While Aunt Libby gathered her belongings for the theater and the sun made its final descent, I sat cross-legged on her futon and made notes in my journal.

My investigation was almost complete. In only a few hours, I would be reunited with Alexander. Once he understood I loved him no matter who or what he was, we could go back to Dullsville and we'd be able to be together.

Then I wondered what exactly that would mean. Would he want me to be like him in every way I could? And if faced with the choice, would I really want to choose the lifestyle I'd always dreamed of?

To quiet my mind, I made more notes:

Positives of Being a Vampire

1. Save on electric bills.

2. Could always sleep in late--very late.

3. Wouldn't have to worry about keeping a low-carb diet. "Are you sure you want to stay alone?" Aunt Libby asked, holding her makeup bag.

"I am sixteen."

"Your parents let you stay by yourself?"

"I could have been babysitting at twelve, if anyone in Dullsville would have hired me."

"Well, there's plenty of food in the fridge," she offered, heading for the door. "I'll call at intermission to check in."

Aunt Libby may have been laid back when it came to her own lifestyle, but when I was under her roof she was just like my dad. I guess she would have been like my father and left her hippie days behind if she had had kids, too.

I quickly changed into my Hot Gothics fashion merch--black- and-white-striped tights and a torn black minidress revealing a blood- red chemise. I applied my standard black lipstick and dark eye shadow. I barely had enough time to put a red rose body tattoo on my neck.

I checked to make sure the container of garlic was tightly sealed, as I didn't want to expose Alexander to the two-inch weapon I'd use to ward off any lurking vampires. I must have brushed my hair and rearranged my red extensions a million times before I rushed out the door and waited at the bus stop for the number seven.

With every passing number eleven or sixteen, I paced the bus stop. I was considering returning to my aunt's apartment and calling a cab when I saw the number seven turn onto the street and slowly lumber toward me. Anxiously, I boarded the crowded bus, a mixture of granola heads and urbanites, slipped my cash into the change receptacle, and grabbed the slippery aluminum pole. I held on to the pole for dear life, trying to keep my balance and avoid bumping into the other passengers as the bus jolted with every acceleration. As soon as the number seven lurched forward and reached the speed limit, it began to slow down again, stopping at every bus stop in town. I checked my watch. It would have been quicker if I'd walked.

After letting off a few dozen passengers and picking up a few more, the bus driver turned the corner and passed my destination-- Lennox Hill Road.

I ran toward the front of the bus.

"You passed Lennox Hill Road!" I called in a panic as the bus driver continued accelerating.

"There is no bus stop there," he said to me, looking in his rearview mirror.

"But that's my destination," I argued.

"I only stop at bus stops," he recited, continuing to drive.

"If it's a dollar fifty to get on the bus, how much is it to get off?"

I heard a few of the passengers laugh behind me.

"Pull the cord," the woman said, pointing to a white wire that ran above the bus windows.

I reached across her and pulled the wire hard.

A few seconds later, the bus driver slowed down and pulled over.

"See that?" he asked, pointing to a square sign on a pole with the number seven next to the curb. "That's a bus stop."

I gave him a dirty look and jumped off the bus, dodging an elderly couple trying to board. I ran down the road the bus had just driven up until I reached Lennox Hill Road. I turned the corner and walked past gigantic pristine estates with lush green lawns and purple and yellow flowers until I found an unkempt, overgrown weed-filled lawn. A decaying house sat on it at the end of a cold and ominous cul- de-sac. It looked as if a storm cloud were hovering over it. I had finally arrived at the stately gothic manor house.

Gargoyles sat on top of the jagged wrought-iron gates. Untamed bushes lined the front of the manor. The dead grass crunched beneath my boots. A broken birdbath sat in the center of the lawn. Moss and ivy grew on the roof like a gothic Chia Pet. I skipped along a fractured rock path, which led to an arched wooden front door.

I grabbed the dragon-shaped knocker, and it came off the door and fell into my hand. Embarrassed, I quickly hid the knocker underneath a bush.

I rapped the door again. I wondered if Alexander was standing on the other side, ready to greet me with a colossal kiss. But there was no answer. I banged my fist against the door until my hand began to throb.

I turned the rusty handle and tried to push against the wooden entrance, but it was locked.

I snuck behind the dead bushes alongside the front of the manor. The windows were boarded up, but I spotted a slender crack. The ceilings in the manor house were so high, I was surprised that there were no clouds wafting through the rafters--plenty of room for a ghost to fly around in without even being noticed. From what I could see, the walls in the living room were as bare as the room itself.

