by Debra Dunbar
She dove through a patch of vines, focusing on the sound of his voice. “I’m right here, Eric.”
“Nyalla.” The word was almost a sigh, and Nyalla became frantic in her need to reach him. Her head pounded, and she felt fresh blood tickle her scalp once again. Pushing aside a tree branch, she saw him leaning against a tree.
“Oh sweet Goddess, are you okay?” Nyalla rushed forward and knelt beside him, afraid to touch him. The faint moonlight barely penetrated the canopy of summer leaves, and she couldn’t tell exactly where he was hurt.
“Mostly bruised.” His voice seemed stronger. “Think my knee is sprained, and my shoulder separated. He threw me into the woods like I weighed no more than a sack of sugar. Hit my head on something, and when I came around, all I could hear was you crashing through the trees like an elephant.”
He must be okay if he was teasing her. Nyalla smiled and helped him up, half supporting him as they hobbled through the brush and back onto the groomed lawn of the cemetery. After the dark of the woods and the dim of the mist, the cemetery was clear in the moonlight. Two bodies lay in the grass, dirt mounded beside the open grave, and the grass was marked with smears of chalk dust and littered with scattered votive candles. It looked like the aftermath of a gruesome drunken party.
“We’ve got to somehow clean this up,” Eric remarked grimly. “After everything that’s happened the last week, we’ll never be able to explain this one.”
Nyalla looked around at everyone. They were a sorry looking bunch, and there was no way they could dispose of two bodies and clean everything up by dawn. Her scalp itched with sticky blood, and her jaw ached, but the others were worse.
Being strong and capable didn’t mean you had to do everything on your own. It was time to call in reinforcements. Nyalla fished her cell phone out of her pants pocket and dialed, grateful it had survived the evening’s activities. The werewolf picked up on the first ring.
“Hello, Candy. I really could use some help.”
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Nyalla winced as she felt the string pulling through the skin at the back of her head. Candy had used some numbing solution, but the sensation was still disturbing.
“What a sorry bunch,” the werewolf grumbled good–naturedly. “Wyatt will be here in a few hours, and he can keep an eye on you. I’ve never seen so many concussions outside of a hockey game. Were you all trying to head–butt this ghoul back into the grave or something?”
Nyalla hid a smile. This was how she always envisioned a mother would be — protective and nagging in an affectionate sort of way. It felt good to have family. Candy had rushed to the rescue, efficient and take–charge as she directed her pack to make things right at the cemetery. It seems werewolves had a lot of experience cleaning up messes and covering up less–than–savory activities. They all had their secrets. Who was she to cast stones?
“How did you learn first aid?” Nyalla asked. Candy had pulled out a huge bag once they’d arrived back at Sam’s house and promptly got to work, stitching up wounds and applying various ointments. They were going to claim a car accident — a tale supported by the condition of Sam’s SUV. The only one who would require more experienced medical care was Ben, who would need dental work as soon as his mouth healed. They were very lucky.
“Werewolves, honey. If we went to the hospital every time one of us fractured a leg or had an ear half bit off, we’d have to set up residence there. We’re a lot more peaceful than legend gives us credit for, but we still tend to settle our arguments with our claws and teeth rather than our words.” Nyalla heard the snip of scissors, and the tugging on her scalp stopped. “There. Just wish you humans healed half as fast as we do. Stitches stay in for a week, and make sure you keep up with the antibiotics. Who knows what kind of nasty germs that ghoul had under his nails. Ugh.”
Boomer thumped his tail and sat up to place his head in Nyalla’s lap. He’d completely healed and returned to his one–headed Plott hound form. She ran a hand over his head and tugged gently at one of his ears. “Boomer has his antibiotics too.” Even hellhounds weren’t exempt from bacterial infections, according to Candy.
Ben rattled the little bottle of pills the werewolf had given each of them and tried to smile. He looked like ground steak, but out of all of them, he’d heal the quickest aside from the missing teeth. Candy swept the bloody cotton and tissues from the table into a trash bag then gave it all a thorough wipe–down with a disinfectant cloth before carefully stripping the latex gloves from her hands.
“Which one?” The werewolf asked, leaning over the table to squirt sanitizing fluid from a large bottle into her palms. Nyalla frowned in confusion before she realized the woman was looking at the brochures, still spread out neatly across the table. Her heartbeat jumped into her throat with familiar fear.
But why not? She thought of the ghoul, her terror when she thought her new friends were dead, the agonizing feeling of loss and life cut short as she relived John’s memories and death. She’d nearly died without ever seeing the ocean or feeling the surf lap at her feet. If John Mayfield had taught her anything, it was that life could be snatched away in a second. The future sometimes never came.
