“I cad explaid everythink,” Kyle said after the silence had stretched on for a couple of very uncomfortable minutes.
“Please, do,” Gretchen said from by the sink, where she was standing with her arms folded over her chest, eyeing them both like a hawk eyeing its prey. “I’m very interested to hear just what the hell is going on around here.”
Oh crap.
“Aunt Gretchen, listen,” Lanie began hoarsely, not wanting Kyle to be the one in the direct line of fire. He’d suffered enough already that day. “This is a…complicated situation. I-I…I don’t know how to explain it to you, but I need you to…to—“
“To what?” Gretchen demanded. “To believe there’s a good reason why I walked into this house to find you being held hostage by a maniac with a crossbow!”
“Aunt Gretchen, he’s not a maniac—“
“I’ll ask why you aren’t at school like you should be later!” Gretchen hissed, cutting Lanie’s words off. “But first, I’d like to hear exactly why you’re alone in the house with a boy and exactly why he tried to kill me!”
“Uh…it’s…it’s…complicated,” Lanie reiterated.
Like a bloodthirsty vampire on the loose complicated.
“Spill it, Lanie,” Gretchen urged, her tone going surprisingly soft. “You know you can tell me anything. And I’ll do whatever I can to help you.” She shot Kyle a look that said she’d give him another beating if it came down to it.
“I…I…” Lanie started and then paused, looking at Kyle, who was still holding the cloth to his face. He lifted his shoulders in a helpless shrug. Clearly, he’d never been in this situation before.
Oh crap!
Lanie huffed out a breath. “Aunt Gretchen, you have to swear not to say anything to my dad.”
“You know I can’t promise that until I’m sure this stud isn’t dragging you into something…shady,” she said, shooting Kyle a significant look.
Stud? Did her aunt just call Kyle a stud?
Lanie opened her mouth to say…something, but then snapped it shut. If she told Gretchen the truth…
“You can tell me, Lanie,” Gretchen told her. “I promise I’ll do anything I can to help you.”
Lanie looked at her aunt’s sympathetic face and large eyes, coming up absolutely blank. She had nothing. Not a single even half believable tale to explain Kyle and his crossbow! And her aunt was waiting for her to say something!
It was at that point that Lanie folded like a cheap lawn chair, while Kyle Vincent stood by with his eyes narrowed and his shoulders stiff, one hand on the crossbow lying on the center island, as if he might have to defend himself or Lanie or at any moment.
Lanie didn’t want to tell Gretchen, but she couldn’t see a way out of the situation and besides, if she didn’t cough up the truth and Gretchen knew she was hiding something, she’d likely go straight to Sam and then…well, they’d all be right back in the same boat. So, if the jig was up, she might as well face it head on and have it over with.
“So, you expect me to believe that a…a vampire killed Stacy Miller and Amy Jarvis? A vampire?” Gretchen questioned in a slightly haughty voice.
Lanie shrugged. She wouldn’t believe it if she hadn’t seen it, so she truly didn’t expect her aunt to believe it. She also wasn’t surprised that her aunt knew the name of the girl in the park. As soon as the family was notified, it had undoubtedly spread like wildfire.
“And this vampire attacked you?” Gretchen continued dubiously. “And your stud here thinks he might try again because he missed the first time?”
Again, Lanie shrugged, hoping and praying that she hadn’t made a mistake squealing to her aunt. If she went to the Sheriff…Lanie couldn’t comprehend what would happen from there, but she envisioned mass mayhem, people running through the streets screaming in terror, and possibly a few buildings going up in flames.
“And you expect me not to tell the Sheriff because…” Gretchen left the statement open ended, waiting for one of them to fill it in.
“Because if he tries to find Frederik, if the Sheriff or any of his men get in his way, he’ll kill them without blinking,” Kyle explained seriously. “I’ve seen it happen before.”
Gretchen’s gaze narrowed at Kyle. “So, I’m supposed to say nothing knowing that there’s “a vampire” in Fells Pointe killing young girls?” she asked, using air quotes.
Lanie shrugged for the third time, feeling helpless.
