The wait seemed interminable, and Dara, curled up against the head of the couch with her husband’s limp hand clutched in hers, looked like she was about to black out. Or maybe keel over and die herself. Jessica felt guilt pecking at her when she saw her like that, thinking she ought to do something for her, but not having any idea what it might be. She was grateful when Lucy went and sat beside Dara to hold her other hand.
Finally, Kiefer’s eyes snapped open and he said, “Alright, I think I got a read on that spell. It’s bad, but not too gnarly. I think I can do a reversal and try to draw it out.” He laced his fingers together and stretched his hands. Touching Jason’s forehead, the sorcerer got to work intoning the reversal spell. Another couple of minutes passed, and Jessica felt her heart might explode from the tension. She didn’t start to feel any better until she realized Kiefer’s sorcery was really working. She felt her mouth slip open as she actually saw the bad magic leaving Jason’s body. Dark, ephemeral tendrils curled out of his eyes, nostrils, and parted lips. The ribbons of smoke drifted toward the ceiling before disappearing into the ether.
Kiefer dropped back on his haunches and let out an exhausted breath. He dragged his forearm across his face. “Alright, try it again,” he told Nathan, and the vampire once again opened a vein, mixing his blood with Jason’s. It took longer than it had with either Kiefer or Frankie, but the wound finally sealed. There was a huge rip in Jason’s shirt, but not even a scar left behind on his pale, taut skin.
“Oh!!” Dara clung to Nathan’s arm, blubbering her tearful thanks at both him and Kiefer.
In front of her, Jason’s eyes opened more fully. He coughed again and stared down at himself, an astounded laugh breaking from his throat. “Oh, hey, thanks, man,” he said to Nathan. And then, his mouth twisting with chagrin, “Sheesh, that sounds so inadequate when someone just snatched you back from the brink of death, doesn’t it?”
“It is fine.” Nathan gave a dismissive wave.
“But—”
“Please, do not speak. You should reserve your strength.” Nathan patted his shoulder as he backed away. Dara tossed her arms around her husband and cried like a baby, sniffling and hiccuping into his chest while he clasped her tightly and tried his best to soothe her.
“That was amazing,” Jessica breathed as Nathan stepped toward her. His lips tugged into the briefest of smiles, but then quickly slipped back into a haunted grimace. “Are you alright?” she asked.
“Fine.”
But she saw his hands were shaking. Dread lurked in his sapphire eyes. That was when she realized just how close a call it had really been. They could’ve lost Jason just now. Swallowing, she moved in to hug Nathan and was surprised when he actually let her. She stroked his back, and he laid his cheek against the top of her head. Geez, he feels so heavy, she thought. Jessica knew it wasn’t only because he was so tall and muscular. She imagined she could feel the decades of pain and loneliness weighing him down, too, and it clawed at her heart. She decided she would gladly hold him like this forever, though, if it meant lifting even a fraction of his burden. If she could somehow make him happy again.
An unfamiliar voice intruded on her ruminations, saying, “So...you’re the ones, then.”
Jessica turned to see Frankie, the security guard, standing behind her. He was agog as he stared past her at Nathan and, just behind him, Kiefer. “You guys did that to me too, didn’t you?” he asked, gesturing at Jason. “Used magic and bled on me.”
Kiefer’s mouth drew up. “Much as I’d like to take credit, I didn’t have anything to do with it that time.” He hooked his thumb toward Nathan. “That was all this guy.”
“You were badly injured, Frankie,” Nathan said, almost apologetically. “Possibly dying.”
Frankie shook his head. “I’m not complaining, sir. I want to thank you. But like that other guy said, it really doesn’t seem like enough to just say so.”
Nathan held up a hand. “Please. I am only glad you are recovered.”
Frankie grinned uncertainly. “Yeah, you and me both. I just got married, you know. Wife’s pregnant. So my family thanks you, too, even though they’ll probably never know about it.”
Jessica saw a light flicker in Nathan’s eyes at that. She guessed he was pleased to know he had saved someone else tonight, that he had done quite a bit of good here. This was what imbued his long and lonely life with any sense of purpose, she realized. Knowing he could help people.
