by Amy Boyles
“He’s also a big kitten.”
“That bites the heads off rats.”
I shrugged. “Nobody’s perfect.”
He barked a laugh. “You think Princess is okay at your house for a few more minutes?”
I batted my eyelashes at him, thinking Axel wanted some alone time. “Sure. Why?”
“Because there’s one more place we need to go.”
Well, darn. Just when I thought he wanted a kiss, the man was being all business. “Where?”
“Garrick’s house. We’ve got to tell him there’s a vampire in town.”
I groaned. “Do we have to? ’Cause I have the feeling he’s going to be super ticked about that.”
“It’s called public safety, Pepper.”
“How about it’s called survival of the fittest and I don’t want to be in deep doo-doo with the sheriff.”
The corner of Axel’s mouth curled. “You’re not the person that has anything to worry about.”
“Oh? Who does?”
“The vampire. They’re illegal in Magnolia Cove except for Halloween. That’s the one day we make an exception.”
“And why are they illegal?”
“Because they drink blood.”
I laughed at my own stupidity. “Right. Well then, let’s go.”
“There’s a vampire on the loose in Magnolia Cove.”
Axel and I stood on Garrick Young’s front porch. It was near midnight, and Garrick had greeted us in a pair of striped pajama pants and a T-shirt. His brown hair was spiked up on top of his head, and though he looked a mess, his eyes popped wide when he heard the news.
“Come inside,” he said gruffly.
I followed, but by the bite in his tone, all I wanted to do was turn around and scatter like a cat.
Garrick flipped on a light. It was an older home, but the paint was fresh and the furnishings, though simple, were clean and sparse.
Garrick rustled in the kitchen. I heard him open the refrigerator. “Anybody want a water?”
“No thanks,” I said.
“None for me,” Axel seconded.
Garrick padded into the room barefoot. He sank onto a leather recliner that held a place of honor in front of his man-cave-sized television.
“I’m hoping I heard you wrong at the door,” Garrick said.
“Wish it was so,” Axel said. “But I have reason to suspect there’s a vampire in Magnolia Cove.”
Garrick took a long pull from his water. He set the bottle on a side table. “What makes you think that?”
So Axel relayed the story. Garrick listened quietly, sipping his bottle. By the end he was scowling.
“So I’ve got a murder and an assault by a possible vampire on my hands,” he said.
Axel nodded. “That’s what it looks like. I don’t know if the two are related, but there’s a strong possibility.”
Garrick didn’t say anything, which made my chest tighten. “You can’t possibly believe that Uncle Donovan killed that Carl guy. Have you spent any time with Donovan? He’s an absentminded professor.”
Garrick’s eyes narrowed. “I won’t discuss this case with y’all, but I wouldn’t have called him in if there wasn’t a reason.”
“We know about the cobalt,” I said.
Garrick really scowled this time, and Axel shot me a scathing look.
“Oh? Was I not supposed to say anything?”
Garrick turned his ire on Axel. “I don’t know how you find out police business, Reign.”
“It’s my super werewolf hearing,” Axel said.
Garrick’s jaw tightened. “I encourage you to stay out of it. I know you’re a PI, but my cases do not concern you.”
Axel flicked a speck of dirt out from under his fingernail. “I help you, you help me; that’s how it’s always been, Young.”
“You’re too close to this one,” Garrick said. “And before you start to say you were close to Betty Craple when we brought her in, I know you have a special bond with Donovan that’s nothing like what you share with Betty.”
Axel’s gaze settled on the floor. “We’re close, I’m not going to lie.”
“That’s why I want you out of it.”
A few seconds ticked by before Axel spoke. “Rock Ford.”
Garrick sighed. “I checked him out. There’s nothing that makes me think he killed Carl.”
One corner of Axel’s mouth curved upward. “What if I told you there was?”
Garrick dropped his head to rest on the recliner. “Like I said, stay out of it.”
“Okay,” Axel said flippantly, “but I think there’s something you should know about him. Something that might change your mind about his involvement.”
