Leo felt uneasy as he walked alongside Crawford. The man was polite and seemed harmless enough, but there was something about him that made Leo wary. The man was just too nice.
Crawford stayed quiet as they headed towards whatever building he had assured Leo was nearby. Leo glanced at him from the corner of his eye every few seconds, in hopes of detecting something about this man. But all he saw was someone enjoying a crisp Fall day. Leo sighed and just hoped that Hal would keep his distance and not be spotted.
Crawford led Leo through an alley and they zigzagged through the maze of back streets. And after only a few seconds Leo was decidedly lost. He had never been the type of person to wander around the back alleys of Southend. He hoped he could eventually find his way out after they were done.
The other werewolf soon stopped in front of a door that had a faded red color. He fished a key chain from his pocket and opened the door.
"After you" the man said, and Leo apprehensively took a step inside.
The building looked like a sort of warehouse, but Leo knew it couldn't be. They had only walked a few minutes and had to be still in the city. The large room they were in had a table with plenty of chairs around it, and a map of the city with various markings. There were a few other werewolves inside talking amongst each other. But what grabbed Leo's attention the most were the shelves upon shelves that lined the walls. They were all filled by glass containers with, what looked like, ashes.
"I'll be brief, Leo" Crawford said, once they settled in front of the map. "There are vampire groups around Essex that exist for the sole purpose of kidnapping werewolves and using them for fights. And we intend to put an end to these vile creatures and their ways."
Leo suddenly found that his throat had gone dry. "How?"
"By killing every single vampire that we come across."
Leo realized he had just stumbled into a group of werewolves that seemed so drunk with vengeance that they were ready to blindly follow anyone with enough charisma.
"You're planning to eradicate an entire species" Leo said.
"When you put it like that, it does sound quiet vile" the other werewolf said. "But just answer me one question: who would mourn them? Who would pity the death of vampires when all they've done is cruel and unnecessary? It's like stepping on a spider. No one will miss them."
"What's inside those jars?" Leo asked, potining.
"What do you think?"
Leo didn't need to think about it. "Vampire ashes."
Crawford nodded. "If our numbers are correct then we must have about two hundred in here. I thought it was a bit tacky to try and keep so many, but the men loved it. Brings up the morale like you wouldn't believe."
Leo shook his head, disgusted. "You're talking as if you're at war with them."
"Because we are. We will forever be at war with the vampires until one of our species will cease to exist. And we're trying to ensure that it won't be us."
"What exactly do you want me to do? Why did you bring me here?"
"This is our way of extending an invitation. I told you before that werewolves tend to stick together. Think of it as a pack. All we want is for you to realize that safety is in numbers. We want you to accept our invitation and fight alongside us."
"And if I don't accept?"
Crawford shrugged. "You are free to do as you wish, of course. If you refuse to work with us, then you can simply walk through that door. But I wouldn't advise that. Because you'd be leaving behind a group of tight-knit werewolves who have each other's backs and work together to make the city a better place for us."
Leo paused for a bit. "And what about the rest of the residents?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"Two werewolves were spotted free in Southend last night. Simply roaming around."
"Some of my men might have accidentally escaped. It happens. It's hard work trying to keep an entire group of people safe from the world when there are only a handful of places to hide."
"But innocent people can be hurt."
"They would be a minority, in any case. I prefer to see the glass half full."
Leo couldn't believe such a large group of people could fall under the spell of one man. Thinking only about the majority wasn't right.
"I can't agree to join you" Leo said.
Crawford sighed. "It's because of your friend. The vampire."
Leo nodded.
"Very well, then. You are free to do as you see fit." Crawford gestured at the door.
Leo was glad that they could end things amicably, and headed for the exit.
"Just remember one thing" the other werewolf said. "No one here, me included, has ever seen or heard of a werewolf and a vampire being friends. Do you know why? It's because such a relationship can't exist. He'll turn against you, Leo. Probably sooner than later. It's in their nature. We battle our monster one day of the month. But them? They are the monsters. They can't hide from who they are."
The day was drawing to a close when Hal had made it back to the café. He hadn't managed to follow Leo and the other man once they got lost in the labyrinth of back alleys. When it came down to it, Hal simply wasn't used to quietly follow someone. He just stared at the clock on the wall and hoped Leo would be alright.
While waiting, Hal checked the local newspaper and searched for any signs of dog attacks. He expected to see at least a mention of a disturbance, but there was nothing there. It was like someone had went out of their way to cover it all up. But who could it be? He thought to ask Pearl about what she had heard, but at the moment she was busy. The café was surprisingly seeing its share of customers, so much that Hal hadn't noticed William walk inside until the vampire had settled into the seat across from him.
