From Sunset Till Sunrise

by Jonathan Rosen

  “She’d prefer vampires?”

  “Okay, obviously they’re not vampires. I think Herb was wrong.” I smiled. “And that means Lily is okay.”

  The door barged open.

  Tommy and I jumped.

  Abby stormed in. “Devin, Mom’s been calling you for over twenty minutes, and she’s—” Abby stopped short and threw her hands up in front of her eyes. “Why is it so bright in here? Pull the shades down or something.”

  I glanced at Tommy, and only one thought went through my mind …

  Uh oh.

  CHAPTER SIX

  ABBY IS A PAIN IN THE NECK

  Over the years, Abby and I have gotten into many fights.

  Over toys. Over what to watch on TV. Over her annoying me. Really, over everything. But I had to admit that never, ever, did I think that we’d get into a fight about needing to check her neck for fang marks.

  Abby swatted my hand away. “Leave me alone!”

  I wrapped my arms around her. “Abby, will you hold still? We need to see something.” I pinned her arms to her sides and turned to Tommy. “Look quickly!”

  Abby wriggled, getting away. “Let go of me!”

  I lost my grip and she whirled, clawing at my arms.

  I grabbed her again. “Hurry up!”

  “I’m trying! Hold her still.”

  Abby thrashed her arms, and I felt my hold loosen. “When the heck did she get so strong?”

  “You know when!” Tommy said. “Now, hold her still!”

  She squirmed. “LET. ME. GO!”

  I clasped my hands around her. “Abby, one more second!”

  She growled. It sounded almost like a wild animal. Her mouth opened and she lunged for me.

  “She’s trying to bite me!” I said. “Hurry up.”

  Tommy examined her neck. “Look, right there!” He pointed to two small, reddish dots on the side of her neck.

  My heart dropped. “Oh, no.”

  Tommy nodded. “I told you.”

  I leaned in close. It was difficult to see, with the way she was fighting me, but they were there. “I can barely see them, though. How is that possible?”

  “That’s easy,” Tommy said. “Vampire saliva has a natural sealant. Otherwise, the people that they’re trying to turn would have these big gaping holes in their necks, and that would kind of give everything away. Not to mention make a big mess, with blood everywhere. Remember, vampires like to do everything on the hush-hush.”

  My hold on her eased up. “They kind of look a little like mosquito bites.”

  Tommy jabbed his finger at me. “And that’s what makes them so sneaky!”

  Abby elbowed me in the stomach.

  “Oof!” I doubled over.

  She spun around and kicked me in the shin. “I said, let go of me!”

  “Ow!” I grabbed my leg and crumpled to the floor.

  Abby ran out of the room. “Mooooooooooooom!”

  I rubbed my shin. “Just great. Now how are we going to explain all this?”

  Tommy held his hand up. “Don’t worry, let me do all the talking.”

  “No! I don’t want you to do all the talking. That’s what always gets us into trouble.” I stopped to think a moment. “Wait a second! Didn’t you say the vampires would go after the smartest one?” I pointed toward the door. “Abby? Seriously?”

  “Will you calm down?” He waved his arm around the room. “We had the garlic powder, remember? Everyone else had nothing. They had no choice but to go after Abby. You’re lucky that I’m around.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, I feel really lucky. I have vampires right across the street who are now able to get into my house at any time.” I pulled myself to my feet, still rubbing my shin. “Even worse, I have a little sister who might be a vampire? She already terrifies me as it is. Yeah, lucky me.”

  He smacked my face. “Calm down!”

  “Ow!” I brought my hand up to my cheek. “What’d you do that for?”

  “You’re panicking, and I need you calm!”

  “I wasn’t panicking!” I punched his arm.

  “Ow!” He rubbed the spot where I hit him.

  “That was for hitting me.”

  He held hands out in front of him. “Okay, stop! We can’t be turning on each other. This is the time we need to stick together.” Tommy closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled. “I need to think.” He started to pace. “Okay, get the VR File.”

  “Can’t you just say it without needing to write it down?”

