I dislodged Candace and walked through the living room. I looked through the peephole. A man I'd never seen before stood on my stoop, blinking at the bright overhead light.
Curious, I opened the door.
"Dorothea Blackwell?"
"Yes?"
"Forgive my intrusion, may I speak to you?"
"Yes. Won't you come in?"
"Are you giving me permission?"
"If you're not here to hurt me, then yes. Please come in."
He sighed gratefully and stepped inside. "I am sorry. I had hoped to speak to you alone, but time is not on my side. It wasn't my intention to disrupt your party."
"That's okay. What can I do for you?"
"My clan is in trouble. I would ask for the help of the Coven of the First Moon," he said formally and put his hand over his chest, bowing low.
"Your clan?"
"Yes," he answered respectfully and smiled.
His fangs became quite visible in the warm light of my living room.
He was a vampire.
And I'd just invited him in…
Excerpt of book 2… Second Blood
CHAPTER 1
It never ceases to amaze me how even when you're immortal life just keeps on chugging along too fast to believe. In the short span of a couple of weeks I'd manage to move to another city four states away from my beloved Virginia, join and become high priestess of a new coven, get blown up, buy a house and a fire house, solve a murder, and pick up two boyfriends at the same time…
While life passes quickly, nobody ever said it was easy.
Leaving my mother's house, a home I had lived in for ninety-nine years, hadn't been the easiest life decision I'd ever made. In my defense, I was driven by the goddess and had little choice in the matter. Judging from how my mother reacted, you'd never have been able to guess that, though. She took it as a personal affront.
Josie, my best friend and another witch, made the move with me. When we left, I had nothing more than a general direction of where I needed to go. We ended up in Cedar Falls, New York. A town a lot quainter than Ashville and in desperate financial status. We also happened across the local coven, which the chief of police and several of the local fire department happened to be a part of. That's when the murders started happening. We managed to figure out who the killer was, but not before we lost several people who would be sorely missed.
The doorbell ringing during our celebratory dinner had been odd. I should have followed my gut something wasn't quite right. As it was, here I stood with a vampire in front of me asking for the coven's help.
My hand reflexively covered my bald head, my hair had been totally singed off in a fiery car wreck. It was epic, but I should have grown my hair back sooner. The guys had been begging me, but I kind of enjoyed teasing them with it.
The vampire was staring at me shyly, grateful to be out of the cold. I just couldn't believe I had invited him in my house so willingly. In my defense, I hadn't known he was a vampire, but still…
"I'm sorry, what?"
"We need your help. I was informed that you were a coven of witches for hire?"
Ahhh. That explains it…
"Formerly for hire… We, sadly, are not what we once were."
"The Coven of the Gold Moon is legendary for their magic…"
"Which is probably why we're now the Coven of the First Moon."
His face fell. "I am sorry to have bothered you."
"Wait." Lady damn it all, I could at least hear him out. "I didn't say we wouldn't help. I'm just letting you know we might not be able to."
He turned and stared at me in confusion.
"Look. Let's start over. Hi. I'm Dot." I reached out and offered him my hand. Vampire or not, I could still be polite.
He removed his glove and held out his pale white hand, gingerly encircling mine and smiling. "And I am Amir."
"Would you care to sit?" I motioned at the couch behind him. The dining room was heavily occupied, as was the kitchen. The noise levels almost drowning out our conversation.
"I can come back…"
"It's okay. Are you hungry?" I realized I probably should not have asked that as soon as the words slipped from my mouth. I wasn't sure if vampires could eat human food, and I sure the hell wasn't offering him a vein. I didn't care how unnaturally beautiful he was. "Can you eat Italian food? I know there's a ton of garlic."
He chuckled and removed his coat. It had hung down to his knees, so I didn't notice the leather pants he wore until I saw them tucked into matching boots. They were…tight. Very tight. "I can not partake in actual food, but I appreciate the offer."
"What about drinks?"
He paused and his cheeks rose a little as a partial smile crossed his face. "Do you have any wine?"
"Red?"
"Of course…"
I took his jacket, hanging it on the rack by the door, and headed for the kitchen. "I'll be right back," I called over my shoulder.
Chief was standing at the back of the line, watching the scenario as it played out. I gave him my best I need you but not in a sexual way right now look.
He dislodged himself from the food line and met me in the kitchen.
"All okay?"
"Oh, yeah, sure. Just invited a vampire into my house. He wanted to hire the coven to help save his clan. Now I'm getting him a glass of wine. The usual."
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me. Want to be my backup?"
"Always."
"Grab a drink."
I poured him a glass of red wine, right out of the box, grabbed the one I had left on the counter, and waited for Chief. He popped a cap off a fresh bottle of beer and followed me back into the living room.
I handed Amir the glass of wine and sat down on the love seat. Chief plopped down next to me, taking a swig from his beer. "Amir, this is the chief of police, and a member of our coven, Bill. Bill, this is Amir. He's asked for our help." I sounded stupid, even to myself. I didn't do well in uncomfortable situations and I couldn't imagine the night getting anymore awkward.
