On Her Turf

Drying myself I nod, I would make sure the shutters were closed.**I had had them installed after I was changed thinking it might save the windows and a good way to keep wolf me in.**Smiling as Chris moves closer I don’t protest when my towel seems to vanish as he nuzzled against me.*“I think your right,” I say with a smile, sliding my hand into his, I lead him into my room pausing to pull the plug.**Once in the room I slip away from you and head over to the window which looked out over the town.**Pressing the button beside the window the blinds slowly descend blocking out the view.*“I will just close the others so that no light gets in" I say slipping past Chris with a smile and a quick kiss on his cheek.**“Make yourself comfortable.” Heading out of the bedroom I close the other shutters, so there was no way the sun would be able to get us in the morning, before heading back to the bedroom and Chris.

I laid myself down on the bed, Ari's sweet scent covering the sheet as I rested my head down. I had never so tired before, then again I had had sex in the amount of time I had with her. I welcomed her to her bed, holding onto her body as I passionately kissed her wanting to hold her forever as my eye became heavier with every moment. I looked forward to waking up and seeing her next to me.

Looking at Chris laying there on my bed made me smile and a small part of me growled contently. It seemed so right seeing him there in my bed. A place that had I thought I wouldn’t see anyone else in ever again and from this moment I never wanted to see anyone else in it but Chris. Joining him in bed, wrapped in his arms as we kissed, I couldn’t think of a more perfect way to end the night. Reaching down I pull the sheets around us as I see his eyes slowly close and I smile kissing his lips once more, before I let my own eyes close. Worn out from all that had happened since the sun had set, sleep claimed me quickly and I slept peacefully through out what was left of the night wrapped in my vampire lovers arms.

Morning came and went as we slept and when I opened my eyes and looked at the clock beside the bed I realized it was almost noon. Looking down at Chris beside me I smile and kiss his forehead before slipping from the bed going in hunt for something to eat and drink. I didn't know if he would wake anytime soon and I didn't need the light ones as I move through my apartment in the dark. Grabbing something to eat I glance across the room at the TV. Turning it on I turn the sound down low and turn to the news, but a food in my hand is forgotten as I see the main story. Another body was found on the park this morning. A growl rips from my throat as I see the crying family of the young woman. "Those bastards, they were there," I growl at the TV I can feel the anger well up inside of me as well as the wolf. Growling I throw the plate across the room and it shatters against the wall. Pacing back and forth my claws grow as I question how I could have let this happen again. "When I get my hands on whoever is doing this I am going to rip them to shreds," I grab the nearest cushion and shred it, slowly losing control the more I think about what had happened and how I didn't stop it.

The crash of the plate jerks me from my rest, even though my eyes were still heavy from the night before, I stand up as I catch Ari in a fit of anger. I could the scorching heat from her even as I sat in bed. I didn't say anything, I allowed Ari to get her anger out as I watched the television, the news of another victim being killed made my stomach sick. I almost responsible, if I hadn't distracted Ari with... well sex, she might have been able to find out who was doing this. I couldn't help but feel responsible for that poor girls death.

As Ari stood there, still very much fuming about what had happened, I got out of bed and tended to her. My hand taking her's as I look at her. "We can't do anything" I admit "Not with it being day and with cop around the area." I look away for a bit to think of way to find out who had been hunting on Ari's turf. "The girls is most likely going to be taken to the morgue in the city hospital. I can try to get us in tonight. What do you say." Since I moved to this city I had frequented the local hospital, buying food from their blood bank. I was almost certain I could get us in to see the body.

Aware of someone coming towards me, the sudden urge to attack them was strong, to vent my anger on flesh instead of plates and cushions. Just as I felt my muscles tighten to lunge I stopped myself recognizing Chris through the red haze of anger. 'He is not the enemy, he is lover/mate, I will not hurt him,' I told myself this fighting the urges. Getting myself under control, just enough so that when he takes my hand my nails slowly returned to normal. Looking at him as my body continues to tremble in anger, I can’t help but snarl when he says there is nothing we could do. He was right but I didn’t want to accept it, I wanted to hunt to be outside and track down this threat, police and daylight be damned.

