Jade hit the box bag with furious anger. She trained so hard all day, but Blade wasn't satisfied at all.

Since he had accepted her as his mentee, she had to work all day without any positive feedback, instead he was always just telling her, she wasn't good enough to put a real fight, but, that wasn't her fault of course, in fact, as he always mentioned, she was just human. Well, he took her with him on his hunt, when he was sure to win. To learn the thing. Jade signed. Nevertheless, to be trained by Blade was an honour, and under his hard words was only the will to make her fit to his world. He just cared about her safety, at least she just hoped so. Since three years she was here yet, and you may think, you get to know the people better, but not Blade. After he found Whistler, he moved to this city, build up his knew Place in an old storehouse and kept up fighting the vampires as if nothing ever happened. But Whistler had told her. The death of his mother, with himself as the murderer. Blade wouldn't see it that way. He would say he just released her. But, since that, he was even colder than before, if that was possible. Karen gave up to try to help Blade. To get through his shield of ice, he build among himself. She loved him, but after a long period, she had to face that he would not be able to express what he really feels although the acceptance, that she was a part of his life now, was a great deal to him. Karen had understood this, but it was not the way, she imagined her life to be. So, she went on. Jade talked to her a few times. Karen was still in contact to Whistler, and she told Jade once, that, when she walked away, she thought, it was the best for both of them. To stop making each other unhappy. To see Blade like an addicted one, who would only wake up, when everybody quit on him. Guess, she wasn't right. Blade was emotionless as ever before.

Jade stopped boxing the bag and went to the bathroom. Cold, clean white tiles, functional as everything here. The hot water hit her sweating body, making her sweat even more. Then she relaxed. Washing her blond hair and rubbing her body she felt better at once. They seemed to have enough problems even without caring about Blades love life. There was this vampire, Deacon Frost, which had to be dead. He had to be, but he wasn't. Whistler told her the story as one of the first things, when she joined. Hard stuff, with vampire gods and all that. Well, that explained the shock, when one of their informers told her, he'd seen this guy in Detroit. So, they moved to Detroit with all their stuff. Slayers seems to be like grasshoppers, moving always to the place with the most food, or in their case, the worst vampires. Since three weeks they were here now, build up their place and visited the known safehouses. No sign of Frost at all.

Jade got out of the shower, rubbed herself dry and dressed. Casual clothes, Black baggy jeans and a tank top. She put on her make up. Black lines around her blue eyes, a little bit rosy lipgloss. A contradiction in everything. The platinum hair to black clothes. The little girls blue eyes and the rosy lips to the destiny as a slayer. That was the thing over all. She wasn't very tall, in fact she was 1.63 meters and her body was slim and well build. No one would guess that she was a trained to kill vampires. And as though some people laugh at her, she takes this as an advantage. Nothing is so powerful as a surprise.

Jade went to the main hall, where Whistler sits on this work desk and, as always, fixed something Blade destroyed the night before. Blade himself just leaned on the wall and starred at another one.

" I'm ready to party." Jade told him, full with energy. "Where are we going tonight?"

"I'm going to hunt, you stay right here." He answered calmly.

"But.. why?" Jade stuttered. "Oh, I don't want to stay in here anymore. It's boring."

"It's safe." Blade just said, turning away to leave.

"For fucks sake." She screamed. "I'm well trained. You took me with you so often. What's the difference here?"

"Here's Deacon Frost."

"You didn't even know that." She cried in despair. "You just heard of him once and since then, no sigh of life.. or unlife. And you told me so many times, that he must be dead. How couldn't he."

"Do what you want." Blade told her. "Go out and live your young girls life, but stop going me on my nerves."

"I'm not a young girl. I'm a slayer." Jade protested.

"You're a slayer, when I tell you are one. You will not go hunting here. That's too big for you, do you hear me?"

Jade screamed furious, grabbed her bag and ran out.

It was too shaming, Blade treated her like a child. Of course she was human, but it wasn't her fault, and Blade had chosen to train her. She jumped in her car, a black, small, damn old thing, which had just one positive effect. It drives. Not very fast or comfortable, but the life as a hunter was not very lucrative. And only the real powerful vampires wear original expensive watches and jewels, the mass of the turned were just bloody fools with not enough brain to make their life comfortable. Most of them were so impressed and proud of their new power that they just seem to forget to use their brains. Damn idiots. Jade drove to a bar a few blocks away. Many young people meet there to party. Jade didn't know one of them. It wasn't worth it making friends when moving away weeks later, and on the other hand, they know nothing about her life and the things that lived between them. She ordered a multicoloured sweet drink and sat down at a table at the end of the bar. Watching the crowd the decided not to think about all that anymore. Blade would calm down in a few days, when this dump 'the vampire who lived' thing would be over.

