▪︎ Chapter 132 ▪︎ “Do we have to wait for the police again?”

Lavinia allowed Gwendolyn to pull her out of the room, the white-haired vampire practically bouncing with excitement as she led the way down the hotel corridor. 

The others followed behind them, their voices overlapping as they discussed the structures they were about to visit.

It was rather amusing how quickly everyone had agreed to accompany Violetta. 

Lavinia doubted any of them had seriously considered staying behind, although she supposed the prospect of exploring something new was particularly appealing when there was so little else to do during the night.

Cordelia twirled a lock of blue hair around one finger, smiling as she looked at the vampires surrounding her.

“I'm happy we can all go exploring together.”

Rosaline lightly bumped her shoulder.

“Aww. Do you think of us as family?”

Cordelia glanced toward her, then nodded without hesitation.

“Of course. I did have a husband before I became a vampire, but he was among the people who gathered to attack me afterward.”

She said it so casually that Rosaline's smile faltered for a moment.

Cordelia merely continued walking, her expression remaining pleasant.

Lavinia looked over her shoulder.

“Then your husband had absolutely no idea what he'd lost.”

Cordelia blinked before laughing softly.

“That's sweet of you, Lavinia.”

“I'm serious!”

“I know.”

Cordelia's smile warmed, and Rosaline slipped an arm around her shoulders.

Violetta glanced toward them before returning her attention to the hallway ahead.

“Our first destination is approximately fifty miles away. It's a tower, and preliminary measurements suggest it stands more than two hundred meters tall.”

Evelyn tilted her head.

“That's quite tall, although I suppose it isn't too surprising. Gothic manors and castles have already appeared.”

She considered something for a moment.

“If the tree houses belong to the elves, do you think the towers belong to witches?”

Valerie, walking beside her, nodded enthusiastically.

“Probably! Witches seem really curious about everything, don't they? Towers would suit them.”

She smiled.

“It's like those fantasy stories where mages spend all their time studying magic in enormous towers.”

“Hopefully they aren't full of dangerous experiments,” Adelaide remarked.

Lavinia giggled.

“Considering the witches we've met, I wouldn't count on that.”

Ophelia crossed her arms as they passed a human waiter carrying a tray of drinks.

“I'm still annoyed about what happened to Violetta.”

Her voice was quiet enough that the waiter probably hadn't heard her, although the displeasure in her expression was unmistakable.

Adelaide glanced toward her.

“Ophelia, it isn't all humans.”

“I know.”

“Really?”

“Yes, Adelaide. I know.”

Adelaide gave her a pointed look.

Ophelia turned her head away.

“Unlike most of you, I've covered quite a lot of ground. I've seen plenty of things, and not all of them were particularly pleasant.”

She exhaled.

“Humans generalize about us constantly. Why shouldn't I do the same?”

“Because that wouldn't be fair,” Adelaide replied gently.

Ophelia's ears twitched.

“I don't want to be the bigger person.”

Rosaline burst into laughter.

Even Adelaide couldn't quite suppress her smile.

Lavinia found herself smiling as well, although she understood that Ophelia's irritation wasn't entirely unreasonable.

Unlike most of them, Ophelia had traveled a considerable distance to reach Oakridge. 

Cordelia had too, for that matter, and Lavinia couldn't begin to imagine everything they'd encountered along the way.

Cordelia generally carried herself with enough poise and confidence that it was easy to forget she'd experienced anything unpleasant.

Ophelia, meanwhile, was simply Ophelia.

Prickly, sarcastic, and occasionally rather dramatic.

But beneath that exterior, she was every bit as considerate as the others.

Lavinia had seen enough of her interactions with Diana to understand that.

Celestine looked toward Violetta.

“Is there a window we could use? It would save us going all the way downstairs.”

Violetta smiled.

“Unfortunately not.”

Celestine sighed.

“What a shame.”

They reached the elevator shortly afterward.

Despite the number of people entering, the interior was reasonably spacious. Lavinia was quite certain there was enough room for everyone to stand comfortably.

Which made it rather strange that she somehow ended up being squished between several vampires.

