The Virus Within (Original rough draft)

Chapter 95

Luke sat across from me in the back of the truck. He had chosen the furthest seat from Nicky. The way the air swirled around helped to dissipate the faint scent of the two humans. Luke seemed relaxed enough as we talked.

He hadn't located his brother and his old home was in shambles with blood splatter. The scent in the blood had not been that of his brother though, and he had sniffed his brother's pillow to memorize his scent. He wasn't sure if he had gotten out unharmed or if he had been bitten in whatever big fight had occurred in the living room.

Nina was sitting sideways in the front seat so she could look out the open back window and participate in the discussion, "Once we get back, we can send messages to other Strongholds asking if he has passed through."

Luke looked grateful, "Thank you very much. I don't dare approach the Strongholds myself."

Nina jotted down a reminder in her notebook and nodded. I was somewhat amused as I realized that Nina was trying to make staying at Ironwind Stronghold more tempting. If he left, he wouldn't know if word returned that his brother was at such and such a place.

I also had a hunch that Nina would try to get the said brother to move to Ironwind Stronghold just so Luke wouldn't have a pressing reason to leave. Nina was being completely open with Luke since he already knew she was a scientist and was interested in the controlex.

They would have learnt from me that trying to hide things was not a route they wanted to go down. If they attempted it, then I would be setting things straight, even if it involved a fight with Daniel. I still had a few tricks up my sleeves...

Truth be told, I didn't think they would attempt it. They had been completely open with me since. Lies were fairly easy to scent and they had not lied to me. I was still of two minds about what they did. Did I still hold a grudge against their earlier deception? Yes, but the distrust was starting to fade without any other reasons for suspicion.

I exhaled slowly as I realized that. I hadn't thought that it would ever be possible for me to trust Nina again and for the longest time I had not trusted her at all. That distrust was starting to fade though. I restrained a peeved growl as I continued watching the scenery go by. I hadn't realized that Nina's constant truthfulness and assistance when I was suffering the aftereffects of the controlex drug would have mollified my instincts.

My instincts were one of the most suspicious, untrusting, and downright stubborn things in existence. Now I realized that my instincts didn't really hold onto the past if enough more recent evidence was provided. My instincts were starting to regard Nina's past behavior as something that she had corrected. They would still watch for suspicious activities as they always did, but they were no longer giving Nina's actions special attention.

It was just completely baffling that my instincts were more forgiving than I was. Perhaps the phrase short term memory would be more accurate. A number of human phrases came to mind. Forgiveness is divine. Actions speak louder than words. Give someone the benefit of the doubt. I believe "thou shalt not murder" was another one, but I seem to recall breaking that rule last month...

Being a Nightstalker made me testy and suspicious. It didn't necessarily make me an ass. That was my own actions. As much as I could be a jerk or prick at times, I actually did have morals and a heart hidden somewhere under my prickly exterior. I shook my head and snorted lightly. Bah... Humbug. And now I'm quoting Scrooge... I just can't win...

I noticed from the corner of my eye that Luke glanced toward me at my snort, but realized that I was deep in thought and not reacting to a potential threat. He turned back to his discussion with Nina about the various lines of research that she had tried. That left me to chew on my thoughts once more.