Chapter 6

"You are playing with fire, Will, an element that is none too friendly to our kind." Stefan had ushered Will into another room then launched into a tirade the second the door was shut.

"I don't know what you mean."

"This Darci, this ingénue of yours… Tempting as she is, she's a liability. You're going to risk exposing yourself. Do you want Draken to know of your presence here?"

"I am being careful. I've only met her a few times in the daylight." Will was trying to sound nonchalant, but deep down in his heart, he knew Stefan was right. He had survived this long by not flaunting his differences. Lately he had been reckless, but he had wanted to see her so badly.

"They only need to see you once and it will be over." Stefan came forward and placed his hands on Will's shoulders. "Do it gently if you must, but let her go. Perhaps you should go away for a few months, too, just to be certain no damage was done."

"Maybe you're right."

"You are not like the rest of us, Will, but you are not human either. Getting involved with them can only lead to trouble, unless you plan to turn her—"

"No! I would never inflict this on her!" Will pulled himself free from Stefan's grasp.

"Then you must end this and soon. We have been friends for many years now, Will, and when I found out about you, I kept your secret. But I will not risk my own life for you. If I think your actions are about to jeopardise my situation here, I will not stand idly by and watch you ruin everything I have worked so hard to achieve. Remember that. Now, let us return before your guest wonders what has happened to us."

* * * *

A feeling of unease descended over Darci as she waited alone in the room. The images on the walls around her seemed to crowd in, suffocating her. The photos had not worried her at first; they were not real. It was just art after all. But now that she was alone, they seemed gruesome and unnerving. She tried shutting her eyes to block them out, but then all she saw instead was herself within the images, her lifeless body draped provocatively in front of the dark death-like figure in the background, her eyes wide open, empty and unseeing.

"Did you want a drink?" Darci's eyes shot open, and her whole body tensed at the unexpected voice. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," the girl added.

"That's okay," Darci said, taking the proffered glass. "I was miles away I'm afraid."

"I do that sometimes too." The girl wandered across the room and flopped down onto a chaise lounge, her long, skeletal legs sticking out. She gestured for Darci to join her.

"Stefan said you were his assistant, is that right?" Darci asked as she perched carefully on the edge of the chair.

"Oh yes, I help him with things."

"Like modelling?" Darci prompted, confused by the girl's cryptic answer.

"Oh, no, Stefan likes me too much." The girl seemed lost in thought for a moment. "I'm Liza by the way."

"Darci. If you don't mind my asking, how old are you? It's just that you seem pretty young to be…"

Liza laughed, though Darci noticed the mirth never reached her dark circled eyes. "Everyone thinks that, but I'm actually twenty-two. Hard to believe isn't it?"

Before Darci had a chance to say anything further, the door opened and Stefan and Will walked in. She could tell at once that something was wrong. Stefan smiled at them, but the gesture looked forced, unnatural even, and Will kept his lips tightly pursed, frown lines creasing his forehead.

"Are you ready to go?" Will asked her, eyes fixed on the ground.

"Yes, if you have everything you need."

"Let's go then." Will turned and marched out of the room, and Darci hurried to follow him.

"Goodbye, cherie. Perhaps we will meet again sometime." Stefan's voice floated after her as she half-ran down the corridor to catch up with Will.

They walked down the stairs in silence. Darci wanted to speak to him, to find out what was wrong, but she didn't know what to say, and his expression was black and forbidding so she kept her peace, waiting for the right opportunity to break the silence.

They reached the front door, and Will hauled it open. He took a step outside and turned to see if she was coming. At that moment, when his head was turned, a man appeared from nowhere and smashed into him, knocking him sideways and out of Darci's view.

"Will!" She ran forward, but before she could get through the door, she found it slammed shut in front of her.