Zoe Anderson is out for revenge. With the help of an elaborate plan, Zoe has just faked her own death in order to pay back her abusive exhusband, Doug, for all the anguish he has caused her. But in order to carry out her vengeful scheme, she must rely on help from a mysterious stranger. As she heads to a seedy part of town to meet him, Zoe is uncertain if he can help her with her dark request. Zoe wants to become a vampire. After the stranger leads Zoe to Tobias, a twohundredyearold vampire, Zoe decides she has no choice but to move forward and sacrifices her life. Fueled by her nightmares and the bloodlust in her eyes, Zoe immediately immerses herself into manipulating her exhusband into thinking he is going crazy. As she sneaks, spies, and tortures the man who stole her children, she fights her hunger for blood, even as she develops feelings for the mysterious stranger who has not left her side since the day she met him. In this urban vampire tale, a scorned woman eager to shed her emotional scars soon learns that being gifted with supernatural powers may come with a price.
TAINTED
By VICKY ST. JOHNiUniverse, Inc.
Copyright © 2012 Vicky St. John
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4697-6511-2Chapter One
LIFE AND DEATH
To the Cherry Hill cemetery please," the girl told the cab driver after she got in. The cabby nodded and drove off. She looked out the window as the small town of Clover passed her by. Everyone who lived in this small town was at the one and only cemetery in Clover. Someone had died, and the entire town felt the loss.
"This is the seventh trip to the cemetery today," the cabby said, looking back at the girl who still gazed out the window. "You don't look dressed for a funeral. Did you know her?"
"Yes, we were close," she answered, not making eye contact with him at all. With her long curly blonde hair tucked in a baseball cap and almost- black sunglasses covering most of her face, she knew he couldn't tell who she was. She wore a large sweatshirt under an even larger jacket with jeans that were about two or three sizes too big. There was no way a person could tell who she was, which was the entire point.
The girl paid the cab driver, said good-bye, and started off to the entrance of the cemetery. There were enormous groups of people, for this town, heading through the main gate. Not wanting to be noticed, she looked around; and off to the right, barely visible through the trees, she saw another way in. Moving the large limbs, the small unused, withered path came into view. With the trees swaying slightly with the fall breeze, it instantly gave her the chills. After taking a deep cleansing breath, she started into the cemetery. This particular trail was almost completely covered by low-lying weeping willow branches. She had to move several dense limbs to make her way down the trail, which didn't seem like a trail at all.
Walking discreetly, she looked at the tombstones that lay on either side of her. She noticed how grandparents lay next to parents, who lay next to children, in the family plots. It warmed her heart to see that entire families stayed together even in death. She couldn't help but wonder if they were a close-knit family when they were living. That question, of course, would go unanswered.
She stopped when she noticed two very small name plates of twins who only made it to three years of age. Both arrived in this world together, both left the same way. There weren't any parents, or grandparents or anyone else to watch over them in this particular plot they lay in. She brushed off the leaves from their resting places, letting them know someone cares enough to at least do that. She wished she could do more, but she had an appointment she had to get to that wasn't going to wait so she continued her walk down the path.
Suddenly the path stopped. She was nowhere near where she had to be. On the left was an iron-gated family plot for a very large family. She had no choice but to jump the fence and walk through the sacred ground. Feeling as if she was intruding on the dead that lay there, she ran through, hopping over the other side quickly. Once on the other side, there were single plots. Some occupied, some not. She walked carefully not to step on someone's grandpa, grandma, mother, or father. She started to hear chatter and mumbles coming from the large group of people just up ahead. Her pace slowed.
Standing behind only large trees, she snuck closer and closer to the funeral that had the whole town gathering in one place. Once close enough to see and hear some of the conversations and see some of the faces clearly, she stopped. Thankfully it was behind a very old, very massive weeping willow that was probably older then the town itself. She couldn't help but pat the time-worn tree as it swayed as sadly as the people that whimpered and cried in front of her.
The girl looked through the crowd to the casket, only catching glimpses of it as people paid their respects, blocking her view. It was a beautiful dark-colored wood with what looked like, from where she hid, shiny brass handles and hinges. It was a closed casket, which the girl seemed relieved about. The flowers that covered the chairs and casket were amazing white- and-purple orchids surrounded by baby's breath.
A break in the crowd made visible the invitation to this particular funeral. It brought tears to her eyes as she read it to herself.
Zoe Anderson Born Feb. 3, 1976 Died Oct. 4, 2009 A Mother, A Daughter, A Sister, A Friend.
She looked past the sign to see an older woman and a girl sitting up front. Even from behind, she recognized them instantly.
