Crime and Passion [ a roleplay with Renny&Robin ]

[Renny]

Landon didn’t argue with her. He didn’t tell her that he had people inside too, and that he had been in there and had visitor forms and everything. He’d let her get him official ones. He also didn’t mention she would be safe inside. That center was run by men friends with Magnus Cross for years. Since Landon was already running a little late, and had to get back to his apartment for a couple things, he just nodded and said his good-byes, heading the opposite direction. He pulled his collar up, shielding his face from the wind, when his nose caught something. He stopped, and glanced discreetly to the left. Three hulking men were crossing the street, blending with the darkness. They were too smooth, too fast for the human eye to catch. To silent for the human ear to catch the scuff of boots. But to Landon, the scent was one that made his stomach roll. Lions. One of the men’s hood fell down, revealing a cascade of blonde locks, fire swirling in the highlights illuminated by the streetlight. And they were converging on Sabrina.

Landon didn’t think. He whirled around, following behind them. It all happened so fast. One of the men darted out, his hand wrapping around Sabrina’s mouth and around her waist, dragging her quickly down an alley. The other two paused and then disappeared. Damn. Landon charged, skirting down the edge of the alley and his eyes flickered, the blue being taken over by a brilliant, luminous yellow. Everything sharpened around him, his wolf-eyes adjusting to the dark. The man kept Sabrina held back, his hands cuffing her own behind her and the other had his fingers over her mouth tight. The third transformed, his body rippling and smooth, golden fur slipping over his body, and in a blink of light, instead of a fully grown man was a rugged looking lion. Fur dark gold, and a thick brownish mane shaggily hanging around a huge head. Teeth were bared, and Landon didn’t wait. He leapt forward, yanking the man who kept Sabrina cuffed at the hands off balance and he shoved her at the other who shifted into a lion.

Landon was horribly outnumbered. He wouldn’t win this fight in human form. He was straddling the man, fists a blur as he slammed the lion shifter’s head into the concrete. The lion’s eyes rolled back, and Landon turned around. The two lions were pinning them in the dead-end of the alley. Shit. Landon made a snap decision. His body rippled, teeth growing sharp and claws expanding from his hands. And then he was a giant wolf, rippling dark fur and huge yellow eyes. He leapt at one lion, but the other stepped in front. Landon was a better fighter, and more agile, but he stayed in front of Sabrina, hoping she’d just do that convenient thing and forget. Especially because his claws raking and slashed, jaws waiting for an opening. And then his teeth tore through the throat of one of the lions. The one that had held her before, not the leader. Blood exploded in Landon’s mouth, and not his own. The animal struggled, but went limp as it collapsed to the ground and rippled. The lion was a human that had his throat literally ripped open. The other lion spun at Landon. The fighting happened so fast. Too fast for human eyes. Just a blur of yellow and black as they looped out of shadows. It was quick, but felt like forever. It wasn’t long until the other lion limped off as fast as it could, screeching into the night.

Landon panted, blood trickling out of shallow cuts. He glanced back at Sabrina, the luminous wolf eyes pinning her with a familiar stare that is until they turned and Landon lopped to the entrance of the alley. It glanced back and jerked its head, trying to get her to move.

[Robin]

Replying

Are you going to sleep early or???

also where do you want me to go next?

is she supposed to follow him or go home? And if I'm skipping, should I go to the next morning?

[Renny]

idk
maybe
it depends
I have stuff in the morning
but I honestly can't sleep

[Robin]

Sorry for the dilemma

And I just added a question or two, sorry

[Renny]

hmm. maybe you could skip to her going back to the place?
and finds that the bodies are gone
and she then thinks she hallucinated it all?
and then she meets up with Landon?

[Robin]

Sure thing, thanks.

