Vicious Circle

“In this spell, you don’t have to be Superwoman and carry the energy to save the day; you’re the pilot of the plane that’s carrying the energy that saves the day.”

Her analogies made sense to me. The partial-change instances I knew of had been co

“You learn the spell, prepare, and practice.”

So we had a hope of healing Theo. I imagined the Fates backing away from her thread with their scissors.

Joh

“Might as well,” Nana said.

Joh

“Me?”

“Your house.”

I joined him in front of the Codex and paused. I couldn’t think about the box. Just standing this close to him made me feel keyed up, yet at ease. I reached out to the box, feeling confident with him there, but footsteps on the stairs stopped us. “Just a minute,” I said. “I want to see the doc out.”

Meeting Dr. Lincoln and Celia in the hall, I said, “Thanks for coming by so late. People-doctors aren’t usually that courteous.”

“Well, I gave my word. You are all doing a fine job.”

“Feeding tube?”

“In, no problem. New machine I brought in up there. It will regulate the feeding tube. Celia here has instructions for it.”

I paused, facing Celia. “Nana found a spell in that book that might enable us to force Theo to change. I want to explain it to all of you wæres. It will be your decision whether to do it or not, but I wanted to ask the doctor something about it before he left.”

Dr. Lincoln put his hand up. “Uh, I don’t treat the wære-folk that often but, all that magic stuff aside, is that wise?” He pushed his glasses up his nose. “I mean, she’s very weak. How can you be certain she’ll survive the transformation?”

“That’s what I wanted to ask: Can you do anything to make her stronger? Kind of rev her up and make sure her body has the fuel for a spell like this?”

He considered it. “I have some…” He started to tell us the technical side of it, then changed his mind. “Well, hmmm. I just did something like that for the mare, to get her heart pumping and warm her up so she didn’t slip into hypothermia while we waited for the crane to arrive and lift her out. I could adjust a protein serving for Theo and make, well, a kind of monster energy drink version for her.” He scratched his head. “It…yeah, it might work.”

“Great.”

“There’s some in my truck. Let me go get it and think this through again.” He opened the door and went out.

Ares started barking from the crate in the garage, and it occurred to me that I ought to get the doc to give him his puppy shots so I could at least do some normal business with him. I wondered if Nana had asked the previous owners about shots. I turned to ask Dr. Lincoln about Ares and saw him backing through the door, then standing there, staring outside. His jaw opened and closed repeatedly, but no sound came out.

“What?” I asked, advancing toward him.

His hand came up and he pointed outside. “I think I’ll wait a while.”

I looked out the door.

Standing just beyond the porch rail, directly opposite my open door, stood a man with luminous white skin and pale, pale hair gleaming silver in the waning gibbous moon’s light. I’d have sworn he had to be taller than Joh

“Goliath,” I said.

His mouth broadened slightly into the most condescending smile I’d ever seen. His chin lowered a minute degree in acknowledgment.

I added, “You killed a friend of mine.”

“Perhaps.”

Beverley stepped into the hall. “Go back to the kitchen,” I said.

“Goliath,” she whispered, her stu

I stared at her. “You know him?”

“Yeah.”

“Hello, Beverley,” Goliath said.

“You don’t think he’s the vampire that killed my mom, do you?”

I didn’t know what to say. She moved toward the door even as I tried to stop her. “Goliath!”

“Beverley!” he called. His expression too had changed.

I pushed between her and the door. “For now, you let me handle this.” I was afraid she’d invite him in or something equally dangerous. “Go to the kitchen, now. Please, please.”

For a tense second I wondered if she would obey; then she just walked away.

I turned back to the vampire. He kept his tone cool and stated, “I have come for Vivian Diamond and for the book.” His voice was deep. Long vocal cords on a body that tall. It startled me, though. I think it was because from one with hair that pale and fine, I’d expected something softer. Shadows appeared under his cheekbones as he spoke.

This made me notice the sharp angles of his face. Such sharpness should have made him harsh and cruel-looking, but instead he was stu

My ears detected Celia slipping away down the hall with Beverley. Ares continued barking. Good dog, sensitive to smelly creatures outside. I stood there and concentrated on breathing normally. What was I supposed to do? Stall. Stalling was good. Get information. That was good too. “Why do you want Vivian and the book?” I asked.

“Both belong to my master.”

“Oh. So you’re a gofer, huh?”

“Miss Alcmedi,” Dr. Lincoln whispered as he moved a step farther from the door, “I don’t think it’s a good idea to be flippant with a vampire.”

“He can’t come in, Doc. And he’s not about to be invited.” It was the only reason I could afford to have a bit of an attitude. That and knowing—in the wild, at least—strength respected strength. I hoped a vampire would do the same.

“That’s a wives’ tale!” The doctor’s whisper was panicky.

“No, it’s a witches’ tale. I’m a witch, and my house has wards.”

“Only holy ground can keep them at bay!”

Through gritted teeth I said, “The average person’s residence can be invaded because they don’t have wards. Churches put up wards by blessing the ground. It’s kind of the same thing.”

“But he’s on your grounds.”

I should have swept a bigger circle around the house. “He’s staying beyond the wards. Now, please, shut up!”

Joh

Goliath looked down his elegant nose. “Finished squabbling amongst yourselves?”

I hated vampires. I really hated vampires. Obnoxious snots. “Quite.”

“Give me what I ask for, and I will leave. If you don’t…” He let me see his fangs. “I might have to take offense at all the digging you’ve been doing lately.”

“Your threat is empty. You can’t come in.”

Even as the last word left my lips, I felt the pull. It slid across my thoughts like a boat on serene water then stabbed an oar into my brain and pushed. Come. Come to me, it said.