“The fewer people who know about him, the better,” Kyle stated seriously. “He’ll kill anyone who gets too close, no matter who it is. He doesn’t care if it’s the Sheriff or you or your grandmother.”
Gretchen thought about that for a second. “But, you’ve been after him for four years, right? How come you’re still walking around?”
There was a moment of silence from Kyle, during which he turned his glance to Lanie, his eyes pinning hers with a look that caused her heart to twist inside her chest. “He won’t kill me.”
“Oh? Why is that?” Gretchen asked, openly suspicious.
Kyle kept his gaze pinned on Lanie, his handsome features slightly pained. “He won’t kill me because…he made me.”
Gretchen stiffened and Lanie felt a little jolt go through her. The kitchen fell silent and Kyle dropped his gaze down to the center island counter top, where his crossbow was laying, the little shard loaded into it glinting like a polished jewel in the light.
Gretchen suddenly cleared her voice. “This vampire…this isn’t a euphemism for something is it? I mean, it’s really a vampire we’re talking about?”
“It’s really a vampire,” Kyle assured the woman, keeping his gaze on his crossbow.
“This vampire,” Gretchen went on, “he made you? Does that mean that you’re—“
“No. I’m…only half of him,” Kyle stated. “I don’t…feed on people the way he does.”
Lanie watched Kyle for a long minute, noting the look of shame on his face. A sharp pain stabbed at her. She couldn’t come to terms with someone who looked like that…feeling shame. It made no sense.
Kyle’s gaze suddenly shot up to Lanie. “Someone’s pulling into the driveway,” he said, his voice tight.
Pure terror shot through Lanie. “My dad!” she gasped as panic gripped her.
If Sam Bancroft found Kyle in his house…she was a dead woman! She was going to be hanged with Kyle’s entrails!
Gretchen was the one who suddenly jolted into motion, darting over to the back door and jerking it open. “Kyle, get out! Go get into my car and wait for me!”
“But, I can—“
“Wait for me in the car, boy!” Gretchen hissed at him. “I’m not done with you!”
Kyle snatched up the crossbow and shot past Lanie and was just…gone, the screen door slamming against the back of the house the only proof that he’d gone off in that direction.
“Damn!” Gretchen exclaimed in shock, blinking hard a few times.
Just a split second later the woman bolted back across the kitchen and over to the center island, where she quickly began unloading groceries from the bags still sitting there, plastering a completely placid expression on her face.
Lanie stood by the island, stiff and terrified, unsure of what to do with herself and then suddenly realizing she wasn’t able to do anything at all. She seemed to be frozen to the spot, terror seizing her muscles tight, making her body go as rigid as stone. She couldn’t have moved if her life had depended on it!
“Lanie! Are you in here!” her dad’s voice suddenly boomed through the house.
Lanie’s heart leapt up into her throat and it dawned on her that she didn’t have the voice to answer her dad.
“We’re in here, Sam!” Gretchen called out, causing Lanie to gasp with a start.
Sure footsteps sounded out down the hall and then Sam appeared in the kitchen doorway, his gaze instantly finding Lanie. “Lanie, what are you doing here? Why aren’t you in school?”
Lanie opened her mouth to speak, but not
hing came out. Not a sound. She didn’t have an excuse for not being in school! And not a single excuse could she come up with!
Oh crap.
She was caught. And now she was dead.
“Lanie was upset about what happened last night, so she called me,” Gretchen answered for her, her tone as light as if they were discussing the weather. “I told her to come on home and we could talk about it.”
Sam seemed to take all that in stride, not even questioning Gretchen. “Alright. I understand, but don’t make a habit of this. School is the most important thing for you right now.”
Lanie nodded and then shot a look at her aunt. She was impressed. Gretchen could stand there and look at Sam Bancroft with a straight face and utter a lie like it was nothing. She never would have guessed it from her aunt, who was all open and touchy-feely and in tune with her emotions.
“How’s everything going?” Gretchen asked easily.
Sam let out a long sigh and ran a hand through his hair. “It’s going. Not well, but it’s going.”
