Victoria stood trembling; wishing Ahmed would just take her in his arms once and make her feel he cared for her. He just stood with his mouth open, looking stunned by her words: "I'm leaving the house, I'm going...somewhere...I'll be back late."

Victoria turned and ran out into the hall. She went to her room, gathered a few things, then went to the nursery. Victoria kissed her daughter goodbye, and then she went out and got her Rey from the garage.

Victoria didn't know where she would go. She started toward the city, but broke down crying before she'd gone very far. She pulled the Rey over and parked it on its underwheels, waiting until she was collected enough to drive. She spent some time leaning over the driving stick sobbing. And when she looked up and saw she was not far from the Village.

Victoria started up the Rey and drove through into and then through the Village. She drove all the way out to the Villa. She started crying again, at the door. She'd already rang, so she waited for someone to answer the door.

The door opened and Victoria came face to face with a lean, black-hair woman. "Yes?"

"I've got to see Orchid," Victoria told her.

"I'm sorry, but he's always asleep at this time of day. If it's very important, you might call after lunch."

Victoria felt the tears burst from her eyes. "Please, I must talk to someone, I don't know where to go."

The woman made a short nod. "I can't promise that he'll see you. But, I can invite you in and bring you something to drink." She slipped an arm about Victoria's shoulders. "What's your name? I am Eleni Sandrunner-Lightfoot. I assist Orchid in running things here."

"Oh." Victoria recognized the family names. "You're one of the Wolfbreed."

"I am," Eleni said.

"My name is Victoria Jinnah. I've thought Orchid a friend for some time."

"You are safe here," Eleni said. She led Victoria through halls tiled in cobalt. The plaster covered walls had painted borders near the ceiling showing Egyptian hieroglyphs and the doors had gilt arches for frames. They came to a dim room at the back of the Villa.

"Sit down, please, I'll bring you some refreshments and see if Orchid can possibly get up. You do know it's hard for him."

"Yes," Victoria said, but honestly this had not crossed her mind before entering the house. She looked about the room. It had windows that were all heavily draped. One wall had a triptych of three large paintings,

The central and rightmost paintings each depicted a figure that bore a resemblance to Orchid. In the central one he was draped with a bit of gauze and being bitten by a vampire who had gold skin and straight black hair. In the right painting, the figure that looked like Orchid was lying with a lily held to his chest, and bleeding from a wound there.

The room didn't comfort Victoria much. Other walls were dominated by a patterned wallpaper in an intricate, dark floral design, and the furniture was all upholstered in greens. She felt she was in an enchanted garden.

Eleni came back, she brought a tray with her, holding a pitcher of fruit juice and one of ice water, and some pastries and small pieces of grilled meat, as well as a box of tissues. Victoria thanked her, wiped her face and hands then poured herself a glass of pomegranate juice and water. "I told Orchid you were here. I don't know if he'll make it down, but you're welcome to stay, especially if you have a problem. We'll be having lunch in a while, if you stay."

"Thank you, I'll wait at least till then. I don't want to be trouble."

"It's no problem," Eleni said.

Victoria just nodded.

When Orchid had not arrived by lunch time, Victoria went to the kitchen with Eleni, where a group of women, children, and young men were gathered. They were served from a buffet and then most  moved from the kitchen to eat. Some of the women stayed at a kitchen table, while the smallest children were sent into the adjacent sun room; the older ones walked farther away. Victoria washed her hands and then sat down to the large lunch with the group of women.

Eleni introduced her daughter Benezir. And then another woman, who Victoria thought must be Anglo-Indian like herself, introduced herself as Jaya Tagore. Jaya said she was a singer who gave lessons in the Villa. There were a few other: mothers from the Village who came to the Villa every day to help teach the children.

They said the Villa was Orchid's house, but he never needed more than a few rooms to live in, so for years he had offered his house as the Haven house. Newcomers stayed in the Villa till they could find places to live, and orphaned children lived there, sometimes close friends stayed, and Eleni stayed as Haven Assistants always had.

Orchid had previously told Victoria that he was not just any Vampyre, but one of their Haven Keepers. She had not understood it meant he cared for so many. She wished Ahmed could find that in himself.

"Victoria, why don't you tell us your problem?" Jaya asked.

"I don't think I should. I would like to tell someone, but I don't know how to tell it without telling it all. And I don't want to tell you certain things, as they would insult people you don't know."

"I bet it's a man," Jaya said.

"It's my husband, and it is not. Please, I'd rather not have to explain myself."

Jaya nodded.

Victoria saw a slender man come into the room. He had blue hair to the roots, and so she thought he was probably half Angel. He wore the same style of jewellery Orchid often wore, although in silver. He looked right at her. "He's going to come down...in a while." And then he got himself some food and sat down next to Jaya. He introduced himself as Morpheus. Victoria thought it was a rare name; something she'd read once while in school, and heard in an old American movie.

Some time later, Orchid came down from his rooms. He was dressed in a white robe, with a train that ballooned at his feet as he stopped inside the kitchen. He was holding a crystal goblet by its cup, drinking something red from it, and he was smoking a cigarette. "Excuse my attire, Miss Jinnah, I came to you as fast as I could manage," he said.

Victoria stared. She'd never seen him in anything but a suit. In white silk he looked absolutely angelic! "I really needed to talk to you," she said.

"Finish your lunch," Orchid said. He sat down beside Morpheus and sipped from his glass. She guessed it was blood. Even knowing he was a Vampyre, she'd never witnessed him drink. Back in school, once, she had tried drinking blood. She hadn't liked it.

The front door sounded. In a rush, a woman with her face and hair hidden by a black scarf moved into the kitchen. She seemed too suddenly at the edge of the table, where she removed the scarf and a pair of dark glasses. Her hair was black, and her eyes deep brown, but she was pale as a lily besides. "You're up! Do you have a disc with Jinnah on it? I need it!"

Orchid dropped his goblet to the wooden tabletop. "Laila!"

"What disc with Jinnah on it?" Victoria asked.

Orchid looked at her silently for a moment, and then abruptly he laughed. "Oh not you, Dear.  Jinnah. you know Muhammed Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan. Laila is going to take the disk to our friend in the Village who is doing historical research."

Victoria bowed her head and laughed. "Oh, I should have guessed." Ahmed couldn't have anything to do with this Vampyre lady or Orchid.

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Secret: Eleni hyphenated her name upon marrying Ibrahim. She grew up as the daughter of the Matriarch of the Sandrunner tribe of Wolfbreed.