A/N

I just want to take a moment to thank all of our readers. Each and every review means so much to both of us. Please check out HeartOfDarkess's stories, she is doing a continuation of midnight sun that is astounding!

This story is a collaboration between both of us, and I have enjoyed every minute of it. Please leave your comments about what you have read, or what you would like to see happen in the story.

Totteacher

I shushed young Alice tenderly, trying to calm her as I carried her back to her room, urgently needing to make preparations for her relocation. The damage to her hands was more superficial than it had appeared, but the fact that she had done something so drastic had me concerned. The dressings removed, I noted that the tips of her fingers were cut, and her nails still caked with fresh blood. I glanced away, holding myself in control due to the nearness of her blood as I entered her room and placed her on her bed.

I listened intently outside for any sounds of this James character. His very presence put every life here in danger, and though she was trying to help, Alice may have made the whole situation far more precarious than it had already been. I heard the gentle thud of Lucas approaching, after having filed the papers, and he was rushing to do as I asked.

I took the clothes and fresh bandages Lucas offered, once again cleaning Alice's hands carefully to remove all traces of blood, as he scrubbed the evidence of her episode off of the wall. I finished with her hands quickly, ignoring the hushed cries that still came from her throat. I couldn't allow Lucas to hear anything we discussed, as his life was equally in danger now. I glanced at the wall, and even though I knew he had scrubbed it thoroughly, the image remained burned into my mind as clearly as if it had never been touched.

I noticed a subtle change in the light, and looked towards the window. The afternoon was waning, and I would not have much time to move Alice if I put it off any longer. I turned to Lucas and spoke hurriedly. "Thank you for your help, Lucas. I would be grateful if you would dispose of those cleaning rags on your way out. You need to go and to get your beloved Charlotte away from this place once and for all, and I mean that you should do it now, do you understand me?" I prompted him.

Lucas eyed me, his brow furrowing in concern. "Dr Harper, what's wrong? Shouldn't I…." he started to ask, but I interrupted. "Now, Lucas. Don't question me, please. You need to get her away from here. From the pain she has suffered. Go in there and tell her what you want for the two of you, ask her to start a new life with you, tell her you will take her anywhere she likes, just do it, and do it now!" I growled fiercely. "I will handle everything else…, just make her happy, and never….ever take her love for granted," I said more slowly.

Lucas studied me for a moment, and then I noticed the muscles in his jaw as they clenched, as if from determination. "Thank you, doctor," he said softly as he turned his back and made his way out of the room. My sharp ears didn't miss his final words, "For everything," as he made his way down the hall.

I lifted Alice's now silent form into my arms and gathered the bag full of personal items that Lucas had packed for her. I leaned down and whispered. "Alice, I am going to take you to a new room, a room where I think you might feel safer," I murmured only loud enough for her to hear. I felt Alice nod her head against my shoulder as I carried her from the room. I took her down the corridors, and listening carefully for any approaching staff, I maneuvered her to her new room without being seen.

I settled her down on her bed, and went to move when I felt her bandaged hands grip my shirt. "No, William," Alice gasped, "He's out there…he's waiting… and he is going to be so angry with you…" she told me as her sobs started anew. I tried to fathom her words. Somehow Alice knew that he was out there, and she seemed more concerned for me than she did for herself. How could I explain to this child that I was a vampire, and therefore, far more powerful than she understood?

I ran a hand over her brow, noting that she was sweating profusely. "Now….now, my Alice. You need to rest. This old man can take care of himself, don't you fret about that. I need you to rest and to grow strong, so you can get well. So you can get out of this dismal place," I said calmly, hoping that my cool fingers would provide her with some relief. The poor child was ill, and stressed to her limits.

