The Fabled

By S. L. Gavyn

A vision of their destruction from the strongest Oracle to have ever lived forced them to become the Fabled. An immortality elixir given without concern caused her to lose the love of her life. Now Sunny Dubois has become an agent of the Council of Elders enforcing their laws and keeping their secret.
Bodies of Vampere have been showing up in Dallas and Sunny is called in to find out who killed them. She figures out quickly that these are no ordinary deaths. Someone is targeting new Vamps, and there is only one similarity. A club called Eternal Darkness. The only problem for Sunny is that the club owner is a Vampere she knew long ago. One she has never forgotten and never will.
Roman Alexander has wandered this world far longer than he would care to remember. He was used to getting what he wanted either by coercion or force, but there was one thing he wanted and couldn’t have. The woman who stole his heart and crushed it.
Sunny and Roman are forced to work together to find a killer before it’s too late. If they can manage not to kill each other along the way they might actually succeed.
Available Books by S. L. Gavyn:
The Forged by Magic Trilogy
Brimstone (Book 1)
Iron Made (Book 2)
Ange Noir (Book 2.5)
Dragon's Flame (Book 3)
The Avery Tywella Series
Darkened (Book 1)
Deadened (Book 2)
Deceived (Book3)
The Fallen-Fey Chronicles
The Darkness
The Cursed
The Light

• Language: English
• Publisher: S. L. Gavyn
• Release date: Jul 7, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311210326

S. L. Gavyn

S.L. Gavyn lives in Mobile, Alabama with her husband, three children, two dogs, two betta fish, one guinea pig, and a tree frog that hangs out in her bathroom shower. She tries to write fantasy novels that are funny, interesting and adventurous with just the right amount of romance worked in. You can find her blogging about her books and various other things at slgavyn.wordpress.com.

Book preview

Acknowledgments

As always, I’ll start by thanking my family for their support. Without you, I would be lost at sea without an anchor. (Or a paddle. A paddle would be nice, but nope.)

I’ll also give a shout out to my beta readers. You know who you are.

Prologue

Egypt 600 AD

And so it is said. So it shall be.

Halt, Aerystasia. You speak of our destruction. How can we possibly reverse this future?

I speak of warning. That is my gift. Some might be changed while other fates are inevitable. This, I believe might be altered.

How? You say we will be destroyed by the humans. You say they will possess weapons capable of annihilating us but say this future can be changed. Do you suggest we kill them before they have the opportunity to obtain such weapons? asked Augustus, leader of the Vampere.

No, Augustus, that is not of which I speak. The humans are too precious to our kinds.

We must shield ourselves then. But we live secretly as is. How can we shield ourselves further?

Aerystasia smiled at the council. I do not believe staying concealed is appropriate. Perhaps announcing our presence is key.

You must have the fevers, Aerystasia. Announcing ourselves to the humans will only bring our destruction faster, Lucian, the head of the Council of Elders spoke up for the first time.

You misunderstand. I believe you are right. The humans consider us monsters, and if we were to confirm our existence, then much bloodshed will pursue. But if we were to spread stories with false details about the monsters the humans believe us to be, they will one day become common tales told among the young and old.

You speak of fables, ones depicting our kinds as the terror in the night. How will that make them want to kill us less? Augustus asked.

As second in command of the council, he was always trying to show his leadership while Lucian sat back, observed, and came to far better conclusions.

These fables will one day become common knowledge. Were they to have details untrue to our kinds… Aerystasia left the sentence unfinished, allowing the council members to make their own assumptions.

The humans would not be able to spot a true Lycan, or Vampere, or any other of our kind, Lucian finished.

Aerystasia smiled and nodded slightly. Might I suggest sending fable tellers to all the continents? Even the one yet to be discovered. The natives there do love their stories.

Hiding in plain sight. Will this be enough to change your vision? Augustus asked.

I cannot be certain, but I believe so. I will inform you if I have another vision concerning this, Aerystasia told the council before bowing and leaving the room.

After she had left, Lucian turned to the other four members of the council. Each member represented one of the major races, other than humans, who inhabited this planet.

How can we be assured this is fact? Augustus asked once she was gone.

Aerystasia is the most powerful oracle in the world. Since her birth over a millennium ago, no one has bested her accuracy. If she says this will come to pass, it will come—unless we stop it, Lucian said.

Aye, she is powerful indeed, the Bruce added.

