I am Jade Page 2

  When he struggled beneath me, I knocked him back down – hard. His breath left in a gush.

  Something told me Carlisle Cross was a lover, not a fighter.

  I think he realized that I was much stronger than he anticipated.

  “I don’t think you want to piss me off. It’s been kind of a rough night,” I said.

  “You don’t say.” He grunted.

  “Truth or dare?” I asked.

  “What?”

  “Truth…or…dare?” I asked again slowly.

  “Look, I don’t know what sick fucking game you’re playing, but I’m not into it.”

  “You’re pretty brave to test me,” I said touching the gun to his cheek.

  His heart pulsated against my palm.

  “Truth. Three girls have gone missing, all in the same week, all last seen with you. Yes?”

  He didn’t answer. I elbowed him in the ribs and he cried out.

  “Yes?” I asked again.

  “Yes, yes…” He admitted quickly.

  “Now.” I took off the safety on the gun. “I dare you to deny knowing where they are.”

  His eyes grew impossibly large. “Wait…wait…” He studied my face and then recognition sparked in his eyes. “Hey, I know you. You’re the lady from the paper. You’re that 3D chick. That’s it!” He grinned. “You work with the cops. You can’t shoot me.” He stated matter-of-fact.

  “Oh, can’t I?” I taunted. “Are you sure?”

  He didn’t answer.

  He had me though. I couldn’t shoot him.

  I pulled up my gun and clicked the safety back on.

  “You’re right.” I pouted, putting my gun back in my waistband. “I can’t shoot you. But if you read the paper, then you know what I am, don’t you?” I smiled through my red lips.

  “A freak?” He solicited.

  “Maybe.” I laughed dryly. “But a freak that can choose to be predator or prey. Guess which one I chose to be tonight?” I whispered.

  The power I contained inside me slowly crawled into him like rushing spiders and invaded his perverted mind like a parasite.

  He screamed and begged me to stop. I knew his head was feeling like it would explode. I let that ride out before I attacked him with the crippling fear I’ve harbored from previous kidnapped victims.

  When I had enough fun, I picked his mind for the information I wanted. I saw him chat with these young ladies online and over the phone. I watched him charm them one by one and make false promises to each of them, but when I was about to extract the information I needed, something or someone cast me out.

  My head felt like it had been split open.

  Breathless, I tried to stand as police swarmed the room.

  Faust made his way to me but didn’t dare touch me. He knew better. I didn’t like to be touched.

  “Jade?” he said my name carefully as though he was unsure if it’s me or not.

  “What?” My hoarse voice sounded strange to me.

  “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine,” I said after a breath. “Where is Cross?”

  “He was handcuffed and taken out already,” Faust said putting his gun back in his shoulder holster.

  “Give me a few minutes, and then we can go and interview him.” I wobbled to my feet.

  “We?”

  I nodded.

  “Yes, we. Did you think I’d do all the work and let you have all the fun?” I asked, finally feeling stable enough on my own feet.

  He managed a dry smile. “Jade, are you sure?”

  “I’m fine, Jake.” I assured. “Besides, you asked me for help, remember?”

  “Okay. I’ll meet you outside,” he said before he exited the bathroom with a uniformed officer.

  I began to walk around the restroom taking in deep breaths and trying to regain my composure. Something felt off.

  Wrong.

  But I couldn’t put my finger on it. What or who could possibly cast me out like that? It had never happened to me before.

  I then caught a glimpse of myself in the shattered mirror. My brown eyes looked larger, and my usually olive skin was dull and pasty. My mahogany brown hair had come loose from its bun, so I unraveled it and let the tresses fall to the middle of my back.

  I saw the lights in the hallway flicker, and the feeling in my gut told me something was wrong. I instinctively took out my gun and began to exit the bathroom.

  The moment I stepped into the darkness, someone crashed into me so hard that my teeth rattled and my lungs forgot how to breathe.