Alice slowly turned to me, her eyes wide and fearful as she let her eyes travel over my features. "What are you, William?" she asked once more. "Your friend, Alice," I responded gently. Alice's eyes narrowed as she studied me. "But you are so much more than that," she said quietly. "You are trying to be my knight in shining armor, but his weapons will be more powerful than yours. I don't know what you are doing William, but you are making everything confusing. The voices say that you are changing what will happen. But I still see death coming……you need to save yourself," her voice dropped off as her words came to an end.

I leaned over, moving aside her long dark tresses before gently placing a chaste kiss against her brow before speaking. "Alice, I would never leave your side until I knew that you were safe. You are like my own daughter, once lost…and now returned to me. I will do everything in my power to ensure your safety, no matter the cost." Alice looked at me once more, her eyes belying how overwhelmed she felt at my words, and I hoped she felt some comfort in the fact that even though her family had abandoned her here, that there was someone who would protect her the way she deserved. "That's what I am afraid of," she mumbled softly as her body lost its battle with wakefulness.

I did not have much time. Now that she was sleeping I had to clean up any traces of blood from her old room, and to scan the grounds to see if there was any sign or scent of James. I slipped from her room, leaving the lights off, and locking the door, thankful that this hall was further from the other rooms, and the fact that the horrible smells from the kitchen would mask out most of her scent, even to a nose as sensitive as a vampire's.

I moved at vampire speed, listening carefully so I would not be seen. I raced to Alice's room after grabbing some rags from the kitchen, and began to rub them over the room, masking her aroma with the sour smelling clothes. Once I had done that, I scanned around the halls, listening intently to every word and breath around me. I heard no unusual sounds, and that let me relax somewhat.

I stopped for a moment, hearing a new noise from midway down the hall, and I glided to the door, smiling when I realized that I now stood outside Charlotte's room. I knocked gently on the door, and heard a flurry of sounds from within, along with heavy breathing. A hesitant, "Come in," came from inside. I opened the door and saw a very flushed, yet smiling Charlotte sitting as far as possible from a grinning Lucas. Their state of dishevelment gave away their actions of only moments ago.

"I see you two are ready to head out," I said with a smile. Lucas nodded, but seemed unable to take his eyes off of Charlotte. Charlotte was blushing profusely and fighting with a small gold band that encompassed her left ring finger. She glanced up and saw me watching her and she smiled shyly. "Lucas, asked me to marry him," she said with a giggle. Lucas moved over, and wrapped his arms around her. "And Charlotte, my love, made me the happiest man in the world by saying yes," he said flashing me a grin.

Lucas looked at me and saw my guarded expression. "But now we are leaving, aren't we love?" he said, holding out his arm for her to take as he picked up her bag in his other hand. Charlotte nodded quickly. "I never want to see this place as long as I live," she muttered quickly, almost pulling Lucas out of the room. "No offense Dr. Harper," she said, flashing me a polite smile. I guided the two of them down the halls, listening as I went for anything unusual.

I escorted them through the last set of doors, wishing them well before turning back. I made my way past the nurse's desk, where a forlorn nurse Whitfield sat tapping a pen against the mountain of papers on her desk. I glanced at her and was about to comment when a horrendous sounds reached my ears. The nurse noticed nothing out of the usual, but my acute hearing was pounded with an intense, blood curdling scream.

I turned and moved down the hallway, running as soon as I was out of the nurse's view. I raced towards the sound that assaulted my ears, and as I neared the source I picked up the scent of something burning. It was a pungent odor, harsh and unpleasant.

I ran until I reached the corner, slowing down to a human paced run. I heard hushed voices speaking, recognizing them as Dr. Halston and Nurse Beauregard. I could hear whimpering, that was muffled and the voices wavered with panic."What went wrong?" the nurse whispered, followed by "I don't know, just unhook that girl from the wires, and do it now, before anyone sees what happened!"

I stepped into the doorway and cleared my throat, instantly making both of them aware that they had been caught. "What in heaven's name's happened here?" I growled at them angrily. I looked the table and saw Alice's prone form lying on the table, the electroshock machine beside the bed. Alice's eyes were closed, but tears streamed down her face, and her features were contorted in pain.

