C: I hear you.

Rod: You know all that stuff you said about vampires not being happy? Did you know...? Did you do this to me to show me?

C: Please, Roger, be more specific. What has been done to you?

Rod: Well... I guess nothing was really done to me, but the people around me. The ones I love. Ya know, Karissa and Magnolia.

C: And what has happened to them? I know that Karissa has been missing. Why don't you begin by telling me about her.

Rod: Um, I think she's dead - dead for real this time. Someone killed her. Why would anyone kill Karissa? She never did anything to anyone, and now she's gone. I don't know much about it, but I know its true. I can feel that she's gone now and I don't know what to do.

C: Yes, I can see you are confused. Death is a difficult thing to reconcile, but I am not here to comfort you, Roger. I am here for information. Is there anything else you can tell me about Karrisa's death?

Rod: (several deep breaths) Um OK, I'll start at the beginning so I don't leave anything out, I hope. The last time I saw her was at the party and she looked at me in a mean way like I'd done something wrong. I don't know what, but I hope she forgives me. I tried to do the right thing. I mean the way we live I think that's what she wanted. Anyhow, she left the party with this Gangril guy named Bruce. I think he's a primogen. So, I was with Shelie and while we were having sex I heard Karissa call my name, like by magic. I know now that she was crying for my help, but I didn't know then. How was I supposed to know? I don't know about magic! I don't know about death and vampire murderers! I don't even know about women... well, not enough to know what they want when they won't tell me.

C: Go on. How did you find out that Karissa was dead?

Rod: It was Ahmed. He found her. Her head was out in some forest. He said I should come alone, but I brought Magnolia. Ahmed said that was stupid. He's probably right, but I don't know why it was stupid. This Jonas guy Cecilia knows came too, but not with me. Bruce was there too. He gave me her head in some kind of bag. In a bag! That's all that's left of my Karissa, just a head in a bag. She's gone. I don't know if Bruce killed her, but he said he was sorry. I guess he wouldn't have said that if he had killed her, unless it was an accident, and vampires don't get their heads cut off by accident.

C: Do you know anything else about Bruce?

Rod: No.

C: Then tell me about Jonas.

Rod: Cecilia stays with him sometimes. That's better than the street. He hasn't got it all together. He's like a really old guy always talking about 'The Network' and 'The Conspiracy' like they're big bad things we should be scared of, and he calls me sonny like I'm some little kid. Get this - he's only like 30 years old, maybe less! So put your crazy great-grand-daddy's brain into your average guy and you've got Jonas. Maybe that's why Cecilia likes him. He's weird, but he's not bad.

C: Is there anything else you want to tell me about Karissa?

Rod: I don't think there's anything else. I miss her.

C: In that case why don't you tell me about Magnolia.

Rod: Oh man, it was right before I got the call from Ahmed that he'd found Karissa and I'd better come see for myself. Magnolia was over at Club MOD! She was crying and she looked sort of beat up. She had been acting strange since the party like there was something wrong, but I couldn't tell what. I kept asking her if she was all right, but ya know, she wouldn't say. Well this time she told me what was wrong. She told me that little shit, Claude, has been beating her up. That really surprised me, 'cause she's a big powerful vampire and everything. She said she wanted me to help her kill him. She really meant it. 20 years she's been putting up with it on and off, and now she wants to kill him. Cecilia has always told me how terrible it is to kill another vampire, but I think he deserves it, and I'd do anything for Magnolia.

C: Beware Roger, it is not a trivial task to kill a vampire, nor one to be taken lightly.

Rod: I know. I didn't really try to talk her out of it. I just sort of told her about the beast, and how killing Claude might be the sort of thing that lets the beast get control of her. Cecilia is always scolding me when I kill people. Tells me about the beast controlling me. Cecilia doesn't stay mad at me for long. She's such a sweetie. Magnolia didn't care about the beast. She made a quiet, tiny, little remark about how the beast might already have her. She said it so quiet. Maybe she thought that if she said it soft enough it would be like she hadn't admitted it. I don't know. Poor Magnolia. She was crying. I feel so bad for her, but I can't even cry. I can't cry for her or Karissa.

C: Neither can I cry for you, Roger.