The Vampire's Redemption, A Paranormal Romance (Undead in Brown County #3) (8 page)

Rage blazed through me like a sword. “You don’t have Sarah.”

“Not yet. But I certainly have an idea of how to persuade her to join me for dinner. A friend of hers is down here visiting me. Perhaps you’d like to speak with him.”

I froze. Maybe it was just a bluff. I’d certainly known Isaiah to make such low moves.

The voice that came on the line was cold, deep and put a huge dent in the theory that Isaiah was playing me for a fool.

“Michael?”

“Alex, you need to get the hell out of there. He’s setting up a trap for Sarah.”

He huffed impatiently, “Nothing is going to happen to Sarah, but you and I have a score to settle. Get your ass down here.”

There was an audible click when the connection was terminated and I swore vehemently. I had been afraid that Isaiah might draw Alex into his web, but I hadn’t thought it would happen that soon. I did know that if I didn’t show up down there at Isaiah’s estate, he might try to drag Sarah into the whole thing.

I put the cell phone back into my pocket and looked dispassionately at the bags of blood lying at my feet. Giving myself over to Isaiah would be the ultimate act of selflessness. Perhaps I was due for redemption. After all, did sixty-five years of denying myself warm human blood fully make up for the atrocities I’d committed before my imprisonment? Somehow, I doubted it was enough.

Dark memories swept over me. Memories that I had fought against for decades. Blood, torn flesh the death of innocents. Thousands of them had suffered at my hands over the centuries. I had been a different creature back then. But the changes I’d made in my diet were minute compared to the changes in the lives of people whose loved ones I’d destroyed without remorse. A mother’s loss of a daughter. A husband’s loss of a wife.

My soul cracked open with a fierce shock that brought me to my knees. Sarah had given me the ability to see what humans could mean to each other. She had opened my eyes to possibilities I never would have considered otherwise. Her courage and affection had opened my eyes. I was free of her, but it was the last thing I really wanted. Because then I was left alone with my many regrets.

I decided to purge myself of my crimes.

CHAPTER 13 – Jackson

“I’m sorry I didn’t ask you about riding Messenger.”

Sarah smiled at me gently and squeezed my arm. “It’s okay. She needs the exercise.”

There were more important things for us to talk about, but I hated to disrupt the way the evening was going so far. Nelly had made an amazing hash brown casserole for us and left to visit her sister in Greenwood for a few days. She had even put candles on the small table in the kitchen and set out plates and silverware for us.

We had finished off half of the casserole, a bottle and a half of blackberry wine and made our way into the parlor to listen to some of her Dad’s old records. She was curled up beside me on the sofa with her glass of wine and the afghan draped over her shapely legs. Sadie was stretched out in front of the fireplace, moving one back leg occasionally and huffing in her sleep. Billie Holiday was on the record player, singing “My Man”.

“Why haven’t you ever ridden her?”

She smiled a little sadly and stared at the rim of her glass. “I’ve been afraid.”

“You didn’t have a bad fall or anything, did you?”

“No, no. Nothing like that.” I loved seeing her like that, so vulnerable and soft, answering questions with no hint of self-preservation. She was utterly open and so easy to read.

She tilted her head back against the cushions and sighed cleanly, the line of her throat clear in silhouette with the lamplight behind her. Her head turned towards me and she touched me with another tender smile that made my heart want to stop.

“I wish I could just let go and be totally brave,” she said. I knew, without being told, exactly what she needed. She needed a stepping stone. She needed someone to hold her, to give her strength for all the challenges that awaited her. She needed someone like her. Someone who understood her.

Unsure of exactly how to put it all into the right context, I wrapped one arm around her and brought her close to me. “You will one day. And when you’re ready, she’ll be waiting.”

After a few moments of silence, she leaned forward to put her glass on the coffee table and turned back to me. “You’re afraid of what might happen between us, aren’t you?”

“I’m afraid that you’ve already made a connection with a vampire. And because I care about you so much, that scares the hell out of me.”

She took another long swallow of her wine before she replied tightly, “You mean Michael?”

“Of course.” I rubbed my temples in frustration and fixed my gaze on the fireplace. “You obviously have a serious emotional attachment to him. I don’t know how to take that.”

