being, before having to abandon it forever in favor of the night.
Although I was eager to become a full-vampire, I’d miss the daytime world. Once my blood turned, there was no going back. I accepted that, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. This way, I had months — perhaps a year or two — to prepare myself for the change.
I’d outgrown my clothes and shoes, so I had to buy some at a small human outpost (we were leaving civilization behind again). In an army surplus shop, I chose clothing similar to my old stuff, adding a couple of purple shirts to my blue ones, and a dark green pair of pants. As I was paying for the clothes, a tall, lean man entered. He was wearing a brown shirt, black pants, and a baseball cap. “I need supplies,” he muttered at the man serving behind the counter, tossing a list at him.
“You’ll need a license for the guns,” the shopkeeper said, running an eye over the scrap of paper.
“I’ve got one.” The man was reaching into a shirt pocket when he caught sight of my hands and stiffened. I was holding my new clothes across my chest, and the scars on my fingertips — where I’d been blooded by Mr. Crepsley — were clear.
The man relaxed instantly and turned away — but I was sure he’d recognized the scars and knew what I was. Hurrying from the shop, I found Mr. Crepsley and Harkat on the edge of town and told them what had happened.
“Was he nervous?” Mr. Crepsley asked. “Did he follow you when you left?”
“No. He just went stiff when he saw the marks, then acted as though he hadn’t seen them. But he knew what the marks meant — I’m sure of it.”
Mr. Crepsley rubbed his scar thoughtfully. “Humans who know the truth about vampire marks are uncommon, but some exist. In all probability he is an ordinary person who has simply heard tales of vampires and their fingertips.”
“But he
might
be a vampire hunter,” I said quietly. “Vampire hunters are rare — but real.” Mr. Crepsley thought it over, then decided. “We will proceed as planned, but keep our eyes open, and you or Harkat will remain on watch by day. If an attack comes, we shall be ready.” He smiled tightly and touched the handle of his knife. “And waiting!”
CHAPTER TEN
B Y DAWN WE KNEW we had a fight on our hands. We were being followed, not just by one person, but three or four. They’d picked up our trail a few miles outside the town and had been tracking us ever since. They moved with admirable stealth, and if we hadn’t expected trouble, we might not have known anything was wrong. But when a vampire is alert to danger, not even the fastest human can sneak up on him.
“What’s the plan?” Harkat asked as we were making camp in the middle of a small forest, sheltered from the sun beneath the branches and leaves.
“They will wait for full daylight to attack,” Mr. Crepsley said, keeping his voice low. “We will act as though all is normal and pretend to sleep. When they come, we deal with them.”
“Will you be OK in the sun?” I asked. Though we were sheltered where we were, a battle might draw us out of the shade.
“The rays will not harm me during the short time it will take to deal with this threat,” Mr. Crepsley replied. “And I will protect my eyes with cloth, as you did during your purge.”
Making beds in the moss and leaves on the ground, we wrapped ourselves in our cloaks and settled down. “Of course, they might just be curious,” Harkat muttered. “They could simply want to see . . . what a real-life vampire looks like.”
“They move too keenly for that,” Mr. Crepsley disagreed. “They are here on business.”
“I just remembered,” I hissed. “The guy in the shop was buying
guns!
”
“Most vampire hunters come properly armed,” Mr. Crepsley said with a grunt. “Gone are the nights when the fools toted only a hammer and wooden stake.”
There was no more talk after that. We lay still, eyes closed (except for Harkat, who
Although I was eager to become a full-vampire, I’d miss the daytime world. Once my blood turned, there was no going back. I accepted that, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. This way, I had months — perhaps a year or two — to prepare myself for the change.
I’d outgrown my clothes and shoes, so I had to buy some at a small human outpost (we were leaving civilization behind again). In an army surplus shop, I chose clothing similar to my old stuff, adding a couple of purple shirts to my blue ones, and a dark green pair of pants. As I was paying for the clothes, a tall, lean man entered. He was wearing a brown shirt, black pants, and a baseball cap. “I need supplies,” he muttered at the man serving behind the counter, tossing a list at him.
“You’ll need a license for the guns,” the shopkeeper said, running an eye over the scrap of paper.
“I’ve got one.” The man was reaching into a shirt pocket when he caught sight of my hands and stiffened. I was holding my new clothes across my chest, and the scars on my fingertips — where I’d been blooded by Mr. Crepsley — were clear.
The man relaxed instantly and turned away — but I was sure he’d recognized the scars and knew what I was. Hurrying from the shop, I found Mr. Crepsley and Harkat on the edge of town and told them what had happened.
“Was he nervous?” Mr. Crepsley asked. “Did he follow you when you left?”
“No. He just went stiff when he saw the marks, then acted as though he hadn’t seen them. But he knew what the marks meant — I’m sure of it.”
Mr. Crepsley rubbed his scar thoughtfully. “Humans who know the truth about vampire marks are uncommon, but some exist. In all probability he is an ordinary person who has simply heard tales of vampires and their fingertips.”
“But he
might
be a vampire hunter,” I said quietly. “Vampire hunters are rare — but real.” Mr. Crepsley thought it over, then decided. “We will proceed as planned, but keep our eyes open, and you or Harkat will remain on watch by day. If an attack comes, we shall be ready.” He smiled tightly and touched the handle of his knife. “And waiting!”
CHAPTER TEN
B Y DAWN WE KNEW we had a fight on our hands. We were being followed, not just by one person, but three or four. They’d picked up our trail a few miles outside the town and had been tracking us ever since. They moved with admirable stealth, and if we hadn’t expected trouble, we might not have known anything was wrong. But when a vampire is alert to danger, not even the fastest human can sneak up on him.
“What’s the plan?” Harkat asked as we were making camp in the middle of a small forest, sheltered from the sun beneath the branches and leaves.
“They will wait for full daylight to attack,” Mr. Crepsley said, keeping his voice low. “We will act as though all is normal and pretend to sleep. When they come, we deal with them.”
“Will you be OK in the sun?” I asked. Though we were sheltered where we were, a battle might draw us out of the shade.
“The rays will not harm me during the short time it will take to deal with this threat,” Mr. Crepsley replied. “And I will protect my eyes with cloth, as you did during your purge.”
Making beds in the moss and leaves on the ground, we wrapped ourselves in our cloaks and settled down. “Of course, they might just be curious,” Harkat muttered. “They could simply want to see . . . what a real-life vampire looks like.”
“They move too keenly for that,” Mr. Crepsley disagreed. “They are here on business.”
“I just remembered,” I hissed. “The guy in the shop was buying
guns!
”
“Most vampire hunters come properly armed,” Mr. Crepsley said with a grunt. “Gone are the nights when the fools toted only a hammer and wooden stake.”
There was no more talk after that. We lay still, eyes closed (except for Harkat, who
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