“You think Alix is your friend, your savior? If you only knew.” With that, he turned and was gone quicker than her eyes could follow.
Deb sat in the car, her fingers poised over her phone. She had arranged to meet Alix and was on her way now but should she trust him? Shaking her head, she started the car. Vincent was just an idiot, maybe he was jealous of Alix; he was certainly acting like it. As she drove to the grill, she wondered if she should ask Alix about it. Ask why there was so much animosity between them.
Chapter Seven
As Deb came into the grill Alix was waiting, he took the door from her and wheeled her to their favorite booth. It was easy for her to get the wheelchair in at the end of the booth, much easier than at a table and if she really wanted, she could have transferred onto one of the red leather seats.
“Would you like a drink?” he asked.
“Just coffee,” Deb said and watched as he walked away. Inside the bar, he seemed able to manage without his glasses and gloves but when she looked closely, he was very pale and seemed on edge. Could Vince be right, did she need to be careful?
“Here you go,” he said and slid onto the bench. “You look beautiful, how have things been going?”
Deb blushed at the compliment and now he was here, she could no longer remember what it was she wanted to ask. It was just so nice to be with him. Then it came to her. “I’ve been having terrible nightmares. They started after the accident and were about once a week but since I started to turn… well, they have been happening almost every night.”
Alix lowered his eyes as if he was ashamed but then he took her hand. It felt cold but strong and strangely comforting. “That is to be expected. I wanted to come to you and explain, but Vincent felt it would be safer if we kept our distance. When you texted I knew I should have said no, but I know how you must be feeling and I needed to see you.”
The words filled Deb with warmth and joy but why did he always bow down to Vincent? “Is he your boss?”
“Who? Vincent? No, of course not, but he is older than me and he knows what he is doing. It is hard to explain but in vampire society age counts and…”
As his words drifted away, Deb thought she saw shame in his features. Was there something he was not telling her? “What are you not telling me?”
“It’s nothing. It is difficult knowing I will never be as strong as him. We have bad blood between us, but I am willing to put that aside to protect you. Now, let’s talk about your nightmares. I imagine that Vincent is in them.”
Deb watched him raise his eyebrows and felt a surge of desire. Ocean blue eyes bore into hers and his face was not only gorgeous, but it made her feel safe. It was as if she could tell him anything. A blush rose to her cheeks as she thought about the erotic dreams she sometimes had about Vincent.
Alix laughed. “Ah, you’re getting those too. Don’t worry; it is just the blood tie. I’m only a little jealous and given time, the nightmares will leave you. The easiest way to facilitate that would be to drink either my blood or to drink human blood.”
Revulsion flooded through Deb, but it was accompanied by a knowing hunger that ate away at her soul. “I couldn’t… I just couldn’t do that. Is there anything else I can do?”
He squeezed her hand. “I’m sorry but the only other thing is time.”
Deb dropped her eyes to the table then took a sip of her coffee. It gave her time to think but now that he was here, all she wanted to do was behave like a normal girl. The urge to change into her vampire form and go play pool was almost overwhelming. Maybe they should go to the cabin; at least there she could be normal. “I thought the dreams were important, that they were the key to my future. Now you’re telling me that they are just caused by his blood.”
“They are important. They were telling you what you have become. Why don’t we go to the cabin in the woods? There you can drink of my blood and then at least the dreams will be about me?”
The thought still turned Deb’s stomach but if it got rid of the nightmares then, it was worth it. “Before we go I have one more question. Why am I in danger?”
Alix’s face fell and he lowered his eyes. “I want to tell you, but Vincent feels it is better you don’t know.”
“Forget him, he’s not here. Look, how can I stay safe if I don’t know what I’m up against?”
“The problem is we are not sure. I think Vincent wants to keep this quiet because if we are wrong… If we are wrong, maybe it is better you don’t know.”
Deb kept her eyes on his, pleading with them, asking with them, she smiled and watched as he agreed.
“… Alright I will tell you what I can but not here, wait until we get to the cabin.”
She nodded.
As they made their way to her car Vincent appeared. His face was a mask of fury and Deb wheeled herself back to get away from his wrath.
“Get yourself home and stop being so stupid,” he shouted at her, and at the same time he backhanded Alix. The younger vampire was knocked off his feet and sent rolling across the car park.
Anger replaced Deb’s fear and she almost leaped from her chair. “You have no right to speak to me like that, to behave like this.”
“I have every right after what this idiot was telling you. Deb, I want to keep you safe and everything I am doing is towards that end. Do not go to the woods it could be dangerous. I will bring blood to your house; just get rid of the girl.”
His anger was controlling him and she could see his fangs as they threatened to burst from his gums. Shaking his head, he fought for control.
“This idiot.” He pointed at Alix, who was searching the ground for his sunglasses. “Well, maybe you should ask him what dreams you would have if you drank his blood.” He crossed the car park in one bound and landed next to Alix. “And then you can ask what he was doing when you met. Now go home, where I can keep you safe.” With that, he grabbed hold of Alix and was gone so fast that her eyes could not keep up.
