Ah, how he delighted in the warmth in her greeting upon his every visit. Here she sat day after day, the solitary radiance in her remorseless dank chamber, yet the welcome never waned. As always, a wave of his pale hand dismissed the formality she had always insisted upon.

�O� Tamasina, how many times need I remind you to call me Angelo?�

And he secured the heavy door of imprisoning steel bars behind him. A smile lit her thin lips, as she replied with the tired line he had come to expect.

�For as many days until my time is up, Mr. De Morlam.�

He did not give her the courtesy laugh that he knew she predicted, and she found this curious but held her tongue.

�Louie sends his regards from along the corridor,� Angelo informed her dismissively, as his dark figure swept across the enclosure, �though I�m afraid Carmilla is no longer with us.� He lowered his head solemnly.

�We all know our time here is� limited, Angelo. We know we shall eventually pay for our crimes; that is why we are here, my friend. We make the best of what we have, well� of what you give us.� She smiled at him, knowing his gaze would avoid it. �Please return the regards to Louie, if you could.�

So often he wondered if she could really be so sanguine in her position, or if she was simply putting on a brave face for him. Angelo began to busy himself immediately with his menial tasks, always first with the replacement of the flowers, taking the old and withered and replacing them with the new and fresh.

�They are quite beautiful today,� she remarked, watching him with those weary eyes from her perch on the tiny bed.

�Ah of course. That is because today I have prepared them special.�

Tipping the water into the plastic pot with a careful decorum, he removed the dead remains and folded them within the blanket that had brought their replacements. Placing it down, he then took the chair from under the table and pulled it across to the bed, joining Tamasina in her corner. She glanced across the cell for just a brief moment.

�You have not come with new literature, Mr. De Morlam?� she observed, and how he hated that look on her face as she began that familiar grim process of realisation.

�No, my dear, not this time.�

She seemed uncomfortable for a moment, but this passed and she began to smarten herself a little, ironing the creases from her aged overalls with the flat of her hands. He looked her in the eyes, but she would not meet his. In all his time as caretaker in these damning halls, Angelo had never before seen his good friend this way. This inevitable day had been long overdue, and Tamasina was realising it now.

�How long has it been, Mr. De Morlam? How long have I been here on death row?�

�Seven years, almost.� He was always honest with them.

Tamasina nodded, though how she felt about this news was a mystery to Angelo. At first he had never understood why they always asked him that question so shortly before it became so meaningless. But he had learnt over the years that those with the longer visits always became more accepting of the inevitable end. Tamasina now lifted her slender hand to his colourless face.

�You have cared for me well all these years, Mr. De Morlam. For all of us here,� she said. �I truly do appreciate all you have done.�

He returned her grateful words with that wry smirk. He would be so sorry to see her go, but so glad to relieve her of this place, and of the suffering she was expecting. He would personally see her on to that new life in which she believed. He thought onwards, to how her little home would be occupied by someone new, someone he would have to love and nurture as he had Tamasina. But Angelo De Morlam did not want to think of such things at this moment; her last moment.

�Of course, my dear. You are like family to me.� They were all like family to him here on death row. �And part of me comes and goes with each of you in turn.�

The warmth on her palm burnt his skin, but he cherished it for every second, granting her this moment.

�Thank you for making me feel human again, Angelo.� She closed her eyes and leant in close to him, a farewell embrace after all these years.

�And to you Tamasina, I say the same.�

And with these final words, he let his aching teeth pierce her throat, the warm blood cascading forth and quenching the burning thirst with which he had lived these past thirteen days. From her lips came the sharp gasp of initial agony, that pain that she�d feel for only a moment, but her entire body resigned itself into his cold grip and her condemned life finally came to an end.

**

It would be a long wait until Angelo De Morlam could drink again, and so he savoured the soothing release that dear Tamasina had granted him; her parting gift for the years of his tender vigil. Her blood pumped fresh in his vampiric veins, warming that which so often was cold. For longer than he could remember, the vampire Angelo had offered an alternative to those unfortunate enough to find themselves facing damnation at the hands of the justice system. And thus, Angelo had found that when faced with unavoidable death, such a small, unspoken offering as the unfaltering care of a friend could be quite the temptation.

Just a moment was spent making himself presentable again after his feeding was complete. Armed now with fresh flowers and a stack of enticing literature, Angelo De Morlam continued his trail down the row to a neighbouring cell. The solid steel shifted aside, granting him unprecedented entry as always.

�Good afternoon, Mr. De Morlam.