Frustrated, I walked around to the side of the manor house and discovered a butler's entrance. I twisted the iron knob on the skinny oak door, but that, too, was bolted shut.

My heart pulsing hard, I ran to the back of the house. A few broken steps led down to a lone dingy window. It wasn't boarded up, so I eagerly pressed my face to the glass.

Nothing unusual. I saw a few cardboard boxes, a dusty tool rack, and an old sewing machine. I tried to open the window, but it was stuck. I ran back up the broken steps and stood on the lawn.

"Hello?" I called. "Jameson? Alexander?"

But my words were answered only by the barking of a neighbor's dog.

I stared up at a single attic window. A tree starved of leaves leaned toward the manor house, one of its branches reaching out just below the window. The huge oak must have been centuries old--its trunk was as wide as a house, and its roots clutched the ground like a spider's legs. I was used to climbing, whether it was over the Mansion's wrought-iron gate or up apple trees in Becky's backyard. But scaling this tree seemed like ascending Mt. Everest in the dark. Clad in combat boots and a minidress, I stuck my heel onto the lowest branch and pulled myself up. I continued to climb at a steady rate, slowing down only to catch my breath or when I needed to feel above me for a limb hiding away from the moonlight. Weary but determined, I scooted along a heavy branch stretching underneath the attic window.

A dark curtain hid most of the room from view, but I managed to peek inside. I could make out an empty box and a wooden chair. Then, I saw the most amazing sight staring back at me-- resting in the corner was the portrait Alexander had painted of me dressed for the Snow Ball. A pumpkin basket hung over one arm. A two- dimensional Raven grinned, flashing fake vampire teeth.

"Alexander!" I called. I tried to tap against the window, but my fingers were just out of reach.

"Alexander!" I called again.

I could hear the dog's bark getting louder.

"Alexander! Jameson!" I yelled with all my might.

Just then, the next-door neighbor opened his back door and stepped onto his deck. He was built like a professional wrestler. "Hey! You kids back again?" he called over.

"What's going on, Hal?" a petite woman asked, following him out of the house.

"I told you, kids are playing in that house next door," he said to her. "I'm calling the police!" he yelled, and pulled out a cell phone from his back pocket.

I scurried down the tree, wanting to avoid being placed in a full nelson or, worse, handcuffs. Plus, I didn't want law enforcement to arrest Alexander and Jameson or force them to find another home-- and this time it might be Romania.

When I reached the bottom branch, I saw, out of the corner of my eye, a rustling of the dark curtain in the attic window.

I quickly stepped back to get a better view.

But the curtain was still.

Suddenly, a chocolate-colored Doberman pinscher sprinted out of the neighbor's house, down the deck stairs, and scratched against the brown picket fence that ran parallel to the manor house.

Afraid the dog would wriggle his way through the skinny spaces between the boards and devour me like Kibbles 'n Bits, I took off around the other side of the manor and tore down the road to the bus stop.

I boarded the westbound number seven, taking a seat in the back behind a college-aged couple. I was excited to find that Alexander was indeed in Hipsterville. I imagined that he was painting portraits in a spooky cemetery. Searching a haunted mansion for furniture to decorate his attic room. Or maybe he was out for a night flight.

I was still confused why Alexander had come to Hipsterville. It was a small town with eerie abandoned manors, and with enough goths and artists to be hidden among. What else did it offer a lone vampire?

The couple seated in front of me began making out, oblivious to the other staring passengers.

I saw their reflections in the bus window. I wondered if they knew how lucky they were. Two humans who could share their nights and days together. Take pictures. Sit in the sun. Then I realized those were just small sacrifices I'd make to be with Alexander again.

The bus approached the Village Players Theater, and I disembarked with several other passengers. I walked alone down the alley toward the back entrance of the theater, conjuring excuses I could tell Aunt Libby and my parents so I could stake out the manor house for the next few nights until I made contact with Alexander. I saw a figure lurking behind the Dumpster.

"I hoped to find you here," a deep voice said, stepping out to block my way.

I froze. It was Jagger. I held my purse close; inside was my Mace and, possibly more important, my container of garlic.

"I have information that may be of interest to you."

"Information?" I asked skeptically.

"About Sterling," he said, with a knowing glance. "Isn't that who you are looking for?"

