“Kane,” she said then, her voice deadpan.
“Kane,” I repeated, straightening a little “Last night. Kane and I got together last night.”
“What about Tommie?” asked Gwen, putting her hands on her hips. “Do you know how much that poor woman loves you? I mean, she’s not a big talker, but she talked to me about it a little, just to pass the time on the ride to and from the doctor’s, and let me tell you, she’s absolutely crazy for you.”
“That…rubs a little bit of salt in my wounds,” I admitted, wincing, “and, yes, Tommie knows about it. And, no, it didn’t go over that well. And, yes, I feel absolutely terrible about the fact that I hurt Tommie, and I’ve never been sorrier for anything in my entire life. But Kane and I…we’re meant to be together, Gwen. It’s just…it’s something that’s…” I trailed off, searching for the right word, and miraculously, the perfect one came to me: “Fated. We’re fated,” I repeated, my voice low as I realized exactly how true that was. I felt it in my bones, that word. Fated.
Gwen stared at me for a long moment, and slowly her expression became hard and stony, her mouth shifting into a thin, hard line. “That’s sweet, honey. I’m happy for you. But you’ve got to know you can’t stay here.”
“What?” I spluttered as Gwen moved past me, angling toward her dresser. She opened the top drawer, and she removed a stack of shirts and turned on her heel, stalking over the bed to dump them into the suitcase. “What are you talking about?” I asked, as Gwen sailed past me again, intent on another stack of clothes from the drawer.
“Tommie said that those vampires last night? They were after you. Which means that you’re not safe here,” she said crisply. “You know that as well as I do.”
“I don’t know that,” I told her, crossing my arms in front of myself tightly. “And Kane told me that she was getting to the bottom of it right now. That she was going to find the person responsible for all of this.”
Gwen cast me a withering look. “How do you know there was only one? There wasn’t one last night; there were two. Two vampires who were trying to kill us. How do you know that any vampire is good? They’re bloodsuckers. I mean, almost every time vampires comes up in anything—books, movies—they’re not good, honey. They’re evil. They tried to kill us.”
“Not the Sullivans,” I promised her, holding up hands again in protest. “The Sullivans would never do anything to harm us, Gwen—”
And at that, Gwen rounded on me. She tossed her last stack of shirts into the suitcase, and she came almost nose to nose with me, her eyes flashing dangerously. “Then who the hell,” she said, her voice in a growl, “bit your neck?”
I put my hand over my healing wounds self-consciously and took a step back.
Tommie must have told her.
“Mags,” I said the word quietly, lifting my chin and holding her gaze. “Mags…did this.”
“Mags Sullivan,” said Gwen, but when she spread her hands triumphantly, she didn’t look all that triumphant; she looked exhausted. “Look, Rose, I can’t force you to do anything,” she muttered, moving past me and yanking another dresser drawer open. “But I’m your best friend, and I’m telling you right now, being at the Sullivan Hotel isn’t safe for either one of us. And I’m getting the hell out of Dodge. And I’m really, really hoping you’ll recognize what’s good for you, too, and that you’ll come with me.”
She grabbed a couple of pairs of jeans from the dresser and stuffed them in her suitcase. That’s when she stopped and stood next to me, breathing out into the stillness with an exasperated sigh. “So? What’s it gonna be? Are you going to come with me?” she prompted, searching my face.
“Gwen…” I began, but she was already moving past me, back toward the dresser.
“I knew it. I knew you wouldn’t come with me,” she muttered, grabbing a few more pairs of jeans out of the dresser, shoving the empty drawer closed with her bottom. “Have they put you under a spell or something?” she asked, and she was being perfectly serious when she glanced at me in frustration.
“That’s probably witches you’re thinking of,” I said, joking weakly, but Gwen flashed me another angry look and tossed the rest of the jeans into her suitcase.
