by V. Vaughn
He chuckles. "Funny. Now you're going to tell me that hot little redhead is a ghost or something?"
"I'm dead serious. I saw Kitty go down the driveway." My best guy friend gives me a double shot espresso I like to start my shift with, and I let the paper cup warm my hands. "I knew something wasn't right with that girl."
"You did not," says Aiden. "None of us did, and I'm still not convinced there is."
"Man." I shake my head. "You'll do anything to get laid."
A woman clears her throat, and I glance at the customer waiting for her drink. "Sorry," I say with a sheepish smile. I turn back to Aiden. "I bet she lives there."
He shrugs as the milk steamer hisses. "She told me she was staying someplace on Ocean Avenue, so maybe she does."
I take a sip of my coffee to get the caffeine in my system before I start my shift. "And you don't think it's odd that she's in the haunted house? C'mon, Aiden. Nobody else lives there!"
"Maybe she inherited it from a distant family relative and is giving it new life. It's a sweet location."
He flashes his surfer-boy smile at the woman waiting as he hands her a drink. "Thanks. Stop by and see us again."
"You are unbelievable," I say as Aiden lifts his arms up over his head to stretch and flashes his perfectly toned abs that make women drool. He lets out a yawn, and I say, "I bet Kitty doesn't feel like she was hit by a Mack truck like the rest of us. She drugged us, Aiden."
"Give it a rest, Lynds. She was probably smart enough to not drink too much, and when we all passed out, she left our poor drunk asses and went home to her mansion."
I glare at him. "I did not drink too much." I sigh as I give up on him. Aiden is a go-with-the-flow kind of guy, but I bet Jenna and Becky will be interested in what I found out. I pull my phone out of my back pocket to text them. Stop by the shop. You won't believe what I just found out about Kitty!
Jenna and Becky work at a restaurant around the corner from the coffee shop, and as soon as the lunch shift is over, they come to see me. They rush up to the counter, and Becky speaks in a low voice. "We're dying. What did you find out?"
"I saw Kitty driving a very expensive black sports car, and she pulled into the haunted house on Ocean."
"Whoa," says Jenna as Becky's jaw hangs open. "Did she go inside?"
"I don't know. I freaked and drove away as fast as I could." Two empty mugs thud on the counter when I set them down for their coffees.
"Does she live there?" asks Becky.
"I don't know. But I bet she does."
Jenna takes her cup from me, and hot liquid from the thermal canister trickles into it as she pours. "Me too." She scowls. "And that's super creepy."
Becky didn't grow up here, and she asks, "So I know you guys say the place is haunted, but other than the rumors, is there any proof?"
I shake my head. "No. And I'm not one hundred percent positive it is, but I've also never seen anyone there. So even if it's not, don't you think it's kind of weird for Kitty to be there all by herself?"
"And what about the car? Why was she driving a rusty old heap when she had access to something much better?" asks Jenna. She glances at me. "You're absolutely sure it was Kitty?"
"Yes. I'd know that red hair anywhere."
Becky squints for a split second. I think it's because she's convinced I have a thing for Aiden, and he was hitting on Kitty hard that night. "Super strange," says Becky.
"Yeah. Are you guys still really tired?" They shrug, and I wonder why they don’t seem to think it’s a big deal. "I'm tempted to go knock on the door to ask her what she drugged us with."
Becky gets a mischievous twinkle in her eye. "I’ll go with you."
"Oh no." Jenna shakes her head. "You're on your own with that. No way in hell am I setting foot inside those gates."
"Chicken," says Becky. She looks at me. "What about you? Want to go sleuthing?"
"You're serious?"
Becky chuckles as she lifts her coffee mug to her lips. "Not really. I don't believe Kitty drugged us or anything. It doesn't make sense. Plus I think I'd need a lot of alcohol to go to the haunted mansion, and I doubt that's a good idea when you might face a ghost."
"Ghost?" asks Jenna. "Naw. I bet, in a place like that, you'd find vampires."
