"He's cute," Hannah remarked, making a slow circle around my ex-boyfriend. Her eyes homed in on Zach's backside as though evaluating exactly where she wanted to take a bite. "I can definitely see the appeal."

A slow rage burned in the pit of my stomach. "He's unavailable."

"Calm down, Blake. I didn't say I want to date him." Hannah traced a finger down the hill of Zach's biceps, raising goosebumps in its wake. She looked at me then, one brow raised. "Why do you care anyway? You're with John now."

Ignoring the vampire, I instead turned to John. "Can you fix him?"

"What was Margaret doing with him?" he said.

"I don't know. Doing what Margaret does best, which is toy with people. She used him to get to me."

"Why?"

"Because she thought I could tell her where Ian is. She said Mr. Abernathy has a job for him. She said she scoured the town looking for him but couldn't find him."

"What did you tell her?"

"There wasn't anything I could tell her. Like you, I have no idea where your delinquent sire disappeared to. I said her father would have to find someone else for the job, and that was that. Now, will you finally help Zach, or do I have to beg?"

John, who appeared to be enjoying Zach's mental incapacitation just a little too much, said no more about Ian. "You try first."

"I already tried," I said. "It didn't work. I couldn't . . . uncompel him."

"Maybe the problem is your pessimistic attitude," Hannah remarked.

I rounded on her. "I'm not being pessimistic. I'm being honest about my own limitations. Do you think I would have brought Zach here if I could have helped him myself? What will happen when he comes to? He's going to have a ton of questions about how he got here and what we're doing and—" I swirled my finger in Hannah's direction, indicating her tight, low-cut sweater and equally tight jeans. "Who the heck you are."

"Don't worry about that," John said with a casual shrug of his shoulders. I wasn't sure whether he meant the way Hannah was dressed, or the questions Zach was guaranteed to have. "After we undo Margaret's compulsion, we'll compel him to forget the entire incident."

I ran my hands through my hair, tugging at the ends in frustration. "There seems to be a lot of compelling going on. I don't like the idea of messing with a person's mind, especially someone I care about. Why couldn't I have gotten a different power, like the ability to fly or . . . or evaporate into mist?"

"Please," Hannah answered, wrapping her arm around Zach's waist and snuggling against him. He stood immobile, oblivious to our arguing, as well as the very attractive vampire hanging off his side. "Those are make-believe powers. Being able to compel humans and other vampires is a rare talent. Not many of us have that gift, so show a little gratitude in your superiority."

"You sound like Margaret," I said. Hannah responded with a slight smile, continuing to trail her fingers up and down Zach's arm.

"What good is my talent if I can't figure out how to use it?" I complained. "The only vampires I will probably be able to compel anyway are those who are younger and weaker than I am. In case you didn't notice, there aren't exactly a lot of new vampires walking around town. I can't even compel Olivia!"

"It's not impossible to manipulate those who are older and stronger than you in your inexperienced state," Hannah informed me. "Just highly unlikely."

"Whatever."

Untangling herself from Zach's side, Hannah jabbed a finger in my chest. "You know what, Blake? You're coming very close to sounding like a whiner. And I hate whiners."

"Well boo-hoo for you." I shoved her finger aside as the blood rose to my cheeks. My gums ached as I fought to rein in my anger.

"C'mon, Blake," John said. "Don't be like that. We're only trying to help."

"Then tell her not to be like that!"

Hannah leveled her gaze at me. "I'm going to let you in on a little secret: The more you practice compulsion, the stronger you will become. It's as simple as that. Margaret is as talented as she is because she's centuries old and has had a long time to perfect her technique, but I'm not too shabby myself. Why? Because I make it a point to practice."

"Thanks for the advice. And here I thought I just naturally sucked. Good to know I'm just lazy."

"Look, all of us Compellers start out weak and inexperienced, some more so than others. I assumed you would figure that out on your own." The corner of her mouth rose in a half-grin. "Also, I didn't want to brag about my own skills in light of your apparent lack thereof."

