Chapter 5

Danny woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. He was about to throw the covers back so he could get out of bed, when he noticed Chris, sitting on his bed across the room...staring at him. His expression was a mixture of mirth and puzzlement.

"What's up?" Danny greeted his brother as he pulled his blanket back and swung his legs over the side of the mattress.

Chris couldn't seem to hide his merriment. "Did you know that you talk in your sleep?" He asked.

"No. What did I say?" Danny responded cautiously, hoping that he hadn't blown it.

The young boy put his hand up to his mouth in mock horror as his eyes widened. "Vampires! Aaaahhhh!" He exclaimed with feeling.

"What?" Danny did his best to sound skeptical. "No way!"

Chis dropped his horror-stricken expression and nodded. "Yeah, and you kept saying Mr. Kincaid's name. Did you dream that he's a vampire or something?"

"I don't remember." Danny shrugged nonchalantly as he got out of bed. He headed to the closet, where he found his robe and slippers. Shuffling into the indoor footwear, he slipped into the well worn robe. His mom had wanted to replace it a while ago, but he talked her out of it. He really liked how it felt and as long as it still fit, why bother?

He changed the subject. "I don't know about you, but I'm starving. I hope Mom's making something good for breakfast this morning." He opened the bedroom door and stepped into the hallway.

After the usual morning arguments with his siblings about time spent in the bathroom, Danny-now fully dressed and ready for the day-hurried downstairs. Chris was hot on his heels. The heavenly smell of frying bacon invaded his sense of smell as soon as he stepped into the living room. His mouth watered with anticipation. Tracy was already seated at the kitchen table, polishing off the last of her eggs. Laurie set a plate of food in front of them as they sat down next to Tracy. It was then that he noticed the absence of one Keith Partridge.

Feeling a bit anxious, Danny tried to sound casual. "Where's Keith?" He asked, digging into his food.

Shirley cracked a couple more eggs into the hot frying pan and a loud sizzle erupted. "He's not feeling well this morning, so I'm keeping him home from school."

Feeling his stomach drop about a hundred miles an hour, Danny put his fork down. "What's wrong with him?"

"It's probably a case of influenza. I've heard that there's something going around. I sure hope that no one else comes down with it." Shirley shuddered inwardly; the thought of all five kids sick with the flu at the same time made her cringe.

Danny wasn't hungry any longer. Things were escalating frighteningly now. He was going to have to talk to Reuben...today.

"Uh, Mom? Do you have any idea if Mr. Kincaid is in town?" The manager kept an apartment in San Pueblo, but his job duties sometimes took him out of town; sometimes even out of state.

Shirley shook her head. "Danny, you know he's on vacation this week, visiting his mother. Why do you ask?" She turned from the hot stove to meet his gaze.

Danny's heart joined his stomach; he had forgotten that. If Reuben wasn't available, what was he going to do? He was going to have to come up with a different plan. And fast.

He pushed his chair back and got up. "Uh...nothing. I was just curious." He quickly went through the kitchen door and headed upstairs to get dressed and grab his school books. "I think I'll get going now, I want to work on my book report."

Laurie stared after him. "Wow. That's the second time in as many days that he's done that."

"Done what, honey?" Shirley sat down at the table and took a cautious sip from her steaming mug of coffee.

Laurie turned to look at her mother. "Left the house without eating breakfast. Didn't you notice?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact I have." Shirley picked the newspaper up and opened the front page, seemingly unconcerned.

"Well, don't you think that he's been acting funny lately? I mean, isn't not eating bad for kids his age?"

Shirley smiled understandingly as she put her coffee mug back on the table top. "Actually, it's quite normal. When you and Keith were his age, you went through the same thing. During growth spurts, a child can be ravenously hungry no matter how much they eat.; Keith was terrible, I couldn't keep up with him. Your father used to joke that he had a hollow leg. But when they're not growing, well...it's the complete opposite, as you just witnessed. Danny is obviously between growth spurts. Don't worry too much about it, Laurie. I'm keeping an eye on him."

"Sure. That makes sense. I guess if anyone would know, it would be you." Laurie nodded thoughtfully and smiled.

Chris had just finished his breakfast and was taking his dishes to the sink. "If you ask me, I think Danny is being weird. He was talking in his sleep this morning...something about vampires. Sounded like a bad dream to me."

Shirley turned to look at her youngest son with interest. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah. I think he was dreaming that Mr. Kincaid had turned into a vampire or something." Chris shrugged, completely unaware that he had just landed Danny in a bit of hot water.

The pretty young mother of five sighed tiredly. "Well, I guess I'll have to pull the plug on the chosen subject for his book report after all."

