"Can you help her?" Honey asked, reaching for her sister's hand.
Evangelina studied Maisie with those penetrating eyes that had witnessed the rise and fall of many dark creatures. "I need to perform a full magical assessment. Detective O'Reilly, Ms. Hadwin, if you could wait outside? This requires focus and privacy."
Roam looked reluctant, but Honey nodded. "We'll be right outside if you need us," she told Maisie, squeezing her hand before they left.
Sister, Sister (Finally!)
In the waiting room, Honey paced nervously while Roam stood by the window, keeping watch on the street below.
"The town's going crazy," he observed. "Half of them preparing for a vampire apocalypse, the other half insisting it's all nonsense."
"Marty Tuey," Honey said with distaste. "Always trying to prove he's above 'old-fashioned' magic."
"And Tandy Keyes has been oddly visible today," Roam added. "I've seen her talking to just about everyone in town."
"Probably sees a business opportunity in the chaos," Honey said. "She's been desperate for sales."
The doorknob rattled, and Tiffany looked up from her nails. "Um, there's like, a ton of people outside. They all want consultations or protection amulets or something. Ms. Coal already said she won't be able to see anyone else today after your sister."
Roam peered out the window again. Sure enough, a line had formed outside the building, stretching halfway down the block.
"This is getting out of hand," he muttered.
The inner office door opened, and Evangelina emerged, looking troubled. Maisie followed, her expression dazed, with Bartie hovering protectively near her ear.
"Well?" Honey asked anxiously.
Evangelina glanced at the growing crowd outside her window and beckoned them all back into her private office, lowering her voice. "Your sister has indeed been in contact with vampires. There are magical traces consistent with their presence---" she paused, looking puzzled, "---but they're oddly... cosmetic."
"Cosmetic?" Roam asked.
"Yes. I found extensive traces of what appears to be a magical aerosol spray. When exposed to my diagnostic spells, it turned bright orange." Two centuries of studying dark creatures had taught her to read the subtlest signs of supernatural influence.
Maisie nodded, suddenly remembering. "The spray! They would douse me with it daily. Ronald's 'Vampire Essence Number Five'---he made it himself. Said it would mark me as his property."
"It's essentially supernatural hairspray," Evangelina continued, fighting back a smile. "With about as much actual power. Though it does create a traceable signature that vampires can follow."
"Like a really persistent perfume," Bartie added. "Quite nauseating, actually. Smells like rotting oranges mixed with excessive masculinity."
"What about the blood moon? The attack?" Honey pressed.
Evangelina's expression grew more serious. She moved to a tall bookshelf and pulled down an ancient leather-bound tome, its covers worn smooth by centuries of handling. She placed it on her desk, opening to a page with medieval illustrations of vampires performing rituals beneath a crimson moon.
"Blood moons aren't just pretty light shows," she explained, her voice taking on the measured cadence of a lecturer. "Theycreate a unique arcane window---a period when the barriers between certain magical states become temporarily permeable."
She turned the page to reveal intricate diagrams of astronomical alignments. "For vampires specifically, a blood moon amplifies their natural abilities and weakens their traditional vulnerabilities. During a blood moon, they're stronger, faster, and more resistant to silver, garlic, and religious symbols all of which weaken them. Only a silver stake to the heart will actually kill them, or you must remove their heads with your bare hands.”
"That’s intensely scary stuff. Is that why Ronald is waiting for the blood moon?" Honey asked, studying the illustrations with growing concern.
"Partly," Evangelina confirmed. "But more critically, blood moons enable permanent territorial claims." Her finger traced a complex runic circle on the page. "Magical creatures have been using blood moons for territorial rituals for millennia. Werewolf packs, fairy courts, and yes, vampire covens---they all recognize the power of a blood moon for establishing claims that will endure beyond the celestial event itself."
"So, if Ronald completes his ritual during the blood moon," Roam said slowly, "the vampire claim on Cauldron Falls wouldn't end when the blood moon passed."
"Precisely," Evangelina nodded gravely. "It would become permanent. And that's why the timing is so crucial. The exact moment when the blood moon reaches its apex---that's when the magical influence is strongest."
Maisie visibly trembled. "That's exactly what Ronald kept talking about. He was obsessed with the cresting of the moon."
"Combined with the falls' magical water," Evangelina continued, closing the book with a gentle thud, "Ronald could create a permanent vampire sanctuary that would be nearly impossible to dismantle once established. The water wouldamplify the blood moon's effects, potentially allowing vampires to overcome their natural limitations indefinitely."