"I …said ...WHAT HAPPENED?" I roared. Both humans trembled in their places as I marched forward, lifting the poor child in my arms. I started ripping the wires from her body, and her eyes opened slightly, and upon seeing me, her tears increased. The smell of burning was coming from her. I removed the bindings as gently as I could, ignoring Dr, Halston's attempt to explain himself.

"The machine … I thought… I thought I could fix it," he muttered. I lifted the trapping that encased Alice's head, gagging her, and holding the electrodes to her body. As I removed it I saw some of the physical damage that had been done. Her tresses were smoking, and burnt, having melted together at the tips from the intensity of the electricity that had jolted through her small frame.

Seeing how they had damaged her further, I raged, rounding on the two of them. "How dare you, you inept fools! I should bind you down to this table and torture you the same way!" I turned to Dr, Halston. "You will never, ever work with a patient again. I assure you that this will be the last day you will ever walk these halls," I growled, allowing my inner monster to rise to the surface.

Nurse Beauregard gasped in fear, sensing the danger that she could not see. "Now both of you clean out your things and be gone from this place!" I hissed, "Before I have the police arrest you both!" I clenched my hands, wanting to render them to pieces for the pain they had caused Alice. They both rushed from the room as quickly as their feet could take them.

I turned to Alice, her eyes brimming with pain. I picked her up in my arms, and carried her like a child back to her room, trying to soothe her, as her shoulders trembled. I sat with her on her bed, rocking her back and forth. Alice's fingers were clenched around the lapels of my suit jacket, and I was not even willing to attempt to remove them.

Alice was quiet and yet she never stopped shaking. Her breath coming in short gasps. Suddenly her small form stiffened in my arms and her eyes glazed over, becoming blank. "Alice?" I pleaded, touching her face softly. I could feel the pain from the near electrocution she had suffered, the seared nerves, the hurt, but there was no other ailment to explain what was happening to her.

"Alice….Alice…" I kept repeating her name over and over, until a few minutes later she finally started to blink her eyes. "Alice?" I questioned softly. She raised her hand as if to shield her eyes. "Alice? What happened?" I questioned softly. The young woman turned her soulful eyes to me, and they looked wise beyond her young years. Finally she spoke, her voice laden with emotion. "William, he is coming……he is coming for us…..tonight."

Panic overwhelmed me as I tried to absorb what Alice had revealed, the dimming light and encroaching shadows of darkness only serving to perpetuate my fear. I was running out of time, out of options. I had never felt more useless in my entire existence. I looked at Alice and spoke softly, hiding all fear and doubt as best I could, her wrinkled brow and panicked eyes searching my face for answers. Answers I could not give her without embellishment. "Alice, my dear child. No matter what happens tonight, I will not leave your side," I said, my sense of bravado wavering under her expression which gave way to the tears once again.

"I can't save us," she conceded in frustration. "No matter what I say, or what anyone decides to do, the same thing is going to happen," she yelped as I reached out to her and wiped the tears from the apples of her cheeks. "We have no hope now William. That monster is going to win and we are going to die. There is nothing but blackness and pain afterwards," she added, piquing my interest.

"There, there," I comforted as I held her closely to my chest, stroking her singed hair. At that moment, I heard the familiar trolley roaming the halls and looked up to see Nurse Whitefield stare through the window, a look of shock crossing her already pallid face.

"Come in Nurse," I beckoned, still holding Alice in my arms.

She opened the door slowly, her face filled with confusion as she stared at us both. "Dr. Harper, I just passed Dr. Halston and Gretchen in the hall as I was about to leave for the day. They left in quite a hurry. I'm not sure what's going on, but Gretchen gave me the task of serving supper tonight."

"Of course, please bring Miss Brandon's supper here," I requested. "She needs all the sustenance she can get. She has had a very trying evening," I explained, justifying my behavior towards my patient, which to an outsider bordered on inappropriate.

