Adventures of a Vegan Vamp: A Paranormal Cozy Mystery Read Online Free Page A

because she hadn’t bothered to introduce herself—disappeared out the door. She’d gone without taking a history, or commenting on when the doctor would be able to see me, or even a goodbye. Looking back, the only direct interaction I’d had with the staff was to confirm my name.
    “Curiouser and curiouser.” I flipped through the contacts in my phone, trying to find someone—anyone—that I could send a quick text with my location and a heads-up to check on me in an hour or so.
    I didn’t realize I’d spoken out loud until a woman’s voice startled me with a reply. “Do you frequently feel like Alice?”
    My eyes met the intent gaze of a dark-haired woman who carried a clipboard. Her delicate features and even skin tones made her age hard to determine, but I guessed anywhere between thirty and fifty. “Ah. No, actually. Just the last few days.” I squinted to read her nametag: Dr. Dobrescu. “Do you usually see new patients first? Shouldn’t a nurse take my history?”
    “There’s some concern that you’re contagious. If you don’t mind, I’d like to eliminate that as a possibility before we proceed.”
    She still had that intent look, so I couldn’t help wonder if there was a serious problem lurking. I’d stopped worrying quite so much, because—twenty-five pounds of rapid weight loss aside—I was feeling pretty good. My energy buzz hadn’t faded yet. “How do you do that?”
    “It’s an in-house test. I just need to draw a little blood.”
    When I shrugged, she set her clipboard down and gloved up—twice.
    “Don’t you have a phlebotomist or a nurse or something for this stuff?”
    “We’re a small office.” She approached with a metal tray.
    Blatantly untrue, but I didn’t think commenting would get me any answers. I watched her wrap a band around my upper arm and then swab a spot with alcohol, but after that I couldn’t do it. Something about blood and needles always freaked me out—especially if it was a needle in my arm and my blood. I stared at a point on the wall, careful that I couldn’t even catch what she was doing in my peripheral vision.
    “You’ll feel a small pinch now.”
    I choked on a laugh. Where did doctors learn that stuff? “Ow.”
    “Did that hurt?” She sounded genuinely surprised.
    Really? She just shoved a needle in my arm, and she was surprised? What kind of doctor was this lady? Glancing in her direction and then quickly away when I caught sight of the tube filling with blood, I replied, “Well, it was more than a pinch.”
    “You said your symptoms began Tuesday?”
    “I think so. That’s the last time I remember being conscious.”
    “You can look now; I’m done.”
    “Also, I should mention that I’ve lost a lot of weight. I think maybe twenty-five pounds in the last few days. I can’t be exactly sure because I hadn’t weighed myself in a while, but close to that.”
    Still Dr. Dobrescu didn’t meet my eyes. And she didn’t seem surprised.
    “Are you guys in touch with the CDC or something?”
    Finally, I’d caught her attention. Dobrescu’s head popped up from her clipboard. “What do you mean?”
    She looked a little panicky.
    “I just mean that you say I’m contagious, and my visit hasn’t exactly been typical so far. You seem to know something about what’s going on. Is there some kind of bug going around that you’re on the lookout for?”
    With a firm shake of her head, she said, “Not exactly. This will only take a moment.” Finally, the woman gave me a close, intent look. Like she was peering into my soul. “Stay here.”
    Eyes wide, I replied as solemnly as I could, “I will.”
    Where the heck did she think I was going?
    She wasn’t gone that long, but when she came back she’d brought reinforcements. As in, a really large man who looked like he meant business. Tall, burly, and with a shaved head, I couldn’t help thinking of the Mr. Clean commercials. Except Mr. Clean had a friendly, welcoming,