Noticing Chris look away, I wonder for a second if I should apologize for snarling at him. It wasn’t his fault for pointing out the truth of the situation. Before I could open my mouth he mentions the girl going to the morgue and her eyes go wide in surprise when he said he can try and get us in. Slowly I nod my head, “That sounds like a better plan than mine,” I tell him, “I had been planning on returning to the park and seeing what I could smell, but now with this being the third girl dead the police would be all over the park messing up all the smells.” Slowly I pushed the anger down until I had stopped trembling. “So we wait until tonight then,” I say with a sigh and slowly step closer to Chris and lean against him. “I am sorry I snarled at you, I just don’t like that this is happening and I don’t like waiting. I have never been very good at being patient, not when I feel like I could be doing something.” Another sigh slips from my lips and I lean my head on his shoulder and nuzzle against his neck, as the smell of him slowly calms me a lot quicker than I can calm myself. “I am sorry I woke you up,” I whisper against his neck, my lips brushing his skin before I kiss it.

My hands wrap around Ari as I kiss her neck, looking at the covered window. "It's okay" I reply, my eyes still heavy with sleep, wanting so badly to go back to bed. "The last thing you need to do is attract cop." I say "let's just say some of them...know." It was unspoken that some officers were well aware of the existence of vampire and werewolves. Hell, some of them may have written their checks. Because of this these cop were given special resources in keeping any problems in check. "Let's just go to bed, as soon as it's dusk we can go, I promise. Unless you want to do a few other things before hand."

Lifting my head I looked at him puzzled, what did he mean some of them know?**Did he think some of the cops knew of me kind and his was it possible.**I didn’t know if the cops from my turf knew but then again it might be possible.**I kept most of my turf clear of any trouble so therefore I never really had to think of the cops knowing.**But it made me think but before I could wonder to much I pushed those thoughts to the side when he suggested going back to bed. Those thought could wait till*tonight, for now I would sleep.**Pulling myself away from Chris I take his hand and look into his face and could see that he was tired.**So I led him back to bed and settled the two of us back into my bed, under the covers and curled together.

If my heart could beat, it would be racing. I held onto her warm body as my eyes closed, her sweet scent making it easier to fall back into my slumber. I awoke at the moon rose and night had fallen. I stood up and rested my hand on Ari as she slept as my mind wandered to when I first arrived in the city, the first time I went to the morgue.

All I was given was a piece of paper with instructions to go to the hospital at midnight, take the stair to the lower levels and talk to a man named Lewis. The second I got there, I saw a man behind a glass in scrubs. He was pale as I was and seemed wired. If I didn't know better I'd say he was like me, but I still hear his heart beating. He looked at me and he knew what I needed.

"Looking to give some blood or take?"

He asked with a slimy smile on his face, his greasy semi long hair in his eye as I confessed to wanting to buy. That was it, every week I'd buy some blood instead of feeding of some random person, or worse rats. It kept me nourished and it kept anyone for getting hurt by me or worse. I leaned down to kiss Ari.

"Sweetie, the sun is down."

Curled with him I didn’t fall asleep straight way but watched him fall back asleep instead as my mind turning over all that had happened over the last couple of days.**The deaths, meeting Chris, the challenge offered in the blood of the dead girls, realizing that Chris was a vampire and my mate and now another death.**Anger stirred within me but was soon washed away as I looked at Chris.**There wasn’t anything I could do at the moment and I didn’t want to spoil having him in my bed with anger.

Closing my eyes my thoughts still chased themselves around in my head.**Round and round they went until they seemed to mingle together not making sense, before sleep finally found her.**Before she gave herself fully to sleep one last thought stood out of the mess, Things had changed now and she wasn’t alone anymore.

