I stood up, ignoring the throbbing in my knees, and spun around on the spot, trying to find the Elders in the dark. But all I could see was the cottage, with black hills cutting a curving line across the night sky on either side of it, and across the road, a wall of something—probably corn—waving and whispering in the dark.

“They— Where did they . . . ? How did they . . . ?” I turned in a new direction with every stutter, still searching the shadows, but all I saw was Reg.

He was on his feet now, leaning against the fence and still holding his side. His mouth was hanging open in a shell-shocked expression that only amplified my fear.

“Reg, they disappeared! Did you know they could do that?”

He shook his head slowly. “Even the Ancients can’t disappear. How can Elders?”

“They can’t,” a voice like gravel said from behind Reg.

I had to squint to make out the shadowy figure on the front porch of the cottage. “Who’s there?” I called. I stepped back into the yard, flinching a little as I passed the picket fence, but there was no wind this time.

“Vamps can’t disappear.” It was a man—an old one by the sound of it. “They just jogged off—same as they always do. Only you can’t see it now. Little too fast for your eyeballs to follow.” The old man chuckled, and it sounded more like a cough.

“Who are you?” I demanded. “What are you doing here? This is our . . . cottage.” I waved a hand miserably over the tiny building. It wasn’t much, but if it was all we had, I was ready to fight for it.

The shadow on the porch lumbered down the few steps to the lawn. I could make out his outline now, and it was large and strong, making him seem younger than his rasp. I wasn’t great at guessing human ages, but I pegged him at about sixty. The raspy chuckle came again.

“On the contrary. This is my cottage, and you are my guests . . . for the time being. Think of me as your caretaker.”

“Sir.” Reg gave an embarrassing little bow, and I stomped on his toe. “Ow!”

“We don’t need taking care of,” I said.

“If you say so.” The old man’s hand stroked his chin, and I could see a beard and mustache taking shape in the dark. “But way I see it, you do need a place to stay, so let’s just start there, huh?”

“And the way I see it, we’ve been taking orders from Elders for too long,” I said, propping a hand on my hip. “Look where that got us—a shack in the middle of nowhere.”