The next morning, I woke up around the early afternoon and immediately felt sorry for who ever the hotel cleaning was. Our room was completely wrecked: from the stack of dirty dishes in the small kitchenette, to the mountains of clothing scattered around the room. I had a fair amount of clothes to begin with, but since we arrived in the city I had easily doubled my wardrobe. I had to practically drag and force Evra by knife point to come out with me, but I didn't want either of us to be here when grumpy bat rose from his slumber to confront us about the previous night.

"I need coffee," Evra moaned as she wrapped her fluffy blue scarf around her face. We decided to stop by a little chain restaurant to pick up something to eat. The diner had a cute retro quality to it, and some kids from the nearby academy were lingering here on their midday break. The hostess sat us in one of the corner booths by the window and read off the lunch specials before hurrying over to the teens to clean up a spilled water. One of the girls from the group locked eyes with me and I grinned, it was Debbie.

"Sam!" She exclaimed. She practically hopped over her friend's lap and slid into our booth."If there was ever someone I was to see it's you. Listen, some boys from school asked me to go this club with them. But I don't feel comfortable going alone. Would you and your sister please come with me?"

I looked at Evra who was too wrapped up in her drink to notice our new guest, leaving me to speak for us. I rubbed my chin as I considered her offer. A club would be a lot of fun, but alway a huge pain in the ass if grumpy bat found out where I was going. I was nearly certain he'd hold off on whatever business he's been doing in this city in order to punish me in some cruel and unusual manner for yesterday. Since he and I weren't on best terms right now, maybe it would be a good idea for Evra and I to give him some space. And besides that, I wasn't about to let Debbie go off on her own.

I laughed and playfully hit Debbie's shoulder, "Of course we'll come!"

Debbie squealed and pulled me into a tight hug, which I'm sure would have hurt a regular human. "You guys have to come by my place! We can get ready together. What about your other friend, do you think we should invite him too?"

Evra let out a hearty laugh, "Oh that would be the day!"

I let out a nervous sigh, and fixed my best friend with a warning look, she quieted but couldn't help but laugh under her breath, "What I mean is our friend isn't really….suited for clubbing."

Debbie looked downcast, "I was looking forward to meeting Sam's boyfriend-"

"He's not my boyfriend!" I exclaimed and immediately turned cherry red, Evra choked on her coffee and Debbie moved quickly to tap her on the back.

"I'm only teasing, wait until you meet some of my guy friends," Debbie gave a small, evil laugh like a madman with a diabolical plot, "You won't be single for long." The pretty girl wrote me her address on napkin before sauntering back over to her group.

Evra took in a shuddering breath and placed her drink on the table, "I'm not sure if this is a good idea. Crepsley is plotting your murder anyway do you really wanna fan the flame?"

I gave her an incredulous look, "You leave grumpy bat to me. Were two young, pretty girls why shouldn't we go?"

Evra snorted then pointed herself, then me, "Part snake. Part vampire. Were not exactly normal."

"What are you saying, don't you want to go?" I gave her my best puppy dog eyes. The snake girl threw some money on the table to cover our bill and grabbed her purse. At first I thought I'd really pissed her off this time, but noticing my worried expression all she did was smile.

"Well, not dressed like this. What kind of friend would I be if I let you go out in that outfit?"

Debbie's parents were pretty chill considering Debbie was going to a club despite being only 17. Granted, it was a friday, and the city was actually pretty low in crime, but I know my parents would throw a fit if I mentioned even going to a party of more than ten people, let alone a club.

Sneaking out was almost too easy. It was midday when we stopped back at the hotel, and we were able to get everything and get out within ten minutes. But not before I left the vampire a note explaining that me and Evra were going to the movies and not to worry, or wait up for us. Hopefully he would lose his nerve to want and talk to me.

