A Darker Crimson

by Carolyn Jewel

  Shick-tak. Lath chambered another UV shot.

  “No, Lath, you can’t. You can’t kill him.”

  “If I don’t, you will leave him?”

  “Yes.”

  Lath took a step toward her, his gun pointed down. He stood arm’s length away. “You are lying, tes,” he said. His eyes were sad. “You are my vishtau mate, but you want the vampire before me.” He took aim again. “This cannot be.”

  “Kill the vampire, and she’s dead.” Aslet again stood in the doorway. The right upper half of his shirt was gone, burned away by UV. His flash-exposed arm hung useless at his side. In his left hand, he clutched his B-Ops issue semi-automatic and pointed it at Claudia’s chest. He couldn’t miss.

  She’d die for Tiber. No doubt about it. If she had to, she would. Just like Tiber would die for her. But she didn’t think she needed to. God help them all if she was wrong. Lath moved so fast she didn’t see anything but a blur of black. She met Aslet’s searing blue eyes and stood her ground even when she saw him press the trigger. Everything happened fast. Tiber shouted. The air pulsed hot and electric.

  Lath collided with he and shoved her away. Hard. She slid halfway down the hall, away from the spray of bullets. He fired at Aslet, then the UV-loaded Browning popped from Lath’s hand. His body spun around once. Blood and bullets spattered the wall behind him. But the Bak-Faru stayed on his feet, chanting again. Claudia’s heart froze in her chest. Lath had been in Crimson City long enough to learn about UV and more than long enough to learn how to kill a vampire without it.

  She scrambled for the gun, got her palm burned by the UV mod unit, and flipped it around. Lath knelt at Tiber’s side, gripping a black-bladed knife, and he was putting magic behind it. Enough to take a vamp’s head. The mod unit drew the Browning’s balance off, but she leveled it at Lath and prayed the kickback wouldn’t make her miss. He turned his head and looked at her. She could see the sadness in his eyes, and it just about broke her heart. “Don’t make me kill you, Lath.”

  His lilac eyes stayed on her face, sad, a cavern of sorrow. Slowly, he shook his head. “You are mine. I love you before all others. With everything that I am. And you will always love the vampire before me.”

  “Yes.”

  “Lath is not my name.”

  “Your name is Ur-Kashev-Ghan.” The moment she said his name, she felt their connection even more strongly. The demon nodded. “Ur-Kashev-Ghan,” she said, “if you kill Tiber, my heart would break. I could never love you. Never.”

  “I would die for you.”

  “Please, Lath, don’t do this.”

  “Claudia Donovan, without your heart, I am already dead.” His knife started a down-stroke.

  She pulled the trigger.

  The flash about blinded her and the kickback knocked her on her butt. When she opened her eyes she didn’t see Lath and for half a heartbeat she thought she’d missed. Only she hadn’t. The Bak-Faru lay unmoving on the floor, a smoking hole in his chest the size of a volleyball.

  With shaking hands she unloaded the bullets. All of them. And then she unfastened the UV mod and threw it across the room. When she looked up, Aslet was watching her from the doorway. Half his face was reddened from the blast he’d taken. Blood dripped down his arm from a slash there. From over his shoulder, she saw a hole in the wall from Lath’s second shot at the demon. This was going to cost a fortune to repair.

  “You need the paramedics,” she told the demon.

  Aslet nodded toward Tiber. “The vampire?”

  “Sorry, man. You’re still on the hook. He’ll be dancing a jig in a minute.” And he’d be hungry as hell.

  Back to the wall, she slid down until she sat next to Tiber. She nodded toward the interior of her apartment and said to the demon, “Put some QuikSeal on that cut before you bleed all over my new bamboo floors. Down the hall, second door on the right. There’s a first-aid kit in the cabinet. Help yourself.”

  Aslet’s blue eyes stayed on her. “I am sorry your vishtau mate is dead.”

  “Yeah, well.” She was glad she was sitting down because otherwise she would have collapsed.

  “For a human female, you are brave.”

