Fifty days....
That's how long it had been since Dakota's beautiful wife, Jadden Steele, received a call to return to her home and take part in a battle that apparently couldn't be fought without her.
Was Dakota happy about it when she left?
Of course not. Truth be told, he was downright pissed.
But he was left with no say in the matter, even if he viewed it as her choosing her past over her family that she now has. He simply did not understand how deep her loyalties ran to those she had left behind in Shreveport. Then again, there were many things about vampires that Dakota did not understand. All he knew was he loved this particular one more than he'd ever loved anyone in his life.
The first couple of weeks after she left, he did everything he could to maintain somewhat of a routine. He still had a six year old girl to take care of. Claira needed him, and the fact was, he needed her just as much.
Just like he always did, he crawled out of bed at 4 AM, carried the still sleeping Claira to Rhyannon and Dean's place by 5:20, got to the radio station by 5:40, did his show from 6 to 10 AM, then accomplished whatever tasks needed to be done for that day.
He was usually able to pick up Claira around 3 PM, and from there, it was the same routine. Playing with Claira and Luke, worrying about dinner, making sure Claira was in bed by a decent hour, and attempting to be in bed by midnight himself, in an attempt (usually unsuccessful) to get at least four hours of sleep every night.
Needless to say, this was a routine that was taking a heavy toll on himself and Claira...not to mention Rhyannon and Dean. Bless them, as good of friends as they were, that had simply become too much to ask of anyone, every single day.
So Rhy came to Dakota with the proposition that he allow Claira to stay with them until Jade's return, for the sake of all their sanities. Kota was extremely hesitant at first, knowing that he was the one who had been entrusted to watch over his daughter. And yes, she was absolutely his daughter. No "step" about it.
But it made sense. If Jade trusted anyone more than Kota, it was obviously her best friend, Rhyannon.
The arrangements were made, and many of Claira's belongings were moved to the Santiago household. For her part, Claira was VERY excited about the move. She loved her Aunt Rhy as much as she loved anyone, and the idea of getting to stay a few days with her sounded extremely appealing, in her six year old mind. Of course, nobody realized just how long she may end up staying there.
Having the house to himself and Luke presented a new problem for Dakota......time to think. He now had a bit of downtime in the evenings, and all that did was present the opportunity to miss the absolute hell out of his wife. Days went by, and Dakota started drinking every night just to keep his mind off of Jade. He usually had a drink or two anyway just to unwind from the day, but as usual when things started going badly for him, his drinking had become excessive. For that, it turned out to be a blessing that Claira wasn't in the house.
Anger seemed to overtake him almost every night. How in the hell could Jade leave her brand new family with barely a goodbye?
Over time, broken shards of glass had begun to litter the floor all throughout the house, as Kota was notorious for smashing his bottles against the nearest wall upon emptying the contents. Sleep only came after finally drinking himself to the point of passing out.
His radio show? Forget it.
He simply stopped showing up. Upon the third consecutive no call no show, he was told to not come back. Kota was quickly finding himself sinking deeper and deeper into that same drunken abyss that he had become so infamous for all those years ago.
Perhaps it was fate, or simply the love of a twin sister, but Aiyana had come to visit her brother one night, only to find him passed out on the couch, which had become his regular bed. Kota had long given up on sleeping alone in the bed that he and Jade shared.
She slowly made her way towards him, being careful not to crunch any more broken glass with each step than necessary. Kneeling down beside the couch, she stroked her brother's cheek and kissed him on the forehead, whispering softly.
"Shikoba....."
She was the only person throughout Rhy'Din who insisted on calling him by his birth name. It drove him crazy at first, but he begrudgingly accepted the fact that it was the only name his sister had ever known him by. He even grew to be fond of the name, but only when she said it.
Kota's eyes began to flutter. For a second, he thought it was his wife returning to him, but it registered with him that he had been called Shikoba. Nobody called him that but his sister.
"....the hell are you doin' here, Aiyana..."
"I ain't gonna sit by anymore and watch you waste away like this. What the hell do you think you're accomplishin' by drinkin' yourself to sleep ev'ry night..? Is this how you want her to see you if she walked in that door tomorrow mornin'...?"
