DISCLAIMER: Based on the television series, Charlie's Angels, of the seventies. The characters of Sabrina, Kelly, Jill, Kris, etc. are owned by Aaron Spelling, the networks - and some guy named Charlie. No infringement is intended and no profit is being made.
ARCHIVING: Only with the permission of the author.
Don't Go Stakin' My Heart
By Del Robertson
The window shattered, broken glass hurled into the room with enough force that several shards were deeply embedded into the thick, plaster wall. A dark silhouette flitted past the window. Shaking her head profusely, the blonde backed away, the kitchen knife she held in her hand violently shaking.
There was the sound of crunching glass as someone climbed through the window frame. She continued her retreat until she felt the wall at her back. Eyes wide, she couldn't tear her gaze away from the shattered picture window and the figure dressed all in back. Using her fingertips as a guide, she inched her way along the wall. Her breathing was coming in loud, erratic gasps. She felt the edge of the doorframe.
The figure in black hastened across the room, bits of glass crushing beneath his shoes and into the shag carpeting. Reaching out for the blonde, he shouted. She raised the knife above her head, screaming. There was a flash of silver behind her and an axe swung down, severing her hand at the wrist.
A loud, high-pitched scream rang out.
"Would you stop that?!?"
Kelly looked up from where she was sitting cross-legged on the carpeted living room floor. Jill was seated on the sofa, a nearly empty bowl of popcorn perched upon her lap. Curled up beside her, hiding her face against Jill's shoulder was her sister, Kris. Jill tried unsuccessfully to extricate her arm from the death-grip Kris currently had on it.
On the television screen, the end credits rolled and the spooky music faded into the background. A smile formed on Kelly's lips as Kris finally ventured to peek out from the terry-clothed safety of Jill's favorite tennis shirt.
"Kris," Kelly asked, "If horror movies scare you so much, why do you watch them?"
"Because that's what you do on Halloween. It's tradition," piped up Jill. "Besides, sometimes it's fun to be scared."
Kelly cocked her head to the side, studying Kris' expression. "Doesn't look like Kris is having nearly as much fun."
Jill turned her head, eyeing Kris suspiciously. Kris quickly averted her gaze. "No, it's fine, Kelly." The honey-blonde haired Angel gave the brunette a sharp look. "Really. Like Jill said, it's tradition. Every year since I can remember, our parents always went out to a Halloween party hosted by our dad's boss. They used to take hours getting ready. We were supposed to go to our rooms and go straight to sleep."
"I stayed awake, curled up in bed, listening to every little sound until I heard the front door close," Jill took up the story, "Then, I used to watch from the upstairs window as they got into dad's car. I wouldn't move until the taillights disappeared at the end of the street."
"Then," Kris resumed, "she'd wake me up and we'd go downstairs and watch horror movies until we heard our parents coming home."
"Or, until Kris peed her panties; whichever came first."
"Hey!" Kris threw a handful of popcorn at Jill. "That only happened once!"
"Once was all it took," Jill flipped her hair over her shoulder, flashed her brilliant smile at her sister as she added, "Tinkle-Bell."
"Tinkle-Bell?"
Red-faced, Kris flashed a pleading look in Jill's direction. She might have guessed big sis wouldn't let it go that easily, though. Jill took great delight in explaining to Kelly that when she was small, Kris had a fascination with the Peter Pan movie. Or, more specifically, with Tinker Bell. Her side of the room, her backpack, her lunchbox all had the same motif. Even her footed pajamas had tiny pictures of Tink on them. So, after her wetting incident, it just came naturally that Jill would begin calling her baby sister Tinkle-Bell.
"You're a cruel, cruel sister. Almost makes me glad I was an orphan," Kelly decided.
"Oh, I used to wish for the same thing." Jill cast a sideways look at her sister. "But, mom and dad said we couldn't return her."
Kris threw a pillow at Jill and a playful tussle ensued. Kelly just shook her head and went back to her paperwork. Despite their sometimes childish antics, Kelly knew Jill and Kris were really very close. Jill would always be the big sister to Kris; always there to guide her, protect her. It was no secret that Kris idolized Jill and wanted to be just like her. That was her sole motivation for joining the police force and then becoming a private invesigator. And, if sometimes a little teasing and rough-housing had to accompany the sisterly love, so be it.