Laurie felt that she had to go to bat for him. "Oh Mom, he's done so much research and I think he's almost done with the book report."

"Really?" Shirley was torn. She certainly didn't want to see Danny have to start all over again; he probably wouldn't make the deadline and then he'd receive a lower grade.

Laurie said nothing, but nodded earnestly.

"Alright. I'll just have to keep a closer eye on his projects from now on." She stood up and went to the kitchen sink with her mug. "I have to pick up some flu medicine for your brother, so I can drop you off at school on my way to the store if you like." She offered Laurie.

"Yeah, that would be great. It didn't dawn on me until just now that I wouldn't have a ride to school since Keith is sick today." Laurie stood up as well. "I can get a ride home with Sally."

"Hey! What about me and Tracy!" Chris said, gesturing toward his baby sister.

"Tracy and I." Shirley corrected him gently. "Honey, your school is just down a couple of blocks, you don't need a ride." She reminded him.

"Yeah, but it'd be cool, we never get a ride!" Tracy declared with indignation.

Shirley sighed contentedly. "Okay, okay." She said with a little laugh. "We'll leave in ten minutes. I want to check on Keith before we leave."

The two youngest Partridges high-fived each other. "Cool!" They said almost in unison.

Just then, Danny came flying down the stairs books tucked safely under his arm. "Mom! Keith just got sick all over his bed." He quickly made good his escape as he bounded out the door.

"Oh dear..." Shirley headed toward the staircase.

Laurie followed her. "I'll help, maybe it's not that bad..."

A few minutes earlier, after having retrieved his school books from his room, Danny stopped by Keith's room; the door was slightly ajar, so he quietly pushed it open and tip-toed inside.

He noticed that his brother's complexion was a bit flushed. Then he visually checked Keith's throat for the tell-tale twin puncture wounds or scars at the very least. He was somewhat relieved to see that it was clear. Then a sudden thought put him on edge again; just because his throat was unmarred, it certainly didn't mean that he didn't have the piercings in a more inconspicuous location; someplace that was normally covered by clothing. He quickly scanned Keith's exposed skin, which wasn't much, seeing as he was wearing long-sleeved pajamas, and was covered up to his chest with a couple of blankets. So far, his hands and wrists were clear. Desperation caused him to briefly consider carefully pulling the blankets away, but he quickly discarded that thought. The pajamas were still an obstacle. The risk of waking his brother was far too great.

Well, at least he seemed to be resting peacefully...almost too peacefully, Danny thought with sudden panic. He quickly bent over his brother's sleeping form, held his breath and listened carefully. Keith had never snored, as far as he knew, but now he could barely hear him breathing. He briefly touched the back of his hand, and was comforted to feel the heat of a fever and not the coldness that he had expected. He stepped back to take in the scene around him.

As he scanned the room, looking for...well, he wasn't sure what he was looking for. Something out of place, maybe? He thought he might know it if he saw it.

Then, as if some outside force pointed him toward it, he saw just what he was searching for.

Keith's window was wide open.

Cautiously, Danny moved to the open window and looked out into the backyard. His eyes quickly scanned the perimeter of the grounds. Satisfied that everything seemed to be in order, he began to withdraw from the window, his questing eyes cast downward for a few seconds. He froze in his tracks as he saw the trellis. How could he have forgotten about it? He knew for a fact that it could hold someone of Keith's weight and height; and most definitely, someone a bit smaller. He remembered a few years ago, back when their father had still been alive, Danny had caught Keith sneaking back into his room late one night, when he was supposed to have been grounded. He had been able to hold that juicy tidbit over his older brother's head for a long time. It was the perfect way to sneak in or out of the house undetected by anyone except Keith. Danny remembered that a vampire couldn't enter a human dwelling unless they were invited by the occupant. Keith must have asked her in at some point earlier, so he was apparently already under her evil spell.

As Danny stood there and pondered everything, Keith suddenly became restless. He moaned softly, murmuring unintelligible words.

Keith's eyes slowly opened, his face was extremely pale. "Oh God..." He was trying to sit up when he abruptly vomited onto the blanket "Danny...go get Mom..." He fell back into his pillow, looking worse for wear.

Danny gripped his books and ran from the room. He tore down the stairs as fast as he could, shouted to his mother that Keith needed her and left the house.

As Danny walked to school, his mind was shifting into overdrive. Maybe Keith's body was trying to purge itself of whatever poison the vampire had introduced into his system. He suddenly had new hope, maybe this was the break that he was looking for.

He spent the rest of the school day in a fog, waiting for an opportunity to place his call for help.