The Vampire Shrink

CHAPTER 26

Bryce physically jumped back a few inches, visibly startled. ‘Lucifer!’

Lucifer? This isn’t Brother Luther? Then who’s Brother Luther?

The tall, bald vampire growled, his discoloured fangs bared. He stepped over me and stalked towards Bryce, whose eyes had gone wide. It didn’t take a psychologist to figure out that Bryce was afraid of the foul-smelling creature backing him into a corner.

‘Lucifer, I wasn’t really going to do her.’ Bryce’s voice quivered. ‘I was saving her for you, just as we agreed.’

Lucifer picked Bryce up by his throat, piercing his neck with long, filthy fingernails. Bryce struggled uselessly as rivulets of blood trailed down his neck and Lucifer licked them with his long tongue.

Bryce screamed, ‘Dammit, Raleigh! The song! Play the song!’

Raleigh sprinted over to a boombox propped on a chair. He pressed a button and Brahms’s ‘Lullaby’ floated softly from the speakers.

Lucifer continued to suck on the wounds on Bryce’s neck.

‘Crank it up!’ Bryce yelled.

Raleigh turned the music up eardrum-shatteringly loud and Lucifer pulled back, dropped his hand from Bryce’s neck and let him fall to the floor. He shuffled over to the boombox and sat in front of it, swaying to the music, humming tonelessly.

Bryce leaped to his feet, massaging his neck.

Raleigh rushed to him. ‘I did good, didn’t I, Master?’

Bryce kicked the small man in the stomach, causing him to double over.

‘You almost fucking got me killed, you moron. You should’ve started the damn CD the moment Bizarro-Man showed up. You know that’s the only way I can control him, otherwise he goes fucking ballistic.’

Raleigh, who wasn’t even as tall as Bryce’s waist, hugged him. ‘I’m sorry, Master. Don’t punish me!’

Bryce hesitated for a few seconds, appearing to consider the possibilities in the location of Raleigh’s face, then peeled the mini-vampire off his body.

I’d got to my feet during the chaos and retreated behind a spectacular mahogany grand piano. I studied the bald vampire who’d inexplicably ceased his rampage and sat hypnotised in front of the CD player.

Shit! Lucifer’s affected by the music. Not only affected, but manipulated, controlled. I’ve never seen a reaction that strong before. He transformed from being a dangerous predator into an almost childlike state. I never would’ve suspected. This is one for the psych journals. If they believed in vampires, that is.

My silent diagnostic session was abruptly interrupted.

Bryce scanned the room, shoved Raleigh out of his way and quickly found me. He stalked over, grabbed my upper arm forcefully enough to leave bruises and pulled me to the circle. The pain of his fingers burrowing knifelike into my arm was so intense I gasped, struggling to catch my breath.

He bellowed, ‘That’s enough bullshit. On with the show.’

Several vampires had been busy placing objects inside the circle and drawing geometric shapes around the outside. Others were working in a different part of the room, blending the contents of small bottles into a silver cauldron that bubbled over a fire. All of them came to attention at Bryce’s command.

I hadn’t noticed before that each wore a black robe. Vampire monks? Vampire devil worshippers?

Lucifer swayed gently, oblivious.

Except for one of the bearded vampires, who scooped thick liquid from the cauldron into a black cup, everyone else assumed their places in the circle and began chanting.

The sound of the chant was different from what I’d experienced with Devereux. That had been melodic. This was more like a deep rumbling sound. It reminded me of a performance I’d attended by a group of Buddhist throat singers. They had the ability, through years of training and practise, to sing two, three or four distinct low tones at the same time, a technique they used for meditation and trance induction. It was eerie and powerful. These guys were doing the same thing, and it sent chills through me, just like it had at the concert.

The other bearded vampire walked the circle, holding a sword straight up over his head. The blade sparkled in the candlelight. He mumbled words under his breath and paused at regular intervals to lower the sword’s tip to the floor and lift it up again.