They were perched precariously half-on and half-off the back of the sofa and Jill had a headlock on Kris. Kris screamed for Kelly to help her. Kelly stayed planted firmly on the floor, refusing to get involved. Eyes crinkling with mirth, however, she put down the manila folder she'd been trying to read and just sat back and watched. And, in spite of her earlier words, she silently admitted to herself that growing up, she'd often wished she'd had a sister of her own.
The commercials ended and the opening credits for the next movie began. Jill abruptly let Kris loose, leapfrogged over the back of the sofa and raced for the kitchen. Bemused, Kelly looked from Kris to the kitchen, then back again.
"Another tradition," Kris explained with a shrug, "Can't have a movie marathon without the popcorn."
"Great." Kelly rolled her eyes, checked her watch. The shadows stretching across the living room floor made it seem much later, but it was actually only a little after three in the afternoon. "You mean we've got to watch this junk until bedtime?"
Kris nodded. "Tradition."
"Hey, Jill?" Kelly yelled towards the kitchen, "What say we start a new tradition? One that involves you two helping me go through these files?"
Dutifully, Kris held out her hand, grimacing just a bit as Kelly handed her five manila folders. On the floor surrounding the Angel was a multitude of white banker's boxes, forming a semi-circle. The lids were haphazardly hanging off some of the boxes, revealing they were chock full of manila folders. Another pile of folders was stacked up in front of Kelly like some interpretative art form of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
"Sure thing, Kel."
Jill breezed back into the room, carrying her big bowl of popcorn in one hand and a diet soda in another. She paused just long enough to grab one folder off the top of the stack. Kelly grabbed for the teetering pile, just barely preventing it from toppling over. She righted the folders, then gave them a warning look before downing her head and opening the thick folder in her lap.
Jill plopped back down on the sofa. Reaching behind her, she grabbed a crocheted afghan and dragged it over to cover her legs. As she curled up against the arm of the sofa, she reached out and took Kris' short stack of folders and tossed them, along with her single folder, onto the coffee table. The action stirred up a small wind.
"We'll help during commercials."
Kelly's gigantic stack of folders fell onto her lap, covering her hands and legs in a debris pile of manila.
"Gee, thanks, Jill."
"Kel? Kelly?"
The brunette Angel jumped as a hand landed upon her shoulder.
"Kelly, are you okay?"
"Huh?" Kelly blinked, shaking her head. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"You sure?" Kris pressed. "You looked like you were a million miles away."
Thunder rumbled ominously; forks of lightning illuminated the black ocean and the deserted beach. The wind shifted, blowing the rain sideways, sending a thick spray across the wooden deck. Shivering from the cold wet, Kelly turned, pushing Kris back into the beach house. She firmly closed and latched the sliding glass door into place.
Jill came in from another room, carrying a cardboard box and placed it on the kitchen counter. Black magic marker designated the box, CAMPING SUPPLIES, and she began rummaging through it. Before long, the countertop was littered with flashlights, an emergency radio, kerosene lanterns and packets and cans of army k.p. rations.
"I think the power will hold. But just in case . . . " Jill shrugged as the overhead lights flickered.
Determined to relieve the tension in the room, Kris reached out, picking up a packet of the k.p. rations. "Jill, if I'd known you were serving army surplus food for dinner, I would've stopped and picked up another bottle of wine. What goes best with rations; red or white?"
"Hah. Hah." Jill took the packet of instant meat and tossed it back into the box along with the rest of the gear she didn't figure they'd need. "You know full well I've got my famous lasagna in the oven."
"I'd rather have the grey mystery meat," Kris deadpanned.
Kris noticed that Kelly's attention had wandered again. This time, to the television set and the reporter dressed in a yellow rain slicker. He looked like he sported a good two-hundred pounds, but the wind was buffeting him back and forth like he weighed only ninety. In the background, the lights on top of several police cars could be seen flashing blue and red.
Kelly continued to stare at the television screen, teeth worrying her bottom lip. Kris nudged Jill, nodded her head in Kelly's direction.
"Don't worry, Kel." Jill put her arm around Kelly's waist, gently bumped her with her hip. "Even if they close the coastal highway, we've got more than enough food and supplies to last the weekend."
"It's not us I'm worried about," Kelly whispered, casting a worried glance towards the front door where the storm could be heard pounding against the wooden frame, "It's Sabrina and Bosley."
