Night was starting to give way to the faint and distant suggestion of morning, but the alleyway was still drowning in oddly shaped shadows. Claire used the flashlight carefully, just quick presses to show them the obstacles, and then Shane led the way through. He had her hold up a couple of times, either out of too much caution or because there really still were minions chasing them … and instead of going back to the run-off tunnels – they had no chance of jumping up the way they’d come down, anyway – he took them the long way around, through mostly deserted streets. When a police car cruised by, headlights splashing over them, Shane casually put an arm around her, and she snuggled into him. It also concealed the weapons they were carrying.

The police moved on.

They arrived back at the front entrance to the Library Annex, and Claire had expected that the cops would be all over it – after all, Oliver had shattered the front door getting in. But instead, a neat plywood replacement had already been installed, the glass swept away, and there was no sign the police had been there at all.

‘Your buddies don’t want company,’ Shane said. ‘Which confirms why there wasn’t any alarm. They’d just kidnapped somebody, and the last thing they wanted was the police busting in on them. Plus, there’s that weird bat-thing and Dead Derrick to explain.’ He tried the door – locked, of course. ‘Hang on a second.’

‘Do you need the flashlight?’

‘Don’t need light to pick locks,’ he said cheerfully. She didn’t know how he did it, but about thirty long seconds later, he gave a satisfied sigh, and she heard the padlock that secured the broken doors click open. ‘New personal best. Okay, inside, but go careful. Enemy territory.’

Inside, the building was silent, just as it had been before; she moved past the offices and storage areas to the door of the mechanical closet, which was tightly closed again.

And a voice – Dr Davis’s voice – said, ‘Nothing to find down there, kids. If you’re looking for your friend, she’s in good hands.’

He was standing at the dog-leg end of the hall, flanked by two men with weapons. And yes, the weapons were aimed straight at Claire and Shane, which didn’t surprise her, but did give her heart a little kick-start of fear.

Dr Davis was holding VLAD. He’d been expecting a vampire rescue. She and Shane, alone, were likely a surprise.

Shane kept his hands down at his sides. ‘Can’t we talk about this?’

‘I don’t see why not, but the fact is, your red-headed friend isn’t going anywhere. Where are the other vampires? The males?’

‘Males,’ Shane repeated. ‘I’m guessing you refer to Jesse as the female.’