How to Vex a Vampire: VRC: Vampire Related Crimes 1, page 1
How to Vex a Vampire
VRC: Vampire Related Crimes 1
Alice Winters
Copyright © 2020 by Alice Winters
All rights reserved.
Cover designed by: Cate Ashwood, Cate Ashwood Designs
Editing by: Courtney Bassett
Proofreading by: Lori Parks
Formatting by: Leslie Copeland, LesCourt Author Services
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entires coincidental.
Alice Winters
Visit my website at www.AliceWintersAuthor.com
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Author’s note
Acknowledgments
Also by Alice Winters
Chapter One
FINN
The first thing I notice as I walk into the room is the woman’s body lying on the floor, her blonde hair splayed out around an abnormally pale face. Just as I kneel down to get a better look, someone grabs my arm and pulls me back. It might have to do with the fact that I’m technically not supposed to be in the room, but I do feel like they could’ve been slightly more gentle.
“What are you doing here?” the man asks, golden eyes sharp. He’s dressed to perfection, not a single wrinkle in his button-up and suit jacket. His dark hair is neatly styled, very much unlike my waves.
“Working. What are you doing here?” I ask. While I know he is the one who technically should be here, I feel like the longer I engage him, the longer it’ll be before he throws me out on my ass. We don’t exactly have a good track record with each other.
“Clearly, I am investigating. And seeing as I did not hear that we were needing help from homicide, I believe you need to move on,” he says.
He’s a handsome man with light stubble, but he has a look about him that tells me he’s used to bossing people around. I saw as much when our paths crossed because of our jobs. I’m a homicide detective and he’s part of the VRC—Vampire Related Crimes.
Even so, my eyes stray over to the woman lying on the floor. I can’t help but wonder how long she’s been dead or who found her body. Since I work with normal homicide, I was not actually called in even though there is a dead body. The department seems to play favorites like that just because I don’t have pointy teeth and look like I’ve never seen the sunlight.
“Do you have permission to be here?” he asks.
“I do!” And then I return to ignoring him. I kneel down, hoping to examine her body before I’m pulled away again, but the man is far too quick. He grabs my wrist and pulls me back to my feet. “So touchy. Do you perhaps miss the time we worked together?” I was on a case a few months prior that was handed over to the VRC after I’d poured hours into it. I wasn’t pleased to be handing my case off to the other department, and even less pleased when the grumpy vampire in front of me had been the lead detective. Somehow, we got stuck working together for the rest of the day, but I hadn’t seen him since.
“No, you don’t have permission,” he said, completely ignoring my question.
“Then why’d you ask?”
And apparently that was his last straw. These fangy types are always a little quick to anger.
“Move along,” he grumbles. Clearly, we’re off to a wonderful start.
I am positive at this point that he wouldn’t mind maiming me. But before he can, I pull up my badge and hold it before him. His gold-colored eyes scan my badge. They’re such a unique color, only seen in a few vampires. Most hold the same color they had when they died, but his are a very clear gold. He takes a moment before handing it back. “What’s this prove? I already know who you are.” He sighs like he doesn’t have time to deal with me and motions to the door like I don’t know where it is even though I’ve just come through it. “You don’t have clearance to be here. It’s outside your jurisdiction, please leave the scene.”
I’m honestly kind of surprised there was a “please” in there with the look he’s currently giving me. “Actually, this is inside my jurisdiction, and I want to know why I wasn’t invited,” I say with a grin. While we are both aware why I wasn’t invited, I feel like making him say it will give me some satisfaction. What’s better yet is the scowl he’s giving me even though he still hasn’t left or forced me to leave.
“You can bring this up with your superior,” he says.
“What’s going on?” a voice I recognize asks. I turn and the new arrival gives me a huge smile. “Finn! I haven’t seen you in what feels like months!”
“It was just a week ago!” I tell the deputy chief of the Vampire Related Crimes unit.
“It sure feels longer!” Chief Brooks says.
“Aww, does that mean you missed me?” I ask as I slide in for a hug whether he wants it or not.
He takes it just because he’s that kind of guy. “More like I was hoping it was longer!”
“Nah! You love me and you know it!”
The older man laughs. “For some reason, I do,” he says as he gives me a one-armed squeeze. “Finn, you already know Detective Church, right? You guys worked together for an afternoon a while back?”
“We did,” the man says. “I didn’t know homicide had been invited to help us with the case.”
“I… don’t think they were. What are you up to, Finn?” Brooks asks.
