The Rose Trilogy Box Set

by Tish Thawer

  I made sure no one was looking my way, then raced to the other end of the tunnel and waited in the shadows under the bridge. As the man got closer, I could smell his cologne mixed with his sweat, but it was the sweet smell of his blood that had my fangs aching again.

  As soon as he was within reach, I grabbed him and pushed him back against the curved stone wall. I moved so fast, that he didn't have a chance to protest before my fangs were buried deep in his neck. I prepared to think the thoughts I assumed would program my sedative, but instead got completely lost in taste of his blood. I stifled his screams with my hand and continued to suck deep draws of blood down my throat. It felt as if his blood was a drug, one that I would never be able to break the habit of. It was more than just a vampire necessity, it was like his blood was the life essence that was fueling my body and turning me into something that Meredith would fear. I loved it. I didn't stop drinking until the man fell to the ground.

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER SIX

  Happily Ever After

  (Meredith)

  It had only been two days since I'd forged the mind bond with Jeremy by forcing him to drink my blood. He'd left me no choice when he prepared to walk out on me and our baby. Now, I only had to slip him a little of my blood every day to maintain control. And, since before this little hiccup, we really were in love, it didn't take much to nudge him into feeling as if we were living out our happily ever after.

  "Jeremy, darling. What time do you think you'll be home from work tonight?" I asked as I cleaned off the kitchen table.

  "I'm not sure, honey. My boss said since I missed our last meeting in Seela, he wanted to make up for it today with a conference call." He shook his head, as if still trying to piece together the events of that day.

  I still didn't know exactly how Jeremy had found out about our heritage or from whom, even though the answer seemed pretty obvious. All I knew for sure was that he'd cancelled his trip to Seela, came home early that day, and found me killing Damien in our garage. It had been the worst way possible to expose him to our demon side. But thankfully, that was all behind us now.

  "Okay, well, just give me call when you're close to heading home so I'll know when to put dinner on."

  "Don't you have one of your meetings tonight?" he asked.

  I tensed up at the question, my eyes flaring red as I set the dishes in the sink. I hadn't talked to or seen any of the other demons who'd been coming to my meetings since after I'd received a call from Damien's cousin, Raúl. He told me that Damien's body had been found down by the railroad tracks. I feigned surprise, of course, seeing as I was the one who dumped him there.

  Damien had practically forced me to kill him when the power hungry fool threatened to murder Jeremy. Plus, I refused to have a lieutenant who thought he could overpower me or uproot my plans. I told Raúl to let me know when the funeral was so I could come pay my respects, but my real reason for wanting to go was so I could get some time alone with him. I was hoping that he'd agree to step into Damien's shoes as my second in command. I had to get back to building my army, because I knew Rose and her adopted vampire family would soon be closing in on me.

  "No. This week's meeting has been postponed, so I'll be here waiting for you." I turned back toward Jeremy and rubbed a hand over my belly.

  With a loving smile, he laid his hand on top of mine and kissed my cheek. "Sounds great. I'll call you when my day is over."

  Watching him head out the door with his coffee mug in hand, left me with a satisfied feeling. He'd be sipping my blood all the way to work, and therefore, my mind bond would remain safely in place. The realization that I would never lose the man I loved was almost as euphoric as when I'd drained the life from his wife.

  Jeremy was the first demon outside of my family that I'd ever run across. The moment we'd met, I knew I wanted him to be the father of my child. The idea of continuing my pure demon bloodline thrilled me, but the first step I'd had to take was to eliminate his wife. Her life essence had flowed into me and activated my ancient demon traits: faster speed, enhanced strength, and most importantly, my journey to becoming immortal. My grandmother's stories rang in my ears as I'd stood over Loraine's dead body; stories of our ancestors drinking human blood. It was in that instant that I knew I'd found the key to becoming the most powerful demon in existence.

  Now, if I could just go to this funeral and get Raúl to fall in line, I could start up the meetings again and continue to spike the punch with human blood. Most of the other demons didn't have a clue as to what they were drinking, but they had certainly enjoyed the "uplifting" effects it had on them. Raúl and a few other cousins had been in on the plan, and after demonstrating their slight increase in strength and speed, I knew dosing them in small amounts was the best way to build my unsuspecting army. However, before I could do anything else, I had to make the doctor's appointment that would confirm my pregnancy. I'd been so happy when my home test appeared positive, but with the distraction of killing Damien and having to establish my mind bond with Jeremy, the last couple of days had been a complete blur.

  As I headed up the stairs to retrieve my cell phone, I realized that even though Jeremy and I had just shared breakfast, I was still famished. The problem was...I wasn't hungry for food.

