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Friday, April 1, 2016

Unedited Sample of Surviving Darkness - Part 3




Surviving

Darkness

Part 3

by

Chrissy Peebles



Copyright 2016 by Chrissy Peebles

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.



Blurb:

With Danny at her side, and her newfound powers growing, Blair feels like she should be okay. Heck, she even has a—sort of—friendship going with Tori, her long-lost half sister. Tori might be an assassin, but she draws the line at killing family, and she’s willing to help Blair with something no one else would: taking down Vlad the Impaler, legendary vampire and all-around bad guy extraordinaire. Just one problem, though: he’s also their father.

Blair knows that time is running out, and when Tori arrives with the story of an ancient artifact that could protect her, she sets off to search for it. She’s sure that she’s just keeping herself safe while she prepares for her fight with Vlad—but it soon becomes clear that every step she takes, every enemy she defeats, is just bringing her closer to the inevitable showdown…




Chapter 1

The sounds of bird calls echoed through the canopy of trees, and sunlight dappled the deck, playing over my bare feet as I sat stretched out on one of the lounge chairs. The scene was such a picture-perfect family vacation, with the smell of pancakes coming from inside and the grill just waiting for hot dogs and hamburgers later in the day, that I could hardly reconcile it with the conversation that was taking place.
“There’s no way,” Danny said, for what seemed like the hundredth time. His plate of blueberry pancakes lay abandoned, and he was frowning at Tori. “Those things never work.”
“Those things,” Tori mused. She made finger quotes in the air and then gave him a look. “Those things like…witchcraft?”
“You know what I mean.”
“No. I don’t. You’re a witch, Danny, and you think enchanted amulets aren’t real?”
Danny’s head turned sharply, his eyes meeting mine. His ancestry was a closely-guarded secret. In public, he only admitted to being a werewolf, something that had kept him and his brother safe from other werewolves trying to keep the bloodline pure—or, as had happened to me, members of his bloodline’s coven trying to come after him for the unpredictability of his powers. The fact was, Danny was just like me: powers under control (though his were better trained), and perfectly able to be a member of polite society. But a secret like that could be used against him, and of all the people he wanted to find it out, a woman who’d been one of Vlad the Impaler’s top assassins was probably not on the list.
 I shook my head. “I didn’t tell her.”
“I can smell it on you,” Tori said. “Witches always have the same smell.” When he paled, she rolled her eyes. “Don’t worry, most people can’t. Vlad never could. I’m sure he has more witch children he never knew about. He hates witches—in theory. But he ends up screwing an awful lot of them.”
I wrinkled my nose. Vlad might not be a father in any sort of traditional way—like, say, not trying to kill me brutally or draw me into a ring of mass-murderers—but I still didn’t want to hear about his sex life.
“Anyway,” Tori said, drawing us all back to the point at hand. “The amulet is real.”
“How can you possibly know that?” Danny gave her a look.
“I read,” Tori said, with great dignity.
“If it can do what you say, why isn’t it being used?” I asked reasonably. Tori had shown up about an hour ago with stories of an amulet that could protect me from our father, and while I was happy enough to have it, as well as oddly pleased that she seemed to be looking out for me, I had some questions of my own.
“The temple it’s in is abandoned.” Tori shrugged.
“Well, why was it abandoned? Because it seems to me, if you’ve got something that powerful, you don’t just…leave it there when you leave the temple. Either it can only be used by a few people, or there’s something wrong with it.”
“Like a curse,” Danny chimed in.
“First you don’t believe in it, now you think it’s cursed?” Tori raised an eyebrow at him. “The amulet is fine. There’s no mention of a curse in anything I’ve read. It protects against vampires.”