Shocked, I inched back. I knew where Alexander was staying, but I didn't know where he was. The promise of any new leads on Alexander's whereabouts made my heart pulse in overtime. Plus, my curiosity about Jagger's identity still lingered. I had to know how he knew Alexander.

"I can help you. I've known him for an eternity," he said with a grin. I glanced back at the Village Players Theater. If I went back inside, I was guaranteed to have a safe night with real unreal vampires. Or I could just wait for Alexander outside the manor house--unless he and Jameson spotted me and left for another town. Then I was guaranteed to never see my Gothic Mate again.

"You better tell me everything you know," I said, clutching my purse to my side. "Otherwise--"

"You are free to go whenever you like," he reassured me.

I stood still as Jagger began walking down the alley. Curiosity eating away at me, I decided to catch up to him. I followed Jagger down the street and toward a back entrance to the Coffin Club.

He led me into the warehouse and down a darkened hallway to an empty freight elevator. The rickety door shrieked out in pain when he shut it. Instead of pushing the button for the Coffin Club, he pressed the "B" button.

The elevator slowly lowered to the basement, screeching as if it were a coffin descending into hell.

"I thought we were going to the Coffin Club."

The elevator stopped. Jagger opened the door and held it for me as I stepped into a corridor.

He followed behind me so closely I could feel his warm breath on the back of my neck. We walked down the narrow hallway, the walls adorned with graffiti and the cement floor cluttered with discarded chairs and boxes. The dance floor music pulsed above. When we reached what looked like a wide storage-room door, I could hear the elevator slowly grind its way back up to mortal level. Jagger lifted the metal-gray door above our heads to reveal a windowless apartment.

I stepped inside.

"Welcome to my dungeon," he said. Dozens of medieval candelabras filled the spacious apartment.

And then I saw it. In the far corner lay an open coffin, adorned with gothic band stickers like a mortal teen's skateboard. Dirt encircled the coffin like a walled city.

My eyes grew wide. "So you are...," I began, but could barely speak.

"Oh, the coffin," he said. "Cool, huh? I got it at a vintage store."

"And the dirt?"

"Saw it in a vampire mag. Creepy, huh?"

I didn't know what to think. Even Alexander slept on a mattress.

"It's really comfortable. Want to give it a try?" he asked with sexy eyes.

"I'm not tired."

"You don't have to be."

Jagger confused me. I couldn't figure out if he was a vulpine vampire or just a goth-obsessed teen like me.

I looked around for any other unusual clues--but everything was unusual. Maps were spread out on the floor. The cement walls were decorated with gravestone etchings.

Next to the radiator an aquarium, without water, was filled with rocks.

His kitchen counter and sink looked as if they had remained untouched. Metal cabinets were missing their doors. I was afraid to think what was in the refrigerator--or, rather, who.

"You are the first girl I've ever brought down here," Jagger confessed. "I'm surprised. You must meet a lot of girls at the Coffin Club."

"Actually, I'm new to town. Just like you. Visiting."

The hairs on the back of my neck rose. "How do you know I'm visiting?"

"It doesn't take a psychic to figure it out. Someone as goth as you would be a regular at the club. Romeo had never seen you before."

"Uh...I guess you're right."

"Can I get you anything to drink?"

"No, thank you," I replied. "I want to know--"

Jagger walked over to the aquarium. He placed his hand inside and pulled out a huge tarantula.

"I just bought him. Would you like to pet him?" he asked, stroking the potentially poisonous spider as if it were a sleeping cat.

Normally I would have loved to pet a tarantula, but I wasn't sure of Jagger's motive.

"Where's your big-screen TV?" I asked, noticing the lack of televisions or computers.

"I find them offensive."

"So you don't watch movies? You've never even seen the original Dracula?" I hinted. "Nosferatu? Kissing Coffins? Someone as goth as you would seem to have the lines memorized."

"I would rather experience life than be a voyeur."

He returned the spider to the aquarium. I dug my hand into my purse. "You left this behind," I said, and revealed the skeleton earring in my hand. He smiled brightly as if I were reuniting him with a long- lost friend.

As he took the charm from my hand, his fingers lingered, gently touching my palm, sending chills through my veins. It took some strength, but I withdrew.

"Now that this has been in your possession, it is even more special to me," he said, placing it back in his ear. "Can I give you a reward?" he asked.

"You can tell me about Alexander."

"Shall I tell you? Or should I just show you," he asked, stepping toward me.

