Leah kicked off her fuzzy slippers and slid between the sheets. She had finally gotten used to the all-night traffic sounds outside her Boston apartment. Since she slept with a window open, it had taken a while. The night was cool and crisp - one of those perfect fall weekends. Of course, weekends didn't matter much to Leah nowadays. As the greenest rookie on the Boston PD, she usually worked either nights or weekends - and quite often both.

Sammy curled up on her feet, and she vainly tried to nudge him away. "Okay, Sam, you win. I'm just too tired to boot your lazy ass off the bed." But she smiled as the large black cat stretched luxuriously and started to purr. She'd found him roaming the hallway of her apartment building, and he'd wrapped himself around her legs as she tried to open her door. After knocking on each and every door on the third floor and failing to find his owner, she just didn't have the heart to take him to the pound. So she'd put an ad in the local paper and taken him to the vet for a checkup. He was pronounced healthy and well fed and estimated to be approximately two years old.

She waited in vain for someone to claim him. She bought him a litter box, food, and a few toys, telling herself that his owner could always take them. Within a week she found herself looking forward to his indifferent greeting when she came home, and she began discussing her day with him. He turned out to be good company. She could tell him anything, and he was the soul of discretion.

Leah's pillow was punched down to a perfect shape. The sheets, changed just this morning, smelled faintly of fabric softener. Tomorrow was a rare day off, so she didn't have to set the alarm. She sighed softly, burrowing under the light comforter, and her cell phone rang. She didn't move. Maybe it was a wrong number. Maybe it was Sue, calling from LaPush where it was three hours earlier. If so, she'd leave a message. The ringing stopped. Then started again almost immediately.

"Dammit!" She reached for the phone on the nightstand, touched it with the tip of her fingers, and sent it flying onto the carpet. "Shit!" Her feet hit the floor and she felt under the edge of the bed for the phone. She glared at the caller ID before she answered.

"What the hell do you want, Charlie? Do you know it's 2 a.m. and I just got home?"

"Of course I do, Leah. I'm looking at the schedule right here on the wall in my office." His voice was wide awake and cheerful, and she wanted to wring his neck. "I suppose you were dreaming about me."

Leah growled, a low, menacing animal sound that probably would have frightened anyone else. "I didn't have a chance to dream about anybody, Charlie! I haven't even closed my eyes! And what makes you think…" He was chuckling softly. "You think this is funny? I just worked a twelve hour shift, Charlie Swan. Twelve freakin' hours! So call somebody else. Please." She was appalled to realize that the last word came out as a whine, but she was ready to beg.

He was obviously done playing with her. His voice turned businesslike. "I really hated to bother you, Leah, but we need your nose." She groaned. Charlie was the only person on the Boston force who knew her secret, and they were both dedicated to keeping it that way. Her sensitive wolf-like sense of smell was a valuable tool, and one of the reasons Charlie had recruited her. It had been relatively easy to lure her away from the reservation with the promise of a steady job and the anonymity of working with complete strangers when she graduated at the top of her class from the police academy. She had finally escaped the reservation, no small feat for a Quileute girl who was born and raised on the rez.

"Meet me at the scene, Leah." He gave her an address that was within easy walking distance from her apartment and then added, almost as an afterthought, "please. The victims were exsanguinated."

"Shit!" was her only reply as she ended the call. She slammed the phone down on the nightstand and reached for her jeans. "You're gonna have to keep the bed warm for me, Sammy," she complained to the cat, who had heard it all before. He patiently cleaned his right paw as he listened to the familiar drone of her voice. He kneaded the comforter and blinked his golden eyes at her, letting her know in no uncertain terms that he preferred a warm body under his bed.

"Well, at least I don't have to put on a damn uniform!" Leah thought. Working undercover had that one advantage. She didn't bother to say it aloud; she figured Sam didn't care one way or the other. A black tee shirt and a leather jacket completed the ensemble, and she tucked her gun in the pocket.

There was no doubt. A block away from the scene Leah's nose was assaulted by the familiar stench of undead flesh. It burned her nose, and the odor grew stronger as she approached the building. She was stopped at the front door by a uniformed officer - someone she didn't know. She showed him her badge and explained that Chief Swan had summoned her. She found Charlie on the second floor. At first glance it looked like the apartment door was left open; on closer inspection, she realized it had been torn off the hinges. Charlie looked up as she stood in the doorway taking in the scene, and she nodded. His scowl deepened.

The victims, a husband and wife, appeared to be Native American. They lay on the living room floor on their backs, fully clothed. Both had visible puncture wounds on their throats and almost identical horrified expressions on their lifeless, bloodless faces. By the time the techs finished their jobs and the bodies were removed, it was nearly 5 a.m.

"Come on, I'll walk you home," Charlie offered. "Thanks for coming, Leah. I know it's above and beyond…"

Leah interrupted him and hissed, in a whisper, "Seriously, Charlie? Vampires in Boston? What the hell is going on?" She leaned against the wall of her building and shook her head. She knew she was too keyed up at this point to sleep.

Charlie moved a hand tentatively to her waist, and she glared at him. "Seriously? You're going there?"

He shook his head. They were exactly the same height, and he looked straight into her eyes. "I know you, Leah. You've got that nervous energy thing going now. There's no way you're going to sleep. And I know just how to tire you out." He smirked and moved quickly, his hands against the wall pinning her in place. His body moved in as his lips took possession of hers, his tongue hotly probing her mouth. Her body responded as her mind rebelled.

They'd been through this before. Charlie Swan was a habit Leah tried desperately to kick. In coherent moments, she knew he was too old for her. But the physical attraction had the force of a punch to the gut in her vulnerable state. There was no doubt that Charlie knew what she needed, what she wanted, and what she liked.

"Inside," she whispered with a muffled moan. She knew this was a bad idea, a dumb move, but her body was burning with need. They flew up the three flights of stairs and she fumbled the key in the lock as he kissed her, his hands fisted in her short, black hair. The door fell open and they tore at each other's clothing while Sam looked on with asperity. At least he had the bed to himself, since they never made it past the couch.