Secrets (The Serenity Series Book 1)

by Dawn Kirby

  “What’s wrong?” he asked quickly

  “Michael knows,” Raine told him.

  “Oh, this is bad,” he said, looking at me pitifully. “Judith is bad enough, but that man is on a whole different level. If Dane finds out-” He quit talking altogether.

  “Trust me, I know,” Raine said, squeezing my hand tighter.

  Still shaking from Michael’s phone call, Kale and Raine’s little doomsday conversation about yet another man wasn’t helping. They may know about all these people, but I didn’t. All I knew was the guy on the phone scared me, and he said my secret was out.

  “Do either of you want to explain this to me?” I asked impatiently. “I get the feeling my life depends on it.”

  “I’m sorry, Leah, we can’t. David had to go to the morgue to make the official ID for the police,” Kale said apologetically. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. “But Donovan’s in his office and he can explain the whole thing.”

  Again, I had to run to keep up with them. They headed towards a long hallway on the opposite side of the living room. Before we entered the hallway, Raine stopped dead. Kale didn’t seem to notice we weren’t behind him anymore and kept on going.

  “Please, no matter what you hear tonight, try to keep your heart and mind open. I know it’s a lot to ask, but promise me you’ll at least try.”

  I could barely smell him anymore. The grip he had on my hand wasn’t half as tight as it had been. It hurt me just to look at his face. I couldn’t tell what was there. It could be fear or even sadness, I wasn’t sure. The only thing I was sure about was I didn’t like seeing him like that. In less than a few hours he had touched a special spot in my heart. A place nobody else had ever been able to come close to. I put my hand gently on his cheek and smiled.

  “I promise,” I said softly. “I don’t understand, but I promise

  I’ll try.”

  His hand slid over mine and kissed my palm. The simple gesture affected me in a way I never expected. A warm, tingly feeling spread through me, leaving me breathless. I could have melted right there.

  “Thank you,” he said gently.

  Halfway down the hallway we met back up with Kale. Having noticed we weren’t behind him, he was leaned against the wall, waiting patiently with a big grin on his face. Walking towards him was like walking through a grove full of mint.

  Between the two big men walking in front of me, I saw Declan coming towards us. He obviously didn’t see me.

  “How’s Leah?” Declan asked. “I’m afraid I had to interrupt ‘em earlier. The poor lass was cryin’ her eyes out when he left.” He must have finally seen their faces because his voice changed. “She’s okay, isn’ she?”

  “No, she’s not,” Raine said harshly. “She just got a phone call from Michael.”

  “She’s really screwed him this time, ‘asn’t she,” he said rubbing the back of his neck anxiously. “Donovan’s in his office. I’ll go get Leah, tis high time she knew.”

  As soon as he finished his sentence, Raine pulled me in front of him. Declan jumped back in surprise, but quickly recovered. A warm smile greeted me in a matter of seconds.

  “It’s good to see you again, Declan,” I said sweetly. “I hope you enjoyed the drive home.”

  “More than ye’ll ever know,” he said slyly, giving me a quick kiss on the cheek. “I hope ye’ve been well taken care of.”

  “Everybody’s been great,” I assured him. “I’m sorry to put you all out like this.”

  “Ye’re not puttin’ any o’ us out,” he said, looking at Raine. “Let’s go see Donovan.”

  We followed Declan to a room at the end of the long hallway. It wasn’t as big as my bedroom, but it was close. Beautiful, dark stained hardwood floors took the place of the plush carpet. Three walls were painted hunter green. Floor to ceiling bookshelves lined

  the forth.

  Declan sat on the corner of the huge mission style desk. A very dignified looking man thumbed through a stack of papers beside him. Raine led me over to a full size black leather couch in the middle of the room. Even after being sandwiched between he and his older brother, Raine still kept my hand firmly in his.

  The man behind the desk finally looked up. In him, I saw a very powerful man. His short, shimmering silver hair and ocean blue eyes demanded your attention. High cheekbones gave his pale face dominating definition. The expensive black suit he had on only added to his sharp persona. Like David and Declan, I couldn’t hear his heart beat either.

  “So, this little speck is what the fuss is about,” he finally said looking quite amused. “I am Donovan. I would like to welcome you into my home. I must say it is an honor to finally meet you.”

  His voice was smooth as silk. I almost stood up and curtsied, his presence was so commanding. Now I understood why everything from the floors up was made from only the best. Obviously, he would accept nothing less.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you too, sir,” I said timidly. “Thank you so much for allowing me to stay here.”

  “You are most welcome. Please feel free to call this your home,” he said, bowing his head slightly. “Did I hear someone say Michael is now involved?”

  “He’s called her twice,” Raine said, squeezing my hand a little tighter. “He gave the impression that others may already know.”

  “I would have expected nothing less from Judith. She has taken David’s secret straight to the devil himself,” Donovan said calmly. He stopped talking to adjust a gorgeous ruby ring on his left ring finger. “I have no doubt Dane will soon be on the hunt, if he isn’t already. Judith knows how David feels about him.”

