by M. Lorrox
Charlie nods. “That’s a good idea.”
Skip hugs June, then looks at Charlie. “Thanks, man.”
He replies with a smile, then leaves.
When Charlie lays back down in bed, Sadie’s eyes are closed, but she’s awake. “Nice job with June, I’m impressed.”
“Thanks. Turning can be a hard thing for a person.” He closes his eyes. “I’m glad you didn’t have to go through it.”
She opens her eyes. “Thanks for letting me rest.”
“Sure, I want to sleep a bit more.”
She rubs his chest. “Are you sure?” She grins while playfully biting her bottom lip.
“I suppose I’ve slept enough for a while.” He gets up and walks to the door to the living room. “Eddy, keep watching Minnie.” Then he shuts the door.
Gross. “So Minnie, let’s play a new game. Sound good?”
“Sure!”
“I think we should build a fort for Valentine. We can use the couch cushions, and this chair, and the kitchen table. Whaddaya think?”
“What about Rusty, he’s sleeping on the cushions?”
“He’ll get over it.”
Minnie looks around and considers the offer. “Okay.” She returns to Eddy. “Only if it’s her castle, not a fort. She’s a noble.”
Eddy laughs. “Deal. Let’s get started.”
They soon have a grand cushion-castle, with a moat, pretend alligators, and lookout towers. Minnie also insisted on installing a series of imaginary water slides—fashioned from plastic stackable cups, spoons, and butter knives they found in the kitchen—so Valentine can cool off on hot summer days.
Minnie and Eddy sit in the grand hall—which is the only area large enough for them to actually be inside—and discuss the layout of other chambers and quarters inside the castle.
Later, when June walks out of the bedroom and sees the creation, she claps and cheers. “Wow, this is amazing!” Eddy sticks his head out, the white sheet roof of the hall draped across his forehead. “Thanks, but I have to admit—” he sighs, “—I’m kind of a professional fort-builder.”
“It’s a castle!” Minnie exclaims from inside the hall.
Eddy lifts his brows for a split second and smiles. “I’ve recently been promoted to build castles now in addition to forts.”
June speaks loudly so Minnie can hear, even though Minnie can hear quite more than June expects. “It’s quite a lovely castle, majestic even!”
“Valentine agrees.”
Eddy notices June is wearing shoes. “Are you headed out?”
“Yeah, I’m going to the mall to do some shopping. Do you need anything?”
Oh crap, I’m supposed to watch her back, but I’m tied to Minnie, and mom and dad are...busy. “Uh, do you want to wait until later so I can come with you?”
“No, I need a little time to myself. I want to go alone. Dad knows, he thinks it’s fine.”
“Oh, okay… I can’t think of anything I need off hand. Are you going to walk over? Is there an entrance nearby?”
“We called down to the concierge, they have a shuttle that can take me there and back, and it even parks under awnings at both places, so I can stay out of the sun.”
Eddy nods. “That’s convenient. Gotta love hotels owned by vampires.”
“I guess so, yeah. Well, I’ll be back in an hour or so. See ya.”
“Later.” I hope this is okay... Yeah, it’s fine. Skip knows, she wants to be alone, and they looked into the logistics.
Minnie clears her throat. “You were going to help me build a chapel, remember?”
He pulls his head back inside and looks around with one of the family’s emergency flashlights they packed from home. “Right. Hand me that plastic lid, I’ve got an idea.”
When June returns from shopping, her dad is in their bedroom, talking on his cell with his veterinary office.
“I’m not sure how long I’ll be gone, or if I’ll be back. I’m very sorry. …Yes, it was an emergency. Call Dr. Cornell from Mountain View and ask him to help.”
June tries to busy herself by emptying her shopping bags.
“Listen, I’m sorry. Unless there’s something else, I need to go. …Hello?” Skip looks at his phone, sees that indeed they had hung up, then sets the phone on the bedside table. “Well, that’s nice.”
June puts her hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, Dad.”
He smiles at her. “It’s alright, and it’s not your fault. What did you get at the store?”