  He stopped and turned to me. He gave me a look like he couldn’t believe how stupid I was. “What’s the point in having a VR File if we’re not going to use it?”

  I sighed. “Fine.” I picked the notebook and a pen up off my dresser. “Happy?”

  He didn’t answer, and instead just picked up talking from where he’d left off.

  “Okay, here’s what we know.” He counted off on his fingers. “One, your neighbors are vampires. Two, since your mom invited them, they can now get in whenever they want. Three, Abby’s already been bitten once, which means she already has some vampire traits.”

  “Like what?”

  He pointed at the window. “You already saw the sensitivity to sunlight. Soon, she’ll have the same for certain smells. Increased strength. Oh, she’ll also be sneaky.”

  “She’s already sneaky.”

  “Well, then, sneakier. Possibly fangs, but I’m not really sure. I have to check that one out.”

  “Fangs?” I pictured Abby with sharp teeth, biting into my neck, and shivered. “So what do we do?”

  He shrugged. “There’s only one thing I can think of for right now.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I think we might have to eliminate her.”

  “Will you stop it, already? Why is your first thought always eliminating someone?”

  “You can’t be too careful with vampires.”

  “We’re not eliminating her!” I stood up and peered out the door. “Do you really think that Abby is going to become one?” I gulped. “We can’t let that happen. I have to do something.”

  “The main thing is we can’t let her get bit again. I think with only one bite there’s still hope to change her back, but if there’s another one … I don’t know.” Tommy stepped out into the hall and looked around.

  I followed him out. The hallway was clear. “What are you doing?”

  “We have to try and keep Abby in our sights and see what she does. We can’t leave her alone for too long. We need to follow her.”

  “You better not follow me!”

  Tommy and I whirled toward the voice.

  Abby was standing in the hallway. I could swear that she wasn’t there before.

  I’m embarrassed to say how long and loud our shriek was. And I was even more embarrassed when Dad came storming up the stairs and saw us.

  “What’s going on?” Dad yelled. He stopped in his tracks. “Why are you and Tommy crouching in the corner?”

  Tommy and I looked at each other and stood up.

  I stared at Abby. “Abby scared us.”

  Dad turned to her and pointed. “Abby did?”

  I nodded. “Yeah, she just kind of appeared out of nowhere.”

  Tommy glanced at me.

  Dad sighed. “Abby, don’t scare your older brother and cousin.”

  Abby stomped her way toward me. “You started it!”

  I backed up against the wall.

  Abby thrust her finger in my face. “I’m warning you, Devin! You better not mess with me again, or I’ll—”

  I threw my arms up to cover my throat.

  Thankfully, Dad stepped between us and pulled Abby away.

  “Let’s go, Abby,” Dad said.

  “Where are you going?” I asked.

  “Abby was complaining about headaches this morning, and her eyes were bothering her, so we’re going to go get it checked out.”

  “Nothing a good stake to the heart wouldn’t cure,” Tomm
y muttered.

  I swatted his chest. “Shut up.”

  Dad pulled Abby toward the stairs.

  She glared at me the whole way.

  Was it my imagination, or were her eyes tinted red?

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  ELIMINATING THE SOURCE

  We raced across the street to Herb’s.

  Again, I had the weird sensation of being watched, but every time I glanced over my shoulder there was nothing. The sun was shining brightly, which seemed to rule out any vampires, but unfortunately that didn’t help get rid of the feeling. I tried to shake it off, but with each step I took up Herb’s walkway it got stronger and stronger.

  Tommy pressed the doorbell and held his finger there.

  The Addams Family theme went off, again and again, but no answer.

  “Maybe he’s not home?” I said.

  Tommy pounded on the door. “He’s home. He’s old, so he doesn’t have anything to do, or a lot of friends. Where else would he be? I don’t know why he’s ignoring us, though. Usually he can’t wait for the chance to tell us his boring stories.” He pounded again. “Herb, open up!”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement from the window. I grabbed Tommy’s shoulder and pointed. “There! I saw something moving inside!”