[Robin]

Sabrina stayed quiet as they took their first few steps out of the cafe. She wasn't much for small talk and after the discussion they'd just had, there wasn't anything she really had left to say. Soon enough they took separate paths and Sabrina gave a small wave before turning and walking down the street in hopes of finding a cab, she saw one far off at the end of the street and craned her neck out to get a better look. All of a sudden there were hands on her and she couldn't breathe. Instinctively Sabrina tried to lash out, kick, but she didn't scream, she had no voice when she tried. She couldn't get to her fun and the massive hands were too strong, she was fast and tough but this stranger had gotten a jump in her before she could do anything. She was got got die before she got to do anything, or at least that's how it felt.

She tried to look around for someone, find some way to help herself but the street was empty. Sabrina was alone, or so she thought. The hands that bound her own were tight, muscular a little sweaty. There wasn't anyway she could release herself from the hold. She'd never encountered someone this powerful before, it was like he was an animal. Finding it to be her only option, Sabrina started biting, as viciously and as repeatedly as possible at the hand covering her mouth. He seemed surprised and a little angry, but it didn't do anything to help the situation. Before she could think, something happened right in front of her and Sabrina's heart nearly stopped, one of the other guys became a lion, like actually A Lion. What. The. Hell. She was hallucinating, that was it. She was terrified and her messed up head was trying to cope. She so didn't need this right now. Sabrina could feel her breathing start to shallow, and get faster and faster. She was going to lose it, and then they would kill her. She would go into shock and die. Then there all of a sudden was Landon, well in her mind it looked like a wolf, but that was just like the lion man. Her head was totally screwing with her. All of a sudden Sabrina's head hit the pavement, she'd been knocked free. Quickly, Sabrina sat up but felt a wet spot, feeling at her head she felt something and lifted her fingers away to find them stained crimson, shit. Oh well, it's was blood, she was alive. Sprinting to her feet she tried to take stock of the situation, but everything was moving so quickly, colorful loud blurs.

What she could see was Landon, killing the lion man. It was like a scene out of the wild, she'd never seen anything so purely savage before. It's was horrifying but part of her, probably the crazy part, was fascinated. In a twisted way it was a little beautiful. Yeah definitely the crazy part. And then it was just over, it was quiet, the lion was dead, Landon looked back at her once before disappearing into and alley. Sabrina swallowed hard, her breathing ragged as she tugged and played with the scarf around her neck, trying to stop herself from shaking. It was the worst hallucination she had ever had. Trying not to think, she started walking again, all thoughts of a cab forgotten. She walked all the way back to her apartment on practically the other side of the city. Sabrina slipped in quietly, past Bryan asleep on the couch and lay down on the bed, still dressed in clothes from work, blood caked her golden locks turning the color scarlet. As she stared at the ceiling above, trying to pretend she'd fall asleep, sabrina realized what terrified her the most about the whole thing. She didn't know if any of it had been real. Forget the animals, what if she had been all alone in the alley, all of it in her head?

she kept thinking about it all night, and naturally got nowhere. When she got up, Sabrina said maybe three words to Bryan as he left for work. Sabrina showered quickly and got dressed, she wanted to be there at seven as she had said. And seven o clock she was there, standing outside the cafe waiting for Landon. Curiously she found herself searching around. There was no crime scene tape, no blood on the pavement. Nothing. So maybe lags night hadn't happened at all. Well that was unsettling, she had made it all up. What the hell was wrong with her?

[Renny]

Landon, however, knew it wasn't a hallucination. He had rushed home the moment he'd shifted back. The moment he'd walked in late, Magnus looked like he was ready to yell. The man was broad, yet still had a handsome quality to him. He was like Bolton in that way, only his hair was a light caramel color, falling straight back against his head, and luminous gray eyes took in everything with cool intensity. Landon was bleeding badly, and the moment the father saw his son, all of his anger at his son's lateness left. And then Landon had collapsed. He'd got bandaged, and it was nothing serious that Landon didn't heal from. Magnus had gathered some of his patrol wolves, and of course, Reece Bolton. Together, the heads of the families, Reece's other son, Corbin and his wife, and Landon's sister, Naomi, and a couple others went to clean up the scene. They burned the bodies of the lions was what Landon gathered, and cleaned up any evidence of a struggle so no mortal would find them.