On the television screen, an image flashed of two police officers moving a large, wooden roadblock into position. A third officer stepped into the middle of the road, using his flashlight to direct vehicles away from the barricade and down an alternate road.
A loud banging sound caused Kris to jump, her fork clattering into her nearly empty plate. The power had finally gone off and stayed off, ending Jill's monster movie marathon shortly before seven p.m. It had also effectively prevented Kelly from sorting through the looming stacks of case folders. With no other options, the trio had decided a candle-lit dinner was in order.
"Probably just the wind causing the shutters to bang against the house." Even as Jill dismissed the noise, she dabbed at her mouth with her napkin and rose from her chair. "I'll just check."
Kris and Kelly grabbed their flashlights, trailing Jill through the house. They went down the hall, stopping in at both of the bedrooms while Jill peered out each of the windows to make sure the shutters weren't indeed loose. A quick check of the kitchen window and the sliding glass door there confirmed that both were secure.
"See, nothing to worry about, Tinkle-Bell," Jill turned to tease her sister as she drew back the heavy drapes covering the large picture window in the living room.
There was a flash of lightning. Kris screamed. Startled, Jill turned to see a face pressed against the glass, dark eyes staring in at her.
"Hey! Open the door, would ya?" Sabrina yelled to be heard over the wind and through the glass. "It's pouring out here!"
Kelly recovered first, rushing to the door to unlock and unbolt it. She flung it open, to find Sabrina already standing on the mat, her arms weighed down by two large banker's boxes. She was soaked to the bone, her clothes plastered against her like a second skin. Rain ran in rivulets off her hair and down her nose. She looked absolutely miserable. When she saw Kelly, though, a tiny smile formed on her lips.
Kris appeared at Kelly's side, peering over her shoulder. She looked from Sabrina to Kelly then back again before finally nudging the now immobile Kelly out of the way. Reaching out, she took the top box from Sabrina's grasp and carried it into the kitchen, placing it into the sink so it wouldn't drip on the floor.
Shaken from her trance by Kris' actions, Kelly quickly reached out and took the other box from Sabrina.
"I'll just place this in the kitchen," Kelly spoke softly. "Then, we'll see about getting you out of those wet clothes and into something a little warmer."
Sabrina stared, watching as Kelly turned and walked away. Was it her imagination, or did Kelly add an extra sway to her hips? Kelly must have sensed she was still watching. Just before she reached the kitchen, she turned around and winked. Sabrina's eyebrows rose in response.
"You waiting for me to invite you in, or what?" Jill asked, appearing in the doorway. Sabrina dumbly stared back at her. "Bosley with you?" she asked, trying to see around Sabrina and into the darkness.
"Huh? Oh, no. Bosley couldn't make it." Sabrina tilted her head to the side, looking past Jill and into the house.
"Oh, come inside, already!" The blonde Angel ordered, reaching out and grabbing Sabrina by the sleeve of her turtleneck and dragging her through the open door.
"Thanks."
It didn't escape Jill's notice that even though Sabrina was speaking to her, her gaze was still glued to Kelly.
"Yeah, don't mention it."
Jill stomped over to the closet and reached in, grabbing a towel from her beach bag. She haphazardly tossed it, causing it to come unfurled mid-flight. Sabrina dragged the towel off her head, mussing her hair. Strands sticking out every which way, she turned to blink at Jill.
"You're dripping," Jill advised, before walking away.
Sabrina stood beside the bed, clad in nothing but a big, fluffy towel. A clean pair of socks and underwear was laid out on the comforter. Water liberally dripped from her hair and pooled on her bare shoulders. This time, though, she wasn't cold and miserable from the rain. This was a warm, clean wet that could only come from a hot shower.
A wicked grin appeared as she vividly remembered that shower. She couldn't recall having ever taken a shower by candlelight before. But, Kelly had explained that they didn't know how long the power would be out and it was certainly more romantic than bathing by flashlight.
Romantic. That wasn't exactly the word that first sprang to mind as she thought of their encounter. Exciting, maybe. Hot as Hell, definitely. A tremor shook Sabrina's frame with the memory.
