The Vampires of Shadow Hills Series: Book 4-6

by Willow Rose

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  Adrian came in through the window again and startled Jazmine when he suddenly appeared in her room.

  "You've got to stop doing that," she said.

  Then she looked at him, looked into his eyes to see if he was still high. He wasn't. It made her smile.

  He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her into a kiss. It felt the way it was supposed to, the way it used to. It felt right.

  "So, have those cousins of yours left?" she asked when he let her go. He stared at her like he wanted more. She pulled away. Not because she didn't want to kiss him again; she did. No, she wanted to keep him that way, constantly wanting more. Keep him hungry for her and not let him think he could get her whenever he wanted.

  "Nah, they're still here," he said and sat on the bed, a self-confident smirk on his face.

  "But the bus is gone?" she asked.

  "Yeah, well…it was stolen," he said with a sniffle. He patted the bed next to him, letting her know he wanted her to sit down. She did. He kissed her neck. She closed her eyes and enjoyed it, allowing herself to enjoy his touches and kisses. They grew in intensity and soon he was on top of her, his hands touching her, and he was groaning greedily. She let him go on for a little while longer, then pushed him off, thinking she couldn't let him go too far. She didn't dare to. He still scared her, especially when he got excited. He had a tendency to get slightly aggressive, and she wasn't sure he could control himself.

  She sat up.

  "What?" he asked and pulled her back down. He held her down on the bed, his hand on her throat, then sat on top of her, grinning.

  She pushed his hand away. "Easy there, cowboy," she said and sat up, pushing him away. The look in his eyes was piercing.

  "I need something to drink," she said. "I'm gonna go downstairs and grab us a couple of sodas."

  Adrian smirked, then sighed. "Sure."

  Jazmine got up from the bed and rushed out into the hallway. She stood for a few seconds and calmed herself down, realizing she was finding it harder and harder to resist him once she got carried away. She feared how it would end when she could no longer stop him. Would he bite her? Drink her blood because he now knew that witches’ blood was better than that of normal humans? She didn't dare to take the risk. No, she couldn't let herself get carried away.

  She walked down the stairs and opened the fridge where she grabbed two cans. As she was about to walk out, she stopped and stared at the TV. It was turned on, and they were still reporting from the lake where they had found the body. They were showing something on the screen. An object found near the body that they believed belonged to the killer.

  It was an earring.

  "What are you up to?" her mother said as she walked in and startled Jazmine.

  "Just getting a couple of sodas," Jazmine said, showing the cans in her hand.

  Jazmine stared at her mother, then at the screen, then back at her mother, who was whistling as she poured herself a cup of coffee. Jazmine couldn't take her eyes off her mother's earlobe, where she was missing an earring identical to the one they were now showing on the screen behind her.

  "What?" her mother said, smiling, while Jazmine's breath became ragged, her heartbeat irregular.

  "You're staring at me like you've seen a ghost. Geez."

  Jazmine shook her head. "No…no, I'm sorry…I'll just be…I'll be upstairs."

  * * *

  There were still five months to the Halloween Block Party.

  Magic and Witchcraft

  The Vampires of Shadow Hills - Book 6

  Five Months Before the Halloween Block-Party

  Saturday night

  Chapter One

  "But, Mom. I hate clowns. You know I hate them."

  Tommy received a look from his dad. "That's nonsense, son. Clowns are funny. They do goofy stuff, and then we laugh."

  His dad glanced at Tommy's mom sitting on the other side of their son on the bench in the circus tent before adding:

  "Why is he being like this?"

  Tommy's mom shrugged. They had just finished watching the spectacular horse show, and the Ringmaster had announced that next came what all the kids were waiting for, the clowns. Upbeat, silly music filled the tent.

  "But they’re sca-a-ry, Daddy," Tommy said, on the brink of bursting into tears. "Clowns are sca-a-ry-y."

