The Last of the Red-Hot Vampires

"It's been my pleasure." He escorted us to the front door. I swear waves of coldness rolled off his wife as we scooted past her in the narrow hall. As we reached the door, I paused for a moment, looking straight at his wife. She met my gaze without flinching, one of her eyebrows arching in an unspoken question. The penny dropped at that moment, my mind suddenly wonderfully organized again as the missing piece of the puzzle snapped into place. I forced a smile to my lips, and continued out the door.

"Please don't hesitate to give me a ring if you have any other questions. And thank you for…er…understanding my little deception. I assure you that it was not by my desire," Milo said, waving good-bye.

"Well, that was hardly more than useless," Sarah said as we carefully picked our way down the broken-tiled path to the street. "All we learned was that this Terrin person has it in for you, and that Milo knew Hope well. There's not a lot to go on."

"You don't think so?"

I opened the car door, glancing over the top of the car to look at Milo's house. A curtain in one of the front-facing rooms twitched, as if someone had been peeking out. "I'd have to disagree. I thought the conversation was very enlightening. Very enlightening indeed."

"Really?" She shot me a fast look before pulling out into traffic. "Enlightening in what way?"

"I'll let you know as soon as I talk to Theo."

"Oh, for God's sake…Portia, you're a big girl. Just because you're madly infatuated with Theo, doesn't mean you have to be a doormat. You can talk to me about things before checking with him first."

"Have I ever been a doormat?"

She pursed her lips and didn't answer.

"That's right, I haven't. I'm not waiting to clear the subject with Theo. I simply need to determine if my proof will support the supposition I believe fits the circumstances."

"I hate it when you talk in that horrible empirical way," she grumbled, but knew me too well to do more than voice the complaint.

We drove along in silence for a few minutes before she asked, "Well? Did you discuss it with Theo? Does he agree with your supposition or not?"

"Hmm? Oh, no, I can't talk to him right now. He's in the Court, remember?"

"What does that have to do with the price of tea in China? I thought you guys could talk even if you weren't physically near each other?"

"Normally, we could, but there's something about the Court that inhibits mind-talking."

"Well, isn't that just fine and dandy! Now I'm going to have to wait—"

"Turn left at the intersection."

"—until Theo comes out so you two can discuss whether or not to reveal to me this supersecret insight you seem to have?"

"Left again, please."

"I may be just a normal person without special powers or anything, but that doesn't mean you can treat me like…hey. Isn't this taking us around the block?"

"Yup. There's a parking spot right over there."

Sarah looked to where I was pointing, shooting me a curious glance before pulling in behind a large panel van. "You want to tell me what we're doing back on the street where Milo lives, or is that, too, a big secret?"

"Actually," I said with a grin, "it's probably better if you don't know. That way it can't be said that you were an accessory."

Her mouth made an O for a second, then her curiosity—almost as great as my own—got the better of her. "Dish, sister."

"Taking a leaf from Theo's book, we're going to become kidnappers. Can you see the front door of Milo's house from here?"

"Yes. Why are we kidnapping Milo? I bet if you asked him to come along with us—not that I know where we're going—he'd be happy to do whatever you wanted. He seems like a nice man."

"Yes, doesn't he?" I rubbed my chin, trying to decide on the wisest course.

"I know you're almost a member of the Court of Divine Blood and all, but you still have to live in this world, and here it's illegal as all get out to kidnap someone." Sarah had a familiar pugnacious expression on her face. I just broadened my grin.

"I hate it when you do that," she told my grin.

I sighed and decided it wasn't fair to involve her in something so potentially dangerous. "You're right. It annoys me to admit it, but you are right, Sarah. What I'm about to do is very illegal, and I think that it probably would be best if you weren't involved. I know it's asking a lot, but would you mind leaving me the car? I don't think I can get another one at short notice, and I'm sure there are taxis that can take you back to Newton Poppleford."

"Oh, no, you're not getting away with that crap," she said, taking a firm grip on the steering wheel. "We're in this together, if you recall."

"Our original plans did not call for kidnapping," I pointed out.

"No, but I'm your friend. A friend's place is at your side when you commit felonies. Oooh! Look! Milo! How do we get him into the car?"

My lips thinned as I watched Milo leave his house, walking around the front to the other side, where I assumed a detached garage sat. "We don't."