"I'm going to call it a day, Mabel," David informed his receptionist. "It's Roger's 15th birthday, so I'm going over to Hallie's house to visit him."

"How's the divorce going?" she asked.

David shook his head. "Everything was settled -- child support, spousal support, custody . . . . But then she changed her mind and told me that rather than joint custody, she wanted sole custody and she offered me really miserable visitation rights."

Mabel shook her head in sympathy. "And I know how much you love those children."

"Roger, Laura and Burke are the only good things that came out of our marriage. If I had it to do it all over again, I would, despite all of the pain it caused me, just to have those children in my life."

"Well, unless you don't want to get there until his 16th birthday, you'd better get out of here."

Recognizing the wisdom in this advice, David picked up his briefcase and headed for the door. "'Night, Mabel."

"Good night, Dr. Collins."

* * * * *

As Sally left the building at the end of the day, she was stopped by Von Stein. "I was wondering if you'd mind if I'd come and visit you at Collinwood sometime. I was up there once or twice when I lived here, and I'd like to see how it's changed."

"Well, I'm not sure when I'll be moving in there. It's kind of a mess right now. I'm probably going to spend all day Sunday working on it. You're welcome to come up then."

"Thank you, Sally." Von Stein inclined his head toward her and then strode away.

Sally watched Von Stein walk away, shook her head in consternation, and began the trek toward home.

* * * * *

Julia was trying to decide which frozen dinner to heat up for herself when Barnabas arrived. He grabbed her, swinging her around to face him, and kissed her on the mouth.

After a minute or so, when he pulled away, Julia spluttered, "Barnabas! What are you doing home?"

"Surprised to see me?"

"Yes! This is Tuesday. You usually have night classes and aren't home until 10:00."

Barnabas shrugged, "they had a power outage at the university. The electricity wasn't going to come back on until 9:00, so they cancelled night classes."

"Good!" Julia smiled, "Then you can fix dinner!"

Barnabas smiled. "I'd be delighted, my dear." He crossed the room to the pantry and began assessing the contents.

Suddenly, Julia's eyes went wide. "Oh! You got a phone call today from a," she walked over to the phone, where she'd left the slip of paper where she'd written down Sally's name, "Sally Bradford. She's renovating Collinwood and wants to discuss the history of the house with you. She's heard that you're the expert on Collins family history." Julia and Barnabas shared a sly grin with each other that carried the knowledge that he was the expert on Collins family history because he'd witnessed a large part of that history himself.

"She doesn't want me to go into Collinsport, does she?"

"No. I told her that you didn't have enough time to go into Collinsport. She said that she'd come here to visit you on Saturday."

"Julia, Friday's our 26th wedding anniversary."

"Right . . . " Julia could tell that there was more on Barnabas' mind than just the date of their anniversary.

"When will the children be coming over to celebrate?"

"Sunday."

"Well, then I'll be glad to meet with Miss Bradford. Did she say what time she was coming over?"

"No, but she said that you can call her at Carolyn's house."

Barnabas gave his wife a look that said that she knew very well how much he hated making phone calls. He sighed, "All right. I'll give her a call after dinner."

* * * * *

Sally's legs hurt when she finished the trek back up the hill to the Collins estate. {I've got to remember to call Mom and ask if Uncle Dan has arranged a car for me yet. I don't know if I'm up to this every day.}

Sally decided to stop by Collinwood and see what had been done while she was at work. She flipped on the light and it went on with far less spluttering and sparking than it had done the first time she came to see the house.

She crossed the foyer and stepped into the drawing room. The glazier had evidently not been able to replace the broken panes yet, but at least he had removed the broken pieces and stretched heavy- duty plastic over the open spots.

Sally wanted to get some work done on the house herself, but she didn't know where to start, especially so close to dark. She toyed briefly with opening the flue on the fireplace and starting a fire to take some of the dampness out of the air, but thought better of it. {It's been 10 years. You never know what could be up there -- birds' nests, bat guano, dead Collins ancestors. I'll call a professional chimney sweep tomorrow.}

Reluctantly, she turned out the light in the drawing room and the foyer, locked the front door, and left the house.

When Sally knocked on the door of the carriage house, Beth answered it. "You don't have to knock, Sally!" she admonished her, "you're part of the family now. You can just open the door and come right on in."

"Thanks," Sally replied with a smile for her new friend.

"And you're just in time for dinner. Mom's got a new recipe she wants to try out on us."

"Dinner? I don't mean to impose. I thought I'd just order a pizza or something."

Beth shook her head, "If I have to eat Mom's experiment, it's only fair that you should have to eat it too. Ask not what Mom's cookbooks can do for you, ask what you can do for Mom's cookbooks."

"OK, well, how can I refuse an offer like that? I just have to run upstairs for a second and then I'll be ready to eat."

