“Yeah?” Kiefer said. “Well, I don’t like getting my ass beat, but you did that to me earlier, so…in you go, jerky.”
“How did that happen, anyway, Kiefer?” Jessica asked, peering at him.
“What do you mean?” Kiefer paused with his hand on the scruff of Theo’s neck.
“How’d you get beat up? Nathan said being a vampire in the past had left you ‘better able to defend yourself’ now. Does that mean you’ve still got super-speed and super-strength?”
Jason developed an excited expression when she asked this question. “Is that what happens? After we turn back, we get to keep our powers?”
“Yes, it seems some people do,” Nathan answered him, “at least for a short while, usually proportionate to the amount of time they spent as vampires.”
“So, if Aaron and I turn back into humans tonight,” Jason said, “after having been vampires for only a couple of days…”
“You could expect…perhaps a few months of enhanced speed and strength,” Nathan speculated.
“Oh, snap,” Jason grinned, “that is so awesome!”
“Yeah, if you have powers,” Aaron grumbled under his breath.
Jason laid his hand on Aaron’s shoulder. “Hey, for what it’s worth, man, my eyesight didn’t improve all that much after I was bitten. I’m still wearing my contacts.”
Aaron’s mouth thinned to a line. “Yeah, totally the same thing. I feel so much better, now. Thank you, Jason.”
Jason shrugged and dropped his hand back to his side. Lucy caught Aaron’s eye and smiled to reassure him.
Kiefer said, “To answer your question, Jessica, I’m faster and stronger than the average guy now, yeah, but not like while I was turned. Back then, I was amazing. My powers have faded every year since I turned back. I assume eventually they’ll be gone, which is part of the reason I’m still learning and practicing magic. That way, I’ll still have something to offer in the fight against evil once I’m just a regular schmo again.” He sighed. “Anyway, Theo here and his buddy, Tom, got the drop on me ’cause like he said, my wards got sorta sloppy. What can I say? I’m not proud of it. But nothing like this has ever happened to me before. H-Town’s usually a pretty quiet neighborhood in terms of paranormal activity. I mean, yeah, sure, every once in a while, you’ll get a crazed witch running around hexing people on a revenge spree. And there’s the occasional Chupacabra that wanders across the state from Mejico. But generally, this is a pretty chill gig. I wasn’t expecting these guys, and they used magic to dull my powers.”
Lucy angled her head, puckering her brow. “What’s a Chupa…cabra?”
“A Mexican goat-sucker,” Dara told her. “It’s a bipedal monster with spines down its back, that drains the blood out of livestock.” When Lucy blinked inquisitively at her, she explained, “My dad’s adoptive parents were both academics, professors who taught at universities in Mexico City. My Abuelita Fuentes specialized in Latin American folklore, and she would tell me these really bizarre bedtime stories.” She paused. “At least, I always assumed they were just stories.”
“Yeah, you’d be surprised,” Kiefer told her with a raised eyebrow. He returned his attention to Jason. “Anyway, this is something you need to be aware of, bro. Even though you’re a vampire, you might still be vulnerable to spells. So don’t count on always having your abilities available to you in a fight.”
Jason seemed to find this disappointing, but he nodded gravely, and Lucy knew he would be careful. Despite his occasional bouts of exuberance, Dara’s husband seemed like a level-headed person overall, and she was glad he’d agreed to come along with them to fight.
In the end, Kiefer agreed to let Theo ride in the cab of his pickup, but he kept his hands tied behind his back, this time with a length of sturdy rope he’d produced from the bed of the truck. Jessica and Nathan traveled with Jason and Dara, while Lucy followed behind with Aaron. When they reached the bookstore, they found a subcompact car from the security company sitting in front of it, with its driver’s side door hanging open and its lights flashing.
“Where is the driver of this little vehicle?” Nathan asked, peering around the courtyard. “If the security guard has entered the building he could be in grave danger.”
“Let’s have a look-see,” Kiefer suggested, ambling toward the bookstore entrance.
With an ache in her chest, Lucy saw that Aaron’s vision had, unfortunately, been accurate: Book of Love’s front window was missing, and pebbles of safety glass littered the sidewalk. The cardboard standee of Prince Ion lay facedown and, as Jessica unlocked the front door and led them all inside, Lucy saw bookshelves tipped over, their shredded contents blanketing the floor like confetti. The posters had been knocked from the wall and ripped to pieces. In the reading nook, gutted plush settees belched out clouds of white stuffing. Lucy’s heart broke for Jessica, knowing she would be devastated to see all of her hard work ruined this way.
The chaos inside the store soon became the least of their worries, though, when Nathan found the lone security guard collapsed in front of the cash register. He seemed really young, barely out of his teens, and his face was a battered mess. Blood spattered the front of his uniform, and he wasn’t moving. Even from a distance, Lucy could see the two dark holes perforating his neck.
“Oh no, is he…?” she couldn’t bring herself to say dead.
Jessica came over, looking sick, and everyone else gathered around, too.
“Well, don’t let Nathan check him for a pulse,” Kiefer said, pushing past the vampire to get to the guard’s side. “We already know he’s too quick to decide a poor guy’s kicked the bucket even when he hasn’t.” He crouched and examined the guard, flicking at the nametag pinned to his uniform. “Frankie?” he said, reading the name off it, “Hey, Frankie,