  I was only drinking human blood as a way to maintain my demon traits, but right now I felt more like a vampire, like I was actually craving it. I entered our bedroom and picked up my cell off the nightstand, wondered if my appetite was something I should be worried about. It only took a moment for my uncertainty to grow, so instead of dialing the number for my doctor, I punched the numbers for my grandmother instead.

  "Good morning, Grandma, it's Meredith. I was wondering if you'd be up for a visit today?"

  "Of course, child. You should know you're always welcome here. No need to call first."

  The sound of my grandmother's voice was like a soothing balm to my soul. She was the one person in our family who had special gifts that were inherent to our demon race. But to me, her most special gift was how loved and comfortable she had always made me feel. I just hoped that she'd remain as calm and comforting if I decided to tell her what was truly going on.

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Disappointment

  (Christian)

  I continued to contemplate my little speech as I drove down the freeway in my '67 Comet Caliente. I had hoped it would ease the disappointment I knew my clan felt, but after scanning them as we spoke, the doubts and fears that layered their thoughts were pretty overwhelming. In their eyes, not only was turning Rose a terrible idea, but the fact that I was the new Sire and they hadn't known about it was most likely going to cause a problem for quite some time.

  In an effort to distance myself from these thoughts, I looked over at the passenger seat and saw Loraine staring out the windshield. It was so odd to look at someone and yet still be able to see right through them. The trees were flying by the window as ethereal wisps of her hair blew in a wind that I wasn't even sure she could feel.

  "Don't worry, Loraine. We'll find her."

  She turned to face me and smiled a sad smile. "I know, Christian. I'm just concerned about how she will be when we find her."

  I knew Loraine was talking about the fact that Rose had drifted dark when she'd completed her transition. Most people rose as light vampires, but there were instances where, if the person carried sorrow and pain within them from their human lives, they would show signs of that by drifting darker initially. With everything that Rose had been through over the last year––her mother's death, finding out about vampires, her attempted murder of Meredith, and the revelation that she and her dad were demons––um, yeah, I supposed I shouldn't be surprised that she turned out darker than expected. Now it was just a matter of reaching her in time, before her emotions shut down, because at that point she'd truly be lost to us.

  The horrible images playing in my head had me veering onto the shoulder. I couldn't imagine my swee
t Rose as some dark, evil creature. The idea caused a serious knot in my stomach because now, it was my responsibility to kill any vampire who drifted dark, even if it was the love my life.

  "Dammit," I cussed, banging my fist against the steering wheel. "Why couldn't I have been there to help her through her transition like every other Sire in history?"

  Loraine's ghostly hand settled on top of my shoulder. "Christian, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you with my worries. And you already know the answer to that. Rose is special. She's now the hybrid and that means there's bound to be differences with her transition than any other's before her."

  "Yes, but now, I'm just so scared that what seemed like the right thing to do at the time was possibly the worst decision I could've made."

  Loraine's weak smile didn't offer much comfort, but apparently her calming ability still worked wonders, because as soon as the words left my mouth, the doubts about my decision eased, if only slightly.

  Getting back on topic, I asked, "Have you felt any kind of pull toward Rose or Jeremy recently?"

  "No. I haven't." She shook her head and dropped her hand back into her lap.

  I wanted to reassure her that everything would be okay, but I couldn't bring myself to lie to her. I honestly didn't know if we'd be able to find Rose or save Jeremy, but whatever our futures held, I had a feeling there was going to be a lot of heartache along the way.

  * * * * *

  (Rose)

  After savoring the last drop of blood as it ran down my throat, I looked down at the man I'd just killed. I wasn't sure what to do or what I should be feeling. As a good vampire I should be mortified; as a bad vampire I should be reveling in the kill; and as a demon I should apparently feel the man's life force filling me with an immortal essence. But as the hybrid, I felt nothing. I wasn't remorseful, I wasn't sad, I wasn't happy, I wasn't...anything.

  Black hair surrounded my face as I closed my eyes and tried to force myself back on task. I'd come here to end Meredith and save my dad, but I found myself no longer caring. I lifted my head and opened my eyes. Maybe I should destroy the bridge in an effort to conceal the dead man's body. Then again, why should I care if he was discovered or not? If anyone approached me for any reason, whether it was to ask the time or to accuse me of murder, I had nothing to fear. Nothing or no one could threaten me now.

  Indifference layered my brain as I wiped my mouth, then rubbed away the traces of blood against my jeans. I walked out from underneath the bridge and everything looked different. It all seemed more crisp and clear...heightened somehow. I could hear squirrels scurrying throughout the trees, and the wheels of the stroller crunching over the rocks in its path. The old woman was still sitting in the same spot, feeding the birds, and even though I was at least one-hundred yards away, I could hear the low clucking noise she made under her breath as she scattered the seeds on the ground in front of her.

  It was amazing. The sky was bluer than blue, and the trees swayed in time with music that I was sure no one else could hear. For being dead, I suddenly felt so alive. I wanted to race around the park, up the trees, through the city, leap from building to building, crush cars with my bare hands, or maybe even stop a train. I laughed out loud at the thought, causing the police officer who'd rounded the corner to turn in my direction.

  The low hiss that escaped my lips was a shock to both me and him. However, I was long gone before the cop had a chance to blink. I now watched from my perch in the top of one of the tall trees as the idiot spun around, looking from side to side. It didn't take him long to find the dead man's body and within minutes the park was surrounded by flashing lights. Yellow tape went up and all the people I'd noticed before were being gathered and questioned. Each of them reported that they hadn't seen anything or anyone unusual. A wicked smiled crept across my face at the idea that any of them could have been my dinner, and yet none of them had even seen me.

  I continued to watch as a crowd started to gather and the man's body was wheeled out on a gurney from underneath the bridge. It was in a black coroner's bag, just like you'd see on TV. I tried to muster some sort of emotion, but as I watched the corpse being loaded into the black van, I still felt nothing. It wasn't until I saw my dad's Lexus pull into his driveway across the street did I feel a twinge of anything. Unfortunately for him, the only thing I felt now was disgust.

  I stared at the house as Meredith came out the front door and greeted my dad on the lawn with a hug and kiss. They stood there for a while, watching the scene in the park unfold. Finally, my dad walked across the street and asked a police officer exactly what had happened. The officer hesitated at first, but once Dad explained that they lived directly across the street, he started to share bits of information. After giving a serious nod to the cop, Dad walked back across the street and embraced Meredith once more.

  Finally a feeling sparked within me––one of rage. I had come here to kill Meredith and "save" my dad, but watching as the happy couple walked back into their perfect little home caused something inside me to snap. I could literally feel my emotions shutting down. As I watched them cross the threshold, I was suddenly over this entire thing––just like my dad had apparently gotten over me. As sad as that should make me, I couldn't bring myself to care anymore. I was a completely different person now and it was obvious that so was he.

  I took one last look at my dad's house then disappeared into the night.

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Stories

  (Meredith)

  Once I hung up with my grandmother, I showered and got dressed. I was still off from work due to the "illness" I'd faked a couple of days ago. I wanted to talk to her and make sure my baby was okay before I headed back to an office filled with nosy co-workers. Plus, I figured once I returned, announcing I was pregnant would make perfect sense as to why I had needed the time off.

  On my way across town to Grandma's house I tried to think of the best way to get the information I needed without openly admitting I was drinking human blood. As much as she knew about the ancient stories, I highly doubted that learning her only granddaughter was openly practicing them would make for a very pleasant visit.

  As I pulled my BMW into her drive, I saw her peek out from the kitchen window and give a little wave. I walked straight in, knowing she'd have already unlocked the door for me.

  "Hi, Grams," I called out.

  "Hello, honey. Come on in. I'm making your favorite."

  Grandma's back was to me as she continued to wash dishes in the sink. I could smell the herbs from the roasted chicken and stuffed green peppers drifting from the oven, but instead of my mouth watering as usual, my stomach rolled. Dammit.

  It was becoming more and more obvious that my decision to become immortal was starting to have negative affects in addition to the positive ones. Yes, I may be strong, fast, and immune to harm, but apparently I was also becoming something else in the process.

  Not wanting to show my sudden concern, I took a seat at the kitchen table and said, "Smells good."

  "I'm happy to see you, Meredith, it's been a while. How did you manage to make it over during the week?"

  "Well, that's part of what I wanted to talk to you about. I haven't been feeling well, and I think it's because I may be pregnant."

  Grandma gasped, and spun to face me. "What?"

  I smiled and placed a hand upon my stomach. "Yep. I think I may be pregnant with Jeremy's child."

  "Jeremy is the man you've told me about? The demon who doesn't know he's a demon."

  "Yes." I giggled.

  Grandma took the seat next to me and reached for my hands. I waited as she held them tight and closed her eyes. I knew she was trying to use her gifts to sense the baby, but I was a little nervous at exactly what she'd pick up.

  After a few moments of strained silence, Grandma released me. "Well, you're right. You are pregnant." She sat back in her chair and smiled, but I could tell something was off when it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I'm not s
ure of the sex and I can't quite get a good visual, but it's definitely a pure-blood demon. The question is...why do I sense human blood in your system?"

  Well, shit. So much for keeping my secret. I wanted to open up to her but was worried about her reaction to my news, so I decided to skew the truth just a bit. "Grams, please understand. I didn't mean for it to happen. Recently I was severely injured, but after remembering all the stories you told me about our ancestors, I drank human blood in desperate attempt to save my own life. It worked. I healed almost immediately and gained major amounts of strength and speed." I waited to see what she'd say before I continued to dig this hole.