Read Murder in Vein (2010) for Free Online Page A

forward. Her husband reached out and put a
warning hand on her arm, keeping her from approaching further.
"She's not for you, Samuel," Dodie told the vampire in the chair.
Her voice, though firm, was respectful.
    Samuel La Croix turned toward the Dedhams and smiled. His
smile was wide, his teeth stark and gleaming against his mahogany skin. He stood, stretched his limbs with the ease of a jungle
cat, and approached the bed. With a soft touch, he ran two fingers across Madison's cheek. She didn't stir.
    "Given her something, have you?" he asked Dodie. "Making
sure she slept while you two went out tonight?"
    "She was still in pain from last night," Dodie explained.
    Samuel laughed under his breath and picked up Madison's
limp left hand, turning the palm toward him. He studied it, running a finger across the lifeline. "She's not one of us," he observed.
    Doug stepped forward. "No, Samuel, she's not."
    "Interesting" He paused and turned toward the Dedhams.
"Haven't most of the victims been marked?"
    "Yes," Doug answered. "At least we think most, if not all, had
bloodlines. But Madison doesn't. Rather shoots our original
theory in the foot."
    Samuel placed Madison's hand gently back on the bed and
once again studied the sleeping woman. After a moment, he
moved toward Doug and Dodie in a long stride of authority.
    Placing a hand under Dodie's chin, Samuel raised her face
to meet his. Nearby, Doug tensed. Samuel was much taller than
Dodie but not nearly as tall as Doug. His head was bald, his jaw strong, his brow thick and serious. A pale scar raised against
his dark skin like a thin, curved levee and traveled down from
behind one ear, disappearing into the collar of his shirt.

    "I've always admired your courage, Dodie, and your concern for your inferiors." Samuel's voice was even, spiced with
an accent of far-off places and centuries of travel. He took off
his sunglasses, revealing two large milky eyes, which he fixed on
Dodie. "But if I want the girl, she will be mine."
    Samuel replaced his glasses and took one last look down
at Madison. "Now let's leave this sleeping beauty and go back
downstairs. We have a lot to discuss before sunrise."

     

SIX

    hen Madison opened her eyes, she again saw the sliver of
light from across the room. She stretched in the big bed,
smelled the familiar wisp of lavender, and glanced at the
clock on the nightstand-8:55 in the morning. Thanks to the
heavy lined drapes, the bedroom was still cloaked in inky blackness.
    When she'd gone to bed, it had been around eleven. She'd
taken another pain pill-only a half dosage, though the fuzzy
feeling in her head made her wonder if it had been more than
half. When Dodie had offered her the medication, Madison had
hesitated, but her body still ached from her assault by Bobby
Piper. She also decided that just in case the Dedhams were of a
blood-sucking mind, she didn't want to be awake if and when
they came after her. She wanted to trust them, and they were trying hard to win her over, but even with the vampire thing aside,
Madison wasn't used to trusting people, dead or living.
    After a trip to the bathroom, Madison opened the drapes.
She had no idea where she was, and in the shock of discovering the truth about her hosts, she'd forgotten to ask. The view outside her window showed the house was located in a woodsy area
surrounded by uneven ground, as if on a hillside. Just beyond
the trees at the end of the driveway, she caught sight of a road.
Beyond that, she could make out the roof of another house. As
she studied the view, a car went by on the road. The other building and the car soothed her. Wherever she was, it wasn't in the
middle of nowhere, as she had suspected.

    Madison stretched in the sunlight, going through moves she'd
learned in a yoga class. Ignoring the protests of her bruises, she
enjoyed the feel of her body. No matter what was ahead, for now
she was alive. She'd decided to approach her time with the