Kai had been through this procedure thousands of times. When his target’s eyes locked with his, the connection was made. He could bend their will to his with a simple suggestion. In terms of his job as Chief Interrogator, it was the easiest way to cut through the bullshit; a simple truth-telling command.

The glow and color change in his eyes was part of the influence vampires had over humans. Green was meant to instill calm; it was easier to keep the subject at his ease through a chromatic signal. 

“Tell me your name,” Kai said. His voice was soft, steady.

“Hunter. Hunter Reeves.”

“Can you tell me why you came to the club tonight?”

Seemingly in a trance, Hunter didn’t blink, but continued staring directly into Kai’s gaze. “I was depressed. I wanted to drink, but I couldn’t bring myself to order anything but ginger ale.”

“Why did you open the bathroom window just now?” Kai had to assuage his fears that somehow this kid had been part of what had gone down.

“I recognized a voice outside,” Hunter said.

“Whose voice did you hear? The older man?”

“No. The one offering the thumb drive.” Hunter continued staring into Kai’s eyes.

“How do you know him?”

“He’s an old f… former friend,” Hunter wavered in his response.

Kai took a pause to figure out what to do; he obviously needed to probe Hunter for more details. It required more interrogation, but a growing pounding on the men’s room door threatened to derail his concentration. There was no alternative; they’d have to continue their conversation outside.

“I need you to climb out the window and join me in the alleyway,” he said.

As if snapped awake from a dream, Hunter blinked and shook his head. “Screw that!”

The response was not what Kai had expected, not what he was used to. The green light in his eyes quickly died out. But he couldn’t let the shock sway the situation. He had to retain control.

“Look,” he said, “I’m gonna have to unlock the door at some point, and I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to explain to whoever comes in as to what two guys were doing locked in the bathroom together.”

“It’s a gay club,” Hunter replied. “There’s only so many things they’re gonna assume.”

Kai pondered the retort. “Fair point,” he conceded. “But, look — you may be a material witness to a criminal investigation. I need you to work with me here.”

Hunter sighed and nodded. 

Kai reached for the communication device on his wrist and pressed a button. “I’m coming out with a potential witness. Be prepared to seal the bathroom window once we’re out.”

Hunter stepped up to the commode and hoisted himself halfway through the window. He looked towards Kai, who had a hand ready to unlock the door. Nodding, Hunter jumped out.

A mere second later, Kai unlocked the door and took a dive through the window as the patrons behind busted through.

Hunter stood, frozen, in the middle of the alleyway, pointed towards the dead end where the dumpster was hastily shoved. 

Had he been looking back at the club wall, he would have briefly seen two hazy figures dash past him, slamming a piece of corrugated steel over the window and bolting it to the wall.

However, against the wall, he saw the DJ who had been inside the club a few minutes earlier, with his head buried into the neck of a man with greasy hair. Purple liquid poured from the man’s neck and was trickling down the DJ’s fingers.

“The fuck?”

The DJ turned his gaze to look at Hunter. He had fangs. They, and his mouth, were smeared with blood.

Hunter spun on his heels. Kai was looking at him again. His eyes were green and glowing again.

“Please stay calm!”

It didn’t work. “What the hell is going” —

Before he finished saying the word “on,” Hunter blinked and found himself in a seated position. With a few sharp breaths, Hunter realized he was on the roof of the building housing the club, the nighttime Dallas skyline surrounding him.

Kai was sitting, cross-legged, in front of him. He was talking into his wrist device again. “Clear the area now,” he said. “Get the cleanup team to the alley on the double.” 

Tears began to fill Hunter’s eyes. “What… what is…?”

Kai softly held up a hand. “Look. I promised to tell you as much as I can,” he said. “But I need you to understand: You may be in danger. So please, answer me honestly. For your own safety.”

Hunter gulped for air. “Who are you?”

Kai maintained eye contact. He may not be able to influence this guy, he reasoned, but keeping eye contact with him could go a long way towards gaining his trust. “I’m an investigator,” he said. “I was investigating the man you saw in the alley.”

