Chapter Four:

The open window was causing a chilling breeze to whip through the room.

"Monty, whatever are you doing at the window, you're going to catch a cold if you keep it open like that!" chastised Phoebe as she hurriedly closed it for him. The sound of the window shutting seemed to snap Monty out of his trance. Still, Phoebe looked at him curiously.

"Monty, are you alright?" Her dark eyes were filled with concern, "You look like you've seen a ghost."

He swallowed hard, nodding. "I'm fine," he said weakly, and he climbed back into bed.

His hand still tingled with the feeling of Sibella's slim fingers intertwined with his. His lips still had her taste on them. He ran a hand through his hair, trying to shake himself of this feeling.

"Phoebe I…" he started but then he decided it wasn't worth it.

"Monty?" She looked at him, puzzled as she slipped into bed next to him. She placed a hand on his chest as she looked up at him, not satisfied until she got an honest answer out of him.

He sighed, "I just… I just had another dream about Sibella," he lied.

She gave him a sympathetic frown, "What was this one about?"

"She told me how she died, and that some person at her bedside turned her into a vampire by biting her…"

Phoebe paused, debating whether or not to tell him about her dreams.

"If they don't go away soon, promise me you'll go see someone about them?" she asked.

He hesitated before nodding, "Yes, of course."

Phoebe cuddled close to him and Monty wrapped his arms around her tightly, almost as if to pretend that Sibella was in his arms. He didn't want to lose the feeling of her presence even if the previous event had been a dream or not. Phoebe laid her head on his chest, intertwined her hands with his.

"You smell like roses, Monty," she remarked quietly.

"Hm?" Monty asked, still half dazed by the appearance of Sibella.

Phoebe paused. "Nothing."

Monty kissed at her hair, "I love you, you know that?"

Phoebe nodded softly, "I know." She glanced up at him and kissed his cheek gently.

"You're so good to me," Monty murmured as he kissed at her neck. Phoebe smiled at the kisses.

"I love you," said Phoebe honestly.

Monty smiled at her, "I love you too."

Phoebe grinned and after a while of kissing, she shut off the light, with her wondering if Monty's so called dreams about Sibella were really dreams after all or not.

The next night, Monty waited for Sibella to arrive at the bedroom again, with Phoebe reading downstairs. As soon as she tapped on the window, he opened it and let her in.

"Where have you been?" he asked, noticing the slight stains of blood around her mouth and the dirt stains around the hem of her dress.

"You don't want to know," she answered as she wiped away the stains with her hand.

He sucked in a breath at that and bit his lip. He then stood up straighter and bravely stepped towards her, caressing her cheek softly. She flinched at his touch.

"Are you feeling alright?"

She nodded weakly, "I'm fine, Monty."

"You don't look fine," he commented. She sighed.

"Monty… I'm alright," she said softly. "Don't be worried about me."

Silence fell between them for a moment.

"Have you told Phoebe?" she asked quietly, looking up at him. She bit her lip.

"No, I haven't," he answered. She nodded faintly.

"That's probably for the best right now," she paused, "How is she?"

"She's doing alright. She's been my salvation these past few weeks. She's always there for me, ready to comfort me. I know she's been hurting too though."

Sibella nodded sadly. "I can imagine."

"I can't believe you're really here," he said at last after a moment of silence faded away.

"Do you still think this is a dream?" she asked him.

"I hope so," he said softly, looking at her.

She stared at him quizzically. "Why?"

"I don't want to think about you suffering like this every day, you deserve a peaceful rest, not an immortal life of killing people," he explained.

"Well, someone obviously thought differently," she remarked darkly, but he could see that she was angry and bitter. He leaned in to kiss her, but she stopped him and stepped away.

"Please don't," she begged softly, "I don't want to hurt you."

He glanced at her teeth and shuddered instinctively, just thinking about the pain they could inflict. She hid her teeth behind her lips.

"Lionel had the same reaction when he saw me, only it gave him a bit more of a shock."

Monty looked at her suspiciously. "Sibella, Lionel's dead."

She nodded, a small smirk on her face, "I know."

Monty's blood froze. She sighed, seeing the terrified look on his face.

"I went to see him, with the intention of killing him, but as soon as he saw me he fainted and his heart stopped. I guess seeing his wife come back from the dead was too much for his old, failing heart."

Monty frowned. "You went to see Lionel before you came to see me?"

She scowled. "Don't be so petty, Monty. I didn't exactly know what was going on with me. I thought I had been buried alive until I felt the uncontrollable urge to drink blood and kill. That was when I realized what had happened to me… that I had become a vampire."

Monty looked at her, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get upset… I wish this hadn't happened to you."

Her face softened. "We can't change what happened now, Monty," she reasoned, "I don't mind… I guess I was bound to be cursed one way or another," she said darkly with a bitter laugh.

"Don't say that," he protested, grabbing her hand.

"Why shouldn't I?" She snapped back at him, "Someone obviously thought that I should be punished for the way I had acted. Someone thought that I had to pay for whatever sins I had committed!"

"This doesn't have to be a punishment," said Monty, "You still get to see Phoebe and I."

"At the cost of killing people!"

She bit her lip and crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes glinting with anger. He touched her cheek gently, his fingers brushing over her face. "What do we do now?" he asked her.

She sighed, "I don't know."

Neither of them heard either Phoebe's footsteps or the bedroom door open and when they realized this, it was too late. Phoebe had already seen Sibella.