I nodded. I hadn't talked to Ryan since I'd stormed out of the restaurant, except in class, and that didn't count. He'd managed to find somewhere else to be at lunch all week. He was avoiding me.
"Ryan's never been mad at me before. Not really. Not like this," I told her.
"Don't take this the wrong way, Daisy, but I don't really blame him," she said.
"Hey, I thought you were my best friend," I said.
"I am," she assured me. "And that's why I'm being completely honest with you. You were kind of, well, oblivious to his feelings. Sean said he wanted to share his big news with you sooner, but he knew you wouldn't be happy about it because you want him to stay in Nightshade."
I considered what Sam said for a moment. She was right.
"You need to do something, and soon," she continued. "These little fights can snowball into something permanent unless somebody makes the first move. And in this case, it should be you."
"I know," I said. "Even though Ryan didn't tell me he'd already signed with a college, I was the one who lost my temper. I owe him an apology."
Sam gave me an encouraging thumbs-up.
I took a deep breath and picked up the phone.
"Hello?" The sound of his voice flooded me with relief. He wasn't so mad that he ignored my call.
"I'm a terrible girlfriend," I said. "That is, if I still am your girlfriend."
"Of course you're still my girlfriend," he said. "It's just, you don't understand how it is for me."
"I'll try," I promised. "Let me make it up to you," I added. "Are you free tomorrow night? I'll cook you dinner."
"You don't have to," he said.
"No, I want to," I replied. "I was completely insensitive. I'll make chicken mole. Your favorite." Ryan loved it, but authentic mole sauce was tricky to make and took a long time.
After I hung up with Ryan, I gave Sam a hug.
"What was that for?" she asked, but there was a smile on her face.
"Thanks for the advice," I said. "Want to go to the grocery store with me?"
"No thanks," she said, barely repressing a shudder. "I'm heading over to Sean's. He just sent me a text that he misses me."
"How are you guys going to handle the whole distance thing?" I asked.
She shrugged. "We'll make it work," she said. "It's only for a few months at a time. If you love someone, you should be willing to wait."
After Sam left, I went into the kitchen to check supplies. I wanted to make fresh tortillas and beans to serve with the chicken mole. The cupboards were bare. Well, not bare exactly, but I would definitely need to make a trip to the store to get all the ingredients. And I needed to make some sort of delicious dessert for a fabulous finale to my "I screwed up" dinner menu.
I went to the foot of the stairs. "Mom, can I borrow your car?" I called up to her. "I need to go to the grocery store. I'm making dinner for Ryan tomorrow night."
I heard her footsteps, and then she appeared.
"Of course," she said. "Would you mind picking up a few other things if I give you a list? I've been swamped at work."
"Sure, I can pick up anything you need," I said.
"Just be careful out there," she said. "There are some strange things happening in Nightshade."
Stranger than usual? I sent her an inquiring look, but she didn't elaborate.
I scooped up the car keys and headed to the store.
An hour later, it was just past dusk and I was walking to my car, loaded down with groceries, when I heard a strange choking sound coming from the bushes to my left.
There was a trail of blood glistening on the sidewalk, and it looked fresh. I set the bags down with a thump.
I ignored my fear and pulled out my cell phone. I punched in the emergency number and then said, "This is Daisy Giordano. I'm in the parking lot of Galaxy Groceries, and there's blood all over the sidewalk. Could you send someone out?"
I heard another moan, but my psychic abilities didn't pick up anything. Someone was clearly in pain. I couldn't just stand there, so I followed the blood. My heart raced as I clutched my cell phone in my hand. I'd been in danger before, but I knew someone needed my help and I had a feeling it couldn't wait.
Still, I felt sick when I saw the body lying face down. Blood pooled and then spread in tiny rivulets. The figure was female, and something told me she was around my age. The blood seemed to be coming from her neck.
I took off my scarf and applied pressure to the wound. The young woman's hair was matted with blood, and the smell overwhelmed me. I fought retching. I hoped help would be there soon. It seemed like an hour had passed, but I realized it had only been a few minutes.
