Page 53 of Top Secret Vampire

“That he went to his mother and told her they’d married. That his mother was angry. She made threats to both him and Jolene. Such a nasty creature. They decided to run away, to leavetown and disappear forever, to seek a place where no one would ever find them. Once they had a safe place to live, she’d have a solicitor sell this house and send her the money. Then she could be with her love, and they’d share a new life together.”

“That didn’t happen.”

“Sadly, no. Oh, here it says that she packed everything she could inside her Ford, including the china doll she bought for a possible daughter. She saw it in the general store and couldn’t resist, though her husband enjoyed teasing her that they would have a son. After that, she would have her daughter as well.” Reese looked up again. “He seems sweet. I’m glad he wasn’t taking advantage of her.”

“Me too.” All too common during any era. “If she owned a vehicle, she had wealth. I wonder what happened with her mother to bring shame to their family and keep her and her love apart?”

“We may never know, though we could ask Margaret.” Reese read some more. “Oh, no.” She lowered the diary onto her lap and looked up at me with tears in her eyes. “He died. He was on his way to her the night they planned to leave, but it was stormy, and he slipped, falling off the cliff. When he didn’t arrive, she went looking for him and found him dead at the base, his neck broken.”

Poor Jolene. I peered around the room, but didn’t find her ghost nearby, listening.Are you here, my friend?I sent the words out with my mind, but I received no reply.We want to help you. Tell us what you need us to do.

“Jolene brought everything they’d packed back inside her house and decided to remain there until their child was born. After that, she’d sell her home and move, telling those in her new community that she was a widow. She didn’t trust his mother not to do something bad, though she wasn’t worried his mother would physically harm her. She thought of going to his mother,of telling her that they’d married and had a child on the way, but she worried his mother would try to take the baby away, that no judge would give her custody of her own child due to her mother’s scandal.”

“This was common back then. Women were supposed to go from one man’s protection to the next. She was fortunate that she didn’t have any relatives eager to take her inheritance from her, because no court would’ve awarded her the house and any money if it was challenged.”

“At least that’s changed for women. It took forty years or so after Jolene died to bring it about, but women have rights now.” She flipped through the pages some more, but it wasn’t until nearly the end of the book that she could make anything out. “She hints here that her mother needed money to survive, that she slept with men to get by. That her father didn’t care because he loved her.”

“Sad that this is shamed, as if women do this themselves without anyone else’s involvement.”

“Jolene gave birth alone, here inside the house, to a daughter.” Reese’s gaze met mine. “A child no one knew about. I wonder what happened after that? There are no more entries in her diary.”

“I believe Jolene and her child need peace, and we are going to help them find it.”

Chapter 25

Reese

Three days passed, and we still didn’t have any more information that would solve this mystery. But whoever it was hadn’t made an appearance or done anything that might help reveal their identity. We’d returned Jolene’s diary to the historical society, but Margaret hadn’t been able to give us more information. As we’d assumed, she hadn’t read the book, and she said she probably wouldn’t have the time.

There were no records in town of Jolene marrying, let alone giving birth to a daughter and keeping her hidden inside the home.

“Maybe whoever was after me has given up?” I said as we sat at the breakfast table together, him with a bag of blood and me with a bagel slathered with cream cheese and a cup of coffee.

“Perhaps.”

“If so, we can put this behind us and focus on helping Jolene, among other things.” Like us. Each night, we slept together and made love. During the day, we took long walks on the beach or went into town for ice cream. At the end of the day, we sat and read books or talked about anything and everything.

With no new information, we didn’t know what to do about the doll that remained in my vehicle’s trunk.

I was falling more and more in love with Wolf all the time. I wasn’t sure if I was ready to tell him I wanted immortality, but I was close. He meant the world to me, and the thought of a life without him gutted me.

“There’s nothing I’d enjoy more than—”

Someone knocked on the door.

“Did you order pizza?” I quipped, rising from the sofa where I’d been lounging beside him.

“Maybe it’s a fan seeking an autograph,” Wolf said as he walked with me out into the foyer.

“Cool. Or it could be my stalker, stopping by to chat about what they can do next.” My laughter faded. “Actually, that wouldn't be funny because they probably would've done new things already. I hope this is over.”

For whatever reason, as I reached for the doorknob, my heart fluttered with unease.

Wolf threw me a glance, his eyebrows raised. “Let’s hope it's pizza, then.”

I opened the door, only for my pulse to surge when I found Detective Carter standing on the porch, a stern look on his face. The unease emanating from him washed over me like a cold wave, dousing my cheer in one swoop.

“Detective Carter?” My voice came out small. “What brings you here?”

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