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  “Then I decide to keep him.” The cub nuzzled up against Laura’s armpit.

  “Well, if that’s what you’re going to do,” Logan said slyly, “he’ll have to have a name.”

  “A name?”

  “We can’t have an unnamed third companion now, can we?”

  “No… you’re right.” She smiled. “A name. Hmm.” Laura thought for a bit. She picked the cub up, and held him out in front of her face. To her surprise, he stuck his tongue out and licked her nose. She laughed. “I think I’ll call him Gray.”

  “Gray. A good name.” Logan knelt down beside her. “He can be a symbol of your strength. For overcoming the instinct and fighting away the craving. For being unlike any vampire I have ever known.”

  “How about that, Gray?” Laura asked the cub. “How would you like to be my symbol of strength?” In reply, Gray playfully swatted at Laura’s nose. Abruptly, something else occurred to her. “The man,” she asked Logan, “will he… become like us? I mean, I bit him, didn’t I?”

  “I saw him leave,” Logan said, “so whatever you did, it was not enough to maim him. He looked frightened, but not much else. Did you even bite him?”

  “Maybe a tiny bit,” Laura said. “I tasted a drop of blood on my tongue.”

  “And you managed to pull away after coming that close?” A new sort of reverence entered Logan’s tone. “The frenzy that takes over once you’re so close to blood is nearly impossible to stop. You’re even stronger than I thought.”

  “What about the man?”

  “Hmm? No, I do not think he is something for you to worry about. Yes, you bit him, but you haven’t been in your new form long enough to be able to convert others. You have to bring him to the very edge of death, and then pull him back from the brink right before he slips. Only then can you create a new member of the Vassiz.”

  “Is that what you did for me?” Laura asked, surprised.

  “You asked me to,” Logan replied solemnly.

  For a moment, a silence stretched between them. But then the cub caught Laura’s attention. “Look,” she said, “Gray’s yawning.” Logan looked. The bear was yawning widely, and snuggling deeper into Laura’s arms.

  “He likes you,” Logan said, smiling. “A rare talent, that.”

  “What do you mean?” Laura asked. “Animals have always loved me.”

  “Loved you when you were a human, maybe, but now that you’re part of the Vassiz… most animals sense something unnatural about us, and tend to stay away. They don’t run, like they sometimes do for humans, and they don’t attack, either. They just… keep away. It’s almost like we’re invisible to them, and they to us.”

  “But not this one,” Laura said.

  “No,” Logan chuckled. “It appears not. But you know, he won’t stay this small forever.”

  “I know,” Laura said stubbornly. “But he’s my responsibility, now.”

  Logan smiled. “I think,” he said, “he became your responsibility as soon as you chased after the hunter.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You have a big heart, Laura. You have to be careful not to let it hurt you. You pitied the bear cub, and going to avenge his mother’s death only strengthened that point. You wouldn’t have done anything else except keep him, after.”

  Maybe he was right. Was she being weak? She didn’t think so. Keeping the cub was just how things managed to turn out for her.

  “I guess we can spend the night here,” Logan continued. “In any case, our third companion has had a hard day, and he’ll need some sleep.” He reached to ruffle Gray’s fur, but the bear snapped at him. Logan pulled his hand away just in time. “Looks like he’s taken a liking to you more than me,” he laughed. “Although I couldn’t imagine why, after I took him away from his mother. It seems like he’s truly yours, now.”

  Laura smiled. “You hear that, Gray?” she whispered. “I’ll be taking care of you from now on. I’ll be your mother.”

  Chapter Four

  ~An Unexpected Encounter~

  They made camp nearby, and spent the night. When Laura slept, with Gray curled up next to her, dark, unremembered dreams haunted her mind again. When she finally woke, early in the morning, Logan was already up – or rather, he probably hadn’t slept at all – and Gray was lying not too far off, staring off into the distance. When Laura moved to get up, the cub scrambled up and ran beside her.

  Logan noticed and smiled at her. “Morning,” he said.