  “Thanks.” The diminishing hole in Tiber’s shoulder was nearly healed, though he was unconscious. Aslet walked past her. “You’re a good aim,” she called after him. “For a demon.” The demon’s laughter stayed in her ears when Tiber opened his eyes. “Hey,” she said, stroking her fingers through his hair. The sight of his gorgeous green eyes made her heart flutter. Sometimes, a thing was just right, and so you went with it. “Up and at ’em, fang. We’ve got another mess to clean up.”

  He sat up, took in the damage to the room and touched a finger to her cheek. “Such a lovely smile, dear-heart. It’s always nice to wake to.” He looked around the room, taking in the damage and settling, at last, on Lath’s body. His head dipped toward hers, and Claudia felt a shiver of anticipation. “Is it finally all for me?”

  “Yeah, Tiber. It is.” She nodded as she twined her arms around his neck and pulled him to her. “After the baby’s born, I’m yours for as long as you can stand it.”

  “Forever,” he said. “Forever sounds perfect to me.”

  She put her mouth by his ear and whispered, “Forever sounds good to me, too.”

  You Might Enjoy

  If you like action-packed urban fantasy, deep emotions, and kickass heroines you might also enjoy my Crimson City Novella DX.

  Surviving the mission is one thing. Keeping her head in Crimson City is another.

  Helen “Hell” Marshall is willing to do anything to get her old job back with Crimson City’s Internal-Operations. She didn’t think she’d have to track down and neutralize a demon on the loose in L.A. to do it. She also didn’t count on having to work with covert agent Jaden Lightfeather. And she really didn’t expect her ex-boyfriend and vampire head of a criminal organization to try to get her back in the middle of the mission.

  She might just get her job back. If she can complete the mission without someone getting her killed.

  GET DX

  For more sexy stories about demons, try out my My Immortals series.

  She’ll give into a demon’s protection… and his passion.

  Paisley Nichols knows how to take care of herself, but when an insane mage nearly kills her and looks to finish the job, the only person she can trust is her sexy, uninhibited landlord who just happens to be a demon.

  Demon assassin Iskander has been burned by betrayal. He keeps humans at a distance, except for nights he spends swept up in carnal pleasure. When Iskander is ordered to keep “the human woman alive”, it turns out his tenant is everything he’s ever wanted in a partner, in bed and out.

  As Paisley develops magical abilities that can save Iskander’s kind from unimaginable suffering, the pair must face off the bloodthirsty mage and come to terms with their growing, undeniable passion.

  My Dangerous Pleasure is an installment of the My Immortals saga, a series of paranormal romances set in a world of demons, magic, and a wide swath of moral grey area. If you like steamy romances, conniving villains, and explosive chemistry, then you’ll love Carolyn Jewel’s sizzling paranormal adventure.

  GET My Dangerous Pleasure

  About Carolyn Jewel

  Carolyn Jewel was born on a moonless night. That darkness was seared into her soul and she became an award-winning and USA Today bestselling author of historical and paranormal romance. She has a very dusty car and a Master’s degree in English that proves useful at the oddest times. An avid fan of fine chocolate, finer heroines, Bollywood films, and heroism in all forms, she has two cats and two dogs. Also a son. One of the cats is his.

  Visit Carolyn on the web at:

