"I didn't know for sure. I saw this guy at school and later in the street. I figured it was just some idiot kid wanting to harass the delegate."
"So that was the guy you saw at school?" Victor asks.
"Yeah." The exact same hoodie with that snake design on the back.
The paramedics are placing Rachel on a stretcher. I leave both guys behind and rush over. "Is she going to be okay?" "Looks like she took quite a blow to the head. We can't get her to wake up," a tall, red-haired guy says. "We're taking her to the hospital so the doctors can run some tests. They'll have a better idea of what's going on then."
"I'm going with you."
"I don't think that's a good idea," Jeff says. "There are too many people there—it's too easy for a vampire to sneak in at this time of night. It might even be what your stalker wanted."
"I'll stay with Dawn here," Victor offers, picking up a framed picture of my parents and placing it back on the mantel. "It isn't safe for her to be alone with so much of the night left. You can go with Rachel."
"While I appreciate that," Jeff says, "I don't know you."
"I know him," I say. "I trust him with my life. I have trusted him with my life." I squeeze Jeff's hand. "You need to be with Rachel. I'll clean up here so that when she comes home, it'll all be okay."
Jeff nods, looks at Victor again. "A Night Watchman?"
I hear the doubt in his voice.
"Those four vampires killed around the trolley? My work," Victor says.
"Impressive." Jeff nods again and looks at me. "Okay. I'll call you when I know something. Lock up behind me." He goes out the door. I close it, lock it, bolt it, and press my head to the wood. Rachel, Rachel, Rachel, please be all right.
Slowly I turn around. "What's going on, Victor?"
"I wish I knew."
With only two steps, he's wrapped his arms around me, holding me near, comforting me.
"She'll be all right," he whispers into my ear.
"You can't know that."
"And you can't know that she won't."
I lean my head back and look at him. I'm worried about another Valentine in Denver. "Do you think Lord Valentine sent Hoodie to tail me?"
"Possibly."
"Do you think he could be … your brother?"
"Son of a bitch," he whispers. He looks toward the balcony. "There was definitely something different about him. I can't explain it."
I can tell he's going into hunter mode.
"If you want to go after him, I understand," I tell him.
"No, I'm not leaving you. Not tonight. Tomorrow night, though, I'll see what I can find out." He touches the sleeve of my shirt. "You have some of Rachel's blood on you." He turns away. "You should probably get cleaned up. I'll take care of the blood in here."
I realize what immense control he has, not to have revealed his fangs while the scent of blood is on the air. For most vampires, it's an automatic response—scent blood, fangs drop.
I don't want to leave him, but I know he's right. I need to change. Otherwise I'll torment him.
When I walk into the bathroom, I immediately jump at my reflection. It's shattered into a million pieces. The mirror was delivered a single strike to its center, the image forever distorted. My intruder wasn't looking for anything at all, just trying to destroy whatever was in front of him. Including Rachel.
After I clean up and change, I check my phone for messages from Jeff. Nothing. I'll assume no news is good news.
I go into the kitchen to survey the damage done there. If it was glass, he smashed it. He even tore off all the photos I had on the refrigerator hanging by little magnets. The childish drawing of my family is gone. It probably flew under the oven and will take forever to get out, which makes me angrier than any of the other destruction.
"I'm sorry," Victor says, righting a vase that had tipped over but miraculously didn't shatter. "I know this place won't feel the same."
"Why did he do all this?"
Before Victor can answer, my phone rings. It's Jeff.
"Hey," I say. "Give me some good news."
"She's in a coma." I hear the sorrow in his voice. "They don't know when she'll wake up. I'm going to stay with her tonight."
"I'm coming down there."
"No, I don't want you on the street at night. Rachel wouldn't want you on the street right now."
As though the apartment is any safer.
"Clive's here," he continues. "He's sending guards to stand watch at your door and around the apartment building. So just stay there."
I nod, realize he can't see me, and say, "Okay."
I hang up and tell Victor what's going on. "So you don't have to stay. I'll have protection."
"I'm not leaving," he insists.
In spite of the circumstances, I experience a fleeting moment of happiness before I turn to tackle the destruction that surrounds us. Victor and I spend the next hour straightening everything up. The entire time, he asks me questions about the things in the apartment, what they mean to me, why I have them. There's an intimacy to what we're doing, an unveiling. It's strange, yet comforting. Almost like we're a normal couple.
When we're finished, it's long after midnight and I'm exhausted.
"You should try to get some sleep," Victor says.
I'm almost too weary to nod. I start walking toward my bedroom, stop, and glance back at him. "I shouldn't ask, but will you hold me while I sleep?"
"For a while."
I'm too tired to even change clothes. I simply slip beneath the covers. Victor lies on top of them, but with his arms around me, it's enough.
The lights are out, but a little moonlight is coming in through the balcony doors. It creates a safe haven for the sharing of secrets.
"Tell me a story. It'll help me go to sleep," I say.
"Once upon a time—"
"No," I interject. "A real story. About you."
"Once upon a time—don't interrupt—there was a vampire who wanted to touch the sun." He combs his fingers through my hair. "One night he was walking through an alley when he thought he caught a glimpse of the sun wrapped in shadow … only to discover it was a girl in need of rescuing. The first time he gazed into her blue eyes, he knew she had the power to destroy him. But he ignored the warnings, because she was the most beautiful creature he'd ever seen."
My breath is uneven. "But he must have seen a lot of girls in four hundred years."
"He had. But none of them appealed to him like she did."
"This vampire and this girl … do they get a happily ever after?"
"I don't know. I told you that vampires lack imagination. So I don't know how it ends."
Or maybe he's just too kind to tell me. Because he also told me that things between vampires and humans never end well.