  “Good morning,” she told him. She remembered back not very long ago when she would wake up to the smell of fresh pancakes and whipped cream and say ‘good morning’ to her parents and sister. She was living a different life, now.

  The thought of food, however, made her suddenly think of Gray. Rather, of the fact that he would need to be fed. One of the advantages of being a vampire, she had decided, was that the need to eat every day was completely subverted.

  “What do we feed him?” she asked Logan, nodding to the bear.

  “Berries and insects and things like that while he’s young,” Logan said, “and when he grows, I’ll wager he’ll develop a taste for meat and fish.” He laughed. “He might even make a better hunter than us, one day.”

  Laura laughed at the joke, too. Waking up this morning, she felt somehow… stronger. More invigorated with life. Now that she had stopped herself from feeding after coming so close, she felt significantly more in control of her body, and of her desires. And she noticed that the hunger pangs had faded to become barely noticeable in the background. She asked Logan about it.

  He replied thoughtfully. “I don’t think anybody’s ever been able to stop themselves on their first feeding. How it’s going to affect you… I’m not sure. You’ll still need blood, certainly, but having fought off the instinct so soon after your transformation to a Vassiz, you might have gained a newfound control over yourself. It’ll probably grant you more control in the future.”

  “I feel more in control.”

  “That’s good, then.”

  They started off again, and continued walking for days. Where they were, Laura didn’t know, but Logan said they had finally passed the Canadian border. Where they were going – well, that wasn’t clear yet, either.

  They didn’t encounter anybody else since the hunters, and since that first night, Gray was becoming more and more lively. He definitely preferred Laura for Logan, though.

  After a while, Laura thought they would be safe making their way to a distant city, but Logan did not share her ease. He said that the elders were still looking for them, and had eyes-and-ears everywhere. One glimpse of either one of them in a populated area and they would find themselves in the same predicament as back in the caves – except this time with no foreseeable escape.

  They entered the dream realm every night, where Logan would show Laura more of her powers. He said he would soon teach her to hunt, the way the vampires of old did, through the dream. He also told her that it was only through the dream that a person’s soul – their very desires – became apparent, and only then would she be able to come to peace with the fact that she needed to take blood. After staring into the soul of a merciless serial killer, he said, it was easier to take their life.

  Laura admired Logan for his courage, and for his self-restraint and control before and after feedings. She admired him for his ability to have lived among humans and staved off the hunger for so long, and so successful. Although truth be told, since the incident with the hunter a number of days back, she hadn’t experienced a single one of the wild instinctual takeovers.

  They walked, and their path slowly angled north. Logan took great care to avoid coming close to any towns or settlements, no matter how small, so they walked across the sparse plains and through the thick forests, by pristine lakes and roaring rivers. They walked, in the clean air of the wilderness, with nothing to disrupt them but the sounds of nature.

  And, of course, there was also Gray. Laura had started to teach him how to behave,
and her successes surprised Logan to no end. In just a few days, she had gotten him to recognize his name, and to come running whenever she called. She would let him wander around them, even let him canter off into the woods, and every time she called for him, he would come galloping back happily. Whenever Logan tried, the bear just ignored him.

  Gray was growing, too. In the few short days since Laura had adopted him, he had already become nearly twice as big. And like Logan said, the brown in his fur was coming out and the light grey becoming all the more dominant. It was a beautiful color – exotic even – and Laura thought it fit him well. And if he still harbored any ill effects from losing his mother, he definitely wasn’t showing them.

  And so, it was in the far reaches of British Columbia, the Canadian province located just north of the American border, where their journey met an unexpected twist.

  They had just set up camp for the night, in a clearing around some trees. Logan had started a fire, to ward off any curious animals and to provide some extra warmth for Gray. And he sat with an arm wrapped around Laura while she leaned comfortably into him.

  They were just sitting, enjoying the silence and the crackling of the fire, when Laura’s ears caught noise from behind them. In an instant she was twisted around, and Logan was looking back, too.

