Victor and Nera did not even make it to the next rooftop.
They left the alley with the prisoner on Victor's back and Nera's scythe dragging sparks against the stone, but the street ahead was already closed. Five vampires stood side by side, blocking the passage. All of them had the same face, the same height, the same dark clothes, and the same crooked smile. Behind them, three more emerged from a side lane. On the roof of the building to the left, four others appeared without making a sound. When Victor looked back, the path they had come from was occupied too.
Nera sniffed the air and made a face.
"They are not people."
Victor dropped the prisoner to the ground and looked more carefully. Now that he had time to observe, he understood what she meant. Those vampires smelled of blood, but they had no weight. Their presence was shallow. Copied. Like a well-made portrait of someone who had never truly been alive.
Alexa spoke in both their minds before he could ask.