He came to a stop at the point nearest to where I waited with Bryce, whose claw-fingers were still cutting off the circulation in my arm. Using the sword, the vampire made a downwards swipe, and reached his hand through an invisible slash in an imaginary entryway, pretending to hold something open.

Bryce dragged me through. The growling chant rose in intensity.

If I hadn’t participated in the Wiccan coven’s ritual years ago, I’d have been surprised by the energetic change I experienced inside the circle. The air felt thicker, as if it exerted more pressure on my skin. My body seemed to move in slowmotion and candyfloss filled my head.

Bryce released me with a push and I crumbled onto the floor.

Again.

Not only were my arm and breast throbbing, but my hip was screaming. I must have fallen on it earlier. I kicked off the only shoe that had made it into the circle and stood.

Bryce yelled to Raleigh, ‘When I tell you, turn off the music.’ He studied me, amused. ‘I’m going to summon your blond vampire lover now. Fix your hair – you’re a mess!’

I rubbed my arm and gave him a blank stare.

He can’t really force Devereux to appear, can he? He’s acting very smug and arrogant, even more so than usual. What if all these vampires together have more power than Devereux?

Bryce strutted over to the invisible opening where the bearded alchemist who’d been stirring the foul-smelling brew at the table handed him the black cup. Bryce muttered something that sounded like strings of vowels and drank whatever was in the cup.

He grimaced, and bellowed, ‘Devereux! Come to me!’

There was a moment of unnatural stillness, then my skin itched as currents of air gathered in the ring. The velocity increased, blowing my hair back from my face as the light flickered and became suddenly brighter.

A sound – not a pop this time but a full-fledged sonic boom – resonated only seconds before Devereux’s shirtless body burst into the circle. The momentum was powerful enough that he landed on his hands and knees.

Bryce dropped the cup he’d been holding and clapped his hands delightedly. He bowed to the circle of chanting vampires.

‘Bravo, gentlemen! You’ve exceeded all my expectations and will be abundantly rewarded.’

Whatever had happened to cause Devereux to arrive had clearly taken a toll on him, because he struggled to get to his feet and appeared dazed.

Bryce watched his guest, who’d finally managed to rise.

Devereux glanced in my direction, and I instinctively moved towards him. His eyes held an emotion that almost looked like fear. ‘This is impossible,’ he whispered in my mind.

Bryce intercepted me and stepped between us. He gave me his back and ran his hands over the muscles of Devereux’s chest.

‘Don’t look at her.’ He frowned. ‘Look at me. I told you what would happen if you didn’t cooperate. This is all your fault.’

Devereux rubbed his eyes. ‘What is this spell? You are not powerful enough to summon me.’

Bryce swung his arm flamboyantly in a wide arc, indicating the robed participants. ‘When you have the right bargaining chips, anything is possible.’ Then he hollered at Raleigh, ‘Now!’

Raleigh hit the ‘stop’ button on the CD player and the lullaby abruptly ended. I hadn’t realised how loud it had been – what a counterpoint the lullaby was to the chanting – until it was gone. I had a vague idea of what Bryce had in mind, but I couldn’t figure out anything I could do to help Devereux. Or myself. Part of me still couldn’t believe it was actually happening.

‘Raleigh, bring me one of the blood-sacks. Now! Move it!’

Raleigh, who enthusiastically enjoyed his role as Bryce’s flunky, smiled – or more accurately, leered – as he scurried over to the corner where Midnight, Ronald and Alan waited. He grabbed Alan by the neck of his shirt and pulled him to the edge of the circle, then dropped his head with a loud thump.

I was glad Alan was unconscious because that had to have hurt.

The bearded vampire with the sword reached his hand through the invisible entrance and mimed holding a curtain open.

Bryce seized Alan and dragged him inside, then picked up a ceremonial knife, an athame, which had been placed strategically in the ritual space. The confident, wicked smile on his face faltered as he darted a glance in Lucifer’s direction and found him standing. Moving towards us.

