Stressed!

by Deborah Martin

  “Mornin’,” she said. “I thought you’d be down after the power went out. Here’s your coffee.”

  She was alone in the deli. Tommy and Charlie didn’t come in until around ten, to start getting ready for lunch. We sat companionably by candlelight, sipping coffee and talking about the events of earlier in the week. My cell phone rang.

  “Amy, it’s John. I don’t know how but Andy escaped our confinement. I thought I’d better call and warn you. With today’s weather, he won’t have any problems being out and about during the day without taking any precautions.”

  “What?” I screamed into the phone. “I thought your regional guy was supposed to handle him.”

  “He is here with me now. We had a long meeting with Andy last night and Max thought he was making progress so he relaxed the wards a little this morning. Apparently Andy, although young, is still strong enough to break through. We’re starting the hunt for him, naturally headed your way, but you need to call Ev or someone pronto.”

  Oh. Shit. I hung up, told Cassandra what was happening and while she went about strengthening the wards over the deli, I tried calling Omar. All I got was his voice mail. I called Ev to tell him what had happened and relate the fact that I couldn’t get hold of Omar.

  “Since John said he had things under control, I let Omar off. He’s probably up north, hunting. I’m going to make some calls. Stay in the deli behind Cassandra’s wards until I call you back.”

  Cassandra looked at me with a very worried expression. “Amy, I’m strong but if he broke through wards set by a vampire for a vampire, I’m not sure mine will hold. And I don’t know who to call for help on this short notice.”

  “Go home, Cassandra. He’s after me and if you’re not around, he won’t bother you at all. I’ll stay here and deal with whatever happens.”

  “Not a chance. Neither of us is big enough to deal with him alone but maybe two of us together have a fighting chance. As stinky as it is, stuff all this garlic into your pockets and bra.” She handed me a pile of garlic cloves, then took another handful and did the same to herself.

  We huddled together at the table, coffee cold and forgotten. A clap of thunder immediately followed by the crackle of lightning shook the building. The storm was right overhead. My phone rang again but it wasn’t Ev.

  “Something just breached the wards on the building,” Elinda told me. “Whatever it is, it’s down in your apartment. I’ve called Mr. Owens. We’re going down to investigate, now.”

  “NO,” I screamed. “Stay in your own place. It’s that vampire and he’s out of control. I don’t want any of you hurt.”

  “Darlin’, I’ve handled more than a young vampire in my time. Don’t you worry about us. You just keep yourself safe. I’ll call you in a few minutes.” She hung up.

  This had gone beyond insane. Another thunderclap, another flash of lightning. My nerves were so frayed I jumped with every clap and flash. I could see Cassandra wasn’t faring much better. My phone rang again.

  “I’ve gotten hold of Gregory,” Ev said through all the static. “He’s on his way but according to him, it’s going to be about fifteen minutes before he gets there because of the weather. Sit tight.”

  Tight? I was strung about as tight as I could get. Wouldn’t you be if a vampire were stalking you?

  All I could do was look out the window, watching the rain sheet down and the near-constant flashes of lightning illuminate the passing cars like I was watching an old-time peep show. Instead of honky-tonk music, the vignettes were accompanied by booming thunder.

  All of a sudden, one flash showed not a car but Andy, standing on the sidewalk looking into the window. Although he was obviously soaked to the skin, the weather didn’t seem to bother him at all. He saw me, grinned and walked toward the deli door. He stopped and recoiled, like he’d bounced off a vertical trampoline.

  His expression changed from a grin to a grimace. He closed his eyes for a moment and when he opened them, they were glowing red. He took another step toward the door and with just a little effort, pushed his way past the wards as if he were walking through nothing more than a waterfall. The red faded from his eyes but the grimace didn’t leave his face. The bell tinkled as he opened the door.

  “Amy, I’m so glad to see you,” he started. “I know if we can just sit and talk, you’ll get to know what a great guy I am. We would make a very handsome couple.”

  I stood up, and Cassandra stood immediately to my left. “Andy, I’ve told you before that I’m not interested in you. Why can’t you understand that?”

