"It's been forever!" Thomas whined.

"It's been ten minutes." Max told him. "And be quiet- we just got Amethyst to fall back asleep."

"Are they really coming?" Thomas asked.

"Of course they are." Aphmau answered, although I could hear her slight disbelief.

"Shush!" Max said sharply. "I hear something."

Everyone fell silent. I sat on the cold stone floor, rocking Amethyst slowly, until I heard it, too- quick footsteps and quiet voices, just outside the stone walls. We all shrunk back, fearing it was Signe until the wall in front of us disappeared, and Ethan fell backward into the room. He landed with a thud on his back, looking up at us and grinning. "Hey guys, I found them!" Dan and Phil appeared, then quickly helped everyone up and out of the room. "Come on, guys! We don't have much time!"

"We were only able to stun those girls for fifteen minutes." Phil explained as we ran. "That should buy us enough time to get us out of here. Introductions can be made in the car."

We quickly ran through the maze of the building and outside to a white SUV parked on the street. We piled inside with Dan in the driver's seat and sped away without a glance back.

"So." Phil stated. "Name and power. I'll start first- I'm Phil, and that's Dan. We're both vampires."

"I'm Ethan. I used to be a test subject of Signe and Aaron's. I can turn glitchy, teleport, and move things with my mind."

"I'm Thomas, and I can turn into each of

5 my personalities."

"I'm Max, and I also used to be a test subject of Signe's. I turn into a beast when I'm angry enough."

"I'm Jess, but you can call me Aphmau. I'm a Kitsune."

"You already know who I am, so what's the point?" I smiled, lifting up Amethyst. "But this is Amethyst, Jack and I's daughter."

"Amethyst?" Phil repeated. I nodded. "Can I hold her?" I carefully put her in his arms, and he smiled down at her. "She's adorable."

"She really is." Aphmau sighed.

Amethyst opened her eyes, then reached up and touched Phil's face briefly. His eyes went wide, and when she let go, he stared at Dan. "So it does happen..."

"Phil?" I asked. "What happened?"

"What?" His head shot back to me. "Sorry. It was nothing."

"Okay..." I muttered, not believing him.

"We're here." Dan announced, pulling up to the house and parking. I looked out the window and saw Suzy approaching quickly. I jumped out and raced toward her, tackling her into a hug.

"Mark!" She said exasperatedly. "You're okay!"

I pulled away, nodding. "I am."

She looked over at Thomas, Max, and Aphmau as they climbed out of the vehicle and visibly cringed. "Dear God, you three are a mess! How long were you in that cell?"

"Two months." Aphmau answered.

"Six months." Thomas added.

"A year." Max muttered.

"Well, you each have your own room for your stay here, and each one has its own bathroom you can use. I'm sure the others have extra clothes you could wear-" She was cut off by a scream coming from the second floor. "That's Jack. We finally got him to sleep, but it looks like he woke up... go. Someone will bring your daughter up soon."

I quickly sprinted into the house and up the stairs to Jack and I's bedroom, throwing the door open. Jack was in bed, curled into a ball and shaking. Molly was standing nearby, muttering in Latin. She broke out of her trance and looked up at me. "Mark?"

Jack's head instantly shot up, and in the blink of an eye he was standing in front of me with his hands cupping my cheeks. "Mark?"

I nodded. "It's me, Jack. I'm here."

He pulled me closer, squeezing so hard I could barely breathe. "I thought you were gone."

I returned the hug, squeezing just as tightly. "Never."