Page 42 of Blood and Bonbons

“But did we die? No. So maybe that second helping saved our lives. Be more grateful and less cranky.” I sighed and rubbed my face. “If he didn’t kill us now, what are the chances he’ll kill us when we close our eyes?”

Vena looked down for a moment, thinking. “He has his ring back and could have fed on us already if he wanted to, so probably small. But we should sleep in shifts to be on the safe side.”

Our sleep time was already too short.

“Nope. We’re going upstairs, barricading ourselves in your closet, and both of us are getting at least six hours of sleep before we head back to the city. No looking like death when you fill out your paperwork for Shepard.”

“Fine. But be honest. You’re worried about looking good for Shepard.”

I was too tired to verbally wipe the smirk off Vena’s mouth. Instead, I trudged upstairs with her following closely.

Fifteen minutes later, Vena and I lay on a makeshift bed in her closet, her phone illuminating the modest space.

“Turn it off,” I said sleepily.

“I will. I can’t stop wondering what this book is. Grandpa was the last one to have it, and he and Grandma disappeared. Miles starts looking for it, and he disappears, too. Related or coincidence? I can’t decide.”

That woke me up a bit.

“Do you really think that’s why he’s missing? Are we going to disappear next because we’re looking for it?”

“Don’t worry. I used Miles’ log-in to search the online archives. If anyone is watching, they won’t know it was me.”

“No, they’ll only know it was someone close to Miles. He’s got tons of friends, right?” I said sarcastically. Miles had acquaintances and a few tight friends, but the circle was small.

Vena cringed and turned off the phone.

“Go to sleep,” she said. “Things might look better tomorrow.”

I doubted it.

* * *

I woke up alone in the closet to the faint sounds of thumping somewhere else in the house.

Heart pounding, I crept from my hiding place and grabbed Vena’s emergency baseball bat before silently making my way down the hall to Miles’ room–the source of the noise. Morning light poured in through his windows, showing the lower half of my crazy best friend’s body wiggling out from under his bed.

“What the hell are you doing?” I asked, setting the end of the bat on the floor and leaning on it.

Vena popped the rest of the way out and looked up at me.

“Nice to see you’re out of the closet,” Vena said with a smirk. “Miss me?”

“How long have you been up?” I asked.

“About an hour.”

I looked left and right dramatically. “An hour and not a crumb of breakfast in sight?”

Vena snorted and stood. “It’s not my turn to bribe you. You owe me this time.”

“For what?”

Looking far too cheerful, Vena pulled her phone from her back pocket and showed me the picture of the book.

“While I was rubbing more lube into the scrotum this morning, I noticed something. Do you see it?” she asked, excitement lacing her words.

“First, gross. Second, yeah, I see the book. Third, did you get any sleep? You’re descending into nutty squirrel mode again.”

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