Note to Reader: I apologize in advance for the multiple points of view and the time skips here. - Alexander (Mei’s vampire ex-boyfriend) - The day following the bizarre encounter in the forest. I worry over every word. I even ask my assistant to look over the letter to make sure it reads OK. She smiles after she scans it. She tells me not to fret, that it's fine, and urges me to re-read it only once to make sure it says precisely what I want it to. So, I do. Dear Talu, I guess by now you know it's me. On my way to France, I stopped in town to hunt. I hadn't intended for anyone to know. I stumbled onto something that you should be aware of. I thought I caught Mei’s scent. It was late. I followed it, thinking she, or you, might be in trouble. I know it's not any of my business, not anymore, but I was worried and old habits die hard. Instead of Mei, I found a lynx. I tried to hunt it, but I think it shifted, into something else - a bird, maybe? Do you know something about this? I

-Aline- "...you'd better pray that I'll still be here waiting for you." His words rip into me. I gasp. The cruel lash of his harsh riposte steals my breath away. My fingernails engrave crescents into my forearms, hugging myself for self-comfort. The tears that earlier threatened, release in a torrent. My mascara, I know, runs in unbecoming dark streaks down my cheeks. For once, I don't give a damn. I can't believe the words Jian hurls so vehemently at me. His letters. His e-mails. The promise of his voice on the phone. These all kept me sane. He keeps me sane. Jian promised he'd be beside me when I was ready to move on. What about his promise? He promised he wouldn't give up on me. No! My mind shrieks. He can't take these things away from me! No! All at once, I realize Jian is all I have to keep myself from drowning in the torment of this unwanted... thing. I can't make myself call it an imprint. The sound of the word is the last nail p

-Asena Cai- (Jian’s Mom) I find my boy sitting in the darkness out in the backyard. From the kitchen window, I take in the sight of him. He's still wearing his tuxedo, his tie undone, the wine colored swath of color hangs around his neck against the white-white of his shirt. His dark hair is in wild disarray around his so familiar, handsome face. There is heartbreak in his expression, so happy only hours ago. My heart cries out for him. I rush upstairs to change and make my way to sit quietly beside Jian. I say nothing as he hangs his head. I watch the steady drip of silent tears fall onto the back of his large, strong hands. In the moonlight, the drops glimmer against his naturally tanned skin before sliding into the dark green grass beneath our feet. I wait for him, offering him my strength simply by staying beside him. I know my son. He does not want me to witness this weakness. He never did as a boy and I know it pains him more as a young man to know I am watching. "It hurt

-Aline- I'm wrapped up in an oversized cashmere sweater, legs curled beneath me on the wicker loveseat on the back porch in Syracuse. Even my ‌werewolf's body heat can't quite keep me warm against this cold, empty feeling inside. The night of Lance’s wedding keeps replaying inside my head as I stare, unseeing, out into the upstate New York winter. The mid-winter chill is so much more here than in the temperate winters in California. My hands cradle a cup of now tepid tea. I hear a door open and turn to greet Bella, only to grimace at the crazy, blonde bitch who steps out onto the porch. In my peripheral vision, I watch Felicia gracefully fold herself into the wicker rocker kitty-corner to my seat... too near. For two weeks, I've avoided her. Now, I am too tired and melancholy to bother getting up and leaving. Besides, I got here first. I huff out a cloud of hot air against the freezing morning, showing my unhappiness at her undesired company. There is no sound other than our combin

Author’s note: There are a lot of point-of-view switches between Jian and Aline in this chapter. Thank you for understanding!__________________-Jian-(in San Francisco, at Talu’s house)Talu’s warning pounds in my head. I've been wallowing in self-pity for two weeks. He's right. I'm not proving myself much of a man here. And he is now allowing me to show myself worthy of Aline. I sigh and stare pointedly at the sheaf of papers he removed from the manila envelope. "So, what did the leech find out?"My gaze shifts warily between the papers and Talu. "First, let me tell you what Mei’s ex- told me." And so he tells me how the bloodsucker was hunting in the woods during a stopover to Europe at the same time the terrible twins paid Mei a visit. That was also the same night Talu was with Aline on a jet plane bound for Syracuse.####-Aline- (in Syracuse at her place)We're still on the porch and I'm mulling over Felicia's suggestion.“So, why not both?”Her words bounce aroun