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"What&039;s your proble like Rush Li on the floor He looked around for a piece of furniture less than two hundred years old to set it on, in vain So he gri onto the pitcher Note to self: Buy coasters "I heard you don&039;t like this place What&039;s your da off each word like she&039;d probably like to bite off Marc&039;s fingers, "I had a daughter once And she was well, she died Here In this house And I don&039;t want to talk about it and I don&039;t want to be here"

She took a step forward and walked into Sinclair&039;s outstretched arm I actually heard my jaw muscles creak as my mouth fell open "You what?" I practically screairl?" Sinclair asked sharply

I shouldered him aside "Is her name Marie? Does she wear headbands to keep her hair out of her eyes? And saddle shoes with anklets? And overalls?"

Sarah burst into tears This wasthan when she yelled at Sinclair "You know about her? How did you know? Who told you? Don&039;t talk to me about her, I don&039;t want you to do that!"

"Sarah, she&039;s buried in my front yard!"

"She&039;s what?" Jessica asked sharply "You&039;re forgetting to share again, dead girl"

"Come on!" I pointed up the stairs "To the vampire bedroom!" I whipped around, whichtoo fast for her to track again "Moht now, okay? We&039;ll talk later, okay? Only this is ied led free "You&039;re e me in front of the other vampires"

I dashed up the stairs

I burst into my bedroom, with entirely too many people hot on my heels "Marie!" I bawled "Marie, coht I&039;d never seen her do it before and let me tell you, it eird At first I didn&039;t think she was in the chair, and then the chair looked a little blue around the edges, and then it was like a faded Marie was sitting there, and then a regular Marie was sitting there

"What?" she asked, looking puzzled Then she looked past e "Mommy!"

I turned; Sarah would need host if-"

She knocked !"

Tina steadied ?" at the same instant I felt her pain; it was all I could do not to snicker, too

Sarah tried to hug Marie, but ended up nearly falling into the chair instead This did not forestall a lecture "Mo!" Marie had her hands on her hips; she was the picture of outraged patience

Sarah backed off and tried to answer, but cried harder instead

"Marie," Sinclair asked, "what did the man who knocked you down look like?"

"Don&039;t ask her about that," Sarah ordered Her voice was still thick, but her , Sinclair wasn&039;t going to cause her kid any pain I really liked her for it I felt bad about all the times I blew her off as an icy weirdo "You don&039;t have to, anyway It was Nostro He killed her And turned hast

"It&039;s complicated," she said, my least favorite word of the week

I heard a snap and looked; Tina had picked up the chair and broken one of the legs off of it "Stop that, the thing&039;s probably worth six figures," I ordered "Well, nohat? Ito move in, so she could be close to Marie? Shit, I hoped not If I let one vampire move in, I&039;d have to let &039;eh Marie&039;s head

"Moo!"

Sarah turned toward ard and still she sobbed "Betsy, my Queen, I need a favor"

"What?"

"Is it-I heard you think we have souls That va with this? I was starting to get a really bad feeling "Yeah, that&039;s true I mean, that&039;s what I think"

"So it is true," Sarah said "Because you&039;re the queen And your will is our will So it says in the Book of the Dead"

That thing again "Okay I ht"

There was a pause, like she was nerving herself to say so If she&039;d been hu breath

"Then I ht now"