I wished there was a volume-control knob to turn down the chanters, because the repetitive sound was giving me a headache.

Devereux’s voice whispered in my mind, ‘Stand back.’

Bryce was distracted by Lucifer’s approach and finding the knife to bleed Alan, and he’d underestimated Devereux’s powers of recovery. He knelt down next to Alan, raised the athame and chanted some words in Latin. Before the blade reached Alan’s skin, Bryce was forcefully lifted into the air by Devereux’s arm around his neck.

The blade flew from Bryce’s hand and clattered to the floor. The two of them tore at each other, snarling and swearing. They levitated, then wrestled down to the floor, pounding on each other like human fighters on angel dust.

I stood frozen, feeling like a helpless idiot.

As Devereux and Bryce flailed they crashed into the chanters, who had nowhere to go because the circle was protected by its own weird forcefield. Apparently, the only way in or out was through the imaginary opening. The fighters struggled back to their feet, separating long enough to hiss and growl at each other.

Devereux spoke, deep and slow. ‘You are the mistake I have paid dearly for. It is finished.’ With a ferocious roar, he launched himself at Bryce and ripped his throat out.

Bryce crashed to the floor like a felled tree.

Blood spurted everywhere, drenching the circle. A sizzling sound, like butter in a hot pan, could be felt as well as heard. Faint static electricity raised the hairs on my arms and tiny sparks ignited around Devereux.

I pulled Alan as far away from the oozing blood as I could.

Although copious amounts of blood still flowed from the wound, the skin of Bryce’s throat had already begun to knit itself back together.

I shifted my eyes away from Bryce in time to see Lucifer plough into the circle and grab Devereux.

On a good day I was sure Devereux could hold his own against the ghoulish vampire, but he was weakened, and the outcome looked bad. Lucifer lifted Devereux into the air, holding him by his hair as he tried to sink his fangs into Devereux’s neck.

Bryce’s throat was healing so quickly he’d be back on his feet within seconds, and I didn’t think Devereux had a chance of fending off both his enemies together.

I cast around frantically, searching for anything I could use to help Devereux.

My eyes caught movement in the mirror. The waistcoated violinist, still holding his instrument and bow, was waving his arms excitedly to get my attention. He moved his mouth, offering more silent words, and pointed his bow at something on the floor.

My eyes tracked where he was pointing, but I didn’t see anything except the sword.

I glanced back at the image in the mirror; he nodded and mouthed, clear enough for me to understand, Yes! Pick it up!

The sword!

I really am dense.

What happened to the ZZ Top vampire who was guarding the opening?

I scooped up the blade, which was much heavier than I had expected. I intended to stick it in Bryce’s chest, because everyone knew you could kill a vampire by puncturing his heart. I hoped that wasn’t another movie myth.

Bryce’s neck was almost completely healed. He had just lifted his head off the ground when I brought the sword down, aiming for his chest.

I whacked his head off instead. This time the blood oozed instead of spurted.

‘Bryce!’ Raleigh screamed.

The collective gasp of the now-silent chanters made me raise my head. All their surprised eyes were on me. A few of the vampires moved a step forwards, as if they intended to take the sword away.

I didn’t care about that. My brain had clicked onto ‘automatic’. All I knew was that I’d missed my target. Before they could do anything, I raised the sword again and plunged the tip directly into Bryce’s heart, holding the hilt with both hands.

The Sword in the Stone in reverse.

In my prevailing shocked and traumatised state, that decision made perfect sense. I’d never again scoff at a story of a mother lifting a car to save her child. That was one heavy sword, but I’d wielded it like it was made of aluminium foil.

The electrical sensation increased and the sparks of light surrounding Devereux ignited with the sound of crackling fire. Bryce had said the blood was the final part of the ritual. He just never thought it would be his blood. But what would it mean for Devereux that the circle had been saturated with the thick red liquid?

He’d managed to prise Lucifer’s hands off his hair, but he wasn’t making much progress in getting free.

‘Kismet?’