"Vampires?" Now I laugh, but a faint memory of something dark comes to me; like when you wake up from a bad dream but can't remember what it was that scared you. I shake my head. Perhaps I am making more of this situation and Kitty’s involvement in it than I should. It’s possible she didn't do anything. "Maybe she'll come in again, and we can ask her about the house," I say.
My friends change the subject to other things, and I half listen as I think about Kitty. I don't believe we will see her again. It’s clear that if I want to know more about Kitty Kane, I'm going to have to find out on my own.
3
Maggie
The black leather seat of the Hart limo is cool on my back when I settle into my spot across from Sebastian. I'm in a crisp blouse and straight skirt, with my hair piled up on my head. I pulled out curls to frame my face. Sebastian instructed me to put on the amount of makeup I wore for my Kitty Kane pictures that we took, and I feel as if I'm coated in sunscreen I can't wait to wash off.
I pull out my phone to check for a reply from Alexander, but I don't find one. After Sebastian told me I would see his brother again, I couldn't wait to let Alexander know. I left him an excited phone message as well as a text. I sigh as I put my phone away.
"You look lovely, Margaret."
"Thank you."
I glance up at the front, where Adly is driving. When he helped me into the car earlier, the icy-cold fingers that grasped my hand, as well as his stunning looks, told me he's a vampire. A partition hums as it rises and blocks my view of him, and Sebastian says, "You may ask me about him."
Gee. Thanks for the permission. I manage to keep from glaring at Sebastian when I ask, "Has he fed lately?"
Sebastian gives me a cold stare. "Of course. I would never put you in danger, Margaret."
"Oh right. I belong to you, like a pet." I recall how Alexander said that vampires still have antiquated rules like believing women are property, and that I'm under the Hart brothers' protection. I think that means no other vampire can feed on me. I reach down and lift the vial of Sebastian's blood I'm wearing around my neck. "Is this my ID tag? Can the other vampires smell it on me so they'll know I'm off limits?"
"You are not my pet. But you are under my care, and I promise you'll always be safe." He reaches inside his jacket. "Which reminds me. I almost forgot." He pulls out a little case that looks like the one my mother uses for her contacts. "You need to put these in."
"What? I don't wear glasses. Why do I need contacts?"
"As you recall, Kitty's eyes are green."
I remember how my images were altered that way in case someone from my past recognized me. It's so they'd think I was someone who bears my resemblance. I scowl at him as I remember what it was like for my mother to get used to her contacts. "Don't you think I should have put these in before tonight to train my eyes?"
"Yes. And I regret the oversight, but you'll only have to wear them for a few hours. You'll be fine."
The cover to the case snaps as he opens it, and in his eerily calm voice, he says, "Come here." He lifts up a finger with a contact on the end of it.
A lifetime of being freaked out about germs that could kill me kicks in. "What is the matter with you?"
"Really, Margaret. This is a painless procedure."
"You put that back in the solution and wash your hands. Who knows where they've been."
Sebastian cracks a smile and puts the contact back in the case before he opens a compartment in the little table between us and pulls out a small package of sanitary wipes. "Of course. Excuse my carelessness."
I'm not sure if he's taunting me or being thorough on purpose, but he takes his time wiping every inch of his hands before he places a contact on his finger again. I slide forward to pe
rch on the end of my seat. Sebastian holds my eye open with two fingers as he puts the contact in place. I blink a few times to discover that while I can feel it, it's not like having something in my eye I can’t stand.
"Well?" he asks.
"I'll be fine." I let him put the second one in. My stomach flips with my nerves, and I wish for the hundredth time Alexander was with me. When Sebastian pushed the release date and book tour to happen sooner, we had fewer days to prepare me for my first public appearance as Kitty Kane, the author.
I glance at Sebastian. "All I have to do is ask them how to spell the name they want the book dedicated to and maybe chat about things that happen in the story, right? You don't have any more surprises for me, do you?"
"No more surprises." He smiles. "There are other authors present, so the attention won't all be on you. You're going to do a wonderful job. You've read the book more than once and understand the elements of the story structure better than some authors know their own."
