Blood Omen

By Lia Davis

Returning home and reclaiming my life sounded like a great idea while I was going through my brother's version of vampire rehab. But thirty minutes after returning to Earth, it's clear that my zodiac-vampire hybrid senses aren't prepared to handle the life I used to live.
After five years away I'm overwhelmed, but there's no chance I'm letting my baby sister chase bad guys without me.
I've worked too hard to quit now.
Then Grace is kidnapped, and all I have to track her down are the primal instincts I keep locked away. I build a team and insert myself into the investigation, because I don't trust the ZEA not to turn their backs on Grace. Like they did me five years ago.
However, my sister isn't the only Zodiac to go missing.
ZEA was counting on my pushy, Alpha personality to ensure I got involved. Why else would they have assigned me to the one Enforcer I'd be happy to never see again?
Maverick Burgess is grumpy, stubborn, and gorgeous. His blood tempts me like nothing I've ever experienced. But Rick is off limits, for his own good, and for mine. My vampire sire would kill anyone who tried to claim my heart.
I can keep Rick at arm's length while my team and I search for my sister, but I can't resist the lure of a mystery. With the help of some unlikely allies, it's beginning to look like we've uncovered something more dangerous than a serial kidnapper, and we're in too deep to stop now.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Celtic Hearts Press
• Release date: May 11, 2023
• ISBN: 9781949575736

Lia Davis

"Lia Davis is the USA Today bestselling author of more than forty books, including her fan favorite Ashwood Falls Series. A lifelong fan of magic, mystery, romance and adventure, Lia's novels feature compassionate alpha heroes and strong leading ladies, plenty of heat, and happily-ever-afters. Lia makes her home in Northeast Florida where she battles hurricanes and humidity like one of her heroines.When she's not writing, she loves to spend time with her family, travel, read, enjoy nature, and spoil her kitties. "

Book preview

Chapter

One

The rhythmic sounds of beating hearts called to me like a siren’s song to an unknowing fisherman. The temptation was almost too much for me to ignore.

Ignore them, I would, because if I didn’t, I’d lose myself to the bloodlust. Only this time I wouldn’t make it back. That was why I came back to Earth, to reclaim the life I had before I was turned into a vampire.

I stood a few feet inside the entrance of Mirage, a nightclub on the river in downtown Jacksonville. It was a popular place for Zodiacs to hang out. The humans came to get up close and personal with the magical beings they worshiped.

I sure didn’t miss that in the five years I’d been off-world. Most humans treated us like gods and royalty. Others weren’t so enthralled by our abilities.

Mirage had a warm, inviting atmosphere full of culture and life. The walls were inlaid with each of the Zodiac signs illuminated in the colors related to that sign: Blue for water signs, red for fire, green for earth, and purple for air.

The club had three levels, with a VIP section on the top floor. That’s where the real action happened. In more ways than one.

The soft music thumped through the place, and I focused on it instead of the hundreds of human heartbeats in the place. Crossing to the bar, I hopped up on a barstool so I could watch the door.

I was meeting my sister, Grace, and I was nervous. I'd only spoken to her on the phone a few times in the last two months, preparing for my return to Earth.

My family was the only Zodiac Enforcement Agents I trusted. The agency abandoned me when I needed them. The Betrayer Supreme was Maverick Burgess. He was my first love and my commander. It was his choice not to come for me.

My brother, Chief, came for me. He kicked my ass into remembering who I was before becoming a vampire, helped me break the sire bond with Emil, and nursed me through the bloodlust rehab trip. My father, Director Julian Parish, and Grace showed up for some of the ass-kicking sessions.

I didn’t blame them for not being there for the blood detox phase. I wasn’t a pleasant person to be around. Plus, no one helped me but Chief. My brother…well, he’s a sociopath. There was no other way to describe him.

I looked at my phone, noting that I’d been sitting there for longer than I realized. Pressing the messaging app, I texted Grace.

Hey. You still coming tonight?

It was so like her to get called in on a case. The girl was a workaholic, like our father.

She replied almost instantly.

Walking out now.

I sent her a thumbs-up emoji and flagged the bartender down just as a woman sat on the stool beside me. She was in her mid-thirties and dressed in a trendy designer suit. Not at all what I would choose to go to a nightclub.

Savannah Parish, right? She smiled as she held out her hand to shake mine. It’s nice to meet you. My name is Helena Krane, and I’d like to talk to you about a job offer.

Job offer? Seriously? I studied her for a long moment, noting how her gaze bounced around the place like she expected someone to jump out at her. Paranoid much?

Her perfectly pressed, white business suit was a bold choice for a nightclub. Then again, she could have come straight from the office. Do we know each other?

Most importantly, how did she know I was back? I literally just walked through a portal fifteen minutes ago. Hardly enough time for the Zodiac grapevine to activate.

ZEA has been preparing for your arrival for a few weeks. Word gets around. She flashed me a bright smile that may fool others into believing she was innocent. My heightened senses told me she was anything but.

is that so, I said, turning back to the drink the bartender dropped off.

My rudeness didn’t stop her from continuing, unfortunately. I was hoping we could schedule some time to talk at my office. Or somewhere else a little more private. She dug out a business card and placed it on top of the bar in front of me. It won’t be a waste of your time. I promise you.

Not interested. I wasn’t back to get a job. At least not yet. First, I had to make it through the week without draining someone. Baby steps and all that.

Gods, why hadn’t Chief come back with me? Oh yeah, he was pretending to be dead while finding out a way to knock Emil off his throne on Lunar.

Helena tapped the business card with her perfectly manicured red fingernail. That’s my direct line. Give me a call, and we’ll schedule a time to meet.

She collected her purse and said, Welcome home. Then she left.

Two seconds after Helena vacated her stool, a man sat down. His familiar earthy scent enveloped me, making me smile. Lukas Reed.

I turned to face him, not knowing if I should hug him or just awkwardly stare at him. It felt like forever since I last saw him and not five years. Lukas was on the team that went to Lunar to track down a Fallen Zodiac who’d gone on a killing spree. That was the mission that changed my life. We had walked into a trap, and I was captured by vampires. After they had their fun with me, Emil turned me.

Lukas pulled me off the stool and into his arms for a tight hug. His warmth seeped into me, soothing my raw nerves. He’d had my back since we met at the Academy.

When he released me, he signed, When did you get back?

Lukas was born mute. He could hear far better than anyone I knew that wasn’t a vampire but couldn’t speak. About fifteen… I checked the time. Thirty minutes ago. Then I took his hand and held it in a casual way that others would think we were a couple. I needed the connection to create a psychic link so I could use my telepathy to speak with him. A new ability I developed since the turn.

Using that newfound telepathy, I sent