I turned to find Alan sitting up, staring at me, his mouth open. He was still wearing the fake fangs. He shifted his eyes to Bryce’s body – both parts – then to the sword, then back to my face.

I could only imagine how I must’ve looked.

Well, I probably looked like what I was: a blood-soaked, traumatised, barefoot, ghost-seeing vampire slayer.

In my demented state, I wondered if I should add ‘vampire slayer’ to my business card, but then I figured it wouldn’t do much for my vampire therapy business.

I wasn’t even particularly surprised that Alan had rejoined the land of the living. Since Bryce had been the one to put the whammy on him and he was now undergoing an accelerated decomposition process, it made sense that Alan might be released from his evil eye.

It’s funny how lucid you can become in the midst of a psychotic break.

Bryce’s handsome face had regressed to his true age, and the massively wrinkled skin slowly began to crumble like ancient papyrus, exposing his skeleton. Chunks of his now-grey, brittle hair blew across the floor in the air currents caused by Devereux’s continuing struggle with Lucifer.

I turned towards my ghostly helper in the mirror and mouthed the words, Thank you. He bowed from the waist, raised his violin to playing position and moved the bow vigorously over the strings. I wished I could’ve heard the tune.

Apparently, seeing ghosts is another one of my skills. Who knew?

A groan from Devereux brought him back to centre stage in my attention. Something was happening to him. He stumbled, unable to remain erect. His eyes met mine and I saw fear again before he collapsed on the floor.

Lucifer loomed over him, slowly bending down.

‘I love you,’ Devereux whispered in my mind.

Something about the hopelessness and finality of the feeling he sent along with the words terrified me. A bone-chilling cold that rose from the horror of killing Bryce and the possibility of losing Devereux washed over me. I dropped to the floor and crawled to him. I stroked his cheek. ‘Devereux, please wake up. Don’t leave me.’ He didn’t answer.

Alan grabbed the athame from where it had fallen on the floor, leaped up onto Lucifer’s back and stabbed him repeatedly. Lucifer looked more annoyed than injured and flailed about, trying to dislodge the irritant between his shoulder blades.

Finally he reached over his shoulder, grabbed Alan by his thick hair and threw him into the former chanters. One of the vampires held on to Alan for a few seconds, a confused expression on his face. Maybe he wasn’t sure where his loyalties belonged since I had killed Bryce. He must have decided that it wasn’t wise to be on the losing team, so he let Alan go.

Grasping at straws, I screamed up at Lucifer, repeating all the words he’d said to me as one of his other personalities: ‘She must be punished. You are the warrior of God. The redeemer of lost souls. She’s a harlot! Jezebel! Whore!’

Lucifer froze. He reached down and grabbed a big chunk of my hair, pulling me up as he straightened. He locked his red eyes on mine and I felt my brain slide out of my ears.

I closed my eyes to break the eye-contact and kept repeating the words, trying to remember everything else he’d said, until I felt him relax his grip on my hair. Even before I opened my eyes I could tell he’d transformed. I knew for sure when he launched into his familiar Southern-accented rant.

‘Whore! Jezebel! You’ll be washed in the blood!’ He seemed to shrink before my eyes, the stained, horrible-smelling black coat now larger than his shrivelled frame, his eyes black coals again. He backed away from me, clutching his coat around him, rocking slightly.

I became aware of Alan standing next to me, his eyes wide, fascinated by the spectacle unfolding in front of him.

I hoped the transformation from one of the split-off personalities to another might release Devereux from whatever power-hold Brother Luther – or Lucifer, or whoever he really was – had on him, but Devereux lay still as death.

The ritual Bryce had set in motion had taken on a life of its own and fulfilled the original intention: to control Devereux.

Then several things happened at once. A loud noise drew my attention to one of the mirror panels on the other side of the room, which turned out to be a hidden door. Lieutenant Bullock’s costumed police officers stormed the room, yelling, ‘Police! Freeze!’ The human rescuers were followed by Luna and too many vampires to count.