"I'm so sorry, Mom," Zoe murmured to herself. It about killed her to see her mother and younger sister grieving because of her. "I wish things could've been different. This is just the way it has to be," she said, trying to compose herself. She was doing a pretty good job of it until her sister turned to greet someone sitting behind her. That's when she noticed just how tore up her sister, her best friend, her confidant was as she sat there with swollen eyes. All because of her sister, who she thought was dead but was actually behind the tree not one hundred feet away watching. This would be the time she would comfort her and tell her everything will be okay. She turned around, leaning back against the tree, trying to pull her emotional state together before she ran out there screaming, "I'm not dead! I'm not dead!" She took a few dozen large breaths before beginning to watch again.
After she wiped away a few tears, she noticed many of the people she went to school with paying their respects. It was truly laughable how many of them showed up. Most of which she'd never talked to. The absolute funniest was that of the high school football jock who ruled the school back in the day. He showed up in the same letterman's jacket he wore in school. With his faded letter, ripped elbows, and bulging belly hanging out, she couldn't help but cover her mouth to giggle. It amazed her how some people never moved on past high school.
The service was about to start, and people started taking their seats. Once the seats were all occupied, people lined up behind them. The stragglers made their presence known once the talking died down.
"I don't believe it! What the hell are they doing here?" Zoe hissed loudly when she noticed a group of five that was considerably later then all the rest. Her eyes widened as her anger rose. The entire reason for doing what she had done was because of those three little kids standing there, looking at the coffin that they thought held their mother.
Her ex-husband Doug; his new wife, Tabatha; and Zoe's kids, Alex, Lily and Little Kourtney. Alex was the oldest at twelve, Lily was seven, and Kourtney was six. They were Zoe's life, and today would be the first time she had seen them in over four years.
Zoe's body twitched behind the tree that hid her. She wanted to run out there, grab her kids, and run for dear life, never looking back. The only thing that stopped her was the sliver of hope that this plan she's been working on would in fact work. Deciding she'd seen enough, "I love you" was all she mouthed before running back the way she came. Going through the plots down the path, she dialed her cell for a cab on her way back to the parking lot. She paced, waiting for it to arrive.
"This is going to work. This is all going to work," she repeated as she paced impatiently. "I don't have another option. I did all the research. Yeah, it's going to work."
"Third and Grey, please," Zoe said, getting into the cab before it came to a complete stop. The cab driver started off in that direction. With all her planning and scheming filling her head, she didn't notice the cab stopping at her destination.
"That's gonna be $10.50," he said as she stepped out. She paid the cabby through the front window. "Thanks," he said, driving away quickly towards another fare.
"Home sweet home," she said after unlocking what has been her new home for the past week. Sadly, she walked into her pay-by-week apartment. To the left was the kitchen-dining combo, in front of her was the small living room, and in between the two was a small hall that lead to a bedroom and the only bathroom.
The walls were completely bare, and all the furniture was smelly junk that looked like it had been picked up off the street. There weren't any figurines, pictures, keepsakes, or anything to indicate this was Zoe's home, or anyone's home. This wasn't a vacation.
She put her keys on the hook just inside the door, closing it quietly. Seeing her kids today was slightly unexpected, but it recharged her ambition for the master plan. She got out her day planner and prepaid phone she bought at the local grocery store. She started dialing numbers that were given to her by some shady characters she found behind local bars, some gang members, and from the homeless. They all had told her that there was only one guy would be able to find what she was looking for. They laughed at her, they picked on her, and they said how stupid she was for asking about this guy. They said she wasn't street-smart enough to talk to this guy they all named Gibbs.
They were right. She wasn't street-smart, she had no backbone to speak of, and barley any voice. When she approached these dark individuals, she spoke quietly, holding her hands together in fear. It took her about two hours to get the name from the first guy she approached. He had warned her, `Gibbs will eat you alive." Then he disappeared back into the shadows of the alley with his friends from where she found him. She wasn't sure if Gibbs was a first or last name. She wasn't about to ask.
The second bar she went to gave her a little more to go on. "He is everywhere," the guy said, giving her little to no hope in finding him. "But normally he floats in the alley between Sixth and Graham. You can most likely find him there."
She only had a few cell numbers that pointed her to this mysterious man, Gibbs. They also said that he is the only one who would be able to take care of her problem. Gibbs himself didn't have a cell or any way to get a hold of him. He worked only through his contacts. With the type of people who knew him, she was beginning to consider he may be slightly more menacing than she was prepared for.
