may not be combined. Demons who never miss appointments are missing appointments. Mrs. Henderson”—I shuddered—“murdered, and Bettina reporting an attack.”
Will looked at me.
“I think all of these things seem a little too coincidental to be, you know, coincidence, don’t you think?”
Kale nodded. Her large eyes let me know that she agreed with me.
“I’m not saying you’re wrong. I’m just saying we shouldn’t jump to conclusions.”
“I didn’t jump. I answered the phone. I got out of my car at the Henderson house. Lo and behold, there conclusions were. There is a full-blown Underworld attacker loose in San Francisco,” I said definitively.
“As long as you’re not going overboard.” Vlad sighed.
“Four events. Four!” I held up my hand, wiggling four fingers. “All within a few days of each other? This is bad.”
Shirley came back with our food and we stopped talking, suddenly trying to look casual in that completely suspicious way. She angled an eyebrow at us. “Can I get y’all anything else?”
I pressed my lips together and forced a smile, though my stomach quivered nervously.
“No, no, I think we’re okay.”
The second she left, Vlad swung toward me and Will. “So there is no evidence that any vampires are in danger?”
I shook my head. “Nothing that we’ve seen so far, especially if these are all the files.”
Will’s eyes flashed and I sucked in a hard breath. “Well,” I started, “someone did try to stake me.”
“Stake you?” Vald’s eyebrows went up.
I made the universal stabbing/staking motion and Vlad grinned. “Then it’s official,” he said,
“this guy has no idea what a vampire looks like.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Well,” Vlad said, puffing out his damask vest,
“please keep me abreast of the situation, particularly should something change.”
He gave each of us small, curt nods and slipped out of the booth.
“You know, I should probably get back to work, too,” Kale said, trying to scurry out behind him.
“Aren’t these files your responsibility?” I asked.
Kale waved me off with a flick of her hand. “I trust you to get them back.” She popped up onto her tiptoes to look over my head and I craned my neck to follow her gaze. Through the plate glass window I could see Vlad was already on the sidewalk, pulling up the collar of his trench coat against the light drizzle that had started. I looked at Kale’s flimsy, short-sleeved Tshirt.
“You’re going to get soaked to the bone. Take this.” I handed her my white puffy jacket and she slipped it on, the collar swallowing her mass of dark hair.
“Looks cute on you,” I said, smiling. “But you can’t keep it.”
Kale grinned and turned on her heel. “Thanks!”
“Such a nice work ethic with kids nowadays,” Will said ruefully. “Send them out to protect something with their lives and ...” He shrugged, cocking a boyish looking half smile.
“I think the only thing she was protecting was—”
The screeching of tires just outside the glass cut off my sentence. Will mumbled something to me, but his words were lost in the booming crush of metal and shrieks of people on the sidewalk.
“A girl’s been hit,” someone yelled from a booth behind us. “Somebody call 911!”
The few bites of lunch I had eaten sat in my stomach like stones. I wanted to get up and look, wanted to turn my head to glance out the plate glass window, but my whole body had gone statue-stiff. My every bone was feeling leaden. When I tried to speak, I realized my mouth was papery and dry. “Do you think ... ?” was all I managed to get out before I felt the tears coursing down my cheeks. “Do you think-think ... ?” I tried to start again, but another sob choked my words. They settled in the back of my throat like a solid lump. I tried to swallow, tried to steady myself, tried to get myself to move.
“The guy took off!” I heard someone yell.
“Oh my God! Oh my God!”
Will seemed to
Will looked at me.
“I think all of these things seem a little too coincidental to be, you know, coincidence, don’t you think?”
Kale nodded. Her large eyes let me know that she agreed with me.
“I’m not saying you’re wrong. I’m just saying we shouldn’t jump to conclusions.”
“I didn’t jump. I answered the phone. I got out of my car at the Henderson house. Lo and behold, there conclusions were. There is a full-blown Underworld attacker loose in San Francisco,” I said definitively.
“As long as you’re not going overboard.” Vlad sighed.
“Four events. Four!” I held up my hand, wiggling four fingers. “All within a few days of each other? This is bad.”
Shirley came back with our food and we stopped talking, suddenly trying to look casual in that completely suspicious way. She angled an eyebrow at us. “Can I get y’all anything else?”
I pressed my lips together and forced a smile, though my stomach quivered nervously.
“No, no, I think we’re okay.”
The second she left, Vlad swung toward me and Will. “So there is no evidence that any vampires are in danger?”
I shook my head. “Nothing that we’ve seen so far, especially if these are all the files.”
Will’s eyes flashed and I sucked in a hard breath. “Well,” I started, “someone did try to stake me.”
“Stake you?” Vald’s eyebrows went up.
I made the universal stabbing/staking motion and Vlad grinned. “Then it’s official,” he said,
“this guy has no idea what a vampire looks like.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Well,” Vlad said, puffing out his damask vest,
“please keep me abreast of the situation, particularly should something change.”
He gave each of us small, curt nods and slipped out of the booth.
“You know, I should probably get back to work, too,” Kale said, trying to scurry out behind him.
“Aren’t these files your responsibility?” I asked.
Kale waved me off with a flick of her hand. “I trust you to get them back.” She popped up onto her tiptoes to look over my head and I craned my neck to follow her gaze. Through the plate glass window I could see Vlad was already on the sidewalk, pulling up the collar of his trench coat against the light drizzle that had started. I looked at Kale’s flimsy, short-sleeved Tshirt.
“You’re going to get soaked to the bone. Take this.” I handed her my white puffy jacket and she slipped it on, the collar swallowing her mass of dark hair.
“Looks cute on you,” I said, smiling. “But you can’t keep it.”
Kale grinned and turned on her heel. “Thanks!”
“Such a nice work ethic with kids nowadays,” Will said ruefully. “Send them out to protect something with their lives and ...” He shrugged, cocking a boyish looking half smile.
“I think the only thing she was protecting was—”
The screeching of tires just outside the glass cut off my sentence. Will mumbled something to me, but his words were lost in the booming crush of metal and shrieks of people on the sidewalk.
“A girl’s been hit,” someone yelled from a booth behind us. “Somebody call 911!”
The few bites of lunch I had eaten sat in my stomach like stones. I wanted to get up and look, wanted to turn my head to glance out the plate glass window, but my whole body had gone statue-stiff. My every bone was feeling leaden. When I tried to speak, I realized my mouth was papery and dry. “Do you think ... ?” was all I managed to get out before I felt the tears coursing down my cheeks. “Do you think-think ... ?” I tried to start again, but another sob choked my words. They settled in the back of my throat like a solid lump. I tried to swallow, tried to steady myself, tried to get myself to move.
“The guy took off!” I heard someone yell.
“Oh my God! Oh my God!”
Will seemed to
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