Escape from the Vampire

By Rachel Stark

After the events in Intrigue at the Vampire Ball, Marika found her life completely disrupted but deeply satisfying. She and Owen were together. She was working with a cause she believed in. But, when Owen suddenly ends things, she finds herself back in the arms of his rival… and pursued by her worst nightmare.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bryant Street Shorts
• Release date: Jul 23, 2020
• ISBN: 9781094412597

Book preview

Chapter One

The sun was already high when Marika opened her eyes and stretched languorously. She rolled onto her side. Owen was buried deep under the covers, with just his unruly brown hair visible. She always marveled that he could sleep like that. She reached over to stroke it, and he pushed the covers off his face. He smiled at her, blinking and rubbing his eyes.

Morning, gorgeous, he said, yawning. She rolled over and nestled against the warmth of his chest. She loved the way his skin smelled. Clean and spicy. Do I smell coffee downstairs? he asked.

Automatic coffee maker. I set it every day so there’s good stuff waiting when I get up.

Mmm, you’re a genius, he murmured, stroking her side. I never figured out how to work the timer on mine. And I can never run out of ways that you are amazing.

He pulled her up for a long kiss, and she felt herself melting against him. After several moments, he broke the embrace.

Our tickets are for the eleven o’clock matinee, he said. If we don’t stop, we won’t have time for breakfast before we have to go, he said. They had tickets to see a musical at the local playhouse. She marveled at how much normal-couple stuff they got to do these days. It wasn’t long ago that they were working side by side, ignoring their mutual attraction.

She kissed him again. Can’t I just devour you? she asked playfully.

He laughed and eased her back on the bed. Tempting… he said.

She threw her arms around his neck and pulled him close. We can get something on the way there, she said. He slid his hands up and down her skin and she was lost in the sensation. His hand traced over her breast, lightly pinching the nipple as it hardened under his fingers. She moaned and arched into his touch. She ran her hands along his back, then across his belly and lower, where she could feel that he wanted this as much as she did.

But then the phone began to ring. It was a special tone that she’d set up for calls from their werewolves. It hadn’t rung in more than a week, but apparently her vacation was over. Owen rolled onto his back and sighed.

Back to the werewolf rebellion, he said.

Section Break

Marika stared out the window at the water as they traveled north to Bay Harbor. She’d been in hiding for the month since she’d stolen the Artifact. After their action at the Vampire Ball, everyone had decided that it wasn’t safe for Marika to return to her position at the Coalition’s Command Center. She’d been hiding out in south Florida and helping however she could remotely. Sometimes they had communications for her to interpret. Sometimes there were technical questions about the bloodwork that Doc was doing on Jessamine. But, most days, she heard nothing at all. She didn’t blame anyone. There wasn’t a lot she could do from so far away, and she couldn’t risk being closer until they were able to protect her.

The little gulf-side motel room they’d put her in was peaceful, if a little lonely. Owen snuck down for weekends when he could, but he couldn’t escape often. So she was most often on her own. She didn’t mind most of the time. She read a lot of books. Took some time to binge the TV shows she’d missed before because she was busy. She ran every day, too, trying to push herself a little farther every time out. She knew that her human strength would never be equal to a werewolf or a vampire, but she’d do everything she could to get more ready.

While she’d had to disappear, Owen had argued that the most effective place for him was in the Command facilities. No one in the Coalition knew that he’d been involved in the theft of the Artifact. They didn’t know he was monitoring communications and sending valuable information to the rebellion. Marika had to reluctantly agree that he could do much more for the cause as a double agent positioned inside Command. So far, it seemed no one suspected him. And he’d been able to deliver a great deal of information. She still worried.

During her call with Marcus, he’d told her that Jessamine had finished with her magical protections on the small house the resistance had rented for her. If anyone checked the lease, they’d find that it was in the name of a shell corporation he and the others had formed. He’d told her it was one of several that they used for safety

Reviews for Escape from the Vampire

[Babiche · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wonderful sequel. Now I want to follow up with more stories.