Feeling someone kiss me, I slowly open my eyes wondering about what he said.**If the sun is down shouldn’t I be sleeping not waking up.**The feel of my bed under me, the sheets wrapped around my body and the smell of the male who had shared my bed, also confused me for no male was allowed in my bed.**My eyes shoot open and I look at him, a storm of emotions rage through me battling for control for what seemed like a lifetime.**The strongest were Rage which demanded I main the male who dared be here, Lust which made my fingers twitch to reach up and pull him down on top of me.**But the ones that quelled the others were Love and Understanding.*

My eyes closed and I kissed him back.**“I think I am going to have to get used to waking up with you here.**Especially if I am going to get kissed awake” I say smiling my lips brushing against his.**She didn’t know whether she should tell him she had been about to either try and rip his throat out or jump him right there and then.*

The second her eyes opened, I could feel the heat resonating from her. It was much like the heat I could feel from when she was angry about who ever was hunting on her turf. I could hear her heart push her blood though her body in a rapid pace. Perhaps I should have ran, yet my deepest instinct told me she could control it, that she would be able to recognize me as her lover.

I held her close to me, a soft kiss upon her lips as she spoke of getting used to me sleeping with her. "Perhaps your wolf side is still wary of me." I said my finger moving up and down her spine. "When we have some time to ourselves, maybe we should try to remedy that." Nothing would have pleased me more than to stay in bed with you, just us entwined with one another as we gave into our primal lusts.

Sadly, I knew we had a job to do, Someone was hunting in Ari's turf and we needed to find out who. I reluctantly let go of her as I began to get dressed. "We'll have to take the back entrance to the hospital." I explained "That's where they keep the blood and it's also where the morgue is. Lewis may be reluctant to help us, but I'm sure you can convince him if you don't doing a bit of intimidation." Lewis was slimy, but he was also a coward. I quick flash of claws would be more than enough to convince him.

Mmmm,” I purr as he holds me close and his fingers gently stroke my spine.**“It’s not you specifically well part of it isn’t.*I am a little territorial and I haven’t invited any one to my bed since before I was turned,” I whisper his fingers slowly stirring the lust that had been quieted a minute ago.**“But I like the sound of fixing that,” I say with a smile as my hand slowly start to run down along his sides.**Thinking we had time now forgetting for a moment about the outside world.

But when he pulls away I feel disappointment and then understanding as I remember the news and our plan.**I lay back on the bed and sigh as he starts getting dressed.*Slipping from the bed finally I head to the closet and grab something to wear.**Peaking over at him as I dress I listen as he explains.**Smiling I slide a top over my head, “ I think I can do that,” I tell you revealing extended canines when I pull my top into place.**

Dressed I cross the room and move over to him with a frown, “But we might need to add a slight detour to your plan.”**I slip a finger into one of the rip marks in his shirt.**“Sorry, I think we need to get you another shirt,” I say, letting go of the shirt, my hand then running up the front of his chest.**“Mind you I much prefer you without the shirt, but that will have to wait until later.” Giving him a long slow kiss I pull back with a sigh.**“Lets go see what we can find out.”

I was rather perplexed at the suggestion of a detour. Surely my shirt was the least of our worries. Despite it all, I could argue with Ari. I was once again taken by her soft embrace. Her sweet scent accompanied by her loving embrace as my hands rested upon her hips. I fought any temptation to stay here and ravish her and nodded at her suggestion to go. I knew that by the end of the night, we would find out more about who was hunting on Ari's turf.

Slipping away from him I head to over and retrieve my boots and pull them on. Collecting my house keys and I head to the apartment door and smile back at Chris. "Come on, lets go get answers," I say opening the door to the night.

The detour to my apartment was brief and non consequential. I grabbed the a black shirt from my bedroom and quickly left as Ari and I head to the hospital.

Before coming, Jack had given me a letter from who ever had killed the woman who turned me. They were a sort of secret society. Elder vampiric family that made sure the myth of vampires stayed just that. They planned everything for my apartment was paid by them and where to get my food was suggested by them.

The hospital was a few blocks from both our places, so walking wasn't very tiresome. "Here we are." I said as we found ourselves across the street from the hospital. My eyes observed the building. Tonight seemed to be rather slow as I saw a on call doctor leaning next to the main entrance smoking a cigarette and only one ambulance car parked near by with an EMT sitting in the back as he ate his lunch.

