Stealth is something I've practised since I was 11 years old. How to enter and exit a room without anyone noticing and how to get around as if I'm invisible. I've always been good at it, finding hiding in the shadows easier and more relaxing for my paranoia. Stealth saved my life once in that kitchen of horrors, I never know if it'll be the difference between life and death again.

So, I keep that in mind as I scale the wall of the Victorian-style mansion, the many cars parked out front enough of a hint that I need to be quiet. Maybe, sneaking into this house is stupid, but I need information like I need air; desperately.

I reach the window on the second floor, the one I saw the two males my age in moments ago. I know exactly which room this is.

Reaching out with one hand and clinging onto the edge with the other, I push the unlocked window open. Then, I rip one of my spare blades from the wall and jam the handle between my teeth, maneuvering myself until my feet hit the carpet inside the bedroom.

I huff, wiping the moisture from my forehead as I look around. The bed frame looks like an antique, very lavish and over the top. Most things in the room around me look old but well-kept, even the draws against the wall are carved with astonishing detail.

Any noise I make must be kept to a minimum, even a too-loud breath could lead to deadly consequences. I remain still, observing the room with my eyes as footsteps sound outside the door. I don't panic, I know who's out there.

Instead, I stand calmly, my arms by my side as I stare at the door. The shadow stops underneath the doorframe, blocking the light with their ankles. It's like they can sense me inside, see through the wooden door and into my ribcage where my heart beats.

The doorknob turns, opening enough for him to step through. Despite pausing outside the door, his eyes widen when he sees me standing in the middle of his bedroom.

Yes, admittedly, it's stupid of me to sneak into a house full of Vampires, especially older ones such as Thomas's father. But, for whatever reason, Thomas won't hurt me. If I want to get to Yasmin, he's my best bet. And what better way to get his attention?

"What the fuck, Reid," He whispers, taking a step forward as he begins to rip his jumper off of his body. He reaches me within seconds, holding the grey hoodie out in front of him. "Put this on, now,"

He doesn't give me time to react before pulling the clothing over my body and rubbing the cotton over my skin such as my neck.

He's covering my scent. My human scent.

"I thought you were smarter than this. What the hell is wrong with you?" Anger burns in his eyes as he looks at me, his eyes darting off for a second as if he's listening for any noise.

"Just returning the favour," I remark sarcastically, smiling slyly up at him.

"This isn't a game, Reid. You cannot come here. Ever," He warns, grabbing a hold of my biceps to keep me steady.

Suddenly, I hear the click of the bedroom door opening, the entrance covered by Thomas's back. He stiffens for a second before his demeanour relaxes and he turns around, stepping out of my line of vision.

Levi's eyes widen in a similar way to Thomas', his pupils flicking from me to his friend beside me. He pushes his back against the bedroom door, clicking it shut.

"What the fuck is going on?" He whispers.

"You guys know what happened to Alex," I announce, taking a step forward until I'm in between both boys, my head turning back and forth between them. "He has a bite mark on his neck. You wouldn't talk to me if I didn't do something drastic,"

"Drastic?" Levi laughs bitterly, looking up over my head to make eye contact with Thomas and shake his head. "She's fucking insane,"

"Be quiet. There's a house full of Vampires downstairs," Thomas hisses.

"You gotta leave, Michaela," Levi looks back at me. I shake my head, sticking firm. Even though I'm not scared of Vampires, the thought of a whole room of them downstairs makes my gut tighten in fear. But, I need to know what happened to Alex.

Both of them pause, their shoulders tensing as they make eye contact with each other. Before I can say anything, I feel Thomas wrap his arms around me while the wind engulfs me in the same way, my hair whipping around as my feet leave the floor. The warmth of Thomas' body and his hoodie around me keep me warm as we exit through the window.

I see the house quickly fade away into the background, leaves and trees covering the home as I'm carried further into the woods.

Within seconds, I stumble for balance as my feet hit the ground. My vision focuses enough to see the same road Thomas took me to when we found Alex, surrounded by woods with the two Vamp's in front of me.

"You are absolutely crazy, Michaela," Levi comments with a grin on his face, his eyes glinting in excitement.

"Don't encourage her,"

"Alex had a bite mark behind his ear," I redirect the conversation, glaring at the two males.

Thomas rolls his eyes, looking annoyed with me and my accusations, "Y'know, there are other Vampires in this town besides us-"

"He also had a hot pink stamp on his hand with the initials Y.W," I cut him off, crossing my arms over my chest. Thomas and Levi look at each other, a guilty expression on their faces, "That symbol has been showing up on a lot of fledglings. You two wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

"Actually, I have an idea for you," Thomas smiles sarcastically, tilting his head as if he's mocking me "Maybe, instead of killing them the second you see them, why don't you ask them yourself?"

"I wouldn't have to kill them if you left humans alone!" I defend, taking a step forward as if to physically put my foot down. "You know how feral fledglings are. There's no point trying to have a conversation with one, which is probably why there's been so many showing up lately. Is that it? Trying to take us out without getting your hands dirty?"

"Oh, if only you were so important to us," Thomas mocks, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back.

"Says the man who keeps popping up everywhere I go!"

"Enough girls, you're both pretty," Levi stands in between Thomas and I, holding one hand in front of each of us "Michaela, if you have a question, ask it. Otherwise, just piss off,"

I pause, looking at Thomas in front of me for a minute. His demeanour when I found Alex disgruntled was confusing, he seemed genuinely angry and confused as if it was never meant to happen. In the dream/not dream I had, he told me Alex wasn't hurt when he saw him last, but what could have happened between?

