Chapter 3: Livin' after midnight

Hellsing mansion, outside London, September 3rd, 2016

Caitlyn stared at the clouded sky outside the panorama windows. What the hell was going on the last months? The vampires ran wild, so much even Mira and Walter were surprised about it. They called them "impudent youth". Caitlyn couldn't judge this and didn't really want to, either. The latest incidents were just the tip of the iceberg, although Mira's nightly enthusiastic "walks" had saved them a scandal more than once. But now the problem was spreading. First that vampire priest who had killed almost a whole village and a lot of police officers. That had been in early July. Then the two vampire teens just a week ago. It was like somebody was producing vampires.

And now the business with the Vatican. If she was honest with herself, the treaty concerning Northern Ireland didn't mean much to her. Fighting over religion was outdated. Only terrorists did that and they were idiots. But this Alexander Anderson had killed two of her men, because she had been too confused to act. Only Mira had saved her. Caitlyn couldn't forgive these murders. She needed to decide on a suiting reaction. The Vatican couldn't just do what they wanted.

Iscariot..., she thought, frowning. There are more things in heaven and earth, than are dreamt of in your philosophy. She was still getting used to all of this. Vampires, alright. But conspiracies? Secret agencies fighting each other? That was like out of a bad crime novel.

She had things to do. But she couldn't focus. Now of all times, her feelings got in her way. Caitlyn pressed the button for the internal communication system. "Walter?" She didn't need to wait more than a few seconds before he stepped out of the shadows. Having a vampire butler was useful in every way she could imagine. Well, not every way, maybe.

"Yes Sir?" Caitlyn still had to smile about being called a sir. Why couldn't there be a Lady Hellsing? But Walter had explained it was the family title and would never be changed. So Caitlyn grudgingly accepted it. How stupid all those old rules were.

Walter was a good butler, all in all. Even after five years she sometimes found herself fascinated by how good he made old-fashioned vest and tie look. He was attractive, and funny and...

His high-pitched voice made it difficult for outsiders to take him seriously. But Caitlyn knew what he was. What he could do. She was glad he was on her side.

"Caitlyn?"

She snapped out of her thoughts. "Right. Sorry. I drifted off. I... wanted to ask you something."

He stood there in front of her desk, silently waiting, like a good butler would. "Of course."

She stood up. Sitting behind her desk made her feel like a bureaucrat. She stopped in front of him. "Walter... what do you think about love?"

He stared at her with those bright red eyes without understanding. "Huh?"

Caitlyn paced up and down in front of her desk. "Just... wondering. What do you think?"

Walter sat down and lit himself a cigarette, ignoring her frown. "I'm pretty sure you're asking the wrong person."

Caitlyn took the cigarette out of his hand and put it out. She was tired of telling him he should go outside for that. "Just say what you think. Normally you always do that."

Walter glared at her. "Monsters don't love."

She stopped her pacing. "Really?" They were so much older than her. So much more experienced. They laughed about inflicting pain. Taking lives was so easy for them. So delightful. And still...

She shuddered. "No, thanks. Real vampires don't sparkle." Again that laugh. So sweet. Not the least innocent. Caitlyn wondered. Was she crazy, feeling like that? Probably. "Are you so sure? Aren't you feeling something?"

He glanced at her and tilted his head. Except for the red eyes he was just a child. An attractive child, though. "What do you mean?" He looked uneasy. Walter never looked uneasy. She had found a sore spot, it seemed. "I told you. We're monsters. We cannot love. You should ask a human."

"I'm asking who I want and that is you right now." He didn't answer, only crossed his arms in front of his chest. So?

"How does a kid like you become a vampire anyway?"

"I'm not a bloody kid!", he said sternly, barely concealing his rage. He hated being called a child. Caitlyn could understand that. She hated being belittled, too. She sat down beside him.

"Tell me. That was an order."

Walter glared at her. Then he stubbed out the cigarette. "Bollocks."