Once Sally came back downstairs, Carolyn explained this family tradition, "since the antique shop is closed on Tuesdays, I've been working my way through some old family recipes for Tuesday dinner."

"Yeah, really old," her daughter agreed.

"OK, well, last week's eel pie might have been a bit much . . . " Carolyn and Beth burst out laughing at the expression on Sally's face.

"Well, this week's recipe is far less threatening. I found a recipe for poached turkey."*

And less threatening it was. It was simply a turkey breast that had been cooked in chicken broth. Carolyn served mashed potatoes and green beans as side dishes and the three women spent a companionable hour eating their dinner.

After dinner, the phone rang. Hoping that it was Devin, her fiance, Beth rushed to answer it. "Hello? Hi, Uncle Barnabas! You want to talk to Mom? Sally? OK. Tell Aunt Julia that I said hello." Beth handed the phone to Sally, who took the phone into the living room, so that she and Barnabas could converse without disturbing, or being disturbed by, Carolyn and Beth's conversation.

"Hello?"

"Is this Sally Bradford?" Sally was intrigued by the man immediately. His broad vowels and the way he trilled the first 'R' in 'Bradford' slightly gave her the impression that he was someone who used his voice to influence people's emotions, like an actor or a preacher.

"Yes, it is."

"This is Barnabas Collins. I understand that you would like to talk to me about Collins family history."

"Yes. I'm renovating Collinwood, and I think that since the house has so much history, I should take that history into account when I fix it up."

"I think that's an admirable attitude, Miss Bradford. So, my wife suggested that you should come to Bangor to meet with me on Saturday, I believe?"

"Yes, if that's all right with you."

"That would be fine with me. What time would you like to come by?"

"Well, I have to run a few errands first, so, say, 11-ish?"

Sally could hear the smile in the man's voice. "11-ish it is then. I look forward to meeting you, Miss Bradford."

"You, too, Mr. Collins. See you on Saturday."

After she hung up the phone, Sally returned to the kitchen to help Carolyn and Beth with the dinner dishes.

"So, I hear that you're going to Bangor to meet Cousin Barnabas," Carolyn said.

Sally nodded, "Mmm-hmmm. All I need is a ride to Bangor and I'll be all set."

"It's been ages since I've seen Uncle Barnabas or Aunt Julia. I'd take you," Beth offered, "but I'm going into Portland to see Devin again this weekend."

"You go into Portland to see Devin every weekend," her mother teased fondly.

"Well, nearly every weekend," Beth conceded.

"There is a bus that runs between Collinsport and Bangor. It takes an hour and a half, but it'll get you there." Carolyn said.

"What time does it leave Collinsport?"

"It used to be 8:00, but it may have changed. I haven't taken it for years, now, not since Beth was a little girl."

Just then, Sally realized that she still needed to call her mother to see if her uncle had been able to arrange a car for her. "Can I borrow your phone to make a long distance call? I need to ask my mother a question."

"Go right ahead."

Sally took the phone and dialed her parents' phone number. "Trudy?" Sally asked when her younger sister answered the phone.

"Sally?!? Oh, my gosh! How are you?" her sister squealed.

Sally smiled, "I'm fine. I love it here in Maine. You've got to come and visit me this summer."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world! So, have you met any cute guys yet?"

"I'm here to research family history, Trudy, not to meet cute guys," Sally said, thinking briefly of David Collins, "and I'm getting somewhere, too. I'm going to be moving into the house where Victoria Winters worked as a governess before she met Peter Bradford."

"Really? Oh, wow! Mom will be so excited to hear that!"

"Speaking of Mom, is she around?" Just as she asked this, Sally heard her mother's voice in the background.

"Yeah. Just a sec." There was a brief pause while Trudy covered the mouthpiece with her hand, and then Sally heard her say, "It's Sally."

Her mother took the phone from Trudy. "Hi!"

"Hi, Mom!"

"It's so good to hear your voice!" her mother responded. "So, tell me all about Maine. How's the new job?"

"Well, I've only worked one day so far, but I think I'm going to like it."

"What did Trudy think I'd be excited about?"

"Oh! I'm moving into the house where Victoria Winters lived."

"That {is} exciting news. I'm surprised that the house is still standing. It must be nearly 200 year old now."

"Actually, Collinwood is 201 years old this year," this was a piece of trivia that Sally had picked up in a conversation with Carolyn the day before.

"Trudy says that you want to talk to me about something. Was that it or was it something else?"

"Actually, I was wondering if you'd talked to Uncle Dan about my car yet."

"Yes, I have. It'll be waiting for you at the Fjord dealership in Bangor. You can pick it up," there was a pause as her mother leafed through the papers in front of her, "on Friday."

