“I learned to appreciate my place on this earth from an elder vampire named Carlos Salazar. He’s running the Red Veil for the time being.” Jace looked at her with a question. “You said Julian Trevelyan invited you into the backrooms. He’s related, sort of. Carlos is his maker. You never said how you knew him.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know Julian at all. He didn’t actually invite me into the backrooms. He found me loitering around the doorway looking for you. He let me in and told me to name drop him if I ran into trouble.”
Jace nodded. “I talked to him afterward.”
“Julian wasn’t what I expected. Then again, neither are you,” she added.
“Julian comes from a coven of vampires who foster coexistence with humans. They revere their humanity or what’s left of it, and taught me to do the same. I can feed without killing, and now that Weres and vampires are on good terms, it’s even better.”
“How?” Daisy asked warily.
“Because Were blood can slake a vampire’s thirst for a month at least, and the longer we partake, the longer we can go between feeding. For some reason Were blood warms us to almost human temperature.”
She nodded. “I admit I expected you to be as cold as ice. In fact, Aimee wondered if sex with you felt like having sex with an ice pop.”
“Aimee Dunne? Wondered about sex with me?”
“No, not you specifically, silly. Sex with vampires in general.” Daisy smirked. “For a well-heeled, well-respected doctor she’s got quite a fetish fascination going on.” She paused. “She’s team Jace, you know. Has been since New York.”
“I always liked Aimee.” He grinned. “You should listen to her.”
Daisy rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I’m glad you’re not marble cold, but I don’t want to know the details.” She angled her head, looking at Jace’s skin in the moonlight. It was luminous.
“In New York, Julian said something that struck me odd, but now not so much,” she murmured. “He told me to take care, and to be cautious of what I wished for because I just might get it.”
Jace a lifted a hand and brushed her dark hair from her cheek. “What did you wish for, Daisy?”
“So,” she said, evading his question. “This happened to you at the bachelor party?”
He wiggled his leg over hers under the blanket. “After the party.”
“If memory serves, you drove to New Orleans with my brother and some of his friends, right?”
Jace nodded. “We bar hopped on Bourbon Street and ended up in the Barely Legal club. Typical. The more money spent, the more lap dances and free shots provided, but at one point your brother thought it funny to slip me a rufie.”
“My brother gave you a date-rape drug?” She stared at him open mouthed.
“I must have lost consciousness at some point because the next thing I remember was curled next to a tombstone in Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 with a woman.
“It was an hour or so before dawn, and she dragged me into a stinking crypt where she finished the job of turning me. She seduced me, drained me and then made me drink from her until I vomited blood.”
Daisy knew the color drained from her face. “Who was it? Do you know?”
Jace exhaled, scrubbing his face. “Unfortunately, yes. Her name is Violet. She’s the same vampire that turned my great-grandfather Micah.”
“Oh my God.” Daisy looked at him, unbelieving.
Jace’s face was full of regret. “Hard to believe, I know. History truly repeated itself this time.”
Daisy sat up and glanced to the dark sky. “This wasn’t a coincidence, Jace. I feel it in my bones.” A hoot owl cooed in the distance as though agreeing.
“It’s not a coincidence. Violet reveled in telling me how she planned this with one of her blood whores. He befriended your brother to get to me.”
Daisy blinked. “He?”
“Not all blood whores are female, Dais.”
She shivered, and nausea bit into her gut. “So my own brother played a part in this?”
“Your brother Jack was guilty of a lot of things, but not this. Not intentionally. He didn’t know his friend was a vampire’s pawn.”
The muscle in Jace’s jaw tightened. “Didn’t it strike you weird there are no direct male descents of Micah and Eva? Except me, of course.”
Daisy nodded. “Now that you mention it.”
“It’s because Violet has been systematically murdering the males in my line for over a century. She kills them at different ages, under different circumstances to keep things interesting, and while pack elders attribute the tragedies to a curse, it was Violet all along.