Valerie pressed against one shoulder, Gwendolyn against the other, while Rosaline had apparently decided that standing directly behind her was preferable to using the perfectly available space elsewhere.

Lavinia's ears twitched.

She looked left.

Then right.

“Really?”

Valerie smiled innocently.

“What?”

“There's space!”

“Is there?”

“Yes!”

Gwendolyn giggled.

Lavinia growled in exasperation and began pushing the nearest vampires away.

“Move! You can stand a little farther away!”

“Aww, Lavinia!”

“Don't 'aww' me!”

Rosaline laughed as Lavinia pushed against her shoulder.

“Such a demanding princess.”

“Rosaline!”

Evangeline snorted from the opposite side of the elevator.

“You're all ridiculous.”

Lavinia pointed toward her.

“Don't encourage them!”

By the time the elevator reached the lobby, Lavinia was still smiling despite herself.

The doors slid open, revealing the hotel's spacious entrance hall.

There weren't many people present, which was a little surprising considering the building's size. 

Then again, the sun had only recently set, and most ordinary guests were probably occupied elsewhere.

The few people who were present certainly noticed them.

A receptionist looked up from her desk and froze for a moment. Two employees standing near the entrance stopped talking, while a couple checking in repeatedly glanced toward the approaching group.

Lavinia could hardly blame them.

Eleven vampires walking together were bound to attract attention, particularly when every one of them possessed the same unmistakable crimson eyes and extraordinary beauty.

Diana received quite a few looks as well.

Whether that was because she stood out among the vampires or simply because she was attractive in her own right, Lavinia couldn't say.

Perhaps both.

They passed through the entrance without incident and stepped into the evening air.

The city was still busy.

Cars traveled along the road, their headlights illuminating the pavement while pedestrians moved between shops and restaurants.

Lavinia watched a vehicle pass and suddenly realized something rather amusing.

She could count the number of times she'd ridden in a car since becoming a vampire on one hand.

Actually, she wasn't entirely certain she'd even need all five fingers.

Of course, when she could run considerably faster than an ordinary car, and now fly as well, using one seemed rather pointless.

Gwendolyn released her hand and stretched her arms.

“Finally!”

Her long white hair shifted as she glanced toward the sky, her pointed ears standing upright.

Lavinia smiled.

“Excited?”

“Very!”

Gwendolyn looked ready to spread her wings immediately.

Then a sharp screech cut through the evening air.

Tires.

Lavinia's ears twitched.

A fraction of a second later, a tremendous metallic crash echoed down the street.

She turned.

A car had collided with a much larger truck at an intersection, its front end crumpling violently around the heavier vehicle.

Broken glass scattered across the road.

For a brief moment, Lavinia simply stared.

Then she vanished from where she'd been standing.

The street blurred around her, and she arrived beside the wreckage almost immediately.

The smaller car had suffered the worst damage. Its front end was crushed inward, and steam rose from beneath the mangled hood.

Violetta appeared beside her.

“Get everyone out. Carefully.”

The other vampires spread out without hesitation.

Lavinia approached the driver's side of the car and grabbed the damaged door.

Metal shrieked as she wrenched it free.

The smell of blood struck her immediately.

Sweet.

Warm.

Fresh.

Lavinia's tongue passed briefly across her lips before she focused on the occupants.

Two humans.

A man in the driver's seat and a woman beside him.

Neither looked particularly fortunate.

The man was conscious, although blood streamed down the side of his head. His breathing was ragged, and one arm hung awkwardly against his body.

The woman was considerably worse.

Her eyes were closed, blood trickled from her mouth, and her breathing was so faint that an ordinary human might have struggled to notice it.

Valerie appeared on the opposite side of the vehicle.

“They're both alive!”

“Good,” Violetta replied. “Get them out.”

From beside the truck, Gwendolyn called out.

“The driver's breathing too!”

Lavinia leaned into the smaller car and reached for the man's seat belt.

“Hold still. I'll get you out.”

The man turned his head.

His eyes widened.

“GET AWAY FROM ME!”

Lavinia blinked.

