by Poppet
She slumps in my arms, her words lost to the mercy of unconsciousness.
I check her heartbeat and breath. Then I focus on the trees. Darkness tightens its cloak around us and I spy the shadows advancing fast.
The others are here, and I'm holding the one they hunt.
Due out in August 2012
Acknowledgements
Thank you so much for reading Zauran. I hope you will take the time to leave your thoughts on this book in the review section on Amazon.
I huge thank you to Claudia Vojkic for her eternal friendship and for being the first person willing to teach me Cyrillic. The final words in this book are the first words you taught me. Thank you my friend.
And a huge thank you to my writing group, Joanne, Kim, Janus, Sonia, Elena and Bonita. Without you my writing journey would be much harder and far more lonely.
Thank you to Diane Nelson of Pubright Manuscript Services for editing the first twelve chapters for me and making me rewrite them, (really your wisdom was fantastic and insightful.)
Thank you to Chic for giving it a final look over to catch my ridiculous mistakes.
And of course thank you to my readers and fans, your encouragement and support means the world to me.
I hope love and light burn bright in your hearts always.
Much love
Poppet
~Teaser~
Seithe
Book 1: The Pravus Series
Have you read Seithe?
If not, here is a taste of it for you:
I stroll down the stairs and pause in front of Thor's slave. His smile is venomous.
Menacing long teeth expose as his black eyes flicker with a feral amber glow. "Addicted already?"
I smile in return. It's weird there is no cover fee. Thorette lets me past, and I hook my sunglasses into cleavage so my eyes can adjust to the flickering strobe.
That's the thing, isn't it? How will I even find him in here?
He doesn't have a fixed identity. Every blond, brunette, silver / blue / brown eyed man, with his build, is a potential Seithe. After staring into the darkness randomly highlighted, I give up. He'll have to find me. Pushing through throngs of Saturday night addicts, I reach the bar, and face Mr Pretty.
"You're missing your guard tonight, princess."
Gracing him with an insincere smile, I retort, "He's not my guard."
A man hisses breath through teeth as he leers down at me. Just a freakish stranger leaning against the bar, red eyes glowing, "Alone? You are as stupid as you look."
Ignoring him, I address Mr Pretty, "Is it possible to get a Smirnoff here?"
He pulls a bottle out from under the counter and hands it to me, nudging his head for me to follow him to the edge of the bar. I push past the asshole and meet Mr Pretty, who's a lot more intimidating up close, at the edge of the crescent. He leans his black haired head down to me and whispers urgently, "You can't be here without someone to watch your back. You'll never leave alive."
These people just love messing with minds, don't they?
"This is a public place, anyone can be here. Stop trying to get inside my head and feed my fear."
He grips my wrist, almost spilling the vodka, "Without a sponsor, you are dead meat baby girl."
Men totally suck. Bet he has a small one to be on such a screwed up ego trip. I hiss back with despising, "You wish. You wish I needed a man to watch my back. I don't!"
More like to stick a knife into it.
A total creep wraps his arm around me and drawls to Mr Pretty, "I'll sponsor her." His left hand slides inside my shirt and cops a squeeze, then he licks the side of my face, "I promise I'll take real good care of her."
SHOVE! Except the asshole isn't letting go.
What's with the pricks in this place?
I'm beginning to regret coming back here.
Men suck. When will I learn this? How often do I need them to prove it to me?
I place my Smirnoff-Ice on the counter with deliberate calm. Using the newly freed hand, I trace my finger down the fuckhead's chest suggestively, down his torso, and slip my hand inside his latex trousers, where I grab and squeeze with all the energy I can muster. I can't resist a malicious laugh escaping as I stare at the vein in his forehead spontaneously protruding.
"Do that again and I'll castrate you! Now eff off and leave me alone!"
His eyes flare such an alarming shade of red that icy fear wraps tendrils around me.
That's not human. That's really scary.
I am so caught up in those red eyes, mesmerized by them, that when my hand is snatched out of his trousers and I am spun to stare at silver eyes, it takes me a moment to register.
"What the hell are you doing? Stay away from the red eyes."
A veined hand and forearm push my head aside and fingers wrap around Seithe's throat, squeezing so hard I am sure he should already be missing his Adam's apple. "Keep your bitch on a leash, Seithe! If I find her here alone again, she'll pay the price."
I catch Seithe's eyes flaring silver as he rams the heel of his hand into Red Eye's nose, "Touch her and you'll pay the price!"
Mr Pretty arcs a flame from a blowtorch right between them in the close space, almost singeing off my immaculate eyebrows in the process; his veins highlighting blue in an adrenalin surge of anger, "TAKE IT OUTSIDE!"
Instead, Seithe hooks my shoulders with his arm and yanks me away, into the darkness. My heart is pounding. This is like stepping into a parallel universe where everyone is different to your idea of normal. I've been dumped into an environment so alien to my usual, that I have no idea what normal is here, or why the men are all so bloody medieval.
~Teaser~
Venix
Book 2: The Pravus Series
Towering legs stride long lengths away from me, clomping boot heels on pale wood where he halts on the threshold to outside, staring into the distance, “You couldn't stay. Too many noticed you. Darise bit you and the blood turned you into a siren.”