By the time Landon was awake, it was six forty-five and he hadn't even gotten back to his apartment. He sprinted around, changing gingerly into a fresh, loose black t-shirt, and dark jeans with his combat boots and leather jacket. He hadn't even barely showered, just wet his hair down and brushed it back. He threw on deodorant and cologne, before going to the café at a quarter after seven. He saw Sabrina, recognized her by her blonde locks. He held his breath, knowing she might start asking questions since she surely saw him kill those lions. He looked exhausted, dark circles under his eyes more pronounced, and he limped a bit, his ankle has been bitten bad last night, but nothing he couldn't fight off. He smiled at Sabrina when he came up to her, although it was forced. "Hello, Detective King." He said, pushing his hands into his pockets. "Ready to talk to this drug dealer?" He asked, leaning on one hip, most of his weight off his ankle and visibly keeping weight off of certain areas like his leg. His shoulder was held a bit awkwardly after being wrenched out of the socket, and he walked a bit funny from a couple cracked ribs. But, shifters healed, their bodies doing so due to the change after puberty. The body got used to it, the mending that is, but it still hurt like a bitch after one.

[Robin]

As Sabrina waited for him, she replayed the events of last night. It had all just felt so real. But her hallucinations always did. She knew she would have to tell Landon something, if he had been there at all, Sabrina still wasn't totally sure about that part of it either, she had no idea what to say, the only person that knew anything about her issues was her therapist. Not her father. Not Bryan. Not the department. But she would need to say something. While Landon thought have had explaining to do, Sabrina thought that was her job. She was trying to figure out how best to spell it out for him when she saw Landon walk up. Sabrina frowned seeing him, finding herself inexplicably worried. As he spoke Sabrina found herself blurting in response, her voice a bit gentle, concerned sounding. "you look like hell. " she couldn't help it, it was true. Between the limp and the rings around his eyes. But, she supposed they both looked like hell. Clearing her throat Sabrina found herself trying for something more polite " I, I mean, Good Morning, Landon. And yes, lets get going." She agreed, handing over the visitors information he would need. Sabrina started walking, keeping her eyes on the ground as she started to speak. " about last night....I probably owe you an explanation. I haven't been, right lately or completely myself. It started after something happened on duty, while I was still with the FBI. It's a long story but someone died and there was this serial killer and it's a whole big complicated mess. But the point is. I think I acted a bit strangely last night, and I'm sorry, I just....I see things sometimes, that I can't explain or aren't really there. But I'm okay, I mean, I'm working on being okay. Okay?" She asked when she finished, looking over at him a clear anxiety filling her usually strong stormy gaze. The cracks were visible. But for some reason, she trusted him not to stab her in the back with it. Now that was crazy.

[Renny]

Landon chuckled. He nodded slowly. Hmm, so that was it. "I understand." He said softly. It was almost a blessing she thought it was a hallucination. "Yeah, some guy bumped into you and you stumbled a bit, hit your head." He said nonchalantly. "I walked you back to your apartment, and I figured you just had a bit of a knock on the head, that's why you acted strange." He said, although he was lying. He felt a bit bad for lying to her, but it was better if she didn't know what she saw was real. Maybe she hallucinated on top of what she'd actually seen, but he let it go. He watched the cracks in her armor, but he didn't push, nor did he shove a knife between her exposed ribs. He understood crazy. A war raged within him. The want to be good, but also to do what he was bred to be. Bad. Although the Bolton's and Cross's did have legitimate businesses, the underbelly was ugly and covered with blood. Landon wanted to be a lawyer, but how could you be when you sometimes had your eyes flash crazy colors, teeth grow into sharp razors, and claws expand out from your hands like Wolverine. So, Landon was being shoved towards the crime part of his family. He'd probably marry Kione, like Naomi married Corbin. But she had done it out of love. They'd have children that were ravens, while Kione would have a litter of puppies, since the children always took on the male's shifter gene. But Landon didn't want Kione, even if she was beautiful. She looked like Brenden, with wavy black hair and luminous blue eyes. But he might as well marry Brenden. He liked Brenden better than Kione, but he didn't like Brenden that way. But he'd rather do it that marry her. Nothing against her, she was just boring. Unlike Sabrina. Whoa. Where did that thought come from?" He wondered, walking along with her. He broke out of his thoughts and realized he was twisting his fingers around his cross and wolf necklace. He let them go, letting them clack together and jingle around his neck. "I imagine it would be hard. With this job." He waved to her, trying to indicate her detective work. "Seeing all of that brutality, it would be insane not to go insane." He smiled, but it was crooked and twisted, almost in a dry and mocking way. The words seemed to match the half-smile, but it fled off of his face when he caught a look of it in the mirror-like reflection in the window. He'd looked like a wolf.

