"I did not agree to come here, I was forced."

Reina stared at Ava, her silver eyes narrowing slightly. "Are you sure?"

     Ava glanced at her then at the other man in the room. Ava hadn't seen him on the ship until Reina had pulled her into the dining room. He was tall, his deep blue eyes were charming, and they went perfectly with his short, white hair. The man straightened when he noticed Ava was staring then awkwardly ran a hand through his hair.

     Ava didn't know what it was, but there was something about him that drew her to him. And she hated him for that.

She turned back to Reina and scowled. "I didn't want to go, really." She paused then looked away from Reina. "But I had to because my boss said so."

Reina furrowed her perfect brows. "Why?"

     Ava didn't want to say, mostly because it sounded weird and awkwardly suspicious. She had worked for her boss since she turned sixteen and they had been small jobs like running errands for people in the organization. Then she moved up to training with the cyborgs then became a trainer afterwards. In some cases, she was asked to escort a few people or spy on certain people. Ava never found it to be anything important since they never told her anything in detail.

That was until the day her boss wanted to see her in person.

"I was bribed with money to be anywhere my brother was. My boss said I had to look after him which honestly didn't make sense but I needed the money to pay for school so..." Ava rolled her eyes then crossed her arms over her chest.

"And you didn't change your mind after you saw the camp?" The odd man at the table spoke up with a deep Australian accent and Ava gave him a glare before she looked back at Reina.

"I did," she answered confidently but paused and added, "I think. I'm not sure. I don't remember much from that time."

Reina edged closer to her. "Well, do you want me to reach into your mind and-"

"What? Why would you do that?" She took a step from her and instantly sent a glare to the man at the table when he stood up. "What is going on? Is something going on?"

"Reina-"

"I know, Miguel." The dark-skinned woman glanced at him shortly before looking back at Ava. She ran her hand over the beads that lined her arm as she said, "If there was more than one Stealth then somehow, someone knew when the portal was going to open and found a way to communicate with the other side, that is, your world."

She took a deep breath before she continued, "The Stealth we caught was from our world meaning no beast came into our world. Therefore, the stealth that went after your brother and his friends was from yours."

"And you are sure about this?"

Ava stared at Reina, expecting her to confirm this but it was the man by the table that did so. He took a couple steps towards them then stopped and said, "I am sure."

Miguel touched the gold chain on his neck lightly before slipping his pale hands into his trousers. "I instigated a search for every Stealth worldwide. It wasn't hard since we only had our census a few years ago. Paul Walters was the man who attacked you. He is a wanted criminal but was able to escape the bounty hunters. We had a psychic go through the rest of the wanted posters, and she got nothing."

The man touched his necklace again. "We even added shifters just in case. We had nothing there too."

     Ava stared at him, her mind running wild before she looked back at Reina, hoping she would smile awkwardly and say it was a joke. Sadly, Reina only stood straighter and met Ava's pair of hazels. There was a Stealth at that camp.

"It's all tied up if you think about it. Someone wanted you at that camp." She shook her head. "More like someone needed you here in our world."

"Do you mind telling us more about your boss and where you worked? At first, I thought it was the brother we had to be cautious of, but now I know it's you." Miguel stated, his words laced with curiosity.

     Abruptly, Ava froze. The sudden need to run and hide seized her. She couldn't speak, and it wasn't like she didn't want to. If what she knew could clear her name, then she would gladly tell them, but her mind was blank. She knew nothing of who her boss was or where he worked. She could remember bits and pieces like the small jobs, but she swore she had serious ones. Ones that made her heart cold and emotionless for days.

She looked back at the people in the room, her heart racing at the realization. "I don't remember."

~::~

     It had been a day since the disaster at Omar. Luckily, no one was after them at the moment. Edgar had expected the Vampires to find out about their relationship with the brothers, but so far, it had been quiet. That was until Wyatt, and Xavier randomly appeared out of a wall at lunch time.

     They sat beside each other on the table while Reina and the brothers' uncle stood on either side of them. Ava was sitting quietly in a corner just staring at nothing. Ever since she saw Silas the day before, she had locked herself in her room and hadn't come out until now.

