"Are you alright?" Lia asked me once we washed and dried the enormous pile of dishes left behind by our guests.

"I'll do." I shrugged. It had been a long day, and I was exhausted, but meeting Bram Stoker was worth it. If someone could tell me anything about my other world and help me get back in, it was he.

"What was it all about?" Lia enquired. "The strange man, following you... why didn't you tell me anything?"

I shook my head, not wanting her to worry. "Don't think about it. Lucas helped me out. And I don't know much myself, I hope I'll find out more tomorrow."

"Ok then. Let's take you to bed; it's too late for chatting," she announced as we walked out of the kitchen, switched off the lights, then headed towards our bedrooms. "The midwife will be here at eight, as you wanted. Then I'll accompany you to work. You are not to leave the book shop alone, you must remember to take your lunch with you. After your shift, because I must study for a test tomorrow afternoon, Lucas will pick you up in the shop and take you to Abraham's, and then back. Clear?"

I nodded, feeling like a small girl in need of a fleet of babysitters.

"Lia, suddenly I'm just a trouble for all of you," I mumbled before I entered my room.

"Nonsense," Lia said, opening her own door. Then she paused, looking at me, her caramel eyes brimming with questions. "Samara... who is Abraham? I understand he's a... vampire. But is he one of Bram Stoker's descendants or something? Lucas said he lived in Pimlico, so I thought..."

I only nodded again, unsure of what to say. Stoker's real identity wasn't my secret to tell, not even to Lia. He must tell her himself, if he'll want her to know...

She sighed deeply, shaking her head, "How... weird this all is. I'll give it to you, my life has never been boring since I met you." She smiled. "Good night, Samara. I'll let you rest. You're a mess."

"I miss him, Lia. I miss Vlad," I whispered, turning away from her to hide the fresh tears filling my eyes, threatening to spill over. And you thought you were getting better... Who are you trying to fool?! My subconscious hissed promptly.

She walked over to me and pulled me in an encouraging embrace. "Of course you do," she murmured. "But all these tears won't help anyone. Not you, not him, not your child. You must be strong. For both of them."

Of course, she was right. As usual. "Thanks, Lia," I muttered when she released me with a final pat on my back, then disappeared into her bedroom.

I slept too deeply to dream. It was as if my mind needed to shut down and reset, to be able to deal with all the new events and information coming at me from all sides. I did not hear my alarm at all and only woke up when Lia pounded on my door, telling me that I had twenty minutes before the midwife would arrive.

Why can't I dream about Vlad every night? Is it really because I'm simply too tired some nights, or is there more to it? I mused, adding this question to my ever growing mental list of things to ask Stoker as I took a superfast shower and got dressed.

I was halfway through my breakfast when Helen, my midwife, arrived. Lia let her in and let us talk in the kitchen alone while she retired into her bedroom to wait for me.

"So what did she say?" she asked me, coming to my room, once the woman was gone and I was getting ready for work.

"Nothing much. Helen did all the things you said she would do and asked me all the same questions you had asked me already. Then she said that we both seem to be perfectly fine and healthy. She will book me for the first scan with your mum, sometimes towards the end of the week, she'll let me know..."

"Great. That means you're very nearly three months pregnant. Soon, everyone will start noticing the changes on your body." Lia beamed at me. "Now hurry up. We must go or you'll be late for work."

When she left me alone again, closing the door behind her, I approached the large mirror attached to the side of the door facing the room. I studied my reflection carefully, a thing I did not do very often. I could not see anything different so far, maybe because the long, wide skirts I always wore were very accommodating and concealing. But to be perfectly honest with myself, whenever I put my hand on my belly lately, I could feel a tiny swell that had not been there before... Aurora. The unconscious idea shocked me with its unexpectedness, making my breath hitch. I did not even think about choosing a name this early; it was as if someone had whispered it in my ear. Aurora. Sunrise. A new beginning. If the baby is a girl, her name will be Aurora. Our new beginning.

"Samara, what are you doing?! You'll be late, and you'll make me be late too! Come on!"

I grabbed my bags and reached Lia by the front door, beaming at her as I donned my coat.

"Are you all right? You are... glowing," she enquired, passing me a lunchbox and a bottle of water.

"Aurora," I said, unable to stop grinning. "If it is a girl."

"Hmm... right. I like that." She smiled back. "Let's go then, mummy. You don't need to start your week by being reproached by your boss."