The arrival of Devereux’s coven caused the vampires who’d been involved in the ritual to dash through the imaginary opening in the circle and pop out of the room.

Luna barrelled towards the ritual space and smashed into the invisible forcefield.

‘Fucking magic bullshit!’ she screamed. ‘They had the whole building protected so we couldn’t enter through thought. We had to follow the stupid humans who’d found a way in. Now we’ll have to erase their memories.’

Her expression became suddenly serious as she got a closer look at Devereux lying helplessly on the floor. Then her face contorted. Enraged, she screamed at Brother Luther, thinking he was Lucifer, not realising that for all intents and purposes he was a different person – er, different vampire.

Trying again unsuccessfully to enter the circle, Luna vented her anger and frustration on the stooped, pitiful vampire standing over Devereux.

The longer she yelled, the more upset he became, until eventually he covered his face with his hands and sobbed loudly.

I knew what would happen if he reached a breaking point, so I tried to convince Luna to stop haranguing him. ‘Please, Luna – you’ve got to stop. He’s calm for now. Trust me, if you keep screaming at him, something bad will happen. He’s sick.’

‘Fuck that! This asshole did something to Devereux and I’m going to find out what it was. Take your human psychobabble somewhere else.’ She’d been prowling around the perimeter of the circle, testing for an opening. Not finding one made her even angrier.

I stared down at Devereux’s beautiful face and remembered the music.

Keeping the dangerous, psychotic vampire subdued so we could remove Devereux from the circle was the highest priority. Maybe when he was freed from the influence of the spell, he’d revive.

Playing the lullaby, which would make Brother Luther shift into his child personality, seemed to be the best temporary solution. Perhaps he’d be immune to Luna’s threats in his regressed state.

All I could think about was saving Devereux, so I didn’t consider the repercussions when I sailed through the opening in the circle, heading towards the CD player.

‘Where are you going?’ Alan called out.

‘No time to explain.’ He’d missed the musical portion of the evening.

When I got there, the little CD drawer was open and empty.

Where was the CD? Where was Raleigh?

Luna yelled, ‘About fucking time,’ and leaped through the opening I’d shown her. She strode towards Brother Luther, snarling, fangs bared, a true vampire Amazon on the warpath.

Too late, I realised my mistake and ran after her. I tried to step in front of her and she pushed me aside effortlessly, shoving me into Alan so hard we both hit the floor.

The sight of her caused Brother Luther to shriek in terror. He clutched his stomach and performed the same up-and-down rocking motion he’d done at my house. Between sobs he begged, ‘Don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me, help me, help me.’

Luna kicked him, screaming, ‘What have you done to Devereux, you festering piece of shit?’

He whimpered, ‘Mama!’ then dropped to his knees, covering his head with his hands and arms. A physical spasm rocked his body. He threw his head back and gave an ear-piercing primal scream.

As before, the transformation was rapid and astonishing.

Alan and I stood and watched Lucifer.

Shocked, Luna backed away. ‘What the fuck?’

He rose slowly to his feet, his no longer emaciated body filling the previously loose coat.

Alan sucked in a breath. ‘Jesus Christ!’

Somehow Brother Luther’s body had become taller, bulkier, more muscular. His actual bones had shifted. His eyes were on fire.

He advanced menacingly towards Luna, his mouth gaping, exposing his still-elongating fangs. She assumed a fighting stance, crouched low, waiting.

Several of the vampires Luna had brought with her crowded into the circle. They growled deep, flashed their fangs and surrounded Lucifer.

He took a step towards Luna, hand reaching for her throat.

Just then, Lieutenant Bullock crashed into the circle, gun pointed. ‘I said freeze!’

All eyes turned to her for a split-second, and in that tiny window of opportunity Lucifer scooped up Devereux and they both vanished.

We all froze for several seconds, stunned.