A high-pitched giggle preceded Bridget as she descended the stairs, and we turned in her direction. "How very unlike you not to brag, Hannah."

"Contrary to what some people might think," she replied, "I am not a snob. I discovered my talent purely by accident and had no one to help me refine it. Call my methods unorthodox, but I take Blake's training very seriously. John and I cannot face Margaret alone. Blake is our element of surprise—she can diffuse the situation—but she's got a long way to go before she's able to take on vampires as mentally resilient as Mr. Abernathy and Margaret."

"Then let's get started," John said. "I'm done listening to you two arguing."

"Fine," Hannah said. "I was ready five minutes ago. Perhaps you should ask your girlfriend how committed she is to saving this town."

"I'm committed," I snapped.

Hannah stood back, gesturing to Zach. "Great. Newbies first."

Resolving to put Hannah out of my thoughts, I shook out my hands, bouncing on the balls of my feet. "All right," I said. "I'm ready. What do I do?"

"Just focus," John said.

"Focus," I repeated, clapping my hands together as I rolled my neck. "Got it. What do I say to him?"

"All you have to do is tell him to wake up," Hannah said. "It's that easy."

"Right." I stopped bouncing and planted myself a few inches from Zach, gazing into his vacant eyes. I took a deep breath as I lifted a quick prayer to whoever might be listening. "Wake up."

"I'm fine, Blake. How are you?"

Hannah's laughter was explosive. Even little Bridget began giggling behind her hands. "Try again," said John, suppressing a smile.

Leading Zach to the couch, I pushed on his shoulders to make him sit. Although he was staring back at me, there was nothing there. I wondered what he was seeing and hearing, if not us.

"Zach . . . wake up!"

"I'm fine, Blake. How are you?"

I threw my hands in the air. "This is pointless. When you compelled me that day at the lake," I said to John, "I was still aware of what was happening around me. But Zach . . . it's like he's just gone. Why does he keep repeating the same thing over and over?"

John scratched his temple. "Because Margaret is good."

"Here's a little trick I used when I was first getting a feel for my powers," Hannah said. "Imagine a connection between your mind and Zach's—a physical link, like a chain or rope. See if that helps."

"Oh, very good idea!" Bridget said, watching the scene intently from the sidelines.

"All right," I said, astonished that Hannah was, for once, being helpful.

Planting my feet and squaring my shoulders, refusing to give in to frustration, I tuned out the sights and sounds around me: Bridget sitting primly on a chair in the corner, John hovering behind me waiting to see if I would fail or succeed, Hannah scrutinizing my every move. None of that mattered now. My only concern was undoing Margaret's compulsion and returning Zach to his normal self.

"Zach," I said, keeping my voice even-toned but authoritative. "Wake up."

There was a small wrinkling of his forehead where his brows momentarily pulled together, just a brief expression of doubt that was so minor I nearly missed it. And then: "I'm fine, Blake. How are you?"

"Damn it!" I exploded, sinking onto the couch next to him. I braced my forearms against my thighs and hung my head. What was wrong with me?

John didn't sound nearly as disappointed as I felt, however. He whooped with excitement. "Did you see that? You almost did it!"

"I wasn't entirely unimpressed," Hannah added, though seemingly with reluctance.

"Try again," Bridget encouraged, rising from her chair to be closer to the action. "I know you can do it. It takes only patience and concentration."

"Only," I muttered. Still, I once again imagined a physical connection—a slack rope being pulled taut—between my mind and Zach's.

"Wake up, Zach. Please. Just wake up!"

Zach blinked, his eyes focusing briefly on mine. As quickly as the veil of confusion lifted, however, it descended yet again. "I'm fine, Blake. How are you?"

"Oh, for God's sake. This is too painful to watch," Hannah said, shoving me aside. She stooped in front of Zach and commanded: "Wake up!"

Zach blinked spasmodically. Confusion clouded his face as he focused on the strange vampire peering intently into his eyes. He reared back. "Hello!"

I pushed Hannah out of the way. "Is it really you, Zach?"