She'd been surprised when Kelly had joined her in the shower. Not that she was complaining. It's just that Kel was usually a little more - reserved - in her affections. True, they'd be sharing a room at the small beach house. But, Kelly always insisted no hanky panky when they stayed over with friends. She honestly hadn't expected to receive anything more than perhaps a loving peck on the cheek.
Oh, she'd gotten that. And, so much more. Kelly had been aggressive in her advances, cornering Sabrina in the shower and pressing her up against the wall. Kelly had been frantic in their lovemaking, plunging her fingers deep inside as her tongue and lips and teeth worked at her neck. Then, when her orgasm hit, she felt Kelly's teeth nip a little too sharply. And, as she slid weak-kneed to the floor, Kelly followed, replacing her fingers with her mouth.
Kris saw the flickering light from a kerosene lantern casting Sabrina's long shadow onto the hallway wall. She was glad that Sabrina had somehow made it in despite the storm. She'd seen how worried Kelly was about their friend. She'd been repeatedly checking her watch all evening and had hardly picked at her dinner. Now that Sabrina was safely in the house, Kelly had finally been able to relax. So much so that after putting Sabrina's clothes in the dryer, she'd collapsed onto the sofa and drifted off.
Rather than disturbing her when the dryer was done, Kris had retrieved the warm clothes and folded them. As she drew near, she glanced at the large antique wall mirror. The mirror captured the angle of the doorway perfectly and she was able to see directly into the bedroom, where she caught Sabrina's reflection tugging her socks on. She barely paused at the open doorway, not even bothering to rap her knuckles on the open door. The slim Angel with the pixie haircut had just dropped her towel when Kris walked in.
"Bri, Kelly - "
Sabrina looked up as Kris entered the room carrying a folded set of clothes. Sabrina realized two things at once. One - that Kelly must have dried her clothes in the dryer and sent Kris to give them to her and Two - that Kris was staring. Hastily, Sabrina grabbed for her towel and refastened it about her body.
" - uh - "
Kris gingerly tiptoed forward as though she was approaching a big mountain cat. She got within two feet before haphazardly tossing the jeans and turtleneck onto the bed and scampering back.
"What, I leave some soap?" Sabrina asked, fingers moving to where Kris' eyes were riveted.
Kris bolted from the room.
Sabrina's fingertips connected with her neck and she winced. "Oh." Her eyes widened with realization. "Kris, wait - " she called out, taking a step forward before feeling a similar discomfort lancing her inner thigh. Looking down the length of her body, she mumbled, "Oh, shit."
"Jill," Kris hissed through clenched teeth, "I know what I saw."
Jill let out an exasperated sigh. Ever since Kris had returned from the guest bedroom, she'd been acting odd. She'd followed Jill from room to room and finally into the kitchen where she was trying to reheat the lasagna so Sabrina might have a warm dinner. She'd been excited, talking in circles, making no sense at all. Then, when Sabrina and Kelly had appeared in the kitchen, Kris had gone suddenly quiet, refusing to say another word.
Now, their two friends were seated at the kitchen table, splitting a portion of lasagna and sipping wine by candlelight. While she was standing in the living room, whispering in the dark with her sister.
"This is ridiculous."
"Jill, please."
"You're cracked; you know that?" Jill threw both arms up in the air, paced in a small, tight circle. "Maybe mom was right. Maybe five was too young to let you stay up and watch the late, late movies with me. They've obviously rotted out your brain."
"Small wonder with gems like Night of the Disco Undead and Funky Vampire Fever," shot back Kris, defensively folding her arms over her chest. "Jill, please, just listen to me."
Jill gave a long-suffering sigh, ran her fingers through her perfectly feathered hair. "Okay, fine. Two minutes. You've got two minutes."
"When she got here, she didn't come straight in, even though it was pouring down rain. You yourself said you had to invite her in."
"And?"
"Don't you see; she couldn't enter. Not until you invited her. It's one of the rules." Seeing that Jill wasn't convinced, Kris pointed out, "Okay, then, where's Bosley?"
Jill shrugged, "He didn't come."
"Exactly."
Jill gave a blank look.
"Bosley didn't call. Sorting these files out this weekend was his idea, remember? It was a priority job that Charlie wanted done. If Bosley wasn't coming, don't you think he would have called?"
"Maybe he got tied up."
"He would have still called," Kris insisted. "She didn't say Bos was at the office or he was coming out later. She specifically said Bosley couldn't make it."