[Robin]

Sabrina was surprised, but relieved when he didn't immediately freak out and refuse to work with her, or say something cruel to her about it. She was sure he had the capacity at least to do both. But he just laughed and Sabrina found a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. Well that was a different reaction. " right, well um, thanks for that." She murmured looking right at him, there was something she could see in those blue eyes that he wasn't saying but she let it go. She trusted him. Landon fell silent for a few moments, as he did Sabrina found her thoughts wandering. It had been just so easy, explaining it to him. Like he wouldn't judge her for it or think different of her or try to change things. She had been with Bryan for two years. And she had said nothing, she'd known Landon for two days and yet he knew basically as much as she did about everything. Shaking her head Sabrina played absent mindedly with stray locks of blonde hair, a force of habit when she was thinking. There was just something that felt natural, simple, talking to Landon, even though nothing about any of the time they'd spent together had been simple.


Eventually he spoke and Sabrina glanced over at him and nodded " yeah. I guess. Somehow I think my kind of crazy is just a little bit different. But oh well.' She shrugged still looking at him, trying to figure out what it was he wouldn't say. She found herself chuckling softly again as they neared the prison facility. Surprisingly, it wasn't hollow or harsh but genuine. It had been too long since she'd really laughed, even if it was about how she was totally out of her mind. Sabrina forced herself to focus as they stepped inside and addressed the guard at the desk. " hello, I'm detective king. I got clearance earlier we're here to speak to Matthew Wright?" She explained to the guard and provided him with the credentials, He checked them over quickly and then let them inside. It was weird, being on the inside. Part of her always worried this was what her own future would look like. One day she might be  too far gone, driven just a little too crazy to come back. If she had insanity inside, evil wasnt out of the question. Especially when she found herself surrounded by it on a daily basis. Who was to say it wouldn't break her, push her until she snapped. And maybe that meant she would take other people down with her, drop herself into a pit of blood and darkness. That was how some killers got started, they went crazy. When she did sleep, Sabrina typically had nightmares, sometimes about garret Jacob Hobbes and Ross, but being in lock up was a pretty frequently reccurring one.  And she didn't think it was all that unreasonable.

[Renny]

Landon didn't say anything else. He just let it drop, because now they were in the prison facility. They moved through. Occasionally, a guard would nod discreetly at Landon. He would jerk his chin to acknowledge them, and Landon seemed to visibly relax. He moved with Sabrina, hurrying along the winding halls of cells. They finally came to a couple of rooms with more windows. As Landon glanced to his left, his breath was knocked out of him. He pushed Sabrina ahead of him, a sharp jab to the center of her back so she would stumble forward a couple of paces, and almost out of view of the room. Landon's eyes met those of another. A crazy, wicked blue-green gaze met his own. They seemed to echo the past so vibrantly, and everything rushed back so hard it made Landon's head spin. His breath sucked in, and he clenched his jaw, looking away from the man behind the glass. Ayres. He thought, and grabbed Sabrina by the elbow, practically dragging her away from the door. He gave her a withering look, as if daring her to ask about it. "Let's go." He hissed, voice low. His other hand was clutching around his two necklaces, so hard his knuckles turned white.

