Her smile became gentler, less radiant, but hopefully reassuring. "Only because I love New York," she told him. "I lived there for a little while and it was one of the best times of my life. What can I say? I crave the company of other New Yorkers."

She gave his arm a gentle squeeze, leading them in the direction of the games.

"There was this Chinese restaurant in Brooklyn I used to visit all the time." A pick-up point on the railroad that she and her sisters had built to smuggle dhampir to safety, actually. "The Jade Dragon, I think it was called. Always the first stop when I was having a night on the town."