Hellsing mansion, September 1944

When Walter had gone to bed, everything had seemed normal. Well, except he was hurting all over. That werewolf. A fucking true werewolf, who would have guessed that? That arsehole had beat him around the place like he was just a toy. It was so undignified.

He was glad to finally be home again. If he never went back to Poland, he could be happy. It was a good feeling to finally lie in his own bed. New Year was approaching fast and Germany's defeat would be sealed in 1945. Of course nobody would ever know what role Walter and the vampire called Alucard had in it. The Hellsing organization might be praised. Arthur Hellsing. But never them. They were just the weapons.

Walter turned around and closed his eyes. It was bright day outside. The light was seeping through the curtains. But even though he was dead tired after the fighting and long plane rides... Why did he think of Alucard? She was just a child in her current form. Just a child like him.

Not exactly like him. He was 14, that could hardly still be counted as a child. And the vampire was so much older. Hundreds of years. Forever beautiful, huh?

He grumbled and turned around again. What the hell was wrong with him?

"Can't sleep?" He jerked upright. God, how much he hated that! She could just pop up anywhere.

That would be so useful.

The vampire had changed her clothes to black, without the hat and coat. She sat on a chair, legs crossed and a cigarette in hand. Now she stubbed it out and came over to him.

"What the hell are you doing?", Walter asked and instinctively moved an inch closer to the wall. The vampire sat down on the edge of the bed.

"You asked me about my old life. I thought you might want to hear about it if you can not sleep anyway." Walter didn't know what had happened. There seemed to be a blackout in his head for five seconds. The next moment his head was lying on the vampire's lap and she was stroking his hair.
"What the fuck-", he mumbled. Was she hypnotizing him? He was barely able to move his body. It felt heavier than ever. His eyes fell shut and he only heard the soft voice of the vampire, with this almost inaudible accent.

"Arthur calls me Alucard. A ridiculous ananym. They called me vampire queen. Lady Dracula. But... my true name was just Vladimira. Mira, to my friends. Not that I had many of those. No one ever called me that again since my childhood."

"Mira?", Walter managed. God, he was so tired. The voice was soothing, dampening his thoughts. If Mira answered he didn't know. He had fallen asleep.

Walter awoke and it was night. That wasn't a big surprise. His burning throat was. He got out of bed, much more awake than usual after a long sleep and toddled, yawning, to the mirror. Somewhere had to be light coming from, because he could see everything clearly in the darkness. He stretched and splashed water in his face. He tasted something in the corner of his mouth. Blood? He had washed when he came home, but it was possible it was still a remain of the fight. There had been a lot of blood. Mostly his own. Fucking werewolf.

When Walter looked into the mirror, he met blood-red eyes.

He jumped back. "Hey! That's not funny!" Alucard – Mira? - loved playing such pranks. But his reflection just had the exact same look of anger and surprise. Walter stepped closer again. His tongue brushed over his teeth. No! NO!

He grinned at the mirror, fangs blinking in the soft light. "No!", he croaked. He spun when there were steps. But they passed outside. His hearing was enhanced, he figured.

"She can't do that!" That fucking vampire! This bitch! How could she dare turning him!

A wave of panic swept over him. This made him an enemy. Alucard was one thing, but him... He had sworn his loyalty to the Hellsing family, but that didn't include waking up as a vampire. And Arthur was not a man to hesitate if it came to his duty. If there was the slightest risk of him becoming a danger...

He opened the window and cold night air rushed in. Somewhere in his head, the question Why? ran around. Why would Mira do that if it was obvious the Convention of 12 would never allow it? Did she want to get rid of him? Did she... suspect something? Hell, now Millennium is not my problem anymore.

"Where are you going? And why don't use the door?" Walter almost fell from the windowsill. Mira had just turned up out of the shadows again. She stood near the door as far as he knew.

"Why?", he asked. He was close to attacking her. But that would be dumb. She was too strong.

