“August Pfeiffer, what the hell were you thinking?” Daphne shouts, whirling on me so fast I jump back, slipping a little in the new snow. “You agreed to meet a vampire alone? You have got to be smarter than that! Did you even tell anyone what you were doing or where you were going?” When I don’t answer, she covers her face with mittened hands. “What if he’d killed you? What if this had been a trap? I mean, it was a trap, but what if it had been worse? You could be in a cage on your way to Romania right now!”

“I’m sorry,” I mumble, my eyes on my hands. I’m not exactly sure why I’m apologizing to Daphne, except that she’s upset, and it’s making me uncomfortable.

Slumping against the side of a parked SUV, she pinches the bridge of her nose for a moment. “I’m sorry, too. I’m just…” Trailing off, Daphne shrugs and shakes her head. When she speaks again, her voice is softer, her expression concerned. “What’s going on, Auggie? If something is … happening to you, I might be able to help.”

“Are you really part of some, like, secret monster-fighting club?” I ask first. It’s not that I doubt her—I just think I need to hear it again.

“The Brotherhood of Perseus isn’t a ‘club.’” She gives an offended snort, folding her arms over her chest. “It’s a centuries-old order of badass vampire-hunting knights, and you have to damn well prove yourself worthy of wearing the emblem before they let you join. My parents met while fighting side by side, and they trained me from the age of six to identify and kill the undead.”

“Wow. That’s … really cool. I can’t believe you’re not allowed to brag about it.”

“Secrecy is part of the membership oath. It’s only under … extreme circumstances that Perseans are permitted to reveal themselves to outsiders.” Glancing back at the lights of the mall, she states, “And this definitely qualifies. Auggie … whatever you thought a vampire could tell you, the Brotherhood can do the same, and at a way lower cost.”

The problem with sharing a secret is that you can’t un-share it again if things don’t go the way you want them to. But I’m running out of places to look for answers, and Daphne has me wondering if I can believe anything Jude told me at all. As I take a breath, the decision trembles on the end of my tongue. “I’ve been having … dreams. Nightmares. Maybe visions, I’m not sure.”