Like happens every now and again, I had a good idea. I figured we could make better use of the vervain water if we loaded it into some squirt guns, and I just happened to have a few of those hanging around the house.
Of course we also brought along some wooden stakes as backup, as well as a gun that shot real bullets. It was always possible those behind the local Rush trade were actually human, but I had my doubts. Humans having that much control over the vampire population just didn’t seem to fit.
The safe-house was the only structure in sight. I estimated the nearest neighbor was about a mile down the road. They certainly had a great deal of privacy, which pointed to illicit activity, in this case anyway.
The house itself wasn’t anything spectacular, but it was big. Looking at it, the house wouldn’t strike you as all that strange, except for the fact that all the windows were blocked out with tinfoil. It was funny how it became easier to spot the places where vampires might be hanging out, once you became aware of their reality.
“Okay, here’s the deal,” Aaron said, as he was reaching into the backseat to grab the plastic Westland’s grocery bag we’d used to stash the water guns and stakes in.
“Keep a couple of these in the waistband of your pants … and make sure your shirt covers them. I’ll keep the stakes and the gun with me.”
“Oh no! I don’t think so. That’s my dad’s gun. I don’t want you getting trigger happy and shooting someone needlessly, especially since I’ll kind of be responsible.”
Aaron rolled his eyes. “Whatever! Just make sure you can get to it fast if you need to.”
The sun was still up, but had turned into a fiery ball of red - orange fire as it began its descent into the western sky.
Aaron followed my gaze. “If we can get in and talk with Jonas before the sun goes down, there is less of a chance we’ll have problems with any of the other vamps.”
“Well let’s go then,” I told him, getting out of the car. Before starting toward the house, I stuck two water guns in the front waistband of my jeans, and the 38 in the back. I just hoped it didn’t accidentally go off or there wouldn’t be much left of my rear end.
Leaving the car off the side of the highway, we crossed the street to the long dirt driveway in front of the house. The air grew still, almost as if the very atmosphere was being sucked away by some invisible force.
My heart skipped a beat, and I froze in mid-stride, when a straggly looking dog appeared from behind a clump of trees. It looked a little like a Husky, but might have had some Golden Lab in it too. The dog gave us a casual once over before disappearing again. Whatever type of dog it was, he didn’t appear to have too much interest in us. So much for being a watchdog, if that’s what he was.
Once we’d reached the house, I stared up at the covered porch with slightly less determination than I’d had a few moments before. The house was eerily quiet. There were none of the sounds one would expect to hear at this time of day. I could hear no conversation or movement from the living room, nor the murmuring of voices drifting from a TV. I thought everyone watched TV after dinner, except for myself. Sitting in front of the TV wasn’t one of my favorite pastimes.
Holding my breath, I listened, but there was absolutely nothing that would point to the house being occupied, though I knew it was. The Immortals were asleep, caught between the world of the dead and that of the living.
Soon they would wake, and go on the hunt for the blood that made it possible for them to continue their unnatural state of living death. I wanted to get our business done and be gone before too many vamps were out and about.
Becoming impatient with my hesitancy to move forward, Aaron climbed the stairs. I winced as the old wood groaned loudly beneath his weight. I had to give it to him; he was proving to be far more daring than I’d given him credit for.
Sighing, I followed him up the stairs. By the time I reached the top, he was already knocking. Flecks of peeling white paint fell as his fist made contact with the door.
It took three rounds of knocks before I heard the door creak open. Aaron was blocking my view of the doorway, making it necessary for me to push up on my tiptoes to get a better look. What I saw sickened me.
The girl couldn’t have been more than eighteen. She was so slight and pale, the white dress she was wearing fit like a tent. Her yellow-blond hair was limp and lifeless, much like her features. I was sure she was probably very pretty, but you’d never tell that by the way she looked now.
“Hi … hi there,” Aaron stammered, obviously as shocked by the girl’s appearance as I was.
There was no response. The girl’s pale blue eyes stared listlessly at him.
“Could you tell me if Jonas is here?” Aaron asked her. “It’s important that we speak with him … now,” he added.
At first the girl seemed confused, as if she wasn’t sure how to react, or what she should say, but then she shook her head. “He’s unavailable right now. Can I take a message?”
“No, we really need to see him,” Aaron told her.
Still she seemed uncertain.
“It’s okay. I’ll take the blame if he gets mad.” Aaron tried to reassure her.
“Okay,” she replied in a low voice. “Follow me.”
The girl stepped outside, and instantly seemed to be blinded by the fading light. It was apparent she didn’t spend too much time outdoors, at least not during the day. I assumed that changing one’s life to exist primarily at night was part of the bargain when you became a vampire’s feeder.
The girl was wearing no shoes, but as she walked around the outside of the house, the hard ground didn’t seem to bother her at all.
“What’s your name?” Aaron asked her.
She stole a peek at him over her shoulder. “Trinity,” she answered, without elaborating, or offering additional information.
Her answer seemed to satisfy Aaron for the time being. He grew silent as we followed her through the tall grass, toward the back of the house. I was letting Aaron handle things, on account of him having so much more experience with vampires than myself. I just hoped he knew what he was doing.
