“No!” The man shook his head, appalled. “Nothing. They asked for nothing. They just want us to know they are among us, and they are protecting us. If we want, as humans, we can donate blood to them like we do to hospitals, for their sustenance, but they don’t drink from people or kill them. That’s more than fair if they can save human lives. They told me to send anyone else who wanted to be healed their way. Vampires only want to live a peaceful life in the open with us. They are not here to kill us.”
“If Vampires are here to protect humans, why didn’t they save the people killed in this park?”
Sadness enveloped the man’s face, and he glanced at the building across the street. “Many of them did save humans in thepark, but they got here after the attack had already started. I saw a few of them up there, protecting someone from the monsters crawling onto the building and attacking them.”
The camera immediately followed his gesture, panning onto the top of the building across the street. Parts of the brick-and-mortar were destroyed, but I recognized it instantly.
It was where Dante’s penthouse was.
“Did the Priest vouch for the Vampire who helped your wife? Or did you immediately believe him?” the reporter asked, turning back to the man.
“To be honest, we were pretty desperate to believe anything at that point. Anything that would save my wife, but Father Diego vouched for him fervently. He said he trusted the Vampire with his life, so we said yes to the treatment. I’ll never regret it. Words can’t describe how thankful we are for the Vampire’s help.”
“So much for anonymity,” the Countess griped, reaching for the remote.
“So, Father Diego helps the Vampires find humans?” The reporter seemed flabbergasted.
“He helps them find people to heal. They want us to know they are nothing like the horror stories told to us in books or movies. They just want to live with us in peace. That was three years ago, and my Jen is perfectly healthy,” the man assured, glancing straight at the camera. “We are not the only ones. I know others who’ve been saved by them too. They are all over the world!”
“Thank you, Mr.…?”
“Frank. Josh Frank.”
“You heard it here first. On WMA New York, Channel Five. Those monsters were not Vampires, but then, what were they, and why did they attack?”
He pressed a finger to his ear, seemingly receiving a message.
“Stay with us for another exclusive as we head straight to St. Patrick’s Cathedral for an interview with Father Diego, where we’ll unearth the truth about the Vampires among us. Are they truly here to help? Do they want to live in peace? Is Father Diego even human? I’ll bring you the answers to all these questions just after the break. This is Mark O’Neil, reporting for WMA New York, Channel Five.”
The screen went black when the Countess turned the TV off, her gaze shifting to someone behind me. “Call Diego and tell him the next phase of the plan got here sooner than expected.”
“Of course.” The guard immediately dialed, pressing the phone to his ear as he stepped out of the room.
My nose wrinkled. I hadn’t even noticed the poor man standing there.
“Is Father Diego a Vampir too?” I asked, stepping closer to the bed.
She nodded. “From our Mexican Clan… A Vampir and a Priest,” she chuckled at the irony. “He is still as devoted to his fate as he was before he transitioned.”
Taking it all in, I turned to the TV, the interviews we had just watched replaying in my mind. “How many people were attacked?”
“A hundred and five were injured but thanks to the team I sent there only fifty died.”
“Fifty is a lot,” I countered.
“I know. And their loss is a tragedy, but when you live in a world of supernaturals, things like that become relative. A thousand crawlers were released on you that day. Trust me, fifty casualties is a low number. If we hadn’t fought back, they could have killed the entire city.”
Anger and disbelief coursed through me. “A thousand crawlers coming for little old’ me seems like overkill.”
Sighing, she nodded. “Not by much when you consider howuniqueyou are. Yet, the second attack was a distraction. I believe it had little to do with you and everything to do with us healing humans. Those driving this attack only stay powerful if humans fear them.”
“That’s why you are leaving.”
“I’m not running away if that’s what you are insinuating.”
My eyes widened. “Not, of course not. I?—”
“Relax, I’m just teasing, yah?”
