THE RATTLY OLD CAR sped through the night. Jonathan stared into darkness.
“Go to sleep, Jonathan,” said Mr. Saginaw.
But Jonathan couldn’t. No one else was asleep. Besides, he was too busy thinking. He thought how relieved he was that Ma and Pa had found a good meal the night before. They looked much healthier. He remembered saying good-bye to Miss Lecky and Tobi and his other friends that day. His class had given him a party in school. Jonathan had been the star of the afternoon, wearing new clothes that Tobi assured him were very cool. He thought about attending a new school when he and Ma and Pa and Mr. Saginaw reached their farmhouse in New Jersey. He was scared. He didn’t want to start over again, but he had no choice. It might take awhile, but he would just have to look for another Tobi, another Sharrod, another Miss Lecky. He could do that … couldn’t he?
He wasn’t sure. He wasn’t sure about any of those things. What if he didn’t find a friend as good as Tobi or a teacher as nice as Miss Lecky?
Jonathan sighed and patted the pocket of his pants. He felt the wad of papers folded up in there. On the papers were the addresses of all the kids in Miss Lecky’s class. Jonathan planned to write to somebody everyday. He hoped for lots of mail at his new house. Mail would be good, in case making new friends took awhile.
In the front seat, Mrs. Primave began to scream. “Vlad! Look out! Look out, Vlad! Look out, look out, look out!”
Mr. Primave hit the brakes.
EEEEEEEECH! The car skidded to a stop.
Mr. Primave turned to his wife. “What was it? What did you see?”
“I think it was a dead vole.”
“Then you guys wait right here,” said Jonathan. “I’ll go get it. You could use a midnight snack.”
When you’re the son of vampires, thought Jonathan as he scrambled out of the car, you have to get used to these things.