“Now what could that be?”
“Cobalt.”
Garrick’s head shot up from the chair. “Tell me.”
Axel waited a good five seconds before he started speaking. I almost laughed. He and Garrick went way back, I don’t know how far, but they knew each other before Garrick took the job as sheriff of Magnolia Cove.
“Rock Ford comes from out West, specifically Idaho.”
“Where they grow potatoes?” I blurted out.
“More than that,” Axel said.
Garrick studied him. I could tell he wanted to ask where Axel was going, but at the same time he didn’t want to.
“Why would Rock Ford have wanted to kill Carl?” Garrick said.
“I don’t know. I’m not the investigator of that murder. But I do know you need to check into him carefully.”
Garrick’s chest deflated as if he’d run out of steam. “Okay. Why should I put this guy under the microscope?”
“Because the guy comes from a town near Blackbird Mine,” Axel said.
“What’s that?” Garrick said. “And before you answer, I know I’m going to regret ever asking.”
Axel shook his head. “You’re not going to regret it because Blackbird Mine is the only mine in the entire country that digs up one thing.”
“What’s that?”
“Cobalt.”
Silence settled in the room, thick and full like a humid night in July. I was surprised a cicada didn’t start singing in the corner, that’s how heavy the air suddenly became.
“Cobalt?” Garrick finally said.
Axel nodded. “That’s exactly right. The same metal used to kill Carl is within easy reach for Rock Ford.”
Garrick drummed his fingers on the armrests. “But why would he kill him?”
Axel shook out his head of dark hair. “That part I don’t know.” He leaned forward and stared Garrick down. “That’s what you’ve got to find out.”
SIXTEEN
When Axel dropped me off at the house, I was so tired I was seeing double.
I wobbled up the steps onto the porch. He steadied me in his firm grasp. “You okay?”
I nodded feebly. “Just tired.”
He brushed a strand of crimson and honey hair from my lips. “Get some rest. You’ll need it for tomorrow.”
I yawned. “Why?”
“Because you’ve got to get Princess to figure out who the vampire is.”
“Right,” I said, sighing. “Just once I’d like things to be easy in Magnolia Cove.”
He leaned in, and I tipped my face toward him, waiting for the kiss. When it came, Axel did not disappoint. My toes curled, my heart quickened and a throb pulsed in my core.
I sighed when it was over.
“That bad?” he said.
“That good,” I replied, smiling.
We said our good nights. I patted Jennie the guard-vine and headed inside. The house was quiet. Shocker. It was so late I wasn’t surprised.
I went upstairs and was about to go into my room when I heard giggling coming from behind Amelia’s door.
I knocked quietly.
“Come in,” came Amelia’s voice.
I found Amelia and Cordelia on the bed, the bat cage on the desk. The door was wide open, and Princess sat on the bedp
ost, one wing outstretched.
“So that’s when I said, ‘If you curl one more hair on me, I’m going to dip your head in Crisco and show you how to really curl a girl’s hair.’”
Amelia and Cordelia broke into a thousand giggles. Amelia laughed so hard she knuckled tears from her eyes.
“You can speak out loud?” I said to Princess.
“Oh yeah, I only talked to you in your head because I realized you weren’t using your mouth. But yeah, I can talk.”
“Can she ever,” Cordelia said, stifling a laugh.
“What’s going on?” I said, sidling up to the bed.
“Princess is telling stories,” Amelia said. “She is hilarious.”
I stared at the small brown bat. Princess wiggled her rear. “What? You never seen a bat tell stories before? I might be stuck in this body, but I still got my mind.”
For now. “You’re the first bat I’ve ever spoken to.”
“Well, come on and sit down. I’ve missed girls’ night. I’ve been stuck without anyone to talk to except a bunch of bats, and they only cover the basics—eat, sleep, poop. Not any of the fun stuff. And boy, do I miss it.”
Cordelia yawned and stretched. “I’m pretty tired. Pepper, you can have my spot on the bed. I’m gonna hit the hay.”