"Hm?", she asked. As if nothing happened. That goddamn vampire bitch had the nerve to play innocent.

"Why did you do this to me?"

She sounded more confused than ever. "Walter, what happened?" He almost laughed. All of a sudden she sounded worried. Like a monster like her had any real feelings. He turned and looked at her, teeth gritted to show the new fangs.

"What happened? You killed me." The look of shock on her face made his theory waver. She couldn't fake that, could she? It was the first time he ever saw her really surprised.

Walter turned around and jumped. He landed on his feet with ease, and completely soundless. The power, the speed his body was able to achieve all of a sudden. It was marvellous.

He ran, not looking back at the mansion he had spent most of his former life in.

Bradmarket, a small village in northern England, 1945

The man wasn't very conspicuous. Not at all. Middle-aged, fairly tall, brown hair, no obvious scars, nothing unusual. Except for the limping, of course. But Walter was sure that was faked to escape going to war. Not even his victims would have been able to describe him.

The man called the "Meadow Killer" had chosen his next victim. The woman he was following didn't even pay attention to him. Nobody did. That was why he had escaped unnoticed all those years. And he was careful. Devilish clever.

Walter stayed where he was, on the roof of a nearby house. He just needed to wait.

One year. One year of being on the run from his own family. Or what he had perceived as his family. Of course, Hellsing wasn't his family. He was a servant. A weapon. A mean to achieve a goal. And now he was an enemy. Sometimes it had been very close. Mira was good.

Alucard. Her name is Alucard!, he chided himself.

The real joke was that he couldn't even leave Great Britain. Without a coffin and money for the ferry he couldn't cross the water. The war was over by now, but how would he accomplish that?

But at least he was getting stronger. Human blood had that effect. The candidates were carefully picked. He wasn't disloyal to the English Crown. His giving in to his spite in Warsaw... It had been a mistake the turning had saved him from. Always think positive, he thought bitterly.

By now he was sure Vladimira hadn't been the one who turned him. Her surprise had been too genuine. A vampire like her had no need to put on an act. Whoever the woman had been – after the rules concerning a vampire it had to be a woman -, she had turned him, fed him human blood and hers as well while he was still unconscious, and just disappeared without leaving a trace. Otherwise he would have been her student, sharing a telepathic bond or something like that. Walter wished he had paid a little more attention to what Alucard and Sir Arthur had said about this.

The Meadow Killer followed the woman in a dark walkway between two houses. Walter wondered about a lot of things lately. One of it was, how stupid people actually were. The woman knew there was a killer on the loose. How innocent could you be?

And the Meadow Idiot himself? He hadn't been caught yet, that was true. Even Walter had taken a while to track him down. But really, what kind of name was that? He believed himself to be Jack the Ripper, writing letters signed with that name. There was no meadow around for miles. Imbecile.

The shadows concealed them from human eyes, but Walter saw just fine. The woman glanced back for the first time and looked uneasy now. It was obvious why he had picked her. She was young. Pretty. Would make a good Draculina, Walter thought. He was strong enough to do that by now. It would mean he didn't have to be alone anymore.

The Meadow Idiot caught up to the woman and grabbed her arm. She stopped, her body rigid. Didn't think of screaming of course. The victims never did. People tended to think they were invincible. Then he clasped one hand over her mouth and it was too late. The only thing was a high-pitched, dampened shriek no one would ever hear. Except for Walter of course.

She tried to break free, but the man was stronger. Then she kicked him in the shin, burrowed one elbow in his kidneys and threw her head back. The Meadow Idiot groaned and staggered back, doubled over and his nose bleeding. The woman took a few steps back, considering if she should run or fight. Walter was honestly impressed.

"Go, Lady. Leave him to me." Walter tried to make his voice deeper. He hated it. This wailing voice of a little boy. Would he forever be trapped within the body of a child?