Eventually they stepped towards a visitation center, and the guard let them in to reveal the man named Matthew Wright. He didn't look like one. He was large, his hair a messy of frizzy blonde and ginger locks all tamed back into a loose ponytail which barely contained it, and his blue eyes were wild and wide, like saucers full of Caribbean water tainted with radioactivity. Landon's stomach clenched at the sight of the lion who looked ready to jump out of his skin. He settled down at one of the metal chairs across from Wright. "Hello, do you know who I am?" Landon asked, and the lion looked from Landon to Sabrina. He muttered something like human. "You're Mad Dog's son." Wright hissed, his hands flinching and twitching, eyes darting from side to side. "You know him?" Landon asked, leaning forward. Wright leaned back. "Of course I do. I know all of them. Crazy sons of bitches locked me in this place." Landon narrowed his eyes. "Didn't Charles Ayres do that?" Wright shook his head. "Whose that?" Landon pulled out his phone and slid up a picture of Charles Ayres. Wright looked at the picture and recoiled so sharply he almost knocked the chair over. "No, no, no, no!" He started screaming, covering his face. And then Landon noticed the scars all over Wright's hands, the healing burn wounds over his knuckles, and Landon flinched.

[Robin]

Sabrina pretended not to notice the looks Landon shared with the guards, clearly he was more familiar with the place than he was letting on. But that shouldn't have surprised her, Landon was part of a major crime family, still she somehow had a hard time reconciling that image of total evil with the man before her. As Sabrina turned to him to speak, she winced as Landon hit her in the back. Looking at him incredulously Sabrina hurried forward. She wanted to ask what had just happened but then she slowly pieced it together, there was someone he was very very interested in avoiding, which likely meant they weren't a good person. So Sabrina let it go. Part of her wanted to shake him off when he grabbed her, it wasn't a nice feeling being grabbed, but she just looked at him, stormy blue green eyes searching his own for some answers. He looked genuinely worried. Sabrina let herself be pulled along, he wasn't going to hurt her. She trusted him. Eventually, Sabrina felt him relax but only slightly, she felt herself reach out, instinctively and for a quick second rested her hand against his. Sabrina hadn't meant to do it, but for some reason it felt like the right thing to do. Very quickly she pulled her hand back, keeping it busy by fidgeting with her golden locks. Soon enough they entered the room and Sabrina glanced up, quickly studying the man who was Matthew Wright. He didn't look like much, but there was something a little off about him, that gave him and air you felt like laying attention to and just couldn't help. The eyes, it was definitely the eyes. Sabrina could feel Landon tensing up beside her even though they weren't touching. There was just something when it came to him she could feel. Sabrina let them speak for a few moments, curiously listening to the conversation. There was a larger story here, something deeper that ran not between them personally but between those around them. All of a sudden something shifted, the picture, it made Matthew snap. Sabrina quickly rose and went to stand next to him. Her voice was firm but kind" Mr. Wright, please. We just need to ask you a few questions." She explained, she turned the picture over, not looking at it herself " There, no more picture. Okay, now please, if you could help us for just a few minutes." She requested, trying to remove his hands from his face. Very slowly Matthew complied and Sabrina felt herself relax. She took her seat again and looked at Landon. The look in her eyes was offering him the lead on this, but there was a tiny fire brewing in that blue green gaze that said, don't screw this up.

