Page 3 of Twilight Destiny

And Saintcrow had been the man in charge.

And Kadie had once been his prisoner.

But that was all in the past.

Rosa parked her rental in a lot at the end of the block, locked the doors and strolled down the street. The exteriors of all the buildings, like the tavern and the hotel, reflected a kind of 1920’s charm. Curious, Rosa stepped into the hotel lobby and looked around. The walls were papered with a cabbage rose pattern that complemented the sofas and chairs scattered around the room. A large crystal chandelier sparkled from the ceiling. A young man smiled at her from behind the curved registration desk. An arched doorway to the left led to a combination bar and restaurant.

Outside again, she ambled down the sidewalk. She passed a grocery store whose exterior looked like something out of an old movie, but when she peered through one of the windows, she saw that the interior was contemporary. Moving on, she saw a couple of department stores, a barber shop and a beauty salon, a drug store, and two family restaurants. There was a gas station at the end of the block.

Stepping into the nearest restaurant, Rosa found a vacant table and sat down, suddenly self-conscious because she was the only single woman in the place. Several of the other tables were occupied by young couples. A few of them were obviously on their honeymoon, judging by the way they gazed adoringly into each other’s eyes. There were a few older couples, and one or two single men. The majority of the diners were young families, likely on vacation.

After studying the menu for several minutes, Rosa decided on a blueberry waffle, bacon, and a glass of orange juice. When she became a vampire, she wouldn’t have to decide what to have for breakfast, she mused, or for any other meal. Putting the thought aside, she glanced out the window, wondering again what time Saintcrow woke up.

After breakfast, she signed Saintcrow’s name to the check and left the restaurant. Deciding to go exploring, she got into her car and drove to the other side of town where she saw a movie theater and a large library. Making a right turn, she passed a swimming pool set in the middle of a beautiful park surrounded by tall trees. In the distance, she saw a campground populated with RVs and tents.

Rolling down the window, Rosa drove up and down the streets with no particular destination in mind. After forty minutes or so, she headed back to Saintcrow’s. Somewhere along the way, she took a wrong turn and found herself in front of a decrepit cemetery.

Stepping out of the car, she opened the rickety wooden gate and picked her way toward the nearest grave. It was marked by a wooden cross and nothing more. Glancing around, she saw row after row of weathered wooden crosses, a few with names scratched into the wood, but most carried no names and no dates. She shook her head. Whoever heard of laying people to rest without including at least their name?

She was about to leave the cemetery when she noticed a marble cross in the midst of all the wooden ones. Curious, she walked toward it. The wording on the marker read,

Shirley Elizabeth Hague

Gone But Never Forgotten

Shirley must have been someone special, Rosa mused, to have warranted such a lovely monument. But even this marker lacked any information save her name. There were no dates of birth or death. Just her name and a simple sentiment.

Rosa shivered as a chill slithered down her spine. She didn’t believe in ghosts, but she had the sudden, disconcerting sensation that there was one nearby.

Muttering, “There are no such things as disembodied spirits,” she ran out of the graveyard, scrambled into her car, and drove away as fast as the road allowed.

Luck was with her and she pulled up in front of Saintcrow’s house a short time later. She cut the ignition, dashed inside, and closed and locked the door. Better to be in the company of a vampire she knew than a ghost she didn’t.

That evening, Saintcrow took her out to dinner in the hotel dining room. Rosa had finished eating before she found the nerve to ask the question that had niggled in the back of her mind all afternoon. “Is the graveyard haunted?”

Saintcrow stared at her. “What?”

“I saw the cemetery today. Is it haunted?”

He shrugged. “Kadie thinks so. Why?”

“Who was Shirley?”

“A woman who lived here some years back.” Apparently Micah hadn’t gotten around to telling his little sister about his love affair with an older woman, he thought.

“Why is she the only one with a nice marker?”

“I guess because she’s the only one buried there that anyone cared about.”

“Oh.” She shivered, thinking of all the people who had died in this town. People who had meant nothing more to the vampires than a ready blood supply.

“Are you through asking questions? I thought you wanted to meet a vampire.”

“I do.”

“Let’s go, then.”

Rosa dropped her napkin on the table, grabbed her handbag and followed Saintcrow out of the restaurant. Although he hadn’t paid for the meal, he had left the waitress a generous tip.

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