Lucian nodded then looked at Augustus to see if he would argue further. When he stilled his mouth, Lucian turned to the rest of the members.

Council, now is the time to act. I think it would be prudent if each member of the council determines the false characteristics of your people. I will send for the best storytellers to speak these fables across the globe. We will join together and spread these tales to protect ourselves against this future threat.

There was a round of nods, and everyone started to disperse. Lucian turned to the open balcony doors and looked out into the night beyond. With any luck, these tales would be enough to deter their future enemy. Aerystasia was right. They couldn’t kill all humans. Not only were they needed, but if they killed the humans, that would also make them no better. No, they would spread these fables until the humans no longer suspected the real thing actually existed. Their people would no longer be separate species coinciding in secrecy against the humans but would unite as one. They would become the Fabled, those of myth, those of legend.

Chapter One

"Dream a little dream"

I knew I was dreaming, but the memories came so freely I couldn’t stop the scene from playing out. It was the last few days of my life as a human, and I must have had them played through my head a million times in the years since. Now even in sleep, I couldn’t escape them.

Sam, hurry up. All the good-looking guys will be gone before we even get to the club.

I opened the door to the bathroom and looked at my business partner. I didn’t realize we were trolling for men. You said we would just meet for drinks to unwind after a busy day.

We have been busy. Do you know how many small businesses fail because the owners didn’t take the time to set them up correctly, to begin with? A lot, I can tell you that. And what better way to unwind than to sit back, drink a few, and admire some good-looking hunks?

I smiled at her. I always did like to people watch. I was actually pretty good at guessing something about them, either what they were there for—sometimes that one was too easy—or what they did for a living or just something about their personality. My ex-friend used to tell me it was my sixth sense. That was before I found out she and my husband had been meeting up for a romp every time I was out of town. Needless to say, he wasn’t my husband anymore, and she wasn’t my friend. I guess my powers of observation only extended to strangers.

Karen reached out and grabbed my hand. Come on. I can tell your thoughts have gone south, so let’s get out of here.

I couldn’t help smiling at her double entendre. That I live in Florida made her statement mean something else. Perhaps it was the affair that made me seek business opportunities elsewhere, or maybe it was just fate that I ran into Karen just as she was ready to leave the publishing house she had been with for years. We started talking, and before you could say Bob’s your uncle we had begun our own small publishing company in Vegas since that was where K was from, and she was the one with all the publishing knowledge. I was the asset that was able to speed-read through dozens of books a week and tell which ones had the possibility to become best sellers and which ones would bomb. K was the one that met with the clients and filed the necessary paperwork.

After only six months in business, we already had three authors on the best sellers’ list. That fact alone was bringing in business like you wouldn’t believe. This trip had been to take care of the final touches of our shared business and celebrate our striving company.

At the club—which looked more like a bar to me—there were several middle-aged people like ourselves sitting around having drinks. K found us a table off to one corner because she liked my ability to guess people as much as I liked guessing them.

What about that guy over there? K pointed to a man across the room who looked to be in his late thirties.

He’s looking to cheat on his wife.

How do you know that?

Well, besides the light-colored ring around his finger where he usually wears his wedding band, see how he’s looking around. He looks desperate. He’s drinking too much, which means he’s nervous, and he keeps running his hand through his hair, which is starting to thin. It’s probably a habit. That means he’s been stressed quite a bit recently, and marital problems are the number one cause of stress in middle-aged men. Also, judging by the timid nature he’s exuding, I’d say he’s looking for a woman to take control of the situation.

So you’re saying if I walked over and told him to get in my car for some quality time of domination, he’d be my bitch for the night.

Pretty much. If you’re into that kind of thing.

No thanks. I like my men, men.

You and me both.

We laughed. The thought of K as a dominatrix was funny. She just didn’t look the part. She was only five-two with light brown hair and eyes. Her small frame and delicate features made her look almost pixieish.

As we sat there people watching, what appeared to be a woman walked into the club and headed to the bar to order a drink.

What about her? K asked me.

I looked at her and raised a brow. That’s a man.

She looked at me, then at the woman, then back to me. What makes you say that? She’s not exactly tall or big-boned.

First, she has an Adam’s apple. That’s a dead giveaway. Second, it’s in the brow. I’m not one hundred percent sure, but I would be willing to put money on it.

Really?

Yep.

