The Complete Vampire Project Series: (Books 1 - 5)
Page 81
“How about you?”
“I have no desire to rule. I need to stay here. I have so much lost time to make up to my daughters. Plus, Jack brought a witch back with him from Term, one who is proficient in the healing arts. Maybe it’s time for me to pursue a different aspect of the magical realm.”
Sloan slowly nodded. In all honesty, she had no desire to go back to New Hope, but the people there would need stability while they got back on their feet. Plus, if Kade came, it wouldn’t be so bad after all.
“Take time to think about it.” Croft stopped and motioned back to Kade. “Talk with him and let me know what you’ve decided.”
“I will.” Sloan took a deep breath, thinking of all the possibilities the future could bring. “It will always be something, right?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, we’ll always have some kind of obstacle to climb.”
Croft thought for a moment, her lips pursing in concentration. “Yes, but that’s life, and with the right people beside us, it can be an adventure where we learn to grow instead of it being a lonely journey. Now, go back to Kade. He’s starting to give me dirty looks because I’m keeping you too long.”
The End
Epilogue
Even though Sloan’s story is over there are other adventures to explore in the Shared Universe. Dominic Drencher pops up again in The Archangel Wars. Here’s sample of book one in The Archangel Wars, Of Angels and Men…
Of Angels and Men
Chapter 1
A Quick Look at Book One of the Archangel Wars Series
“Another drink, sir?”
“Yes. In fact, can you just bring the bottle? I think that’ll be easier for both of us.”
“I certainly can, sir. Would you like to be informed of the price? I mean, before I go get it.”
He knew she was trying to be polite. Deep down, he understood what was going through her head. She was doing the calculations on how much he’d already drunk, in addition to the cost of the bottle. “No, I don’t need to know the price. Just bring the bottle, please.”
He caught the surprise in her eyes even as she turned to go. The server bobbed with a bounce of her blonde curls, and was gone.
He smirked and brushed a dark blond strand of his own hair behind his ear. The expensive fabric of his tailored shirt pressed against his muscular chest and arms as he reached across the table for the book that lay face up in front of him.
Reading the book alone looked out of place in such a high-end bar. Even he realized that. The book reminded him of how he’d felt as he made his own transition from plain and forgettable to something else entirely. Something he was still trying to understand. All eyes were on him, from the female patrons in the bar to the staff. He witnessed his server murmuring to her coworkers while grabbing the requested bottle of 1939 Macallan.
The sheets in his book gently ruffled; his fingers touched familiar passages. The pages were like old friends. He couldn’t help smiling as he remembered exactly how many times he’d read the book.
The lighting in the bar was dim, which would have posed a problem to anyone else but him. The words were so familiar, he could see the print on the page as clearly as if he were sitting on a park bench during a bright midday.
He heard her before he saw her. “Here you are, sir. The most expensive bottle we have. I had to convince my manager that this wasn’t a joke, but when I told him who ordered it, he practically ran to fill the request.” She placed the newly dusted bottle of whiskey onto the table. “Do you come here often?”
He put the book down, his blue eyes making contact with hers. “From time to time. Usually there’s a different waitress working.”
“Oh, I’m part of the day shift. I’m just picking up extra hours.” Her gaze fell from his, hesitating too long on his muscular torso, then finally rested on the book he’d placed back onto the table. “Spartans, huh?”
He nodded. “Spartans.”
An awkward silence followed as the attractive young woman grasped for a follow-up line, a line she’d never had to use before. Men had always felt obligated to fill the silence in an attempt to please her. “Um… can I pour the whiskey for you?”
“No, that’s fine. You can leave the bottle.”
She cleared her throat, once again at a loss for words. “If you don’t mind my asking: Who are you? I mean, the entire night staff seems to know you, and I think every woman in here has inquired about you since you sat down.” Her face reddened, even as she asked the question.
He looked at her—really looked at her. She was pretty, young, and carried herself like a woman rather than a girl. High energy and a steady smile made her not only attractive, but also approachable. He couldn’t blame her for the question. In all fairness, it was one he’d been trying to answer for the past four years. “I don’t know. I don’t know if I’ll ever know. The last few years have been a blur of temporary happiness.”
This was clearly not the answer she was expecting. “Oh, okay. Well, let me know if you need anything. My name’s Sophia.”
He nodded as she turned and left. Part of him wished he’d been nicer, but it was the truth. Alan Price opened the costly bottle of whiskey as nonchalantly as someone would open a bottle of water and poured himself a generous portion. As the glass traveled from the tabletop to his lips, he thought back to the first night he realized life would be more of a mystery than he’d ever thought possible.
Buy Of Angels and Men on Amazon now to continue reading…
A Special Note For You
You. Yes, I’m talking to you. You’re amazing! Thank you from the bottom of my black heart for following Sloan’s story all the way through to completion. It’s always hard to say goodbye to a group of characters. The only thing that takes the edge of the pain is the next cast of characters I plan on writing for my next series.
I’ll miss Elwood’s unintelligible yammering, mage swords, and vampire coffee, but there are so many stories that need to be told, I feel confident pieces of these characters will bleed into others.
There has been so much great stuff going on in my career, I wanted to share some of it with you before you go. I know that none of this would be possible without you awesome readers. I signed contracts with a foreign rights agent to take my book and to get it translated into various languages around the world. This same agent is handling audio book rights for my Vampire Project Series.
Outside of this, I’ve been asked by two different authors who are doing extremely well to write stories in their universes. Needless to say, I’ve jumped at the opportunity. The thought that I’ll be able to learn from these authors as I shape stories in their worlds has me up at night, I’m so excited.
That’s what you can expect to see from me in the next few months. The genre will be a little different from what my main fan base is used to seeing me write, but my writing style and the characters who appear in the stories will be the same. I’ve found out over the years that it’s in my nature to write character-driven stories rather than plot-driven narratives.
In other news outside of writing, I was elected as the president of the California Writers Club, and I went up north to receive the Jack London award, which was awesome, and the bookstore I helped open in Orange, CA had its official grand opening. If you’re ever in the Southern California area, check out a little bookstore called 1888. It will be well worth your time, I promise.
Well, books don’t write themselves, and Elwood isn’t here to conjure me one, so I’d better get going. Again, thank you so much for reading my work. As always, I’d love to connect with you. I’ll add some links below, so please stop by and say hello!
See you on the other side,
Jonathan
Please feel free to join my Wolf Pack by visiting http://www.jonathan-yanez.com or
CLICK HERE
My Wolf Pack will keep you updated on release dates for upcoming projects, give you access to exclusive excerpts and provide you with free and dis
counted ebooks.
Stay Informed
Get A Free Book by visiting Jonathan Yanez’ website. You can email him at jonathan.alan.yanez@gmail.com or find him on Amazon, and Instagram. He also created a special Facebook group called “Jonathan’s Reading Wolves” specifically for readers, where he shows new cover art, does giveaways, and runs contests. Please check it out and join whenever you get the chance!
For updates about new releases, as well as exclusive promotions, visit the author’s website and sign up for the VIP mailing list. Head there now to receive a free copy of Shall We Begin.
CLICK HERE
Enjoying the series? Help others discover The Vampire Project series by leaving a review on Amazon.
About the Author
Jonathan Yanez is also the author of The Elite Series, The Archangel Wars and Gateway to the Galaxy. His books have been optioned for film and are available in ebook, print, and audio book. He would love you to leave a review after you finish reading Hunter’s Call. You can find out more about him and his work by visiting http://www.jonathan-yanez.com