Immortality: Second Chances

By Janet Stillwell

War is coming. Alaric Santoro is an immortal warrior and the son of a king and of the original royal descendants that protects the human race.

Katerina is a fay. She and Alaric share a connection that is fate, but Katerina has always chosen her duty to the fay sisters above all else.

Torn between duty and love, Alaric and Katerina will be forced to decide where their loyalties lie. How will their love and free will change the course of events in the future? Sometimes, life gives a second chance, not always. It's what Alaric and Katerina do with those second chances that counts.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: May 11, 2021
• ISBN: 9781662420788

Book preview

Chapter 1

Alaric and Katerina

It was after one in the morning. Alaric lay in bed at his family’s castle in Europe. He had seen battle the night before with his four brothers, Magnar, Knox, Baltor, and Kaden. Together, they protected all of humanity. Alaric and his brothers were waiting near one of the portals in Las Vegas when vampires tried to come through to their side. The warriors were ready for them. Alaric braced himself for battle. He drew his sword, and his instincts took over. His sword defended him as if possessed, decapitating the first vampire’s head as he came through the portal. Then Alaric flipped the sword into the air and caught the blade. Magnar, Baltor, Kaden, and Knox were on top of the other three vampires so fast that the air around them had become deathly quiet.

Magnar grabbed one vampire by his throat and lifted him off the ground.

I will rip out your fangs, you bloodsucker, he told the undead being.

The vampire spit in Magnar’s face and snarled, thrashing violently and snapping at him the whole time. Magnar then summoned a fireball in his other hand. As the heat intensified, he reached into the vampire’s chest and yanked his heart out. Magnar watched it burst into flames as the vampire crumpled to the ground.

Knox carried a narrow unsheathed sword close to his leg. He looked over at his brothers without losing a step. His powerful body turned flexible, slicing across the vampire’s neck as the blood gushed from an artery. The vampire’s head tumbled to the ground, and so much blood surged forth from him that it ran in rivulets over the ground like water.

Alaric observed the portal. He noticed a vampire trying to escape. For a moment, they stared at each other. Alaric forced himself to breathe steadily, preparing to strengthen his position. The minute the vampire saw him, his fangs started lengthening as his black hair hung across his pale face. The vampire took a step closer. His cold stare with black eyes was calm and steady.

Alaric lifted his head, exposing his neck, and whispered, Bite me.

Then the vampire charged him. The vampire made brief eye contact with Alaric, who only smirked at him. Alaric’s shoulder didn’t move as it should, so he switched the sword to his other hand, trusting his instincts. Then the vampire halted. He saw an image of a white dove clearly engraved along the medal blade, inlaid with gold and silver. Then he recognized the warrior as Alaric Santoro. The vampire felt the reality of his situation was beginning to sink in. Just as the portal opened back up, he vaulted back through. The three young vampires were no match for Alaric and his brothers as they were probably very young, not more than six months turned.

It was early morning after the fight when Alaric awoke to the sound of howling all around him. He jumped out of bed and grabbed his sword. Thinking he heard something in the hallway, Alaric threw open his bedroom door. Standing there was a raven-haired woman with the most vivid jade-green eyes staring back at him. Alaric’s blood rushed straight to his heart like a bolt of lightning, and he felt it difficult to breathe.

He squeezed his eyes closed, his ears buzzed, and tunnel vision started forming. And all at once, it grew light in his soul, and the veil that concealed the unknown was lifted. Then the lights on the heavy iron and wood chandeliers overhead exploded between them, knocking him back. Next, Alaric felt electricity coursing through his entire body into his very essence. He saw clearly it was fate that led everything up to this very instant. Alaric’s soul hummed like the hum surrounding an electric wire. Then a sense of peace and calm at his core returned as her energy flowed through him. It flowed between them—balanced, calm, but powerful. She was a woman he could easily fall hard for.

For a moment, the beautiful woman was motionless. Her breath caught by the scorching electricity that ran through her veins. She hesitated, and next she sensed the connection between them surged with energy. She then realized her fate was sealed in a way she never thought possible, yet she didn’t understand. Images flooded her mind but too fleeting to catch. Then it was like magic. When she met his gaze, she felt mesmerized by gold flecks glowing in a sea of cobalt-blue eyes. His eyes were like the ocean, so full of life yet so uncertain. The blue in them carried his emotional currents, and then part of his soul flowed into her. Next, with a shimmering of light all around her, she vanished.

