"You got to the next town fast," Bonnie said. She was settled in her bedroom, alone in the house until her father came back from a food shop. Around the time Bridget had left, the panicked phone calls had started from her parents. Bonnie clutched onto the sheets of her duvet as she lied through her teeth, making it look like she didn't know a thing about her friend's whereabouts.

Her poor folks, Bonnie had thought. In the eyes of Mr and Mrs Teahan two daughters had now gone. Their only daughters who had disappeared on the streets of Santa Carla.

"I actually flew," Bridget said on the other side of the phone and she groaned. "Already giving into temptation."

"Being hard on yourself won't help," Bonnie said. "Flying was probably better than being stuck on a bus with human blood all around you." She glanced at the sky outside, gazing up at the streaks of burnt orange and red dying away for the darkness. The sun had long disappeared in the horizon.

"It's getting very dark now," she added and Bridget sighed.

"They'll be up soon. They'll know I've done a runner. And I'm worried Marko will come for you."

"Edgar and Sam are staying over. Michael and Star said they'll cover Sam's house. We've got everything we need if they come to finish us off," Bonnie assured her even though she couldn't stop staring at that night sky creeping closer. It sent a chill down her spine.

Bridget sighed down the phone again. "I'm sorry. I should be there to help." She already sounded weary and fed-up. Bonnie could tell from the constant huffs and sighs her friend had been making.

"You need to get yourself sorted out. You've been honest in how you feel about killing Alan and Bernice. Getting away from them will probably be the best way to stop yourself from turning." Bonnie flopped on her bed. On the sheets beside her, she had laid out her weapons. "How're you feeling by the way?"

There was a nervous chuckle. "Um… hungry. My throat feels like it's burning. I'm jumpy. Everything is so loud. And bright."

"Heightened senses," Bonnie said. "You feel different so quickly. Just be careful."

"I will. At least, doing my best. Listen, I better go. My money is running out and I need to get back to the motel. I'll call you tomorrow when I get to the next town."

If I'm alive tomorrow, Bonnie thought but acknowledged her friend's goodbye despite her cynic thoughts. She hung up, fighting back tears but gave her head a quick, sharp shake. No. She couldn't cry. Not when she needed to be on her best defence.

On the floor, she noticed a shadow appearing. The silhouette of a male figure and her head whipped up at the same time her thoughts screamed: "This is it!"

But when she turned to face the window she saw Alan. Pale and silent, he smiled calmly at her. He gestured over to her with his hand, beckoning her towards the window. She shook her head, eyes glancing at the weapons on her bed.

"Bonnie, I'm not going to fight," he said, voice muffled slightly. "Open the window."

"You're not coming in."

"I'll stay outside. I promise."

She clenched her jaw, holding up a cross as she went towards it. Alan stepped back as she opened it and she quickly jumped back, keeping her cross up. He had only managed to get to the window frame when he felt something pushing at him, warning him back. He nodded and relaxed his posture, staying outside.

"I just want to know where Bridget is. She's disappeared."

When Bonnie kept silent, mouth pressed tightly together to hold back her answers, he pressed on. "Bonnie, where is she?"

"I don't know," she lied. There was some truth to it. Bonnie knew Bridget had left Santa Carla but she didn't know which neighbouring town she had stopped at first.

"I keep trying to get in contact with her but it's hard to connect with a half vampire. Even when I was the one who turned her." He glanced at Bonnie, taking in how she kept her face straight. Not a single twitch of surprise at the news. "So you know what she is now. You've seen her."

He leaned against the wall next to her window, tilting so he could still peer in.

"She came to say goodbye," Bonnie admitted. "But she didn't tell us anything. Well, she told us what happened to you and Bernice. Then she left and didn't say where she was going."

"She's left town?"

"You turned her into a vampire," Bonnie said, unable to help her lips form into a sneer. "She's freaked out. She doesn't want to be like that."

"You didn't see her," he argued back, responding with his own sneer. "Her neck had been torn into. She was losing blood and dying. Should I have left her there to die or was it better for me to keep her alive? It was the only solution I could think of."

Bonnie huffed, blowing her bangs out of her eyes and broke eye contact with him. Alan, she realised reluctantly, was right. The only other path was letting Bridget become another dead body for the town's corpse population and she didn't want to see someone else she was close to dead. There had been too much of that already. Her mother… Leon…

"I wasn't going to let her die," Alan added. "So I won't apologise. I've got nothing to be sorry for. She still means a lot to me, you know."

"What about your victim?" Bonnie asked, glaring at him again. "You're not sorry about that?"

"That was out of my control. Remember how the hunger felt?" He glared back, a slight scowl twisting on his features and Bonnie noticed a flicker of yellow in his eyes.

Still freaking temperamental, she thought and sighed.

"I'm sorry, Alan. She didn't tell us where she was going. She just… took off."

He sighed. "I turned her to save her, not to scare her. We always said we'd look out for one another."

"I believe you," she said and she meant that. She could actually see the hurt and disappointment in his eyes.

"But I don't think she wants to be like that," she added, careful in her choice of words.

