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Then I realized that Manuela, the witch who now hated htly across her chest

Great That wouldn’t be distracting at all

"Welcome to the Vampire Trials," Dashiell said simply "As you know, this event is held approximately every three years as a way to solidify the unique arrange us to share power" I noticed he didn’t say share power equally "As is our custo a break in the " I couldn’t see Dashiell’s face, but I could hear the humor in his voice "We will repeat this sah the crowd, as people shifted in their seats and whispered to their neighbors Dashiell held up a hand "I understand that many of you have heard about an incident that took place yesterday evening near the University of Southern California One of our va wo that sink in In the front row, Manuela the witch glared at me with a renewed intensity I barely suppressed the instinct to sluain, it was into a void of dead silence "I can assure you that the vaing and risking exposure I have scheduled her trial for first thing to paranoid, but this one sounded disappointed The croanted blood, and they wanted it now

Dashiell gestured to his left We had built portable wooden steps and set the orchestra pit, so the litigants wouldn’t have to leave the auditoriue area "These stairs will be for the defendant," Dashiell announced He gestured to his right "And these will be for the accuser Let us begin" He nodded to a short, stocky vae behind a podium with its own microphone "Lawrence, please read us the first nahts went up, and Dashiell took his seat between Kirsten and Will Lawrence, one of Dashiell’s most loyal--and most sycophantic--vampires, opened the protective cover of a tablet and tapped at the screen "Werewolf Travis Hochrest has been accused of theft by Witch Adrienne Pough," he called grandly, as though he were announcing the arriving guests at a ball

An ample woman in her forties and a skinny ith a bulbous nose both approached their sides of the stage,their way over to sit in the chairs on either side of ave me a prim nod and took her seat, her hands folded on the table in front of her Travis Hochrest, on the other hand, tried to givetime no see!"

The audience tittered, and I smiled in spite of myself I’d cleaned up more than one minor mess caused by Travis I declined the fist bump, which caused him to plop down in the chair with an injured look A wave of body odor assaulted lad not to have enhanced senses

"Adrienne," Kirsten began, "please tell us what happened between you and Travis" We had agreed in advance that the leader for each party would be the first to address them, and that ould use first names, because most of the vampires only knew each other that way

The witch beside me looked like she wasn’t sure whether to sit or stand Kirsten gave her an encouraging smile as if to say, "Either way" She stayed seated

"I used to have a goat," the witch said abruptly She bit her lip, winced, and started again "That is, until last year I kept a soat in my backyard, for milk, mostly At the Midsummer party, Travis Hochrest said he could susted look crossed her face "Anyway, I believe he followedwhen I went out to feed Shelly--that was her name--she wasshe had been killed" Adrienne’s voice faltered as she got choked up "And there olf prints in the blood"

"Isn’t it possible that a coyote got the goat?" Kirsten asked carefully

Adrienne shook her head "No, rew up in Montana, see, and there are olves there I saw their tracks all the time I knoolf print when I see one" She reached into her cardigan pocket and held up a cell phone "I got pictures of them, too"