Vampire in Denial Read Online Free Page A

"Did they know you were a vampire?"
     
    Thinking back, Tessa couldn't remember the details of her actions. She thought she might have bared her fangs, but her attackers might not have noticed. "Maybe." She explained what had happened at the end. Before she finished speaking her mother rushed over to check her head injury. She'd forgotten that she'd been hurt. Her brothers' faces darkened with fury.
     
    "Forget about me. I'm not the problem here. They took Jared," Tessa cried out.
     
    "Jared. Who's Jared?" Her mother fussed over Tessa's head as if she'd taken a fatal blow, which being part vampire, obviously wasn't likely. Brushing her mother's hands away, Tessa said, "He's one of the people I went to the movie with."
     
    "I thought you went with Catherine?" her father questioned, confusion wrinkling his face.
     
    Frustrated at her family's inability to stay on topic, she snapped, "I did, but Jared was there – Billy and Zack, too."
     
    "Okay, okay. Your father didn't mean to upset you, dear." Her mother's gentle voice barely penetrated the noise the rest of her family made as they discussed the concept of vampires attacking humans.
     
    "Mom, I'm upset because Jared was kidnapped," she yelled into the melee, finally silencing her father and brothers. "Does no one understand me? My friend's been kidnapped."
     
    "Seth, contact the Council. I need to meet with them now ." Her father spun around to look her in the eye. "Tell me. Did you recognize anyone?"
     
    She shook her head vehemently. "No. It all happened so fast. Once I regained consciousness––"
     
    "What?" he roared. "They knocked you out?" Her father's jaw squared and the look in his eyes promised someone would pay. Good. Her father was one of the oldest of the vampire clan. He didn't forgive or forget easily.
     
    "Just briefly. When I came to, everyone had left."
     
    Seth, being the smart-aleck brother he was, asked, "Then how do you know your friend was kidnapped. Maybe, he just went home?"
     
    Shaking her head, Tessa knew in her heart Jared would never do that. "I'm sure he wouldn't have left me lying on the ground alone like that. He'd have called for help, at the very least."
     
    "I'm sure he would have, honey. You've always been a good judge of character," her mother said.
     
    "True. Except humans are afraid of us, and if your friend had never seen one of us in action before…" Seth shrugged. "Just saying."
     
    "Don't bother saying," snapped Tessa. All of a sudden her stomach felt a little queasy. "Ooops." She raced to the bathroom, her mother following behind her. At the toilet, she dropped to her knees and bent her head over the bowl. "I think I'm going to be sick."
     
    And she was. Crap, what a horrible feeling, not to mention embarrassing. Was her mother digging into her hair again? She slapped her hands away. "Mom, I'm fine."
     
    "No, you're not. Head wounds can be tricky. Nausea and throwing up are early signs of a concussion and other more dire conditions." Her mother handed her a wet washcloth. "Here. Wipe your face."
     
    Tessa sighed and did as ordered. Once a mom, always a mom. Cool water slipped over her sweaty skin and eased the tension in her taunt muscles. Everything ached, and not just from the blow to her head.
     
    "By the way, you really should know by now, that those head injury symptoms really don't apply to vampires," Tessa said and grinned up at her model-perfect mother. What a trial to grow up under the umbrella of a smart beautiful woman who was also stunningly graceful. "You're a great mom, you know that?"
     
    Her mother's face split into a beautiful smile and her eyes lost their worried look, warming with love. "Thank you. You're a great daughter, too, you know?"
     
    "Even though I'm a throwback?"
     
    Her mother frowned. "Don't you ever say that. For all I know you could be the wave of the future."
     
    Tessa tossed her a disbelieving look. "Oh sure. Like I'm going to believe that. I'm defective, Mom. Let's be