"Relax" William said, when he noticed Hal tensing up. "I'm not here for a fight. Too many witnesses."
"Then why are you here?"
"Well, I went back to the house today. The one where we were supposed to just have a peaceful supper the other night. And while I did find the big pile of ash that was my former protégée, I couldn't find my damn bottle of blood. So you wouldn't happen to know what happened to it, would you?"
Hal put on his best honesty mask. "Not a clue, sorry."
"It's a really special bottle, and not just because it once used to hold some really good whiskey. It used to belong to my great uncle Freddie who would beat the living hell out of me and my brother."
"And you want to keep that kind of souvenir?"
"Well it's also the same bottle I used to smash uncle Freddie's skull in the night I was turned into a vampire. So, it's kind of a special little memento of mine. That's why I'm asking if you didn't happen to, say, oh I don't know, grab it on your way out yesterday?"
Hal couldn't help the expression of recognition that came across his face.
"I knew it" William said, smiling, "you're really doing the whole peaceful not-drinking-blood-to-prove-I'm-not-a-monster thing. But it's not really working, is it?"
"I just need more time to ease into it."
"Right, sure, that's what it is. It definitely can't be the fact that the thing inside you can't change."
"It's been done before" Hal said "vampires can change."
"It's true. But, ultimately, what's the point? One vamp staying dry won't change the outcome. It's the same as one person suddenly turning vegetarian. It won't cause less cows to be slaughtered."
"You won't tell Cutler, will you?"
"That's the problem now, isn't it? I've been trying to throw wrenches into your reputation for years – oh don't look surprised, you already knew - and now I finally have a reason to make all the vampires disrespect you."
Hal couldn't believe he was at the mercy of this fool.
"But... I won't" William went on. "Because I can't go back either. It's my fault Henry's now dead, and if Cutler found out, he'd have my head. He really cares for all the stupid little recruits." He sighed. "So the reason I'm here is because I have a proposition for you."
"You mean one than entails something other than soiling my reputation or killing me?"
The other vampire sighed. "Look, I know I was ready to turn you to dust the other day, but now I'm starting to see that there are better options. Whether you like it or not, we're both stuck here for the foreseeable future. The least we could do is make the best of it. That's why I propose we team up. Us two against Cutler. Against the world."
"I'm not going against Cutler" Hal said, shaking his head "And I'm not going back either."
"Because of that werewolf, what was his name? Leon?"
"Leo. And no. I'm staying here for my own reasons."
William shook his head. "I knew it. I just knew it. You've gone weak."
"I'm trying to become a better man, William."
"But you're not a man, you're a vile predator. When are you gonna start acting like one?"
Hal just stayed silent and struggled against the urge to throw a punch in his face.
"I saw you with that werewolf, you know. Walking alongside him like you were mates. I had to stop by the bins to heave."
"He's helping me."
"He's corrupting you."
"He could help you too."
William shook his head, frustrated. "There's no changing your mind is there?"
"I'm sorry" Hal said, but they both knew he didn't mean it.
"Then we're not together" William said. "I can live with that. But can you? Because that means I'm against you."
Hal shrugged. "So nothing's changed since last night."
"I was really ready to drop everything and come by your side. Even let you lead because you're an Old One. But this settles it."
"Settles what exactly?"
"You remember those two werewolves that attacked us the other night? They're part of that group your friend Leo just visited. They're hell-bent on killing every last one of us."
"Leo's not with them."
William raised an eyebrow. "Not yet."
"You can't talk about Leo when you don't know him at all."
"I know he's a werewolf. And wolves hate us. Doesn't matter who you are or how you were raised or taught. Dogs are meant to hate us. Why do you think their blood burns us the way it does? They're designed so that every fiber of their being despises vampires."
Hal had to agree that he had a point. But acknowledging something like that in front of William wouldn't lead to anything good.
Once the silence had settled between the two, William rose from his seat.
"Then this is it" he said, "Goodbye, Hal. And the next time we meet, you better choose your side wisely. Because if your werewolf friend will still be there by your side, I won't pull anymore punches."
Anymore? Hal suddenly realized something.
"You've been following us."
William shook his head, but a spark of wickedness was in his eyes. "You must be really off your game if you didn't realize that until now..."
And with that he was gone.
Hal was left wondering if he had made the right choice. He could have just lied and agreed to team up with him, just in order to keep tabs on William. Because vampires like him were hard to predict.
"Who was your friend?" Pearl asked, who had just disentangled herself from a table of customers.
Hal just shook his head slowly as he kept his eyes on the door. "He's not my friend. Not anymore."