Deb’s perfect day was destroyed. Anger raged inside her at how selfish and jealous Vincent was. He just wanted to keep her away from everyone but him. Maybe he was a stalker. As she drove away from the grill, she remembered his last words: ‘what he was doing when you met.’ What did he mean by this?
Chapter Eight
Deb wheeled into the office to find Nova still hunched over the computer. There were printouts scattered across the desk and two coffee cups discarded on the floor. Despite her unease at the meeting with Vincent, Deb found a smile on her face. “I see you’ve been busy?” she said wheeling her chair beside her friend.
Nova had pulled strands of her blonde hair out of the ponytail and looked a little like a mad scientist. There was a pencil in her hand, which she alternately chewed and waved at things. “This is so interesting.” She indicated the reams of paperwork, which just made Deb’s head spin.
“Really, how so?”
“Well, I don’t know how I found it out because the police didn’t, but all the dead women knew someone who was seeing this therapist.” Searching the desk she found a photo of a tall, thin clean shaven man with receding black hair. His name is Jonathan Meeks.”
“Really?” Deb said picking up the photo and looking at the cruel, arrogant face that stared back at her. The familiar heat of excitement filled her stomach replacing the knowing hunger that had settled there. “How does he know our victims?”
“Ah, well that’s the problem. Do you want a muffin?” Nova asked waving the packet which had just one left.
Deb’s stomach growled, but it was more revulsion than hunger and she shook her head. “What do you mean, that’s the problem?”
Nova chewed noisily and tried to speak. Her eyes looked alive and excited for the first time in forever and Deb stifled a smile and bit down on her own impatience. It was good to see Nova looking interested and she didn’t care what Vincent said, her friend could stay here as long as she wanted.
At last Nova swallowed and was able to speak. “Sorry. I’ve been so
busy I forgot to have dinner. Well, the problem is he didn’t know the victims, but he knew their friends.”
The heat left Deb’s stomach leaving her with a cold pit that needed filling. Maybe she should grab a biscuit from the kitchen or a cup of the meat broth that Mace always drank. Nova was staring at her, expecting her to put things together as she always had in the past. “It may just be a coincidence especially as the police didn’t find it.”
“No,” Nova said. “You see, I did some more digging and over the past two years ten more women have committed suicide and of those, eight of them had a friend who went to see our friendly neighborhood therapist. Now that is too big of a coincidence to be anything else but evidence.”
The excitement was back. “That is brilliant work. Did you find their suicide notes?” Deb asked.
With a flourish, Nova produced three sheets of paper and as Deb scanned down the list they were all slightly different, but the words: ‘Sorry, I can’t cope’ were in all of the notes. “That’s amazing. This has to be murder but how?” Deb’s mind had gone into overdrive, she was searching through the records and there she found it. He was a hypnotherapist. Could he be hypnotizing these women and, if so, for who or what?
The two girls looked at each other and Nova let out a squeal of delight. They had something. While Nova searched the computer for more records, Deb plowed through what they already had. Her investigator's brain picked out relevant information. All the women lived alone and they all appeared to have only one or two best friends. They were close to those people and would have accepted a recommendation from them. But how was he doing it?
Deb was deep in thought as the door burst open and Brett surged into the room. “Deb, Deb you have to look at this. He threw a photo across the room and Deb’s arm shot out impossibly fast and grabbed it from the floor. She kept her head down since the sudden fright had her fangs pressing into her gum line. As she rose up past Nova again, she noticed the pulse of her friend's jugular vein. It was so close, so tempting and so juicy that it was almost impossible to pull her eyes away from it.
With a staggering effort, she sat up and turned to Brett. “What are you doing bursting in here?”
He stepped back having never seen his sister like this. “Look she was my friend and no way did she kill herself. Look at the picture.” Brett was pointing. “Look, they said she took an overdose. Well, she never had any pills and look at her neck. Jesus, if it wasn’t insane, I would say a vampire killed her.”
Deb hid the shock on her face with difficulty. “Don’t be stupid Brett. Why would the police lie?”
Hurt transformed his face. He was no longer her little brother but a grown man and he was learning about the injustices of the world. It wounded her to see him like that, but he could know nothing of vampires. The photo weighed a ton in her hands and her eyes were drawn to it. There were two rips in the skin on the side of the pretty blonde’s neck. She had been killed by a vampire. That meant that two girls were now victims of a vampire in their sleepy little town in a little under a week. What could she say? Brett was watching her, expecting her to make it right. She was his big sister after all, wasn’t it her job? At last, something came to her. “I think maybe this was part of the autopsy. Sometimes the coroner makes incisions in the neck to test for drugs and poisons.” Brett was in a world of hurt and as she watched, his world bounced from acceptance to denial and back again. “Promise me no more stupid talk about vampires and I will look into it for you?” Deb smiled her sweetest smile and waited for him to return it. Instead, he turned from the room and slammed the door.
“The coroner?” Nova asked. “You know those marks aren’t from any autopsy I’ve ever seen.”