“This is the most incredible thing that’s ever happened to me,” Frankie went on, a beatific smile lighting his face. “It’s a miracle!”
“Yeah, that’s probably true,” Kiefer said, stepping toward him. “Too bad you won’t remember it tomorrow.”
Frankie reluctantly tore his gaze from Nathan to look at the sorcerer. “What do you mean?”
Kiefer gave him a hard look. “I can’t just let you walk around remembering everything you’ve seen here tonight. I’ll have to erase your memory. C’mere.”
Frankie danced away quickly, almost stumbling as he backed into an overturned chair. “No, I don’t want to forget anything.”
“Seriously?” Kiefer laughed. “You don’t want to forget that vampires are real and that if they get the chance, they’ll rip out your throat and spit down your neck?”
Frankie frowned in uncertainty, his gaze flicking back to Nathan. “Is that what you are? A vampire?”
Nathan didn’t answer, only dropped his gaze.
“He didn’t try to rip out my throat,” Frankie pointed at Nathan. “He saved my life.”
Kiefer moved toward him again.
“No,” Frankie held up his hands. “Wait, please, hear me out. I’m guessing you don’t want the cops around, right? That would only complicate things?”
Kiefer sighed. “Yeah, but it’s likely too late for that. It’s been a while since you came here. The company you work for probably called them when you didn’t check back in with them.”
“No,” Frankie shook his head vigorously, “that’s just it. If it’s not an emergency—and I told them it wasn’t—then they’re supposed to give me time to secure the area and then call the cops myself. I was going to, but then I got knocked out.”
“And you don’t think they’ll follow up on you?”
“They already did.” Frankie patted the phone in his pocket. “They texted me. And just a while ago, I texted them back to let them know I’ve still got everything under control here.”
“So the police aren’t coming,” Jessica said.
Frankie shook his head at her. “Not yet, anyway. I’ll wait until you guys clear out of here and then I’ll make the call. That’ll give me time to fix the cameras for you, too.” He pointed up, and Kiefer followed his finger to one of the dark bubbles protruding from the ceiling. “I’m guessing you don’t want anyone to see what was recorded on them.”
Kiefer looked at Jessica. “Can’t you take care of that?”
“Sure,” she said, “but there are cameras in the courtyard, too. I don’t have access to those.”
Now Kiefer looked annoyed, but Frankie started to smile. “I do,” he said. “I have access to them! I can fix ’em all if you want.” Just don’t erase my memory. The plea was there, clear and determined, in his sparkling brown eyes.
Kiefer turned and exchanged a look with Nathan. The two of them seemed to communicate without a word. After a second, he swung his gaze back to Frankie. “You can be cool, right? I’m not going to regret this?”
Frankie’s face lit up. “I won’t say anything, you have my word.” He grabbed Nathan’s hand and kissed it before turning and darting off into Jessica’s office, where the recording equipment was kept.
Nathan watched him go. “You could have scrambled those cameras with magic, Kiefer,” he said.
“Yeah, I know.” Kiefer watched Nathan with glimmering eyes and a smile tugging at his lips. “But it probably would’ve busted the cameras. And anyway, did you see how excited that kid was to be helping you?
Someone’s got a new number one fan.”
Nathan snorted. He pushed past Kiefer, who was snickering, on his way toward the courtyard, shoulder-checking him so hard he nearly fell over.
Chapter Twenty-One
Outside, Jessica had expected to find bedlam. Shattered glass and torn books and maybe mutilated bodies strewn around everywhere. Instead, the Courtyard at Vintage Meadow Lake was nearly empty and surprisingly calm. Two people, a man and a woman, huddled together on the sidewalk in front of the store, their filthy clothes torn to ribbons and dirt encrusting their bare feet. The woman’s wiry hair looked as though she’d stuck her finger in an electrical socket. They both looked bewildered, maybe suffering from shock. Theo stood with one foot on the curb, watching over them.
“These two were vamps; turned back when Celia died,” Kiefer explained to Nathan. In an undertone, he added, “Don’t worry, I’ll, uh, help them get their memories in order before we take off.”
