paranormal romance novels that will draw you into their world of vampires, werewolves, witches and hunters

Excerpt

Dull violet eyes greeted her as his heavy lids opened. He blinked languidly and with too much effort for her liking. He was covered in blankets but she could see how badly injured his arms, neck and face was. A thick bandage was wrapped around his throat, the side of it stained with dark blood. His arms were covered in gashes, long lacerations that were edged with angry red and were weeping.

She shook her head and fought against the feelings inside of her and the tears rising into her eyes.

"Jascha?" she whispered his name again, wishing now that she could hear his voice and have him tell her that Timur was overreacting–he was going to be fine.

He wasn't going to die.

Before she had time to stop herself, she was kneeling beside the bed, his right hand held firmly in hers and her cheek pressed against it. She closed her eyes and tears escaped them when his fingers closed around hers.

She wanted to ask who had done this to him. He was strong, far stronger than she had been, and yet someone had hurt him. No, this wasn't hurting. This was butchering. Anger boiled up inside her. Someone had butchered him and left him to die. Death could be as swift for a vampire as it was for a human. Whoever had done this knew what they were doing and they'd made sure that Jascha wouldn't die that night.

This was a message. Someone was telling her species that they were stronger than them.

Her jaw tensed and she growled.

Someone was going to pay.

Jascha's fingers flexed weakly against hers and he muttered something that made no sense. She raised her head, taking in the extent of the damage done to this face. It was covered in rich bruises and fine cuts. His split lip and swollen eye made her heart ache for him.

His eyes met hers, pupils dilating and contracting as he struggled to focus.

A tiny frown made his brows shift.

"Mari?" he breathed so quietly she almost didn't hear him.

The sound of that name brought back all the pain and she dropped his hand, standing and distancing herself from him as her heart broke all over again. She turned her back on him while she pushed all of her feelings back down inside of her and tried to lock them inside her heart.

"Mari?" he whispered again.

She turned on a pinpoint and stared at him with cold eyes.

"My name is Marise," she said and steeled herself against the darkness that entered his eyes. It was what he deserved. She couldn't remember now what they'd fought about or exactly what had been said, but she still felt the pain each day.

She moved to the foot of the bed, buying the time to get back in control of the situation and herself.

He sighed.

It said so much.

She knew she wasn't the only one who had been hurt that day. They'd both said things and done things that were the undoing of what they'd had together. Only she'd accepted the position as Law Keeper and ran away, when he'd been willing to heal the breach.

She folded her arms across her chest.

"If you're up to it, I'd like your opinion on what happened the night you were injured."

He gave her a look that conveyed exactly what he was thinking. He was right. It was cold of her to stand here, distant and uncaring while he suffered, but that was what a Law Keeper did. They didn't mix business with pleasure. Pleasure was a thing of the past for them. To hold this position meant being impartial about the bloodlines and being emotionless. Emotions got in the way and clouded your judgement.

Like hers were right now.

She turned her back again and paced across the room. She didn't need the distance it brought–she needed the darkness. It robbed her sight of its sharpness and meant she couldn't see his injuries so clearly.

"A simple nod or shake of your head will suffice. That is, if you can manage it?" She looked at him.

He gave her a tiny nod and grimaced, his hand coming up to touch his throat as he frowned. His eyes closed and she could see the pain in his face. She'd forgotten the wound there. A part of her said to give him time to recover before questioning him, but the rest overruled it and said to get it over with and get out of here before these feelings stirring inside of her became dangerous.

He was a soldier. She was sure he understood. She needed answers for her investigation and so she could judge whether this case required a Law Keeper or not. This couldn't get personal. She couldn't go there again.

"Do you think there's a reason you were left alive?" she said, holding the tremble from her voice so he wouldn't know how much the sight of him so injured was affecting her.

He nodded.

"I think so too. Timur hasn't a clue what happened. You do though, don't you?"

He nodded again and swallowed with a grimace.

She moved a step closer so he could see her better through his one good eye, but kept far enough away that she couldn't clearly see his wounds.

"Who did this to you? A vampire?"

A shake of his head, tiny and almost imperceptible.

"I didn't think so. Were they human?"

He hesitated. There was uncertainty in his eyes.

