by W. J. May
There had to be a hundred people in just one row. His stomach clenched when he did the math. "David, do you realize how many people are hanging here? They couldn’t all have disappeared around the same time."
"I’m sure they’ve been disappearing, a few here and a few there, for a very long time." David glanced up, grimaced and turned his face forward resolutely.
Serus and Goran spoke quietly ahead of them. Cody couldn’t quite hear and he wanted to. Motioning to David, he picked up the pace so the bits of conversation were understandable.
"Moltere dropped off the grid when?"
"Hell if I know. Forty, maybe fifty years ago, maybe. After Taz was rescued. But Moltere wasn't actually seen or recovered during that rescue. He could have disappeared a lot earlier."
Cody frowned. Damn it. His father always did that. Spoke in half sentences, half thoughts. He glanced around. They should be in the area they'd seen on the monitors.
"Hey. Old guys."
Both men stopped and spun.
Cody grinned. "At least I have your attention." At the disgruntled look on their faces, his grin powered up a watt. "I think we’re here. You should be looking at these people’s faces to see if you know any of them."
Everyone turned to study the woman hanging beside them. Cody tried to keep his eyes on her face, but it was hard. There was a lot of skin showing wrapped in bubble wrap or something just as gross, with body fluids pooling off to one side. He gave her face the once over and walked to the next one and the next one.
The bubbled wrap made it difficult to tell the vampires from the humans. He thought these were all humans. But then how could you tell? Vampires were taller, slimmer and had a few distinct features, like the eyes and fangs. But everyone here had their eyes and mouths closed. None, however, appeared super tall. He kept walking, his eyes going from face to face.
"I don’t think these are the vampires yet."
"Nor do I."
"Then we keep looking." Cody came to the last one in the row. He studied the wall and the layout. It definitely resembled what they’d seen on the monitor. He backed up until he could see the people hanging at the end of the next row. The last body, a male was taller.
And a vampire.
An old one at that. He frowned. As vampires could live almost forever, to keep them suspended like this was like a permanent living hell for the vampire in question. Studying the tubing connected to this vampire, Cody realized his blood was heading in a different direction altogether. But why? Who would want it? What were they doing with vampires? Were they harvesting vampires on a regular basis or only those who were in their way? And were they just here to keep them from talking…or were they running experiments on them?
A chill ran down his back. Shit. This could be David or him. Or worse – Tessa.
"Dad. Do you know this one?" He stepped back out of the way. Both elders stepped forward to get a better look. Cody watching his father’s face, saw the color bleach from his already white skin and saw him spread his legs in a wider stance as if trying to recover from a blow.
"Oh no."
"Who is he?" David walked around Cody to take a closer look, then shrugged his shoulders. "I don’t know him."
"It’s Moltere. The man we thought was behind all this."
"What?" Cody and David turned to stare at the plastic-wrapped legend. "Tessa said we shouldn’t jump to conclusions. Looks like she was right again. So if he isn’t behind this mess, then who is?"
"That’s what we need to find out."
David said, "Maybe he started it and had a falling out with his partners?"
"If this is what happens to anyone who crosses them, then we’d better not get on their bad side," Serus said, half joking.
There was nothing funny about this, though. Cody frowned, "Too late. We already are."
***
Tessa sat on the side of Jared’s bed. He was pale and lifeless, but it was the sudden lack of skin tone that worried her the most. His cheeks sagged like he wore skin a size too big for him. He'd look pretty good when they'd first seen him, but now it was as if the life were dripping from him. Mom had said something about the nutrients having kept him in good shape, but without them…
Whatever it was, this aged versions no longer looked like Jared.
She sniffled again. Then she shook her head. What a maudlin teenager she was turning out to be. She didn’t like that at all. She sniffled harder and wiped her eyes. Straightening her back, she took another quick glance at her mother whose head was tilted toward her father in deep discussion. Her dad had arrived just a moment ago, a wild look on his face. Her mother had raced over and they’d been there ever since.
As much as she wanted in on it, she wasn't sure she wanted to know more. This had been an unbelievable couple of days.
Her guilt had subsided – but not abated. She hoped Jared made a full recovery. She knew now she wasn’t responsible for his getting kidnapped, and honestly, she didn’t know that anyone could have found him any faster – but still, her people had done this to him.
Her mother came over to her. "Tessa, do you want to lie down here for a bit? Help is on the way, but they're going to be a couple of hours yet."
Tessa cringed. "No. I don’t want to sleep in this place. It gives me the creeps." All she saw when she closed her eyes was that damn tubing running through every person, pumping out their life force. She couldn’t imagine a worse type of existence.
"Oh, honey. You’re safe now. No one is going to get you here." She brushed Tessa’s long hair back off her face. "I love what you did with your hair. Did I tell you that?"
"No. The last time…didn’t you ask what happened to my beautiful hair?" Tessa grinned at the pinched look she got in return.
