Barring any delays from the train, the post was delivered promptly at two in the afternoon. Normally Grace picked up the letters as part of her rounds, but Evelyn took over the burden a week ago. She’s been waiting for a reply.

Evelyn rarely mentioned it, but mail delivery sometimes felt like waiting for the river to freeze over just to get to the other side. After her mistress sent a letter to Marc requesting advice, they took steps to isolate the runaway. She was mostly confined to the maid’s quarters, while Grace and Evelyn shared the same quarters.

She thought over their daily affairs and came up with nothing. Evelyn often stated that her art projects were moving along, and the staff were very accommodating. Her mistress was also quite happy to have found a muse in that Georgian. While Breanna was fun, Evelyn likened it to playing with her food.

“Oh, no…” Grace whispered.

To confirm a grim hunch, she passed by the door leading to her quarters. There were no sounds from within, not even a heartbeat. As she passed by Evelyn’s door, there was only one solid heartbeat within.

“…the mail,” Grace added.

That was why Grace was surprised when she turned the corner and heard someone crying. That’s Evelyn…

Her mistress did not shed her mask for something trivial. Vampires, especially women, had to conceal their true emotions most of the time. So, this had to be something big, but was not something like Marc being killed in action. The walls would be shaking if that happened.

She doubted The Grand would be able to hide every accident. After all, not every vampire cared about leaving no trace of their passage behind. Even Evelyn loved to make a mess from time to time. At least she ensured the killings appeared to be the work of someone who looked the part.

While their side was said to avoid detection at all costs, there was a lot of leeway in how these guidelines were interpreted. Violent deaths and suicides were still the leading cause of death for humans. That meant vampires could hide within the statistical noise. The difference is that Drusilla and her ilk don’t care to hide.

This is why she knew for certain that she and Evelyn were, for the most part, the only guests. Occasionally there were transient guests, but they were rarely here for more than one night. The Grand was still officially under construction, which meant people were only here when necessary. Brought in for specific tasks and and hightail it out of here the next day.

She supposed that would change when the myriad of clubs, restaurants, and amenities were opened. When that happened, vampires and their prey would be able to drown in the excess.

She walked past the kitchens and heard whimpering on the other side. Normally the hotel’s ventilation concealed such sounds, even from the discerning ears of a vampire. Without any power, she could hear a pin drop. Try not to think of it…

Five minutes later she was in the southern wing of the hotel. Located deep under tonnes of rock, these suites were primarily designed to accommodate vampires. The lack of sunlight was guaranteed and as a bonus the rooms were said to be soundproofed. That last part proved to be a bit of a misnomer. A retired naval gunner may have trouble eavesdropping…

Grace made her way through the corridors and passageways reserved for the staff. The Grand catered to an exclusive clientele with peculiar tastes. Some were known to take their business elsewhere if they had to tread on the same ground as the help.

The way ahead was entirely devoid of light due to an accident in the generator room. It was said that workers were burnt to a crisp, but Grace was not about to ask around for gory details.

The lack of lighting was fine for her and other vampires. At most she needed to wait a moment for her eyes to adjust when someone walked by with a lantern or the occasional flashlight.