13:17: PARANORMAL THRILLER (Time of Death)

by Candy Crum

  “Enough.”

  It was only a single word. It hadn’t been loud or even angry. It was simply spoken, but I felt the boom of power overtake everyone in the room except Cass and me. Everything in the room stopped. It was totally silent aside from the footsteps that fell from across the room. They were coming from the very place Cass and I had entered through.

  I turned to see a very tall man with short, jet black hair, icy blue eyes, and medium-toned skin. He was dressed in clothing fit for a New York theatre. Black slacks, black dress shirt, a long well-fit overcoat, and black dress shoes. He looked like he walked out of a magazine. He was flawless in every way.

  “Tristan,” Cass said.

  “Cass,” Tristan said, giving a nod in his direction.

  Tristan walked into the room at the mess that laid before us.

  “On your knees,” he said, his voice calm, smooth.

  Every human in the room dropped to their knees without question, bowing their heads as they did so. I watched in awe as he controlled everyone in the room.

  “Mia,” Tristan said.

  His face softened as he looked me over, a small, yet genuine smile spreading across his lips. He stepped forward, pulling a white cloth from his pocket. He kneeled in front of me and gently wiped my face clean.

  “My little girl, so beautiful. I see the innocence and pain in your eyes. You are everything that I could have dreamed of and more.”

  “You’re… my father?” I asked. My voice was barely a whisper.

  He was beautiful, but he was incredibly powerful. The look of kindness and love on his face told me that everything that Cass and my mother said had been true. He was a good man. The power that he displayed, however, and with absolutely no effort at all, told me that the other half of Cass’ description was just as correct. He was not someone that you’d want to piss off. I could see then why he was so terrified for Tristan to find out that Cass had been my first after turning.

  “I am. Tell me daughter, what would you have me do for you here?” he asked.

  I looked around at the destruction around us. Will was dead and Andrews was no longer breathing. I imagined that he’d died a slow death from drowning on his own blood.

  “All I wanted was to save them,” I said, my voice still quiet. “He was my best friend and he was just an innocent cop. He tried to help me. He knew what I was and all he did was try to help me. I failed.”

  “What would you have me do, daughter?” Tristan asked once again.

  The darkness scratched the back of my brain. “Kill them. They will go on to hurt others. They will kill mercilessly and will never show a moment of grief or remorse. They have to die.”

  “As you wish,” Tristan said before standing.

  With only the tiniest gesture of his hands, every armed man in the room lifted their guns to point at their own heads. I saw what was about to happen and I didn’t care. I was numb. Two good, innocent men died. Will had gotten himself into some bad trouble, but he’d never hurt anyone before.

  “Wait,” I said.

  “Yes?” Tristan said.

  I stood then, my eyes once again meeting those of the man that had defied me and then killed Will. His face showed nothing but submission. My father had a hold on him that I couldn’t manage earlier, but I could at that very moment. I was no longer in danger and no longer making a futile attempt to hold a room full of men under my power. Every bit of my focus was on him and I could feel the bond building as I focused harder on him.

  “Come to me,” I said.

  “Yes, Mistress,” he said.

  He bowed his head and rose to his feet, never again lifting his eyes as he made his way to me. He stood in front of me, not saying a word and only waiting for me.

  “Is that how you show respect to your Mistress?” Tristan asked.

  Will’s murderer immediately dropped to his knees.

  “Please forgive me!” he pleaded.

  I was disgusted by what I saw before me, but a large part of me that was twisted and dark at that moment loved watching him suffer. I hoped that every innocent person whose life he’d ended was watching him right then with great pleasure.

  “Look at me,” I said. He was quick to obey. “Do you know where Jay is?”

  “Yes, Mistress,” he said.

  “Stop calling me that. My name is Mia. I’m not your damn Mistress, but I do have total control over you and you will do as I tell you. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, Mia,” he said.

  “Good.”

  I knelt so my face was only inches in front of his, my eyes locked on his.

