believe this act can make up for centuries of Godless living? Centuries of death and evil? How much blood is on your hands?”

“That blood can never be washed away, Father. You know this. There is much I would atone for, if given the chance, but the blood will always remain.”

“Perhaps I shall simply kill all three of you.”

Theroen shrugged. “It is within your power. I ask that as payment for three hundred and fifty years of loyalty, you let us live. Let us go, Abraham.”

“No.”

“Then I offer my life for theirs. That is the bargain... the request.”

Two wanted to protest, but could not find her voice. She wondered if it was Abraham or Theroen keeping her from speaking, suspected it was the latter, and began to weep in frustration.

“Your foolish notions of love and redemption disappoint me, Theroen. At every step, you have disappointed me. Did you learn nothing from Lisette?”

“I learned much from Lisette, father.”

“Not everything. No, Lisette brought one secret with her into the ground, Theroen. Sweet little Lisette, pure and honest. Wretched. Loathsome. Good. All these years and you’ve never found out. How marvelous.

“Oh, Theroen... How she did scream when I chained her to her funeral pyre.”

Theroen’s eyes blazed. His jaw clenched, hands wrapping into fists, muscles tensing. It seemed that at any moment he would spring at Abraham.

“Isaac...” He began, and Abraham cut him off with the wave of a hand.

“Isaac was a fool, and a puppet. It took me little effort to work him into a frothing rage over Lisette’s transgressions. He brought her to me, Theroen, so she would know. Before she died, I wanted her to truly understand the penalty for taking what was mine.”

Theroen was pale. Shaking. Barely in control of himself. He spoke through his teeth. “I have given you more than three centuries of service for a debt that I did not owe. You will let my child, and Melissa’s child, leave. Then you will prepare for death.”

And now Abraham grinned, his eyes greedy, burning with anticipation. “Oh, my. How exciting it all is! Yes, Theroen, she may leave. You will stay. This will be wonderful indeed.”

Theroen turned to Two. “Go.”

Two found she could speak again. “No, Theroen. I won’t.”

“You will. Take Samantha, and go, and do not look back.”

“You can’t...”

“Go!” he snarled. Two flinched backward, then looked at him again, frightened, confused, unsure. Theroen, with a visible effort, brought himself back in control. “Please, my love. Do not make me force you.”

His eyes held her for a moment longer, and then Two saw the anger swallow him again, and he turned back to Abraham. She took Samantha’s hand, turned to her right, and ran, tugging the younger girl along.

* * *

They made perhaps two hundred yards through the damp woods before Two was stopped by a low growling. She skidded in the mud, nearly falling, and came to a halt. Eyes glittered from the darkness before her.

“Whatthefuckisthat?” Samantha asked in a breathless rush.

“That’s Tori. She’s the other vampire. She knows me... but I think she knows what happened to her sister, too.”

Tori moved closer, into a patch of moonlight, and Two saw that her face was drawn and pinched in rage. She snarled, and charged them, howling. Two did the only thing she could think of. She held out her hands, still tacky with Melissa’s blood, and implored Tori to stop.

Tori seemed somewhat taken aback by this. She slid in the mud, came to a stop, and rolled back on her haunches, considering Two.

“Tori, it’s Two. I know you remember me. I know you’re a lot smarter than you seem. I know you can smell Melissa’s blood. I know that you know she’s dead. Can you understand that I didn’t want it, Tori? That I’m sorry? I need you to understand.”

Tori took a few steps closer, and made that questioning sound Two had heard when they had first met. Dogs yawning. Two held her hand out. Tori sniffed it, growled again, looking up at Two with accusing eyes. Two knelt, and matched Tori’s gaze.

“I didn’t want to kill her, Tori. I didn’t. Now I have to run. You can stop me... kill me here if you want. That might not be such a bad thing. Or you can come with me. I don’t know how far we’ll get, but it’s me or Abraham now. You have to choose.”

Tori seemed to be struggling, perhaps attempting to process the words, perhaps only making her own decisions based on the evidence before