“And you don’t think there will be any sort of conflict with the fact that Blair is half-vampire?”
“Maybe if she tries to hurt herself.” Tori seemed amused. Her smile faded when Danny didn’t return it. “Seriously, dude, what is your problem with this? I’m not trying to screw her over. She’s my sister.”
“Maybe that seems like a weird line in the sand for you,” Danny shot back.
She was up in his face a moment later, crouching over the chair as she looked into his eyes. “I never hurt family unless they try to take me out.”
“Blair did try to kill you that one time.” He wasn’t cowed.
“Because I was coming after her with weapons. I’m not going to hold that against her.” She jabbed a finger at his chest. “So you shut the hell up about my loyalties. I would never hurt her…unless she started siding with Vlad.”
Fine.” Danny pushed her off him. “But that doesn’t change the fact that what she should be doing is learning her magic here, where it’s safe. She doesn’t need to go traipsing off after some mythical amulet in…whatever, some jungle somewhere. Or is it in a museum? Do we need to do a jewel heist?”
“I told you. Temple.”
“Fine, so it’s Tomb Raider instead of Ocean’s 11. Still stupid.”
“Hang on.” I put my hands up to keep them both from speaking. I’d thought it was a good idea to let them get their jabs out early, but it had been a while and we were getting nowhere with the two of them at each other’s throats. “So, Tori. This amulet. Who made it? How does it work?”
“I don’t know how it works.” Tori shook her head. “I don’t really know anything about spells. Maybe this one will be able to tell you,” she added grudgingly, jerking her head at Danny. “All I know is that it was made by a coven of witches. They disappeared a while back, no one knows how, but before they did, they built a temple in Tibet.”
Tibet?”
“It’s not exactly a weird place for a coven. Very remote. Not a lot of connection to the outside world unless you’re in one of the major cities. It’s hard to hide in Europe or America. But Tibet…”
“Tibet.” Danny was frowning. “I could swear I heard something…” His frown deepened and he shook his head. “I can’t remember it. Damn. Sorry. But that doesn’t change anything. Blair has spent her whole life not just not being taught about her powers, but actively being taught not to use them. She can’t take on Vlad like this.”
“I know other things,” I pointed out. “It’s not like I know nothing.”
“I know you do.” He looked over at me and his face softened. “You know how to heal. You’ve learned about science. Most witches never do.” He reached over to squeeze my hand. “It’s remarkable.”
“Touching.” Tori’s voice was like acid. “But we still need to get the amulet.”
“We don’t. We don’t need Blair going anywhere until she’s figured out her magic. And that could take months.”
“Months in which Vlad is almost certain to find out where she is,” Tori pointed out brutally. “You think you’re safe out here? I found this place on my own. And I’m good. I’m one of the best. But Vlad collects the best. He’s not going to rest with Blair out here. He’s going to try and track her down, and kill her before she reaches her full strength—or at the very least, kidnap her and try to turn her to his side.”
“He wouldn’t.” My blood ran cold. The thought of Vlad bending me to his will, holding me in a cage and working on my mind until my very sense of reality warped, was so vivid that for a moment I thought I was going to throw up. “I can’t…I can’t…”
“He’s not going to get that chance,” Tori said, almost gently. Her voice hardened. “Because you’re going to go get that amulet and stay safe.”
“No, she’s not,” Danny insisted. “She goes back out into the real world, and he’ll pick up her trail in a second. He’s going to be watching for her to try to run.”
“Actually,” Tori said, grinning, “I think he’s betting on her being just as pigheadedly stubborn as you are. All of our family tries to throw themselves headfirst at things they don’t have the strength to fight. She’d already have gone after him if you hadn’t been keeping her here and softening her up with all your…distractions.”
