Chapter 7

“This better work,” Morgaine muttered.

Gwyneth who had been kneeling by the front door rose and placed a hand on her hip. “Or what?”

“Or Sly will probably be afraid to leave his apartment.”

Gwyneth huffed and returned to her work. She had made the ointment according to Josie’s directions and was now filling the cracks around the door with it, like caulk. “Cain’t one vampire settle things with another vampire in a fair fight?”

“Something tells me Sly would be the only one fighting fair. Besides, he was made twenty-six years ago and is considered a child in the vampire world.”

In some ways, Gwyneth struck Morgaine as a child in a witch’s world. Since she was five years younger and hadn’t been practicing seriously until she moved to Boston, she’d felt it her responsibility to help her cousin catch up.

“How old is his maker?”

“I have no idea, but Sly seems to think he’s ancient. I think some vampires lose their humanity over time and this one seems to have none left.”

“I wish I was as psychic as y’all, Morgaine. I shoulda known he was evil while I was speakin’ to him—even over the intercom.”

“It’s the same principle for witches. The longer we practice, the more psychic we become. I think everyone is psychic to an extent, but some try to develop it, and some don’t. You just haven’t been at it as long as I have.”

“Yeah, I wasted a few too many years trying to get dear, drunk Dwayne off his inebriated ass. Thank the Goddess I didn’t marry him.”

“I don’t think anything is wasted, Gwyneth. You did your best to help him, but some people are determined to self-destruct. You can feel good about your role in that relationship. You did everything you could. It was time to walk away.”

Morgaine thought about how she might take her own advice. She had taught Gwyneth as much as she could for as long as the younger witch was willing to learn. But when the willingness stopped, so did the learning.

“Yeah, an’ I thought I was helpin’ Dwayne for a while.”

“When did you know it was hopeless?”

Gwyneth finished spreading the ointment around the door and wiped her right hand on a towel. “Long about the time he came home drunk with another drunk woman and told me to shove over so he’d have room to fuck her right next to me. Said he was tired of sneakin’ around.”

Morgaine shook her head. “You don’t deserve that, Gwyneth. You deserve someone who loves you so much he wouldn’t want to be with anyone else.”

“I know that—now. Do y’all think Sly feels that way about you?”

Morgaine shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s too soon to tell.” If not now, maybe in time.

“Well, let’s knock on his door and get him to help us with that still. There’s no way I can open that heavy secret door all by myself.”

“Are you sure this is what you want to do?” Morgaine asked. It was a new moon night and the candle she held made only a dent in the darkness as it flickered in the drafty basement air.

Sly barely heard her as he concentrated on the still Gwyneth was putting together. With the false wall opened up and the windows cracked, everything seemed safe enough…as long as no one called the Health Department. He pulled a large spider web out of the way and wiped his hand on a rag they’d brought down to catch spills.

“I haven’t come up with any better ideas, yet,” he said, absently. “Have you?”

She let out a long sigh. “No.”

Gwyneth stuck out her hand. “Sly, honey, hand me that wrench, please.”

Sly picked up the tool from the floor and gave it to Gwyneth. “Are you sure I can’t do more to help?”

“We’re almost done, sugar.” She tightened the last of the bolts. “Speakin’ of sugar, is everything set as far as the mash is concerned?”

“I followed your directions to the letter.” He reached down and helped her up. “Has it fermented long enough?”

Her long black skirt was covered with dirt, dust and who knew what else. She brushed it off and blew a few strands of dusty red hair out of her face. “Yep. Like I said, this recipe is quick.”

Morgaine stepped back with one hand on her hip. “Now what?”

“Now we take this still for a spin,” Gwyneth said, excitedly. “Let’s go upstairs and get the mash Sly made up. My mouth’s already waterin’ for some good ol’ home brew. This is the smoothest whiskey you’ll ever taste.”

“Don’t forget we’re trying to adapt the vampire wine cure we’ve heard about,” Morgaine reminded her.

“But Josie’d never heard ‘o that.”

Sly smiled at Morgaine. He hoped she wasn’t jealous of her younger cousin anymore. He’d spent a lot of time with her and done his best to put those fears to rest.

“Of course I haven’t forgot. Have ya’ll discovered what the secret ingredient is?”

