Before I even considered what I was doing I was running across the room. People gave me strange looks but I didn’t care. I ran full speed, vaguely seeing the faces of the people I passed including Logan, who gave me a surprised, curious look as I ran past him, and into her waiting arms. She caught me, a half expectant, and half surprised expression on her face.
“Hello there, sweet girl.” She held me close, her hand holding the back of my head to her shoulder. She hugged me for a moment, before releasing me and stepping back. “You cut your hair” she said, reaching out and touching the ends of my long hair.
“I can’t believe you're here” I said breathlessly. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”
“I didn’t know I was, until today” she smiled.
Callie was an advisor to the council, so I didn’t get to see her as much as I would have liked.
“Besides, I wanted to surprise you” she said stroking my hair, tenderly.
“You sure did, I’m so happy you're here.”
She laughed. “I was afraid Claudia would spoil it” she looked towards Claudia, who was facing the other way, deep in conversation with Ben. “You know how she gets and I didn’t think she’d keep her mouth shut”
“She almost didn’t” I said remembering how desperate Claudia had been to get back here. “I’m sure she would have been too afraid of you to spill it, though”
“Oh, I’m real scary” she laughed again. “How have you been?” She smiled, reaching out and taking my right hand.
“Callie!” someone behind us called.
I had been about to answer but was cut off when Alana walked up. Callie gave me an apologetic smile, before turning towards Alana. “Just give me a sec” she whispered to me quietly.

I nodded. While Alana was asking Callie her opinion on the whole deal with the hunters, I took the time to look at Callie and see how much she’d changed.
At 30 years of age and being a living vampire like me, Callie hadn’t changed much in the last 6 months since I’d seen her. She was relaxed in black slacks and a pale blue top. She wore black Jimmy Choo heels that made her look taller than her 5”4 height and her short black hair was pulled up in a messy bun. Her face was tanned from, both her years in the sun and her Spanish background. With large dark brown eyes, she was dazzling.
Most vampire myths are false, including the one that says that once a person becomes a vampire they automatically become attractive. Other than our metabolism becoming faster, resulting in us not gaining weight like a human would, our physical appearance doesn’t overly change. An immortal vampire however, is paler because they can’t venture out into the sun.
I could tell that Callie was watching me out of the corner of her eye as she continued to speak to Alana and I felt my self-confidence drop. Usually I look fairly good but today I knew that I didn’t. I was tired and I had been pushing myself to catch up on the work I was behind with at school. And it showed, even I knew that. Although over all I didn’t mind how I looked, she’d seen me look worse and I was just so happy to see her.
Two other council members joined the conversation and I knew that it would be polite to leave and let them talk privately. Callie had a very important job. She’d seen and experienced a lot, being an ex-Death Walker, and her advice and opinion was highly valued within the council. Squeezing Callie’s hand goodbye, I moved off to the side.
I looked for Claudia, but not finding her I chose to walk over to one of the many tables filled with food and poke around. I noticed a pitcher of blood, but decided against it. It would be better to drink when I was alone, in private, and with not so many hunters around. I had a plate filled with all sorts of bread and different cheeses, and had just walked over to a couch, when I looked up and saw Logan walking beside me.

Not expecting anyone to sneak up on me I nearly dropped my plate. Regaining my composure, I sat down. “What’s going on?” I indicated the room, filled with people and popped a piece of bread into my mouth.
He took a seat in one of the two arm chairs sitting across from the couch, separated with a coffee table. “Your council came down when they heard of the progress we’d made on the Micah mission.” He looked around, unhappily. “We didn’t expect so many vampires.”
I swallowed what I had been chewing. “I figured something like that. All the you guys are on edge.” I cringed. “Well, more than usual anyway.” I corrected. What was I saying? The hunters were always on edge around us, Logan especially. Which reminded me.....
I eyed him sitting across from me. What was he after? It wasn’t like him to want to socialise. “Is there something I can help you with?” I asked. Our truce aside, I didn’t want to have any more contact with him than was necessary.
“Yes, actually there is.” He sat back in his chair. “As things are getting more complicated, we want to be able to keep track of the vampires we are working with” he said formally. He glanced over at Frank and frowned. He wasn’t happy with this; I could read it on his face. “Anyway, the vampire you were just talking to. What is her name?”
“You mean Callie” I looked back at her, still talking to Alana.
“Oh, right Callie de Melina. As in advisor to the council?” he asked.
“Yes, that’s her” I said looking back and meeting his questioning eyes.

