Crimson: Secrets and Lies of a Living Vampire (Shades of Red Book 1)

by T L Christianson

  I don't know how long I sat there, but exhaustion overcame me, and I fell asleep with my head on my knees. When I woke up, my stomach growled, and my fangs ached.

  The cell was dark, but I could see that the blood had been cleaned up. I didn't know if I should be thankful or wary.

  I paced the room, back and forth, trying to think of a way out of this. Even if I told them I would do it, and then didn't, they might hurt Owen and the kids.

  I couldn't allow them to be hurt. I couldn't.

  If Chronos was just trying to find a cure for all Moroi society, what did it matter? In the end, these vamps would get the cure anyway, right?

  I chewed my thumbnail.

  My mind churned, and I tried to justify what I would have to do. I grew tired and slept again.

  When I awoke this time, I found Iona squatting before me.

  "Hello." Her voice was soft, and she smoothed a wet washcloth across my forehead. "I'd like you to entertain the idea of working with us."

  I sat up groggily and wondered if they had gassed my room to make me pass out.

  I licked my lips and nodded reluctantly. "Yes," I told her in resignation. "Just promise me you won't hurt Owen or the kids."

  The sleek vampire nodded and held her hand down to me, giving me deja vu. Owen had reached down to me like that not too long ago, and my heart squeezed at the thought.

  I ignored Iona's hand, getting to my feet on my own.

  "Then, follow me. Let's have some breakfast…." She regarded my haggard appearance. "And blood."

  I began to follow her to the door, when she turned to me. "I expect you to behave. You know, accidents happen to children all the time...." I stood in stunned silence. "Do you understand what's at stake here?"

  "I'll only do what you ask as long as you leave Dr. Bennett's family alone." I stared her down defiantly.

  We sat at a fancy white covered table on the wooden deck overlooking the ocean. A pitcher of human blood, coffee, tea, steaming bacon and eggs, toast and pastries were laid out. I began with a large glass of blood before piling my plate with food.

  Aidan and Iona sat with me, drinking coffee with blood and nibbling on the elaborate spread before us.

  After I'd finished most of my food, a smartphone was set next to my plate. I looked up, swallowing. "What's that for?"

  Iona's long fingernails tapped the object. "This is how you will communicate. There's no need to send it to us, we will have access to the phone remotely. You'll need to take pictures of everything in Dr. Bennett's lab, every scrap of paper, every shred of work, every memo, every note. Starting tomorrow when you get back to Colorado."

  I gulped. "What's today?"

  "Friday," Aidan said absentmindedly.

  I shook my head. They had kept me for six days! Six!

  Iona continued, "Make sure that you have service or Wi-Fi at all times."

  Aidan interrupted, "if you talk to anyone about where you’ve been this week or mention anything about us, accidents will start happening at the Bennett house."

  The duo pinned me with stony expressions.

  I nodded and finished my blood before pouring coffee. "Why do you want Dr. Bennett's work? Why don't you just make your own cure?"

  The two vampires shared another look before Iona turned back toward me and raised an eyebrow.

  I'd been through Owen's lab a dozen times, and I was ninety-nine percent sure there wasn't a cure, but what if there was?

  They were wrong. My spying wasn't going to give them anything helpful.

  I smiled to myself.

  Chapter Twelve

  My return was unremarkable, and my reunion with Owen bittersweet, tainted by more secrets, and now betrayal.

  He kissed me, and we sat holding hands watching TV with the kids.

  Owen was brilliant, but he wasn’t a vampire. He didn’t give off the electricity that vamps did.

  I regarded him and wondered how he got mixed up in all this. How did he get pulled into Chronos Corp? Was he like a pet or really an employee? Was this extravagant estate really his cage? I was paid by Chronos, and so were Flor and Elaine. I found all this paperwork in the study. This house was owned by the company also.

  I knew that in real life, there was never a right side or wrong side. Those boys who were killed during the Great War weren’t any better or worse than the German boys they were shooting.