"Niet," he said, voice strained but the accent that had always melted her was still there.

It was just like him to fall back on his native tongue. She hoped he'd keep his answers simple. She never had grasped the language.

"Did they look human?"

"Da," he croaked and rubbed his throat again.

She stepped nearer and had to look away when fresh blood seeped into the bandages around his neck. Her stomach roiled at the thought that she was hurting him by making him speak. She wanted to ask him to stick to nodding or shaking his head, but she couldn't let him see how affected she was by all of this.

"Do you think they were demon or were they wholly human?"

" `Ya ne pani`mayu." His voice sounded tight and he pushed himself up as he coughed.

Blood trickled down from the corner of his mouth.

"Damn it, Jascha! I told you to shake or nod." She stormed across the room and sat down on the bed beside him. Her hand was against his cheek, holding him and forcing him to look at her. Everything she was ready to say slipped away and instead she wiped the blood off his chin with her thumb.

She took her hand away from him, gathering herself while she wiped her thumb on the dirty cloth beside the bed.

There was a canister of blood and a stained glass pushed to the back of the small table. They were feeding him old blood? How was he supposed to heal? Anger stirred inside her and she shot a black look at the door. She could sense Timur outside with the guards. Was Tynan there too? Surely he wouldn't let Jascha suffer like this?

She undid the buttons on her jacket sleeve and pushed it up her arm before setting to work on the buttons of her shirt cuff. She rolled it up and tugged it out of the way.

Thinking about what she was doing, she justified it by telling herself that a dead witness was of no use to her. This was about the case. This wasn't personal.

She extended her claws and pressed one into her wrist.

Blood beaded against her skin.

This wasn't personal.

She looked at Jascha. He was laying back on the bed again now, eyes closed and his jet-black hair falling loose from his ponytail. Rogue strands of it criss-crossed his face. She ignored her temptation to clear them away and extended her arm to him.

His nostrils flared.

His eyes rolled as he opened them and gave her an incredulous look.

She moved her arm closer, frowning at him, but silently pleading him to drink. Without fresh blood, he'd never heal. Her blood would suffice until she could get Tynan to hunt for her. She wondered if there was any way that she could have words with Timur about the canister of blood without it looking as though she was bringing her feelings into this.

Her eyes widened when Jascha's mouth latched onto her wrist and she gasped when he bit her. It was the last thing she'd been expecting. She half closed her eyes when he began to drink, stirring all too familiar feelings inside of her. He was the last person to do this to her. She looked at his face, studying him and taking everything in.

Was it really fifty years since she'd seen his face?

No. She saw it each day in her dreams. He was always with her. She was just too stubborn to admit it.

His drinking slowed and before she knew it, it was over and he was licking the wound on her arm. She held it there for a moment when he stopped, the smallest part of her heart hoping he'd continue. He didn't. He lay back on the bed, his eyes still closed.

"Jascha?" she said and he looked at her. It seemed to take a lot of effort. Her blood was probably making him drowsy. "Was it a vampire hunter?"

"Da," he said.

"But not one like we've met before?"

"Niet," he whispered and closed his eyes again.

She smiled now that he couldn't see her. Ghosting her fingers down his cheek, not brave enough to touch him, she looked at him a moment longer and then rose from the bed.

"I'll arrange for fresh blood for you. I have more questions I need to ask. If you remember anything, please ask for me." She hated how cold she sounded.

Rolling her sleeve down, she stopped when she saw the marks on her wrist and stared at them. They were shallow and it wasn't because he was weak. It was because he hadn't wanted to hurt her. She ran her fingers over the marks and then buttoned her sleeve, covering it with her jacket.

Walking over to the door, she paused and looked back at him. It hurt to look at him, to have those memories of their time together come back, and to see him in so much pain. She hurt so much. He'd taken her feelings and smashed them. That much she could remember. They'd broken each other's heart that night.

She wanted to say something more, but couldn't bring herself to. She had already brought enough emotion into this investigation. If anyone found out, she was likely to be punished.

She reached out behind her and took hold of the door handle.

Turning, she opened the door.

She hesitated a moment when he spoke.

"Da svi`daniya, lubov moya."

She held the smile inside on hearing such familiar words. Was she still his love?

