Page 57 of Blood and Bells

“He had a rogue elf,” I say. “And he was—” I gesture vaguely now that my vocabulary has packed up and left “—doing the vampire thing.”

“Drinking blood.”

“Yes.”

“Right.” She nods slowly. “And this is upsetting because…?”

“Because—Marcy—he was drinking someone’s blood.”

“Yes,” she says patiently. “He is a vampire. That is very much their whole thing. It’s in the brochure.”

“That’s not—” I stop, aware I sound ridiculous, even to myself. “It’s not that simple.”

“It might be,” she says. “Walk me through it.”

I exhale, long and slow, and try again.

“He promised,” I say. “To Frank. To the town. To me. That they wouldn’t feed on anyone except in Hemoglow and only with consent.”

Marcy nods. “Okay.”

“And then I see him. Feeding,” I say. “He said it was for information. That vampires can sometimes pull memories when they feed. He was trying to find out what Santa’s doing with the tree.”

“That tracks,” Marcy says.

“That’s not helpful.”

“I’m not trying to be helpful yet,” she says. “I’m trying to understand why you look like you’re about to either cry or commit a small but meaningful crime.”

I give her the sort of look that ought to come with weather warnings.

“I am not going to cry,” I say.

“That’s good,” she says. “Means we’re in the crime zone. Are we talking felonies or misdemeanors?”

“I’m serious, Marcy.”

“So am I.” She leans forward slightly. “You saw him do something vampires do, for a reason that—annoyingly—makes sense. The elf is fine. The town is still standing. So why are you this upset?”

“I just told you⁠—”

“No,” she says, gently but firmly. “You told me what happened. That’s not the same thing.”

I open my mouth.

Close it again.

“I trusted him,” I say finally.

“There we go,” she says softly. “That’s the one.”

My attention drops to the latte foam, which has arranged itself into the sort of meaningless swirl people in expensive wellness retreats probably call an answer.

“I trusted him,” I repeat, quieter now. “He stood there and told me he wanted to help. That he wanted the vampires to be part of Willow Creek. That he understood the rules.”

“And then you saw him…bend them.”

“Break them.”