My cousins waited a split second, then followed frantically. “Just where do you think you’re going?” Pep yelled.
“We have to get to Cookie! She lied about the shower!” I yelled back. Of course she had. She knew who the killer was, and she had gone to trigger a confrontation on her own.
“Why would she lie about that?” gasped Lark as we blew into the kitchen. Audrey wasn’t there; even she had left her usual spot in the kitchen to help in the search for Dorian Deadly.
She wasn’t likely to find him.
“You think Cookie is trying to find Dorian?” asked Pep. She sounded hopeful. For all of Cookie’s crazy, she rarely failed at anything she put her mind to. That’s how she always found the wine.
We reached the foyer and started running up the stairs.
“Yes, I think she is. She didn’t want to involve herself, I’m sure, but she figured it out before I did,” I said. Not that that was surprising. She had noticed the signs. I had missed them . . . until now.
“Do you know why the Deadlys were targeted?” asked Pep.
“No, I don’t,” I said. That much was true. I might know the who, but that hadn’t told me the why. But I had a feeling we were about to find out.
“Cookie!” I yelled when we reached her apartment. Hearing no answer, I tried the door. It slid open.
Cookie having booby-trapped her apartment in every conceivable way, we didn’t dare enter it. But we didn’t need to. She wasn’t there.
“I should have been more suspicious when she mentioned taking a shower,” I muttered. “It’s not as if she’s ever terribly clean.”
I pulled the door closed.
“Now we’re looking for her, too,” muttered Pep. “She should have taken us with her.”
“She knew where she was going. She must think Dorian is somewhere where we wouldn’t look . . .” I let my mind wander.
It went straight back to the vampires who attacked us when Mirrorz rebelled, to the way they’d flown through the air.
That night when the Root of All Evil had revealed itself at last, I had fought them on the roof.
Maybe the vampire had gone there again.
I started upwards, my cousins following at my heels. Soon I felt a draft on my face, and sure enough, halfway between the top floor of the mansion and the roof was an open door that somehow managed to look like it was part of a wall tapestry.
“Have either of you seen that door before?” I asked my cousins. Beyond it was a narrow hallway filled with dust and cobwebs.
Lark and Pep peered around me.
“No, I never have,” said Pep. “It must be another secret passageway. Cookie must have gone that way.” Without waiting for any more conversation, she pushed past me and hurried down the hidden hallway.
Lark and I didn’t hesitate to follow, but that didn’t mean I was happy about it.
“This is a bad idea,” I whispered at Pep’s back. She didn’t respond or slow down, and I knew she was right. With Dorian missing since last night and Cookie gone as well, time was of the essence.
But soon we reached another wall, and a dead end.
“Nothing?” Lark whispered.
“Silence! Let’s see if we can hear anything,” whispered Pep, pressing her ear to the wall.
We listened intently, but besides the usual constant creaking to be heard everywhere around Haunted Bluff at any time of the day or night, there was no other sound.
“I have an idea. Follow me,” Lark said, heading back down the passageway.
Pep kicked the wall and made an exasperated noise. “This is no time to play hero,” she called after her sister.
Lark stopped about five feet away. Ignoring Pep’s petulance she said, “I thought this part of the wall looked funny.” She pressed her hand against a strip of wood that was visible through the peeled-away wallpaper. I stepped closer and looked carefully.
No, the wallpaper hadn’t peeled, it had been cut.
Lark was putting her hand on a lever.
The door swung open and we all gasped.
Beyond the hidden door was another room, lit by a torch. At the far end was yet another door.
This time we heard muffled voices.
Pep didn’t hesitate. I had no chance to see if I recognized the voices before Pep rushed forward and grabbed the door handle. As soon as she touched it she pulled her hand away and let out an incredible yell. There on the door handle were symbols of fangs. Pep’s hand was red.
All noise on the other side of the door ceased at the sound of Pep’s yell.
We had lost the element of surprise.
