I tilted my head and looked to the east as a pack of coyotes started howling close by. Supper was long over and the sun was already halfway set. I turned toward Luke. He was already watching me with hope in his eyes.

I bared my teeth in the parody of a grin, "I think that coyote pack was calling us to come over for a visit. Feel like accompanying me to meet a few of the locals?"

Luke eagerly rose to his feet, "I was hoping you would offer."

Luke had no chance of catching a coyote and he shamelessly, yet politely, accepted the invitation with anticipation. I chuckled and also got to my feet before heading toward the edge of the building, "Just don't let me forget that I need to dig up a rabbit before we return."

Luke bared his teeth in silent humor. Any type of blood would work to heal wounds, but this was just another way to mess with Daniel's head. Besides, if he went after rabbits, that left more coyotes for us. Luke seemed to have sided with me when it came to keeping Daniel off balance.

The Terror's presence often had my instincts on edge and it had to be much worse for Luke since he was a Runner. Luke followed me as I dropped off the roof and headed toward the trees. He took a deep breath of the air and winced since the smell of humans was still quite strong.

I flashed a canine at him and he refocused on me as his instincts were distracted by my presence. The light was rapidly fading as I kept to a pace he could keep up with. It was closer to a jog, but he would be able to manage it for half an hour or so. The coyotes were closer than that.

The sky was nearly dark and I took another sniff before growling faintly. Luke dropped his pace to a slow walk as he watched me disappear into the trees. We had done this before. He would follow my scent slowly to give me plenty of time to catch something off guard.

I picked up speed and went into stealth mode. Very few animals would linger in an area if they realized a zombie was near, so I had to manage to get two coyotes before the pack was aware that I was near. Otherwise I would be relegated to rabbits.

I came within sight of the pack. It was one of the larger packs I had encountered and I could see at least fifteen of the canines and smell more that were in trees nearby. Most were lounging or wrestling alongside the stream.

I swiftly circled to the other side of the clearing to see if I could sneak up on some of the hidden ones. There was no wind, so my scent would not spread easily and unless one walked across my trail, they would remain unaware until it was too late.

One was trying to dig a mouse out from under a tree root and was oblivious to its surroundings. That was its loss. I had to kill this one without a sound, otherwise the others could take off. I may have been a Nightstalker, but I didn't have a chance of keeping up with a running coyote. Those things were fast when they were spooked. Even Daniel wouldn't be able to catch one unless it tired and slowed down.

My stamina wasn't sufficient to run down prey and I wasn't entirely certain how long Daniel could maintain his top speed. His speed and stamina outstripped mine by far more than I cared to think about. I was a much better ambush predator though...

This coyote wouldn't even have time to realize it. I crouched down and tensed before silently leaping out at it. I managed to snap its neck before it realized the danger it was in. It didn't even have time to manage a bark of surprise or a yelp. That was how I liked it. I preferred to keep my kills clean and humane.

Now for the second one... My instincts wanted to stay and claim my kill, but I overruled them as I shifted back into the trees. My instincts easily went back into hunting mode with the strong smell of the numerous coyotes.

Another coyote was napping in the long grass at the base of a tree. I easily snuck up behind it and eyed up its neck from a nearby bush. A long howl of alarm nearby caused the coyote to wake with a jump. It swiftly got to its feet.

I narrowed my eyes and sprang out of my hiding place. The coyote went down with a broken neck. Several more coyotes started yipping an alarm before running off. They had found my first kill and knew that the hunter was still around.

I exhaled gustily and shook myself off while looking at the dead coyote at my feet. I lifted my face to the now-dark sky and gave a soft low cry that had a very eerie tone to it. It reminded me more of a creepy owl call as opposed to the loud and very distinctive cougar-like Nightstalker scream.

It wasn't a sound that one would hear a feral Nightstalker make. It was actually a friendly proximity call that sane Nightstalkers could make when attempting to locate those nearby. Had another sane Nightstalker been in the area, he or she would have likely returned the call even if they had never met me before. Each individual's call was just a bit different, allowing us to identify individuals by their call.

