Disclaimer: please see previous chapters

Ch 10. A new day: Hal

Five past six and the sun is well on its way. It looks like being a fine day, with the cloud cover breaking up and a light breeze coming from the sea. Tom is largely human, though I wouldn't wake him yet in case the internal changes aren't complete. Still he should be safe now.

As I reach across for Tom's clothes, Alex stirs, eyeing me blearily.

"Err... what you doin'?"

She stares at Tom's form on the monitor. I can understand that it's a shock to see him human again but he is naked. And she really shouldn't be looking. It's... unbecoming. Unladylike... And I'm sure it'd freak him out too. I try to be charitable and tell myself that she's not fully awake yet. And to ignore the stab of jealousy. What. That's it's not my body she's... Don't be absurd.

Riffling though Tom's clothes, I identify and remove all the stakes. He's not going to be happy to find out about Alex and her condition. And I'd rather he didn't attack me by default, assuming it was me. Especially if she tells him how I drank her blood. I don't know how addled he'll be when he comes round. He's not going to know where he is or how he got here. I have to arrange things so that he isn't trapped but he doesn't bolt either.

I go to the back of the van and unlock the doors, letting the morning light stream into the cage. Tom doesn't stir. Then I unlock the cage, leaving the gate slightly ajar, and place his clothes just inside, in a neat pile. Alex comes bounding to join me, wittering about floating clothes and cameras. Looks like the sleep was what she needed and she's wide awake and lively now. But I feel the need to protect Tom's modesty somehow, and I take off my coat, laying it over him. It should keep him warm and it should also help him figure things out when he starts coming round. At least that he's not on his own.

Now that Alex is in a better frame of mind, she's quite easy to talk to. She's full of questions about supernaturals and particularly werewolves. As we lean against the van side, I start to fill her in. Answer her questions. It's the least that I can do after last night. And I have a feeling that she'll be spending some time with Tom, Annie, Eve and I, at least until her door comes. It'll be good for her. Help her to adapt.

A groan and a thud emanate from the back of the van. Quarter to seven. Looks like Tom's awake. I put my head round the door and say hello, being roundly sworn at for my pains. Most un-Tom-like. Still, he knows he's not alone now. And he can get dressed. I give him a few moments before joining him in the back, carefully ignoring the excrement, and asking the question that's been bothering me all night.

"Tom, where's Eve. Is she safe?"

He looks at me like I'm an alien, not a vampire.

"Yeah, why wouldn't she be?"

I 'm relieved. I felt sure he'd have left her with someone if Annie wasn't back, but, from his lack of concern, I'm assuming that she is.

"So," I begin. "Do you remember anything at all about last night?"

He shakes his head, looking confused. And bit by bit, shards of memories start to return to him. I've never seen him look so horrified.

I fill him in on how we got here and what happened with Alex, and he's beginning to boil. I've rarely seen Tom get angry. Irritated, yes. Furious, no. But we need to focus. The main thing now is getting back to Barry, abandoning the police van here as it's too conspicuous. Oh, he needs to clean up. The stench of wolf is almost unbearable. I direct him to the stream that I saw earlier and return to Alex. The smell clings to my coat but it is chilly and I am fairly immune to wolf after 55 years with Leo and now Tom. I tell myself that I can shower later as I pull it on. I cling onto that as my flesh crawls in response and I lean on the front bumper, breathing the cleaner air.

When Tom returns, Alex and I are talking, but I can see that she's a bit freaked out. Her first werewolf. A lot to process. But the one thing that both she and Tom agree on is that they're going to get Cutler. I can't say that I'm happy about this, but if they are, I'm going with them. I could do with something of him left for a heart to heart discussion afterwards. And he may be more receptive. I'm going to keep hold of the stakes though. Just in case. I know how rash Tom can be. And I don't actually want Cutler killed off.

By 8am, we're coming into Barry, heading for Stokers. We'll start the search for Cutler there. If we don't find him we can always try his office. Let's hope that the Old Ones haven't arrived yet. All being well, it'll only be a couple of them. Mr Snow hasn't left Bolivia in centuries and the rest may not be as much of a threat as I fear. If we work together, we can handle them. If we can't then we can always hide. Flee. Either way, we will survive.