“Not yet,” Sly and Morgaine answered simultaneously.

Gwyneth elbowed Morgaine out of the way and headed toward the stairs. “Then don’t go givin’ me no warnin’s.”

“I wasn’t giving you a warning. I was giving you a reminder.”

“You was naggin’ like the preacher gettin” the town drunk to church.”

“Ladies,” Sly interrupted. “Let’s keep our eyes on the prize. First a drinkable batch of whiskey, and possibly later a cure for vampirism.”

Morgaine sighed. “You’re right. I’m getting ahead of myself.”

As the three of them traipsed up the stairs to Sly’s apartment, Gwyneth whispered, “Can y’all see any of the sludge I painted around the front door? The last thing I want is for someone to come along and wash it off before it sets up.”

Morgaine said, “I’ll take a closer look, but I thought you did a good job with it this afternoon.”

Sly glanced at the door frame which appeared to glow faintly around the edges. ”Can either of you see that? It”s glowing.”

“I can’t see anything. It seems to have dried clear. We need to test it, though,” Morgaine said.

“Oh, that’s right. I plumb forgot. Sly?”

“Uh-oh. What do I need to do?”

Gwyneth smiled. “Nothin’ much. Just mosey on outside and see if you can get back in.”

Something sounded suspicious. “What do you expect will happen?”

“Oh, probably nothin’. We just need to be here in case y’all need to be invited back in again.”

“Are you saying you might have sealed me out of my own building?”

Gwyneth shrugged.

Morgaine blew out the candle and said, “We don’t know the vampire’s name, so Gwyneth decided to seal it against all vampires who don’t live here. But sometimes the powers-that-be can be very literal. And since you’re not alive…”

Sly finished her thought in his head. “Got it. So, what happens if I can’t get back in? Is there anything special you’ll have to do?”

“Nope. We just invite you in again.”

“Are you sure nothing else will happen? I mean, I won’t burst into flames if I try to walk through your barrier or anything?”

“Heaven’s no!” Gwyneth chuckled. “We’re not fire bugs.”

“But you said you bought something called Vampire Slayer powder.”

“I didn’t use that on the door, silly. Y’all have to come and go. I’m saving that for your maker, if and when we can find him.”

“I thought you already found him.”

“We think so, but one of us,” she glared at Morgaine, “has to go and look at the place in person.”

“We agreed I’d astral project and Gwyneth would walk over there during the day. We can corroborate what we find later.”

“So, are you gonna get over the willies or what, Sly? Go outside and come back in again. Morgaine, I’ll deal with you tomorrow.”

“Deal with me?” Morgaine’s eyes grew a little larger and Sly figured it was time to distract them, quickly.

“Okay, here I go.” He yanked open the door and stepped outside, letting the door shut. Then he reached into his pocket, pulled out his key, and unlocked the door. “So far, so good.”

Sly took a giant step and slammed into an invisible barrier. “Ouch!”

Both women covered their mouths.

“Oops,” Gwyneth said. “Sorry ‘bout that.”

“Well at least we know it works,” Sly muttered.

“Please come in, Sly.” Morgaine stretched out her hand.

He grasped it and slowly stepped into the building with no more trouble than a human would have. “Whew.”

“I did it, Morgaine!” Gwyneth was so pleased with herself she hugged her cousin. And he could tell Morgaine was genuinely thrilled.

“Yes, you did. Did you have any doubts?”

“A little one, maybe. I was sure he wouldn”t catch afire, but I was a bit worried he”d maybe get singed.”

“”Now you tell me? Forget it, I’m fine, and you’ve redeemed yourself,” Sly said. Her face fell and he was immediately sorry he’d put it that way. He didn’t want to hurt either one of them. He’d have to remember how powerful these women were—and that one of them had something called Vampire Slayer Powder!

Morgaine crossed the hall to Gwyneth’s apartment. Before she knocked on the door, she said a small incantation. It was more of a prayer to the Goddess for help and direction. Then she knocked and waited.

Gwyneth opened the door looking well rested and refreshed. Good. She hoped her cousin would be in a receptive mood.

“Mornin’ Morgaine. Would you like to come in?”

“Please.”

