Samson turned to the two men. “You have your orders, and not a word to anybody for now.”

The two grunted their agreement and, with a nod of their heads to Gabriel, strode out the door.

“What are they—?” Gabriel started.

“We have a situation.” The look on Samson’s face was serious. “Come, we need to talk.”

Samson waved him into the living room with its authentic Victorian-era furniture. Gabriel followed, a strange sense of foreboding settling in his gut. His boss and friend of many years always had a calm demeanor, but tonight he was different. His black hair was ruffled, his eyes worried, and the lines on his face spoke volumes.

Samson stopped in front of the fireplace and turned back to Gabriel. Even in June the fireplace was lit to provide warmth against the foggy night. “I know you’re anxious to return to New York—”

“I was planning on taking the jet to—” Gabriel interrupted.

“I’m sorry, Gabriel, but I’ll have to pull rank on you. I need you here. You can’t leave.” Samson’s announcement came as an utter surprise.

“What?”

“I know you want to go home, but I need you to run point on this for me. Ricky is useless right now. Ever since Holly broke up with him last month, he’s just not the same.” Samson ran his hand through his hair. Ricky was Gabriel’s counterpart in San Francisco—the Operations Director. Gabriel didn’t say a word. Something was wrong, seriously wrong if Samson found it more important for him to stay in San Francisco rather than get back to work in New York.

“This is too important. Believe me, I would have Amaury take care of it, but he and Nina need some time together. He’s practically on his honeymoon holed up at his place. I can’t do that to him right now.”

Gabriel nodded. “What’s going on?”

“Sit down.”

Gabriel sat and waited until Samson did the same. “I’ve never seen you like this.”

Samson gave a mirthless laugh. “I guess my responsibilities as a husband and expectant father don’t go well with having a newly turned vampire in the house.”

“A newly turned vampire?” This was indeed a shock. A newly turned vampire was a danger, unable to control his urges, liable to attack anybody. That Samson was uneasy made perfect sense. His wife Delilah was human and pregnant with their first child. She would be a prime target for any new vampire.

“She was attacked tonight.”

“Delilah? Delilah was attacked?” Gabriel felt adrenaline shoot through his veins.

“No, no. Thank God. Delilah is fine. No. This woman—a human—she was attacked and turned. The two bodyguards who just left—Eddie and James—scared off her attacker and went to help her. Her eyes had already turned black, so they knew the process had started.”

A human’s eyes turning entirely black with not a spec of white remaining was a sure sign of the turning. Only once the turning was complete would the eyes turn back to normal.

“They brought her here about half an hour ago,” Samson continued. “She must have been attacked on her way home. We have to find her attacker and take him out.”

Gabriel understood. “A rogue. As long as he’s out there, he’s a danger to everybody and particularly to her if he realizes we’re sheltering her.”

Gabriel and his colleagues despised vampires turning unsuspecting humans against their will. It was a major infraction in their society—a crime in fact—punishable by death. A vampire’s life wasn’t easy—Gabriel of all people knew this for a fact. He therefore believed in protecting a human’s right to choose and wouldn’t force this life on anyone. He’d punish anyone who violated this right.

“Yes. That’s why I need you. I need somebody I can rely on.”

“What do we have?” Gabriel was all business now. This was his job. This was what he did best. A case to sink his teeth into and turn his thoughts away from his personal problem was what he needed.  “Do we know who the woman is?”

“She’s a doctor. She works at UCSF Medical Center. We found her ID. Her name is Maya Johnson, age thirty-two, lives in Noe Valley. We haven’t been able to ask her anything yet. When Eddie and James brought her in, she was unconscious. I hope she can give us a description of the vampire who attacked her when she wakes. In the meantime, I’m keeping radio silence on this. It could be anybody. Until we know who might be behind this, I don’t want anybody to know she’s here.”