******************************************

      "Have a seat, folks.  I think we all know why we're here."
Captain Cohen pulled out Nick's resignation letter and slammed it on
the desk in front of him.  "Start talking, Knight.  Tell me why I
shouldn't have you brought up on charges."
      "Charges for what, Cap?  Last time I checked, quitting a job
wasn't a crime."

      "Leaving us all wondering if you were dead or alive, is!  You
didn't even clean out your desk.  I can write you up for dereliction
of duty,  fleeing the country in the middle of a murder
investigation, and if you took your service revolver with you, I can
probably add a weapon violation as well.  You will not resign,
Knight.  Consider this an extended leave of absence.  Go get married,
have your honeymoon, and then come back to work."

      "Married?"

      Unfolding his length from the metal chair, LaCroix rose to
his full height, and loomed over Cohen's desk.  "I beg to differ,
Captain.  You will accept my son's resignation, and wish him and his
family well."

      Natalie felt LaCroix capture Cohen's heartbeat, and plant the
suggestion.  Meanwhile, Nick was staring at her in confusion, no
doubt still piecing together who he was marrying.

      Face blank, Amanda looked straight into LaCroix's eyes.  "I
accept the resignation....."

      Frowning, she turned to Nick and blinked a few times, before
continuing.  "When you leave, everyone will be sending along their
sincere thanks and best wishes.  We'll miss you, detective,  but it's
about time you two finally decided to drop the just friends act.
Have you set a date yet?"

      Natalie caught his attention and shook her head.

      "No."  Jaw clenched, Nick turned away.

      Sensing his grief through their link, Natalie jumped in to
save him.  He may not be her mate,  but he was still her best
friend.  "Not yet, Amanda. We'll work on the wedding plans later."

      "All right.  But, if you need someone to perform the wedding,
I'd be happy to offer my services."

      "Thanks, Captain."  Natalie pasted on a smile, feeling guilty
as hell about deceiving her friends.  Only the thought that it was
safer for them this way,  kept that smile from turning into a frown.
LaCroix noticed, but other than his lips tightening, he made no
comment.

      "No problem.  I'll see you at the party on Saturday, then?"

      "Yes, we'll be there."  They said their good-byes, with
LaCroix looming in the background.

                           ****

      "Nick!"

      Natalie clenched her fists, imagining it was Nick thick neck
between her hands instead.  Nick had dropped them off back at the
Raven in complete silence.  Anger had radiated from him in waves, but
he refused to say what was wrong.  Instead, he waited for them to
close the doors, and peeled away.

      "No, Doctor, don't bother."  LaCroix glared after the
retreating car, arms crossed in annoyance.  "I will take care of him."

        "He's mad at me."  Natalie shivered in the warm air.

      "And what did you expect?"   LaCroix demanded, suddenly
beside her.  "He foolishly thought to marry you, and dreamed of
getting children upon you.  Now, not only is his dream shattered, you
threw it back in his face.  I have killed women for less."  He
carressed her hair, his hands playing to their own tune, while his
mind no doubt relived past kills.

      She stepped away from him, half afraid he wanted to reenact
some of them. "Don't.  Nick chose to run away.  If he'd stayed, he
would be in your shoes right now, the dream still intact.  His
choice, not mine."

      "A good choice it was, too.  I'll thank him for his foresight
later.  For now, you need  to go upstairs, before you fall asleep.
Your body is still adjusting to the changes.  Come."

      "How did...?"  She followed after him, through the Raven, but
he didn't answer until they were inside his private apartments.

      "The link, Natalie.  If you concentrate on it, you can sense
my health, not just my emotions.  The depth of the link can range
from person to person, with others that I have brought across, the
link was nonexistent.  With you, it is what I have with Nicholas,
perhaps even stronger."  He lifted a brow at the sight of his sword,
resting safe on the wall, and the corners of his mouth tilted almost
imperceptably up.

