“Uh...” Marty interrupted. “I know I’m just a mundane and you all are the magical ones, but I think Astrid would be safer at my house… or RJ’s.” He turned to face me. “Finn too, Poppy.” I nodded as he continued. “Your house is too close to Wanda’s and, in this case, it would be best not to take any chances.” He faced Wanda then. “What if you warded my house instead?”

  “Or Astrid and Finn could both stay with me,” Roy suddenly offered, stepping forward.

  “But, what about the bar?” I asked.

  Roy shook his head. “Their safety is more important.”

  “I think… I think we’ll need you to help us with Roscoe,” I answered.

  “Finn and Astrid will be fine with me,” Marty insisted, giving Roy an expression that Roy gave right back to him.

  Ugh, men.

  I faced Marty then, because he was really the only choice since we needed Roy and he was right—my house was too close to Wanda’s, too close to Betanya. “Would you mind having them stay with you? Just for a couple of days?”

  Marty beamed at me. “Of course not. I’d be delighted.”

  “Und I can veave zee magic of zee vards,” Olga offered with a quick nod.

  Wanda looked at her and smiled. “Which saves me the time of having to do it myself.” Olga just nodded again as Wanda clapped her hands together. “Then that settles it. If you give me a moment, Marty, I’ll pack Astrid’s things and send them with you,” Wanda said as she helped Betanya up and then walked her down the hall to Astrid’s bedroom.

  “I’ll need to pack Finn’s things too,” I said as I faced Marty.

  He smiled at me. “You know… you could always stay with me too.”

  “She, uh, she doesn’t need to do that,” Roy answered immediately, taking a step towards me.

  Marty looked up at him and frowned. “Poppy’s not any safer in her house than Finn is.”

  “She can stay with me,” Roy said, his lips as tight as his narrowed eyes. “I can protect her better than anyone can.”

  “Well, that is debatable,” Lorcan started.

  Roy glared at him. “You sleep during the day.”

  Lorcan cocked his head to the side and nodded. “I suppose that is true.”

  Just then, Wanda returned with a large pink duffel bag that was crammed to the brim with clothing and bathroom incidentals. She handed it to Marty who slung it over his shoulder.

  “I’m not staying with anyone,” I insisted.

  “Mom,” Finn said, giving me an expression of worry.

  “Finn’s right to be concerned,” Wanda said and looked at me in that knowing way of hers. “I think it would be best if you stayed with me because your house isn’t protected and we don’t have the time to ward both Marty’s house and yours.”

  “But, where—” I started.

  “We could make room for you in the living room.”

  “Or you could stay with us!” Darla offered excitedly, but at the prospect of staying with Darla and Libby, I’d rather take my chances with Roscoe.

  “I have a blow up mattress,” Marty added.

  “Or you could just stay with me,” Roy said.

  I looked at Roy and shook my head. “I don’t… I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Then I took a deep breath and faced everyone. “I think Wanda is right—I’m going to stay with her.”

  Marty nodded. “Well, I’ll take care of Finn and Astrid as if they were my own.”

  “I know you will.” I gave him a smile and was suddenly incredibly grateful for him. He was truly the best sort of friend.

  ***

  A couple of hours later, Olga had finished her protection warding spell on Marty’s house and I’d gotten both Finn and Astrid all settled in. Darla had also opted to stay with them, probably because she wanted to flirt with Marty.

  Now, it was time for Olga and me to return to Wanda’s. As I walked towards the Jeep, with Olga right beside me, Marty took a step nearer to me and grabbed my arm, pulling me aside.

  “I want you to promise me something, Pops.” He dropped his voice to a confidential whisper.

  “What?”

  “I want you to promise me you won’t do anything stupid when it comes to searching for Roscoe.” He gave me a broad smile. “Just remember, you might be magical, but you’re also still human.”

  “What makes you think I’d do something stupid?”

  “I’m just worried about you,” he answered on a sigh as he shook his head and wore his worry in the frown on his lips and the creases in his forehead.

  “Marty,” I started, but he interrupted.