About 8:00, the three women heard a knock at the door.

"Ah! That'll be Tom and Ted!" Carolyn said as she crossed the living room and opened the door to reveal the twins. "You're running late! Come on in, boys. You know the drill."

Sally watched with a slightly befuddled expression on her face.

"The twins spend three nights a month with us," Beth said, without further elaboration.

Apparently, the twins did, in fact, have a routine they followed when the spent the night at the carriage house. Sally watched in amazement as the two boys carried their knapsacks immediately up the stairs, returning with school books in their arms. They walked into the dining room and got right to their homework.

* * * * *

"Nnngh."

"That sounded painful."

Rueful laugh. "Yeah, you know what Lois said to me the last time she was here? She said that women have the babies because men can't stand pain. I came {this} close to asking her if she's ever tried turning into a wolf."

"Well, if you decide to say that to her, let me know far enough in advance that I can catch the expression on her face."

Sabrina winced along with Chris when the next pain came. "Come on, you can squeeze harder than that!" she chided him lovingly.

"I don't want to hurt you," he said, glancing at their joined hands where they lay on the arm of the chair.

"The worst way you could hurt me would be to not let me help you."

"Ah! That's why I married you!"

"Why?" she asked.

"Because I love you so much. Come here and give me a kiss."

Sabrina touched her lips to his briefly.

"You call that a kiss?"

"Well, the last time I kissed you during a full moon, you almost bit my lips off."

"Ooh! Chaining me to a cast iron lawn chair and then kissing me until I chew your lips off. Sounds kinky."

"You wish! Although, maybe, once the full moon's over. . . ."

"You are such a tease. You know, this chair is really uncomfortable."

"It doesn't need to be comfortable . . . ."

"It just needs to be sturdy," he finished for her. He gripped her hand more tightly as another pain hit him.

After the pain passed, Chris said, "I wish you'd go to Carolyn's house. I don't like you putting yourself in danger staying in the house with me."

"Chris, when you're a werewolf, the only one of us that's in danger is you. I shudder to think what would happen if a werewolf hunter came into the house with you alone here."

"Like werewolf hunters just happen along every day."

"Well, at least with me here, we can be sure that it won't happen." She grinned slightly, "and anyway, I sort of think that I'm beginning to bond with your inner wolf."

"Sabrina. . .," Chris sounded exasperated.

"Really. He's sweet, in a feral kind of way."

* * * * *

David stretched his back as he got out of the car. Traffic had been miserable, and as he knocked on Hallie's front door, he heard the grandfather clock in the hallway chime 8:00. Roger would still be up, but 8:00 was Burke's bedtime and that, like as not, Laura had retreated to her bedroom more than an hour earlier. He sighed. He just had to hope that Hallie would let him go upstairs to see his other two children while he was there.

A few seconds after he knocked, Roger came to the door. "Dad!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms around his father.

David closed his eyes as he hugged his son. "Happy birthday, Roger! I'm sorry I'm late."

Roger led his father into the foyer of the house. "I'm just glad that you made it before Mom sent me to bed." Roger rolled his eyes heavenward as he said this.


He opened his briefcase and pulled out an adequately-wrapped box, which he handed to his eldest child. "Happy birthday, Roger. I hope I remembered which one you wanted."

Roger took the package and hastily unwrapped it to find the latest in a series of computer logic games under the paper. "Oh, wow! Vapyr! Can I go and play it tonight, Mom?"

Hallie sighed. She didn't approve of computer games, even non-violent ones like the ones that David bought for Roger, but the arrangement that she had with her eldest son was that he could play them for half an hour a night. "All right. But only until 9:00!"

After Roger disappeared into the study, Hallie asked, "Would you like some birthday cake, David?"

"Actually, I was wondering if I could look in on Laura and Burke."

"OK, but I just sent Burke to bed. Don't wake him up."

Although David silently fumed, he said aloud, "I promise. I'll just open the door and peek at him." He turned around and walked up the stairs to his daughter's room.

As he expected, Laura, who looked just like her aunt Carolyn had looked at that age, was still awake, reading Clive Barker's latest novel. "Laura!" he whispered.

"Daddy!" she whispered back, dropping her book to her side and hurrying over to hug her father.

"I can't stay long. I still need to get home to get a full night's sleep. I've got a hospital to run, you know."

"I know." Laura smiled at her father, "I'm just glad that you were able to make it."

"Good night, Princess," he said, kissing his middle child on the forehead.

After he'd tucked Laura back into bed, David stepped back out into the hallway. He turned off the hall light, and silently pushed open Burke's bedroom door.

He stood there for a long moment, listening to the sound of his youngest child breathing. The sound changed slightly, and Burke whispered, "Is that you, Dad?"