  “What the heck is going on? Why is he hiding?” Tommy banged louder this time. “Herb, we see you in there! Open the door!”

  The window shade fluttered.

  “Stop knocking!” I said. “I just saw him.”

  We stayed quiet and listened.

  I heard a sound from inside.

  We pressed our ears to the door.

  I heard a few creaks. There was definitely movement.

  Tommy frowned. “He is hiding from us!” He knocked again. “Herb, we hear you in there! Open up!”

  “Go away!” Herb shouted.

  “Herb, c’mon!” I yelled. “I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s important!”

  The door finally creaked slightly open. Through the crack, I saw his eye.

  “What do you want?” Herb asked.

  “We need your help!” I said. “Abby’s been bitten!”

  His eye widened.

  The door inched open a little more.

  The smell hit me right away, and I reeled back.

  Garlic.

  Herb stood there staring at us. He was wearing a turtleneck sweater and a necklace of garlic cloves. He eyed us for a few moments. “How do I know you’re not lying to me? For all I know, you could be like Chris Sarandon trying to use your charm to enter my home.” He wagged his finger. “Well, I assure you, I’m just as equipped as Roddy McDowall was.”

  That was it. I’d had it. “What are you talking about?”

  Herb’s brow furrowed. “What I’m saying is—how do I know that either of you haven’t been bitten and you’re trying to use my good, kindhearted nature against me? Sure, I might seem as lovable as Jim Nabors to you, but believe you me, I know how to take care of myself.”

  “Herb, we’re not vampires!” Tommy yelled.

  “That’s just what a vampire would say. Well, you’re out of luck, creatures of the night.” He sneered at us. “I didn’t invite you in, so—”

  I rolled my eyes. “Oh, for—” I shoved the door open and stormed past him.

  Herb stared after me and shrugged. “Okay, I guess that works.”

  Tommy followed me in, and Herb slammed the door behind us.

  He turned three different locks and checked the peephole before turning back toward us. “Were you followed?”

  I thought about my feeling of being watched, but couldn’t prove anything, so I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”

  Tommy snorted. “What difference would that make? It’s not like they don’t know where you live.”

  Herb stopped short. “True, but we can never be too careful.”

  Tommy pointed up. “It’s also daytime.”

  Herb thought a moment. “I guess that might afford us a little extra protection.” He motioned for us to follow him. “Quick, come with me to the kitchen.”

  He hurried down the hall, and we followed.

  My eyes immediately started to tear. There was garlic everywhere. Hung from the ceiling and the cupboards, and scattered all around the table and counters.

  I waved in front of my face. “Herb, what’s going on? How do you even breathe in here?”

  Herb shook his head. “I’d rather be alive than breathe.”

  Tommy looked at me. “See?”

  Herb nodded. “Yes, ever since the incident at your house, I’ve been vigilant. Once there’s a vampire in the neighborhood it’s like letting a fox in the henhouse. Especially when they know that we know. They’ll do anything they can to silence us. And no vampire is getting the best of Herbert T. Dorfman, where this time, the T stands for ‘taking precautions.’” Herb motioned to the table. “Sit down.”

  We pulled out two chairs and sat.

  Herb did the same.

  Tommy eyed the refrigerator. “Before we start, do you have anything to eat?”

  I turned to him. “Seriously?”

  He shrugged. “What? We didn’t get to eat breakfast. Your mom is really bad about hosting sometimes.”

  Herb clapped to get our attention. “Boys, focus!”

  Wendigo hopped onto the table and meowed. He was wearing a garlic collar.

  Herb rubbed the cat’s head. “Poor Wendigo hates it, but it’s a small price to pay for safety.”

  I pointed to the collar. “Isn’t garlic, like, really bad for animals? I mean, it could kill them, right?”

  Herb nodded. “Ordinarily yes, but I needed to protect him against vampires. A rather simple spell protects him from that. Observe.” He held a garlic piece out to Wendigo.

  The cat tried to bite it, and the garlic disappeared from Herb’s hand.

