A Taste of Crimson Read online

  Table of Contents

  Copyright

  Welcome...

  Books by E.M. Knight

  The Vampire Gift Audio Books

  The Vampire Gift 9: A Taste of Crimson

  Book Description

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  EPILOGUE

  The End

  Free Book Offer

  Copyright

  THE VAMPIRE GIFT 9: A TASTE OF CRIMSON

  This book is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, or have been use fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.

  THE VAMPIRE GIFT 9: A TASTE OF CRIMSON

  Copyright © 2019 Haven Publishing, Limited.

  All rights reserved.

  Published by Haven Publishing, Limited.

  [email protected]

  The uploading, scanning, and distribution of this book in any form or by any means---including but not limited to electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise---without the permission of the copyright holder is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized editions of this work, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s work is appreciated..”

  Welcome...

  To a dazzling new vampire series for fans of TWILIGHT, DARK STRANGER, and SHADE OF VAMPIRE...

  Introducing:

  THE VAMPIRE GIFT

  By E.M. Knight

  www.emknight.com

  [email protected]

  Books by E.M. Knight

  The Vampire Gift Series:

  Available Now:

  The Vampire Gift 1: Wards of Night

  The Vampire Gift 2: Kingdom of Ash

  The Vampire Gift 3: Throne of Dust

  The Vampire Gift 4: Darkness Rising

  The Vampire Gift 5: Whispers of Evil

  The Vampire Gift 6: Secrets of Hope

  The Vampire Gift 7: Prophecies of Light

  The Vampire Gift 8: Shadows of Mist

  The Vampire Gift 9: A Taste of Crimson

  Coming Soon:

  The Vampire Gift 10: Crypts of Dawn

  (Spring 2019)

  The Vampire Gift 11: Wards of Destiny

  (Spring 2019)

  The Vampire Gift 12: Realms of Reverence

  (Spring 2019)

  The Vampire Gift 13: Spirit of Twilight

  (Summer 2019)

  Future Books:

  The Vampire Gift 14: Huntress of Betrayal

  The Vampire Gift 15: Destiny Bound

  The Vampire Gift 16: Tomb of Death

  The Vampire Gift 17: Slaves of Time

  The Vampire Gift 18: Calls of Creations

  For an updated list of books, check out:

  www.emknight.com/the-books

  The Vampire Gift Audio Books

  Listen to the entire series, professionally narrated, on your phone, tablet, computer, anywhere, with Audible.com narrations!

  The Vampire Gift series is available as professionally-narrated audiobooks, both in the UK and US. New audiobooks are constantly being released.

  If you’re not yet an Audible member, the company offers a free 30-day trial, which you can activate immediately just by following the links below.

  United Kingdom Audible.co.uk Store Links

  The Vampire Gift 1: Wards of Night

  Audible Edtion (UK)

  https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B07HG8BBMX/?source_code=AUKFrDlWS02231890H6-BK-ACX0-128167&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_128167_rh_uk

  The Vampire Gift 2: Kingdom of Ash

  Audible Edition (UK)

  https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B07C5TZ6CS/?source_code=AUKFrDlWS02231890H6-BK-ACX0-113759&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_113759_rh_uk

  The Vampire Gift 3: Throne of Dust

  Audible Edition (UK)

  https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B078JRCJLV/?source_code=AUKFrDlWS02231890H6-BK-ACX0-103900&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_103900_rh_uk

  The Vampire Gift 4: Darkness Rising

  Audible Edition (UK)

  https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B0742JP46X/?source_code=AUKFrDlWS02231890H6-BK-ACX0-091381&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_091381_rh_uk

  The Vampire Gift 5: Whispers of Evil

  Audible Edition (UK)

  https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B075LP32Z1/?source_code=AUKFrDlWS02231890H6-BK-ACX0-096278&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_096278_rh_uk

  Audible.com US Store Links

  The Vampire Gift 1: Wards of Night

  Audible Edition (USA)

  https://www.audible.com/pd/B07HGBGS9M/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWT-BK-ACX0-128167&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_128167_rh_us

  The Vampire Gift 2: Kingdom of Ash

  Audible Edition (USA)

  https://www.audible.com/pd/B07C62XXGT/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWT-BK-ACX0-113759&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_113759_rh_us

  The Vampire Gift 3: Throne of Dust

  Auible Edition (USA)

  https://www.audible.com/pd/B078JTMD6W/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWT-BK-ACX0-103900&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_103900_rh_us

  The Vampire Gift 4: Darkness Rising

  Audible Edition (USA)

  https://www.audible.com/pd/B0742JCVVH/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWT-BK-ACX0-091381&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_091381_rh_us

  The Vampire Gift 5: Whispers of Evil

  Audible Edition (USA)

  https://www.audible.com/pd/B075LTHGQP/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWT-BK-ACX0-096278&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_096278_rh_us

  .