He looked at me as though I'd lost my mind. "What's going on? Where am I?"

"My house," answered John.

Zach looked from me to John, his confusion deepening. "How did I get here?"

"That's not important," I said. "Tell me the last thing you remember."

For a moment Zach just stared at me, but I could see the wheels turning as he struggled to clear away the remaining mental fog. Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Margaret Abernathy," he said slowly, as though trying to grasp a fleeting memory. "I remember Margaret Abernathy."

John and I shared a look. "What about Margaret?" he asked.

Zach shook his head, a frown pulling down the corners of his mouth. "She told me to call Blake. She told me that if I didn't cooperate, she would do the same thing to me that she did to Olivia."

"She really likes throwing around that threat," I said.

Zach met my eyes. "What did she do to Olivia?"

"She ruined the poor girl's life, that's what she did," Bridget answered.

"Huh?"

"Olivia is fine," John assured Zach. To Bridget he said, "There's no need to exaggerate."

"You're calling what Margaret did to Olivia—what she could have done to Zach—exaggerating?" I said, my voice rising.

"Blake—"

"Who are you?" Zach said to Bridget.

The little vampire smiled sweetly as she came over and patted Zach's hand. "An old friend."

A deep crease lined Zach's forehead, and I could only imagine how disoriented he must feel. I had to set things right.

"Margaret Abernathy is a vampire," I blurted out.

The furrow in Zach's forehead deepened. "Huh?"

"She bit and infected Olivia with vampire venom. You know Thomas Abernathy, right? He completed the transformation and made Olivia a vampire so she wouldn't die."

A million different emotions flitted across Zach's face, settling at last into a comical gape of disbelief. "Blake," he said carefully. "Are you high?"

"I don't think you should be telling Zach any of this," John said beside me. "It goes against vampire law."

"What does it matter?" I said. "You're going to compel him to forget anyway."

"I agree with Blake," Bridget said. "Let the poor girl have her say. It will be therapeutic for her to clear the air with her friend."

"Fine." John shoved his hands into his pockets and turned away.

"Oh, this should be good," Hannah said, plopping down on the couch next to Zach. She waved her hand. "By all means, proceed."

"First of all," I said to Zach, ignoring Hannah, "I'm not high. I've been wanting to tell you the truth for months now, but I haven't been able to."

"We're still friends. You can talk to me about anything," Zach replied.

I shook my head slowly, full of regret over the pain I kept inflicting on him. "Not about this."

"We used to be close, Blake. No secrets, remember? We can't just go from having everything to having . . . nothing."

My heart clenched, as though Zach had reached through the wall of my chest and now held it in his fist. "Yes, I know. But things changed, Zach. We've been over this before. Lots of times."

"Things changed," he mocked, throwing my words back at me. "I know. Like how you broke up with me to go out with him." Zach gestured angrily in John's direction.

Hannah rubbed her hands together greedily, obviously enjoying my discomfort. "Should I pop some popcorn or—"

"Quiet!" Bridget hissed. "Do not make things more difficult for Blake than they already are. Young love is never easy."

"You always spoil my fun," Hannah muttered.

I took a deep breath, once again indebted to the little vampire's uncanny ability to keep Hannah in line. "One of the reasons why it would never have worked out between us is because I'm a vampire, too."

Zach's mouth fell open and I quickly continued before he had a chance to respond. "I was bitten and infected over the summer. Remember when I was sick? That was the venom. I was dying, Zach. I would have died if I hadn't been made a vampire."

"You're kidding, right?" Zach glanced around the room as though looking for something. "I'm being punked. There are, like, hidden cameras everywhere and this is all just one big hilarious joke to make me look like an idiot." He smiled suddenly and laughed, pointing a finger at all of us in turn. "Let me guess, Gabe set this up. You got me Gabe!"

"You're not being punked," John said impatiently. "And she's not joking. Blake broke up with you because I put the suggestion in her head. She had little choice in the matter."

The smile fell from Zach's mouth and his expression turned stony. "You're lying. You're not a vampire. None of you are. I don't know what you all are up to, but this isn't funny."