Jill crossed the room to the end table beside the sofa. She lifted the receiver off the cradle and began dialing. Holding the phone to her ear, she listened. She repeatedly tapped her index finger on the base before hanging up. "Phone's dead. Bosley couldn't have called."
"The question is, because of the storm or because of Sabrina?"
"Stop that. Now." Jill bristled. Kris was beginning to get to her. Fidgeting, she checked her watch. "I promised you two minutes. Time's up."
"Jill, all I'm asking is for you to keep your eyes - and your mind - open. The clues are all there if you're just willing to see them."
Jill downed her head, pinched the bridge of her nose between her forefingers. She knew she was going to regret asking. But, she had to know.
"They're doing it again."
"What?"
Sabrina's eyes flicked to the living room. "Staring."
"Probably because you keep fidgeting with your turtleneck." Kelly reached over, swatted Sabrina's fingers away from her neck.
"I can't help it, Kel." Her voice cracked. Leaning forward across the table, she spoke in a hushed whisper. "You didn't see the way Kris bolted from the room."
Kelly leaned closer, maintaining eye contact with Sabrina. "Look at me, Bri. It'll be okay. Just give her some time."
Sabrina nodded. Kelly was right. Really, what else was there that she could do, anyway? It was out of her control. And, truth be known, she really hated that. It deeply bothered her when she couldn't make things happen.
Disturbed, she reached across the table. At first, she was reaching for Kelly's hand. But, when she saw Kris and Jill watching, she grabbed for the plate of garlic bread instead. She was surprised to feel Kelly kick her beneath the table.
"You do and you won't be kissing me tonight," Kelly warned.
Both Sabrina's eyebrows rose. "You're kidding, right?"
"Does it look like I'm kidding?"
Sabrina pushed the plate away with the tips of her fingers.
"I can't believe it! Bri loves my garlic bread."
Kris leaned near her sister's ear and murmured in a low voice, "Garlic's a natural repellent."
"I can't believe it," Jill repeated. "I just can't believe it."
Feeling Kris push past her, Jill grabbed her by the arm and tugged her back.
"Where are you going?"
"To prove it."
Kris shooed Jill off her arm. With a determined stride to her step, Kris walked right up to Sabrina, standing so close she was practically on top of her. Jill watched as Kris seemed to be having a nonchalant conversation with the duo. Then, placing her hand on Sabrina's shoulder, she leaned across the table.
Fingertips closed about the bottle of wine. Kris quickly pulled it towards her before either of the other Angels could intercept her with a helping hand. Just as she neared Sabrina's place setting, she accidentally hit the rim of Bri's glass with the bottom of the bottle. The glass toppled, sending the nearly full glass of wine spilling.
As predicted, Sabrina immediately jumped up and began wiping at her stained torso with her napkin.
"Jill, help me get this on to soak before it sets in," Kris called out to her sister. To Sabrina, she said, "Don't worry, Jill's got an extra shirt that'll fit you."
Faster than anyone could react, Kris had stripped Sabrina out of her turtleneck, deftly tugging it over the stunned Angel's head. Jill swooped in, taking the article of clothing from Kris before Sabrina could yank it back. As she did, her eyes were drawn to Sabrina's exposed neck.
The 'loaner' from Jill turned out to be a blue denim work shirt, several sizes too large and with the name Jake embroidered above the front pocket. Sabrina was so mortified at being stripped down nearly naked in the middle of the kitchen that she was thankful for whatever clothing she could get her hands on. If it had been neon pink with a yellow sunflower on it, she wouldn't have complained.
For the record, Kelly wasn't complaining, either. She had taken full advantage of the opportunity while Kris and Jill were in the laundry room to grab Sabrina by the collar of her shirt and pull her in for a searing kiss. Before she knew it, Kelly had her pressed back against the kitchen sink and was rapidly unbuttoning the borrowed work shirt.
"Kel - " Sabrina breathlessly broke off the kiss, capturing Kelly's fingers in her hands before she could undo any more buttons. "What's gotten into you?"
"I don't know. Maybe it's that the storm blew up so unexpectedly." Kelly's voice trailed off and she shrugged helplessly, sending her dark locks cascading over her shoulders with the motion.
Sabrina knew that storms always had a way of getting to Kelly; had ever since she'd been in that orphanage. She'd gotten better with it over the years, but there were still times she had flashbacks to her youth.
