It was a dream. The barking dogs, everything.
     Evonne looked around her room. The sun’s light told her that it was midday. A nice long shower and a late breakfast called out to her. It would be what she needed to erase the strange dream from her thoughts.
     Before she could pull herself out of bed, she heard someone knocking at her door. Settling back into the bed, she the covers up to her shoulders and called out, “Come in.”
     The door opened and David stepped inside. “It’s 11 a.m.,” he began, closing the door. “I tried calling you on the intercom but you never answered.” He walked around her bed and investigated the intercom on the nightstand. It was switched off.
     Evonne struggled to remember. “I may have turned it off.”
     “You missed all the excitement last night,” David informed her as he turned on the intercom. “Something had the dogs on edge for an hour.”
     So the dogs were barking. “Did they find anything?”
     “Nothing.” David walked over to her window and looked out. “We’ve increased security,” he said, facing her. “And you slept through all of that commotion?”
     Evonne stirred and gave a fake yawn. “Apparently.”
     “What…” David moved to the bed and sat down. He saw something that caught his attention, something that caused his stomach to drop. He urged the covers down to gain a better look.
     Evonne instinctively placed a hand to her neck. As the hand made contact, she felt the pain return. Last night was real? Her mind reeled, unable to grasp the complete events from last night.
     “Someone was here last night, Evonne,” David said. “Tell me what happened.”
     “I don’t know,” she lied, “I can’t remember.”
     He tried to catch her eyes. “Evonne, this isn’t a little matter. Do you know what this means? A vampire managed to break in here and leave without being seen. That has never happened.”
     She looked up at him, her face showing desperation. “Please don’t tell anyone. Don’t tell my father.”
     “I have to.”
     She sat up, fear in her eyes. “David, I’m asking you sincerely, as a friend. Don’t tell him.”
     He took her hand into his and kept his voice serious. “You have to understand. This isn’t something that can be swept under the rug. This concerns your safety and the safety of everyone here. I can not ignore that.”
     “You can’t tell him. Please, he’ll blame me, I know he will.”
     “He won’t blame you. It’s not your fault. There was nothing you could have done.”
     She looked away. “Or could I.”
     David narrowed his eyes at her. “What do you mean?”
     Evonne paused, choosing her words. “I was awake. I saw him. He even spoke to me.” Her eyes returned to him. “Please, don’t tell my father.”
     “What did he say to you?”
     “I don’t remember.”
     He lightly squeezed her hand. “Yes, you do. Evonne, did you take any of his blood?”
     She appeared hurt by the question. A small exchange of blood wasn’t strong enough to harm her in any way, but it was something she had heard about. Some called it a “blood bond.” Vampires would form a bond to a human through blood and use it as a means of tracking them or laying a claim.
     “No,” she replied. “I know better than to do that.”
     “Good. What did he look like?”
     Evonne shook her head. She didn’t want to lie to him, but an inner voice told her that she must. “The room was dark. I didn’t get a good look at him. David, you have to believe what I say. He doesn’t want to hurt me. Don’t ask me how I know this, I just do.”
     “He’s a vampire,” David tried to remind her. “They can not be trusted. You know that!”
     “Don’t tell my dad, please,” she continued to beg. “Please, David, as a friend.”
     He let out a sigh in disbelief at what he was going to say. “As your friend, I will do as you ask. But if anyone suspects anything or if something else happens, even if it’s a stray cat stirring up the dogs, then I will tell him what happened. Understand?”
     Evonne happily nodded. “Thank you.”
     “However,” he added, “if you see him again, do not say anything, just get away as fast as you can. Promise?”
     She nodded. “I promise.”
     Against his own better judgment, David chose to keep promise and say nothing to Alex. As a true friend, he wouldn’t go back on his word. To see Evonne looking at him in distrust, it pained him greater than anything he could imagine.