Staring down at the empty space on the floor, my brain finally registered that Devereux was gone and I lost it. I screamed like the Banshee from Hell. The walls reverberated as all the pain, fear, confusion, and grief I’d tried to hold inside burst forth in one long, gut-wrenching, soul-shattering cry. Then the tears began. I dropped to the floor and pressed my forehead on the spot where Devereux had been lying.

Everyone was silent while I sobbed.

Alan knelt down beside me and stroked my hair. ‘I’m sorry, Kismet. We all tried to save Devereux. He’s very powerful. If anyone can get away from that lunatic, it’s him. You’ve got to keep hoping.’

I raised my head and met his eyes to see if he believed what he’d said or if he’d chosen that moment to dredge up his unused therapy skills. His warm eyes beamed sincerity. And compassion. I sat up, exhausted, tears streaming down my face. I was grieving for his competition and he was being remarkably understanding.

Luna snorted in disgust. She narrowed her eyes, pressed her lips together tight and covered the few steps to where Lieutenant Bullock stood, still pointing her gun. She knocked the weapon away, growling, and brought her face nose-to-nose with Lieutenant Bullock’s.

‘Bitch! You distracted us. I almost had the fucker. I’m trying to decide if I should kill you now, or wait until we find Devereux so he can do it himself.’

Lieutenant Bullock retreated a couple of steps. ‘You are interfering with police business. Step away.’

Luna turned to the other vampires. ‘Police business? Gather round, everyone. This cow thinks she has something to say about what’s happening here. She thinks she knows one fucking thing about anything.’

Lieutenant Bullock still didn’t seem to understand who, or what, she was talking to. She might’ve understood vampires in theory, but she had no personal experience with them. She probably thought all the bloodsuckers in the room were humans dressed in their ball costumes. It’s likely she didn’t know she was conversing with the real deal.

‘There’s a body on the floor and blood everywhere. You bet your ass I have a lot to say about it.’

Luna plastered on her most evil smile. ‘And what kind of body do you think is on the floor, human?’

Alan rightly sensed that things were going south at the speed of light, and he jumped up and squeezed himself in between Luna and Lieutenant Bullock. But instead of helping, he leaped into the fray. The three of them started arguing at the top of their voices.

The other cops and vampires lined up on opposite sides, facing each other like the Sharks and the Jets in West Side Story. Though I doubted they’d break into a dance routine.

I tried to intervene a couple of times, but I didn’t have the energy to involve myself in anything as meaningless as blame or police protocol or whether vampires existed. Devereux was gone, maybe dead. That was all the pain my heart could hold. If I’d had any doubt about my feelings for him, losing him made things crystal-clear.

I staggered out of the circle and walked aimlessly in no particular direction. The sound of someone crying penetrated the fog in my head.

‘Shit!’ How could I have forgotten about Midnight and Ronald?

I raced over to where Ronald was still cradling Midnight in his lap and knelt. He was crying, his shoulders shaking. ‘She’s so cold – she’s dying, Dr Knight. I’m losing her.’

I stroked his cheek with the backs of my fingers. ‘Hold on, Ronald. It’s not over yet.’

I leaped up and hollered, ‘Someone call an ambulance!’

That stopped the argument.

Everyone ran over to see what I was yelling about.

There’d been enough death and loss for one night. Midnight wouldn’t be on the list, not if I had anything to say about it.

Having a positive goal seemed to galvanise everyone. Soon Midnight and Ronald were being carried on stretchers out of the music room to a Flight for Life helicopter waiting on the castle’s roof.

I noticed that everyone in the room was taking turns watching me, as if they expected me to pick up the sword and behead someone else. Since I hadn’t known I was capable of that kind of violence to begin with, I couldn’t give anyone any guarantees about my future actions.

With Devereux gone, I didn’t know what to do.

After the medical tech got Midnight prepped and stabilised, he told me her vital signs were incredibly good for someone who’d almost been drained. I don’t know why he spared the time to talk to me again and be so encouraging. Maybe he saw something in my eyes. Anyway, he said her outlook was great.

Except for some missing hair and scalp, a nasty souvenir of his first ever Vampires’ Ball, Ronald was completely fine.