“What of the others?” Nathan asked.
Kiefer shook his head. He gestured for Theo to come over and asked him what had happened while he and the others had been busy hauling Jason into the bookstore.
“Dorian’s people—the ones that were still awake,” Theo said, “picked up the rest of their crew and their weapons, threw ’em in the trucks, and took off. They set all the vampires loose, though. Took the collars off ’em, and let the monsters just take off running. I counted twenty-eight of ’em.”
“Great,” Kiefer raked his fingers through his hair. “That’s just awesome.”
“We will find them soon,” Nathan assured him. “We will deal with them accordingly.” He eyed the people sitting on the curb. “In the meantime, I will ask Frankie to call an ambulance when he summons the police.”
“I’ll go tell him to do it,” Theo offered.
Nathan examined him suspiciously, noting, “You are no longer under Kiefer’s command.”
“Nah,” Kiefer said. “It’s a long story, but…in the end, Theo had his uses.” He turned his attention to the erstwhile minion.
Kiefer must’ve looked rather fierce, because wariness snaked into Theo’s expression. He stiffened. “What? You guys gonna kill me now?”
“That would be the easiest way to make sure you don’t go running back to Dorian.”
“I told you I don’t want anything to do with Dorian!” Theo turned a pleading look on Nathan. “I have family nearby. I just want to go home and see ’em again. Stay out of trouble from now on. I swear it.”
“What makes you think Dorian will simply allow you to walk away from his operation? Your former compatriots will report how you betrayed him in order to help us. He will likely be angry over it.”
“He’ll be freaking pissed,” Theo acknowledged with a spark of fear in his eyes. “But I wasn’t exactly high in the ranks of his outfit or anything. I’m no one important. And I’ve got other friends around here, people who can help me hide. Maybe as long as I don’t get in Dorian’s way again, he’ll forget about me and just let me disappear.”
“Perhaps.” Nathan sounded doubtful. He considered Theo a moment longer. “If you do choose to hide, it will likely be more prudent for you not to visit your family. Your calling on them could put them in danger. At least for the foreseeable future.”
Theo nodded gravely. Then he seemed to realize what Nathan was saying. “So, you are going to let me go?” he asked hopefully.
Nathan glanced at Kiefer, the two of them pretending to weigh Theo’s life in the balance.
The sorcerer’s expression hardened as he looked back at Theo. “Yeah, alright, but make sure you do stay out of trouble. ’Cause remember, I’ve been in your head now. I can come find you anytime I want to. And if I have to do that, trust me—you won’t like what happens next.”
Theo raised his hands, cracking a brittle smile. “Believe me, you won’t have to worry about me again.” He went inside to look for Frankie.
The rest of the group instinctively gathered around Nathan, like they were awaiting further instructions from him. They looked exhausted, dirty, and in some cases bloody, but triumphant, and Jessica thought the vampire seemed pretty proud as he swept his gaze over them.
“You were all very valiant tonight,” he said. “You fought bravely and well, and I thank you for standing with us. But you should all go home now and try to forget about what has happened here. Return to your normal lives, now that you have reclaimed them.”
“Won’t you need help tracking down the vampires that ran away?” Lucy asked him.
He smiled at her. “I believe Kiefer and I can handle that.”
Lucy looked skeptical, but she walked over to Jessica, Dara, and Jason, and gave them each a fierce hug, not seeming to mind that with the latter two, she was getting blood on her shirt. She returned to Kiefer and Nathan. “Thank you, guys,” she said, pressing her borrowed rosary and magical amulet back into Kiefer’s hand. “Seriously.”
Aaron stepped up beside her. “Yeah. I don’t even know where to start…”
“It’s okay.” Kiefer offered a magnanimous wave and grin. “Don’t bother.”
“Yes, please do not,” Nathan agreed, with a much graver expression. “After all, one could consider this Kiefer’s and my blunder to begin with. Celia did escape our confinement. That is why she was able to attack you in that alley.”
Kiefer made a face at him. “Well, you didn’t have to remind them of that,” he groaned.