“So? I'm capable of looking after myself. And I was at his home, not Pravus.”
His hair strips back to tissue white, glowing full moon eyes burn into me with renewed focus, “Zaria you were followed, and not just by me.”
“I didn't see you there.”
“Because I didn't want you to see me. How many others didn't you notice? Your attention was riveted on the bartender until his sister marked you with that kiss. As the owner of Pravus, her interest made sure every Vampyre was instantly intrigued by you, instigating their need to know more.”
“You say vampire as if the whole place is crawling with them. They have clubs all over the world, I know because I'm a member, and nowhere do they mention vampires.”
I give him my doubtful challenge stare.
Delicious laughter breaks the tension and I'm captivated by the change in him when he smiles, meaning it.
“Zaria, you are one seriously unobservant lady. How long have you been going to Pravus?”
Sitting down on a puffy taupe couch, I level my voice, “Months.”
“And in all that time, how many ugly people did you see?”
Hmm, good question.
“Uhm, none that I can recall offhand.”
“How many of them had normal eyes and teeth?”
“Loads.”
“And they were all female, weren't they?”
Now that I think about it, he has a point.
“Yes. How did you know?”
“Because the Pravus in Belgrade is set up for male Vampyre. The only female vamp you'll see in it is Ellindt.”
Wait!
“What?! Are you saying – Darise is – is... and she is... no way!”
His smile carves his jaw and I can't help but stare as he crosses back to sit opposite me, creaking leather when he flops into his chair and stretches long legs, resting elbows on the arms of the chair and steepling fingers, “Yes, he is. She is, I am – except the bouncers, they're... different.”
“Why do they have black
eyes?”
“Because they were never human.”
“And you were?” I ask.
“No. Vampyre look human because we predate humans. We came first, then your kind came.” Sitting forward, resting elbows on his knees, arm muscles pop, obvious in his sleeveless button up shirt when he links his fingers, giving me a piercing look, “Admit it, you were drawn to Pravus because the men there have no flaws.”
Darise is just beautiful. His skin is smooth, looking almost polished, and he's so ashen it reminds me of dancing on snow. His lips and eyes are stark against his skin, he's the palest man I've seen there.
Thinking back, I was awestruck the first time I went into Pravus. It's like a Disney ride, as if all men allowed entrance have to be over a certain height. They're all toned, some of them buff, but it's true, all of them are captivating in some way.
“Zaria, it works both ways. If you are drawn to them, they are drawn to you.”
“That still doesn't answer why I'm here and not with Dar– him. If you ask me, one of you took a kidnapping interest in me.”
Simmering, I hold his gaze, squashing down the fascination when his hair and eyes morph to brown.
That delectable smile softens his features while simultaneously turning him into chiseled angles.
“I'm older, hence my stature. I have rank to pull a mortal out of danger.” His hands clench, making the leather under his elbows creak, “And you were in danger. You can take my word on that.”
“What kind of danger?”
Oddly I have trickles of fear squirming through me now.
“Zauran, a neuri, is on the hunt. Neuri only hunt once every decade. He's a new alpha, out to prove himself, and the place he goes looking for a compatible female, is Pravus.”
“New alpha?”
“Yes, he recently reached maturity. Forget everything you've ever heard about werewolves, the Neuri are nothing like the stories.”
He stands, returning to the cabinet, and I watch long legs in leather jeans and a white shirt tightening over muscles when he moves, pouring new drinks.
With his back still to me, he says, “So aside from red eyed Vampyre you also have that crowd out for new blood. New Year's might be a celebration for you, but in the supernatural world it's a time of gathering, of renewal, a time for finding a mate.”
Twisting, holding a goblet in each graceful hand, he strolls back, offering me one, “As an alpha, as an elder, I was duty bound to remove you and any other human out of Pravus before Zauran arrived with his brethren. And to get you away from the men who hunt to kill.”
Taking the goblet, I sip it. It's the same stuff Darise was drinking. It's deeply purple wine looking stuff, heavily laced with festive spices. Coughing when my eyes water, I swallow the cold brew with my nose tickling and fever exploding on my tongue.
Inhaling a harsh breath I bury the cough long enough to say, “So you're saying only you can protect me and that's why I'm here?”
“Technically I'm not the only one, but present tonight I was the only option you had. Darise can't take on Zauran.” Sitting down again, blue eyes stare straight through me, “You'll understand when you meet him.”
“When? Are you saying I will?”
“It's inevitable...”
His calming baritone trails off and I'm instantly aware of how I'm leaning forward, almost tipping off my chair waiting to hear my fate. “But?”
“Zaria...” he releases a long sigh, downs his drink and places it onto the polished black stone table between us, all the while distracting me with the way his muscles move in rhythmic dance with every movement of his arm and fingers. “Look, you've been dropped in the deep end. There's no kind way to say this.”
“Oh god! Say what?” Nausea squeezes my gut and I relinquish my own goblet to the coffee table.
“If you don't want to be a neuri conquest, you have to learn to be more than you are. You have to acquire survival skills you obviously lack. You are drawn to danger, drawn to the supernatural kind, and you have no way of understanding how to control the world.”