Runners could not produce a noise like that, but Luke knew what it meant and I knew that he would hear it since it carried quite well. I didn't have to wait more than a couple of minutes for Luke to come crashing through the bush at a jog. I moved away from the coyote and went toward where I had left the first one. Luke politely waited until I was out of sight before going after the coyote so it wouldn't rile up my instincts in case they wanted to claim that kill as my own.

Regular zombies may be able to share a kill without a qualm, but no other rank had that luxury. Our instincts detested sharing a kill and only my humanity allowed me to give a kill up to another. My control was more than adequate to allow Luke to go ahead and avoid waiting, but he was unfailingly courteous. Especially when I had let him have a kill that he had no chance of making.

The coyote was right where I had left it. A few tracks were nearby, but the surviving pack members had swiftly cleared the area. They would not return any time soon. I wasted no time in using my belt knife to trim the fur and thoroughly enjoyed the warm blood.

I wondered how Daniel managed to hunt various creatures. I recalled the deer he had chased toward me when we had first gotten to Ironwind Stronghold. The deer had been exhausted, so he had likely run it down as he herded it in my direction. The time he cleared a path in the trees in a rage, he had probably startled the one deer and it must have frozen in surprise.

I really wasn't sure and it wasn't something that I really wanted to inquire into. It could be a touchy topic for Daniel considering that he didn't seem to like revealing any of his abilities or limitations.

I finished and shook myself while automatically checking for any blood spots. My clothing was spotless as they almost always were, but the inspection was a habit. I wandered back to where Luke was. He had just finished.

His dull red eyes turned at the sound of my approach. Between supper and the hunt, he must be stuffed if his eyes were that color when he wasn't trying to control it. It also meant that his instincts were quite low. He grinned at me, "I can't remember the last time I had coyote."

I leaned against a tree, "I had one earlier this week, but I haven't seen many around the Stronghold."

"What is plentiful around the Stronghold?"

I chuckled, "Rabbits. Lots and lots of rabbits. Some pheasants and quail. Enough deer that we can hunt them once a week or so without impacting the population. Some bigger predators occasionally make the mistake of wandering through."

He tilted his head, "And the humans don't mind us taking out creatures that they may very well need?"

"We actually bring the carcass back and they turn it into jerky or thoroughly cook it. Drying out or high heat kills the virus." He must not have known that detail any more than I had before arriving here.

He blinked in surprise, "I wasn't aware of that. Well, that removed the guilt I was feeling for planning to put a dent into the rabbit population."

I chuckled, "Indeed. The only thing we take is the blood and that is the one thing that they don't really want, so it works out quite well."

He nodded thoughtfully before refocusing on me, "Just what was Nicky saying about a rutabaga?"

I burst out laughing, "I honestly have no idea. I haven't even seen one since the zombies arrived. She uses the cans of tomato juice as airborne missiles, but she did that before we crossed paths with Daniel, so he is clueless."

Luke chuckled and shook his head, "I think you are getting far too much amusement from torturing that man. I have never seen a zombie that humanized before though."

I sighed as I was once more reminded of that fact, "Yeah, it was just the other day that he finally figured out the body language for a wrestling match."

Luke frowned in concern, "Does he understand passive body language? I don't feel like ending up wounded if he gets mad or his instincts push him."

I growled at that thought before shaking my head, "No, he doesn't understand as far as I can tell, but his control is sufficient that I don't think he will harm you. We got into one spat and he merely pinned me despite the fact that I was pissed and trying to inflict damage."

Luke looked up in surprise, "How badly did you injure him?"

Luke knew about my sickle and belt knife. I made a face, "I didn't have my weapons on me, so I didn't manage more than a few minor scratches."

Luke scratched his head, obviously perplexed, "What made you so mad?"

I huffed my annoyance, "When I first came to this Stronghold, I had some pretty nasty bullet wounds from highway bandits. I didn't realize that Nina was actually a scientist at that time. She had been taking blood from a wound on my back when she cleaned it without letting me know-"

Luke growled in anger as his eyes started glowing. He shook his head to try and collect himself. I waited a few seconds before continuing, "I found out when I overheard a conversation. Nicky and I had a plan to escape on the quiet side during the night, but they had bugged her room and overheard it. They gave her hot chocolate with a sedative in it that night."

