I tried not to think of what was happening to Alex out there by the creek. Whirling, disturbing images of him gulping down hot blood assailed and strangled me. He was going to hate me for making that decision. However, the choice had been made and I would have to live with the consequences for the rest of my life. Now, so would he.
Chapter Twelve.
I sat in the window seat of the dark-paneled study, among the shelves of books and encyclopedias, maps and long-forgotten personal effects of my departed father, and I stared out into the night with a decimated sense of my own heart. Katie had gone to her own room upstairs after the doctor had left, and I sat there in the darkness waiting for the sun to come up.
My cat, Whiskers, lay beside me on the cushions of the window seat, her eyes half closed, and her dark fluffy tail twitching. I reached out to stroke her in an effort to ground myself back in reality.
The doctor had been shocked when he had heard that Gunter had turned on us. The disappearance of Luanna had yet to be explained, and I had heard nothing from either Victoria or Michael since Katie had helped me hobble back to the house on my sprained ankle. Dr. Fleming was sure it was only a minor sprain, but advised me to have it x-rayed as soon as possible to check for a possible hairline fracture of my foot. He had brought in a pair of crutches and had left me there in the study after assuring me he would be contacting the Council about Gunter's actions.
But what if that had been the plan all along? After the doctor had walked out, I considered the possibility that the Council may want me out of the way. If a group of ancient, deadly vampires wanted me dead, then what hope was there that I might keep my sister safe? What about Victoria? Could she be trusted? Whiskers purred beside me, lessening the increasing panic that was beginning to take root in my head.
A light tap at the window startled me. I saw Michael through the glass waiting outside.
Whiskers hissed and leapt away from the window in a streak of black fur. I watched her dully, feeling oddly unconcerned about her reaction and walked over to the French doors that led out onto the back patio.
I twisted the knob and pulled the door open just a little. He stood beyond the patio; the shadows surrounding his lithe, masculine body were frighteningly dark. Determined not to step outside, I just watched him and waited patiently for his news.
"You're not coming out?" he asked.
I shook my head.
He lowered his crystal blue eyes and the brows above them crinkled in worry, "I can understand you wanting to be cautious after what happened tonight."
"Just tell me what's going on," I replied tightly. "I'm tired."
Pursing his lips, his gaze rose again to my face and I almost started to weep. All the pent-up fear and black anger rose up in me like a thunderstorm. I was so tired and so sick of being strong under all the pressures that had been brought for me alone to bear.
"Alex is recovering. He's been turned successfully."
"I see. I guess I owe you some gratitude. You'll have to forgive me if I'm not terribly thrilled about this whole thing."
"He'll be angry when he realizes what's happened."
I shivered, imagining how deep Alex's hatred for me would run. It had been selfish to choose to keep him here, with me, when he had wanted a real life. Real life included death, didn't it?
"Victoria will be staying a little while, if that's agreeable to you." His voice had become clipped and stern. "I've looked for Luanna. She has hidden herself well. I'd advise you and Katie not to be out after dark until I can find her."
"And I suppose you will not be trying to escape?" I inquired a little hastily.
"I will not."
"Okay. Dr. Fleming is checking with the Council to see what went wrong with Gunter."
A cloud of rage slid over Michael's features. "He was probably sent to kill you."
"Or you. If you can catch Luanna without killing her in the process, we might be able to get some information out of her. If they were sent here to kill me, they had several chances and didn't take them. I think they were after you."
"Either way, the Council's responsible for this."
"Yes, they are."
He crossed his powerful arms. "And can you trust the doctor? If he's working with the Council?"
I bit my lip, and the pain helped me focus. "I don't know. Probably not."
"Come out here." He insisted, his voice quiet.
"No. I'm going to bed. We'll talk again tomorrow night." Without casting him another glance, I shut the door and locked it. I leaned against the door and wrapped my arms around myself, trying to hold in the maelstrom of emotions flying through me.
I had forgotten to ask him about Victoria's calling him a prince. I was not sure I even wanted to know. I grabbed my crutches, hopped to the front door, checked that it was locked, and did the same to the back door before heading very slowly up the stairs. Katie's door was closed and the light was out. I hesitated beside it, wanting to see how she was doing. However, I truly was exhausted.
Going into my own room, I leaned the crutches against the wall and tugged off my hoodie, leaving the short-sleeved t-shirt on. I closed the door as quietly as I could, turning toward my bed.
"Hello, Sarah."
My breath caught painfully in my chest and I wheezed, trying to catch my breath upon seeing the person sitting calmly on my bed.
"Mom?"
And I had thought the night could not possibly get any worse. Shows how wrong I was.
I hope you enjoyed the first book in the Undead in Brown County series and the special bonus from The Vampire's Curse. Yes, there is definitely more to come. In The Vampire's Curse, Sarah has to deal with the reappearance of her mother, the mysteries surrounding the vampire Council, her guilt over Alex and her rapidly evolving relationship with Michael.