The Meadow Idiot straightened up and looked around. So did the woman. "Who are you?", the man growled. "Show yourself!"

"Just go, Miss. I'm sure you have somewhere to be by now. Don't look back." During the last words, his voice suddenly leaped to its normal high pitch. Crap.

The woman took a step back. "Be careful. And thank you, my knight," she added with a smile. Then she turned and returned on her way in a relaxed jog. What a lady.

The Meadow Idiot meanwhile had begun to laugh. "You're just a kid! Hey! You stay there!" He lunged after the woman, surprisingly quick for someone of his physique. Wires wrapped around his wrists and yanked him back before he got even close. He stopped dead, barely staying on his feet. Walter jumped to the ground. The man could only see a slender figure in the darkness extending slightly blue glistening wires. And glowing red eyes.

The Meadow Idiot looked him up and down. Then he began to laugh. Walter stared at him, dumbfounded. "What's so funny, you cunt?", he hissed, not bothering to change his voice.

"You're a vampire, huh? A vampire child, more exact. That's lovely!"

Walter gritted his teeth. "You're an enemy of the British crown and an abomination before God!"

The man just laughed harder. "You call me an abomination?" Walter could barely keep himself from just cutting off the bastard's hand.

"I never had a choice! But you're doing this because you're a sick bastard!" That wail again. He despised it. Despised it more than anything.

The man grinned like the maniac he was. "Really? Because seeing how good you are, you have a lot of experience. Tell me again, how sick I am, while you enjoy it just as much. You're going to cut off my hand and my screams will delight you. You will kill me. That's square. Wouldn't want to spend a lifetime in prison. I've had my fun. But don't you dare to claim you are better than me, vampire!"

Walter stared at him. This ridiculous, fat, almost bald man, this psychopath...

had a point.

He did enjoy his work. It was for his queen and country, of course. Or had been. Slaughtering all those enemies. The Nazis in Warsaw especially. But he couldn't argue that he enjoyed fighting. It was what he lived for, after all. Had lived. Now he didn't exactly live for it anymore, obviously.

"You know what? You're right. But you're also some psycho who targets women just for fun."

The so-called Meadow Killer shrugged his shoulders. "What can I say? It is like it is."

Walter wanted to finish it, but hesitated. "One last question. Why Meadow Killer? That's a pretty stupid name. There's no meadow around for miles."

He smiled. "My first victim was my neighbour. Daisy Meadow."

"Oh," Walter said. "That makes sense. Then you can burn in hell now." The wires cut through flesh and bones without the slightest resistance. With a wet thud the hands fell on the ground. After a moment blood rushed out of the stumps.

The Meadow Idiot howled in agony and dropped to his knees. But he was still grinning. Walter caught the blood before it touched the ground. Droplets ran along the wires. It was easier than just letting all that hot, strong liquid float. Mira had done this more than once. Drinking all of it. A stream. A river. It was creepy, if you thought about it. "This is it," the man giggled. "This is it."

Walter paid no attention to him. He was still practising this trick. But he wanted it all. Every last drop. He needed his strength.

Something was fighting against him. Drawing some of the blood away from him.

"You have become stronger. Impressive." Walter whirled and almost stumbled over the corpse of the hapless killer. Mira smiled at him. She looked the same like that night, when Walter ran for his (un-)life. "You don't look happy to see me."

Plans were rushing through his head. The bloody bastard. It had taken too long to track him down. And Mira had found him. She had him in plain sight. Running was useless. There was nowhere to go, even if he made it away from her. "Sir Arthur is waiting."

"What, you don't have orders to kill me on sight?", he asked sarcastically.

Mira – Alucard. Her name is Alucard. - tilted her head. "No. How do you get that idea?"

"I'm a vampire."

"So am I."

"I'm a deserter."

"Possible. Yes, actually, you are right. Still, I have orders to bring you back. Sir Arthur is wondering 'what the hell happened to my butler'." She smiled again. Just a cute little girl.