"I'll see you tomorrow," she said and closed the door behind her.

She killed all her feelings the moment the door clicked shut and turned to look at the people in the corridor around her. The two guards were still there and she didn't recognise either of them. They looked wet behind the ears, younglings no doubt.

Her eyes sought out Tynan but he was nowhere to be seen so they settled on Timur.

"I will have more questions for him come sunset tomorrow. For now, he must rest. His injuries are extensive, severe enough that a full interrogation may be the end of him. If that happens, I will have no answers to support my involvement in this situation and you will have no Law Keeper to protect you from this human."

Timur's eyes widened, showing the white around his irises and exposing his fear to her again. He fidgeted and she frowned. He was petrified of the thought of this human coming after him. Having seen what this person had done to Jascha, she could understand that fear, but as lord of his bloodline, he should not allow himself to be ruled by it. He was safe in his home. Or did he think that he wasn't?

"I will speak with the other guards and see what they know," she said, hiding her true intention. She had to find Tynan. It was unlike him to leave Jascha suffering like this. She wanted to know what had happened to change him. "Ensure that only your guards are allowed out to hunt for the house."

Timur swallowed, hard enough that she saw it.

"What is it?" She didn't give him an inch as she stepped towards him, straightening to her full height and staring down into his eyes. He was still hiding things from her, and she was beginning to get annoyed by all the secrecy. How was she supposed to do her job if she was being kept in the dark about things?

"No one is allowed to hunt," he muttered under his breath.

She frowned, her eyes narrowing.

"Are you insane?" She was tempted to take hold of his shirt collar and rattle him. Either that or she was going to throttle him. She took a deep breath and forced herself to remain calm. If he saw how shaken she was by the sight of Jascha so hurt, he wasn't going to give her the respect she needed and deserved.

"They are still out there."

She ignored his worried look and the childlike pleading in his eyes.

"You are weakening your house. You are letting Jascha die!" She clenched her fists and struggled to rein in her anger.

A dark look entered his eyes and for a moment she thought he was going to remind her who was lord of this bloodline. She couldn't believe how weak he'd become. She couldn't believe that he was risking the lives of everyone in his house because he was frightened of a vampire hunter.

"I am sending your guards out to hunt whether you like it or not. This house needs fresh blood. You have to keep your people strong or they will be lambs to the slaughter should this vampire hunter attack with allies." She didn't wait for a reply. She turned and stormed down the hall towards the guardroom.

Fury fuelled her as she took the steps down into the basement level of the house. It had been given over to the servant ranks and the guards long ago, before she was turned. The guards had their restroom down here and the training rooms. She was sure she'd find Tynan there. How could she have thought that it had been his choice to feed Jascha old blood? She should've known that he would never willingly allow Jascha to die like this. Timur had effectively tied his hands behind his back and forced him to watch his brother die.

Pushing the door to the guardroom open, she strode in and scanned the faces. She recognised some of them. They all looked stunned to see her. Before she could locate Tynan, he was standing beside her, silent as always. She didn't acknowledge him, instead she kept her eyes fixed on the others.

"You are to hunt in groups. Bring fresh blood to the house. Timur will not punish you. I have seen to that." She held their gazes and then whispered out of the corner of her mouth to Tynan, "I need a word in private."

He nodded and left the room. She waited a moment and then followed him out into the hall. Looking around, she caught a glimpse of him heading into the armoury. She walked casually to it, her whole body shaking with the release of emotions that the idea of speaking to him brought. She knew that with him, she had no chance of remaining cold and business-like. Her heart said that he would never tell anyone about how she acted in private with him, and it seemed to give her feelings free rein to do as they pleased. She couldn't control them no matter how hard she tried.

It was a dangerous way for her to feel.

"I need a moment," Tynan said as she entered the room.

She looked at the guards and stood to one side as they began to leave. They didn't question Tynan's order, so he must have made it to a higher rank than he'd been the last time she'd seen him. Her eyes traversed the room while she waited, taking in the assortment of swords, spears, bows and axes that lined the dark walls.

She'd never liked it in here. It was always gloomy and reminded her of death. Her family never took up arms lightly, so being assigned to work in the armoury was almost a punishment. No one came here and the long hours each guard had to work were often passed alone.

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