Debbie was able to get her parents to lend her their beat up old buick for the trip downtown only if she swore not to drink a single drop of alcohol (me and Evra made no such promises). When we pulled up along the curb already noticed there was a crazy line of people trailing out the door. I self consciously looked down at my outfit and breathed a sigh of relief. It took me a long time to figure it out but I ended up settling on a black, short, crushed velvet dress, fishnets, and some platform combat boots. A faux leather motorcycle was slung over my shoulders. Evra wore a striped, green and purple long sleeve shirt, and a pair of dark green cargo pants. The tougher looking outfit actually looked quite cute on the snake girl, who had her yellow-blonde hair tied into two high pigtails.

A group of Debbie's friend immediately circled us as we got out of the car. Most of them were girls but she had some guy friends too, none of which were really my type. Looks like Debbie's plot was doomed to fail. However one of the guys had an uncle whose friend owned the club, and we were able to get in almost as soon as we approached the door.

When we walked in, the non description bass laden music was almost too much for my ears. But when Evra pressed a pair of earplugs into my hand I breathed a sigh of relief.

We quickly found ourselves on the dance floor as some heavy, metal core based music flooded in through the speakers. I was giving Mr. Tall a mental high five since my license had me listed as 21 instead do for 18. I would have to remember to give him a serious thank you when we got back.

I drank some frothy draft beer out of a plastic cup and tried not to let it spill all over me as the crowd formed a mosh pit in the middle of the dance floor. I handed Evra some kind of mixed drink and she mouthed her thank you.

Debbie was pressed up against some guy with an insane amount of facial piercings, and the two of them were rocking out pretty hard for a while. By the time I'd finished my fifth drink I was finally feeling brave enough to test out some of my moves with one of her friends. He tried to make conversation, and even though I could hear him just fine I pretended like I couldn't, all I wanted to do was dance. He could save the wooing for later, if I gave him the chance that is.

It was nearing midnight when I began to feel uneasy. There were a lot of people packed into this tiny room, but I felt the inescapable tingle of a gaze fixated hotly me. I whipped my head around in every direction but saw nothing. That's when I felt it, a tight hand on my shoulder. I jumped and let out a startled yell before whirling around.

"I'm in so much trouble aren't I?" I gave a nervous laugh as I eyed the positively livid vampire in front of me. The hand from my shoulder immediately gripped my arm and I felt tears well up in pain. The vampire dragged me out of the room and out one the emergency exits. Once we were in the alley he roughly shoved me against the wall. He looked ready to commit murder.

"Have you no shame? An assistant should not be acting like this!" He fought to keep him voice low, a battle he was losing. Maybe it was my anger, maybe it was the drinks I'd had earlier but I felt a lot bolder than I should have.

"Just because I work for you doesnt mean youre my keeper! You can't tell me what to do!" I yelled back.

His gripped tightened on me, I would definitely have bruises later, "I am your mentor, you must obey me! It is my duty to teach you and keep you safe-"

I tried pushing him away from me, but I was no match for his strength, I groaned in frustration. "Don't give me that crap! You don't care about me!" He reeled back as if he'd been struck and I almost instantly regretted my words.

"As my assistant it is well in my right to give you the punishment you well deserve," He growled, he leaned forward and I flinched, but the pain never came. I decided to do the only thing I could think of, which was wrap my arms around him and pull our bodies close. My heart took off a mile a minute. He remained silent for a long time before gently patting my back, I could tell that close contact wasn't really his forte.

The vampire let out a heavy sigh, "I always worry for you, it will serve you well to remember that." He said softly. I felt tears build in my eyes. "Despite what others may think, I know you. I know you have had a hard time with all of this. I blame myself, I should have never blooded you."

Looks like I just bought myself a one way ticket to a guilt trip vacation. I had been pretty horrid to Crepsley the past couple of weeks, all because I was angry. I'd been so selfish, and I realized that even though I was angry at him for not trusting me, I certainly wasn't giving him any reason to by acting like a spoiled child.

"Don't say that, it was my choice, afterall." I tried to hide my sniffling, "I'm sorry…." I pulled him closer.

