Well, she was definitely lying about something, but that didn't surprise him. Nobody came to Veridian Shores without a good reason. He could wait to figure out hers. In the meantime, Capper reasoned, it couldn't hurt to have her somewhere secure until they got to the bottom of this newcomer's real purpose.

They walked side by side through the heaving dark streets of Veridian Shores, and he couldn't stop his eyes from flickering to look at her. Straight, jet black hair spilled down around her shoulders, and he couldn't fail to notice the streak of pure white that had been died through her fringe. Her skin was smooth and pale, like porcelain, accentuating the striking emerald green of her eyes. Despite the heavy-heeled boots (and he'd witnessed first hand the kind of damage she could do with them) she didn't quite reach his eye level, but there was a strong, determined Aspect there. She had a rare combination of youth and strength concealed in that diminutive frame.

Winding away from the clattering industrial hotspot of the docks, he led her into the body of the city, where the flow of humans never ceased. Music seeped through the walls of clubs and bars, the bass notes sending reverberations through the concrete pavement. Cars trundled by, their exhaust pipes vomiting smoke into the air, drivers and passengers alike leaning out of windows, whooping and screeching.

Capper glanced at his new companion and found her gazing at it all with a calculating curiosity. A lot of people were overwhelmed by their first exposure to the coastal hub's seething, dark night life, but Gliss didn't look overwhelmed. She looked intrigued.

That meant one of two things: either she'd been to the city before, or she was very hard to impress. He'd never met anyone from Iron Hollow before, but he knew something of the city from his histories. It was a rough, lawless place; a dark, granite-hewn mire compared to the heat and allure of Veridian Shores.

He led her through the throng of human party goers, past scantly clad women and braying, cologne drenched men, all of them ripe and ready, completely oblivious to the killers that walked among them. She caught his eye and a feline smile slid across her face. He suspected she was thinking the same thing. Her display on the docks certainly proved she was no stranger to the hunt, whatever her background.

It took several minutes for them to clear the river of humans. It occurred to Capper that he could have taken a speedier route, through the back alleys or over the roofs. But he wanted time to gauge this newcomer; study her reactions when exposed to the realities of Veridian Shores. So far she wasn't giving much away and that in itself kept him interested.

"You've never been here before?" he asked once they'd turned onto a quieter stretch of road.

"Never."

"You handle it well."

She winked at him. "I like it. It feels big."

"Bigger than home?"

"Much."

He smiled thinly. "I've never been to Iron Hollow. What's it like?"

"Colder."

Capper looked at her but she simply held his gaze, a mischievous glint in her eye. Okay, he thought. I can wait.

The pair turned another corner, now reaching a neighbourhood of tall, gleaming houses with railed balconies and huge, shining windows. He could still hear music ebbing gently from the high-class cocktail bars scattered up and down the open road, but everything about it was more restrained. The people that trickled up and down the pavements glittered with jewellery and money, and the smell of their well fed blood filled Capper's senses as they passed. He could tell from the hungry expression on Gliss's face that she could sense it too. Every now and again he treated himself, but the Clans couldn't operate openly here.

People tended to notice when the well-off started dying.

Clearing the tempting district, they made a final turn and Capper felt a sense of calm descend over him at the sight of home.

The Glaive estate sprawled out in front of them, a dark, gothic fortress of grey rock. A wall twelve feet high ringed the main grounds, its top surmounted with wrought iron spikes that glinted viciously in the moonlight. Capper could sense the Aspects of the guards patrolling the perimeter, as regular and predictable as a conveyor belt. He glanced at Gliss.

Those emerald eyes were wide now. He wondered if there were structures like this in Iron Hollow – if that was really where she came from. She was lying about something, but right now she looked genuinely impressed by what he knew was a relatively modest specimen by the standards of Veridian Shores.

"What do you think?" he asked.

"That is large," she said simply. "Very large."

"You'll get used to that." Capper motioned her to follow. "They do everything big around here."

"So I've heard."

He led her around the wall to the main gates where a block-like guard tower stood. He could see a dark figure inside it but couldn't make out the individual. Hopefully Beel was on duty right now.

He could see Gliss eyeing the tower suspiciously as they approached the large metal structure of the gate itself. A road led from it through the spacious estate grounds, winding like a grey snake up to the main house. Capper stepped over to the stone pillar on the far right where an old, rusting speaker grill had been installed. He pressed the transmit button.

"Capper to Gatehouse," he declared.

"Nice night for a walk," replied the guard and Capper let out a silent sigh of relief. It was Beel. "Who's your friend?"