As Nurse Whitefield approached with the bowl of food, she gasped, her eyes widening so much that the whites of them dominated her entire face. "What happened to the poor girl?" she shrieked in horror, her usually grating voice that of a banshee. That analogy somehow seemed apt, considering the situation that I now found myself in.

"It seems that our good Dr. Halston attempted to give this poor girl electro-shock therapy with faulty equipment," I hissed angrily, taking the bowl from her. I did not care that I had breached the unspoken rules that Doctors had between each other, protecting their species as though they were above reproach. I placed the food on the table next to Alice's bed, her tears flowing relentlessly as my words caused her to shudder against my chest.

"Her beautiful hair," she stated softly, her voice filled with regret. "I could retrieve some scissors and try to fix it if you like," she offered. I used to cut my mother's hair all the time," she added caringly. "Would you like that Mary?"

Alice hesitated and stared at me through her tears, and then towards Nurse Whitefield, nodding in silence, her body collapsing in mine as she gave into what she felt powerless to change. Her destiny. My destiny. Our apparent inevitable demise.

"I'll be right back. I will come fix your hair after I finish serving supper," Nurse Whitefield said as she bid us farewell, wheeling the trolley out of the room.

"She needs to go. You need to tell her to go, William," she said, her breaths rapid from the remnants of her hysteria. "She's such…..a nice lady and…and…I don't want to see her die too," she added, her sobs punctuating every other word, her face confused.

"Never fear, Alice. I will see to it that you are all safe," I said as I released my grasp on her and left her on the bed. "You need to eat something, and then Nurse Whitefield will return to fix your hair." As much as Alice's hair seemed to be of little significance compared to what she had told me was to happen, I felt that distracting her in this way would keep her calm. I stared out through the barred window, keeping a guarded watch on the grounds outside.

Never allowing my concentration to waver, a thought occurred to me. If Alice's prediction eventuates and if this monster visits here tonight, would he stop at just killing us? My mind kept going to and fro, my thoughts scattered as I tried to consider the safety of not only Alice, but the other innocent humans that could be caught in the crosshairs of his attack. Of course, I remembered what it was like to be driven by the one scent that drove a vampire to the pinnacle of savagery, and if this James just focused on Alice, I may just have a chance of saving the rest of them. I knew this building well, and hoped that the locks would slow James down enough for me to draw him away and fight. I needed to distract him. That was my only option. I knew that this particular vampire had to be an expert in tracking, his sense of smell far exceeding any others the only explanation for him being able to find Alice in the first place. I could run for decades with Alice in my arms and knew one thing. No matter which of the four corners of the earth we ran to, he would find us. Standing and fighting was the only solution. This James needed to be disposed of, and disposed of now. I had to put an end to this madness.

Alice picked up the bowl and watched me as I thought, absentmindedly pushing the food around the bowl without actually eating. I could not blame her. Feeding was the last thing on my mind at the moment. I needed to find a way to turn this hunter, James, into the hunted, but for this to work, I needed to find out more about Alice's visions.

"Alice?" I murmured distractedly as I stared out the window on constant alert. I opened my mouth to speak further, but heard the nurse's familiar footfalls approach once again. "We can discuss this later," I remarked under my breath as I turned to see Nurse Whitefield knock and immediately enter, carrying scissors, a small hand mirror and towel in her hands.

"Come on Mary, let's fix your hair," she said happily as she walked to the chair and indicated for Alice to join her. Alice complied, slowly sliding off the bed, never taking her worried eyes off me as she sat.

The nurse placed the mirror on the bedside table and draped the towel over Alice's shoulders. "Now, I will try to keep as much length as I can," she said calmly as she ran her fingers through Alice's burned tresses. Then, she clicked her tongue and added, "I don't know how much of this I can save. Why on earth would that maniac do such a thing?" I was relieved that I was not the only one who saw that the doctor deserved to be committed more than half of the patients here. Alice shivered in response, hunching her shoulders as she began to cower at the very mention of the so-called human that did this to her.