[Renny]

Landon watched her calm Matthew. He was gazing at her now, eyes blinking every once in a while, pale lashes fluttering. He was staring at her, then glanced to Landon. "She's mortal?" He seemed to question this, but Landon plowed right along, trying to get the drug addict and insane man's attention with a question. "Do you remember if you helped him at all?" Landon's voice was gentle, leaning forward, features softening. Matthew Wright looked down at his hands, and they were shaking, from the need of drugs, or fear, Landon couldn't tell. But Landon did know he was staring at his scars. "I was a good lion, I was. I helped him. He said I was a good lion." Wright was shaking more violently know. Landon didn't have much time. "Did he ask you to sell drugs?" Landon asked, and Wright looked up, eyes wide and for a moment, they were so clear, Landon thought they looked right through him. "No. No. That was Rodriguez. He had me kill someone." Wright's voice went soft. "But I let her get away." Landon blinked. "Her?" He asked, leaning forward. Wright looked at him, and clouds began to swirl in his eyes. "She was so young. Just a little girl. I couldn't kill her." Wright shook his head and held out his hands, and he began to shake violently again. "He burned me. He hurt me." he shook his head. "He's the devil." Wright moaned, covering his face again, and began to sob. The door burst open and a couple of medics shot into the room. One of the guards gave Landon a firm look. Landon glanced at Sabrina. "The interview is over." The guard said, as the nurses shot a sedative into Wright's arm, as he flailed and wailed. Landon sighed, swiping his phone off of the table, glancing at Sabrina and followed her out of the room. The door closed behind the guard. "Thanks, Anderson." Landon said, turning back to the guard. A wolf necklace was looped around his neck, same as Landon's. He hoped Sabrina didn't notice it. The guard nodded, directing them back through the building. Landon paused as they entered the hallway where Landon had acted weird. "Hey, Detective, go on ahead." He looked at the door with the windows next to it showing who was in it. "I'll catch up." He said, but his voice was far away.

[Robin]

Sabrina let herself breathe for a moment, trying to keep herself calm,that could've gone very poorly. She sat back in the metal chair studying Matthew's face curiously.  She could see very quickly he was staring at her, as though confused by her presence or trying to find out exactly why she was here. Matthew soon verbalized this and Sabrina frowned. Mortal. What did her being mortal matter, everyone in this room was mortal. Clearly Sabrina had no idea that she what she'd seen. Landon ignored this overture and kept asking. So maybe it had been nothing but the ramblings of an imprisoned madman. Sabrina let her mind drift a moment until a word pierced her haze, lion. That didn't feel like a coincidence, not after what she had hallucinated the other day. She felt a slightly sick feeling in her stomach as Matthew babbled on. She didn't know what this was about but she no longer felt safe. There was something Landon knew that he wasn't telling her, she had known this from the beginning but all of a sudden Sabrina was really feel all the anxiety and frustration that come with that realization.

Sabrina could feel everything getting blurry and out of focus, turning into a rush of color and noise. She couldn't see or think clearly, it was like her mind had kicked into survival mode, because she didn't feel safe. Being left in the dark felt dangerous these days. Taking a few deep breaths, Sabrina clenched the sides of her chair, knuckles white on her already pale hands, trying to stop the shaking, center herself again. You'll be fine, she had to tell herself. Your name is Sabrina King, you're in Boston,Massachusetts, it's 10:45 AM, and the feeling will pass. Eventually Sabrina felt stable again, her vision and hearing cleared and she could breath again, but her heart still raced like an angry drummer was locked inside. When she could focus, Sabrina very briefly caught words. Little girl. Couldn't do it. But one thing stuck out, chilled her to the core, he's the devil. Before the blonde could respond or ask anything further Wright, in a flash, was sedated and dragged off.

Sabrina sighed angrily, resisting the urge to dive into a flurry of curses. She quickly left, Orr order of the guard, Landon close behind her. Sabrina vaguely noticed the interaction between him and the guard. There was something off about it, but she had bigger things on her mind. Sabrina stopped when Landon did, back in the hall where she'd been shoved and grabbed. Sabrina watched him closely, and when he suggested she go on ahead, Sabrina immediately shook her head and stepped forward to stand face to face with him. The look in her eyes showed a dangerous storm brewing in those blue green depths. Her voice was soft but there was a powerful nature to it, her eyes on Landon's the entire time.n" I'm not going anywhere" and that was that. It was fact.