  I wondered about the two clans. That rogue clan was willing to kill to save their own people. How was Chronos involved in all this? What if they really had designed the disease? Maybe both sides were just scared.

  I waited for everyone to go to sleep before creeping down to the study. Using the smartphone, I took pictures of everything in the room and all the papers in the desk. Most were innocuous, nothing pertained to work, and the bulk of the contents were bills and household paperwork. It was tedious and took me hours to complete. Hopefully, this would be good enough.

  I texted the only number on the phone: I’ve searched the house and outbuildings. Dr. Bennett does not have a laboratory here. I’ve taken pictures of every scrap of paper I could find in his office. I can mail you this phone or destroy it. Sincerely, Emilie

  I received a reply: We know he has a laboratory there. You just need to look harder. Stop trying to get out of this. Any further attempts will be met with an accident.

  I was weirdly pleased that they had used correct punctuation. I rubbed my hands over my face and sighed.

  What else was I going to give them? Was I really going to do this?

  One secret is out.

  Owen told both Flor and Elaine that we’re a couple now. Flor seemed happy about it, and we’re communicating better with my rapidly improving Spanish.

  Elaine, on the other hand, was not happy and made that known to me.

  She was in the kitchen on Monday when I came down at lunchtime.

  “I hope you know, you’re making a fool out of him.” She stirred something on the stove and gave me a condescending look.

  I found the prepared meals for the kids in the refrigerator and pulled them out. “What?” I asked, surprised at her tone.

  “Mr. Bennett.” She slid trays into the double ovens on the wall and set the timer. “He’s too old for you, and you know that.” After checking the pot on the stove, she leaned against the counter and sighed, crossing her arms.

  I shook my head and smiled. “What? Our ages aren’t that big of a deal.”

  “You can’t compete with Sarah. She was the complete package and you…” She made a face at me that gave her a triple chin. “You’re an accessory.”

  I cocked my head, saying sarcastically, “I’d love to get more relationship advice from you. Are you still binge-watching Orange is the New Black by yourself every night?” I pursed my lips and looked at her with wide-eyed innocence.

  “This can only end one way for you both and for the children,” she predicted.

  I didn’t respond but gathered up the lunch things and began to make my way up the back stairway from the kitchen.

  “Heartache!” she yelled behind me. “Mark my words. This won’t end well for either of you!”

  “Tell me what you really think, Elaine!” I yelled back.

  As I hurried up to the schoolroom, her words haunted me. Would I regret this? Was this all going to end in heartache? I tried to reassure myself, but with the blackmail, vampires, and secret research, I didn’t really know. Or did I? I’d said the same thing to myself more times than I could count, and that’s why her words stung so much.

  They were true.

  Tears popped out on their own volition, so I set the tray down on the hall table to wipe my eyes before bringing lunch to the third floor.

  Even though Owen had been working late hours trying to meet a new deadline, we still found time together. Most evenings while he read his messages from headquarters, we’d snuggle up on the couch in the study. His fingers drawing circles on my skin, giving me goosebumps up and down my body.

  I
didn’t mention Elaine’s rant to him. It was upsetting, and he didn’t need any distractions.

  Purplish half-moons had bloomed under his eyes, and his skin was pale. I covered him with a blanket and left him to sleep.

  I kept forgetting Owen was human. Vampires could go a long time without sleep; I wished he could as well. I wondered about turning him… It would solve so many problems for us.

  I couldn’t even defend myself against a group of vampires, but he could. He could protect the kids if he were changed.

  A few weeks had gone by, and I’d begun to relax when the smartphone buzzed on my dresser.

  I noticed a new text: Get to work, or there will be consequences!

  I replied: On it.

  Owen had been working in his lab day and night. It made me wonder if there were consequences for him as well if he didn’t make the breakthrough his bosses wanted.

