In a Hideout About an Hour Later

The haze of unconsciousness slowly lifts from your mind. You hear only voices at first, hushed voices, too soft to make out what they're saying. One is deep and male, the other higher pitched, feminine. It's too dark to see. You can make out shapes around you, but nothing too clearly.

You could be in the lair of some demons for all you know, but you'd probably be dead already, or worse.

You rise slowly. You're whole body aches. It feels like you ran into a brick wall. Then you realize that's exactly what you did.

'Fucking demons,' you think, 'hope I wasted the lot of 'em.'

Then you hear a familiar voice, Angela's, comforting you.

"There, there," she says, "lie still, everything's gonna be okay."

She brushes her hand across your brow. You hope she's still human, but her voice sounds so sweet and loving, you find yourself not caring what she may be.

A bright light shines in your face, blinding you. You realize it's your flashlight that you entrusted to Angela.

"Turn that off," Angela sneers. "It'll only attract them!"

You breathe a sigh of relief; she's not a demon. That makes things easier.

As the light is dimmed and your eyes re-adjust you confirm that Angela is, in fact, still human.

You take note of the two others with you, the couple that you rescued.

The woman leans toward you and kisses you softly on the cheek. "Thank you," she says, "thank you so much!"

Angela introduces you, "This is Maria," she says nodding at the olive skinned, Philipino woman, "and her husband David."

You try to get up, but Maria gently pushes you back down. "You still need to rest," she says, "but you're injuries aren't too serious. I'm a doctor. You'll be okay."

"Where are we?" you finally manage to ask.

"In an abandoned store," David says, Amanda and Maria managed to break in while I carried you."

"But what about the Church?" you ask, "Wouldn't we be safer there?"

"Bastards wouldn't let us in," Maria says, "They were too scared to open the door for anyone. We had to get off the street before those demons you hit recovered."

"Recovered?!?!" you say in shock, "Didn't I kill them?"

"I don't think anything'll kill them," David replies. "We should be safe here, at least for a little while. We're going to try to get out of the city at dawn. I figure the demons aren't as powerful during the day."

"What time is it?" you ask.

"2:30," Amanda replies.

'That's a long time until dawn,' you think to yourself. Then you begin to calculate the incubation period of the Lilith Strain. You gaze about the room at your companions. Any of them could have been infected and not have turned yet. You're particularly concerned about David and Maria's tattered clothing. Both of them were in close contact with some demons. And then there's Angela. She said her father didn't touch her, but you can't be too sure.

David and Maria are off in the corner, in the dim light, you can't tell if they're groping one another in a way totally innapropriate for the current situation or simply huddled together to ward off the chill in the air.

Angela brushes her hand against your leg, briefly touching your inner thigh. Your erection rises, then falls as she mops your brow again with a cool compress. 'Did she mean to do that?' you wonder.

Is the Lilith Strain affecting your companions or are you just paranoid?

Only time will tell....