Together, they wandered through the mall, passing kiosks and shops on every side. Just as Olivia had hoped, none of the VITs paid them any attention. After all, why would they? She smiled smugly as she glanced at her sister’s sweatpants and sporty T-shirt. There was nothing about Ivy to draw anyone’s attention . . .
. . . until they passed a cookie stand in the food court that wafted the scent of fresh, delicious cookies through the air.
‘Bleagh !’ Ivy dry-heaved and retched so loudly that heads turned all around them.
‘Hey!’ The owner of the cookie stand looked hurt – and worried too, as he glanced at all the people watching. ‘What’s wrong with the smell of my cookies?’
‘Nothing,’ Ivy croaked. ‘I just – bleagh !’ She covered her mouth and nose.
Oh no, Olivia thought. This is exactly the kind of attention Ivy doesn’t need to attract ! Sure, some of their watchers were ordinary Franklin Grove locals, but others were definitely VITs . . . and they were watching the twins with narrowed eyes. Why would a normal teenage girl retch at the aroma of sugar? Olivia wasn’t sure herself – Ivy didn’t usually have a problem with sweet snacks. She knew what everyone must be thinking as they stared at Ivy. Maybe this normal teenage girl isn’t so normal . . . We have to get out of here – fast.
Olivia wrapped her arm around Ivy, even though she had no idea what was causing her twin’s reaction. ‘I’m sure it’s not your cookies,’ she reassured the stand owner, as she started to steer Ivy away. ‘They smell delicious. Now we’ll just get out of your way and –’
‘They don’t smell delicious, they are delicious.’ The cookie maker glared at Ivy. ‘Here, try one! Take it!’ He scooped out a cookie and waved it at her. ‘Just eat one of my cookies and then tell me how the smell could make you sick!’
‘I can’t – sorry, I – bleagh !’ As Ivy broke off to dry-heave, Olivia led her away from the stand owner, who still held his cookie aloft, yelling after them that they should really try one. She could feel the suspicious stares of the VITs following them all the way through the food court.
One VIT even stood up as they passed his table, waving a strange, ropy necklace at them in a motion that almost looked threatening. ‘Hey! Is something making you ill?’
Olivia glared at him. Did he have to sound so hopeful? And why was he waving his jewellery at them? She didn’t have time to stop and look closely at his strange necklace, not with Ivy bent over, green-faced and looking ready to throw up at any moment. ‘We’re fine!’ she snapped. ‘We just need a bit of privacy.’
She had never been so relieved to leave the food court in her life. As soon as they were well out of range, she pulled her twin into a hidden alcove between two stores.
‘What’s wrong? Those cookies smelled amazing.’
‘It wasn’t the cookies.’ Gasping for breath, Ivy shook her head. ‘It’s garlic. I can smell garlic everywhere !’
‘Really?’ Frowning, Olivia peeped out from their alcove . . . and sucked in a breath as she suddenly understood.
All the VITs walking past were wearing long coats and jackets – long enough for hiding things inside . . . and, as the two closest VITs walked past, Olivia could see crudely made chains of garlic wrapped around their necks.
That was what had been on the other VIT’s necklace: garlic! That must be why the VITs were here today: to root out vampires, using garlic like a dowsing rod. Oh no ! Olivia paled as she finally made the connection. That was why the VIT in the food court had waved his necklace right at Ivy – and why he’d sounded so hopeful when he’d asked if she was ill.
And now they’ll all know that it worked.
Suddenly, Olivia felt ill too. The mall was full of garlic-carrying vampire hunters, who’d already managed to target her twin sister . . .
. . . and the vampires of Franklin Grove were in even more danger than she’d realised.
Chapter Six
It took another few minutes before Ivy started to get her breath back. As soon as she did, though, she said: ‘We have to stay in the mall.’
Olivia stared at her. ‘Are you crazy? This place is full of garlic. Those VITs already saw you get ill from the smell –’
‘And that’s exactly why I can’t run away.’ Ivy squared her shoulders. ‘If I leave now, it’ll prove to them that they were right. I have to stay and act normal, so they’ll think that they just made a mistake.’
‘But how can you?’ Olivia shook her head. ‘With all this garlic –’
‘Come on,’ Ivy said. She grinned ruefully. ‘Just this once, you can drag me to the perfume counters. By the time I let those saleswomen spritz me with all their stinky samples, I won’t be able to smell a thing.’
‘If you’re sure . . .’ Biting her lip, Olivia stepped out of the alcove, heading with Ivy towards the closest department store. When they passed a crowd of VITs with their coats open over their garlic necklaces, she gave Ivy’s arm a supportive squeeze. Ivy smiled as though everything was normal, and the VITs looked away, disappointed.
Olivia had never been so proud of her twin before. Ivy really is the strongest person I know.
She was so proud, she barely even let herself smile at the sight of Ivy grimacing as she allowed herself to be sprayed with samples of almost every perfume the department store had in stock. By the time the store assistants were finished, even Olivia’s nose was feeling numb!
But it was worth it. When they passed another crowd of VITs on their way out of the department store, Ivy sailed past them without a twinge. ‘It should not just be vamps that hate garlic,’ Ivy mumbled. ‘How can anyone actually enjoy something that smells like that ?’