The Devil's Fool: A Paranormal Vampire Romance Novel (Devil Series Book 1)

by Raven Steele

Charlie gasped. “Amazing!”

  The entire process took less than ten minutes. I wished it had been longer so I could spend more time with him.

  “When do you think he’ll wake up?” Charlie asked.

  “It could be any time. We shouldn’t leave him here in case those vampires come back. Let’s take him outside.”

  Charlie bent over and lifted Lucien up over his shoulder. “We can take him to my place.”

  I walked behind the storage units with Charlie behind me. “Absolutely not! He’ll probably kill you.”

  Charlie stopped moving. “So why am I trying to save him?”

  “Let’s put him over here.” I pointed to a stack of wood.

  “Gladly.” Charlie dropped him on the ground hard.

  “Careful,” I cried. I positioned Lucien in a more comfortable position.

  “I don’t get why we are doing this. Even you admit he’s dangerous.”

  “He won’t be. We just need to give him some time.” I stood and looked down at him. “I wish we had a blood pack or something. He’s going to need it when he wakes up.”

  “I have some,” Charlie said.

  I turned to him. “Why do you have blood?”

  “You should always have blood with you when working with vampires. For negotiating purposes.”

  “To negotiate for what?”

  “My life, for starters." He swung the medical bag over his shoulder and reached inside.

  When he handed me two bags of blood, I placed them in Lucien’s lap.

  “He’ll be fine,” Charlie said. He tugged at my arm. “Let’s go. I can still get some sleep if we go now.”

  Reluctantly, I followed him to the car.

  On the drive back, Charlie shifted in his seat. And then again, huffing as he did so.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  He glanced at me sideways. “It’s Lucien. I have a horrible feeling that this is happening too soon.”

  “He may be dangerous, but that’s only because he knows no other way.”

  “And how do you plan on showing him another way if he won’t let anyone near him?” he asked.

  “I’m working on it.”

  Much to my dismay, sleep eluded me the rest of the night. I couldn’t get Lucien out of my mind, so as soon as it was light, I took a cab back to the storage units. I walked behind them only to discover that Lucien was gone. The blood bags had been thrown against the side of a building and with his finger, he had traced the words: Stay away. My heart sank.

  How was I going to get through to him?

  I arrived at the office before anyone else. Surprisingly, Henry was waiting for me in my office, sitting on a chair in the corner. “I understand you met Lucien?”

  I smiled and set down the donuts and napkins I’d brought in for the staff. “I don’t know how you do it, but it’s a little creepy how you know things before you’ve been told. Yes, I met Lucien. He’d been attacked by two men and left for dead in a warehouse, but Charlie and I saved him in time.”

  “Was he aware of what you did?”

  I sat down behind my desk and grabbed one of the napkins, my fingers fidgeting with the white paper. “Not until after he woke up. We left some blood bags for him, but he destroyed them. I don’t know what to do, Henry. I don’t think he’ll let anyone into his world.”

  “Then you need to upset that world,” he asserted, his eyes boring into mine.

  I tore the napkin in two. “How can I do that if I can’t even get near him?”

  “Eve, you’ve been watching him for a long time. What have you learned?”

  I frowned, trying to think. No one ever approached Lucien, but when he did encounter someone, it was always deliberate and always ended badly for the other person. “He chooses to be alone.”

  “You’re right. So if you can’t go to him, make him come to you.” His voice, always calm, held a playful note.

  I wasn’t sure how I could do that, but it made sense.

  Henry leaned over and stopped my hands from continuing to shred the napkin. “You need to want this with every fiber of your being. It will be difficult and frightening at first, but if you really commit, you will get through to him.”

  I tossed the napkin away and sighed. “You’re right. I’ve been afraid, but I do want this. I know there is good in him.” I nodded. “I’ll do it. I’ll find a way to make him come to me.”

  The moment I committed to Lucien, I felt something new grow inside me like a determined spring chick anxious to shed its cramped shell. I let it all go, including my doubts and fears for the future. My experiences up to this point, whether good or bad, had made me who I was today. If I could, would I change any of it? A month, or even a week ago, I would’ve said yes. I always thought that if I could go back to my younger self, I would tell her to run away because she wasn’t strong enough for the storm brewing in her future. But now I knew that storm had been crucial to my development. I needed those moments as much as a caterpillar needs a cocoon.

  I am ready.

  No more doubts.

  No more fears.

  I knew who I was, and I deserved to be happy. Finally, I believed this.

  I left work early to prepare myself for what was to come. I vowed to become something beautiful in Lucien’s life no matter the cost. His soul was as valuable as mine. When the clock turned midnight, I had only to think of Lucien to be near him. My ability no longer required me to be asleep.

  I found him standing between two warehouses down by the marina. He gazed up into the stormy night sky; the occasional crack of lightning reflected in his blue eyes. I couldn’t read his stony expression, but at least he looked well, which meant he had fed.