  “We’re all used to Lorcan’s kind of vampire—the reasonable, considerate, caring, sort of rational person who helps his neighbors and protects the lives of those he cares about. Roscoe is nothing like Lorcan. I mean… he’s insane. He’s more than insane. He’s bloodthirsty, vindictive, murderous, and sadistic.”

  I nodded because he had a point and he didn’t even know just how powerful Roscoe really was, owing to the fact that he’d been absorbing Betanya’s magic all these years. “Yeah. I know.”

  Marty shook his head. “If it were up to me, I wouldn’t want you going after him at all.”

  “Somebody has to do something,” I pointed out, frowning, because while I appreciated his caring, I didn’t appreciate his doubts. I knew what we were up against and it wasn’t like I was going to treat Roscoe like a goofy Golden Retriever. I knew what he was—what he was capable of. I’d seen it with my own eyes.

  “Let the others deal with it, Poppy.”

  I shook my head again. “I can’t just sit back and not help.”

  Marty shrugged. “I know. I’m just… if anything happened to you, Poppy…” Apparently, he couldn’t finish the sentence.

  I took his hand and smiled up at him. “I’m going to be careful.”

  “Okay,” he breathed. “I guess I have to live with that.”

  “I don’t want to put myself in danger—if for no other reason than for Finn.”

  “I would hope for me too,” he answered and gave me a strange expression, one I didn’t understand and didn’t have time to understand presently.

  “Anyway, Olga and I should get back,” I started as Marty nodded and gave me a weak smile.

  ***

  “I can’t believe it,” Wanda breathed, shaking her head as she paced her living room. Olga and I had just returned and Roy, Libby and Lorcan were still present and accounted for. Florence and Henner were keeping watch over Betanya in Astrid’s bedroom. The only reason Lorcan was still up when it was now nine in the morning, was owing to the fact that it was dark and miserable outside.

  “There is nothing good about the re-appearance of another Blood Witch,” Hellcat mewed from his spot on the armchair beside the couch.

  “Oh, stick a paw in it,” Wanda called to him over her shoulder.

  “I can’t believe Betanya’s really here—alive—right under my roof!” she continued. “I never would have thought it was even possible.”

  “It’s beyond good news,” I agreed.

  “But it leaves open zee question of what you vill do with Betanya und me,” Olga said as she faced Wanda.

  Wanda nodded, but then waved Olga’s question away. “I can’t think about that right now.” She turned to face Lorcan. “Do you realize what this means for us? For the blood bond?”

  “Don’t get your hopes up,” Lorcan answered, and the expression on his face was one of concern. “Bringing Betanya back doesn’t guarantee we’ll be able to break the blood bond. If you recall—”

  “She never broke it, yes, I know,” Wanda finished in a snarky tone and then breathed out her frustration on a sigh.

  I reached out and patted her arm. “Even though Betanya’s being alive might not solve the issues with the blood bond, it’s still a big improvement on what was once impossible, isn’t it?”

  Wanda nodded. “All right, no more talking. We need to find Roscoe.”

  “And how are we going to do that when you can’t scry Roscoe’s location?” I asked.

  “I might not be able to locate him, but we have an alternative,” she answered.

  “What’s our alternative?”

  “Lorcan.”

  “Lorcan?” I repeated. “Um…”

  “Please keep your overarching confidence in my abilities to yourself,” Lorcan said as he frowned at me.

  “I’m sorry, I just…” I turned back to face Wanda. “I’m not sure how Lorcan is really going to be able to help us.”

  “Well, witch magic doesn’t seem to work on Roscoe, owing to the witch blood flowing through him so,” Wanda started.

  “I can do a thorough job of searching Haven Hollow for the chap,” Lorcan finished for her.

  I sighed, figuring we had no other ideas, so we might as well start there. “So what, you’ll fly over town and hopefully spot him?”

  “I can’t fly, my dear.”

  “Well, whatever it is you can do, is that the plan? You running recon?”

  “I shall do whatever I can.”

  With that, Lorcan approached the front door and opening it wide, disappeared. As I watched, he reappeared in the distance, maybe a football field’s length away.

  And he said he couldn’t fly—if that wasn’t flying, I didn’t know what was.

