by Krista Davis
It took a few seconds to sink in. Maggie shuffled to the top step, leaned over, and unsnapped something on the bottom of her dress. She made her way down, slowly, one painful step at a time, as though she had difficulty walking, but she still carried the cigarette. When she reached the bottom, I realized she wore a Morticia Addams dress, skintight, all the way down to her ankles. I guessed she’d unfastened something that allowed her to walk more easily, but she still couldn’t do much more than shuffle over to Patrick.
“Patrick!” Her cigarette fell on a bale of hay when she screamed.
The spark ignited a loose bit of hay on the top, and it blazed like a dry Christmas tree. Simultaneously, two police cars arrived, and a crowd of partygoers rushed down the stairs, adding to the confusion.
I grabbed the Grim Reaper’s cape and threw it over the hay bale, dousing the fire. As I recalled, hay bales were packed so tightly that they didn’t burn easily. Nevertheless, my heart thundered from the brief flare-up of loose material.
With the fire under control, I paused to catch my breath and saw Wolf, the homicide detective whom I dated. His presence told me everything I needed to know—Patrick was dead.
Wolf took charge of the scene, finding a few seconds to kiss me intensely on the lips before calmly moving everyone away from Patrick and the EMTs. Our relationship wasn’t a secret anymore, but I was stunned by his public display of affection, however brief. Mars scowled at me, and I couldn’t help noticing that Detective Kenner, who’d been chasing me in spite of my relationship with Wolf, was watching. There was nothing wrong with Wolf’s kissing me, yet I couldn’t help wondering if it had been for the benefit of Mars or Kenner.
We clustered at the edge of the sidewalk. Partygoers lined the stairs to Natasha and Mars’s front door, their assorted gruesome costumes bestowing a surreal atmosphere. The fog machine continued to blast a pea-soup cloud over Patrick, contributing to the eeriness.
I hadn’t known him really, and our one encounter had been decidedly unpleasant, but the shock of his death stunned me. I looked on with the others, watching the horror unfold.
Maggie stood near Patrick, clinging to Mars. Her hands clenched his jacket so tightly that her knuckles shone white in the semidarkness.
One of the EMTs called Wolf. “I think you should see this.”
I knew what they were showing him—it had to be the two blood red spots I’d seen on his neck. Wolf, characteristically calm, took it in stride. His voice low, I heard him ask, “What is that?”
The EMT didn’t have Wolf’s tact. “Vampire bite?”
Maggie bent forward to have a look, and screamed as if a vampire were biting her. If it hadn’t been for Mars wrapping his arms around her waist, she would have fallen. She stopped screaming as quickly as she had started and muttered, “Three days. He’ll be dead in three days.”
Unless I missed my guess, he didn’t have three minutes left.
She turned around and scanned the crowd. I followed her line of sight—a weird collection of people dressed as vampires, interspersed with traditional witches, skeletons, mummies, and scary TV characters. Her head fell back, and she collapsed, nearly taking Mars down with her.
Wolf lunged toward them and helped Mars lower Maggie to the ground. An EMT came to her assistance, and I wondered if they would have to cut the tight dress off of her to restore her circulation. Not on the sidewalk, I hoped.
She came around quickly, struggled to sit, but she couldn’t stand up by herself because of the tightness of the dress. Over the EMT’s objections, Wolf and Mars helped her to her feet. She took a couple of tiny Morticia Addams shuffle-style steps, bent over, and ripped the seam of her dress, right up to midthigh. “Blake. I have to warn my son, Blake.”
Warn him? Of what?
The woman beside me shuffled closer to make room for the growing crowd and jingled when she moved. In spite of the gypsy costume, I easily recognized Natasha’s mother, Wanda. She wore a turban with her hair tucked underneath it; a gauzy loose blouse unbuttoned too low, showing off too much cleavage; and a long skirt. She gave me a quick hug and said, “I sense danger for that woman.”
Even when I was a little girl, Wanda had claimed powers of prognostication. It didn’t take much, though, to guess danger lurked, since something sinister had happened to Patrick.