"Hey honey. New here?" a voice came from her right side.

Some importunately guy had seated himself next to her and Jade just wanted to tell him to leave her alone, when she drew her head to him and meet the most fascinating blue eyes she had ever seen. Like a little animal she got fixed to him as if he was going to hunt her down. His eyes were like lucid ice, so cold and deep. Her heart started beating against her chest.

"Yeah.. yes.." she stuttered. "I just moved in, so to say."

"So, you wanna dance?"

Jade nodded helplessly. What's wrong with her? She never reacted to a guy in such a way. She noticed the hand, he hold out to her and grabbed it. It was smooth and cold. He helped her stand up and led her, without letting go her hand, to the dance floor. There, he turned her in his arm. His hands on her waist, sending little shocks through her body. She laid her hands on his shoulders. They swayed to the slow music and Jade finally got the chance to take a closer look at him. He wasn't very tall. A head larger than she was. He was slim, but Jade felt the muscles under his fine thin shirt. His face was well-defined, high cheekbones, small lips, and these eyes. His eyebrows made a little bow and the right one had an outstanding scar, which made him even sexier. His hair stood up as if he just got up from his sleep place and some wisps fell into his face. He smiled at her, noticing her examination.

"What's your name, though?" he ask grinning.

"Jade.", she muttered.

"Jade.", he repeated softly. The way he speaks her name make her get a warm creep. "So, Jade, nice to meet you. Where are you from?" "Oh, nowhere" she said.

"Huh, that's a mysterious answer. Why won't you tell me?"

"It's not so easy.", she replied. "Rather tell me about you."

"Fine. I also moved in here a few weeks ago. So we both are strangers here. That's good, isn't it? I live in the outlines of the city and in fact, I'm just trying to build up a new life."

"What happened to your old one?"

"Huh, let's say, it ended painful. In fact, it does. So I needed time to.. regenerate, and now.. I'm here again."

"What are you going to do now?" Jade went into it.

"Hmm, reconsider my plans. There are just a few things to manage before. But enough of me, mysterious girl. Somebody waiting at you at home?"

"Yes, in a way, but that's not important."

Jade decided to let Blade run after her this time. If he did not need her, why should she need him. The man took her closer and Jade leaned his head among his shoulder. She liked the way he smelled. So male and so.. like more. Music turned faster.

"If nobody waits for you, why don't we go to my place. It's more private." He smiled.

Jades thoughts run wild. She wasn't the type of girl that.. but, this guy

"Fine, let's go." She said.

He leaded her out of the bar to the parking area. His car was a gray-black Porsche. He opened the door for her, longing around her. His body was so close to hers. Jade was trapped between his body and the side of the car. He looked her directly in the face, eyes meet eyes, and then he leaned forward to kiss her. His lips met hers. His kiss was both, soft and hard, sweet and hot the same time. He caressed her lips, sucked on them. As he released her, she felt cold and lonely. She slipped through the open door on the seat of the Porsche and he went around the car, took seat next to her in front of the steering and started the car with a loud sound. They cruised in the outlines of the city, barely speaking. When they were on the main street, he grabbed her hand, pulling it into his and pressed it tenderly. Every now and then he looked at her, caught her eyes. Then the car slowed down and he stopped in front of a historic mansion. It was a two-storey villa made from sandstone. In front stood two large old weeping willows that swayed in the wind that blows through its branches making whistling sounds. The night was cloudy and the full moon only shines barely down on them. He led her over a sandy path to the large two-doored entrance, which opened to the dark main hall. Jade felt like being in a bad horror movie. The floor was tiled grey and black in copious helix that ended in the middle of the hall. On two sides at the other end of the room ascended wide carpeted stairs to the upper story. The man, Jade noticed that she still didn't know his name, lit on the great chandelier on the ceiling. It spent a dim light. Jade looked around herself interested. He smiled about her bewildered look, then slipped his arm around her, pressing her at the closed door and kissed her passionately.