"I know you have many reasons to hate me," He admitted. "But never doubt that I care for you."

My heart should have been leaping for joy at his words. If only they meant what I wanted them too. Sure he cared for me, I'm his assistant, his student. But deep inside, I knew I cared for him differently.

I discreetly wiped the tears from my face, and took in a shuddering breath, "Let's just go home…."

Crepsley broke away and nodded his head solemnly, "I'll have Evra take you back to the hotel."

"No, no. I mean let's go home to the cirque…"

The vampire only shook his head, "My business here is not yet finished, we will have to stay a bit longer, I'm afraid."

I crinkled my nose, clearly not pleased but I kept my mouth shut. Just what was so important about this place? In the time weve traveled we hardly ever left the cirque, and certainly never decided to stay in one place for so long. As the vampire disappeared off into the dark night, I stared after him long after he vanished from sight.

What was he hiding from me?

Nearly three weeks passed after the events in the alley. And one day as Evra and I entered the room after a shopping trip,I noticed the kitchen light was on; Mr. Crepsley was eating some of the leftovers I'd saved for him the other night. He looked awful. I could tell right away he hadn't been feeding properly.

I set my bad on the counter and slowly made my way over to him, I placed a hand on his arm and smiled,"You know, I've been feeding by myself these past few weeks."

"Good," he said absentmindedly. It was the first time I'd fed by myself, and I'd been expecting some sort of a compliment, but he didn't seem to care. It felt like his mind was elsewhere.

Even though I knew he didnt care for me the way I wanted him too, I also knw that things like that took alot of time. After what happened in the alley, I realized how selfish I was being, and I wanted to be a better assistant so that Crepsley would one day be able to put his faith in me. I wanted him to rely on me.

"Whats wrong, you look awful?" I placed a hand on his forehead. Could vampires get fevers?

He placed his rough hand over mine and gave a slight smile. It was one of those rare tender moments we had. His brown eyes had softened slightly in the dim lighting. My heart started beating a mile a minute, I pulled away abruptly.I placed his plate in the sink and then grabbed his coat. He gave me a tentatively pat on the back before leaving. "If you're not feeling well you shouldn't go out."

Either he didn't hear me, or chose not to listen. "Do not wait up for me," he called over his shoulder.

Evra cringed, "That's cold, even for him. You think he's still upset?"

I sighed, dejected, and slumped into a chair. I felt a headache coming on, "I never know what he's feeling. I just wish he'd tell me why we're here, and why he keeps sneaking off at night."

"Maybe he's seeing someone." The snake girl laughed evily.

"As if!" I exclaimed.

That night as we got ready for bed Evra turned on the TV for a bit of white noise. I was brushing my long hair when I heard the news broadcaster interrupted our program.

"Sam!" Evra snapped in a very unusual tone. She looked up at me, and her face was a mask of worry. "You should watch this," she said slowly. Sitting down, I studied the TV screen. There was a picture of the outside of a building on it, then the camera dissolved to an interior shot and scanned around the walls. A caption told viewers that the photographs were from stock footage, which meant they'd been filmed sometime in the past. A reporter was babbling on about the building.

"What's the big deal?" I asked.

"This is where they found the bodies," Evra said softly.

I surged forward and launched myself onto the couch next to her, "What bodies?" I gasped.

"Watch," she said. The camera came to rest in a dark room that looked the same as all the others, held on the scene for a few seconds, then dissolved back to a view of the building's exterior. The captain told us that these new pictures had been shot earlier that day. As I watched, several policemen and doctors came out of the building, pushing stretchers, each of which held a motionless object covered by a body bag.

"Are those…"

"Corpses," Evra confirmed. "Six so far. The police are still searching the building."

"What does it have to do with us?" I asked uneasily. The room suddenly felt 30 degrees colder, and it wasn't from the heavy wind outside.