“Oh? What’s happening?” wondered Gretchen, going to the fridge to put some food away.
“Well, word’s out that Amy Jarvis was found and people are starting to panic already,” Sam answered, walking over to the island to plop heavily onto a stool. The man looked haggard and weary to the bone. “The station’s getting calls, Mayor Wylie’s getting calls. People are wanting a curfew put in place and the schools shut down…it’s a mess.”
“Is there really that much of a reason to panic?” Gretchen asked, greatly interested.
“Well, two dead girls in two days is serious business,” Sam answered wearily, running his hand across his face. “But, some wise soul in town must have uttered the phrase serial killer, and now half the residents are ready to arm themselves and shoot the first thing that moves.”
“Serial killer?” Gretchen repeated, sounding surprised. “Is that what you think?”
Sam paused for a beat, his gaze sweeping over to Lanie and then back again. “Two girls have been found in the same park, murdered in the same manner. I don’t want to put that label on the perpetrator, but that seems like a possibility.”
Lanie thought she gulped audibly.
“Should we be on lock down, Sam? I mean, is it really that kind of a situation?” Gretchen asked.
“I don’t want to think it’s that bad, but if any more young girls turn up, it might turn into that kind of situation,” Sam answered. “This is no joke, Gretchen. Things are bad.”
Gretchen slid her gaze over to Lanie, who went stiff. Oh no. Gretchen was going to tell Sam! Gretchen was going to tell him everything and her father would wind up getting killed and then she’d be all alone!
“You look beat, Sam. Why don’t you go on up to bed,” Gretchen told the man, looking back to him and Lanie had a hard time not blacking out from relief.
“Yeah. I am beat,” Sam said, sliding off the stool and dragging himself across the kitchen. “Unless something else happens, I won’t be going back to work until in the morning, so just let me sleep through.”
Lanie nodded and watched as her father left the kitchen, listening to him clump down the hallway and then up the stairs. Once he was safely out of earshot, she heard Gretchen let out a sharp breath.
“Well, that was the most harrowing three minutes of my entire life!” the woman hissed, bringing Lanie’s attention around to her. “Lanie, do you really expect me not to say anything to your father about this! I mean, you’ve seen the person who killed those two girls, right? You can identify him because he came at you. And so can the stud with the crossbow. You both know who Sam should be looking for!”
Lanie regarded her aunt for a moment, realization dawning on her. Gretchen did not believe the story they had told her. She did not believe that a vampire was responsible for killing Stacy Miller and Amy Jarvis. She thought it was a person.
“This isn’t some kind of game or joke, Lanie. Two little girls are dead!” Gretchen said, biting off each word. “I don’t know what that boy has told you or what he’s done to you, but if you—“
“Kyle didn’t do anything to me!” Lanie heard herself snap at her aunt. Did her aunt really think that Kyle Vincent had…brain washed her into thinking she’d seen a vampire? “I’m not making this up! There is a…a monster out there killing people! And he tried to kill me! If Kyle hadn’t been there, he would have!”
Gretchen was visibly taken aback by Lanie’s tone and seemed thrown for a second. Probably because she’d never heard her niece so much as raise her voice before. A shard of remorse stabbed Lanie, but she ignored it. These were desperate times, so her sassy tone would just have to be overlooked!
Gretchen cleared her throat and pulled herself up, shaking off Lanie’s lippy outburst. “You’re really serious about this? You really believe what you’re saying about a…a vampire killing those little girls? Your friends?”
It was obvious that Gretchen was not going to get on board with the vampire story, and Lanie couldn’t blame her. Pulling in a breath, she tried to keep her voice even as she spoke. “Aunt Gretchen, you shouldn’t be involved in this. Just forget that we said anything. I’ll handle—“
“Ha!” Gretchen scoffed, cutting her off. “My niece and some stud armed with a crossbow think there’s a vampire running around killing little girls! Do you really think I’m going to just forget about it?”
She could hope.