"A stray I picked up over at the dockside," he explained, ignoring the furious look Gliss shot him. "She's looking for a place to hole up for a little while. I thought I'd let the Elders speak to her – see if they'll put her up?"

"Never could resist a pretty girl, could ya?"

Capper glared up at the dark figure in the gatehouse. "Are you going to let us in or not?"

"Touchy tonight aren't we?" There was a dull clunk as the gate's locking mechanism disengaged and the two halves split apart to admit them. "I'll let the Elders know you're coming."

"Thanks, Beel." The hinges of the gates hissed faintly as they opened, revealing the huge tracts of immaculately trimmed grass that flanked the road, and a symmetrical corridor of thin, tall trees. He stepped through the gate and turned to face his new companion, spreading his arms wide. "Welcome to the home of the Glaive Clan."

"Well, you certainly work the gardeners hard, I'll give you that much," Gliss replied smoothly, striding past him. She cast a glance over her shoulder and the white gleam of her smile twinkled in the night.

Capper frowned for a moment, shook his head in amusement, and then set off after her.

The trudge up the road to the looming bulk of the house took several minutes and during that time Capper spotted the flitting silhouettes of guards shadowing their movements. Their Aspects lurked dimly at the edges of his mind, barely present unless you knew what to look for.

"Do your friends always skulk around like this?"

At least that's what he'd thought. Gliss looked quietly satisfied with herself but he didn't give her the response she was fishing for. Instead he upped his pace as he caught sight of the main door of the estate. Six broad marble steps ascended to the pair of double doors that towered twelve feet in height, flanked by a pair of black-coated guards.

They didn't stop them – evidently Beel had wasted no time in passing the word along. Capper placed a hand against the door and pushed. With a low groan it swung open revealing the teeming atrium of the Glaive mansion.

"After you." He gave his companion a mock bow, making a grandiose gesture to the interior.

Gliss frowned and strode past him, the thick heels of her boots clumping against the floor.

The first room that anyone entered was designed to impress; a huge chamber with a high vaulted ceiling and a chandelier the size of a car hanging over it all like a fireball. Far below a deep, blood red carpet with golden edges formed a cross over the gleaming marble floor, and all around it vampires of the Glaive Clan moved.

A kaleidoscope of blue, purple, green, grey and black, all of them dripped with power, their Aspects filling the chamber. The women wore long, elaborate dresses, their ears, arms and necks heavy with glittering jewels. The men stalked from group to group, clad in carefully sculpted suits over lithe, sinewy frames. Words flowed; so did drinks and above it all a faint but unmistakable haze of cigarette smoke drifted.

Some glanced in their direction. Others didn't register their presence at all. It was generally a safe assumption that any unwanted guest would have been challenged well before reaching the mansion itself. However, Capper was still acutely aware of the dozen or so guards scattered around the gantries overlooking the atrium.

"Wow," Gliss muttered. He turned and saw her staring at the assembled vampires with a look of faint disgust. "That's quite a sight."

"Not your kind of party?"

She shook her head.

"Yeah, me neither." That extracted a smile from her. He found it quite an enticing sight. But as soon as it appeared something seemed to catch her eye and it vanished again.

"Who's that?"

He followed her gaze and a shiver went up his spine at what he saw. "Shit."

Another female vampire was storming across the atrium towards them and he braced himself, silently cursing his own stupidity. Of course Brooke would be waiting for him, and he could see the anger on her face. It didn't take a genius to figure out the cause. He turned to Gliss.

"Okay, this might get a little...animated," he said quietly. "Just let me do the talking."

She raised an amused eyebrow but before he could say anything else, Brooke was upon them. He turned back, feeling the anger of his clan-mate washing over him. Here we go...

"Capper, where have you been? And who the hell is this?!"

That was one thing he liked about Brooke. You could never accuse her of wasting time. He forced himself to meet her blazing coral eyes and swallowed hard. There weren't a lot of things that could make him feel guilty, but she had a hell of a talent for it. She was a full head shorter than him but that didn't make her any less intimidating.

The contrast between her and his newfound companion couldn't have been much more pronounced. Next to the rough, tough stray from Iron Hollow, Brooke was a model of the Glaive Clan aristocracy. Long straw-coloured hair rested perfectly straight around her delicate features, save for a single braid that hung down next to her left cheek. She wore a sleek, off-the-shoulder dress coloured the deepest midnight blue, and the silver necklace around her throat was studded with a sapphire the size of a golf ball. The slit in the right side of her dress revealed the pale, unblemished skin of her leg and emblazoned on her right thigh a tattoo of coiling flames glowed in the low light of the mansion. And it wasn't the only thing about her that did.

