by RK Close
His fingers dig deeper into my hips until I almost cry out. I can feel his need and see the desire in his eyes. It’s like a powerful drug. I wonder what he sees when he looks at me.
The lights in my room flicker several times before we are plunged into darkness. There is no light from the window, which I find odd, but I can still feel Adam beneath me.
Suddenly, candlelight illuminates the darkness with a soft light that makes everything seem out of focus. Immediately, I realize we’re not in my bedroom any longer. Trying to understand how this could be, I look down at Adam, and scream.
It’s not Adam under me. I’m straddling Zachariah, as he laughs up at me from his handsome face. His strong hands grasp my wrists and hold me in place when I try to crawl away. I frantically look for Adam. That’s when I finally take notice of my surroundings.
This looks like a medieval dungeon with stone walls, torches for light and many dark tunnels that lead who knows where. We are on a large stone table in the center of the room.
I hear a growl from behind me, and I twist my head to see what other horror awaits me. What I see is Adam, chained to a wall looking every bit the monster. There is blood dripping from his chin and hands. His eyes are glowing with a preternatural light, and he looks deranged.
As dread begins to tighten my stomach, I’m forced to acknowledge something; I’m not certain who he wants to tear apart: Zac or me.
Turning back to Zac, who should be dead, I demand, “What have you done to him?”
Zac smiles his seductive smile and sits up, bringing his face only inches away from mine. I try to rise and turn my face away, but he releases my wrist only to grab my hip and force me down on him. With his other hand, he grabs my chin and turns me to face him. I’m mortified by our position.
“I’ve not done anything to your precious Adam.” He grabs both my wrists when I try to hit him and secures them with one hand. His other arm snakes around me, pulling me into his chest as he kisses me brutally on the lips. I cry out and turn my face to the side.
Behind me chains rattle loudly, and a roar echoes off the chamber walls. Hot tears roll down my face as I try not to give in to despair.
Zac swings us around and drops easily off the table, placing me on my feet. I look at him in confusion. He steps back, still smiling at me as though I’m a confused child.
“You still don’t understand, do you? Adam is what he is. He will kill you in the end.”
“No! Adam would never hurt me. You lie, and you kill. That’s what you do, not Adam. He’s different from you,” I say.
“No, he’s exactly like me. The same desires drive us both. Lust for blood, lust for the flesh and power over all of it. I indulged my cravings. But, Adam knows what’s just below the surface.” He walks around me in a circle, never taking his eyes off mine. “Why don’t you test your theory now? Go to him. Embrace your beast, and then tell me he will never hurt you.” Zac sweeps his arm wide in Adam’s direction.
Looking at Adam, I study the angry look on his face. Do I dare?
I take a few shaky steps toward him. Zac continues to watch, but moves to another side of the room. As I get closer, Adam starts trying to grab me, hindered only by the chains holding him to the wall. I look at Zac, and there is a sad smile on his lips.
When I’m just beyond his grasp, I slowly reach for Adam’s face. He bares his teeth, as if he wants to devour me. I stop short of touching him. I’m too afraid of being wrong.
“Why are you here, Zac?” I ask in a defeated voice.
“That’s for you to figure out, Sam. I am only the messenger. You are the interpreter.” He gives me one last look then disappears into one of the tunnels. I turn back, and Adam is no longer chained to the wall. He no longer behaves like a savage beast. Adam looks like the man I know. But he’s not just a man. He’s a vampire, and I must never take this part of him for granted.
Adam takes me into his arms, and a shiver runs through my body before I close my eyes and nothingness claims me.
I smell the coffee before I open my eyes. The aroma helps pull me through the cobwebs of sleep. Opening my eyes, I run through the dream, thankful I didn’t wake up screaming for once.
Zac is now a ghost from my past. He is the skeleton in my closet. I killed him. Will he haunt me forever? He said he was only the messenger. What does that mean? Was he conjured from my subconscious, or was that Zac’s spirit sent to tell me something? Maybe if I understood why I have these dreams, I’d know better how to unravel their meaning. If only there were someone who could explain them to me. It sucks to wake up one day and realize you’ve been living a lie. Especially when finding the truth could destroy everything you hold dear.
Could Gabe’s uncle be correct? He believes I have fairy in my bloodline. It would be a laughable notion if I didn’t already know what I know. If it’s true, I’d want to know if it was my mother’s side or my father’s. There are so many unanswered questions and I’m not sure I want to know the truth.
Can all supernatural species procreate with humans? The implications are mind-blowing. I’ve tried to ignore this whole notion ever since Gabe mentioned it. I thought maybe my dreams were situational and I’d go back to nice regular sleep once again. I don’t even know if I know what that is anymore.
I drag myself out of bed, feeling like I need another eight hours of sleep. Once I’m dressed in running shorts, tank top, and sneakers, I make my way to the kitchen in search of the coffee I’ve started to fantasize about.
Adam is sitting at the kitchen table playing with his phone. He puts it in his pocket as I come into the kitchen.
“Hi,” I say, shuffling up to the coffee maker. Adam has already placed a cup next to the pot for me. I look up at him with gratitude in my eyes and a smile on my lips. It’s one of those mornings. I’m usually a morning person, but not when I don’t sleep well.
