“Every night.” He drew me close and sighed into my hair. “And every night I’d wish and hope that you’d wake up in the morning and be yourself. I’m so happy, Mariah, but a little scared. I can’t help worrying something will go wrong.”
“Of course it will, Phoenix. Life is things going wrong. It won’t matter. We’ll fix it and move on.”
“I love you more than any guy has ever loved any girl in the history of the universe.”
“Hyperbole.”
“No way,” he mumbled sleepily. “It’s true. I win at love.”
I snuggled against him and went to sleep, strangely unconcerned about what I might dream.
Good call, because as it turned out, I dreamed that Deacon opened a comedy club.
Author’s Note
15% of sexual assault and rape victims are under age 12.
29% are age 12-17.
44% are under age 18.
80% are under age 30.
12-34 are the highest risk years.
Girls ages 16-19 are 4 times more likely than the general population to be victims of rape, attempted rape, or sexual assault.
7% of girls in grades 5-8 and 12% of girls in grades 9-12 said they had been sexually abused.
3% of boys grades 5-8 and 5% of boys in grades 9-12 said they had been sexually abused.
Nearly 30% of child victims were between the age of 4 and 7.
93% of juvenile sexual assault victims know their attacker.
34.2% of attackers were family members.
58.7% were acquaintances.
Only 7% of the perpetrators were strangers to the victim.
Victims of sexual assault are:
3 times more likely to suffer from depression.
6 times more likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.
13 times more likely to abuse alcohol.
26 times more likely to abuse drugs.
4 times more likely to contemplate suicide.
If you or someone you know is being victimized, go to http://www.rainn.org/ Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network and find help. There are many people who care what happens to you, including me. I’m donating a portion of the profit from this book to RAINN. ~ Trinity
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
– Edmund Burke
Acknowledgements
Many thanks to Kristen Droesch for stellar editing, and for the email out of the blue that made my day. A thousand thanks to Paula Kubiak for allowing me to use her beautiful photograph. Thank you Kim Killion for the marvelous cover design. Thanks to InkSlinger PR and the magic of Kelly Simmon, whose enthusiasm is a gift. Special thanks to first readers Damaris Cardinali, Kate Sowa, Sarah Evans, Aujah Irvin-Jenkins, Ashley Carroll, Kenzie Ellis, Katie Gillary, Jen Showalter, and Stacy Vandever Wells. Your thoughts and editorial suggestions were a tremendous help, and I appreciate your time. Sometimes, it really does take a village! Huge thanks to the awesome bloggers who helped spread the word about this book. You’re all treasures, fellow bibliophiles who inhabit the Mother Ship with me, and I love you for it. This book exists because of readers who said they wanted more Mephisto. My sincere gratitude to all the Trinity Facebook Page Peeps who are always lovely and were so supportive of my efforts to get this book published. You’re why I stay up late!
Trinity Faegen is a multi-published RITA winning author who also writes romance as Stephanie Feagan. A practicing CPA who loves travel, books, and smart guys, she lives in the outback of west Texas with her husband and a mean cat. For bonus content, more about the Mephisto, and newsletter signup for news about new releases, please visit her website at www.trinityfaegen.com.
Books in The Mephisto Covenant Series
Book One - The Mephisto Covenant: The Redemption of Ajax
Egmont USA
Available in hardcover, paperback, and eBook. See Trinity’s website for information and buy links: http://www.stephaniefeagan.com/books/trinityfaegenbooks/the-mephisto-covenant-the-redemption-of-ajax/
Book Two - The Mephisto Kiss: The Redemption of Kyros
Egmont USA
Available in hardcover and eBook. See Trinity’s website for information and buy links: http://www.stephaniefeagan.com/books/trinityfaegenbooks/the-mephisto-kiss-the-redemption-of-kyros/
Coming in March 2014!
The fourth book in The Mephisto Covenant series . . .
The Mephisto Code: The Redemption of Xenos
We are Anonymous. We are Legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Expect us.
A year ago, Euri was a freshman at Cambridge, a concert pianist whose boyfriend was a fellow computer geek she’d known since childhood. Occasionally they hacked into ultra-secure databases just to prove they could, and participated in a few Anonymous ops. Then Euri left England on a concert tour and when she returned, Miles had become a violent, angry stranger, talking incessantly about a guy he met online known only as Anonymous66X. Miles was never a druggie, but after he overdosed and died, Euri became obsessed with finding Anonymous66X, to stop him from preying on others. She walked away from school, her career and her aristocratic family to join an indie band whose lead guitarist, John, is rumored to be 4Jane, one of the best hackers in the world. She tours with the band and, with John’s help, works into the wee hours every night, searching for Anonymous66X. His follower numbers continue to grow, but he’s elusive and she comes no closer to discovering who he is. Then Euri meets Zee, and everything she thought she knew about Anonymous66X, her music and herself becomes so much garbage code, a jumble of disjointed meaningless script.
Zee is mentally wack and knows it. A son of Hell, he’s no choirboy, but he can’t convince himself to claim Euri, can’t doom her to eternity with him and his crazy mind. When he learns she’s searching for Anonymous66X, he knows if she finds him, he’ll kill her. Anonymous66X is Eryx, his oldest brother, sworn enemy and mankind’s greatest threat. Zee is certain he can convince her to back off, and once she gives up and goes back to her life, he’ll disappear and grieve the loss of her for all time. But Euri won’t give up, and worse, she’s getting closer to finding Anonymous66X. In a manic haze of fear and lust, Zee abducts Euri, and nothing will ever be the same for either of them.
The fourth installment in The Mephisto Covenant Series begins a new chapter in Eryx’s war for Hell. He’s back, stronger, smarter, and more determined, unleashing all the fury of his dark, hopeless soul. Unless the Mephisto can find a way to outwit him, they’ll lose more ground and Eryx will be ever closer to taking the reins of Hell, eradicating free will, ensuring the doom of all mankind.
Dedication
For Mike – they’re all for you
Copyright © 2013 Trinity Faegen
All Rights Reserved
Pink Publishing, LLC
ISBN:
E-Book 978-1-940431-02-4
Print 978-1-940431-03-1
BISAC Code: FIC027120 FICTION / Romance / Paranormal
Key words: New Adult, angels, Hell, alpha male, sexual assault survivor, Mephisto, paranormal romance
Please Note
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
The reverse engineering, uploading, and/or distributing of this book via the internet or via any other means without the permission of the copyright owner is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author's rights is appreciated
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher, except where permitted
Cover Des
ign by The Killion Group
Cover photograph by Paula Kubiak Photography
Interior Format by The Killion Group and Author E.M.S
The Mephisto Mark: The Redemption of Phoenix Page 35