  I wondered if he knew I knew about his secret lab. Where did he think that I thought he went all day?

  Last night, I stayed up, listening as one by one the residents of the house fell asleep, their breathing and heartbeats slowing.

  When I knew everyone was out, I went to Owen’s study and opened the secret door. Dragging myself down the steps, I turned on the lights.

  Sitting at the main desk, I sighed, wondering what pictures I should take. There were stacks and stacks of paper.

  I took a picture of the desk with my own phone, so I could put it back exactly how I found it.

  Beginning with the filing cabinet, I grabbed a stack and set them on the desk. Laying the papers out, I started snapping pictures.

  I speedread each document as I flipped pages, sighing with boredom, until I stumbled upon something that sent a cold shiver down my spine.

  Maybe Owen wasn’t working for Chronos but against them?

  There was a file on masking different chemicals in the blood, making poisons undetectable to us. I set the smartphone down and didn’t take pictures of those documents.

  That’s when I noticed the name in the researcher box: Sarah Bennett. Owen wasn’t working on poisons; Sarah was. I tilted my head and realized that the date was from this past spring. It must’ve been a typo. I began to thumb through the paperwork, not making much sense of most of it before I closed the file.

  Poisoning vampires? Owen’s wife?

  I plunked down a new bundle of files and began again.

  After getting about halfway, I stopped photographing and just read. All of these notes other than the sets of data were handwritten by Owen and two other people. Some were webs, others were lists, and then there were the chemical drawings.

  I made a mental note as to where I would continue next time. As for now, what I had done should tide the other vamp-clan over.

  I looked at the phone and saw it was connected to the household Wi-Fi. The other clan would have the pictures.

  I chewed my lip and thought of the disease and blood being poisoned.

  Should I be afraid of Owen?

  Did I drink any of the chemicals?

  Probably.

  I shivered and worried my lip with my teeth again.

  Was Chronos Corp in a secret war against the Moroi clans?

  So many things ran through my mind. When I got back to my room, I lay in bed thinking. For all I knew, the chemicals he was hiding could be medicine… but I doubted it.

  I was worried.

  Owen had been gone for almost two weeks to Chronos headquarters. On top of that, a quiet young vampire was now staying here, doing research. I think he was feeding the mice. His name was Gabriel. I saw him very rarely, and I thought he was sleeping in the secret lab.

  As far as the blackmailing vampires, I kept doling out a little information every few days to keep them off my back. I kept thinking that I should’ve gone straight to Owen about them, but if they were watching us… I just couldn’t take the risk. There was no way that Owen and I could defend ourselves against a group of vampires. Why didn’t Chronos have protection for him? Did they think that living out in the woods was enough? Or his fence? Or his guns?

  I hated this situation.

  The entire household had been tense, waiting.

  After school today, I decided to take the kids into town to shop for Christmas. They chose to go to Walmart.

  As we walked the aisles, I relaxed. Jack sat in the cart, and we looked over the Christmas gifts of mugs, coffee, syrups, and hot sauce.

  None of that suited us, so we moved on.

  “Look.” Becca pointed at a large blow-up lawn ornament. “Can we get it?”

  I laughed. “What?” I scoffed. “Let’s make our own snowmen! That’s much better. Don’t you think?”

  She began to sing "Frosty the Snowman" as we continued to walk the store.

  Jack picked out a pretty apron for the cook and a scarf for Flor. He chose cookies for his dad. I threw them into the basket and laughed, earning a dirty look from an older man next to us.

  Becca picked out a pair of slippers for Flor and a basket of bath items for Elaine. She was unsure as to what to get her dad, and then decided on a back massager that strapped to a chair.

  I stopped at the photo center and picked up the pictures I had taken of the kids. I planned to frame them and give them to Owen.

  Deciding that we would make Christmas treats, we loaded up on puffed rice, marshmallows, and chocolate chips. When we got home, we spent the entire afternoon baking and decorating.