Cordelia gave Princess’s wing a little shake. “I’ll see you in the morning. Thanks for the laughs.”
“Anytime,” Princess said.
Cordelia shut the door softly behind her. Princess swung her head to zero in on the desk. “Is that Cajun Shrimp–colored nail polish?”
Amelia grabbed the bottle and shook it. “Boy, you really know your colors.”
“Darling, I live for Cajun Shrimp. Will you put it on my toes?”
Without hesitating, Amelia thrust the bottle into my hand. The thought of touching those furry little feet made me cringe, but I had to remind myself that there was a person inside that bat’s body. She wasn’t some furry animal that could pass rabies from person to person. No, inside that sonic-yelling mammal lived Princess.
“I love Cajun Shrimp,” she said. “It’s the only color I ever wear. Wore. You know what I mean.”
Now for those of y’all who aren’t aware, Cajun Shrimp is mostly red with a hint of orange. It’s the perfect color for summer because it seriously looks good on just about everyone and you can also wear it in the winter because…well, red and Christmas.
Red and Christmas. Got it?
Good.
I unscrewed the cap and was about to start applying when Princess said, “Can I hang from someone’s finger? It’s so much easier to hang than it is to sit.”
I quirked a brow to Amelia. My cousin blanched but quickly cleared her throat and stepped forward. “Sure.”
Princess hooked her feet over Amelia’s finger, and I proceeded to paint her toenails.
“So, Princess,” I said, “what do you think about going out tomorrow night and hunting down the vampire?”
“You want me to look for Arnold?”
“That’s his name? Arnold?” I said.
“Arnold Carlsburg.”
I nearly dropped the cap. “Arnold Carlsburg? How do you know that?”
“Because he told me. That vampire talked all the time about himself. Said he was cursed because he was misunderstood.”
“How?” Amelia said.
“Oh you know, nobody in his family got him. They all thought he was a wild card who spent too much money and sucked too much blood. The usual I guess when it comes to vampires.”
“I guess,” I said. “But his last name is Carlsburg?”
“He told me it was a common vampire name.”
“Yeah, I think it is,” I murmured. Also a common name for a murder victim.
“So his family didn’t like him, that’s why he was cursed?” Amelia said.
“Oh no—well that was part of it. The main reason he was cursed is because he cheated his brother out of a whole bunch of money.”
“How much?” I said, thinking a few thousand.
“A million dollars,” she said. “That’s what he said.”
The nail applicator smeared over her toes. “What? A million dollars?”
“That’s what he said.”
Amelia and I exchanged glances.
“What is it?” Princess said. “Is there something wrong with my toe-sies?”
“No, there’s nothing wrong with your toe-sies,” I said. “It’s that a Carl Carlsburg was murdered this week.”
“Oh, another Carlsburg. That’s interesting,” Princess said.
“His family was from Transylvania,” Amelia added.
Princess glanced from Amelia to me. “Y’all are gonna tell me that the two are related, aren’t you?”
I blew on her toes. “We don’t know, but it sounds like they are. Thing is, lots of folks had a reason to want to get rid of Carl. He’d been hired by your Uncle Johnny to kill Donovan, but had also swindled the father of the Sensational Singers by selling the vampire bat to him to begin with.”
Princess whistled. “Well if that ain’t a cluster, I don’t know what is.”
I capped the bottle and set it aside. “That’s what I say. It is a cluster, with all these people invested in Carl in one way or another. Did Arnold ever tell you who his brother was?”
Princess shook her head. “No, he sure didn’t. All I knew was that there was money involved.” She suddenly gasped. “Uncle Johnny didn’t kill Donovan, did he?”
“No,” Amelia said.
“Whew, because none of this is his fault.”
“Princess, how come you sound Southern and Johnny sounds like he’s from a mob movie?” I said.
Princess blinked at me. “I guess because I am. I grew up in the South and he lives out West—a transplant from the East. We’re close, though.”