“That’s not funny, and you know it,” she muttered. Then she stepped back from the suitcase and looked down at the overly full thing. And that’s when I realized she was done packing. There was nothing left in the room for her to pack. Gwen didn’t own much; she liked to be “as free as a bird,” as she’d always told me, and everything she owned was capable of fitting into her vintage blue suitcase.
And it was full now.
“You’re leaving…today?” I asked her, and she nodded, but she wouldn’t look at me as she snapped the suitcase shut, pushing down on the latches a little harder than necessary to force them closed.
“I don’t feel safe here, honey. And you shouldn’t, either,” she said, finally turning to face me. “Please come with me?”
I stared at my best friend, my best friend who had gotten me this job at the Sullivan Hotel in the first place, my best friend who had convinced Kane to hire me on, sight unseen, without a resume. Gwen had been the one to set everything in motion; Gwen had been the one to break me out of my sadness about Anna, to convince me that I needed a fresh start, or I would be haunted by her forever. Gwen had been the one to push me out of my comfort zone, to bring me here, to Eternal Cove.
Gwen had changed my life irrevocably, had been my best friend for so long…and now, we were being separated again.
I couldn’t leave Kane, not when something had just started between us. Not when we were falling in love. And I couldn’t leave Tommie—not like this.
Gwen knew all of that when she looked at my face. She knew, and she didn’t say anything else, only stepped forward and wrapped her arms around my shoulders, holding me close.
“I’m going to miss you,” she said simply, squeezing me tight. “It was really great living together again, even if it was only for a couple of days. We haven’t done anything like that since college. It was nice,” she said, and she sounded wistful as she took a step back, as she gazed at me with sad eyes. “I hope you’re going to be okay, honey. I’m really worried about you. I wish there was something I could say to convince you to come with me.”
“I’m sorry, Gwen,” I told her, and I really was.
This seemed to be the morning of apologies.
And of goodbyes.
Gwen shrugged a little, as if to shake the sadness away. Then she chuckled, but it sounded strained. “So, I’m all packed. You know I pack light,” she said, sniffing, and when she turned away from me, I could see that there were unshed tears in her eyes. “So, I guess I go down and hike to where Moochie’s beached… Poor guy. It’s not that far from the Sullivan Hotel. And then I'll see what it takes to get a tow truck out to the middle of nowhere,” she muttered, snatching up her cell phone from the top of the dresser and sliding it into her back jeans pocket.
“Don’t leave yet,” I told her, and she glanced at me quickly, but I raised my hands. “Wouldn’t it be easier to call a tow truck place from here? That way, you could figure out where you’re towing it to, look it up first. I mean, have you even had breakfast yet?”
Gwen wrinkled her nose. “Since Tommie just hauled my ass from the doctor’s to here just a little while ago…no. That’s not something that was on the morning agenda.”
“Okay,” I told her with a resolute smile. “You call the towing company and a garage or something. Figure out where you’re going to take Moochie and how much it’s going to cost. I’ll go down to the kitchens and get us both something to eat. I’ll bring it right back. What do you want?”
Gwen glanced at me suspiciously, as if she was trying to figure out if this was an elaborate ploy to get her to stay, but then her expression softened. “Like…a million scrambled eggs. And a couple of cinnamon buns. And if she has pancakes, some of those. And if she doesn’t have pancakes, some waffles. Hell, even
if she does have pancakes, some waffles, too, okay? And don’t forget syrup, because you can’t eat any of that without syrup.” She grinned at me as I turned, about to make my way back toward the door. “Thanks, Rose,” she said, her voice soft.
“Don’t mention it,” I told her, grinning back over my shoulder.
I slipped out of her rooms, and I shut the door behind me. Already, I could hear her locking it and sliding the chair beneath the doorknob. I was a little shaken. I guess it was ridiculous to think that my best friend didn’t fear anything, but, honestly, in all the time I’d known her…she really hadn’t ever been afraid. Not once. This was the woman who said she’d buy a ticket to ride to the moon the second NASA ever made rocket buses. This was the woman who completely uprooted her life and moved whenever and wherever the wind took her. Even during all of our late-night talks, where we discussed everything, where we got to the deepest, darkest parts of ourselves…the only thing she’d ever told me she was afraid of was some idiot becoming president and pushing the nuclear button for no reason.
