The Care and Feeding of Stray Vampires (36 page)

“Severe concussion!” Gigi added between sobs.

Ben nodded. “And a concuss—”

“Severe!” Gigi cried.

“A severe concussion,” Ben finished, patting Gigi’s back. “Your legs are OK, though. That’s something.”

Gigi continued to cry softly. I reached out to touch her but gasped at the searing pain in my arm. “I’m sorry, Geeg, I really am. No more fistfights with vampires, I promise.”

“I was all alone!” Gigi cried, untangling herself from Ben and throwing herself back on my chest. I wheezed at the impact and the radiating waves of agony in my ribs. “The doctors kept asking me questions about living wills and DNRs and insurance. I didn’t know anything about that stuff. They shoved all this paperwork at me, and when I said I was only seventeen and couldn’t sign it, they called Child Protective Services! They said I might have to go to foster care if you didn’t wake up. I guess I never realized what would happen if—if something—if you—”

“Shhh,” I said, patting her head.

“I’m so sorry if I’ve ever been mean to you or made you feel lame because you were trying to take care of me. I know you work hard and worry a lot and give up stuff to make sure I’m OK. And if I ever make you feel like it’s not worth it, I want you to kick my ass.”

“OK.”

“And ground me. In fact, I’m thinking of grounding myself after that bullshit I pulled with John. I can’t believe Ben put up with it. Oh, but can I be ungrounded on April 23? Because that’s the prom, and Ben asked me.”

“Watch your language,” I said as she dabbed at the tears on my cheeks. “And sure, you can go to the prom. We’ll go dress shopping as soon as I’m out of traction.”

“OK.” She sniffed, brightening a little when talk turned to silhouettes and color choices, whether it was tacky for Ben to match his bow tie and cummerbund to her dress.

As my sister chattered happily and Ben cautiously picked through the Godiva box, all thoughts of lying vampire Romeos and nearly dead sisters were abandoned
for corsage floral schemes. I couldn’t help but wonder where Cal was. I was hurt, injured while saving him, and he couldn’t come to the hospital to check on me? Had he gone back to the house to check on Gigi while I was unconscious? Had he already left town?

I cleared my throat, trying to focus on something beyond the hot tears gathering at the corners of my eyes. When Gigi finally took a breath, I focused on the boy standing awkwardly at her side. He was looking everywhere but at me, which made me think that my hospital gown was a little more revealing than I’d previously believed. I plucked nervously at the robe, tightening it at my throat. “Ben, I’ve been meaning to ask you, but I’ve been unconscious. How did you find us?”

Ben blushed. “There’s this new app for the iPhone called FriendRadar. If a phone that’s on your contact list is within a hundred feet, it will ping until you’re standing right in front of that person. It’s supposed to help you find your friends at the mall or the movies or that sort of thing. But I rewrote the software to increase the range. I was supposed to be picking up Gigi at your place the night John took you guys. When I got there and saw the house tossed, I turned on the app and followed Gigi’s signal.”

“How much did you increase the range?” Gigi asked.

Ben cleared his throat and averted his eyes. “I probably shouldn’t tell you that. It’s not entirely, um, condoned by the FCC.”

“You’re a genius,” I told him. “You have permission to
date my sister, for real this time. No curfews, no restrictions, no base limits.”

“Thanks, but I’m pretty sure that’s the painkillers talking,” Ben assured me, squeezing Gigi’s shoulder affectionately. “We can talk more about dating rules later.”

Gigi’s mood darkened suddenly. “I should have dated you all along. This is all my fault. If I hadn’t fallen for John’s crap, Iris wouldn’t have gotten hurt. You know, that night at the movies, I was texting him because he wanted to know where I was. He was trying to figure out how much time he had to search our house and then jump us. Asshole.”

I patted her cheek, wincing when the IV pulled at the skin of my wrist. “Geeg, you’re not a bad kid. You’ve never made me regret taking you on. Question my sanity? Yes. But never regret. Even with the John thing. You just made a series of really bad decisions, which is something I can identify with.”

“You mean with Cal?” she asked.

I wiped at my eyes. “Letting Cal into the house. Forgetting that Mr. Marchand was a vampire just because he happened to look like a cuddly old man. A series of really bad decisions.”

“Never trust a man who looks like Colonel Sanders,” Ben agreed sagely.

