"I plan to kill Jasper before he can kill again."
"Not exactly legal."
"With Jasper, we have no other choice. And you know it,” Michael said quietly. “You had a taste of what he will be like last night in Monica."
"Then she is a vampire."
There was no disbelief in Jake's quiet statement. Only an edge of fear she could well understand.
"Yes,” Michael answered. “As Jasper is."
"Shit,” Jake muttered and took a gulp coffee. “So how do we kill a vampire? Chase it with a stake and cover it in crosses and garlic?"
Michael smiled, though no humor touched his eyes. “The cross works as a deterrent for vampires only because, historically speaking, they have always been made of the purest silver. The metal can burn vampires that touch it, particularly the newly turned. As for garlic, I suspect it is only a deterrent for those with weak stomachs."
"So what's the proper method of killing vampires?” Jake asked. “And how do you know so much about them?"
"As I've already told Nikki, a stake through the heart and decapitation are the best bet. Exposure to the noonday sun works, too. Either way, you must first find their daytime resting place."
"Why the noonday sun? I thought exposure to any amount of sun would kill?” she said in surprise.
"In most cases, yes.” He paused, and shrugged. His quick look told her he wished this subject had never been brought up. “Age has a lot to do with it. The more years you have behind you, the more tolerant you become to silver and the sun."
"So how old is this Jasper?"
"As near as I can gather, just on ninety-eight years old. Not enough to give him much immunity." And he still looked fifteen, she thought, feeling ill. “Then what about the zombies?"
"Kill their master, and they will die,” he said, voice grim. “It's his life-force keeping them alive."