Part Three

********** What a beautiful day! (Now watch some bastard louse it up) - Plaque in my locker. **********

In a gentlemanly manner Dick opened the car door for Joyce. "I'm glad you called." He said as he motioned for her to enter.

"I hope I'm not being a bother. I promised my daughter that I would not go out there alone. She worries about me."

"She can come with us." Dick offered.

"No, she went to LA for the weekend. Her Aunt, my ex-husband's sister is getting married."

"It's nice she worries about her mother. These days a lot of children just don't care."

Dick got in and picked up his car phone. "I have to call and confirm the press check. Rick, the night foreman told me it would be at about 8:45. If that still holds we'll have time for the tour beforehand."

The drive out to the plant was pleasant. Small talk about the Gallery business and what Joyce could expect to see at Sunnydale Graphics. In the parking lot, Dick again came around and opened the door for her. "Just look at that beautiful sunset!" he said as he helped her from the car. "I just love sunsets."

Joyce shook her head. "Lately, I have preferred sunrises."

"To each his own." Dick commented. "Well, let's go on in. They are expecting us."

The building which housed Sunnydale Graphics struck Joyce as a bit unusual as they walked through the front parking lot. No windows, just a single door was the only break in the width of the building. She hesitated for a second as an uncomfortable feeling went through her.

"What's the matter?"

Joyce shook her head. "Oh nothing. It just seems a bit foreboding. I was expecting a more modern building."

"It was built in the late 70's when the memory of the energy crisis was still in everyone's mind. So, not one window went into the design. Sad, but that's what happened." Dick explained as they walked up to the heavy metal door. He took out his keys and unlocked it and held it open for Joyce.

"Let me take your coat." Dick said as they entered the building.

Joyce complied and then took a look around the lobby. In one corner a hundred and thirty year old press stood on display. "Oh my! Look at this."

Dick locked the front door and went up to the press. Pointing to a plaque sitting on the antique he told her. "One of our employees, Gregory, collects and restores vintage printing equipment. He even uses them to print his own books. The standing 'joke' around here is that he has been a printer for 300 years. Some people collect stamps, Gregory collects one ton machinery."

"Isn't that a little odd?"

Dick held his hands up in a gesture of mock confusion. "This industry seems to attract eccentrics. Myself included." Opening a door off of the lobby he motioned her through it. "Shall we go on through? First stop desktop publishing."

And the tour began...

Joyce looked down at the huge square of brownie being offered to her. "No thank you. Chocolate hasn't been agreeing with me here lately.

"Oooh, that's too bad." The grandmotherly lady sadly acknowledged. "Here, let me wrap it up for you. You can just nibble on it after you get home."

"Her nickname is 'Aunt Bea'." Dick laughed. "Always bringing in treats. It's a miracle we all don't weigh 500 pounds. But this is her signature creation - Mississippi Mud - half brownie, half fudge, completely sinful."

"I can see that." Joyce said taking the goodie from Mary Ann. "Maybe a little bite won't hurt..."

Dick winked at Mary. "You're about to gain another follower."

Mary chuckled. "Enjoy your tour, dear. Maybe I'll see you on the way out."

Joyce followed Herron through the computer department and on into the next area.

"This is stripping where the film is laid down in position for the platemaker. The young man who is usually on duty here doesn't seem to be around. So we will just go on back to plates."

The two entered the area just as Kimmie hit the vacuum switch on a large glass covered frame.

"Kimmie, this is Ms Summers. Want to explain what you are doing?" Dick said while bringing Joyce up to the equipment.

"Sure. This device is a vacuum frame. It draws the negative tightly down onto the plate."

Joyce drew closer and looked down through the glass to see what was being described. Kimmie suddenly turned off the vacuum and raised the lid.

"There was a little lint goober. The tiniest bit of dirt will ruin a plate." She said while brushing her hand across the negative wiping the speck away. Dick moved in a bit closer and pointed at another one.

Joyce cocked her head to try and see what Herron was pointing to. A chill went through her and the phrase "Oh shit..." entered her mind. In the glass she could see Herron's reflection, but not this woman's who was standing right beside him. "...a vampire!"

The platemaker shut the lid and turned on the pump. As the frame drew the negative to the plate she sprayed the outside of the glass and wiped it clean. "It will take a few seconds to draw down. Now these plates have a photosensitive coating..."

Again Joyce watched as Kimmie drew her arm back and forth across the glass. The can reflected, the rag reflected but not the figure.

