By

Mary

 

 

Diana Lynch and Mart Belden were the first couple in Sleepyside to mysteriously vanish.

The community was rocked by the disappearance of the well known lovebirds, and there was talk of little else at the various dinner tables throughout the normally quiet and small community.

The Belden’s dinner table was no exception.

"It’s awfully mysterious for them to just disappear like that," Trixie Belden commented, stuffing a roll into her mouth.

Her mother frowned at the messy teenager. "Well, yes I suppose it is dear, but must you cram your food like that?"

Trixie carefully swallowed and wiped her mouth guiltily. "Sorry Moms."

Her mother beamed her approval. "That’s better, sweetie."

Trixie’s oldest brother Brian scooped more mashed potatoes out on his plate, noting with secret approval that with Mart gone, there was plenty for everyone. "I guess we shouldn’t have had that birthday party," he commented, taking a reserved bite.

Mart and Diana had wandered off from Brian’s birthday party to make out. After a notable absence, Mr. and Mrs. Belden had sent their good friend Jim Frayne to find them, but he was unsuccessful. One week had gone by with not a single clue.

Mr. Belden frowned at his eldest son. "Don’t say that, Brian. If anyone deserved that party, it’s you son." Privately, he was simultaneously relieved that it was Mart rather than Brian, and disappointed that it wasn’t his youngest son Bobby. Bobby was a bit of a pain at times.

Trixie could take no more. "But doesn’t anybody think it’s mysterious?" she wailed.

The Belden family looked at her indulgently. "Yes, it is at that," her father finally chuckled. "People don’t generally vanish in thin air. They probably eloped and are at this very second…" he broke off, suddenly aware that Bobby and Trixie were looking at him with unabashed interest. "Well, let’s just say they aren’t very concerned that people are wondering about them." He neatly patted his mouth with his napkin and rose. "Another fine dinner, Helen. I’m going into the living room to read the financial section and wonder again why I have rich friends who could advise me, and yet choose to live a life that could almost be called poverty level."

Brian rose too. "I promised Honey I’d help her study for her Algebra test," he said with a sly smirk that fooled nobody. The family knew that it wasn’t exactly help that he hoped to give the beautiful Wheeler daughter!

"Have fun, dear," his mother said. Then almost as an afterthought, she added, "And be careful walking over there. You just never know."

"Don’t go, Brian!" Bobby suddenly wailed through a mouthful of pot roast. He whimpered as the roll that Trixie threw at him hit him squarely on the nose.

Trixie gazed into her plate and wondered. Mart was only 15 and Diana 14. Neither one of them even had a driver’s license, so how could they elope? It’s happened at last. Having all us kids has finally caused Moms and Dad to have a complete brain meltdown. They aren’t even worried! She smiled a little. She wasn’t very worried either. It was nice not having to endure Mart’s constant insults or see Diana preening on the bus every morning in her newest lavender outfit that brought out the color in her eyes.

Still though, it was terribly mysterious. And if there was anything that proved irresistible to her, it was an unsolved mystery. Trixie’s blue eyes brightened as she began to clear the table. A bona fide mystery was taking place right in town, and she wasn’t about to miss a thing.

* * *

The next morning, Trixie found herself alone on the bus with Dan Mangan, an orphan who was now living with Mr. Maypenny, the Wheeler’s gamekeeper, even though the Wheeler’s groom was his uncle and should be ashamed letting Dan live in a cabin in the middle of nowhere.

"Where is everyone?" Trixie wondered, taking a seat next to him.

Dan sighed. "Jim drove himself in—something about a project he needs to work on. And Honey, well, she’s vanished."

Trixie started. Brian hadn’t come home last night. "Brian’s vanished too!" she said.

"Really?" Dan yawned. It was too bad about Honey, actually. She looked real good in yellow.

Trixie grabbed his arm excitedly. "Yes! Oh Dan, don’t you see? There’s a pattern emerging! Couples are disappearing from Sleepyside!"

Dan became interested in spite of himself. It beat thinking about all the wood he had to chop. "Yeah, you’re right, Trix! It can’t be a coincidence."

Trixie drew herself up importantly. "We need to have an emergency meeting of the Bob Whites at lunch today. Even though it will just be the three of us." Trixie’s cheeks stained a faint shade of pink as she realized that she was finally going to be alone with the two best looking boys at Sleepyside Junior Senior High.

The bus pulled up to the stone buildings and stopped with a screech and hiss of brakes. "Get off ya maggots!" the bus driver yelled.

"I’ll see you later," Trixie promised as she and Dan went their separate ways.