"Listen." She turned up the sound. A reporter was talking into the camera now, live, explaining how the police found the bodies — a couple of teenagers had stumbled over them while they were exploring the deserted building as a dare — and when, and how the search was progressing. The reporter looked pretty stunned. An anchorman in the studio asked the reporter a question about the bodies, to which she shook her head.

"No," she said, "the police aren't giving out names, and won't until the relatives of the deceased have been notified."

"Have you learned any more about the nature of their deaths?" the anchorman asked.

"No," the reporter replied. "The police have blocked the flow of information. We only have the early reports to go on. The six people — we don't know if they're men or women — appear to be victims of a serial killer or some sort of sacrificial cult. We don't know about the last two bodies brought up, but the first four all shared the same bizarre wounds and conditions."

"Could you explain once again what those conditions were?" the anchorman asked. The reported nodded.

"The victims — at least the first four — have slit throats, which seem to be the means by which they were killed. In addition, the bodies appear — and I must stress that this is an early, unverified report — to have been drained of all their blood."

"Possibly sucked out or pumped dry?" the anchorman suggested. The reporter shrugged.

"As of the moment, nobody can answer that, except the police." She paused. "And, of course, the murderer."

Evra switched the sound off but left the picture on.

"Do you think…Crepsley could be involved?" Evra swallowed hard. I thought of Mr. Crepsley, who'd been out alone every night since we arrived, prowling the city for reasons he wouldn't reveal. I thought of the six bodies and the reporter's and anchorman's comments:

". . . drained of all their blood."

"Possibly sucked out or pumped dry."

"Do you think he's responsible for this?" Evra pressed again when I remained silent. I shot up out of my seat and prowled around the room.

"No way!" I exclaimed, "He would never kill those he fed from. Besides, he hasn't fed properly since before we left."

Evra shrugged and I completely lost it. "I can't stand being in the dark about this! All of it! The vampire Generals, this city, and now murder!" I clenched my fists, "I've had enough. Tomorrow when he slips away, we're going to follow him."

"What do you mean we?" Evra groaned.

The first night we lost him after a couple of minutes: he shot up a fire escape and by the time we got to the top he was nowhere to be seen. We wandered around the city for a few hours, hoping to stumble upon him, but saw neither hide nor hare of him for the rest of the night. We learned from that experience. While Mr. Crepsley slept the next day, I went and bought a couple of cheap cell phones, my secret smartphone was left hidden in my underwear drawer, where I knew the vampire wouldn't be able to find it. Evra and I tested them out before dusk, and they worked pretty well. That night, when Mr. Crepsley headed for the rooftops, Evra stuck to the ground. She couldn't move as fast as me. By myself, I was able to keep track of the vampire and pass the information to Evra, who followed on the ground. Even alone, it was difficult to keep up. Mr. Crepsley could move a lot quicker than me. Fortunately, he had no idea I was after him, so he didn't go as fast as he could, since he didn't think he had any need to. I kept him in sight for three hours that night before losing him when he slipped down to street level and took a couple of turns that I missed.

The next night I stuck with him until dawn. It varied after that: some nights I'd lose him within an hour; others I'd be on his tail until morning. He didn't do much while I was following him. Sometimes he'd stop in one place for a long time above crowds of people and observe them silently as if looking for someone specific. Other times he roamed without stopping. His routes were unpredictable: he might go the same way two or three nights in a row, or try entirely new directions every night. It was impossible to anticipate his moves. Evra was exhausted at the end of each night — I kept forgetting she wasn't as powerful as me — but she never complained. I said she could stay in for a few nights if she wanted, but she shook her head and insisted on coming with me. Maybe she thought I'd slip up without her. Maybe she was just afraid to be alone at night with a killer on the loose.

Although I was sleeping through most of the days in order to stay awake at night I made a point of waking a couple of hours before sunset to spend some time with Debbie. Usually I went over to her house and we sat upstairs in her bedroom and played music and talked about boys. I was always trying to conserve energy for the night chase ahead but sometimes we'd go for a walk or hit the stores for some cute outfits.