"I can't run, right? You won't let me."

"Why should you want to?"

"Right," he murmured.

"Can you fly already?"

"Never tried."

"Then it is about time." She strode up to him like nothing had happened and took his hand. Walter was very well aware that she could kill him easily, even without a gun. But he had no choice. They rose up in the air and soon the landscape was rushing along under them.

Hellsing mansion, outside London

"So, you're finally back. It's been a while, Walter."

"Yes, Sir," he murmured.

"You look different. Something with your hair?" Sir Arthur laughed. "Look at me when I talk to you, boy." Walter looked up and met Arthur's blue eyes. Sir Arthur Hellsing smiled at him, mockingly, like he always had. "I don't want excuses or anything. Just tell me what happened the night you ran away."

"I went to bed. When I woke up, I was a vampire."

"That's all?"

"Yes."

"What about Alucard here? You were together, right?"

"Right. We talked."

Arthur grinned in an I-don't-believe-you-way. But he didn't dig further into that aspect. "Fine. What happened after you woke up?"

Walter retraced what he had done up to the point where Mira entered and he fled. Arthur, his grin gone, nodded. "Any idea who did this? Alucard here assures me she had nothing to do with it and also didn't notice anything until you woke up."

"I searched, but no. I don't know who did it."

"Good. Then let's get to work."

"Huh?", said both Walter and Vladimira.

Arthur stood up. "You are servants to the Hellsing family. Walter, I expect you to resume your services as a butler. As to you, Alucard..." Walter had a sudden feeling of dread, like a cloud obscuring the sun. "I value your services highly, you know that. I also never doubted your absolute loyalty. Unfortunately the Convention does not believe in this loyalty. They voted for a security option."

"What security option?" It was Walter who asked this. Would she have to go? The thought made him uneasy. They had seen each other for the first time in one year tonight, but still...

Arthur was pacing up and down, hands locked tightly behind his back. "They are worried about what you might do in times of peace. They didn't listen when I tried to tell them you are absolutely loyal to me. So we will lock you up until your services are needed again. I already consulted the books of my ancestors and-"

"That's not fair!", Walter interrupted. "You can't just put her away like a toy, until you need it again!" Mira laid a hand on his shoulder to stop him. Her pretty face was blank. She was in her true form again. A beautiful countess, tall, with pale skin and dark hair, clothed in an armour. She had been feared by her people. The warrior countess. The vampire queen. No one dared to oppose Vladimira Tepec.

"Oh, do you think so?", Arthur said quietly. His gaze was hard. "Because I think I can do just that. You're my servants. You obey. No questioning." Walter suppressed a growl and looked at his shoes. This couldn't be! Why didn't Mira say anything? She could not want this.

She must not want this.

"The sigils will allow only a member of the Hellsing bloodline to open the tomb. You will sleep and not feel anything, Alucard." Arthur sighed. "The Convention decided this and I cannot oppose them anymore. The queen gave her consent. I'm sorry." He went to the door. "I will wait downstairs." With that, he left the room.

"This is it, then," Mira said. "We won't fight together anymore." A mocking smile crossed her face. "Pity. I looked forward to see what you can do now."

Walter stared at his feet. And now? "Hm."

"'Hm'? That's the last thing you say to me?"

He met her eyes. His own blue was gone. Red like hers they were now. "What should I say, then?"

Mira shrugged her shoulders. "You know, Sir Arthur met a woman. I think he really does love her. Either way, he's worried that I might hurt her."

"You mean that she'll get jealous of your immortality."

"There is no true immortality, Walter. How often do I have to tell you?"

"So he just locks you up. After all you did for this family, this is just wrong." He didn't say any of the words he applied to Sir Arthur at this moments. He was still his loyal butler.

"Is this really about me?", Mira asked. She grinned. "Or is little Walter scared of being alone?"

