Christian (Vampires in America: The Vampire Wars Book 10) (38 page)
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Authors: D.B. Reynolds
Epilogue
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
SOPHIA STARED at the picture, her hands shaking so much that the image blurred. She was furious, but she was also scared to death. They had Colin. She didn’t know how this had happened. Colin was deadly, a warrior from head to toe. He was invincible. She scolded herself, knowing that last one wasn’t true. No one was invincible, not even her. But Colin was never alone, never without vampire guards. So, how had they’d gotten to him?
The answer was as enraging as it was bitter. Someone had betrayed him, betrayed them both. Someone who was close enough to Colin that he’d trusted him. Trusted him enough to have dismissed his other guards and met alone with the traitor.
She studied the picture again, and her heart broke. They’d beaten him, at least. And probably done far worse things that she couldn’t see. There were horrible things a vampire could do to a human, terrible ways of torturing not just his body, but his mind. Her Colin was tough. He was a Navy SEAL, trained by the best to withstand torture, to resist attempts to get information out of him. But no one was invincible, she repeated to herself.
She put the awful picture down, and her hand hovered over the phone. She needed help, and didn’t know whom among her own people she could trust. If one was a traitor, couldn’t there be others? She needed to call Raphael. She could no longer pretend that the other vampire lords didn’t know something was wrong. They’d have missed her at the challenge launch in the South, and at the Council meeting in Mexico to welcome Christian Duvall as the new Southern lord. Hell, if nothing else, Cynthia Leighton had been calling Colin nonstop, and getting no response. She’d have brought her concerns to Raphael by now.
And wasn’t this exactly what their new and historic alliance had been crafted for? For when everything was on the line, and one of them needed help? There might be a price. But there was no price she wouldn’t pay to save Colin’s life and sanity.
It was Colin himself who worried her the most, however. He would never betray her. He’d die first.
And that was what terrified her. That he’d die before she got there.
She picked up the phone and called Raphael.
To be continued . . .
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D.B. Reynolds
Experience D.B.’s other titles from ImaJinn Books
Raphael
Jabril
Rajmund
Sophia
Duncan
Lucas
Aden
Vincent
Betrayed
A Cyn & Raphael Novella
Hunted
A Cyn & Raphael Novella
Unforgiven
A Cyn & Raphael Novella
The Cyn And Raphael Novellas:
Betrayed, Hunted, & Unforgiven
Deception
A Vampire Wars Bool
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Acknowledgments
As always, I want to thank my editor, Brenda Chin, for her patience and expert input, both of which made this a better book. A big thank you also to Deb Dixon for another amazing cover. I love my Christian!
Thank you to Sophie Wogc (Rebel Love!) who improved Christian’s French, which is a good thing, because my high school French just wasn’t going to cut it. You know that Saturday Night Live skit with Alec Baldwin? Yeah, well, that was me. Rest assured that any mistakes in Christian’s language are mine! Thanks again to John Gorski, who always bails me out when it comes to guns and bullets. Natalie needed his help this time around. Without him, she’d still be trying to get out of that locked room.
And once more I must thank my fellow writers Steve McHugh and Michelle Muto (more Rebel Love!) for their invaluable input to everything I write. We started together so many years ago, we’ve written and read so much together, and they’re my first line of support when the writerly front gets dark . . . and yet we’ve never met in person. Someday, someday.
Love and thanks to Karen Roma for all of her efforts on my behalf, from beta reading, to Tim Tams, to her tireless promotion of my books. Another good friend I’ll meet someday for sure.
Hugs also to Annette Romain Stone for all her help. Being a writer these days means staying active on so many fronts, and Annette keeps me sane while I juggle all of that, and try to keep writing at the same time. Thanks also to the wonderful members of my Street Team, who do such a great job of getting the word out about my books. I couldn’t do it without you.
Special thanks to all of my readers who make it possible for me to do what I love. I’m a lucky, lucky woman.
And finally, love always to my family who cheer me on and keep me going. And love to my darling husband, who made my life complete on the day he said, “I love you.”
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About the Author
D. B. Reynolds arrived in sunny Southern California at an early age, having made the trek across the country from the Midwest in a station wagon with her parents, her many siblings, and the family dog. And while she has many (okay, some) fond memories of Midwestern farm life, she quickly discovered that L.A. was her kind of town, and grew up happily sunning on the beaches of the South Bay.
D. B. holds graduate degrees in international relations and history from UCLA (go Bruins!) and was headed for a career in academia, but, in a moment of clarity, she left behind the politics of the hallowed halls for the better-paying politics of Hollywood, where she worked as a sound editor for several years, receiving two Emmy nominations, an MPSE Golden Reel, and multiple MPSE nominations for her work in television sound.
Book One of her Vampires in America series,
RAPHAEL
, launched her career as a writer in 2009, while
JABRIL
, Vampires in America Book Two, was awarded the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best Paranormal Romance (Small Press) in 2010.
ADEN
, Vampires in America Book Seven, was her first release under the new ImaJinn imprint at BelleBooks.
D. B. currently lives in a flammable canyon near the Malibu coast with her husband of many years, and when she’s not writing her own books, she can usually be found reading someone else’s. You can visit D. B. at her website, dbreynolds.com, for information on her latest books, contests, and giveaways.