Warriors Blue - XXL - Preview - Jeanette Peters (the reading list TXT) 📗

»You seem uneasy. There’s no need for that. We have no intention of harming you. Your daughter is well, too«, the vampire who seemed to feel her stress promised. They walked towards the huge villa, the back of which was directly adjacent to the beach. The wall of the house was painted white and blue shutters hung on each window. How many times had she dreamed of raising Penelope in an area like this? But these were just dreams. Unreachable.

»Please come in«, the vampire asked her and Theresa noticed that she had stopped to admire the house. Nervously, she took the last few steps separating her from the front door and then entered the large entry hall of the house.

»Where ...?«, Theresa started, but immediately fell silent again. Could she dare just ask about Penelope?

»Your daughter’s asleep right now. She’s obviously not used to being awake at this hour«, the vampire explained. »Follow me, please.«

She left without assuring herself Theresa was following her. She didn’t think of resisting the vampire’s request anyway. After all, this was all about Penelope’s safety.

They entered the room that could have been described as a huge living room. The whole room seemed to serve only to accommodate a seating group. Nothing else. Walls and floor were covered with light wood and the ceiling was decorated with elaborate stucco. The furniture seemed heavy, yet inviting.

»Have a seat«, the vampire told her. »Do you want a drink while we wait for the others?«

»The others?« Theresa looked up in shock. Being around one vampire made her uncomfortable. And now there should be more?

»My brothers and sisters«, the vampire explained reassuringly while pointing at an armchair. »Please sit down. I promised you that nothing would happen to you. So why are you so scared?«
»My daughter ...« Theresa’s voice broke off and tears came to her eyes.

»Your daughter is well and you will be able to take her back with you. We only have some questions«, the vampire explained.

»Really? I can take her?« Relief flooded Theresa. They wouldn’t take away her Penelope.

»Of course. She’s your daughter, isn’t she? What happened was our fault, not yours.«

»I still don’t understand how everything got this far«, Theresa confessed. Now that she knew they wouldn’t take Penelope away, she felt much more relaxed. Maybe the vampires weren’t as bad as it was told.

»This is something we want to find out. That’s why we want to talk to you«, the vampire explained. »But I forget the rules of courtesy. First of all, I think I should introduce myself. My name is Sara. I live here with my family.«

»It... it’s a pleasure to meet you, Lady Sara«, Theresa stuttered. She was familiar with the rules of dealing with vampires. Every mortal was. »Well, I doubt that under the circumstances, Theresa«, Sara replied. Before Theresa could respond, the door opened and more vampires entered. Tense and as unobtrusive as possible, Theresa looked at her. She always thought the vampires were threatening. But they did not. One vampire had his short, blond hair lying around his head in wild strands and his gaze seemed amused. He was wearing tight jeans and a checkered shirt.

Sara walked up to him. »This is my brother Clay«, she introduced him. Then she pointed to the vampire woman standing right next to him. »Violet, our little sister. She beats a little out of line, but we love her anyway.«

Violet hissed at Sara and then grinned. She was much smaller than the other vampires and could not have been older than fifteen when she died. Her hair had a strange color. It looked like the failed attempt to dye it.

»This is Marius. His transformation wasn’t long ago and he just recently joined our clan«, Sara continued. Theresa wondered why she was introduced to all the vampires in the house. Marius was more like the kind of vampire Theresa was afraid of. He was completely dressed in black and looked daringly at her. There was no emotion to suggest that he was alive. If she hadn’t known better, she would have sworn to see a sculpture there.

»And lastly, my cousin Jonathan. He’s usually a little stubborn.« Sara and Jonathan looked at each other with love. Theresa could see how close they were.

Jonathan seemed least of all present as a vampire. He was wearing jeans, just like Clay. But instead of a shirt he wore a sweatshirt. His brown hair was a little longer than Clay’s, but his eyes seemed more closed. He seemed thoughtful and a little melancholic to her.

Theresa managed a formal greeting and then waited for what happened.

Sara felt how stressed her guest still was. The mortal was obviously not used to dealing with vampires. However, she made an effort.

Most of the tension had gone away when Sara told her that she could take her daughter with her. Sara made only limited accusations about it. But maybe it would have been better to let her know it sooner.

After introducing them all, they sat down. Each of them had a preferred place. The armchair on which Theresa was now sitting was usually intended for visitors. Violet completely ignored the living-room landscape and took a seat on the windowsill instead. She loved to look out the window. Jonathan sat down in the outermost chair. Sara knew why he kept choosing that spot. From there he could observe the whole room. Clay took up the huge couch and Sara sat down there, too. Marius, on the other hand, seemed not to have found his place yet. But he, too, developed certain preferences over the years.