Nurse Whitefield took the scissors in her hand and began to cut away small pieces, each wisp of hair that fluttered to the floor causing Alice to cringe. "Don't worry. I'm sure I can keep a little of the length, Alice….may I call you Alice?" she asked, smiling warmly as she expertly snipped Alice's raven locks. Alice seemed to relax under the influence of Nurse Whitefield's upbeat banter, her eyes softening at the same time, calming her.

"Yes," she replied, forcing a smile in return. "What is your first name?"

"Victoria," she answered.

"I love your hair Victoria. It's such a pretty shade of red," Alice said wistfully.

"Why thank you Alice," she whispered, her smile broadening as she placed the scissors on the bedside table and retrieved Alice's hairbrush.

Victoria ran the brush through Alice's hair, her eyes full of sympathy for the poor girl. "You always wear it up, I bet it would look beautiful down as well," Alice complimented further.

"It is much more practical in my line of work," Victoria replied, winking at Alice as she leant over and picked up the small hand mirror from the table. "There. All done. I hope you like it, Alice," she added as she held up the mirror to Alice's face.

Still standing at the window behind them, I caught Alice's reflection in the mirror. She still looked beautiful, though her severely cropped hair, which now stuck out in all directions, now gave her an other-worldly look, just as though she had been lifted straight from the pages of a fairytale. She reminded me of an impish, woodland pixie.

"I like it," Alice said, smiling at me. "William? What do you think?" she asked, seemingly seeking my approval.

"Lovely," I replied in one word. "Simply beautiful," I added complimentarily.

As Victoria rolled up the hair covered towel, Alice leapt to her feet and hugged the nurse. "Thank you Victoria," she murmured in appreciation.

"You're welcome Alice," she replied, releasing her hold from Alice's fond embrace. "Now I'd best get this towel to the laundry," she continued as she gathered up her tools of the trade and headed for the door.

"Yes, thank you Nurse Whitefield. If you have finished with your supper duties, you may head home," I urged. "I will take care of things from here."

"I cannot leave you here by yourself, Dr. Harper," she argued. "Everyone else left over an hour ago."

"I will not hear another word of it, Nurse Whitefield," I pressed as I walked towards her and opened the door. "Good evening," I added abruptly to make my point, gesturing my hand to encourage her to leave.

"Of course, Doctor. Good evening to you both," she said, her confused face letting out a small smile as I closed the door behind her. I immediately walked back to my post at the window, relieved that I had managed to be rid of as many people as possible from this place tonight.

After a few moments of silence, Alice walked to her bed and sat, taking up her familiar position. "Alice," I asked, never averting my eyes from the window. "Tell me more about your visions. You said you saw James, but you once told me that you only heard voices."

"Yes, I usually only see darkness, and hear the voices. And sometimes the voices are so faint and hard to make out, that I don't understand them at all," she said as she picked up the brush from the bedside table and ran it through her hair and added, "But for some reason this James is so clear to me. I don't know why, but I see him more than I've ever seen anyone or anything before. The only other time was……" she trailed off, prompting me to turn towards her. I stared at her face, the innocence of it taken away by her multitude of traumatic experiences.

"When? When was it Alice?" I asked in desperation, trying to make the pieces fit together in this impossible puzzle as I walked to her bed and sat down.

"You. I saw you," she gasped. "Before I came here, I saw you. The voices told me to trust you, that you wouldn't hurt me." She continued in a tight voice. She had somehow known about me….these voices…these visions that she was receiving, they almost seemed as if she was getting premonitions of things to come. A gift that could be both a curse, and a blessing, depending on the situation. Though now it seemed far more of a nuisance than anything else.

To be plagued with such knowledge, to know when your death was due to arrive, would drive anyone mad. No wonder she had finally lost her will to fight to appear as an average human being. Why would one wish to live when they were assured of their own demise?