Bill reached across the table and shook his hand. "Excuse our high priestess. She's socially inept."
I was wrong. It did get more awkward.
Amir laughed, his otherworldly voice sending chills up my arms and down my spine. "What was that?"
"My apologies. Our voices…they are meant to entrance humans."
"What about witches?"
He shrugged. "You are the first I have met."
"Why don't you tell us what's going on?" Bill tried to get to the point.
I nodded.
The vampire sighed, sipping his wine and leaning forward to set it on the table next to the empty bottle chief had put down. He placed his elbows on his knees and stayed where he was, pressing his hands together. "Our clan lives north of here in a small village. We do what we can to survive and not draw attention to ourselves, but that is no longer the case. Over the past few weeks… Excuse me, I do not know where to start." He reached down and picked up his wine, tasting it and letting it roll around his tongue before swallowing it slowly. I could see him gathering his thoughts.
"Take your time," I said quietly and waited. Chief's hand touched my back and begin to rub me affectionately as he sat back in the love seat.
"It started three weeks ago. We were in the wilderness on a hunt… Three of us. We heard what sounded like thunder and Janus screeched, the sound scattering the wildlife around us. When we emerged from our cloaking camouflage, Janus was gone. Yvette and I assumed he had gone back to our village, but when we returned, he was not there. The next evening, we searched and searched, but found no trace of him. It was as if he vanished into the air."
"What were you hunting?" I tried to sound curious, but it came out accusing, even to my ears. Chief nudged me in the back. "I didn't mean that the way it sounded."
Amir chortled. "Yes, you did. It is okay, though. I understand. The truth is we were hunting bear. It has become too dangerous to hunt humans in
the past century. We have had to adjust our diet."
That didn't make me feel any better. "Do you think he was attacked by a bear?"
"No. There would have been signs of a struggle. And the chances of a bear winning against a child of the night…"
"Sorry to interrupt. Continue with your tale?"
He nodded, taking another sip of wine. "Two days later we found him."
"Alive?"
"No. He was chained to a stone altar in the woods. Drained of his blood."
"Somebody drank his blood until he died?"
Amir shrugged. "There is more. He was drained of his blood and most, if not all, of his organs were missing."
"So, it wasn't another vampire."
"No. We cannot feed from each other. It is poison to us."
"I'm guessing he wasn't the only one?"
"No. Since then, two more of us have been found the same way, drained and robbed of our organs."
I looked over at Chief. "Any thoughts?"
"The same ones you probably are having right now."
"You know something?" Amir sounded hopeful.
"Yeah, but it's probably nothing you would want to hear."
He shook his head sadly. "At this point, the bitter truth would be welcome over blind ignorance."
"Sounds like you are being hunted by witches. Vampire blood, fae blood, werewolf blood… These are all very powerful things. Many witches who have left the Lady's graces often seek power through such things. I am sorry."
He backed up a little, fear plainly etched across his face. "You?"
I held up my hands. "No. We do not trade in death. You are safe. I was apologizing for what has happened. How many are in your clan?"
"There are eight of us left."
"Where is your village?"
"Just over the border into Canada."
"Eight of you for an entire village?"
He sighed. "We used to number more in times past, but this world is changing rapidly. We are the stuff of legends, as I'm sure you are familiar. We do not fit in anymore. We were hunted almost to the point of extinction by humans. Those of us who did not want to go off into the cold night, became hermits and banded together. We live in caves and huts, far away from the prying eyes of the humans around us, giving them no reason to think we are real."
"Not all of you."
"Pardon?"
The thought of them living so primitively, broke my heart.. There were a clan of vampires back home who had sought protection and became prosperous, healthy, well adjusted, and liked by the community. Their Halloween decorations usually won the annual competition, much to the chagrin of my mother.
"What if I told you that you didn't need to live like this?"
"I do not see how things can be different."
"Can you be trusted around humans?"
He looked at Bill like I had lost my mind. I turned to get his reaction. It mirrored Amir's. This wasn't going to be as easy as I thought.
"Amir. I'm from a town on the east coast. The witch population is over seventy. There is also a family of lycanthropes who live there. As well as a…clan of vampires. They run the blood bank and are valued members of the community. We have fae visitors as well. What is truly unique about Ashville is the supernatural community lives in harmony with the human population."
"How?"
"Centuries of prosperity. This town is far from that, but it is my goal to accomplish much the same, and we are off to a rocky, but good, start. Would you be interested in moving here where it's safe?"
"I am the chief of our clan, but I can not speak for all in this. This is…too much?"
His French accent became a little more prevalent. "Would you consider it if they agreed? I would help you transition if I thought you could be trusted."
"What is a blood bank?"
"Human's donate blood and it is kept frozen. It's used to treat humans in hospitals who suffer traumatic injuries and require transfusions. The vampires supply this donated blood and live off the excess."
