“The Aging-In-Place for Senior Citizens task force?” Mayor Tuck asked with a dubious expression.
“Yes,” Dru said emphatically. “That’s definitely the thing I wanted to ask about.”
“I’m so glad you’ve taken an interest,” the mayor said with a big smile. “Now isn’t a great time to get into a big policy discussion, but if you want to give me your basic thoughts, I’ll make a note of it. Though the best way to share your ideas is at a council meeting.”
“Really?” Dru asked, slipping past a very confused looking Viktor to join the mayor in the hallway.
“Oh yes,” the mayor told her. “That’s how I got my start in politics, you know. I attended a couple of council meetings and fell in love with the process. Now, tell me, what are your thoughts on easing zoning restrictions for seniors?”
“I have so many,” Dru began as they headed downstairs.
5
Dru managed to handle the conversation in a way that probably didn’t impress the mayor, but hopefully didn’t arouse her suspicion either.
“Well, it’s an unusual stance, but I’ll note it down, Dru,” the mayor said when they reached the lobby. “Thanks for your input.”
“Dru, there you are,” Howie barked out.
“Sorry, Mayor Tuck,” she said.
“Nice to speak with you dear,” the mayor said, heading over to Melody, who appeared to be waiting for her by the fireplace.
Dru took off her coat and hung it by the front door. A battery powered lantern sat on the front desk, casting a beam of harsh light across the lobby, and darkening the shadows around it.
“Where have you been, Dru?” Howie asked.
“Sorry, Howie,” she said. “I just needed a minute. Zander was covering for me.”
“Well, I need you to get some food for these people,” Howie said. “They’re freaking out, and none of them will go to bed.”
“I’m, uh, not a very good cook,” Dru warned him.
“Oh for Pete’s sake, I’m not asking you to make them a proper meal,” Howie said, exasperated. “Just go to the kitchen and find some snacks you can bring out. Got it?”
“Yeah, sure, Howie,” she said.
She headed for the kitchen with Viktor still at her elbow.
They would be alone in there, with all the knives.
“Hey, Zander,” she called. “Will you give us a hand?”
“Sure,” he said eagerly.
The three of them stepped into the darkened corridor that led to the kitchen and sitting room.
Dru held her phone out in front of her, wondering once again how long the battery would last, and what she was supposed to do when it died.
“Hey, didn’t you and Howie go to find Chester?” she asked. “I thought he was going to turn the generator on.”
“Oh, man, yeah,” Zander said. “Chester was so pissed.”
Dru could picture that.
“Turns out we don’t have a lot of fuel around and the generator is finicky, according to Chester,” Zander explained. “He’s working on her.”
“Holy crap,” Dru said.
“So we won’t have power again for a while?” Viktor asked.
“And when we do, we’ll be using it sparingly,” Zander agreed.
Dru placed her phone on the stainless-steel island so that the light made a wide circle on the ceiling and cast the kitchen in dim light.
“What do you think people want to eat right now?” she asked.
“We’d better not open the fridge,” Zander said. “Don’t want to let any cold out.”
“What do you think, Viktor?” Dru asked.
She could see his surprised expression even in the shadows.
“Comfort food,” he said after a moment.
“Chips and salsa,” Zander agreed. “And cookies.”
“The carbs will make them crash,” Dru said.
“I think that’s what Howie wants,” Zander suggested.
Dru shrugged and the three of them gathered up the snacks in silence, placing everything on trays to carry into the dining room.
“Constance is going to flip out when she comes in and sees that we raided the kitchen,” Dru said.
“Nah, she’s super nice,” Zander said.
“Tell you what,” Dru said. “Let’s tell her you did this by yourself.”
“Sure, Dru,” Zander said. “But I really don’t know what you’re worried about.”
Dru led the way to the dining room with her phone as Zander and Viktor followed, each carrying a tray of snacks.
Zander put his tray down and stepped into the lobby.
“Snacks in the dining room,” he announced and headed back to the big table to grab some sustenance for himself.
There were normally a few candles burning in the dining room for ambiance at dinner. Dru lit them now, hoping there was a good supply somewhere since they were clearly going to be needing them.
“Oh, thank God,” Angie Wilder said, sauntering in and grabbing a handful of chips.
Others trailed in after her, digging into the junk food with relish.
Dru grabbed a plate and placed a couple of cookies on it.
Zander already had a mouthful of chips.
But Viktor was standing in the corner, watching her. When he caught her looking, he smiled. She walked over to him, grateful for a change to have so many people in the room.
“Here you go,” she said, holding out a chocolate chip cookie.
No one could resist a soft-bake cookie with the chips gleaming in the candlelight.
“No thanks,” he told her. “I just ate.”
Dru gulped, her throat suddenly dry.
He definitely hadn’t just eaten. She had been with him for hours now.
“Dru, what’s wrong?” he asked, concern marring his handsome features.
But she heard a sniffling sound coming from the solarium.
“Someone’s crying,” she realized out loud.
She headed for the solarium door, with Viktor right at her elbow once again.
It was just her luck that she seemed to have ensnared the world’s clingiest vampire.
6
Dru stepped into the solarium.
Even in darkness the air here was redolent of sunshine.
“Hello?” she called out softly.
“Dru?” Hailey’s voice called back to her.
She slipped between the plants, back to the little table in the corner where she had studied the journal with Viktor what felt like a thousand years ago.
Hailey was sitting, her body curled in on itself as she tried to stop herself from crying. Apparently, she hadn’t gone off to bed at Zander’s suggestion after all.
“What happened?” Dru asked, wrapping an arm around her friend and holding her close.
Viktor stayed back a little, to give her some space with her friend.
“There’s been a murder,” Hailey said. “We need the police.”
“They can’t come,” Dru reminded her. “You saw that tree. And it’s still storming.”
“There’s not supposed to be a blizzard,” Hailey sniffled. “There hasn’t been a blizzard this early in the season in Willow Ridge for a hundred years.”