It Started With A Vampire

Unmasking Shadows

Milo hadn't spoken in ten minutes. He sat at the dining table in the new suite, the cryptic red-ink note spread out in front of him. A laptop was open beside it, camera feeds flickering on the screen. Meg was pacing behind him, chewing the cap of a pen she hadn't written with once.

Malachi sat across from them, tense, his fingers laced tightly as he watched Eva across the room.

She was on the floor, her back against the wall, hugging her knees.

Ariana sat beside her, one hand resting gently on Eva's ankle, grounding her. MK hovered nearby, clearly trying not to freak out himself.

"they know where we are," Eva whispered. "They keep knowing. And I don't get it—we're doing everything right."

"You are," Milo said quickly. "This isn't about you doing something wrong. This guy—he's careful. But he's slipping. That note? That's ego. He's getting cocky."

Meg crossed her arms. "Which makes him reckless."

Malachi stood and crossed the room, kneeling beside Eva. "Look at me," he said quietly.

She blinked up at him.

"You're not alone in this. Not even close. We're gonna figure it out. Okay?"

Her voice was shaky. "What if he's someone we know?"

The words hung in the air. No one dared to answer.

⸻

Later That Night

Meg had stepped out to speak with hotel security while Milo locked himself in the side room, trying to enhance the grainy footage they'd collected over the last few days. MK offered to order food, but no one was hungry.

Malachi paced. "He said Eva could change her name, her face... and he'd still find her. That means he knew where she was before. Even in the old hotel."

"Even in my trailer," Eva said suddenly, her voice hollow.

Ariana sat up straight. "Wait. Your trailer."

Eva nodded. "That's where the first notes were. And he knew details—personal stuff. Not just what fans could see online."

"That doesn't just mean stalking," Milo called from the other room. "That's inside knowledge."

He stepped back into view, carrying his laptop. "And I think I know why."

⸻

Milo's POV

Hours of camera review. Dozens of names. Fuzzy screenshots. But something wasn't adding up.

He pulled up a series of screenshots—each one showing someone lingering near the old filming lot.

"Recognize this girl?" he asked, showing them the blurry frame of a girl near the trailers. Her hood was pulled up. Head down.

Eva stiffened. "That's Felicity."

Milo nodded. "Yeah. But here's the thing—this was last week. We thought she disappeared after the knife incident. But she didn't. She's been around."

MK frowned. "So she never left?"

"Not only that," Milo said, flipping to another image, "I pulled footage from the catering tent, trailers, even delivery logs. Felicity never signed in once. She wasn't an official visitor. But look—"

He zoomed in on a screenshot of Felicity speaking to a man. Medium build. Black hoodie. Clean-shaven.

"Who's that?" Malachi asked.

"That's what I've been trying to figure out. His badge was fake, but he was walking around like he belonged. Helping crew. Carrying equipment."

Eva's eyes narrowed. "She wasn't acting alone."

Milo turned to her. "Exactly. I think Felicity is a distraction. Maybe even a pawn. The real stalker is still out there—smarter, quieter, and using people to get to you."

⸻

Back in the Living Room

Silence again.

But this time, it felt different. More dangerous. Sharper.

Ariana broke it. "Then that means... they could still be close. On set. One of us?"

"Not one of us," Milo said. "But around us. Embedded."

Eva's chest was tight. The room swam for a second, her ears ringing.

Malachi caught her hand. "Hey—deep breath. Come on, Eva."

She let him pull her back down to the couch, where she closed her eyes and breathed in through her nose.

"We can't go back to filming like this," MK said quietly. "Not with someone like that still watching."

Meg returned right then, and her face said everything before she opened her mouth.

"I've already made the call," she said. "Filming's postponed for another week. Security's doubling, and we're not releasing the new location to anyone outside of the core team."

Eva nodded slowly. "But what about the press?"

Meg exchanged a look with Milo, then said carefully, "Funny you ask."

Milo turned the laptop toward her again. This time, it showed a fan page. Hundreds of comments. Blurred photos. Posts titled:

EVA AND MALACHI HIDING OUT—INSIDE SOURCE CONFIRMS LOCATION?

PR COVER-UP OR SOMETHING DARKER?

EXCLUSIVE: Strange behavior from Disney cast has fans worried.

Malachi let out a frustrated noise. "They're feeding off this. They're making it worse."

Eva swallowed hard. "Then maybe I should tell them more."

Everyone turned to her.

"I already posted once," she said. "But what if I go deeper? Tell people what we're facing. Not just the stalker. But the fear. The silence. Maybe if people knew the truth..."

Meg shook her head slowly. "That's dangerous, Eva."

"So is being hunted and pretending I'm fine," Eva snapped.

Malachi didn't interrupt this time. He just looked at her—really looked at her. There was something different in her now. A fire.

"I'll think about it," Meg said finally. "But for now, we stay quiet. Until Milo can find out who the guy with Felicity is."

"And when we do?" Ariana asked.

Milo looked right at Eva. "Then we end this."