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for one minute it was true, Damien is some kind of vampire. That meant vampires
existed. And if vampires exist, what else was out there from myth and legend?
She made up her mind to find out if Damien feared a cross. If he did, logically he
feared what the cross stood for, and it would follow God was really out there watching
over us. There would be proof. Wouldn t that be wonderful? It really would be possible
to be reunited with her parents. It could all be true. God, heaven, hell, all of it.
Alice had always thought so.  Look around, Ellie, she d say.  Look at the sky, or
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the trees, or one petal of a flower. Look at a mother s face when she is holding her child.
Listen to that same child s laughter when his mother makes a funny noise. God is all
around us, Ellie, you just have to let Her in.
Eleanor had always envied Alice. Faith came naturally to her. Eleanor had to work
at it. Since her parents deaths, she and God were at an impasse. She didn t understand
why death existed. Why would God give all that love, only to rip it so cruelly away? All
that pain and suffering. For what?
A sudden realization flashed though her mind. Vampires never die. Maybe
vampires were what humans were before Eve and the apple. Just because the legends
said vampires were evil and forsaken by God didn t mean it was true.
Wait. No use getting ahead of herself. She had no idea what Damien was. It was
best to keep an open mind. All possibilities, including the con-man theory, were an
option.
So what should she bring tonight for protection? A cross? Silver? Garlic? The Bible?
Condoms? Where did that come from? She was afraid she knew. Her mind had strayed
back to Jacob and his kiss.
 Stop right now, she said, getting out of bed. It was time to start working on the
list. Picking up a pencil, she added one more item. Decide what to wear to a cocktail
party that might have monsters in attendance. No pressure.
All through the long day, Eleanor s mind kept returning to what waited for her in
the evening. Although she kept busy, the hours crawled by. As she glanced at her watch
for the hundredth time Bobby said,  You got someplace you have to be? Oh I know.
You ve got a hot date with that mystery man you won t tell me about.
 I told you, Eleanor said, trying her best to sound like she wasn t lying.  He s just
a private detective I m thinking about hiring.
 Riiiight. Bobby put his hand on his hips and stood in front of her.  Everybody
decides whether or not to hire a private investigator by locking lips. That was some job
interview I saw. What are you going to do with him if he gets the job?
Eleanor got angry.  Just drop it, okay?
 Fine, fine, Bobby said.  But if you re up to something, and it endangers Alice in
any way, you ll have to answer to me. I know you, Eleanor. You re not telling me
something, and if Alice is hurt as a result, I will never forgive you.
Eleanor tried to tease him out of it.  Why, Bobby, could you possibly be jealous?
Bobby grabbed her shoulders and shook her.  Listen, this is Alice we re talking
about. If anything happens to her I ll&  He looked at Eleanor with such anguish, she
almost told him everything. Only the thought of him getting hurt stopped her.
He let go and ran a hand through his hair.  I m sorry, he choked out.  I& We can t
lose her. We just can t. She s been missing three days now and I m afraid if we don t
find her soon&  He sank down on a chair and put his head in his hands.
Eleanor looked at him, shocked. Was she blind, or what? How long had Bobby been
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in love with Alice? Does she feel the same about him? Kneeling next to Bobby, she held
one of his hands.  We ll find her. I promise you, Bobby, we will find her. She stroked
his hair back from his forehead.  Bobby, how long have you 
Bobby stood and cut her off.  Just drop it, will you?
I guess we finally found something we can t talk about, she thought.
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Chapter Six
At 6:55 Eleanor stood in front of the house with the creeping ivy. She remembered
how frightened she d been the previous night when she d approached the door.
Tonight, in contrast, she felt a nervous but pleasant excitement.
Digging in her beaded bag, she took out her mirror for a last once-over. It always
amazed her what carefully applied makeup could do. Satisfied that she hadn t managed
to smudge it on the drive over, she put away her mirror and smoothed down her
favorite version of the little black dress. Needing something of her mother s with her
tonight, she d worn the family pearl necklace and earrings. Family legend said the
pearls were lucky. Remembering the cold, she d topped off her outfit with a
multicolored shawl. A cross, two cloves of garlic and her mace were in her purse.
Mike answered her knock. He was dressed in black. Even his red hair was covered
by a black knit cap. He looked so much shorter with his curly mop of hair hidden she
had to fight the urge to stand next to him to see who was taller.
 You sure clean up nice, he said, with obvious appreciation.  Ready to have some
fun?
 Lead the way, Ahab.
Mike stopped short and glared at her until comprehension lit up his face.  He told
you. I ll kill him. He turned and ran down the hall.
Eleanor followed slowly, her stomach in knots. She couldn t believe she was more
nervous about seeing Jacob again than she was about getting her sister back from
monsters. She heard voices coming from the library. Mike interrupted them.
 You told her about the bet, Hastings. I can t believe you did that. Not good, so not
good, man.
 She has arrived then, she heard Damien say.
Feeling shy and self-conscious, Eleanor stopped at the doorway and tentatively
looked in. What she saw took her breath away. Last night she d thought Damien and
Jacob were heart-stopping attractive in T-shirts and jeans. Tonight, in tuxes, they rose to
a new level. Her pulse quickened as she looked at them standing close to each other by
the fireplace. One dark, one light, both deadly handsome. They didn t seem real. A fire
was blazing, adding light to the dragonfly lamp s glow and the soft firelight danced
through their hair. She wanted to go to them, run her fingers through that hair and
caress those beautiful faces. It was as if she were very young again, encountering for the
first time something unknown and wonderful. You had to touch it to make sure it was
real.
Damien walked toward her.  Good evening, Eleanor. You look lovely, he said.
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 Please come in and sit down for a moment. We do not have much time. He escorted
her to the chair and helped her sit.
Eleanor chanced a glance at Jacob. He looked at her with such intensity she felt a [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]