After making her nightly calls, she decided tonight was the night she would go into the city to find and execute the first part of her plan. Grabbing the one towel she owns off the bed, she jumped into the shower to clean up first. "Suck it up," she said to herself as the rust-colored water ran over her. "I can do this," she repeated to herself over and over.
She got out of the shower and walked into her room, looking at her new life folded there on the bed. There was a tight tank top that had a high back and thick straps to cover things she didn't want anyone to know or see but show an adequate amount of skin. The jeans were so tight they looked like they might be painted on, and boots, which were knee-high, cover up the fact the jeans never made it to her ankles. Zoe was the type of person that wore loose T-shirts, sweatshirts, and jeans most of her life. Her choice of clothes came from watching the women that frequented the bars she went to or the ones walking the streets. They all looked like no one you want to mess with. Zoe figured this was how she needed to look in order to get Gibbs's attention. Zoe thought she was actually tainted with many forms of scars left by her ex-husband during her marriage. She knew she wasn't like these women she's seen so far. She's not aggressive, so she hoped that these clothes would at least make her look the part.
After dressing, examining her look in the mirror. "God, what am I doing?" she asked, looking from side to side. "There is no way I can to pull this off."
If anyone she knew saw her right now, they'd think she was dressing for Halloween. With the holiday right around the corner, it was very possible.
Her body looked like she might have had kids. She wasn't fat, she wasn't skinny. She was the perfect weight for her tall six-foot frame. Her C-cup chest that arrived about the time she had her kids enhanced her figure in this particular outfit. The knee-high boots and skin-tight jeans made her already-long legs look even longer. As she looked at herself, her image disappeared as horrible memories filled the reflection.
"You never do anything I tell you to do!" Doug shrieked at the top of his lungs. "Why can't you listen to what I'm telling you so I don't have to do this again? God you're so stupid! Why do I waste my time on someone like you? You couldn't figure out how to tie your shoes if I wasn't here to hold your damn hand!"
This was just part of his hour-long lecture she would be receiving from him. "Are you even listening to me?" he screamed as Zoe sat there quiet.
Every lecture, she really had to focus and retain the last bit of every paragraph to make sure that when he asked her what he just said, she would be able to recite it back flawless. She taught herself to dump the information retained shortly thereafter. "Of course I'm listening to you. I don't understand why you are so angry. I was only late by, like, five minutes." The disgusted look on his face told her she just added another half an hour to his tirade.
"And what were you doing in those five minutes? Huh? You do realize you were supposed to be home taking care of the kids, and me," he continued without letting her answer one of his questions. Zoe was surprised he took a breath in between rants. "Do you even know, do you have the slightest clue as to what a housewife is supposed to be doing?" Again, she did not attempt to answer this rhetorical question. If she didn't know, or did know, he was going to make sure she knew what he thought it was and his way was the only way. "A wife that stays home with the kids. Who cooks, cleans, and takes care of whatever I need, whenever I need it. That means, no job, no going out with your friends, no having friends, no going to the store without asking me permission first." He brought up his hand; she knew what that meant and braced for impact.
"If I could, you know I would stay home. But with your construction job, we just can't meet the bills. I got a job where we wouldn't have to get a babysitter. And it's not even a full shift." He cut her off (of course) lifting his hand again. She knew she should've kept her mouth shut.
"You just don't get it!" He stood pacing in front of her while she held the side of her face that had made contact with his closed fist as he continued to rant and rave about how she was supposed to be home with the kids, cook him dinner, and make sure he wanted for nothing. She normally tuned him out when he got this way. After he was finished, or what she had hoped was the end of all of this, he turned without saying a word and left the house. She knew right where he was going. She wouldn't see him again until the next day if she were lucky. He was off to drink with his friends from work. She was glad he left. Now the house would have some peace.
She got up from the couch, still holding her now-swollen cheek, and walked into the kids' room to find her son and daughters all asleep in their beds. They were the reasons why she didn't walk out the door and never look back. The love between Zoe and Doug was gone- if, in fact, it was ever really there to begin with. The kids were all she had left. Alex lay hugging his dinosaur pillow; Lily holding her blanket, Kourtney snuggled up against the wall.
She walked over to the middle of their room and stood there silently, crying about how sad and pathetic her life had turned out. Something had to give; something had to change. She kissed all of them as they dreamed of teddy bears, fairie,s and anything else their little minds thought of. After that, she walked out to the living room and sat on the couch.
"I'm doing the right thing," she thought out loud, snapping back into reality, grabbing her phone to call a cab to take her to the city.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from TAINTEDby VICKY ST. JOHN Copyright © 2012 by Vicky St. John. Excerpted by permission of iUniverse, Inc.. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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