A few days later, Alexander thought it would be a good idea to let Stormy spend time again with her friends. She was so excited at the prospect of being with Valentine, Billy, and Henry that she was glowing. Alexander thought it would be okay for them to all be together, but I wasn't convinced that this particular mixture wouldn't be too dicey.

We dropped Stormy and Billy off at Henry's and headed back to the Mansion. It was too risky to have them hang out at the Mansion, with coffin beds in the Sterlings' rooms and a cellar full of blood, and my house was so small it felt like neither group would have any room to breathe. Alexander thought it would be safe for them all since Henry's parents were hom ~ liked Ste. I wasn't sure what I was afraid of exactly. Billy getting bitten by Valentine? Stormy screaming about mirrors? I feared Alexander and I were being like her parents and not letting her spread her bat wings among mortals. It was time to give Stormy a chance again to develop friendships with her peers and truly have some fun.

Alexander and I returned to the Mansion for a little private time. I walked into his attic room and spotted a new painting he was working on displayed on his easel. It was smaller than many of his portraits that I'd seen before. This was an eight by ten.

I examined it closely. "That looks like Billy and Stormy!" Our siblings were dressed as they were the night of the dance.

"I thought since his picture wasn't going to turn out," my boyfriend said, "that I could paint him one."

"That is so thoughtful of you," I remarked sweetly. "I know he'll love it. Normally I wouldn't want a picture of my brother, but this time I think I want one, too.""Well, this is for him," he said protectively. "By the way, has he mentioned that Stormy wasn't in the photo?"

"No, come to think of it, he hasn't," I recalled. "Maybe he hasn't checked yet or maybe we're off the hook."

"What are you going to say if he brings it up?" Alexander was seriously concerned.

"I guess the same thing I said to Becky about Sebastian not showing up in her pictures," I said, referring to the time Becky snapped a few of Alexander's best friend at a soccer game. "That she must have moved when it was taken."

"Will you be able to find a frame for this painting?" he asked. "You're good at shopping for those things."

"An excuse to shop? I'm your girl!"

Alexander kissed me long. But the picture of Billy and Stormy was staring at me. It was hard for me to concentrate when my brother was looking over my shoulder.

"You seem distracted," he said.

"I don't know if it's such a good idea to leave them alone. Do you?"

"How much trouble can they get in at Henry's?" Alexander asked.

Just then I heard my text beeping.

I let go of our embrace and grabbed my phone. It was from Billy.

STORMY FREAKED OUT. HENRY DARED HER TO EAT A CLOVE OF GARLIC. SHE'S LOCKEDSHEe go IN HENRY'S ROOM.

"Oh no!" I said.

"What is it?" Alexander asked, concerned.

I showed him Billy's text.

"I hope she's okay," I said.

"We have to get there now!" Alexander was alarmed. "Call Billy. I'll get the antidote." I called and texted my brother but it went right to voice mail.

"He's not picking up!" I shouted.

Alexander stuck the antidote into a plastic bag and we raced down the stairs past Jameson, who was coming out from the kitchen.

"Where are you off to in such a hurry?" he asked.

Alexander didn't even answer his butler and instead rushed out the front door and into the Mercedes. I did my best to keep up with him, but I was huffing and puffing. This time Alexander didn't stop to open the door for me. He had one thing on his mind, and that was the safety of his sister.

Alexander peeled out of the driveway and raced toward Henry's house.

I kept calling Billy, but he didn't answer.

"Should we call the doctor?" I asked.

"I think we'll get there before he does," Alexander said.

Alexander pulled the Mercedes into Henry's long driveway. We hopped out. Alexander didn't even pause to shut his driver's side door. He raced up to the house and rang the bell relentlessly.

Henry opened the door, surprised to see us.

"Where is she?" Alexander demanded.

"Stormy?" Henry was still bewildered by our sudden presence at his house.

"Yes!"

"Uh ... upstairs in my room."

Alexander took off up the stairs, and I followed close behind.

"Stormy?" Alexander called.

We passed several normal-looking bedrooms and a bathroom. At the endom.v h of the hallway was a movie poster of Lord of the Rings hanging on the door.

"That must be it," Alexander said.

Alexander pushed open the now-unlocked door.