  Out of the edge of the clearing, Laura saw two shapes emerging. But they weren’t clear even to her improved vision. A man and a woman, she thought, and tall. Laura had no idea how she hadn’t heard them approaching earlier.

  “Who are you?” Logan demanded, and Laura felt his body tense.

  “We come in peace, friend,” a smooth, confident voice answered him. The couple moved closer, until they stood just at the edge of the fire’s reaches. It took time for Laura’s eyes to adjust, but when they did, she could see the two people clearly.

  Both of them were beautiful. They looked to be somewhere in their early thirties, although their faces had an agelessness to them that was hard to place. The man had stunning blonde hair that sat atop a perfectly chiseled face. Hard cheekbones and a strong chin gave him a very masculine look, while delicate eyes complimented it with a dash of femininity.

  And if the man were stunning to her, Laura could only imagine the woman’s effect on most men. She had blonde hair streaming down to her hips, and her eyes glistened with magnificence. She had a small nose that was perfectly centered on her face, just above delicate rose-red lips. And she wore a beautiful white dress which was completely unmarred. The hemlines were touched by threads of gold, and the bodice bore elegant designs.

  “We bring a gift,” the man said, lobbing something towards them. Logan snatched it out of the air. Laura looked. It was a dark piece of cloth. As Logan unfolded it, she realized it was an elegant black shirt. Perfectly Logan’s size. “We thought you might like to have a new piece of clothing,” the man continued, “seeing as how you haven’t worn anything for days.”

  “How did you know?” Logan asked, the projection of ease only slightly spoiled by a threatening undercurrent.

  “We’ve been tracking you for five days,” the woman answered. Laura’s breath was taken away by her voice. It rang like bells, and the only justified description Laura could give it was… angelic.

  The couple took another step forward, and Laura saw that their flawlessness was only magnified from closer up. They both had milky white skin, and it was completely perfect. And, she realized with a start, they had no smell she could pick up. They were vampires. The Vassiz? Had they been found?

  “How did you find us?” Laura demanded. If her voice was a little unsteady, so be it. If these two had gotten so close and avoided notice, what was to stop a whole army of the Vassiz encircling her and Logan right now?

  “You have nothing to fear from us, dear girl,” the man said, spreading his hands. “As to how we found you… we were told of your coming. By an old friend. I believe you’ve met. Were it not for him, I do not think we would be speaking now.”

  “Not… Rafael?” Laura asked.

  The man nodded. “Indeed. He told us of your coming a bit more than a week ago. But… we did not expect to find you alone. Is he not with you?”

  Laura looked at Logan. Did they not know? His face gave nothing away, but she could feel that he had relaxed noticeably on the man’s mention of Rafael.

  “You look troubled, child,” the woman said in that ringing voice. “Speak. What is the matter?”

  Laura looked again at Logan, and he nodded. She gulped. “Rafael… he did not make it.”

  “What do you mean?” the man asked. He sounded taken aback. “Has something happened?”

  Laura nodded. “We were in the caves, being chased by… enemies. And Rafael found us there. He helped us escape, but I’m afraid he sacrificed himself to do so.” Both the man’s and the woman’s expression turned to concern. “When we were lost, he showed us the way out, but stayed back to fend off those coming after us. He sacrificed himself, to help save us.” As Laura spoke, the woman walked all the way up to her. And Laura felt absolutely entranced by her presence. The woman knelt softly, and cupped Laura’s chin.

  “Believe in him, my girl,” she said soothingly. “He knows more than any other.” Laura was completely captivated by the woman. It was like she put some sort of spell on her. Looking away was… hard. With that beautiful, ageless face staring right into her eyes, Laura felt as if she had come face to face with an angel. She had to force herself to tear her eyes away.

  “Share our fire,” Laura said weakly, motioning to the clearing.

  “Thank you,” the woman said, rising. Logan hadn’t moved away from Laura. The man came up beside the woman and took her hand, and they both sat down across from Laura and Logan.