  "They're not scary. Where do you get this nonsense from?" his dad said addressed to his wife again. "Do they teach him this stuff at the pre-school? I told you we should home-school him. That place is nothing but a bunch of scared old women who fill him with nonsense and superstition."

  "But they are…" Tommy continued. He was yelling to be heard over the music. His mother squirmed in her seat as people next to them began to stare at the screaming kid.

  "They're sca-a-ary; they're sooo scary-y-y-y-y!"

  "What's wrong with him?" Tommy's dad said with a snort.

  "It's the make-up, I think. You know how kids don't like it when they can't see someone's face properly. Or maybe the big feet. It is a little creepy; you have to admit that."

  "It's nonsense is what it is," Tommy's dad said with another snort. "Just look at them. They're funny."

  Tommy's dad pointed as three clowns emerged into the arena. One was tooting a horn, another blowing bubbles, the third one juggling rings in the air. Tommy's dad started laughing just at seeing them in their colorful clothes and big red noses. The juggling one slipped in the soap from the other one's bubbles and fell, while the first one tooted his horn.

  Tommy's dad burst into a loud laugh and patted his son on the back. "See. Didn't I tell you they were funny? Look, now they're doing a balancing act and that one over there is using a jump rope. How do you do that with those big feet, huh?"

  Tommy stopped screaming and wiped his nose. He looked at the three clowns. The one jumping rope fell on his nose and, as he got up, the red nose was completely flat. That made all the kids in the tent laugh out loud, and the parents start to clap in time to the music.

  Tommy giggled. "Did you see that, Mommy? His nose was all flat."

  Another clown ran to comfort the crying clown with the flat nose and pulled out a bucket of plastic flowers from his pants. The clown got happy and smelled them, then started to sneeze.

  "Look, Mommy," Tommy said excitedly. "The nose isn’t flat anymore. He sneezed it round again. It's all round again!"

  Tommy chuckled and let go of his mother's hand. He leaned forward in his seat to see better. Tommy's dad sighed, relieved when he saw the big smile on his son's face. How anyone could be scared of clowns was beyond him. What was so frightening about a bunch of goofy funny-looking clumsy clowns? All they were trying to do was to make you laugh. What could be scary about that?

  Tommy's dad burst into laughter again, tears streaming down his cheeks, as the clowns ran in between the spectators with buckets that people assumed were filled with water, then turned them upside down, making people think they were being soaked with water when it was, in fact, just confetti.

  That one never grew old. He wiped a tear from his eye, just as the lights went out in the tent. When they were turned back on, Tommy was in tears as were several of the other kids.

  Tommy's dad laughed. "Those were some funny clowns, huh?"

  But Tommy was inconsolable. "What's going on with him?" his dad asked, surprised at the sudden change.

  Tommy's mother held her son close. "What's wrong, buddy? Did it scare you when the lights went out? It was just part of the act, buddy. The show is over now, and we have to go home."

  "Sca-a-a-ary, Mommy," he said between heavy sobs. "Sca-a-ary clown."

  Tommy's dad sighed and got up from his seat. They started to file out of the tent, following the other spectators. Several of the young children were crying like Tommy.

  "Are we back to that again?" Tommy's dad said.

  "He probably got scared when the lights went out," his mother said. "They really shouldn't end the show like that. It scares
the kids. Especially the young ones."

  "Didn't you think the clowns were funny? You were laughing most of the time, remember?" His dad tried once again, but Tommy wouldn't stop crying. Tommy's mother grabbed him and carried him, squirming and screaming, the rest of the way to the car.

  "Mommy…clown…" Tommy said, sobbing as she strapped him into his seat. "Bi-i-i-g teeth. Big sca-a-a-ry te-e-e-e-th."

  Not knowing what her kid was talking about, Tommy's mother shook her head and closed the car door. She worried that her husband might be right. Were the teachers at the pre-school filling them with fear? She had thought they went a little overboard with the whole STRANGER DANGER thing that Tommy would yell at her for days afterward. Would it be better to home-school him? She wasn't sure she would be up for the task. She felt her neck. It was sore for some reason. She shook the thought, then got into the car, where Tommy's dad had turned on the engine, while Tommy was still crying from the back seat.

