"Hey, don't knock denial. It's not just a river in Egypt, you know," Nick fired back on a wide grin that left one fang visible for a second. "For a long time, I beat things up. Trees, a heavy bag, sparring with others on the island. Since I can't drink much, it seemed the best way. After a while, the rage sort of burned out of me and I became the easy-going, take-it-as-it-comes guy you see before you."