In Time's Shadow (Amaranthine Vampires Trilogy Book 2) by TP Donohue

Author:TP Donohue [Donohue, TP]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-09-23T00:00:00+00:00

Following Raf’s instructions, David made it to the park quickly and pulled the car to the curb. He shadowed the trail of Essie’s familiar sweet clove smell, now mingled with her father’s pine scent, to the eastern edge of the park. In the tunnel under the road, he caught the lingering scent of the Bloodborns – rotting flesh and decay. A pool of blood had partially soaked into the concrete. Dharma’s blood. He sniffed around. The Bloodborn trail led off in the opposite direction to Essie and Gilbert. It seemed they hadn’t tracked her.

Following her scent to the top of the stairs, he stopped on the side of the road where it abruptly evaporated, just as Raf had said. He paced a few metres in both directions, trying to pick up the trail again. But it was pointless. A car horn sounded behind him and his brain made the connection. Essie and Gilbert must have gotten into a car. That’s why there was no further trace of them. But whose car? It could have been a taxi, he supposed.

He stood on the curb looking anxiously up and down the street for any signs of the pair. If they had gotten into a vehicle, they would be long gone. But Essie wouldn’t have gone with a stranger. And not many people would pick up two strangers. He turned, thinking to retrace his steps for more clues, when he ran straight into someone.

‘I’m sorry,’ he apologised, automatically taking a step back. An older man stood in front of him, his fair hair sprinkled with streaks of grey.

‘Not to worry,’ the man replied, smiling. ‘My ice cream is unscathed, so that’s all that matters.’

David stopped, rubbed his eyes, and blinked. The skin on his neck prickled. There was something about the man’s face that was so familiar. He blinked again.

‘Are you all right?’ The man looked concerned, his pale brows crinkled together.

‘Yes,’ David stammered. ‘Thanks.’

It was impossible, wasn’t it? And yet . . . in his mind, he saw him again. An elderly gentleman lying in a white hospital bed, near death. Years from now and far away. Yet, as he stared into the man’s eyes, all those years fell away, dissolved by the tide of time. Here he stood, alive and well.

Oh. Oh.

‘Cecil!’ A woman called, her voice slightly anxious. ‘There you are. I thought I’d lost you.’

‘Sorry, dear!’ Cecil replied. ‘Just ducked in to grab an ice cream while you were in the bookstore.’

The woman pursed her lips. Her hair was threaded with grey too, cut short in a stylish bob.

‘Couldn’t resist the Rainbow Ripple, hey?’ She winked at Cecil, then turned her eyes to David.

‘And who’s this, then?’

‘Oh – I don’t actually know,’ Cecil replied. ‘We just ran into each other – quite literally!’

‘Yes, sorry – again. I’m David.’ He automatically extended his hand.

‘Nice to meet you, David,’ Cecil said, shaking it. ‘This is my wife, Sarah.’

‘Hello.’ He held his smile. He knew he was staring at them for an uncomfortably long moment.

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