I'd never been to Chinatown but as I looked out the window, I saw that it wasn't that different from where I lived. Like the streets around my apartment, it was cramped with buildings that looked like they were put together by a builder that didn't know what he was doing. Poor quality materials and shoddy workmanship.

This was an old city that struggled to cope with the rising population of humans and vampires. The government pushed for their people to breed and create a resilient race but they didn't bother to clean up the city or to create quality homes for them.

Silas slowed at the corner, to the side was a dark alley that was lit up with red paper lanterns. It did nothing to add to the overall light of the alley, just shining a dull red hue over the brickwork.

As Silas quickly moved around the limo and opened the door, a wave of humid air hit me. It was enough to make me want to remove the leather jacket.

Stepping out of the vehicle, I waited for Alaric. Nisha had been dropped off on the north side of the city. It was the upper-class area and a great place to buy clothes. That was her job for tonight, find more things for me. My job was to be the obvious presence of a partner in Alaric's life as he went about his duties for the night. Which, I had no idea what they were.

"Won't be long."

Silas nodded, closing the door. Alaric took my hand and together we walked into the dark alley.

We were halfway down the alley when Alaric stopped, letting go of my hand. In the muted light I couldn't see what he was doing.

"That red door over there, we're going in there and it might get a little hectic."

I looked at the flimsy wood steps that went up to the red door. There were only three steps but they all looked like they were ready to break from wood rot. Even the landing looked a little dodgy.

"So, what do I need to do?"

"Don't scream and don't run."

Sidestepping a puddle, I chased after him. Alaric walked up the steps without a care for them crumbling under his weight. I put a foot on it and pressed hard, nothing moved.

"Hmm."

With a smile, I looked up at the back of Alaric and thought that my heart might have dropped into the pit of my stomach. A handgun was poking out of the back of his pants, not hidden by the jacket he was wearing.

"Alaric, what are you doing?" I whispered.

"Dealing with a traitor."

Taking my hand again, Alaric opened the door and pulled me in. The entry was incredibly small, we could barely fit in the space between the wall and the desk. It was a heavy room, wall to wall red that was consuming and made the space seem even smaller. Commanding most of the space was a desk, the man behind it was asleep, leaning back into the corner. Even the door clunking shut didn't wake him. If it weren't for him snoring, I would have suggested we check for a pulse.

Alaric guided me into the darkness of the next room. If I thought that the entry was consuming, I was wrong. In the new room, we were faced with black walls, light that was sporadic and did nothing for the space. It was a wider room but the space to walk in was no more than a corridor in width. Large platforms lined the walls, I glanced under the platform to the left of me and saw feet poking out. Two layers, cram them in and to hell with comfort. Seagrass mats were laid out along the platforms with people lazing around, smoking.

Good god, he's dragged me into an opium den.

The platforms were filled with a lot of people. We turned a corner, faced with another corridor of platforms but this was clearly an upgraded area. They'd created rooms with white chiffon walls, tossed a couple of pillows onto the mats and probably doubled the price.

At the end of the corridor was a single door. It was black, glossy from the shine of the light. Alaric opened the door to a round of gasps from the people inside the room.

It wasn't a large room but it was far grander than anything else in this place. The room was done up like a sultan's tent with draping material from the center of the ceiling to where it met the walls, then they cascaded down to the floor. Pillows littered the many seats and the lounge that was large enough to be considered a bed. The table between it and the chairs was filled with food and drink.

I thought that in this room would be the traitor that Alaric was looking for but there were a couple of men as well as a lot of naked women. Shifting my eyes away, I tried not to look at what they were doing or how incredibly wrong it was that they didn't stop when someone barged into the room.

"Ladies, a moment please."

The guy that had his pants off and was having his oral good time gave a disinterested flick of his hand, barely bothering to cover himself when the woman lifted her head. One by one the naked women filed out of the room and Alaric closed the door. The entire time he did not turn his back on the men.

"Alaric Eldon, what a surprise."

"Ah, but the surprise is all mine. Here I was thinking that I would get to speak to you alone tonight and yet I find that you've increased my pleasure for this fine evening."

Alaric turned his head to me, giving me a wicked wink as he pulled the gun out from the back of his pants. In quick succession, Alaric shot off four rounds, hitting each of his targets. I covered my ears, still wincing as the last two shots rung out. The men didn't even have a chance to get out of their seats, their bodies slumped to the lounges as Alaric put the gun into a holster hidden under his jacket.

"Why?"

"Because if I reached into my jacket, they'd instantly know. Behind me and they didn't."

