Page 105 of You’re So Vein

Hannah pokes her head out from the kitchen. “Me?”

“Yes. I have a birthday surprise for you. I’m sorry it’s late. If your dad is okay with you coming with me?”

“Going with you where?” I ask.

“Into the village.” Komal’s eyes flash as she catches the wariness in my face. “Don’t worry, it’s perfectly safe. Gideon and Arabella are distracting the Conclave with a reception at Sanctus, and all members of the Nevermore Coven are looking out for trouble.”

“You told them—”

“I told them about my lovely human friend Hannah, whose parents are Thralls at Dusk Court, and who has a rare skin condition that means she can’t go out in the sunlight,” Komal says proudly. “And they’re excited to help make her dream come true.”

Hannah turns to me, her face bursting with brightness. “Can we, please?”

I can’t say no to that face. Especially when all the surprises in Hannah’s life are bad ones.

I bundle Hannah into her coat. She skips ahead of us down the path while I lock the door behind me. Komal takes Hannah’s hand, and they skip together. At the gate, Hannah stands on tiptoes to whisper something in Komal’s ear. My chest flutters.

Komal leads us through the winding path on the edge of the woods toward the centre of the village. Halfway there, we pass Alaric, who raises his sword and nods from the gloom. Our sentry.

We leave the woods and cross through the deserted streets. Hannah dawdles, peering into people’s front gardens. “Look at this! Someone has let their rose bushes get all gnarly and tangled. The Gorilla Gardener should fix this up—”

“I don’t think the Gorilla Gardener does private gardens,” I say, meeting Komal’s eyes with a smile.

“But they planted Komal’s dad’s garden, didn’t they?” Hannah looks at me.

“I think that was an exception because of all the work Chirag does for the community. But I wouldn’t know, of course. You know I’m opposed to all public gardening without a permit.”

“Of course he is. That’s why the Gorilla Gardener wants me to be mayor.” Komal tugs Hannah’s hand. “This way. You don’t want to miss your surprise.”

We take a shortcut through the crumbling churchyard, the graves like rows of teeth piercing the moonlit sky, the steeple a sharpened stake upon which my kind have been slaughtered. Looking at the church makes me feel the ghost of Komal’s arms around my waist, the sharp jut of her chin on my shoulder.

I follow Hannah’s laughter until we emerge in the deserted green.

No, not deserted.

The lights are on and the doors are open at Spell The Tea, Zen and Tonic, Glazed and Confused, and a couple of other shops. Twinkling fairy lights have been wrapped around the streetlights (a fire code violation, but I decide it’s not the best time to point that out). Lilac has a table set up outside the bakery, where Celeste stands over trays of baked goods with a curious pink tinge, and there’s even a jazz quartet playing quietly under the pub awning, out of the drizzle. Thirty or so vampires are out shopping, and a few villagers mill around, wary but curious.

Isis stands outside her shop, arms outstretched, wearing a witch’s hat decorated with glow in the dark stars.

“You must be Hannah. I’m Isis, welcome to Argleton’s exclusive late-night shopping experience!” she cries. “Step right up, step right up, we have delights to astound and confound you. And Beth has mushroom brownies, so I’d probably stay away from her.”

“Hey!” Beth yells from the door of her shop. “My brownies are delicious! And I have all-natural makeup and skincare.”

“Yes, but we have spells and smells. And vastly superior snacks!” Isis grabs Hannah’s hand and drags her inside.

I step in after her, still not certain what’s going on. Komal ducks under my arm and hands Hannah a name badge.

“What’s this?” Hannah frowns at it.

“It’s for you. You’re going to need it when you serve tonight’s customers.”

I pin it to her chest. Komal has doodled a little bat in the corner. The tag says, “Hi, my name is Hannah and I’m here to help.”

“I heard that your dream is to own a shop one day, so you’ll need to learn the ropes,” Komal says. “My friends Isis and Dora are expecting lots of shoppers tonight, vampire and human, so I thought you might like to be their assistant for the evening.”

Hannah’s eyes are as wide as saucers. “Really?”

“Yes, really.” Dora smiles from behind the counter. “As a worker, we’ll be paying you a fair wage, of course. And you get a store discount if you want to purchase anything. And Augustin will be right here to protect you, as I know he’s your friend. But first, would you like to come back here and help me fill these hex bags?”