» Relax, Theresa. Your daughter’s asleep, as I said. We only have a few questions«, Sara explained to her again. Theresa nodded strained and waited in silence. Sara gave Jonathan a meaningful look. It had been his wish to talk to the mother, so now he should also ask the questions that occupied him.

Jonathan understood the hint and bent forward with interest as he now closely examined the human. »Why did your daughter want to sell her sister to us«, he asked without hesitation and they all saw the mortals flinch.

»It’s my fault«, Theresa whispered. »I should have seen it coming.«

»What do you mean?«, Jonathan hooked and frowned.

»Miranda, my older daughter ... she’s a drug addict. I can’t even blame her, because I was once myself a long time ago«, Theresa confessed. Sara could see how hard she had to admit that. » I was, until seven years ago. So Miranda has heard a lot of it, she’s practically been exemplified by me. So it’s my fault.«

»You’ve been clean for seven years?« Jonathan suddenly seemed not only busy, but seriously interested. Theresa nodded. »Penelope’s father, he was also from the scene. I loved him very much. Then he died of an overdose. That was when I realized that the drugs would kill me sooner or later. I wanted to get clean, but I couldn’t. Not until I realized I was pregnant. That was the trigger to go to one of the drug centers to get help. I haven’t touched the stuff since. It didn’t seem fair to me. After all, they gave me Penelope to give me a chance to make things better.« Theresa herself seemed surprised to talk so frankly about her past. Sara took a side look at her twin brother. His self-satisfied expression clearly indicated who was responsible for the openness of the woman.

»And your daughter? Your older daughter, I mean.«

»Miranda? She was actually always a very sweet child. Only after Penelope was born did she change. She probably felt neglected. That was my fault for giving all my love and time to Penelope. She was my hope, after all. Miranda was on the road a lot anyway and, to be honest, I didn’t care where she was either. At that time she made her first experiences with drugs, but I didn’t know that. And this with my old ...« Theresa stopped and frowned. »...friends. They introduced Miranda to the drugs and gave her the attention that she wanted from me. By the time I realized it, it was already too late. Miranda cared more about drugs than my affection. She stayed away for nights and only came home to steal money from me or take something she could sell. I tried everything, but nothing helped. At some point, I gave her a choice: Either she’d get help or she couldn’t come back.«

»And she never came back?«, Jonathan suspected, and his voice now had a soft undertone. Sara knew it didn’t really touch him. Too many stories of this kind had already been heard. Many of the children who lived with them had experienced similar experiences. Theresa shook her head. »No. She just disappeared and never came back. From time to time I heard from the people she spent time with how she was doing. Until six months ago, anyway.«

»What happened there?«

»She must have tried a new drug. Suddenly her old friends weren’t good enough for her. I guess she wanted more.«

»SinTex«, Jonathan assumed and looked disgusted.

»I didn’t know about it then. But yes. A few weeks ago someone told me that he saw her with some people who are known in his circles to deal with SinTex. But what must have confused him very much was that Miranda didn’t look like a buyer. He suspected she was going to deal now. But not in some shabby alley. She must have pulled the big boys ashore.«

»And that’s for sure?« Jonathan’s body tensed up. Sara knew SinTex had been causing him headaches for a while now.

»No. Nothing is for sure. Miranda has built herself a whole new life in which I no longer play a role. And so far I didn’t think Penelope would play a role either. I never thought she could ...«, the mortal stagnated and sobbed.

»She might want to contact your younger daughter to sell her to us«, Clay finished the sentence for her. Theresa nodded and sobbed again.

»That throws a completely different light on the whole situation«, Jonathan muttered. He spoke softly so that the mortal could not hear him. Sara wondered what was going on in her cousin. He looked at Theresa. »Why is your daughter all alone at night?«

» She isn’t!«, Theresa replied sharply, bleaching out right after. »I mean, she’s never alone. I... nobody wants to hire me because of my former drug addiction. The only job I could find was in a run-down bar on the night shift. But our neighbor usually looks after Penelope when I’m at work at night.«

»Tonight too?«

»Yeah. I don’t know what Miranda told her to leave her alone with Penelope. Probably should have told Gwen about Miranda. and I didn’t want to risk being despised for my former behavior.«

»And this job?«

Sara frowned as she looked at Jonathan. What was he getting at?

»I don’t have it anymore«, Theresa whispered and a bitter undertone lay in her voice. »I’ve only worked there a few weeks. My boss wouldn’t let me go today. But I had to go! So I quit.«

Jonathan nodded and now Sara felt real compassion for the mortals for the first time. They had met many mothers over the years who didn’t care about their children. They had forgotten that