He stared at me in horror.
I sighed, at a loss how to explain it better. I looked at Bill and couldn't read the look he was giving me. I'd talk to him later.
"This. I… Would you excuse me? I need to ponder your words. Would it be alright for me to return in two days time?"
"Sure. Take all the time you need."
He stood and bowed. "I thank you for your hospitality." He headed for the front door, retrieving his jacket and practically running out of the house.
At least I had given him an option. I sighed and turned to Bill.
"Are you fucking insane?"
That's when I noticed the coven standing in the entrance to the living room, listening to the entire conversation. Some held plates of food in their hands, still eating and watching the entertainment.
"What?"
"I asked you if you had finally flipped your lid. How could you invite an entire coven of blood-sucking vampires to relocate to our town?"
"They need help."
"So do you, Dot."
Bill got up from the couch, grabbed his empty beer and walked away, leaving me sitting there in shock from his unexpected anger. "What did you want me to do?"
"Hear him out. Kick him out. Get on with our lives?" He grabbed a plate off the counter after parting the sea of gawkers.
"You would just leave them to be slaughtered by rogue witches making potions they shouldn't be?"
"They're vampires, Dot. They can fend for themselves. Hell, one of them could probably wipe out the whole town. You want eight of them running around Cedar Falls? Really? That was your plan?"
I chugged my wine and walked over, grabbing a plate and taking some chicken and pasta. I didn't feel like having any of the garlic bread. I loved the stuff but hated having the aftertaste in my mouth for the rest of the night.
He took a seat at the dining room table. I finished shoveling food on my plate and took the seat next to him at the head of the table. "We are in a unique position to help them, just as they could possibly help us in the future. When I'm telling you the vampires in Ashville integrated just fine, I mean it. Do you know what the crime rate is in town?"
"Are we counting your mother in this rate or just petty crimes?" My brows rose at his snarky tone as he shoveled a forkful of twisted spaghetti into his mouth. He was really angry.
"Zero, Chief Dick. There hasn't been a murder in Ashville in thirty years."
"This isn't Ashville, Lady Asshat."
I regretted my decision not to grab a piece of garlic bread. It would have complemented the acidity of the sauce perfectly. I looked over at the trays. Candace was standing there nibbling on un-sauced noodles. "Candace, could you toss me a piece of bread, please?" I turned back to Bill. "Listen, Mr. Douchenugget. I'm telling you we can have what they have. You just need to trust me a little bit."
"Before or after the population is sucked dry? Should we wander around the forest and find some werebears? The humans can run around with porkchops tied to their waists and they can all play tag! This food is really good. Is there any more wine?"
Candace handed me a slab of bread and someone else set the box of wine and a glass down in front of us. I sloshed some in the glass and slammed it down in front of him. "Let's not be fucking ridiculous! I'm talking about helping a small coven of vampires who have been reduced to living like cave people. How fair is that?"
"Fairer than letting the people get turned into juice pouches!" He took a sip of wine. "Ooh. That's good, too. Beer just doesn't go with Italian."
"I thought you drank beer with everything. Juice pouches was a good one, though. But come on! Do you think I would put the people of this town at risk? Why would I? If I couldn't handle the situation, I wouldn't have fucking suggested it."
"Could you pass the salt? And why the fuck would I think you could handle it? Since you've been here, you've been blown up twice, almost got shot, and almost got three people of the coven killed? You don't even have any fucking
hair, Dot."
I rubbed my head absentmindedly. He did have a point. "Yeah, well, you're a dick!"
I pushed my food away, stood, and stopped.
The coven was standing in a semi-circle around the table. They looked like kids watching Mom and Dad fighting about whose turn it was to empty the dishwasher. I sat back down and let out the breath I'd sucked in, staring hopelessly at Jimmy. He gave me a small smile, but didn't look too thrilled with me, either.
Author's Note
Reviews are important for new authors and I greatly appreciate everyone who takes a moment to leave one, even a line or two! Thank you so much for reading my debut novel! I'm writing away and more books will be out soon! In fact, book 2, Second Blood, releases Feb 1st and is up on amazon now!
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About the Author
A late comer to the writing game, Jacquelyn had always been a fan of romance novels and lately become addicted to the reverse harem category. I mean seriously, who wouldn't? Sitting alone one night she flipped open her laptop and said, "I'm going to give this a whirl." And thus, the Lovin' the Coven series was given life. She has designs on other series as well, but only time shall tell.
As for her, she is five-foot-something, with graying hair, wicked eyes, an eager smile, and an annoying laugh. She lives at home with her dog, a cat, and that is about all she is comfortable sharing.
Connect with Jacquelyn
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Other Works
Lovin' the Coven Series
First Moon
Second Blood
Third Charm (Coming Soon!)
First Moon : A Reverse Harem Tale (Lovin' the Coven Book 1) Page 21