I blushed a fiery red. The fact that Danny seemed to be able to make me weak at the knees just by looking at me was something I didn’t really want my sister to know. Her laugh only made me blush harder.
Anyway,” she said, the laugh still lurking in her voice, “what she needs to do is have protection in case he comes for her while she’s learning the ropes. So.” With a glare at Danny, she unrolled a map.
It was new, an almost photorealistic view of Tibet, and somehow that seemed incredibly funny to me. We were searching for ancient amulets—shouldn’t we have an ancient map?
Tori just shook her head at my giggle. “There isn’t a treasure map to this thing. It’s just a reference in some old books.”
“Wait…” Danny was staring at the map, his fingers tracing over mountain ranges. “Wait.” He opened his mouth to speak, and then pushed himself up and disappeared into the house.
Tori looked over her shoulder and then shrugged. “Okay, so there’s a set of tunnels somewhere around…here.” She tapped at the map. “You’ll need to follow them down. They’re close to the base of one of the mountains, and they’ll be well-hidden. Whoever these witches were trying to escape, they did a damned good job of it.”
“Not forever, apparently,” I pointed out. “Why did they leave this place? It’s not filled with…giant spiders or anything, is it?”
“Not giant spiders,” Danny said. He had returned, holding an old, leather-bound book, and he dropped it unceremoniously on the map, pointing at a paragraph in almost indecipherable script. “Hellhounds.”
I didn’t have the first idea what he was talking about, but Tori pressed her lips together, swallowing uncomfortably.
“See?” Danny pressed. “Not a good idea.”
“What are hellhounds?” I asked.
“Hellhounds,” Danny pronounced, sitting back down with a glare at Tori, “are part dog, part bear, part human, part…demon.” He shook his head, his features contorting. “They’re nearly impossible to kill, they’re strong as hell, and they’re vicious. Oh, and they’re territorial. If they claimed that place, you can be damned sure they haven’t given it up.”
“It’s got to have been centuries since they were there,” I tried.
“He’s right,” Tori said glumly. “They’re probably sill there.”
“Is the amulet?”
“Quite possibly.” She met my eyes. “And I still think you should go.”
“You can’t be serious!” Danny jabbed his finger at the book. “Hellhounds. Hellhounds.
“Vlad the Impaler,” Tori responded, unimpressed.
Danny collapsed back into the chair and groaned, his hands over his face.
“Okay, say I decided to go.” I leaned over, tapping him on the arm.
“Why did I know you were going to say that?” His voice was muffled. He didn’t look at me.
“Say I did. What kind of magic could defeat the hellhounds?”
He rolled his head to look at me. “You’re impossible, you know that?”
“Yeah, well, it takes a special kind of person to go after Vlad the Impaler. So. Magic.”
He sighed. “You’d need to learn warding,” he said finally. “And…more than just the lightning. I can think of a couple of things. But,” he added, as I lit up, “I’m going with you. And you’re staying here until I think you know that magic well enough for us to have a fighting chance.”
He gave Tori a look, clearly blaming her for this state of events, and she only smiled, sleek and self-satisfied as a cat that has the cream. She stood, stretching, and zipped her leather coat up.
“And when you get back, I’ll see about introducing you to the other sisters.”
“There are other sisters?” I sat bolt upright.
“When you get back?” Tori repeated, unconcerned. She smiled at Danny, showing teeth. “I’ll show myself out.”
And she was gone. Danny sat back with a groan, and I reached over to tap him on the shoulder.
“Hey. It’s going to be okay.”
“You two will be the death of me.” It was a weak joke, and his smile was gone almost instantly. He reached over to clasp my hand. “Blair, promise me you’ll take this seriously. Hellhounds are nothing to joke about.”
“I promise,” I said. But as he settled back in his chair, I knew that I didn’t have the first idea what I was promising. Suddenly, the world didn’t seem like a place where I was supposed to fight Vlad, but a place that was full of dangerous things that might kill me before I could face him again.