"Tell me," I said, defiant. "Is he a friend of yours?"

"Maybe yes," he said with an inviting smile. "Maybe no," he said with a wicked grin.

"Forget it, I'm outta here."

"I know him from Romania," he said quickly.

"Have you seen him in America?"

He shook his head, his white hair flopping over his blue and green eyes.

"Do you know where he is?" I asked.

"What if I do? How much is it worth?" he asked, licking his lips.

"You don't know, do you?" I challenged. I backed away from him, stepping on a map.

"But you know quite a lot," he argued.

I pulled my purse close. "You knew enough about my Romanian friend to come to the Coffin Club and ask for him," he said, approaching me again.

"I don't know anything--"

"Then why do you want to find him?" he whispered softly in my ear as he gently stroked my hair off my shoulder.

"I must have been mistaken--" I said, looking away from his gaze, wanting to run, but not being able to move.

"Really?" he whispered. "He made you feel like his breath was yours," he said, circling me, his words landing softly on the back of my neck.

"I don't know what you are talking about," I lied, my heart pounding in my chest.

"That your flesh and his are one," he said, as his lips gently caressed the nape of my neck.

I could barely speak, my heart racing, the map crinkling underneath my boot.

He stepped close in front of me, his eyes piercing through my own, and gently touched my onyx necklace.

He leaned into me and kissed the top of my chest. He whispered, "That you are just a kiss away from being bonded with him for eternity."

I could barely breathe. My heart raced as he held me.

"Get off!" I cried, wedging my arms between us and pushing him away.

A map tore underneath my boot. Jagger tried to pierce me with his gaze, but I stared down at my feet. It was a map of Hipsterville. The cemeteries were highlighted in yellow, with several crossed out in black marker. Then I noticed, lying a few feet away on the floor, the other maps--neighboring towns of Hipsterville and Dullsville. Cemeteries were highlighted and crossed out in black.

I glanced up at Jagger as he tried to lock his blue and green eyes with mine. He gently grabbed my hand like he'd done in the Coffin Club. "We can find him together," I recalled him saying. Then I remembered the note I'd found in Alexander's room--"HE IS ON HIS WAY!"

I backed away from Jagger and reached into my purse. It was worth a shot. My fingers shook as I tried to pry open the container of garlic.

The container's suction was like Super Glue. I struggled with the lid when Jagger stepped toward me.

I raced out the door and ran down the hallway. I pressed the elevator button and glanced back. Jagger stepped through his doorway and began running down the hall after me. I could hear the screeching elevator above me, but it was nowhere to be found. I looked up. The number "3" lit up; "2" lit up. "G" lit.

"Hurry! Hurry!" I mumbled, pressing the button repeatedly.

I could hear Jagger coming closer. Suddenly the "B" lit up, and the elevator stopped in front of me. I pulled the rickety door to one side and jumped in. I used all my strength to pull the accordion door shut just as an angry Jagger stepped in front of the elevator.

I darted back, away from the door, as his gaze caught me. He reached out for the door, realizing I hadn't yet pushed a button. I quickly pressed my finger against the "G" button.

As the elevator began to lift, I leaned against the wall, away from him. "I hope you find him," I heard Jagger call. "Before I do." "What are you doing here?" Aunt Libby asked when she found me peeking underneath the shades in her dressing room after curtain call. "I called you at intermission, but you didn't pick up."

"I must have been in the shower," I rambled. "But I wanted to see you."

"You did? That's so cute!" she said, wiping off her makeup.

"I'm having such a fabulous time. But I have something to tell you."

"Yes?"

"I have to go back home tomorrow."

"So soon?" she asked, putting down her makeup sponge.

"I know," I whined. "I don't want to leave, but I still have tons of homework to do."

"When I was in school, spring break was just that--a break."

"And I'll need to leave early. Before sunset."

"Still afraid of the vampires?" she teased.

The truth was, I wasn't sure--I didn't know who or what Jagger was. The one thing I was sure of was that he was following Alexander.

It was just moments ago that I had barely escaped Jagger's lair. If I attempted to find out Jagger's reason for his search, I might be putting myself--and, more important, Alexander--in danger.

Now that Jagger was following me--outside the theater yesterday and waiting for me in the alley tonight--I knew if I returned to the manor house, or anywhere I thought I might find Alexander, I would lead Jagger right to him. Although it broke my heart, I had no choice. I would have to leave Hipsterville.