’t want mean Mr. Sandoval to call animal services again. You remember what happened the last time? They put you in a cage until mommy could prove you weren’t a threat.” I told my snake, gaining me a strange look from both my brother and my ‘bodyguard’. “What?”

“Rae, I don’t quite know how to tell you this, but he’s a snake… he doesn’t understand what we’re saying. How do you even know it’s a he?” My brother asked looking at me as if I had grown an extra limb.

“Well I had to take him to the vet shortly after you gave him too me. You didn’t bother finding out what species he was before you bought him, I didn’t know what to feed him. They gave him a thorough examination before giving me a stack of pamphlets about this high.” I held my hands about two feet apart. “And he understands a lot more then you do. Come on Pollux, let’s go downstairs and get you a nice bat to eat.”

As I headed downstairs I heard Greg ask Rocko, “Did she just say a nice bat?”

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“What exactly are we looking for Raven?” Greg asked wearily as he looked up from another photograph from the St. Catherin’s Massacre. We were comparing all of the known Legion attacks to the pictures that I took at my Uncle’s castle. So far neither of us could find any similarities, not good. Rocko was waiting upstairs for us, because of the chair he was stuck in; he couldn’t join us in the basement.

“Anything that looks similar, anything at all. Let’s take a break; I’m starving how about you?”

“I need to rest my eyes anyway; we’ve been at this for hours.” He said stretching his arms. “What’d you have in mind?”

“Let’s go upstairs and see what I’ve got in my cupboards.”

When we got upstairs Rocko was watching my TV. “Rae, I think you should listen to this…” He said worriedly as he turned up the Volume.

It was the afternoon news, And in other news, multibillionaire Lord Dracula Wolfe, was found dead at his manor earlier this morning, police say that they expect foul play, but otherwise refused to give any more comments. Dracula leaves behind his twenty year old nephew Robert Wolfe, and seventeen year old ward Ravenna Dragoon.

Dragoon is the same girl who was accused of brutally murdering her father three months ago, but the charges were dropped due to lack of evidence. I am told that the police have issued a warrant for Ravenna’s immediate arrest My last school picture was posted on the screen, If you see this girl or have any information of her whereabouts please call crime stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS immediately.

Tune in later tonight when we have more updates on this on going investigation

“I never liked that picture…” I said with a sigh.

“You used to have braces?” Greg asked with a smirk, I elbowed him in the gut, and went to answer my phone; it had started ringing shortly after they showed my picture on the news.

“Hello?... Hi Finningan, yeah we just saw it… well unless the police get here first then I’m not going anywhere. See you soon.” I hung up the phone, and walked back over to the guys. “Good news, Finningan is on his way over; let’s hope he gets here before the police do.”

“Oh great just what we need, Finningan Morelli… Why do you keep him around? He’s so…” Rocko whined.

“Brilliant at keeping me out of prison, and keeping me from paying large sums of money to hunter’s wives who want to blame me for their husbands’ deaths. You tamper with the gun it’s not going to work properly.” I retorted.

We waited a good twenty minutes for Finningan to arrive at my house, and he wasn’t exactly pleased when he got there either. As soon as he arrived we went into the kitchen to discuss my options. “When the Police get here you’re going to have to give your self up, it will look better to the press if you go quietly.”

“Just like last time eh?”

“Exactly. How do you get yourself into these situations? I swear I’ve taken you to court so many times that my other clients are getting jealous.” He said with a sigh, “We’ll have to handle this exactly the same as last time. Exactly the same.”

“Aye captain!” I said sarcastically, “So I get to spend another night in lock up do I? Should I take my toothbrush this time?”

“Raven I’m serious. They can’t mention your father’s death in court but after that broadcast you bet your a*s we’ll be hard pressed to find a jury who hasn’t heard about it.”

“Damn… alright I know when I’m licked…” Just at that moment there was a loud knocking at my front door.

“I’ll get the door; you sit there until I call for you.” Finningan told me as he went to answer the door.

“Sir we have a warrant for Ravenna Dragoon’s arrest.” The Police officer at the door told him holding out a folded piece of paper.

Finningan took the warrant and read it over quickly, “But of course Officer. My client want’s it known that she is coming out on her own recognizance.” He looked back at me and called, “Raven, would you come here please.”

“Coming…” I called innocently; I walked over to the door and walked out.

The Police officer on my porch politely slapped a set of hand Cuffs on me and recited my rights, “Ravenna Dragoon, you are under arrest for the murder of Lord Dracula Wolfe, you have the right to remain silent anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney….”

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At the station they printed me, took another mug shot and placed me in a holding cell. There was one other person in the cell with me, a woman passed out on the floor. But there were four people in the cell next to mine, a large tattooed biker, a fidgety looking middle aged man, and a couple of punk teenagers. I’m guessing that what ever these two teens did, the only reason they got caught was because they couldn’t run fast enough with their pants hanging half-way down their asses.