"Yes, well, I think that’s when I was looking at my daughter’s beautiful black hair bleached to nothing."
"Oh. I thought it was the length."
Her mother looked puzzled for a moment. Then her eyes widened and she came rushing around the end of the bed. "You didn’t cut it, did you?"
"Just kidding Mom." Tessa laughed out loud. It felt good to find something humorous amongst the living dead here. "I didn’t cut it. I wouldn’t."
"Damn right." Rhia sniffed and walked back toward Serus who stood guard at the entrance. "I’m going to discuss strategy with your father. You get some rest. Sleep or not, but at least lie down. There are plenty of beds here; you might as well use them."
Tessa considered the rows of empty beds. She was tired. There wasn’t anything more she could do at this point. And there were plenty of vampires here to watch over Jared. It honestly felt like a major crash-and-burn session had hit her, with the crash part winning.
She studied Jared’s face. He didn’t look like he’d be coming around any time soon. How they were going to move him and all these other people was beyond her.
"Maybe I should. Just for a minute." She wandered the long line of beds, then choose one across from Jared. She didn’t want to be where she could be seen from the warehouse or where she could see who and what hung there. What a horrible last vision to take into dream state.
She stretched out and closed her eyes.
***
Cody walked over to where the adults were deep in discussion. "How long will it take for the teams to get here?"
"Probably another hour, possibly two. We've connected with Sian and Taz. They’re sending an assessment team in first to determine what needs to be done, followed closely by medical teams and equipment."
"Right. That could take a bit." He turned his back to the macabre scene. He had enough visions to keep him in horror movies for a long time. "There isn’t much we can do now then, is there?"
"Just be aware. Just because we couldn’t find anyone else, doesn’t mean there aren't any others – waiting for an opportunity to pick us off one by one. Everyone needs to stay together, at least in pairs."
"Speaking of everyone, where's Tessa?"
"She’s lying down, on
my orders." Rhia frowned. "She’s exhausted."
Serus patted her arm. "She’ll be fine. She comes from good stock."
"That may be, but she’s only a girl. She shouldn’t be exposed to horrors like this at her age." She rubbed her eyes. "I hate what she’s gone through."
"So do I. However, it’s happened, and she’s come out a trooper. She’s really come into herself over this. I wouldn’t want to have cheated her of that." Serus snagged her shoulder in a quick hug.
Rhia looked up at them, smiled slowly. "She did well, didn’t she?"
"Yes, she did." He smiled proudly down at her.
Cody couldn’t help adding. "She’s really grown these last couple of days. It's been amazing to see."
"Thank you, Cody. For helping her and believing in her."
Not used to compliments, Cody felt something uncomfortable crawl across his skin. He turned away mumbling, "No problem."
He headed back to the sick room to check on Tessa and Jared.
***
Tessa couldn’t sleep. She kept thinking about needles and tubing and blood. So much blood. Once, she’d opened her eyes thinking she’d heard Jared and had sat up, but there hadn’t appeared to be any change in him. After a moment, she lay back down. The room was otherwise empty. Her friends and family stood just around the corner. She could hear their voices, a distant murmur, but normal sounding.
Everything was fine.
She yawned. Grabbing up the folded blanket off the end of the bed, she threw it across her legs and pulled it up to her shoulders. Her clothing pulled every time she tried to get comfy.
This time when she closed her eyes, she slept.
Once again she dreamed. She dreamed of her blanket being pulled back. Of a needle being slipped into her arm and of a piece of tubing being attached. She stretched out her arm and the tubing dangled down on the bed. Drip, drip, drip went the drugs into her veins. Her dreams took her deeper and deeper.
***
Cody rounded the open doorway and found Jared sleeping, if that’s what you called sleeping – more like being comatose – on the one bed on the right. He walked over to him and stared down at the slack face. So this was Tessa’s friend. His competition.
He straightened and snorted. This sack of meat was no competition for him. Disgusted and more than a little concerned that he’d even had that thought, he turned around to search for Tessa. Only she wasn’t there.
Hadn’t her mom said she come in to lie down? Tessa had already proven she didn’t take orders well. Puzzled, he walked down the center aisle. At the end of the room he turned around and walked back. As he approached Jared again, he frowned. One bed had a blanket tossed to the floor. A series of indents showed on the sheets of the still-made bed.
Just then, Rhia came in.
"Where did you say Tessa was?" Cody asked her, an inkling of worry attaching itself to his spine.
"In here." She stopped, put her hands on her hips, frowned and looked around. "She was right there on that bed beside you. I saw her just a moment ago. She didn't go past me. We've been standing here at the doorway the whole time."
Cody pointed to the blanket on the floor. "Was this here before?"
She shook her head slowly. "No." She hurried over. "She was lying here with the blanket pulled up to her shoulders." She walked to the front of the bed. "Where is she?"
