She glanced away, then back to me, smiling shyly. “If that’s not too much to ask. I mean, I understand if—”
I reached across the table and put a cool finger to her lips. “Shhh.”
Lori took my hand and gave it a squeeze, her flesh so warm around mine, her heartbeat so steady and strong, so familiar.
My chair creaked as I leaned across the table again, but this time it wasn’t a finger I put to her lips.
- - -
“So, how is your newfound fame treating you?” I grinned at Tamara.
Normally, two women walking alone in a Birmingham park after midnight, at least one of them pretty, would be a recipe for disaster.
But we weren’t the sort of disaster most people would walk away from.
She shrugged her delicate shoulders, the moonlight glinting off her pale skin. “Mostly good…I mean, I’m not nearly as much of a pariah now, thanks to you. Except that Liandra seems jealous, of all things—and now the family thinks I’m ready for bigger responsibilities.” Tamara shuddered, and I couldn't tell if the motion was serious or not.
“Every cloud has a dirty lining, I guess.” I smirked.
Tamara agreed wordlessly, filling the air with the musical chime of her laughter.
“So what do they want you to do?”
“I’m not sure yet. I think they’re leaving it up to me.” Tamara produced another shudder.
“The horror,” I replied.
“I know, right?” She stuffed her hands in her pockets; I supposed it was cold or something. “One of my older brothers came down to personally tell me how thrilled Mother was with me and that maybe now I could finally start helping build the family’s influence down here. Though, of course, there was no mention of how to do that or anything.”
“That bastard,” I grumbled.
“No, no. It’s not like that. Matthew’s cool.” She smiled. “For one of my older siblings, especially.” She sighed. “I’ll figure something out. Hopefully.”
As we started to wind our uneventful way out of the park, Tamara laid a land on my arm, her tone deadly serious. “I also need to warn you about something.”
“Oh?” I was in too good of spirits to easily take a hit to my mood.
“I had a friend pull the security footage from St. Valentine’s for you.”
“That’s great!” I exclaimed, grinning. Then I noticed her grim look as Tamara shook her head. “That’s not good?” I amended.
“Not when a dirty blond in a T-shirt and British accent got there first,” my Moroi friend replied.
I missed a step and stood there for a minute, staring at the burbling fountain in the distance.
“That’s fine,” I said after a moment and started walking again.
Tamara put her hand back on my arm. “Oh?”
I nodded. “Yeah.”
Things might not be perfect, and somewhere out there, people might still be trying to kill me, but I wouldn’t trade my life after death for anything.
From the Author
So. Here it is. Blood Red Ashes.
Within these pages, Ashes has learned a lot about herself, and also managed to pull her shattered life back together, while still overcoming almost insurmountable odds. But it's not all roses; more threats loom on the horizon for her, as tensions mount between the supernatural factions, and her true nature becomes less and less of a secret. And to top it all off, her friends have their own troubles, which may come back to haunt them sooner rather than later...
But for more of that, you'll have to keep reading. :]
I truly had a blast writing this book. Probably the most fun I've had writing a story so far. There were so many parts of this story that simply flew from my fingers, so many parts I'm eager to share. If, in reading this, you get a fraction of the enjoyment that I had in writing it, I'll consider it a success.
Despite that, I feel it took far too long to produce. From distraction to depression, it seemed like obstacles lined up to take away time from my writing. There have been some rough points along the way, but the end product is more than worth it. I also have to remind myself I'm still relatively new at this, and I'll get better--both in time management, and in writing itself. I look forward to that, just like I look forward to completing the next book in the series.
Speaking of which...
Thank you so much for reading,
Annathesa Nikola Darksbane
See you next book!
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Acknowledgments
Thanks to my favorite authors and writing inspirations, for being you.
Thanks to my family for existing and being awesome.
Thanks to Rot and the girls for you-know-what. Keep it up. :]
Thanks to my wifey, especially, for being patient and loving.
Thanks to our designer, Mark Thomas for once again putting up with all our picky-ness!
Thanks to our editor, Brenda, for stopping us from writing words like “picky-ness”.
And thank you as always to our fans for giving us the chance to do what we love for a living!
*pterodactyl noises*
Annathesa Nikola Darksbane is a lesbian Discordian shaman who dreams of one day becoming a real cyborg. Currently residing with her awesome partner (and fellow author) of 16+ years, and her unusually awesome daughter.
She loves philosophy, science, critical thinking, chaos, good food, reading, writing, pen and paper RPGs, video games of most kinds, has an interest in melee combat and believes in making magic every day.
Though she was born wanting to be a storyteller, for many years the only stories she told were born of being a game master for varying circles of friends. Eventually, with much prodding, she was convinced that those tales needed a new home, instead of living solely in her head.
Copyright © 2016 by Annathesa Nikola Darksbane.& Shei Darksbane
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof
may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever
without the express written permission of the publisher
except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Printed in the United States of America.
First Printing, November 17, 2016
Darksbane Books
707 E Mobile ST
Florence, AL 35630
DarksbaneBooks.com
Cover design and illustration: Mark Thomas / Coverness.com
This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to real people and events are coincidence.
Table of Contents
Contents
Description
Title Page
Dedication
Foreword
CHAPTER ONE How far is too far
CHAPTER TWO Sewer Details
CHAPTER THREE What happens under the bridge stays under the bridge
CHAPTER FOUR I'll just watch you
stuff your face
CHAPTER FIVE Honey, I'm home
CHAPTER SIX Long-distance intimidation
CHAPTER EIGHT New kids on the block
CHAPTER NINE That something that you do
CHAPTER TEN Bloodbathing
CHAPTER ELEVEN Giving me the run around
CHAPTER TWELVE Leads: Get them while they're hot
CHAPTER THIRTEEN All we needed was a Mystery Machine
CHAPTER FOURTEEN In lieu of a good night's rest
CHAPTER FIFTEEN At least we weren't stuck in the waiting room
CHAPTER SIXTEEN Medical Emergency
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN Probably the most obvious hideout
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN Following bloody footprints
CHAPTER NINETEEN Written in the blood of innocents
CHAPTER TWENTY Noone wanted to go swimming
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE Mama knows best
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO Everyone's favorite dead woman
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE And I thought one was too many
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR The ghost next door
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE No one taller than the last vampire standing
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX Epilogue: A night to remember
From the Author
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Copyright