I took a deep breath as my own irritation flared at the memories, "When she didn't show up, I climbed up to her window and snuck in. Daniel had been waiting outside the door of her room and entered when he heard me. When he said that Nicky had been drugged, I was furious. Needless to say that I lost that match."

Luke narrowed his eyes, "Did he harm you at all?"

I shook my head, "My old wounds reopened a bit during the scuffle, but he just pinned me."

Luke exhaled slowly and shook himself, "I suppose they finally came clean at that point?"

I nodded, "Yes. And as far as I can tell, there are no other secrets there."

"And when a Nightstalker doesn't get suspicious it says a lot. I find it surprising that you stayed after they took your blood without your permission."

I was silent for a few moments before I spoke quietly, "If it had been taken for anything besides research for a cure, I would have been long gone."

Luke also spoke softly, "You wished that the cure had been around in time to save your sister."

I clenched my jaw and growled lowly while turning my head away in admission of the truth. My sister had been with me on that train. By the time I had returned, she had been missing from the train. When I had finally located her, she was already a mindless zombie. As a normal zombie, she hadn't stood a chance at remaining in control.

She may have been twenty-three and five years my junior, but we had always been close since a car crash had stolen our parents from us. We had always had each other and we had never been apart since we shared the same apartment.

That was my other reason for hanging around Ironwind Stronghold, although it was one that I had never voiced. There was a chance, a slim chance that was so slight that it may not even exist, but there was always a chance that the human mind was actually buried deep and able to recover. If Nina ever figured it out, I would be heading north to find my sister.

Luke sighed softly, "Sorry. If it is any consolation, I know how you feel."

I knew Luke had it worse than I did. He had a larger family and, other than his missing brother, all of them were mindless zombies. I shook myself off to shake the heavy emotions from my mind, "Don't worry about it."

"Changing the topic back to the Stronghold. How have they been aside from taking your blood by stealth?"

I shrugged, "They never really did anything to annoy me besides that. Most are honestly happy to have me there. They will attempt almost anything if they think it makes staying easier. They even pushed one table into a corner and always leave it open."

He tilted his head, "I thought you didn't eat food anymore?"

"I don't, but that is a fairly recent occurrence and they don't yet realize what sabotage that one lady did. I still sit and visit through breakfast and lunch, but the crowd at supper is too much for me."

"Do you think they will try anything underhanded like that again?"

I thought about it, but eventually shook my head, "I don't think so. I caught them before and they know my instincts are sharp. I am pretty sure that they were certain that I would have disappeared the moment they mentioned tests and were hoping to have everything they needed from a Nightstalker before I healed."

Luke looked amused, "I suspect that if they had not mentioned the cure first, that they would have been correct, regardless of how bad your injuries were."

I shrugged, "Probably."

Luke shook his head, "Suspicious old bat..."

I looked at him in disbelief, "What did you just call me?"

He shifted his body language and bared his teeth in jest at me, "An old bat. You are older than me, so I can call you old. Considering how much blood you drank tonight, you could very well pass for a vampire bat."

I took a step away from the tree and dropped into a crouch as I started circling him, "One, I am only older by two weeks. Two, you did not just compare me to a flying mouse..."

He growled playfully, "18 days actually. I guess I can't really call you a flying mouse, you aren't fluffy enough."

I snorted and charged. He was slower than me, but I held back as I tackled him and we snarled at each other with our wrestling match. The ending was predictable, but I let him have a good round before I managed to pin his arms against his sides. He stilled and gave a light growl and I released him as I got to my feet.

Runners were more coordinated than their lesser cousins and Luke had no difficulty getting to his feet before I could offer him my hand. I started brushing myself off, although I tended to pick clothing that dirt and leaves didn't cling to.

Luke bared his teeth at me in a grin, "Now, how about those rabbits..."

I raised an eyebrow, "Rabbits?" After that coyote, I had no idea where he planned to put any more food, let alone more than one rabbit.

He chuckled, "As if I would ever pass up the chance of a meal. I am not about to forget about that mountain lion either."

I shook my head before testing the air, "Rabbits first. The next time I scent a mountain lion, I will let you know."

He followed me into the forest as I tracked the numerous rabbits.