  Andy turned his attention to Cassandra with a hiss. “This is between me and Amy, witch. Please leave us alone.”

  “Not a chance, fang-boy. It’s my store you’re standing in and I’m not going anywhere. Not to mention that it’s my friend you’re interested in and I’m not leaving her alone with you. By the way, you’re dripping all over my floor.”

  Wow. I don’t think I could have managed that much cheek. I was even more grateful for my friend, witchy or not.

  Andy moved toward me and grimaced even more. “Get rid of the garlic, Amy. It’s not conducive to quiet conversation between adults.”

  “Adults?” I laughed but took a step back all the same. “Since when is stalking someone who’s not interested in you the act of an adult? I’d say it’s closer to the actions of a lovesick teenager.”

  Andy’s fangs dropped just a bit. This was not good. “Have it your way. Garlic only hurts, it doesn’t kill. We will speak so sit down.”

  Not knowing what else to do until help arrived, I sat back down and trying to be nonchalant, took a sip of my now-cold coffee. My hand only shook a little and I didn’t slosh a drop. Cassandra sat back down, too, but pulled her chair close to mine and put her hand on my knee. I could feel a tingle coming from her palm. Andy stood a few feet away, still dripping on the floor.

  “Amy, am I not a handsome man? If it’s the pale skin that bothers you, I can start going to a tanning salon. I’m rich, too, and can give you everything money can buy. I can control myself well enough to only take sips from you. I promise I wouldn’t turn you. We could have a lovely life for several decades.”

  I tried stalling. “Andy, I guess you’re OK-looking for a guy but looks aren’t everything. Neither is money. I have no desire to be involved with someone who is in the public eye. I like my life private.”

  “I could give you that privacy,” he pleaded. “You wouldn’t have to attend all the parties…” he broke off as the door flew open. Elinda, Marge and Bud (the dwarf neighbor) barged in, a gust of wind adding some more rain to the puddles of water on the floor. The three of them marched over and stood between our table and Andy. Elinda and Marge extended their hands and I think I saw a little sparkle comes from their fingertips.

  “Stay away from her, vampire,” Elinda growled. “Amy doesn’t want you. She is not and never will be yours.”

  Andy’s fangs dropped all the way. “We were having a pleasant conversation until you barged in. Leave us alone and you won’t get hurt.”

  Just then a car pulled to a quick stop at the curb outside, spraying the sidewalk and window with a wave of water. Gregory hopped out and, wading through all the water, ran inside. One look told him what was going on and he, too, extended his hands but from behind Andy. I did indeed see sparkles this time. Cassandra stood, moved to Marge’s side and added her sparkles to the mix.

  “Binding matrix, now!” yelled Gregory. The four of them extended their arms, palms all facing Andy. I saw the sparkles fly from their palms: red from Gregory, blue from Marge, purple from Elinda and magenta from Cassandra. A mysterious fifth stream of yellow sparkles came from behind me, where the counter was. The candles all blew out like a strong wind had come up in the deli; sparkles meshed into a multi-colored web that surrounded Andy with a twinkling glow and then faded from my sight.

  Andy’s eyes took on a deathly glow. He hissed, turning this way and that, but couldn’t pull his hands out of his po
ckets or move his feet from where they were firmly planted on the floor. “You will pay for this, all of you,” he spat.

  “I doubt it,” Gregory said. He moved his hands like he was tying a knot, said “done” and the four of them dropped their arms. We all looked over to the counter where Tommy was just lowering his hands and had a very concerned look on his face. “Who’s the vamp?” he asked.

  “A not-friend of Amy’s,” Cassandra answered him. “Why didn’t you tell me you were a wizard?”

  “Wasn’t pertinent to the job description.”

  Cassandra moved over toward the counter and they started talking in low tones.

  Gregory looked at me. “I talked with John. He and the council rep are about fifteen minutes away. We would all have been here sooner but there are accidents all over the place with this storm.”

  I dropped into my chair. I couldn’t help myself: the tears started flowing. There was no telling what would have happened. I had been unable to protect myself and all these people had come to my rescue. Gregory stood at the door with his eyes on Andy. The other three crowded around me.