She pulls out a green bikini swim suit, a pair of gold-framed aviator sunglasses with green lenses, and a green sarong. “I decided I should embrace the green.”
“They look nice, but uh, didn’t they have any one-pieces?”
June laughs. “No dad, they didn’t have any cute one-pieces.”
“Ah-ha! If they have ugly one-pieces, that’s exactly what you need.” He grabs the bikini. “Let’s take this back right now.”
She laughs and snatches the bikini back. “Nice try, Dad.”
He sighs.
She grabs the sunglasses and puts them on. “Cool, right?”
He nods. “Quite stylish... I suppose we should unpack now, huh?”
June takes a deep breath and nods. Moment of truth…
After they unpack their luggage and put their clothes away, they walk into living room to find Charlie on all fours, roaring and clawing, as he attacks the castle. Eddy and Minnie converted the grand hall into a battle command center by rolling the sheet/roof back, and they defend the castle by hurling invisible rocks at the monster with their battalion of invisible catapults.
Sadie, who is on the hotel phone in the bedroom, puts her hand over the handset’s microphone. “Guys, I’m on the phone. Keep it down, or I’ll attack!”
The Charlie monster expresses his horror at the thought. He opens his eyes up big, clamps his teeth together, and pulls his lips open—sucking in some air as he turns to Eddy and Minnie.
They mimic the expression in silence. Then Eddy launches another, quiet barrage of invisible stones at the monster.
Sadie stands. “Oh, thank you Jules. …Yes, I’m looking forward to it. Bye.” She hangs up, then whistles as she walks into the living room. “Time out, pause the battle!”
Charlie turns. “What for? Oh, hi Skip, hi June. Nice sunglasses.”
They laugh. “Hi.”
Eddy and Minnie shout as they launch a sneak attack on the Charlie monster, breaking the ancient rules of time-out-truces, but upholding an even older rule of warfare: Rules? What rules?
Charlie collapses. “Ugh, you’ve got me! I am defeated.”
Minnie stands triumphant and points at him. “It serves you right for attacking Valentine’s castle.”
Sadie claps her hands. “Hey! Alright, playtime is over. Tonight, we’ve all been invited to a presentation on the status of the zombie war, and I’ve been promised we’ll also be told why the Vampire Order has called this meeting. Afterward, there will be a meet-and-greet. I need to give them an RSVP. Who wants to go?”
Everyone but Minnie and Charlie says, “I do.”
Charlie hams up a devilish smile. “I guess that leaves me with Minnie, we’ll stay here.”
Sadie scoffs. “No luck, bucko, you’re going.”
Eddy laughs. “Yeah, bucko.”
Charlie’s face turns to stone when he looks at Eddy. “I will end you.”
Sadie rubs her forehead with her hand. “If everyone wants to go, we can get a sitter for Minnie. Jules has a list of approved ones.”
Skip asks, “When is it?”
“It’s in an hour.”
Skip looks at June. “We better shower up and get ready.”
June nods and takes off her green shades. “Mrs. Costanza, is it formal? What should we wear?”
“It’s not formal, but dress nicely.”
“I’ll do the best I can, but no promises; a man packed for me.” She smiles at her dad.
“Oh, I packed more clothes fo
r you than I did for me. You even said I did a good job…”
She laughs. “Just joking around, Dad.” They head into their bedroom and shut the door.
Charlie gets up off the ground. “You sure you want a sitter? Rusty’s here, and she’s almost seven.”
Sadie thinks it over. “If it was later at night, I’d say yes because she’d just sleep, but she’s wired from having slept on the ride up. Besides, Jules assured me that she has some very qualified vampire sitters available.”
Charlie shrugs. “Alright, fine with me.”
Sadie walks the perimeter of the castle moat. “Do you think we could put something over in Skip and June’s bedroom while the sitter is here? Just to get it out of the way?”
“I’m sure that’d be fine. What do you want to move?”
“Something heavy.”
He nods with the recollection of the old trunk in the bedroom. “Eddy, mom needs you to move her trunk.”