She stayed right there by his side, talking to him, until he finally went to sleep once again. Soon as she was sure that he was out, she began with the unenviable task of cleaning up the ungodly mess that had overtaken her brother and sister in law's beautiful house. It was a job that basically took her the rest of the night, but she was able to finish it. Without a word, Aiyana slipped out of the house, satisfied that she had been able to help her brother, if only in a small way.
Around 9:30 that morning, Kota's eyes fluttered open once more, and although he had a hell of a hangover, his mind was much clearer than it had been in weeks. The first thing he noticed was the fact that SOMEBODY had apparently cleaned the place up last night, although he had no idea who. Pulling himself off the couch, he painfully stumbled into the kitchen, where he found a note lying on the counter.
Shikoba,
You're welcome. If you love her, do something about it. Go find her.
Aiyana
All this time, he'd been waiting. Waiting for what?
What if his wife needed him, and simply had no way of getting in contact with him?
Was it his job that had been preventing him from going after her? That was out of the equation now.
Was it the overwhelming sense of anger towards her? That wasn't even a factor now. If anything, he had come to realize that his only anger was directed at himself for failing to watch after their daughter and properly keep up with their house in her absence.
He loved her. He couldn't stand to lie around and wait for her return anymore. He had to find her. At the very least, he had to find out what happened to her. God forbid that he came home without her.
Fifty days to the day that Jade left, Dakota and his ever faithful rottweiler Luke set out on their journey, bound for Shreveport, Louisiana. The only thing Dakota knew about the town was that it was 340 miles northwest of the city where he'd spent many years fighting, drinking, and destroying his body in various other ways...that being New Orleans.
When would he be back?
Soon, he hoped.
But he wouldn't be back until he came home with his wife, or with the knowledge that his wife would never be coming home again.
All he could do was pray that the second choice wasn't even an option.
The first stop was back to Rhyannon's, as she was in possession of a portal that could take him back to his home country. Unfortunately, her portal only led to Los Angeles, California, which was 1622 miles from his destination.
This was going to be one hell of an adventure.
That's how long it had been since Dakota's beautiful wife, Jadden Steele, received a call to return to her home and take part in a battle that apparently couldn't be fought without her.
Was Dakota happy about it when she left?
Of course not. Truth be told, he was downright pissed.
But he was left with no say in the matter, even if he viewed it as her choosing her past over her family that she now has. He simply did not understand how deep her loyalties ran to those she had left behind in Shreveport. Then again, there were many things about vampires that Dakota did not understand. All he knew was he loved this particular one more than he'd ever loved anyone in his life.
The first couple of weeks after she left, he did everything he could to maintain somewhat of a routine. He still had a six year old girl to take care of. Claira needed him, and the fact was, he needed her just as much.
Just like he always did, he crawled out of bed at 4 AM, carried the still sleeping Claira to Rhyannon and Dean's place by 5:20, got to the radio station by 5:40, did his show from 6 to 10 AM, then accomplished whatever tasks needed to be done for that day.
He was usually able to pick up Claira around 3 PM, and from there, it was the same routine. Playing with Claira and Luke, worrying about dinner, making sure Claira was in bed by a decent hour, and attempting to be in bed by midnight himself, in an attempt (usually unsuccessful) to get at least four hours of sleep every night.
Needless to say, this was a routine that was taking a heavy toll on himself and Claira...not to mention Rhyannon and Dean. Bless them, as good of friends as they were, that had simply become too much to ask of anyone, every single day.
So Rhy came to Dakota with the proposition that he allow Claira to stay with them until Jade's return, for the sake of all their sanities. Kota was extremely hesitant at first, knowing that he was the one who had been entrusted to watch over his daughter. And yes, she was absolutely his daughter. No "step" about it.
But it made sense. If Jade trusted anyone more than Kota, it was obviously her best friend, Rhyannon.
The arrangements were made, and many of Claira's belongings were moved to the Santiago household. For her part, Claira was VERY excited about the move. She loved her Aunt Rhy as much as she loved anyone, and the idea of getting to stay a few days with her sounded extremely appealing, in her six year old mind. Of course, nobody realized just how long she may end up staying there.