“Good morning. How did you sleep?” Adam asks.
I think about that question and the dream and shake my head before saying, “Not very well.”
“Nightmare?”
“Yeah, how did you know?”
“Just a guess. What was your dream about?” He leans forward.
I feel nervous and try to change the subject. “I can’t remember, exactly. Where were you last night?”
“Following a lead. What have you learned from your investigation?”
I proceed to fill him in on what I’ve learned about Madison, her brother, and a few other details. An hour later we both head in different directions.
***
Slipping on a light jacket, I make my way to a small park near my condo. There are dark clouds in the sky, which makes my heart sing. Anyone who lives in Arizona can relate to this obsession with storms. We pray for rain in the desert.
A long run will shake off the strong feelings from my dream and clear my head for the day.
My ear buds blast Eminem from my playlist and I have a good pace going when someone catches my eye. Leaning against a tree, smoking what looks like an e-cigarette, is the creepy guy in the hoodie. He was watching me until he noticed that I spotted him. In the meantime, I’ve stopped jogging to gawk at him in disbelief. There is no question in my mind. He’s been following me since Madison’s apartment, but why?
Before I know it, he turns and starts to jog in the opposite direction. No you don’t!
“Not this time!” I say out loud. Breaking into a sprint, I’m gaining on him until he looks over his shoulder and sees that I’m bearing down on him. He’s surprised but then turns on the speed. Creepy Guy runs out of the park and between two buildings that I know well. Cutting to the right, I go around two buildings to the other side where the alley emerges. I’m appreciating the physical boost I have from Adam’s blood as I take the last corner of the building.
I barrel into the guy just as he trots out of the alley. We roll several times before stopping a few yards from each other. I jump to my feet, and so does he. There is a second where I see his eyes glow with a hi
nt of amber. This surprises me, but I guess it shouldn’t.
“Why are you following me?” I demand.
He stands to his full height and smiles his creepy smile at me before turning to run again. When I start to pursue him, I realize that he was holding back before. His speed is not natural, and I lose him quickly. Frustrated, I jog back to the place where we collided. I thought something might have fallen from his jacket.
Looking around the sidewalk and street, I do find a pen and a book of matches. Maybe it wasn’t an e-cigarette the stalker was smoking. Turning the matchbook over in my hand, I read the name imprinted on the back: Red Moon Bar. The pen is from PIMA SOLAR, INC.
It’s time I have that talk with the Taylors. Why would they have someone following me? Why hire me to find their daughter if they don’t trust me?
15
Trust
I plan to pay Sean another visit to ask about his father, but I’ll wait until happy hour. More witnesses around. In the interim, I’m at the A.S.U. campus to question the tennis coach. Juliet informed me where and when to find Coach Martinez. She assured me that he’d be in his office doing paperwork on Friday afternoons. He wasn’t.
But after some sleuthing I found Coach Martinez working with a player at the tennis courts. Martinez is an attractive thirty-something Hispanic man with an athletic build. I’ve been watching him work with the male student for about fifteen minutes now. When I see that this lesson is nowhere near ending, I decide to move things along.
“Robert Martinez?” I ask, approaching the court. “I’m sorry to interrupt you, but I need to ask you a few questions about Madison Taylor.”
This gets his attention right away. He gives me a hard look before turning to the student-athlete. “That’s all for today, Seth. We’ll continue at practice tomorrow.” He clamps a hand on Seth’s shoulder before turning back to me. He doesn’t look happy to speak with me.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Samantha Chase, and I’m a private investigator. I’ve been hired by the Taylor family to find their daughter.” Martinez visibly pales at my words.
“What does this have to do with me?”
“Since you’re her coach and she’s your team captain, I thought you might have information that could aid me in my search.” A thin sheen of sweat appears on his face.
“I haven’t seen Madison in a couple of weeks. I don’t know what I could tell you,” he says.
“I was hoping you’d know if anyone would want to harm Madison for any reason. Or maybe you know if she was seeing anyone on the team?” He can no longer look me in the eyes without glancing away.
“No, I don’t know the players that well. I don’t know who Madison was dating. I’m sorry, but I have another appointment that I need to get to. Will there be anything else?”
Sitting down on the bench, I stretch both my arms wide across the back, making myself comfortable. My message is clear; I’m not done with him. “Well, maybe we can talk about who Madison was sleeping with instead,” I say.
Martinez looks indignant when he says, “I don’t know what you’re getting at, but I don’t like what you’re implying.”
“Okay, I don’t really have time to play these games, so let’s just cut to the chase. I’m not here to turn you into the college, but we both know what I’m referring to. Implying is the wrong word. I know you were having an affair with Madison Taylor. I also suspect it wasn’t a romantic affair of the heart.” I rest my elbows on my knees.
He suddenly looks defeated and sits down on the opposite end of the bench. “You seem to have all the answers.”
“Obviously I don’t, or I’d have found Madison by now. Did you have anything to do with her disappearance, Mr. Martinez?”
“No! I swear. I hate her, but I would never physically hurt anyone, even to save my marriage.” He buries his face in his hands.