"This way." I said as I led Ari to the side of the building, crossing the street and keeping to the shadows to avoid anyone from seeing us. The entrance to the morgue was on the back side of the hospital, it was used in secret to those who were told about it. I continued to lead as the unlocked entrance let to stairs going down. "I seems vampire have a lot of sway in the world" I said "Some of the blood donated here is saved for... us. It's an alternative to feeding on humans...or animals. The only thing is it's not free."

I often wondered how others who had turned coped with their new abilities. Were they given the same treatment as me, did they even accept it? I didn't like thinking about it and it didn't didn't have time as we reached the lower level of the hospital, the morgue.

There Lewis was, behind his plexiglass as he sat there with that obnoxious smile of his the moment he saw me. His eyes seeming as if he hadn't slept in days. "Oh, it's you." he said with his arrogant tone. "Come for another quick meal, and who's this, another stray yearning for a sip of milk." I tried to keep myself from breaking the glass and strangling his neck. "I need to get into the morgue." I said bluntly.

"Pfft" replied Lewis "I don't know how close you think we are, but if think I'm going to help you and your little friend with some sick fetish of your's, you're insane." His reply wasn't surprising, he knew me, he knew I couldn't do anything. But he I knew he didn't know Ari.

I had been to this hospital a couple of times before I was turned and a few times after that but never for myself. Plus my Sire had told me to avoid hospitals at all costs, that I would be found out. The reasons behind going after the change were mostly for the victims of those that had hunted in this town, those that made it to the hospital mostly never made it to the next day. Thankfully there were only a few, as most had got the hint that this was my turf and I would protect it. Then there was the other time I went to the hospital, the time after I woke up covered in blood. To witness what I had done as well as to face the fact that I might have done to someone, what had been done to me. But there had been no new werewolf, there had been too much blood loss and too much damage.

A shiver ran through me as I tried to shove these thoughts back and think on other things. I didn’t like the hospital, the memories were one reason, the smell another but also the one who changed me had told me to avoid them at all cost, unless I want to be found out. But after meeting Chris I was starting to wonder if there weren’t in fact people in the hospital that knew about my kind. There was at least one that knew about vampires and I was about to meet him.

Following Chris I had never been to the morgue and would have no idea on how to get there without him. Listening as he spoke of his kind I focused on his voice and tried not to let the emotions that came with the memories take over me. So this was where he came to sat his hunger, I was curious about how match it would cost for that blood. This distraction calmed me slightly which I was glad for because once they got to the lower levels and I laid eyes on the man who was going to help us, even if he was going to need some convincing, I was glad I was with Chris and his calming presence. I didn’t like this man everything about him repulsed me, from the way he looked to the smile he gave us and to the tone he used when he spoke to Chris.

I kept quite though I felt like snarling at him, I would let you handle this …. at first. My eyebrow rose at the mention of fetish’s, it made me wonder what went through this man’s head to think that was what we wanted. Okay so we asked now came the convincing. “I don’t know what little twisted fantasy you having running through your head little man, but don’t include us in them,” I snapped, letting a little of the hatred for the hospital slip into my voice making it come out as a snarl. “Now will you please let us into the morgue, or I will have to come through this glass” I paused as I brought up one clawed hand and tapped on the plexiglass “and make you change your mind” I smile letting my face shift slightly so that the wolf was staring out at him from human skin. “Oh and by the way I am no stray” I growled baring my sharp canines.

Maybe it was over kill, but I wasn’t comfortable and I wanted to get this over and done with and get out of here. I wanted to run from this place, run and set emotion aside and then when I run myself out, maybe curl up in Chris’s arms and enjoy a different kind of exercise that would wear me out. But that would have to wait.

The very sight of Ari's nails and teeth were enough for Lewis to move back in fright. His eyes were one her then darted to me. I could already see what he was thinking 'you brought a lycan!?' was perhaps what he was thinking. Despite the tension I kept calm leaning forward as I spoke. "You should open the door...please." With his body against the wall Lewis quickly pressed the button that unlocked the door to the back which would lead to the morgue.

The fright in Lewis' eye were still present as I let Ari go in first. Before following I looked back at him, "I would prefer if didn't tell your master about this." He nodded as I followed Ari into the back.

