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as she had earlier that night, in her flowing black dress, with her hair in its bun. Only this time, the dark red lipstick on her mouth almost looked as if it could be — blood.
    What should I do?
I wondered wildly.
Yell for help? Wake up Mom and Dad?
Even if I’d wanted to, my throat had gone bone-dry.
    Slowly, Great-aunt Margo turned her gaze away from the bats, and in one choking second of terror, I realized she was about to see me. Finally, I was able to move. I spun around and tore toward my bedroom. With quivering hands, I shut the door. Then I flung myself onto my bed, burrowing under my covers and trying to stop my teeth from chattering.
    Did I really see that? Did she see me? Am I going crazy? Is she about to knock on my door?
My mind was racing as fast as my heart.
    After I’d pinched myself — hard — to make sure I really
was
awake, and I’d waited a good while to make sure Great-aunt Margo wasn’t coming after me, I lifted my head out from under the covers. The apartment was as silent as it had been before the fateful bang. There were no voices, and no sounds of flapping wings. If I strained my ears, all I could hear were Dad’s snores.
    What was going on inside the guest room? Had the other bats also transformed into people? Or had they all flown out into the night?
    On my desk, my laptop screen was still bright. The whole horrifying experience had happened so quickly that my computer hadn’t even gone to sleep. I knew
I
wouldn’t be sleeping much that night. But I couldn’t bring myself to get out of bed and go back to reading the Wikipedia page. Besides, I wasn’t sure I needed to. I remembered almost every sentence, and the words drummed through my head now.
    The fanged creatures. Knobs of garlic. Vampires who can shape-shift into bats.
    Vampires who could shape-shift into bats … who came from the very town that Great-aunt Margo came from. Great-aunt Margo, who was “allergic” to garlic.
    I drew my knees to my chest and sat still in the darkness while the storm raged outside. All my life, I’d suspected that there were secrets lurking behind the ordinary, that there was more to reality than met the eye. And now, I had actual evidence.
    The realization struck me all at once, as fast as a flash of lightning. It was so crazy, but so obvious that I couldn’t deny it.
    My great-aunt was a lot more than just weird.
    She was a vampire.

Chapter Four
    “What’s wrong, honey?”
    Sunlight flooded my room, and Mom leaned over my bed, her eyes concerned. I was lying on my back, clutching my sketchbook to my chest. Last night, I’d started drawing to calm down, and must have somehow fallen asleep. Now, my hair was sweaty and matted, and I could barely lift my heavy eyelids. I understood why Mom looked worried; this was much worse than my usual morning grouchiness.
    What’s wrong?
I thought.
Well, you see, Mom, I think Great-aunt Margo is a vampire, so we should all start wearing turtlenecks. Oh, and we should hang garlic everywhere.
    But I was too drained to even respond.
    “I’ve never seen you so pale,” Mom said, touching my forehead. “Maybe you’re coming down with a cold. Do you want to stay home from school?”
    Normally, those words would have made me grin and snuggle deeper into bed, especially on such a sun-splashed day. But now, Mom’s suggestion only filled me with dread. I was
not
about to stay cooped up with vampire bats. I had seen far too much last night to feel safe in my own home.
    And I had to warn Mom and Dad.
    I tried to lift my head from the pillow. “Great-aunt Margo —” I began, feeling a shudder pass through me as I spoke her name.
    “Oh, she’s not here, hon,” Mom said, and I felt a wave of relief. Maybe she’d flown (literally flown) back to Romania.
    “She left very early, before sunrise, to take her bats to the museum,” Mom continued. “I’m supposed to meet her there soon, but I can go in later if you want. Dad has a deadline, so he’s going to be