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“Sandy!” she shouted, and footsteps hurried toward them until the girl appeared in the doorway.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have come in. You didn’t answer when I knocked, and the door was open. I saw bloody footprints in the hall and followed them to the kitchen. I thought you might have been hurt,” Sandy said quickly.

Gideon noticed the girls looked nothing alike, so he doubted they were related. However, he did notice the same scale-like reflection on the girl’s neck, so perhaps they were the same supernatural creature. Aerin stared down at his feet and winced. He hadn’t meant to trail blood through her house. Even if he had tried to escape, he would have left a trail for her to follow. He really needed more blood to sharpen his mind before he made any more foolish mistakes.

“We both know our blood isn’t red, and you shouldn’t be following bloody footprints regardless of whether you are concerned or curious,” Aerin scolded, and the girl, who couldn’t be more than sixteen, stared at her defiantly.

“Next time, you should answer your door! We’ve got a problem, and I need you to help me fix it,” Sandy begged.

“Please tell me you and Shelby weren’t out night swimming? I’m not going to cover for you again and say I was with you,” Aerin groaned.

“No, it’s about the rude Goblin from the coffee shop⁠—”

‘That’s enough; we’ll talk about it on the way,” Aerin interrupted. Clearly, she didn’t want him to know about her life.

“Who are you?” Gideon interrupted, hoping the young girl wouldn’t be so guarded.

Sandy stared around Aerin and waved at him without a hint of fear. “Hi, I’m Sandy. Sorry for interrupting your alone time.”

“You weren’t interrupting anything, and who she is is none of your business.”

“Is she always so defensive?” Gideon asked Sandy, who nodded.

“I’m afraid so.”

“I pulled you from the sea and gave you blood and new clothes. Please have some respect,” Aerin said, looking between the two.

“Talking of changing me in front of a young lady.” He gasped. “Do you have no sense of propriety?” He wanted to get up, but her voice lingered in his mind, telling him to do the opposite. What magic is this? Their earlier struggle had drained his strength.

“He talks funny?” Sandy chuckled.

“He’s old.” Aerin shrugged, securing his wrists the same way he had done hers. He had even offered her his hands. Why am I following her orders? Is she a witch?

“He doesn’t look much older than you.” Sandy frowned. “Why are you tying him up?”

“Looks can be deceiving. He’s a vampire, and I’m tying him up because he hasn’t fed in a while, and I want to make sure he doesn’t wander into town hungry. That’s what friends do—make sure they don’t harm others,” Aerin said.

“Right, friends,” Gideon quipped, though he wondered how old she was. He was over four hundred; a born vampire can decide when they want to stop ageing, but he couldn’t remember what age he had chosen. If he didn’t look much older than the young lady, he could figure it out himself. “How old is she?” Gideon asked Sandy.

“Like ninety?” Sandy shrugged.

Great, she is another immortal or slow to age. She was certainly not a human ninety.

“Can you both stop talking about me like I’m not here?” Aerin said. “And yes, I’m ninety-four, thank you, Sandy, for underestimating.”

“You’re welcome; still, you never look a day over twenty-five,” Sandy said, handing her friend another rope to help restrain him.

“The seawood oils work wonders on the skin.” Aerin winked.

“That makes sense. I have to tie up my friend Bertie when it’s a full moon so he doesn’t wolf out.” Sandy shrugged.

Gideon couldn’t help but fear where the hell he had ended up with so many supernatural creatures living together. His fear clawed at him as much as the rope dug into his tender flesh.

“Are you two a couple?” Sandy asked, frowning as Aerin finished securing his ankles to the chair.

“No,” they both said in unison.

“Sorry for asking.” Sandy backed up.