Page 29 of Crimson Bond

The sky looked strange, a bank of thick nimbostratus clouds hanging low overhead and giving it the appearance of dusk, though it was much later.

Precipitation continued to strike the windshield with a light tapping noise. It didn’t sound like rain, though, now that I was paying attention. It sounded icy.

Well, wewereon our way to Canada. What were the chances of making it all the way there without any weather issues?

“Is it supposed to snow today?” I asked.Might as well talk about the weather since we can’t talk about anything important.

Reece bent to view a larger picture of the sky through the windshield. “I guess it snows every day somewhere in December. We’re passing through so many states, odds are we’ll get hit with it eventually, especially since we’re going north.”

“We should check the forecast. Snow or freezing rain would really slow us down.”

I turned on news radio, hoping to hear a local weather report.

Reece chuckled. “Your Amish roots are showing.”

He opened the car’s center console and pulled out a phone, offering it to me. “Try this.”

“Oh, right.” I searched national radar, locating a small system moving through this area and the possibility of a larger one up ahead. We’d have to keep an eye on it.

We left the radio on and listened for a while. Working for Sadie, I’d gotten used to keeping up with current events—especially those that had a direct impact on the vampire community.

After a few minutes, the host threw the coverage to a live report from President Parker’s latest rally.

Though he wouldn’t be running for re-election for almost four years, he continued to hold big events where he whipped his audience into a near-frenzy of adoration for him and hatred of anyone who wasn’t exactly like them—vampires in particular.

Having met with him a few times, Sadie speculated that Parker didn’t necessarily even believe in what he was saying—he just craved the slobbering idolization of his supporters and would say anything they wanted to hear in order to get the ego boost from their worship.

In that way, he wasn’t much different from Imogen.

I reached for the dial, intending to change the station. I’d heard enough already to know this speech wouldn’t be any different from the rest of them.

Reece held up a hand. “Wait. I want to listen for a minute. It’s good to take the temperature of things in the outside world every so often.”

“... and we’re gonna drive ’em out of our neighborhoods,” the president was saying.

There were loud cheers. “And we’re gonna drive ’em out of our schools.”

More cheers. “And we’re gonna drive them out of the workforce and give jobs back to hard-working, God-fearing Americans who stayed on the straight and narrow instead of choosing the path of darkness.”

Tremendous cheers and shouts of “Hail King Parker,” and “Stake the vamps! Save the humans!” blared through the radio.

I gritted my teeth and squeezed my eyelids shut, trying desperately to employ my Amish community’s policy of praying for our enemies instead of hating them.

It wasn’t easy. What about those of us who hadn’t chosen to become vampires? Like me, and Reece, and Kelly, and Larkin, and—well, I knew of too many others to name them all. A lot of uswereGod-fearing Americans and didn’t want anything to do with ‘darkness’—except for of course the fact we had to live our lives at night.

“We’re gonna drive themoutof this country andbackto the mouth of Hell from whence they came,” Parker continued. “But I need your help. Donations to my—”

Reece reached up and snapped the radio off in a furious motion. “Sorry I made you listen to that.”

“No, you’re right. It’s important to be aware of what’s going on.”

“Like we canavoidbeing aware of it. How many billboards for hotels and restaurants have we seen on this trip that said ‘no vamps’ in bold letters? Things are getting worse, not better.”

His grip on the steering wheel tightened until his fists shook, and he let out an angry sound.

“It makes me so mad.Thisis why we need the Bloodbound. Wehaveto fight back.”

15

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