Darlings of Darkness: A Vampire Anthology Part 105

Before my mother or I could get in a word, Nathan spoke up in a surprisingly deeper voice. "Thanks for the info. Maybe we'll run into each other sometime."

"Maybe. It was really nice meeting you," she replied, clearly directing it towards Nathan, who looked like he'd all but forgotten about Deanna. Then she sashayed into the store like a runway model while we all stared.

"Wow," I smirked, turning towards my brother. "You can reel your tongue back in now."

"What do you mean?"

I snorted. "Oh, come on, Nathan."

He smiled innocently. "There's nothing wrong with being friendly to strangers, especially when they look like that."

"I think the feeling was mutual," replied mom, looking at me. "That smile she gave him was enough to light up the entire town."

"How can she resist?" he said c.o.c.kily. "Heck, I'll bet that I'm the best thing that's ever walked into this town."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, Lord. Here we go."

He flexed left arm muscle. "Oh, come on, you know I'm right."

"I certainly do," said mom, leaning over to kiss his cheek.

"Yeah, and mom's biased," I replied. "Don't let it go to your head."

He ignored me and started packing more groceries into the back of his trunk. "Let's get the rest of this stuff loaded quickly," he said, glancing up towards the sky, which was growing darker. "I'm starving and it's getting late."

"Me too," I replied, handing him another bag of groceries.

When we had everything in the trunk, Mom gave Nathan the directions to the cabin, which was a few miles past town, and this time, he led the way.

"Finally," I said, putting on my seatbelt as she pulled out of the parking lot. "I just want to get there already."

"Won't be long now."

Darkness came very quickly, and in a small town without many lights along the roads, it was a little creepy.

"It's a b.i.t.c.h driving when you don't know exactly where you're going in the dark," said mom, frowning. "I think the turnoff is coming up in another few miles or so. I hope Nathan catches it in time and doesn't overshoot it."

"Knowing him, he probably will," I answered with a smirk, "especially, if he's on the phone with Deanna again."

"He seemed to forget about her when that redhead made an appearance."

"Thank G.o.d, although, she's probably worse than Deanna."

"Let's hope not."

I stared at her in shock. "See, you weren't crazy about her either!"

She turned down the radio. "Are you kidding me?" she groaned, scowling into the rearview mirror.

I turned to see the flashing lights from a police car. "What, were you speeding or something?"

She pulled over to the side of the road. "No, you know me, I never speed."

It was true, my mother was an annoyingly slow driver and Nathan was always giving her c.r.a.p about it. Even grandmothers pa.s.sed her on the roadway.

Mom rolled down the window as the police officer approached her. She immediately handed him her driver's license and insurance information. "I'm sorry, officer... was I speeding?"

My brother had noticed the cop, too, and pulled over ahead of us, waiting. He'd sent me a text message, wondering what was happening. I'd sent him one back, explaining that I wasn't really sure, yet.

"No, but you do have a taillight out," he replied with an easy smile.

My eyes widened as I stared at his mouth. What's with this town and their unnaturally white teeth?

"Oh, no, really?" she answered, biting her lower lip. "Oh, man, I'm sorry. It must have just went out."

"Yes. Anne Gerard... you must be new in town?" he asked, studying her license.

She smiled. "We are, in fact," she pointed towards me, "this is my daughter, Nikki, and that's my son, Nathan, ahead of us in the Mustang."

He glanced down at her left hand, which no longer had a wedding ring, and his smile broadened.

"Ladies, I'm Sherriff Caleb Smith. Welcome to Sh.o.r.e Lake," he answered, giving her back her license.

Was it me or did he actually puff out his chest a little before he leaned back down and handed it back?

"Thank you," answered my mom with a silly grin on her face. She definitely noticed the puff.

"Since you have such a lovely smile and you're new in town, I'm just going to give you a warning. Make sure that you take care of it as soon as you can, though. Next time I might not be so easy on you."

Mom smiled wider than ever. "I will, thank you, officer."

He tipped his hat. "My friends call me Caleb. Drive safely now."

"Wow," said mom after she'd rolled up her window. "Did you see that man's eyes? They were an amazing shade of violet. I don't think I've ever seen anyone with that color of eyes. No wedding ring, either."

I stared at her in disbelief. "Oh, my G.o.d mom, we just got into town!"

"Yeah, but I agree with Nathan that there's nothing wrong with making new friends; especially friends who are in law enforcement," she replied with a straight face.

"Well, I guess," I answered, staring into the darkness. Obviously, she was beginning to get a handle on her fears and I should have been relieved, but instead, it only made me... uneasy.

Chapter Two.

When we finally made it to the cabin, my jaw literally dropped.

"What do you think?" asked mom as she parked the car next to Nathan's.

"Wow. It's amazing," I replied, opening the car door. "Are you sure this is the right place?"

"It is. I saw pictures but wanted to surprise you," she said, getting out of the car.

This was no average lakeside cabin; it looked like something you'd see on a "Top Ten List" of some luxurious getaways.

"This must be worth millions. I can't believe we're staying here," I said, unable to wipe the grin from my face. I felt like someone had just shouted "Move that bus!" and we were looking at our new dream home.

"Yes, it's quite extraordinary," she said, staring up at the cabin. "I'm still in shock that we get to stay here, too. Ernie is a lifesaver."