  Herb smiled at us. “See? No matter how much he’d try to get a piece, he’ll never be able to.”

  “Sweet!” Tommy yelled. “Being a warlock is awesome!”

  Herb gave a slight grin. “That it is.” He leaned back and pyramided his fingers in front of his face. “Now, tell me what happened.”

  Tommy tapped the side of his neck. “We saw two marks on Abby.”

  “And she was also sensitive to sunlight today,” I said.

  Herb winced. “That’s not good. Not good at all. It definitely sounds like the initial stages of vampirism, but I’d need to see it for myself to be sure. Do your parents know?”

  I shook my head. “No, I haven’t told them yet.”

  Herb rubbed his chin. “Hmmm. We might have to, but perhaps this can be remedied without causing any panic. Parents do have a tendency to mess these types of things up. In the meantime, though, we need to make sure that she’s not bitten again.”

  A chill shot through me, and even though I knew the answer, I asked anyway. “What happens if she’s bitten again?”

  Herb’s eyes peered over his glasses. “She’s been bitten once now, so she already has the vampire curse flowing through her. But she’s not turned yet. If she’s bitten a second time, though …”

  Tommy leaned forward. “We’d have to eliminate her?”

  I swatted him. “Will you stop?”

  Herb shrugged. “It’s a possibility, but not quite yet.”

  That snapped me to attention. “What? What do you mean, ‘yet’?”

  He held up three fingers. “A vampire needs three bites to turn someone.”

  Tommy raised his hand. “I told him that.”

  Herb started counting down. “After the first bite, she’ll start showing some symptoms, as you’ve already seen. Sensitivity to light. Perhaps certain smells. After the second, she’ll exhibit traits. Blending into darkness. Maybe certain cravings, such as blood.”

  “Blood?” My voice squeaked.

  Herb nodded. “But by the third bite …” He shook his head. “By the third bite, it’ll be too late. She’ll be a full-blown member
of the undead.”

  I gulped. “Isn’t there anything that we can do?”

  “Well, there is one thing,” Herb said. “But it’ll be dangerous.”

  “What?” My voice came out in a whisper.

  Herb looked back and forth between me and Tommy for several moments. “The only way that I know of is to get rid of the head vampire. The one at the top of the chain. The one who sired them all. Then everyone else in their bloodline will return to normal.”

  I swallowed hard. “By ‘get rid of,’ what exactly do you mean?”

  “It means,” Tommy said, “that someone has to be eliminated!”

  Herb nodded. “Yes.”

  My heart pounded. I was having trouble breathing, and all the garlic in the room sure wasn’t helping.

  “It’s not so easy, though.” Herb grabbed both ends of his necklace and pulled them back and forth around his neck. “Vampires are tough to kill, and dangerous too. On a vampire’s home turf, they’ve probably rigged thousands of traps against intruders.”

  I pictured every vampire movie I’d ever seen, and realized it was not a place I wanted to get stuck inside of.

  “So, what do we do?” I asked.

  “Not us.” He pointed at me. “You.”

  I patted my chest. “Me?”

  Tommy leaned over and whispered. “Well, he’s right. It is your sister.”

  “And your cousin!” I turned to Herb. “Herb, please, I need your help. You seem to know all about them. I don’t know what I’m doing. I can’t do this alone.”

  He pointed to Tommy. “You have him.”

  I glanced at Tommy, then looked back at Herb. “Herb, seriously, we need your help.”

  “Devin, I’m sorry,” Herb said. “I’ll help how I can, but I’m not going into the vampire house. I already told you once if there’s one thing that witches and warlocks fear, it’s vampires. They’re immune to our magic. We’d be as scary to them as cousin Marilyn is to the rest of the Munsters.”

  “What?” I asked.

  “All I’m saying,” Herb said, “is that it’s better to do it now. The longer that vampire blood is mingling with Abby’s the harder it’ll be to turn her back.”

  My shoulders slumped. “So I have to get into their house? And do what, exactly?”