Kelvin's head bowed. He listened to the voices around him. He didn't recognize any, but he made sure not to look up. It was evident he was swiftly taken for his blood, so he knew he wouldn’t be harmed more than he already was. He licked the corner of his mouth and tasted the saltiness of his own blood. He focused his inner wolf ears on his surroundings to try and get a bearing. Apart from the voices, all he could hear was pigeons flapping their wings as they roosted in the rafters above him.

A warehouse somewhere…

A woman's voice and one male voice was all he heard. Footsteps fell on the wooden floorboards. Kelvin tilted his eyes and saw a pair of ultra-shiny black shoes. "He should be awake soon, and then we can test his blood," the deep voice said.

"Do you think he’s a hybrid?"

"No, my dear, he’s not a hybrid, however, from what I’ve found out from my contacts in New Orleans is, his mother was born to a hybrid, so he is the sole offspring of a hybrid. He will do until we find Noelle and her firstborn." The deep voice uttered the words in a slow, loud drawl.

Whoever it is they sound ancient.

"When are we going to test his blood?" a female voice said. She spoke from far across the musty-smelling room. The one that Kelvin was tied to a chair in.

"My dear, all in good time. His cortisone levels will be high. We’ll have a false reading."

The female voice pressed on. It said, "I thought it was going to be a quick needle in the arm or a bite on the neck; and we'd be finished?"

Kelvin heard the low chuckle. "Oh! No, my dear. It's much more complicated than that. His body has to be calm and relaxed. If he is stressed, then his inner wolf will fight against our hosts."

"I want to be one of the first," the female voice replied.

"Sorry dear, you have a much more important task to do. When we know it’s safe, then you can become a pure daywalker."

"Master, I look forward to that day, I really do."

"Me also, my dear, and then we can all live as one. Forever!"

So, they really are going to be immortal?

The voices faded as the footsteps faded with them. Kelvin inched his head up. He saw a dim light through a frosted-glass, office window. Shadows walked back and forth. Kelvin heard muffled voices as they spoke. He listened, and he focused on his surroundings. The room (although not overly-large) appeared to have no door, apart from the office to his side. He turned his head as far as he could see, and in both directions. He now saw the edge of a door, and it appeared to be, one way in… and one way out.

Kelvin looked up. The moonlight tried to make its way through the grimy skylight. Kelvin noticed the roof girder. If he could climb to that, he could escape. He flexed his wrists and tugged at his ankles. Whoever had taken him didn’t use rope. Steel shackles dug into his skin. Changing to his inner wolf wouldn't help him break free from his bonds. The chair was securely bolted to the floor, so no matter how much he rocked, he wasn't going to tip the chair onto its side.

Think. The pigeons. There must be a hole for them to get inside.

Darkness fell inside the room. The moon fought to light the room, but it barely cast a silvery glow much further than the floor where Kelvin sat. He glanced over at the office. The tall shadow towered over the shorter figure. He could see the shadow of a long arm reach to the shorter figure as it caressed its face.

"Master, your touch. I can't wait until you have been revived. I can then pleasure you like no other."

"I know, my dear, and we have another to join us, and then the three of us can pleasure each other."

"I look forward to that, Master. Once we have gotten the hybrid blood, we can do all that we wish."

"Yes dear.” Kelvin watched as the tall figure leaned to the shorter figure. He guessed they were kissing. “But for now, you have to go."

Where is he sending her?

Kelvin lowered his head as the office door opened. The light footsteps walked past him. He heard the door creak as it opened and then the metallic pop of the catch as it closed again. He saw the shoes as they stood to face him, and a hand touched the back of his head.

"Soon my precious. Soon you can help us."

My precious, noooo. You sound like Gollum from Lord of the Rings. Let me lose, and I'll show you the meaning of precious.

Long, spindly fingers caressed his head. "I know you’re awake, I can smell you."

Kelvin started to lift his head. His eyes fell on the dark jacket with the blood-red, silk lining. Thin lips were pulled tightly together. They parted slowly, and Kelvin saw the yellow-stained teeth. The pale skin was wrinkled. His head tilted. Kelvin stared into the eyes that looked down at him.

"I’m so glad you could finally join us."

"Over my dead fucking body."

The tall figure giggled as the lips pulled back on his face. "If your blood is no use, we find Noelle and Drake." The figure clasped his hands in front of him. "That can easily be arranged."

* * *

Dustin left his apartment. It was early, although, from his side of the apartments, he could not see the sun as it cast the first golden beams over the horizon. He walked into the backyard and opened the door to his old van. His hand rummaged under the passenger seat as he grabbed the cold metal of his revolver. He popped the clip. It was full. He opened the glove compartment and took the box of bullets that sat hidden under the Cripple Creek and Colorado Springs maps. No need for them soon.

The bullets made a dull rattle as they hit the bottom of his jacket pocket. He walked to the lobby from the door he bolted. The quiet mutter of voices filled the area as Maria started to address the search party. Dustin leaned on the reception counter and pushed the gun against the small of his back. He slid it into the waistband of his jeans.

"We all know we are looking for Kelvin. He was taken in the street behind the coffee shop.” Maria looked up the stairs. Kat rested her hands on the handrail and looked over the balcony. “So, we’ll start there and spread out in a circle. Do you have any questions?"

Maria watched heads shake. None of the pack posed any questions. They’d performed search parties before, and they understood what they needed to do. She looked up. Kat had returned back to her apartment.

The pack filtered through the entrance into the early morning sun. Gabriel made his way down the steps. "Where do you think you’re going?" Maria asked.