  After cracking my head on the wall that I was violently slammed against, my vision became blurry. I then felt myself being raised off the ground to a nauseating level. It took me a moment to regain my vision, but when I did, I was gazing into a pair of soulless black eyes.

  I could smell something metallic on his breath and instantly thought of blood. Vampire. Ever since a shapeshifter accidentally shifted on national TV during a live interview, the monsters have publically come out to play.

  I tried using my power to incapacitate him, but he was unfazed.

  He tightened his long fingers around my throat. “That won’t work on me, girl.” His face neared mine, and he took in a deep breath. His eyes widened, and his thin lips curled into a smile. “You are Lucian’s pup.” He laughed.

  Pup?

  “You know…m-my…fa-ther…” I croaked.

  He loosened his grip and came closer to my face. “Indeed, I do.” He took in another deep, deliberate breath. “You’re a virgin.” He laughed again and the sound was childlike. “How delicious.”

  I wrapped both of my hands around his and tried to push him away.

  He glowered. “Do not fight me, girl. I am not the one you should fear. Do you have any idea how long they’ve been looking for you?”

  “Who? And how do you know my father.”

  “My dear, I—”

  Two shots rang out behind us, and he immediately dropped me.

  We both fell to the floor.

  I coughed so hard that my stomach threatened to spill out. My throat burned and the fragile bones there protested my violent attempt to regain my breath. When I finally gazed up, an officer wearing a dark gray uniform was standing a few feet away with a gun pointed in my direction.

  Anger flared through me, I stomped toward him and shoved both fists into his chest. He had about a foot and a half on me, but I didn’t care.

  “What the fuck?” I growled. “Who told you to shoot?”

  Intense green eyes gazed down at me with a spark of amusement. His mouth turned upward into a smile as he put up his gun.

  “Are you mute?” I asked through gritted teeth.

  He crossed his arms over his chest. His deliberate silence inched his way onto my last flickering nerve.

  “You got a name?” I fumed.

  He mocked me with a grin and finally spoke in a silky voice. “Yeah, I got a name.”

  “Is it Dick?” I snapped.

  His smile widened, and he neared my face.

  I held my breath as his mouth hovered over mine.

  I could taste the mint on his breath.

  “Wouldn’t you like to know, princess?” He winked and then turned on his heel and left.

  When I turned around to look back at the man he had shot, the spot was empty.

  Chapter Three

  Twenty questions…or less

  In the stifling, gray interrogation room, Faust and I sat across from our suspect while he puffed on a cigarette and sipped coffee from a paper cup. Faust wanted to handle it traditionally before allowing me full access into his head again. I agreed to play nice.

  “So, how did you get involved in all this?” Faust asked him.

  After a long pull of his cigarette, Cross answered with smoke coming out of his mouth and nostrils. “Okay, so last month a guy – a vampire, I think – comes in and asks me if I want to make some serious money right?” He leaned his elbows on the table. “He gave me a wad of cash and s
aid it was half now and half when the job was done.”

  “And the job was to kidnap the girls?” I asked.

  He nodded. “Technically.”

  “What’s so technical about it?” I pushed.

  “Well, I didn’t actually commit the kidnapping. I found these girls, reached out to them through social media and charmed them until they agreed to meet me.”

  “You did this all in one night?” Faust asked.

  “Nah, man, even I’m not that good.”

  “Go on.” Faust urged then took a sip of his coffee.

  “It took months of prep work. I had to make these girls trust me. I started feeling bad about it because I was getting to know them too, you know? I tried backing out, but I couldn’t. He beat the shit out of me when I tried.” Remorse played behind his eyes briefly. “Anyway, he said I couldn’t ask any questions or tell anyone about it, or he’d kill me. I mean, if you saw this guy, you’d take his threats seriously too, you know?”

  I gritted my teeth as anger festered inside of me. “Vampire, you said?” I asked.

  “I assume, yeah. Not human, that’s for sure.”