David cringed. He wasn't ready to have another confrontation with his wife. If Hallie finds out that Burke is awake . . . "Yes. It's me," he whispered back.

"I thought so. I love you, Dad."

"I love you, too, Burke. Get back to sleep. Your mother will have my hide if she finds out that you woke up when I was up here."

"OK. Good night, Dad."

"Good night."

After David closed the door, he leaned up against the wall with his eyes shut for a moment. Carolyn often told him how much Burke reminded her of him at that age. He sometimes wondered if he had affected his own father, Roger, as strongly as Burke affected him. When he was a child, David had always thought that his father hated him, which was why he'd once tried to kill his father. He hoped that Burke knew how much he loved him.

David walked back downstairs and on the way to the front door, he stopped in the study to say farewell to his eldest child. "Good night, Roger," he said, kissing his son on the top of his head.

"Good night, Dad. You are picking us up for the weekend on Friday, aren't you?"

"Of course. I wouldn't miss my weekend with the three of you for the world."

Impulsively, Roger stood up and hugged his father. "Bye, Dad."

"Good night." David stepped back out into the hallway and walked down to the living room. As he picked up his briefcase, he heard Hallie talking on the phone in the kitchen, laughing.

"Leander! Stop it!" Hallie giggled.

As the hilarity continued, David walked out into the foyer, through the front door, and into the night.

WEDNESDAY

"Morning," Chris said as he entered the kitchen in his flannel robe.

Sabrina walked across the room to her husband. "Morning yourself, handsome," she said, as she kissed him on the lips.

Chris rolled his head around gently to work out the tension that the transformation caused. "Here, let me do that," Sabrina said, lowering him into a kitchen chair and massaging his shoulders.

"While I have you here," Sabrina said, "I think that there's something we need to talk about."

"I'm all ears," Chris replied.

Sabrina dropped herself onto her husband's lap. "Well, Tom & Ted's 13th birthday is coming up in a few weeks, and I think we need to decide what to get them. 13 is an important birthday."

"It was for me. It was the first full moon after my 13th birthday that I made the transformation the first time."

This thought sobered them up momentarily.

Sabrina shook her head slightly to clear it. "Well, we don't have to worry about that with our sons. That's why we adopted, after all, so that our children would be safe from the curse."

* * * * *

"Yes, I'll hold on." Sally had taken a few minutes out of proofreading her code to make a few phone calls. She had just finished arranging to meet the chimney sweep at Collinwood on her lunch hour, and now she was calling David to see how his visit with his children went.

"David Collins," he said as he answered the phone.

"Ummm, hi, David. This is Sally Bradford. I'm renting Collinwood from you."

"Yes. I remember you, Sally. How may I help you?"

"I just remembered that you were going to visit your children yesterday, and I thought I'd call to see how it went."

David sighed, "It didn't go well. Traffic was awful, and so I ran late."

Sally moaned sympathetically, "that's too bad. But you got to visit them, that's what's important."

"I know, but it's just so . . . I don't know. Frustrating, I guess. I hardly ever get to see them anymore, and. . . . Look this really isn't a good time to talk."

Sally felt rejected when he said this, but she felt better when he added, "I have the kids this weekend. Maybe we could come out to Collinwood and visit you? I've been wanting to take them to see the house, and this would be a good opportunity. We might even be able to help."

"That would be nice. I'm going in to Bangor on Saturday, but I'm available on Sunday."

"Then it's a date. See you then."

"'Bye." Sally hung up with a goofy smile on her face. Soon, though, her attention was caught by the words Hi, Sally, embedded in the code she was working on.

Sally highlighted these words and deleted them. Then, she moved her mouse down to the Start button and then up to Programs, then to Accessories, and finally she clicked on the application she was looking for -- Notepad.

{Is that you, Jeb?}

Her keys clicked momentarily, and the words {Who else?} appeared on the screen.

{I didn't know that you could type,} she said.

{Neither did I}, he responded. Sally somehow got the idea that he was smiling.

{You know, I'll have to leave my laptop on during the day so that you can surf.}

{Surf? Like they do in California?}

Sally chuckled, {No, it's a term that means to, well, are you familiar with the Internet?}

{What's that?}

{That's what I thought. Well, it's a network of computers in different places around the world that are connected by phone lines. You can use them to "visit" all sorts of different places. You can read newspapers, visit museums, meet people, read books, all sorts of things.}

{Really?}

{Yep. And since you can use a computer, you'll be able to do all of that, just as if you were, well . . .}

When she paused, Jeb provided the word that she was looking for. {Alive?}

{Ummm, Yeah. That's what I was trying to say. Oh, and Jeb?}

{Yes?}

{One more thing. If you want to chat, please open up this window. The one that says "Notepad" at the top. I'm not sure what will happen if my boss finds your notes to me in my code.}