  Lucien didn’t sense my approach. I circled him until we came face to face.

  “Lucien,” I whispered.

  His eyes closed as if feeling a gentle breeze.

  I leaned forward on the tips of my toes and gently brushed my lips against his.

  “I’m coming for you.”

  * * *

  ***

  Continue on to book two The Devil’s Angel told in Lucien’s point of view.

  The Devil’s Angel

  Chapter One

  Lucien’s bones spoke of the storm hours before it came. It was always that way with him, his body telling him things before they happened. Sometimes he listened, sometimes he didn’t. Tonight, he was all ears.

  But it wasn’t just the storm; something else was coming, and it frightened him. And Lucien didn’t frighten easily, not even when those two men had attacked him with that Saranton knife and left him for dead. It was how he was rescued that disturbed him the most. It was also how he had sensed the presence of something following him around for the last several months. He thought maybe it was some kind of a poltergeist, but he hadn’t felt threatened by it. A poltergeist he could understand, maybe even appreciate, but this new something upset him.

  He stood in the center of a long alleyway between two warehouses, casting his gaze upward so he could watch the storm clouds creep across the night sky until they had entirely engulfed the stars and the moon. That’s the way it was with darkness. It always destroyed light.

  A sharp pain scratched at his stomach like a rat gnawing on a piece of leather. The pain, like always, gave him comfort, though he never understood why. All he knew was that pain had become his constant and only companion for centuries.

  Lucien knew nothing else in life but pain and suffering. The concept of hope was foreign to him and belonged in a world that was not his. He wondered if somewhere within his suppressed memories he would find the answer to his self-inflicted torture. But the pain always intensified whenever he tried to recall his forbidden past.

  A lightning bolt tore across the night sky. There was no sound; it was quick and electrifying. His hair stood on end. The salty smell in the air filled him with anticipation as he waited for the monstrous storm overhead to release its fury.

  A sudden clicking of heels against asp
halt startled him, and he dropped his gaze away from the contentious storm. In the same instant, his nose picked up on a new scent. It was the aroma of the oncoming storm, but laced with the fragrance of budding lilacs.

  A tall, thin woman walked confidently past the old train station next to the marina, a large bag swinging carelessly at her side. She casually looked around as if she had nowhere to be and wasn’t in any hurry to get there. The time was 1:00 a.m. A cold breeze pushed its way through the streets, twisting the hair around the woman’s face.

  It was his passion to watch approaching storms, the way darkness crept silently over the sky, building in pressure, and finally climaxing into an explosion of bright luminosity and thunderous roars. But tonight, the sight of the extraordinary woman strolling aimlessly through the filth of the city captivated him. He silently moved away from the back of the alley, still safely within the dark shadows, in order to keep watching her.

  She was exquisitely beautiful. Lucien thought she was more beautiful than any other woman he had ever encountered. Her long golden hair hung in loose curls to the middle of her uncovered back. Despite the distance between them, he could see her eyes were a rare sea-green color. The color reminded him of a deep tide pool he found once in Ireland that had been filled with open oyster shells. When the light from the sun touched the shells’ polished surfaces, they gave the water the most glorious shade of green he’d ever seen — until now. He thought it strange that she would make him think of Ireland, his birthplace.

  The woman stopped suddenly, directly in front of the alleyway entrance, which was only three feet across, wall to wall. Her jade eyes peered inside, a small smile playing at the corners of her mouth. He pressed himself against the building as if she could see him. That’s ridiculous. No human eyes could see him; it was much too dark, especially with the clouds overhead.

  He inhaled a deep breath and relaxed more fully into the night. He must have imagined the smile, for she had already turned away and headed back the way she came.

  Lucien didn’t want to hurt her, but he felt it necessary to scare her senseless. She should not be here in this dirty place, ever. He stepped out of the shadows to confront her but quickly retreated when he sensed someone approaching who didn’t share the same feeling about her as he did.

  A man dressed in dirty brown and orange clothing approached the woman. His long hair was a mess of dirt and grime, and his feet shuffled one over the other awkwardly. Clearly, he was inebriated. The woman did not seem to recognize the impending danger as she strolled toward the drunken man.

  “Give me some money,” the transient slurred, spittle spraying from his mouth.

  “I’m sorry, but I don’t have a dime for you.”

  “What’s in your purse?” His tone turned hard.

  “Oh, I have plenty of money,” she clarified sweetly, “but none of it is for you. I apologize for not being more clear.”

  Lucien couldn’t help but smirk, but at the same time wondered why the woman wasn’t being more careful.

  The man stepped forward, his fists balled tight. “Give me your purse, or I’ll rip that pretty little dress off.”

  She stood her ground, showing no fear. “You are ridiculous. Get out of my way.”

  The drunken man lunged for the woman, grabbing her roughly around the waist.