About that time the woman’s eyes met the man’s, and they shared a look. She took her drink from the bartender and walked over to the man’s table. Even though we couldn’t hear their conversation, she obviously asked him if she could sit, and he told her yes. She had a seat, and they were instantly engulfed in conversation.

I looked over at K and raised my brows. Looks like cheater might get more than he bargained for tonight.

She pulled her eyes away from the couple, and when she looked at me, hers were wide. I started laughing, and she joined me. The thought of what was going to happen when that woman took that cheater to her place was hilarious. That’s what he got for cheating on his wife. Then again, he might actually like it. If so, I felt sorry for the woman. It was bad enough to be cheated on without the other woman turning out to be another man. Even though I felt bad for her, the thought made me laugh harder.

By the time I finally gained my composure a man had joined our table. He looked to be in his mid-twenties with black hair and eyes so dark brown they almost looked black. He wore a gray T-shirt, dark jeans, a black leather jacket, and boots.

Roman, I didn’t know you were going to be here tonight, K said to the man.

I hadn’t planned on it either. Who is your lovely friend, Karen?

He had been looking at me while talking to K. I didn’t know what his interest was. I was at least fifteen years older than he was, and although I’m not ugly, I’m certainly not the best-looking woman. Him, on the other hand, I wouldn’t be surprised to see on the cover of a magazine talking about the hottest men in America. He would probably be toward the top of the list too. Those dark eyes made me think wicked thoughts, and I was ashamed to say he had a starring role in all of them.

Oh, this is my friend and business associate, Samantha Wilson. Sam, this is Roman. He’s a friend of mine.

I just bet he was. Even though K was my age, she liked to look at and even date younger men. Personally, I wouldn’t date anyone that wasn’t at least forty. I mean, how could I bring a twenty-something-year-old man home to meet my kids who are almost the same age?

Hello, Roman.

Samantha. What a lovely name.

Everyone calls me Sam.

He frowned. Do you prefer to have a man’s name?

I shrugged. I like it. And I don’t really give a fuck if you do or not. That’s it, Sam. Stick to your guns. I didn’t need some child telling me what name I need. Even if he was the nicest looking guy I had seen in a while.

I think you are definitely too feminine to have a man’s name.

I looked at K and rolled my eyes. She was looking strangely at Roman, then at me and back to him. I brought my brows together in a typical what expression. She shook her head slightly.

So, what do you do at Karen’s business, Samantha? Roman asked as he took a seat at the table uninvited.

Apparently, he thought he had the right. I was sure with his looks he was used to getting anything and anyone he wanted.

Actually, Sam owns half the business, Karen interjected.

Really? Attractive and successful. What a combination.

Okay, so this guy must have a thing for older women. It was time to nip this in the bud. Even though my inner libido was begging me to indulge him, I didn’t have it in me to lead someone on. I knew there was no chance I would ever be in any kind of relationship with him, and I wasn’t looking for a one night stand.

I’m sorry, Roman, but K and I were kind of in the middle of something, so if you don’t mind… I let it hang.

He looked shocked. I looked over at K in hopes she would back me in getting rid of him, and she looked almost worried. Did she think he would get mad because I wasn’t interested in him?

After a moment, he seemed to snap out of his shock and instead seemed confused. I apologize. I didn’t realize I was intruding. He stood. I hope you both have a wonderful evening. Karen. Samantha. He nodded to each of us as he said our names. Then he walked over to the bar and had a seat on one of the stools.

Wow. I’ve never seen him act that way about a woman before, K said as she stared at his back.

You mean you two weren’t involved.

She looked at me. No! I told you we were just old friends. It was never anything like that.

Oh. Old friends? From when? When he was a toddler, and she used to babysit him?

Weren’t you attracted to him? she asked me.

Hell yeah! I shrugged to play it down. I really didn’t want her to think I was some kind of cougar. He’s good-looking, sure. But he’s way too young for me. Could you imagine me bringing him home to meet my kids?

You could just have a fling with him. You’re halfway across the US from your kids. They’ll never know.

Ugh. I would feel like a cradle-robber. No, thank you. I think I’ll stick with men my own age.

He’s older than he looks, you know.

If you tell me he’s my age, I’ll be asking what the name of his plastic surgeon is because his work is totally worth the money.

She laughed. No. I guess he doesn’t look our age. Maybe it’s just that he’s an old soul.

I looked skeptical.

Well, one thing’s for sure. He was totally smitten with you. I wonder what he’s going to do about it.

There’s nothing he can do. Oh, if only I had known. It turned out there was a lot he could do.

