He rushed into the room. Her father. Rushed in with excitement in his face – not an innocent excitement of a child, but a rather violent excitement of a hunter who just shot a deer. His green eyes were ablaze, even his skin looked more alive, more vibrant. His copper-brown hair shone a little more in the dim light of the candles. Everything about him felt alive. He was a vampire. There were only a few occasions when those creatures felt alive… His wife was sitting in an armchair with two little girls by her feet. Their father interrupted a story about the most beautiful nymph the world has ever seen. All three of them looked up, but only his wife dared to ask. “What happened?” He was pacing back and forth, then finally stopped and looked at her with a smile. “They caught one. They got one of the animals from the forest.” Pruna frowned and closed the book in her hands. “I thought you had no contacts with your family.” Her voice was harsh, ice cold, and very quiet, as if ...