"What, honey?"
"I was just wondering?" I said, twisting my purse strap. "Do you..."
"What is it, dear? Sit down." She grabbed Janice's chair and wheeled it next to hers.
"About today...I know this sounds crazy, but do you...well...do you believe in...vampires?" "Do I?" She laughed, fingering her crystal necklace. "I believe in a lot of things, honey."
"But do you believe in vampires?"
"No!"
"Oh." I tried not to show my disappointment.
"But what do I know?" she chuckled. "My sister, Kate, swears she saw the ghost of an old farmer in a cornfield when we were kids. And I dated this guy who saw something silver shoot straight up in the sky, and my best friend, Evelyn, swears numerology helped her find a husband, and my chiropractor heals people by putting magnets on their joints. What's fantasy for some is reality for others."
I hung on her every word.
"So do I believe in vampires?" she continued. "No. But I also didn't believe Rock Hudson was gay. So what do I know?" She smiled a sparkling white smile.
I laughed as I walked to the door.
"Raven?"
"Yes?"
"What do you believe in?"
"I believe in--finding out!"
Chapter 11 Mission Improbable
"I'm on a mission!" I screamed to Becky, who was already waiting on the swings in Evans Park. I had told her to meet me at seven P.M. "You'll never believe what's happening!"
"You have another pair of Trevor's underwear?"
"Trevor who? No, this is way beyond him! Way beyond the city limits. This is totally out of this world!"
"What gives?"
"I have all the dirt on the Mansion family!"
"Oh, the vampires?"
"You know?"
"It's all over town. Some say it's the way they dress. Some say they're just weird. Mr. Mitchell told my father they must be inhuman since they ate at Georgio's and held the garlic."
"But that's the Mitchells. Still, I may have to add that to my journal. Every bit of info is crucial!"
"Is this why we're meeting?"
"Becky, do you...believe in vampires?"
"No."
"No?"
"No!"