“Hush, Sofia. You do have the tendency to ramble when you’re trying to defend yourself.” Corrine eyed me before once again giving Derek a wary glance. “Follow me. There’s someone I’d like for you to meet.”

As Corrine led us along the round ledge we were standing on, I could sense Derek’s discomfort. I wondered if it was difficult for him to be around all those humans. I instinctively grabbed his hand and squeezed. His grip on my hand tightened. To me, the gesture was well understood. I was there for him and he was grateful for it. I looked around me at the place shrouded with darkness.

“How is everyone able to cope without sunlight?” I found myself asking. During the months I stayed with Derek before leaving The Shade, we were given doses of Vitamin D along with other nutrients – I wondered if all humans were given this treatment.

“Most of the people who live here at the Catacombs were born here,” Corrine explained. “It’s hard to miss something they never actually had. They get nourishment of Vitamin D from supplements. The lack of sunlight does weaken them however, in ways that artificial nutrients could never make up for … the average life span of the humans on this island is not long.”

I glanced at Derek, remembering the Sun Room and everything it took just to give him a glimpse of the sun. The lavishness of his penthouse seemed an excessive extravagance compared to the drab living conditions of The Shade’s human slaves.

Corrine went down a spiral wooden staircase leading to the level below. We followed. I could sense curious eyes on us as we trailed behind Corrine who didn’t even bother to check if we were still following her.

“A vampire and his migrate…” a young woman whispered to an elderly one with graying hair.

“Beautiful young woman,” the older woman responded. “Poor thing.”

I knew Derek heard too because his grip on my hand tightened just enough for me to sense his tension, but not enough for it to be painful.

We kept following Corrine as she took a turn toward a tunnel – wider than the one we entered. It was the same tunnel the children had retreated to. We passed several arched doorways. I strained my neck to see what was through them, but only saw darkness. Corrine kept walking until she stopped in front of one of these entrances. We walked in and found the two children we saw earlier bundled up with their mother – a beautiful woman with dark auburn hair and a sad smile. Sorrow filled her eyes. Inside what I assumed was their home, were three cots – very similar to the ones found in the Cells. An old table was positioned in one corner of the room, upon which a single candle flickered.

Corrine must’ve noticed me staring at the candle. “Not all the areas of the Catacombs have electricity - even though The Shade’s power plant wouldn’t even exist without human labor. Those who don’t have electricity get a ration of candles every week – candles that humans also make.” Her eyes were on Derek.

I shifted glances between my two companions and shifted my weight from one foot to the other. “How do they generate electricity?”

Derek answered me this time. “An effort was made to make sure that The Shade was as self-sufficient as possible. The island has its own power plant, farms, factories… made possible by humans who live on the island.”

“When the island is in need of certain expertise,” Corrine added, “the vampires abduct someone who has it. No human abducted has ever been able to leave the island. Until Ben and you…”

At this, I gave Derek a grateful glance, knowing fully the risks he took by letting us go. He didn’t even look my way. Corrine shrugged it off and stepped into the room. The auburn haired woman was whispering consolations to her children before she looked up at us. Fear was in her eyes – magnified tenfold when she saw Derek standing by the door.

“Corrine…” she shook her head, her lips trembling. “Please…”

“Don’t worry, Lily. He’s not here for you or the children.”

Derek flinched. He let go of my hand. I looked up at him and brushed a hand over his elbow before following Corrine inside. He remained by the door.

“I’m Sofia…” I introduced myself, my eyes specifically on the two little children.

“Lily.” She smiled faintly, but she still looked shaken, her eyes flitting from me to Derek. “These are my children. Rob and Madeline.”

“How old are they?” I asked.

She didn’t seem to appreciate my interest in her children. I found that strange because most mothers I knew – Amelia for one – pounced at the chance to talk about their kids. Not Lily. She put her arms around her children and gulped before answering, “Rob is seven. Madeline is five.”

“Relax, honey. She’s the girl I was telling you about,” Corrine tried to soothe her. The information made her even more nervous. Her eyes fell on Derek.

“That means he’s…”

Corrine nodded. “Derek Novak.”

Tears began to show in Lily’s eyes. “I can’t lose my children!”

“Why would you lose your children, Lily? No one’s going to take them from…”

I was silenced by the look of pity she gave me and then her kids. “You don’t understand, Sofia. You’re a Migrate. You weren’t born here. You don’t know what it’s like. I fear for my children, because just like my husband was, they’re beautiful. Beauty isn’t something you want your children to have. Not here at The Shade. Beauty almost always assures death.”