We were both afraid of what we might find. Stormy was lying on the bed, pale and still. Valentine was holding her wrist as if he were looking for a pulse. Billy was standing next to them both.

Alexander rushed to his sister's side. "Are you okay?" Alexander shouted.

Stormy sat up. "What are you doing here?"

Alexander had the antidote in his hand.

"Can you breathe?" he asked her, himself breathless.

"Of course I can breathe!" She looked at her brother, bewildered.

"Of course I can breathe!" She looked at her brother, bewildered.

"Did you eat garlic?" Alexander asked firmly.

"Uh ... no," she said, confused.

"Did it touch you?"

"No."

"Did it come close to you?"

"No, I didn't even see any garlic," she answered, now frustrated.

"How about you?" my boyfriend asked Valentine.

"I'm fine," Valentine said.

"What are you talking about?" Stormy finally asked her brother.

"Billy said you ate garlic," Alexander told her.

"No - " she said. "And that was ages ago."

"What's that?" Billy asked, seeing Alexander's syringe in a plastic bag.

"Then what are you doing?" Alexander asked Stormy.

"Valentine's reading my blood," Stormy answered brightly. This was a power the youngest Maxwell possessed. By pressing on someone's vein, he was able to read their soul and innermost thoughts and feelings.

"I'm next," Billy offered.

"Billy spaou?"sent us a text," Alexander said. "I thought you were eating garlic."

"I told you I didn't. We were playing a game," Stormy said.

"We were playing truth or dare," Billy said. "And Henry dared Stormy to eat a clove of garlic. Then she freaked out and ran up here."

"Don't you know you are supposed to take the 'truth' and not the 'dare'?" I asked Stormy.

"She locked herself inside until we promised we weren't going to make her," he continued.

"So what's so wrong?" Henry asked. "She dared me to eat a jalapeno. My eyes are still tearing." Stormy grinned mischievously.

"Stormy is allergic to garlic," I said.

"I knew Alexander was," Billy said. "But Stormy, too?"

They nodded.

"I didn't know that," Henry said apologetically.

"I know," Alexander said. "She could have just told you without freaking out."

"And so is Valentine?" Henry said.

"Yes," Alexander answered.

"That's odd. They aren't even related."

I breathed a huge sigh of relief.

"You didn't have to come over," Stormy said, embarrassed. "I handled this myself."

"Why didn't you answer your phone?" I yelled at my brother.

"It was on vibrate. I didn't hear it. It's downstairs."

I stared at him with daggers. "You are grounded."

"You can't ground me!"

"I can try," I said. "Where are your parents?" I asked Henry.

"They went out for dinner."

"Well, I think the party is over," Alexander said. "You should get off Henry's bed now." He was glaring at Stormy.

"I don't want to go!" she said defiantly. "We were just having fun. Valentine was reading my blood."

"Well, he can read it another time."

"I don't want to leave." Stormy stayed on the bed. "I want to find out what my reading is. Then Billy's and Henry's."

"I'll tell you what your reading is," Alexander announced. "And it's not pretty."

"I'm not going," she said stubbornly. "It isn't sunrise for another eight hours."

"Shall I have Jameson come and get you?" Alexander asked. "Or I can pick you up in front of everyone and carry you down to the car."

"You aren't the boss of me!" she declared angrily. "You spoil everything."

She hopped off the bed and stormed out of the room.

Alexander shook his head. "I knew she'd be a handful."

Valentine caught up to her in the hallway, and I overheard them talking.

"You like Billy - " Valentine said.

"What?" she asked.

"I read it in your blood. You like Billy. I thought you liked me."

"Stormy likes you," Henry said to my brother.

"Who told you that?" Billy asked.

"I heard Valentine," Henry answered. Then Henry whispered to me, "I was hoping she'd like me."

"I thought we were friends," Valentine said to Stormy.

Then we peeked our heads out of Henry's room.

"We are," she said. "But I have lots of friends now." She was as proud as she was sincere.

Valentine crossed his arms as Stormy headed down the staircase and out to the car.

"I don't understand a girl who doesn't like mirrors and is allergic to garlic," I heard Henry say to Billy. "I think I'm glad she likes you and not me."