“Okay, thanks.” He glanced up, met Franks gaze and nodded. Frank nodded back, before walking away in the other direction from where we were sitting. Logan looked like he was about to say something, but apparently changing his mind, begun to get up.
“Wait. What were you about to say?” I urged him. I wasn’t blind and I certainly wasn’t stupid. I could see there was something he wanted to say, it was in his eyes.
“It doesn’t matter” he said gruffly, shaking his head. He was already on his feet.
“If it matters to you, then it matters” I told him, quoting something my mother had once told me. “Go ahead, ask”
He slipped back down into his chair. “Alright” he shrugged. “You told me to ask” he warned me. He looked directly into my eyes. His face and eyes both intense. “Callie, she’s your shire, isn’t she?”
That wasn’t something I had been expecting. My first instinct was to tell him that it was none of his business and that I wasn’t going to tell him anything. However, when I stared back into his eyes, I didn’t see his usual coldness, all I saw was curiosity. So instead I told him the truth.
“Yes she is. Callie was the one who turned me into a vampire” I tilted my head to the side, still looking into his eyes. They were so deep. “How did you know? Who told you?”
“No one” he shook his head. “No one had to tell me” he glanced down before looking up and meeting my gaze again. “I’ve been around vampires for a long time. I’ve seen how they act and how they act around their shires. But you,” he cut himself off.
His eyes bore into me and I sat staring at him, unable to speak, yet waiting for him too. “That, well, that was something different. That’s for sure” A smile played at his lips and he ran his hand through his hair absentmindedly.
I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed. I don’t know where it came from but I suddenly was very unsure of myself. I shrugged. “I’ve missed her.” I told him honestly. “I haven’t seen her in months”
“I could tell” he said and I was somehow sure he could, even if my actions hadn’t proved it. He continued to look at me, not speaking and he looked like he was trying to figure out the answer to a very tricky puzzle. Neither one of us spoke until Callie walked over and sat down next to me.

“There you are, sweet girl. I’ve been looking for you. Oh, sorry. I didn’t realise you were talking to somebody” she said, noticing Logan. “I don’t think we’ve met, I’m Callie de Melina” she extended her hand, offering to shake hands and smiled.
I looked at Logan, wondering how he would respond. He looked down at her hand briefly before taking it. “Logan Miller.”
After shaking hands Callie let go of his hand and leaned back, stretching. “The hunter? I’ve heard a lot about you”
Logan’s eyes flicked towards me and away so fast that at first I thought I had imagined it. “From whom, may I ask? Good things I hope?” he narrowed his eyes, a clear challenge towards Callie.
She merely laughed. “Good and bad hunter, good and bad. Mainly positive things from Quintenn but some from Claudia.” She gave him a dazzling smile. “You’d be surprised to hear that most of the negative thoughts about you came from you own superiors.”
This time he laughed a genuinely amused laugh that was rare for him. “Actually I’m not that surprised. They don’t approve of the whole charge in, gun’s blazing technique that I prefer.” He looked at me, including me in this conversation. “But if you ask me, it’s more fun that way.”
Callie winked. “I hear you. Life’s more fun if there’s a little bit of danger.” She bumped her hip to my own. “Don’t you agree?”
I shook my head slowly, glancing between the two of them “I don’t know,” My eyes settled on Logan. “Sometimes life’s too dangerous to be fun.”

Wether he understood that that was a reference to hunters or not I never knew. He never had a chance to answer because at that exact moment a hunter came rushing in, up to Frank, who briskly exited the room, ushering Logan to follow him.
“Excuse me” he said, nodded to Callie and walked off.
We watched him leave. “I wish all the hunters who attacked me looked like that” Callie whispered in my ear, watching his butt as he walked off. “I may just give up and play dead. Yum!”
“Not you too! You, Claudia, even Erin for god’s sake. You all should form a fan club” I said rolling my eyes.
“You're trying to tell me he’s not hot?” she teased.
“He’s attractive, I never said he wasn’t” I muttered. “It’s just too bad he’s got zero personality.”
That had her burst out laughing. “Tell me, sweet girl, everything that I’ve missed while I’ve been away and spare me no details. Claudia will just fill them in anyway, so don’t even bother.” She brushed back my hair. “I’ve missed you.”
“Me too. I’m glad you're home, if only for now.” I told her, before launching into a recap of everything that that happened in the last 6 months. I told her everything from my issues at home, to things with Erin and the whole deal with the hunters and what I really thought of them.