The backroom was easy to navigate, signs for every section were on each corner of the hall. Finding the morgue would be simple. "I figured you could convince him" I said to Ari. "Ghouls may feel invisible at times but when threatened they act like mice." The moment I mentioned the term ghoul, I felt I inclined to explain.

"Ghouls are what humans become when they drink the blood of a vampire. As long as they drink the blood of their master, they become more than human; fast healing, speed, strength, they don't even age. But they also tend to take the traits of their masters." The thought of who his master was scared me. I knew there other vampire clans, but the less I had to deal with them, the better.

With my all my talking I almost didn't realize we had made it to the morgue. I opened the door as a burst of cold air blew toward me, the the wall at the far end covered with small door where the bodies were, few of which we needed to look into. "You got the names of the girls right?" I asked Ari.

Keeping my eyes on Lewis, I took a little joy in scaring, which was something I didn’t normally enjoying doing to humans. Closing my mouth hiding my teeth but I kept smiling at him, my wolf eyes watching him and my claws still resting on the bench before me. The fear I smelt coming from the man on the other side of the Plexiglas brought the wolf closer to the surface. If Chris hadn’t spoken so calmly then I might just have gone through the glass, which settled the wolf slightly. I would have taken his hand then but she wasn’t about to show weakness.

“Thank you” I said, finally taking my eyes off the man and headed through the door. I caught your words to him and was curious about the meaning behind them. That man had a master! As we walked through the halls I let my claws shift back to normal fingers and hands and gave Chris a sweet smile when he said he figured I could convince him, “Glad to be of service.” Slipping my hand around his, I relaxed a little more.

The word Ghoul caught me by surprise and as I listened I realized I really didn’t know much about the world of monsters even though I was one. My Sire really hadn’t prepared me as much as I thought he had. Questions popped into my head as we entered the morgue, but I shoved them to the side focused on what we were doing here.

“Their names ….” I started but stopped as I tried remembering the news reports as I headed to the doors on the other side of the room. “Haley Burnett & Natalie Henderson, they were the first two killed the night before we met” I saw the little pieces of paper set into slots on the doors and started looking for the two girls. The last name was harder to remember “I think the other girls name was Anna or something like that” I shook my head.

As I searched I finally asked Chris something that I had been wondering since the mention of Ghouls. “If Lewis is a Ghoul does his master live here in town? Has there been a vampire or vampires here the whole time that I didn’t know about?” And if so, did the one who changed me know about them, but still left me here on my own. I didn’t ask this last one out loud because I knew Chris wouldn’t have an answer to it, only the man concerned would and I doubted I was ever going to see him again.

It was just then I found Natalie’s name on one of the doors. “Found one,” I said opening the door.

“Found one,”

My eyes turned to Ari before I could even begin to answer her first question. In the five years I had lived here, I had learned a lot. I only wondered if I was suppose to even speak about it to Ari. She was a werewolf after all, and our kind didn't usually fraternize much less sleep with one another. Regardless, it didn't seem to be the time right now as I looked over at the door.

"Natalie Henderson", I hesitated when reaching for the door. I wondered what atrocious sight we would soon behold when we revealed to poor girl's body. I looked at Ari for a moment, I could do very little to hide the fact that I was a bit concerned in unveiling the corpse, but I knew it had to be done. "Okay" I said softly as opened the door, sliding the large tray out where the body bag laid. Like taking of a band aid, I quickly unzipped the bag.

There Natalie was. The poor girl's neck was completely torn, almost seemingly hanging by a thread as her stomach stood ripped open. I almost expected myself to be ill from the sight even throw up at the very scent of it all. None of that happened, all I felt was pity and perplexity.

"Odd", I said "She was ripped apart, but look at her look around all. There so little blood almost as if what ever did this ate her and... fed on her blood."

Watching Chris open the door, I felt my stomach tie in a note, unsure of what we would find. Seeing his hand hesitate I looked up at him and could see the unease in his face. Wanting to remove the unease I almost opened my mouth to say let’s just leave it, pretend we never came here and leave. But I knew we couldn’t or at least I couldn’t, not when a challenge had been issued. I also had the feeling he wouldn’t leave me to do this alone. So instead I tried to give him a reassured smile even though I didn’t feel it.