  “Poppy,” I turned around at the sound of Roy’s voice.

  “Hi,” I offered.

  “Do you think Astrid and Finn are safe with Marty?” he asked, shaking his head to let it be known he clearly didn’t. “He’s just a human.”

  “I know, but with Olga’s protection wards in place, no one will be able to get into Marty’s house.”

  Roy nodded and then took a deep breath. “I think we should ask Fifi to step in at Marty’s. At least she could protect Finn and Astrid better than Marty could, if it came down to it.”

  I thought about it for a few seconds before agreeing that it was a good idea. Fifi, as a demoness, would be much better protection for Astrid and Finn than just Marty alone, even though I doubted whether Roscoe would be able to make it past Olga’s wards—Olga’s power was strong and she was easily as proficient at brewing potions as I was.

  “What do you think?” Roy asked.

  “I think it’s a great idea,” I answered as Roy whipped out his phone and dialed Fifi.

  After a very brief conversation, he nodded at me. “She’s on her way to Marty’s now.”

  I nodded and gave him a smile, even as I was very aware of the fact that Fifi had a huge crush on Marty and maybe the two of them in his house wasn’t the best of ideas, given that Fifi and Roy were destined for each other and Marty and I…

  Marty and I are nothing more than friends, I reminded myself.

  “Thanks,” I managed.

  Roy returned the smile and we both just stood there for a few seconds, neither of us saying anything.

  “It was nice spending time with Finn last night,” Roy said finally.

  “Thank you for all your help. You’re a really good… friend.”

  When I said the word, I could see the light die in his eyes just a little bit and the smile on his lips faded. He didn’t say anything, but he didn’t have to—I’d hurt him; it was obvious.

  The sooner his love affair with Fifi could start, the better.

  Chapter Twelve

  “So we just wait here for Lorcan to return?” I asked, shaking my head.

  “Do you have a better idea?” Wanda demanded, throwing her hands on her hips. “Like I said, witch magic doesn’t work on Roscoe.”

  I nodded and breathed out an impatient sigh as her words reverberated through my head and then something occurred to me.

  Witch magic wouldn’t work on scrying Roscoe, but maybe…

  Gypsy magic could.

  “Wanda,” I started as I looked up at her with excitement.

  ***

  “Are you ready?” Wanda asked as we sat in her living room and she handed me the vial of Sleep Oil I’d made for her a few months back when she’d been suffering from insomnia.

  I nodded. Roy, Olga, Wanda and I were sitting on the floor in a circle, trying to pull off this location scrying attempt with my magic. Libby was fussing with something in the kitchen and the sounds she was making made it hard to focus.

  I pulled my handbag toward me and took out the bottle of the Mystic Veil potion and then stared at it for a long time as I thought about what I was attempting to do.

  Roscoe had spent years inside the veil—decades, even. With any luck, the veil would cling to him and the Mystic Veil would lead me right to him, owing to the fact that the potion had already parted Betanya’s veil, which meant it now had the added benefit of knowledge, of learning.

  And parting the veil was the outcome I wanted—the outcome we wanted. Yet, I shivered at the thought. Truly, there was no part of me that wanted to go looking for a vampire as dangerous as Roscoe. I didn’t want to do it any more than Marty wanted me to do it, but the same argument still remained.

  We had to locate him because doing so would be the only way that we could later go after him—once Betanya was well enough. And, I wouldn’t actually be physically anywhere near Roscoe. Instead, I’d be in the astral plane with an astral body. Even if Roscoe spotted me, he wouldn’t be able to hurt me.

  My mind once again made up, I twisted off the bottle cap and anointed myself with the Mystic Veil. But, the Mystic Veil wouldn’t be enough to get me where I needed to go, and that was where the Sleep Oil came in.

  In order to travel to the astral plane, I had to be asleep and with my nerves on edge the way they were, sleep wasn’t going to come naturally. Not to mention the racket Libby was making in the kitchen.

  “Libby, will you put a lid on it for a minute!” Wanda called out after Libby dropped a metal pan which clanked against the tile floors.

  “Sorry!” Libby responded and, luckily, the cacophony died.

