Blood of a Red Rose

by Tish Thawer

  When I discovered Jeremy was a demon, I'd made it my mission to seduce him in order to become pregnant and continue my pure demon bloodline. But I'd never expected to fall in love with him. Once I had, the only way to secure my life with him was to kill the one person who stood in my way...his wife. And now, having successfully separated Rose from her father, we'd finally been able to start our life together. So for now, I wouldn't tell him that he was a demon. At least not yet.

  Besides, I wanted to spend more time with the other demons I'd met and see how they lived their lives and what of our histories they knew. A lot of demons were like Jeremy, clueless about their heritage, but every week, more and more demons were coming out of the woodwork and attending our little get-togethers. It was comforting. Especially since I knew it wouldn't be long until Rose and her boyfriend's clan found out that I was still alive. I knew they would be coming after me, and I'd have to be prepared. And the more demon "friends" I had, the better.

  "I'm coming over. I have something I want to talk to you about."

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER THREE

  Spy

  (Christian)

  Once again, I woke up realizing I was the luckiest vampire in the world. Rolling over in bed to find the love of my life, Rose, sleeping peacefully beside me was like waking up in heaven every night.

  After gently brushing the hair out of her eyes, I leaned in and placed light kisses on her cheek before tiptoeing into our bathroom to shower. I needed to talk to Rose tonight. I wasn't looking forward to what I had to tell her, so I was happy for this brief time to myself to collect my thoughts.

  After showering, I wrapped the towel around my waist and slowly crept back into the bedroom in case she was still sleeping. She wasn't. Instead I found her lying in bed with her hands tangled in her hair and a worried look on her face.

  "Rose, are you okay?"

  She sat up and a warm smile spread across her face while she looked at me standing there in nothing but a towel. If I hadn't been concerned over what she was worried about, I would have dropped the towel and proceeded to start our evening off in a much more delightful way, but with a crease to her brow, she pushed herself off our bed and wrapped her arms around me. "I was just thinking about everything that's happened. Terrance, Meredith, my dad. I...I just can't believe how much everything has changed."

  I pulled back from the hug to press my lips to hers and then made sure to look her straight in the eye. I wanted her to know that she didn't have anything to worry about ever again. "I know, baby, but now you're living and working here full-time, and once I become the new Sire, I'll change you and then we'll truly be able to start planning our very long future together."

  When I'd started to show signs of being triggered as the next Sire, I was completely skeptical. Actually...I was still pretty skeptical. I wasn't truly convinced that what was happening to me really meant I was the one, but in moments like these, I hoped it was true. Only a Sire had the ability to create another vampire, and the idea of being the one to turn Rose and to have her join me as my consort was euphoric.

  She smiled at me and then headed towards the bathroom. As I walked towards my closet I heard her ask, "Do you have any idea when you'll become the new Sire?"

  I was happy to hear the question because it meant she was thinking along the same lines as me. "I'm not sure. My abilities are increasing, but I think Evie wants to wait and see what other talents I develop before we do the Passing of Powers ritual. Honestly, I'm not even sure I'm really the one being triggered. It could all just be a big mistake." I didn't feel the need to hide my insecurities from Rose. We'd been through so much together, and I knew we'd face this together too.

  "What happens if it's not you?" she called back.

  After pulling on my jeans and slipping into a navy t-shirt, I shrugged. "I guess we just wait until someone else starts to show signs of being triggered."

  I heard the water for the shower turn on and then Rose said, "I'm gonna hit the shower, but when I'm done...there's something I want to talk to you about."

  I mulled over her words as I finished getting dressed, wondering what she could possibly want to talk to me about. I knew what I needed to tell her wasn't going to be easy for her to hear, but I thought it was something she needed to know. I hoped it would help her get some closure.

  I was a little nervous about how she would react to the fact that Evie had recently sent Renard and Loni to spy on her father. Especially since what they'd found would come as a pretty big shock. Jeremy, Rose's dad, had sold their family home and moved away. I knew it was going to be devastating for Rose to hear, but she had a right to know.

  After her attack on Meredith, Rose and I went into hiding here at The Rising Pit. A few weeks after the incident, however, Jeremy had come to the club looking for us. Evie turned him away, telling him she hadn't seen either of us since that night. He hadn't been back since.

  At the time Evie had suggested that one of us bite him and use our sedative to make him forget, but Rose panicked at the idea. She'd said no matter how bad the memories her father had of her were, she just couldn't live with the idea that he wouldn't remember her at all. Evie tried to convince her we could wipe just the memories of Meredith and the attack, but Rose was adamant. She insisted that he needed to remember those things so he would be more willing to let her go.

  Apparently her plan worked because he'd moved away completely, leaving the memories of what happened and any hopes of finding his daughter behind. I guess he realized his daughter was now a grown woman and there wasn't anything left for him to do but to move on.

  It was a hard situation for everyone, and this conversation wasn't one I was looking forward to.

  * * * * *

  (Rose)

  As I lathered my hair with my favorite honey and oat shampoo, I contemplated the best way to tell Christian that I wanted to go see my Dad. I knew he'd probably say no, that it was too risky, but honestly, I didn't care. It wasn't like he or any of his clan could stop me if I really wanted to go. I would just wait until they were all comatose during the day, and head out on my own.

  I wasn't sure what I would say to my dad or how I would breach the demon subject, but I had to try. I needed to know why no one ever came after me for killing Meredith. Not that I wasn't happy about the fact, just confused. I needed to know once and for all if I was going to have to stay hidden forever.

  I emerged from the bathroom in my terrycloth robe, towel drying my long blonde hair and found Christian pacing. "I've been thinking about it, and I want to go see my Dad." There. I'd said it. He stopped in his tracks and stared at me, then his hair and eyes started to drift.

  "Did you hear me? I said I want to go see my dad."

  "I heard you. But I have something I need to tell you."

  "I don't care if you think it's a bad idea. He's my dad, and it's been four months since everything happened. If the cops haven't showed up yet, then I doubt they will. I need to know what he told them and I need to know if he's okay." I stomped back into the bathroom, threw my wet towel over the shower door, and then took a seat and started doing my makeup.

  Christian entered the bathroom and stood behind me, placing his hands gently on my shoulders. I stopped applying my mascara and looked at him through our reflection in the mirror. "I didn't say it was a bad idea, but I have something to tell you which pertains to your dad that I think you need to hear first."

  I pushed out of the seat and spun around to balance myself on the edge of the dressing table. "What? What do you need to tell me about my dad?" My grip tightened on the table, turning my knuckles white.

  "Rose, your dad has moved. He sold the house and moved away."

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Ruse

  (Rose)

  It took me a moment to catch my breath. I'd heard what Christian said, but it just wasn't registering in my brain. There was no way my dad would have sold our home and moved away. I was born there, and every
memory of my childhood revolved around us and that house.

  "When? When did he move?" I couldn't get a grip on whether I was pissed or sad.

  "We're not sure. Evie sent Renard and Loni to check on him a few weeks ago and they found the house with a sold sign in the yard and no one there."

  I pushed off from my perch and began to walk out of the bathroom. Christian reached out to grab my arm but I quickly yanked it away. "Don't!" Guess that settled it...I was pissed.

  "How dare you keep this from me! You said that Evie sent them to check on him weeks ago and you just now decided to tell me?"

  "I was going to tell you, but Evie wanted to try to gather more information, like where he moved to." Christian rushed to explain as he followed me out into the bedroom. "Unfortunately, we haven't found any forwarding address. Renard reported yesterday that he thinks your dad still works for the same place, even though most of his office has been cleared out."

  I flopped down on the bed because I didn't trust my legs to keep me upright for much longer. As Christian continued speaking, I felt my head shaking no as if I was having an out of body experience. "If we could look around during the day it would be easier. We could use our sedative to force someone to tell us the information, but at night, running across someone who knew your dad has proven difficult." He knelt down in front of me and took my hands in his. "I'm sorry, Rose. I wasn't trying to keep it from you, I just wanted there to be more I could tell you when the time came."

  I sat in silence and stared into Christian's eyes. They were drifting from caramel to dark brown and back again, along with his hair. It was obvious this was truly upsetting to him as well.

  "I don't know what to say. I'm sad but also really mad. Can I just have some time alone?"

  "Sure. But Rose, please know that I'm so sorry. Sorry for not telling you before, and sorry it happened in the first place." He kissed my hands, placed them back in my lap, and then strolled out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

  I sat there stunned, thinking back to when my dad had come looking for me shortly after I'd gone into hiding. It'd made me feel good to know that after everything, he still wanted me in his life.

  At the time, Evie suggested that they bite him and make him forget everything, but I just couldn't allow that to happen. Not for the obvious reasons I gave them of course, but because if they bit him they'd become infected with his demon blood. Skating around that had been a little tricky, but I convinced them not to bite him, and instead just tell him that Christian and I hadn't been back to the bar since that night.

  It hurt to know my ruse had worked so well, and that my dad had really given up on me. I knew I had no right to feel hurt by his actions; in his eyes I was a murderer and a runaway. Why did I expect him to care? This was exactly what I hoped would happen. But at the time, I also thought I would soon be a vampire, and would need to cut all ties because of it. But instead, that dream had been shattered. My heart still hurt over losing my mom, and now being faced with having to live a mortal life without Christian or my father...I suddenly felt very alone.

  I curled up on the bed, drew the covers around me, and did the only thing I could do: cry myself back to sleep.

  * * * * *

  (Christian)

  As I walked down the white tiled hall of our secure lair, which was located deep beneath The Rising Pit, I realized I wasn't ready to face everyone just yet. Usually, once everyone awoke for the night, we'd all meet upstairs and head out together to feed before opening the club for business. But tonight...I just couldn't deal with everyone questioning my bad mood. I hadn't stopped drifting yet so they would immediately know something was wrong. Rose and I had been so happy since she moved in, and honestly, I was feeling a little embarrassed to admit to everyone that we seemed to be having our first real fight.

  So, instead of heading for the spiral staircase that led up and out into the club from underneath the stage, I took the turn at the end of the hall which led to the area where the blood bags were kept. I would have to make do with cold blood tonight if I wanted to avoid everyone for a little while longer.

  "Hey, what are you doing down here?" Bobby asked as I entered the room.

  So much for that plan. "Nothing. What are you doing here?"

  "It's my turn to give Terrance his pity meal." Evie had stocked the room with blood bags the night after Terrance had been chained up. Even though he had done some pretty bad things, she would never let him starve, so each night we took turns taking him his blood.

  I turned around and started to head back to my room, but felt Bobby follow me out the door. "So tell me. What are you doing down here? I can tell you're upset. Did Rose stop putting out?" He chuckled, which was normal for Bobby...make light of every situation.

  It didn't surprise me Bobby picked up on the fact that I was upset. He would have known even if I hadn't been drifting. Best friends always had a way of knowing when something was wrong, and Bobby and I had been best friends since the moment I'd saved him and asked that he be turned.

  It was 1613, and we were in England to attend the marriage festivities of Frederick V and Princess Elizabeth, which included performances of six of Shakespeare's plays. Bobby had been one of the actors.

  After one of the shows, the actors were drinking and apparently there had been a scuffle and Bobby ended up getting shot through the chest. I'd been out walking, looking for someone to feed on, when I'd smelled the blood. They had dumped his body in the river on the edge of the grounds. He was barely alive, but just enough that Evangeline was able to save him. We'd been best friends ever since.

  "I just told Rose about her dad moving and she didn't take it very well."

  I prepared myself for his snide comment, but for once it didn't come. Our footsteps echoed in the hall as we continued to walk in silence towards Terrance's cell.

  We didn't bother to stop for chit chat; Bobby just tossed the blood bag into Terrance's lap and kept walking, but then I heard something that stopped me dead in my tracks. "I swear I'm gonna kill that bitch."

  Thankfully, I could now tell the difference when my skills flared up, allowing me to hear someone's thoughts. Before I just thought they'd been whispering something under their breath, but this was definitely one of Terrance's thoughts, and if it was about Rose... "What did you just think? You swear you're gonna kill who? I promise you Terrance, if you are talking about Rose, I'll have Evie kill you tonight!"

  He sat there staring at me while the muscle in his jaw ticked at an annoying pace. "I wasn't thinking about Rose. I was thinking about Meredith. The demon bitch who did this to me."

  Bobby looked at me with a frown on his face, while I was stunned into silence. This shouldn't be possible. Meredith's blood had infected Terrance, causing all memories of her to become fuzzy, ultimately hiding her involvement, even to him. He'd never been able to think clearly about her before, and shouldn't be able to think about her now, let alone contemplate killing her. Something was happening to him.

  As I looked closer, I noticed his hair wasn't quite as dark and his eyes seemed slightly lighter too. My god, could he actually be drifting back? "Bobby, go get Evie. Now!"

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Possibility

  (Rose)

  I woke up in Christian's bed...our bed, and immediately wanted to be somewhere else. I was shocked at the intensity of my feelings. Being with Christian had been all I'd wanted for the past year, but now...I just felt so stifled. I knew it was stemming from finding out about Dad selling our family home, but learning that had apparently opened a floodgate of emotions which were now threatening to overwhelming me.

  Maybe I could find Dad and smooth things over with him so we could live together again. Or maybe Jillian and I could get that apartment together like she wanted. I just knew that since becoming a vampire was no longer an option, I needed to come up with new plan.

  I knew it was something that would take some time to figure out, and luckily time was on my s
ide. As Christian had pointed out, their clan was in transition. They currently didn't have a Sire who could change me, and right now, that was a very good thing.

  I knew Christian wasn't sure if he was truly the next in-line, but regardless of who the new Sire ended up being, it wouldn't matter. I'd never become a vampire and I wasn't sure how I was going to convince Christian to let me go without telling him the truth. But the fight we just had presented me with a pretty good opportunity.

  As much as it hurt me to do it, I would continue to act betrayed that he didn't tell me about my father sooner and slowly begin to pull away. But first, I had to find my dad. I needed to know if I was a wanted fugitive and how he really felt about everything that had happened. Maybe after leaving The Rising Pit I could move back in with him and things could go back to normal. The problem was, I now had no idea where to begin my search.

  My self-pity party continued as I got up to finish getting ready. I was just so mad, hurt, and confused. A year ago, I had a plan that would allow me to live forever with the man I loved–and now everything was ruined. I wallowed in everything I was feeling as I finished my makeup. Then I threw on a pair of jeans, a purple tank top, and slid into my flip-flops before flopping back down on the bed.

  I grabbed my new cell phone and prepared to call Jillian. It was a risk, but it also seemed like the most logical thing to do. My parents had been friends with her parents for so long, and I didn't think my Dad would have left town without telling them where he went.

  "Jillian? It's Rose. Please don't hang up." I was happy that she picked up at all since she wouldn't have recognized my new number. Christian had insisted I get a new phone when we'd gone into hiding.

  "Hang up? Are you fucking kidding me? I've been worried sick about you! Where the hell are you?"