"Well, what's she planning on doing? She was given my blood. The only way for her to become human again is by killing me and she's already said she can't do that."

"No. She refuses to."

He raised an eyebrow. "Are you guys going to?"

Bonnie's shoulders slumped. "Personally, I couldn't bring myself to kill you or Bernice."

"And how does Edgar feel?" Alan asked, a little louder and he grinned in Bonnie's direction before turning to greet someone she couldn't see from her bedroom. She turned on her heel to race out of the house.

Edgar stood still, feet apart with a stake in his hand. Sam had his bow and arrow raised as he stayed near the eldest Frog's side. When Edgar had seen his brother, he was surprised at how calm he stayed. How easily he got into action, marching over with his stake raised and ready.

But he had only seen the back of Alan. Now his brother had turned and Edgar felt his stomach toss. His brother looked pale. The white of his skin, unnaturally white, made his hair look darker. There was a coldness in his eyes now. A detachment. He felt his grip on his stake loosen.

What turned his stomach was how much Alan grinned. No embarrassment, regret, disgust… nothing except amusement.

"So, what's going to happen?" Alan asked.

"I should kill you," Edgar snapped but his jaw twitched.

"You can't, though," Alan answered for him. "I don't think I could kill you."

"Isn't that going to interfere with Logan's plan?" Sam asked.

"Logan has other problems now," Alan said. "That's another reason I'm here. We all need to meet up. Logan and Adam want to talk."

Edgar sneered. "Adam? As in Doctor Mathias? You've been a vampire for one night and already you're their gofer and on a first name basis. I'm not going anywhere near those filthy bloodsuckers."

"You're already near one," his brother retorted, an identical scowl of disgust on his face. "You've probably heard about Marko and Charlotte. Logan will forget about his plan if you guys come and talk with everyone."

"We're not stupid. You're taking us straight into a trap."

"If you want to talk, we can all do it here," Sam added. "Tell your new friends to come to Bonnie's house."

"We'll talk here," she said. "I'm having none of you in my home."

Alan raised an eyebrow at her. "What happened to mi casa es tu casa? You always said that to me."

"When you were human," Bonnie pointed out. "You're a vampire now. That automatically makes you the enemy."

Logan's voice was sudden and above them. "We have new enemies now."

A sudden breeze blew around them as screeches echoed in the street. Four figures stood near Bonnie's back gate. All horribly familiar. Logan, Bernice, Ruby and Doctor Mathias. Sam aimed his bow and arrow, ready to shoot at them while Edgar glanced around for any signs of Marko and Charlotte but Doctor Mathias held up his hand.

"Marko and Charlotte are a much bigger problem," he said.

"Well whose fault is that?" Edgar muttered, looking back at glare at the vampires. He watched Alan walk over to join them, nostrils flaring at the sight of his brother standing with the enemies. It was a stab in the back. Nothing other than betrayal seeing his brother as one of them. He had to force his emotions to bubble down. Lock them away because right now he had to deal with five vampires and make sure they weren't just getting ready to attack.

"Have to admit, things have been balled up a smidge," Logan said. He smiled at the three vampire hunters. "We've got ourselves in a bit of trouble."

"You looking for sympathy?" Edgar asked with a sneer. "Wrong place, bloodsucker."

"We're looking for… help," Logan said. The reluctance in his voice was clear, even down to the scowl.

"You want our help," Sam repeated and scoffed.

Edgar shook his head, hardly believing what this vampire had just demanded. "After everything you've done to us?"

"No freaking way," Bonnie said, pulling her own sneer.

"You think I'm happy to ask for help from some stinking vampire hunters?" Logan stepped forward but Adam stretched out his arm to stop his son.

"Maybe we don't have to call it help," he suggested. "Call it… an alliance, if you will."

"Our services aren't for vampires to request," Edgar said.

"Marko and Charlotte broke away," Ruby explained. "They're after your blood still but they're also after ours."

"A pack of five can't handle two nightcrawlers?" Edgar managed a smirk but a growl from Logan wiped it off his face.

"After me and my father, Marko is the oldest vampires amongst us. And Charlotte is a pretty tough vampire. She surprised me. Look, would you rather have two vampire packs after you or would you like us to guarantee you some back up and vice versa? Marko's already done a lot of damage and that was nothing compared to what he could really do." He glanced at Bonnie who he noticed flinched first from his words. He kept his gaze on her. He knew this girl had a history with the vampire, a history she thought was a thing of the past since last summer. But he had returned and murdered her mother in the process. Her father would no doubt be next. Why go straight for her when he could let see the people she cared about die first before she did?

"You help us, we'll help you," Logan said.

"And what about this revenge for killing Max?" Sam asked. His eyes went straight to Adam. "You're Max's brother. Actual brother."

He nodded solemnly. "I am."

"And that makes you Max's nephew?" Sam asked Logan. He had to force the information to sink in fast. "You wanted revenge for killing Max. Why suddenly turn and ally up with us?"

"I was upset to learn of my brother's demise. We weren't exactly close but family steps in for family. You killed him but I'll admit he made a lot of silly mistakes. His desire for a family has always ruined lives." Adam's eyes fell but he gave a quick shrug and straightened, gazing calmly at the vampire hunters again.