A noise downstairs caused Alaric to run toward the steps, taking them two at a time. He saw two hellhounds and two warlocks running out the massive front doors of the castle, across the lawn, and into the woods. Alaric was puzzled that some of Alator’s warlocks had broken into the castle. He knew his father would be furious. Alaric stood there with his heart pounding with an urgent need to see the mystifying woman again.

Alaric’s father, Carlisle, ran down the stairs behind him yelling, Alaric, what the hell is going on?

Carlisle was king of the Royal Descendants of Immortal Warriors, and Alaric, being his eldest son, would become king one day.

Meanwhile, Katerina was back in her faerie realm safe, not sure who had sent warlocks and hellhounds after her. Someone or something was after her. She wasn’t sure why but intended to find out. Katerina hadn’t planned on sneaking through the castle. However, she was trying to lay low to see who was chasing her. Katerina knew the castle would be a haven. It was, after all, home to the Santoro family, the first original immortal warriors. Katerina didn’t know the warrior who stood before her. His long, black hair was tied back with leather ties in a low ponytail. He was at least six feet, four inches and had broad shoulders with cobalt-blue eyes that had gold specks in them that gazed into her very soul. Katerina thought to herself that one day, she would meet him again.

Alaric told his father what he had seen but didn’t tell him about the raven-haired woman. That was his secret to keep for now.

Carlisle knew there was something brewing in the human world. There had been too many deaths unaccounted for by the supernatural. Carlisle hurried to his office and called a meeting with his sons and his only daughter, Astrid, and his wife, Marina. They had been married for over two thousand years. She was always by his side and a warrior in her own right. Marina was a water nymph and had long, straight, brown hair and ocean-blue eyes. Carlisle had sent word to Alator by a fay named Alfie about warlocks and hellhounds in his castle. Alator sent word back that two warlocks were missing. Alaric’s body went rigid as he thought about the two warlocks chasing the raven-haired woman through the castle, but he managed to stay calm. Alaric didn’t think his brothers would notice.

Magnar was standing across the room, looking directly at his brother Alaric. He could sense something was off about him but couldn’t quite place what it was. Magnar and Alaric had been close their entire lives, so he knew something was wrong. Carlisle leaned back in his chair and continued with his meeting. He decided he would send his sons to Gray Haven in Las Vegas to nose around a little and see if they could pick up a trail. He sent Astrid to the faerie realm to see if the fay sisters had any news. The fay sisters ruled all of Seelie Court. The next morning, Alaric and his brothers were off to Las Vegas. Knox loved Las Vegas. He had spent many years there working for the family business. The Santoro family owned several all over the world. Mostly in security forces, they were protectors after all. So they took the family jet instead of traveling through the human portal. They didn’t want to draw any more attention to themselves. The Gray Haven had enough room to house them while they were in Las Vegas. Warriors only stayed at the safe house when they were on assignment, and right now, there were only a few warriors present. There was no way the brothers wouldn’t draw attention to themselves. They were all over six foot tall and lean and looked impressive as hell. Knox, the youngest, had sandy, blond hair that always looked like the wind had just blown through it, light-blue eyes, dimples, and a baby face. Magnar was magnificent with chestnut-brown, unruly, wild hair and green eyes that every woman seemed to love. Baltor boasted long, black, braided hair that cascaded down his back with hazel eyes, and Kaden was just as outstanding as his brothers with strawberry, blond hair, cut military style, and dark-gray eyes. They all had gold specks in their eyes. That was the only true sign that they were the original immortal warriors. The brothers decided to leave the safe house that night. Alaric went out to the parking garage to take one of the black Escalades. He pulled around to the front of the Gray Haven. Magnar climbed in the front seat of the SUV, while Baltor, Kaden, and Knox got into the back. Knox hated riding in the back seat. He would always try to call shotgun, but he was too late again.

Magnar turned around slowly in the front seat and smiled at Knox.

There’s always next time, Little Brother, he said.

Alaric pulled out onto the road, heading toward one of the most popular nightclubs in Las Vegas where the supernatural went to mingle and didn’t have to hide what they were.

Magnar asked Alaric, What’s the name of the nightclub that we’re heading to tonight?

Alaric replied, The Best Bloody Mary Around.

Arriving at the nightclub, the brothers parked, got out of the Escalade, and walked around to the front doors of the club. There were two burly bouncers guarding the entrance to the club. They nodded at the Santoro brothers to pass. They