A return to the factory

[Jessica's POV]

Catherine lifts Jade's head and slams it down onto the asphalt. There is a sickening crunching sound. Jessica knows that the blow is not enough to kill Jade, but she's is heavily stunned.

"Do we think Elizabeth is regrouping at the factory or back at home?" Jessica asks.

"Could be either. Or neither. Elizabeth has lairs all over this city -- she could be anywhere. She had almost certainly alerted Diana though" Catherine answers, rising to her feet and brushing the dirt from her pants. "At least we have the car" she laughs.

Mary sees the anxiety on Jessica's face, and walks over to her, pulling the vampiress into a tight embrace.

Well, this has gone terribly Jessica thinks. What did we think would happen? Jessica bites her lower lip and begins to pace. At least I'm still alive...for now.

"It will be okay" Mary assures Jessica, "Elizabeth is strong and cunning, but her hubris leads her to mistakes. She knew about the plot, and yet we are still alive."

"Maybe we can beat her to the factory and capture Diana?" Jessica asks.

"Doubtful. But I'm willing to try" Catherine says. Catherine looks down at Jade. "She'll be out for a while. Could be useful later, though."

The vampiresses proceed to lock the **** Jade in the trunk of the car.

"I always liked her" Catherine says. Jessica can't remember Catherine ever saying anything nice about anyone.

Unceremoniously dumping the driver's body on the side of the road, they make a u-turn to return to the factory.

Diana's car, a Maserati, is still in the parking lot at the blood factory. Jessica feels goosebumps on her arms. Something doesn't feel right. Jessica now realizes that the "conspirators" have never discussed the army of hybrids that Diana had created -- no doubt loyal to Elizabeth. Cleaning up this mess could take years she thinks.

"Maybe we shouldn't go in there" Jessica suggests, ashamed of her own skittishness. God knows what Elizabeth has left for us.

"We have to -- if there is any chance that Elizabeth hasn't gotten to Diana first..." Mary says. "She couldn't have had that much of a head start."

Mary, Catherine and Jessica walk into the dark facility. The lights are out, but Jessica's vampiric vision quickly adjust to the darkness. The facility is dead quiet. After proceeding through the front offices (this was a plastics factory on paper), the vampiresses make it to the main factory floor. The smell of blood is overwhelming. Jessica gasps, feeling herself involuntarily salivating.

The blood harvesting machines are empty. Their former human occupants are scattered across the floor, their throats torn out. There is no sign of Diana, or any of the enthralled humans or hybrids who worked at the factory.

"Elizabeth must have murdered them in a fit of rage" Mary says dryly. Jessica sees shadows moving out of the corner of her eye, and hears footsteps.

"There are people here!" Jessica yells, going into an athletic stance, knees bent. Mary and Catherine do the same, forming a circle looking outward with Jessica. The first would-be attacker runs at Catherine. Jessica recognizes him, one of Diana's assistants, now clearly enthralled to attack. Catherine makes short work of the assailant, easily dodging his charge and snapping his neck.

This opens the floodgates. About a dozen and half attackers rush from side rooms out towards the vampiresses. Jessica recognizes some as staffers, some as the humans they captured to be bled that very night. I guess Elizabeth didn't kill all of them.

Two human women run at Jessica. With swift kicks, she sends both flying. Looking over, she sees Mary wrestling with three humans assailants. I admire her non-lethal restraint, but now is not the time Jessica thinks. Catherine, meanwhile, looks to be having a grand old time, cutting through the humans like butter. Jessica shudders when she sees Catherine literally rip a human's heart out of his chest cavity, and bite it. Gross.

After about eight minutes, the melee is over. Jessica counts fourteen dead, five humans/hybrids seriously wounded. Mary goes to one of them, nursing a broken leg. Gripping the human's head, Mary says "you are to go home and forget all about this. All about us." After a pause, Mary shakes her head.

"Elizabeth's enthrallment is too strong, I can't undo this" Mary says sadly.

"Mary, we have ****" Catherine says, expressing surprising understanding for Mary's distress. In a blur, Catherine blows through the room, finishing off the human survivors.

"Elizabeth knew this wouldn't stop us, but she also knew that it would slow us down" Catherine says, licking blood from her hand. Oh well. "Jessica, this facility has a self-destruct, right? Or did I make that up?"

"No, it does" Jessica answers. "I can activate it."

"It's getting late. Sun will be up soon. We need to find cover for the day" Mary says. She punches the bleeding machine next to her, leaving a large crater in the sheet metal. "Elizabeth and Diana could be halfway around the globe by nightfall!"

"We'll find them" Jessica says resolutely, knowing how hollow her words sound. They could be anywhere come tomorrow night. "Maybe Jade can help us?"

The vampiresses drive off into the night. In the rearview mirrors, they watch the blood factory explode, a large cloud of flame rising up into cloudless night sky. Good riddance Jessica thinks.