  “We should start with our names, then,” the man said. “I am Alexander, and this is Madison.”

  “I’m Laura,” Laura said, “and this is Logan.”

  “A pity our encounter comes under such inauspicious circumstances,” Logan said.

  “Do not let Rafael’s fate bother you,” Alexander offered sagely. “As Madison told you, he is very capable.”

  “I am sure he will be quite alright,” Madison added with an eye towards Laura. Gray had gotten up and walked over to Laura, and she put him in her lap, petting his back to soothe him. He seemed tense, as Logan had earlier, and was staring directly at Madison and Alexander as if they were a threat.

  “How did you know him?” Laura asked.

  Madison laughed. “He is an old friend,” she said with mirth. “We shared many ideals about the world as it should be.”

  “He said he was a recluse,” Logan said suspiciously, “and that he didn’t communicate with many others.”

  “Oh? That would not surprise me,” Alexander replied. “He can be… quite cynical, sometimes. Wary, even, with those he meets. What he says is usually the truth, though he has a way of sometimes twisting that truth beyond recognition.”

  “Are you saying he lied about being a recluse?” Laura asked.

  “Not lied, no,” Madison answered. “But he may have mislead you. He spoke to us, and others, through the dream. But he has lived in the cave for generations.”

  “In the sanctuary,” Laura put in.

  “The sanctuary, yes,” Alexander said as if remembering. “It was that once. A very long time ago…”

  “You know it?” Logan asked suddenly. “You know what it was?”

  “I do not know first-hand, but I have read things about it many years ago.”

  “…there was another tongue,” Logan said, half to himself, “encrypted on some of the walls, and the towers outside. Do you know what it was?”

  Alexander shook his head. “I cannot help you with that,” he answered. “The answers to some questions need to be found on your own.”

  “What do you mean?” Laura said. “If you know what it means, please, tell us!”

  “You should listen more closely, girl,” Madison said. The way she emphasized girl was not exactly deri
sive, but it was not as kind as it had been before, either. “He said he does not know. But where we are headed, you might find answers.”

  “And where you are headed?” Laura asked, confused. “I thought you were tracking us to meet Rafael?”

  Alexander smiled. “Do not be completely naïve. Yes, we had been on your trail for a number of days, but only in the hope of seeing Rafael. The way he spoke of you, we thought you might have convinced him to leave his home. But we had not heard from him… since you met. We were pilgrimaging north, regardless.”

  “North?” Laura asked. “What’s north?”

  “Rafael did not tell you?” For the first time, Alexander sounded genuinely surprised.

  “Tell us what?” Laura asked again. “No, we have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  Alexander turned to Madison. “An interesting turn of events,” he said to her. Then he shifted his attention back to them. “We are going north,” he said, “in search of an ancient archive.”

  “An archive?” Laura asked.

  “Yes. I have been there once before. It is where I read about the sanctuary for the first time. I trekked there by myself, the first time, and it is where I first met Rafael. An ancient archive, full of books and documents and other treasures. It is hidden in the most unsuspecting of small towns further north. The townspeople guard the building dearly, but none know what it holds, anymore.”

  “What is it?” Laura asked again.

  “An archive,” Madison said in the chiming voice, “containing documents and other writings banned by the elders of the Vassiz.”

  “Banned? Why?”

  “Only the elders know that, girl,” Madison replied. “The same ones who put entire packs after you. The archive has been tended and maintained for eons, and none alive know of it other than Alexander and I anymore. And now, you, too.”

  “Why share?” Logan said suddenly, breaking out of his silence. “If the secret is guarded closely, and known not even to the elders anymore, to go there… is treasonous to our race.”

  “Not everything is as black and white as you see it,” Alexander said, and Laura felt Logan tense again. “We share because of our mutual interests. It seems you placed your cards in our camp a long time ago, regardless. The elders want you. Dead or alive, they want you. And they will find you, eventually. They have turned nearly every member of the Vassiz after you. It is only a matter of time before you are reached by those loyal to the elders.