“Honestly, I don’t know where Michael and I stand with each other. But I do know that the last time he spoke to me, he said some really shitty things.” The tone of the conversation had brought an edge to Sarah. Her voice, her facial expressions, her body language. Everything was sharper. She was getting rigged up for a confrontation, but I wasn’t going to let it go down that road. She wasn’t going to get the kind of fight she was looking for.

“Besides, he’s a vampire. He’s killed people, Jackson.”

“He probably
has
killed people.”

“And he can be a total asshole sometimes.”

“Yeah, it definitely seems like he can get that way.”

It was slowly stealing her thunder, having someone agree with her like that. I guess I had been reading the signs and making the right moves to calm her down. According to Nelly, Sarah’s temper could get completely out of hand sometimes. The only explosion I’d personally seen up to that point had been her argument with Michael and the ensuing slap (which he had thoroughly deserved).

With a defeated sigh she settled back against the sofa and crossed her arms. “Even if he wasn’t a jerk a lot of times, he’s still a vampire. I don’t want to be turned. I always thought I would get married, pop out three and a half kids and raise them out here.”

“Is that what you really want? Marriage? Children?”

That was when her cell phone rang. Before she could dig it out of her pocket, I had moved. With both hands framing her face, I kissed her as deeply as she’d ever been kissed. I put my soul into that simple gesture of affection. I wanted her to know that she had me before she answered that call.

Somehow, I knew it was Michael.

CHAPTER 14 – Sarah

“Um… Hello?”

I hadn’t even bothered looking at the caller ID. Everything inside me was still reeling from Jackson’s kiss. I felt hot all over, in every little blood vessel, in every pore. When he backed away and let me answer the call, he was purposeful. The light in his eyes sang of his strength and resolve. It was almost impossible to focus on the phone call awaiting me.

“Sarah, before you hang up I need you to listen to me. Alex is with Isaiah.”

I sputtered in surprise, “Michael? Where are you calling me from?” Sadie’s head went up, her golden ears perked up at the familiar name.

Jackson stood with his glass of wine and left the room, casting one hot glance of promise over one shoulder. My breath stopped for a moment. All I wanted to do was follow him.

“It doesn’t matter. Did you hear what I said? He has Alex.”

I tried desperately to concentrate on his words. “Isaiah must be holding him against his will. Wait. Did you talk to him? Did Alex say anything about wanting to join Isaiah?”

“Not specifically. Look, they’re going to try to get you to go down to Dallas, to Isaiah’s estate. Sarah, whatever problems you have with me right now, please believe me when I tell you that it’s a trap. Isaiah’s using both you and Alex to get me to give myself up.”

“It would probably be better for everybody if you just came back here, Michael.”

There was a long pause before he responded, “Better for you?”

It would certainly make things more complicated. “I don’t know about that. But at least Isaiah could be kept away from you. And if he captures you somehow, you know that Victoria and Jones would both put themselves in danger to rescue you.”

“I had planned on coming back anyway, if that is agreeable to you.”

“Yes.” My voice cracked slightly when I recalled the things he’d said and done before he left.

“But you’ve got to ease up on Jackson. He’s a good man, Michael.” He also had to understand that there were boundaries between us. Otherwise, there was no way we would be able to deal with each other.

“I know he is. By the way, I have your sister with me.”

“Is she okay? Does she know what happened to that woman?”

“It’s a long story, and I’ll let her explain when we come back. She was injured, but I healed her.” His voice didn’t sound the same for some reason. I couldn’t pinpoint the change, but something had definitely happened.

“You healed her? What does that mean?”

He cleared his throat. “You know what it means. She’s had my blood.”

There was something significant in that. Had Michael bonded with my sister?

“If you have questions, save them for later. I have to get off here and take care of some business.”

He ended the call, leaving me wondering what the hell I had missed. What kind of business was he talking about? And how did Katie get injured? What exactly did it mean now that Katie had Michael’s blood in her veins? The questions kept rolling through my head endlessly. And Isaiah had Alex? When was this bullshit going to end? When was life going to be normal again?