“Hey kid, what ya in for?” The tattooed biker asked casually.

“Who me?” I asked curiously, he wasn’t actually looking at me when he asked.

“Yeah you, come and sit down, we don’t bite, we’ll I don’t know about that guy, but I don’t.” He said actually looking at me and smiling warmly. I walked the short distance across the cell and sat on the bench in my cell directly across from him. “The name’s Spike, so what ya in for?”

“I’m Raven, and they think I murdered my guardien, you?” I told him uncertainly.

“Oh you’re that girl from the tube… nice to meet ya. There was a brawl at the pub and I got caught in the middle. They arrested a few of us for disturbing the peace. Unfortunately this isn’t my first offence.” He said with a wink, “Linda’s here for public intoxication, and Eric’s here …. Why are you here again Eric?” He asked the fidgety man.

“Indecent exposure.” The man said blushing.

“We robbed a man at gun point!” One of the teens bragged loudly.

“That’s nice, boy sit down and shut up! How many times do I have to tell you that there’s a reason they tell you that you have the right to remain silent. I suggest that you take the hint!” The sleeping woman said angrily, “Some of us are trying to sleep here.”

“Easy Linda easy.” Spike said softly, “They’re just idiot kids, no offence girly.” He added nodding toward me.

“None taken.” I said with a smile.

“That chick is nuts!” The boy said pointing at me, “The news chick said she brutalized her pop and then offed him. Yo Guard! I wan a new cell!”

“Boy if I have to talk to you one more time I’m gonna be the one doing the brutalizing!” Linda snapped at him before falling back asleep.

“I’ll have you know I didn’t kill or ‘brutalize’, as you so adequately put it, my father or my un… guardien.” I told the pea brained numskull.

“Then how’d your a*s get on the news?” He asked, “Are you saying the news chick was lying?”

“No I’d say she was misinformed…”

“Miss in what? You mocking me girl?” He asked threateningly.

“Easy cowboy, it means someone told her the wrong thing. Now sit your punk a*s down.” Spike said with a growl, “Just because Linda’s in the next cell and too drunk to do anything with your punk a*s doesn’t mean I’ll be so kind.”

“Come on Mike she’s not worth it…” The other boy said giving Spike a worried look.

“Raven?” I looked to the cell door, there was Greg looking vastly amused.

I stood up and walked over to him, “Hello, It took you guys long enough…”

“It’s just me and Finn, Rocko’s giving a press conference outside of Drac’s castle. Finn’s dropping of a change of clothes for your hearing; the closest date he could get for the bail hearing was tomorrow. With a Judge Ennis, apparently he’s very familiar with the supernatural.”

“Damn, I hate Judge Ennis, what time?”

“Eleven thirty, the last one before lunch or so I’m told. Are you going to be alright in there?” He asked eyeing my cellmates.

“I’ll be fine; I’ve done this before… Why couldn’t I get the hearing after lunch? Ennis is so much nicer after he’s eaten! Uh Greg? Could you do me a favour?”

“Sure Rae, what’s up?”

“Could you feed Pollux while I’m in here? All you have to do is throw a few live rats into his environment tomorrow morning. If they haven’t confiscated him that is.” I said darkly.

“Well that’s what took us so long; Finn insisted that we stay while they searched the house. Rae they found they pictures we were looking at, Finn almost s**t a brick when they broke down your work room door. I’m not sure how well your gun collection is going to go over with the Judge…”

“God damn it! They searched my work room? And here I though I was actually going to get bail tomorrow. I want to know who set me up… so then I can kill them! If this was the Legion I swear to god I’ll…”

“Rae, for now I’d work on being innocent before you worry about a set up. Didn’t they search your work room during your other trial?”

“No, they couldn’t get a warrant for it. Finningan said that they didn’t need too.” Then a thought hit me and my blood ran cold, “How far into my work room did they go?”

“I’m not sure why?” Greg asked confused.

“Because I have a room full of my father’s kills in jars… well their ashes anyway. Who’s going to believe that their not my kills. Oh god I knew I should have ditched the jars.” I gripped the bars of the cell door.

“Relax Rae; I don’t think that they found the jars. What I’d like to know though is how did anyone find out that Drac was dead? We were the only ones there this morning, and we took his ashes with us when we left.” He whispered the last part to me.

“Raven, the guards will come and get you tomorrow before the hearing. You will change into the outfit I brought for you before hand, please Raven promise me you will wear it.” Finningan asked as he approached the cell.

“I’ll wear it as long as it’s not the same outfit you brought last time. I look terrible in yellow.” I sighed.

“Don’t worry it’s not yellow, it’s black, this time your in mourning remember. Your Guardien was just brutally murdered.”