Bending down, Cody picked up a plastic tip. Like the kind that protected the end of a needle. Worry turned to fear. "Look what I found."
Rhia stared at it uncomprehendingly. Then her eyes widened, fear turning them to dark obsidian. "Please no."
Cody stared at the piece of plastic, unable to look away. Just the thought of a needle being used on Tessa made his heart pound in fear. Who knew what they'd do to her?
"Dear God, I hope not," he whispered. He spun around. At the back was a door. They'd checked it earlier. He thought it was just a supply cupboard. But it was the only other way for Tessa to have left this room…willingly, or not. He raced toward it, calling over his shoulder, "Go get the others."
"Oh, my God!" Rhia raced out to get help.
***
Tessa opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was the tube in her arm. She frowned, blinked several times to clear her vision and then reached for the tubing. Her hand touched the needle taped to her wrist – her eyes widened in comprehension. She tried to close her fingers around the needle, to pull it free. Her fingers didn't want to work.
Drugs dripped steadily into her arm. Pulling at her, drawing her down, deeper and deeper.
Oh, dear God, no!
She screamed – endlessly – soundlessly – in her mind.
This ends book 1 of the Family Blood Ties. Book 7 is being released in April 2015.
Author's Note
Dear reader,
Thank you for reading Vampire in Denial! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I loved writing it. Book 2 in the series is called Vampire in Distress. Book 8 will be out in the August of 2015!
I love to hear from readers, and you can contact me at my website: www.dalemayer.com or at my Facebook author page. To be informed of new releases and special offers, sign up for Dale Mayer's newsletter. And if you are interested in joining my street team, here is the Facebook sign up page.
If you'd like to read about other books I've written, please turn the page.
Cheers,
Dale Mayer
The Family Blood Ties series goes as follows:
Vampire in Denial
Vampire in Distress
Vampire in Design
Vampire in Deceit
Vampire in Defiance
Vampire in Conflict
Vampire in Chaos – April 2015
Vampire in Crisis – August 2015
About the author:
Dale Mayer is a USA Today bestselling author best known for her Psychic Visions and Family Blood Ties series. Her contemporary romances are raw and full of passion and emotion (Second Chances, SKIN), her thrillers will keep you guessing (By Death series), and her romantic comedies will keep you giggling (It's a Dog's Life and Charmin Marvin Romantic Comedy series).
She honors the stories that come to her - and some of them are crazy and break all the rules and cross multiple genres!
Books by Dale Mayer
Psychic Vision Series
Tuesday's Child
Hide'n Go Seek
Maddy's Floor
Garden of Sorrow
Knock, Knock...
Rare Find
Eyes to the Soul
Now You See Her… - October 2015
By Death Series
Touched by Death - Part 1 - Free
Touched by Death - Part 2
Touched by Death - Full book
Haunted by Death
Chilled by Death – March 31 2015
Second Chances...at Love Series
Second Chances - Part 1 - Free
Second Chances - Part 2
Second Chances - Full book
Broken, but… Mending Series
Skin
Scars
Scales (of Justice)– September 2015
Novellas
It's a Dog's Life- romantic comedy
Charmin Marvin Romantic Comedy
Broken Protocols #1
Broken Protocols 2
Broken Protocols 3
Broken Protocols 3.5
Broken Protocols 1-3
New adult/adult crossover Books
In Cassie's Corner
Gem Stone (a Gemma Stone mystery)
Time Thieves
Design Series
Dangerous Designs - Free
Deadly Designs
Darkest Designs
Family Blood Ties Series
Vampire in Denial - Free
Vampire in Distress
Vampire in Design
Vampire in Deceit
Vampire in Defiance
Vampire in Conflict
Vampire in Chaos
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Vampire in Crisis – August 2015
Non-Fiction Books
Career Essentials: The Resume
Career Essentials: The Cover Letter
Career Essentials: The Interview
Career Essentials: 3 in 1
Book 4
Synopsis
Alexa O’Brien has never been like other people. A hunter of supernatural rogues, she is a werewolf with unusual but extraordinary power. Power that draws her to Arys Knight, the mysterious vampire who awakens her dark side. What they create together is dangerous and binding, forcing her to question the source of her abilities. It threatens not only her remaining humanity, but her relationship with fellow werewolf, Shaz Richardson, as well.
When Alexa’s womanizing former lover and the Alpha of her pack is framed for murder, he draws public attention that could earn him a death sentence unless she steps in to help him. Alexa would love to watch karma at work but as the body count rises, long buried secrets are exposed. She’s forced to face the painful truth that not everyone is who she thinks they are.
ONCE BITTEN
Copyright 2009 by Trina M. Lee
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author.
Manufactured in the United States of America.
Editor
B. Leigh Hogan
Cover Artist
Stella Price
Published by
Dark Mountain Books
This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents and dialogues in this book are of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is completely coincidental.