"Daisy?" came her faint voice.
Dread filled me. It was someone I knew. Or, at least, someone who knew me.
"Turn me over, please." I was so upset, I couldn't tell if the conversation was happening in my mind or if she'd spoken aloud.
I did as she asked and flipped her over, as gently as I could, but she smothered a scream of pain. When I saw her, I wanted to throw up.
A huge piece of her throat had been torn out. Somehow, though, she was saying something. I recognized the voice. "Elise? Elise Wilder?"
"It's me," she said. "There's not much time."
Her voice was fading, and I bent closer. She said something I couldn't hear.
"It's okay, don't talk," I told her.
Not. Talking, she sent back.
This time I knew I was reading her mind. She sent me another message, but it was blurred by her pain. Then, more clearly, Vamps.
"You mean vampires did this to you?" I asked, but the connection was gone. She'd lost consciousness.
I was relieved to hear the ambulance. I waited until I heard the sound of someone approaching. "We're over here. Please hurry! She's hurt badly."
Two emergency response people took charge. I stood there feeling helpless as they loaded Elise into the ambulance and took off, headed for the hospital.
Ryan and his dad came roaring up in his dad's police car. Ryan jumped out and came running toward me.
"What happened? Are you okay?"
I seemed to have a knack for finding bodies, dead or otherwise.
I inhaled shakily. "I'm fine. Ryan, it was Elise Wilder. It looked like someone had slashed her throat. There was blood everywhere."
He wrapped his arms around me.
Chief Mendez joined us. "Daisy, are you up to answering a few questions right now? I'd like to get the information while it's still fresh."
I nodded and then filled him in on how I found her.
"Did she say anything?" Chief Mendez asked.
I hesitated. "I'm not sure I heard correctly."
"Just tell me what you think you heard," he replied.
"'Vamps,'" I said."She said 'vamps.'"
I'd never seen that expression on the chief's face before, but I wasn't imagining the emotion I saw. He looked scared.
CHAPTER FIVE
After I had answered the chief's questions, Ryan helped me gather up the groceries and put them in the trunk of my car.
He drove me home in my car because my hands were shaking too much for me to drive.
When we got home, my sisters came running to meet us.
"Mom is freaking out," Rose warned me.
"She heard something happened at the grocery store," Poppy said.
"Something did," I said. My mind flashed to the horrible scene. Elise lying on the ground, her throat a jagged slash of red.
Ryan wrapped his arm around me. "Let's go inside," he said. "Daisy can tell you all about it in a bit. She's a little shaken up."
Once inside, we ran into my mom in the hallway. She had car keys in hand and was clearly on her way out. "Daisy, Chief Mendez called me and told me what happened. I'm on my way to the crime scene right now."
She paused for a moment and gave me a long hug. "I've got to go, but we'll talk later, honey. Your sisters are here, and if you need anything, call my cell."
"Be ca
reful, Mom," I said.
"You too," she said. "Don't answer the door unless you know who it is, and even then be cautious."
I nodded, and then we went into the kitchen.
"I'll make you some tea," Rose said.
"You're lucky Dad's still at the library," Poppy commented. "You know he'd freak out."
Rose shot her a dirty look. "You're not helping, Poppy."
She stuck her tongue out at Rose. "I'll find some cookies," Poppy said to me. "Sugar's good for you. You've had a shock."
"Isn't that for when you give blood?" Ryan asked.
The word blood reminded me of Elise and how much of her blood had been all over.
I sat down hard on a kitchen stool.
"Sorry," Ryan said. "I spoke before I thought."
"It's okay," I said.
Rose put a steaming cup of mint tea in front of me and spooned a liberal helping of honey into it. "Drink this," she ordered. "I'll take care of the groceries."
Poppy handed me a cookie. I was lucky to have sisters who cared so much about me.
I took a sip of the tea, then took a deep breath and told them the whole story.
Before I could finish, Dad came rushing in, followed closely by Rose's boyfriend, Nicholas.