  “Yer safe, now and always,” Bud’s gruff voice penetrated my tears.

  Marge put her arms around me and I sobbed into her grandmotherly bosom. “We love you, honey, and wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”

  Just then, the lights came back on. I looked outside and through my tear-blurred eyes, saw that the rain had let up. Cassandra kissed the top of my head and said, “Does everyone drink cappuccino? I think something caffeinated, warm and sweet is called for.”

  “Does that include me, sweet witch? Your blood smells warm and tasty.” Andy gave Cassandra a smile that didn’t look very friendly, considering his fangs were fully extended.

  “Not a chance vampire,” Gregory snapped. “Try to move and the matrix will burn you like sunlight.”

  “I’ll make you a special espresso,” Cassandra said. “Heavy on the holy water.” Andy hissed.

  By the time John, Mark and an older man wearing a trench coat and fedora walked in, we were all sitting at two tables by the window, sipping our cappuccinos. I was still sniffling but at least not sobbing uncontrollably. Gregory had sat down but had turned his chair to keep an eye on the statue that was Andy, standing in the middle of the room.

  “Andy Deland, it is the judgment of the Council that you be confined in the Council dungeon for a period of not less than seventy-five years for violation of our Accords,” pronounced the unknown man who, although appearing to be in his early sixties, carried himself like a much younger person. He looked at Andy and then at Gregory. “Wizard, I will bind him. When you see mine complete, you may release yours.”

  Gregory nodded. The Council rep waved his hand up and down Andy once, Gregory moved his left hand to his left and then slashed it quickly back to his right. Andy went rigid and his eyes opened as wide as they’d go. He looked like he was trying to open his mouth to say something but it appeared to be zipped shut.

  Mark picked Andy up and put him over his shoulder, like a construction worker carrying a board. It would have been a hilarious sight if not for the circumstances.

  “I’ll be to the car in a minute,” John told the other two men as they exited the deli, Mark taking care not to bump Andy’s head on the doorframe.

  “I thought vampires couldn’t do magic,” I asked the group.

  “Some of the older ones can,” John answered. “A few centuries ago, we didn’t have a problem turning a witch or wizard. Something changed about five hundred years ago and we now can’t seem to seduce magic-wielders in order to feed off them, much less turn them. But there’s a few dozen around the world who can do magic and they’re all on or work for the Vampire Ruling Council. It’s one of the ways they keep everyone in line. Max is one of the oldest and he happens to live in Kansas City.

  “Amy, I can’t begin to say how sorry I am about all this. It’s rare for a vampire to go rogue and even rarer for one to escape a ward set by Max. But now that he knows what to expect, Andy won’t get out again. And the dungeon is in Switzerland, so he’ll be far away from you during your lifetime. Gregory and the rest of you, thank you.” With that, John left.

  Chapter 9

  “Darlin’, we need to go back to your apartment. That kid did a number on your stuff,” Elinda said.

  “Fudge! Is he all right?” I knew vamps would take an animal’s blood if they were desperate.

  “I found him under your bed. He’s up at my place until we can get yours sorted,” Bud told me. “He’s not pleased but I thought it’d be better to get him out of there and we didn’t think their cats would understand.” ‘Their’ being Elinda and Marge’s cats. Oh man. How bad was it?

  With the storm’s passing, people were back out on the street and customers started coming into the deli. Cassandra and Tommy had to get to work.

  Gregory had gotten on his phone as soon as John left. He flipped it closed. “Ev told me to tell you to go home. I’m supposed to forward the phones to his cell the rest of the day,” Gregory said. “I suggest you go see what’s happening at home and don’t worry about the office for a bit. If you need me for anything, just call.”

  “I’ll forward the phones. I have to go back up to shut everything down, get my rain slicker and purse, anyways. But thanks, Gregory. For everything.”

  Marge would have accompanied me upstairs but my legs just didn’t want to cooperate when I stood. I tried to walk and would have fallen over if not for Bud catching me. A clove of garlic fell out of my pocket, which reminded me to get rid of the rest of it, too. Cassandra laughed as she, too, unloaded and put the pile into the compost bin.