  The solemn looks the four of them wore let me know Michael and Judith weren’t the only ones I had to fear. The grip Raine had on my hand every time Dane’s name was mentioned supported my thoughts a hundred percent. This time I actually had to pat his hand so he would loosen his grip, to get the circulation flowing again.

  Donovan watched our exchange. Apparently amused either with Raine’s reaction to the danger I was in or my hand potentially being crushed, he smiled and turned his attention to Kale. The second he opened his mouth the smile was gone.

  “Were there any difficulties with Turner?” he asked matter-of-factly. Kale simply shook his head. “What of the other two? Have they been taken care of?”

  “They have,” Kale answered. “The police will find the Bronco burned out in a ditch. The bodies were regrettably burnt beyond recognition,” Kale added.

  Something about the way he said that last part didn’t really sound sincere. I already knew how he felt about JD. That had become apparent when he tossed JD’s body back into his truck. Since Deana was also a part of the whole thing, I felt it was safe to assume he felt the same way about her. Hopefully the coroner would not be able to determine their real cause of death.

  “Very good. I’ll give Turner a call for the official report after the car has been recovered. I have every confidence the coroner will see their deaths as little more than a drunken accident,” he told Kale. “I would very much appreciate it if you would go to Brody’s tonight. If Dane knows, maybe whoever is helping him will let something slip. You know where to put your focus.”

  There was a mutual bow of their heads and Kale left the room. He didn’t seem at all torn up about going out tonight. I could have sworn I saw a smile on his face as he walked out. The fact that he was whistling a tune from Snow White as he made his way upstairs solidified my observation. At least he would have some fun while he scoped things out.

  “Declan, will you please let David know that I have explained the situation to Leah?”

  Declan nodded and followed Kale’s path out the door. Donovan turned his attention fully on us. For a few minutes we sat there quietly while he looked between us. I wasn’t sure what he was searching for, but his steady gaze made the hair on my head tingle. After a few more long minutes of silence he put his focus solely on Raine.

  “David has wisely put her in your care,” he said, his voice ta
king on a diplomatic tone. “Do you still want the responsibility?”

  “I do,” he said flatly.

  “I thought you might,” he said, donning a satisfied smile. “Very well. Please excuse us for a while. I have quite a story to tell this young lady.”

  Donovan motioned him towards the door. Raine gently squeezed my hand one last time and left the room. The haze surrounding him was almost gone. With the door shut behind him, I heard his heart quicken as he walked heavily back down the long hallway. Whatever I was about to hear obviously worried him.

  Chapter Nine

  Donovan stood up and walked over to stand beside me.

  “May I?” he asked, holding his left hand out to the empty seat beside me. I nodded and he took Kale’s former place at my side. “Before I tell you everything, you must understand this is neither the fault of your mother nor your father. They are as innocent in this as you are.”

  He paused long enough for me to nod my head.

  “All of this started before you were conceived. Until now, I’ve never seen two people more in love than your parents. They were like any other young couple. Hopeful and looking forward to the rest of their lives together. Mia had a very successful business. David had just finished school and worked a twelve-hour shift at a construction company. He wanted to stay there long enough to pay for the wedding, and then start his own company. With the ceremony a few months away they started looking for a home. It was at that point that their roommate, Judith, became desperate.”

  “Why would that bother her? It’s not like them moving away would end their friendship.” Knowing how much everybody I’d met despised the woman made me wonder what my parents hadn’t seen.

  “She wasn’t worried about their friendship, Leah. Judith was in love with David. There were several attempts made by her to break them up, but they were all fruitless. She thought if she could get Mia out of the way, he then would then fall for her. Unfortunately, that meant his life would drastically change. This is the part where you will either turn your back on your father or you will accept him for what he is.” He stopped and looked at me for few seconds. “Judith had a lifestyle they never knew about. Her job as a phlebotomist at the hospital helped her play off her odd hours. She worked only at night. Your parents stayed so busy with their own jobs –lives –they never really paid much attention to her. When Mia’s parents died in a car accident, Judith made her move. Her plan was to turn David without him finding out until it was complete.”

  “Turn him how?” I asked him, rubbing my hands nervously against my thighs. I’d only heard that phrase used in movies.

  “Turn him into a vampire,” he said slowly, watching my face carefully. “She made the choice for him.”

  He had stunned me, but amazingly I wasn’t scared or upset. The fact that he had just told me vampires were real didn’t bother me. Neither did having a vampire for a dad. Curiosity was really the only thing I felt. It explained why Mom had told me to expect the unexpected. Never in a million years would I have expected something like this.

  “Is that why I can’t hear his heartbeat?” I asked. “Why his skin is so cool and pale?”

  “We have no detectable heartbeat. Very little blood flow unfortunately leads to the cold skin and pale appearance,” he explained.

  Wait, he said we. Everything was so obvious now. He only came to see Mom at night. Raine had said it was impossible to wake him up, and at the time the sun was still out. He had both excellent hearing and sight. The unbelievably quick movements he made and the way he looked when he smelled blood, it all made sense. David and Declan shared the same qualities, and I couldn’t hear Donovan’s heartbeat either.

  “You and Declan are vampires too, aren’t you?” I asked, already knowing the answer.

