Preview: Crimson Red - The first season of the Colors of Moonlight series

Martina

Martina took an appraising look at the five-year-old standing in front of her and pursed her lips. Since she was born, her daughter had managed to turn her life upside down.

»Go get your coat and the white booties,« she said to the blonde girl and gave her a nudge. Not strong enough to let Joleen fall, but the little girl had to take some steps before she was able to run. »I'll do Mom," she called out with her squeaky voice that Martina already owed one or two headaches. She looked at her trembling hands.

Maybe she should take something before they picked her up? She shook her head in answer. It wasn't wise to be dopey while making a deal with vampires. This arrangement has been in place for a few weeks now. And Martina has gone through all the points over and over again. It was important when you got involved with the beings of the night. They were happy to wording the contracts they had drawn up in their favor. If you weren't careful, you ended up with nothing. That was a good reason not to consume anything for now.

She reached for the cigarettes on the table in front of her. Gallantly, she pulled one of the sticks out of the package before she put it in her mouth and lit it. The tremor and tension eased a little after the first stroke. She got up and went to the bar in the corner of the messy living room.

Most of the furniture here had come from friends or benevolent clients. Some of them were brought here by herself when the neighbors turned off the household garbage outside. No two pieces were the same. She poured herself a glass of cheap whiskey and thought back. All options were open to her six years ago. She was young, pretty, and she was good to gather many lovers. Mostly several men at the same time had made her life very exclusive. And then she got pregnant.

»Bitch,« she muttered and tipped down the whole glass of whiskey, to refill herself right afterward.

None of her lovers wanted to accept the possibility of having a child with her. She had already started taking drugs, so she used the opportunity to ask six men for money. After all, money never hurt. Soon she had found a cheap backyard clinic to remove her little mishap. As soon as she was lying there, she realized that she couldn't. She didn't love the fetus inside her. No. The inability not to eliminate this disturbance had been her mother's fault.

»Stupid cow!« Martina cursed. Her mother had been a religious person, read the Bible daily, and lived in a disciplined manner according to its rules. Martina was also forced to submit to the laws of the catholic church. She was sixteen when she left home. She hadn't thought back to her childhood home since then.

However, at this moment, her mother's parenting collapsed on her with all its force. She had left the clinic without having achieved anything. She again emptied the glass with a pull and took the bottle into her free hand. »Mom, I've got everything! « the annoyingly squealing voice sounded behind her. Martina flinched. Quickly she turned off the glass and the bottle, turned around, and took off to punch her daughter. »Stupid brat!« she hissed. »How many times have I told you not to sneak up on me like that?«

Joleen stood in front of her holding her cheek, which was already beginning to turn red. Shit, she should have thought. The vampires surely managed to put a foot through this little reddish discoloration. » I'm sorry, Mom,« Joleen moaned. She looked at her with big green eyes. »Go and put ice on your face,« she demanded and turned away from her daughter.

»Yes, Mom. I'm sorry, Mom, I didn't mean to scare you,« the five-year-old whispered and then disappeared towards the kitchen. She rolled her eyes. Soon it would get better. She should have come up with this idea much sooner. But a neighbor drew her attention to the opportunities to improve her situation. There were vampires. It was a well-known fact that they controlled most of the world's events. Martina was aware of this. But it never bothered her.

She used to have one of the creatures of the night as a suitor, but that was a long time ago. Vampires were generous, even if they used them only as a bloodwhore for one night. Again she shook her head. You had to be careful when you let them drink from you. If they got into a blood rush, it could end deadly for the bloodwhore. There have been reports of a vampire losing control and a bloodwhore reaping death instead of lust.

Sex and feeding were pleasantly combined. Also, the victims had hours of highest ecstasy. But the feeling that vampires caused in humans could lead to addiction. You couldn't get rid of it. You always wanted to experience the intoxication that you could only get through a vampire. Bloodlust, unlike blood rush, was a guarantee of perfect sexual fulfillment. Martina knew whores, who had gradually degenerated into bloodwhores because they brought a vampire into bed over and over again. Martina had always paid attention to that. Even if vampires paid well, it was not worth getting dependent on them and possibly getting enslaved.

Well, that was just a rule for her, of course. Not for the little girl who entered the living room at that moment, with a cautious look.