“She’s solely responsible for hundreds of deaths. She’s the King Herod of the vampire world. Vampire council adjudicators placed a price on her head, but still she manages to skate under their radar.
“She told me point blank I was slotted to die much earlier, but when she saw my face, she claimed she couldn’t take my life, so she turned me instead.”
Daisy twisted the end of the blanket in her hands. “Is she your lover? Is that why?”
He shook his head. “No. It’s because I resemble Micah. Violet was supposed to marry him, but he threw her over for money and position.
“He knew Eva had land, and with that came the possibility of power. Violet was ruined. It was the mid-nineteenth century. Micah had taken her virginity, leaving her with no prospects and no position. She eventually took to the streets.
“She became a blood whore in a vampire brothel, vowing revenge on my entire line, and when the opportunity presented itself, she grabbed it. Violet is warped, and taking Micah wasn’t enough. After I was turned, I stayed away to protect you.
“The crazy bitch swore she’d kill you and your family if I didn’t listen. When she heard how your brother Jack died, she laughed, saying the Alpha of the Brethren and the vampire council of New York saved her the trouble of killing him herself. Violet is consumed by hate. She even swore to wipe out my entire family, not just the men.”
“Oh my God! Jenny! I’ve got to go—” Daisy scrambled to her feet, pushing the tight blanket from her body. “This was a huge mistake,” she mumbled, scooping up her dress.
Jace sat up, questioning. “Go? Why?”
Daisy’s eyes searched his and she laid her hand on his cheek. “Because you put our daughter in danger by coming here. You have to leave.”
“Leave? No—” He held her wrist. “Doesn’t this say anything to you?” He swept his free hand toward the rumpled blanket and their strewn clothing.
Daisy looked at the aftermath of their lovemaking. “It says goodbye, Jace.” Shaking her head, she gently pulled her hand from his grasp.
“Goddamn it! Don’t do this, Daisy. You forget I have a right to see Jenny. I’m her father.”
She swallowed the tears tightening her throat. “No, Jace. It’ll confuse her and she’s so little, she’s bound to talk. You could be seen, and there’s no telling what the packs will do. Jenny is both Cochran and Matthews. Both sides would rally to protect her. Father or not, you’re undead.”
Jaw tight, he exhaled hard. “You’re right, but I don’t care.”
“Maybe you don’t, but I do.” She locked eyes with him, but they were at a stalemate, with nothing left to say. “It’ll be dawn in a few hours, Jace. There’s no shelter up here, so unless you can withstand the strong Texas sun, you’ll need to find cover.”
He didn’t take his eyes from hers. “I’m not leaving, Daisy. I’ll be here waiting every night until I convince you.”
6
“Mommy?” Jenny peeked through the door, her dark eyes and little nose visible through the crack despite the darkness.
Daisy rolled over, tossing her arm over her forehead. “Hey, peanut. What’s the matter?”
The little girl pushed the door all the way open and climbed onto the bed with her mother.
“Can I sleep in your bed tonight?” she asked with eyes like saucers.
Daisy held open
the covers and let her scoot in beside her. She wrapped her arm around her daughter’s waist and snuggled in tightly.
“Bad dream, sweetheart?”
Jenny nodded. Her silky hair tickling Daisy’s neck. “I dreamed there was a man in my room.”
Daisy’s eyes snapped open wide. “Was it Grandpa?”
“Nope.” The little girl shook her head.
“You sure it wasn’t a dream, honey?”
She nodded. “I’m sure—Mommy?”
“Hmmm.”
“You remember how Grandpa Carson teached me how to see things with my nose?”
“Mmhmm,” Daisy replied, trying to hide her sudden annoyance at Jace’s father. Jenny was too young to learn about shifting.
“The man in my room didn’t smell like nothin’.”
Daisy’s chest tightened along with her grip.
“Mommy! You’re holding me too hard!”
Daisy relaxed her grip even as her mind raced. “Everything on Earth has a smell, peanut. You must have dreamed it.”
Jenny didn’t say anything at first. “Promise?”
Daisy kissed the back of her head and snuggled in. “Pinky promise. Now, go to sleep.”