"I look out for my family. And right now more of my family are being threatened by another party." He gestured to the vampires around him before placing a hand on Logan's shoulder. "I've changed my priorities."

"And why can't all of you sort the vampires out?" Bonnie asked.

"Marko and Charlotte are in hiding. And when they decide to come back out, they won't be alone. They'll want numbers to match our own. This could end up being a pack fight which puts more people in danger. True, I don't really care about humans but you do," Adam pointed out. "Marko and Charlotte will be aware that we'd kill them in an instant. They're smart so be prepared for more vampires around. Marko wants to see the rest of you dead. Work with us and we can offer that protection from them."

"And what's to stop you from killing us when we've helped you deal with Marko and Charlotte?" Bonnie asked, raising an eyebrow.

"We could be persuaded to leave the rest of you alone. It looks like you're suffering enough seeing three of your loved ones on our side," Logan said, grinning as his eyes darted from Alan to Bernice.

Edgar didn't want to glance back at his brother. But he couldn't help it when he looked at Alan. He stood next to Bernice and both of them stared back poker-faced, again not a trace of disgust at what they had been forced to become. With a huff through his nose, he gritted his teeth and spoke through them as he glanced back at the leader of this gang.

"Two," he corrected.

"Don't get so cocky over Bridget," Sam added. "She'll beat this."

Logan smirked. "We'll see. Where is the new half vampire?"

"We've already told Alan she's gone," Bonnie said. "She left town."

"Why?" Bernice asked.

"Maybe because she doesn't want to be a filthy leech," Edgar sneered at her.

"You let her leave town?" Bernice asked. She scowled, throwing her hands up in the air. "Bridget has trouble attached to her. She's not going to fight this by running away."

"She won't fight period," Ruby added with a smirk. "You can't fight the change."

Bonnie gave a sardonic laugh and gestured to herself. "I think I can argue against that. In fact, there were four of us going through the change last summer. And we're all human again. You might have two of ours on your side but that doesn't mean you're going to get everyone you change." Her eyes hardened at Bernice and Alan. "You're going to have to let her go. She's one of us."

"Again, we'll see. Bridget's got quite a temper on her," Logan said. "I've watched your little gang for eight months. I know all of you very, very well. She's mouthy and trouble. Sooner or later she's just going to snap." He clicked his fingers, laughing at the glares on the hunters' faces. "So… the Marko and Charlotte problem. Do we have a deal?"

Bonnie and Sam turned to Edgar and he knew the reason. It was his decision. His answer that they would follow. The last thing he wanted was to be working with vampires. That was never in the job description. They were vampire hunters and their only duties were to save the human race and stake every bloodsucker they came across.

But with three of theirs gone, it was only him, Sam and Bonnie left. Reluctantly, he knew that if he made enemies with both packs, they would be being hunted by more vampires than they could handle. And it wasn't just them in danger of being hunted. Their families and friends had been brought into this. Bonnie had already lost her mother. Leon had been killed.

It might be an alliance… but it was an alliance that was ensuring the people he cared about were safe. No more could be lost.

He nodded, speaking through gritted teeth. "Fine. You got us for assistance. But we're finishing Marko and Charlotte off the first chance we get. Before it gets too bad. I'm not playing around and when this is over, I want your whole pack getting the fuck out of Santa Carla." He looked at his brother and Bernice. "That includes you two. Also, if any of you go back on your promise to look out for us, the deal is off. I'll stake every one of you."

"And the same to you," Adam said and the two shared a brief nod.

"Deal," Edgar growled and gestured to his friends who also mumbled their agreements.

"And what about Bridget?" Alan asked. "I know you guys know more about her whereabouts. I'd like to find my girlfriend."

"Sorry to disappoint but she's kept quiet. And with good reason," Edgar snapped, marching away from the vampires. He spun to find his brother right in his face, darting his hands out to stop his older brother in his tracks.

"We really don't know where she's gone," Edgar said to him. "Just let her deal with things."

He pushed past Alan, nodding for Sam and Bonnie to follow him back into the house, leaving the vampires to stand on the lawn.

"Well," Logan said, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "This is going to be interesting."

Aaaaand it's over. For now. I shall continue to be evil mwahaha!

Thank you for reading these last two chapters. Please feel free to leave a review if you wish. There is another story to be uploaded and it will be the last in the Santa Carla Undead series. As for when it's going to be uploaded, I'm afraid there will be a wait. I managed to get these three stories written and finished before my university year got incredibly intense so I'm very behind on writing this last story. As of now I'm up to chapter 17 in the final story but I only post when the whole thing is completed. I'm sorry that there will be a wait but my degree has been super intensive and the last year has completely taken away my freedom and real life. The plus side is my assignments are almost finished, I'm about to complete my last placement and I have landed my dream job so most of the things that have been holding me back in the last six months are no longer an obstacle. Slowly, I'm getting more time for writing so this summer I'll be working towards finishing the last story.

Again, thank you for reading and look out in the future for Santa Carla Undead #4: Past and Present. :)