Gwyneth stepped aside and Morgaine crossed to the couch in Gwyneth’s living room. “Is Chad here?”

Gwyneth cocked her head. “Chad?”

“Hello ladies. Is there something I can do for you?”

“Uh, yes.” Morgaine said, nervously. “Can you give us a few minutes alone?”

“You want to kick me out of my own apartment?”

“No. We can go to my place if you’d rather not leave.”

“In other words, you just don’t want me eavesdropping.”

“Correct.”

An audible sigh suggested Chad was fed up. “What makes you think I won’t just follow you and listen in without telling you?”

“Because I’m respectfully asking you not to.”

Another loud sigh. “Oh, all right. You’re taking all the fun out of it anyway. I’ll go see what Nathan’s up to.”

“Thanks, Chad.”

Gwyneth’s expression turned to one of concern. “What’s wrong, Morgaine? You look like a pup that was left behind when the family went for a Sunday drive.”

“I’m okay. I’ve just been thinking…”

“Oh. Well, that can’t be good. Y’all want a glass of sweet tea?”

“No, thanks. I’d just like to talk to you for a little while.”

“Of course.” Gwyneth sat on the sofa next to her. “What’s got y’all thinkin’?”

“A couple of things. First, you know how much I rely on you for everything. It sounds as if you’re starting to resent it.”

“I’m sorry, darlin’. I don’t mean to sound that way. I just worry about you, that’s all. What if something happened to me? Back when Konrad and Roz lived here, I know y’all felt safe with each other, but now they’re gone.”

Morgaine looked at her lap. “I know. I—oh, Goddess…This isn’t easy. I don’t want you to get mad.”

“Spit it out, cousin. I’m more apt to get mad if you keep dancing around the back door.”

“I need to help Sly…and not just as a friend. But I need your help. Do you know what I mean?”

Gwyneth sat up straighter. “Oh! You are sweet on Sly! More than a little by the sounds of it. But what about his feelings for his wife? Oh, no wonder you look sadder than a broken swing.”

Morgaine leaned back and stared at the ceiling. Oh well, here goes nothing. “He kissed me.”

Gwyneth cocked her head. “Huh?”

“I know. I was confused too.”

Gwyneth stood abruptly and balled her fists. “Well, now I know why you thought I’d get mad. But I’m not mad at you, cousin. I’m mad at him. How dare he say all that stuff and then lead you on?”

“I—I don’t think he’s leading me on. Look, if you’ll sit down and try to stay calm for a few minutes, maybe I can explain it.”

Gwyneth dropped back down the sofa. “Fine. Try to explain, ‘cause it sure don’t make no sense to me.”

“After you went back upstairs the other night, I stayed a little longer.”

“I noticed that. I was thinkin’ that was a good sign. It meant you were feelin’ okay outside your comfort zone—especially seein’ as how his place is always so damn dark.”

Morgaine smiled. “Yeah, we talked about how we enjoyed spending time together, even though there’s only a window of a few hours in the evening when we’re both awake.”

“And that’s when he kissed ya?”

“No. Yes. I mean, after that.”

“So, what kind of kiss was it? Was it a peck, like kissin’ Uncle Clarence?”

Morgaine shook her head.

Her eyes widened. “A passionate tongue kiss?”

“Uh...” Morgaine shrugged. “It was nice. Soft. Sweet. Kind. Loving…”

Gwyneth stood again. “Then he did lead y’all on. I have a mind to go down there and—”

“No!” Morgaine put her hand on Gwyneth’s arm. “Please, sit down. There’s more I want to say.”

Gwyneth lowered herself slowly and perched on the edge of the couch as if she could jump up again at any second, if she didn’t like the way the conversation was going.

“We promised to help Sly, and I want to. Very much. I think if we keep getting to know each other better, maybe it will grow into something, and then you won’t always be stuck with me. You have all kinds of opportunities to find nice guys. You can go out and socialize. You’re so beautiful—”

Gwyneth raised her hand. “You can stop now. I know what you’re sayin’.”

Morgaine studied her hopefully. It was hard to read what she meant by that from her expression. “And?”

“And, I’ll help. If you want Sly, I can teach you about flirtin’ so he gets the message without feelin’ like he’s been hit over the head with a brick.”