That was it. And I knew it was the truth, because I knew Gwen like the back of my hand.
But this…this accident last night, and being hunted…it had done something to her, changed her.
And that made my heart ache.
To say that I wasn’t afraid wouldn’t be exactly true. I was afraid. But I just didn’t care anymore. I’d been through enough already. If another vampire came at me, he’d have hell to deal with.
And that was the honest truth.
So I was walking down the hallway, worrying about Gwen…but I was not remembering something very important. In fact, I was blissfully unaware at that moment that, very recently, I’d promised Kane that I would wait for Branna in Gwen’s rooms. I had promised that I would not, under any circumstances, wander the corridors alone.
But, in my shock over Gwen deciding to leave, I’d honestly forgotten my promise. And I walked the hall, thinking hard about Gwen, about Tommie, about Kane…about a million different things…
Until my reverie was broken by someone singing.
I was in a hotel that was almost full to capacity, so hearing someone else’s voice shouldn’t have been so startling. But I was also on the floor that had been converted to apartments for the hotel’s staff. And all of the staff had been deployed today, considering that we were full up at the hotel. Every single person was working, according to the schedule. But, as I stood there, my entire body tense, I knew that even with everyone working, there could have been a million reasons that I was hearing singing.
But none of those million reasons ran through my head at that moment.
Because my body reacted to the singing long before my head could come up with any sort of coherent thought.
All of the hairs on the back of my neck were standing on end. It was the strangest thing, as if I’d just seen something terrifying, or heard something terrifying, but, no—it was just a pleasant female voice, humming something softly. It wasn’t a necessarily scary sound, but for some reason…it unnerved me.
I stood still for a long moment, trying to get my bearings. Where was the humming coming from? That’s when I noticed the big, oaken door to my right, the one with the black painted border, standing slightly open. It was the last door on the floor before the enormous staircase.
It was no big deal, obviously, that the door was ajar; someone must just be in there, probably a fellow staffer cleaning up the room because they needed it for a guest, since we were so full. But as I walked past the door, I paused, because I saw someone in the room.
Someone I didn’t recognize.
I shouldn’t have stared, but an odd sensation overwhelmed me. The woman in the mirror…she looked so familiar. Like the kind of familiar that makes your brain stretch and strain as you try, desperately, to remember where you saw her before. Because you know that you have seen her, have met her, have spoken with her…but, for the life of you, you can’t remember when or where or why.
I stood there in the hallway, as still as a statue, and I peered through the open crack of the door at the woman standing just inside. The room was similar in layout to the ones that Gwen and I had, save for one glaring difference. There was no furniture in it. Nothing at all except for the tall, antique standing mirror that was positioned along the opposite wall. This is what the woman was standing in front of. Her back was to me, but I could see her reflection in the mirror clearly.
She was tall, and she was very pale. I noticed that first, and I realized that the person I was looking at must be a vampire. Not that a human being can’t be pale, but this woman was deathly pale, ashen pale…vampire pale. After meeting and knowing enough vampires, I knew vampire pale when I saw it.
She stood in front of the mirror, and she ran her fingers through her long, blonde hair. It was the color of wheat and rolled in waves down her back as she threaded her fingers through it, combing it. She was staring at herself in the glass and humming something quietly to herself. Honestly, I’m surprised I had even heard her voice out in the corridor; it was that soft.
She had very high cheekbones and big blue eyes. She was very pretty, but there was something about her that was just a little…off. It made me shiver as I stood there, watching her. She was wearing a color of lipstick that was bright, cherry red, and it contrasted with the white of her incisors sharply, though it complemented her red dress.