“Excuse me?”

“GET OFF!”

His voice cracked as he struggled against the seat belt.

“HELP! SOMEBODY HELP!”

Lavinia's lips twitched.

She glanced toward the ruined dashboard, then back at him.

“That's what I'm doing.”

“DON'T TOUCH ME!”

She ignored him and reached farther into the wreckage, carefully pulling the damaged belt away from his body.

The man twisted violently.

Then his fist struck her face.

Lavinia's head tilted slightly.

She looked at him.

He stared back, breathing heavily.

“You'll only hurt yourself doing things like that,” she remarked.

His expression twisted.

Before he could respond, Lavinia grabbed the damaged seat and wrenched it backward, creating enough room to free his legs.

The metal bent with a sharp groan.

She released the belt, slipped one arm behind his back, and pulled him from the wreckage.

The moment his feet touched the pavement, he scrambled away.

“DON'T TOUCH ME!”

Lavinia straightened.

“Well, you're welcome.”

On the opposite side of the car, Valerie's low growl carried clearly over the surrounding noise.

She was working to free the unconscious woman, although her crimson eyes hadn't left the man since he'd punched Lavinia.

Lavinia glanced toward her and smiled reassuringly.

Valerie didn't smile back.

Instead, she tore away another section of damaged metal and carefully lifted the woman from the passenger seat.

The man saw her.

“HEY!”

He stumbled forward.

“GET AWAY FROM MY WIFE!”

Valerie ignored him and carried the unconscious woman a short distance from the wreckage before lowering her gently onto the pavement.

Adelaide watched the man with an expression of disbelief.

“Is he actually serious?”

Evangeline clicked her tongue.

“If we'd left them alone, there's a good chance neither of them would have survived.”

Valerie crouched beside the woman.

Her pointed ears twitched as she listened.

The woman's heartbeat was weak and irregular.

“I'll give her a little blood,” Valerie said. “I'm not a doctor, so I can't tell exactly what's happening inside her just by listening.”

She raised her wrist toward her mouth.

Before her fangs could pierce the skin, the man rushed forward.

“DON'T!”

He shoved Valerie.

The orange-haired vampire allowed the unexpected movement to send her backward, landing on the pavement with her hair spreading across the ground.

For a moment, she simply stared at him.

Then she looked toward the unconscious woman.

“I was trying to help.”

Her voice was remarkably calm.

The man pointed at her.

“I DON'T WANT HELP FROM MONSTERS!”

Valerie's expression went blank.

“You're going to give my wife your blood?” he demanded. “What if she turns into one of you? What if she becomes a monster too?”

Evelyn stepped forward.

Her normally shy expression had hardened.

“If it weren't for the so-called monsters, you'd both still be trapped inside that car.”

The man turned toward her.

“SHUT UP!”

Evelyn's ears twitched.

“You were injured, and your wife is barely breathing. You'd still be waiting for someone to pull you out.”

“I DIDN'T ASK FOR YOUR HELP!”

His voice grew hoarse.

“You attacked me! All of you! I'm going to sue you for this!”

Lavinia stared at him.

He pointed toward the car.

“I'm the victim here!”

Evangeline made a disgusted noise.

Valerie remained crouched beside the woman.

“Your wife needs treatment.”

“DON'T TOUCH HER!”

He moved between them.

Valerie looked up.

For a moment, Lavinia wondered whether she was about to lose her patience.

Instead, Valerie slowly rose to her feet.

Violetta approached the unconscious woman.

Her expression became serious as she listened to the woman's weakening heartbeat.

“Sir.”

The man turned.

Violetta gestured toward his wife.

“She's bleeding internally. If you don't allow us to help her, she's going to die.”

He stared at her.

Then his expression twisted.

“I'm not listening to another monster!”

Violetta's smile disappeared.

“I'm telling you that her condition is critical.”

“GET AWAY!”

Ophelia exhaled sharply.

“Either let us help her, or she dies. It's really that simple.”

Rosaline folded her arms.

“We could just restrain him and treat her.”

The man immediately crouched and pulled his wife into his arms.