Oh, crap. Martinez is going to cry on me, and now I’m just annoyed. “People have killed for less reason than that. Why should I believe you?” I do believe him, but I want more insight into Madison’s character, and his. “What exactly happened between you and Madison?”
“It started at the beginning of the season. Madison came into my office one night when I was working late. It had been a rough week. Things had been difficult at home. My wife and I had been fighting at the time. I was in a bad place when Madison showed up. She came onto me, hard. I’ve never known a woman to be so bold.” He stops to see my reaction. I keep my face steady and remove all traces of judgment. I want him to finish.
“Go on.”
“I’m sure you can imagine what happened. I felt terrible afterward. Guilt weighed heavily on me. I told Madison that it could never happen again. I told her that I loved my wife and that I’d made a mistake. I just wanted to forget it ever happened.” He wipes his eyes with the back of his hands. “But Madison had different plans. She laughed at me and said that it would happen again, whenever she felt like it. I was shocked. I thought maybe she had some crush on me, and I was worried that the whole situation would hurt her.”
He looks at me again but continues without prompting. “Madison showed me a video of the two of us in my office that night. She must have set it up earlier. It left nothing to the imagination. She said that we would continue the affair until she grew bored with me, or she would make sure the school and my wife received a copy. She also demanded that I make her team captain.” He begins to tear up again.
I’m disgusted with him for cheating on his wife, but I’m even more annoyed that he didn’t man up and take responsibility for his mistake. I have no sympathy for his tears, and I let it show on my face.
“What choice did I have? She had me by the ba…over a barrel. She would have destroyed my life.”
“Sounds like a perfect motive for murder, if you ask me.” I don’t believe he had anything to do with Madison’s disappearance, but the police would.
He’s still on my list, but he seems too beat up to fight back. Madison knew how to pick her prey.
“I swear I didn’t harm her.” He starts crying in earnest then. That’s my cue to leave.
“I’ll contact you if I have any further questions,” I say as I turn to walk away. I stop and turn back to face him. He looks at me expectantly. “Madison didn’t destroy your life, Martinez. She was just the tool you used to do that yourself.”
I leave him to chew on that. Hopefully he does the right thing and confesses to his wife, the only real victim here.
***
Coach Martinez, Sean O’Donnell, Professor Davis, Creepy Stalker Guy, Chad Taylor, and Cian are all on my persons-of-interest list. The only one with a clear motive would be Martinez, but I just can’t get my head around it—yet. If he has anything to do with her disappearance, then he wins an Oscar for his acting.
I’ve just walked into Rúla Búla when I spot Sean and Cian having a heated conversation behind the bar. Neither of them notice me, so I slip into a table behind a column so I can observe without being easily seen.
I can’t hear what they’re saying, but it’s emotional for sure. Cian’s arms are flying around. He’s speaking volumes with his body language. Sean’s face is red and he looks pissed off, but his mannerism is quiet and calm in comparison.
This is an interesting connection. How do Cian and Sean know each other? I’d give a body part to hear what they’re arguing about. I’m leaning forward on my bar stool trying to pick up the conversation when I hear a soft voice with just a hint of an Irish lilt. “Do you know the boys, then?”
I’m so startled that I slip off the stool. My butt was barely hanging onto it in the first place. The seat comes crashing down with me. I jump up quickly, humiliation burning my face.
A cute young girl wearing an apron and name tag blinks at me, waiting for my response. I glance at the “boys” and see that both are staring over at me like I’m on fire. I smile and wave. The girl picks up my stool for me and continues to wait.
“Uh, yes. Well, sort
of. I’ve known Sean for a couple years, but I just met Cian recently.” I realize that I’m babbling and close my mouth as I return to the stool.
“I didn’t mean to startle you. You just seemed focused on the boys, so I thought I’d ask. I’m Deirdre, their sister,” she says, holding out her hand.
I’m so surprised by this information that I simply blink at her. When her eyebrows raise, I look at her hand and shake myself for being such an idiot. “I’m sorry. Did you say you are their sister? Meaning, you are a sister to both? Meaning, they are brothers?”
Deirdre starts to laugh, and it sounds sweet and gentle, bringing to mind a stream flowing through the woods. This is unexpected.
“Yes and yes,” she says, still laughing. “Didn’t you know they were brothers?”
I shake my head. Cian never gave me his last name and Sean never mentioned a brother, much less a sister. I do recall Jacob saying something about Sean being one of Colin O’Donnell’s children. That means that standing beside me is the daughter of the alpha. And this young woman is a werewolf. I guess they come in all sizes.
Deirdre looks like she is of Irish or Scottish decent, with her soft waves of flaming red hair. She’s even lightly brushed with freckles across her nose.
“I’m Samantha, but you can call me Sam. Most of my friends do.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Sam. Looks like my brothers are planning to have a word with you. I best be getting back to work. I hope to see you again soon.” Deirdre beams at me before hurrying off.
I look over to see the brothers walking toward me. When they’re together, I can see the family resemblance. I’m about to be surrounded by werewolves. This should be interesting. Standing up again, I give them what I hope is a disarming smile. They’re just persons-of-interest, not suspects yet.