E.N. Chaffin

Hello! As a special gift to you from me this Christmas season, here is a sneak peek of the first (or a first) chapter in my upcoming book. It is the start of the first installment of my newest 7 book series in the World of Nectere. (Super fancy.) I hope you enjoy it. And I hope you are just as excited as I am for my newest creation. *squeals*

If you have read my debut novel, Loading Life, you will probably recognize this story from the preview I had written. Now, over a year later, I have revised it for an even better experience.

So without further ado:

Nectere, Book One

 

The scent of blood was strong, even as the rain threatened to wash it away. One of them was injured.

Good.

Lavanya’s lips curled into a shimmery smile.

Her job would be easy tonight.

She worked her way closer to the men – her targets – as they chatted away in the storm. She curled manicured nails around one of her many obsidian daggers as she tried to listen to them. The wind didn’t care for her eavesdropping, though, and whipped up once again. At least she had braided her hair tight and clipped it back from her eyes. Nothing worse than tangled fiery locks when on a hunt.

Lavanya dared to get closer, thankful for her dark outfit. It not only kept out the cold but hid her in the shadows. Now she could hear their mumbles.

Words struck out at her. Girl. Alone. Price.

Lavanya felt her witchstone flare up when her anger did. It glowed purple shades on her light skin. She clutched it tight at the end of its chain. It calmed as she did.

Radulf was right. These men had picked up another child and were most likely going to sell her off into the Trade. Poor thing.

But that was why she was here. Lavanya would stop them at any costs.

She crouched behind an ancient tree, its energy twisted around her hand and mixed with her own. She closed her eyes and breathed.

Her eyes shot open. The men’s auras flamed up a few feet away. Two were monotone – humans. The other one, a sea green. Shapeshifter. She pursed her lips. Too bad aura didn’t tell her what sub-species. But, alas, things weren’t always that simple.

“Where is the boss?” One spat on the ground and rolled his shoulders back. He was nervous.

Lavanya kept her laugh to herself.

“Soon. His plane just landed and the package is with him.”

“Man. Why couldn’t we meet him at the airport?”

“Idiot.” The third man – the shapeshifter – smacked the first in the back of the head.

“Hey!”

“That’d be way too suspicious. And who knows how many hunters would be waiting for us.”

The first man grumbled under his breath.

Good to know they had no clue about the spy in their ranks. Oh well.

It was then that beams of light washed over the men. Lavanya followed them back to a black car. Their leader was here.

This was it.

Lavanya readied herself. Once the car parked, she would cut them down and save the child.

The car slowed to a stop a few feet away from the men. The shapeshifter walked towards it, the two humans staying put. The shifter opened the back passenger door – so there was a driver as well.

Lavanya dug the balls of her heeled leather boots into the ground.

A pinkish red aura rose from the car – vampire. But a very weak one from what she could tell. Easy prey.

She waited until the man got out and the door shut behind him. The driver didn’t leave the car. Lavanya saw no sign of the child.

First things first, then.

She shot her knife straight towards the car.

The front tire wheezed, startling the men.

She pushed herself into the air, hands grabbing for the knives on her back.

“Oh, shi-”

She hit the man’s neck with the hilt. Hard.

The human fell back as she smacked the other one in the same spot.

Two down.

A roar shook the forest.

Lavanya spun.

The shifter rocketed towards her, his skin tearing off into fur.

She charged him as his muzzle broke through his mouth.

Her energy filled her knives, the obsidian drenched in purplish aura.

She punched at the side of his snout and tore into his flesh.

Roars erupted from the shifter as she spun around and dug her third knife into his hip.

He fell to the ground, rain drowning out his screams.

She jumped to the front of the car and stopped.

The vampire held his package – the child – right before him, a knife of his own up to the girl’s throat.

He grinned, his pink aura flickering.

“So it’s you, witch. Come to ruin my fun again?”

She giggled. “Can’t I have a little of my own?”

Lavanya forced herself to focus on the vampire. She wanted to make sure the child was alright. But if she looked away now it could spell death for her and a life of slavery for the girl.

The vampire bared his teeth. “Come closer and-”

“And what? You would kill her? I don’t think you’d harm your precious income like that.”

He grinned. “If it means you leave me be, I’d do it.”

This snide creature. She hated when someone this powerful would dare threaten the weak for his own benefits. Disgusting.

She kept up her smooth facade, though. There had to be a way to get the child to safety. She realized the storm had died down as droplets hit her skin and trickled down her shirt. She could hear them hiss as they hit her necklace.

“How about this.” Lavanya put her knives back in their sheaths and placed her hands on her hips. “Let the girl go and I’ll let you go. Easy as that.”

“Or-” he tightened his grip on the girl, receiving a small yelp “-I could keep her and you can die!”

Lavanya jumped as huge claws swiped from behind.

The bear was back on his feet.

She cursed and landed on the other side of the car.

It was then she noticed the driver’s window was open. A mist of light gold pointed a handgun with a silencer right at her. Never saw a child of the Fey do that.

Oh. So they wanted to play a bit longer with her? This would be fun.

She kept her arms in front of her chest, her palms flat as she filled every concealed knife with her energy. She would have to do this quickly.

The vampire laughed, staring her down from across the car. “What are you going to do now, Miss Witch? You have no chance against-”

He gasped, eyes bulging.

As he fell, she shot a knife into the car and hit the driver.

She ran and jumped over the car, hitting the distracted shifter three times in the back.
He fell to the ground and she gracefully landed in front of him.

She looked over to the vampire. He was still gasping, holding his gut. It was odd. She didn’t cut him. Or at least didn’t remember getting a hit. Even through the rain, she could see blood seeping through his jacket. Such a pity since it appeared to be tailor-made.

She threw a knife in his shoulder and he stopped gasping, knocked out from her energy.
She listened for a second, then grabbed her phone from her hidden pocket. She pressed ‘2’ and waited.

“Nikolai? I’m done.” She looked around the scene. “Send the police to my location. I got five down. All from the Trade.” She spotted the child huddling near a tree trunk. “And get Ghost or someone out here too. I have a child on my hands.”

The man uttered his reply and hung up.

Lavanya put her cell up and walked over to the girl. She must have only been ten, twelve at the most. Lavanya crouched down to the girl’s eye level. Monotone aura. Human.

Lavanya pushed the girl’s long black hair away from her frightened eyes. “It’s going to be okay-”

She saw blood on the girls’ hands.

“Are you bleeding?”

The girl shook her head.

“Then what is . . .”

She followed the girl’s dark eyes to the limp vampire.

“His blood?” She whipped her head back around. “You did that?”

The girl nodded.

Now that was certainly strange. Lavanya couldn’t remember the last time she had met a child who could take on a vampire. Even if he was pathetic, a human could never do that. At least not an ordinary one.

“How? Are you a witch like me?”

The girl bit her lips, shaking her head.

“So what are you?”

Lavanya knew the answer. It was right there. Aura never lied. But maybe there was something else she was missing.

The girl was silent, uneven breaths the only sound she made.

Lavanya grimaced. This child was in no shape for her questions. “It’s okay. It’s okay.” She took off her coat and laid it across the girl’s shoulders, pulling the child into her arms.

The girl was hot, but she shivered anyway. A fever?

Lavanya tilted her head and whispered, “Do you have a name?”

“K-Ka-“

“Katy? Kasey?”

“K-Kai. . . M-my name is Kai.”

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(c) 2018/2019 E.N. Chaffin. All Rights Reserved.

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