I recall the lessons Sebastian gave me as he dissected the books he and Alexander wrote for Kitty, and I nod. I know the stories so well I feel as if I did write them myself. But I still wring my hands as I worry I'll somehow be found out as a fraud.
Sebastian says, "It will be dark when we arrive, and I'll be right by your side through the whole thing."
I offer him a grateful smile. While he may not be my favorite person right now, he's all I've got. The wheels of the car hum over the highway, and I glance out the window to see an orange sky as the sun sets. "Will you tell me how you became a vampire?"
I don’t glance his way, but I feel Sebastian’s stare for a moment before he replies. "I became a vampire to save Alexander."
"From what?"
He doesn’t answer right away. "It's a long story."
I reach for the vial of Sebastian's blood and notice it's warm from my body heat as I turn to look at him. "Did you give him your blood?"
"I'll tell you some other time."
I’m not willing to let him off so easily. "How did you become one? How does it work?"
His face hardens, but he doesn’t speak. The car slows, and I think we're approaching our exit. I glance out the window again and notice Sebastian’s reflection. Now that I’m not looking at him, he appears troubled. Sebastian says, "We'll be there soon. Let me go over what's going to happen one more time."
I let out a sigh, because no matter how many times I try to get personal information from my boss, it's apparent he guards his past closely. I tune out Sebastian and lean back to glance out the window again. The night I saw Sebastian feed on my friends replays in my mind. He did it to teach me a lesson, and I wonder if he would have told me otherwise. Sebastian didn't want me to make friends with humans in town, and when I went to a party with people I'd met from town, he and a few of his vampire buddies came and fed on them. Alexander explained that my friends wouldn't remember a thing and would wake up just fine.
That may be so, but I wasn't okay. That was the night I realized I'm trapped in my new world, and the only way I'll leave the Hart brothers is when I die. My love for Alexander helped me accept my reality, but that was short lived. Lights from oncoming cars glow as night falls, and the pain of Alexander leaving me floods my mind. But I have to push it away, because in minutes, I need to pretend to be Kitty Kane.
Sebastian is done talking, and I take a deep breath and reach for my purse. I pull out a compact mirror and check my reflection. My green eyes and makeup startle me at first, and I think about how I'm about to be someone I'm not. I suppose, after time, it will be easy to do. I am already very different from the Maggie who arrived at the Hart mansion a little over a month ago, and I wonder if one day I'm going to look in the mirror and realize who I used to be is completely gone.
4
Lyndsey
Figuring out how I was going to see Kitty Kane again was easy. When I got home from work, I Googled her name. I found her author website and learned her first book comes out tomorrow. And then I hit the jackpot. She'll be at a bookstore in Portland, signing copies for her debut. I stare at the image of her book, Tempt Me, and think maybe she should have hooked up with Aiden. Because on the cover is a guy with a perfect bare chest, and he has those bedroom eyes Aiden uses when he's trying to take a girl home.
I tap my fingers on the small table in my one-bedroom apartment before I get up to refill my water glass. That's another symptom of whatever Kitty did to us— I've never been so thirsty. Cool water slides down my throat as I drink, and I think about when I told Jenna and Becky I saw Kitty. Neither one of my friends seems to think Kitty did something to us, but I bet I could get them to go to the signing with me. We'd look legit that way. I take another sip of water. I'm not sure I want to involve them in this, though. Since I'm the only one who believes Kitty is up to no good, I think my discussion with her might be better if it were one-on-one. Besides, I don't think I can take my friends fawning all over Kitty like she's a big deal.
I let out a yawn and make my way to my bedroom for an early night. I manage to sleep like the dead, and instead of going to the beach to surf the next morning, I laze around in an attempt to conserve energy for work and my trip to Portland.
Fortunately, it's a gorgeous sunny day, and most tourists are at the beach, so the coffee shop is slow. I spend my time between customers Googling what drug Kitty might have used on us, but I don't find anything conclusive. When my shift is over, I grab a large double-shot latte and get in my car for the ride to the book signing. Port Porpoise is a little more than an hour away from Portland, and my drive is easy.