He pokes his head back out of the castle. “A: Can’t you see I’m busy restocking our invisible armaments? And B: She didn’t tell me to do it, but I’d be happy to help if you give me a minute.”
Charlie gets up and walks to the bedroom. “C’mon, we’re moving it now.”
“Sorry, Minnie. I’ll have to help rebuild our defenses later.”
“It’s okay, we’re all set. I just added a dragon’s nest. When the eggs hatch, we’ll have a hundred or so dragons to protect the castle.”
“Wow. Nice work.”
“Thanks.”
Eddy climbs out and helps Charlie carry the trunk over to the Tubmans’ bedroom.
Charlie knocks, and Skip opens the door. “Can we put this someplace out of the way? Our bedroom is overflowing with stuff, and Sadie doesn’t want to leave it in the living room.”
Skip nods and stands aside. “What’s in there?”
Eddy sighs dramatically. “Skip, believe me, you do NOT want to find out.”
Charlie clears his throat. “Shut up, Eddy. Some old knick-knacks and heirlooms, but mostly it’s filled with family pictures and papers. Stuff a bored babysitter doesn’t need to investigate.” -THUD- They set it down beside a dresser.
“Gotcha. Well, we’ve got plenty of space in here; let me know if you want to move anything else.”
Charlie grins. “Thanks, bud.”
Forty-five minutes later, everyone is dressed and ready to go. Charlie also moved his two swords and the monk’s spade to the Tubmans’ bedroom, just in case. These he set upright in the far corner beside the window, and he covered them all with the blanket the spade was wrapped in.
When the twelve-year-old babysitter arrives, Charlie gives her the rundown.
“So, Kimmy, do you have any other questions?”
“No, sir. Little Minnie will be put to bed by eight-thirty, if there’s a problem I call the number on the counter, and I’ll stay up until you return.”
“Great. Oh, and help yourself to anything in the fridge.”
Kimmy reaches into her backpack and pulls out a large drink bottle. “No need, I’m all set.”
“Well then, see you later!”
“Have fun!”
As the family walks out the door, Rusty runs along with them, scurrying between their legs. Sadie almost trips on him. “Rusty!”
He tilts his head up.
“You have to stay in the room.”
He growls.
“Charlie, your dog is being a jerk.”
“He’s always a jerk.” Charlie turns around. “Rusty, Minnie needs some company. Stay here and watch over things.”
He tilts his furry head. -Bark!-
“And don’t bark. I’ll take you out after the thing.”
Rusty lies down on all fours and sets his head between his paws.
As the Costanzas and Tubmans approach the ballroom, they get into a sizeable line. A security guard with slicked back hair, mirrored glasses, a scarred face, and a faded black suit stands at the doors to the ballroom. He takes everyone’s name and checks it against a list before allowing them entry. When the party reaches him, he notices Skip’s brown eyes and shifts to address him first. “Name?”
“Skip Tubman.”
Charlie starts to say something, but the guard’s hand is up in a flash as he scans the list. “I’m sorry, but Tubman isn’t listed, and this is a private event. Only authorized guests are allowed. You’ll have to leave.”
Charlie sighs while Sadie pulls on his shoulder and steps forward. “He’s with us, the Costanza party. I RSVP’d for five.”
The muscles in the guard’s neck tighten as he attacks the list, looking for the Costanza reservation. He sees the asterisk next to the name. He closes his eyes and sighs. “My apologies, Elder Costanza. I’m required to ask you the following question. For the record, do you vouch for everyone in your party?”
“I do.”
“Thank you. You all are permitted to enter, but first, you must turn off any cell phones. They must stay off and out of reach while you are in the ballroom. If any guards see or detect the use of any electronic device, the device will be destroyed and the user will be detained for investigation.”
Sadie nods. “I’m familiar with security protocols, and we left all our phones in the room.”
He steps to the side and gestures with his arm for them to enter. He bows his head an inch in respect.
Once past the guard, Skip pokes Charlie. “That was…interesting.”
“We have to take security very serious. Five bucks says we see a guard bust somebody during the presentation.”
Skip pulls his lips tight, then smacks them as he opens them. “I doubt I should take that bet.”