  “I want you to go to Jay. I want you to tell him exactly what happened here. I want you to tell him that he has pissed off someone that will never stop looking for him. You tell him that Will is dead and for that, he will pay with his life. It will not be pleasant. It will not be swift. I am going to be a voice for the innocents of this town. I am going to be their hero. I’ve told him this before, but I want you to remind him. I’m going to rip through all of you, piece by piece. I’m going to disassemble everything that he’s worked for. When everything has fallen apart, I’m coming for him. Tell him exactly that. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, Mia,” he said. “I will.”

  “You are never to harm another person again. I suspect that Jay will kill you for that eventually. I don’t care what happens to you, but you will never harm another person again,” I ordered.

  “Never, Mia,” he said.

  I was getting sick of hearing my name.

  “Go. Now,” I demanded.

  He scurried out of there. I heard the door close and multiple guns fired simultaneously, effectively ending the horror that we’d all walked into. Tristan walked past me and lifted Andrews’ head. He finished pulling the bonds from his feet before gently placing him on the floor. Tristan then pulled a knife from his belt before driving it in Andrews’ chest, twisting it hard.

  “Cass,” Tristan said. “Bite into your wrist.”

  Cass did as he was asked and held the open wound over large hole in Andrew’s chest. A few moments passed before Tristan leaned forward, placing his mouth over Andrews’. It looked as though he were giving him mouth to mouth, but then I realized he was kissing him. I wanted to stop him, but I had to believe there was a purpose to all of it.

  Tristan pulled away and I watched in amazement as the holes in Andrews neck and chest closed. He took a deep breath and coughed several times, eventually turning over to vomit blood onto the floor.

  “It hurts now, but you’ll heal very quickly,” Tristan said.

  “How…” I started. “How is that possible? He was dead!”

  “Succubi and incubi are the only ones that can bring the dead back to life,” Cass said.

  “If they are gone for very long, it’s impossible to get them back. He still had warmth to him,” Tristan said.

  My eyes lit up. “Will! What about Will? Can you bring him back? He died just seconds before Andrews was shot!”

  Tristan’s brows furrowed as something resembling sympathy crossed his face.

  “I’m sorry, daughter. That I cannot do. His wounds are far too severe. If I brought him back, he would be brain dead. The brain is much more complicated than a hole in the heart. The human brain doesn’t have the rapid healing capabilities that the rest of their body does when given vampire blood. The organ is too complex. I’m sorry, Mia, but your friend is gone.”

  Tears began to well in my eyes as the adrenaline eased and the reality of the situation before me settled in.

  “I loved him,” I said. “I know that he knew it, but I never really got to tell him how I felt.”

  “I’m sorry, Mia,” Tristan said.

  He helped me stand, turning me to face him. Looking at him, I could see me. His hair and eyes. They were mine. I took after him quite a bit.

  “I’m going to help you through your transition,” he said. “I wanted to see what kind of person you were and I’ve seen it. You’
ve impressed me. You’re beautiful inside and out. I wanted someone that would make a difference in the world and that will be you. I think that turning later in life helped you. I will never be able to repay your mother for raising you the way that she did. The way that both of your parents did. I know that you’re hurting right now, but I need to get you and your friend out of here. I need to get you home.”

  “Leave me,” Andrews said from the floor. “I have to call this in. I can’t abandon this.”

  “And how will you explain this?” Tristan asked.

  “I’ll tell them the truth, minus the heroics that were taken. As for the mass suicide, I’ll tell them that they killed themselves. Ballistics and everything else will agree with that. It’s exactly what happened,” he said.

  “You guys go,” Cass said. “I’ll stay here with him and make sure nothing bad happens.”

  “Thank you, Cass,” I said. “For everything.”

  “Yes, Cass,” Tristan said. “Thank you for looking out for my daughter.”

  I could see the hard swallow in Cass’ throat before he smiled. “Of course.”

  We started to head out, but Tristan turned back, a dark smile forming on his lips.

  “And Cass,” he said. “Please tell me that my only close friend wasn’t aware that he was deflowering my daughter.”

  My eyes widened. How did he know? How creepy. I wasn’t sure that I liked that very much. Would he always know?

