Look over there, " Lou said when they pulled the VW into a parking space at the motel late that afternoon.
Max looked where he indicated. A little boy was stationed outside Lou's motel room as if he were standing sentry duty.
"It's Sid. Wonder why he's outside?" She frowned. "You think Storm and Jay took off?"
"Jason's Jeep is still here."
They got out of the Bug and started across the parking lot. As they did, a car pulled in and moved in their direction, and suddenly Lou snapped his arm around Max's waist and propelled her quickly off the pavement as he kept a wary eye on the vehicle.
They stopped on the sidewalk that ran past the room doors. She put a hand over his on her waist, so he wouldn't take it away too soon, and looked up at him. "What was that about?"
"Just being careful."
She smiled a little, her heart going warm and gooey. The car, meanwhile, pulled harmlessly into a parking spot. "I like you this way. All protective and watchful."
"Someone made a try for you last night. We can't be sure he won't try again."
"A vampire made a try for me last night, " she reminded him. "He won't try again during broad daylight."
Lou shrugged and averted his eyes. "I'm just making sure he doesn't get the chance."
"Because you care about me."
"Of course I care, Max. You're one of my best friends. Maybe the very best, you know?"
"I know." She held his gaze, wishing he could see that there was a lot more than friendship flowing back and forth between them. But he knew that. He might deny it, but he knew. He had to know.
She could see the knowledge right now, in his eyes. "Hey, mister."
Lou jerked his gaze from hers, and Max felt lonely without it. But she turned with him to face the little boy who stood near Lou's door.
"Hi, Sid." Lou glanced at his watch. "Sorry I'm late." "It's okay. I waited."
"I see you did. Why didn't you go inside?"
The boy frowned. "You said meet you here. At the door."
Lou nodded, as if that made perfect sense. "That's right, I did, didn't I? Well, I'm here now, so you can come on inside."
The boy looked a bit hesitant. Max said, "Normally, you shouldn't talk to strangers, of course. But Mr. Malone is a policeman. A real one. So it's okay this one time."
Sid looked up at her and smiled his crooked-toothed smile. "It's okay. I know who's good and who's not."
"You do?"
"Uh-huh"
"And how do you know that?"
"By the colors. You have orange, red and yellow. And you're blue and green, " he told Lou.
Lou frowned, looking down at his clothes as if in search of the alleged colors.
"I think he's talking about auras."
"Nope. Jus' colors, " the boy said.
She smiled at him and tapped on the door. Footsteps crossed the room, then Stormy tugged it open. "You're back, " she said.
"And I'm beat. How about you?"
"Exhausted. Found some interesting stuff, though." She smiled down at the boy. "Good to see you again, Sid. You want some junk food?"
He frowned.
"Chips, dip, soda, cheesy poofs?"
"Yeah!"
"Help yourself, " she said, stepping aside and pointing to the table, where open bags and crumbs reigned supreme. The boy raced inside and dug in.
Max sank into a chair and leaned her head back against it. Lou went straight to the bathroom and came back with a pair of tablets in his palm, grabbing a diet cola from the ice bucket as he passed. He handed both to Max. "For the head."
"I'm fine."
"Take 'em, anyway. Humor me, huh?"
She nodded and took the pain reliever, washing it down with the soft drink. She thanked him with her eyes, then turned to Stormy. "We talked to people and put posters up in the next towns in three directions, then plastered Endover with them. Funny thing is, around here, no one is the least bit interested in knowing what we're doing or why. They don't ask. And when you tell them, they really don't seem to care."
Stormy nodded thoughtfully.
"The ones who responded at all mostly said the same thing. `Stop poking around, go home and wait. They'll turn up."'
Stormy nodded again. "Makes sense."
"How so?"
She reached for a stack of papers, and Max noticed the printer that sat on the table where none had been before. "You two have been busy, " she said.
"Yeah, Jason picked us up a printer, along with a full supply of snacks and Coke." She handed the stack of pages to Max. Lou leaned close to read over her shoulder. "A lot of people seem to disappear while passing through or near this place. Every one I've been able to check up on turned up safe and sound within a few days to a week later."
"I'll tell you one thing, it was a huge load off my mind when Stormy told me that, " Jason said.
Max flipped through the printouts of news articles Stormy had apparently found online. "Where were they found?"
"Usually within a few miles of their homes. The odd thing is, none of them had any memory of where they'd been."
Max frowned. "Break it down for me, Storm."
