Chapter Two

Narrowing the List

His body wasn't doing some funky disfiguration and I could still see his image in the mirror. So that ruled out half the clans in Vermont. According to Alyson, who called me later that evening, Billy transferred to Lyndon State early this semester, after completing his Associate's Degree at Maria College in Albany, New York. She checked the school records and found out that he was currently trying out for the track team and that the coach was seriously considering letting join. Billy's grades were fairly average in the core classes, but his skills were primarily in the sciences.

Now I knew for a fact that Coach Fields and Waters were both Brujah. Albany was heavily populated Brujah territory, and would hate to lose an athlete like Billy. A Ventrue professor taught biological science, but Billy currently took physics in another lab. That left my clan, and in Lyndon State when Professor Murphy wasn't here, Alyson, Peter and I were it. Every Kindred staff member had an alibi, and wouldn't risk endangering the Masquerade over something so stupid. But there were students who were Kindred, and they were suspect too.

We were at the hospital in St. Johnsburry. A few nurses from the children's ward noticed me and said hi. In high school I used to spend my weekends entertaining the sick children by doing a cheesy magic act. The younger ones loved it, but the older kids only got bored, so I taught them the art of improvisational acting and then I was a hit. Now a days I still got called to help cheer up the tough cases. Somehow, every time, I always left with a few smiles.

I spent a few minutes looking at the newborns and pondering their futures. I'd all ready picked out careers for each one. A baby boy in particular was my personal understudy in MacBeth. The name on the side of the crib said "Baby Leewood" and his little brown eyes squinted at me as if he knew his fate.

"Better brush up on your reading and writing," I said softly. "Oh, and you'll have to learn Shakespeare. When you get admitted to UVM I'll be there to teach you."

Billy was moved from the emergency room and placed on a program to cure his dehydration. I went to his room as soon as it was clear. There were no other patients in the room so we had a little privacy, even with the door open. He was a little more conscious now that the Final Torment had long since subsided.

"Dude, what the hell is going on?" He asked, as calmly as he could muster. "I mean this chick just messed me up and suddenly-"

"What can you tell me about this chick?" I asked, taking a seat by the window.

He seemed confused by the question, but answered it anyway.

"I don't know her name. This girl went out with a couple weeks ago introduced me, and I went to a play with her. It was at the college I think."

Tears Over Spilled Milk, I thought, remembering the name of the play. The professor had written it and I was in charge of the casting.

"Was she a student?" I asked.

Billy was quiet while he thought about it.

"No, I don't think so. Or if she was I've never seen her on campus before the night I met her."

"Did you learn anything about her?"

"I went out with her a few times," he said, looking away. I guess he felt a little guilty of his reputation. "I've never been good with names. All I know is that she was an English major and that she liked poetry. She knew all these different poets by heart, Poe, Keats, and some other guy I've never heard of before, Chez something."

I made a note of the name in case it might be useful later.

"I ran into her today," Billy went on. "We didn't have classes for another couple hours so we went down to the gymnasium. No one was there so we kinda started making out. Before I knew it she held my back to the wall and bit into my neck. I tried to fight her off but she was just so strong, it was like trying to move a statue. She made me drink from a cut on her breast. When I was done she bit into my chest and left. I didn't know what to do, I just…something was happening to my body. I lay there on the mat feeling like my body was in a vice."

"Final Torment," I said.

"What?"

"It was your Final Torment. We all go through it when we're embraced."

Billy was confused. I reached for the pitcher and a paper cup on the night stand and poured some water. I handed Billy a cup and poured some for myself.

"This is going to take some time to explain. But the short of it is you are now Kindred. We're vampires, and the girl that bit you was evidently one as well."

"You're saying you're a vampire too?" Billy looked like he was about to hit the panic button.

"Yeah. I was embraced back in 1990, after I graduated from high school."

"Embraced?"

"Turned, brought across, made, etcetera. When another Kindred turns you into a vampire it's called an embrace. But embracing someone forcefully is the human equivalent of rape. That's why we need to find the girl that embraced you so she can be punished."

"I won't be punished will I?"

I shook my head. "No, you have nothing to worry about. So long as you obey our Prince's laws you're going to be fine. But it's very important you do as I say at this point, otherwise I can't help you."

"Well what's going to happen now?"

"Well, first thing to do is to figure out who the girl was who turned you. Now, think hard, who were you with when you first met this girl?"

Billy thought long and hard. It was clear to me that names weren't his forte, and I wondered how much respect he actually had for the girls he dated. From my point of view, he didn't seem like some chauvinistic pig, but looks could be deceiving.

"Kelly…Kelly Romasky." He said at last. "I was dating Kelly Romasky…now that I think about it I think she was…kindred is it?"

Recognition dawned on me. "I know her. She's not Kindred yet, she's a ghoul…I'll explain later. Give me a sec." I flipped out my cell phone and quickly called Alyson. I told her what Billy told me.

"Romasky" Alyson replied, surprised. "Yeah, I remember her too. She transferred here along with her mistress from MCLA. Her mistress is a Toreador."

"But was she the one who turned this guy? From what he tells me it could have easily been a," I shuttered. "A Gangrel."

"Well, we'll find out one way or the other. What was the name of that poet?"

"Chez?"

"I'll Google it while Murphy interrogates the students. Meanwhile, keep an I on Billy and make sure no one comes for him. Oh and Simon?"

"Yes?"

"Quit planning the babies' careers."