Morgaine laughed. “I wasn’t asking you to help me flirt. I have the feeling he likes that I don’t do that. I want your help finding a way to bring Sly back to the land of the living. If that means finding that cure for vampirism, I’ll need your help. If that means defeating his maker, I’ll need your help. Basically, whatever we do to help him will be dangerous, but if we do it together, we have a chance.”

“And if there’s a chance for more, you would like to be with him?”

“Yes.”

“And you aren’t scared?”

“I’m terrified.”

Gwyneth smiled. “Good.”

“Good that I’m terrified?”

“Good that you’re terrified and willin’ to try anyway.” She nodded once, firmly. “I’m in. Now what do we do first?”

“Let’s see if we can find his maker now that it’s daylight. Bring your camera.”

“Y’all are goin’ with me? I thought I was goin’ alone and y’all would astral project.”

“No. If I want to be Sly’s girlfriend, I have to stick my neck out for him. And if you’re kind enough to help me, I need to be there to protect you.”

Gwyneth put her arms around Morgaine and hugged her. “I always knew this day would come. I’m prouder of you than I’d be of a prize pig at the fair—oh, sorry. I didn’t mean that to sound like I was comparing you to a pig. You know what I mean.”

Morgaine grinned. “Yes, I know.”

The witches located the basement apartment in the block where their compass had pointed. Morgaine set down her heavy canvas bag on the sidewalk.

Gwyneth studied the mailbox. “V. Malvant. That’s a strange name.”

Morgaine shivered and hugged herself. “There’s something evil in there. I can feel a dark, twisted energy. Can you?”

Gwyneth closed her eyes. “Eek…now that you mention it, yeah. It’s like barbed wire. All sharp and twisted.”

Morgaine nodded and lowered her voice. “We need to be careful. Even though he should be completely unconscious and vulnerable, nothing says he might not have some kind of magical alarm system.”

“So that’s why we’re gonna astral project to get in there, right?”

“We can do that first, but eventually, we’ll have to find a way in. The more we know about him and his lair, the better.”

“Know thine enemy an’ all that, right?”

“Right. Now, according to the compass, there’s an alley entrance too. When we actually break in, we should probably do it from the alley. I’m thinking we should astral project from there too. That way we’ll see exactly what we’re getting into.”

“So, let’s git back there so we can take him from behind. Ugh, that don’t sound right.”

“We’re attacking his flank. Does that sound better?”

Gwyneth smirked. “Only a little better.”

“Can you take the bag? My hands are sweating.”

Gwyneth hefted the heavy bag with an “Oomph,” and the two women strolled to the side street and around the corner. As they entered the alley, Morgaine smelled garbage and urine. Disgusting. She stopped and her chest fluttered. Maybe this was a bad idea.

Their alley didn’t smell like that. Of course, they’d had a werewolf and vampire guarding the place for several years.

She contemplated how weird that was. She was more afraid of open spaces and panic attacks than she was of a werewolf and vampire. Truth be told, she’d feel a whole lot better with her vampire and werewolf friends guarding her right now. At least it wasn’t dark out, and she trusted her cousin to get her back to her apartment safely, in case she had to flee. She took a few deep breaths.

Since all the buildings on the block were connected, they counted the same number of buildings along the back and matched up the architecture. By that process, they had no difficulty finding the maker’s apartment again. He had only one small, barred window. A few steps led up to the back door. Morgaine felt the same malevolent energy but didn’t detect any kind of magical protection. Thank the Goddess.

“Back in the day, this musta been the servant’s entrance,” Gwyneth said.

“You’re probably right. The back of the building’s basement was where the kitchen was usually located, with the parlor upstairs and in front.”

“That must be why the alley smells like garbage. But nothin’ excuses the outhouse smell. I’m guessin’ that might be from a homeless person.”

“In this neighborhood?”

“They’re all over the city, Morgaine. If I had to, I’d keep my cardboard box in a nice area like this.”

Morgaine shuddered. “I can’t imagine it.”

“That’s your agga…agriv…”

“Agoraphobia.”

“Yeah, that.”

Morgaine nodded but tried not to dwell on it. They had a job to do, and she wouldn’t be able to do it if she stood there, frozen.

She reached out and grabbed Gwyneth’s hand. “I need your strength, right now.”