He rose and I grabbed his arm to restrain him. "Zach, in a few minutes you'll be compelled to forget all of this. I—" I dug my nails into his flesh. "I need you to believe what we're telling you. I need you to believe me."

Zach stared at me, his normally warm and friendly eyes now cold. "The only thing you are is a liar. You lied to me when you said you loved me. You lied to me when you said we'd be together forever. You're lying to me now!"

"Good God, you're just as big a whiner as she is!" Hannah said. Wasting no more time, she came within an inch of Zach's face. Baring her fangs, she hissed menacingly, admittedly more dramatic than necessary. Still, she made her point.

Crying out in alarm, Zach attempted to scoot out of her reach but only succeeded in flipping backward over the couch. I moved quickly, crouching over him in a protective stance.

"Get away from him!" I yelled, my own fangs descending in response to the perceived threat.

Hannah's fangs immediately retracted and she jerked as though on invisible puppet strings, retreating at once into the kitchen.

"Did you see what you did?" John said, his mouth hanging open as he laughed.

"Well done!" Bridget echoed, clapping her hands. "Well done, indeed, my young vampire friend."

"What the hell was that?" Zach demanded, his voice high with alarm.

Hannah returned a moment later, a look of mingled shock and respect on her face. "Now we're getting somewhere," she said. "I think you've given me something I can work with."

"Get away from me!" Zach screamed, crab-walking until his back was pressed against the wall. He caught sight of me then, my own fangs cutting into my bottom lip as I attempted to keep them concealed. "Jesus, Blake. What is this?"

I covered my mouth with my hand. "I've only ever wanted to tell you the truth, Zach. You have to believe me. I never wanted to hurt you."

He made the sign of the cross with his fingers. "This is insane. Vampires don't exist. You're just—"

"We're just real," I said. "Zach, please tell me you believe me. Please tell me you understand that when I broke up with you, I never wanted to hurt you. I never—"

"Enough!" John yelled. "Hannah, do you want to . . . ?"

"My pleasure."

"No wait!" I cried, only belatedly realizing what she was about to do. But Hannah pushed me out of the way.

"You went to the mall and met a beautiful girl."

"Really?" Zach said, the look of horror on his face melting away, replaced by a goofy grin that I had once been intimately familiar with. "Who?"

"Me, of course," Hannah replied. Offering him her hand, she helped him to his feet.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Hannah."

"Hannah," he said dreamily. "I'm Zach. You're really pretty."

"Why did you do that?" I demanded. "I needed him to understand!"

"What difference does it make in the end?" Hannah said, rounding on me.

I stared at her, at first unable to get the words past my anger and disappointment. "What difference does it make?" I said at last. "What difference does it make?"

"Is there an echo in the room?"

Without thinking, I raised my hand and swung with all the strength I had, completely focused on hurting her as she had just hurt me.

"Stop!" John commanded, curling his fingers around my wrist before the flat of my palm could connect with Hannah's cheek. He squeezed, physically forcing me to lower my arm.

"I wouldn't go there," Hannah said, a low menace in her voice. Still, I hadn't missed the way she'd flinched, or the flicker of fear that flashed in her eyes, no matter how brief it was.

But really, what difference did it make that Hannah had compelled Zach to forget? I was a vampire; he was human. We would always live parallel to each other—as long as he was alive—but we would never again be an intimate part of each other's world.

"It makes no difference at all," I said finally, the breath rushing out of me.

"Exactly," Hannah said. To Zach, she added, "Come on. Let's get out of here."

"Where do you think you're going?" I demanded.

"To the mall," Hannah replied. "It'll be open for a few hours yet and I'm in the mood for a little retail therapy . . . among other things." She grabbed a handful of Zach's backside and squeezed, making him jump and giggle.

"You went to the mall yesterday," John said. "Besides, do you think going out is such a good idea? No one knows you're in town. If anyone sees you—"

Hannah pressed a finger against his lips to silence him. "Please. Give me a little credit. I know how to be discreet."

