Call of the Vampire by Gayla Twist Read Free Book Online

to her?” I asked. “What happened to Colette?”
    He closed his eyes to suppress some deep-seated grief, a wound that had never closed. “She was human,” he said. “She died.”
    “Oh.” I felt foolish for asking him such stupid questions. He was in pain, and I was making it worse.
    “I need to talk to you about when you leave here,” he said, his face very earnest. “You can’t tell anyone about what you saw tonight or who we are. You can’t share any of it.”
    “You can trust me,” I assured him. No one would believe me anyway. “But Blossom might say something.”
    “No.” He shook his head. “She’s been asleep the entire time. The most she’ll remember is the party.”
    “What happens if people find out?” I asked. “About you and your family being... you know...”
    “That can’t happen,” he said gravely. “No one must know. It would be very unhealthy for Tiburon, and I don’t want anything bad to happen. It’s best if you say nothing.”
    “Unhealthy?”
    “Colette, please,” he said, reaching through the bars to grab my hand. “I want to protect you. Daniel has agreed to let me handle this, but if word got out, I don’t think I could stop him from causing trouble. Do you understand how important it is for you to keep our existence a secret?”
    “Yes,” I whispered. The mere touch of his hand in mine filled me with such yearning, I would have promised him anything. It was almost enough to make me forget that he had called me by another girl’s name.
    “It’s getting late; I have to go,” he said, standing up and releasing my hand.
    “Now?” I asked, feeling like something had wrenched at my heart. “It’ll be hours until dawn.”
    “It’s best that I go now.”
    I nodded, not trusting my voice, my disappointment was so intense.
    “You must leave as soon as it’s light. Do not go out through the house. It would be best if the servants didn’t see you leaving. There’s a hidden passage beneath the steps, the ones that lead up to the castle. Look for the stone that is a little lighter than the rest and press it. You must press very hard. You’ll see an opening that will take you down to the water. You can make your way along the river from there.”
    “I’m not sure I can carry Blossom,” I said. She was still out cold, and her body being limp would make her extra heavy.
    “I’ll try to send a servant down to help you, but I can’t promise. His name is Viggo. You can trust him as you would trust me.”
    He reached through the bars for my hand and lifted it to his lips. The brief contact of his mouth against my flesh gave me more pleasure than I had ever experienced from the kiss of any boy. He released my hand, and I felt the loss acutely. I did my best to suppress a wave of panic. “When can I see you again?” I blurted.
    “Never,” he said, shaking his head. “I’d be no good for you. I’m no good for anyone.”
    I don’t know how long I just sat there after he left. It felt like my brain was full of molasses. I couldn’t process everything that had happened in the last few hours. I hugged his tux jacket around me and then realized I was wearing his coat. With greedy fingers, I searched the pockets for little clues to his life. I found a crisp linen handkerchief with the initials JAV embroidered in the corner in an ornate script.
    Next, I found his pocket watch. It had no chain and wasn’t an expensive gold piece like I had first assumed. Up close, I saw that it was only gold plate, and most of that had been worn away in spots. I popped it open, like I had seen him do. It was ten minutes after five. There was maybe another hour and a half until dawn, two hours tops. On the inside of the cover was an inscription. I squinted in the dim light of the dungeon to make it out:
     
    Our love is timeless.
     
    All of my heart,
    Lettie
     
    That’s when my hands began to tremble.
     

Chapter 7
    When the watch read a quarter to seven, I began trying to wake