Lucy chuckled. “I guess that’s one way of looking at it,” she said, “but really, the two of you didn’t have to hunt down Celia in the first place, did you? You’ve both been working hard behind the scenes all these years, trying to save all our hides when we didn’t even know we were in danger. I think that qualifies you both as heroes.”
Kiefer waved at her again, but the twinkle had returned to his eyes. “Just go on,” he said. “Get out of here and enjoy your normal lives, like Nathan said. That’ll make it all worthwhile for us.” He punctuated it with a smile, which Aaron returned. He and Lucy meandered away down the sidewalk, back to Lucy’s car.
After they’d driven away, a similar scene played out with Jason and Dara, until it was only Jessica left with the two vampire hunters.
“I should stay and talk to the police,” she told them.
“I do not think that is wise,” Nathan said.
“It’s my store,” she reminded him with a weary smile. “As soon as Frankie contacts the cops, they’re going to call me and tell me to come down here, anyway.”
“They will wonder why you were here ahead of them.”
“I’ll tell them Frankie called me and I happened to be in the neighborhood and…Oh, don’t worry, I'll come up something.”
“Very well. Kiefer and I will wait around the block for you. Text us when you are done.” Nathan’s tone and expression left no room to argue, so she didn’t. She watched Kiefer go over and talk to the two people on the sidewalk, presumably to scrub away their more problematic memories. Meanwhile, Nathan gathered up the weapons and supplies still lying around and stowed them in the truck.
Jessica went inside to get her story straight with Frankie.
◆◆◆
When the police had finally arrived and filled out her paperwork—and Frankie had kindly helped her board up the storefront before taking off—Jessica texted Kiefer. His pickup truck trundled to the curb and she leaned in the driver’s side window.
“Hey guys, can a girl get a lift? It won’t be out of the way or anything. I live right across the hall from Peter Cushing over there.” She nodded at Nathan.
“Believe me, I know.” Kiefer’s laugh was short and insinuating.
Jessica cocked her head. “What does that mean?”
“It does not mean anything,” Nathan said, “but yes, of course we will escort you home.” He exited the truck and came around to lead her to his side of the vehicle.
“Had you talked to Kiefer about me before all this happened?” she asked, her eyes wi
de with wonder. He didn’t answer her. “What’d you tell him?” she persisted. He still didn’t answer, but she thought she saw his lips tug up at the corners.
“Put on your seatbelt, Jessica,” he said as he handed her up into the cab.
She narrowed her eyes at him but did as she was told, taking the space in the center of the bench seat and strapping the lap belt across her middle. Once Nathan was resettled at her side, Kiefer pulled away and aimed the truck in the direction of her complex. As they rounded a corner, Jessica felt the vampire staring down at her.
“What?” she asked him.
“Peter Cushing,” he said, an amused smile still touching his mouth. “He portrayed Abraham Van Helsing, not Dracula.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“I have seen those films as well. When they were new.”
“Yeah, well, I know who played who,” she assured him, “but you were definitely in much more of a Van Helsing mode tonight. The ultimate vampire killer. My hero.”
He chuckled, and she rested her head on his shoulder. He didn’t move, but she thought she felt him relax just a smidgen. She tucked her hand into the crook of his arm and closed her eyes, trying to picture what might happen between them when they got back to their apartment building. Hoping he would kiss her goodnight. Or good morning, as it were, since it wasn’t long until sunrise now.
“Thank you,” she said, pressing her cheek against his shoulder, “for everything.”
“Do not mention it.” He patted her hand, the brief touch sending a soft sizzle sparkling through her blood. With a note of regret, he added, “Now, um...you should get some sleep.”
“What?”
She laughed, but something about the way he’d said it made her leery. She tried to pull away to look at him, and felt Kiefer touch her other arm. She turned toward him and saw the sorcerer watching the road, not even paying attention to her. She heard him murmur something.
“No, I don’t want to—” she said, but it was too late. He had cast a spell on her. She could feel it wending its way through her body, like the slow, spreading burn that came after taking a shot of alcohol.
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