When she finally let herself relax, she felt the man loosen his hands over her. Heidi couldn’t see who it was as the man had a hood over his head with a large, black cloak. As the voices of several men approached them, the man blended himself into the dark wall.

Through the little gap, Heidi caught sight of a man running past them but to be only be shot making him fall limp on the ground. The sound of the gunshot mingling with the rain as blood seeped out of his body and she gasped seeing the water turn red.

“Where is he?” One of the men asked while the others who had followed the man lying on the ground dragged him by his legs.

“He shouldn’t be far with the state he is in. Search the other side of the alley,” the group of men ran through the other street to pass them without any knowledge.

Once they were out of sight, the hooded man stepped back making Heidi shiver, bringing goosebumps over her wet skin. As she had been in the rain she hadn’t realized how cold the rain was.

“Thank you for your cooperation,” he said with his back facing her as he looked around the street and he then groaned softly like he was in pain. He leaned over the wall and clutched the side of his stomach.

A part of Heidi wanted to ask if he was alright but another part of her told her to mind her way as it would be better not to get involved with a stranger. Even though it was night and dark she could see the man move his hand to show a dark liquid on his hand. Didn’t vampires heal fast? Why was the man bleeding then?

“Are you alright mister?” she asked him worried as well as curious, seeing the back of his head hit the wall making his straight nose and pale thin lips peek through the hood. Hearing her worried self, the man’s lips quirked up softly.

“Don’t you know that you shouldn’t talk to strangers, especially to vampires, human,” he said softly to her enough for her to hear in the rain.

“Of course, I don’t speak to strangers! What do you take me for? It is only that you were bleeding and I was-you know-worried. Well excuse me for intruding but I wasn’t brought up to leave an injured person lying on the ground without an aid!” Heidi said making the man chuckle, “Why are you laughing?”

“I apologize,” he smiled and then clutched his stomach again before moving his hood from his head to reveal a face which was carved to perfection. Even in the dark, Heidi could see his strong jaw with pale thin lips as he ran his tapered fingers through his wet hair. She was staring at him when he asked her, “Talking about aid, I don’t know how long I am going to keep bleeding. Where do you live?”

Would it be alright to take a vampire home? She bit her lip worriedly, if the Curtis family knew about it, they would skin her alive. But he was an injured man. Surely her mother in heaven wouldn’t mind if she showed some kindness. Taking into account that he hadn’t tried attacking or drinking blood from her, she spoke,

“My house isn’t that far. Will you be able to walk?” she asked him to which the man looked at her. She didn’t know what he was thinking but when he stood up straight as she felt that his answer was yes and she took him to his house.

Heidi had made the man take a seat in the dining room and when she came back with a first aid box in her hand, she felt her mouth open at the sight of a half-naked man. The man had taken off his shirt, dabbing the cloth she had given him for his wound, turning the cloth red now. His slightly muscular form was now moving to dab the side of his stomach as there was no doubt that he had been stabbed with a knife gruesomely to form a bloody mess.

“Here, this is the first aid box. Please help yourself, I will be in the next room if you need something,” Heidi said averting her eyes away from him.

“And here I thought you would help the injured man,” he commented making her look up at him. His eyes peering down her brown ones.

“I am sure if you have the energy to run your mouth, you can also finish tending to your wounds yourself,” she said, turning her back to him quickly and then said, “I didn’t know human medicines worked on vampires.”

“They don’t.”

“They don’t? Why are you using them then?” She asked him confused.

“Let’s just say that my butler experimented something with my drink this noon to make me seem more human.”

“Can that happen?”

“Yes but it lasts for only a few hours.”

“I hope your butler is alright,” Heidi murmured with a smile, “He should be really brave to do something like that.”

“Oh, he is very brave. Brave enough to be ready to starve for an entire week. What’s your name?” he asked her. Sharing her name wouldn’t be a problem, after all, she wasn’t someone of high importance and did she didn’t have any money either.

“Heidi,” she could hear the cap of the antiseptic being opened and closed as she answered, “What about you? Why were you being chased after?”

“Curious thing aren’t you. Let’s just say that some things are better not known and left ignored because ignorance is a bliss. I think I will need a last favor from you,” she heard him say it to her and she turned around to see if he was done bandaging himself. He now wore one of Daniel’s shirt which she had given him.

“What is it?”

“I think my body has restored back to its original state,” he said stalking towards her making her gulp.

“Congratulations?” she asked him wearily making him smile.

“Well, thank you but I am feeling very very thirsty right now,” he said making her panic, “Like really warm so that I quench my thirst.”

“I-I don’t think I can help you with that Sir…” she said slowly backing towards the wall and she felt her back hit the wall as her head began to turn dizzy.

She felt the man lean forward and then speak, “If it’s not tea, I am fine with coffee too.”

“Huh?”

“I always feel like drinking warm tea when it rains. Don’t you?” he asked her with that charming smile making her smile back uneasily at him.

She didn’t know why but for a second it felt like he was really going to drink her blood until she wilted like a dead flower. When she came back from the kitchen with a cup of tea, the man had already left with a note on the dining table.

‘Thank you for your hospitality.’

He hadn’t signed neither had he revealed his name at the end. Sighing, she took a sip of tea from the cup. The dark creatures were strange, she thought to herself.