The next morning I stood outside the building in which K had leased an office for our publishing business. It was a new twelve-story building that looked sleek and expensive, which was why K chose it. Image was everything, and she couldn’t very well meet clients in her kitchen. Or at least that’s what she told me when she rented it.

I entered the building and walked to the wall of elevators on the other side of the lobby. As I stood there waiting, a man walked up to stand beside me. The elevator dinged, and both of us entered. He reached forward to push the button for his floor, then turned to me. I saw he had already chosen the tenth.

I’m getting off at the tenth as well, I told him.

He nodded with a polite smile, then stood toward the back of the elevator. He could have been the older brother to Roman from last night—same dark hair and eyes, even the mouth looked just as kissable. But this man was probably twenty years older. He looked at me and catching me checking him out, smiled again. I suddenly felt nervous, so I decided to talk. It’s what I usually do.

So, you work on the tenth floor?

Yes, I recently moved my practice there.

You’re a shrink?

His smile grew. "We prefer the term clinical psychologist."

Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude.

On the contrary, it’s nice to find someone who isn’t afraid to tell me what they really think. Have you rented an office as well? I didn’t think there were any more available on my floor.

My business partner rented one a couple of months ago. I’ve been out of town, and this is the first time I’ve actually been here.

That explains it. I’m sure I would have noticed if you had visited before.

The elevator opened on our floor, and he reached forward to put his hand in the doorway allowing me to exit first. I stepped off, and he fell into step beside me as we walked down the hallway. He stopped at the first door, and I saw Dr. Alexander, Ph.D. on a plaque beside the door.

This is me, he said.

Well, it was nice to meet you, Dr. Alexander.

Please, call me Roman.

My face was vibrating. I tried to swipe it away and only managed to move the vibration to my chest. What in the world was that? I opened my eyes. I was lying on my stomach in my bed, and the vibration was my phone. As my befuddled brain evaluated what was going on, my phone stopped vibrating then immediately started again. I climbed up to my hands and knees and sat back on my heels while answering the phone.

Sunny Dubois, I said as I threw my long dark hair out of my face.

Hello, Daughter. I am sorry to wake you, but I have a case for you. If you’re up for it.

Was he kidding? As long as it doesn’t involve handing out tickets, you have your girl.

He laughed. Oh, this is most assuredly not a misdemeanor case. A dead Vampere was found in the middle of the street in Dallas.

In the middle of the street? Was he killed there?

That would be for you to determine, but my sources say no. Calvin is currently on his way so we will learn more once he conducts his evaluation.

All right. I’ll get Tristan and hop a portal.

Very good. The local police are being taken care of, but I would like as little exposure as possible.

I’ll do a quick look-see; then we’ll bring the Vamp back for further examination.

That sounds like the most feasible plan. Be well, Daughter.

You as well, Father.

I hung up then called Tristan.

Hey, Mom. ’Sup?

Meet me on the corner in five minutes.

Whoa. I’m kinda in the middle of something.

Duty calls, Son. Unless you’d rather sit this one out.

It’s a real case? No baby shit?

If you’re not at the portal in five minutes, I’m leaving without you.

I hung up. He’d be there. He had been an actual agent for almost six months now but had been on probation, which has consisted of only handling misdemeanor cases. As his partner, it meant I have been stuck working the same cases. Boring doesn’t begin to describe it. But I knew I would have to do it when I first agreed to let him become one of the council’s agents. My one concession was that he would work as my partner for the first year or until I thought he was ready to be on his own. He now was my only child after all.

I threw on my clothes and grabbed my phone before leaving my house through the garage. Being able to bring my car would make getting around Dallas easier. Or I hoped it would. When I reached the gate surrounding my estate, I entered the code and held my hand to the monitor until it was accepted, and the gate began to open. Tristan was standing on the other side. I stopped, and he got in.

Nothing like giving me advanced notice.

Sorry if I interrupted your nightly romp. Next time, I’ll leave you to your women and go by myself.

Now, let’s not get hasty. I don’t give you grief over your relationship with Doyle. I was just asking for common courtesy.

Mine and Doyle’s relationship isn’t like that. It’s merely a trade-off. I have what he needs, and he takes what I can’t otherwise get rid of.

Yeah, you’ve told me before, but I tell you that he wants more than that from you.

We are both contented with our current partnership.

No, you are content. He would rather it be more permanent. And wouldn’t you prefer a more stable relationship? You know, with a man—not Doyle.