Where had I seen that red dress before? It looked almost as familiar to me as her face did.
As I watched, the woman did a little turn in the mirror, and she hummed a little bit louder. When she glanced at her reflection, a smile turned her mouth up at the corners, and it wasn’t mischievous or charming; it was downright evil.
And then, just at that moment, she stopped humming. She stood straight and tall as she gazed at her reflection, and she sighed, again running her fingers over her hair.
“Soon,” she whispered, and she glanced at her reflection, smiling at it. She blew her own likeness a kiss, and then she stepped closer to the mirror. She pressed her cherry-red mouth to the glass, and when she stepped back again, a kiss print appeared on the mirror's surface.
My eyes were clamped to her reflection, because when she took a step back from the mirror, she...well...
She changed.
She ran her fingers over her hair again, and the strands transformed from long, wheat-colored waves to large bloodred curls that cascaded over her shoulders. And when she put her red-painted fingernails over her face, as if she were playing an eerie game of hide-and-seek, my heart was in my throat.
The woman removed her hands from her face with a flourish, and she grinned wickedly at her own reflection in the mirror.
I stared at her, and I took a step backward, the world reeling beneath me.
Because it was Melody standing there in that empty bedroom.
This woman had just transformed into Melody.
To be continued…
Who is Melody, and is she capable of keeping Rose and Kane apart? Experience this epic romance as it unfolds in the seventh Sullivan Vampire story, Eternal Dream, coming soon!
Sign up to be notified when the next Sullivan Vampires novella is released!
If you missed the first three Sullivan Vampires novellas, you can get all three novellas bundled together in the Meeting Eternity omnibus, available now.
More from Bridget Essex:
- The Vampire Next Door: (Co-written with author Natalie Vivien) Courtney's book store is failing, and she thinks her girlfriend might be cheating on her...Courtney doesn't even think she believes in love...that is, until she meets the vampire next door.
- Raised by Wolves: Meet Becca Swift! She's got the most overbearing family in the world—because she was raised by wolves. Literally. Becca is a werewolf, and she is part of a loud and crazy, up-in-your-business pack. In her day-to-day life, she tries to keep the fact that she's a werewolf a secret... But then along comes Loren.
- The Guardian Angel: When Er
in's life is saved by a gorgeous woman who swears she's Erin's guardian angel...things begin to get complicated.
- Wolf Queen: When they were teenagers, Amber and Stevie were so deeply in love that nothing could drive them apart. Until the one night, when Amber needed Stevie to be there...and, instead, Stevie disappeared without a trace...
- Wild: An Erotic Lesbian Romance: Six months ago, Lily made the worst mistake of her life and let the woman she loved walk away. Now, at a campground party, she glimpses Cora across the fire, the woman she's not stopped thinking about or wanting, and sparks begin to fly.
- Come Home, I Need You: An Erotic Lesbian Romance: Faith has a passionate, potent relationship with her wife, Marina, one that has stood the test of time. What started as a fiery fling has evolved into a lifelong love affair of two powerful women who love each other intensely. But Marina's job often takes her out of the country, and Faith's been missing her terribly lately…
- Falling for Summer: On the twentieth anniversary of her sister's drowning, Amanda goes back to Lake George to face her past and unexpectedly meets Summer McBride. Summer is a beautiful, vivacious, carefree woman--everything Amanda isn’t--and Amanda begins to fall for her until she learns Summer’s dark secret. Can love heal all wounds?
- A Knight to Remember: Holly, a librarian, is starting to believe that love is impossible to find. But one night, during an unusually vicious storm, magic and romance appear in Holly’s backyard in the form of a mysterious, gorgeous woman…wielding a sword.
- Date Knight: The sequel to the much-loved novel A Knight to Remember, Holly and Virago are on another adventure—this time, in another world.
Trusting Eternity (The Sullivan Vampires, Volume 2 Page 17