End of sample.

I don't have a release date yet. But I'm half way done. : )

Sample of The Ice Pack - Book 3




The Ice Pack

Part 3

by

Chrissy Peebles



Copyright 2016 by Chrissy Peebles

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

Cover Artist: Book Cover by Design

Editor: Autumn J. Conley




Chapter 1

Gripping a stake tightly in her hands, Julie walked into the dense woods. It was midmorning, and she was ready to kick butt, dressed in a flannel shirt, well-worn blue jeans, a winter coat, and black boots, with her hair tied up in a tight ponytail to keep it out of her face. They were hunting a nest of vampires who had been murdering innocent people for at least six months. Myles had evidence that victims were being taken to the nest, where the vamps kept them alive; they were like helpless prey, with no chance against the supernatural threat against them. Now, it was time for someone to go after the vicious predators.
Julie could smell it, the alluring scent of the hunt. The vampires had walked that very path last night, and the stench they left behind triggered a quick vision. She gasped as a vampire sank its razor-sharp fangs into the neck of a screaming woman, but then the vision ended as quickly as it had begun. Short as it was, it was enough to turn Julie’s stomach. Her blood boiled with rage and thundered through her whole body, swirling her mind into a fury. That’s it, she thought. It’s time to send these monsters back to Hell!  
Her team consisted of six Ice Pack wolves, and Myles had dubbed Zach the leader. They all knew it was best to catch the vampires when they were sleeping, and they had discovered that none of their fangy foes were wearing daylight rings, which was a relief. The team had spent over a week trying to find out where they were holed up, and that persistence had paid off. Now, it was time for the bloodsuckers to go down.  
Sunlight glistened on the snow Julie crunched beneath her booted feet, making it glisten like a thousand tiny diamonds. As pretty and serene as it was, it was also quite creepy, like some sort of Halloween scene thrown haphazardly into the script of a Christmas movie, a Norman Rockwell painting on the verge of a bloodbath. When a bird fluttered its wings and flew off, Julie jumped, and her heart almost beat right out of her chest.
“Shh!” Zach scolded, lowering his crossbow and motioning for her to be quiet.  
Julie was eager to get it all over with, because the sooner they put the vile nest of vamps out of everyone’s misery, the sooner she could go back and look for Grant. The leads she’d followed hadn’t panned out, so she was frustrated, but she knew she had to keep trying. No matter what direction her hunt for Grant took her, the trail eventually grew cold. She had no idea where he was or if he was even alive. It was as if he’d just walked off the face of the Earth. Not even Tabby could find him, and with all her connections, that didn’t make any sense at all.
Julie glanced around at the tall pine trees as she swiftly moved past them. When Zach pointed, she followed his finger to the elusive vampire nest, housed inside an old mansion. Get in and out, Julie thought hopefully.
She was well aware that Taylor, her best friend, would prefer to try to rehabilitate the vampires at the immortal sanctuary, but after seeing the bloody crime spree photos, she knew they didn’t deserve a second chance. Besides that, Tristan had ordered that the vampires were to be killed and their lair burned to the ground. Not only were they killing by the dozens, but they were bringing way too much attention and bad press to the immortal community, and that was dangerous for everybody involved.
“We could just burn it down with them in it,” one team member suggested. “If we pool all our magic together, we’ll turn ‘em into toast in a matter of seconds.”
“No!” Julie said. “Have you forgotten that they’ve got hostages in there? We set their dinner free, then hit ‘em hard and fast, then play Firestarter on that nasty old house, just to make sure we got them all.”
“There can’t be that many hostages remaining. What are a few human lives anyway? Why should we risk ours when we could just as easily—”
“Um…every life matters,” Zach retorted, “except for those murdering, vampire pigs.”
“You’re biased,” Jordan said, shaking her head. “Still hurt from past experiences.”
“C’mon, sis. You know what they took from me.”
“I get it, Zach. They killed your girlfriend. And you can’t stop thinking about revenge. It’s too personal for you. You shouldn’t be here, whether we have to destroy them or not. That kind of thing is what gets people hurt.”
“You gonna hate vampires forever?” another team member asked as he pushed through the vegetation.
“I don’t hate all bloodsuckers—only the fanged freaks who hunt and kill humans, like the animals we’re hunting now.”
“Well, just don’t let that hate get you killed in the process, man.”
***
They made it to the basement without incident and followed a tunnel to a large room. Julie could smell the metallic tang of blood, and it turned her stomach. Zach pushed open the door and walked inside, only to see the grim sight of people hanging from chains, inside metal cages, like livestock. The vampires were cozy as could be, all nestled in sleeping bags on the floor.
“Look at ‘em,” Zach whispered, “huddled down there like Boy Scouts.”
“I doubt they’d help any old lady across the street,” Julie said.
“Maybe to this godforsaken torture chamber of theirs,” Zach said, glaring at the vampire closest to him and resisting the urge to stomp his face in with his boot. “Let’s do this. These things make me sick.”