While he had his hand on the inside of his jacket, Alaric pulled out a notepad and a small pen. Humming with a happiness that was seriously wrong, Alaric crossed off four names on his list.

"I'm feeling pretty damned good Emmeline. How about you?"

"Well, considering that I just witnessed four murders."

"And didn't freak out." He said excitedly. "Kudos to you."

"Yeah, yay for me. Shouldn't we be leaving? You know, cops and all that."

Alaric shrugged, opening the door. The place was exactly as it was when we walked into the room. No one was worried that a gun had just been fired four times, no one bothered to see what was going on.

Okay, so I get that the people that were high probably didn't know any different but what about the people that ran the place?

Taking my hand again, Alaric moved through the corridor at an easy pace. Reaching the red entry with the sleeping man, I wondered when any of them would do something. Before I stepped out into the stifling heat, I looked back at the dark corridor that was dimly lit. It was empty except for the people on the mats that were either asleep or so drugged out that they had no idea what was going on around them.

No, no one would care.

"Don't you worry that the girls will identify you?"

"No, they're either high themselves or don't want the attention that speaking out will bring. If they work in there then it means that they've hit rock bottom and they're desperate for money."

We stopped at the end of the alley, I looked around at the maddening scene of a busy city.

"Besides, no one will care that those men are gone. You might even find that there are some who will rejoice in it."

When I stopped looking at the bustling landscape, I turned back to Alaric who was watching me.

"Still up for this?"

"I guess."

He let out a huff of amusement, shaking his head. Silas opened the door for us as we approached.

"Nisha has called to say that she is ready to be picked up."

"Very good. After that, we need to purchase bolts for the doors."

Silas smiled and tipped his head.

"As you wish."

We climbed into the limo, Silas was eager to get moving. I was too, I don't know why but there was something that was creeping me out. Looking around, I wondered if we were being watched.

"Yes, it's possible."

"Pardon?"

He flicked a disinterested hand to the side of the street as Silas pulled out into the traffic. Alaric's gaze was on his phone, not really paying attention to anything else.

"You're looking around as if you believe there might be someone out there. Yes, it is possible and no, it doesn't bother me. Vampires are ruthless, Emmeline. How I get to power, who I take out to get there is not something that they will worry about. What they care about is that I am the bloodline and that I create a continuous line."

"But will you?"

That caught his attention, his eyes lifted from the phone, finding mine quickly.

"Of course I will. It will show the people that I am a man of his word. All they want is a few kiddies to ensure that the line doesn't die out. They thought that it had until Nisha and I returned. It's understandable for them to be like that so I'll deal with that issue once everything is right in the world again."

I nodded, quietly turning back to the view out the window.

Silas made good time getting to Nisha who was waiting where we'd left her, this time with dozens of bags around her feet. I watched as the bags were put into the trunk and turned back to Alaric.

"You know, I can't help but feel a little conflicted about how much money would have been spent when we've just come from a place that is filled with people doing it tough."

"Just a little conflicted, Emmeline?"

I shot him a glare, twisting my lips as I frowned.

"Ouch." He teased.

The door opened and Nisha sat down, glancing between the two of us.

"And how did the meeting go?"

"Exceptionally well, I got four."

Nisha smiled darkly and said nothing.

"And Emmeline didn't freak out, just one cool customer."

Her dark brown eyes slid to me, a subtle smile of appreciation on her face. Maybe I was growing on her.

"Although she wants to save the world, Nish. One crack whore at a time, right Emmeline?"

"Yep," I said with a sigh, turning to the window.

The mood had turned frosty. Alaric was showing a side of him that was merciless when he teased. I could take it with good humor, I wasn't going to be a downer. But hell, he could be a prick when he wanted to be.

Was it wrong to want a better life for everyone? He wanted to return this world to the way that it was before it fell into the hands of Hendrick, how was that any different?

"We don't have a lot of money Emmeline." Nisha offered. "What I used was from the allotted funds that were set aside for the upkeep of our appearance. We are on a budget until Alaric's placement as the ruler has been confirmed."

Glancing briefly at Alaric, she pressed her lips tight with a forced smile.

"We're going to get there and I know that Alaric is appreciative of your assistance and cooperation in this Emmeline. We only want to show you how much we value your presence in this world."

"Okay," I said, unsure of why she was saying it and not him.

"And I'm sure that when Alaric is where he should be then we can look at the situation for those in need and with any luck, there may be money that can be sent towards the appropriate charities. We don't know what the bank balance is like and we won't know until Alaric is the leader."

Weakly, I smiled at Nisha.

"Sure."

I could see the unease on her face as I turned back to the window. The poor thing probably felt like she was the meat in this crazy sandwich.