“Sarah.” It was Jackson’s voice. A sound that was solid, real, without mystery.

He was standing in the doorway that led to the kitchen and saying my name. Suddenly, I felt the urge to be reckless and throw caution to the wind. I wanted to forget about vampires. I wanted Jackson beside me, around me, inside the core of me.

His humanity called out to me like some siren, high and sweet, promising an experience unlike anything I’d known before. I crossed the room in five quick steps and wrapped my arms around his neck. I pulled his face down to mine, feeling the strength of the bands of muscles in his neck. His mouth was slightly open and there was light stubble on his cheeks, chin and over his mouth from not shaving for a few days. I adored the way his full lower lip trembled with excitement when I slid my hand through the open front of his jacket and down his stomach towards his groin.

With a low chuckle, he disengaged my arms from around his neck and gave me a quick peck on the lips. “You’d better cool off just a bit, my love. What did Michael have to say?”

I groaned and shook my head. “Do we have to talk about this right now?”

“Yes.” His face was entirely serious, but I was sure his pulse was still racing from our very intimate embrace. “I don’t want you flinging yourself at me to try to erase the conversation you just had.”

“Oh.” He was right, of course. That was exactly what I’d been trying to do.

“Sit. Drink your wine. Tell me.”

Ignoring his order to sit, I picked up my wine glass and took a deep swallow. The blackberry wine slid smoothly over my tongue and down my throat, warming me from the inside out. It was a far cry from the quick inebriation I could achieve with a Hurricane from Joe’s, but it gave me the courage to speak my mind without falling down in the process.

“Alex is with Isaiah. It’s worrying Michael because he knows how powerful Alex has become. And Michael is coming back.”

He nodded. “I thought he might.”

“Katie is safe, but Michael wouldn’t tell me if she actually killed that woman we found.”

“How do you feel about her coming back here if she’s one of the vampires responsible for that?”

The doorbell rang. Sadie sprang up from her spot by the fire and went to the front door, her nails clicking against the hardwood. I followed her and drew back the sheer curtain panel to see who was on the porch.

It was Karen Morrell, Chief Deputy of the Brown County Sherriff’s department. Karen had been at her post for almost twelve years and had been raised right in Nashville. Although she was pushing forty-five years old, she was in excellent physical shape and definitely knew how to use the standard issue pistol that the rest of the department staff utilized. At the moment, she was accompanied by an unremarkable young deputy that I didn’t recognize.

As I pulled open the door, my heart began to race. I had a pretty good idea they weren’t here to collect donations.

“Hi, Sarah. Mind if we come in for a few minutes?”

I nodded quickly and moved aside to let them in. Denying them access to the house probably would have raised a huge red flag. That was the last thing I needed. They both came inside, looking grateful to be out of the cold wind and surveyed the front hall with caution.

Crossing my arms, I addressed Karen. “What can I do for you?”

We had only talked a few times in the past. One of those conversations had taken place after I’d hit Trevor Kincaid in the face. That’s what he got for cheating on his girlfriend. He was a complete jerk. At the time, Karen had understood about the drama. She took down my statement but hadn’t followed through with an official report. I had the feeling that she might have been giving me a break because she liked my spunk.

She gave me a quick smile. “Just a couple of quick questions.”

I shifted uncomfortably and saw Jackson out of the corner of my eye watching the three of us from the parlor doorway. “Okay.”

Karen pulled out a small notepad from her thick brown jacket and nodded towards Jackson. “How’s it going? I’m Deputy Morrell from the Brown County Sheriff’s office.”

“Jackson Bennett,” he replied stiffly.

“Sarah, Trevor’s father came into my office a couple days ago.” Her eyebrows rose as she spoke, “Sounds like Trevor got into an altercation with a friend of yours.”

I nodded. “Outside of the bar. My friend Alex showed up shortly after Trevor assaulted me.”

“Trevor attacked you?”

Sighing, I tried to think of a believable scenario that Karen wouldn’t freak out about. Explaining that Alex had super human powers and had broken Trevor’s arm without breaking a sweat was likely to bring up a lot more questions that I couldn’t answer without divulging the fact that I had vampires on my property.