One of the men hanging helplessly in a cage met Julie’s gaze and moved his dry, cracked lips, as if to say something, and she motioned for the prisoner to be quiet. Zach and Jordan quietly sneaked over to the cages to unlock them, while everyone else positioned themselves near the snoozing vampires.
“Help me!” the man blurted. “For goodness sake, get me out of here!”
Just like that, the element of surprise was gone, courtesy of his petrified, piercing cry.
Julie lifted her stake high in the air and readied herself to plunge it deep in the heart of the vampire sleeping below her in a purple sleeping bag, but he suddenly jumped up and kicked her back with all the strength of an MMA fighter. She flew into the wall, pain exploding in her back.
The vamp, a nasty creature with spiky hair and scary eyes, pounced on her in a blur. Drool dripped from his gaping mouth, and he struggled to bite Julie with his long, sharp, fully descended fangs. His fierce claws sliced at her face, coming dangerously close to slashing her. Julie kicked his ribs with everything she had and finally sent him flying, but he raced right back over to her in the blink of an eye, smiling sadistically and baring his terrifying teeth. The beast inside Julie fought an animalistic urge to rip his heart out, and she instead reached for the stake she’d dropped in the collision.  
Growls and snarls filled the air as the other wolves were locked in battle, but everyone silenced when a gunshot echoed and a bullet penetrated the ceiling, sending plaster and paint chips crumbling down on a few of them.
“Wait!” the vampire yelled, tightly clutching the rifle. “Stop this fighting!”
“And who are you to tell us what to do?” Zach hissed.
“I’m Sal, the coven leader. Can we not talk this out, come to a truce, so there is no bloodshed on either side? Surely you wolves are more civilized than…this,” he said, looking around at the carnage and the blood that had already stained the floors.
“Civilized?” Julie said with a smirk. “You call this civilized? Murdering people, keeping them in cages till you get a sweet tooth and drain them dead? If we let you walk out of here, you’ll just make a new nest somewhere else like the vipers you are, and the killing will just start all over again in a new place.”
The man in a black shirt and leather pants, with eyes the most unusual hue of green, stepped toward Julie. Even when he pointed his rifle at her, Julie wasn’t frightened; she knew she could stop the bullet in the blink of an eye with her magic.
“You know, there’s this old song,” Julie snapped.
“What song?”
“It’s called ‘Don’t Stand So Close to Me,’ The Police. I know it’s about as ancient as you are, 1980 or something, but you oughtta give it a listen sometime and stop standing so close to people who don’t wanna smell your nasty breath!” she said, peering furiously at him.
“Is it because we’re on your turf?” asked a vampire with long, blonde hair.
“Listen, we don’t want any trouble with the local wolves,” their leader said.
“We’re not local,” Zach said.
The vampire smiled. “We’re willing to share. We’ll even give you first dibs on our prisoners. You can have all the meat you want, as long as you leave the blood for us.”
“We didn’t come here for a freaking buffet, you monster!” Julie shouted.
“Why are you here then?” Sal asked. “I was under the impression that you dogs are here in search of…Puppy Chow, like those nasty hyena kin of yours who try to surround a poor lion and steal his hard-earned prey.”
“The only preying that is going to go on in here should be yours, on your knees, begging for your undead lives,” Julie said. “Are you really so stupid that it isn’t obvious? We’re the cavalry. We’re here to save the people, not eat them.”
“Oh. My mistake.”
“As Sal said, we want no trouble, and we are happy to go elsewhere,” another said.  
“If you didn’t want trouble, you shouldn’t have made this town your feeding grounds,” Julie barked, “or any town, for that matter. You can drink from blood bags or animals. As your slimy leader said himself, there is no need for all this bloodshed.”
“Blood bags? No!” a vampire answered. “Why should we be condemned to drink stale blood from some unknown source? We don’t just merely drink blood…we drink life. We enjoy draining our victims. And I can’t believe you’d have us drinking from rats and rodents!”
“Well, you are what you eat,” Zach sniped, “though that’s somewhat of an insult to the filthy rats, I suppose.”
“Your murderous rampage caught the attention of the Immortal Council, and now you must be punished,” Julie said. 
The blonde woman’s eyes widened with horror. “The Council? So you’re…vampire hunters? They sent you after us?”
Julie nodded. “Yes, and we’re here to shut you down permanently.”
“That won’t happen, you mutts!” Sal said, shifting his stance to study his adversaries.
“Wanna bet? You may think you’re invincible, you toothy terror, but remember that we tracked you down pretty easily, in just a few days. You’re not so smart, and your bloodthirsty rampage ends right now.”
They stared at each other hard for a moment before Sal inhaled sharply and spat, “I smell you, wolf. You stink like a wet dog.”
The wolf inside Julie growled at the insult, desperate to rip the vampire open with razor-sharp claws. It took every single ounce of control she had to stop her wolf from taking over, but she didn’t want to be controlled by pure rage, as she knew it would override all her common sense. Her wolf was infuriated by the fact that the nest survived by committing mass murder, but she had to tame the beast inside her.
