Page 78 of How to Stake a Vampire

It was Sunday morning. We were on our way to Barney’s place to discuss yesterday’s incident at the blood bank and how to proceed from there. The vampire had been adamant the strategy meeting take place at his home and that the Tremaines be invited.

According to him, he and the vampire power couple had confidential information to share that could aid our investigation.

Didi, Gavin, and Detective Johnson had excused themselves from attending, probably because no amount of overtime pay could justify sharing the same breathing space as Victoria and the Tremaines.

It was Samuel who had advised bringing Pearl along for her historical perspective. I would have laughed had I not recalled the cat’s various uncanny abilities, not to mention her talent for knowing things she had no business knowing. If we were about to dive into dark vampire secrets, having a supernaturalfeline with questionable origins and an attitude problem might actually be useful.

Victoria, on the other hand, had connections throughout Amberford’s supernatural community and knew how to navigate vampire politics without accidentally starting a war. Plus, someone needed to keep Pearl from insulting anyone important enough to hold grudges.

Samuel turned onto a tree-lined street in Amberford’s historic district, a few miles from the Hawthorne estate. I inspected the row of large Victorian houses sitting behind immaculate gardens and lawns so perfectly manicured they looked like someone had used a ruler to trim each blade of grass.

We were definitely in vampire territory.

Samuel pulled up in front of a three-story mansion painted in tasteful burgundy and cream. It sprawled across a large plot and had wings and annexes that seemed to have been added over the years.

“Barnabas has excellent taste,” Victoria observed with approval.

I studied the eldritch weather vanes cautiously. “It’s very, er, vampire-y.”

Pearl sniffed. “They may serve tea in actual china cups here.”

Bo’s eyes gleamed with a morbid light. “I bet it’d be easy to bury bodies in the garden.”

A familiar Rolls-Royce was already parked in the driveway.

“The Tremaines beat us here,” Victoria noted.

I eyed the silver Audi behind Gregory’s car with a puzzled frown. “Who else got invited?”

An uncomfortable expression danced across Samuel’s face. “Virgil and Ellie.”

I stiffened. “What? Why?!”

“Barney insisted,” Samuel said. “He claimed this concerns them too.”

My stomach did an uncomfortable flip, both at his words and the fact that he’d kept this a secret from me. I wasn’t happy about my best friend potentially walking into danger. Again. The whole vampire-transformation thing was still too fresh in my mind.

What if she got hurt, or worse?

“Could you perhaps save the panic for an actual crisis?” Pearl said sharply. “Your anxiety is making the car smell like stress sweat.”

“Fur Ball’s right,” Bo panted.

We climbed out of the Bentley before I could come up with a suitable riposte.

Barney’s home was even more impressive up close. The shingle roof was adorned with gables sporting ornate Victorian woodwork and Gothic finials. Quaint bay and oriel windows protruded from the brick-and-decorative-wood-trimmed facade in unexpected places, adding to the mansion’s rambling charm. Everything was perfectly maintained, from the brass door knocker shaped like a bat to the spotless stained glass and the topiary bushes framing the front lawn.

The place made my apartment look like a college dorm.

“I should have worn my bow tie,” Bo remarked as we headed up a cobblestone pathway to a wraparound porch with intricate spindle work and whimsical newel posts.

“I shall buy you another one, for casual occasions,” Pearl said graciously.

I was about to ask “With what money?” when we reached the wooden front door complete with Gothic motifs and oversized hinges.

Someone had put googly eyes on the bat brass knocker.

We stared.