I have two stable relationships with men currently, and believe me, when I say that is more than enough.

I was referring to an intimate relationship with someone who isn’t related to you.

Why, so I can break up with them and find a new one every other week like you do?

I can’t help it that women can’t be more understanding when I tell them I can’t say what I do for a living and that I work seventy-plus hours a week.

And what was your excuse before becoming an agent of the council? Oh yes, now I remember. You didn’t want to be tied down to just one girl.

His good looks had women practically flocking to his bedroom. His blond hair and dark eyes looked nothing like my dark hair and blue eyes, but age-wise, I looked like I could be his sister. At least most of the time.

I didn’t then. Now I wouldn’t mind a relationship, but being called in the wee hours of the morning to go do something I can’t share with anyone kind of puts a damper on my possible dates. I had to practically throw this one out the door while she was, uh, less than appropriately dressed. She actually accused me of being married. She thought my wife was on the way home.

Looking at him, I rolled my eyes. You should have told her your mom was on the way home. I chuckled. As far as work goes, I notified you thirty seconds after I was notified. Would you like me to ask Lucian to call you first next time? I’m sure he would love to hear about how important your time is, and that proper notification should be given prior to you doing your job.

Ugh. Don’t tell Grandfather. The last time I complained about something he spent two hours lecturing me about the proper behavior of young men and how I was failing.

I smiled at him. Just be lucky he wasn’t the one to train you in becoming an agent. Trust me. No one knows how to exploit failure like Lucian.

All I can say is better you than me.

Is that any way to treat your mother?

Hey, he’s your father.

And your grandfather. I think a little one-on-one time with dear old Gramps would do you good. I’ll be sure to schedule your next training session with him. Of course, I’ll be there for moral support—and to watch.

You’re sadistic. You know that.

Mwah-ha-ha. How did that sound? Villainous enough?

He rolled his eyes.

We pulled into the park on the corner and made our way around to the fountain. It was built just inside the tree line and was surrounded by woods on three of the four sides. Many thought it was to give one the peacefulness of the forest and running water at the same time, but the Fabled had built this fountain as one of many portals around the globe. Essentially, the portal was closed unless someone with magical power decided to use it, in which case, there was a failsafe cloaking spell that would activate as soon as the portal was opened. It certainly made it a lot faster and easier to get from Georgia to Texas.

As we approached the fountain, I sent out my magic to open the portal and thought about where I wanted to go. All the portals were interconnected, and every major city in the world had at least one. Most larger cities had several. Dallas was no exception, and it had three that I could remember. I aimed for the one that was closest to the coordinates the council had sent to my phone. I could see the slight shimmer around the fountain and knew the portal was open, so I drove through.

We came out at the end of an alley in central Dallas. I hit the GPS on my phone and followed the directions to the street I was looking for. We were in the middle of the industrial district, and even at five o’clock in the morning, there was traffic and people everywhere. This wasn’t good.

Damn, no wonder the council is involved in this one.

I nodded. Even if this Vamp was killed in self-defense, the killer will be put to death for bringing attention to our kind.

The cardinal sin, Tristan joked.

I quickly parked and started toward the dead body and our medical examiner Calvin Cooley. Hey, Cal.

Hello, Sunny. Tell me, what do you see here?

I’m going to assume you mean besides the obvious.

He nodded.

The obvious would be a cluster fuck. We were standing in the middle of a crowded street. At least four Wizards were holding a ward around the crime scene that was causing the cars and people to divert their course. Luckily, there didn’t seem to be much backup as far as the cars go, but we needed to get out of here quickly.

I concentrated my attention on the body. He appeared to be in his mid-twenties. That didn’t mean much as Vamps go since most Fabled could change their age at will. Only a few could change their entire appearance while most could just make themselves younger or older depending on what they wanted. It was because of the magic that kept them immortal. Blood magic, in the case of Vampere, was easily manipulated if you knew how. It was always working to keep them eternally young anyway, so it made sense they could use it to look younger or older. I once met a Vamp, who appeared as a child and liked being that young. Personally, I think that’s creepy, but to each their own.

This Vamp was good-looking with blond hair and light-colored eyes. They were probably blue at one point but had a white haze over them now. He had a swimmer’s build and was at least six feet tall. It didn’t surprise me that he was attractive. As the only species of Fabled that are made instead of born, it is quite common to find them the cream of the crop, so