“He’s the one who’s into all the vampire crap!” The cat hopped through the open window, took one look at the strangers, and shot under the couch. Jay pulled the window shut and rain slid down the panes.

“I’m telling you we don’t have a case against him.”

“You mean you didn’t,” Jay pointed out. “That’s changed. Now we have bodies,” Jay said. “Bloodless bodies with evidence of homicide. Bite marks on the victims’ necks. I’ll bet my right arm those bruises match Dr. Grotto’s bite impression.”

Mai stared at him. Weighing her options, as if she might renege on her previous agreement. Finally, glancing at her watch, she said, “Okay, let’s do this thing. We’ll go talk to Grotto and see what the Vampire King has to say. On the way, you tell me everything you know and don’t leave out a word.”

“Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned,” Father Mathias whispered as he knelt at his bedside. How had he been so tempted, so easily led astray? He’d thought it was all for the greater good.

Or so he’d tried to convince himself.

But God knew. The almighty Father could so easily view the darkness that was Mathias’s soul and recognize the deceit, the evil, that lingered deep inside.

How many times had he attempted to confess all his sins to Father Anthony? How often had he wanted to seek the counsel of a wiser and more devout man than himself? And yet he hadn’t.

Coward, he mocked, knowing his weakness.

He closed his eyes and bowed his head, his hands clenched in heartfelt supplication. “Please, Father, hear my prayer,” he whispered, hearing the sound of the rising wind, the approach of a heavy storm. Already rain was beating on the windowpanes and running through the gutters, gurgling noisily in the downspouts.

Somewhere above, a branch was pounding, banging against one of the attic windows.

Evidence of God’s fury.

His all-powerful rage.

A reminder of how small and insignificant Mathias was.

He lost himself in his prayer and missed the soft tread of footsteps slipping along the hallway. He was unaware that he was no longer alone. Absorbed in absolving himself of his wrongdoings, offering up his repentance, he didn’t realize an intruder had entered until it was far too late.

And then, the creak of one floorboard made him freeze, his intonation lost….

The hairs on the back of his scalp prickled as he turned, looking upward into the face of evil. Dark, soulless eyes stared down at him. Liver-colored lips drew backward into a hideous grimace. White fangs, seeming to drip with blood, caught in the dim lamplight.

Mathias gasped, but it was too late.

Lucifer incarnate had descended upon him. The devil to whom he’d sold his soul so willingly had returned to collect his due.