“This one.” She reached past the werewolf to pick up a brochure. “Dewy Beach, Delaware. The Atlantic Ocean is on one side, and Assawoman Bay is on the other. I’ll do some fishing, and I want to take sailing lessons.”
Tamika nodded in approval. “There’s a nice microbrewery near there, too. Of course, you’ll need to wait until you’re twenty–one to do that,” she added hastily, looking at Eric.
He shrugged, wincing and putting a hand on his shoulder. “I’m hardly going to go all law–enforcement on someone drinking a beer or two after what happened tonight.”
Besides, Eric wouldn’t be going, Nyalla thought, looking at him somewhat sadly. She’d not needed to use her gift to see what was clear in his eyes. He cared about her, was attracted to her, and she hoped they could somehow manage to be friends, but probably not. The ghoul, her werewolf and demon friends — it was all too much for him. She’d never even revealed her gift to him, and it was just as well. He’d never be able to accept the fact that she could reach into his mind and heart and hear his innermost hopes and fears.
A feeling of loneliness washed over her, and she quickly squashed it. Eric had been wonderful. He’d helped her take those first terrifying steps — the first of many steps she would take in her life. For that, he’d always hold a special place in her heart, but now it was time for her to walk alone. Well, walk alone with her pack at her back.
“It’s the perfect time for me to go,” she explained to Candy, and she put the brochure back on the table. “It’s going to be crazy here with the construction people replacing the windows and fixing the damage the ghoul did to Sam’s house. A couple of weeks at the beach will be fun.”
“This should help.” Candy plopped a stack of money in front of her — fifteen–thousand dollars, to be exact. Nyalla looked up at her in surprise, and the werewolf raised her eyebrows. “What? I’m a werewolf, not a saint. Always rob the dead guy.”
It wasn’t really robbery. It was Sam’s money from her safe, and although Nyalla had fully intended on paying the necromancer, he wouldn’t need it now. She felt a twinge of guilt. He was inept and a bit of a jerk, but he hadn’t deserved death. Although, if he’d stayed and faced the ghoul the moment the thing had emerged from the grave, he might be alive today. Besides, black magic had its price. She shuddered, remembering tales of sorcerers who had also paid the ultimate cost for their actions.
Fifteen thousand. She ran her fingers across the stack of bills. Sam had a safe full of the stuff. Nyalla was sure she wouldn’t mind if this little bit got shared with her new friends. Besides, she had another fifteen thousand in the glove box of the Suburban that she’d intended to give Tadax after the ghoul was dead.
Boomer nudged her leg, tail wagging and tongue lolling out the side of his mouth. Nyalla ran her hands over the velvety fur and s
ilky ears. “We’re going to the beach, boy. You and me. We’re going to the beach.”
About the Author
Debra Dunbar primarily writes dark fantasy, but has been known to put her pen to paranormal romance, young adult fiction, and urban fantasy on occasion. She lives on a farm in the northeast section of the United States with her husband, three boys, and a Noah’s ark of four legged family members. When she can sneak out, she likes to jog and ride her horse, Treasure. Treasure, on the other hand, would prefer Debra stay on the ground and feed him apples.
Connect with Debra Dunbar on Facebook at DebraDunbarAuthor, on Twitter @Debra_Dunbar, or at her website.
Thank you for your purchase of this book. If you enjoyed it, please leave a review on Goodreads, or at the e–retailer site from which you purchased it. Readers and authors both rely on fair and honest reviews.
Books in the Imp Series:
A DEMON BOUND (Imp Series, Book 1)
Samantha Martin is an imp, enjoying an extended vacation from Hel. All she wants to do is drink beer by the pool, play mischievous pranks on the humans, and get her hot neighbor in the sack. It’s a relaxing break from her infernal home, as long as she manages to avoid the angels, who won’t hesitate to execute her on sight.
But when her naughty hellhound lands her in trouble with the local werewolf pack, Sam is blackmailed into helping track and catch a killer. The steps she must take to appease the werewolves will put her right in the crosshairs of the angels. And with angels, there is no second chance.
SATAN'S SWORD (Imp Series, Book 2)
Samantha Martin is an imp, bound by an angel who allows her to live among the humans … as long as she follows his rules. It’s not easy for an imp to follow the rules, especially when Sam’s brother, Dar, finds himself in hot water. He needs her help to retrieve an artifact from the vampires, or the powerful demon he owes a favor to will enslave and torture him for centuries. It should be a simple courier job, but with demons nothing is simple. Sam reluctantly attempts to help her brother, trying not antagonize the vampires or the demon gunning for him, all while chafing to comply with the restrictions her angel has placed on her as a bound demon.