Gwyneth squeezed her fingers. “You got it, cousin. It’s time we get this cow to town.”

“Huh?”

“You northerners would say ‘get this show on the road,’ I think.”

“Oh. Yeah, let’s do this.”

Gwyneth shrugged the bag off her shoulder and let it lay in the alley. “Don’t you want me to go alone first?”

Morgaine gulped and shook her head. “No. I can do this.” She squared her shoulders, closed her eyes, breathed deeply a few times and went into a trance. She let her spirit soar above her body. Her body still held Gwyneth’s hand, and she inserted her energy into the building.

Now inside, she stood in a hallway with a view of the front door and a banister to the right. A door on her immediate right probably led to the cellar. It was set up much like her building, except narrower. Probably only a single-family home with a basement apartment.

She moved through the door to the right. Suddenly Morgaine froze. She was in total darkness. Her throat constricted.

I…I can’t do this! Morgaine ripped her spirit out of the building and back into her body so fast, her head spun. She tried to run, but her feet wouldn’t move. Somehow, she lost her balance, let go of Gwyneth’s hand, and fell on her ass. “Dear Lord and Lady!”

“I do declare!” Gwyneth stood over Morgaine as her cousin breathed into a paper bag. She had helped her over to the next apartment’s concrete steps, and they were partially hidden from the maker’s apartment by a parked car.

Her breathing finally slowed, and she said, “I felt a panic attack coming on. What did you want me to do? Lose my shit in there?”

“You wasn’t even in there. Not for real. It woulda made a mess in your panties though.”

Morgaine rolled her eyes. “It’s just an expression.”

“Just tell yourself it’s not real.”

“It was real enough. Look, sometimes I have panic attacks for no goddamn reason at all. Suddenly I’m in a vampire lair in total blackness and, surprise, surprise, I freak out. You would’ve too.”

“Nope. I didn’t inherit the freak-out gene. Didn’t you say your mamma thought she was goin’ crazy a few times?”

“Yeah.” Morgaine hung her head. “That’s why she moved to a big city. Too many small town people knew her business.”

Gwyneth sat beside Morgaine on the steps. She patted her arm as if comforting a child. “Don’t pay it no never mind. We are perfectly safe. Ya hear?”

“I—I guess so.”

Gwyneth let out a big sigh. “So, this is kind of a pickle. If all went well with the astral projection and there was no magical alarms or booby traps, we was plannin’ on going in for real.”

“I don’t think that’ll happen.”

“Why not? I can understand you not wantin’ to, but I can still go.”

Morgaine grabbed her wrist. “You can’t go in there by yourself! That’s reallycrazy.”

“I’ll be fine. As long as it’s daylight, he’s dead to the world…so to speak. Plus, we lugged all these supplies down here. Flashlights, candles, matches, a wooden stake, a camera…”

“So? We’ll just take them back home.”

“Do you really want to give up on Sly? Cause if you do, I doubt his maker—or V. Malvant as we now know he’s called—will give up.”

Morgaine braced her elbows on her knees and covered her head with her hands as if she were expecting bombs overhead.

Gwyneth sat quietly and let that sink in for a bit.

At last, Morgaine sighed. “I’d still like to help Sly, but…”

“But what? You are a powerful witch, Morgaine. If anythin’ V. Malvant should be afraid of you!”

Morgaine chuckled. “Yeah, and a few minutes ago the big, powerful witch was breathing into a paper bag.”

“Look, you can stand outside with the door open, and I can go inside. If anything happens you can hear me. But nothin’s gonna happen!”

“I can’t let you go alone.”

“Then are we both goin’ in or are we givin’ up?”

Morgaine glanced over at the next apartment where the vampire lay dormant. “I’ll try it. If I start to flip out—”

“You won’t flip out, because there are only two options. Help Sly or don’t help Sly. And if he means so much to you, we’ll help him.”

“He means the world to me, but I don’t get why you’re doing this?”

“Because you mean the word to me. Even though we’ve had our differences, we’re kin. And Sly is becoming like family. And I want y’all to be happy.”

Morgaine smiled at her. “I love you, Gwyneth. You know that, right?”

“A’ course I do. And I love you too, knucklebrain.”