Scarlet Fever

By J. Dawn Light

Tomlin Ripley has been dispatched to this little post gold rush town to decide whether the famed vigilante the Scarlet Angel is a threat or a helping hand. What he discovers is that she, her secrets hiding mask and her alter ego September Wilkes are a delicious distraction to him. But they'll have to work together when a mad man from her past comes back into town and goes on a killing spree.

• Language: English
• Publisher: J. Dawn Light
• Release date: Jul 26, 2011
• ISBN: 9781466122574

J. Dawn Light

There's not much to know about me personally. I'm extremely boring. But I'm completely in love with my life, so it works for me. I've been married for over 13 years now to a man that still gives me butterflies and I have 3 amazing children that are obviously the best children ever!Writing wise, I'm all about the paranormal romance. Mostly adult, but have something in mind for a YA. We'll see how that goes.I think in my advancing age, I've managed to contract adult ADD, so I have a really hard time reading something that doesn't keep me completely entertained, which is why I write the way I write. I'm not big on romanticizing the appearance of a wall or putting scenes in my books that don't either lend something to the romance of the two main characters, or the story in general. Unless it makes me laugh. I do a lot of stuff because it makes me laugh.

Book preview

SCARLET FEVER

J. DAWN LIGHT

Copyright © 2012 Jessica D. Lightfoot

Smashwords Edition

Prologue

Throughout time, there have always been secret societies. And like everything else in an imperfect world, there are good ones and there are bad ones. Ones for inconsequential facts of life made only for those who just want to belong to something, and those of far more importance.

Whether you call them, sororities, fraternities, clubs, gangs, the mob, etcetera. They all have one fundamental element. Some people belong, some people do not. You must possess certain traits or be born into certain families to become a member. You must uphold certain rules or be important enough to live above the rules.

So, what if there was a society of men and women possessing skills either acquired through training or great intelligence, or completely unexplainable in their origin, that allowed them to fight the evils of this world?

What if the tools they used to pursue justice, were either natural, supernatural, or anachronisms, in that they were invented, developed and put into use far before the world outside of the society would be ready to accept.

Would the world be a better place if this society didn't have to follow the rules of government? If they could pursue the guilty without worrying about the rights of murderers? Rapists? Terrorists?

Chapter One

May 1861

The soft summer breeze blew a raven lock across the face of The Scarlet Angel, as she crouched on the balls of her feet on the edge of the roof of the only saloon and whorehouse in town. The tress momentarily tangled in the deep red mask covering her face. It would have blocked her vision had she not had her eyes closed, using only her ears, as she listened for the noises that warranted the need for her particular skills.

The City of Riverbridge, California, a little town thrown together less than fifteen years ago, was better off because of her presence, or at least the women were. The men were better men because of her presence, or at least they had better be.

The Saloon doors opened and the sound of piano music and boisterous laughing filled the air, causing a wave of nostalgia to compress her chest. It was always like that. The sounds and smells of the saloon reminded her of her mother, of a time when her mother was still alive, of a time when getting a hug when things weren’t quite right only required that she ask for one.

Joanne Wilkes had been a lady of the very saloon Scarlet was perched on. She had of course been a whore and therefore one of the least respected individuals in town, but a person’s worth shouldn’t be calculated by their profession, only by their heart, and her mother’s heart was the kindest of all Scarlet had encountered.

She was pure and innocent in spirit where she was not in body, and she never failed to meet the needs of those she could help, especially her daughter. Whore or not, she had made sure her child was fed, clothed, educated, and of course loved. Loved beyond reason. Her daughter had been everything to her, and Joanne proved it in all she did.

Her warm hugs and kind green eyes were shared with everyone. Her big perfect smile captivated every eye within its reach. She was beloved by anyone who took the time to know her, and she was even kind to those who didn’t, to those who treated her like the whore she was.

She was by far the most beautiful of all the whores and therefore the most requested. There hadn’t been a man to walk in the saloon who hadn’t been completely drawn to her chocolate brown hair, clear bright green eyes, and perfect porcelain skin.

Though she was a whore, she had been everything a child could hope for in a mother. She had been everything a person could hope for in a fellow human being, and her soul was a soothing balm of calm and purity, which was important to someone with September's rather special talents.

As a reader of souls, it was hard to not be effected by the evils in the world. Dark souls always tasted and smelled so foul, but her mother's had always washed that taint away, making everyday bearable.

But, as most good things come to an end long before anyone is ready, Joanne was taken from her daughter and her friends over five years ago.

Seventeen years of her mother’s love and companionship never seemed like enough, but Scarlet had many, many good memories, and she spent every opportunity she could spare in her head, thinking of the wonderful woman who had birthed and raised her.

Unfortunately, every time she thought of Joanne, the memories always lead her to that night five years ago. The night that took an innocent seventeen-year-old girl, and turned her into an avenging angel. The Scarlet Angel.

She would never forget the terror she had felt engulf her mother's soul that night. Even from down the street, it had managed to nearly suffocate that girl she had been. Nor would she ever be able to forget the sight of the blood that covered almost every surface when her feet hadn't been fast enough to carry her that distance to save her mother from being butchered. It was ingrained in her memory with gut-wrenching detail.

The evil stench of the soul that had been in that room with her mother had been so putrid, it had stayed in the back of her nose weeks after her mother's death.

He had disappeared out of the window while Scarlet took in the scene, and for many moments, she had been unable to make her mouth work to tell the men who filed in behind her, where he had gone.

By the time her brain had kicked on, the raping, murdering bastard had been long gone. And what killed Scarlet the most was that he was still free, possibly killing others, and that was something that she loathed to consider.

As a tear rolled from her eye, under her mask and down her cheek, Scarlet sucked in a deep breath, centering herself, trying to lock down on the memories that threatened to bury her in a suffocating mound of despair and self-hatred.

It was with her mind firmly in the present, that she realized she wasn’t alone on the roof. The pleasant little bumps popping up on every exposed inch of her flesh, and the lure of his soul to hers, told her exactly who had joined her on top of the saloon.

"Hello Marshall. She said without even turning. She didn’t need to. There was only one person who caused her skin to prickle deliciously, and he was the breathtakingly handsome Marshal Tomlin Ripley.

So far, Ripley had been far more competent when compared with any of the marshals that came before him. Already, in the month he had been a member of the Riverbridge community, he had run out most of the lowlife thieves that had been plaguing their little town.

Scarlet had met him shortly after he arrived, as September Wilkes, the name her mother had given her at birth. He had looked her over with those amazing aqua colored eyes and she had nearly fainted on the spot. Never in her life had she been so instantaneously attracted to a man. Never had she felt that hum of awareness that was present every time he was near. Never had she felt the lure of another's soul.

It was almost as if she could touch it, and the urge had been so strong, she had caught herself reaching for the man.

You must be The Scarlet Angel. The deep temper of his voice vibrated through her body, and her breasts tightened. Just like that. He only need say a few words and her