"Nothing personal," Morley said. "We're starving, love. And you're so juicy."
"Ewww," Eve said faintly. "Has anybody ever told you that you smell like tombstones?"
He glanced at her and smiled. "You're the first," he assured her. "Which is a bit charming. I'm Morley. And you are . . . ? Ah yes. Amelie's friend. I remember you from the cemetery. Sam Glass's grave."
"Nice to meet you. Don't eat me, 'kay?"
He laughed and combed her hair back from her pale face. "You're cute. I might have to turn you and keep you as a pet."
"Hey!" Claire said sharply, and took a step forward. "Didn't you hear me? Let her go! She's under Amelie's protection!"
"I see no bracelet." Morley grabbed Eve's arm and lifted it to the dim light, turning it this way and that. "No, definitely nothing there." He kissed the back of her hand, then extended his fangs and prepared to munch out on the pale veins at her wrist.
Eve twisted and punched him in the mouth.
Morley stumbled backward against the car, and Claire triggered the sprayer, coating him in silver spray. This time, he screamed and flapped his arms and lunged away from Eve, toward the darkness. Claire sprayed the rest of his crew again as they followed, waking howls of pain and anger.
Shane dashed forward, vaulted the gate, and helped Eve stand up from where Morley had shoved her. "That went well," he said. His voice was shaking. "No fang marks, right?"
"Lucky me," Eve said, and laughed wildly. "Get the weapons bag. I can't believe you left it in the car; what was that? What town did you grow up in?"
"I was trying to help you fix the car!"
"Bozo." She hugged him, hard, and smacked him on the back of the head; then she took a deep breath as Shane left her to retrieve the black nylon bag out of the car. "And you."
Claire lowered the Super Soaker. "What? What did I do?"
"Saved my life? Redefined awesome in our time?"
"Oh. Okay." She felt a smile bloom from deep inside, and for a moment, it was all good.
Really good.
"Ladies," Shane said, and slammed the car door. "Let's have the champagne inside, okay? And talk about who pulled the wires in the engine, and how we're planning to back Michael up with no wheels?"
He had a point. Claire covered their retreat with the Super Soaker, feeling kind of like a neon-gunned Rambo, and Eve slammed and locked the door, then put her back to the wood and breathed a deep sigh of relief.
The second Claire put the water gun down, Shane wrapped her in his arms and kissed her, really tender and sweet and a little bit desperate. Hot.
"Hey," Eve said. "Michael, remember? What are we doing for transpo, cabbing it?"
There was exactly one taxicab in Morganville, and he didn't work at night, so that wasn't much of an option. They didn't even bother to discuss it. "Well," Claire said, very reluctantly, "there's another way. But you won't like it."
"I'll like it less than getting molested by a vampire in a flasher raincoat who smells like graveyards? Try me."
"I could open a portal," Claire said. "But I've never been to the radio station, so I can't risk doing it blind. I have to go someplace close that I know. What's around it?"
"Hang on a second," Shane said, and dropped the weapons bag to the wood floor with a thump. "What about Ada? You said she was out for blood, right?"
"I said you wouldn't like the idea."
"So just to recap - Ada wants to kill you, and you're going to walk through a portal she controls?"
"Well - "
"No, Claire. Next."
"But - "
"Not happening."
She sighed. "What if I get Myrnin to open it for us? He's better at it. I don't think she dares mess with him directly."
"And tell Myrnin what's happening? Bad idea. The dude is half crazy all the time."
"So what's your bright idea?" Claire asked. Shane spread his hands out. "That's what I thought."
She pulled her cell phone out and checked the screen. Her battery was getting low; she hadn't had a chance to charge it up recently, although that was Morganville Survival 101. She picked up the old-fashioned landline phone on the hall table and dialed Myrnin's lab.
It rang, and rang, and rang, and finally, Myrnin picked up. "What?" he snapped. "I was in the middle of dinner."
Claire was afraid to ask who that was. "I need help," she said.
"Claire, you are my assistant. Not the other way around. Perhaps it would be helpful if I prepared an organizational chart you could keep on your person. Possibly tattooed on your arm."
He was in a mood. Claire bit her lip. "Please," she said. "It's a little favor."
"Oh, all right. What?"
"You know the old radio station outside of town? KV - " Her mind blanked. She looked at Eve, who mouthed the answer. "KVVV. Could you open me a portal?"
"Hmmm," he said. She heard the sound of liquid being poured in the background, and him swallowing it, and him smacking his lips. "Well, I suppose I could get you close, if not inside the building. Would that do?"
"Sure. Anything."
"And why can you not do this yourself?"
"Ada . . . ?"
Myrnin was silent for a long few seconds. "She's better," he said. "I don't know what got into the old girl. But I've had a talk with her, and really, she's much better now. Much better."
"That's good." It would be, if it were true, but Claire didn't trust Myrnin's judgment when it came to Ada. "Um, about that portal - "