At the back of the house there was a barn and a few outbuildings that I thought were probably sheds. She kept walking past the outbuildings, and didn’t stop until we’d reached an area behind the barn. The trees and foliage was so thick, I began to wonder if she weren’t up to something, like maybe leading us into an ambush.
Trinity knelt down and removed a stack of large branches that had been masking a wooden plank door in the ground. As she pulled up on it, the hinges groaned in protest.
Leaning over, I stared down into what was basically a hole in the ground. It was so dark that the ladder seemed to disappear into a black abyss of nothingness.
“He’s down there?” Aaron asked in disbelief.
Trinity nodded. “That’s where you’ll find him.”
Aaron’s brows came together in a scowl. “This wouldn’t happen to be some kind of trap would it?”
Cocking her head to one side, Trinity responded with a voice dripping sarcasm. “If y’all get yerself trapped, it will be your own fault for going down there with those things.”
“I asked to see Jonas … not to jump into a damn hole.”
I could already see their conversation going in circles if I didn’t jump in and say something soon. “Well it’s not likely we’re going to get him to come up here right now, so I don’t see as we have any choice but to go down there,” I told Aaron.
“I suppose you’re right,” he replied after a long hesitation. Stepping onto the ladder, he grasped both sides and quickly disappeared into a chasm of darkness.
Trinity stood up top and watched as we descended the ladder.
“I don’t suppose you thought to bring flashlights?” Aaron asked from somewhere below.
“Nope … didn’t think we’d actually be going into the ground.”
At the bottom, we found ourselves in a tunnel that led in a direction that would pu
t us under the barn. Feeling our way through the darkness, we started following the tunnel. After going a ways, I could see dim light coming from up ahead.
When we reached the source of the light, we found two chambers. The one to our right had approximately eight coffins lined up on the floor. The chamber to the left had a metal table with what appeared to be blood-draining paraphernalia. There was also some lab equipment.
I made a mental note to remember exactly how to get back here. When Uncle Charlie showed up again, I would spill the beans on Jonas for sure.
Killing people to make a drug! It was just so pathetic. I would feel no remorse at all for giving away Jonas’s role in it.
Nudging Aaron with my elbow, I pointed to the chamber with the equipment.
He nodded, but said nothing.
I asked, “So which one is Jonas’s coffin you think?”
He looked as lost as I felt, which didn’t inspire a lot of confidence in me.
“I don’t know,” he shrugged.
In that instant, I was practically sent into orbit by the sound of deep - sadistic laughter coming from the darkness behind us.
Reaching beneath my shirt for one of the squirt guns, I whirled around to see who had snuck up on us.
Before I could pull out the gun, Jonas stepped out of the shadows. “You don’t really think I’d sleep in such a hole, do you?”
I opened my mouth to respond, but Aaron beat me to it. “This is where the girl told us you’d be.”
“She did as she’d been instructed to do if strangers came calling,” he told us, in a voice drenched with laughter. “As you can see … there is no escape. You’d have to get by me, and I promise you … it won’t happen.”
“We just came here to ask you a question … that’s all. We’re not here to cause you any trouble,” I spoke up, hoping to keep the situation from blowing up in our faces.
He didn’t need to know what I’d been thinking a moment before.
A look of faint amusement crossed his face. “Well if it isn’t the little Marcus groupie.”
“I belong to Luke,” I reminded him.
He moved toward me, and as he did, I backed away. Before I realized what he was doing, Jonas managed to get his arm around my waist and was pulling me so close, I could almost feel the hunger seeping from the pores of his skin.
Refusing to let him intimidate me, I didn’t so much as flinch when I met his dark eyes with my own.
“I smell two vampires on you,” he said in a voice so low it was almost a whisper. “You must not be so loyal to your Luke.” Now his lips were less than an inch from my face. I could feel his breath against my skin.
I still couldn’t get over the fact that vampires actually breathed, though they didn’t need to.
“That’s none of your business,” I told him in a very definite, don’t screw with me tone. Although I was trying to sound brave, it was impossible to keep my voice from cracking.
As he stared into my eyes, I felt that pull that meant he was trying to compel me. Suddenly my imagination went wild, and I was almost tempted to offer my throat to him - to offer myself to him.
I was getting rusty. Now Jonas was actually able to get into my head. I decided it was time I started practicing my blocking out skill. It seemed I would be running into plenty of situations where I’d need to be able to keep these vamps from controlling my thoughts.
Suddenly, Aaron’s warning about Jonas not being so gentle popped into my mind. In that instant, I wondered what not so gentle might feel like.
“Jonas,” Aaron called from somewhere behind the vampire. “Let’s not do this … please.”
The sound of Aaron’s voice seemed to snap me out of my dazed - sinful thoughts.
Thank God!
I would have to be more careful around these vampires. It was becoming way too obvious that Uncle Basile was right. They could seduce you, even if you didn’t like the vampire doing the seducing, and I sure didn’t like Jonas.
“Well you’re not easy,” he said, a wicked smile playing on his lips. “But you’re also not impossible.”