Tell me what you thought of the Vampire's Warden by writing a short review. I love hearing what my readers think and appreciate every review written. Thanks again for reading and you can find out more about the Warden series by visiting www.sjwrightbooks.com.
-S.J. Wright.
Story 10 (Excerpt).
Courage Runs Red.
Book I.
Blood Red Series.
By.
W.J. May.
Blurb: What if courage was your only option?
When Kallie lands an college interview with city's new hot-shot police officer, she has no idea everything in her life is about to change. The detective is young, handsome and seems to have an unnatural ability to stop the increasing local crime rate. Detective Liam's particular interest in Kallie sends her heart and head stumbling over each other.
When an underworld war between vampires hits too close to home, Kallie gets caught in the middle. Torn between love and family loyalty she must find the courage to fight what she fears the most and possibly risk everything, even if it means dying for those she loves.
Cover Art and Cover Layout by Book Covers by Design Printed in the United States of America Thank you for your purchase, for comments, or to obtain further copies, please find us on the web at www.wanitamay.yolasite.com, on Face Book at Author WJ May, or contact the author direct at [email protected].
Chapter 1.
One Dark and Stormy Night...
Heavy rain battered against the windshield. The massive drops ricocheted like bullets against the roof of the car, and the wipers were losing their battle to keep the front window clear. A gust swiped against the side of the car. Kallie's vice grip on the steering wheel still could not stop the slight swerve the wind forced the car to do.
She had been driving already over a year, but just got her full license about two weeks ago. She knew how to drive, her Dad owned a trucking company and had let her drive tow-motors and skid steers since she turned ten. Good driver or not, no one should be driving in this sudden storm. Her too long bangs fell into her eyes and she tried futilely to blow them out. No way in hell was she taking a hand off the wheel to get them out of the way.
Her dad lay sleeping in the passenger seat beside her, oblivious to the storm. One of his dispatch had called in sick two days ago and then yesterday a driver had came down with the same stomach virus. He'd covered the dispatch's desk and then opted to take the transport truck's freight delivery of the sick guy himself. He had gone and done the twelve hour round trip drive with no rest, and then he still planned to be back in for work at seven.
When he got back to the office after parking the transport truck, he texted Kallie. She promised earlier to pick him up. It was Mom's birthday today and he always made her breakfast in bed his specialty, omelettes.
Kallie checked the time on the car's digital clock, just after three thirty. When she had left about forty minutes ago, dark clouds covered the full moon and night sky but it had barely been raining. The storm blew in about the same time her dad had fallen asleep beside her. She suspected he had picked up the virus his workers had and she didn't want to wake him.
Another strong gust of wind slapped the side of her little car. The Sunfire veered toward the curb and Kallie cringed as she drove through a massive puddle. The car hydroplaned and seemed unsure if it wanted to steer straight or spin. She let out the breath she had been holding when the wheels finally settled back on the asphalt.
She flipped the defrost on high to try and clear the glare from the windshield. It didn't help fast enough so she squinted. The haze came from outside and trying to see more than ten feet in front of her seemed next to impossible. High beams were also useless. They just made the heavy rain look like shiny silver bullets and blocked any view through them.
Her dad snorted in his sleep and she glanced over at him. His head had fallen against the back of his seat and his mouth hung open slightly. She had no idea if he was wearing his seatbelt.
A strange scratch against the outside of the car made her jump. It brought her focus quickly back to the road. A twig must have blown and scraped the car.
Kallie strained to see if any tree branches or someone's garbage cans may have blown onto the road. She huffed in frustration. They had to be close to their street now. Darn her folks for choosing to live just outside the city. Darn the city for not putting more lights on the long roads that led to her house.
She accelerated a tad when she noticed the red mailbox just up ahead. Their street was about two minutes up the road. Easy peasy. Almost home.
Less worried, she thought about her warm cozy bed and couldn't wait to crawl under the covers and go back to sleep. Tomorrow was Saturday so no school. Maybe her mom wanted to go shopping.
Lost slightly in thought, Kallie didn't see the figure crossing the street until it was almost too late. The dummy wore a dark hooded top and no reflector stuff. Kallie swerved hard to the right and felt her dad's side of the car go up on the curb. Puddles sprayed the underside and made an eerie, hollow banging noise against the bottom of the car. The concrete sidewalk was slippery and the car started to hydroplane again.
Kallie bit back a scream when the car stalled out and she lost powered steering. Pressing the breaks she felt the car fishtail and almost as if in slow motion, she turned to see the bright eyes of the stranger watching her fiasco. In the glare of her lights, his eyes looked the weird red, like when you take a picture and the flash catches your retina. It was a strange thought at a terrifying moment like this.
Still skidding, she tried pumping the gas and turning the key to get the car started again.