  "Guess he just wasn't old enough for this," she said apologetically to her husband, whom she could tell was disappointed. He had been looking forward to taking his son to the circus for weeks. He used to love going with his dad when he was a child himself and wanted his son to experience the same joy.

  As they drove off, Tommy's mother spotted what looked like two bite marks on her husband's neck, but for some reason, she didn't think it was important. Just like she didn't find it important that two hours had passed from which she had no memories.

  Chapter Two

  The signs announcing Circus Fantastico's upcoming arrival were on every lamppost as I drove through town on Monday morning. I was behind the wheel in Adrian's car that my mother had let me take since he was done with school now and I needed it more than he did. School was out for the summer, and this was the day I began my internship at News13, the local TV station. Duncan's family owned the station, so they were the reason I got the internship, but that didn't make me less excited about this new adventure. I was supposed to be there for four weeks, and since my dream was one day to become a reporter, this was a great shot for me. Plus, I got to get out of the house every freakin' day. No more controlling mom looking over my shoulder constantly, no more annoying cousins. At least for eight hours during the day. It was heaven.

  Jayden wasn't very happy with me going. I mean he was happy for me because it was a great opportunity, but he wasn't very pleased with the fact that Duncan would be hanging out there as well. I didn't really need him there, but my mother had told him to keep an eye on me. I guess I should feel offended that she didn't think I could take care of myself, but I was too thrilled to get away from her even to care.

  I parked outside the big building with all the satellite dishes on top of it, then stepped out and took in a deep breath. Three vans with the TV station's logo on the sides and dishes on the roofs were parked next to me. I couldn't believe I was actually going to be working here. This was a dream come true.

  "Sprinkles!"

  Duncan spotted me as I walked into the newsroom. I had received a badge at the reception desk with my name on it and placed it around my neck. I cringed when Duncan called me that name. This wasn't a place for nicknames. I was trying to look professional. Duncan was standing by the coffee maker, chatting with someone when he waved at me. I approached him. He smiled. I liked the way he looked at me like he was ready to eat me up.

  "There is someone I want you to meet," he said. "This is Olivia. She's the editor in chief around here. She's the one you'll be reporting to."

  I reached out my hand. "Nice to meet you."

  She shook it, then looked at me over her glasses. "All right, Robyn. What have you got for me?"

  "What do you mean?"

  "Stories. No one comes to this newsroom without stories. That's rule number one around here. You always have a story for me. At least one well-researched, ready-to-go story."

  "Ah…I see," I said, feeling embarrassed that I didn't have one.

  She pushed her glasses back up. "If you want to be a journalist, then you need to start finding yourself some stories, my dear; it's not enough to simply know the right people," she said and walked past me, sipping her cup. "But you can start by making us a new batch of coffee; this one is awful."

  She disappeared into her office and shut the door.

  I stood for a few seconds looking in her direction, trying not to blush. Duncan came close and whispered in my ear, putting his lips so close to my skin I could feel his icy breath.

  "She's not as bad as she sounds."

  "I don't think she likes me very much," I said.

  He chuckled. "I'll fire her for you if you want me to."

  "No," I said and turned to look at him. "I want to do this right. If that means I have to work hard for her approval, then so be it. Now, scram, I have coffee to make."

  He chuckled again. "All right. I'll check in on you later."

  Chapter Three

  "Wish me luck."

  Jazmine stared at her mother. She was starting her new job as a concierge at the Shadow Hills Inn downtown. She was so excited while standing there in front of her daughter, wearing her new purple uniform and nametag.

  "Good luck," Jazmine said a little less enthusiastically than she had meant for it to be.

  "Thanks, baby," her mother said and started to walk toward the front door. "Have a great day at school."

  Jazmine turned and looked after her. She was still in her PJs. "It's summer break, Mom."