I brought up one hand and pushed him back. “I’m here on business … not to entertain you.”
Laughter sparked in his dark eyes. “Too bad. It is your loss, by the way.”
“I’m sure I’ll live.”
“Are you sure?” he asked, his smile a shade darker.
“If I don’t … you might not,” I pointed out, though I wasn’t really all that sure about that.
He offered no rebuttal, but his eyes spoke volumes. In those glimmering pools of night, I saw the possibility of ecstasy beyond my wild imagination, but I also saw bone-chilling darkness.
Clearing my throat, I told him, “We came here to ask you what you know about Rush … and as I can see … you must know a lot.” I motioned to the lab equipment.
His laughter returned. “Maybe. What do you want to know about that sweet nectar … that when made with just the right ingredients … can drive a vampire to the brink of madness.”
The thought of an insane vampire sent chills up my spine, but so did the underlying meaning of his words.
He had to know what I was.
“Well first thing I want to know is how can you live with yourself? Killing people to make a drug … it’s disgusting!” I ranted.
Jonas shook his head. “Do you really think I’m that stupid? Why kill the cow?”
I gave him a questioning look, prompting him to elaborate. “We have volunteers. There’s no need to do any killing.”
Now I felt a little stupid for getting in his face about killing, but making Rush was still against the vampire code, or whatever they called it.
“How does it affect other species?” I asked.
“Different ways,” he told me with a shrug of his shoulders.
“If someone were to take Rush … and then become comatose or a vegetable … what species would you guess they were?”
Jonas’s threatening manner became subdued for the moment. A thoughtful expression slid over his features. “I’ve heard of that happening with weres?”
“Weres?” I was more than a little confused.
“Werewolves … werecats, creatures like that. If the Rush does this to the weres, it is also a possibility it would be similar for shifters.”
First vampires and now werewolves!
The new reality I was living in wasn’t looking good at all.
“How do you reverse the damage … or can it be reversed?” I asked, shifting my weight from one foot to the other. He was still way too close for comfort.
“It might be possible. Vampire blood sometimes works, but it has to be a very old vampire, or the blood is not potent enough,” he explained.
My thoughts went to Marcus. As far as I knew, he was the oldest vampire in these parts.
But would he help Max?
“Thanks,” I told him, attempting to slide to one side so that I could step around him, but he lifted both his arms to trap me between them and the cement wall.
“Nothing is free,” he told me.
Well this wasn’t exactly a positive development, though I wasn’t too surprised. “What is it that you want?”
“You.”
I shook my head. “You know I belong to Luke … besides, I would hate to end up like that poor girl you’re keeping in the house.”
Still smiling, he backed away. “That would be a shame for someone like you … to end up like that … wouldn’t it? You might want to think about that before you get too attached to your Luke.”
Though I didn’t really take his warning seriously, his words kept echoing in my head long after we left the Stilwell safe house.
Chapter Eleven
It was well into night by the time we returned to Club Crimson. Marcus was absent, but Grace was there, and by the look on her face when we walked through the door, she wasn’t too happy.
“Well well … look who decided to make an appearance,” she said, her voice sarca
stic, adding just enough of a syrupy southern twang to add the illusion of innocence to that sarcasm.
Grace was about as far from being the innocent Southern belle as a girl could get. It was anyone’s guess how much blood she’d spilled over the centuries.
Right away I came to Aaron’s defense. “It’s my fault. I asked Aaron to go someplace with me. He didn’t want to, but I was very persuasive.”
Her blue-violet eyes bit into me, but she said nothing. Instead, she turned her attention to Aaron. “Do you suppose the bartender could use a hand … that is unless y’all have other plans for the night?” she added, this time not bothering to disguise her irritation.
Aaron nodded and headed for the bar. The transformation was amazing. As soon as he was in Grace’s presence, he went from being an assertive - kind of cool guy, to being totally cowed.
“Is Marcus around?” I asked.
“He’s not,” she told me, her voice colder than usual.
“Okay … thanks.” I turned to leave,
Before I could take one step, she reached out with her hand to grasp my arm. “Do not interfere with Aaron again.”
Now I was mad. Vampire or not, she had no right to treat him the way she did. “You know … he is a person, and not just walking fast food.”
Grace’s laughter was deceptively soft. “But he’s my person. Do yourself a favor and don’t forget that little fact.”
Rolling my eyes, I walked away. It was beyond me how Aaron could even care about such a cold-hearted bitch, but he did seem to.
* * *
Seeing how I was wound up as tight as a dollar store watch, I tossed and turned for hours after going to bed. When I did manage to fall asleep, my dreams were full of strange images of snow swept mountains - sandy seashores with white-capped waves, and wind cold enough to bite.
The images gradually changed to visions of his brilliant blue eyes - eyes that seemed to be calling to me from across a vast abyss of time and space. There was hunger in those eyes, but not the hunger for blood that I’d learned to recognize in the vampire. The hunger I saw in those Nordic eyes, reflected a yearning of the heart and soul.
Crimson Rush A Vampire Romance (Crimson Book 1) Page 11