"How come you never go out at night anymore? Jack asks about you all the time!"

I vaguely remembered Jack being the boy I danced with the other night. I flushed bright read and continued to flip through a new edition of teen digest, "I'm not really interested in dating anyone right now."

"Which means you definitely have someone you want to date. Who is he?" Debbie giggled.

I huffed out an aggravated sigh, "Why does everyone assume I like him?"

Debbie grinned, "I didn't say you liked him. You just did."

We continued talking in circles like this for a while before. I had to leave to meet up with Evra.

Mr. Crepsley was definetly following someone. He was hovering above a busy shopping street, where he'd been for almost an hour, studying the shoppers. Then, without warning, he climbed to the top of the building he'd been clinging to and started across the roof. I called Evra. She never called me, for fear the vampire would hear my phone.

"He's on the move again," I said quietly.

"About time," Evra grumbled. "I hate it when he stops. You don't know how cold it gets, standing still down here."

"Go get something to eat," I told her. "He's moving pretty slowly. I think you can take five or ten minutes off."

"Are you sure?" Evra asked.

"Totally," I said. "I'll call you if anything happens."

"Okay," Evra said. "I'd love a hot dog and a cup of hot chocolate. You want me to pick something up for you?"

"No thanks," I said. "I'll keep in touch. See you soon." I hit the off switch and started after the vampire. The other nights, he'd either stayed in one spot or wandered around without direction. He was moving with purpose this time. I decided to get closer. It was dangerous, especially since he wasn't rushing — he was more likely to spot me — but I had to see what he was up to. Closing the gap by a third — as near to him as I dared get — I saw that he was sticking his head out over the edge of the roof, keeping a watch on the street below. Looking down at the well-lit street, I couldn't spot who he was after. It was only when he paused above a lamp that I noticed the fat man at the base, adjusting his shoelaces. That was it! Mr. Crepsley was after the fat man! I knew by the way the vampire stared, waiting for him to tie his shoelaces and move on. When the fat man finally stood up and started walking again, sure enough, Mr. Crepsley followed. Taking a few steps back, I called Evra.

"What's up?" she asked. I could hear her munching on a hot dog. There were voices in the background.

"Action," I said simply.

"Oh, hell!" Evra gasped. I heard her dropping the hot dog and shuffling away from the people behind her, to a quieter spot.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Totally," I said. "The target has been sighted."

"Okay," Evra sighed. She sounded nervous. I didn't blame her — I was nervous, too. If we were caught I'd have a hell of time explaining what we were doing.

"Okay," she said again. "Give me your position." I read out the name of the street.

"Don't rush," I told her. "They're moving slowly. Stay a couple of streets back. I don't want Mr. Crepsley spotting you."

"I don't want him spotting me either!" Evra snorted. "Keep me up to date."

"Will do," I promised. Clicking off the phone, I started after the pursuing vampire. He trailed the fat man to a large building, which the human disappeared into. Mr. Crepsley waited half an hour, then slowly circled the building, checking on windows and doors. I trudged along behind, keeping my distance, ready to race after him if he entered. He didn't. Instead, when he was through examining the place, he went to a nearby rooftop, from where he had a perfect view of all the entrances, and sat down to wait. I told Evra what was happening.

"He's just sitting there?"

"Sitting and watching," I kept my gaze trained on the vampire. Just what was he looking for?

"What sort of place is it?" I'd read the name on the walls while I was passing them, and seen in a couple of the windows, but I could have told Evra what went on in the building just by the foul smell of animal blood in the air.

"It's a slaughterhouse," I whispered. There was a long pause. Then:

"Maybe he's just here for the animal blood," Evra suggested.

"No. He would have entered by now if that was the case. He didn't come for the animals. He came for the human."

"We don't know that," Evra said. "Maybe he's waiting for it to close before going in."

"He'd have a long wait," I laughed. "It stays open all night."

"I'm coming up," Evra said. "Don't move until I get there."

