Kathrina is the third immortal sister and she has possession of the Book of Anu, the journal of the world’s oldest and most powerful vampire. While reading this journal she becomes obsessed with the vampire and determined to find out who he is, but she doesn’t have to look far. The vampire is much closer than what she realizes. He has heard the calling of her blood and has come to claim what is his, but neither of them is prepared for the uncontrollable passion that is unleashed when they come together.
Kathrina is convinced that the information in the journal can help the immortal sisters defeat their uncle and win the final battle between good and evil, but what she doesn’t know is that there is an evil at work that is far more powerful that anything she could ever have imagined. Their only hope may be her vampire lover and the secrets he has kept from the world since the dawn of mankind.
Tears of the Vampire is now
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Immortal Destiny – Tears of the Vampire Excerp
The vampire
awakened suddenly - his shimmering eyes cutting through the darkness within the
casket. Even from his deepest slumber he’d sensed her blood calling to him. For
the first time in thousands of years, he felt heat spreading through his body,
chasing away the perpetual chill of the grave. His years of waiting had not
been in vain; finally he had found what he needed to end his curse of darkness.
With one hand, he
effortlessly pushed open the heavy coffin lid and sat up from his bed of satin.
The calling grew more intense and his head began to ache. He wondered who she
was, and if the girl knew that she would soon sacrifice her life so that he
could again live in the light.
It didn’t really
matter. He had waited too long to ignore the call of her blood - blood that
would end the disease that had consumed his being for longer than mankind had
existed. Her coming had been foretold long ago, and she belonged to him.
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The fluid movement
of color and array of bizarre costumes gave the scene a surreal - almost
ominous overtone. In the distance she thought she caught the twanging sound of
a banjo over the buzz of the crowd. The chilly night air seemed to be charged
with energy, but all of the excitement could not dispel the feeling of doom
that had crept over her.
Though they hid
behind brightly colored masks, she could feel their presence - their hunger.
They were out there - ready to feed on unsuspecting revelers. Once, Kathrina
thought she saw the radiant eyes of an immortal, but when she looked back the
vampire was gone.
She pulled her
coat tightly around her, but still could not dispel the cold.
Across the street,
two women in skimpy costumes stepped out to a second story balcony and began
tossing plastic beads to the people on the street. Unexpectedly, she found
herself in the middle of a frenzied crowd. Kathrina was pushed roughly aside
when a large - burly man moved passed her and jumped into the air to retrieve a
string of beads.
She continued
walking, pressing through the throng of people. More than once Kathrina was
nearly trampled, but she pushed through the crowd and kept moving. It wasn’t
far now - maybe a block or so and she would be out of the worst of it.
The professor
would be there, waiting for her and probably thinking that he’d been stood up.
Kathrina hadn’t counted on the crowd being so large, but the mistake was
understandable, considering that it was her first Mardi Gras.
It seemed an
eternity before the masses of people began to thin and she could walk down the
street without being shoved, or in danger of being trampled. The scent of
Creole delicacies hung in the air, making her stomach growl with hunger. She
pushed her craving aside and moved on.
He would be
waiting in the alley, near the back entrance of the club where they’d agreed to
meet. The TradeWind was a popular nightclub with the working class. Kathrina
had purposely selected a place far removed from the New Orleans goth scene so
there was less risk of being noticed. She knew that the vampires would likely
be busy hunting among the multitude of people that had gathered in the city for
the festivities, but something just didn’t feel right.
She was a born
vampire, and thanks to the DNA she inherited from her father she could sense
things that most humans couldn’t. All night she’d felt danger. It was out there
hiding within the darkness - stalking her.
Nicole and Sarah
had warned her not to go out tonight, but Kathrina was confident that she’d be
safe among the crowds of people. Her sisters worried about her because she was
the youngest, but Kathrina could take care of herself. It was her family that
she was concerned about. Her father’s brother was their biggest worry. Omar
would love nothing more than to kill all three immortal sisters. Kathrina could
not help but worry that her sisters may not have the strength to go against the
ancient vampire.
Of course there
were other threats to her family, and all people on earth. The Book of Anu
hinted to this, which is exactly why it had been necessary for her to go out
during Mardi Gras, despite the danger.
Professor Klieg
was the local authority on ancient languages. He’d agreed to complete the
translation, but it had been necessary to leave the book with him. That had
been two days ago. Today he’d called and insisted that she meet him right away.
Kathrina had thought it would be okay to venture out. She was sure Omar’s
followers would be too busy to bother with her tonight, but maybe she’d been
wrong.
Kathrina glanced
over her shoulder before turning down the alley. It didn’t appear as if anyone
was watching her, though even if someone were, she probably wouldn’t see them.
A vampire would not be so obvious.
The alley was dark
compared to the main streets, but a nearby streetlight provided some
illumination. It also helped that she could see exceptionally well in the dark,
another gift from Donavan, her vampire father.
Entering the
alley, Kathrina winced at the sound of her footsteps echoing loudly through the
empty street. Nearing the back entrance of the TradeWind, she saw that the
professor was not there waiting for her like she thought he’d be. Kathrina
paused, something was wrong.
The professor had
insisted that she meet him as soon as possible - it didn’t make sense for him
to be late.
Moving cautiously
toward the entrance of the nightclub, her eyes scanned the darkness. Kathrina
had to bite her tongue to keep from screaming when a rat scurried out from
beneath a dumpster.
That’s when she
noticed a shoe near the large metal trashcan. As she moved closer, she saw that
the shoe was attached to a leg. Holding her breath, she peeked around the
dumpster. Her hand flew to her mouth in an effort to cutoff the scream that
threatened to tear loose from her throat.
Professor Klieg
was sprawled on the ground, his throat torn open like he’d been attacked by
some kind of animal, but she knew better. It was the classic cover up for a
vampire killing.
Though Kathrina
knew she wouldn’t find a pulse, she checked anyway. He was dead, but his body
was warm. It was possible that the vampire was still nearby.
Her eyes scanned
the surrounding darkness, but she detected no movement. Turning her attention
to the blacktop near the body, she searched for the book. It was gone.
Riddled with guilt,
she brought her hands up to cover her face. The book was probably the reason
the vampires had targeted him in the first place. Somehow they’d discovered
that the professor had possession of the Book of Anu. If she hadn’t involved
the professor, he would probably have went through his whole life without ever
realizing that vampires were a reality.
The peaceful silence was abruptly
shattered when a high-pitched giggle pierced the night air. Kathrina looked up
and saw a female vampire hovering several feet above the ground. The sight of
the woman sent a chill up Kathrina’s back. It was not that the vampire was
horrifying to look at, but exactly the opposite. The woman had bright blue eyes
and blond curls that fell across her shoulders. She could have been any
suburban housewife - someone you might encounter while strolling down the aisle
of a supermarket. It was the fact that the vampire was so average American that
Kathrina found so frightening.
