Control

"What happened? Tell me." Aselia asked him calmly. She knew he was in bad shape.

"I lost control, I shifted. I jeopardised our mission and now I have endangered you as well." Remorse filled every nerve cell in his body and he was choking on his words.

"Hey, it happens don't drown yourself in what can't be reversed." Aselia knew he will self-shame himself.

"I killed five vampires today and I didn't leave any scent behind. But vampires are smart and ruthless. What if they trace it back to me and then you? I need to abort and go back. Someone else will take my spot."

"Don't be an idiot and listen to me carefully. Exiting the hotel so suddenly when you have a booking for a few more days will arise suspicion. At the moment this hotel is the safest place for you. Xiran seems to have higher connections and maybe he knows the mayor of this city as well. So no one will come looking for you here. So lay low for a few days and then we will see what needs to be done." Aselia tried to put some sense into Yurian.

"Fritez City has very tight security especially when it comes to their kind. Remember what they did to our hunters the last time we sent them here to fish for information? How could I be so stupid? But they were about to rap* and kill her if I hadn't intervened. It triggered my memory." Yurian replied between gritted teeth.

"I remember all of them were mercilessly killed except one who wasn't caught. He was the one who told us about Xiran but even he never saw him or knew much about him. All he knew was about his habit of having contracted girls. Apart from that did you leave a witness behind?" Aselia knew what that meant.

"She never saw my face, I had already transformed when I advanced on them. She ran away in fear and I don't think she will come forward. I erased her scent as well as mine before leaving." Yurain knew he was in a big mess, and it wasn't smart of him to kill vampires in vampire territory when he was undercover.

"What were you even doing in a place like that?" Aselia inquired.

"It was a secluded bar, I had gone there to blow off some steam. My mind was a bit troubled. She came in with three vampires. They began to handle her roughly, but the bartender and manager didn't step in or stopped them. They began to tear her clothes, her blood-curdling screams took me back to memories of my sister. I couldn't hold in anymore and snap..." he trailed off, the burdens of his past wore him down.

"Hey, hey deep breaths. Everything will be fine, I am here for you. Remember, I will always be here for you. Sleep it off and don't you dare tell the headquarters."

"I won't, and you should go before someone discovers you. Contact me whenever possible." He sounded a bit relieved.

"I will and before I forget, I will be attending the next soiree Xiran will hold so hopefully our Phantom Vampire will turn up." She informed him of the progress.

"He is letting you attend?" Yurian sounded surprised.

"Yes, I got into his good books." Aselia didn't want to go into details about what she had done.

"How?" Yurian asked mischievously. "Don't ask, rest now." Aselia was curt in her reply.

"Don't tell me you...."

"Byeeee," Aselia ended the transmission before Yurian could ask her the bloody details and heaved a sigh of relief but then gloominess washed over her. She didn't want to abort this mission, she wouldn't get a chance like this again.

She quickly came out of the washroom and hid the device. Her heart was still racing so she took out her art supplies and began to paint. She needed to calm her nerves and stay focused. It had been a long time since he had lost control like that. He could have been captured or killed. She knew she needed to speed up her mission but it wasn't in her hands and Xiran would never dish out information. He was too smart and thorough. She was afraid one day he was going to see through her facade as well.

--------------

On the other hand, Xiran was still in his car roaming the streets of his city. He had appointed a dummy Mayor to the city, whose face was known to everyone. But real power was in Xiran's hand and only a handful of people were aware of this fact.

He was currently heading to Mayor's office to debrief him about what to say to the media and how to control the situation before it got out of hand. It would not reflect favourably if his reputation got tarnished because of these killings. Plus it was bad for business.

They reached the Mayor's office. It was a red square-shaped building with two pillars in front. The parking was underground where a hidden tunnel was located which lead straight to Mayor's Office. A hidden panel behind his bookshelf opened the door to the hidden tunnel. Xiran and Carios took that tunnel and reached his office. It was lit by lights embedded in the wall and was made up of concrete and marble.

Mayor Mazitine had already locked the other accessible door so no one would disrupt their meeting. Xiran stepped out of the tunnel and Mayor slightly bowed: "Señor, how do I owe the pleasure?" Mazitine was a short, thin but cunning man. The ageing factor differed between each vampire. Some stopped ageing at the mere age of 20 while some kept ageing until their 60s. Unfortunately for Mazitine, he belonged to the latter category. He was almost bald for he hadn't stopped ageing as he had touched his 50s.

Xiran grazed past him and settled down on Mayor's seat promptly. Placed both his hands on the side arms and crossed his legs before speaking: "The containment of the incident at the local bar. You need to stall the media and tell them the culprit will soon be apprehended. Don't let the situation get out of hand. I have informed the police to catch whoever is accountable. Also, visit the families of victims and offer them compensation. Besides I need to know what kind of bar it was and what went on there." His intense gaze was fixed on Mazitine.

"Understood, Señor. Any other way I can be of service." He placed his hand on his chest as a sign of respect.

"Just keep me posted about the situation and make sure to increase the patrolling in the streets. I don't need the repetition of such incidents or you might need to find another seat to fill." The threat in his voice was spoken softly but its impact was felt in bones by Mazitine.

"I apologise, I will be tripling the security from now on. You will not be disappointed."

"Good, because I am sure you won't like to end up like the previous Mayor."