"Women, between twenty-two and thirty-eight, not counting our two seventeen-year-olds. Attractive, as I said before. Those seem to be the only common denominators. Other than that, they're all over the map. Married, single, professionals, blue-collar workers, some had kids, some didn't, and they come from a wide range of locations."
"But they were all passing through Endover?"
"Looks like."
"Did you lose somebody, too?" Sid asked.
Max had nearly forgotten the boy was in the room. She turned to look at him, sitting on the foot of the bed, a bowl of cheese curls in his lap, his lips coated in orange powder. Beside him was one of the posters she and Lou had run off at a print shop this morning. It had a photo of Delia and Janie on it. She'd sprung for the extra bucks to have the posters done in color. Grainy black and white just wasn't as effective.
Lou moved to the bed, sat down beside the boy. "That's right, we did. Those girls there in the picture. This one is Delia, " he said, putting a finger on Delia's face. "And that's her friend Janie."
The boy looked around the room, his gaze halting on Jason. "Don't worry, " he said. "They'll come back."
"How do you know that, Sid?" Lou asked.
The boy shrugged. "I don' know. I jus' do"
"Sid, " Max said, moving closer. "Have other people come here looking for people they've lost?"
"Sure, " he said with a nod. "But they don't find 'em here."
"They don't?"
"Nope. They find 'em home." He looked again at Jason.
"You should go home. That's where she's gonna be."
"I'm not so sure about that, kid, " Jason said.
"Is that why you're so spotty?"
"Spotty?"
"Are you talking about his colors, Sid?" Maxie asked. Sid nodded, and she looked at Jason. "You know I can't see them, like you can."
"Nobody can." He lowered his eyes, looking a little sad.
"What do Jason's colors look like?"
"Not good, " he said. "Can't even see the real colors-got a dark cloud over 'em. Like everybody else around here. An' black spots, too."
"Everybody in this town has a dark cloud over their colors?" Max asked.
He looked at her, then at Lou. "My mama says it's all in my head. Same as the night man."
"The night man?"
He nodded, his eyes big, searching, and fearful. Until Lou said, "I think I saw the night man, too, Sid. I saw him last night."
Sid blinked, looking as if he didn't quite believe it. "Grown-ups never see him."
"Maybe some grown-ups can, " Lou said. "I sure saw someone. Someone with long dark hair. And he was in dark colors." Lou lifted his brows. "I mean, his clothes were dark-colored. I don't know what his other colors were like."
"He don't have any. I thought maybe 'cause he wasn't real, like Mama said." Sid lifted his gaze to Lou's. "But he does have long black hair and black clothes."
"And you're the only one who's ever seen him?" Lou asked.
"I don't know. Maybe."
"Do you know where he lives?"
Sid averted his eyes quickly, swiping them with the back of his hand.
Lou leaned closer. "Hey, it's okay. Don't be afraid."
"I'm not. It's just-nobody ever believed me before." Max glimpsed a tenderness in Lou's eyes she had never seen there. A moment later, he was hugging the boy close, patting his back.
"I believe you, " he said. "We all do. And I think your mama would, too, if the bad air wasn't putting that dark cloud over her colors."
The boy's arms locked around Lou's neck, and he held on tight. When he finally released his grip, he sat back and looked up into Lou's eyes.
Lou blinked down at him, then averted his gaze. "Excuse me a minute. I, uh...left something in the car." He got to his feet and left without a word or a glance back. Stormy sent Max a questioning look.
Max said, "Have some more snacks, Sid. I'll be right back." Then she went outside to find Lou.
God, it hurt to hold that little guy in his arms. Brought it all rushing back as if he'd only lost his precious Jimmy yesterday. He'd grown hard over the years. He'd locked the pain away in a dark corner of his mind and, for the most part, managed to keep it there. Incapacitated and impotent. But lately-Jesus, lately it was leaking out like battery acid. Burning through his veins at the most inexplicable moments.
Something was softening his hard shell, and he had a feeling he knew what it was. Max. Keeping that damn shell in place required not caring too much about anything. He'd managed to cultivate his "don't care" attitude to perfection over the years. He was laid back, never got too wound up. Took life as it came to him and rolled with the punches. Nothing could hurt you if you didn't care.
Maxie made him care. She'd grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and dragged him into her misadventures and her crazy life. And even though he thought all he wanted was peace and quiet, she made him want to stay right there, in the midst of her chaos.