Wanda closed her eyes and held out wrinkled hands covered with enormous gemstone rings. “She’s afraid. Very afraid. I’m getting the name Lucas.”
Okay, that was a little creepy, given June’s tale about Viktor Luca.
I heard Mars offer to help Maggie up the stairs. Strain showed in her expression as she gazed around at the other guests. Looking for a friendly face?
“Which hospital will they take Patrick to?” she asked. I froze. I’d guessed he was dead, since Wolf had been called. Either I was wrong, or Maggie didn’t understand yet.
Wolf ran a hand over the top of his head. “I’m sorry . . .” Oh, not in front of everyone! I stepped forward. “Would you like to come across the way to my house for a little privacy?”
Mars immediately said, “Great idea.” He took Maggie gently by the arm to lead the way, but she recoiled at the sight of me, as if I were a threat. She pulled a pendant on a chain out from under her costume, spun around, and stood with her back to me for a few seconds. Looks passed between Mars, Wolf, and me. What on earth was she doing?
She turned toward me with a weak smile and dropped the pendant under her dress again. “Thank you.”
The crowd opened for Wolf as he led the way for Mars and Maggie. I was in the middle of the street, bringing up the rear, when I heard someone shout, “That’s her!”
EIGHT
Dear Natasha,
Everyone in my neighborhood has long stairs leading up to the front door. I’m so tired of a lantern or a pumpkin on each step that I could scream. I would love to do something new and different. Any suggestions?
—No More Pumpkins in Gourd Neck, Arkansas
Dear No More Pumpkins,
Buy glow-in-the-dark paint and paint scary sayings on the riser of each step: “You’re getting closer to doom.” “Run!” “Prepare for the worst.” “It’s not too late to turn back.” Paint freehand and let some of the paint drip down. You’ll have a very original entrance!
—Natasha
I looked over my shoulder and saw Gabriel’s babysitter pointing at me. “She’s the one who kidnapped him.”
An African American woman, only slightly taller than me, with a flawless complexion, accompanied her. The trousers of her police uniform cinched her waist too tightly, creating ample rolls above and below. Her shirt strained to contain a generous bosom. “Hold up there a minute, ma’am. I need to have a word with you.”
I waited for her to catch up to me. “Gabriel is fine. And I did not kidnap him or anyone else.”
She looked around. “Where is he?”
“He’s at my house with my niece. Come on. You can see for yourself.”
By the time we reached my foyer, Mars and Wolf had escorted Maggie to the living room, and Jen and Vegas were eavesdropping.
“What’s going on? Is that Blake’s mom?” asked Jen.
“Heather! What are you doing here?” Vegas blurted.
I ignored their questions. “Did you manage to reach Gabriel’s parents?”
“We only get voice mail,” said Jen.
Vegas and Jen were still wearing something wooly wrapped around their necks. “Please tell me you’re not coming down with colds. Do you have sore throats?”
A pink flush flooded Jen’s cheeks. “It’s a precaution.” She held a kneesock out to me. “We have one for you, too.”
Aware of the horrible moment that must be transpiring in my living room, I wanted to get them out of the foyer. “Everyone into the kitchen. You’re sure no one is sick?”
They promised everyone was fine. The girls had turned on spooky lights and lit candles in the kitchen.
“Where’s Gabriel?” I asked.
>
Jen and Vegas shrugged and raised their palms as though they had no idea.
Panic surged through me.
In a loud, teasing voice, Jen said, “Where could Gabriel be? I haven’t seen him. Have you, Vegas?”
“You see? They’re hiding him!” said Heather.
The officer frowned at us, her forehead furrowed.
As though on cue, little Gabriel, still wearing his devil horn hat, gleefully ran into the kitchen from the family room. He looked far too angelic to be a devil. He giggled and charged past us into the foyer.
“Is that the missing child?” the officer asked Heather.
“Yes! What a relief. Thank you, Officer.” She took a couple of steps in the direction of the foyer but didn’t realize that Gabriel was making a circle. He toddled toward us from the family room again, obviously delighted with himself.