"As if!" I said, but Evra had hung up and didn't hear me. She arrived a few minutes later, her breath stinking of mustard and onions.

"Dry bread for you from now on," I cringed.

"Do you think Mr. Crepsley will smell me?" Evra asked. "Maybe I should go back down and —" I shook my head.

"He's too close to the slaughterhouse," I said. "The smell of blood will block everything else out."

"Where is he?" Evra asked. I pointed the vampire out. Evra had to squint but eventually spotted him.

"We have to be extra quiet," I said. "Even a small noise could have him swooping down on us." Evra shivered and settled down. We had to breathe into our cupped fists to stop our breath from showing. We would have been all right if it had been snowing but it was a clear and frosty night. We sat there until three in the morning. Evra's teeth were chattering, and I was at the point of sending her home before she froze to death, when the fat man emerged. Mr. Crepsley started after him immediately. Too late, I realized the vampire was going to pass by us on his way back. There was no time to hide. He'd see us!

"Keep perfectly still," I whispered to Evra. "Don't even breathe." The vampire came toward us, walking steadily across the icy roofs in his bare feet. I was certain he'd spot us, but his eyes were trained on the human. He passed within ten feet of us, his shadow crept over me like some awful ghost, and then he was gone.

"I think my heart stopped," Evra said shakily. I heard the familiar thump-thump sounds of the snake-girl's heart (it beat slightly slower than a normal human's) and smiled.

"Don't worry, we're cool." I told her, but I also said it to quiet my own heart rate.

"I thought we were done for," Evra hissed.

"Same." I stood and checked which way the vampire was going. "You'd better slip back down to the street," I told Evra.

"He's not going fast," Evra said. "I can keep up." I shook my head.

"There's no telling when he'll speed up: the man might get in a cab or have a car waiting for him. Besides, after our narrow escape, it's better we split: that way, if one of us gets caught, the other can sneak back to the hotel and pretend she wasn't involved." Evra saw the sense in that and went down the nearest fire escape.

I began following the tracks of the vampire and the fat man. He walked back the way he'd come, past the deserted street where we first picked him up, onto a block of apartments. He lived in one of the central apartments on the sixth floor. Mr. Crepsley waited for the lights to go off inside, then went up in the elevator. I ran up the stairs and watched from the far end of the landing. I expected him to open the door and enter (locks were no problem for the vampire) but all he did was check the door and windows. Then he turned around and went back to the elevator. I hurried down the stairs and got the vampire back in view as he walked away from the apartments. I told Evra what had happened and where the vampire was heading. A few minutes later she caught up with me and we followed Mr. Crepsley as he jogged through the streets.

"Why didn't he go in?" Evra asked.

"I don't know," I said. "Maybe there was somebody else there. Or maybe he plans to come back later." After a while, we turned a corner into an alley and spotted Mr. Crepsley bent over a motionless woman. Evra gasped and started forward. I caught her arm and yanked her back.

"What are you doing?" she hissed. "Didn't you see? He's attacking! We have to stop him before —"

"It's fine," I said, feeling relieved. "He isn't attacking. He's feeding." Evra's struggles stopped.

"You're sure?" she asked suspiciously. I nodded. "He's drinking from the woman's arm. The corpses in the building had their throats cut, remember?" Evra nodded uncertainly.

"I'm glad he's finally feeding. I was worried about him." Evra gave me an odd look and I blushed. "What?"

"Oh nothing," She smirked. "Mrs. Totally-In-Denial."

Minutes later, the vampire moved on, leaving the woman behind. We hurried down the alley to check. As I'd guessed, she was unconscious but alive, a small, fresh scar on her left arm the only sign that she had been feasted upon.

"Let's go," I said, standing. "She'll wake up in a few minutes. We'd better not be here when she does."

"What about Mr. Crepsley?" Evra asked. I looked up at the sky, estimating how long was left until dawn.

"It's too late. He's probably heading back for the hotel. Come on if we don't get back before him, we'll have a hell of a time trying to explain where we were."