“DON'T YOU DARE!”

He glared at them.

“I know what you're trying to do! I'm not falling for your lies!”

Lavinia watched him.

The woman's breathing had become almost imperceptible.

Her heartbeat fluttered.

Once.

Again.

Then it stopped.

Lavinia's ears twitched.

She crossed her arms.

“It doesn't matter anymore.”

Valerie turned toward her.

Lavinia looked at the woman lying motionless in her husband's arms.

“She's dead.”

Silence followed.

The other vampires stared at the man with expressions ranging from disbelief to outright disgust.

He didn't seem to understand what had happened.

He continued holding his wife, glaring at the vampires as though they were waiting for an opportunity to attack him.

Violetta sighed.

“We did what we could.”

The man looked down.

“Hey.”

He shook his wife's shoulder.

“Hey, wake up.”

Nothing.

His expression changed.

“Come on.”

He shook her again.

“Wake up!”

Gwendolyn returned from the truck, carrying its injured driver carefully in her arms.

The man was bloodied, his clothing torn, but he was conscious.

“Thank you,” he murmured.

Gwendolyn smiled gently.

“It's okay.”

She lowered him onto the pavement, making sure he was comfortable before looking toward the other wreckage.

Her smile faded.

“What happened?”

Valerie glanced toward the grieving husband.

“He wouldn't let us help.”

Gwendolyn listened briefly.

Then she looked at the motionless woman.

“Oh.”

Her ears drooped.

“The man in the truck was injured even worse than she was,” Gwendolyn said quietly. “I gave him some blood, and he's okay now.”

She looked toward the husband.

“She could've survived too.”

The man suddenly scrambled to his feet.

“YOU!”

Lavinia turned toward him.

“YOU KILLED HER!”

She blinked.

“What?”

“YOU KILLED MY WIFE!”

His voice cracked.

“If you'd just waited for medical professionals, she'd still be alive!”

Lavinia stared at him for several seconds.

Then she absently twirled a lock of golden hair around one finger.

How could someone be so oblivious?

He'd been told repeatedly that his wife was dying.

He'd watched them rescue her.

He'd prevented them from treating her.

And now he was blaming them.

Lavinia tilted her head.

“If you want, you can get back into the car and wait for an ambulance to pull you out.”

The man's face twisted.

Then he charged at her.

He grabbed the front of her black dress.

“YOU THINK THIS IS FUNNY?”

Lavinia looked down at his hands.

Then she rolled her empty crimson eyes.

“Actually, yes.”

The man froze.

Lavinia looked up at him.

“You wouldn't let us help her. We told you she was dying, and you kept getting in the way. Now you're blaming us because she died.”

Her lips curled into an incredulous smile.

“So yes, I think that's pretty funny.”

His fist struck her face.

Again.

Lavinia sighed.

She caught his wrist before he could withdraw it, applying just enough pressure to make his fingers loosen around her dress.

He gasped.

“Let go!”

“You first.”

His grip released.

Lavinia pushed him backward.

The movement sent him stumbling several feet before he fell onto the pavement beside his deceased wife.

She straightened her dress.

“That's the second time you've hit me.”

Her crimson eyes narrowed slightly.

“Don't try for a third.”

Valerie huffed.

Then she turned and kicked the rear of the totaled car.

The metal caved inward with a tremendous crunch, and the rear windshield shattered into countless fragments.

The man flinched.

Valerie looked toward him.

Her expression was cold.

Lavinia glanced at the damaged vehicle.

“Valerie.”

“What?”

“You're going to make it even harder for the insurance company.”

Valerie stared at her.

Then she snorted.

Despite everything, Rosaline laughed.

Ophelia shook her head.

“We should've just left them alone.”

Adelaide glanced toward her.

“Ophelia...”

“No, seriously. Now he'll go around telling everyone that vampires killed his wife.”

Evangeline clicked her tongue.

“He killed his wife by refusing to let us help.”

“He'll still blame us.”

“Let him.”

Rosaline glanced toward the truck driver, who was sitting quietly on the pavement.

“At least he took it better.”

