“I know it’s hard,” she said. “But trust me. Trevor is on our side.”
“But he—”
“I know,” Holly cut him off. “I know. I’ll explain it all. I promise.”
“Perhaps, I should give you some privacy,” Lucien said.
“No,” Holly said. “Please, stay. Johnny might be able to help you.”
Johnny looked at Lucien. His eyes sparkled with recognition. “A vampire?” he hissed. “What are you doing in these parts.”
“He’s looking for his wife. She’s missing, and he thinks it’s related to what’s going on with the barrier.”
“It’s not a barrier,” Johnny said.
“What?” Holly blinked in confusion. “If it’s not a barrier, then what is it?”
“A spell,” Johnny said. “Not on the town, but on us. You, Elise, and all of the firstborn sons.”
“What?” Holly sputtered.
“No one else is trapped here?” Trevor asked.
Johnny shook his head. “I brought one of the witches here. She could see the town perfectly.”
“If that’s true, how did you get here?” Trevor asked, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.
Holly shot him a warning look, which he ignored.
“This.” Johnny pulled out a vial of milky liquid.
“Is that bottled death?” Lucien said.
Johnny blinked. “You know it?”
“I do. May I?”
With some reluctance, Johnny passed the vial to Lucien.
He held it up to the night sky and examined it. “Not bad,” he said. “I suppose it’s difficult to procure some of the ingredients. They weren’t the highest quality.”
“How does he know about this stuff?” Johnny muttered to Holly.
“My wife made a study of all areas of magic, including potions,” Lucien explained. “Even if you were whispering at an inaudible level, I’m a vampire. I can hear your heart beating a hundred yards away.”
“Right,” Johnny muttered. “Can you tell me how long one sip of that stuff will last? That’s all I took.”
“You drank something called bottled death?” Holly cried. “What’s the matter with you?”
“It tricked the spell into thinking I’m dead,” Johnny explained. “That’s how I got past the barrier.”
“This will only last a few minutes, I’m afraid,” Lucien said. “I might have something to extend its life if you’ll allow me to tinker with it.”
Johnny glanced at Holly.
“Do you trust him?”
“I do.”
“Fine.” Johnny nodded. “Do whatever you need to do so that I don’t end up back in the fake forest.”
“Let’s return to the inn.” Lucien passed the vial back to Johnny. “Take a sip if the effects wear off, but only a small one.”
With a dramatic swish of his long coat, Lucien made off toward the inn.
Holly clutched Johnny’s arm as they walked. “I can’t believe you’re here.” She sighed. “I’ve been losing my mind.”
“Believe me, so have I,” he said.
“How is everyone?”
“Coping,” he replied. “We’ve been running around the woods like clueless idiots, trying to figure this out. Edwina might actually kill me soon.”
“She’s alive?”
“All of them are, though they’re still recovering from the battle.”
“I hope you’ve told them thank you for me,” Holly said.
“Of course not,” Johnny scoffed. “That would involve being polite, and I make it a point of never being polite.”
“No kidding,” Trevor muttered.
“What was that?” Johnny whirled around. “You of all people shouldn’t expect politeness from me.”
“Easy.” Holly placed a hand on his chest. She gave Trevor an apologetic look. “I’ll take Johnny back to my room and explain everything. Tomorrow, we can meet for breakfast and talk through everything.”
Trevor gave a curt nod. “Sounds reasonable. Should I tell Mrs. Sanders?”
“Please,” Holly said. “It’s not like Lucien can join us at the diner.”
“Not without throwing a comforter over my head,” Lucien added. “Even then, I’ll likely singe it.”
“Yes, let’s avoid setting the vampire on fire, please.”
Holly led Johnny into the lobby of the inn.
“This is where you’ve been staying?” he asked.
“Did you expect a dungeon?” Holly chuckled.
“Yes, actually.”
“You’re in for a few surprises.” Holly released Johnny’s arm and approached Trevor. “I’ll see you in the morning?”
“If you need me, you know where to find me.” Trevor’s smile didn’t reach his eyes. He stepped around Holly and made his way upstairs.
“I will return shortly with your potion,” Lucien said to Johnny as he stepped into a back room.
“He’s not going to poison me, right?” Johnny asked.
“I don’t think so,” Holly replied. “How do you feel? The walls still look solid, right?”
“As far as I can tell.” Johnny looked at the walls, puzzled. “Do you think that, when the bottled death wears off, I’ll be able to walk through walls?”
“What?” Holly laughed.
“I’ll see a forest instead of the town,” he said. “But the town is still in the same spot. If I can’t see the walls, how will I avoid bumping into them? If I go upstairs, will I fall through the floor, or will I think I’m floating in midair.”
“You’re making my head hurt.” Holly winced. “I can barely understand the laws of physics as is, let alone what happens when magic is thrown into the mix.”
Thankfully, Lucien appeared shortly.
“Here you are.” He passed the vial to Johnny, now filled to the stopper with slightly less murky liquid. “Lucky for you, there’s a plant that grows in these woods that acts as a decent substitute for one of the rarer ingredients.”
“Decent?”
“You might vomit blood, but the potion should still work the same.”
“I can’t tell if you’re joking or not,” Johnny said slowly.
“Why would I joke about that?”
Johnny opened and closed his mouth as he examined the vial. “So, stick to small sips?”
“That would be wise.” Lucien turned to Holly. “Since my night is only beginning, I’m going to head out. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“What will you do?” Holly asked.
“I’m going to keep looking for signs of