* * *

"Trixie, I know you’re my special girl and I’m supposed to believe every word you say, but I have to point out that your couple theory is just, well, dumb." Jim took a large bite of his sandwich.

Trixie’s mouth dropped open. "But Jim! Mart and Diana are a couple, and so are Brian and Honey! Everybody knows that."

Dan whistled. "Do you think I should break things off with Ruthie Kettner?"

Trixie nodded grimly. "It might not be a bad idea." At least Dan isn’t scoffing at my theory. And that bad-boy-gone-good thing he’s got going on is a big turn on, I have to admit!

Jim laughed. "Oh come on! I thought you were enjoying your time with her. Are you honestly going to break up with her over a theory?"

Dan looked pained. "Well, it is true that I lucked out finding a girl in this town who likes to dress wild and attend midnight beer blasts with me. But if I vanish, Regan’ll kill me for leaving all that unfinished work."

"Better to be safe than sorry," Trixie put in, finishing up her tuna fish sandwich.

"Still though, there is this one leather number she likes to put on…"

Jim stood abruptly, his face starting to redden. "I’d better go—I have a lot to do." He looked at Trixie for a moment, his green gaze so intense that she felt a shiver go through her. "I’ll see you later."

Trixie watched him go for a moment, feeling warm as she realized that he had no doubt been imagining her dressed in leather. Am I ever going to get anything other than fond looks?

"Trixie?" Dan repeated. "What do you think we should do next?"

Trixie crumpled up her trash. "There’s only one thing we can do. You have to chop a ton of wood after school and miss out completely. I must ride into the dark preserve alone and see if I can dig up any clues, foolishly putting myself in peril."

Dan sighed. "You’re right as usual, Trix. But don’t forget, first I have to tempt fate and have one last make out session with Ruthie Kettner before breaking up with her."

Trixie grinned. "Well, of course!"

* * *

Regan stood over Trixie glaring, his large, freckled hands on his hips. "You want to take Susie out all by yourself?"

Trixie gulped at his expression. "Yes," she said meekly.

Regan shrugged. "Whatever. I just needed to get in my airtime." He walked back to his little office at the end of the immaculate stables and turned up his country music, sitting at his desk and putting booted feet on his desk. Why do any work when you have a bunch of teenagers to force into slave labor?

Trixie galloped off down one of the many trails that led into the twisting labyrinth of the preserve. With any luck, she’d get lost and end up in a part she was completely unfamiliar with.

Several hours later, she got her wish. She shivered and dropped Susie down into a walk, the trees growing so close together that she could barely make her way through. How am I ever going to find my way back out? she hopelessly wondered.

A bat swooped overhead and she let out a squeal. Susie panicked at the sound and shot forward, the low hanging branches almost unseating her rider.

"Whoa, Susie!" Trixie called out hopelessly. Luckily, the little mare was soon over her fright and dropped back into a walk.

"There, there," Trixie crooned, patting the little black mare’s neck. "It’s all…" she broke off, her eyes widening in surprise. She was coming into a clearer section now, and even though it was so dark she could barely see, there was no mistaking the dark shape looming in the distance. Suddenly, the moon came out from behind the clouds and she could see the object for what it was.

Trixie dismounted and wrapped Susie’s reins around a tree. She hugged herself as goose bumps formed, drinking in the sight of the dilapidated shack that mysteriously appeared before her. She knew that anytime a new building was discovered in the preserve, it always meant some kind of adventure!

She crept towards it, her heart pounding. She reached the peeling front door at last and slowly opened it a crack, peering inside. But she couldn’t make anything out in the complete and total darkness.

She cautiously opened the door wider, the moonlight spilling through the doorway.

"Mart!" she gasped, catching sight of her almost twin brother. "Diana!" Her gaze took in the coffins neatly lined up along the back wall, and she wondered with a shiver what they were doing there, and who, if anybody, was in them.

The pair seemed to float towards her, holding hands. Trixie’s heart sped up as their white faces came nearer. "You guys look terrible," she said weakly.

They smiled, showing long, sharp fangs. "Your appearance, as usual, indicates your usual disregard for current fashion attire," Mart said, using the largest words he could find for the sole purpose of annoying his only sister.

"I like to be comfortable…" Trixie began hotly, when suddenly it dawned on her.

"You’re vampires!" she accused. It occurred to her that this was a very bad thing, and she turned and began to run through the dark.

"Join us!" she heard them scream, and her heart froze at the sound of air whistling behind her. She ran faster and faster, but could feel them getting closer. She risked a glance back and ran headlong into her brother Brian.

