Sasha allowed Alice to walk ahead as he drifted in gradually after, taking the place in one step at a time. After weeks of research on her, he had only been able to form a partial image of the character of Alice Lynch, and here was a wealth of information. Not that it did him any good at this point. Still, academically speaking, it was fascinating to learn about someone new.

He leveled his gaze with one of the mannequins, as if it could stare back at him. 

“Truly this is an age of lies.” Sasha picked up a sock from an endtable and turned it to examine it in the light. It was dropped without a care as he moved on. “From your Facebook profile, and your shop, I wouldn’t have guessed you to be so disorganized. Humans are slaves to appearances.”

A Christmas tree still. It was the end of summer. He wasn’t certain if Alice was lazy, or simply… slow moving. The unpacked luggage was considered at length. Had she recently traveled, or simply not unpacked since she moved in? She did appear to actually own a [i]corded[/i] phone, and presumably a landline. Without bothering to follow the cord, he wondered if it had a rotary dial.

This was a mess. Not just the flat, but its tenant. This was a girl caught between different phases in her life, and she didn’t seem quite decided on where yet to go.

“I’ll be waiting, Alice.” The hint of a threat hadn’t quite left his voice, but at least now the vampire seemed sated and tamed. As long as she cooperated, this was likely to remain the same.

As she moved on, Sasha curiously plucked the letter from the bin as he passed by, then gradually retired on the sofa to open and read it for himself. As if he were entitled.