Laughter came from the other. “Killer’s my name,” he said. “And there’s a reason for that. Now you’re going to walk out of here with me, and back up to Trinity Gate, and don’t attract the slightest attention. My friends have been alerted. I don’t know who and what you are, but we’ll get to all of that very soon.”

As he spoke, the being’s pale eyes appeared to narrow and glaze over. Something stirred in his battered face and it became as expressionless as the face of a giant cat. “Flesh and blood,” he murmured. He took a deep breath and inhaled. He closed the gap between himself and Garekyn, driving his sharp vampiric teeth into Garekyn’s neck before Garekyn could stop him.

A dizziness came over Garekyn. A great yawning darkness opened. He saw the immense circuitry of his own blood illuminated in a flash. No, not like this, no. He felt the pull on his veins and on centers of power within himself of which he knew nothing. A vision exploded in the darkness. Amel? Benji Mahmoud’s face, the name Armand whispered. And then again Amel. Amel.

It was as if something invisible from within Garekyn was reaching into the other, the other who was sucking the blood so powerfully that Garekyn was shuddering and nauseated and suddenly terrified.

Garekyn fought it with all his strength, driving the creature back against the other wall so hard that the creature’s head struck the marble with a dull sound. Now it was battle, the creature lunging for Garekyn again; and this time, applying all his might, Garekyn drove the creature back again and down, slamming his face hard against the porcelain of the sink. Something broke, but with a sound so soft Garekyn could barely hear it.

Blood flowed on the dirty white porcelain. The blood glittered! The darkness rose up to take hold of Garekyn again. The creature’s hands closed on Garekyn’s neck, but with his left hand, Garekyn grabbed a full hank of the creature’s hair and swung his head down again and again on the edge of the sink.

The skull caved, the blood shot out of the creature’s mouth like the jet of a fountain—glittering. Amel. Armand. Names called in a void that might replace the little lavatory room if Garekyn didn’t hang on with every bit of stubbornness he could muster.

Again and again, he slammed the head down, this time on the chrome faucet and he felt the head close around the faucet as the faucet pierced the skull.

“Armand!” roared the creature as the blood bubbled from its lips.

Without hesitation, unsure of his strength, and determined to control all that would happen henceforth, Garekyn ripped the head forward and turned the head with all his might so as to break the creature’s neck.

Done!