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expect me to join you on this ridiculous escapade, I suggest you let me in.” Vincent’s voice rattled through the intercom carrying an accent I recognized, but couldn’t quite place.
    I pressed the buzzer and the thought of him being near me sent chills down my spine. What was he even doing here? Before I could answer my own thought, Vincent’s fingers tapped along the door in an annoying, chipper melody.
    I grabbed the silver handle and pulled the giant oak slab towards me. Vincent’s golden orbs looked up at me and an amused expression played at his lips. Black hair was styled in perfect spikes, decorating his head and contrasting the pale skin that covered his body. His shirt was a shiny yellow silk, mostly unbuttoned and revealing a smooth chest. His shirt matched his shoes in an odd collaboration, and black pants fit snug against his legs.
    “Could you have left me out there much longer?” Vincent pushed past me. This was one of those moments where I wished vampires actually had to be invited in. “Gods know what kind of monsters are running amok. This town is full of them, you know.” Vincent walked into the room and twirled around in an overdramatic maneuver. The smile that accompanied his words managed to be both suave and unsettling.
    “You don’t say,” I replied, closing the door.  
    The awkward silence I thought I'd avoided settled over us. Vincent’s golden gaze flickered between Rayna and me, his smile changing to one of pure satisfaction. “Have I interrupted?”
    “No,” I said.
    Vincent’s hand came to his mouth, idly tapping a finger over his lips. “A lover's quarrel perhaps?”
    “Who’s a quarrel?” Willy asked, jumping down the last step with Tiki behind him.
    Willy’s flannel shirt was missing buttons, flaring out over acid washed jeans with a hole in the knee. The beard he was still trying to grow stuck out in awkward patches on his chin, never growing past stubble.
    “Wonderful, the help is here.” Vincent rolled his eyes.  
    Willy jumped back into Tiki, nearly knocking them both down. He regained his balance and stumbled against the wall, his skin turning a dark brown to match the paint.
    “Wha–, wha–, what’s he doing here?” His stutter thickened as his brown eyes found Vincent.
    “He’s coming to the meeting. I already told you that.”
    “Yeah, we–, well, I thought he’d me–, meet us there. You know, like you do at meetings.”
    I shook my head. “Tiki, I told you, you have to wear clothes today.”
    Tiki stood in the same rags he’d come here in. Baggy white pants were stained with dirt and hung from his waist with a frayed rope. His shirt was missing, revealing smooth caramel skin that covered an overly muscular body. His eyes were solid orange with the exception of large, white triangular pupils in the center, and the look on his face was not happy.
    “Chase Williams, I do not like the clothing here. It is tight and uncomfortable. Especially when it bunches around my–”
    “Okay, that’s more than I need to hear. Come on, we’ll try to find you something…less restricting,” Rayna said, leading Tiki upstairs.
    “My, you do like to associate yourself with pathetic creatures, my dear hunter,” Vincent said.
    The door opened before I could respond and the large body of Marcus walked in. Marcus’ dark gaze fell over the room, and he frowned when he saw Vincent. “I thought you were going to meet us there.”
    “See?” Willy chipped in.
    “Please. You think I’d go there alone? The only reason I’m even coming is to appease your associates. My family doesn’t need any more unwanted attention from your kind.”
    “I told you, the Circle has sworn an oath of safe passage for all of you tonight,” Marcus said.
    Vincent laughed. “I’ve not survived five centuries by believing in the oaths of hunters. I’ll come with you, but you will see to it that the Circle keeps their word, or my family and I will retaliate. Although we’d prefer to