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“There’sa huge snake in the basement,” Tyler said.“I mean huge.This thing—it’s the size of a.I don’t know.Hollywood anaconda or something.”

“Unlock the door to the basement,” I said.

“Are you sure?”Tyler asked.“It looks angry.Like, real angry.”

“Unlock the goddamn door,” I said.

He did so, and I stomped down the steps.A huge black-scaled snake was stretched out around huge wooden pillars that supported the house.Javelins and knives pinned its body in place, and its head snapped at me blindly.

“Nagi,” I said.

“Unleash me!”the snake snapped.“They stretched the limits of my transformational capacity.”

“Can you explain?”I asked.

“If this were a video game, I’d be out of mana,” he said.“I can’t switch back.Especially not stabbed here, like this.”

“And let me guess.You need a recharge,” I said.

“There ought be plenty upstairs,” Nagi’s hissing snake voice said.

“This is beyond stupid,” I said.

Brother Al triedto stop me on the landing, but I pushed past him.

“Still haven’t found Vic yet,” I said.

“I see,” Al said.“Any ideas?”

“They do have a whole churchyard in the back,” I said.

“Shall we?”he asked.

I rolled my eyes, and on we walked.Through the house, to the backdoor, out to the graveyard.A fresh clump of soil and a shovel were parked in the earth.

“Let me guess,” I said.

Brother Al picked up the shovel and began digging.About six feet down, we found him—Vic—mostly just bones and a head.

“Where did your flesh go?”Brother Al asked.

“They carved it off and have it in the freezer,” Vic said.“Look, I know how this looks, but all I need?—”

“Yeah, yeah,” I said.“A little blood, huh.Just a lil squeeze.Like a lemon.Right?It’s just that fucking simple for you.”

“It’s really not,” Vic called, as I turned away.

I stomped backinto the house.

“I just think it’s funny,” I started.

“We have company,” Carol Anne said, her voice brisk.

Brother Al and I looked over.There was a man there—a man that looked extremely familiar.He wore a wide-brimmed cowboy hat and had on a pair of black shades, and I took in the rest of his uniform with a deep drop in the pit of my stomach.

“Sheriff Esteban Stephens, at your service,” he said, shaking my hand.

Al and I screamed at each other through our eyes briefly.