I laughed, swiping at my cheeks. Gigi frowned. “What do you mean, letting Cal into the house was a mistake?”

“Well, do you see him here?” I asked angrily. “I mean, the man turns our lives upside down. I’m attacked at his
house by the same creep who messed around with your brain to pump you for information. I nearly get killed trying to save his butt. But is he anywhere to be found? No. I’ll bet he lit out of the house as soon as the Council vacuumed up Mr. Marchand with their little Dirt Devils.”

Gigi shrugged. “I don’t know. I haven’t been back at the house long enough to see if he’s still there.”

“Where have you been staying?” I asked, my eyes narrowed.

“Over at Miss Andrea’s house,” she said, adding quietly, “and at Ben’s.”

Ben added hastily, “Our rooms are on different floors. And my parents said she can stay as long as she wants.” He laughed. “My dad didn’t ever think I’d get a girlfriend. He and Mom are thrilled.”

I tried to calculate which could be more dangerous to my sister’s well-being, staying with her hormonal, adoring boyfriend or being exposed to what Dick Cheney considered appropriate conversation in front of a teenage girl. I pressed the little red button that released my pain meds and wondered how often I was allowed a dose.

Better yet, did they sell York Peppermint Patties in the gift shop?

“And for the record, Cal’s at the Council offices. Ophelia said something about needing to debrief him,” Ben said, looking at Gigi with an expression of acute male discomfort.

“I’ll bet she did,” I muttered.

I felt a strange, warm sensation spreading from my arm through my chest. It took me a second to recognize
that it was the morphine drip. I sighed, relaxing into the stiff hospital mattress, as Gigi tried to turn the topic back to more pleasant matters: their “sucky” prom theme, “Almost Paradise”; a scandal at their rival school involving the valedictorian, the shop teacher, and Chatroulette; the stream of vampires that had been showing up at our house to leave little presents on the porch. And not lame presents, either—spa gift certificates, bottles of wine, exotic plants. Gigi said that the vampires had started visiting the night after my accident to offer tokens of appreciation, now that my address had become common knowledge on the vampire news network. Because Ben and his parents weren’t comfortable with so many vampires approaching the house with Gigi there, he said that Jane and Andrea had been appointed to accept the gifts.

“I wonder if I have to write thank-you notes,” I mumbled. “Do vampires do thank-you notes? Geeg?”

I looked over to see Gigi dozing off, her head tilting back uncomfortably against the hard plastic chair.

“Ben, why don’t you take Gigi home to get some sleep?” I asked. “That angle can’t be good for her neck.”

“But you just woke up!” Gigi protested weakly as she raised her head.

“So you know I’m going to be OK.” I sighed. “Go home, get some sleep. In your own room … on a separate floor from Ben’s. Ben, would your mother be willing to sleep somewhere between your bedroom doors as a precaution?”

“Where do you think she’s been camped out for the last week?” Ben muttered.

“Fine,” Gigi said, yawning widely. “But I need to go home and grab some clothes.”

“Be careful, OK?” I told her. “If you go by the house and anything seems off, don’t even go inside, just drive to Ben’s.”

Gigi stepped closer, leaning over the bed rail as she kissed my forehead. “What if Cal’s there? What do you want me to tell him?”

With fresh pain consuming me, I wasn’t sure how to answer. I shook my head.

“Why are you crying?” Gigi asked, pushing my hair back.

“Because you’re yanking on my IV.”

—

I dozed off and on throughout the afternoon, grateful for the private room. I was sure that Ophelia had arranged it, because my insurance company certainly wasn’t going to cough up for it.

I woke up to fingertips trailing gently over my cheeks. Soft lips pressed against my temple. I felt the corners of my mouth tilt up. “I love you.” I sighed, opening my eyes and expecting my vampire to be sitting at my bedside.

There was a strange squelching noise a foot from my bed, shoes turning on freshly cleaned tiles. My eyes fluttered open. The deep brown eyes I expected to be hovering near were usurped by baby blue.

I recoiled, yelping when the movement pulled at my IV restraints. “Paul!” I exclaimed.

“Hey, Petal,” he said softly. “I’ve got you.”

“Hi,” I whispered, squinting up at him. “What are you doing here?”

“Well, where else would I be?” he asked, pushing the hair back from my face. “My girl’s hurt, I come running.”