  “Who’s going to lick the spoon?” I cried into the din of Christmas carols in the kitchen.

  “Me! Me!” they both cried.

  I handed them each a beater from the electric mixer.

  I placed three colors of frosting that I’d made on the large farmhouse table in the kitchen. Our sugar cookies lay scattered over the table in the various shapes we made.

  “Okay,” I said, capturing their attention as they licked away. “First, frost your cookie, so the decorations stick to it.” I spread green frosting over a wreath shape. “Then, decorate.” I pressed red-hots into the top. “Voila!” I placed my masterpiece to the side and folded my arms, leaning against the counter.

  Becca set down her beater and ambitiously began to frost a candy-cane-shaped cookie in white and then red until it broke. Instead of getting upset, she just ate the pieces. I poured glasses of milk for each child and began washing dishes. My two little rascals made mess after mess that I cleaned up. It was so much fun that I didn’t mind one bit. We laughed and talked and listened to Christmas music.

  I was able to forget all my worries and just enjoy.

  Chapter Thirteen

  When I heard a car on the gravel driveway, I was flooded with relief.

  Owen was home.

  He looked terrible as he lugged his suitcase inside. The dark circles under his eyes were worse, and he seemed thin and haggard. His usually shaven face was almost bearded. I watched him hug his children with a forced smile.

  The kids fluttered around him like hummingbirds until they drifted away to do something else.

  When it was just the two of us in the family room, I took his hand and pulled him up.

  “Come with me.” I led him to his bathroom and ran the water in the old cast iron clawfoot tub. “Are you hungry?” I asked.

  “No, just tired.”

  “Okay, let me take care of you, and then I’ll put you to bed. Do you want some hot chocolate?” It was a weakness of his, and when he nodded, my smile was genuine.

  Running downstairs, I heated up chocolate milk in the microwave. Taking one of the paring knives, I cut my arm and allowed several drops of blood to fall into the drink. It would heal him and make him feel better.

  Owen was already in the bathtub, looking at me with a silly grin on his face. “You made me a bubble bath.”

  “Hey, don’t knock it.” I presented the chocolate. “Here you go.”

  He breathed in the scent and sipped it. “This is amazing.” Looking up at me, his dull eyes narrowed. “I really mi
ssed you.”

  I smiled back at him. “Me, too.” I kissed his head and began washing him with the washcloth.

  “Mmmmm…” he moaned. “I don’t think anyone has washed me like this since I was a baby.”

  I laughed and blew bubbles at him. “Want me to shave you?”

  “Oh… shave me?”

  “Your face.” I shook my head, guessing where his mind was.

  “Yeah, sure.”

  I picked up his shaving cream and razor.

  “Wait, do you know how to do this?” he asked.

  I laughed at the tinge of fear in his voice. “I could shave you with a straight razor, but Mr. Safety razor will have to do.” I held the triple blade Bic between my fingers.

  As I slowly spread the cream that smelled like Owen over his stubble, he splashed me and laughed.

  “You’re not getting out of this so fast,” I told him with mock sternness, mimicking my English nanny from childhood.

  He splashed me again and laughed. The front of me was now soaking wet.

  Two could play at this game. Turning my back to him, I lifted up my shirt inch by inch in a painfully slow strip tease. Then I unbuttoned my jeans, giving him a good view of my round bum. Now, there were a lot of things I didn’t like about my body, but I had a great butt.

  I sat down on the bench and slid my jeans the rest of the way off. I was determined to distract him.

  He would get shaved… even if I had to do it naked.

  Walking back to him in just my bra and underwear, I leaned over, giving him a good view of my chest, while pulling the washcloth from the tub.

  That stinker! He pulled me in with him, and my seduction distraction idea went down the drain.

  After my splash, I found my bearings and knelt between his knees. I gasped in surprise. “Oh, you are in trouble now.” I laughed and splashed him.

  “I like this kind of trouble.” His eyes gleamed with mischief.