She stepped up behind him then. He recognized the pattern of her footsteps. Felt the warmth of her presence, and then of her hand sliding up his back to his shoulder. She said, "I know it hurts, Lou. It must hurt like nothing I could even imagine."
He thought about denying it, telling her he just needed some air, but hell, this was Maxie. She knew. "He's nothing like Jimmy was. Not even the right age. Just... something about that hug back there... hit me like a sledgehammer."
"I know." She moved around in front of him. "You miss him."
"Like I'd miss my limbs."
She nodded. "I got a taste of that when I thought I was going to lose Stormy. And even that can't really compare. Not with losing a child." She slid her arms around his waist and hugged him. "I'm here for you, Lou. As your friend, if that's all I can be, but I'm here. I always will be."
Lou closed his eyes tight and wrapped his arms around her, held her to him for a moment. "I know you will. I know."
They stood there like that for an extended moment. Then, finally, he gripped her shoulders and set her away from him. "We should get back inside. Storm probably thinks I've lost it by now."
"You've got her wondering, that's for sure." She smiled gently at him. "Don't worry, Lou, I'm not going to tell her about Jimmy. I wouldn't do that to you."
He knew she wouldn't. It amazed him sometimes how much he trusted this crazy redhead. "You know something, Max?" he asked, taking her by the hand to lead her back to the door.
"Hmm?"
"I'm glad you're around."
"I know you are" The mischievous grin she sent him then made him wish to hell he could be more than a friend to her. Made him wish he were capable of the kind of loving she deserved. There was a pang of longing in the region of his chest. He squelched it, and they walked back into the room together.
Sid looked up as soon as they entered. He said, "I know where the night man lives-but you better not go there."
Lou went closer, hunkered down to put himself at the boy's level. "Now, Sid, if I don't know where he lives, how can I be sure I won't go there? You know, by mistake."
The boy frowned, considering that. Then he pressed his lips tight and nodded. "It's on the island. Out in the water. You can't see it except from the lighthouse."
"Aah, right, the lighthouse. And the lighthouse is...?"
"You gotta walk. It's down that dirt road out past town."
Lou ruffled Sid's hair. "Thank you, son. You've been a big help to us."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah" Lou dug out a twenty and gave it to him. "This is for you. You put it in your piggy bank, okay?"
"Okay." Sid jumped off the bed and raced to the door, but paused there and came back to hug Lou once again. Then he was gone, off like a shot on his bike, sailing at light speed down the street.
Lou turned slowly.
"I think we need to get that kid out of this town, " Stormy said softly. "If any part of what he thinks he knows is true-"
"It's ridiculous, " Jason said. "He can't know anything. And what's this crap about a `night man'? Sounds like he's watched too many monster movies to me."
Max sent a look at the others, a question in her eyes. Lou nodded. Stormy did, too. "Jason, " she said slowly, "Sid is the only person in this town who isn't acting...dull, almost tranquilized. And I think I know why."
"You think someone's doping the water or something?"
"No. I think this entire town is being held under a vampiric thrall."
"A vam-are we back to vampires again, Max?" Jason started to smile, but it died when he saw the look in her eyes. "You...you think a vampire has taken my sister?"
"I didn't say anything earlier, because I didn't want to frighten you, Jason. But that man who came after me-he was a vamp."
Jason's eyes searched hers. He swallowed hard. "I...I don't know what to say. I don't think I believe you. I don't think I want to."
He paced away, looking shell-shocked.
"Sid's in danger, " Max said. "Especially if someone realizes he's immune to whatever kind of power this vampire has over everyone else here."
Stormy lifted her brows. "You think this guy's badass enough that he'd hurt a child?"
"Delia and Janie aren't much older than children, " Max said.
Jason spun to face her. "But he hasn't hurt them." When everyone just stared at him, he went on. "I mean, that we know of. He never hurt any of the others. So it makes sense to think-if he were some kind of evil menace, then why were all those other women found unharmed?"
"I don't know, " Max said. "But you're right, it's a good point. Hold on to it."
"I agree with Jason, for what it's worth, " Stormy said. "I don't think he would hurt anyone."
Lou searched her face. "What are you basing that on?" Shrugging, Stormy said, "I don't know. Gut feeling, maybe?"
"Sid said he was saving up to go to a private school, " Lou said. "How about if he gets an opportunity to visit one, all expenses paid? We fork over a couple hundred bucks for a room at a Holiday Inn, some traveling money, and hook him up."