The battered old door came flying open, but we couldn’t see anyone on the other side.
Pep didn’t hesitate or try to figure out what was going on in the darkness. Cradling her hand, she raced through the doorway.
Lark and I hurried after her from the other side of the hall.
The little room we entered was one of the many secret spaces of Haunted Bluff. Wide old floorboards and peeling floral wallpaper provided a backdrop to the confrontation we were about to witness.
What we found was Cookie standing next to Dorian, who was kneeling on the floor with his hands bound behind him. Facing both of them was Marsha, dressed all in black. Her turtleneck came up to her chin and her hair was pulled into a tight ponytail. She turned and looked at us, her expression serious.
“I was so close,” she murmured, looking at me. “Cookie got here not long ago. I was so close to killing him.”
Dorian struggled. Pep went over to him, but Marsha raised her hand, a silent warning for Pep to not go any further. Dorian turned his head to look at Pep. His skin was pale and his eyes were tired. He didn’t look relieved to see us. He looked furious.
“Vampire witch is what she is. A nasty business, but it explains a lot. She was once just a regular witch, but now she’s both,” said Cookie.
We had only ever seen Marsha at night, and now I knew why.
“Why did you want to kill Dorian?” I asked.
Marsha sighed. “I want all the Deadlys dead. They lived, and live, up to their name. My sister was a thieving vampire. His father murdered her a long time ago. I always remembered.”
“The supernatural world is a dangerous place. Your sister was trying to steal from the Deadlys,” said Cookie.
“Are you insulting my sister?” she demanded.
“I’m saying she was in a dangerous business, and I don’t think it was worth the life of all the old man’s children,” murmured Cookie. “Now untie him.”
“The Deadly family was too powerful. I knew I couldn’t take them on as a simple witch, so I made a deal with the vampires. I may not reach my goal, but I’m not just going to give up!” Marsha raised her hands high over her head and yelled one word: “Explode!”
Fire burst from the flooring. Sparks flew into every corner of the little room. Marsha smiled for the first time, the light making the angry vampire witch look even more manic.
Lark threw herself onto Pep, while Cookie and I raced to grab Dorian. The room filled with smoke as we followed a running Marsha out. By the time we got to the safety of the hallway, she was nowhere to be seen.
Cookie gasped and her eyes flared. “You three go! I’ll try and put out the fire.”
I reached down and whispered an enchantment to untie Dorian. Once he was free, his arms sagged to his sides, as if all his energy had drained away. He tried to stand but stumbled. Pep caught him, still nursing her hurt hand.
“You all right?” I asked him.
“I’ll be fine! Let’s go. She killed my brothers,” he said gruffly.
“Did you know her sister?” I asked as I dragged him up.
“My father said she tried to kill him first. He still didn’t mean to kill her, he said it was an accident. We may never know the truth. My father is brutal, but I’ve never known him to lie,” he said, visibly regaining some energy as he talked.
“Let’s go over that part later,” said Lark. �
�If Marsha gets away we’re going to have to go after her. Then who knows where we’ll catch up with her.”
“Let’s go,” I said.
We left Cookie in the burning room and the four of us headed down the hallway.
Dorian stumbled forward. We had just reached the hidden door back to the main staircase to the roof when I heard the sound of running feet. I careened down the stairs and slammed into a hard chest.
Grant’s hands steadied me. He was in his full official regalia, with a bit of snow outlining the brim of his hat.
“What happened?” he asked, his eyes scanning the surroundings. “We couldn’t find you, so I came looking. I was worried that you’d gone off by yourself and done something dangerous.”
“She came to find me,” said Dorian. He was coming down the stairs under his own power, but barely, and he was still frighteningly pale. Lark had taken over trying to support him, while Pep stood staring at her injured hand.
“What happened?” Grant went straight to Pep when he saw the red marks.
“I was in a hurry,” she muttered.