".... and now it's ready to burn. Fire in the hole!" Kimmie moved back away from the frame and stood by a remote unit waiting for the other two to join her before hitting the switch.

Dick led Joyce back toward where the platemaker stood. "This is what you could call artificial sunlight. It won't burn a person as quickly as the real thing, but repeated exposure will mess a person up."

"Absolutely." Kimmie chimed in.

Joyce gulped again and glance back and forth between her two companions. They had not noticed her sudden nervousness. The comment Dick had made to 'Aunt Bea' - "You’re about to gain another follower..." entered her mind. She covertly laid the brownie down on the cabinet, pushed it behind some boxes and steadied herself. "I see. What's next?"

"Pressroom. Your job is running out on the 46. This way Joyce, I'm sure you will get a kick out of it."

The two entered the pressroom and went up to a large six unit press. Two men, one clean cut, one bearded were completing the task of putting the plates into position. Dick launched into a long-winded speech as to what they were observing. Joyce, on the other hand was not listening. She watched the two as they reached down and tightened a row of nuts along the shiny steel clamp. Bearded one - reflects, Mr. Clean - doesn't she noted. "Great - another one." Her mind began to race. She had to get out of there. Run? Maybe as plan 'B'. She was three miles out in an industrial park they would catch her before she saw another soul. She needed help.... Giles. Get to a phone and call Giles.

"Joyce?"

Herron was standing beside her waiting for a response. "Any questions?" he repeated.

"Oh no.... ah... Hey, how about that coffee you promised?"

"That's part of the deal. How do you want it?"

"Just.. just black, black with cream, that's fine."

Herron exchanged a confused glance with the pressmen over the coffee order and headed for the lunchroom leaving Joyce there with the two. Mr. Clean came up held out his hand. and introduced himself. "I'm Andy and that is my helper Gary. We're ready whenever you are."

Joyce considered rejecting the handshake, but decided that it would be less suspicious to follow through. His hand was so cold that it was all she could do to keep from jumping away. "Where's the lady's room?" She asked.

Andy pointed toward a door. "Through there, first door on the right."

Joyce thanked him and left the pressroom. Slipping down the corridor she bypassed the restroom and went into the office area. She tiptoed past the deserted cubbie-holes until she reached a far desk. She stopped to listen for a moment and then picked up the phone and dialed Rupert's number.

"Come on, come on, come on... answer." She whispered as it rang for the forth time.

"Hello?"

"Mr. Giles, It's me Joyce. I'm out at Sunnydale Graphics and this place is fullofvampiresandIdon'thaveacarandLordknowswhattherest..."

"What? Slow down.."

"The platemaker and pressman are vampires. I don't know what the rest of them are. I have to get out of here."

"Have you been threatened? Can you get out of the building?"

"Every out of the way door I've seen is chained or padlocked shut. And I know the front door is dead bolted. They don't know I know. They think I'm just here for a press check. But some lady did try to force chocolate on me."

"Oh Dear God, not that... Listen, I'm on my way. I'll pretend that I'm there to pick you up.... maybe we can just walk out."

"I'll be up by a big press. I think they called it the 46. I have to go before they catch me talking to you."

"Stay calm, I'm on my way."

Rupert hung up the phone and grabbed a bottle of holy water and a stake. "Have to go in low-key." he muttered.

Joyce made her way back to the lady's room and sat on the couch. "I'll just stay in here for awhile." Looking around she noticed a key in the vanity cabinet. "Maybe there is something I can use under there..." She accessed the cabinet but all she found was sacks marked with various names. Poking through them she found nothing but personal supplies, combs, brushes and small mirrors. "Mirrors?" She thought for a second and then realized that there wasn't a large mirror over the sink. "So I was right, they're not all vampires. What is going on here?"

Joyce bit her lip for a second. Grabbing a mirror she left the restroom and crept up to the pressroom door and opened it a crack. Allowing herself a quick peek to see where the two pressmen were standing she withdrew back behind the door. "OK, let's see who's who." She said softly as she positioned the mirror within the opening. Nope, Andy did not cast an image onto the surface, but the other one, Oh Lord! What appeared in the mirror did not have human features. Horns sprouted from the side of both of his heads and instead of a beard, whiskers and spines reminiscent of that of a catfish appeared.

Joyce let out a small whimper. "Oh no, a vampire and demon tag-team... so Herron is a..."

"Card-carrying Warlock." Herron answered from behind her to finish her sentence.

"Oh shit......." Was all she got out before everything went black.