My good mood was gone as soon as we ventured outside. I did not see anyone, but I could feel them lurking in the shadows. "Lia..."

"I know. Now that the guys told me, I can feel it as well," she admitted, looking over her shoulder as we walked quickly down the street. "You need to talk to Lucas, Samara. You can't live like this forever."

I nodded, and we walked the rest of the way in silence.

"By the way, they both left you their phone numbers, should you need anything," Lia said, handing me a small piece of paper as we finally reached the book shop. "And you've got mine. Do not hesitate to call whenever you need. Understand?"

"Thanks, Lia, and I'm sorry," I said, opening the door and looking at her, already rushing away.

"Don't be silly. Go in and wait for Lucas in the afternoon. Have a nice day."

"I like your new friend more than the previous one, Miss Marlowe," Mr. Turner informed me as I exited our little kitchen at the end of my shift, ready to leave. "He introduced himself politely and asked me to tell you that he would be waiting for you outside when you are ready."

"Thank you, Mr. Turner," I said, spotting Lucas behind the window, smiling and waving at me through the glass. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Have a nice afternoon, Miss Marlowe," my boss called as I walked outside to join my new friend.

"Thank you so much, Lucas," I told him as we started walking towards the tube station. "I'm sorry for..." I stopped apologising when I saw him shaking his head at me. He didn't want to hear this. "Ok then." I changed the subject. "Someone followed us this morning. I... I wouldn't want to put Lia into any danger."

"I know, Samara. We need to find some other solution soon. I don't think any of them would approach the two of you in broad daylight, but still... Your friend has her own, quite a busy life, as she told us yesterday."

"But so do you, Lucas, this is not fair to any of you."

"Don't worry about me," he said as we descended the stairs of the station and headed towards our platform, letting ourselves be carried by the stream of human bodies flowing in the same direction. "I'm in the third year of history. All I need is some time to study. And as you surely know, I don't sleep much."

"But..." I tried to object once we got on the train, but he cut me short.

"You mustn't worry about me. You've got a lot of other things to think about already, it would seem." He let his look drop to my belly, then met my eyes again, his lips pressed into a thin, disapproving line. He didn't have to say anything; the mute question was obvious in his eyes. How could he abandon you like this...

I looked away from him, feeling confused and unsettled by his reaction. Feeling... really abandoned when he put it this way, even though I knew well that Vlad had sent me back here for my own good. Still, I would never have left him if he had let me decide...

We stayed quiet for the rest of the journey and only spoke again once we reached Stoker's house. There were two young men walking through the gate as we approached.

"Lucas." One of them greeted my companion while the other looked at me and said, bowing deeply, "Lady Samara. Nice to meet you."

They were clearly vampires. How come every vampire in London suddenly seems to know me?

"Hi," I said simply as they passed by, then vanished quickly into the deep shadows of the gardens across the street.

"What were they doing here?" I asked Lucas, unable to resist my curiosity. "Who are they?"

"Uncle's... clients. Or I should say patients. He helps them with their... addiction. Many of them."

"But how come I've never seen anyone coming in and out of this house? I've sat out here every afternoon since..."

Lucas laughed. "They have a special ability to become as good as invisible to curious human eyes Samara, if they don't want to be seen. That, and the back entrance. But you have inconvenienced them enough over the last week, believe me."

"That's your uncle's fault," I said smugly. "He should have let me in."

"But I was not supposed to interfere in your life, Samara. Your husband asked me to stay away from you," Stoker said, opening the door.

You must remember how sharp their senses are, my subconscious scolded, while I tried to remember what I had said before, what else he might have overheard.

"How?" I asked, walking towards him. "How could my husband ask you anything? And how do your vamp... your friends know me?"

"Not here," Lucas said, motioning for me to enter. "Let's talk inside."

Stoker ignored my first question, but as I reached him he said in a low voice, a smile he was trying to suppress lurking in his eyes, "You are a bit of a legend here, especially among the young ones."

"Uncle..." Lucas protested, closing the door once we were all inside.

"Why, isn't it true, Lucas?" he teased, apparently making fun of him. Then he looked back at me, clarifying, "They all want to visit the Bran Castle, and the most... romantic ones hope to find their own Princess Samara one day."

"What...?" I looked at Lucas, thoroughly puzzled by Stoker's words, hoping that he would be more clear. But Lucas just shook his head and walked past me in silence, preceding us into the vast, dark house.

"We've been followed," he informed his uncle without looking back, letting the words trail down the dimly lit corridor towards us.