"I agree. We'll round up all the suspects, toss them in cells, and figure this out," Susan said with a tiger-worthy growl beneath her words.
The doctor timidly raised a hand again.
"You don't have to raise your hand, Dr. Snow," Aunt Ruby said kindly. "What is it?"
Dr. Snow pointed with a slightly unsteady finger. "I don't mean to be alarmist, but that's a vampire. And he's headed straight for us."
22
Jack
"That's okay. He's my brother," Susan said, and the poor doctor just looked more confused.
I was surprised Dr. Snow knew Carlos was a vampire, though. There was no outward sign, since he wasn't flashing his fangs or anything, that any plain-vanilla human would have picked up on. For those of us with any supernatural abilities, though, vampires had a certain shadowy aura that floated around them like a barely visible hint of smoke.
Our potential town doctor wasn't an ordinary human.
I could tell by the thoughtful way Tess was looking at the doctor that she'd reached the same conclusion. Susan and Andy would have, too.
"You throw a party when I'm not here?" Carlos said, flashing that smile Tess thought was so charming.
He was the male version of his sister. Long, wavy dark hair where hers was now cut short. He had a secret and overly mysterious job, multiple dangerous enemies, and he'dinadvertently put Tess in danger once, for which he and I weren't quite square yet. On the flip side, he was a loyal friend but a deadly adversary, and Tess was one of his favorite people. So, I knew he'd fight as hard to protect her as I would.
Carlos inhaled a long breath. "And why do I smell a dead body?"
"A dead McKee," Tess told him, her face drawn and unhappy.
Carlos raised an eyebrow. "Not Bubba?"
"No, Cletus," Susan said. "Did you just get back into town? We have things to discuss when I'm done here."
Carlos nodded and glanced at me and Tess. "Yes. We do."
"Murder is Dead End's idea of a party?" Dr. Snow asked, her voice faint. "I think I need to sit down."
She wobbled a little, and Carlos reached out to offer a steadying hand, but she visibly recoiled.
Carlos's eyes cooled, and he gave her a bland smile. "I was talking about the Fourth Festival, of course. I don't believe we've met."
"No, but I've met … people like you," she said, her eyes flashing defiance. "Vampires."
Oh, boy.
Tess bristled. "Hey. Doc. We don't judge people by what flavor their magic is in Dead End. And I especially don't want to hear you being rude to my friend."
The doctor's eyes widened, and Lauren, who'd been uncharacteristically quiet, held up a hand. "How about we all calm down and deal with the situation in front of us? I'm going to get a chair for Abby to sit on, since Susan wants her to stand by until the coroner gets here. Tess, Carlos, I'm sure Dr. Snow didn't mean to be insulting. She had a difficult encounter with vampires in the past. Susan, Andy, Lizzie, I'm sure you have important police work to do, so why don't you get on with it?"
We all gaped at her, and she smirked.
"You don't think I'm just a pretty face and a superior sandwich maker, do you?"
The doctor took Lauren's hand and squeezed it. "You definitely have a pretty face," she murmured.
Susan shoved her hair back from her face. "Okay. Not going to argue with any of that. Mike, Mayor, thank you for your assistance, but this is a police matter. Why don't you head home and get some rest? I'll do my job here and contact you first thing in the morning, or sooner, if we get any answers tonight."
Aunt Ruby nodded. "You're right. The mayor's job isn't to interfere with yours. Tess, Jack, do you want to come home with us?"
Tess hugged her aunt. "I love you, but we're okay. We'll talk to you in the morning, too."