She glanced at the clock on the nightstand. Dawn was too close for it to be Jace. She chewed on her lip. Seth wouldn’t dare, and besides, Jenny would recognize him. Maybe it was just bad dream.
She listened to the soft rise and fall of her daughter’s sleep. At least one of them would get some rest tonight.
“You look awful,” Aimee said, pouring herself a cup of coffee with a shot of Jameson Irish. “Want one?” She chuckled holding up the green glass bottle. “Maybe the better question is, need one?”
“Need, definitely, and hold the coffee,” Daisy replied.
Aimee poured two fingers high into a cut-glass tumbler and dropped in a few ice cubes. “Must be pretty bad for you to drive all this way. What did Seth do now?”
“This isn’t about Seth. I really need to talk to you, Aims.”
Aimee handed her the whiskey. “Well, I cancelled my afternoon appointments. I’m all yours, darlin’.”
Daisy got up from the off-white couch and walked to the high-rise window overlooking the Houston cityscape.
“How do you breathe up here with no windows?” she muttered.
Aimee turned her green eyes toward her friend, watching as she fidgeted, moving from the desk to the end table, to the window. “Daisy, for God’s sake settle somewhere and talk to me. You didn’t drive two hours to talk about the air quality of my apartment.”
“I kicked Seth to the curb.”
Aimee exhaled, nodding. “I’m glad to hear it, Dais, but you could have told me that over the phone.”
“My father agrees with the decision, as well. It turns out your gut feeling about him was right. He was more interested in the ranch and what he could gain than me or Jenny.”
Aimee studied her friend. “I’m sorry, Daisy.”
She shook her head and sat on the loveseat, her whiskey still untouched. “Don’t be. Anyone who tells my daughter she should be put down deserved his balls in a pair of gelding sheers, and that’s exactly what’ll happen if he shows his face again.”
“You okay?” Aimee smirked. “I mean short of contemplating a felony with the intent to injure.”
Daisy burst out laughing. “I miss having you around, Aims. Really.”
Aimee put her coffee mug on the glass end table and regarded Daisy, the dark smudges under her eyes and the way she chewed on her lip.
“What’s the real reason you needed to see me today, Dais? Don’t lie to me, now.”
Daisy scrubbed her face with one palm, before circling her temples with the tips of her fingers. “Jace showed up at the ranch last night.”
Aimee smacked her thigh with her fist. “I knew it!” She got up and walked back and forth in front of her coffee table. “This is exactly what I hoped would happen.”
“I’m not so sure I share your enthusiasm, Aims. It’s complicated.”
“What’s so complicated? You love him and obviously he still loves you. Wolves aren’t the only shifter species with keen senses, and mine tell me you not only want him, but had him in spades last night. I can smell the sex on you from here so don’t bother denying it.”
Daisy, put her whiskey on the coffee table. “I don’t deny it, but sex doesn’t change anything. There’s a lot more to consider than mutual attraction.”
“Okay, but being from different supernatural species doesn’t make you mutually exclusive,” Aimee countered.
“Aims, you forget the part where he lives on blood and can’t survive sunlight.”
She shrugged. “No relationship comes without compromise.”
“I came to terms with Jace being a vampire last night.” Heat crawled up her cheeks as images flashed into memory.
Aimee gave her friend a wicked smile. “That good, huh? You’ll have to give me the juicy details to add to my fetish list.”
“That is so not happening.”
“You can’t blame me for trying. Still, you two can make a life together, Daisy. I’m not saying it’ll be easy, but you’re a fool not to take what you want simply because Jace is undead. Vampires are a part of our shrouded world. It’s that simple.”
Daisy’s face sobered. “I won’t lie. I’m afraid, Aimee. The situation with Jace has put Jenny’s life in danger. I’m not sure how to handle it.”