"It's okay, Kel." Sabrina made a showing of turning her head and looking towards the ceiling. "Sounds like the rain's almost stopped."
"It's not just the storm. The power went out and you weren't here and - " she nervously fingered the collar of Sabrina's shirt as she admitted, "Damn it, Bri. I was worried for you. I - I was scared that I could've lost you."
"Hey, hey." Sabrina saw the moisture welling up in Kelly's big brown eyes and the sight nearly broke her heart. "Hey, I'm here now," she said, using her thumb to wipe away Kelly's tears. She pulled her lover into a hug, pressing her lips against the top of her head as she promised, "And, I'm not ever going away."
"Where is she?" Jill asked, poking her head around the corner of the laundry room door.
"I don't know," Kris whispered back, her head nestled just beneath Jill's chin as she, too, peered around the doorframe.
The two blonde Angels edged their way around the doorframe and into the kitchen. Flashlight held braced against her drawn gun, Jill played the light about the room. Realizing the room was empty, she relaxed her stance.
Kris appeared beside her, flashlight in one hand and fingering a gold cross necklace that she had pulled out from beneath her t-shirt. Seeing Jill's gun, she nodded her head at the weapon. "You do know that's not gonna work, right?"
"Yeah, I know."
Jill had seen the mottled discoloration peppering Sabrina's neck. And one set of marks that appeared much deeper than the rest. And, finally, all the little things that Kris had been pointing out to her finally clicked into place.
Sabrina Duncan was a vampire.
Realizing they needed help, Jill fished the emergency radio out of the box of camping supplies. She flicked it on. Nothing. Frowning, she tried several different knobs and twisted the dial. Still nothing. She rattled it. Then, turned it over, popping the back open. The batteries were gone.
The lights flickered, the power finally coming back on. The television crackled back to life, an old black-and-white Boris Karloff movie coming into focus on the screen. The kitchen and living room area were bathed in bright light, abruptly chasing away the shadows.
The duo briefly caught a glimpse of Kelly disappearing down the hallway, Sabrina walking backwards in front of her, leading her by the hand. There was something primal about the way Sabrina's eyes stared unblinkingly at Kelly. Jill felt a shiver race down her spine.
"What's Kelly doing?" asked Kris.
"She can't help herself," Jill surmised, "Vampires have the power to mesmerize their prey."
Frozen in place, they watched as Sabrina continued to lead their friend down the darkened hallway.
Kelly's legs became entangled with Sabrina's and nearly brought them both down. A giggle escaped Kelly's lips as Sabrina latched onto her to keep from falling. The move had her leaning impossibly far backwards. She felt one of Sabrina's arms wrap about her waist and the other around her shoulders. Then, her nose was buried in Kelly's hair, her mouth at her supple neck and her giggle turned into a low, throaty moan.
"Get away from her! Now!"
Startled, Sabrina's and Kelly's heads both whipped around in the direction the shout had come from. Jill was in the hallway, Kris right behind her. Sabrina's gaze locked on the gun Jill held leveled at her.
"Jill, wait." She straightened to her full height, took a step towards her friends. "It's not what you think - "
She saw the flash, heard the shot being fired. Instinctively, she turned, shielding Kelly and pushing her out of the hallway and through the bedroom door in the same instant. At the same time, she heard two more shots ring out.
Jill stood frozen in shock, finger reflexively pulling the trigger repeatedly, even though there were no more bullets left in the chamber. Sabrina looked down at her chest, fully expecting to see blood pouring from a multitude of wounds. What she saw was -
- Nothing.
Jill swallowed convulsively. She was an expert with her weapon, having one of the highest scores at the firing range. She'd shot Sabrina dead center, she knew it.
But, the proof was staring her in the face. No blood, no bullet holes.
And, no reflection, she realized, her eyes darting to the antique mirror.
Jill's hand trembled violently and she dropped her gun.
And then, Sabrina was shouting something after her. And she was running down the hall and into the living room, Kris right behind her. But, as she rushed around the bar and into the kitchen, she noticed that Kris was no longer there.
Bri - no, not Bri - that creature she's become must have gotten her.
"Jill!"
