The Dead Girl's Dance

She looked around and saw three more, all armed, pointing weapons at the vanand then, she saw Shanes father walking up, as easy as if the whole town and every vampire in it hadnt been hunting him through the night. He even looked rested.



Monica Morrell, he said. Come on down! See what youve won.



Monica froze where she was, holding on to one of the hanging leather straps. She looked at the guns, at Gina, who was kneeling with her hands in the air, and then helplessly at Claire.



She was afraid. Monicacrazy, weird, pretty Monicawas actually scared. My father



Lets talk about him later, Frank said. You get your sweet ass down here, Monica. Dont make me come and get you.



She retreated farther into the van. Shanes dad grinned and motioned two of his bikers inside. One grabbed Gina by the hair and dragged her out to sprawl in the street.



The other one grabbed Monica, struggling and spitting, and handcuffed her to the leather strap in the back. She stopped fighting, amazed. But



I knew you were going to do the opposite of what I told you, Frank said. Easiest way to keep you in the van was to tell you to get out. He opened the drivers-side door and stuck a gun in Jennifers face. You, I dont need. Out.



She slid down, fast, and kept her hands high as Frank pushed her toward the bikers. She sat down next to Gina on the curb and put her arms around her. Funny, Claire had never thought of those two as being friends in their own right, just as hangers-on for Monica. But now they seemedreal. And really scared.



You. Shanes dad turned to look directly at Claire. In the back.



One of the bikers put his gun close to her head. She swallowed and scrambled into the van, claiming the leather seat that Monica had so recently tumbled out of. Shanes father got in after her, then a sweaty load of bikers. One of them got in the drivers seat, and the van lurched into gear.



It hadnt taken but a minute, Claire figured. In Morganville, at this hour, nobody probably even noticed. The streets looked deserted.



She looked at Monica, who stared back, and for the first time, she thought she really understood what Monica was feeling, because she felt it, too.



This was a very bad thing.



The van lurched through a long series of turns, and Claire tried to think of an easy way to get to her cell phone, which was in the pocket of her jeans. Shed dropped Eves back at the car, when Monica had slammed her face-first into the dashboard. She managed to get her fingers hooked in her pocket, casual-like, and touched the metal case. All I have to do is dial 911, she thought. Eve had probably already reported the abduction, if Eve was okay enough to talk. They could trace cell phones, right? GPS tracking or something?



As if hed read her mind, Shanes dad came to her, stood her up, and patted her down. He did it fast, not lingering like some dirty old man, and found the phone in her pocket. He took it. Monica was yelling again, and trying to kick; one of the bikers was doing the same thing as Frank, although Claire thought it was more feeling up than patting down. Still, he found her cell, tooa Treoand slid open the van door to pitch them out into the street. Kill em! he yelled to the driver, who pulled the van into a U-turn and went back the other way. Claire didnt hear the crunch, but she figured the phones were nothing but electronic bits.



The turning and lurching continued. Claire just hung on, head down, thinking hard. She couldnt get word out, but Eve would have. Detective Hess, Detective Lowe? Maybe theyd come running.



Maybe Amelie would send her own people to enforce her Protection. That would be pretty fabulous right about now.



Hey, Monica said to Shanes dad. Stupid move, asshole. My dads going to have every cop in Morganville on you in seconds. Youre never going to get away, and once they have you, theyll throw you in a hole so deep, even the sewer will seem like heaven. Dont touch me, you pig! Monica writhed to get away from the stroking hands of the biker next to her, who just smiled and showed gold-capped teeth.



Dont touch her, Shanes dad said. Were not animals. Claire wondered where all this sudden White Knight syndrome came from, because hed been willing to let his boys do whatever to her and Eve back at the Glass House. Take her bracelet.



What? No. No! It doesnt come off, you know that!



The biker reached down and took a small pair of bolt cutters from a pouch on his belt. Claire gasped in horror as the biker grabbed Monicas arm. Oh God, she thought, hes going to cut off her hand.



But he just sliced through the metal bracelet, instead, yanked it off her wrist, and tossed it to Shanes father. Monica glared at him, trembling, and slapped him. Hard.



He drew back a hand to slap her back. Leave it, Shanes father said. He was staring at the bracelet. The outside was the symbol, of course; Claire couldnt read it, but she figured it was Brandons symbol, and now that Brandon was dead, she wondered who picked up his Protection duties. Maybe Oliver



On the inside was inscribed Monicas full name: MON



ICA ELLEN MORRELL. Shanes dad grunted in satisfaction.



You want a finger, too? the biker asked, snipping the shears. No trouble.



I think this makes the point for us, Shanes dad said. Get us underground, Kenny. Move.



The guy drivingKenny, at least now Claire knew one of their namesnodded. He was a tall man, kind of thin, with long black hair and a blue bandanna. His leather vest had a naked girl on a Harley on the back, and it matched the tattoos down the arm that Claire could see. Kenny expertly navigated the confusing streets and turns of Morganville, moving fast but not dangerously fast, and then all of a suddendarkness.



Kenny flicked on the lights. They were in a storm drain, a huge concrete tunnel big enough to fit the vanthough barelyand it was heading down at a steep angle into the dark. Claire fought to get her breath. She didnt really like closed-in places, or the dark. She remembered how freaked-out shed been sealed in the hidden pantry room at the Glass House, not so many days ago. No, she didnt like this. She didnt like it at all.