Grant took something mushy and green out of his pocket. “This is a combination of healing herbs. We should have you better in no time,” he said.
Pep nodded gratefully. Grant gently took her hand and leaned over her fingers, murmuring something none of us could quite hear.
Pep gasped.
As we watched, her fingers went back to their normal size and color. All the swelling was gone in a matter of seconds.
Without another word we headed after Marsha. Into the night we ran, while I gave Grant the headlines through panting breaths.
When we got to the courtyard I could see Marsha fleeing toward the closed mansion gates. The snow was falling harder and her feet were making tracks, not that we needed a path to follow at this point. As we spilled out the door of the house, Marsha glanced over her shoulder and a sharp smile lit her face. She thought she was going to get away.
Grant raced forward. Dorian tried to follow him.
Then something shocking happened.
Out of nowhere came supernaturals. Pouring from every side of the property, the ghosts were led by Jezebel while the skeletons followed Erika.
“Charge!” yelled Jezebel gleefully. As she floated past me she said, “Vampire witch, huh? Never heard of that before. We don’t like posers. As I also believe we’d tried to express to you, we’re a bit tired of the murders around here.” She sped off without giving me a chance to reply.
Good thing, because I was worried that we hadn’t seen the end of trouble at Haunted Bluff. Not by a long shot. If nothing else, Mirrorz and his gang were still at large, and their other name was trouble.
Supernaturals can move incredibly fast when they choose. I silently reminded myself to stay on Jezebel’s good side. As if she were riding a charging horse, she raised her arm and pointed at Marsha. The vampire witch’s eyes widened. She was about to be overwhelmed.
Epilogue
My attic ceiling was boring. I swallowed hard as I gazed, unmoving, at the high rafters that swept above my bed. I hadn’t moved in what I was pretty sure was a couple of hours. I had showered and put on clean pajamas and a sweatshirt, then collapsed into bed. I was supposed to be dressing for dinner, but I hadn’t been able to bring myself to do it. Nerves and near panic were shooting through me.
Marsha had been arrested. Even Clover had cheered, mostly because he was happy that he could return to business as usual, or at least as usual as it ever was around here. Marsha had fought furiously. When she caught sight of Dorian, he’d been forced to step away. If the supernaturals and Grant hadn’t been there, Dorian might have been in trouble even after she’d been cornered. As it was, she didn’t stand a chance of getting away with what she had done.
In other news, my mother wasn’t wasting any time. Grant was coming to dinner that evening. With me. With her. With my silly younger brother whose opinion I actually cared a lot about. I wanted to sink into the cushions and stay there where it was safe and I didn’t have to go through the thrilling nerves of dating.
Grant was a good guy. In fact, he was the best guy I had ever met. I was happy, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t also terrified.
Daylight had long since stopped streaming through the curtains. My ghost roommate was nowhere to be seen. I was thankful for small favors, because I didn’t know what I would do if I had to talk to her.
The door to the attic nudged open and in trotted Rose, whom I hadn’t see all day. She found the strangest places to sleep, and today had apparently been business as usual for her, too. Now she looked wide-eyed and mischievous.
“Comfortable?” she asked. She jumped onto the bed and started kneading my ribs.
“Yes,” I said, petting her head. She leaned into my fingers and I felt the vibration of her purring.
“What are you lying around for? Shouldn’t you be spending hours getting dressed?” she asked.
I groaned into my pillow. “How did you hear?”
Rose coughed delicately. “You think Cookie knows all the nooks and crannies of this place, but she doesn’t have anything on me.”
I nodded my head. If I had thought about it for a moment, I would have known that was true. Rose curled up next to me and said, “Go ahead, you can tell me all your troubles.”
“You realize I don’t have any cheese to offer you in return, right?” I asked her.
“Yes, I’m doing it out of the goodness of my heart. Besides, I’m nosy.”
“You’re a cat,” I said. Cats always thought they had a right to walk into any room. Even if they had just made you open the door so they could leave, they were as likely as not to want to go right back in.
