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Julian swallowed hard and licked his lips. “Those people out there were moving so fast,” he said. “And that woman… All that blood. I…I shot her.”

I nodded encouragingly. “You did. You hit her in the chest while she was running. Impressive, really.” Julian’s eyes widened. “Don’t worry,” I reassured him. “I doubt she noticed after I tore out her throat. And I know her wound looked bad, but she’s going to be okay. I assure you.” I drew a breath and kept my voice low and steady. “By tomorrow night, she’ll be healed and able to return here.”

“They weren’t human.” Julian paused, absorbing the full weight of his revelation. “You’re not human.”

Those weren’t questions. I shook my head and replied anyway. “No, we are not.”

Julian nodded. That answer made sense to him, at least.

“What are you, then?” he asked.

It was a fair question, yet surprising; it was one a human had never asked me in my many years. I needed this man to know the truth for this to work, but I felt oddly afraid to answer. The words stuck in my throat, reluctant to break free. I swallowed, trying to dislodge the anxiety, and took a deep breath.

“We are vampires,” I said finally. Now that it was out, I felt vulnerable as I waited for the man’s response.

“Vampires?” He blinked, and a crease formed between his brows. “You drink blood? From humans?”

I kept my eyes locked on Julian’s as I nodded. Julian pressed himself back farther into the chair, as if unconsciously trying to put more distance between us. I wasn’t surprised by his apprehension, but all things considered, he was handling it better than I’d expected.

“And those two were here to take me away to drink my blood?”

I nodded again.

“This is normal for you? Snatching people to feed on?”

“No, this isn’t normal. None of this is. We don’t usually attack people. Before all this, we tried to act more civilized. Most vampires employed humans to feed from. I relied more on my charms to…feed, and we didn’t kill the humans, uh, people. However, things have changed. This group of vampires, two of whom you saw tonight, is imprisoning people and feeding by force. I saw the humans they’ve captured and how they’re being kept, and I left. I couldn’t condone what they were doing.

“I was there last night when those two attacked and carried off two people from the other side of the ridge. I knew you were here, and I knew they would return for you soon. I wanted to spare you that. I’m here to help, and I guess to see if there’s an alternative to how the others of my kind are surviving now.”

“You came hoping to do what, charm me? Feed on me?”

“No, you misunderstand.” I paused again, searching for the best way to phrase my idea. “What I’m proposing is more of an arrangement between us. I offer protection in exchange for…a donation, I suppose.”

“And what if I say no?” Julian asked, a hint of challenge in his voice.

I had to admire the man’s bravery. “I will protect you from this group no matter what you say. I’ll get you far enough outside their territory that they won’t find you. After that, the choice is yours, whether to help me.”

“Help you? You mean, let you drink my blood?” Julian tilted his head slightly as he watched me. “Could I stop you if I wanted to?” he asked quietly.

I sighed. “No, you couldn’t. But I promise I won’t harm you or take anything from you against your will.”

“Donation.” Julian quirked one side of his mouth. “I don’t suppose it would involve needles and collection bags, though?”

I grimaced. “No, I don’t have the skill or the equipment necessary, I’m afraid.” I kept my lips pressed together, concealing my teeth. Julian did a good job of not squirming at the thought of being bitten, though his muscles tensed in response.

“But it’s not a choice you need to make right now,” I said, shifting the topic. “Or for a while. What matters now is your safety. You can’t stay here. They won’t return tonight, but they will come back. If not for any other reason, then to settle the score between the woman and me. It’s personal, and she isn’t the type to let my insult slide.”

“Where would we go?”

“We will begin by traveling as far as we can from here before morning. We will stop for the day and resume tomorrow night, putting more distance between us and the others. I think that should be sufficient.”

“Two nights of driving through the cold snow with no real destination in mind?” Julian glanced around his small home. His cat rubbed against his legs, and he leaned down to scoop it into his lap. He petted the animal and held it close to his chest. “I don’t know. This is all happening so fast. Leaving makes sense, I guess, but the rest I’m not so sure about.”

“You don’t have to be, but we need to get going soon. Does your car work?” I asked.

Julian nodded. “Yeah, I haven’t driven it in a while, and it doesn’t have much gas, but it should run if we can free it from the snow.”

“Leave that to me. I’ll scout the road down the mountain. You pack what you need as quickly as possible. We should leave within the hour.”