I awoke just before sunset. The curtains were drawn and the living area was empty. I merely followed the sound of voices after folding the blankets I had slept with, and found myself once again in the kitchen. I gave a curt nod of greeting to Amy, her mother, and her sister as Amy handed me a plate of food. I thanked her and ate quickly before grabbing up the maps and promptly leaving the apartment. If I wanted to get a head start on Vigo, I would need to begin before the moon replaced the sun.

The sun was quickly disappearing, and the odd, bright street lamps were popping on as I went through the city. This Chicago was very different from my Chicago, and yet, there were similarities. Some of the buildings I was able to vaguely recognize, and I passed storefronts with familiar names. I made my way towards the closest possibility if Vigo's hideout. There were a few spots I had circled on the map while Amy had helped describe certain areas for me.

Thinking of Any left me feeling a bit guilty for everything she had done, and worried she might in turn be hurt by Vigo. However, thoughts on anything but the hunt lead to distractions, which lead to death. So I pushed all thoughts Amy related away and focused again on the shadowy city.

Nothing. I had seen nothing, and the only tidbits I had heard had been angry adults cursing Elizabeth Howard or sullen youth defending her name. I opened the door to Amy's appartment silently and felt along the walls in the dark towards the living area. I kept my steps silent as to not awake anyone.

Otherworld was still on the small table by the sofa, so I picked it up and started where I had left off.

Amy walked in the next morning as I was reading The Mists. It hadn't taken too long to finish the first novel. She smiled and said hello.

I smiled back, but it didn't reach my eyes. Amy's smile faltered. She must have been able to tell last night did not go well.

"Good morning."

Her eyes went to the newspaper on the table. I had found it in the hall last night on my way back and decided to pick it up. "I found this outside your neighbor's apartment." I explained. "Astonishing story, isn't it? The Otherworld phenomenon is so great that the author is being criticized for somehow inciting the killings."

She picked up the newspaper and sat next to me. Her broe furrowed as she read it over.

"It is difficult to comprehend." I said.

Amy nodded and replied, "Just because Elizabeth Howard writes aboutvampires doesn't mean she should be blamed for the killings."

"I meant the popularity of the series is difficult to understand." I corrected. "The better part of it is tomantic drivel. James and Hannah as star-crossed lovers? It insults my sensibilities." I huffed and frowned. Who would ever in their right minds think Hannah was an okay match for my cousin? I certainly had to disagree.

"It's different when you're looking in from the outside. People like melodrama and... Romance." Amy said softly. She always spoke so carefully. It was a little endearing.

"Melodrama and romance? Is that why people care about what's going on in my world?" That was insulting. There were vampires rampaging the streets and murdering people, yet the books were interesting because of romance?

"That's part of it. Personally, your story line of avenging your family is the one I find most interesting, not James and Hannah's relationship."

I scowled. "What he sees in her, I'll never know." At least Amy was... somewhat rational. I felt a portion of smug pride that she found my story more interesting.

"Hey," she said suddenly, "I want to show you something. Come with me." She led me to the second living room that she called a 'den' that I had slept in the day before. She pressed a button on a small box and screen and motioned for me to sit down while she grabbed another chair. I slowly sat down, my eyes never leaving the contraption.

"Is this similar to the one in the living room? With live news reports?" I asked curiously.

"No, that's a TV. A computer is like..." she trailed off and scrunched up her nose as she thought. "It's a machine that holds a lot of information. Almost anything you'd find in a library or newspaper is on here. And it's also like a typewritter, except you can see the words on the screen instead of on paper."

"Extraordinary." I murmured, looking behind the box-shaped 'computer' for something that made the pictures appear.

Amy typed on the letter keys and the screen changed. I looked at the picture of the cover of The Mists of Otherworld.

I looked at Amy. "Do all of these computer machines have this picture on them?"

"No, I put it there myself." She said. The light from the screen cast half her face in shadows. "You can put whatever picture you want on your computer."

"I see." I said, even if it was all still very confusing.

She reached past me to do something on the computer, and her arm brushed mine. She was holding her breath, but I barely noticed any of it as I gazed in wonderment at the computer.

"So you're saying that when someone else puts on a computer, this is not what appears on their screen."

"Right. When my sister opens it, she's at the homepage of Metal Mouth, her favorite band. Now, look at this." She typed some more and the screen changed again. Fascinating...

"What is all this?" I asked, looking closely at the screen and glancin at all of the words.

"It's people talking about the books." She moved the little white pointer and clicked on something. "Someone here wanted to talk about the ending of The Mists, and almost four hundred people responded in the last few hours."

"Remarkable. Wait a minute- who id Mrs. Alexander Banks eight thousand and twenty-one?" I asked as I saw the small name at the top. I certainly was not married, and who would call themselves that?

"It's just, uh, a name. Everyone had to log in under a made- up name." Amy stammered. I turned to look at her, narrowing my eyes. Her face was splotchy and bright red.

"And is this your made-up name?" I was astonished to say the least. How odd.

Yes, but it's just a joke. I mean, there sre thousands of other Mrs. Alexander Bankses. That's why I'm number eight thousand and twenty-one." She said quickly, not meeting my eyes. Her face only continued to redden until there were no more splotches on her very pink face. However, she did not look bad with the blush.

"Hmm. I am glad, at least, to see that some readers support my caude. Wait a minute." I said again, touching my finger to the smooth, cold screen. "Is that person claiming to be Vigo's lover?" Preposterous. Why would anyone want to call themselves that?

"It's just a joke, I told you. She doesn't know Vigo is real." Amy defended.

"Joke or not, it isn't funny."

"Let me show you something else." She said instead. "It's called e-mail. Electronic mail. You can send a letter through the conputer."

Amy proceeded to show me how to send an e-mail, check the weather, the local news, the times of sunrise and sunset. The last one would be very useful. I wished I would have had that when I was first starting out as a vampire hunter.

Every new page was like starting all over again. It was all very interesting and new. I asked question after question before pushing back and declaring,

"I would love to bring this knowledge back to my world. When the vampires came, almost a hundred years ago, many of our brightest minds fled. Anyone with money fled. It is no wonder we are stuck in the past." I paused, feeling disappointed that my own Chicago had been stuck so far back for so long. Then I turned and picked up The Mists, pushing the sadening thoughts away. "I can't believe how many people have read these books." I flipped to the back cover again, studying the picture of Elizabeth Howard. "It is essential that I speak to the author. Perhaps I could speak to her on the telephone, or we could arrange to meet."

Amy pondered it for a moment. "It's not easy to get in touch with someone as famous as her. I'm sure her address and phone number would be unlisted."

"We must find a way. She may have some insight into finding Vigo. Perhaps she knows where he is right now. And I need to understand how she could possibly know so many details of my life- including my thoughts." I shuddered internally at the thought.

"Maybe Elizabeth Howard goes through the same portal that you and Vigo came through, and that's why she knows Otherworld so well." She paused. "But yhat doesn't explain how she'd know her characters' thoughts." Indeed.

"However she does it, it's totally objectionable. And I intend to tell her so after she has helped me lovate Vigo." If I told her beforehand, she might very well refuse to help.

"I'll check her tour dates. I know she isn't coming to Chicago until November, but she might be somplace else we can get to." She turned back to the computer and clicked around some more before saying, "She'll be signing in New York City next weekend. That's a long way, but it's manageble. We could take a bus."

I nodded. "New York City it is. I am most eager to make Elizabeth Howard's acquaintance."