"Shut up!", he hissed. "You-" He broke off when Mira suddenly hugged him. Walter froze. He was tall for a boy his age, but she was taller. Her hair hung in his face. What an awkward hug. He never wanted to move again. "I'll wait," he promised. "No matter how long. I have the time now, don't I?"

"There is-"

"I don't care if it's long enough." The armour scratched against his skin. Only a few years before her, Joan of Arc had been burned at the stake for "cross-dressing". But that had been the Catholics.

"Goodbye, Walter," she said softly. "And thank you for being my partner."

"Goodbye, Mira. You... you too." He stepped back, suddenly embarrassed, and tried to think of something to say. Something important or meaningful.

Mira turned around. "We better don't let Sir Arthur wait."

present day

"Walter?"

He snapped out of his thoughts. "Huh?"

Caitlyn had her cheek propped up on her hand. "You were quiet a while. What happened after that?"

Walter looked at her blankly. "After what?" What had he told her? He didn't remember when he stopped talking.

"Do vampires get dementia? Sir Arthur said "As to you, Alucard..." and then you just broke off. I sat here for at least five minutes. Where were you with your thoughts?"

He tried not to show his relief. Some things didn't concern her at all. "Sorry, Sir. ...Lady?"

Caitlyn smiled when she heard this. Walter went on. "Sir Arthur decided – the Convention of 12 decided, actually – to lock Mira up. They thought she was too dangerous. Security option, they called it." He couldn't keep a growl out of his voice. Seventy years. Seventy bloody years.

"And she stayed down there until those guys turned up and dragged me here." He nodded. Caitlyn looked at him for a moment. Then she frowned. "Say, after all the other family members died, were you here all the time?"

"Most. Not when I was hunting," he answered carefully. Uh-oh. "I mean, I would never have let them kill you or anything-"

Caitlyn waved a hand. "You were there. Even while that arsehole cut me."

"You needed to open the tomb!", Walter defended himself. He didn't see the point of this whole conversation. And why did Caitlyn look at him like that? Like she was trying to make up her mind.

"Did you ever find out?"

The sudden change of topic left him confused. "Huh?"

"You already said that once," Caitlyn said, a sudden dullness in her voice. "I mean who turned you. Did you find her?"

"Oh, that. No. Left without leaving a trace."
"With Mira around that was probably for the best. If it wasn't her after all."

"It wasn't!", Walter said immediately.

Caitlyn just smiled and nodded. She looked sad. What the hell was going on here? He wished he could just read her thoughts like Mira. But his duty as a butler was to serve, not to question. Sometimes that pissed him off so much. "Why would somebody do it then? I don't get it."

"Sir, I've been trying to solve this for seventy years."

She shrugged. "Might as well give it a try." She took his hand, just for a moment. On her bare arms he could see the scar from five years ago. He looked at her, unsure of what to do. She had behaved weird the last weeks, even before she was almost killed by this Alexander Anderson. Walter hadn't been there, but it was obvious she blamed the death of her agents on herself.

Not only the fucking Vatican of all people, now they even have a bloody regenerator. There was trouble to come. He felt it. Blood, death and fighting. And he looked forward to it. Being eternally young had its perks. Never getting useless.

"Are you sure about what you said? About love?", Caitlyn asked. Her blue eyes were absent.

"Monsters don't love. They can't."

She let go of him. "Thank you. You can go now." Walter nodded and got the hell out of there.

Caitlyn stared into space for several minutes. This was so ridiculous. As the head of the Hellsing family (What family? There was only her, Walter, and Mira.) she should be able to control herself better. She had been thrown into this and it was too much. It wasn't fair.

Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown. How true. God damn it!

Walter was much older than her. If it wasn't for his... - what, curse? - he would be an old man now. Eighty-seven years of age. Immortals and mortals never had a chance. Only two immortals had. Maybe. Who was she to oppose this? Age and youth cannot live together.