She heard Sabrina calling out for her. She backed into the kitchen, shaking uncontrollably. Her back hit against the counter, her elbow connecting with the cardboard box. Desperately, she rummaged through the camping supplies, her hand finding and closing about a tent stake.
She saw Sabrina's shadow cross the large window in the living room. Frantically, she looked about for somewhere to hide. Her sight fell on the cabinet door beneath the sink. Opening it, she pushed some cleaning supplies aside as she crawled inside. Hunkered down, she used the cup-towel ring attached to the inside to pull the door shut.
"Jill?" Sabrina called out again, methodically making her way through the house. "Jill? Please, I need to talk to you."
She had worried that their friends might take it badly when they discovered that she and Kelly were involved. They'd intended to break the news to the Munroe sisters before now, but had just never found the right time. They should've known they couldn't keep their relationship secret from their fellow private detectives for long.
Of course, she never thought Jill would take things to this extreme. She nearly had a heart attack before she realized that the blonde-haired Angel must've been shooting blanks. Still, it scared Kelly bad enough that she's still curled up on the bed, shaking like a leaf.
Normally, Sabrina would have let Jill go and stayed to comfort her lover. But, Kris had insisted that she needed to be the one that confronted Jill, since they'd been friends longer.
So, here she was, playing hide-and-seek with an Angel that obviously didn't want to be found. Sabrina glanced into the kitchen, then headed out towards the laundry room. Something caught her attention, though, and she paused with her hand on the doorframe. Looking back, she just barely saw the cabinet door under the sink pulled closed.
Slowly, she walked back into the kitchen, being as quiet as possible. She crept across the floor, towards the kitchen sink.
Huddled beneath the sink, Jill silently prayed that Sabrina wouldn't find her. She heard a noise and opened one lone blue eye to stare out the tiny crack she'd left. She saw Sabrina's black socks padding across the linoleum floor and her heart trip-hammered in her chest. She wiped her too-sweaty palms on her thighs.
Reaching the cabinet, Sabrina paused with her fingers on the knob.
Jill tightened her grip upon the tent stake, raised her arm.
Taking a deep, reassuring breath, Sabrina flung the door open. Jill came rushing out at her, a piece of wood clenched in her fist.
Jill shot out of the house, chasing Sabrina out onto the rain-slicked deck. Sabrina bolted down the wooden stairs, missing the last step and landing hard on the packed down, wet sand. Pushing herself to her feet, she felt the pain shoot up her ankle.
Glancing back, she saw Jill chasing after her like a woman possessed, a tent stake held above her head as she ran.
Sabrina half-ran, half-limped away from the house at an angle. She was trying to make it around to the front of the house, where the cars were parked in a section just off the road. She didn't have her car keys on her, but she hoped that Kelly had run true to form and left her set beneath the floor mat.
The storm had blown away several sand dunes and the downpour had caused a steady rush of water to flow down from the road above. Even now, the water was flowing at a pretty good pace and Sabrina hesitated, unsure of her next step.
"What's wrong?" Jill taunted, breathing heavily as she finally caught up with Sabrina. "Oh, that's right." Sabrina backed up, not liking Jill's sudden confidence. "Vamps can't cross running water, can they?"
"What?!?"
Sabrina was so caught off-guard by that statement - by what Jill had just called her - that she failed to react in time to her sudden attack.
Jill charged, catching Sabrina in the midsection, bringing her down. Sabrina landed on her back, her head hitting against the ground, the wind knocked from her body. Instantly, Jill was on top of her, straddling her, powerful thighs pinning her down.
Jill raised the stake, double-handed, above her head. Sabrina reflexively flung her arms over her face and upper body in a purely protective move.
"JILL!"
"NO!!!"
Kris and Kelly screamed as they ran towards the two struggling Angels.
Jill brought the stake down.
Kelly was at Sabrina's side, kneeling in the wet sand and crying. Kris lingered in the background, not quite knowing what to do. Jill stared down in open-mouthed shock. Slowly, Sabrina unscrewed her eyes, realizing she hadn't been staked.
Looking up, she focused on a set of dress shoes, pants and a sports jacket. A chubby fist had a firm grip on the tent stake he'd wrestled away from Jill.
"Bos, you have no idea how happy I am to see you," Sabrina breathed a huge sigh of relief and laughed nervously before falling back and collapsing upon the sand.