Having the house to himself and Luke presented a new problem for Dakota......time to think. He now had a bit of downtime in the evenings, and all that did was present the opportunity to miss the absolute hell out of his wife. Days went by, and Dakota started drinking every night just to keep his mind off of Jade. He usually had a drink or two anyway just to unwind from the day, but as usual when things started going badly for him, his drinking had become excessive. For that, it turned out to be a blessing that Claira wasn't in the house.
Anger seemed to overtake him almost every night. How in the hell could Jade leave her brand new family with barely a goodbye?
Over time, broken shards of glass had begun to litter the floor all throughout the house, as Kota was notorious for smashing his bottles against the nearest wall upon emptying the contents. Sleep only came after finally drinking himself to the point of passing out.
His radio show? Forget it.
He simply stopped showing up. Upon the third consecutive no call no show, he was told to not come back. Kota was quickly finding himself sinking deeper and deeper into that same drunken abyss that he had become so infamous for all those years ago.
Perhaps it was fate, or simply the love of a twin sister, but Aiyana had come to visit her brother one night, only to find him passed out on the couch, which had become his regular bed. Kota had long given up on sleeping alone in the bed that he and Jade shared.
She slowly made her way towards him, being careful not to crunch any more broken glass with each step than necessary. Kneeling down beside the couch, she stroked her brother's cheek and kissed him on the forehead, whispering softly.
"Shikoba....."
She was the only person throughout Rhy'Din who insisted on calling him by his birth name. It drove him crazy at first, but he begrudgingly accepted the fact that it was the only name his sister had ever known him by. He even grew to be fond of the name, but only when she said it.
Kota's eyes began to flutter. For a second, he thought it was his wife returning to him, but it registered with him that he had been called Shikoba. Nobody called him that but his sister.
"....the hell are you doin' here, Aiyana..."
"I ain't gonna sit by anymore and watch you waste away like this. What the hell do you think you're accomplishin' by drinkin' yourself to sleep ev'ry night..? Is this how you want her to see you if she walked in that door tomorrow mornin'...?"
She stayed right there by his side, talking to him, until he finally went to sleep once again. Soon as she was sure that he was out, she began with the unenviable task of cleaning up the ungodly mess that had overtaken her brother and sister in law's beautiful house. It was a job that basically took her the rest of the night, but she was able to finish it. Without a word, Aiyana slipped out of the house, satisfied that she had been able to help her brother, if only in a small way.
Around 9:30 that morning, Kota's eyes fluttered open once more, and although he had a hell of a hangover, his mind was much clearer than it had been in weeks. The first thing he noticed was the fact that SOMEBODY had apparently cleaned the place up last night, although he had no idea who. Pulling himself off the couch, he painfully stumbled into the kitchen, where he found a note lying on the counter.
Shikoba,
You're welcome. If you love her, do something about it. Go find her.
Aiyana
All this time, he'd been waiting. Waiting for what?
What if his wife needed him, and simply had no way of getting in contact with him?
Was it his job that had been preventing him from going after her? That was out of the equation now.
Was it the overwhelming sense of anger towards her? That wasn't even a factor now. If anything, he had come to realize that his only anger was directed at himself for failing to watch after their daughter and properly keep up with their house in her absence.
He loved her. He couldn't stand to lie around and wait for her return anymore. He had to find her. At the very least, he had to find out what happened to her. God forbid that he came home without her.
Fifty days to the day that Jade left, Dakota and his ever faithful rottweiler Luke set out on their journey, bound for Shreveport, Louisiana. The only thing Dakota knew about the town was that it was 340 miles northwest of the city where he'd spent many years fighting, drinking, and destroying his body in various other ways...that being New Orleans.
When would he be back?
Soon, he hoped.
But he wouldn't be back until he came home with his wife, or with the knowledge that his wife would never be coming home again.
All he could do was pray that the second choice wasn't even an option.
The first stop was back to Rhyannon's, as she was in possession of a portal that could take him back to his home country. Unfortunately, her portal only led to Los Angeles, California, which was 1622 miles from his destination.
This was going to be one hell of an adventure.