“I’m not—”

“My girl. I know,” he conceded. “I let you go. I wasn’t smart enough to hold on to you.”

“I think there were equally ‘not smart’ actions on both sides,” I admitted.

“Could you forgive me?” he asked. “Iris, I can’t tell you how I felt, hearing that you were hurt. I didn’t know what I would do if something happened to you. I don’t want to be without you. I want to ask you if you could consider marrying me. I’ll be a good husband to you. And I’ll make more of an effort with Gigi. I didn’t realize how important you two are to each other, until I saw her reacting to seeing you in this hospital room. Won’t you please marry me?”

He pulled a black velvet box from his pocket and showed me the little round solitaire that would have looked very elegant on my hand. He pressed the box into my palm, but my fingers refused to close around it.

It would be so easy. I could have a normal life, with a normal, if unexciting, man. I could have the white-picket-fence fantasy, a husband, a house, kids, and a dog. No more drama. No near-death experiences. No having a backup plan that included being turned into a vampire.

But it would be a lie. I didn’t love Paul. I never did.
I had affection for him. I wanted to be his friend, the kind of friend he didn’t have sex with—and that was it. I wanted to see him at the Piggly Wiggly without feeling awkward.

I closed the box, squeezing his hand. “I really appreciate it, but no. I can’t.”

He frowned, nodding. “Can I ask why?”

“Because you’re right. We could make this work. We could put our noses to the grindstone and make this a marriage. But it shouldn’t be that hard, Paul. And in that whole speech, you didn’t mention loving me.”

He sank back into his chair, looking a little sheepish. “I didn’t, did I?”

“We don’t love each other like married people should.”

He protested, “But we could—”

“No, Paul. That’s my final answer.”

“I’ve really lost you, haven’t I?” He smiled sadly. “To that vampire?”

I nodded. “You’ve lost me, as much as I lost you. I’m sorry, Paul.”

“Well, at least I tried.” He sighed. “But if my mama asks, I made a grand sweeping gesture that you were just barely able to resist, OK?”

“I’ll tell her there was groveling involved,” I promised.

“Thanks. She’s always liked you,” he said.

“Would have been nice to know that when we were dating,” I muttered.

He chuckled and leaned in to kiss me. I ducked away, making him pause.

“No?”

I shook my head. And as he was backing away, we heard a cold voice from the doorway.

“Is there a problem here?” Ophelia was standing in the doorway, wearing a tight white minidress that could be termed a nurse’s uniform, in the porniest sense of the word, complete with a starched white cap.

“No,” I said, yawning. “My friend was just leaving.”

Paul frowned at Ophelia but squeezed my hand and left without a fuss. “Good-bye, Iris.”

“Good-bye.” I sighed. “I’m glad to see you, Ophelia.”

“I see the pain meds are kicking in,” she said, sauntering closer. She looked over her shoulder. “Close the door, would you?”

A lankier vampire followed her, shutting the door behind him.

“Oh, shit!” I yelped, springing out of my languid state. “Ophelia, that’s—”

“Mr. Dodd, I know. I thought the two of you should be formally introduced, since he is about to offer you the rarest of gifts. The vampire apology.”

“I’m sorry?”

“No, that’s his line.”

“I’m sorry,” Mr. Dodd muttered.

“For?” Ophelia prompted.

“For being ‘grossly inappropriate’ when I met you at my house, leading you to think that I was a threat to you, when I was supposed to be observing and protecting you.” He said it in a monotone so flat that he could have been reciting a telemarketer’s script.

“What?”

Ophelia said, “Mr. Dodd was supposed to make contact with you, just enough that you would remember his face and not panic if you happened to see him. Instead …”

Awkward silence.

Ophelia kicked his ankle and hissed. “Instead …”

“I came on to you,” he mumbled. “Usually, when I put on the charm, ladies prove quite receptive.” He followed this remark with a sullen little sneer, then resumed looking down at his feet.

“He was watching you on the rare occasions when you ventured into public at night,” Ophelia said. “We knew that Cal couldn’t be with you, and I thought it would be helpful for you to have some protection. I didn’t mean to give you something else to worry about.”

“I’m sorry,” he muttered again.

“That night at the movies!” I exclaimed.

“I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“You sent me running home into the arms of a crazy teenage vampire stalker.”

“I
said
I was
sorry
.”

“You know, somehow that doesn’t quite cover it,” I shot back.