I give him a smile. “Just happened to hear this called in and decided to stop and see if you needed my help,” I say as nonchalantly as possible.
Neither seems too convinced with my exaggeration of the truth. “Happened to hear it? Seeing as we’re on a different frequency, I’m having a strangely hard time believing that,” Brooks says.
I grab my chest as I stare at Brooks. “Are… Are you calling me a liar? My good man, does this face look like the face of a liar?”
“One hundred percent.”
I grin at him. “Actually… I’ve been offered a promotion.”
He gives me a genuine smile. He’s always been so proud of me no matter what I do. I’ve known Brooks since I was a teenager, and he was a mentor of sorts after I decided to get into law enforcement. Since he doesn’t have children at home, it almost felt like he pulled me under his wing and helped me along the way like I was family. “Wow! Congratulations, Finn. That’s amazing.”
“That I don’t want,” I interrupt. “I would like to be transferred to VRC.”
He raises an eyebrow. “Finn, you know that’s not open for debate. You can’t just join the VRC department.”
“There’s an opening, and you guys have been looking for six months to fill it. I’d like to apply.”
“Finn—” He’s giving me that tone like he wants to be sweet and nice but is also putting his foot down as father-figure Brooks comes out.
“Is it because I don’t gnaw on people? I mean, I can give a mean hickey if that’s what I need to do to get considered.”
Brooks tilts his head and raises an eyebrow. “You’re a crucial member of the homicide department, I know that much, but I can’t have you on the team.”
I hold his eyes as I stand my ground. I’m shorter than both of them and I know my thin stature doesn’t give me much of a leg up, but I’m determined. “I can hold my own.”
“I’m aware, Finn. But it’s still a no. There are no humans in our unit and there never have been because it’s too dangerous. You are a human, so you need to deal with humans; we’re vampires, so we deal with vampires. It’s not a choice. It’s what works, and it’s what keeps everyone the safest.”
I will not be deterred. “I’ve dealt with so many vampires in my life that I’m positive I can hold my own against them.”
“In an empty-handed fight, you’d get your ass handed to you,” Brooks says.
“That’s the issue with you vampires, you think everything has to be a fight. You’re right, I might not be able to take on a vampire hand-to-hand, but I have the weapons skills and the smarts to hold my own.”
Brooks shakes his head. “Why? What’s wrong with where you’re at?”
That’s a secret, but I’ll give him part of the truth. “I need to do something else with my life and you guys are a man short. You guys need me. You guys long for me. You just don’t know it yet.”
Marcus snorts, like I might have forgotten about him. I definitely haven’t. Marcus Church is very well-known amongst us detectives because he’s good at what he does and a bit ruthless. The women, and a few men, all like talking about the renowned Marcus.
“We just filled the spot. Sorry about your luck,” Marcus says.
I tilt my head at the guy in the corner and notice almost instantly that he’s young. Through years of interacting with vampires and watching them closely, I’ve learned how to decipher whether a vampire is young or old since physical appearance doesn’t help. The younger they are, the more they wear to protect themselves against the sun. But they also do other social things that give it away. Vampires are very respectful of age. The older a vampire, the more respect you give them. Then the dead giveaway is how well they can handle blood. This man is hesitant and he’s having trouble with the blood that’s been spilled across the floor, which is easily noticeable by the way he’s wrinkling his nose. “Him?”
Most older vampires, unless presented with a large quantity of blood, can handle the smell and control themselves. And vampire blood is rarely noticed by vampires unless the vampire presented with the blood is extremely young. But it’s a requirement for them to keep a mask on their belts at all times, in case they’re presented with a situation they can’t handle. If they’re driven by bloodlust, there’s no telling what they could do.
“Yes, him,” Brooks says.
“Good luck,” I say with a smile.
Brooks shakes his head. “Don’t give me that tone.”
I widen my eyes like I have no idea what he’s talking about. “I had no tone. I just kindly wished you luck.”
Brooks folds his arms across his broad chest as Church stares at me, clearly unimpressed. “That’s because you think it’s not going to work out.”
“It’s not,” I say, and Church gets a little hint of an expression on his face that tells me he actually agrees with me. “Even Church here doesn’t like him.”
Brooks turns to Church and raises an eyebrow. “While Church might have been a bit… hesitant, our new hire was at the top of his class and Church has taken him under his wing.”
Church audibly scoffs at that and I realize I kind of like the guy.
I smile at Church. When I first met him a few months ago, I thought that he could be a bit of a dick, but I think it’s a façade he puts up. “I can’t wait to work with you,” I say as I give Church a pat on the shoulder.
