“Okay. That was weird, right?” I looked over at Violet.

“Yeah. Were they following you?” Violet narrowed her eyes at me.

“I don’t know,” I said, and my mouth felt dry. They had just walked in here, saying they’d seen me, and left without buying anything.

“They might be following you,” the nurse said. We’d been staring at the front of the shop to watch the vampires as they left, but all three of us wheeled around to face her.

“Do you know who they are?” I asked.

“Yes, of course.” She smiled and blinked her eyes, but said nothing more.

“Can you tell us who?” Violet asked, her words much snippier than I would’ve gone for.

“No. Confidentiality.” Her smile turned apologetic, and she gave a helpless shrug.

“So there’s nothing you can tell us about them?” I asked.

“Oh, no, I can tell you something.” The nurse lowered her voice and leaned closer to the glass. “They aren’t people you want to mess with. They’re vigilantes. Miss Smith is familiar with them.”

“Of course she is,” I sighed. “And she’s not here right now.”

“Wait.” Bobby pushed in between Violet and me to get closer to the glass. “Vigilantes? You mean like Batman?”

“What is with this kid and Batman!” Violet groaned.

“He’s only the most awesome thing ever,” Bobby shot back, glaring at her.

“Hey, you guys shut up!” I snapped, and they fell quiet as I turned my attention back to the nurse. “What are they vigilantes against?”

“Why, vampires of course.” She stood up straighter and scanned the UPC symbol on the cooler. “Vampires can act out if someone isn’t watching.”

“And they’re watching?” I asked. She punched something in the computer after she scanned the coolers. “Are they part of an organization?”

“No.” The nurse opened the slide glass window and set the coolers in front of us. “You’re all set.”

“Is there anything else you can tell us?” I asked, and Violet grabbed her cooler off the counter.

“No, I’m sorry.” She did the apologetic smile again. “Miss Smith probably knows more than I do, anyway. She used to work with them.”

“Awesome. Thank you.” I sighed and grabbed my cooler and turned to start walking out.

“Oh, you, sir!” The nurse pointed to Bobby. “Were you going to donate today?”

“Um, no, sorry,” Bobby said, following us out. “I already give away too much for free.”

As soon as we pushed the doors, I looked around. I half-expected the trio of vigilante vampires to be waiting outside to jump us, but they weren’t. I wanted to walk quickly to the car, but I had to slow down to match Bobby’s pace. Milo would kill me if I let something happen to him.

“Did Olivia leave any number for you to get a hold of her?” I asked Violet as I popped the trunk.

“No. She doesn’t believe in cell phones.” Violet tossed her cooler in the trunk, and I did the same.

“But this isn’t necessarily a bad thing,” Bobby said. “I mean, most vigilantes are good guys. They’re on our side. They’re trying to stop the same killer we are.”

“Maybe.” I slammed the trunk shut and got in the car. Bobby climbed in before Violet and arranged himself on the hump in the center, and then Violet got in. “But if these vampires think I’m with the killer, and they’re out to get him, then they’re out to get me too. And that’s not good.”

“Yeah,” Violet agreed as I started the car. “And besides, that Dane guy seemed like a major douche.”

“Yeah, and what was with his clothes?” Bobby asked. When I floored the car, he flew backwards, hitting his head on the glass.

“Hang on,” I told him belatedly.

“That happens sometimes with the older ones,” Violet said, referring to Dane’s sense of fashion. “They get really, really out of touch with trends, especially if they live off the grid. Olivia’s told me some about what she used to do. When she was working, she’d move around a lot. She usually only reentered society when she got called in.”

“You mean somebody like summoned these guys to come here and take care of this?” I asked.

“I would guess so,” Violet shrugged. “If they really are friends of Olivia’s, they’re probably more familiar with the area.”

“Do you think she would’ve called them?” I asked.

“I doubt it. I mean, not without telling you at least.”

“But why would anybody call them?” I rounded a corner fast, and Bobby flew into Violet.

“Get off me!” Violet shoved him back roughly.

“It’d be nice if you could take it easy,” Bobby said, readjusting his hat.

“Sorry.” I slowed down a bit as we got closer to Olivia’s building.

“It’s a vampire,” Bobby said.

“What?” I glanced over at him.

“I said that earlier that a vampire is the serial killer,” Bobby said. “That’s the only reason those guys would get involved, right? I mean, assuming they are what that chick said they are.”

“Holy shit.” I stopped in front of the building, almost slamming on my breaks, and Bobby reached to brace himself on the dashboard. “You’re right.”

“You know, Olivia has never called herself a vigilante,” Violet said, looking over at us. “She’s a vampire hunter. And so are they.” Her purple eyes met mine. “And we’re both vampires.”

“Oh, that’s real deep,” Bobby said sarcastically.

“You’re lucky you’re with her, or I would kill you,” Violet said flatly.

17

I popped the trunk, and Violet got out of the car. She grabbed her blood from the back, and giving me one final wave, she went into the building. Bobby adjusted himself more comfortably in the seat and clicked on his seatbelt, and I pulled away from the curb.

“Do you think it was her?” Bobby asked as I drove us home.

“Who?”

“Violet. Do you think she’s the serial killer?”

“No, of course not,” I scoffed.