The Angels and Bosley were safely back inside Jill's beach house. Jill was crouched on one corner of the sofa while Kelly and Sabrina sat beside each other at the other end. Kris was lounging on the floor, elbows propped up on a pillow. And, Bosley had claimed a plush, overstuffed chair. The Angels had changed into nightclothes and all of them were sipping from mugs of hot chocolate.
"Sounds like I missed out on all the fun," Bosley said, sipping from his mug.
"Yeah, what happened to you, anyway?" questioned Kelly, "We were expecting you hours ago."
"What can I say? I was hoping if I took long enough, you'd have the files all sorted out."
"Oh, no, Bos." Kelly shot him a wicked look. "I made sure I saved the biggest, thickest files especially for you."
The Angels chuckled at Bosley's offended look. Turning to her sister, Jill said for what was probably the fifth time, "I can't believe you went to all this trouble for a prank."
"Consider it payback for all the horror movies you've tortured me with over the years," shot back Kris.
"Okay, I can see how you manipulated things to make it look like Sabrina was a blood-sucking fiend. And, it's nice to know that my friends were accomplices in your little gag."
Kelly and Sabrina exchanged a look with Kris. They hadn't been let in on the plan. Kris had merely seen an opportunity present itself and ran with it. Obviously, though, she had led Jill to believe that the love-bites on Sabrina's neck and the impromptu make-out session they'd interrupted in the hallway was all part of the trick. Well, as long as she wasn't telling, neither were they.
"But, what I don't get," Jill continued, "was that stunt in the hallway."
Sabrina visibly swallowed and Kelly fidgeted with the decorative lace at the cuff of her nightgown.
"I mean, I fired point-blank at Bri. There's no way I could've missed her."
"I exchanged your bullets for blanks while you were out looking for the box of camping gear," explained Kris.
"I hope you know I expect you to put those batteries back in the emergency radio, young lady."
"Yes, mother," Kris smiled behind the rim of her coffee mug, "And, I'll fix the hallway mirror, too."
"How did you rig it so Bri didn't cast a reflection, anyway?" Jill asked.
"No silver backing, no reflection. It was just luck that you didn't have a chance to notice when Sabrina was pushing Kelly into the bedroom that she didn't have a reflection, either." Kris couldn't fight off her grin any longer. That had really been what had pushed Jill over the edge. Up until that point, she wasn't positive her big sister had fallen for it. Even with the 'bite marks' upon Sabrina's neck as evidence. "I really got you, didn't I?"
"If you must know, you honestly scared the daylights out of me."
"How do you think I feel?" asked Sabrina, "I mean, I was the one that was nearly staked by one of my best friends."
"And, as my friend, you'll forgive Kris for her stupid prank, won't you?" asked Jill. "Honestly, Kris, you should be ashamed of yourself."
"Well, I think you should take some of the responsibility for my actions. I mean, you're the one who said it's fun to be scared on Halloween, aren't you?"
Jill took the pillow she'd been leaning against and threw it at Kris, hitting her squarely in the head.
"Oooh! I'll get you!" Kris screamed, getting up and coming after Jill, pretending as though she were sporting claws and fangs.
"Ha! I'm not afraid of you!" Jill taunted, even as she leapt off the sofa and raced for the master bedroom. "There's no such thing as vampires!"
Kris started to chase after her sister. But, paused beside the sofa just long enough to lean in and conspiratorially whisper to Kelly and Sabrina, "Just be glad I didn't show her where else you got bit." She pointedly looked in the direction of Sabrina's lap and waggled her eyebrows. Then, she was up and chasing after Jill.
Sabrina and Kelly sat in stunned silence for several long moments before either one of them could compose themselves enough to look Bosley in the eye.
"Enough excitement for one day," Kelly choked out, "Think it's time to retire for the evening." A glance out the window revealed the pale pinks and grays of a predawn sky. "Or, what's left of it."
Kelly got off the sofa, then helped to pull Sabrina up. Sabrina groaned with the effort, clutching the small of her back and limping on her bandaged ankle. Kelly kept an arm wrapped firmly about her waist, helping to guide Sabrina towards the hallway.
"You turning in, Bos?" Sabrina asked, indicating the sofa and the afghan spread out over the back of it.
"In a while." Bosley experimentally ran his tongue over his enlarged incisors. "Think I might grab a bite first."
The End