  Her mother stopped at the door. "Ah, yes. Silly me. I’ve been so nervous about this new job, I completely forgot. So, what are you going to do all day?"

  "Probably just hang out here, watch some YouTube."

  Jazmine stared at her mother, waiting for the obligatory speech about how she shouldn't waste her entire summer break watching online videos, but for some reason, it didn't come.

  "Well…have fun, dear," her mother said, then left, slamming the door behind her.

  Jazmine shook her head, then walked to the kitchen to get herself some coffee. She found a cup and poured some from the pot, wondering about her mother. She hadn't told her she knew about the earring. She hadn't told anyone about it. Instead, she had been lying awake night after night, wondering what the explanation could be. Could it be a coincidence? Could her mom have dropped the earring at another time? Did it just happen to be near the body of that boy by accident? Her mom had acted strangely lately, but she still didn't find it very likely that she could have killed someone. Not her mother. It simply didn't fit. She wasn't a killer. She couldn't be.

  But what was she doing at night when she left the house?

  Jazmine sipped her coffee and looked out the window. She spotted Jayden going for a run. Adrian was going to come over later, so Jazmine wasn't going to be all alone all day. They hadn't seen each other much lately since he graduated and had all the partying to do. He was starting Harvard after the summer, and that had Jazmine slightly worried. Would he forget about her? Would he find some other girl there? Someone the same age as him? Or maybe someone who was…what he was.

  Adrian was still goofing around with his cousins, and she hated when he was with them. They weren't getting high anymore, at least not during the day—Jazmine didn't know what they did at night—but so far, Adrian hadn't been high when visiting her, not since the day she got angry with him, so that was good. But she still didn't like those cousins. They seemed crazy enough to be slightly scary. She especially didn't like the way they looked at her, their eyes hungry for her blood. Maybe she was just being paranoid because she knew that they were the ones who had told Adrian that witches' blood was better tasting than humans'. Jazmine shuddered when thinking about the triplets, then opened the cabinet and pulled out a box of cereal. She poured some into a bowl, when BamBam, her cat, jumped down from the top of the cabinet right in front of her.

  "You scared me," she said.

  That was my intention, she thought for a minute she heard the cat reply in her mind but shook the thought and
poured some orange juice into a glass.

  Chapter Four

  Jayden panted. He was running around the lake, listening to Dubstep in his earbuds. He had woken up feeling restless, especially after seeing Robyn drive off in her brother's car. He knew she was out there right now at that TV station, with him, and it made him angry. Robyn had forgiven Duncan for what he had done to her and that worried Jayden. He thought Duncan was just very good at manipulating Robyn into thinking he was a good guy. No matter how sweet he was, he was still one of them, one of the vampires, and not to be trusted. Why Robyn refused to see that, he didn't understand.

  Jayden passed the area where they had found the body of that boy, Sam, a few weeks ago. There was still some police tape on the trees, but the police were no longer working the area. Jayden felt sick to his stomach thinking about it. The media kept claiming that it was a wolf. That meant people were running out there at night shooting at whatever animal they saw and believed was a wolf. It wasn't good. Jayden feared for his family's lives when they went hunting at night. Even his stupid brother.

  Jayden was especially worried about his dad. He seemed more and more confused lately and kept asking about things that had happened just months ago. Jayden could tell it worried his mother greatly too. He could see it in her eyes when talking to him. Jayden had asked the Internet and mostly read articles about early Alzheimer's. He didn't like to admit it, but many of the symptoms seemed to fit. Especially the part about becoming sad when realizing there was stuff he didn't remember that he ought to be able to.

  The worst part was seeing it in his eyes.

  Jayden shook the thought and sped up, trying to run some of his restlessness off. Summer break was usually a great time of the year for him, but not this summer. Robyn wasn't going to be around, and he was stuck in the house with that brother of his who wanted to get rid of him or at least make his life miserable. Logan was going to community college after summer break, so he wasn't planning on moving out anytime soon.