The moonlight paled to the glow gracing Ruby’s face, and tossing her own swords in the car, she climbed inside. Ruby took an easy breath, and it was the first easy breath she’d taken since entering Lisa’s apartment hours before. No longer choking on the acrid taste of her self-loathing, Ruby couldn’t contain her glee. Nothing would ever erase her mistakes or rebuild Bennett's trust in her, but Lisa was alive, and that was all that mattered.

Spellbound by the woman sitting behind the wheel, it took several seconds before Bennett spoke. “I thought…I thought you were dead.”

“Me, too! Let me tell you,” Lisa said, waving her hand. “But then I woke up, and geez Louise, was I a mess. It took me two, count them, two showers to get all the blood off, and I ruined my favorite towels in the process. I mean, I got out after my shower and dried off, only to see blood on the towel, so I had to hippity-hop back in and wash all over again. It took like forever. And, of course, then I had to get dressed, and I don’t know if you know this about me, but it usually takes me like hours to settle on something…and then I remembered, silly me, it wasn’t like I was going out for a night on the town—duh. So I just tossed on some jeans and a sweater. Do you like them?”

Bennett tilted her head ever so slightly, studying Lisa for several seconds before looking back at Ruby. Their eyes met, and when Ruby pressed her lips together, it was clear they’d come to the same conclusion.

Contrary to popular belief, Bennett and Ruby knew that when newly turned vampires first opened their eyes, blood lust was not yet on their minds. Much like allergic reactions to chemicals, foods, or flora, when mortals awaken as vampires, their experience differs. Some are annoyed by sounds they’d never heard so clearly because now they were being drilled into their heads like woodpeckers against a tree. Some are blanketed in fear so intense their limbs shake, and their eyes tear, and others are so profoundly in shock, they don’t move for hours. And then there are the ones who awaken youthfully euphoric. Delirious from the power they’ve yet to harness and exhilarated by the rush of absolute immortality flowing in their veins, their energy seems endless. Quite literally, they are high…and Lisa was positively soaring.

Lisa didn’t miss the exchange of amused looks between her front and back seat passengers, and she squinted at Bennett. “What?”

As Bennett tried to find the words, Lisa looked back at Ruby, and something in the rear window caught her eye. “Hey guys,” she said. “What’s with the bushel of dried jalapenos coming our way?”