Gathering his nerve, Capper dived in. "Hey, Brooke."

"Hey?!"

"Relax – I was just down at the docks." He indicated the other girl tentatively. "And this is Gliss. She's from out of town. I thought the Elders should see her."

Brooke frowned as she looked the intruder up and down disdainfully. "Where's she from?"

"I'm from Iron Hollow," Gliss put in sharply. "And I can speak for myself, thank you very much."

"And what would someone from that glacial cess-pit want in Veridian Shores?"

"None of your damn business, princess."

"Brooke," Capper interjected quickly, shooting Gliss a warning glance. "That's what we're going to find out. The Elders are waiting for us right now."

"Why did you bring her here?" she asked accusingly.

"She was Ostracised – she's got nowhere to go."

"That doesn't mean we have to take her in."

"Name another clan that wouldn't have just killed her? She arrived on our land. That makes it our responsibility."

Brooke's eyes narrowed, unconvinced. "You know how unstable things are. We can't take chances. She could be anything! Anyone!"

Gliss let out a low hiss and he saw her eyes shift, ink-black pupils focusing on the smaller vampire. He quickly stepped between them.

Reaching out, he placed a gentle hand on the smooth skin of Brooke's arm. "I promise, I'll come speak to you later, but right now we have got to go. You know the Elders don't like being kept waiting."

She bristled, her slim hands clenching into fists by her sides. Eventually she nodded. "I'll see you later then." With that she flounced off and Capper silently thanked the First for releasing him from the confrontation. Taking Gliss by the elbow he guided her out of the atrium and through a broad connecting passage lit by gaslight.

"Well, that was a delight," Gliss sneered after they'd made it out of earshot. "Is everyone here as uptight as your little princess?"

"No, not everyone." Capper sighed ruefully. "I know Brooke can be kind of abrasive, but she means well."

"Does she? Seems to me like she just doesn't like other girls getting anywhere near you. What is she, your girlfriend?"

"It's ... complicated."

"I'll bet." She shot a look back toward the lavishly clad inhabitants of the mansion. "Must be nice having the luxury of simpering around the house all day trying on the prettiest dresses. Does that little soft-skin even hunt for herself?"

"Oh, she may not look like much," he replied. "But she'll fool you."

"I'll believe it when I see it."

Capper couldn't be bothered to press the point, and in any case they had more important things to think about. At the far end of the passage a pair of massive mahogany doors stood, both inlaid with swirls of gold and silver. That elaborately gilded structure led into the Sanctum of Elders – the seat of the Glaive clan's power and influence. A very tall man stood beside it, clutching a brass cane in one long hand.

"C'mon," he murmured, motioning her forward with a jerk of his head.

The man by the door stepped out to bar their path as they reached the double doors. He wore a long, dark coat that lay open, revealing the white silk shirt beneath. His oil black hair was swept back, slicked against his skull and his equally dark beard descended into a neatly trimmed point. Narrow, slate-grey eyes appraised them with a hint of suspicion.

"Just can't stay out of the limelight, eh, Capper?" he grated.

"You know me," he replied, grinning. "I like to keep the Elders on their toes." Capper looked at Gliss and gestured to the man. "This is Tithe, head of the Glaive envoys and seneschal of the clan Elders."

Gliss folder her arms, looking the man up and down dubiously. "That's a mouthful."

Tithe gave a derisive snort. "Ill-mannered little scarecrow isn't she?"

"Well, nobody's perfect."

Gliss bristled at that. "Screw y-,"

"The elders are waiting for you," Tithe rumbled over her indignant outburst. "You'd both do well to keep a civil tongue. They're not as tolerant as I am."

"I'll make sure she doesn't insult anyone." Capper winked at her. She scowled but didn't argue.

He stepped toward the door but Tithe's cane shot out to bar his path, catching him hard in the stomach.

"Hey!" he yelped stepping back in surprise. "Are we going in or not?"

"Take your hat off."

"Huh?"

"Take your hat off!" the older vampire hissed impatiently.

"Oh..." Capper gave a sheepish smile and swept the beanie off his head, revealing his shaggy mass of light brown hair. He caught Gliss's eye; saw her smirking. Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, thunder-foot, he thought. "Now can we go in?"

Tithe shook his head in exasperation and turned, pushing the formidable double doors open. The huge slabs of wood parted and the seneschal led them into the inner sanctum of the Glaive Elders.