“The fact that you even said that just proves what messed up lives we lead. I think this could be an animal and maybe we should investigate after we deal with the suicide case?” Deb watched as Nova nodded. How could she keep her friend away from this? The last thing she needed was Nova to believe there were vampires in their town.
Chapter Nine
Summer was in heaven as Isaac carried her up the stairs and laid her down on the deep crimson comforter. It had been a wonderful night. They had eaten and danced and he was so romantic. The best part was her folks were away and they had the house all to themselves.
Isaac leaned in close to her, she had spent the day asleep in the trunk of his car but he needed her to think otherwise. Needed her to believe that it was night and that they had spent the evening dancing and drinking. “You remember the night. We danced till you were dizzy and ate the best food. You had pheasant and pear and I had salmon. Afterward, I brought you home and we made love. Do you want to make love with me, Summer?”
As he looked into her eyes, she remembered the night, it was wonderful but there was very little detail. Was she drunk?
“Summer, do you want to make love to me?”
“Yes,” she said but as the words left her mouth, they were replaced with a deep feeling of unease. Something was wrong, she should be afraid and as she thought about it, fear crept down her spine and into her stomach. It filled her veins with ice water that surged through them bringing with it doom and dread and something she could not quite get her head around. Her eyes were wide open and she knew she should run but her body refused to move, it just laid there on the bed as great tremors ran down her and she wanted to scream. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. She tried again but all that left her was hot air while he sat above her watching and waiting.
“You are delicious when you are afraid. I could compel you to not feel it but where would be the fun in that?” Isaac changed, his eyes turned the yellow of dirty linen and veins pulsed in his neck. His brow was even more pronounced but all Summer could really see was the pair of fangs that emerged on each side of his mouth.
Isaac could taste the fear as it radiated from the terrified girl. It came off her in big waves creating more of a disturbance in the air than she could. He had compelled her to keep still and to not scream. He knew that inside she was screaming, shouting and kicking but she was trapped and it intoxicated him. It had been a good day, he had assessed the situation, Deborah Marshall was indeed something special. What she was he did not know but she had two vampires following her. They thought they were keeping her safe, but they would be no match for him. Now all he needed to do was find out a little more and wait for The Guild to decide who should die, Deborah Marshall or Dagmar Van Patten.
Now he would feed. Leaning over he watched as Summer’s eyes became so big, he thought they might jump out of her face and land on her ebony cheek. The whites gleamed in the shade and the fear that resided in them made him growl in anticipation. “Strip,” he commanded.
Instantly she started to remove her clothes. First, the t-shirt was pulled over her head, leaving her long dark hair streaming around her ebony shoulders. Then she undid the zip to her jeans and with shaking hands, she pulled them down and kicked them away as if they were toxic. That was enough. She had a good body, but he did not want that, all he wanted was her blood and he wanted it to be sweet from her fear. Reaching up he took her face and pulled it so that he was staring into her eyes. She had lovely walnut eyes that were filled with terror so profound it would scar her for life, but it was not enough. With eyes the yellow of a chain smoker’s fingers he stared into her very soul. “Understand Summer that your life is in my hands. I will drink your blood until I am fully sated. Maybe you will die tonight or maybe it will be tomorrow. Do you understand?”
She nodded like a bobble-head doll and he sunk his teeth into her groin. The blood poured into him and it was so sweet, so delicious that he doubted he would be able to stop. It ran around his teeth and was warm as it coated his tongue and flowed down his throat like a river of life. As he ingested the life-force, it instilled him with power and he roared into her legs and ripped in further. The bite had caused serious muscle damage, but it didn’t matter, he could heal her if he wanted. And if not, he could simply kill Summer and the
crippled girl before leaving town. The blood had slowed and he could feel her heart as it flapped around searching for something to pump. Soon she would be gone and soon he could leave this place. Just one more suck and she would be dead.
Drawing his fangs he drank of her just as his phone vibrated in his pocket. Summer was almost gone and every fiber of his being wanted to take those last few drops, but the tone was one he recognized, it was The Guild and he must answer.
He pulled his teeth from the girl, bringing a bite-sized chunk of flesh with him. Summer collapsed with her eyes rolling to the back of her skull, her breathing had nearly stopped and she was close to death. Flicking open his phone he licked his lips and savored her very life as he licked it from his fangs.
“Yes,” he said.
“We have listened to your evidence and it is possible that this girl is the prophesized. We need you to stay undercover and if it is so, then you will kill Dagmar Van Patten and anyone else that knows about her. And Isaac… no more bodies.”
The phone went dead and Isaac looked across at the girl, who was barely breathing? Now it was him who felt fear. If he were to go against The Guild of Vampires, The Guild of the Undead then it would be him who would feel the final death.
Chapter Ten
Nova typed into the computer so fast that Deb’s eyes struggled to keep up. Her friend was not superhuman but she had such skill, she only had to think it and her fingers obeyed. Deb had asked Nova to show her how to search but so far, it was all too much.
“There, did you get that?” Nova asked.
“No sorry, can you go over it one more time?”
Deadwood: A Vampire Series (The Darker Side of Deb Book 2) Page 4