"Thanks for the positive thinking. By the way, where were you with your opinions when she was ready to kill someone?"
"Hey, I didn't see any point in all three of us having those eyes bore into us. Did they start to turn black, or was that my imagination?"
Jackson scowled, closed his eyes, and dropped his head back. "I guess we wait and face the music when it comes."
All three looked toward the kitchen when they heard Elisabeth yell, "I said no! We'll have to find another way."
"Oh, boy. That can't be good."
"Skippy, if you don't stop stating the obvious, I'm going to smack you."
Sarah sat forward and instinctively held her arm across Connor. "Maybe she's mad at Thomas now. That could work in our favor."
Jackson shook his head. "And she calls me a coward."
Elisabeth entered the drawing room wearing a look of consternation rather than anger. The three miscreants registered relief as she finished pouring her drink at the bar without addressing them. She gulped a long draw of scotch, leveled her eyes on Jackson and calmly announced, "I'm going to take a nap. We'll finish this later."
He nodded while tugging at his collar.
The vampires remained motionless until they heard the bedroom door shut, then Jackson began to pace. "I wish I heard all of that conversation."
Sarah stood and hugged herself. "She can't stay mad at us forever. I bet she'll be fine when she wakes up."
"She does seem more rational once she's had a nap… and a good meal."
"Great idea. I'll make a nice stew for when she wakes…and some buttermilk biscuits… and a strawberry-rhubarb pie. That's her favorite." Sarah skipped to the kitchen with Connor in tow.