I made good time after I had come to terms with the idea that I was truly free. Even my inexplicable misgivings were not enough to overcome the fact that I was on the move in the wilds again, and this time without pursuit.

The only vampire who was intimately aware of my existence had thrown me out. Unless she changed her mind, I was as free and clear as any anonymous free human. Of course, I would have to destroy and hide the brand, but that was a small if unpleasant task in light of my liberty.

Without real fear of being followed, I was able to pace myself properly. I was well aware I could make more distance by keeping at a steady and maintainable speed from my years of roaming. I decided not to go straight to any of the cranky old man's hideouts, just to be on the safe side, and so I headed to my previous location before I had been captured.

I had no intention on staying there since I had been picked up close to that spot, but I did want to discover if any of my supplies were salvageable, although I would only go there by light of day. I was not going to risk another trip to the council slave cages.

Instead of going as far as I was able, I bathed in a river and washed my clothing to minimize the chances of vampires or wildlife detecting me. Fragrant plants helped further cover my scent before I searched for a good place to rest for the night. Along the way I fashioned a sturdy stick into a makeshift weapon.

Upon finding a decent spot, I hung my provisions from a branch where they would be out of reach of any animals that might be looking for an easy meal. I laid dead branches over the side of a fallen log to create a makeshift shelter that would hopefully camouflage into the scenery if a bloodsucker should happen across it. I was fairly far from most leeches and would probably be safe, but I had thought the same when they had caught me unawares last time.

Piling a bed of grass in my shelter, I lay down and covered myself completely in the blanket I had stolen. With any luck it would help protect me from the insects that wanted to bite and bleed me.

Though the vampires behaved as predators, in nature they were parasitical, like absurdly large and powerful mosquitoes. The ridiculous image of such giant insects almost made vampires seem tolerable. Especially the ones that wore humanlike masks and seemed somehow deeper than mindless undead killing machines.

Forcing all intrusive thoughts of one particular example from my mind, I ensured that I was fully covered by the blanket. I willed myself into the shallow sleep that had helped me survive for so long.

* * * * *

I woke with the dawn the next day. Wasting not one second of the hours of light, I got up and gathered my untouched supplies and carried my weapon.

My wariness of the morning was not unfamiliar, but as the sun rose ever higher it wore off. Certainly there were dangers of the day as nature's tyranny was ever vigilant, but at least I had hours when the bloodsuckers could not touch me. It was hard not to feel optimistic as I continued on.

I reached my last free domicile around the moment the sun had reached its zenith, and I hurried inside to see if any supplies remained from my last visit or if they had already been scavenged.

The building was a reasonably well constructed single room shelter, carefully crafted from logs. Whoever had built it had put a great deal of energy and effort into its construction, but when I had found it the building had been well deserted.

That should have been my first warning. The builder had intended to stay in this place yet something had stopped them.

I pushed open the door, trying not to dwell on the day that the leeches had managed to catch me. The memory helped me not at all.

Instead of focusing on the past, I turned my attention to the task at hand. I was pleased to find that my flint was still there, although fires were nearly more danger than benefit when dealing with the fine noses of the bloodsuckers.

Searching the shelter, I found some rope and my hunting knife, along with a spear I could vaguely remember crafting while trying to decide my next move to hunt for my leech.

I had so much information about that demon bastard now compared to then that I could scarcely believe it was true. If everything worked out well, in a few weeks it would be gone from the world and I might finally have the peace I had craved ever since I lost everything. I could almost taste it.

Certainly, it was going to be difficult, but I simply had to avoid detection by Jack's sire and I already knew when I would take my chance. The archives had taught me that Ivan was a member of the council, so if Jack did not travel with its sire, the ancient vampire would not be in its lair to protect it.

Realistically, a million things could go wrong, but I would discover what I could and improvise the rest. I had managed every time before, and this time I was armed with information from the bloodsuckers' own files.

I smiled grimly at the thought of destroying that demon.

And then my mind flickered across the remembered image of the leech crumpling to the floor of the gatehouse.

I swore. This was not getting me anywhere. I turned my mind back to my task.

After I had grabbed the few things I had thought would be handy, I fetched a sharp stone and a thick fallen branch. It would only take me a moment to leave a coded message for the next human who came through here to let them know that a leech attack had happened nearby; a common courtesy free humans did for one another.

I brought the stone up to begin to dig the shape of a drop of blood into the bark, but my hand refused to move.

Scowling to myself, I tried to force my hand to the task I intended.

It took me a moment to understand. It was her damn mind control. Leaving a warning that I had been captured nearby was apparently tantamount to admitting that I had not spent my previous months in the wilderness like usual.

Frustration flowed through me. Even here in freedom, she oppressed my mind and controlled my actions. I did not care that it was for a good cause, I did not care that she was not as bad as she pretended to be, I did not care that she had let me go, because she still kept coming into my mind unbidden. How had I come to know every part of her face and form like the back of my own hand?

I had the uneasy suspicion that she had even visited me in forgotten dreams before the dawn.

