The Barrens: a patchwork of farmland west of Sacramento proper. Fertile fields for the Kine that are largely a wasteland for the Kindred.
All save for one corridor that runs along West Capitol Avenue, just north and west of I-80. Not that it's flush with prey, not that any self-respecting Pale would hunt it by choice. But tonight’s errand isn’t about choice. Alice is hungry. Hungrier than he’s ever seen her. And the goal of this excursion is getting her fed. Without, of course, breaching the terms of her punishment.
Cross had noticed this blasted, urban corner of the Barrens before, during his drives around the city. And it’s here he points his car tonight, with Alice in the passenger seat. The windows are down, letting the spring air in and the smell of burned flesh and hair out. Townes Van Zandt plays, softly, on the stereo.
The Burned Man himself has already fed this evening. He’d seen to his needs before taking Alice out, not wanting his own thirst to interfere with her efforts. He’s feeling a little strange, coming along for this. For him, hunting has always been a private affair. But, he knows that this is the quickest way for her to reach the deserted corner of the city that she’s been sentenced to hunt. And he also knows that she’s on the edge of starvation, a dangerous situation for any Kindred. Hopefully, he won't need to intervene.
Hunting Roll
Cross parks the car in an out of the way lot, cutting the lights and then the engine. “We’re here,” he says in the sudden silence, as if she wouldn’t know. “Ready?”