  The Vampire Gift 9: A Taste of Crimson

  E.M. Knight

  2019.

  Haven Publishing, Limited.

  .

  Book Description

  The Vampire Gift 9: A Taste of Crimson

  The old Queen has awakened.

  Yet, she is cowed. Eleira, the Forsaken Sisters at her side, needs Morgan's expertise to defend the coven. Can her one-time nemesis be brought into alliance, no matter how fragile, for the good of The Haven?

  Or will their seething hatred for each other come roaring back?

  Elsewhere, Logan's accord with the Black Sorceress is paying off. He is ready to collect the demon army needed to devastate The Haven, thus putting the wheels of prophesy to motion.

  Yet the taint of Blood Magic runs deep. Phillip, Raul, and their father—all have been touched by it. Logan's insanity grows with his strength, making him ever-more reckless, ever-more dangerous.

  The biggest threat, of course, lies with Cierra. Her vision for the world involves only fire, chaos, and death. When the next full moon rises, she will be unleashed... and none will be safe from her wrath
.

  Get ready to return to The Haven with the next instalment of The Vampire Gift!

  Chapter One

  April

  New York

  I stand in the back of a long, dark alley in Manhattan, feeling the milling masses of humans all around me.

  Their smell fills my lungs. The blood, the sweat, the grime, the dirt. The disgusting, repulsive stink of the massive sewer system underground—the excrement of such a huge population.

  Smithson is on his knees to my side, feasting greedily on his fifth victim of the night. The bodies he’s already drained of blood are piled up behind him. They will be burned before the night is over, in a special room in The Order’s building, and the ashes thrown to the wind.

  No trace of these humans will ever be found.

  Paolo is out there, somewhere, amongst all these people. I do not yet trust myself enough to go. If I drink in a populated area, I am afraid the blood lust will take over, and I won’t be able to stop myself from killing and killing and killing and gorging on the limitless blood available.

  So I stay huddled here, refusing to enter the fray, waiting for Paolo to bring me back at least one criminal— a murderer—I can feed on.

  Maybe it’s stupid, but I still feel a sort of affinity for these humans. Even though my instincts tell me they are nothing but sheep to be slaughtered, I can’t yet shake the feeling that killing them is wrong. I was of their kind not so very long ago, after all.

  I still have sympathy for them.

  So, I’d asked Paolo to find the most vile human he could, someone who has needlessly killed, someone who has raped, so that I could at least hold solace in the fact that I rid the human world of lecherous trash.

  My right hand grips the side of the dumpster beside me. Smithson is feeding without making a sound, but even so the smell of fresh blood from his human is oh-so-tempting. I wish he didn’t feed so near me, seemingly oblivious to my moral struggle.

  The vampire hierarchy prevents me from speaking out against it or making any sort of complaint.

  So, I hold on to that dumpster tightly and look out into the night, watching the stream of people pass from my little vantage point. None are aware of how close they walk to death.

  I hear Smithson finish up and look over in time to see him toss the body away. He wipes his lips with the back of his hand and smiles at me.

  “You don’t know what you’re missing.” He struts to my side. “Go feed, April. I’ll be your guardian. If you lose control, I’ll pull you out of there.” He looks up at the sky, light pollution blocking the stars. “I told you these blocks are safe for us. You are protected here by The Order.”

  “Small amount of good that protection did you,” I mutter, “having the obsidian stores relocated.”

  “Aw.” He looks at me with pity. “You’re worried about James. Well, you mustn’t fret. We have what we need—” he pulls the turtle torrial out of his coat pocket, “—and now we can go retrieve the obsidian without running into any trouble.”

  “What about the slender man? The one you said impersonated you. Who is he, what is he?”

  “A brother in spirit. A lone wanderer. A lone wolf. I’ve come across him once before. I’ve stood face-to-face. We spoke, briefly, and he impressed me with his knowledge of my organization.”

  “You implied that he could pass for you.”

  “Oh, yes,” Smithson says. “The slender man can pass for anyone. He is able to use the Elemental Forces to manipulate his face. He can wear a mask to look like anybody else.”

  “He sounds dangerous,” I say.

  “That is why I have this torrial,” Smithson replies, tucking it away. “Precautions are needed for our looming encounter.”

  “You think we’re going to run into him?” I ask, trying to distract myself from the tantalizing smell of blood.

  “I am certain of it. He impersonated me and had the obsidian transferred to a remote facility. I wouldn’t be surprised if the men guarding it are all dead. He set this up specifically to meet me. I have no doubt.”