  Lucien didn’t like the way the transient touched her. This thought startled him, but he pushed the emotion back. He stepped out from the alley and cleared his throat. The man looked in his direction, eyes growing big when he noticed Lucien’s height and large stature. The man’s hands dropped to his sides, and he stumbled off as fast as his unstable legs permitted.

  Lucien’s gaze flashed to the woman. In that brief instant, he heard, as clear as the thunder above, her heart stop. Her face showed no emotion, but her heart betrayed her. She appeared to recognize his confusion and quickly recovered. She looked down at her roughed up dress and sighed. Her long, slender fingers smoothed the angry creases.

  “Are you all right?” he asked in a velvet voice. He was aware of the effect he had on women. His appearance and demeanor could hypnotize.

  The woman didn’t bat an eye. “I’m fine, sir. Thank you for assisting me.”

  She turned to leave.

  “Wait,” he called after her, confused. He strolled over to her. “That must have been upsetting. Are you sure you’re all right?”

  He flashed his perfect smile and waited for her to swoon. Then he would show her what scary really was. That would make her think twice before wandering through the wrong side of town at such a late hour.

  “Of course I’m fine. I thought I was lost, but now I know where I am. Again, thank you.” She walked right by him.

  Lucien noted she hadn’t even looked at him. Impossible! This wasn’t going the way he expected. He moved at lightning speed in front of her. She gasped in surprise. Now that was more like it.

  She gained her composure but still did not show any fear. “Very impressive. I’ll have to remember that one.”

  She walked by him. Again.

  He growled low. He wasn’t having the impact on her he would’ve liked. He darted in front of her and said, “I’m going to kill you.”

  That should scare her.

  She rolled her eyes.

  “I’m serious. I’m going to rip your head off and drink every last drop of blood.”

  “Because you’re a vampire,” she stated, arching one eyebrow.

  He couldn’t tell if she was mocking him or if she really believed that he was, in fact, a vampire. “What if I am?”

  “We all have our issues,” she said.

  She moved to pass him again, but he blocked her and cocked his head, eyes narrowed. “You’re not predictable.”

  “That’s great. Now can I get by?” she asked, clearly annoyed.

  He tightened his lips. “You’re not acting the way you should.”

  “How am I supposed to act?”

  “You’re supposed to be afraid and run away.”

  The woman set down her bag. “And what exactly should I be afraid of? You’re a messed-up vampire hiding out in the worst part of town, and you’re trying to scare me away because... why? My presence has ruined some imaginary world you’ve created? Any other vampire would’ve had his fangs in me by now.”

  Lucien’s stare turned cold and deadly. His teeth clenched tight, and his jaw muscles bulged. Only his older brother had ever spoken to him in such a condescending manner, and that was over three hundred years ago.

  Before she could blink, Lucien rushed the woman, slamming into her hard. He clenched her shoulders tightly, lifted her up, and raced across the dirty pavement, running faster than he had in years. The force of the air behind her caused her hair to blow wildly around her face. Had he not been so angry, he might’ve appreciated how angelic she looked in that moment.

  He sprinted, lightning-quick, his aim on the wall of the train station. They hit it hard, and the woman’s head jerked back against the bricks with a sickening thud, but she barely flinched.

  Inches from her face, he spat, “You dare mock me?”

  She didn’t answer, but returned his look with equal venom.

  “Your life is nothing to me!” He lifted his head back and, with fangs barred, prepared to bite.

  * * *

  Continue reading The Devil’s Angel TODAY!

  Books by Raven Steele:

  Raven Steele is a pen name for Rachel McClellan. Check out her Dystopian novels!

  * * *

  "There's got to more to life than just surviving."

  * * *

  In the future, mankind has learned to manipulate their DNA, harnessing only the good genes, like intelligence, strength and height. They called this prime DNA and humans rushed to get these new pDNA injections, which gave them superhuman-like qualities. Centuries later, however, their DNA became so engineered that humans rarely live past the age of thirty, thanks to a new deadly disease called the Kiss. The only cure is
to receive an injection of oDNA, DNA from an Original human that hasn't been genetically altered. Problem is there aren't many Originals left.

  * * *

  When seventeen-year-old Sage wakes up in a hospital with no memories, her only clue are the words "Run Now" written on her hand. Trusting her instincts, Sage barely escapes but only to collide with an outside world that would kill to get their hands on her.

  * * *

  With the help of unlikely allies, including a boy with hidden bat wings, Sage makes the dangerous trek to Eden, the last place for people like her and the only place she'll be safe from those at the Institute who would use her blood until she died. But with deadly Primes hot on their trail, Sage must make the ultimate sacrifice to save the people she’s grown to love.

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  About the Author

  Rachel McClellan is a USA Today bestselling author. She lives in Wyoming, a place secretly known for its supernatural creatures. When she's not in her writing lair, she's partying with her husband and four crazy, yet lovable, children. Rachel's love for storytelling began as a child when the moon first possessed the night. For when the lights went out, her imagination painted a whole new world. And what a scary world it was...