Heather held out her arms to him and he stopped cold. His happy expression morphed to one of displeasure, as though someone were trying to feed him bitter medicine. “I don’t like you.”
The officer’s eyebrows shot up. “We’ll let him play for just a little longer.” She bent toward him. “Hi. I’m Officer Wong.” She lifted his necklace and sniffed it. “Garlic? You afraid of vampires?” She directed her question to Jen and Vegas.
Heather snorted. “I have to send a schoolwide text about this!”
Vegas jutted her hip with attitude. “You think you’re so smart. Well, if you’d seen what we saw tonight, you’d be wearing garlic, too. But that’s okay. You run back on down the street by yourself without any vampire protection and hope he doesn’t drink your blood.”
Heather tried to snicker, but her doubtful expression suggested her bravado had been shaken.
The officer appeared confused. “You three take the baby and protect him from vampires.” She pointed straight at me. “I’d like a word with you.”
Jen took Gabriel’s hand and led him to the family room. Vegas and Heather followed her.
“Hot cider?” I asked.
“Sure.” Officer Wong stood at the island, watching me. “How come you have the baby?”
“He showed up at my front door all by himself. You can ask Jen and Vegas. When we took him home, Heather didn’t even know she’d lost him. I didn’t dare leave him alone with her again.”
“Uh-huh.” Disbelief drenched her tone. “A three-year-old just happened to escape his sitter, walk to your house, and knock on the door.”
She clearly wasn’t buying my story. “I don’t know how he managed to get away from her. He was scared when he got here. There’s a very creepy Halloween display between our houses, and I think it spooked him.”
The corner of her mouth twitched, and she studied me while I poured the cider. “Cupcake?” I asked, placing a plate of them on the counter. “Those are devil’s food, double chocolate.” The dark cupcake was topped with a chocolate ganache. I had drizzled white powdered-sugar icing over top in circles and used a toothpick to drag it into spiderweb designs.
She lifted one, pulled back the wrapper, and bit into it. “Umm, these are good.”
“Wong?” Wolf’s voice came from the doorway.
Officer Wong gasped as if she’d just had a eureka moment. She licked ganache off her forefinger and waggled it at me. “I know who you are. They warned me about you!”
What does that mean? I wanted to ask, but Wolf shot toward the cupcakes.
“Buttering up the cops?” he teased.
I poured him a cup of cider. “How’s Maggie?”
“Taking it hard. For some reason, she thought he was unconscious and would die in three days.”
Wong squinted at him. “Why do I feel like I’ve missed something?”
Wolf brought her up to speed. “Is that why the girls are protecting the baby with garlic?” she asked.
I relaxed a bit. Wong was obviously sharp. It had been such a weird and confusing night that it was getting to be a little bit hard to explain everything. “The vampire was standing in front of Natasha’s house, posing like he was part of the display. Then Daisy stuck her head under his cape and he took off at a run.”
“You saw the murderer?” asked Wolf.
I nodded. “So did Vegas and Jen, and, alas, Gabriel. I don’t know that he was the murderer, but he was wearing a vampire cape and a mask, and he took off running.”
Wolf scowled. “Did you recognize him? Hair, shoes, voice?”
“I thought he was a prop, a mannequin. If I’d known he was a killer, I’d have paid more attention.” I thought back. “He didn’t say anything. The collar of his cape stood up, hiding his jaw, and he wore a horrible mask.” I shook my head at him. “I’m sorry. Everything happened so fast.”
Jen stomped into the kitchen. “I am so mad!”
“What’s wrong? Is it Heather?” I asked.
Jen waved her hand in a familiar gesture she must have picked up from her father. “She’s obnoxious, but that’s not why I’m upset. I love mysteries. I devoured Nancy Drew, and I didn’t notice one clue about the identity of the vampire.”
Wolf bit back a smile.
“Vegas and I talked about it, and we can’t even remember how tall he was. How pathetic is that? I have to start being more observant.”
“You’ll tell me if you recall anything?” asked Wolf.
She threw her hands in the air. “We’re useless!”
Raised voices came from the family room. “That stupid Heather. Man, but she’s mean.” Jen rushed back to the family room.
“Mars is going to drive Maggie home, and I have to get back,” said Wolf. “I want you to be very careful.”
“We’ll be fine,” I assured him.
He frowned at me. “Soph! Until we catch this guy, you and the girls need to be on alert. He may come after you if he thinks you can identify him.”
“Don’t be silly. We didn’t see anything. You heard Jen.”
Wolf leaned toward me and in all earnestness, said, “But he doesn’t know that.”
Wong and I watched as Mars and Wolf accompanied Maggie out the front door. Instead of the broken, weepy woman I expected to see, Maggie stood erect, her alert eyes taking in everything.
The door had barely shut when Wong said, “Did she look like someone who just lost her man?”
“I don’t think I’d have been so together.”
“Me, either. Unless she was happy to get rid of him.”
A whiney voice arose behind Wong and me. “Well? Can I take Gabriel home now? His parents will be arriving anytime, and I wouldn’t want them to find an empty house.” Heather had the good fortune to be a very pretty blonde with a pert nose and great hair. Unfortunately, she acted like she had figured that out and was used to getting what she wanted.
Officer Wong sipped cider and didn’t appear to be in any hurry. “What time did you put Gabriel to bed?”
Heather’s eyes widened in surprise. “I wasn’t watching the clock. He’s a baby. He goes to bed early.”
“And then I guess you watched TV?”
Heather recovered and if her sly look and sassy tone were any indication, she thought she was onto Wong and her line of questioning. “No. I read a book.”
“I like to read. What book was it?”
Heather couldn’t stop a sly smile from creeping onto her lips. “My biology book.”
“I like biology, too. So how come it took you so long to answer the door when Mrs. Winston came by?”
How could Wong possibly know that?
Heather had to think for a minute. “I was in the bathroom.”
“I see. How do you think she got inside the house to snatch Gabriel?”
I almost began to feel sorry for Heather when she paused, unsure of herself. “I heard something in the backyard, and I went outside to check on it. I guess I left the door unlocked, and she was lurking outside, waiting for the opportunity.”
“So, you weren’t reading your biology book. You weren’t even in the house.”
“
You’re not allowed to question me without my parents present. I know my rights! My daddy is very influential in this town. He will not be happy to hear about the way you’ve treated me. I’ll . . . I’ll get you fired!”
Wong appeared nonplussed. “Perhaps you’re not aware of the penalty for false charges.” She brushed by Heather into the family room.
Heather turned toward me. “You wouldn’t dare!”
“I don’t think I have anything to do with it.” I said it with smug satisfaction, and immediately wished I hadn’t, even if she was a spoiled stinker.
Wong returned, carrying a sleepy Gabriel. Addressing me, she said, “I’d better get this little guy home in case his parents return.”
I nodded and opened the front door for her. “Wait. How did you know she didn’t answer the door right away?”
Wong grinned and whispered, “There were Heathers when I was in school, too. And they were always outside necking with some boy.”
Vegas darted up from behind and draped a second garlic necklace over Gabriel.
Heather pinched her nose shut with her fingers. “Ugh. You are so weird. No wonder your mother ran off and left you. I’d abandon a kid like you, too.”
It was mean. Low-down, dirty, and aimed to hurt Vegas where she was most vulnerable.
To her credit, Vegas didn’t cry. When Heather was out of earshot, she said, “I hope she gets in big trouble for ignoring Gabriel.”
I had a feeling that wish had already come true. Between Gabriel’s parents and the very astute Officer Wong, Heather had some explaining to do—no matter how important her parents might be.
“In fact, I hope the vampire does bite her!” Vegas crossed her arms over her chest and pouted.
I had just begun to close the door when I heard a blast. Holding the door open just a crack, I peered out. Doors opened up and down the street. Daisy and Mochie ran to my side in alarm. The acrid smell of burning filled the air. I hoped it wasn’t some kind of gas leak. I’d seen TV news reports of entire blocks being demolished by a gas leak. Maybe we would be safer outdoors?