ELVEN BLOOD (Imp Series, Book 3)
Sam may be the Iblis, but she is also an imp with a price on her head. The powerful demon, Haagenti, won’t rest until she’s dragged back to Hel for “punishment”. Sam knows she can’t face Haagenti and win, so when an Elf Lord offers to eliminate the demon in return for her help, Sam jumps at the chance. It’s a simple job — find and retrieve a half–breed monster dead or alive. But finding this demon/elf hybrid isn’t proving easy and time is running out.
DEVIL’S PAW (Imp Series, Book 4)
For once no one wants to kill Samantha Martin. She’s free to do all the things a mischievous imp loves to do– like remove all the county speed limit signs, and wrap City Hall in crime scene tape. Her only worry beyond organizing the delivery of her boyfriend’s birthday present, is writing those pesky four nine five reports for the Ruling Council of Angels. But imps can never stay out of trouble for long.
Demon corpses have been found drained of all energy, their spirit selves ripped clean from their bodies. Sam’s angel, Gregory, considers her a prime suspect, so when an angel is discovered dead in the same manner, he drags her to Seattle and Juneau to try to clear her name. The race is on to find the murderer before Sam’s secret is exposed and she’s blamed for the deaths. But is a devouring spirit really the killer, or is there more to the deaths than either Sam or Gregory suspect?
IMP FORSAKEN (Imp Series, Book 5)
Sam is banished to Hel, the bond with her angel, Gregory, broken. Six Elven kingdoms are battling for supremacy, and she’s broken and injured in the middle of the most hostile one. Shooting the top off a royal throne, committing fraud in the completion of a contract, and threatening a high lord hasn’t endeared her to the elves, either. If she wants to free the enslaved humans they hold, she’ll need to find a way to help unite their kingdoms.
But elves aren’t the only problem facing Sam. The ancient demon, Ahriman is holding her to the terms and conditions of the breeding contract she signed — and one thousand years under his claw is looking to be the most terrifying thing in all of Hel.
IMP (Imp Series, prequel novella)
Demon young are cruel, especially to little imps like Az. No matter where she hides, even deep in the swamplands, her siblings eventually find her and hurt her, ripping off her scales and slicing her wings. Many demons don’t live to adulthood. Only the strong survive. And the clever.
Survival isn’t looking probable for Az, with eldest brother, Paquit, determined to rip her to shreds at every opportunity. When her other brother, Dar, proposes a trip through the angelic gates into the land of the humans, she jumps at the chance. Finally, a fun adventure safe from Paquit’s cruelty and attacks. Or maybe not.
NO MAN’S LAND (An Imp World novel)
Kelly’s family has beaten her nearly to death, yanked her fangs and discarded her in West Virginia – a buffer zone between two contentious vampire families. It’s impossible for a vampire to survive in exile, especially without fangs. Desperate, Kelly will do anything to convince her family to take her back.
Jaq’s werewolf pack calls West Virginia their territory. They keep it that way by killing every vampire that crosses the border from either side. When she finds a vampire abandoned and dying, she throws caution to the winds and nurses her back to health. Now Jaq’s in the difficult position of keeping Kelly safe from her own pack until the vampire is allowed back into her family.
But the vampire factions are on the warpath, and the werewolf territories are smack in the middle. Both Jaq and Kelly must make allies of old enemies to protect what’s theirs and to carve out a family that's more than blood.
STOLEN SOULS (An Imp World novel
Nyalla is dog–sitting for Satan. It's a sweet gig for a girl who, up until recently, had been a slave to the elves in Hel. The house is amazing, she's got the key to the Corvette, and although Boomer is a Hellhound, he's also a lovable, slobbery companion.
When a newly interred corpse vanishes, followed by a series of grisly murders, Nyalla can't help but wonder if Boomer's odd diet has taken a deadly turn. Could the dog be to blame or is there a more sinister creature on the loose? Nyalla must stop who is behind it all before more die – and before the county puts Boomer on death row.
DEMONS OF DESIRE (An Imp World novel) Release date: July 2014
Amber’s succubus desires are driving her, as well as every man within a five mile radius, crazy — and, Irix, the sexy incubus sent to tutor her, isn’t helping one bit. Determined to find some balance in her life as well as get away from his tempting presence, she escapes to visit a college friend in New Orleans.
But the Big Easy is anything but peaceful. Two powerful witch covens are battling for control of the mighty river and the potent ley lines that run through the city. Amber discovers her half–elven heritage may just resolve their differences, but the covens have other, more lethal, ideas. She knows she can restore the elemental energy to balance, but it’s not easy to play peacemaker when her succubus side wants to drown the whole city in a tide of lust.
The tensions between the covens are her only trouble. There’s nowhere Amber can run to escape the siren–call of her demon nature, and no where she can run to escape the seductive incubus who won’t seem to take “no” for an answer.
Sam and Gregory will return in ANGEL OF CHAOS, tentative release date of August 2014!
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About the Author
Books in the Imp Series: