Blood of a Red Rose

by Tish Thawer

  See...told you.

  "Have you heard back from Balam yet?" Loni asked.

  "No. I'm expecting his call tonight. Sunrise is still hours away, so once I receive his call, I'll gather you all again." Evie dismissed everyone and then she and Dax headed into her office, while everyone else moved to the bar to talk with Renard and Loni. Just as I started to make my way to join them, Christian grabbed my hand and motioned me in the other direction with a nod of his head.

  "I need to get out of here. How about we go back downstairs and continue what we started?"

  I knew that if I said no now, he'd be confused, but I was already started feeling guilty for allowing myself to give in earlier. As much as I wanted to fall back into bed with Christian and let him make love to me until the sun started to rise, I just couldn't. It wasn't fair to him.

  "I'm sorry, Christian, but hearing about my dad has kind of ruined the mood. Plus, I want to ask Renard some more questions about what else they found out."

  He gave me a small smile and nodded his head in understanding. "Alright. Well, I still need to get out of here so I'm going to head back downstairs. Come find me when you get your answers." He kissed me and then started down the stairs, disappearing under the stage.

  I walked towards the crowd and scooted onto the red leather bar stool next to Renard. "I'm sorry to bug you, but you said that you saw my dad, right? Did he really seem okay?"

  "Yes, we saw him and Meredith sharing...some pizza in their townhome. He seemed perfectly fine and then the next day he woke up and started getting ready for work. Nothing seemed unusual or off with him at all," Renard explained.

  "Good. Thank you. That's good to hear." I wasn't sure what other information I expected, but I wished there was more they could've told me. Like maybe whether or not he seemed sad, or if they thought he was thinking about me at all. I knew they were silly questions that had no answers, but I still felt like asking them. Then one pertinent question did strike me. "Do you think he's aware of what Meredith's doing?"

  "No, I don't think so. She went to this meeting alone and had a different guy there that was helping her."

  Now this information I could work with. If I could get a hold of my dad and convince him Meredith was up to something shady, maybe he'd leave her without ever getting involved in this whole demon mess. Maybe I could convince him that she was cheating on him with whoever this other guy was.

  Now I had a plan.

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  The Voices

  (Christian)

  I couldn't stand to be upstairs a minute longer. Not with all the voices in my head. As I sat there listening to Evie explain what Renard and Loni had found, I started to hear everyone's inner thoughts. I wasn't scanning them, but I think my clairaudient ability was on overload. I could hear their panic at Evie's announcement. Dom was questioning whether she should take Tori and just run away. Bobby was giving himself a pep talk about how we could "take these demon fuckers out." And Renard and Loni were reliving everything they'd discovered and their conversation regarding what they thought they should do once shit hit the fan.

  I didn't want to be hearing any of these things, because for one, it was confusing and was making my head hurt. And two, because it pissed me off to think that anyone in my clan would even think about ditching Evie and the rest of us. I knew they were all scared because this was something that none of us had ever faced before, but damn it...you don't just run off and leave your clan behind.

  As I reached my room, I decided I'd try to gain some control over my new abilities. But the instant I entered my room, I caught the scent of Rose's lingering passion from before and my mind once again shifted to her.

  I wished I could've convinced her to come back downstairs with me. But I understood that she needed to talk to Renard about her dad. I knew she still wanted to reach out to him and was desperate to find a way to get him away from Meredith, but I was getting desperate for us to have some time to ourselves. Desperate to be happy again, like we were before.

  I walked over to my desk and pulled out a piece of old tattered stationery and decided to put my thoughts to words. I'd never been shy about expressing my feelings to Rose, but I needed another outlet to show her how much I still loved her, even if things were chaotic at the moment.

  As I concentrated on Rose and thought of the words I wanted to write, I started hearing a whisper in my mind. It sounded like a female voice calling Rose's name. "Rose. Rose?" I looked around and found nothing out of place. So, after pouring my heart out on paper, I finished my letter and put it back in my desk for safe keeping. Then I made my way over to the bed and laid down. It was time to do some meditating and get a grip on these voices...whoever they were.

  * * * * *

  (Loraine)

  Once again I felt myself being pulled back into my ghostly form. But when I opened my eyes and found myself in Rose and Christian's room, and Rose nowhere in sight, I started to panic. "Rose. Rose?" I called out, knowing she couldn't hear me, but I didn't understand how I could be here if she wasn't.

  I quickly noticed that Christian, who was sitting at his desk, turned around and examined the room, looking straight in my direction. Suddenly, I was filled with the knowledge that he was now a Sire and was gifted with extraordinary psychic powers. I floated over to him and looked down at what he was writing and found that it was a love letter to Rose. It must have been his thoughts of her, combined with his psychic abilities that pulled me into form. How interesting.

  I continued to watch as he finished his letter and returned it to a box within his desk. Then he laid down on his bed and began to drift into what I recognized as a meditative state. Since I had no control over when I appeared and disappeared, I was stuck watching as he began his deep breathing and relaxation techniques.

  Within moments, I felt a chill brush across me. Since I was a ghost, I wasn't sure how that was even possible. Suddenly, Christian opened his eyes and looked directly at me. "Loraine?"

  I think if I still had the ability to faint, there would have been a shiny ghost laid out on the floor. "Christian. You can see me?"

  "Yes. And apparently hear you, too."

  I was so excited that I could finally communicate with someone that I flew up to the ceiling and spun around. I hoped this meant that soon I'd be able to talk to Rose and Jeremy again. What a blessing this was.

  "Not that I'm not happy to have someone to talk to, but how are you able to see me and hear me when no one else can?"

  "I'm sure it has to do with my heightened abilities now that I'm..."

  His sentence trailed off and I realized he didn't know the amount of information I'd obtained since being dead. He probably wasn't even sure if I knew what he truly was.

  "It's okay. I know everything. You're a vampire and the new Sire, your clan is preparing to face that demon bitch who killed me, and you love my daughter more than you've ever loved anything in all of your six-hundred-plus years." Suddenly I was the one leaving out information. I was well aware that the vampires didn't know about Rose and Jeremy's demon side, and I also knew it wasn't time for that information to be shared.

  "Yes. That's right. Now how exactly is it that you're here on this plane?"

  "It only started happening recently. I was first pulled into this very room while Rose was crying on the bed. I believe her grief, combined with her thinking specifically about me, pulled my energy to her. I was able to use my psychic gift to calm her. I've visited Jeremy too, and had the same effect on him. There seems to be a pattern; they have to be either very angry or thinking specifically about me, then I appear and my ability soothes them."

  "Rose never mentioned you had a psychic ability. Did she know about it?"

  "No. Neither did Jeremy. But it wasn't something I had to activate or try to use on people; it was just something that happened whenever I walked into a room. People who were upset would calm, and anyone feeling fear would relax when around me."

&nbs
p; "Damn. That's a handy ability to have. I wish I'd developed that during my triggering."

  By now Christian had pushed off the bed and was walking in my direction. I didn't feel the need to move as I knew he'd just pass right through me. Surprise again. He bumped into my arm as he made to step around me.

  "Whoa. That's never happened before. Every time I try to touch Jeremy or Rose, my hand just mists through them."

  "This whole situation just keeps getting stranger and stranger. I know I'm the new Sire, but honestly, I don't have a clue what to do about any of this. And all I really care about is getting things back to normal with Rose. You probably know this already, but we've been fighting, and there's been some real tension building between us. I just wish there was something I could do to make her happy, if only for a small moment within all this craziness."

  As I floated over to the vampire who loved my daughter, I thought of the perfect thing to help get these two back on track. Regardless of Rose's plans, I somehow knew it was vital that she and Christian remain together. I assumed this was more cosmic information the gods felt I needed to know. So, I laid a hand on Christian's shoulder, still amazed that I could do so, and told him just what he needed to do.

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  Perfectly Perfect

  (Rose)

  Though talking to Renard hadn't taken long, I still wasn't ready to head downstairs to find Christian. I'd already made up my mind not to be selfish and allow any more intimacy between us, so I'd wandered around for the next few hours talking and dancing and wasting time with Dominique, Tori, and Loni. Currently we were upstairs in one of the private rooms talking about how Loni had been turned into a vampire.

  "I met Renard when he was visiting Hollywood. I was working at Grauman's Chinese Theatre and he came in doing the tourist thing. He was this cool European guy with spiky hair. He was so hot I wanted to jump him that first night. From then on, we spent every night together for two weeks straight. Of course at the time, I had no idea he was a vampire. He told me he had to spend his days with his family but that his nights were mine." Loni giggled and continued to reminisce.

  "After spending those two weeks with him, I found out that he wasn't just a pretty face, but that he was also really smart and shared my love of architecture. By the end of his vacation, I'd completely fallen in love with him and him with me. He petitioned Evie to change me and she agreed. He told me what he was and that if I accepted to join his clan, we could be together forever. And so I did. That was about eighty-six years ago."

  It amazed me that it was that long ago, yet she gushed about him like they'd just met. But, I suppose for a vampire, eighty-six years really was just a drop in the bucket when it came to forever. I almost asked why they waited so long to formally wed, but I didn't want to be rude. Plus I was suddenly depressed because this perfect dream of spending an eternity with the man you loved had almost been mine as well. I excused myself and headed back downstairs. As I reached the main floor, Evie came out of her office and looked around the club. "Rose, can you please go downstairs and ask Christian to join me in my office?"

  "Sure, Evie."

  I ran down the spiral staircase and descended into the pit, wondering what Evie wanted to talk to Christian about now. Hopefully she'd heard from Balam and would soon be sharing the news with us all.

  When I reached the door to our bedroom I listened for a moment before turning the knob and walking inside. The lights were off and I couldn't see a thing. It was dead quiet. But suddenly there was a click, and the entire room was lit up with sparkling moon and star crystals hanging from the black ceiling.

  I fell to my knees and started to cry as I stared up into a replica of my old room.

  "I hope you like it. I wanted to do something special to show you how much I love you."

  "Oh, Christian." I couldn't even speak as I was wracked with emotion. The sight of this had me missing my mom and falling in love with Christian all over again. I looked up at him sitting on the bed, saw him looking at something off to the side of me and then I flew into his arms. "I love it. I can't tell you how much I love it."

  "I'm so glad. When I got the idea a few hours ago, I snuck upstairs through Evie's office and out of the club to go grab everything. They aren't the original ones from your house, but it's all I could do in a rush."

  "It's perfect. Perfectly perfect." I couldn't stop crying as I buried my head in his chest. He kissed my hair and continued to hold me. I thought I heard him whisper thank you to someone but wasn't sure as I couldn't hear much over the sound of my sobs.

  Once I was able to get myself under control, I looked at all his hard work. He must have used his vampire speed to paint the ceiling because there were little splashes of black paint on the walls where it had splattered from the rushed brush strokes. The crystals were just like the old ones in my room, and they were sparkling in the artificial moonlight that Christian had rigged to shine on them from a new lamp in the corner.

  "Christian, I'm sorry for being so distant and angry lately. It's just with everything that's been happening, I've been really sad and emotional. Even though I love you with all my heart, I still miss my mom and dad and my friends. And then when you told me about my dad moving and the other stuff, I just felt angry and betrayed. I know it wasn't your intention to keep things from me, but it's how I felt at the time. Can we just start over, please? I hate fighting with you and I don't ever want to be without you."

  Talk about a one-eighty. I knew it was a big risk to change my plans of leaving, but honestly, I didn't care. No matter what happened, I couldn't leave Christian. He was truly the love of my life and whatever we faced, we'd face it together. Now and forever...however long forever ended up being for me. It was worth it. He was worth it.

  His passionate kiss was all the answer I needed. I started to fall into his arms when I remembered the reason I'd come to find him in the first place. I jumped up from the bed, wiped my face, and pulled myself together. "Wait. Evie sent me to get you. She wants you to come up to her office."

  He stood up, grabbed my hand, and kissed me once more. "Alright. Let's go see what Evie has to say. I think we're about to find out exactly how to put an end to Meredith and her fledgling army."

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  Reactions

  (Meredith)

  All the demons arrived for the meeting right on time. After welcoming everyone, we'd had a great time talking about our heritage and the all the stories that had been passed down through the generations of our different families. I tried to hide my impatience and I thought I did a pretty good job, but Damien on the other hand was having a hard time keeping his excitement under control. Twice I had to ask him to join me again as he kept wandering over to the tables.

  Finally, I announced, "Everyone, thank you for coming. Now please help yourselves to the wonderful spread we have for your enjoyment tonight."

  Damien nodded to each of his relatives that were aware of what they were here for and they each grabbed a glass and filled it with the punch. After slamming back the drink, they all headed towards the alcove as planned.

  Damien waited for a few minutes before following them. I stayed to mingle with the others who were unaware of what was happening. They continued to chat, make their plates, and pour their drinks. Once everyone had started to sip from their glasses, I slipped out to check on Damien and the others. "How's it going in here?"

  "Good. They've each reported they can feel the effects of the blood, but that it's very subtle. Like they've just chugged an entire energy drink," Damien explained.

  "Perfect. We don't want an overwhelming reaction from anyone, so that's really good news. I'm going back out to monitor everyone else. Let me know if anyone starts to show signs of aggression."

  "Sure thing, boss."

  As I re-entered the main hall, I watched everyone mill around, working off their nervous energy. The boost they were experiencing from the blood s
eemed to be the perfect dose. Everyone was happy and seemed to be enjoying how they felt, whether they understood the reason behind it or not. No one was acting strangely or showing any signs of ill side effects...yet. Most of them were still on their first cup of punch. I wondered if we would need to worry once they started having seconds and thirds. Only time would tell.

  I watched as Damien and his pack of relatives headed back to the table for refills. I motioned for them to take some food too, so they wouldn't look suspicious. After filling their plates and glasses, they once again headed back to the alcove. I joined them after a few minutes of mingling.

  "Any changes?" I asked.

  "Yes and no. They still feel like it's just a nice boost of energy that they're getting, but we've tested the effects and watch this." He motioned to one of his cousins, who picked up a metal folding chair and proceeded to fold the leg in half. It seemed the blood was having a greater effect after all.

  "Great. But that needs to be it for tonight. No more tests, and no more refills. Understand?"

  "No problem, boss."

  The rest of the men nodded their agreement as I headed back out of the room. But as I rounded the corner and took a final glace back at Damien, the angry look on his face had me nervous. These reactions of his were something I was going to have to address soon. Very soon.

  * * * * *

  (Jeremy)

  After my shower, I felt so relaxed that I decided to not even broach the subject of going back to the club with Meredith once she got home. She said she wouldn't be late, but it was already eleven o'clock and I hadn't heard from her. Usually her meetings only lasted an hour and she was home by 10 p.m., so I decided to grab a beer from the fridge and watch TV in bed while I waited up for her.

  I still planned on heading to The Rising Pit at some point in the near future, but instead of involving Meredith, I'd just do it on my own. Rose was my daughter and there wasn't anything or anyone who was going to stand in my way when it came to finding her.