  “We are. Do you want me to continue or shall I stop now?”

  “Please go on. I’d like to know the rest,” I said anxiously.

  He smiled and started again. “David was able to accompany Mia to the funeral, but had to return to work soon after. The two weeks Mia was busy settling her parents’ affairs, Judith applied the tools of her trade. She put sleeping pills in everything he could possibly eat or drink. She couldn’t run the risk of him waking up and seeing her feed on him a little at a time each night. How she knew how much to take without killing him, I’ll never know. The small needle she used left very little evidence. I am sure he mistook it for an insect bite of some kind, if he even noticed it at all.”

  “Fang marks would be too obvious,” I said sarcastically. “Why would she need to drain him? Can’t you bite someone and get it over with?” I had no clue how the change was made, but I wanted to understand it. A whole new world had been thrown at me.

  “A consensual turning is normally a quick, highly erotic process.”

  Yay me! Learning about the sexual experience between a vampire and his human prodigy wasn’t a lesson I wanted to be taught.

  “I will spare you the details for now and tell only what you need to know.” I nodded my head gratefully. “The body must be drained of the human blood and replaced by vampire blood. No matter how the process is approached pain is always involved.” He put his cold hand on my neck, his thumb lightly caressing my throat. I held my breath until his hand fell back to his lap. “To answer your question- biting someone is just that, a bite,” he said softly. “In her case, Judith had to be very careful. If she took too much, David would die. If she didn’t take enough, it would never work. The method she employed to turn him had never been done before. As far as I know, it has never been done since.”

  “Did you know what she was doing?” I asked quickly. If he had and still let it happen, I knew I would not be able to trust him. Morals should play a part in your life no matter what you are.

  “Absolutely not,” he said firmly. “I assure you, I would have put a stop to it if I had. Now, where was I?”

  “David being drained,” I said quietly. Just saying it made my stomach turn.

  “Ah, by the time Mia returned two weeks later, David was very weak and extremely anemic. It was around Christmas time, as I’m sure you already know the store stayed rather busy. He flatly refused to let her close it to take care of him. He also continued to work despite, what I am sure was immense pain and fatigue. Concerned for his health, Mia asked Judith to keep an eye on him when he came home from work. By this time, and unbeknownst to them, she had already quit her job to do just that.”

  “Even after she tried to break them up they still trusted her?” I asked astonished.

  “They were very good people, Leah. Don’t fault them for it,” he warned. “Between hard work and blood loss, David was exhausted by the time he came home. Even so, she continued to drug him. Mia was also drugged. Around this time Judith began injecting David with her blood.”

  My stomach threatened to turn over with that detail. Needles didn’t bother me, but the image of the scene did. I could see my parents lying in their bed, thinking they were perfectly safe. Then I saw the woman from the driveway hovering over my dad’s sleeping body with a sick grin on her ruby red lips.

  “For the next three weeks she gave him her blood. It only took a few days for him to begin to feel normal again. Our blood can rejuvenate the body quickly. Sometime during his change you were conceived. Eventually his appetite disappeared and his senses began to heighten. Near the end of the process the sun began to hurt his eyes. Before he could take the night job at work, it had become complete.”

  “How did they figure it out?” Surely David didn’t wake up one night and tell Mom he wanted to suck her blood. She would have laughed in his face.

  “By that time he had not eaten anything in days. His hunger for blood was no doubt at a boiling point. Consciously, he would not have known what he needed. There was no one there to guide him through the initial process. While they were sleeping one night, instinct took over. He was horrified to wake up and find his fangs in her shoulder.” Donovan paused to clear his throat. “Mia stayed coo
l and tried to make sense of it. David was so distraught, he never saw Judith enter their bedroom. She gladly admitted what she’d done and demanded that he go with her.”

  “And he went with her!” I said exasperated. “He accepted being a vampire just like that.”

  “No, he fought it every step of the way. When he refused to leave with her, she called me. I turned her myself, so she was in essence my responsibility. I was told he asked to be turned and then changed his mind. When I got to the house, I found David irate and Mia trying to control the bleeding. Obviously I’d been lied to. After I discovered the truth, I took away Judith’s freedom. For years I have kept her under lock and key right here in this house.”

  “So how does all this affect me? Just because my dad is a vampire doesn’t mean I should have a target on my forehead.”

  “David had to come and stay with me for a couple of months. I needed to teach him how to live as a vampire. Not that it was easy for him; they still wanted to be together. Mia had to make him leave. She wanted him to have as much knowledge as I could give him. I gave her enough money to compensate for his salary and Judith’s part of the bills. It wasn’t fair to make her suffer for Judith’s stupid decision.”

  “Why didn’t he come back?” I asked desperately. “Did he turn to Judith while he was here?”

  “Hardly! David has never so much as looked at Judith again,” he assured me. “You changed everything.”

  “How?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper. It had been my fault after all.

  “The night David returned to your mother, he heard your heart beating inside her. Mia hadn’t even realized she was pregnant yet.” He smiled at me and took my hands in his. The ring on his finger was actually warmer than his hands. “David was ecstatic. He could not wait to be your father. Judith, unfortunately, overheard him giving me the good news and became irate.”