I was morbidly drawn to the edge of the circle, which no longer held together, where I stared obsessively at the partial skeleton wearing a red velvet duster. The sword still rested nearby, clear evidence of something I knew logically but was resisting emotionally. I sat down, trying to feel bad. Trying to feel ashamed. Trying to feel anything. But I was still utterly numb.

Alan had finally got across to Lieutenant Bullock that it was a vampire body rotting on the floor in the Dark Magic circle, so no forensics team would be arriving to collect evidence.

‘Lieutenant, if you tell anybody you spent the last couple of hours with vampires, you’ll be taken away by the men in white coats and put in a straitjacket. Is that how you want to end your career?’

Luna was still prowling the area, mumbling under her breath about the stupid humans and what she wanted to do to Lieutenant Bullock. We each deal with pain in our own way.

I wasn’t sure how I was going to deal with mine. I rested my forehead on my bent knees as another river of tears poured down my face.

It wasn’t fair. I’d just accepted that Devereux was a vampire and that I had strong feelings for him, then he was gone. We’d known each other less than two weeks. My brain still hadn’t processed all the chaos and horror I’d experienced since I first met Midnight. Did the idea of working with real vampires even remotely appeal to me any more? Why would I want to involve myself with such a violent, irrational group?

Devereux dead? My mind couldn’t accept it.

Weren’t vampires supposed to live for ever?

I knew that after the shock receded, I’d have to deal with all the stages of grief. Was I supposed to move into an office in Devereux’s building, seeing constant reminders of him every day? I’d have to be a glutton for punishment to do that. I shook my head, unable to believe that I could even think about something as meaningless as office space or buildings. Maybe I’d take a sabbatical from my practice. Hide away. Go to Paris to visit friends.

I don’t know how long I sat there in front of Bryce’s remains, but for some reason I had an urge to raise my head. The ghost in the mirror was once again working hard to get my attention.

Nobody else has the ability to see this ghost but me?

He was beside himself with joy. He smiled very wide, danced in circles and thrust his bow vigorously in a pointing motion towards the far end of the room.

Since he’d been such a reliable resource, I rose and shifted my eyes in the general direction the bow indicated.

There was something on the floor, half-underneath one of the grand pianos.

My heart pounded and I gasped. My body knew before the rest of me did.

I ran flat out across the room, skidding to a stop a foot away from flowing platinum hair.

Devereux looked like he’d been hit by a truck. Or exposed to the vampire equivalent of kryptonite.

I screamed again, this time with pure joy, which was quickly followed by the sound of running footsteps and excited voices.

He lay sprawled on his back, his hair partially covering his face.

I dropped to my knees, held his face in my hands and kissed his parched lips. His skin felt icy-cold to the touch. Suddenly terrified, I feared that Lucifer had sent Devereux’s dead body back as a sadistic parting shot.

I checked his pulse points for a heartbeat, but couldn’t detect anything. But if he was dead to begin with, did it matter that he had no heartbeat? I knew so little about vampire mortality that I had no idea what signs to look for.

Luna, who’d dropped down next to Devereux across from me, closed her eyes and pressed one hand against his forehead and the other to his chest.

I watched her, not sure what she was doing, but hoping she knew some kind of vampire trick that would bring Devereux back to consciousness. I couldn’t help myself. I started crying again.

‘I can feel him.’ She glanced at me. ‘He’s in there.’

‘What does that mean?’ I choked out between sobs.

‘Stupid human,’ she said gruffly, and then cleared her throat and spoke more softly. ‘Take his hand and find out for yourself.’

I picked up his hand and held it in both of mine, waiting. I didn’t know what I was supposed to be listening for, but touching him felt wonderful. Even if his skin was as cold as marble. I closed my eyes and clearly heard him say my name. His finger twitched almost imperceptibly.

I burst out laughing, still crying, and a joyful roar rose up from the bystanders.

My vampire was alive.

Or whatever.