Vampires Don't Fall In Love

Broken Bones

Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING! The Bailey School Kids book series and its characters belong to Debbie Dadey & Marcia Jones.
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Ben had never met anyone like Kilmer Hauntly's grandmother. Madame Catalina Hauntly was a willowy, pale woman with a Romanian accent, green eyes and raven black hair that fell to her hips. She wore a black dress so long it hid her feet and had lengthy, bright green fingernails that seemed to glow in the dark.

Most adults said she was weird. Children in the neighborhood thought she was a vampire. Ben didn't care. He adored her.

Madame Hauntly was different from other grandmothers. She only came out at night, told the most amazing stories and loved to climb trees. Ben always spent time with her when she visited the Hauntlys.

Well...not always.

Ben sighed.

He'd broken his arm a week ago doing stunts on his skateboard. The cast itched!

He tried to use a fork to scratch at the skin beneath the fiberglass, but that ended the moment his mom saw. She confiscated the fork and sent him to his room.

Ben plopped down in front of his bedroom window to watch all his neighbors go about their day. Mr. Davis, the principle at Bailey Elementary, watered his garden and shooed Kilmer's cat Sparky off his lawn. Ben waved to Mr. Lobo, the music teacher, who had been spending his free time at Mrs. Jeepers' repairing and renovating the old Clancy Estate.

Annie and Jane ran by on their way to the local playground to play soccer with Carey, Eddie and the other kids.

"We're going to Doodleburger afterward. Want us to pick you up a milkshake?" Annie asked.

Ben shook his head. "It would melt by the time you brought it back. Thanks anyway though."

Jane shrugged. "Suit yourself."

Ben watched them hurry down Dedman Street and disappear around the corner. He wished he could go, but all the jostling would mess up his arm worse than it already was.

What bummed Ben out most was knowing he'd have to miss out on Madame Hauntly's visit. She was due to arrive early that evening.

He wouldn't get to hear about her childhood home at the feet of the Transylvania Alps, learn more about the Hauntly family history or take her to a movie at the cinema that had just opened over on Main Street. Ben knew how much she liked dark, cool places.

He and Kilmer had planned on treating her to dinner at Jewel's Pizza Castle. Madame Hauntly had promised they'd all climb the old oak tree together.

"This stinks!" Ben glared at his cast. "I can't climb trees or play ball with this stupid thing stuck on my arm."

He tried playing video games, but it was practically impossible to reach the next level when he only had one good arm. He eventually gave up and turned off the television figuring he'd skip supper and go to bed early.

Ben was beginning to doze off when he heard a tapping at his window. He turned over to see what it was then remembered he'd closed the drapes. He slid off the bed and pulled them open.

Nothing.

Ben frowned. "Huh? I could've sworn I heard-"

A face appeared in the window. Ben cried out and jumped back before realizing it was Madame Hauntly perched gracefully on the ledge outside his window.

"I didn't mean to frighten you," she said. "Kilmer told me about your arm. I hope it isn't causing you pain."

"I'm okay. It's just...I can't have any fun with my arm stuck in a cast. The doctor says I'll have to keep it on until the bone heals. How am I gonna play sports or climb stuff with this thing?"

Madame Hauntly hummed in thought. "Well, climbing trees and playing sports might be out of the question until your arm is healed, but there are other ways to have fun."

"Like what?"

Madame Hauntly smiled giving him a glimpse of her sharp eye teeth. "A movie? Or pizza and ice cream, perhaps? I spoke to your parents. You and I will be eating pizza and going to see a movie. Wash up and meet me out in the yard. Kilmer and the others are waiting for us."

Ben perked up. "Really?"

Madame Hauntly smiled. "Of course, silly boy. Did you think I would exclude you from being part of my visit because of your injury?"

"I didn't think you'd want me around slowing you down," he admitted.

"Oh, darling..." She patted his shoulder. "I am your friend as much as you are Kilmer's. I will always make time for you."

Ben smiled genuinely for the first time since he'd fallen from his skateboard. "Kilmer's right. You're the best."

Madame Hauntly laughed. "I am not the best, but I certainly appreciate the compliment. I will wait for you outside."

Ben threw on clean clothes and ran his hand through his hair. A quick glance in the mirror and he was on his way out the door.

Maybe having a broken arm isn't so bad after all, he mused, keeping in step with Madame Hauntly as they headed toward the pizza castle.

Madame Hauntly noticed him staring at her and offered him a reassuring smile. She didn't act like other adults. Ben believed wholeheartedly that she was the coolest person in Bailey City.

After they were done eating and the movie had ended, Madame Hauntly took all the kids back to Hauntly Manor Inn. Ben sat on one of the dirt mounds in the conservatory while she told stories about Romania and the Transylvania Alps.

"It is late," she said, "I will walk you all home."

She made sure everyone made it safely back to their houses. It was past midnight, but Ben just couldn't sleep, so he snuck out the back door and struggled up the ladder of his tree house.

He was less than half way there when a hand gripped his ankle. He gasped and looked down to see Madame Hauntly standing at the base of the tree.

"You should be in bed resting," the Hauntly matriarch stated as she helped him back down. "It is not good to climb about with a broken arm. I do not wish to see you harmed."

"I can't sleep," he explained.

"Is it your arm? Does it hurt?" she asked. "I can speak to your mother. She ought to be able to give you something to quell the pain."

Ben shook his head. "It's not that. I just had so much fun that it's hard to turn my brain off."

Madame Hauntly nodded in understanding. "You must have a lot on your mind. Would you like to share your thoughts with me? I am a good listener."

Ben sat on the grass and leaned his back against the tree while Madame Hauntly made herself comfortable on one of the low lying branches above.

True to her word, she listened as he told her about school and stuff going on in his family. He talked to her about his favorite games and how he and his dad were training so he could try out for the football team next year.

After another hour or two, Ben grew tired and ended up falling asleep. Madame Hauntly lifted the exhausted fifth grader and carried him up to his room.

How she ever managed to do so without waking either him or his parents, Ben didn't know. He woke the following morning in his bed with a blanket draped over his body and a leaf stuck in his hair. If Madame Hauntly was a vampire, she was the good kind.
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