  “So, you kidnapped innocent girls for money.” I stated bitterly.

  Cross avoided my eyes and went back to his consumed cigarette. “Listen, he never said what he wanted with them, and I couldn’t back out anymore, do you get that?”

  Faust put his hand up. “Relax.” He cautioned. “What requirements did he give you? Age, hair color, race…?”

  Cross shook his head and put out his cigarette. “No, man, nothing like that. Well.” He thought for a minute. “They had to be seventeen. And they had to be these particular girls.”

  Faust wrote that down and tapped his pen on the notepad. “Anything else?”

  Cross looked at me and then away. “They all had to be…” He rubbed a hand over his jaw.

  My ears perked up. “Be what?”

  “They had to be virgins,” he answered, sheepishly.

  Faust and I looked at one another.

  We instantly thought some sort of sex trade. I didn’t tell him yet about the vamp at the club that called out my virginity like it was written on the wall.

  “Why?” I pressed angrily.

  Cross shrugged. “Don’t know, he never said.”

  Trying my best to control the bubbling rage inside, I balled my hands into fists and took a deep breath.

  “How did you know which ones were virgins?” Faust asked.

  Cross just shrugged.

  “Answer the question.” Faust demanded. He was starting to lose his patience. The line between his brows deepened.

  Cross made an impatient noise in his throat and that sent me over the edge.

  I slammed my fist down onto the table and stood up.

  Cross flinched so hard that he fell backward in his chair. “Don’t let her near me, please!” He shrieked. “Don’t let her touch me!”

  Faust placed himself between me and Cross and reached for my shoulders, but I slapped his hands away. “Don’t!” I snapped.

  His eyes hardened, and his hands dropped to his sides.

  “Jade—”

  “I’m done, Faust.” I intercepted. “I’m about to throw up my arms and let you figure it out on your own. Let me do my job, or I’m out of here. I have enough cases on my own. I don’t need this one, and I sure as fuck didn’t ask to be included.”

  He rubbed his eyes and took in a long breath before turning his attention to Cross. In three long strides, Faust crossed the room, wrapped his hands around Cross’s collar and lifted him to his feet. “You better start talking or I will let her loose.” He growled.

  “Man, I told you everything.” Cross cried. “Girls are proud when they’re virgins, it doesn’t take a lot to get that information out of them.”

  Faust relaxed his grip and slammed Cross back down into the chair.“What if they weren’t? How could you tell for sure?” he asked.

  “I couldn’t, but he could,” Cross said lighting another cigarette. “I tried offering him other girls instead, and it was like he could smell that they weren’t pure.”

  “What’s the guy’s name, Cross?” Faust asked pinching the bridge of his nose.

  “I don’t know,” Cross answered.

  “What did he look like?”

  “I don’t know, we met in the dark. He wore a mask.”

  After a sigh, Faust gave me a nod. “Do what you need to do, Jade,” he said and walked out the door.

  It only took me five minutes to violate his mind, but I still couldn’t extract the information I wanted. I wasn’t cast out this time. Instead, his mind was just…empty. As if someone purposely erased all the information.

  Maybe he had told us everything, and he truly didn’t know the identity of the man, the reason for the kidnappings, or where the girls were taken. Perhaps contacting the families and touching something belonging to one of the victims might prove to be more effective.

  Outside of the interrogation room, Faust waited for me with his back pressed against the beige wall and his feet were crossed at the ankles. Under his arm, he held a manila envelope. His handsome face was tinged with fatigue. “File on the girls,” he said handing it over.

  “I didn’t say I was going to take on this case.” I pointed out. “I have a lot going on right now. I would be wasting my time anyway, someone is protecting him, keeping his thoughts from me. You’re the detective, you may need to handle this on your own.”

  He was quiet as he nodded.

  “I’m sorry, Faust.”

  He gave me a fake smile. “I know. I also know that since Eleanor died you don’t want to work with me because you blame me. I wasn’t fast enough. I couldn’t save her.” Faust stated.