An hour before sunrise, Victor leaves. The theater wouldn't be safe, so I'm sure he sought refuge with Richard. He said that as soon as the sun set, he would be out trying to discover exactly what was going on, and how his father might be involved.
Surrounded by guards, I head to the hospital. I don't even know if Victor will be able to return to me tonight. I'm being watched as though I'm a precious jewel that the Agency is expecting some thief to snatch away.
Now I'm holding Rachel's hand, listening to the constant beeping of the monitors, a strange symphony of noise. Jeff is out meeting with Night Watchmen and other Agency personnel to see if they can figure out who this guy is. They sent a sketch artist over to work on a composite for the TV stations and newspaper, but all I could really provide was a description of the hoodie. I never saw the vamp's face.
The door swings open and Vivi rushes in, followed by Sin and Michael. Michael's gaze locks with mine, and quite honestly, I'm not sure whether I'm glad to see him. The harsh words we exchanged echo through my mind. So much has happened with Victor since then. I feel guilty, even though Michael was the one who pushed us apart.
"Oh my God! I can't believe it," Vivi says.
Earlier I texted her to let her know I wouldn't be at school and gave her a short version of what happened.
She wraps her arms around me and it feels so good. She leans back and studies me. "Was it that guy in the hoodie?" she asks.
I nod and glance back at Michael, but there's no satisfaction in my words. "I was right. He's a vampire."
"But you first saw him during the day. And it makes no sense," Michael continues. "He didn't drain her."
I was so grateful that she was alive, I didn't even think to question that. "We must have gotten home before he had a chance."
"We?" Michael asks.
"Victor and I."
His jaw clenches. "That Night Watchman?"
His attitude irritates and hurts me at the same time. "I don't know why you're mad. You're hanging around with Lila."
"I wasn't. I just…" He rubs his hand quickly back and forth over his short hair and looks at Sin, then Vivi. "Could you guys leave us for a second?"
Sin studies me. "I'm sorry. About what happened?"
The way he says it is odd. Like he was responsible.
"If I'd caught the guy the other evening—" he begins.
"It's not your fault," I say quickly. I'm carrying enough guilt for everyone. I should have told Rachel and Jeff about Hoodie, about my suspicions that he might have been a vampire.
"We'll go get you some coffee," Vivi says, pushing Sin toward the door. "Then we'll be back."
The door closes behind them, and Michael releases a deep breath before moving nearer to me. "Maybe I was a little jealous of Sin and Vivi. She never questions him."
"If that's what you want from me, Michael, I can't give it to you. I've lost too many people to sit idly by when I'm worried. I don't want anything to happen to you."
He takes my hand. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for the way I've been acting. I promise… Lila … she means nothing to me."
I can't say the same about Victor, especially after everything that happened last night. But Michael is human. He'd never want my blood. He'd never be a monster.
I move into Michael's embrace and welcome his arms folding around me.
The door opens.
"Oh, good, you've made up," Vivi says.
I step away and smile self-consciously. Michael ducks his head, blushes. It's kinda cute.
Vivi hands me the coffee. "So when do they think Rachel will wake up?"
"They have no idea."
"You can stay with me."
"Thanks, but I'll be fine at the apartment. I have a whole pack of guards now."
"You won't be needing them for long," Sin says. "Come on, Michael. Let's see if we can find this creep."
"You don't need to do that. A lot of people are already searching for him," I say.
"We'll take care of him," Michael says, and I know his pride is at stake, so I push down my fear.
"I know you will. Just be careful."
He grins. "Always." Then he leans in and gives me a quick kiss on the lips before he and Sin leave.
With a sigh, Vivi slumps against the wall. "So is everything really going to be okay with you and Michael?"
"I hope so."
"Me, too, because Lila … ?" She sticks her finger in her mouth and makes a gagging sound. "Double-dating with her would be a drag."
I grin. "I can imagine."
The door opens and Clive strides in. Before I can even say hello, he's getting down to business. "We just got a message from Valentine. He wants a meeting tonight."
I tighten my jaw. "That's good. Because I want one, too."
That night I don't bother with the stupid Victorian dress. I fasten the chain-mail choker beneath the turtleneck collar of my blue sweater. I slip the stake Victor gave me into my boot. Not that I'd get a chance to use it against Valentine, but it makes me feel safer.
Winston raises his eyebrows at me when I emerge from my apartment building, but all he says is, "Good evening, Miss Montgomery," as he helps me climb into the carriage.
The ride gives me time to think, to put things in order. Victor and Michael, and Rachel. I try to stack them up, make sense of them. But when I arrive at the manor, all of that leaves me.
I march up the steps and bang the knocker. When the servant opens the door, his eyes widen. The way Valentine holds on to the past, it's possible he's never seen a girl in jeans before.
I step inside, but he seems frozen to the spot.
"I'm sure you don't want to keep his lordship waiting," I say.
"Of course not. Follow me, please."
I follow him to the same room. He opens the double doors. "Miss Montgomery, m'lord."
I stride into the room. Valentine slowly sets down his goblet, but unlike his servant, he's not surprised. He's angry.
I'm in no mood for pleasantries. "My mentor, Rachel, was attacked by a vampire. In our apartment. In the city. Are you going to tell me he was a rogue vampire, one you have no control over?"
"You are not properly dressed for a meeting."
"Lord Valentine, now is not the time for games."
"Really, Dawn? I believe they've only begun. Sit."
I'd rather pace, but I drop down into my usual chair. "Rachel is in a coma."
He picks up his goblet. "She is not my concern."
"VampHu prohibits vampires from coming into walled cities."
"One vampire—"
"It's more than one, and you know it," I snap.
"Watch your manners, child. It is only through my grace that you leave here."