"Daisy! Thank goodness you're not hurt," Dad said.
I was happy to see he wasn't shaking. He'd been abducted by the Scourge when I was little and had only recently come back home. Overprotective was an understatement.
I started from the beginning again and then finished with what I'd heard Elise say. "Vamps."
"And you're sure that's what you heard?" Nicholas asked. He was pretty intense about it, but I knew he'd tell his dad, who was the head of the Nightshade City Council.
"I'm sure," I said. I'd gone over it in my mind about a million times since I found her.
Poppy crossed her arms over her chest. "You must have heard wrong, Daisy," she said flatly.
What's her problem? I sent a message to Rose telepathically, but Poppy caught on.
"Stop that, you two," she said. "If you have something to say, then say it."
"Okay," I said. "Why are you acting so weird about this? You're acting like I accused you of attacking Elise."
"I just think you may be jumping to conclusions is all," she said.
I shrugged. "Maybe, but I heard what I heard. The chief said he'll look into it. So, you can't tell anyone what I told you."
"I'll let the council know," Nicholas said.
"My dad said he'd give your dad a call," Ryan said. Chief Mendez and Mr. Bone worked together to keep Nightshade safe.
Poppy still looked irate, but there was nothing I could do to appease her when she was in this mood.
"I want you girls to be careful," Dad said.
"We will," Rose soothed him.
Dad changed the subject. "Who's hungry? I'll order takeout."
The thought of food made me want to gag, but I didn't want to disappoint Dad. He always wanted to feed everyone when there was a crisis.
"How does apology Thai food sound?" I asked Ryan.
"Not as good as your chicken mole, but you know me, I'm always hungry," he replied. He gave it his best effort, but his smile didn't reach his eyes.
"She'll be okay," I said softly. I wasn't sure if I was telling the truth, but I prayed Elise would pull through. Elise had helped Ryan through a difficult time, when he first learned to deal with shifting. She had really been there when Ryan needed someone who understood what being a shifter meant. Nicholas had tried to help Ryan, but two male Weres in the same room didn't necessarily equal peace and tranquility. He and Ryan got along fine now, though, which was a relief.
"We'll find out who did this to her," I added.
This time, his smile was a real one. "Daisy Giordano is on the case," he said.
I glanced over at Dad, but he hadn't heard us, thankfully. He and Nicholas were talking about Dad's new book deal.
I wondered what the council would think of Dad writing about Nightshade secrets, but I got my answer seconds later.
"Your father suggested that I use a pen name," Dad said to Nicholas. "And the town is now in Oregon instead of California."
"I can't wait to read it," Nicholas responded.
Mom came back just as we sat down to dine on Thai One On's signature dish, the spicy Crying Tiger.
Dad got up from the table. "Sit down, honey, and let me fix you a plate."
"It smells delicious," Mom said. She plopped down on a seat next to Dad's and kicked off her shoes.
"How did it go?" Poppy asked.
"You know I don't want you guys involved in this," she said.
"Mom, Elise is our friend. I found her near death. We're already involved," I said.
Mom sighed. "You're right," she said. "It was exactly like that other vampire case. I couldn't pick up a trace. Not a single clue. I couldn't even sense my own daughter's presence at the scene. I was useless."
Mom's specialty was psychometry, which she used to help the police at crime scenes. Like, if someone died, she could sometimes figure out how by touching something that belonged to the person or an object from the crime scene.
"Maybe good old-fashioned forensics will turn up something," Dad said.
"Or Elise will regain consciousness," I said.
"They induced a coma," Mom said. "Poor girl was in too much pain. And..."
"She tried to shift, didn't she?" Nicholas said.
Mom nodded. "She's in her human form, and I hope she's dreaming peacefully. Mrs. Wilder hired a private nurse, so that helps."
"Why would a vampire attack Elise?" Ryan said.
"In a word, food," Nicholas replied.
"Gross," Poppy said. "Besides that weird soul-sucking vamp from last year, there haven't been any vampire attacks in ages."