“In danger how? From Jace?” Aimee shook her head. “I don’t see that. Especially since you admitted you two had hot monkey sex last night. You don’t have to show me the faint puncture wounds for me to know he fed from you last night. It’s understood. He didn’t hurt you, or worse, take your life. It’s clear he’s not a common youngblood in the way most are, aggressive, reckless. My guess is Jace has had guidance in controlling his baser impulses.”
“Jesus, Aimee. When did clairvoyance become an avian trait?”
“It’s not clairvoyance, Daisy. Research and common sense. Sex and blood are linked for vampires. It’s part of their circle of life, if you can call their existence, life.”
Daisy tipped the edge of her whiskey glass toward her friend. “You amaze me, Aims, truly. But that’s not it at all. I have no worries about Jace and Jenny. In fact, I think given the chance, he’d be a good father. There’s an outside threat.”
She patted the loveseat for Aimee to sit and told her the story about Violet.
“Holy crap.” Aimee’s jaw hung slack.
Daisy slumping against the back of the small couch. “So you see. It’s not quite as simple as you think.”
Aimee got up and went around her desk to her laptop and started typing.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m calling in a favor. Someone I think might be able to help with this.”
“Who?” Daisy sat up straight.
Aimee glanced up from her screen. “Don’t worry about that, yet. I can’t do or say anything until I hear back.”
She closed her laptop, and walked around her desk to the narrow credenza against the wall. “In the meantime, let’s go shopping and get you a sexy little number to wear for your icy hot vampire tonight.”
“What’s the use?” Daisy shrugged. “I told Jace to leave.”
Aimee stopped with her purse halfway to her shoulder. “When?”
“After he told me Violet promised to kill his whole family.”
She angled her head, her brows knotted. “So after you reconnected, then?”
“If that’s a fancy way of asking if it was after we hooked up, then yes.”
She grinned, and shoved her purse the rest of the way up. “He’ll be back. If not tonight, then tomorrow.”
Daisy opened her mouth, but then closed it again, and the self-censorship wasn’t lost on Aimee.
“What?” she asked.
Daisy shook her head. “I’m sure it’s nothing, but Jenny crawled into my bed at half past four this m
orning. She claimed there was someone in her room. Someone with no scent. She thought it was a man, but whoever it was frightened her.”
Aimee hesitated. “And you think it was Jace?”
“No, that’s just it. It was too close to dawn for it to be him. I left him by the big oak in the north pasture. He didn’t have much time to find decent shelter. Impulse control or not, the sun is still deadly for him.”
“Then who could it be?”
Daisy lifted a hand. “That’s just it, I don’t know.”
“Seth?”
She shook her head again. “He’s too much of a pussy. Maybe it was nothing, and Jenny dreamed it.”
Aimee inhaled, pressing her lips together. “Perhaps. Perhaps not. Keep a close eye on her. Just in case.”
“I’m back!” Daisy put her keys and purse on the hall table. “Anybody home?”
Nothing.
She walked into the kitchen and snapped on the light. Leaning against the cookie jar in the center of the table was a note. She picked it up and tore open the top.
Daisy,
I took Jenny to the Matthews’s. She insisted. They’re going to keep her for the night.
Dad.
Damn. What was she supposed to do now? Call and tell them their granddaughter can’t stay because a psychotic vampire was using death threats to manipulate Jace?
She dug her cell out of her purse and dialed Aimee.
“Daisy? Is everything okay?”
“Dad took Jenny to Carson and Elinor’s place. Should I worry?”
“I don’t know. Maybe you should find Jace and discuss this with him. He’s her father.”
Daisy exhaled into the phone. “You’re no help, you know that.”
“Yes, I am, and you love me. Go find your man and put him on the case.”
“Ugh”
“Love you, too.”
Daisy hit end and shoved her phone into her bag. Where the hell could he be holed up? She glanced out the window at the sky. Heavy clouds and drizzle, and the sun hadn’t quite set.
The Weather Channel warned of a storm brewing, which meant it would be a thousand times worse the closer she got to the north edge along the mesa. Hail, flooding, and tornados. It was that time of year.
The Red Veil Diaries (Volumes 1-4) Page 30