I turned my head away, pondering this new information, and noticed that the daylight had receded even more. Soon the day light that kept the institute safe would be gone, and then everyone in the building would be in danger from the vampire who had been temporarily kept at bay.

I ran a hand through my hair in frustration, and looked at the small girl beside me. Her new haircut only caused her to look even younger than she was, her innocence and virtue emphasized by the way her tresses flared away from her delicate features.

I stood suddenly, knowing that I only had a short time in which to accomplish a great number of things. I had gotten Lucas, Charlotte and nurse Whitefield off of the premises. Dr. Halston and Nurse Beauregard had been sent away, but I had to find a way to keep the other staff from coming into work this evening.

I glanced at Alice, as she sat on her bed, her legs were drawn up to her chest and her arms were wrapped around them tightly. She looked as if she were holding herself together, that her thin arms were the only thing keeping her from falling apart in every sense of the word.

"Alice?" I queried hesitantly. She turned her glistening eyes towards me, and I could see the tears pooling on her lashes. "I need to step out for a moment… but I will be close enough to hear you, I won't leave you unprotected. Do you understand?" I finished quietly. She nodded her head mutely, then turned her face in the direction of the window, the one portal she had to the ever darkening sky outside.

I didn't wish to leave her side, but there were others to think of, and I had to do all that I was able to save each and every last one of them. I raced through the halls to the nurse's desk, carefully listening for any movements or heartbeats that might signify that a human might be close enough to witness my uncharacteristic movements.

At the front desk I searched for a contact sheet, and finding the numbers of the orderly and the night nurse, I called them both, asking that they report for duty the next morning instead, as the day orderly had quit his position and the day nurse was let go. Both were happy to have the night off, and offered to come in bright and early the next morning once they were assured that the night shift was duly covered.

I made a quick call to Mr. Price, asking him to come and collect his wife, as we recommended that she go home and try to settle into her normal routine before their child came. The man was ecstatic that he would be allowed to take his wife home at long last, he hung up the phone quickly and I hung up the phone with a thud, and then raced back to the patient's quarters, unlocking all of the doors as I went. If I had a heart, I knew that it would have been racing out of fear. I had so many to save, and I knew that it would not be possible to save them all, but I would have to do what I could.

Once I had arrived at the patients rooms, I listened in the direction of Alice's room which was separated from the rest, and hearing no sounds aside from her regulated breathing, I set my plan in motion. First, Miss Bradshaw.

I pulled out my keys and opened the door. She sat there by her window, looking out intently over the grounds whispering, "Where could he be? He needs to come back for me….. I promise I will be the best rose he ever had." This would be easier than I thought I surmised. "Miss Bradshaw!" I exclaimed loudly. She turned to me at once.

"I am sorry doctor," she said hurriedly. "I am not entertaining any other visitors. I am saving myself for my love, I am to be his precious rose. He even climbed up her to meet me…can you imagine how much he must love me to do such a thing?" she said with a blissful smile.

"Umm, yes Miss. That is why I am here. There was a young man who came to the front desk…he had long hair, drawn back from his face. He was very strapping. He said that he wished to have his rose meet him in the next town tomorrow, at the chapel…. He wishes for you to leave directly in order to meet him there. I have just gotten your release approved in order for you to go to him," I stated simply, as if such things happened every day.

The woman glanced at me shrewdly for a moment then leapt off of her bed so suddenly that the springs groaned in protest at the movement. She started grabbing at things that were draped around her room, and throwing them into a large carpet bag. "It is about time!" she said with an exasperated sigh. "I should never have had to wait to go to him, don't you know that?" The young woman continued to mutter to herself as she packed her things. I stepped back and left her door open, reminding her that she had to hurry or she would never make it in time.

