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MR CREPSLEY LED THE WAY up the stairs and out of the building He walked confidently through the darkness I thought I could see a bit better than I could when coht just have been because my eyes were used to the dark, not because of the vampire blood in my veins

Once outside, he told me to hop up on his back "Keep your aro orup, I looked down and saearing slippers I thought it was strange but didn’t say anything

When I was on his back, he started running I didn’t notice anything strange at first, but soon began to realize how fast buildings were zipping by Mr Crepsley’s legs didn’t see that quickly

Instead, it was as if the world waspast it!

We reached the hospital in a couple of minutes Normally it would have taken twenty minutes, and that was if you sprinted all the way

"How did you do that?" I asked, sliding down

"Speed is relative," he said, tugging his red cloak tight around his shoulders, pulling back into the shadows so we could not be seen, and that was all the answer he gave

"Which room is your friend in?" he asked

I told hi s, then nodded and told me to hop back up on his back When I was in position, he walked over to the wall, took off his slippers, and laid his fingers and toes against the wall Then he shoved his nails forward into the brick!

"Hmmm," he muttered "It is crumbly but it will hold us Do not panic if we slip I kno to land onfall to kill a va his nails in,a hand forward, then a foot, then the other hand and foot, one after the other He moved quickly and within e, gazing in

I wasn’t sure of the time, but it was very late No-body was in the room except for Steve Mr Crepsley tried theIt was locked He laid the fingers of one hand beside the glass covering the latch, then clicked the fingers of his other hand

The latch sprang open! He shoved theup and stepped inside I got down from his back While he checked the door, I exaed than it had been and there were new tubes all over his body, hooked up tomachines

"The poison has worked rapidly," Mr Crepsley said, gazing down at hiht be too late to save him" I felt my insides turn to ice at his words

Mr Crepsley bent over and rolled up one of Steve’s eyelids For a few long seconds he stared at the eyeball and held Steve’s right wrist Finally he grunted

"We are in tiood thing you did not wait any longer A few oner"

"Just get on with it and cure hi to kno close to death my best friend had come

Mr Crepsley reached into one of his lass vial He turned on the bedside laht to examine the serum "I must be careful," he told me "This antidote is almost as lethal as the poison A couple of drops too many and" He didn’t need to finish

He tilted Steve’s head to one side and told ainst the flesh of Steve’s neck and er over it, then removed the cork of the bottle with his other hand

He lifted the vial to his ?" I asked

"It must be passed on by mouth," he said "A doctor could inject it but I do not know about needles and the like"