     Edgar had only heard a few whispers about what was going on and they were all summed up under mind control.

     She sipped on her coffee as Miguel frowned at the boys who didn't seem bothered by their relative's displeasure.

"Oh, nice. You just disappeared in the middle of everything." Reina scoffed at Wyatt then turned to Xavier. "And can you explain what happened with the dragon?"

"Someone poisoned him," He sighed and leaned forward. "I shouldn't have brought him to the festival. And I suggested the dragon riding event." Xavier's lips pursed as he laced his fingers together on the table.

     Reina groaned and took a step from the boys. Brushing the few strands that fell from her up-do behind her ear, she frowned at them and said, "I do not know what to do with the both of you, so please stay safe right now. We have a bigger problem other than the two unconscious boys in one of these rooms. If I am right, there is a psychic, a Seeker, the boss and a bunch of Stealths."

"Wait, I'm lost," Edgar admitted, dropping his cutlery down to listen properly to what she was saying. "What do they have to do with anything?"

Miguel turned to him, his steely gaze making the boy's body squirm. Edgar didn't like the fact that he couldn't read the man's emotions and yet could sense the power coming from him. Out of everyone in the room, he had the most, but it felt strange, and Edgar didn't know why.

"Let me do a recap of yesterday." He cleared his throat and started, "I am here because when a cluster of Vampires is in a place where they aren't meant to be, the issue is brought to me. Think of me as the Father of Vampires. I can create and destroy them.

"I am also the brother of the Supreme Lord and he makes me do small jobs. Taking you and your friends to the White Witch and solving the Stealth problem is one of the small jobs. However, this job is looking bigger and bigger every time I revisit it."

Miguel glanced at Ava as he continued, his eyes flashing red before settling back to their original color, "Ava just told us yesterday that there was more than one Stealth, that the one we caught wasn't the one chasing you and your other friends. It was, in fact, from your realm."

     Edgar sank in his seat from the information. There was a Stealth at that camp. Well, Yonakai was a large, dense forest, the Stealth could have been from anywhere. However, he had been going to that camp for years. There weren't monsters there. There couldn't be monsters there.

     Miguel's eyes narrowed instantly at him, and he shrunk lower in his seat. "Do you know anything about this camp? Ava doesn't know anything since it was her first time."

Edgar nodded slowly. "Yeah. I've been going to it for five years. It helps you get in touch with nature. The world right now has turned almost totally from natural resources to factories and houses. Some parts of the country have been destroyed by erosion or earthquakes."

"Explains why the portal popped there," Reina added. She noticed his raised brow and explained, "The portal opens in places filled with nature. It's normally Australia but can jump to different countries sometimes."

"Right," Miguel nodded at her then continued, "Concerning the list Reina mentioned, someone - probably the 'boss' - needed a Psychic, Seeker and maybe a Stealth or two. If a good psychic and Seeker combine their powers together, they could  be able to guess where and when the portal was going to open. Only witches can feel where and when without any help.

"Sadly, we cannot explain how the Stealth in our world was at the portal at that time. We can only take his word for it." The pale man said with a finality in his tone and Edgar gaped at him.

He didn't understand anything even though they were speaking proper English. What was going on? Someone was trying to get to Domus? Why? Why send Ava and Silas when the 'boss' could have gone himself? Who was the boss even?

Edgar voiced his questions. It was getting more confusing the more he thought about it.

"The boss they are referring to is my boss," Ava answered before anyone else in the room, and they all turned to her. "The one who made me go to the camp. I do not remember his name or who he is."

Edgar cocked his head. "Do you mean the owner of Robert Tech? Silas told me your family works there." He turned back to Miguel. "I know the owner. Not personally, since I've actually never met him, but I know his name. Robert Crossway. My dad used to work for him as a scientist before he went crazy one day and died."

     The room instantly went silent, and Edgar noticed the tension. He knew he shouldn't have said it like that, but it was the only way he could say it so people wouldn't feel sorry for him. Not that it ever actually worked.

Reina cleared her throat awkwardly and said, "I'm sorry to ask you about this but, how sudden was it? Did it just happen or were there subtle hints that he wasn't OK?"