I swore and abandoned my attempt with a shake of my head, hoping that if I rattled my brains enough she might be dislodged.

Carrying my new and old supplies, I carried on steadily as if I could move myself out of range of the past.

* * * * *

I travelled for a couple of days before I found a location that would be good to hole up while I ensured that I really had not been followed by the leech or her minions and dealt with the damn brand. It was a natural cave, with barely enough space for me to sleep, but it would do for a couple of weeks.

I set up a spot about ten minutes from where I slept by a river to cook and sterilize drinking water by day.

My days fell into a quiet pattern. I foraged, built, and hunted by the light of the sun. I washed my blanket and my clothing each morning and let them dry in the sun by my cave. I started a fire before the sun reached its peak only when and as long as needed. Before darkness fell each night I washed myself and covered myself with the scents around me before sleeping restlessly.

I gathered medicinal herbs I had learned from my mother, and I prepared myself to obscure the leech's mark from my chest. I heated my knife in the fire to sterilize it and sliced at my own flesh until the mark could not be identified, swearing and sweating the whole time I did it. Then I heated my knife again and cauterized the wound with a pained grunt.

After I recovered, I applied my medicinal paste. I spent the next couple of days doing as little as possible and tending my wound.

As I healed, I began falling back into the rhythm I had established, always watching for signs of danger or pursuit.

* * * * *

Once I was satisfied that the leech's only hold on me was in my mind and my new scars had began to satisfactorily heal, I decided to move on. I travelled for several days before I saw anything besides the cruel natural world, the twin oppressor of humanity beside the bloodsuckers.

It was another human built building, and if nothing had changed, it would not be deserted. It functioned as something like an inn for wayfarers and the keepers well.

I had long since wondered how they had survived in one fixed place without being picked off by the bloodsuckers, but now my mind wandered to the leech's words and I wondered if Braydon and his family had simply lucked out so far, or they had been even more fortunate to situate themselves in the middle of a natural reserve where the vampires were forbidden to hunt humans.

My dissatisfaction surged again that I could not share my knowledge and suspicions with the other humans, but it seemed there was nothing I could do to dislodge the leech's mind warping words.

Her caution was understandable, considering what I had learned, but the control on my mind bothered me.

I forced her from my mind and cautiously approached the building. I nearly jumped when the door opened and someone walked out. I relaxed only marginally when his less than fluid movements declared him most likely a human, because humans could be trouble in their own right.

He eyed me with a similar suspicion to my own as he passed, which made me even more certain he was human. Few vampires could pull off such a human gesture, self-assured as they were in their own invulnerability. I nodded in acknowledgement and he returned the gesture, stalking off in another direction.

I pushed through the door and was hit with the scent of a cooking wilderness stew I imagined was rabbit. I let my eyes adjust to the dimness of the interior for a moment before I stepped forward.

"Jamie!" a familiar voice said loudly. I turned my head to see one of Braydon's daughters, Lisa, walking from the kitchen. She smiled at me in a friendly way. "Long time, no see."

I summoned a smile for her. "Been too long."

"Been keeping out of trouble?" she teased.

"Always. I stay one step ahead of it."

She chuckled, and then turned to business. "Well, dad's out fishing with Nelson, so if you want to talk to either them, you'll have to hang around for a while. My sisters are out, too."

I considered. If I could get a loan on some supplies I would not have to bother my cranky mentor, but I did not want to stay here any longer than was necessary, because the public nature of the location made me distinctly uneasy. It would be laughably simple for a leech to sweep in and capture or kill all the unwary humans. Posted guards would do little to stop such an attack in the dark of night.

"No, sorry, I don't really have any time to spare," I said with a shake of my head.

She smiled with sad understanding. "Still searching?"

"I've got a lead."

She tried to look encouraging and failed. "Well, good luck, Jamie. Kira will be disappointed that she missed you."

I smiled, but I was secretly relieved that I would not have an encounter with her sister. Kira was a pretty girl, like her sisters, but she had wide eyes that put me in mind of how Melissa had once looked at me, and the reminder still hurt. I had nothing like that left to give, only my mission.

"Well, say hello to your family to me," I said as I moved towards the door again.

"Jamie?"

"Yeah?"

"Here, take this at least," she said, bringing over a flat baked loaf of wild grains. "Take care. Don't be a stranger."

"Yeah," I agreed, although my mind was already well ahead on my journey. Cranky old man it was, then. Hadron would just have to put up with another visit from me, whether he was there or not.

* * * * *

My journey continued, and I took frequent breaks to stop and find food, or occasionally speak with other free humans I encountered to get the lay of the land. Always, I did my best to perfectly hide at night.

There was a certain familiar comfort in the isolation of my regained freedom, although my months with the leech had reminded me what it was like to have frequent human interactions. There, I had not had to consider where my next meal might be coming from, and after I had understood she meant me little physical harm I had not had to consider securing a place to sleep.

Truly, it had been the first time since my family had been stolen from me that I had had a break from the constant vigilance of survival and my goal. I would not sell my justice for the luxury, but it had helped me gain strength I had not known was available to me.

I continued ever forward.