Gwendolyn nodded.

“He was really badly injured. I gave him a little blood because I wasn't sure he'd survive otherwise.”

The man looked up at her.

“Thank you,” he said again.

Gwendolyn smiled.

“You already thanked me.”

“I know.”

His voice was unsteady.

“But I mean it.”

He glanced toward the wrecked truck, then down at his body.

Only a few traces of blood remained where his injuries had been.

“I thought I was going to die.”

Gwendolyn tilted her head.

“You were hurt pretty badly.”

The man swallowed.

“Even if an ambulance had gotten here immediately, I don't think...”

He trailed off.

Then he looked up at her.

“Thank you.”

Gwendolyn's expression softened.

“You're welcome.”

Lavinia watched the exchange with a faint smile.

At least someone appreciated their help.

The distant sound of sirens reached her ears.

Gwendolyn looked toward Violetta.

“Do we have to wait for the police again?”

Violetta shook her head.

“There are cameras covering the intersection. Everything that happened should be recorded.”

She glanced toward the approaching emergency vehicles.

“We don't need to remain here.”

Lavinia nodded.

“Good.”

The grieving husband was still shouting something, although his voice had become hoarse enough that his words were difficult to distinguish.

Lavinia didn't bother listening.

A soft rustling filled the air.

Then came the sound of enormous wings unfurling.

Black membranes spread behind the vampires, their shapes briefly obscuring the lights from nearby buildings.

Several pedestrians stopped and stared.

The truck driver looked up in astonishment.

Gwendolyn smiled at him one last time.

“Take care!”

Then she leaped into the air.

The others followed.

Lavinia spread her own wings and pushed off the pavement, rising rapidly above the street as the city opened beneath her.

The husband's cries faded into the distance.

Soon, the buildings were little more than illuminated shapes below them, and the roads became narrow ribbons of moving headlights.

The cool night air swept through Lavinia's golden hair.

Valerie flew beside her, her orange hair streaming behind her shoulders.

“I was this close to punching straight through him.”

She held up two fingers, leaving barely any space between them.

Lavinia laughed.

“I'm okay, Valerie.”

“He hit you twice!”

“And neither punch hurt.”

“That's not the point!”

Lavinia smiled at her.

“I know.”

Valerie huffed, although her expression softened when Lavinia reached over and briefly squeezed her hand.

Gwendolyn approached from the other side.

“I would've put him back in the car.”

Lavinia turned toward her.

“Gwendolyn!”

“What?”

“You can't just put people back into wrecked cars!”

“He said he didn't want our help!”

Rosaline laughed from behind them.

“He certainly made that clear.”

Evangeline shook her head.

“Some people are unbelievable.”

Cordelia glanced toward the distant city.

“At least we managed to save the other driver.”

Celestine nodded.

“And we tried to save the woman.”

Lavinia looked ahead.

That was true.

They'd tried.

And if they'd simply restrained the man and given his wife vampire blood, she would probably still be alive.

It would have been easy.

Any one of them could have held him down without difficulty, and he wouldn't have been able to do anything about it.

But then what?

They would have forcibly restrained a human and administered vampire blood to another without consent.

Even if the woman survived, how would the incident be described afterward?

Would people praise them for saving her?

Or would they be accused of assaulting two humans and conducting some sort of supernatural experiment?

Lavinia could already imagine the arguments.

The husband would probably insist they'd attacked him regardless of the outcome.

And there would undoubtedly be people willing to believe him.

She sighed softly.

It was an unpleasant thought.

They possessed the ability to save people from injuries that would otherwise be fatal, yet even offering that help could become complicated.

Violetta had spent much of the afternoon defending her decisions to cooperate with vampires.

Now they'd encountered a man who would rather let his wife die than accept their assistance.

Lavinia wondered how many more situations like that awaited them.

Then she looked toward Gwendolyn, who was happily flying beside her again, her earlier irritation apparently forgotten.

Valerie remained close on her other side.

Ahead of them, Violetta led the group toward the distant Diverged Lands.

Lavinia smiled faintly.

They'd done what they could.