      Was that pride in his voice?  Of all the things she did not
need, this topped the list.  "Wonderful, just what I wanted to hear
to make this evening perfect."

      He closed the door behind them, and towered over her.  "Do you
dislike my company so much, Doctor?"

      Great, back to the doctor title,  he wasn't pleased again,
and if she wasn't careful, she had the feeling he would transfer all
his annoyance with Nick, directly to her.  "No, LaCroix, your
presence is fine, invading my mind is not.  You can't tell me that
you don't enjoy your privacy."

      "Not at all, there is no privacy between family, and you, my
dear, are now family of the closest kind.      I have nothing to
hide from you.  Indeed, I am happy with my past.  Can you say the
same?"

      He pulled her to the side of the bed,  and sat between her
knees, looking up at her.  "What dark secrets are so important for
you to hide?  Do you find my body grotesque?  No?  Then what is it
that you reject?"

      She considered his actions in the past few days, both the
good and the bad.  Choosing the words to tell him that, without
rejecting him outright was tougher...hmm, <excuse me LaCroix, you're
a grade `A' psychopath, with homicidal tendencies, what's not to love?
>  On second thought, nope, that wouldn't do it.

      She glanced over his head, at the sword, using it to remind
herself of the other side of him,  the one that cared if she saw her
last sunrise, the one that stared at her now, with tenderness and
concern.  "LaCroix,  I am more than willing to follow you to the ends
of the earth, but only if you stop trying to control me through
fear.  As long as you hold a threat over my head, you won't know if I
stay at your side to protect them, or if I care for you.  That's a
damned empty relationship, what's the point?"

      "Do you?"  The husky question, came from deep within his
throat,  half growl, half purr, and full of longing.

      "Do I what?" She blinked, hoping that he wasn't following the
same line of though that she was.

      "Do you care, Doctor?"  Impatient now, he grabbed her
shoulders, needing to know her answer.

      Yep,  he was.  She been afraid of that.  Damn, she didn't
want to get into this conversation.  Not now, she wasn't even certain
of what she felt yet, more than friendship for certain, maybe even
love.  God knew, that loving this man would not be easy.  A biting
comment died on her lips, as she saw the open longing in eyes that
had been alone too long.  He deserved honesty.  Whatever had caused
him such pain in the past, that he'd become a bitter cynic, would not
be repeated by her.  She ran her hands through his soft hair.  "Yes,
I care, LaCroix.  I may even love you,  just give me time."

      Sheer joy brightened his face, and rushed through the link.
Not even when he brought her across, had she felt such happiness, and
gratitude from him.

     "Take as much time as you need, we have eternity, after all."
Pressing kisses to the back of both of her hands,  he rested his
forehead against her stomach.  "You do me a great honor.  Thank you."

     "You're welcome.  But,  you're still not off the hook.  What
about
Schanke?  Do you still plan to add him to your menu?"

     "Believe it or not, I do not wish `Don' harm.  Had I wanted him
dead, I would have torn his throat out when he confronted me about
Nicholas possibly being a vampire.  Do you know, he asked me
outright?  To this day, I still don't know if he left convinced."
Natalie gaped down at LaCroix's bowed head.  "Wait, do you mean to
tell me that Schanke knows?"

     "I don't know.  We spoke at length that night, he left content,
and unharmed.  But, when a person regains their memories, there is no
taking them away again.  Whether or not Don did indeed remember
anything, is a mystery best left unsolved.  Do you understand?"

     Natalie stood there poleaxed.  Understand?  Hmm...that would be
a no. Did she agree, oh yeah.  "Yep, perfectly."

     "Good."  He lifted a sardonic brow, and smiled at her.  "Come,
it's time for you to go to bed.  Alone, I'm afraid.  I have other
things to take care of today."

     "Nick?"

     "No, nothing half so pleasant.  It's time for inventory, and my
accountant will be coming by this afternoon.  Mr. Franklin only had
it half right, the only sure thing in life is taxes."

 End Chapter 12b