When the bag was unzipped I couldn’t do anything but stare. My eyes took in the injuries, the throat and the stomach. My body trembled slightly as I suddenly had a flash back to a different torn up body. Gripping the edge of the tray she laid on I tried to focus. Looking up when Chris spoke I looked from him to the body, the memory clearing from my vision and see Natalie laying there. Her death seemed similar yet very different.

“It’s not a wolf kill, well not a proper one I think.” Raising my hand I held it over the stomach of the body not game enough to touch it. I let part of my humanity go giving myself to the hunter side of the personality that came with the wolf. “Wolf kills are more though and a lot messier depending on the goal. This looks messy but I have seen worse. It’s almost as if someone either wanted to make it look like a wolf or some other creature with claws did this” My fingers turned to claws pretending to swipe the stomach. “Or the one with the claws was stopped before they could do more than tear out the throat and stomach, a controlled killing.”

Looking up at Chris I pointed out the fact there were very few other claw marks. Lowering my head slightly to her I sniffed. The human side of my pulling further back or I would have been sick at the idea. “Some of her blood was on the tree, I am guessing mixed with the other girls.” Then I growled slightly then frown, “I smell vampire, at least I think it is vampire. This is the smell I caught at the place she was killed, the smell is close to yours but not yours.”

My eyes then narrowed, as I caught something else. “There was something else with her when she died, its smell is mixed in with the smell of death.”

None of it made any sense. Vampire were known for feeding on the living, drinking their blood and in some cases turning their victims into one of them. They almost always clean, a simple bite was enough to paralyze a person, making little resistance and no need to kill them. Here we were though, in front of dead body; torn from the neck and stomach, with little blood.

I stepped back from the body and looked trying to make some sense of it all. "Most kindred..." I closed eyes wanting to keep from using the term used among vampires. "I mean vampires... don't feed like this, also..." I move back to Ari and the body and stare at her. "When I first came here, I was told about... your kind, how if we ever come across one, we should run." I looked down at the body as some of the organs. "Even some of the intestines looked like there were chewed up." It was then that Ari's word stuck in my head.

There was something else with her when she died, its smell is mixed in with the smell of death.

"Whatever this thing is, it more than a simple vampire or werewolf because no vampire or wolf would hunt on a lycan's turf... not unless it knew it could take it from them."

Raising an eyebrow at the term kindred, I tilt my head slightly keeping my eyes on Chris as he moved away and then when he moved back. So the vampires knew there were werewolves in the area, or at least thought there might be a chance of one being here. That would be the only reason for giving Chris the warning. Vampires told there kind to run when meeting my kind, were they scared of us. This only added more questions that could wait for later.

Nodding when he mentioned the chewed organs. Looking at them it only adds to my thinking of a controlled kill. There would be chunks missing, a section torn from the body if the kill had been intending on feasting on the intestines. "I don't know what this creature is or if it's working alone. I don't care who or what, I have fought too hard to give my turf up to someone can come here and start murdering my people," I growled, stepping away from the body.

Needing to move I look for the other two girls not sure if we would find anything new on them or would there bodies be ripped up exactly the same way. This shouldn't be happening, had I not proved I could protect what was mine, why did someone want what was mine.

The frustration in Ari was far to obvious. The anger in her eyes blazed as she tried to search for the other two bodies. I froze for a second and closed my eyes as I began to feel a presence. Two men, soft soled shoes, the faint smell of cigarettes coming from them. Coroners. I looked over at the clock, it was almost 5am. I had to leave before the sun came up, but I couldn't leave Ari, especially not in her state.

I had no choice, I began to move over to Ariana; moving a bit in front of her, hoping to ease her anger and not get caught in her claw. "Ari" I began as I tried to meet her gaze. "Ari, sweetie look at me." I put my hand on the side of her face making her meet my eyes. "In a few moment the sun will come up and those coroners will see us if we stay here." With those word a kissed her softly, hopefully subduing the wolf within her. "I promise when we get back to my place, I'll tell you everything I know about the vampire living here and I'll do whatever I can to find who's been hunting on you turf, but right now we need to leave... please."