Edgar was relieved when she didn't brush over the topic the way he had expected her to. Talking about his dad was a taboo at home, but he wasn't there now. "It was sudden. No prior hint."

     Edgar glanced at Ava when he sensed her staring and a weird shiver went down his spine when her hazels narrowed. He could sense the hostility and he quickly glanced back at the other four people in the room to see if they felt it too. No one did. Reina was conversing with Wyatt and Miguel and Xavier just watched them.

     Swallowing, he looked back at Ava again, and his heart skipped a beat when she swiftly looked away from him like she hadn't been staring murderously at him. This was the first time he sensed it.

     There was something up with Ava.

     Wyatt spoke up out of nowhere, startling Edgar. "Do you think it was mind control, Edgar?"

It took Edgar a while to answer that question since he was still shaken up by Ava's behavior. He didn't even feel comfortable speaking, but he answered anyways, "Only if mind control can last for two years, because that was how long he wasn't okay." He told them of how the doctors diagnosed him with different mental diseases until he died.

Reina sighed and dropped on one of the dining chairs. She took a glimpse at Ava before running a hand over her face. "I'm so sorry Ava, but I have to do this."

"Do wha-"

Ava never finished that sentence when a blue hieroglyphic appeared in front of her and a red tape popped out, covering her mouth. The second she reached her hands up to yank it off, red ropes slithered out of the hieroglyphics and wrapped around her wrists, tying themselves into a knot. Ava's angry shouts were inaudible behind the tape, and she stood up from her seat to glare darkly at Reina.

     The dark-skinned woman only sighed again then met Ava's eyes. The blonde instantly dropped to the floor, and Edgar watched everything in silence.

       The only thing he hated at the minute was how relieved he was that she wasn't conscious. He looked back at Reina just as Miguel beat him to ask, "What was that for? Am I not following?"

"Something is wrong with Ava and until we find out what, she needs to be closely watched, and information should not be shared with and around her. From what I have gathered, whatever made Edgar's father not okay, is inside Ava. It is either not working correctly in her, or it is like a ticking bomb." She sat up in her seat, glancing at everyone in the room before her eyes fell on Ava on the floor.

"Is it the same with Silas?" Edgar had to ask. It would crush him if he had to relive what happened to him that bright morning with Silas.

"I don't know," she shrugged, "but we will leave the watching to you. If you see or sense anything weird about him, tell me right away."

Edgar nodded though feeling oddly uncomfortable that they would make him watch over Silas. He only hoped this wouldn't come between them. Silas was starting to mean a lot to him.

Miguel strolled over to where Ava laid on the floor with her hands and mouth taped and asked as he stared at her, "No one felt anything weird from her until now right?"

"Even if I did, I probably ignored it." Reina shook her head.

"Do you want her on the ship? I could take her to my den." He added excitedly as he wiggled his brows at her.

"No. I need to see into her mind again and check if I missed something."

Miguel nodded, then turned to Edgar. "If you remember anything about this Crossway man, do tell Reina so that I can be informed. However, if a bunch of vampires is in a place they aren't supposed to be, expect me there. Adios."

The pale man vanished on the spot along with Ava's sleeping body, leaving the room feeling awkwardly empty. They all stayed quiet for a while, letting everything that had been said settle in until Xavier stood up and drew all their eyes to him.

"Home's on lock down so I cannot go back. Do you mind if I stay on the ship?" He glanced at Wyatt who got a cigarette pack out of his breast pocket.

"Sure. Make yourself at home," he replied before he popped one of the cancer sticks into his mouth.

Xavier nodded then left the room without another word.

     Edgar felt the need to leave too, and he did after he tossed the meat he was eating out. Recently, he had lost appetite for his usual meals and had started to crave a new meat the chef prepared specially for him. Reina had called it something, but Edgar was too consumed by the food to have heard her. Sadly, it was only during dinner they served him so he had to wait until it got dark before he could have a piece of that tasty meat.

Not that he really minded anyways. He had found an oddly entertaining hobby watching Silas sleep peacefully.