"Brian! Thank god you’re here. Mart and Diana…they’re…" she broke off as she looked into the deathly pale face of her eldest brother. "Not you too?" she moaned. Oh crap. And Brian’s usually the anchor in these kinds of situations!

"You know, I do have a life outside of studying to be a doctor," Brian said, taking one arm while Diana took the other.

"This won’t take long," Mart promised, licking his lips.

"I want to do it." A smooth, tactful voice drifted from above, and suddenly Honey floated down from the treetops, landing with a soft jolt in front of them.

"Tired of bats?" Mart grinned as Honey stuck her tongue out at him.

Trixie looked wildly around, but there was no escape. "Hon, I thought I was your best friend!" she cried.

Honey smoothed her oddly colored hair. "Well, yes. You are. I mean, I’ll always be grateful to you for turning me from a poor, little, rich girl into a country bumpkin."

Trixie twisted frantically and managed to break free at last, just as she heard a familiar voice.

"We’re coming, Trix!"

She almost wept with gratitude as Jim, Dan and Ruthie Kettner came running into the clearing. She should have known that Jim and Dan would find a way to save her. She made a mental note not to be so negative in the future. She ran towards them, smiling.

"Are you okay?" Jim asked, sweeping her into a hug.

Trixie laid her head down on her shoulder. "Oh Jim, it’s horrible! Mart and Diana and Honey and Brian are the undead!"

She heard a throaty chuckle and lifted her head. Dan and Ruthie were grinning back at her, their terrible fangs glinting white in the darkness. "Don’t forget us," Dan said. He licked his lips. "I may be a secondary character to you people, but I have a life, damn it!"

Trixie’s stomach turned to ice. She gazed up at Jim. "Are we the only ones left?" she nearly sobbed. "Thank God I can always rely on you to do the right thing!" When he didn’t reply, she ventured a small, "Jim?"

Jim looked down at her and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "You know, I looked around one day and realized that everybody was getting some. Everybody but good old, honorable Jim. I found Mart and Diana that night, all right. And you don’t even want to know what your brother was doing with my sister. And Dan—" he broke off and glared at the hottie in the leather jacket. "—and Dan, who is usually off doing chores, even he manages to get a little action!"

Jim grabbed her shoulders and glared down into her eyes. "Well, I’ve had enough of all this smush. I decided all this cuddling, snuggling and kissing had to stop! I managed to keep my feeding under control all these years, usually relying on the rabbits I caught with my woodsman skills. And what was my reward? Fond looks!"

Trixie went limp as he drew back his lips and let his fangs grow. "At least I won’t have to take Geometry next year," she thought inanely as his mouth descended, and the grip on her shoulders tightened. He gave her a shake and she finally screamed, closing her eyes in terror.

"Trixie!"

Jim shook her again, and she twisted violently away from him with a small cry.

"Trixie, what is wrong with you? What’s the matter?"

She dared to open one eye and found herself curled up on one of the Manor House porch swings. She laughed giddily with relief as she realized that she was at Brian’s surprise birthday party. "I had a bad dream," she said, smiling ruefully, slowly straightening up.

Jim sat next to her and put a comforting arm around her shoulders. "It must have been a doozy. You let out a scream."

Trixie’s face reddened. "I did?" She was suddenly aware of Jim’s arm around her and the blush deepened.

Jim chuckled. "You sure did. Feel like talking about it?"

Trixie began to giggle. "Not really," she said. She decided to take a chance and snuggled her head down onto his shoulder, her heart leaping when his arm tightened around her.

"I really want to kiss you," Jim said.

"You do?"

In answer, he turned up her chin with his free hand, bent his head and brushed her mouth with a soft kiss.

Trixie’s heart pounded so loudly she thought the entire party could hear it. "You finally kissed me," she said in wonder, then blushed at how silly that must have sounded. She was relieved when Jim smiled at her.

"Finally," he agreed. He lowered his head and kissed her again a little harder, his fingers sliding into her curls as the hand on her shoulder slid down her back.

"You’d better go back to the party before I forget you’re only 14," he murmured, reluctantly lifting his head. "Besides, it’s almost time for Brian to open his present."

Trixie could barely breathe. "Okay," she said with a small sigh. Her eyes glowed at him, then she walked back into the house.

Jim watched her go a moment, deep in thought. It was about time. Frankly, he didn’t think he could take one more happy couple. Even honorable men have needs!

His sharp hearing picked up the faint rustling of a small animal darting through the nearby woods. When a backwards glance indicated that nobody was about, he swung his supple body over the railing, the moonlight bouncing off his fangs as he tore into the preserve for a little present of his own.