  I gritted my teeth. “This has nothing to do with her, Faust. That’s not fair.”

  “Come on, Jade. You won’t help me because you’re afraid. Afraid you’ll fail. Afraid you’ll succeed…”

  “I have to go,” I said walking past him.

  Detective Eleanor Bates, Ellie as I called her, was my mentor and my friend.

  Actually, she was more than that. She found me on the side of the road making my way out of town after I ran away from an abusive foster home and took me in. I was fifteen.

  After my father vanished, my fragile mother’s mental health slipped and she became catatonic. I was thrown into the foster system and spent three years dodging fists and sneers from people that feared me.

  I took a few steps down the hall before Faust called my name. “Jade, I miss her too.” He offered. “She was my friend too.”

  I nodded and tried to walk on, but when I turned, I hit a wall. At least it felt like one.

  The imposing officer from earlier in the evening gazed down at me with dominant brows over deep green eyes.

  “Ma’am.” He winked and moved aside.

  “Officer Dick.” I spat a greeting and hurried away.

  Something about him made me uneasy.

  When I watched her get choked along the wall at the club, I was quick to react. I knew the one attacking her wasn’t human. I could smell him. I was very surprised when she charged at me with her short stature and angry fists. Her tone was bitter and demanding. I enjoyed the way her face looked when she frowned up at me. I amused myself with her anger. I’ll admit though, she is quite striking and those lips look mighty tasty. I may take a bite.

  Adrian

  Chapter Four

  Cherry on top!

  As I exited through the double doors of the police station, the wind was suddenly scented with Burberry cologne.

  There was a pressure in my chest that instantly crippled me. My stomach contracted, and I felt violently nauseous. My legs went numb, and I fell to my knees.

  Seth.

  I could feel him all around me. I could taste him on my tongue. “Seth?” I said his name out loud. My heart went into panic mode and thudded against my ribs with painful understanding.

  Something had happened to Se
th. I could feel his soul wrapping itself around me. Hugging me. His presence was faint, but it was unmistakable.

  I fumbled for my keys and got in the car as fast as I could. A mile down the road, my cell phone rang. I hit the button on the steering wheel to answer.

  “Jade…” Madam Stella owned a local physic reading shop downtown.

  Tears immediately started running down my face. “Something happened to Seth.”

  “I know,” she responded. “I dreamt it. Come to me, Jade.” She urged gently.

  “On my way!” I hung up and hit the gas pedal.

  Something crossed my path, I swerved, slammed my brakes, and screamed as my car reacted accordingly. It fishtailed and started to flip as it barreled out of control toward the side of the road.

  I braced myself for impact.

  The deafening sound of twisting metal and shattering glass echoed in my ears. I don’t know how many times my car flipped before it came to a stop, but I know my chest hit the steering wheel when the front of my car slammed into something hard enough to stop it on a dime. I felt bones inside snap, and my breath left my body in a gush. No matter how much I tried after that, I couldn’t get it back.

  I struggled.

  Struggled with battered lungs to pull in a full breath, but I couldn’t. Pieces of glass cut into my face and head. Some grazed me, others lodged into me.

  My skull felt like it was on fire.

  I knew I was bleeding. I could smell and feel the warm liquid drip down my face and soak my long hair.

  Every few seconds, I gave into the darkness that surrounded me. A darkness that swept over my body and offered it freedom.

  It was getting harder to breathe. My lungs shriveled inside me. Sharp jabs of searing pain ran through every inch of me when I opened my mouth for air.

  I was dying.

  I knew it.

  “Ma’am?” A man’s voice called out. “The ambulance is on its way. Can you hear me?”

  I couldn’t answer. Couldn’t move. I started to feel numb all over.

  My body shivered and convulsed. My heart no longer beat with agility. It was weak and faltering.

  “Stay with me.” The voice urged. “I’ll stay here with you until they arrive, okay? Can you hear me? Can you talk?”