Scarlet Ribbons

Charlotte knew that it was going to be uncomfortable nonetheless. The gore shouldn't have surprised her, but it still did with all the walls dripping from blood, still shiny from the fresh kills of whatever was inside of the room, and other small cut body parts from whatever creatures that vigilantes were able to get their hands on and torment.

It was branded in her mind like a horror movie that she couldn't chase out. Vincent turned around, and Charlotte blinked quickly to try and gauge any other information about the room, but the stench was too overwhelming.

The only thing that caught her eye was the black present that she was able to get a glimpse of earlier. Breathing through her mouth, she focused on the square black box with a red ribbon tied around it which severely contradicted what was seen in the room.

Charlotte cringed away when Vincent went over to the corner and read the words written in black that read devious and horrific profanities and other taunts to try and get a ruse out of them. If anything, she was more disgusted than angry.

She followed Vincent to the bathroom and flinched when she saw the bathtub filled with blood and gagged in her mouth from the fingers that were cut off and thrown into the sink causing a huge mess and more blood smeared onto the bathroom mirrors.

"Do you think these were innocent bystanders who were killed?" Charlotte sofly asked.

"No. This is the blood of vigilantes."

"Then why did they sacrifice so many?"

Vincent crossed his arms. "They never stop trying to find an opening to destroy us. Losing a few members is nothing for them."

He strode back over to the bedroom to stare at the present and was about to touch it when Charlotte laid a hand on his arm.

"Are you sure it's not a trap?" she asked.

"No. It's clear that they are only trying to taunt us."

"How can you be so sure?"

"I've lived long enough to anticipate their antics."

Vincent ripped the ribbons off of the box, the scarlet fabric fluttering to the ground seeped with blood and lifted the cover of the present and immediately covered it back with anger coursing through his blood, lighting his eyes with a golden rim as his body stiffened.

Charlotte didn't even get the chance to look inside. "What is it?"

He tossed the box back onto the bed. "We need to get out of here."

"What was it?"

Vincent grabbed Charlotte's arm and pulled her out of the bedroom. They sprinted down the stairs, and she tried to get a better grip on his hand that slipped away when he suddenly scooped her up into his arms. She wrapped herself around him, looking back around to see if she had missed anything.

"What was in the box?" Charlotte asked again.

Vincent slammed the penthouse door shut with a beep. "It was a tongue."

"A tongue?"

"To be more precise, a vampire's tongue."

She covered her gasp with her hand. "What does that mean?"

"They must have found the vampires they gathered to be useless or they must have already made use of them and ripped their tongues out."

"But why are we running away? There was no one inside."

"You're correct. But they just gave us the biggest clue."

"Really?"

"It was written all over the walls. We need to get there as fast as possible."

She thought back to the words that only contained death threats instead of locations. How did he piece the information together in the first place?

Vincent clenched his fists. "I know why the vigilantes were tailing us earlier."

Charlotte paused. "Why?"

"They were all on a suicide mission. They all planned to die anyways to distract us while they left clues all over inside. It was a messy take for them, but luckily, we have a breakthrough."

"Where are they?"

"Let's call Stone first to get some men to come to clean up the rooftop and the penthouse."

They got on the elevator again which in turn only made her dizzy, but they went up to the adjourning parking lot instead of the first floor to get their ride. Vincent had his phone pressed to his ear as he was barking out orders just as Stone was demanding answers.

He placed her down when they reached the stacked parking garage and tossed her the key which she caught and jingled in her hands as Charlotte ran over to the parked black car that she remembered them getting into earlier.

Unlocking the door, she slipped into the driver's seat with no hesitation and Vincent to the passenger one while still talking to Stone. Slipping on her seat beat, she turned over to him. "Where are we headed?"

"To the mayor's mansion."

Charlotte whipped her head back as the information didn't make sense after going through her brain. "Excuse me?"

"Charlotte, go!"