  “How can you be so unconcerned about it all?” I ask. “Doesn’t it trouble you that someone could infiltrate your post so easily?”

  “Yes, of course it does.” He smiles. “But at the same time, it does not. It only happened through my own carelessness. I took my eyes off the affairs of The Order while I was working on a greater purpose. If you recall, I was Captain Commander of your former coven for some time.”

  I wrap my arms around myself and suppress a shiver.

  “Yes, I know all about that,” I answer.

  At that moment, I feel a pull and look over in the direction of the opening to the street. Paolo’s presence is getting close, suddenly distinguishable amongst all the other bodies.

  I square my shoulders to the entrance but keep my arms crossed.

  “Oh,” Smithson says, as he also notices the approach. “Your savior is back.”

  A few seconds later, Paolo appears. At his side is a tall, radiant woman in a red dress. He has a hand on her arm. To any casual observer, the touch would look innocent, but I can tell that he has her locked to him with an unbreakable grip.

  “Well, isn’t this interesting?” Smithson murmurs. “Who do we have here?”

  Paolo walks close to us, and then shoves the woman forward. She stumbles for a few steps, but then catches her balance and regains her poise.

  I take a deep breath. She is fully human but completely unafraid.

  I find that very odd. I know from my time around vampires that simply being in their presence triggers an instinctual dread in the mortal. Even when I shared James’s bed, as a human, I had to constantly fight through the fear always present within me.

  The woman looks me over once, and then completely dismisses me. I feel a tinge of irritation at that. She picks out Smithson as the leader and addresses him.

  Her voice is soft, yet strong and confident. She speaks in the tone of a lover.

  “You and your little crew,” she coos, “have made a tremendous mistake. Right now, there are men out there searching for me. They will find us soon. When they do…” she looks at her nails, “…the end won’t be pretty for you.”

  Smithson considers the veiled threat. Then, he looks past her at Paolo. “Who is this, and where did you find her?”

  “She was in a little building by the docks,” he answers. “Surrounded by guards, but it was not hard to sneak by them and get her out.”

  The woman smiles over her shoulder at him. “I made it easy for you, didn’t I?”

  Paolo acknowledges that with a grunt. “She did not fight or scream for help, for what it’s worth.”

  “That’s because I find this whole thing so fascinating,” she tells us. “Who, I wonder, would be brave enough to kidnap me? What did they want? How much of a ransom would they demand?” She gives a light laugh. “How much would Daddy pay?”

  I exchange looks with Paolo. “This is who you brought for me?” I say, so softly that the woman will not be able to hear.

  He shrugs and answers in a normal voice. “It is what you asked for.”

  Smithson walks up to the woman until they are nearly nose-to-nose. She looks back into his eyes with nary any fright.

  I have never seen a human so calm and collected before.

  “How long do we have,” he whispers, “before your men find us?”

  “Five minutes,” she states, very matter-of-fact. “How you treat me in the interim will determine whether you leave the encounter dead or alive.”

  “Hmm.” Smithson smirks. “Is that so, Mrs…?”

  “Miss,” she corrects. “And please, don’t play games. Let’s not pretend you don’t know exactly who I am.”

  Smithson glances down at her lips, which are painted a lurid red to match her dress.

  “Let’s say,” he says softly, “for the sake of argument, that I don’t.”

  “Then your man has made a grave mistake, and that mistake will cost all of you your
lives.”

  “Somehow…” Smithson says, wrapping an arm around her lower back and tugging her into him, “…I think not.”

  And without warning, he crouches down and leaps up, propelling him and her high into the sky to land on the rooftop nearly seven stories up.

  “Shit,” Paolo curses and leaps up after them.

  I’m not as strong as either of the other vampires. I know I can’t jump that high in a single bound. So instead, I quickly scale the wall.

  I reach the rooftop to find a spectacular scene. The woman is clinging on to Smithson and laughing, positively laughing, in full delight.

  “That was…” she licks her lips, trying to catch her breath. “Incredible! Exhilarating! What a great trick! Tell me, how’d you do it?” She sweeps a hand over Smithson’s head. “I don’t see any wires. There must be some kind of tech exoskeleton attached to your legs, mustn’t it, that gives you power like that?”

  She moves to touch his thigh, but he swats her hand away and pushes off.

  She harrumphs. “Fine. You don’t have to tell me. Keep your secrets. They won’t be of much use to you when you’re all dead, anyway.”

  Smithson rolls his head from shoulder to shoulder, faking a bemused expression. “You really think you’re going to be found—or saved?” He holds out his hand. “Cell phone, please.”

  The woman gives it up without complaint. He takes it, and, in a show of effortless strength, crushes it with one hand.

  That finally catches her attention. She blinks.