Where are you taking us? she asked. She meant it to sound tough, but instead it sounded like what she was: a scared sixteen-year-old, trying to be brave. Great.



Frank Collins, hanging on to one of the leather straps, looked at her with something strange in his eyesalmost, she thought, respect. Not taking you anywhere, he said. You get to deliver the message. And he pitched her Monicas severed bracelet. Tell the mayor that if I dont hear that my sons been set free before tomorrow at dawn, pretty little miss here gets to find out what fire is really like. Weve got us a nice blowtorch.



She didnt like Monica. In fact, she kind of hated her, and she thought Morganville would be a much better place if Monica justdisappeared.



But nobody deserved what he was talking about.



You cant do that, she said. You cant. But she knew, looking around at the grinning, sweaty crew hed brought with him, that he could do that, and a lot worse. Shane was right. His dad was seriously sick.



Kenny up theres going to pull up to a ladder soon, Frank continued. And Im going to want you to get out of the van, Claire. Go up the ladder and push open the grate. Youll be right in front of the MorganvilleCity Hall. You walk up to the first cop you see and you tell him you need to see the mayor about Frank Collins. And you tell him that Frank Collins has his daughter, and shes going to pay for the life she already took, not to mention the one theyre about to. Got it?



Claire nodded stiffly. Monicas bracelet felt cold and heavy in her fingers.



One more thing, Frank said. Im going to need you to tell them just how serious I am. And youd better be persuasive, because if I dont hear something from the mayor before dawn, well be using those bolt cutters to send him some more reminders. And shes fresh out of bracelets.



The van lurched to a stop, and Frank threw open the sliding door. Out, he said. Better make it good, Claire. You want to save my son, dont you?



He didnt say anything about saving Monica, she noticed. Nothing at all.



Monica looked at her, no longer sleek and magazine glossy. She seemed small and vulnerable, alone in the van with all those men. Claire hesitated, then got up from her seat and grabbed a leather strap to steady herself. Her knees felt like water. This is crazy, she said. Hang in there. Ill get help.



Tears glittered in Monicas eyes. Thanks, she said softly. Tell my dad She didnt finish, and she sucked in a deep breath. The tears cleared away, and she gave Claire a half-crazy smile. Tell my dad that if anything happens to me, he can hold you personally responsible.



The door slammed shut between them, and the van sped off into the dark. Claire was glad she had her hand on the ladder, because the lights went away fast, and she was left in a dark so close and hot and filthy that she wanted to curl up into a ball.



Instead, she climbed, feeling for the slimy rungs in the dark and waiting for somethingsomething with teethto lunge onto her back at any second. Vampires lived down here, they had to. Or at least, they used these tunnels as highways; shed always wondered how they got around during the day. These werent sewer tunnels, just storm drains built extra large. And since Morganville wasnt exactly built on a floodplain, chances were, the water had never been more than ankle-high in these things since theyd been constructed.



Claire climbed, and when she squinted just right, she saw flickers of what looked like daylight. There was a grate overhead, covered with some kind of protective material to keep the sun from filtering down into the tunnel. She braced herself on the rungs, hooked her left arm through one of the iron bars, and heaved with her right to push the grate up.



Hot Texas sun washed over her in a warm, sticky flood, and Claire gasped and raised her face to it in gratitude. After taking a few fast breaths, she pushed herself up another rung and thumped the grate back on its hinges to climb out.



Just as Shanes dad had said, she was standing in front of the MorganvilleCity Hallwhich was, unfortunately, not on Founders Square. It was a big Gothic castle of a building, all red sandstone in rough-cut blocks, and people were coming and going on their way to or from work, or filing paperworkjust carrying out their daily lives, whatever that meant in Morganville.



She rolled out onto the grass and flopped there, breathing hard. A couple of faces appeared overhead, blocking out the sun. One of them was wearing a policemans uniform cap.



Hello, Claire said, and shaded her eyes. I need to talk to the mayor. Tell him I have information about his daughter, and Frank Collins.



The mayor had changed out of the suit hed worn to put Shane in a cage the night before; he was wearing a green golf shirt with black slacks and loafers. Very preppy. He was in the hallway, talking into his cell phone, looking tense and angry. Claire was escorted past him, into his office, and deposited in a big red leather chair by two members of Morganvilles finest; she didnt recognize either of them. When she asked after Detectives Hess and Lowe, she got nothing. Nobody even admitted to knowing their names.



Claire was feeling more than a little light-headed. She had no idea how long it had been since shed eaten, but the world was starting to take on a surreal melty edge that really wasnt a very good sign. Between the stress, the poor sleep, and the lack of food, she was going to be loopy soon.



Keep it together, Claire. Pretend youre cramming for a test. Shed gone without sleep for three days once, prepping for her SAT, and she hadnt eaten much beyond Jolt cola and Cheetos. She could do this.



Here, said a voice from beside her, and a red can of Coca-Cola appeared, held in a big male hand. You look like you could use something to drink.



Claire looked up. It was Richard, Monicas cop brother. The cute one. He looked tired and worried. He pulled up another chair close to hers and leaned forward, elbows on his knees. Claire busied herself with the Coke, popping the top and taking a fast chug of the icy sweet contents.



My sister got carjacked, he said. You know that, right?



Claire nodded and swallowed. I was there. I was in the van.



Thats exactly why I wanted to talk to you before I let you see my dad, Richard said. You were in the van with Jennifer and Gina and Monica.



Claire nodded again.