Guilty Pleasures   ::   Гамильтон Лорел

“The vampire murderer, I presume,”I said.

Zachary gave a little bow. A ghoul leaned against his leg, and he stroked its nearly bald head. “When did you guess?”

“Just now. I'm a little slow this year.”

He frowned then. “I thought you'd figure it out eventually.”

“That's why you destroyed the zombie witness's mind. To save yourself.”

“It was fortunate that Nikolaos left me in charge of questioning the man.” He smiled when he said it.

“I'll bet,” I said. “How did you get the two-biter to shoot me at the church?”

“That was easy. I told him the orders came from Nikolaos.”

Of course. “How are you getting the ghouls out of their cemetery? How come they obey your orders?”

“You know the theory that if you bury an animator in a cemetery, you get ghouls.”

“Yeah.”

“When I came out of the grave, they came with me, and they were mine. Mine.”

I glanced at the creatures and found that there were more of them. At least twenty, a big pack. “So you're saying that's where ghouls come from.” I shook my head. “There aren't enough animators in the world to account for all the ghouls.”

“I've been thinking about that,” he said. “I think that the more zombies you raise in a cemetery, the greater your chances for ghouls.”

“You mean like a cumulative effect?”

“Exactly. I've been wanting to talk this over with another animator, but you see the problem.”

“Yes,” I said, “I do. Can't talk shop without admitting what you are and what you've done.”

Edward fired without warning. The bullet took Zachary in the chest and twisted him around. He lay face down, the ghouls frozen; then Zachary raised himself up on his elbows. He stood with a little help from an anxious ghoul. “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but bullets will never hurt me.”

“Great, a comedian,” I said.

Edward fired again, but Zachary darted behind the tree trunk.

He called, hidden from sight. “Now, now, no hitting the head. I'm not sure what would happen if you put a bullet in my brain.”

“Let's find out,” Edward said.

“Good-bye, Anita. I won't stay around to watch.” He walked away with a troop of ghouls surrounding him. He was crouched in the middle of them, hiding I supposed from a bullet in the brain, but for a minute I couldn't pick him out.

Two more ghouls appeared around the car, crouched low on the gravel drive. One was female with the tatters of a dress still clinging to her.