"Yes, but—"

"Let me put it this way," Hannah said. "If I don't get out of here, I'm liable to go crazy." She gave me a pointed look. "And I don't think anyone wants to see my crazy side."

"Then I will go along with you," Bridget said. "You can buy me a new dress."

"Thanks," Hannah replied, looking down her nose at the smaller vampire. "But I don't need a babysitter."

Bridget pursed her lips as she stood and returned the glare. "I didn't wish to be so forthright about the matter, but someone has to look out for the human boy."

"You don't think I can look out for him myself?"

"I'm positive you can," Bridget answered with a knowing smile. When Hannah made no reply, she turned to John. "We won't be gone long."

"Fine," John said. "Come straight home, though. Conrad Abernathy has instituted a curfew. You don't want to be caught."

When the door closed firmly behind them, I let out the hysterical laugh I'd been holding in. If I didn't laugh, I realized I would cry.

"What's so funny?" John asked.

"Absolutely nothing," I said, my laughter finally fizzing out.

The house was quiet—almost too quiet. I had gotten used to any number of vampires taking up space and invading our privacy, but John and I suddenly had the entire place to ourselves.

"Do you think Zach will be okay?" I asked, sobering quickly.

John took off in the direction of the kitchen, me trailing after him. "Are you concerned about Zach in general," he said, "or are you afraid of what Hannah will do with him?"

"Both, I guess."

"Hannah won't hurt him."

"You sound so confident."

He opened the fridge and withdrew a single bag of blood. Tearing the plastic with his teeth, he offered it to me first. "I know Hannah. She won't hurt him."

"But how do you know?" I insisted, taking a swallow of the blood.

"Because you love Zach, and Hannah knows that if she does anything to compromise his safety, it will kill you."

"She hates me, which is reason enough for her to do something to him," I pointed out.

"Maybe." He took the bag from me. "But she also knows that if she hurts you in any way, I will kill her."

"You would kill Hannah?"

The corner of his mouth lifted. "Well, I wouldn't actually kill her, but you know what I mean."

"I would absolutely kill her." I waved my hand, scattering such dark, complicated thoughts. "But it doesn't matter. I don't love Zach anymore."

John passed the blood to me once again. "Yes, you do. Maybe you don't love him like you once did, but you still love him."

"Maybe," I conceded, staring at the nearly collapsed bag in my hand. "It doesn't change the way I feel about you, though."

"I know." He touched the bag with the tip of his finger. "Finish it. I'm not hungry."

Bringing the bag of blood to my lips, I savored the sensation of the cold liquid hitting the back of my parched throat. I could practically feel the blood pumping up my veins, erasing the ashy pallor of my skin as it revitalized every cell of my body.

"Are you jealous?"

I nearly choked on the last mouthful of blood. "Jealous of Hannah?"

"Not of Hannah, necessarily, but of the next girl Zach will date."

I wiped the back of my hand against my mouth, my shoulders rising and falling as I thought about it. "I don't have any right to be jealous. I've been hoping Zach will move on."

"But letting go is difficult."

"Well . . . yeah."

For the longest time, it had been Zach and me. We'd been friends since elementary school, and we were convinced, like many first-time loves, that our relationship had what it took to stand the proverbial test of time. But then John had come along and I'd become a vampire. Still, Zach's feelings for me never wavered. I'd done everything to make him forget about me and move on, but he was determined to keep me perched firmly on this imaginary pedestal. Frankly, I didn't deserve it.

"It'll be hard to let go," I said, dropping the empty bag into the garbage. "It's for the best, though. Zach needs to move on. I just don't want him moving on with Hannah."

"Forget about them," John said, pulling me against his chest. "At least for right now. For the first time in weeks, we have the entire house to ourselves."

I grinned as John led me out of the kitchen and up the stairs. "So what do you want to do?" I asked. "I've still got a few hours before I have to be home."

John swept me into his arms and pushed open his bedroom door with the toe of his shoe. "I'm sure we can think of something."

*****

Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this chapter, please vote, comment, and recommend Blood Stain to others.