  carolynjewel.com | twitter | facebook | goodreads

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  Books by Carolyn

  PARANORMAL ROMANCE

  My Immortals Series

  My Wicked
Enemy, Book 1

  My Forbidden Desire, Book 2

  My Immortal Assassin, Book 3

  My Dangerous Pleasure, Book 4

  Free Fall, Book 4.5, a novella

  My Darkest Passion, Book 5

  Dead Drop, Book 6

  My Demon Warlord, Book 7

  OTHER PARANORMAL ROMANCE

  A Darker Crimson, Book 4 of Crimson City

  DX, A Crimson City Novella

  HISTORICAL ROMANCE SERIES

  The Sinclair Sisters Series

  Lord Ruin, Book 1

  A Notorious Ruin, Book 2

  Surrender To Ruin, Book 3

  Reforming the Scoundrels Series

  Not Wicked Enough, Book 1

  Not Proper Enough, Book 2

  OTHER HISTORICAL ROMANCE

  Scandal

  Indiscreet

  The Spare

  Stolen Love

  Passion’s Song

  Anthologies

  Christmas in Duke Street

  Dancing in The Duke’s Arms

  Christmas in The Duke’s Arms

  Midnight Scandals

  Novellas

  Miss Fiona Harper’s Night of Passion

  A Seduction in Winter

  An Unsuitable Duchess

  In The Duke’s Arms

  One Starlit Night

  Moonlight, a short story

  FANTASY ROMANCE

  The King’s Dragon – A short story

  EROTIC ROMANCE

  Whispers, Collection No. 1

  Excerpts from the Crimson City Series Novels

  Crimson City by Liz Maverick

  CHAPTER 1

  Fleur Dumont flung herself out of the ninety-third-floor window and somersaulted along the vertical length of the skyscraper. She quickly adjusted to the altered plane of the fighting field and leaped into the air, one leg bent at the knee; the other leg she kicked straight out into the chest of her assailant.

  Her foe lost his footing, but he recovered position within seconds, foregoing any attempt at bracing himself along the slick glass of the building beneath him. Instead, hovering in the air, he gestured to someone behind Fleur. A glance at the reflection in the windows below her feet confirmed two more enemies. Sweat pouring down the back of her jacket, Fleur pulled a pair of daggers from the sheaths strapped around her thighs and whirled in a circle, her weapons at the ready, trying to make herself a little more space. The sky blurred into a luminous rainbow as she turned, the night’s darkness making the lights that streamed past much more vivid. Projected down toward the human world at street level, they originated from a fleet of flying advertisement projectors. Looped videos, holographics, multicolored skylight lasers—all touting a seemingly endless number of desires and cures. The lights were uncomfortable and distracting to vampires, but Fleur had trained outside enough to be able to ignore them when it counted.

  The three vampires floating around her were, like her, armed with daggers, and she already knew firsthand of their power and skill. Well, size and numbers could not trump the strength and agility inherent in her blood, so at worst, they were equals. Fleur focused and moved in for the kill, directing a flurry of blows at all three men as she danced through the air.

  Until one of the men snatched a gun from his shoulder holster and fired. Caught by surprise, Fleur lurched away and hit the top of a billboard with her knee. She cartwheeled wildly off in the other direction amid a shower of sparks as some of the bulbs exploded from the impact. She went into free fall, just missing a remote-controlled drone that hummed by projecting an all-species evening edition of the news onto the thickening smog particles.

  She let herself drop and took the opportunity to catch her breath, but the splash of violet on her right sleeve spurred her back into the fight. He’d capped her, all right. That pissed her off, and immediately she reversed direction, purposely holding her left arm behind her and out of sight.

  Just as she reached the three men and lunged forward with her knife, a watch chime froze all her foes in mid-action. They stopped fighting immediately, and the session ended with the flat end of Fleur’s blade slapping dully off Marius’s chest armor. “That’s time,” he said. “And we’re off.”

  Without another word, the men all turned and headed upward, Fleur on their heels. They alit gracefully on the edge of the huge picture window leading back into the training room, where the slick angles, metal, and glass wrapping the outside of the massive landmark building gave way to a completely different world: dark woods, lusciously colored fabrics and touches of gilt.

  “Come on, come on … finish this!” Fleur looked wildly from one man to the next, but the three Protectors were already stripping off their fight gear.

  “Sorry, Fleur,” Warrick said, swatting her dagger away as if it were a fly. “Nice work, but next time, don’t expect a reflection to save you.”

  Fleur knew he was right. She wasn’t quite where she needed to be. She should have been training from the day she was born, but the assumption had been that she’d never be called. That hadn’t really changed, but the number of vampires left between her and serious responsibility had been whittled down to two: her half-brothers, Christian and Ryan. She could have gotten away with calling them brothers, straight up, but they simply weren’t close.

