Albert lay motionless, his flesh long gone, but his smile stayed the same. “It’s been a while,” I said as I jumped down and lay beside him. I had made sure the casket was big enough for two, and it had served us well over the years. I caressed the side of his face.

His unruly hair was windswept and wild when we finally settled inside, and the fire he had built lit up his face like a cherub. We had only a few scraps of bread to nourish us, but love kept us going through the night.

I realized at first that I couldn’t respond to that or justify my feelings. As much as I loved Alard for rescuing me from starvation and illness, he still condemned me to a life of misery and pain.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Not you,” I said. I went back into the kitchen and opened the fridge, grabbing one of the plastic bags of AB- blood. “I get a supply delivered weekly from Amazon. You really can get everything there.”

He stood there, with his hands reaching toward the fire, sporting an expression of curious amusement as if trying to figure us out. I could see how this might seem interesting—a vampire popping popcorn and watching movies in the dead of night with a human.