A dark, treeless terrain sprawled out beneath me. The pale rays of the moon fell upon field after field of faded, moss-stained tombstones. Every foot of the landscape seemed to be covered with them.
When I glimpsed the glistening ocean in the distance, I realized this was an island.
But it was only once I caught sight of a familiar lighthouse perched among a cluster of rocks, that I realized this was The Shade.
Once our home.
Now a sea of graves.
When I came to and Xavier, gripping me by the shoulders, managed to pull me upright, all I could do was gasp:
“I need to warn Derek.”
Chapter 39: Ben
Tobias the cancer patient’s “half-turning” appeared to be successful, at least from what I could tell. His convulsions finally stopped, as did his vomiting. At first, when I opened his cabin door to go in and inspect him, I feared he might be dead. But I felt his pulse—he was alive, just unconscious.
I was struck immediately by how cold he felt—almost as cold as me—and I noticed he was trembling ever so slightly. I wrapped a blanket around him before leaving the cabin again. Picking up the black phone Jeramiah had given me, I dialed his number.
He picked up after seven rings. “Joseph?”
“I appear to have been successful in half-turning a man. I don’t notice any claws or fangs, yet he’s clearly still alive.”
“Is his skin cold?”
“Yes.”
“That’s a good sign. Stay where you are. I’ll be with you in five minutes.”
Five minutes?
“Wait, how do you even know where—?”
Jeramiah hung up before I could complete my question. I slipped the phone back into my pocket. How could he get here so quickly? Could he have been stalking me all this time?
I climbed up to the hatch and opened it, poking my head out and scanning the shore. I didn’t notice anyone. I remained standing for the next few minutes and almost jumped out of my skin when there was a sudden thudding beneath me in the submarine. I feared for a moment Tobias had come to and was attempting to break out of his cabin. But as I descended the ladder, my eyes fell on Jeramiah standing in the passageway, his arm around a tall young woman with sleek black hair and narrow eyes.
“How did—?”
Jeramiah chuckled at my surprise. “Meet Amaya,” he said, gesturing toward the woman. “One of our witches.”
She gave me a smile and held out a thin hand for me to shake.
“So where is he?” Jeramiah asked, his sharp blue eyes settling on me as he tightened his long hair in a bun.
I gestured toward the cabin where I was keeping Tobias. Jeramiah opened the door and stepped inside. I walked in after him, leaving Amaya standing in the corridor.
Jeramiah ran his hands along the man’s arms as he looked him over. Then he gripped his jaw and examined his face. Finally he turned back to me and nodded.
“Seems you’ve done it.” He nodded at Amaya and scooped Tobias up in his arms. “Let’s go.”
I wasn’t even given time to ask where we were headed before Amaya gripped my and Tobias’ arms, and my surroundings disappeared.
As a blur of colors assaulted my vision, I couldn’t help but wonder if this was yet another mistake.
I could be headed to my death for all I knew.
All I could do was hope that, wherever these strangers were taking me, it would be a place where I could find myself… rather than lose myself further.
* * *
Ready for the next part of Derek, Sofia and the twins’ story?
A Shade of Vampire 14: A Dawn of Strength is available now from Amazon!:
Click here to grab your copy.
Here’s a preview of the awesome cover (you may need to turn to the next page for it to be visible):
I can’t wait to share it with you!
See you there…
Love,
Bella x
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An Important Note About Kiev Novalic
Dear Shaddict,
If you’re curious about what happened to Kiev during his time away, how he met Mona, and how he came upon Anna, I suggest you check out his completed trilogy: A Shade of Kiev.
Kiev’s story will also give you a deeper understanding of the Shade books and the kind of threat Derek, Sofia and the twins are now up against.
The trilogy is available from Amazon. Click here to grab the first book!
Here’s a preview of the cover:
Read More by Bella Forrest!
A SHADE OF VAMPIRE SERIES
A Shade of Vampire (Book 1)
A Shade of Blood (Book 2)
A Castle of Sand (Book 3)
A Shadow of Light (Book 4)
A Blaze of Sun (Book 5)
A Gate of Night (Book 6)
A Break of Day (Book 7)
A Shade of Novak (Book 8)
A Bond of Blood (Book 9)
A Spell of Time (Book 10)
A Chase of Prey (Book 11)
A Shade of Doubt (Book 12)
A Turn of Tides (Book 13)
A Dawn of Strength (Book 14)
A SHADE OF KIEV TRILOGY
A Shade of Kiev 1
A Shade of Kiev 2
A Shade of Kiev 3
BEAUTIFUL MONSTER DUOLOGY
Beautiful Monster 1
Beautiful Monster 2
For an updated list of my books, please visit my website: www.bellaforrest.net
Join my VIP email list and I’ll personally send you an email reminder as soon as my next book is out! Click here to sign up: www.forrestbooks.com
Bella Forrest, A Turn of Tides
(Series: A Shade of Vampire # 13)
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