  Her cousins, the three Protectors standing before her, were her core family now. For Marius, Warrick, and Ian Dumont had never once swayed in their loyalty, not even amidst the power struggle during the war between the species when her mother had not only fallen from grace, but had fallen forever.

  Still, Fleur wasn’t convinced her cousins took her training seriously. Probably no one did. But at least they humored her, and they could humor her all they wanted as long as they gave her the training she’d requested.

  She sighed and threw herself down on one of the carved rosewood benches lining the training hall. “I thought it was just going to be Marius today. Nice trick calling for the others.”

  “You know us too well. You’re able to anticipate our movements at this point,” Ian said, busy flexing his chest muscles with the pleased air of a man who knew his body could not be more perfect. “And even with those damn stuffy helmets on, I’m sure you still know who is who. From movement or sense if not by sight. We should bring in some outsiders for you to practice on.”

  Warrick stripped off his shirt and tossed it in the corner bin, then glanced over. “You’re not hurt, Fleur, are you? You took a nasty bounce off that advert.”

  Fleur crossed her legs to hide the rip in her training suit and quickly peeled off her jacket so they wouldn’t see the violet paint. If Marius had been toting a real UV weapon, she’d be lying on the floor writhing in pain. “I’m absolutely fine. Not a bad recovery out there, I think… So, what are you meeting about?”

  Read Crimson City

  Through a Crimson Veil by Patti O’Shea

  CHAPTER 1

  Mika wrapped her arms around his waist and gave him a seductive smile before she realized what she was doing. “Yeah? I hate to tell you this, but if you’re trying to wring my neck, it’s farther north.”

  His hands immediately stopped kneading her rear, and Mika pulled free. She ignored his cursing and walked a few steps away. McCabe grabbed her, tugged her back, and put her in a bear hug. It was supposed to be a method of restraint, but the feel of him against her bottom made Mika wriggle. His hold tightened, forcing her to still, but not before she felt his body begin to react to hers. She turned and ran her hands up his chest.

  “Are you trying to convince me to protect you by offering me your body?” he asked.

  It was meant to be an insult, there was no doubt about that, but she wasn’t prostituting herself and Conor knew it. He’d said that to make her mad; he wanted her to storm off in a snit, then he wouldn’t have to deal with her. Too bad for him that she knew what he was up to, and Mika refused to let him push her buttons.

  “No, but I might offer you my body for other reasons,” she answe
red easily. Turning her head, she snuggled into his shoulder and nipped at the pulse point in his throat, then ran her tongue over it. She couldn’t have chosen a worse action if she’d planned it—not if her goal was to stay close to Conor McCabe. He released her so fast, Mika staggered to catch her balance.

  Damn it, why did she have this need to always push? She knew he didn’t want to want her, that if she had any hope of him agreeing to her scheme, she had to do everything she could to play down the overwhelming physical attraction flaring between them. But was that what she’d done? Hell, no. She’d maximized his awareness of her. How stupid.

  “I’m sorry,” she said, and tried to sound contrite.

  “Let’s start over, shall we?” He pivoted to face her, and she could sense his reluctance. Be businesslike, she told herself. “Conor McCabe, I’m Mika Noguchi.” She took a few steps toward him, arm outstretched. For a moment, she didn’t think he was going to take her hand, but he surprised her. The shake, however, was perfunctory. “I’d like to hire you to protect me, and to slay the demon that’s trying to kill me,” she said.

  He tucked his hands in the back pockets of his jeans. “I don’t work cheap,” he warned her.

  She knew she had him then. McCabe might not realize it yet, but they were now negotiating price. Mika managed to keep her satisfaction in check. “That’s okay. I don’t value my life cheaply.” With a shrug she added, “And I can afford you.”

  “Can you afford this?” He named a price that made her eyes bug out. “That’s per day,” Conor added.

  “That’s outrageous!”

  “So? Usually I only kill demons. You’re going to have to pay for my time if you want around-the-clock baby-sitting.”