Sunset Rising (Sunset Vampire Series, Book 5)
Read Sunset Rising (Sunset Vampire Series, Book 5) Online
Authors: Jaz Primo
Tags: #vampires, #vampire, #urban fantasy, #paranormal romance, #paranormal, #paranormal fantasy, #vampire adult romance
Sunset Rising
Book #5 in the Sunset
Vampire Series
by
Jaz Primo
RUTHERFORD LITERARY GROUP
http://www.rutherfordliterary.com
* * * * * * *
Novels by Jaz Primo
The Logan Bringer Urban Fantasy Series
Bringer of Fire
Bringer Unleashed
Bringer’s Law**
** Additional Titles Forthcoming
* * *
Gwen Reaper
(A Young Adult Paranormal Romance)
Winner of the Paranormal Romance Guild’s Reviewer’s
Gotcha Choice Award
for Best Young Adult Novel of 2012!
* * *
The Sunset Vampire Series
Sunrise at Sunset: Revamped
A Bloody London Sunset
Summit at Sunset
Wicked Sunset
Sunset Rising
Sunset Burning **
** Additional Titles Forthcoming
* * *
All titles published by Rutherford Literary
Group
Sunset Rising
Published by Rutherford Literary Group at
Smashwords
Copyright 2015 by John Primo
ISBN 978-0988569041
Cover art by Sharon Legg,
Sharon Legg Digital Art
Edited by Laura Matheson
eBook conversion provided by Smackwords.
Rutherford Literary Group
1205 S. Air Depot, Ste #135
Midwestern City, Oklahoma 73110-4807
http://www.rutherfordliterary.com
All Rights Reserved.
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 publisher does not have any
control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or
third-party websites or their content. Any trademarks mentioned
herein are not authorized by the trademark owners and do not in any
way mean the work is sponsored by or associated with the trademark
owners. Any trademarks used are specifically in a descriptive
capacity.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or
distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission.
Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted
materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only
authorized editions.
DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to devoted loved ones
– my family, friends, and supporters – who’ve steadfastly
encouraged me through challenging times while this novel was being
written. Without you, I wouldn’t be the person I am today.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
My heartfelt thanks to Tabby, the newest
member of my family, who injects her youthful exuberance into both
my life and my writing process, often with equal parts mirth and
aggravation. My sincere thanks to my loved ones for supporting me
through occasionally turbulent emotional events while this book was
written. As always, a huge thank you to my dedicated publicist,
Vicki Rose Stewart, for her continued support and
encouragement.
Thank you to my editor, Laura Matheson, for
her marvelous editing and mentoring skills. You were a joy to work
with on this gotcha project. Special thanks to my covert artist, Sharon
Legg, for sharing her talented artwork and permitting me to grace
my novel covers with such beautiful imagery. As always, I give a
hearty thank you to my graphics and font wizard, Brandon, for
continued support and assistance.
Finally, a huge thank you and a big hug to
my dedicated readers for your continued support, encouragement, and
promotional assistance. Certainly, my unique collection of Sunset
Vampire characters and storylines thrives under your energetic,
grass-roots-level advocacy to others in the world. Thanks so much
for all you do!
Sunset Rising
Table of Contents
Novel Promo – Sunrise at Sunset
:
Revamped
Novel Promo – A Bloody London Sunset
Novel Promo – Summit at Sunset
* * *
PART I
NEW HAVEN
* * *
Chapter 1
Caleb
Imagining killing people versus actually
killing people are completely different experiences. The former
questions your sense of innocence while the latter questions your
humanity.
Contemplating either was abhorrent to
me.
Yet, I’d recently partaken in each.
Grasping the repercussions of either was
vast; certainly too much for me to process during the moments in
which each had occurred.
In the fog that followed my recent
experiences, I felt too overwhelmed to confront those
realities.
As such, sleep was my preferred form of
escapism.
In the space between restless dreams and
consciousness is a timeless place of endless possibilities; a place
I felt satisfied to dwell.
Unfortunately, my visit there felt far too
short lived.
The moment my eyes opened, a host of
unsettling thoughts and memories washed over me.
It took a few seconds to get my bearings as
moonlight streamed in through the open blinds.
I lay alone in my bed, feeling slightly
unnerved.
My last memory before falling asleep was of
Kat curled around me.
I had felt safe then. And loved.
After a moment, my feelings of numbness,
confusion, and bewilderment from Friday night resurfaced anew.
Accompanying them was a stark reminder that
I’d killed two people.
While I felt anxious over that, strangely
enough, I was devoid of either guilt or regret.
Despite the taint of death, I realized that
it was nothing personal. It had been a matter of either living or
dying; a simple choice, really.
It had been an exercise in survival, and I
had prevailed. In the end, that was what mattered.
Memories from Friday night flashed through
my mind in a series of disjointed images.
My walk home from the convenience store.
The two mysterious men who assaulted me; the
ones who’d been stalking me around the city and campus, though I
had no idea why.
I vividly recalled my surprise and feelings
of panic at their strength and speed.
The memories of my desperate attempts to
defend myself felt like permanent scars in my mind. My actions had
culminated in two separate, and very awkward, acts with the combat
knives that Kat had given to me.
In the end, there had been two deaths, and
thankfully, neither of them was mine.
But that had been Friday night. I scarcely
recalled anything from Saturday night. I’d only briefly talked to
Kat and Alton and then slept again.
Though uncertain of the time or day, my
visit with them must’ve been only a few hours ago because I still
felt tired and sore. My entire body ached as I stretched my arms
and then strained to read the display on my wristwatch.
Damn! Sunday evening! I slept through the
entire day.
I groaned, rubbing at my eyelids with my
rough fingertips. Even the joints in my fingers ached.
After pausing to listen for the sounds of
voices downstairs, but hearing only silence, I slowly sat up and
rolled out of bed, ignoring the pain from my protesting muscles and
joints.
I’d gotten the hell beat out of me Friday
night.
It had all happened so fast, and I’d felt so
ill-equipped to handle things.
Fortunately, I had handled things in the
end…somehow.
Following a quick hot shower, I put on a
pair of jeans and a t-shirt and quietly exited my bedroom.
As I stood at the top of the stairs, I heard
the subdued conversation of familiar voices downstairs, but I
couldn’t understand what anyone was saying.
As I slowly descended to the first floor,
the voices fell silent and multiple sets of eyes targeted me.
They were the four most important and
beloved people in my life.
Actually, more accurately, they were
vampires; not that I cared in the least. They were like family to
me.
While I was relieved to see them, their
intense expressions spoke volumes; concern that radiated toward me
in veritable waves.
Still, who could blame them? Upon being
attacked the other night, I didn’t know if I’d ever see them
again.
My beautiful mate, truly the love of my
life, Katrina, stared at me from her seat on the couch. I could
almost feel the pain reflected in her emerald eyes.
Alton Rutherford, my quasi-uncle for all
intents and purposes nowadays, nodded back at me as he sat in one
of the recliners, confidently poised like a king upon his
throne.
Honestly, as one of the most powerful
vampires in the world, perhaps the title truly suited him.
My surrogate vampire, Paige Turner, a sassy
hellion who always had something snarky to say, was oddly silent at
the moment. She leaned against the breakfast counter next to where
her beau, Dr. Ethan Reynolds, sat on one of the barstools.
Ethan was one of the kindest and most
sincere vampires I’d ever met, and he had the best of bedside
manners for any physician, either human or vampire.
“
Hey,” I said, nervously
slipping my hands into the front pockets of my jeans. “Grim faces.
You’d think somebody died.”