Julie smiled. “I smell you too. What is that scent called anyway?” she asked, sniffing the air. “Oh, I know. It's called...Revolting.”
“Cute,” the vampire said. “Now let’s talk this out.”
Julie took another step closer. “There’s nothing to talk about. Prolonging your pathetic life by drinking the blood of these innocent people just pisses me off, you rogues.”
An entourage of six vampires moved in behind Sal, and several more eased over to join them, until he was surrounded by at least a dirty dozen.
The beast within Julie stirred. It feared nothing and longed to attack, but she managed to stifle her anger.
Sal crossed his arms. “Well? What are you going to do, little pup? We are not about to run…or repent.”
“I doubt running would get you very far anyway,” Julie said, seething.  
Sal’s fangs lengthened, and his eyes glowed. “You claim you are smart, but it seems you came so…unprepared. Only a few crude stakes? Darling, you really should be more armed to fight a coven like ours,” he said, pointing at his gun.
“Not necessary,” Julie said.
Sal laughed.
“No, really. You have no idea who you’re dealing with.”
“You think you’re stronger than us, little wolf? Perhaps you are in the stinking department,” he said, drawing laughs and cruel chuckles from the others of his kind, “but we are certainly not afraid of a mangy bunch of house pets.”  
Julie met his gaze. “Well, I’m not your typical mutt.” With that, she flung her hand, and a large gust of wind knocked the entire group backward. “And that, darling, is why I don’t need weapons like you do.”  
“Who are you?” Sal demanded, dumbfounded and stumbling to his feet.  
“We’re The Ice Pack,” Julie answered, “and we’re about to freeze this nest for good!”  
“The Ice Pack? That can’t be true. It’s just a myth, some silly fairytale about mythical creatures created to guard elite immortals,” a woman shouted, laughing. “Next, you’ll be telling us you are the Tooth Fairy.”
“We do exist, and we have strength, power, and magic like none you’ve seen before. No immortal can win against us. Surrender now, or we will kill you. We will destroy you so thoroughly that there will be nothing left but ashes, not even one fang for you to put under your pillow!”
“We are vampires, and we do not surrender, least of all to dogs!” a woman shouted.
An arrow flew at Julie’s face, but she caught it in a split second, just before it hit her face. “Nice try,” she said with a growl in her throat and a glow in her eyes. “All that did was make me mad though. I warned you before that you should run, and I won’t warn you again.”
The ravenous predators did opt to run, only at her team instead of away from them. The Ice Pack fought back, charging directly at their enemies and dodging fists, claws, and fangs. As they fought, the humans in the cages, roused from their painful, nightmarish sleep by all the commotion,  
A vampire in a fedora threw his fist at Julie, but she ducked the blow easily with immortal Ice Pack speed. In exchange, she delivered a flurry of blows to his face, chest, and groin. He struck her with his body, sending her reeling backward, then fell clumsily on top of her. As he tried to punch her, she threw her arms up, and a yellow stream of energy threw him to the ceiling, so hard that large chunks of concrete came raining down. As soon as he crashed to the floor, Zach rammed a stake through his heart, and he vanished, leaving behind only a pile of black dust with the fedora sitting on top of it, like some sort of twisted Indiana Jones shrine.  
Jordan kicked another vamp’s legs out from under him. As he started to stagger and stumble like an old drunk, she staked him. Next, a furious redhead took slow, measured steps toward her, but Jordan kicked her in the chest.
The vampiress flew back but somehow caught her balance and let out a demonic, inhuman growl. “You killed my husband!” she shrieked.  
Jordan gripped her stake tightly and lifted it high in the air, ready to strike again. “Then you need to join him…in Hell!” 
The woman gnashed her teeth and charged, but Jordan was much too fast and easily penetrated her chest with the stake.  
A vampire with a red Mohawk charged at Zach, but he easily pulled back his fist and took a hard swing at the corpse’s face. The sucker-punch knocked the creature right out, and he fell to the hard floor with a loud thud.
A gothic chick with dark eye makeup hissed and leapt at Julie, but she quickly delivered a crushing blow to the vampire’s throat, sending her to the ground in an unnatural, twisted contortion. Before she could stake the sprawled-out vampire, she heard the crunching of glass behind her and spun around to see another female adversary rushing in her direction. A kick to the chest sent her flying against the wall. Julie ran over as the monster hissed, snarled, and curled her lips, and she finished her off as the thing lurched at her with deadly intentions. Julie was enraged, and two more fireballs emerged from her palms.
“I now see the legend about The Ice Pack is true,” a vampire asked, growling through her bared fangs.
“Ya think?” Julie retorted.  
The vampire vented her fury and, shrieking like a banshee, ran at Julie with a butcher knife. Julie moved faster, her Ice Pack instincts kicking in. In a blur, she threw a stake so hard it sank straight into her heart. With a guttural growl, the vampire exploded.

End of Sample. 

The Ice Pack is available  here for preorder:  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01B6K4RME