The Single Undead Moms(92)

“OK.” Danny sighed, and then Sergeant Lane handed him his flashlight, flicking it on. “Cool.”

“Danny, how do your mom and your grandpa get along?” the policeman asked. “Are they always nice to each other, or do they fight sometimes?”

I raised my eyebrows. Had Les called the cops on me? I’d barely spoken to him the night before, and if anything, he was the one behaving in a creepy, vaguely threatening manner. Did this have something to do with the custody case? Maybe he was all smug and weird because he’d called child protective services to review my fitness as a parent. What the hell was this?

“They used to fight sometimes,” Danny said. “Papa said that I should be living with him and Mamaw, but Mom said no. That made Papa mad. And he said mean things sometimes, which made Mom mad.”

“How mad?” Sergeant Lane prodded.

Oh, Lord. This was not the time for Danny’s unique interpretation of conversations. Using my vampire speed, I ran into the living room and stood behind Danny. My son was used to this by now and didn’t so much as flinch. Sergeant Lane, on the other hand, stood up so fast he nearly knocked over the rocker he was sitting in, and his fingers were already flipping the safety catch from his gun holster. I closed my hand around his wrist to stop him. “That won’t be necessary, Sergeant Lane.”

“Hi, Mom,” Danny said as the officer’s blue eyes narrowed at me. “This is Russ. He’s a policeman. But he won’t let you touch his gun. I already asked.”

“Trust me, baby, I would know better than to touch a gun in a room with a six-year-old in it,” I told him, releasing Sergeant Lane’s arm as he tugged away from me. “Danny, honey, why don’t you run upstairs and watch some SpongeBob before dinner? I need to talk to Sergeant Lane.”

“Really?” Danny asked. “You never let me watch cartoons before dinner.”

“So it’s a treat,” I said.

Danny went tromping upstairs before I could change my mind.

“I’ll just go into the kitchen and warm up Danny’s dinner,” Kerrianne said, practically sprinting into the kitchen.

I crossed my arms and dropped my fangs. I wished I could say that it was some attempt to be badass, but honestly, I was just pissed off, and I hadn’t eaten yet. Sergeant Lane winced at the sight of my dental aggression, making me smile.

“Have you been questioning my son without me being present or giving permission?” I asked him. “I’m not an attorney, but I’ve watched enough Law and Order to know that’s not OK.”

“I was just making conversation until you woke up,” he said, clearing his throat.

“So I’m assuming this has something to do with my in-laws?” I asked.

Sergeant Lane smirked at me. “You could say that. Is there anything you’d like to tell me about your in-laws?”

There were a lot of things I’d like to say about my in-laws, but this was starting to feel like a trap. “Is there something you’d like to tell me about my in-laws?”

He sighed. “Mrs. Stratton, it is my duty to inform you that your father-in-law, Les Stratton, was found dead this morning.”

For just a second, I was sure I’d heard him wrong. I damn near fainted as all of the bones in my body seemed to go liquid. “What?”

“Les Stratton was found outside the Cellar, that vampire bar on the other side of town, his blood drained, with severe wounds to his throat. The coroner estimates his time of death around two A.M. Can you tell me where you were at two A.M.?”

Ignoring his question, because I wasn’t about to tell him that I was recovering from a schoolyard chupacabra ass-kicking, I sat heavily on my sofa. My brain felt like it was moving too quickly from this current crisis to what it meant for my custody case with Danny to how to handle telling my son. It was like my brain refused to focus on one thought for too long, because the overwhelming emotion I felt at the moment was gratitude. I felt bad for Marge. And I felt terrible for Danny, who had adored his papa. But overall, I just felt relieved that I wouldn’t have to spend every minute of every day worrying about Les trying to take my son from me.

What was wrong with me that I felt such ambivalence every time a Stratton man died?

And suddenly, a thought occurred to me.

“Did you just question my son about his dead grandfather without Danny even knowing Les has passed?”

“ ‘Passed’ isn’t exactly the term I would use,” Lane told me. “It’s too peaceful. Your father-in-law was savagely attacked. He was barely recognizable.”

“Keep your voice down,” I hissed. “I don’t want this to be the way Danny finds out that his grandpa is gone.”