  “You’re in a little shock, I think,” Gregory smiled at me. “I’ll go forward the phones and bring your stuff back down. Wait here. I’ll give you all a ride back to your apartment building so you don’t have to walk through the rain again.”

  We all piled into Ev’s limo for the two block ride home. What I saw when we pulled up made me burst into tears again.

  My door was off its hinges and all the windows were broken. Mr. Owens, Jack, and Edward (the other mundane tenants) were out in the rain, starting the process of boarding everything up until workmen could arrive to make the actual repairs. I cried even harder when I walked into my home. That creep had pulled everything from the shelves, cupboards and closets, and tossed my furniture around like toys. Anything breakable that Fudge had left alone was now in shards. I turned one of my chairs upright, sat in it and sobbed even harder.

  “Amy, I’m sorry. In all my years, I’ve never had a ward breached before,” Mr. Owens said.

  “It’s not your fault,” I replied, trying to choke everything back so I sounded coherent. “He apparently got through others, too. God. I wonder if this is covered by insurance.”

  “It’s not [I moaned] but the Vampire Council will ensure that the damages are covered. I’ve already been in touch with them,” Mr. Owens told me. “Max will be by here later after he’s handed that boy off to the enforcers. He’ll make you a settlement offer. Don’t take the first one, or even the second. They can afford to be more than generous to keep the news of a rogue under wraps.”

  “How the hell will I know what’s fair in a few hours’ time? I don’t know what needs to be replaced or what needs to be fixed!”

  “I’ll be here since they owe me money for damage to the building. Don’t worry. It’ll all get sorted.”

  During our conversation, Elinda, Marge and Bud had disappeared upstairs. They all came back, Bud armed with trash bags, Elinda with her broom, bucket and mop, and Marge carrying a tray with a large urn and several mugs on it.

  “Tea, everyone. Then let’s start cleaning up,” she announced with a bright smile.

  The men righted my furniture, I flipped on the overhead lights so we could see (it was almost pitch black in there as Jack and Edward put up the last board) and they all sat down to a calming cup of tea. I couldn’t sit, though. I wandered around, looking at
all the books that had been ripped to shreds, my laptop in smithereens and the television with its cracked screen. I knew vamps were fast but he’d done all this damage in less than ten minutes. Even Fudge’s food was scattered all over the kitchen floor.

  “Bud, can I go get my cat?” I asked.

  “Sure. Door’s unlocked.”

  I went out the back door, through the hall and up one flight to Bud’s apartment. The smell of his pipe smoke hit me when I opened the door and then something else did, too. Fudge almost flew into my arms. “At least you’re OK,” I sniffled into his fur. “I’m not sure anything else is, including me.”

  Fudge purred loudly and snuggled as close as he could to my chest as I walked back downstairs. When we walked back in the door, I saw everyone picking stuff up, looking to see if it was intact and throwing the majority of my belongings into large trash bags. Fudge hopped out of my arms and ran into the bedroom. I followed.

  If I was going to clean, I needed something other than office clothes to wear. Picking through the piles of ripped fabric, I found a couple pairs of jeans and a few shirts that were still intact. I changed, carefully hanging my suit in the nearly-empty closet. There was one thing left on the closet shelf that hadn’t been moved or trashed – my family Bible. Andy literally couldn’t touch it and for that, I was grateful. I started going through the mess. Fudge supervised from the one pillow that had escaped Andy’s wrath.

  Three hours later, my apartment almost looked like it wasn’t lived in. None of the furniture was broken but apart from that, there wasn’t much. I had salvaged my jewelry box, most of my jewelry and maybe a quarter of my clothes and shoes. My family pictures were intact but all the frames had been busted. The walls were bare, the bookshelves were empty, no lamp graced any side table and the only things on my desk were the halves of two old books Edward thought could be restored. The kitchen counters were clear and the cupboards were empty, except for my cooking pots, Tupperware and a few spice bottles. I didn’t even have a whole plate to eat off of. Twenty lawn-sized trash bags filled the center of the living room, with pieces of broken wall art, the microwave and television leaning against the pile.