Kissing Corpses by Amy Leigh Strickland Page A

with her than with you,” he said. “You're selfish, Kendall.”
    Cody's eyes darted to the door to the kitchen. Geneva was standing there with a pizza box.
    “Sorry,” she said. “I just... who wants cold pizza for dinner?”
    “I'm going out,” Cody said. “When I come back, don't talk to me.”

    Cody came back from dinner right at sun down. Even his anger couldn't keep him out when Rawdon was awake. He shoved a black takeout box in the fridge and retired to his room. Gilchrist finished off the cold pizza. He went around the house, closing the blinds and curtains, and then went into the guest room and closed the door behind him.
    “What's going on?” Geneva asked.
    “We torched his lair, but Gilchrist says he probably buried himself for the day. We have to wait and see if he was even in the house.”
    “You what?”
    “Well, Gilchrist did. He fire-bombed it.”
    “Holy crap, Kendall! You killed him?”
    “Maybe. Hopefully.”
    “You kill--”
    “He was a vampire, Geneva. I know you don't believe me, but I saw him lift a 50's jukebox over his head like it was a cardboard prop. He's a vampire. I'm not crazy.”
    I flipped through the channels and found reruns of Law & Order SVU . Geneva and I sat down to watch. I could feel the tension radiating off of her. She wasn't sure if she was supposed to believe me or report me to the police.
    Neither of us had spoken about the conversation she had interrupted with Cody. I was still replaying it in my head. He had called me selfish. At first I had been angry, but then I started considering that maybe he was right and maybe I was the worst person on the face of the planet. Now I was here, putting his life at risk, because I was worried about myself. I hadn't worried about Rawdon hurting Geneva to get to me; could I live with myself if he did that?
    I stood up and walked to the window. The curtains were shut and the light from the TV was the only sign of life in the house. I wondered if Gilchrist thought that it would make the house look abandoned. I parted the curtain and looked out into the cul-de-sac.
    Rawdon was standing in the street, staring directly back at me.
    His cold blue eyes were like silver disks right now, his pupils reduced to pinpricks. It wasn't right. Human eyes would be dilated in the dark. He hadn't bothered to put on his glasses. I closed the curtain and jumped back, yipping in surprise.
    “What?” Geneva asked, not looking away from the mystery Benson and Stabler were solving.
    “Rawdon,” I gasped. “He's here.”
    “Shit.” Geneva clicked off the TV. We were plunged into darkness.
    “The lights!” I shouted. “Lights!”
    Geneva and I knocked into each other in our rush to find a light. She screamed.
    “What's going on?” Gilchrist asked, bursting into the room with a UV curing gun in hand. This one was far more high-tech than the wannabe hairdryer that he had sent me. This light was an oblong black shape with a digital menu screen and buttons on the side. It cast a straight beam, but the light didn't travel far.
    “She saw him,” Geneva said. “He's here.”
    Gilchrist ran to the window and looked out. I peeked over his shoulder. Rawdon was gone.
    “Alright,” he said. “Stay calm. He can't enter the house without permission from the owner. Cody, get in here!”
    Cody came out of the bedroom. He was already wearing pajama pants and had taken out his contacts. He wore reading glasses. “What?”
    “He's here,” I said. “He's outside.”
    “He can't come in unless you invite him in,” Gilchrist said, “But he can hypnotize. Under no circumstances are you to look at him or talk to him. Stay at the center of the house. Stay alert.”
    “He can't come in,” Cody repeated. “Are you sure? He could still torch the place.”
    “Depends if he's fed recently,” Gilchrist said. He walked into the guest bedroom and came out with a crossbow. He must have brought it into the house in one of those black leather bags. “If it's