"I'm coming with you."

"Like hell you are, you’ve been through enough."

"If I hadn't have gone to the forests then maybe none of this would’ve happened. Both Tanya and Kelvin would still be here," he replied, not convincing himself in the process. "You try and stop me from coming."

"Well, it will keep your mind busy."

Gabriel huffed as he walked beside Maria. "Now it makes sense of all those dreams. They were trying to tell me Tanya was going to bolt and cross to the other side. I guess the lure of immortality was just too much."

"I'm not sure I’d want to live forever. Growing old gracefully with grandchildren on my knee sounds very appealing."

"It does when you say it like that," he replied. "Where are we looking then?"

Maria explained Dustin singled out the old industrial complex where they would start. He and Kelvin walked past it a couple of times, and it gave off a bad vibe. Dustin mentioned what Kelvin had said and that the place smelled of death.

"I know that place. It used to be full of winos and kids who were smoking pot, or worse."

"I think things have changed slightly. I bet there aren't as many winos around now. They’ll all be drinking something else. All vintage. A nice one-year-old bag of blood." She laughed to lighten the mood. She failed miserably.

Dustin stood atop the steps. His hands were stuffed in the pockets of his jeans. Maria glanced at him, because his jacket hadn’t fully covered the gun that stuck out from his jeans.

She pulled on his coat. "Do I always have to finish dressing you?" she said.

* * *

Gabriel wrapped his fingers around the cold steel of the flashlight. He flicked the button and tested it on his shoulder as Dustin pushed open the graffiti-covered door to the first unit. The light bounced around the warehouse as beams of light flooded through the broken glass windows. Specks of dust danced in the rays of light as their boots walked steadily, and deeper into the building.

Rats scurried across old, rusted machinery that had been left when the company had gone bust. The flashlight caught their scaly tails as the rats stopped to twitch their nose to smell the air. Then, like magic, they vanished through holes in the walls and ceilings.

Dustin walked away from the broken glass and approached a door. It had been broken recently, and tufts of fur hung on the splintered wood.

"Gab, bring the flashlight here," he whispered.

Gabriel shone the light onto the door. Dried blood stained the wood. Dustin pulled the fur from the door and held it to his nose. He sniffed, and his inner wolf took in the scent. He’d never forget it.

He pulled the gun from his pants and pushed the barrel against the door. The creak of the hinges killed the silence. The door swung, and they entered the back of the unit. A flash of yellow shone from the far wall. Dustin raised the gun as a figure stood. The old army jacket was tattered and torn, and it hung from the body that cowered away from the light. It circled them and snarled. Its head snapped from side to side. An empty syringe laid on the floor.

"These vlads still do drugs," Dustin whispered.

Maria screamed. They turned their heads as they saw her fall backward as she slipped on a half-empty blood bag. A cloud of dust filled the air. The snarl caught Dustin's attention as he snapped his head back, pulling the trigger. He fired three shots across the room as the drug-filled vlad's head exploded into a mess of splatter that went everywhere, on the floor and walls. Its lifeless body fell to the floor. A beam of light fell across its fingers, and a rancid stench of burned fur and flesh made Gabriel retch. He bent over as his stomach reflexed.

"I'm okay. It’s caught my stomach off guard," he said, retching a second time with tears streaming down his cheeks.

The vlad's body smoldered. Dustin stepped over it as he walked to another door that hung from its hinges. He noticed hooded shapes that scurried around in the darkness. A door opened and flooded the room with sunlight. Screams filled the air as bodies ran into the parking lot of the warehouse.

Dustin, Gabriel, and a dust-covered Maria walked outside. Huddled piles of clothes were scattered, and plumes of smoke filled the air.

Dustin was not smiling. "I don't think he’s going to be in here. It's a shit-filled hovel of a place to hide."

"We can kill a few more if you want some fun," Gabriel said, flicking the switch on the flashlight.

Dustin kicked at a pile of clothes. Ashes fell from the sleeve of the jacket. "They’ll breed as fast as we can kill them, and I think half of these will kill themselves with drugs anyway, from the look of the needles scattered around the floor."

"What do we do now?" Maria asked, feeling uncomfortable being there.

Dustin slipped the gun back into his pants. "I think we best inform the cops and see what the rest of the pack said. There's no more to do here," he said. "On top of that, I think we should start praying." He looked at Gabriel, who looked pale. "Where did Edmund do all his experiments?" Dustin asked.

Gabriel explained there was a place, but then again, he wasn’t fortunate enough to have seen it, and Noelle never mentioned where it was, although Garrett had been there, just once.

"You think he’ll remember?" Dustin asked.

"I can ask, but he had that spell of no memory if you cast your mind back," he replied.

"It’s better to check. That way, we can cancel it out as an option, and the quicker we can narrow it down, the quicker we can find Kelvin," Dustin remarked as they neared the Towers.

The pack stood in the parking lot. They said they’d checked a good few blocks in every direction. There had been no sign of a struggle, apart from a piece of fabric that was caught on the drain where Kelvin was carried up to the roof when he was taken.

Dustin took the cloth and sniffed. He now possessed two scents he would remember… forever. If any vlad came near them, he’d know immediately.

They looked at the top of the steps. Kat stood in the doorway. "Any sign of him?" she asked.

Dustin negatively shook his head. "No sign at all." Dustin climbed the steps. "Have you any idea where he could’ve been taken?

Kat huffed and snorted, obviously annoyed at the question. "Why would I know where they’ve taken him?"

“Never fear the shadows, it means there’s light shining somewhere.”