She grabbed a wrap and a hat and stalked out of the room, still talking to herself, only this time about how she would never give herself to anyone now that she had found such a perfect manly specimen. I didn't even waste the time to roll my eyes at the ridiculousness of her words, instead I moved on the room of Mrs. Elizabeth Price.

If I was able to save her, than I would in fact be able to save two lives, for the child she was carrying was very close to being delivered, it would be the cruelest of fates to come so close to life, yet never to live. I knocked on the door as I unlocked it, and the young woman who resided there turned to look over at me from her bed. Her eyes were dark with emotion, and I noticed that her heartbeat was elevated, but the baby's heartbeat was strong and steady.

"Mrs. Price…" I began, not sure of what I would say to convince this woman to leave. "Yes Doctor?" she replied softly. "I was sent her to speak with you, about how you have been feeling. How have you been doing today? It seems as if the baby is growing each day," I said with a half hearted smile. My time was growing short, and I still had many patients to try to save.

The woman turned away from me, replying with a flat toned voice. "I am sure it is." "Why have you been feeling so down?" I asked. She turned in my direction once more. "Down? Why have I been feeling down? Have you seen me? I have this child growing inside of me, and I feel nothing. What kind of mother feels nothing for a child she grows within her own womb? I am terrified that when this child comes that I won't be a good mother," she moaned.

I had heard of such things before, a sort of depression that often accompanied pregnancy, sometimes distancing the mothers from the child, but such issues often, though not always, resolved themselves after the child was born, and the woman's body had a chance to recover from the trauma of childbirth.

I was struck with a brilliant plan. "Mrs. Price. I have called for your husband to come and collect you today," I said as the woman's eyes flashed with alarm. However, I cut her off before she could speak. "I have decided that the best course of action for you is for you to go home, and to try to settle into your home again before the baby arrives. I am also going to send someone to help you … a young woman named Hazel."

"Miss Dayton will be there to help you ready your home, and to assist you after the child is born. Now Miss Dayton suffers from a condition known as epilepsy, it will occasionally cause her to have moments of trembling, or small blackouts, but they pass and she is fine, it in no way prevents her from helping out around the home. All I ask is that you show her the respect she deserves, and I am sure that you will become fast friends. Now, Mrs. Price. I know that you have concerns about your feeling towards this child, but I think it best for you to try to ready the child's place in your home, and to see if you develop any feelings for the child after it is delivered. If at that time you find that you have still not bonded properly with the child, than a wet nurse can be procured, and you can return here for further treatment…..How does that sound to you?"

Mrs. Price was quiet as she took in what I had said. The she quietly asked a question. "Have you seen cases like this before…do you think that it might help?" I nodded my head. "Yes, indeed I have, and I have often seen mothers, such as yourself, who after the turbulence of child birth have bonded quickly with their child. It often has something to do with the fact that you have both struggled through something, but have come through it together."

Mrs. Price nodded in acquiescence to what I had said. "Remember," I reiterated. "If you still feel unwell about this after the child has arrived, we will welcome you back with open arms," I said as I rushed to remove her from the room. The woman seemed too flustered to question my behavior. I slipped from her room as she dressed to retrieve Miss Dayton.

The young woman seemed surprised at the offer of a place to stay outside of the asylum, but she was excited. When I informed her that the family was aware of her condition, she seemed embarrassed, but I brushed off her worries. I attempted to soothe her fears by reminding her of those things we knew about her condition, suggesting that when she smelled the change in odor that she excuse herself, or that she lay down and make herself comfortable until the episode passed. I wasn't sure if this arrangement would work, but regardless that was two more women who would be safe from the lurking vampire who prowled nearby.

The young woman listened intently as I made her grab her things and ushered her out into the hallway, where a very heavy Mrs. Price looked her over skeptically. I offered both of the ladies my arms, and ushered them both to the front door. I did not offer to stay with them, preferring to ask them to wait together until Mr. Price could gather them. I knew that he would arrive soon, and I was determined to return to the other patients before the sun went down enough to allow the vampire to move in.