"If his mom would go for it, it just might work, " Max said.
"I can find the right school in a snap online, " Stormy said. "Set this whole thing up."
"Make it for at least three days, " Lou said. "Maybe some time away from here will clear the mother's head. Maybe she'll think twice about coming back."
"We can give her a call while she's away, see if she's open to reason after a few days. Maybe suggest she not hurry back."
"Agreed, " Lou said. "Meanwhile..."
"Meanwhile, " Max said, rubbing her palms together, "we've got an island to visit."
There was precisely one boat-rental place in all of Endover. It was housed in a barnlike building on the water's edge, with the words Endover Boat Rentals painted across the front of the building. There were several docks, numerous boat-hoists, and half-dozen motorboats of various sizes, some tied to the docks and bobbing serenely in the water; others dangled from their hoists a few feet above the reach of the waves that rolled gentle and steady over the pebble-and-sand shore.
"It's beautiful out here, " Stormy said, as they got out of Jason's Jeep. She stood there for a moment, taking in the view: blue-black water speckled with tiny whitecaps as far as the eyes could see.
"It is pretty, " Max said. "I love the shore" She took a deep breath of the sea air. Rather than invigorating her, it made her want to yawn. Sighing, she followed Lou, who was already making his way to the entrance, a small door situated to the side of a much larger one, with a tiny sign tacked to it that read Office.
Lou knocked twice, then opened the door and stuck his head inside. "Hello? Anyone here?"
A short, wiry man limped into view. Unshaven, dressed in bib overalls, wiping his hands on a rag, he sent them a smile with teeth that were even and white, and gave a tug on the bill of his olive-green cap. "Come on in, " he called. "What can I do for you?"
"Stan, is it?" Lou asked, glancing at the patch on the man's overalls and holding out a hand. "Lou Malone."
"Good to meet you. I'm afraid you haven't come at the best of times."
"No?"
"Nah. I haven't got a craft available. I'm guessing you wanted to rent one."
"Yeah, we were hoping to."
The man pushed back his cap and scraped a hand through his hair. "Sorry about that."
Lou frowned. "You telling me every boat here is spoken for?"
"Only those that are running. We been having a rash of engine troubles this past week?'
"You have, huh?"
He nodded.
"I don't suppose you know anywhere else we might be able to find a boat around here?"
"I'm the only place there is. You come back in a day or two, though, and I might be able to fix you up. All right?"
"Sure, " Lou said. "Not a problem."
The man nodded. Max opened her mouth to argue, but Lou put a hand on her arm and met her eyes. She let it go and joined the others in walking outside, back to the waiting Jeep. Only when they were safely inside and driving away did Lou speak. "Did anyone here believe Stan back there?"
"Those boats all looked sound to me, " Max said. "And hell, they can't all be broken down."
"That's what I thought. But he didn't look like he was lying."
Jason frowned at that comment. So Max explained. "Being a cop for twenty years, Lou has a great sense of when he's being lied to. It's more accurate than a lie detector. So you thought he was telling the truth, Lou?"
"As little sense as it makes, yeah. Or at least what he thought was the truth."
Max frowned and tipped her head to one side. Stormy said, "He had that blank look in his eyes. Like so many of the others in this town."
Lou sighed. "Let's drive up the coast. There's gotta be a boat somewhere we can beg, borrow or steal. It's the freaking ocean, for God's sake."
Within five miles Max thought they had found what they were looking for. A boat, bobbing gently with the waves, tied to a dock without a house in sight. "Stop here, " she said. "Pull over, right there."
They stopped the car, all of them looking around. "What do you think?" she asked.
"What do I think?" Lou looked at her. "I think it's not our boat."
"You said beg, borrow or steal, " she reminded him. "I was kind of hoping for one of the first two"
She shrugged. "This is one of the first two. We're borrowing it."
"Without permission. Which makes it stealing." She sighed. "Once a cop, always a cop."
"How do we even know it's seaworthy?" Jason asked.
They got out of the Jeep and trooped down to the water's edge. Max looked inside the boat, then sighed. "There's no motor. And look at the size of that hole in the bottom. Hell, these ropes aren't keeping it from floating away, they're keeping it from sinking."
"That solves the question of stealing it."
Max frowned, . leaning over the small craft. "Look at that hole." As they all did, she said, "Hell, what are the chances of hitting a rock or whatever and causing a hole like that? It's almost perfectly round. Dead center, too."
