The Traveling Vampire Show

“Yeah.” I walked toward it.

“The front door’s the open one,” he reminded me.

“If someone comes in the front door,” I explained, “what you do is run out the back and shut it behind you to slow ’em down....”

“Or maybe so they don’t realize you went out,” Slim added.

“Right,” I said. I stepped up to the back door and opened it. A warm wind blew in against me. I pushed on the screen door.

It stayed shut.

Because its inside hook was fastened.

“Guess she didn’t run out the back,” I admitted.

“So much for that theory,” said Slim.

“She still could’ve gotten away.”

“Maybe she didn’t need to,” Rusty said.

“That’s right,” I said.

“So what do you want to do?” Slim asked me.

I shrugged. I had to do something, but didn’t know what. I felt miserable: confused, helpless, scared.

Even as we stood in the kitchen chatting about theories, Lee might be running for her life with Stryker or someone hot on her tail. Or maybe she’d already been captured. Someone might be taking her farther and farther away. Or torturing her. Or raping her. Or killing her. Or she might be perfectly fine. Maybe she’d walked over to a friend’s house for supper or gone for a stroll to enjoy the wild, windy night.

“I don’t know,” I muttered.

Bitsy raised her hand as if she were in a classroom.

“We know, we know,” Rusty said. “In your brilliant opinion, we should forget about Lee and go to the drive- in.”

“Shows how much you know,” Bitsy said.

“What is it?” Slim asked.

Bitsy frowned and opened her mouth, but no words came out.

“Spit it out,” Rusty said.

“Shut up,” I told him. Then I looked at Bitsy. “Is there something you want to say?”

She glanced around at all of us, then said, “Just that you shouldn’t be so worried about Lee. She just went somewhere, that’s all”

Rusty smirked. “Thanks for the news flash.”

Bitsy scowled at him, then looked at me and said, “Nobody’s after anybody. I mean, you’ve got it all wrong.”

“About what?”

“Everything. That guy you keep talking about ... Stryker? From the Vampire Show? He didn’t do any of that stuff. You know, sneak into your houses and chew on the book and do things with the roses.” Blushing fiercely and looking ready to burst into tears, Bitsy said, “I did it.”

Chapter Forty- one

I think my mouth fell open. I know Slim’s did.

Rusty blasted, “You!”

“I’m sorrrrry,” she brayed, and then started to bawl. Face red and twisted, tears rolling down her cheeks, she sobbed out, “I didn’t mean to! I’m sorrrrry!!!”

“You little shit!”

“Knock it off,” I told Rusty.

Standing there, Bitsy lowered her face into her open hands. Her shoulders jumped up and down. She gasped and snorted.

Slim started making faces at me and nodding toward Bitsy.

I got the message. Stepping up to Bitsy, I murmured, “It’s all right,” and put my arms around her.

Her arms whipped around me like a springing trap.

I stroked her head with one hand and patted her back with the other while she shuddered and twitched. Her face was shoved against my chest. I felt her hot breath through my shirt. Soon, I felt wetness, too. From her tears. And, I’m afraid, from her slobber.

I kept saying, “It’s all right” and “Everything’s fine” and “It doesn’t matter,” and so on for quite a while until Bitsy finally calmed down.

Then Slim said softly, “Let’s go sit down.” She led the way. Bitsy and I followed her, Bitsy sniffing and clinging to my arm.

In the living room, Slim pointed to the sofa. So I sat down on it, Bitsy still hugging my arm.