“Who does this kid think he is?” Church asks.
“He’s like a tiny fly that loudly buzzes around pestering everyone,” Brooks teases even though he clearly loves me and all the stuff I put him through.
“And your new partner,” I tell Church before holding a hand out.
Church glances at it then completely ignores it. “I need to get back to work.”
“When you do, check under the couch, there’s probably a knife or something under there. I’m surprised your superior sniffy skills didn’t kick in and notice it. You can see the scrapes in the hardwood from where they forced it under, and I’m assuming it’s the murder weapon,” I say. “See ya at work tomorrow, Brooks.”
Brooks shakes his head, clearly forgetting how to show excitement. “Don’t come in.”
I grin at him as I back toward the door. “You know you don’t mean that!”
“Don’t come in, Finn! No one wants you!”
“Church does,” I say as I wink toward a scowling Church before leaving the room.
While I know they have no interest in me because I’m human, I also know that I will whittle them down until they let me join. They have to because I need to kill him. And the only way I’m going to kill that asshole is with a team of vampires behind me.
I know, they say that you shouldn’t fixate on revenge.
But I have a vendetta and I’m not going to stop until that man is lying at my feet with every ounce of his blood drained from his body.
And then I’m going to watch him burn.
I might be bad at holding on to decade-old grudges, but this is one that I just can’t drop. Not yet, anyway.
I get into the car and rub at my thigh that’s aching. It’s not like I can rub the pain out of it, but it helps.
Now I just need to get rid of the new vampire, who is book smart but not old enough to control himself in a department such as this one, and show them that I can be a vital part of their department.
I just hope it’s not too late.
MARCUS
I turn away from the interruption and back to the dead woman lying on the floor. She’s a vampire, but a young one. One young enough that a slit throat killed her. VRC deals with any case involving a vampire while homicide deals with human deaths caused by other humans. Occasionally, they mesh, but most of the time if homicide realizes they’re dealing with a vampire in any form, the case gets pushed over to our department.
Which is how I met Finnigan Hayes. I’d been taking over a case that he’d been deeply involved in. While I understood his reluctance to hand over weeks of hard work, it was needed because they realized that the killer was a vampire. Instead of willingly handing it over, we got stuck together for part of an afternoon which led me to realize that he’s an annoying human. Thankfully, I haven’t seen him since.
This is also why I knew that he didn’t belong here, and he knew that as well.
But humans like him think they’re allowed to do anything they want and get away with it. Why should he be allowed to join this unit without the correct requirements? Unless he’s planning on dying anytime soon, he’s not welcome.
“Welks, help me move this couch,” an analyst says as he grabs the edge of the couch to see if the knife really is under it.
The analyst is a human who was pulled in just for the day because the regular one had the day off. Since he’d already been called in before they realized it was VRC’s case, he was asked to stick around.
The analyst grabs the couch as the new recruit, Welks, walks over to help.
“Fuck,” the human analyst cries as he jerks his hand back. “There’s something sharp on the edge of the couch.”
I think nothing of the sweet smell of blood until Welks lunges for the analyst. Briar grabs Welks as he zooms on by, ready to “help” the analyst with his bleeding problem.
“Nope! Out you go!” Briar, a fellow detective and member of my group, says as she hauls Welks outside with her.
Welks had already been on edge all day from being surrounded by blood, and this seemed to just set him off. But if this minor of a thing could set him off, what happens when we’re thrown into a bigger case?
I look up and lock eyes with Brooks. “No,” I state flatly, realizing what the look on his face is saying. “Now, I’m glad that I’m right about the whole Welks thing, but no. There will be no damn human on my team.”
“He’s smart.”
I jab a finger at the wide-eyed analyst. “If the human analyst wasn’t here, that wouldn’t have been an issue.” I know what I’m saying is absolutely stupid. It’s not the human’s fault. A vampire should be able to control themselves even if someone simply pricks their finger.
“Top of his class,” Brooks reminds me.
“No.”
“You should see all the work he’s done.”
“No.”
“He was practically raised by a vampire, so he understands all the ins and outs.”
“How do you know so much about this kid?” I ask in disbelief.
“He talks… a lot. Like if you don’t know everything about him by the end of your first day working together, then he’s either dead or unconscious. I’ve also known him since he was young.”
I narrow my eyes. “‘Our first day working together?’ Excuse me? I must be going deaf in my old age.”
“Tomorrow is going to be so much fun!” Brooks says, and I decide he’s an asshole. That’s alright. I’ll make the kid want to leave.