The bookstore for the event is just off of Commercial Street, which runs along the coast, and I find a parking spot across the street. I step out of my car to a cool breeze blowing off the water. My feet tap lightly on the brick sidewalk in the Old Port area as I make my way to the bookstore.
The shop is huge. When I enter, I find it's bustling with activity. I notice that, like the big chain stores, it has an attached coffee shop, and I discover there is a toy section as well. I suppose they've figured out how to handle the loss of print book sales by branching out. I hang back as I look for Kitty. I find her sitting at a long table with another female author beside her signing a book. Kitty is talking to a woman, and I notice a handsome man in a suit standing behind her as if he's her bodyguard. Kitty doesn't appear to be the friendly girl-next-door type I met. Instead, she's wearing too much makeup and is dressed up like a businesswoman. I watch her interact and let out a small huff of distaste, because Kitty's animated in her speaking as if she's some fancy famous person.
When she finishes with a customer, the man behind her leans down and whispers something in her ear, and he walks away. This is my chance, and I push my way to the front of the line.
"Hey!" says the woman I cut off.
I turn to her. "I won't take long. I promise."
When I return my attention to Kitty, she says, "Lyndsey." A smile lights up her face, and I suspect it's as fake as mine. "What a pleasant surprise."
The table is hard on my hands as I splay them on it and lean in close to speak in a low voice nobody can hear. I fight the urge to hiss at her and use my sweet-as-pie tone I reserve for difficult customers. "Can you take a break? I really need to talk to you."
She glances over my shoulder at the line behind me and then in the direction her male companion went as she frowns. "I really shouldn't."
Now I whisper, "Surely you can go to the bathroom. This is really important."
Kitty nods. "Okay. Let me sign one more book, and I'll do that."
I paste on a smile as if I'm grateful. Being pissed off about what she did to my friends and me isn't going to get me answers. "Thanks." I turn to the woman I cut off and keep up my sweet act. "Thanks for letting me steal her for a moment. I appreciate it. She's all yours."
I fall back into the crowd and search for the bathrooms, where I make a beeline to go wait for Kitty. Water rushes as I wash my hands in an attempt to tamp do
wn my anger. I can't lose my cool and ruin any chance of getting the truth out of her. As the hand dryer blows, Kitty enters, and her face morphs into a big smile. "Hey. So what's going on?"
"I need some answers."
She opens up her palms to me. "Okay. What do you want to know?"
"The party at Matt's. All of us woke up in the middle of the night, feeling like we'd been drugged. All of us except you. Where did you go?"
She knits her brow as if she's confused, but the way her face pales tells me she's not. "Didn't Becky tell you I left?"
I recall waking up in the woods with Matt, Declan, Aiden, and Jenna. When we got to Matt's house, we found Becky, but she had no idea what happened to Kitty or how she got there, because the last thing she remembered was walking to the brook with the girls to go find the guys. "No."
Kitty lets out a sigh, and her frown relaxes as she straightens up a little taller. "Well, I'm not surprised. She was pretty wasted like the rest of you." She's trying to make this our fault? "Since Becky and I didn't want to get high, we went back to the house. She fell asleep, and I had no idea how long everyone was going to stay at the brook, so I left."
A woman walks in, and I wait until the stall door thuds shut before I lean in close to Kitty and reply in a low voice, "We were wasted on whatever you gave us."
Kitty jerks back, and I think I see fear in her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about." She glances toward the door. "I should really get back out there."
I step into her space again. "Not until you tell me what happened."
Kitty licks her lips and glances around as if she's frightened. She backs toward the door and pleads with me. "I didn't drug you. I swear."
"Then what happened?"
She shakes her head quickly before she turns to leave. I don't want to make a scene, but I grab her arm anyway.
She turns to me, and now I think I see compassion on her face as she says, "Lyndsey, I really don't have answers for you. I'm just as confused about what happened that night as you are. I'm sorry."
