‘We know that,’ Olivia said. ‘But we have a strategy we want to try out first. Isn’t that right, Ivy?’
She kept her gaze fixed on her grandmother’s face, but in the corner of her eye, she saw Ivy looking at her bug-eyed. She wasn’t surprised – she hadn’t had a chance to share the plan she was forming. But surely . . .
Yes. Like the faithful twin she was, Ivy nodded in agreement, on Olivia’s side as always. ‘We do,’ Ivy confirmed. ‘Will you trust us enough to try it? Please?’
The Countess’s eyes flickered over to Ivy. Her face turned grim. ‘Can you promise me that you won’t let us down this time?’
Olivia winced. She knew her hot-tempered twin. How much needling could Ivy take before she finally lost her patience? If that happened, everything could be lost.
But when she turned to look at Ivy, she found her twin the picture of calm composure. Ivy looked straight into their grandmother’s eyes as she spoke, her voice clear and confident: ‘Grandma, I have never let you down before.’
‘Oh?’ The Countess arched one eyebrow, her face hardening. ‘Have you already forgotten Wallachia Academy? Did our wishes mean so little to you then?’
‘Never,’ Ivy repeated. ‘You and Grandpa will always be important to me – but I’ve always made the choices that were true to myself. Isn’t that what the best vampires do?’
For a moment, Olivia couldn’t breathe as she watched emotions flicker across their grandmother’s face – irritation, surprise and then finally acceptance.
The Countess nodded as graciously as a queen. ‘I understand,’ she said. Her face softened, and she reached out to lay one hand on Ivy’s shoulder. ‘Yes, girls. I trust you both. Do what you have to.’
‘Thank you!’ Olivia gasped. She traded a relieved glance with Ivy and hurried out of the kitchen.
‘Go on, then,’ the Countess called after them. ‘But if you can’t resolve this issue by dusk, we’ll have to do it our way.’
‘We understand,’ Ivy said.
Olivia pulled Ivy to a halt at the living-room door. Inside, her dad was glumly ordering ugly clothes online while wedding catalogues lay ignored at his feet.
‘Dad?’ Olivia said. ‘Can we invite a friend to your engagement party?’
‘Of course!’ His expression lightened for the first time that morning as he looked up at Olivia. ‘It’s nice to have someone remember what’s really important around here.’ With a guilty look towards the dining room, he nudged one of his wedding catalogues open with the toe of his shoe and took a quick peek inside.
‘What are you doing?’ Ivy whispered. ‘Why do you want to invite someone? You can’t –’
‘Don’t worry,’ Olivia whispered back, pulling her twin out through the front door. ‘I have a really good idea.’
The trip to Holly’s house was just long enough for Ivy to hear Olivia’s whole plan. Ivy was still feeling nervous about it as they walked up the front steps, but all it took was a glance at the pink corsage on Olivia’s shirt to remind her what was really important.
Her twin had chosen to trust her. Ivy couldn’t do any less for Olivia now.
She pushed the doorbell and fixed a smile on her face. No more grumpy Ivy, she promised herself.
‘Hey.’ Holly opened the door, looking from one twin to another. ‘What are you guys doing here? It’s kind of early for a visit.’
Olivia beamed, reminding Ivy what a good actress her sister really was. If the Hollywood industry strikes ever ended, her twin would become a true star. ‘Can we come in to talk for just a minute?’
‘Of course.’ Holly stepped aside to let them in. As usual, she was wearing her trademark hippy clothes: a tie-dyed T-shirt and jeans with flowers and suns embroidered all over them. Not exactly what I’d expect from a vampire hunter, Ivy thought.
Then she stepped inside, and her eyes widened. The bookshelves in Holly’s front room were lined with rows and rows of Bare Throats at Sunset. ‘Wow,’ she said. ‘You must really like that book!’
‘Yeah, well . . .’ Holly’s face coloured. Her long blonde hair fell over her eyes as she looked down at her feet. ‘You said you wanted to talk?’
‘We wanted to invite you to a party at our house this afternoon, at three o’clock,’ Olivia said brightly.
‘A special kind of party,’ Ivy added meaningfully.
‘Sorry?’ Holly frowned.
‘Lots of people are going to be there,’ Olivia said. ‘Lots of different kinds of people.’
‘That’s right.’ Ivy lowered her voice to a whisper. ‘It’s, um, super-secret. With a very exclusive guest list. That’s why we’re having to use a special menu.’
Come on ! She urged Holly mentally. Get the picture !
Between her tone of voice and the thing she was doing with her eyebrows, it had to be obvious what she meant: Vampires !
Holly’s lips twitched. ‘Well,’ she said. ‘That does sound . . . interesting.’
Had they done it? Ivy felt her muscles tense up as she waited for Holly to continue. Please let the plan work ! It all depended on what Holly did next. Had she figured out that the twins knew she was behind the blog? Or would she remain under her deep cover of a normal girl of Franklin Grove?
Not that anyone in this town is normal anyway, Ivy thought ruefully. Still, she held her breath as she waited for Holly to make up her mind.
Finally, Holly nodded, and Ivy let out her breath in a whoosh.