Not Another Vampire Book by Cassandra Gannon Page A

idiot.”
    “You
are distraught.”  Over something or other .  “You shouldn’t be so hard on
yourself.”  Damien had no idea why, but he wanted her to cheer up.  Once again,
he said the first thing that came to mind.  “After all, you’re but a flower in
a storm, Kara Lynn.”
    Her
head snapped up at the facetious drawl.  Perfect pink lips parted as she gaped
at him.
    Damien
shifted uncomfortably under her astonished stare.  The joking comment had been really abnormal.  Not at all like his usual self.  It had come from someplace new
inside of him.  Someplace that seemed different from his usual words.  He
didn’t know what to make of the remark, either.
    Kara’s
smile returned, again.  Genuine and filled with relief.  “You’ve got real
potential when you act out of character, Vlad.  You should ignore the script
more often.  I think you could come up with better lines.”
    More
meaningless words, but at least they seemed like praise of some kind.  He
nodded and held out a hand to her.  The woman spent half her time sitting on
the ground.  “We need to speak about some things.”  Hopefully in English.  She grasped
his palm and Damien held onto it a beat longer than necessary.  His thumb
caressed the back of her hand as he reluctantly stepped away.  “I have
questions.”
    “Me
first.  I need to be sure of something.”  Kara gazed up at him.  “Why do you
live here?”
    His
head tilted, not expecting that.  “What do you mean?”
    “I
mean, why don’t you move someplace less morbid?”
    “Not
all of us feel the need for ruby bedroom sets in our castles .”  He
snapped, sensing some criticism in her remarks and lashing out instinctively.
    “Oh
please.”  As usual, the woman was unfazed by his temper.  “That’s just Tanya
being her usual subtle self.”  Karalynn waved it aside and focused on him
intently.  “Look around and be honest.  Do you seriously like this
place?  The truth.”
    Damien
blinked.  This ridiculous exercise was important to her.  He could tell.  The
woman was so weird that he halfway suspected the Vampires had pawned her off on
him as a secret weapon.  Testing him for weaknesses.  So why was he willing to
play along with her lunacy?  Why did he never stay angry at her for more than a
moment?
    Once
again, he shied away from the answers to those questions.  Examining them too
closely would lead straight to his downfall.
    Instead,
he sighed and began studying the space, pretending that he’d never even seen it
before and trying to form an opinion.
    Actually,
she was right.  The furnishings were oppressive.  Dark and dreary and covered
in cobwebs.  Did no one clean?  Sometimes servants came and went, but Damien
was never clear on their schedules or from where they appeared.  He hadn’t
hired them, had he?
    His
brow furrowed with that foggy memory.
    Why
did so many things suddenly not make sense when Karalynn pushed at him?
    “Do
you like this room?”  Kara prompted, tensely.  “ You, Damien.  Just you.  Think .”
    “No.” 
He said.  “I don’t.”
    Kara
let out a shaky breath.  “Thank God.  Thank God you can see through some
of this craziness.”
    He
snorted at her vehemence.  “I had no idea interior design was so important to
you.”
    “It’s
not.  It’s…”  She shook her head.  “Do you know the reason why your home looks
like this?  The reason it’s decorated in a way that you don’t like?”
    “No.” 
He finally admitted, glancing around, again.  “I never thought about it.”
    Kara
nodded.  “Well, I do know the reason.  The reason why sometimes you have
a walking stick and sometimes you don’t.  The reason your scar moves around
your face.  I even know your sister’s name was Amalie.”
    Damien’s
jaw sagged.
    “You’re
stuck in the Matrix , Neo.”  Kara nodded as if that made perfect sense. 
“Sit down and let me tell you about the publishing world.”

Chapter Five
     
    The