"This was definitely an old-fashioned bloodsucker," I said. "Her throat looked like hamburger meat." I pushed away my food. I'd lost what little appetite I'd had. "But if it wasn't a vampire, what was it? Who or what could do that to Elise?"
No one had an answer, but I wasn't really expecting one.
CHAPTER SIX
The next day I was scheduled for an early shift at Slim's. The morning fog made Nightshade's familiar Main Street look foreign and vaguely menacing. I was glad that Mom was dropping me off on her way to work.
Flo was already there when I arrived. She wore a T-shirt that read I'M A GLEEK. A sign of a kinder, gentler Flo?
She caught me staring at her shirt and actually blushed a little. "It's a gift from Vinnie," she said. Vinnie was her boyfriend and was in my favorite band, Side Effects May Vary, along with Nightshade High's school nurse, Ms. Phillips.
"Did he mean it ironically?" I asked, having a hard time picturing it.
She giggled. "No, he's a total fan," she said.
"He has good taste," I said. "In girlfriends and in television shows."
It wasn't until a little before lunch that things went downhill. Wolfgang Paxton walked in the door with some of his buddies. I sighed and gave Flo an imploring look, which she ignored. I was stuck waiting on them. No sense in putting off the inevitable, so I grabbed some menus and headed over to their table.
"What can I get you?"
"Hi, Daisy," Wolfgang said with a wink. "I'm glad you asked."
What horrible innuendo would come out of his mouth? Wolfie was an all-around pain in the butt, but he was also a paying customer.
I gave him a tightlipped smile. "What do you want for lunch?" I asked emphatically.
He had the grace to apologize. "Sorry, I can see you're busy. Can we get three rare cheeseburgers, two large fries, and three chocolate shakes?"
"And a steak platter," one of his buddies said. "The twenty-four ounce."
"Rare, I take it?"
Wolfgang nodded. "And when you have time, I need to talk to you about something." He read the reluctance on my face. "It's important."
"Okay," I agreed, "but it'll have to wait until my break.
"
I had fully expected him to eat and run—after paying the check, of course—but when I finally caught my breath, Wolfgang was still sitting at the table, alone, patiently waiting.
The diner had almost emptied out, and Flo had already plopped down on her favorite stool at the counter. I made myself an iced coffee and offered money to Flo, which she waved away.
"Is it okay if I take my break now?" I asked her.
"Fine with me," she said.
I went to talk to Wolfgang, who was gnawing on a few remaining fries on his plate.
"What do you want, Wolfie?" I asked. I was being kind of rude, I knew, but he was kind of a jerk.
"It's not anything bad," he replied. "I wanted to say thank you for helping Elise."
I couldn't have been more floored if he'd wanted to elope.
After I recovered from my surprise, I asked, "How is she? I'd like to stop by and see her after my shift."
"She's still not conscious," he said grimly. "Bane won't leave her bedside, not even to sleep, but he wanted me to tell you he's very grateful. They said she might not have made it if you hadn't come along when you did."
I didn't know what to say. Whoever had done that to Elise was a truly evil person, but after a lot of thought, I wasn't sure that it really was a vampire. First of all, what vampire was foolhardy enough to take on the entire Wilder clan? Not to mention the Paxtons, who were another very powerful Were family. Plus, it was barely past dusk when I found her, and vampires don't like daylight. But I was positive Elise had communicated the word vamp to me. What else could she have meant?
Wolfgang's lower lip quivered, but with effort he controlled his emotions. "I want you to tell me everything you know about what happened."
"I heard moaning and saw the blood. I went to help her. You know the rest."
"Did she say anything when you found her?" he persisted.
"She was in a lot of pain," I replied.
"Please, Daisy," he said. "Bane's going crazy, wondering why anyone would do that to Elise."
I hesitated. "Chief Mendez asked me not to discuss the particulars of the case." And to stay out of the investigation, but I had no intention of doing that.
"It was a vampire. That's what everyone's saying," Wolfgang said. The anger in his voice was so intense that I shivered. He was out for payback.
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