Princess unhooked her feet from Amelia and flew back to her post on the bed. She leaned over and glanced at her toes. “Ah, now I feel like a girl again. It’s amazing how a little spit and shine will make you feel a thousand percent better. Now, if I only had a naked cabana boy to give me a massage.”
I snorted with laughter. “Ha. No naked cabana boys here.”
“Shucks. Anyway, what changed my uncle’s mind? He’s pretty headstrong. When he calls a hit on someone, they’re usually dead within a few days.”
Nice.
Not at all.
I stretched my legs in front of me. The lengthening muscles felt good. I exhaled as the ropes of tendons relaxed. “Johnny’s girlfriend, Eva, changed his mind.”
“Eva? Who’s that?” she said.
I blinked. “His girlfriend. I said that.”
“I know, but I’ve never met her.”
I shrugged. “She must be new.”
“Must be because I never met an Eva. But why’d she talk him out of it?”
I explained the story about how Donovan saved Eva when she was young. “And that’s how it went.” I paused. “So when Eva fell from the bushes tonight, you’d never seen her before in your life?”
“Nope. Not one hair on that blonde girl’s head. I don’t know her.”
“They’re very close,” I said. “Anyway, how’ve you been feeling?”
She released the post and fluttered around the room. “I feel great. I mean, if I could stay a bat and still be human, I’d do that, but I do miss my life and makeup and a big bowl of pasta. I miss those things.”
I watched her carefully. “So you’ve been feeling okay?”
“Yeah. Why do you keep asking me?”
Amelia jumped in. “Because the vampire, Arnold, is waiting for the last part of the spell to be completed.”
“I thought it was complete. Look at me,” she said, performing a loop-de-loop. “I’m a bat. What more is there to change?”
I patted the air at Amelia, letting her know that I wanted to handle this part.
“The thing is, Princess, you can talk to us now, but at some point the vampire will need to either work o
ne more part of the spell or wait for the entire transformation to take hold—I’m not sure which.”
“What happens then?” Princess said.
I twisted my fingers. Sheesh. I didn’t want to have to be the person to tell her this. I shot a look to Amelia, who shook her head. Great. What a scaredy-cat. Yes, I know I was being a scaredy-cat too.
But I digress.
“What happens then,” I said gently, “is that you’ll be completely changed into a bat and we won’t be able to turn you back into Princess. Right now Arnold is vulnerable. The transformation spell isn’t complete. But once it is—”
“I’m stuck like this forever?” she said, her voice rising in pitch.
“We’re afraid so,” Amelia said.
Princess’s gaze flickered to me. I nodded. “If you can find Arnold, we can work the spell that will place the curse back on him and free you. Forever.”
I watched Princess’s lower lip tremble, and I thought surely she’s not going to cry.
Then I watched as little bat tears streamed from her eyes. “Oh why? Why did I ever listen to that bat and believe his lies?”
Amelia shot me an anxious look. I nodded as if to say it would be fine.
“Princess,” I coaxed gently, “why don’t you tell us what happened.”
She hiccuped. “You mean how I became a bat?”
I patted her little furry head. “Exactly. How did you end up like this?”
The tears slowed from her eyes. Amelia handed me a tissue, and I dabbed Princess’s fur.
“Well,” Princess began, “I assume y’all know that I requested a vampire bat as a birthday gift.”
“We do,” I said soothingly.
“I always wanted one. Heck, I don’t know why. I’m a werewolf. Must be all the wolf blood running in my veins. We hate vampires, but I assume y’all know that. Witches aren’t much better, but we tolerate y’all.” Her gaze darted between us. “No offense.”
“None taken,” Amelia said.
“Well anyway, I got Arnold as a gift. At first he was a plain old bat. He ate crickets, he slept, that sort of thing. But then the dreams began.”
“What dreams?” Amelia prodded.
“Dreams where I would be lying in bed at night wearing nothing but a thin nightgown. All this mist would be in my room. It would be so thick I’d start choking on it. Right when I’d be about to have to get up and leave—you know, because I couldn’t breathe—I’d notice a figure outside the French doors leading to the balcony.”