Before long I spot Xander’s green hair and slow. I follow, keeping to the other side of the street. I try to stay behind other people walking to their evening plans, but Xander and Aristelle keep stopping. Each time they do, they shift their heads in the same direction before moving on. We’re drifting out of the heart of downtown. There are fewer people, and I worry they’ll turn and spot me, but they don’t. They only pause and wait, like they’re deciding which way to go, but they don’t talk to each other before striding on. It’s like they know where they’re going but don’t at the same time.

The hairs on my neck prickle.

It feels like I’m hunting them, but it feels like they’re hunting too.

They pause beside a bar with nobody outside. Xander reaches out and grabs Aristelle’s hand, interlocking their fingers. He flashes a smile at her as he does, and then they move around the side of the bar.

My stomach feels like it’s in my toes, making my feet too heavy to move.

That’s not what I expected, but I force myself forward.

Just before I reach the dark alley they disappeared down, a young man runs out of it.

I take a step back. His wide eyes roam over me like he doesn’t even see me. His fingers hold his neck. He runs in the other direction.

My heart starts pumping so fast I let out an unsteady gasp. Breathe, I tell myself as I reach into my backpack for my stake.

I’ve practiced for this.

I watched 30 Days of Night a dozen times, even though the scenes where vampires killed people made me sick. I wanted to cry and hyperventilate each time, but I taught myself to breathe through the pain and the fear and the memory.

Focus.

They’ve obviously tricked me. Of course real vampires would have powers I don’t know about. Mom must have gotten tangled up with them somehow. Maybe she even knew they were vampires. Maybe she even knew Xander and Aristelle. For all I know, they’re the ones who killed her.

My breathing is calm. Perfect.

The stake in my hand is rough, and my grip is solid even though my palms sweat.

I take the last few steps to the mouth of the alley.

Xander pushes a girl against the side of the bar. His forearm presses into her throat. Aristelle stands in front of the girl, her nose just inches from the girl’s neck. They’re only a few feet from me, so I don’t wait, I don’t think, I just charge.