  Anointing myself with the Sleep Oil, the scent of rose and musk filled the room as I placed the bottle on the floor beside me. Then, leaning against the couch, I stared at the ceiling and breathed in deeply, willing my heart to slow, and willing my wayward thoughts to slow along with it. I closed my eyes and focused on entering the astral realm.

  Telling myself repeatedly to relax and go to sleep only seemed to make me more tense. I opened my eyes when my phone pinged and, worrying it might have been Finn, checked it. Turned out, it was only a batch email from Haven Middle School with this week’s newsletter and a bunch of event dates, fundraisers, and sports schedules.

  “Focus, Poppy,” Wanda said as I put the phone back into my purse and, taking another deep breath, nodded as I closed my eyes. This time, the Sleep Oil started to do the trick because my eyelids suddenly felt like they were stuck together with glue. My mind blurred and, still in a lucid state, I fell asleep.

  The instant I felt myself start to teeter and spin through the astral plane, I suddenly crashed down hard on the ground.

  I landed on my feet and it felt like the thud of my landing ricocheted through my entire being. It took me a second or so to remind myself I was in the astral plane and lucid dreaming, thus I was in charge of the dream me. As I glanced around myself, I took in my shadowy surroundings and realized this was some sort of surreal version of Haven Hollow. And instead of daytime, as it was in the physical world, in the astral one it was night.

  I tensed and my heart started racing again as I realized I was in a strange Salvador-Dali like version of Haven Hollow. As soon as I looked at the dream landscape more closely, I remembered I wasn’t in any danger. This was all just a dream—a fabrication. It wasn’t real. I could do anything and go anywhere and nothing could hurt me because all of this was just the workings of my mind.

  Lucid dreams and astral projections were fun for that exact reason—anything was possible. I flexed my knees and kicked off against the ground as I soared into the night sky. Vaulting into the air as if I were powered by a jet engine, I floated up, higher and higher still, heading into the starry sky. Once I was high enough that I could see every inch of Haven Hollow, I studied the details of the miniature landscape below me.

  Cars that appeared to be the size of toys buzzed up and down Main Street. Tiny people walked from one building to another as they talked to each other or their phones. The only light was provided by the street lamps and the fairy lights that enveloped each tree along the street.

  Everything looked the way it should—everyone happily carrying on, unaware there was a feral vampire prowling the town. As to the vampire in question, I didn’t see Roscoe anywhere. That was just an illusion, though. He was here. I sensed that truth with the uncanny awareness of a dream. Yes, he was here, but he was hiding somehow.

  I turned a full revolution and cast my dream sight over the whole coast of Haven Hollow.

  I still couldn’t sense him. It was as if he were somehow covering his trail—that his power was strong enough that he was disabling me from seeing him, but he was definitely here. The whole town seethed with his rotten presence.

  Betanya was still here, and Roscoe wouldn’t stray too far from her—not when he was driven to kill her through the madness of the blood bond. Pulling my dream sight away from the coast, I focused more narrowly on the town again, starting to turn in the direction of my house and Wanda’s duplex when I saw him. He lurked around the very outskirts of town where open fields turned to woods. As I watched, he snuck from one isolated house to the next, halting in concealed shadows as he hunched his shoulders to make himself less visible.

  I narrowed my dream vision on Roscoe, as if I were a cameraman getting a close-up of my villain. I’d never seen him with my own eyes, no, but even if I hadn’t gotten a full description of him, my dream awareness told me instantly this creature was him.

  Roscoe didn’t look much like a vampire, actually he didn’t fit the notion of a vampire in my head at all. He wasn’t tall, suave and incredibly handsome like Lorcan. Instead, Roscoe looked like the plainest, most ordinary human man I’d ever laid eyes on.

  He wore the blood stained button-up shirt Finn and Astrid had mentioned when they’d spotted him through their windows. A few streaks of mousy brown hair covered a balding dome of a head and his small, dark eyes were set too close together in a pasty, unshaven face. Yet there was something in those eyes that hinted to the treachery within. There was something mad about them—something that seemed like it would be welcome among the feral animals of the forest beyond Haven Hollow.