The nightmare drive had no intention of ending. The car continued its spinning course. When the engine suddenly kicked back on, the Sunfire lurched forward and Kallie tried to swerve away from a parked car. The passenger front end clipped the parked car and as the wheel spun with a mind of its own, Kallie knew she'd lost complete control. They were going to flip. She tried to brace her hands against the ceiling and screamed.
Over and over she screamed; as they tipped, as her dad crashed against the windshield, as a horrible cracking sound filled the inside of the small car, as the car picked up momentum from the small grade hill. Her screams were muffled when the air bag burst free from the steering wheel. She had no idea how many times the car rolled over and over. It felt like it would never stop.
Abruptly, part of the front and side the car slammed into a large hundred-year old oak tree. Only then did her screaming stop.
Everything around her crashed into blackness.
Chapter 2.
Two years later...
Kallie gripped the straps of her backpack as she jogged up the long set of concrete steps to the police station. She pulled her bag tight so it would not bounce against her back. With her luck, the loaner camera she got from her college photo class would flip on, or record itself jostling against her notebook or worse, have the battery die. Great first impression.
At the top of the stairs she slowed to a walk and pulled her long blonde ponytail tight. How she landed an interview with this hot-shot rookie RCMP guy was news worthy probably more than the interview itself. This guy had managed to crack a bunch of unsolved murders and elude the real press. She shook her head. Just a first year college student who wanted to get into journalism, she hadn't jumped though any hoops to get the interview.
It had been quite easy actually. She found Detective Liam Steel's email on the RCMP website and asked to interview him for her school paper. When his email address showed up in her inbox an hour later, she figured he was politely declining. Instead, he had agreed and asked what evening would work for her. Hands shaking with excitement, she replied and nearly misspelled the single sentence: Thursday night would be perfect. For once auto-correct worked in her favour.
Now outside the doors to the police station, she checked her reflection in the glass with the remaining rays of the setting sun; hair in place, make up didn't look smudged and her clothes were decent. She grabbed the long handle with one hand and at the same time slipped her iPod into the side of her backpack. Cool air blew against her as she stepped inside. The humidity made outside feel like a hundred degrees, and the smog from the city traffic didn't help alleviate any of the hot thickness. The marble floor and constant run air conditioning inside the station made goose bumps appear on her arms. She shouldn't have worn a tank top. At least her long striped skirt seemed to agree with whatever temperature man or nature threw at it.
Evening at night, the lobby bustled with activity. Men and women in uniform strode purposely down the hall or through doors while tired looking people paced or sat on red leather chairs. What or who they were waiting drew Kallie's curiosity. Maybe they were waiting for their robbing son to finish his court case, or maybe they were the people who were robbed and were waiting to talk to a police office.
Someone's watch beeped reminding Kallie she should have been here a bit earlier. She walked over to a reception ling and stood by the "Wait To Be Called" sign.
"Step forward, ma'am."
Did all police officers sound so formal? Kallie cleared her throat as she went to the receptionist whose bun seemed so tight the woman's eyebrows were stuck halfway on her forehead. Kallie tried not to stare at them. "I'm here to see Liam-Detective Steel." She cleared her throat a second time.
Bun lady's eyebrows shot up another notch. "Really? What for?" She clicked through a few screens on her computer. "Name?"
"Kallie Matheson-"
"I.D. please." The receptionist cut her off.
Kallie slipped a strap of her shoulder and unzipped her backpack. She pulled her wallet out and handed the woman her driver's licence. She covered the odd pair of scars on top of her wrist with her free hand. They were faded but the pink jagged spots reminded her of drug needles. She wasn't a druggy, she'd never tried anything stronger than ibuprofen, but other people always commented on them. It made her uncomfortable and now at the police station, she seemed more aware of them.
"Go down the hall all the way to the end. There's a set of stairs. Third floor, go right to the very end, last door on the right is the detective's office." Oblivious to Kallie's discomfort, the secretary handed Kallie her drivers licence back, along with a visitor's badge. "Wear the pass so the officers can see it, don't stuff it in your bag."
"Okay. So hall, stairs, third floor, right and right at the end." She slipped the pass over her head and made sure her name lay face up. "Thank-you." Even bitter-bun lady deserved a teeny bit of politeness. "Have a nice day."
She race-walked down the hall and jogged up the steps, repeating the direction pattern under her breath until she reached a wooden door containing a brass plaque with Dt. L. Steel on it.
About to knock, butterflies had somehow managed to find their way into her stomach and throw a hip hop party. She wiped the palms of her hands against her skirt and took a deep breath. "It's just an interview," she muttered. Except what if her questions sucked? What if the guy didn't have anything to say? He refused to talk to any of the big national papers so what if this was some kind of joke?
Chuckling sounds distracted Kallie from her thoughts. A deep, slightly sexy-slightly muffled voice called from behind the door, "You coming in, or just going to stand there all night?"
Kallie blinked and glanced above the door expecting a security camera staring down at her. Nothing there but cream painted walls. Strange. She shrugged and reached for the doorknob turning it. She stepped inside, the heavy door swinging shut behind her.