  “I’m so sorry,” Cass said. “I really had no idea until after. She’d been awakened for a week or so and hadn’t fed. I was only trying to help. I didn’t know until after. I swear.”

  “I believe you,” Tristan said. “Let’s not let that happen again, hmm?”

  “Yep,” Cass said. “Not a problem.”

  With that, Tristan escorted me out of the building. I was still shaking from everything that had happened. My heart was broken and I felt no hope that things would get better anytime soon. All that I had left was my grief. My anger. My hatred. The only thing that I had to hold onto was the promise that I made to Jay. It was a promise that I intended to keep. I wanted him to suffer for all the lives he’d ruined when he pulled young boys off the streets and made them criminals or killed innocent people and left their families to deal with the pain.

  I would wait.

  I would heal myself.

  I would let my father teach me things that I need to know to survive.

  Then… Jay would feel every ounce of pain that I did. He would feel my wrath.

  Make sure to Pre-Order Book Two WRATH on 1/5/17

  Covers and Synopses for future books down below!

  Wrath by Candy Crum (2/7/17)

  Time of Death Series book 2

  Synopsis:

  Will is dead... Jay is alive... and I am something in between.

  A succubus.

  Some sort of supernatural creature that survives by draining the life energy out of humans through sex.

  My life is upside down and all I have is my rage. I've never felt, nor been capable of such fury in my entire life. My biological father, an incubus named Tristan, has returned and he is the most terrifying being I've ever met, though he loves me completely. Daddy's messed up little girl.

  With his help, I will be able to keep my promise to Jay. With his help, I will finally be able to rip everyone and everything Jay knows to pieces.

  I'm coming for you, Jay. Vengeance WILL be mine.

  Pre-Order Links :

  US: http://tinyurl.com/jdnxt7c

  UK: http://tinyurl.com/jjqbctj

  AU: http://tinyurl.com/hst5fsd

  (Pre-Orders are always priced at .99c and will return to the normal $2.99 pricing the following Monday after release! So get it at that price while you can!)

  Just… Friends by A.M. Wray (1/24/17)

  Book Three in the “Bending the Rules” series.

  Andi Rochester had the marriage of anyone's dreams - if those dreams were nightmares. After years of being with someone that couldn't care less about her, Andi vowed never to allow herself to get close to anyone again. It's been over two years since that divorce and she still hasn't let anyone in.

  When her very good friend Alex lets her know that he would like to have more, Andi begins to get nervous. Unable to break her vow to herself, she comes up with another solution that might help them both.

  Just friends... Beneficial friends that is.

  Alex is the rare kind of guy that needs more than just sex. What will Andi do when sex just isn't enough?

  US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N9I5IDH

  UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01N9I5IDH

  AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01N9I5IDH

  Phobia by A.M. Wray (2/14/17)

  Book One in the “H*Phobia” Series

  If you woke up tomorrow in another world, how would you adapt?

  How would you survive if your role in the world were reversed?

  What if you were another race? Rich instead of poor? The humble worker instead of the CEO?

  Would you still be who you are? Would you still make the same choices? Most importantly -- would you still treat those around you the same?

  Seventeen-year-old Tyler Wilson is the stereotypical jock in high school and has no intentions of setting himself apart from the rest, like some of his peers have worked so hard to do. He prides himself on being cold and enjoys seeing pain and fear in others. After severely injuring a new boy his age, simply because he is gay, Tyler's parents are given an ultimatum: extensive therapy or EXPULSION, which would prevent Tyler from graduating in the summer with his friends.

  Refusing to be left behind, Tyler opts for therapy, but is completely blindsided by his course of treatment. His therapist, Lisa, is known to be the best and has turned around even the harshest of offenders, but Tyler is resistant and stubborn. Lisa decides that Tyler needs something extra... Something life-changing...

  Tyler needs to learn the true meaning of the word fear and desperation.

  The mind can be a terrible thing. It can play tricks on you, especially when your mind is in the hands of a professional. It's impossible to know if you will wake if your world...

  Or a world completely unknown to you and everyone you know.

  US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5J1L6O

  UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01N5J1L6O

  AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01N5J1L6O