"He's more like Santa Claus," I replied, feeling giddy. I couldn't wait to check out the inside. It was possible that Sh.o.r.e Lake wasn't going to suck quite as much as I thought.

She reached back into the car and pulled out her cell phone. "I'd better call him once we've unpacked the groceries. Let him know we've made it and how thrilled we are." Her eyes became misty. "You know, I just can't thank him enough for everything he's done."

I agreed with her there. This place was beyond words. Heck, everything about it screamed money, too, from the expensive cedar wood frame to the thick-plated enormous gla.s.s windows; it reminded me of a mountainside chateau in Europe.

"Impressive, huh?" she said.

"Yeah."

Especially with its two-tiered deck that someone had built on north side of the cabin, and a ma.s.sive porch that wrapped around the entire main floor. There was even a gazebo with a hot tub next to a courtyard which contained a large grill and several pieces of outdoor furniture for entertaining. Unfortunately, we had n.o.body to entertain.

"Wow," said Nathan as he got out of the car and walked over to us. He was also staring in amazement at the cabin. "How in the world did you score such an awesome place?"

Mom smiled. "Ernie."

"Look, there's the boathouse." I pointed down towards the lake. Even that place looked like it was larger than some of the homes in our old neighborhood.

"Cool," said Nathan, nodding in approval. "I hope the weather is nice tomorrow, so that we can take the boat out," he started walking towards the dock. "I wonder what kind of boat they have?"

"Check later," said mom, grabbing her purse. "We need to get this stuff inside."

He sighed and turned around. "Okay. It's probably too dark to see anything now anyway."

She took the keys out of her purse and began walking towards the cabin. "You know, I'm really surprised that there isn't some kind of alarm on the cabin. I mean, this place is vacant most of the time." She sighed. "I hope when we get inside, nothing is missing."

"Everyone must trust each other in these parts," I said, following her up the steps to the front door.

"Apparently," she answered, putting the key into the lock. When we stepped inside, she flipped on the lights and my breath caught in my throat.

"Wow..." said Nathan. "This place is... tight."

"It's amazing," she said, taking a step back. "I'm just, speechless."

"Can we step inside of the doorway, people?" I said, swatting at a mosquito. "Before the bugs enter before we do?"

"Oh, sorry," she chuckled.

We entered what had to be called the "great room." It was enormous and had a large soapstone fireplace with a bearskin rug lying near it, which was kind of hokey to me but it certainly added to the affect. Plush burgundy colored leather furniture with hand-carved wooden end tables sat across from the fireplace, and I imagined myself in the chair-and-a-half, reading a book next to a crackling fire.

"Wow, I just love those light fixtures," gushed mom, staring at the dozens of rustic chandeliers that made the place glow with warmth. She walked over to a row of intricately carved shelves and touched the amber colored wood. "And all of this lovely hand-carved woodwork, the leather furniture, and... oh G.o.d, what isn't there to love about this place? Next time I see Ernie, I'm going to plant a huge kiss on his little bald head."

"You should," said Nathan. He raised his voice a few octaves and put a hand on his hip. "And give him a big sloppy one from me, too."

"Oh, so you're finally warming up to us being here?" she asked.

He grinned. "Mom, seriously, if you're happy, then I'm happy."

She walked over to Nathan and threw her arms around him. "I swear, I have the two best kids in the world."

"Love you, too, mom," he answered, patting her gently on the back. "And don't worry, everything will work out. Even... even with Deanna. Seriously."

"Good, I'm glad you feel that way," she replied, releasing him. "I just want everything to work out for you and your sister."

"Don't worry. I'm sure it will," he replied.

"Guys, I'm going to check out the upstairs," I said, climbing the staircase, two steps at a time. I could barely contain my excitement now that I knew we were actually staying at such a glamorous place.

"Pick out a bedroom!" she called as I made it to the top of the stairs. "I don't care which; I hear they're all pretty nice."

"Will do!" I hollered back.

There were several bedrooms on the upper level, all s.p.a.cious and each having their own bathroom. I chose one with a queen-sized pillow-top bed and a small balcony with an awesome view of the lake.

"So, what do you think?" asked my mom from the doorway, a few minutes later.

"Oh, my G.o.d, I love it!" I squealed. "I feel like we're on vacation somewhere. I wish we could stay here forever."

"I know, it's pretty breathtaking. I don't know about this one, but my bedroom has its own Jacuzzi and a closet so big, I could park the car in it. I'm going to check out yours."

While she did that, I walked over to the balcony door and opened it, enjoying the cool air on my cheek. It was dark outside, but the reflection of the moon on the water made the lake seem so peaceful. I imagined myself lying on some kind of canoe or boat, staring up at the moon with the waves rocking me to sleep. "I just can't believe this place. If we're dreaming, I never want to wake up."

She stepped next to me and linked her arm through mine. "Don't worry, it's real."

My stomach began to growl and I patted it. "I don't know about you, but I'm starving."

"Yeah, I'm getting there myself. Let's go see if Nathan did what I asked and brought the groceries inside. I'll make us something to eat."

"Okay."

We went back downstairs and I helped mom put the rest of the groceries away in the fridge, which actually looked like the wooden cupboards surrounding it.

She took out a frying pan from one of the boxes in the kitchen and smiled. "Who wants homemade sliders? It might be ghetto here, but I'm not about to give those up."