Hell is empty and all the devils are here - William Shakespeare.

'Kowalski? Denvers? Come in,' the voice crackled from the car radio.

Agent Xavier Kowalski took his hand off the wheel and picked up the receiver. 'This is agent Kowalski,' he confirmed.

'We have a 287 in progress at the South Building on the Grange estate.'

His partner, Dylan Denvers, frowned and stared up at the clear blue sky.

'A 287?' she repeated.

'Dispatch, can you repeat?' Xavier asked.

'We have a 287 in progress at the South Building on the Grange estate,' the voice said again. 'Your orders are to neutralise the threat to the public. A team will be ready when you arrive.'

Xavier put the receiver back before flicking on the overhead red flashing lights.

'This seems off,' Dylan said. 'Why would vampires attack during the day?'

'It happens. When one of them gets desperate enough, they can't resist the urge to feed. They're forced out of whatever hole they've curled up in.'

'But it's only 11am.' She checked the time.

'You've seen what hunger does to them. Not even a little sunlight would keep them at bay.'

'It's more than a little sunlight. It's midday, in summer, during a heatwave. We're missing something.'

Silence fell between them as Xavier sped up along the motorway, weaving past cars and shooting down the exit ramp.

'You're still thinking about it,' he stated, taking the turn into the estate.

They could see the two multi-storey buildings ahead. Big, ugly, dominating. Not an uncommon combination on the old council estates. They'd been built to house many, not to beautify the area. It was one of only a few left as the city of London committed to their promise to refurbish its social housing.

'I know about their hunger, but sunlight burns them.'

'But it takes long exposure to kill them,' he reminded her, as though she was still a rookie rather than a fully qualified agent going on five years of service.

'Still, it would have been painful and they don't heal quickly from sunburns.'

'A vampire in the throes of hunger won't care about it being painful.'

Dylan stared out of the window, thinking over what she knew. 'You're right. We've seen our fair share of vamps driven practically insane with hunger, but something still feels weird about it.'

'Well, we're about to find out.' Xavier beeped his horn to disperse the crowd of protesters and regular gawkers in his way. 'Bloody vamp lovers. They're going to get themselves killed,' he muttered, locking eyes with a few protesters who shoved placards at his window.

'They're still hung up on the old moves before the Awakening. Vampires were pretty then. Desirable. I bet none of them would go running into the arms of one if it stalked them in the night.'

Police officers spotted their red lights and pushed the crowd back, allowing them to edge their way through. An officer flagged them over to a police car made blockade.

'You're the agents from the Bureau?' he rushed as they stepped out of the car.

'That's us,' Dylan confirmed.

'Thank god. I have a team ready to be briefed. We want to contain this as quickly as possible.' The officer mopped his brow with the back of his hand as they marched to the back of the car.

'What do you know so far?' Xavier asked as he popped the boot.

'We believe they got into the building from the sewers. There's construction work going on in that area. A resident was the first to raise the alarm when she spotted the workmens' bodies. Their throats were torn out and bodies drained of blood.'

'How many bodies?'

'Four workmen, but we know they're in the building, so there could be more.'

'You keep saying they? Do you think this is more than just one vamp?' Dylan asked.

The officer shifted on his feet. 'Given the number of footprints we found, we estimate eight vampires could be in the building.'

Xavier shared a look with his partner. One was desperate. Two was rare. Eight was a fucking disaster.

He looked at the SWAT team standing by the van. They looked nervous and he could understand that. Vampires were fast, strong, and deadly. And it appeared they were dealing with a group.

He picked up the two pistols and placed them in the holsters at his side before raising his UV round carrying gun. His very own pride and joy. Dylan rolled her eyes, also picking up her weapons of choice, which she maintained were less flashy than his.

The trio wandered over to the team who stood to attention when they caught sight of their uniforms. Unlike the two agents, whose sole purpose was the protection of humans against the supernatural, these officers were just that; police officers. They had all gone through the additional training in order to deal with situations like this, but they weren't experts. They relied on the Bureau's agents to lead the way. And the Bureau relied on the publicly funded police officers to provide the manpower that their privately funded budgets couldn't stretch to.

'These are difficult conditions,' Xavier said, not willing to sugarcoat the situation. 'We have an unknown number of residents still in the building, and a maze of corridors and rooms that need to be searched. There is a high probability that there are eight vamps in that building. It could mean a feeding frenzy and that means a higher risk of contamination. Any bitten human you find will need to be tested.'

'You've been equipped with standard UV emitting rounds, as well as light grenades, and high pitch sound devices.' Dylan began her usual speech as she explained their equipment to them.

Xavier took himself away to walk the perimeter and a senior police officer followed him.

'Is there anything else we can do?' the man asked.

'Have you got another SWAT team on the way?'

'You think one will be necessary?'

'Right now, we're going in with barely two to one. They're risky odds.'

The man paled. 'The other SWAT team won't be ready for another hour.'

Xavier's face pinched. 'The residents that aren't already dead won't survive that long. You think your officers are up for it?'

The officer straightened. 'They are well trained and, I'm sure, under the guidance of two distinguished agents such as yourselves, they will do their job admirably,' he said crisply.

Xavier didn't respond. Either way, the officers in question were about to be tested.

'We're ready to go, Kowalski,' Dylan shouted.

Xavier walked back towards her, and away from the senior officer, who, despite his admission, was looking worried.

'Agent Denvers will lead half of you through the doors at the back. The rest of you will be with me going through the front,' he explained. 'Each floor has four flats. Two of you will enter and clear each flat. Agent Denvers and I will assist.'

'Any questions?'

The officers stared at the floor before one stepped forward.

'Why go through the main entrances? Won't they be expecting that?'

'You're thinking of them like humans. They're not. These creatures don't care that we have weapons or that we're here to kill them. All they care about is their hunger and the need to sedate it. They will be so carried away with the kill that they won't even notice us until we get close enough to become a threat.'

'Or food,' Dylan added.

'They'll catch your scent and then they'll come after you if you look like the easier meal. Any more questions?'

The officer stumbled back, looking more queasy now than when she'd asked her question, and she wasn't the only one. No one else stepped forward.

'Good. Team one with me.'

'And team two with me,' Dylan yelled.

They separated and Xavier rolled his shoulders as they approached the front door.

'Hell is empty and all the devils are here,' he whispered to himself.

'Is that Taylor Swift?' An officer asked.

Xavier stared at the officer as though he'd lost his mind. Some days he felt like the 20-year-old he always saw himself as, and then there were other days when he felt all of his forty-seven years. It seemed today was going to be one of those days.

'Follow me,' he said gruffly, pushing the door open in one fluid motion and making his way towards the stairs.