Caitlyn stood up and walked over to her desk. She pressed the buttons for the intern communication and dialled the number. "Mira. Come to my office, please." There had to be something in her voice today. Mira was there in a matter of seconds, just appearing from the floor. "Yes, Master?"

Caitlyn sat on the edge of her desk. "This might be a bit of an odd question, but what do you think about love?"

Mira tilted her head. She wore a white suit with a scarf today. "That is indeed an odd question."

"Walter said 'Monsters cannot love'."

"He is right. That's why they are monsters."

"I don't believe you. What about you and Walter?"

Love sought is good, but given unsought better, she thought.

Mira frowned. "We're monsters. Master, what do you want?" Caitlyn looked past her. What did she want? Maybe having a moral higher ground. Finishing something before it brought her down. She already was, probably. Why did he have to be so charming? In a rebellious, swearing, crazy way.

"You two need to talk. You will go now and do just that."

"About what?"

Caitlyn spun and slammed her hands on the desk. It was hard to keep her voice down, but she didn't want anyone – Walter or the guards – to hear this. "I don't know." She laughed. It sounded hysterical. "Just so you two stop eyefucking each other. You immortals may have all the time you want, but I like to settle things asap."

I wasted time, and now doth time waste me.

"Master, I really don't know-" Caitlyn stomped to the door, dragging Mira with her. The confused vampire didn't struggle, but they got a lot of curious glances from the guards. They went down the corridor to Walter's room. The sun was almost up. Caitlyn was dead tired and there were still things to do before the other members of the so-called Convention of 12 arrived this evening.

She shoved Mira to the door. "Go." The vampire looked at her. "That's an order."

Mira nodded slowly. Then she turned and walked through the door without knocking. Or opening it. Caitlyn heard Walter ask what she was doing. Mira's answer was too quiet to be heard by human ears. There was a conversation going on. Caitlyn turned and walked back the way she had come, leaving Walter and Mira to whatever they did.

Better go to bed. Having a butler was useful, but she hated the straight rules and manners of the so-called nobility. She was able to get everything done herself. But first she needed sleep. Fucking conferences. She could see why the Convention needed to know – especially about the chips. But she was busy enough right now.

She stopped and leaned against the wall, eyes closed and the shaking hands pressed against the cold stone. She had the vague feeling of having done the right thing, but that didn't make the pain any easier. Damn it. God-bloody-damn it

"Sir, are you alright?" She opened her eyes and looked at a young guard. He couldn't be much older than eighteen. Walter had taken care of employing their guards when she was too overwhelmed by her new position five years ago. She remembered faces, but no names. The commander was called Flint Havel. Hell, I'm a horrible leader.

"Sir?", the boy stuttered. Caitlyn suddenly realized she was crying. Her face was wet. She gratefully took the handkerchief the boy offered her. "Thank you. I'm sorry, but what's your name?"

"Joshua Radley."

"Joshua. Okay." She smiled shakily. "Everything clear this night?"

"Yes, Sir."
"Good. Good," she repeated. "Keep it up. I'm glad to have good personnel like you."

He hesitated. "Can I help you in any other way, Sir?"

"No, thanks. I'm going to bed. But wait... Actually yes. If you meet Walter, tell him to prepare the conference room. And the shift on duty this evening will have to do a security check before the Convention members arrive."

Radley saluted. "Yes, Sir!"

"Good. Bye."

The boy looked at her, unsure what to do. "Bye, Sir," he said with a question mark in his voice. Caitlyn walked down the corridor to her room. Fucking conferences indeed. The Convention of 12 would want to have a complete report not only on her involuntary meeting with Alexander Anderson, but also on the vampire priest. Caitlyn had avoided that for as long as possible. But now the problems were piling up. Delays have dangerous ends. I should have remembered that.

She didn't need her hormones getting in the way, too.

Hope you liked it.

For those who want to know what happened in Badrick, check out the spin-off "The countess' dream". ;)