Placing her fingertips on the napkin, she dragged it closer to herself and folded it up in her palm. Just what was this guy thinking?

“Well, that’s it for me, I have to head out,” Scott said, standing. “I do hope to see you again sometime. And remember, I was human not too long ago. Your mentor never was.”

Madeline watched curiously as Scott walked away, meeting up with an older gentleman that she assumed was his sire. Without looking back, the pair walked calmly past the podium at the far end of the ballroom and then turned to exit down the long hallway.

Rolling the linen-like paper in her loose fist, she thought about the meaning behind his words. He was right, to a degree. She wasn’t free by any means, but she was safe. Or at least she felt she was safe. The more she contemplated it, the more she realized being safe was a relative state of mind. She had gone from being a more-or-less normal girl, to being kidnapped by monsters, to living with a guy who fed off her less than pure thoughts. Comparing where she started from to her current state made her realize that safe wasn’t really safe.

“Hey, everything okay?” Levi asked as he approached the table looking concerned. “You look troubled.”

“I’m fine, just getting a bit tired I suppose,” she said as she clutched the cocktail napkin tighter. “Putting on airs under this environment is a bit much.”

“Well, I was just coming over to collect you so we could leave,” he said looking her over. “Not to mention I am sure there are a lot of questions bouncing around in that head of yours.”

“Are you sure?” she asked. “I know how much of a big deal this event is for you, and I wouldn’t want to make you cut it short.”

“I normally don’t close it out,” he admitted. “Fashionably late, and exiting fashionably early makes it look like I have somewhere else to go.”

Madeline nodded at his perfectly logical explanation.

Offering her a hand, Levi helped her slip out of the booth and up to her feet. Offering her his arm, the two exited the Golden Lotus leaving the rhythmic rumble fading behind them. She wrapped her warm shawl tightly around her shoulders as they stepped outside into the cold, late October air. Sliding into the back of an awaiting taxi, Madeline leaned against Levi for warmth, which he was happy to provide.

“I am not doing this for any sort of gratification, okay,” she said, making her intentions perfectly clear. “I am chilly, and you are warm, end of story.”

Levi was amused by her declaration. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

He could hear her grumble at him.

In another taxi on the other side of town, heading in the opposite direction of Madeline and Levi, Scott sat with his sire, Cole.

“So how did I do?” Scott asked, trying to judge the evening.

“You’ve accomplished your task well,” Cole responded. “Master Gideon wanted you to make contact with Ms. Madeline, express your concern over her well being, and give her your number. You’ve also sown the seeds of mistrust in her mind, which is probably the most important objective. She needs to realize how deadly that felinae is so she will come to us. Right now, as with most of his victims, she’s so attracted to him she can’t help but stumble on her path.”

“So what now?”

“Stay in town. Watch her. Be there for her,” Cole instructed. “When he breaks her heart, be her knight in shining armor and spirit her away.”

 -----------------------------------------------------------------------

It was extremely difficult for Madeline to hold all her questions until they arrived home. She fidgeted in the taxi, through the lobby, and all the way up the elevator. When they finally entered the foyer and Levi locked the door behind them, it was like a verbal damn broke.

“Caslon and Tiff, felinae. Keith and Kane, felinae. Maseo, Terrant, and Micheal, vampires. And Scott is a vampire because he straight up told me, even though I guessed it already. So how many did I get right?”

“All correct, except for Caslon and Tiff,” Levi confirmed.

“Wait, what?” Madeline placed her hands on her hips in disbelief. “They had cat-like ears just like the others.”

“Cat-like, yes. Felinae, no,” Levi corrected.

Kicking off her heels, Madeline thought carefully back on their ears and how they were a different color pattern than the others she’d seen tonight, and she remembered one more important thing she had overlooked. Unlike domestic cat ears, theirs were not as pointy.

“Ah, so they are pantherinae then, not felinae,” she concluded as she reached to pick her shoes off the floor.

“Correct.”

“Gwen is the only one I can’t figure out,” she admitted. “I didn’t get the feeling that she was a shapeshifter, or a vampire.”