Yeah, you shouldn’t. Charlie smiles and checks out the ballroom. It’s set up with round tables for a dinner, but there are no place settings, only chairs. More tables are folded and stacked along one end of the room along with additional chairs. At the other end is a raised stage, and on it sits some chairs and a microphone on a stand. The tables closest to the stage have “RESERVED” signs on the them, but random people seem to have filled in all the seats already.
He doesn’t notice the opulence of the room—it pales in comparison to the Italian, Ottoman, and Russian courts he’s worked in, in the past—but Eddy, June, and Skip are blown away. Chandeliers light the large room, tapestries and thick curtains hug the walls, and the carpeting underfoot is plush and clean.
Sadie looks for other elders she knows and points toward the stage. “I’m going to sit up there. You all should find a seat somewhere in the middle.” She walks up the side of the room to the front, then as she starts to walk across, people stand up to greet her. When Sadie reaches the reserved tables, a man stands and hugs her, then motions for one of his companions to vacate and open a place for her.
The rest of the family has been sitting for a full minute by the time she sits. Skip was watching, and he motions to Eddy. “Your mom must carry some clout here, huh?”
Eddy nods. “Yeah, she’s the equivalent to…maybe a Senate Majority Leader or something.”
“Oh, wow.” He turns to June. “Did you hear that?”
She nods and keeps looking at the stage through her tinted sunglasses. There’s so much activity in the room—so much energy, especially up toward the front. She’s drawn to it and is distracted by it at the same time. “There’s a lot of people in here, Dad.”
Skip looks around. “Sure are. And I’m definitely in the minority; I don’t think I’ve seen any eyes that weren’t vampire-green.”
June bites her lip and stares toward the front.
Eddy scans the entire room. I’ve never been around so many vampires. This is awesome!
A woman with long, wavy red hair and a vintage dress steps onto the stage—which must be made of wood; the clicking of her heels resounds through the ballroom. She makes her way to the microphone. “Good evening everyone, please take your seats.”
Charlie leans over to Skip. “That’s Mirabelle Darien. She’s the
House’s media person.”
“Welcome everyone, and thank you for your attendance tonight. I have some short comments, and a special guest will give a presentation. After we’re done in here, the hotel restaurant will be opened to our party only and will be operated by our people for a casual meet and greet.” She smiles, and her perfectly white teeth shine in the spotlights aimed at the stage. “I will look forward to speaking with each one of you there.”
Charlie squints at Skip. “She’s always seemed a little too nice, if you know what I mean.”
June tilts her head. “Hmm.”
Eddy looks at her, and she notices. “Don’t mind me. I was just thinking that she seems nice, like, the right amount of nice.”
Mirabelle continues. “Now, what we’re going to share tonight is largely public information, but some of the details that involve the vampires is not public information—just as what you had for a snack this afternoon isn’t public information!”
Half the room laughs, while Charlie chuckles with the other half. “I think the joke is that she keeps using that joke. It’s past dead at this point, but she keeps using it, so I think it’s actually becoming funny again. It’s like an undead joke!” Charlie laughs a little too loud, and the tables nearby scowl at him.
Eddy leans over and whispers, “Dad, please be quiet, I want to hear what she has to say.”
“—fighting the zombies on The Line, but The Line keeps failing. Zombies keep getting through, somehow, and the U.S. government keeps losing cities. Nashville is close to falling, and cities in the north aren’t faring much better.”
Skip and Charlie look at each other. If The Line fails on the western side of the Smoky Mountains, and if it’s pulled back to the eastern side, it would be reestablished at Asheville. If that happens, Waynesville, their old hometown, would be abandoned and overrun by zombies.
“The U.S. government has officially requested assistance from the Vampire Order. They believe that a collaboration can be mutually beneficial to both groups; the vampires can help on key strategic sorties, allowing the government to beat back the zombies into containment, and the U.S. government can help the vampires in going public.”
“We don’t want to go public!” A man across the room stands, and as some guards start to move toward him from the edges of the room, he jumps onto the table.