“Control?! I don't want to control the world.”
He makes a face, twisting his mouth skew and tugging my heart right there with it. “Control's the wrong word. Aaah, more like, influence. Humans have abilities they're not aware of, but in order to survive in my world you need to hone your senses, your instincts–”
Leaning closer to me again, fresh night air breath wafts hotly at me, “In short, you require a tutor. You may fancy Darise but he's not the alpha in his family. He'll never have the patience and endurance to teach you what you require – in order to survive.”
When he speaks, referencing Darise, it's as if Darise doesn't matter, I can't believe how intoxicating Venix is. I could stare at him for hours, lulled into security with that incredible voice.
Hang on.
“How do I know you won't hurt me?”
“I never said I won't hurt you. Pain is an excellent teacher. But I have silver eyes. That means I've never caused a death. That makes me safer than ninety-nine percent of the men you've met in Pravus. Safer than Darise.”
“What about that Jowand... guy?”
“He's safe, but not omnipotent. You have a mammoth neuri after you, tracking your scent, and now mine because of it. If you require protection, best you choose a male built like him. There are a dozen of us, if that, worldwide. Good luck finding another prepared to tutor, teach, and protect an innocent, when it's just so much easier leaving you to them.”
When he says 'them' he nudges his head, forcing soft hair to drop abruptly into his eyes.
Smoothing it away off his forehead he flops back to stare up at the ceiling.
“I don't know what I was thinking. It's easier to stay out of conflicts. Instinct just took over.” Swiveling his attention, brown eyes look deeply into my heart, “And now I'm stuck with you. Fuck you are going to complicate my peaceful existence.”
“Hey, I didn't ask for your help. I'm fine on my own!”
In an instant he's standing over me, hand round my neck, squeezing my throat with tungsten fingers, “Oh can you? You didn't even see this attack coming. I'm one male, alone, can you handle twelve of them catching you this easily and gang raping you? The one who impregnates you wins. Can you, Zaria? Or do you need me because you are pathetic prey who can't even sense danger when she's staring into his eyes?”
Choking, stamping my feet and clawing at his hands, I'm powerless against his strength and leverage, my head pounding fit to explode, when hot soft lips cover mine and steal what's left of my air, plunging my awareness into spiraling hard black hell.
~Teaser from Book 1~
Erra
(an erotic romance by Poppet)
It's easy to do. You're so busy watching the creep stalking you, you walk straight into the next person.
“Are you okay? Sorry about that.”
Strong hands steady me. Not tight, just firm. Commanding. And they haven't let go.
Snapping my focus front and center, the muscles directly in front of me, close enough to feel the warmth of him, make looking up a hundred times harder.
Heat infuses her guilty stain into my cheeks.
His hands feel as good as the voice he just wrapped around me, like a cocoon of throaty silk.
Breathe in, slowly, you can do this.
Looking up, and up, until it's enough to give me neck-ache, The Hulk is staring back down at me with gentle toffee-brown eyes. His perfect skin still holds the sun, it brushes his complexion with wind, outdoors, fresh air.
“I-I'm fine.”
His focus darts over my head, his lids narrowing ever so slightly.
“Is someone bothering you?”
Yes actually, the son of my dead boss seems to want to find me, so please let go so I can get out of here before he sees me.
But instead my throat has ceased. The swallow is forced, it hurts.
He leans down, getting close to my ear, his hot breath washing into my
neck when his lips graze my skin they're so close, “Need a chaperone to your car?”
If I could just close my eyes and freeze this moment, I would die a happy woman.
“Uhm...”
C'mon Sarah! Snap out of it. He's going to think you're retarded.
“Yeah,” I pause to clear my windpipe, he's giving me a giddy vertigo. “Uhm. That would be great.”
No hesitation from Mr Capable then. His hand slips from my arm, curling his arm around my shoulders, and starts to walk, with purpose.
He glances at me, while I do the two-step trying to keep up, “What was the problem?”
It's hard to put into words, and I doubt you want to hear my paranoid delusional theories for the rest of your night. I'm sure the Hustler ladies are already oiling up, waiting for you.
“It's a long story, suffice to say, I have an admirer. And it creeps me out a little.”
We're through the doors, heading to the parking bays.
“Which car's yours?”
I nudge my head at the midnight Polo. “That one.”
And off we go, trotting like two horses about to start fillying about.
“Nowhere is safe. It's ridiculous when women need a buddy system just to get groceries.”
“I doubt he'd hurt me. He just freaks me out.”
Please tell me this breathlessness is only because you walk so damn fast.
Mr Lickable stops at my car, bracing an arm against the curve of the roof.
“Sorry, I didn't catch your name?”
“Sarah. Sarah Tempest.”
His smile sends a weakening frisson smack down my spine, short-circuiting everything on the way down.
“Nice to meet you, Sarah. I'm Dustin.”
I smile, knowing I now look like I just escaped the facility and the white jackets are after me with tranquilizer darts.
A card is shoved into my hand, “Call me when you get home.”
“Uh – why?”
Yes goddammit, why!?