“It’s dinner tonight. Grant’s coming. We’re going to be official once Mom gives us her approval,” I explained.
“Isn’t that a good thing?” Rose asked. “Then you can mate?”
I yelped. “Mom approving is a good thing. I’m just nervous. I’ve dated before, but he’ll be my first real boyfriend. I really like him,” I whispered.
“You should like him. It’s much better than not liking him,” said Rose.
“I know that,” I huffed. “It’s just . . .”
There was no way for me to know what my problem was. Judgment, I supposed. Lizzie would now know that Grant was my boyfriend. So would Kip. And then there was my brother. For some reason, all that made me incredibly nervous.
Just then the door burst open and Pep came rushing in clutching an armful of dresses. With barely a hello, she threw them onto the orange couch.
“I’ve decided. I need to know how to perform an enchantment that gives me a personality change,” she said.
Lark came in after her. She was walking much more slowly, as she’d been doing recently. I sat up a little without displacing Rose. “What are you talking about?”
“My personality is flawed,” said Pep, throwing clothes in all directions. Some sparkled and some looked shiny. I hadn’t the faintest idea what she was doing.
“I’ve been telling you that for years. Remind me why you care so much about what you’re wearing tonight?” Lark asked.
Pep froze so suddenly, it was as if she’d been stealing black opals and Lark had caught her red-handed. She paused, then turned to look at her sister. “I just think it’s important to look nice. Jane’s going to get herself a boyfriend and all that.”
Lark nodded sagely. She clearly didn’t believe her sister.
“He’s just so good-looking! And I’m sure he’s about to tell us that he’s leaving, and I just . . .” Pep bit her lip and stopped mid-sentence.
Lark and I leaned forward. Even Rose was engaged. She knew how monumental this moment was.
“I want to look hot,” Pep finished at last.
At the moment, in her usual uniform – a collared shirt with a sweater over it, and jeans – she looked more buttoned-up than hot. In the warmer months she might have had a skirt on, but it would always be a skirt of a
proper length.
“We’ll help,” said Lark. She stepped up and started looking through the clothes, examining each item and then discarding it.
“Do you think I’m crazy? I’ve never felt this way before. I thought he was SO annoying when he first got here,” said Pep. She almost sounded wistful for the days when she didn’t have to put up with him.
“No, I think you have a crush. That’s perfectly normal. Even if it isn’t perfectly normal in this household,” I said.
Pep nodded slowly but continued to look lost. “What are you wearing tonight?”
I indicated a shimmering black top and skirt combination. “Warm, but with a party vibe, is what I’m going for.”
“Excellent,” said Lark.
“You think she’s making a wise style choice?” Pep asked.
“No, I think we’ve found the dress you’re going to wear. I’m going to have to up my style game,” said Lark, holding up a garment for Pep.
“Oh, no,” gasped her sister.
Pep’s nerves about dinner were all I needed to make me relax. I suddenly remembered that Grant thought I was great. I knew that, because he put up with my family and smiled when he saw me. I had a great outfit to wear to dinner, and my mom was acting happy about my choice. My brother was the only one left to worry about, but he was so chill he’d be right at home in Alaska. All in all I felt good about how this evening would turn out.
Even better was that I could now sit back and watch Pep and Dorian. Pep had talked openly at last about how she felt, so Lark and I no longer had to pretend not to notice. We were in fact sad that Dorian would be leaving soon. Pep had never had a crush before.
“I didn’t know she had that muscle,” Lark muttered. “Now I have to find my own outfit.” She went off to do just that, and Pep followed her out of the attic to get dressed.
Even though I didn’t want to get anything on my dress, once I was ready I went to help Audrey take dishes into the dining room. Her cheeks were rosy and the kitchen was hot.
“Haven’t seen you all day. We’ve been preparing a special meal since we woke up this morning and found out that Marsha had been arrested last night,” she said when I came in.
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