And that pink symbol, it's so familiar to me. The answer feels so obvious. Alex had no connection to Yasmin whatsoever except the party we went to. I look down, holding my left hand up slightly to observe it. On the side of my hand, a hot pink smudge is cut off by the end of my skin. The smudge is small, no bigger than my pinkie finger. I remember some guy stamping everyone at the party, even me despite my protest. He skimmed my hand sightly, leaving a freckle of a mark. If it was any bigger, I may have noticed it sooner

Moving my eyes from the hot pink freckle, I slowly face the males in front of me, "What are you guys doing at those parties?"

Both of them look at each other, a slight panic flashing through their expressions. Thomas didn't let me through that hallway for a reason. It wasn't just to be a dick, he fought against me hard and so did the other Vampires. He only stopped once I was leaving the hallway like I wasn't a threat anymore.

"You're making fledglings on purpose," I come to a realisation, my eyes darting between them. "The parties, they're not really parties, are they? Not fully?"

Thomas looks at me with pain, like he wants to reply but his lips are sealed shut with the world's strongest glue. Levi almost looks the same, the cloudiness in his eyes identical.

No, that can't be.

"You've been compelled, haven't you?" I gape, taking a slight step back. What Vampire would compel their own kind let alone be strong enough to do so? I snap my eyes up from their road, making eye contact with Thomas's brown eyes "You told me to forget about the fledglings and you brought me out here to do it so no one would hear us. Someone's forcing you to make fledglings,"

"Yes, I told you not to worry about them,"

"But, why? Why are you trying to help me in the first place?" I ask, confused.

Thomas doesn't reply straight away, his eyes flicking to his friends before landing back on mine. His face falls softly as if that secret person inside of him is showing once more. "Because I remember what it was like to be human,"

My chest clenches in an unfamiliar feeling, almost as if I feel bad for him. I didn't think any part of me could feel even a smidge of sympathy for his kind. No matter what he's gone through or what he feels, he is the same thing that destroys lives and families. Being a Vampire seems like a walk in the park compared to finding your parents dead.

"And you?" I turn to Levi, waiting for his response.

He shrugs casually, looking at Thomas. "I owe a favour,"

"Why the stamps?" I question, the hot pink spot on my hand metaphorically burning me.

"We can't tell you that. You're going to have to figure it out on your own," Thomas says. He sounds sincere, they both do. But, I can't figure out why they'd want help from a hunter, specifically me. What benefit do I bring that they can't obtain themselves? If only I could just ask them that.

"Alex has the stamp, but he's not a fledgling," I announce, thinking back to the small wound on his neck. I assumed he was just fed from but, paired with the stamp they use, it would be unlikely that he was only fed from.

My chest clenches, my lungs forgetting to function for a second. No, it can't be. I have the stamp too and I'm not a fledgling. But, I didn't go missing like Alex did. I didn't emerge from the woods dirty and confused with the mark of a Vampire on my neck.

"Is he going to become one of you?" I whisper, clenching my eyes shut as my voice cracks with emotion. Alex is the only person who knows me, the only person I trust enough to let in. He's been my best friend since before everything that's happened, I can't lose him to the same thing I've lost everyone else to.

I ignore the tears welling up in my eyes as I clench my jaw and step around Levi, throwing my fists against Thomas's chest repeatedly. He doesn't flinch at my punches, standing there as I continue to strike his skin with his hoodie still over my body. "Why him? You could have taken anyone from that party!"

"Reid-"

"You want my help?" I yell, pushing against his chest enough for him to stumble away from me. "Shove it up your ass!"

"You don't mean that," Levi attempts to reason, trying to calm down the situation.

"Why him?" I yell, feeling my body fight to fall over in a heap. But, I won't.

"You won't kill him. It needed to be him. I'm sorry," Thomas sounds like a robot as he apologises as if he's reading from a script in front of him.

"Was that Yasmin's idea?" I press.

"We all made the decision together," Levi informs me.

I look at them both, a bitter laugh escaping my lips, "Well, aren't you guys just a fucking team, huh?"

"You'll understand eventually," Levi says ominously.

"Whatever your little plan was, count me out of it. I'm done with these little impromptu meetings and secret messages. Your kind just takes and takes with no concern for others and what your actions cost them. You can't just have something because you want it," I shake my head, feeling anger boiling inside of me.

"You're not the only one who's lost something to this, Reid," Thomas snaps, his jaw popping as he clenches it tight.

"Maybe so," I say, stepping closer to him as I continue, wanting my words to sting him like a bee, "But I haven't taken anything from you,"

"Alex will be turning soon," Levi's voice drags my attention to him. My heart squeezes at the mention of my best friend. "If you want to see him before he does, you should go now,"

Confliction takes over my body, one half of me wanting to run to my best friend while the other half wants to stay here and kill them both for forcing me to choose.

I turn back to Thomas, his face stone cold as if he's deliberately trying to hide his emotions from me.

"You're both coming with me," I announce, turning my back to both of them and walking down the empty road. If Alex is going to turn, I know I won't be able to kill him or help him. Maybe, I need the two creatures behind me after all.

I hear their footsteps filter in through the empty night air after a second of silence, neither of them saying anything as they stay a couple of steps behind, following me into the night.