“The one who- who- who I just saw…”

“Dead, yes.” Kai took a labored pause as he decided what to divulge. “He had already been found guilty of his crime and had been sentenced to death.”

Hunter blinked, his head swimming. “Don’t you have to be in a courtroom to be sentenced to … don’t you have to be in prison to be exec… why was the DJ biting him?!”

Kai bit his lip. “I have to make some very quick decisions here.” He paused again. “The DJ is… a vampire. As am I.”

Hunter’s eyes once again bulged with shock. “I’m losing it,” he said. “Or my drink was spiked or something. Investigator… vampire…”

“I can tell you more,” Kai promised, “but I must finish asking you what I need to ask to continue my investigation. You said you knew the other guy. What is his name?”

“Alex Cavas,” Hunter said. “He… W-we used to work at InnerCore together. When he said the company’s name, I knew that’s who was in the alley.”

“You didn’t know he’d be there tonight?”

“I hadn’t spoken to him in weeks,” Hunter said. “Not since I quit the company.”

Kai nodded, taking Hunter’s words as the truth. In decades of this work, he could easily pinpoint when someone was being deceitful. He offered a soft smile. “I have more to ask you, but I’m sure you want to ask some more.”

“You did just admit to being a vampire, right?” Hunter’s brow was furrowed, deeply concerned.

“Yes, and before you ask—no, we’re not all evil, bloodthirsty monsters. Every species has its good and bad actors. I try to live as good. And if you need proof…” He reached into his left pocket and pulled out a black handkerchief. He held it out to Hunter. “Your hand’s been bleeding since you got outside. I think you caught yourself on some broken glass.”

Hunter looked at his injured hand. Red coagulated blood  surrounded a nasty gash. He wrapped the hanky around it. “Thanks,” he said softly. “You FBI? CIA?”

Kai shook his head. “I can’t tell you precisely who, but it’s not a government body I work for.”

“What was that thing you’ve been doing with your eyes?”

This time it was Kai’s brows that furrowed. “One of the things vampires can do is influence humans’ behavior. We do that with controlled connections - with eye contact. We can cause a person to experience any range of emotion. The color and brightness of our eyes can help extract the result we want.

“If it helps any, green is meant to keep you calm. Did you feel… calm, at any point?”

“Not really,” Hunter admitted. “Why is that?”

Kai wasn’t certain of his response. “There are some humans who are impervious to vampiric influence. It’s… rare. I’ve never met one, myself.”

“Huh.” Hunter licked his lips. They were dry and chapped. He suddenly realized he was on a rooftop on an unusually cold-for-Texas January night. “I feel… really tired, all of a sudden,” he said. “Could we possibly continue this tomorrow?”

“Only if you promise me you won’t skip town on me,” Kai said. “I feel I can trust you. I don’t want to track you down if I don’t have to.”

Hunter nodded. “If you want, we could… meet somewhere?”

They stood up simultaneously.

“You’re not… afraid of me?”

“I’m not sure what I am at the moment,” Hunter said. “I just took in a lot of shit and I need some time to process it.”

“I understand,” said Kai. “Yes, let’s meet up somewhere tomorrow, around 9 p.m.”

“How about at the fountain at Anderson Park?”

Kai cocked his head as if to ask why that particular location.

“I always feel comfortable at fountains,” Hunter explained. “I think I could be the most helpful to you if I’m comfortable.”

The vampire nodded. “Er… do you want me to take you to ground level or” —

Hunter pointed to the ladder at the far end of the roof from where they stood. “I’d rather get down myself, if you don’t mind.”

Kai nodded and watched as Hunter swung himself over the ledge and onto the rungs of the ladder. In a few seconds, he was gone.

Moments later, Mugan zoomed past the rooftop and landed gently next to Kai, who had sat back down. “You okay, boss?”

“Yeah.” Kai appeared frazzled.

“Sorry about that dude seeing me suckin’ on the suspect,” Mugan said. He had a smooth, British accent. “Is he gonna be alright?”

“Yes,” Kai said. “He’ll be fine.”