Where were others I growl to myself searching through the names. Finally I found one of the others but before I can open the door I catch sight of Chris entering my sight. I try to move not wanting him in front of me while I was angry, I didn't want to hurt him. But his words and his hand on my face, cut through the haze of anger that had clouded my mind. When he kissed me the wolf inside me settled down and withdrew. "Chris," I whispered and then his words sunk in. Pulling my head back slightly and tilted my head hearing the sound that I had missed before. "Okay let's go"

Slipping away from him I go to Natalie's body and quickly zip up the bag. "I'm sorry," I whisper before her face is covered. Sliding the tray back in and closing the door so that there was no sign that we had been here. "I don't like this place" I tell Chris as I head towards the door. "I can't wait to get out of here."

We were fortunate to leave the hospital unseen, the coroners turned into the break room before even reaching the morgue, giving Ari and I enough time to slip away. Even with my back turned I could feel Lewis' eye on us as we left, in the back of my head I wondered if he'd say anything to his master. the last thing I needed to get attention from her. I shelved the thought, I didn't even say a word, I needed to keep my mind set on getting home before dawn.

5:58 am, just a few minutes before day break and we made it home. I let Ari inside first and closed the door behind me, my head lean against the door as I thought about what would come next. I made a promise to Ari to tell her everything I knew about the vampires that resided here. I was hesitant. I knew a lot about them and I knew what they were capable of, and the last thing I wanted was for them to do anything to Ari. I kept quiet for a moment before taking a deep breath and speaking.

"When a vampire turns you, your blood is drained."I started my head still facing the door. "A bit of it is replaced with theirs and eventually you become one yourself, it's known as the embrace." I turn to Ari and walk over to the couch. "The thing is not all vampire are alike. Some are different, more aggressive, insane, some even look inhuman. Like I said there's a lot of politics involved, fighting between clans over which territories are run by who and traditions, particularly one known as the Masquerade." I knew Ari was lost, so elaborated. "The Masquerade, is the idea to convince humans that we don't exist. That means not using our abilities and acting human. It's supported by the clans that originated from in Europe during the Renaissance. It's basically a cornerstone in the survival of many kindred... that's what we call ourselves."

"I don't know if any of the clans are involved, but if they are this maybe about more than hunting in your turf."

Paying no attention to Lewis as we left the hospital I was just relieved to be out of there, though I still felt the urge to run but it wasn’t as demanding as it had been while surrounded by the hospitals walls. There seemed to be haste as Chris walked, following him I didn’t speak as I matched his pace. I knew he was worried about the sun rising before we made it to his place as it was closer. Looking up at the sky, I hadn’t realised we had been in there so long.

Once in the apartment I turn to look at him and see Chris leaning against the door. Concern filled me and I started towards him but stopped when he started to speak. Standing still I listen, there was something about the way he looked as he stood there talking to the door. There seemed to be hesitation, did Chris not want to tell me this or was he so used to not talking about it that it felt wrong to do so.

When he finally turned towards me I didn’t say anything, giving him space to choose if he would continue to speak. Moving to the couch I sit next to him and continue to listen, taking in all he had to say. It was interesting hearing of the world of vampires and it made me aware how little I knew about the way my own people’s society worked. At the mention of a Masquerade I gave Chris a confused look and was glad when he explained.

When he had finished I sat there silent, it had been a lot to take in. Who knew that there was this whole species living out there like this, I had thought if there were werewolves and others that sure there were would be vampires. But this sounded so structured and organised and no wonder I had never realised that there were vampires here. My thoughts went round and round turning everything over and then finally I looked at Chris. There was still more to think about especially what Chris said last, but if she thought any more about it right this moment she would scream or go crazy. Anyway there would be time during or after her run, which she would do later to shake the feelings of being in the hospital that still clung to her.

Smiling at Chris, I moved so that I was leaning against him before sliding one hand along his face. “Thank you for sharing this with me,” I said before kissing him softly. “I am sorry if you felt like you had to share something you didn’t want to and I would have understood if you hadn’t told me, so thank you,” whispering this to him I rested my forehead against his looking into his eyes. “This night has been very busy for us and the sun is rising. I think we both need some rest and we will talk after we have both slept.”