"It could happen, " Lou said.
"Looks like someone took a mallet to it." Max turned to Stormy, fully expecting her to agree. But Stormy was staring down the shore at something in the distance. When Max turned to see what, she saw the top of the lighthouse, just visible around a bend.
"Lou, " Max said, "didn't Sid say something about a lighthouse?"
Lou nodded. He was staring as well.
"We should go there, " Stormy said.
Max put a hand on Stormy's shoulder. "You okay? You look a little-"
"I'm fine." She blinked, shaking off whatever had been weighing on her. "We need to go there. To the lighthouse."
"Okay. So let's go."
They piled back into Jason's Jeep and drove down the coast road, taking a few wrong turns onto side roads. Stormy pulled out the map of the town, and they located the little finger of a peninsula. It didn't show any lighthouse, but it was the only place on the map that matched the location. And apparently no roads led out there. Very strange. Still, they finally located a barely passable dirt track with a gate across the front and No Trespassing signs posted everywhere. Jason got out to open the gate, then looked back at the Jeep, shaking his head, pointing to a padlock and chain.
"Guess we hoof it from here, " Max said.
Lou looked uneasy. "I think maybe you and Storm ought to head on back to the motel. Jay and I can check this out."
"Stop being chivalrous, Lou. We're as capable as you are, " she said. "Besides, we've only got one vehicle at the moment. We go together or not at all."
He sighed.
"I'm not giving in, " she said. "So you can stop thinking up arguments."
With a nod, Lou got out. The four of them climbed over the gate and hiked along the dirt path. It was a mile if it was a foot, but eventually they started catching glimpses of the lighthouse. Finally they emerged from the tree-lined track onto the clear-cut, crooked finger of land that seemed to be beckoning the sea to come closer. At the tip, the once-white lighthouse stood, leaning slightly, sadly in need of paint. Shingles were missing from the roof here and there, and the upper windows had panes that were missing, others that were cracked or broken. Some were still intact but smudged with the grime of disuse.
"This place doesn't look like it's been used in years, " Max whispered, then wondered why she was whispering. The place had that creepy, "someone's listening" feeling that made you automatically lower your voice.
They walked out toward the building then Lou pointed out to sea. "Look, there's that island Sid mentioned. He said it was only visible from the lighthouse."
"You think that's where his night man lives?" Storm asked.
Lou shrugged. "No way to know. First things first. Let's check out this lighthouse"
Jason followed in silence. Max could only imagine how painful this must be for him, not knowing what they might find inside.
They walked beside him up to the only visible entrance, a small, faded red door with chipping paint and a tarnished brass knob. She tried the knob, found it locked.
"That's odd, " she said. "Who locks a place with half the windows busted out?"
Lou shrugged. And while he had been averse to stealing, he didn't seem to have any qualms about breaking and entering. He moved her aside, gripped the knob and slammed his shoulder into the door. It popped open without much resistance. Max started inside, and Lou kept pace right beside her, a hand on her arm, eyes watchful, scanning the place.
It was bereft of signs of human presence. Dust and cobwebs coated everything. The floorboards were ancient and unfinished, with wide gaps between them. Lou pointed downward. "Footprints in the dust. Look."
Everyone looked. "Someone's been here-and recently, " Max said.
"More than one someone, too."
Max nodded, and they crept along, following the tracks. They led to a rickety door, and when Lou jerked it open, there were stairs leading downward, spiraling to the left.
He looked behind him. "Someone bring a flashlight?"
"I did." Jason came closer, taking out his flashlight. Then he elbowed Max gently. "Better go back, something's wrong with Stormy. She started acting funny as soon as we got inside. Lou and I will check this out."
Max didn't hesitate. She swung her gaze behind them to see Stormy. She was sitting on the floor underneath a window, her back against the curving outer wall, staring at nothing. Max rushed back to her friend, while Lou and Jason crept down the stairs.
"Stormy? Honey, what is it?"
"I don't know, I don't know. God, there's something..." She pressed her hands to her head, closed her eyes and began rocking slightly.
"Does it hurt? Are you in pain?"
"It's...I..."
"Storm. Talk to me, dammit!"
The rocking stopped. Stormy lifted her head, her eyes furious and blazing-and jet-black. She stared at Max with a withering gaze and whispered, "Vulpea batrana nu cadet in curse."