“Look, I don’t know what’s going on around here, but I intend on finding out,” Gretchen stated firmly, jolting into motion and beginning to quickly put the groceries away. “I’m going to go have a talk with your stud and I expect you to be here when I get back. Is that clear?”
Lanie nodded.
“Be here in this house when I get back,” Gretchen reiterated, slamming the fridge shut. “Otherwise, I’ll go straight to your dad with this.” That said, the woman bolted from the room, leaving Lanie alone in the kitchen.
Once her aunt was gone, Lanie glanced around, trying to figure out what she should do with herself. However, there wasn’t much she could do at that point, so she decided to do the only thing that made sense just then, which was to go into the living room to pace until she could come up with a better alternative.
Lanie had no idea what Gretchen was doing to Kyle, but she didn’t hear from them for hours. In fact, Johnna and Devyn showed up after school and they still weren’t back, which worried Lanie. Right behind Johnna and Devyn came Chase Wylie, Finn and Brady and as everyone trooped into the house and toward the kitchen, Lanie felt rather a bit like screaming in agony. The last thing she wanted was to have a houseful of people hovering around! She needed some space! There was not only a bloodthirsty killer on the loose, but apparently her aunt had taken a man hostage! The last thing she needed was a horde of teenagers making a mess and yapping in her face about homework or what had happened in the cafeteria that day!
“Hey, Lanie, why’d you skip the rest of the day?” Devyn asked, going straight to the fridge and pulling out a soda.
“I just didn’t feel like going back,” she answered vaguely, watching as the three boys all disappeared into the pantry.
“And your dad let you get away with that?” Devyn asked dubiously.
Lanie shrugged.
“She’s had a hard couple of days and her dad knows that,” Johnna said, shaking her head at Devyn. “Speaking of your dad, Lanie, have you talked to him about what’s going on?”
“I-I…why?” Lanie asked, suspicion wafting through her.
“Well, because we went to Katy’s for a coffee at lunch and people were talking about…a serial killer,” Johnna said, whispering the last words. “Have you heard anything? Is that what the Sheriff thinks? Is there…a serial killer running around Fells Pointe?”
Lanie suddenly felt a pang of sympathy for her father. “He actually said it’s too early to have an opinion about anything like that, but that we should all stay calm and try not panic. It won’t help anything.”
She decided to add those last bits in for her father’s benefit.
“Well, since you were the only person who saw the…the…you know…are you going to be in danger?” Johnna asked, her eyes wide. “I mean, seriously? Two people are dead and you might have seen the person who did it.”
Lanie lifted a shoulder. “I really don’t know,” she said, which was actually sort of true. “But, you two can go on home if you want to. If someone does decide to…come after me, I don’t want you to be caught in the middle.”
Yes! Please, go home! Her dad would probably not be happy about it, but oh well. She honestly didn’t want her friends to wind up in the path of the monster who’d nearly carried her off into the night. But, aside from that, she really wanted her house to be cleared out. She could not deal with this…situation…with her friends hovering around!
The boys exited the pantry just then, their arms laden with all manner of junk food. “What does Sheriff Bancroft say about the serial killer?” Brady asked, thunking his armload down onto the center island.
“He’s not saying anything,” Lanie stated firmly. “So, if you hear any one going around saying otherwise, it’s a lie. My dad doesn’t want a panic to break out when no one really knows what’s going on.”
“Sounds like a cover up,” Brady said, tearing open a bag of chips with his teeth.
Lanie ignored him. “Don’t make a big mess, guys. And keep it down. My dad just went to sleep,” she warned.
Chase sidled up to her and nudged her with his elbow. “Are you still going to be working on all the Homecoming Week stuff?”
“I guess so,” Lanie answered, watching as Brady and Finn made short work of the bag of chips and then started on a box of cookies. They were like two rabid dogs!
“Well, you don’t have to be worried. I’ll be watching out for you,” Chase told her.
Lanie tried to smile, but failed miserably. Yeah, she’d be figuring a way to get out of that ASAP! She wasn’t overly crazy about Chase Wylie, but she didn’t want him to get in the way of the monster that was running around killing people, either.
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