“You are correct on both counts.”

“She had to have created those lights because I swear I would have noticed them before. And that confetti. That was amazing,” Madeline thought out loud.

She paused for a moment as a thought occurred to her.

“Was she fae?” she asked Levi hesitantly.

“Yes, she is fae,” Levi confirmed. “I’m proud of you. You did really well.”

“So tell me about the glitter!”

“That’s a fae trick,” Levi revealed. “Remember how I told you fae can affect people’s minds? Their sanity?”

Madeline nodded.

“The confetti is an illusion. It tastes like whatever the person experiencing it wants it to taste like. That’s why if you concentrate, you can change the flavor.”

“So then it was just plain paper?” Madeline asked, trying to understand.

“No, there was no confetti at all. It was just Gwen messing with everyone’s senses.”

“Then what about the lights? The ones I didn’t notice until they took the stage?”

“She created those too. They were fairy lights, not anything mechanical. From what I know of the fae, fairy lights are pretty easy to create, Gwen just dressed them up a bit and spun them in sync with Michael’s music,” Levi explained.

“It was so amazing,” Madeline smiled, remembering. “So do all non-humans tend to mingle together in groups like that?”

“What do you mean?” Levi asked, confused by her wording.

“Well, Gwen’s not a vampire, but she appeared to be in a relationship with one, and is in a band with them too. Is that normal? To have different ‘groups’ hanging out together?”

Levi fell silent for a moment, trying to come up with the best way to word his answer.

“In a word, no, it’s not normal,” Levi confessed. “Certain circumstances placed Gwen in Maseo’s care. And it’s definitely not customary for shapeshifters to befriend undead, or vice-versa. As harsh as this may sound, especially coming from me, it’s best to assume the different factions hate each other, because that’s usually the case.”

“I see,” Madeline acknowledged solemnly, staring down at her feet.

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence before Madeline found herself unable to stifle a yawn.

“Well, I’m going to get some sleep,” she stretched, turning towards her bedroom.

“What are you going to do with his number?”

“Excuse me?” she paused, turning back around.

“His phone number. What are you going to do with it?”

Madeline froze. How did he know? She’d thought she was clever, hiding it in her palm and acting casual about it, but he knew the whole time. The idea was a bit frightening.

“I… I don’t know,” she stuttered. “He seemed nice and all, but I am not sure if I ever plan on calling him, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Worried?” Levi repeated, almost as if he was slightly insulted. “I’m not worried. If anything it should be you that’s worried. It’s not a wise idea to get into a relationship with a vampire. You never know when they’ll get the urge to kill you in the middle of the night.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” she replied, feeling rather awkward. She was about to once again head to her room, but felt an apology was in order. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to… I wasn’t trying to deceive you. I just didn’t want to seem rude to Scott, and I wasn’t sure if his number would come in handy later.”

“You don’t have to explain yourself. I’m not going to tell you who you can and can’t see, but I am going to tell you who’s dangerous. Now go get some sleep. You did well tonight.”

“Thank you,” Madeline said sincerely before she finally went to her room and closed the door behind her.

Setting the crumpled cocktail napkin on top of the dresser, she unzipped her black dress and hung it carefully on a hook fastened to the back of her door. It took her only a few minutes to wash up, slip into her pajamas and crawl into bed. Before she fell asleep, she thought back on what Scott said about Levi being dangerous and manipulative. He definitely had it in him, but something deep down inside told her that wasn’t necessarily true. Growing up, she had many instances where her intuition protected her from potentially bad situations by throwing up red flags in her head. Neither Levi, nor any of his friends raised any of those red flags. Not even Tiff, who she was positive hated her.

Out of nowhere, her grandma’s words echoed in her mind.

Let your instinct be your guide.

She wasn’t sure what had triggered that memory, but they were wise words to follow, especially at a time like this. Wrapping her fingertips around her opal, she decided she would continue to give Levi her trust and ignore Scott’s accusations unless some solid proof demanded otherwise.