David looked back at me. “Come with me.”

“No. Why?”

“Ara—” He edged between Mike and Emily’s rooms. “Just...just don’t go in there, okay.”

I nodded, waited for him to disappear into Mike’s room, then stepped through the doorway anyway; my hand flew to my mouth. “Emily!”

“Ara?” she cried from a dark corner near her wardrobe, huddled into a ball on the floor. “What did he do to me?”

“Ara—don’t!” David called from the other room as I flew into Emily’s arms. She grabbed my shirt, clutching for dear life, pulling her shaking body close to my chest.

“Emily?” David grabbed her wrist, coming up out of nowhere. “Let go of her, now.”

“Don’t let him touch me, Ara!” she screeched, kicking at the ground with her feet. “Please don’t let him hurt me again.”

“What did you do to her?” I shoved his hand away.

“I’m sorry, Em.” He squatted beside us and gently unlatched her fingers from my shirt. “I had to forcibly restrain her. She had her hands around Mike’s throat.”

“Oh my God. Mike! Is he okay?” My pulse quickened, I looked to the door.

“No.”

I covered my mouth.

“She didn’t bite him—just...”

“I thought he was trying to hurt me, Ara,” Emily cut in, her eyes pleading. “I scratched him.”

Scratched? “David?” I swallowed over a deep breath, making a huge lump form in my throat. “Is it bad?”

He concentrated on untangling Emily’s fingers from my shirt. “I’ve forced him to drink some blood. It’s all I can do.”

“Ah—” Emily’s voice wavered nervously, her terror-widened eyes locked onto her outstretched arms. “David, what’s happening to me? Ah!” She shot back, thrashed violently into the wall, scratching at her arms.

David slid his hands around my waist and shifted me across so he could grab her. “Ara, go, please.”

“No. What’s happening to her?” I stood back, but every-thing in me screamed to run to Emily, to hold her as she writhed, thrashing about, tearing at her arms where the veins pulsed and wriggled under her skin, turning bright blue, then white, with every scream that passed her lips.

“Make it stop! Make it stop!”

David clasped a firm hand across her mouth. “Emily. Shush. You’ll make the neighbours call the police.”

“Er—” She twitched, her throat composing a long, wavering sound. “I’m trying, David. I’m trying.”

“I know,” he said.

“What did he do to me?” she growled in a very low, very cold voice, her gaze becoming fixed on my vampire, hatred and something so demonic behind it that I stepped back.

“It’s okay, Emily.” David lifted her and carried her to the bed. “You’re turning. In a few minutes, it’ll stop—then...”

“Then what?” I asked, restraining from placing hands of healing on Emily. Nothing I did would make it better.

David looked back at me with urgency in his eyes, pinning Emily down with a hand on her chest. “Then, she’ll be thirsty.”

“For blood?”

“Ara, you better get out of here.”

The world stopped; the only sound I heard was my own very quiet breath and the beating of my heart.

“Ara,” David said more forcefully, wincing slightly as Emily gouged at the flesh on his forearm. “Go to Mike. He needs you.”

“No. I’m staying with you. David, look what she’s doing to your arm.”

He looked down; the deep gashes started to prick with blood, the skin around the edges folding outward where it was still attached.

Emily kicked, screaming and wailing—attempting to toss about, but unable to move under the force of David’s strong hold.

“I’ll be fine, Ara.”

“You don’t look fine.” I edged forward. “She’s hurting you.”

He held out his other hand, stopping me. “I won’t lie, okay, yes, it hurts, but not as much as loosing you. Okay. Just go. Go!”

Everything in me said stay, but, as if on cue, Mike groaned, his voice laden with so much agony that I almost didn’t even look back as I ran from the room. All I could think of was the time his appendix burst and I first saw him cry; it was the worst night of my childhood. I thought he was going to die. I’d never heard anyone cry that way. But this was worse. Much, much worse.

Almost as fast as a vampire, I made it to his side. “Mike? Are you okay?”

“Oh. God. Just go.” He rolled his face to the wall.

“No, I’m not going anywhere.” I lifted his head and shoved his pillow under it—afraid to look at his face. “Just tell me what to do, Mike, please. How can I make it better?”

“You can’t,” he said slowly, his voice trailing off. “Not you.”

“Mike?”

He didn’t answer.

“Mike?” I whispered.

His laboured breathing became deep and restful; I sat back against the wall, sinking my head into my hands as the morning sun lit the room. I felt unwelcome, in a place I’d sat so many times, talking and joking with him. In one week of my life, I’d managed to destroy so many lives. How on earth was I so cursed that I could alienate people so fiercely, not only losing them, but making sure they would run so far from me that I’d never even see them pass on the street, ever again?

I wanted to lay with Mike, safe in his arms, safe, knowing he loved me. But the cold floor, hard under my tailbone, and the wall, no comfort for my aching heart, reminded me that this is where I belonged. Love, warmth, they belonged to people who deserved them. But I destroyed Emily, and I broke Mike’s heart. If he could ever forgive me for that, I’d still have no hope of saving our friendship, because I knew how much Mike hated vampires, and I knew, from everything he’d ever told me, that he would not forgive me for turning the girl he loves into one.

When the morning comes, I don’t know what I’ll do. What will my life mean, what will anything mean if I have no one left?

I sunk my head back down on my knees, letting the restful breath of my ex-best friend take me away with exhaustion.

At some point, just before I was about to fall onto my side, cool arms wrapped my body and carried me to the softness of my bed, where I stayed until morning came, safe and warm, in David’s loving arms.